Next Fest Demo Post Mortem!

Thank you for playing the Next Fest beta demo!! For those wondering, yes! We are reading your comments, and we're hard at work making sure they are addressed!

This is our first game, so there's a ton we don't know and a ton we're still working on! Based on your feedback, here's a list of things we're working on for the full release:

-Video/Graphical Settings

(Including image scaling! The game is designed for 1080p, but we're looking at ways to upscale for higher resolution monitors and account for different screen sizes)

-Control Customization (And Better Support for Steam Deck/Linux)

We'd eventually like to do controller support too, but that will have to wait until everything else is done, so you can expect that after the full game releases!

-More Consistent Indication of what is and is not interactive

Many players struggled to know what they could interact with! Thus far the cursor changing was our only indicator, so we are making sure that the cursor stays consistent and is always a reliable way to tell, as well as trying to add in a stronger indicator for you!

-Fixing the typesetting display bug that some users are having by ensuring all text complies with basic ASCII format

If you're having some issues with apostrophes, fear not! We are aware of the issue and are working on a fix! This seems to apply to those playing on Proton via Linux.

-Fixing issues with the save system which causes items to seemingly disappear

-Adjusting spawn locations between rooms so that Howard is always on screen after a transition

-General Polish Features and Bug Fixes

Thank you for your feedback and for playing our demo, we cannot stress enough how much that means to all of us!

There's clearly a lot more left to do than we thought, which is why we're not announcing a release date just yet! Instead, we'd like to announce our expected release window, though please note we are committed to making sure the game runs smoothly and is relatively bug free. Your voices matter and we are so happy you have been bringing these issues to our attention so that we can make sure to take care of them before the full game releases! Thank you for your patience and for your time!! That said, without further delay, here is our expected release window:

The Island of Doctor Morose is expected to launch in December of this year.

That should give us enough time to get the full game ready for you! We care so much about the world and gameplay of The Island of Doctor Morose, and we can't wait to share more with you when the time comes! For now, we need to get back to work and finish squashing these bugs!! Enjoy the demo until November 20, and we'll see you in December!

-Caden 'Octo' Rogers

Game Director for The Island of Doctor Morose