Greetings, Operators, As 2025 approaches, we want to take this Dev Update #5 as an opportunity to look back at what we achieved together in 2024 and share some insights into our plans for 2025. Spoiler: the community will be even more involved! [h2]600,000 WISHLISTS[/h2] We recently reached 600,000 wishlists on Steam, exceeding even our highest objective. Huge thanks to everyone for your support, enthusiasm, and for spreading the word about Beautiful Light! [h2]2024 REWIND[/h2] [list] This year, each month has been rich in content and improvements, but we've selected a few highlights for each of them: [*] January - We kicked off 2024 with the first community playtests of the year, built on what we've made in 2023 and testing performance across more configurations. [*] February - The first iteration of the Skin Forge was introduced, finally allowing character customization! [*] March - We developed AtmoStorm, our dynamic weather system that simulates realistic weather conditions based on real sun position data. Ligthing and colors are then handcrafted to create -beautiful- weather scenarios. [*] April - Major optimization work was done, and we launched the [url=https://deepworlds.studio/dev-timeline]Development Timeline[/url], giving you near real-time insights on our progress. [*] May - [url=https://x.com/BeautifulLght/status/1778033638124175755]PC Gamer tested Beautiful Light[/url]! We also hit 25,000 members on Discord. [*] June - We reworked the movement component system, improving both workflow efficiency and game performance. You can find the open-source code [url=https://github.com/DeepWorldsSA/DeepWorlds_GMCAbilitySystem]here[/url]. Also, we introduced the Boom Ball! [*] July - The first playable anomaly, The Juggernaut, was implemented! [*] August - We reached 500,000 wishlists! [*] September - We compiled the most frequently asked questions into an [url=https://deepworlds.studio/BL-FAQ]Extended FAQ[/url], covering various aspects of the game. [*] October - Our biggest playtest session yet took place, involving over 250 Discord community members, along with a few content creators. [*] November - Playtests provided valuable insights on balance, bugs, and design improvements. [*] December - Check out the video below! (oh, and we're now 37k members on [url=https://discord.gg/project-bl]Discord[/url] !) [/list] [h2]DEV UPDATE PRESENTED BY [b]Psychoghost[/b][/h2] [previewyoutube=Y8Kwz7EVNOo;full][/previewyoutube] [h3]PREVIOUS DEV UPDATE :[/h3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrksuiBkbLI [h1]What's coming in 2025[/h1] [list] [*] 2025 will be a community driven and important year for Beautiful Light. We will be conducting the first medium- and large-scale playtests on Steam to test the robustness of our matchmaking system, servers, and backend. [*] Additionally, we will be working on persistent economy systems, including inventory and stash management. Gear fear basically! [*] We aim to begin playtesting the second map as soon as possible to validate early gameplay elements for its gameloop. This map will build upon Ground Zero, offering even higher-stakes gameplay. Here, you can bring in a previously extracted artifact to increase its value. It's all or nothing. [*] Later in the year, likely in Q4, we will also implement the first progression systems for PMCs and anomalies. [/list] We can't wait for you to get your hands on the results of our hard work! [h3]DEV TIMELINE[/h3] Stay updated on the development progress with our dev timeline. [b]>>> [url=https://deepworlds.studio/dev-timeline]https://deepworlds.studio/dev-timeline[/url][/b] [i]Cosplay Cover image by [url=https://x.com/media_dare]Dare Media Productions[/url] <3 [/i] [h3]STAY TUNED[/h3] Follow us on our socials for more updates and content : [list] [*] [url=https://discord.gg/project-bl]Discord[/url] [*] [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/BeautifulLightGame/]Reddit[/url] [*] [url=https://www.tiktok.com/@beautifullight_dw]TikTok[/url] [*] [url=https://twitter.com/BeautifulLght]Game twitter[/url] [*] [url=https://twitter.com/DeepWorlds_SA]Studio Twitter[/url] [*] [url=https://www.twitch.tv/deepworldsstudio]Twitch[/url] [*] [url=https://www.youtube.com/@deepworlds]YouTube[/url] [*] [url=https://www.instagram.com/beautifullightdw]Instagram[/url] [*] [url=https://vk.com/beautifullightdw]VK[/url] [/list]