Behind The Scenes — A Big Update Coming Soon

I've been working hard these past months to bring Winken to the next level. The update is almost ready, and a public beta test will open very soon.

Before that, I wanted to take you behind the scenes. This is the first of a few dev updates I'll be sharing here over the coming weeks.

🚀 What's Coming Next

The next update will be big and cover:

• The MIDI Files management and reworking of the audio system.

• The game will now support MIDI Controllers on MAC systems.

• The UI/UX refresh: Menus, Score, XP, Game Modes... has been redesigned to be simpler, smoother, and to give you more freedom in how you play.

• The reworked gameplay flow — Play / Levels split, new scoring with multipliers, leaderboard from the main menu, XP and rank system, Titles...

• Multi-language support: 12 languages will be supported.

• The new community features — Discord integration, score sharing.

Today's Focus: MIDI Files Management

Until now, playing a custom song in Winken required two files: a musicxml for the notes, and an MP3 for the sound. Both had to be perfectly synced. It worked, but preparing your own song was painful.

I wanted Winken to feel as natural as opening a score on your piano.

What's Changed

• Direct .mid import — Drop a MIDI file in, the game plays it. No MP3 needed.

• MusicXML support extended — .musicxml was already supported. Now .mxl works too (the default format from MuseScore).

• Improved audio engine — The game interprets MIDI data directly into sound. Lighter and smoother.

• MP3 still optional — You can still add an audio file alongside your MIDI if you want. It's just no longer required.

• The game will now support MIDI Controllers on MAC systems.

→ Direct .mid import in action

📌 A Few Technical Notes

For now, Winken reads one voice at a time (no multiple voices or chords yet). The extraction picks the first note found in the track you select.

Further down the road, I'd love to add a PRO mode with double staff, chords, multi-voice, and proper musical symbol handling. But that's a story for another day.

💙 How To Stay In The Loop

• 👀 Follow this page to be notified of the next dev updates and the beta test launch

• 💬 Join our Discord for daily behind-the-scenes posts and direct chat with the community https://discord.gg/q4M8nNwwuh

Thanks for being part of this journey. Winken wouldn't be where it is without you.

Love & Music ! ❤️

— Ludwig