Back to Game

Changelog

Last Updated: 2026-07-14

All notable changes to DEADSHIFT.

Current Version: v0.8.6

[v0.8.6] - 2026-07-14 — The Walk-Away Rule

Added

  • Dialogs respect your feet — every world-anchored dialog in the Depths (the Attendant's lift choice, chest dialogs, the Company Kiosk, NPC conversations, inspect popups, object context menus) now closes itself when you walk away from where you opened it. Inventory, map, and menu still travel with you
  • Sites introduce themselves — all nine POI set-pieces (Hive Nest, Flooded Sump, Sealed Vault, Gallows Beacon…) now carry hover identification like props do, so a cloud of eggs webbed across the floor reads as HIVE NEST, not scenery

[v0.8.5] - 2026-07-14 — The Daily Shift

Added

  • THE DAILY SHIFT — one date-seeded assignment per calendar day: every worker pulls the same kind of shift that day (the seed is the date), targets scale to your own record, and it pays double rate. One attempt — accepting burns the day, met or not. Your streak of consecutive completed dailies and your personal-best banked haul live in the local logbook and print on the shift receipt

[v0.8.4] - 2026-07-14 — Hazard Pay

Added

  • Deep banking pays more — the deepest point you reach in a run now multiplies your unsecured credits at the moment they bank: +10% per 50-level shell, uncapped (the world has no ending; neither does the rate). The bonus shows live on the UNSECURED ASSETS readout while you're still down there, appears as a HAZARD PAY line on the shift receipt, and counts toward bank-credits contracts. Die and it was never real — the risk didn't change, the stakes did

[v0.8.3] - 2026-07-14 — The Attendant

Added

  • The man at the lift — every deep shell's bullseye portal is now staffed. Stepping onto it no longer yanks you up a shell: THE ATTENDANT offers the choice — ascend one sublevel (complimentary, the old chain of centers) or the EXPRESS LIFT straight to the surface shell, for which the Company retains 6% of your unsecured credits per shell skipped (capped at 40%, rounded in its favor). Descent wells remain unattended — going deeper is always free

Fixed

  • Pathing across the bullseye can no longer accidentally send you up a shell — the lift always asks first

[v0.8.2] - 2026-07-14 — Shell Escalation

Added

  • The deep breeds worse things — from Shell 1, Hardened variants (gold-tinged, tougher, meaner) join the rosters; from Shell 2, Corrupted ones (bleed-red, far worse). Chances climb with every shell. They count as their base creature for quotas and quests — and pay accordingly: variant kills roll loot twice with multiplied credits
  • Epic and corrupted weapon drops — the reserved variant art enters the ladder as deep-shell presentation tiers: an EPIC drop (Shell 1+, violet) minted its stat roll as the best of two; a CORRUPTED drop (Shell 2+, red) the best of three — and claiming it puts +5 Corruption on your ledger. Rarity remains the weapon's identity; the presentation is the event

[v0.8.1] - 2026-07-14 — Reclamation

Added

  • RECLAMATION — everything down here is Company property. That includes you. At Corruption 100 the Company stops billing and starts collecting: three Adjusters — a Claims Adjuster, a Senior Adjuster, and whatever a Final Adjuster is — arrive in a ring around your position. You are the asset
  • Adjusters never lose the trail — darkness is no cover, distance is no escape; they follow you across the rings. Extract, die, or fight
  • Severance — each Adjuster downed pays 250c and a guaranteed armor piece; clear all three: RECLAMATION SUSPENDED — the paperwork survives you. The Company will refile

Fixed

  • Corruption 100 was quietly double-dispatching (an old plain wave alongside the new team) and leaking regular creatures into the never-despawn pursuit rule — one collection team now, as intended

[v0.8.0] - 2026-07-14 — The Quota

Added — the tagline, built

  • Company Contracts — clocking in offers three assignments; pick one (or descend freelance): bank N items · bank N credits · reach depth D · neutralize M hostiles · recover K of a named material. Quotas scale with your deepest-ever record
  • The quota lives on your HUD — live progress under the haul readout; the Shift Receipt scores the contract: met pays a completion bonus and builds your streak; missed goes on the ledger — you begin your next descent with +10 Corruption. The Company notes it
  • Death breaks the streak — and the contract dies with the run

