Hello everyone! I’m so sorry, I’ve just realized I forgot to post the December news here! So here it is:

It’s time for another development update on Zefyr: A Thief’s Melody. Progress has been steady, with lots of improvements across the board. Let’s dive right in!

I – Functional & Graphics Improvements

I’ve been testing the full game once again after all the latest updates, and while things are looking better, I found plenty more to refine. Here’s what I’ve been focusing on lately:

Content Updates

• World Enhancements: Every level has been upgraded with added details like vegetation, stencils, rocks, grass, fog effects, set dressing, and other polish.
• Animal Additions: The world now features 35 unique animal species, with over 100 individual animals scattered throughout. Each one has its own avatar too!
• Collectible Quests: I’ve compiled a complete list of animals and flowers, so now the “collect” quests are officially finishable.
• Chocolate Placement: Three chocolates now grant you one additional heart, and you can finish the game with a total of 10 hearts.
• Key & Boss Updates: All key cards and bosses now have updated avatars.
• New SFX: A tiny but satisfying touch—slingshot sound effects are in!

Fixes

• Graphics Issues: I’ve addressed glitches with lock FXs, transparency problems, and visual FX bugs.
• Character Faces: Some NPCs and guards got a facelift, literally! Improved skin textures and optimized imports make them more consistent.
• Grapple & Climb Bugs: Annoying issues with these mechanics in certain cases have been resolved.
• Save Fixes: Fixed saving problems with open-world bosses.
• Camera Consistency: Now the camera behaves uniformly when showing switches or doors being activated.

Optimizations

• Merged plant objects for better performance.
• Cleaned up old, unused game objects.
• Refined and updated the world map.

With these changes, the main and side quests are now fully functional. There’s still a bit of content to add in certain zones, but overall, the game is graphically nearly as polished as the demo. Characters look more coherent, and here are a few new screenshots:

That said, there’s still plenty to do in terms of narration, cutscenes, music, and sound. Those will be the next big areas of focus!

II – Community & Festivals

Steam Next Fest

I participated in the Steam Next Fest recently. The results were a mixed bag; +800 wishlists: Not as many as I had hoped, but the feedback was positive. Players enjoyed the demo, which is great reassurance for me as a solo dev!

GWB Awards Finalist

I was thrilled to be a finalist in the GWB Awards (organized by Tencent). While I didn’t win, making it that far was already a big achievement—it’s the first time Zefyr has been selected for a festival with such high standards.

I also got a small visibility boost from being featured on the dedicated Steam page for a few days, which brought in +100 wishlists.

So I added this nice logo to the Steam page (the 1st of the reward section):

Social Media

I’ve been trying to stay active on social media, with posts on Reddit (where I’m still running a few ads), X, and Bluesky. Speaking of Bluesky—it’s been blowing up lately! I gained over 1,000 followers in just a few weeks, thanks to being featured in a few “Game Dev” starter packs.

If you’d like to join me there (especially as X continues to lose active users), here’s the link: https://bsky.app/profile/oneiricworlds.bsky.social.

III – Beta Testing News

The full game is now in the hands of a few trusted friends for testing. And luckily… they’re not holding back. They’ve pointed out a lot of issues, especially with the level flow in some critical areas. I’ll be addressing all their feedback to ensure future testers don’t have to suffer as much!

Private Beta in December

The next step is the official private beta test, which I plan to launch in December. Think of it as a little Christmas present for some of you.

I’ll share the details on my social platforms, Patreon, and Discord, so stay tuned!

That’s it for now. Thanks so much for your continued support—it means the world to me.

Take care, and I’ll see you in the next update, hopefully a beta announcement!
Peace!

~ Mathias