[v0.7.6] - 2026-07-14 — The Archive

Added

  • THE ARCHIVE — third tab of the Atlas (M): every site keeps a dossier. Key facts open on first contact; each place holds a sealed secret that declassifies after enough interactions — search enough camps and learn which way the tents face. Dossiers survive death: knowledge is kept
  • Monument records — each charted layer's monument joins the Archive with its art and account; unfound monuments wait as silhouettes
  • The Burrow, documented — a floor-by-floor cross-section (F0–F7) in the Archive: names, purpose, and clearance state

Fixed

  • The minimap and Atlas were vertical mirrors of the world — north on the map was south underfoot. Both now match the camera

[v0.7.5] - 2026-07-14 — Honor the Run

Added

  • The Shift Receipt — extraction now ends with a proper accounting: assets banked, schematics decoded, hostiles neutralized, experience logged, deepest point, finest recovery, corruption settled. The Company thanks you for your service
  • The Incident Report — the death screen names what got you and where, tallies the forfeit haul, and confirms what death cannot take: experience and charted strata are retained
  • Depth ambience — a procedural ambient bed that darkens and deepens with every layer (no two realms sound alike); toggle and volume in the new SETTINGS panel (ESC menu)

[v0.7.4] - 2026-07-14 — Name the Realms

Added

  • Layer signatures — every layer now holds its own monument, found nowhere else: The First Bore, The Ring Mother, The Chandelier, The Vent, The Sounding Stone, The Pulse, The Gantry, The Pumphouse, The Lantern Colony, The Dead Array, The Stake, and The Door. Three per layer per shell, seeded
  • THE DESCENT — a new view in the Atlas (M): the Yggdrasil column of every layer you've charted — name, epithet, depth span, its tile, its signature — with unsurveyed strata as silhouettes below your deepest point, ending in 'it does not end'
  • Deepest depth is remembered — your furthest descent persists (and survives death: the knowledge is kept)

Fixed

  • Reload restoring an old shell — the map restore ran after the scene had already chosen its world (mount-order race); deep shells also now stream fixed enemy rosters like the first shell

[v0.7.3] - 2026-07-13 — The Atlas

Added

  • THE ATLAS (M) — the world seen whole: your shell as a ring mandala with every layer named on its ring, fog-of-war terrain, all markers (wells, portals, extraction, sites, stashes), and a shell rail charting the descent chain (…no ending)
  • Waypoints — click the Atlas to pin one: a white beacon in the world and on the minimap, auto-cleared on arrival
  • Every realm has an identity — all twelve layers (and the unsurveyed strata beyond) carry an epithet: COLLAPSED WORKS — what industry left behind; THE SILENCE — the Company stopped measuring here. On entry banners and the Atlas

Fixed

  • The old M map rendered one DIV PER TILE — a million elements on the mega cave. The Atlas is a single canvas
  • Reload now resumes the shell you were actually in (fast multi-well descents outran the save sync); clairvoyance rebuilt on a descent field — no frame drops, the arrow cannot flip

[v0.7.2] - 2026-07-13 — No Ending

Changed — the Infinite Depths is now actually infinite

  • The power law — layer thickness follows base × Xn (4 levels × 1.25 per layer): layer 1 is 40 tiles, every layer is a quarter wider than the last, and the ladder never ends
  • Shells — past a shell's rim, descent wells drop into the next shell: a whole new 1000×1000 ring world, generated on demand, forever. Each shell's bullseye leads back up one shell — the way home is the chain of centers; extraction remains at the very first
  • Beyond the surveyed twelve — past The Silence the Company stops naming things: UNSURVEYED STRATUM 13, 14, 15… cycling the six deep biome arts, darker with every cycle
  • The depth-50 freeze is dead — stepping on a descent well used to lock the game 20–30 seconds while the next shell generated (it read as 'the world just ends'); shell generation is now sub-second, with a DESCENT flash
  • Target frame — locking an enemy shows a combat card (portrait, name, live HP bar) bottom-left; chests gained charged medkits and Overdrive Stims at rare/legendary tiers
  • Quality is visible — Worn scratches, Honed edge-glint, and Pristine sparkle overlays composite onto every weapon drop and inspect preview; Pristine drops twinkle at the ground glow. Refreshed weapon base/rarity/fire-effect art across the board
  • Absolute depth — the HUD counts DEPTH without a ceiling; loot, XP, bands and Corruption keep scaling with true depth across shells

[v0.7.1] - 2026-07-13 — Bigger Rings, Real Biomes

Changed

  • Every layer is substantial now — ring thickness rebalanced from as little as 20 tiles to a minimum of 40 (most layers 40, the deepest two 50); crossing a biome is a journey, not a blink
  • Six genuinely new biomes — the deep layers no longer recycle the old tile art as tints: Collapsed Works (rusted girders and bolt heads), The Flooded Levels (standing-water sheen), Phosphor Warrens (glowing spore clusters), Static Fields (pale interference flecks), The Deep Claim (ore-veined Company rock), and The Silence (near-black stone with rare cold glints) each have their own floor and wall tile sets — eleven distinct biome arts in total

[v0.7.0] - 2026-07-12 — The Ring World & The Forge

Changed — The Depths is now a RING WORLD

  • Radial world — spawn and the extraction doorway sit at the exact center of the map (the green bullseye); depth = distance from center, so you can explore in every direction and difficulty, biomes, loot and enemies all grow outward
  • Twelve layers (was six) — the original six kept thin for quick early progression, then six new deeper layers growing exponentially thicker: Collapsed Works, The Flooded Levels, Phosphor Warrens, Static Fields, The Deep Claim, and The Silence
  • You always know where you are — HUD depth readout (DEPTH 23/50 · PHOSPHOR WARRENS · LAYER 9/12) plus an ENTERING banner when you cross into a new layer
  • Extraction on the map — a green ring marks the extraction doorway on the minimap; purple return portals seed in rings around the circle and all teleport back to the center

Added — The Forge (Wrench's station)

  • Weapon refit Mk I–III — "equipment enrollment tiers": bounded permanent stat bumps per weapon (never past a quarter of its power — upgrades deepen what you have without obsoleting the hunt). Mk III demands deep-band materials; legendary work demands abyss/core tiers at every Mk; higher tiers gate on Wrench standing
  • Armor reforge — reroll a piece's affixes within its rarity (an honest roll — odds stated), or promote it exactly one rarity rung; top promotions need core-band materials. Corrupted pieces stay corrupted — un-cursing is not for sale
  • Find it in the ESC menu (THE FORGE) or via Wrench's Workshop; the weapon inspect panel shows MK badges and stats as base(+bonus)

Added — Weapon Stat Rolls

  • No two drops alike — every dropped/chest weapon rolls bounded stat variance at mint (±10% damage/fire/reload, ±15% magazine) and is graded Worn / Standard / Honed / Pristine beside its serial. Shop, starter and crafted weapons stay neutral — the store never gambles
  • Compare before you commit — the near-drop panel shows the drop's quality and per-stat ▲/▼ deltas against your copy; a strictly-better duplicate is adopted automatically (your old copy field-strips to salvage); mixed rolls stay your call
  • Pristine pays — Honed/Pristine duplicate salvage carries a credits premium

Added — Nine Points of Interest

  • The Depths gained destinations — nine composed set-pieces, each a decision, not decoration: a derelict camp to search (guaranteed near your first walk out), a signal shrine (one free transmission per descent), a sealed Company vault (find the keycard this run → cache-tier payout), a hive nest (destroy the eggs for rare salvage — the nest disagrees), a flooded sump (the glint is under water that hurts), a service elevator (spend a Power Cell to skip a band outward), a research pod (the study concluded; samples remain), a gallows beacon marking hot zones (elevated spawns AND elevated loot — the read is honest), and a Company kiosk vending ammo and medkits at field prices (2×)
  • Band-pooled, spaced, seeded placement — one anchor per room, the two big risk beats never stack; two new lootable items (Vault Keycard, Power Cell) enter the depth loot pools

Added — Economy

  • Cargo Rig — buyable inventory expansion at Mags' shop: 40 → 48 → 56 → 64 slots (2,000/6,000/15,000c), relationship discounts apply, purchase persists
  • Field Salvage — duplicate weapon pickups are a CHOICE now, not a blind ammo grant: sell at a rarity rate, convert to rounds (ranged only — swords are not ammunition), keep, or stash
  • Unique IDs everywhere — inventory detail shows item IDs, Depths tooltips show object IDs, gear tooltips show each piece's serial number

Fixed

  • Skill points finally stick — allocations rendered as 0/N (a reactivity bug) AND the whole progression block (level, XP, SP, skill ranks, weapon XP) was never in the live save — every reload wiped it. Both fixed; the Depths shows the same LEVEL UP / +1 SKILL POINT banner as shifts
  • Admin uncapped means uncapped — per-stack limits no longer flash a false CARGO FULL; stack-full and cargo-full are now distinct, honest messages
  • circuit_board existed only as a rumour — it dropped from chests and was demanded by recipes but had no item definition; it is now a real tiered material
  • Layer progression legibility ("still in the orange zone") — thick-band pacing replaced by the 12-layer ladder above

[v0.6.1] - 2026-07-11 — Arsenal & Persistence

Added — Weapons & Combat

  • Bottom-center weapon cluster — SM2-style HUD widget: weapon sprite + ammo, cycle ghosts, consumable slots, hover meta for everything; the Service Pistol is a permanent cycle member and can't vanish
  • Depth-gated equipment drops — weapons spawn as glowing world drops with rarity tier rings (shallow common-only → deep opens legendary), walk over to collect; armor drops straight to your Loadout, band-capped; per-weapon muzzle/tracer/impact fire effects
  • Weapon schematics — a rarer exploration find: extract with the plans to decode a crafting recipe, then build the weapon at the workshop (crafted duplicates convert to rounds)
  • Exploration drops — weapons and schematics spawn as you explore (near your path, findable), not only from kills; a console tracker calls distance and bearing to the nearest drop
  • Hold-to-fire combat — auto-attack only while Space/F is held or an enemy is click-locked; tighter auto-target range; real projectile tracers travel from you to the target with impact bursts (line of sight you can see)
  • Depths quests — the Sage offers quests whose progress actually ticks (kills and pickups now feed quest objectives); locked Burrow doors explain themselves on hover

Added — Inventory & World

  • Drop-to-stash — drop items from your inventory as a persistent ground stash; it's still there next session. Cargo-full pickups tell you honestly instead of pretending
  • Continue where you left off — your position persists per map (reload, descend, return — you resume where you were); death is the only trip back to spawn
  • Return portals — purple portal landmarks throughout the depths teleport you back to the entry; drawn on the minimap as beacons
  • Inventory WEAPONS tab shows your roster with click-to-equip; armor and gear persist across sessions like everything else

Fixed — The Persistence Arc

  • Weapon roster persists — unlocks from drops, chests and crafting survive reload (they used to reset to the two defaults)
  • Ammo levels persist — per-weapon rounds are remembered across weapon switches, Burrow trips and reloads; cycling weapons is no longer a free reload; death restocks (the one legitimate refill)
  • Armor/gear persists; melee weapons no longer consume "ammo" (a sword doesn't run out)
  • Stale-build banner — long-lived tabs now detect a newer deploy and offer SAVE + RELOAD, so you're never playtesting old code
  • Ghost IN COMBAT indicator, schematic pickups mislabelled CARGO FULL, descent portal sending you to the start, XP award wiring, weapon preview sizing, hotbar count drift

[v0.6.0] - 2026-07-11 — The Infinite Depths Update

Added — The Infinite Depths

  • The Infinite Depths — a procedurally generated descent beneath the Burrow (enter via the F4 tunnel): biome-tiered caves (Stone Tunnels → Fungal Caverns → Magma Veins → The Abyss → Void Heart), darkness with eyes watching from it, outposts, chests, destructibles, hazards, and landmarks
  • Depths bestiary — three creatures (Miner → Gaunt → Insect) escalating with depth; enemies in darkness show only their eyes
  • Clearable zones — each depth band holds a fixed roster of enemies; kill them and they stay dead for the run. Enemies only repopulate when you die
  • WASD movement + click-to-target combat — move freely, click or Space/F to attack, Q cycles your real weapon roster, targeting ring on locked enemies, out-of-ammo alerts
  • Depths kills now award XP — player XP and weapon XP flow from Depths combat (deeper kills pay more), so descending levels you up

Added — Risk & Reward Economy

  • Craft it, bank it, or lose it — Depths loot enters an at-risk RUN HAUL (the UNSECURED ASSETS readout). Extract to bank it permanently; die and it's forfeit
  • Extraction interference — activating extraction with a haul starts a 25-second channel while an interference wave converges. Leaving the point pauses the clock. A rare Silent Ticket skips the wave entirely
  • Corruption — a per-run meter the Company fills as you push deeper. Thresholds raise vendor prices, cut max HP, sharpen enemy senses — and at 100, an AUDIT team is dispatched. Extraction clears the ledger
  • Duplicate weapons convert to ammo — picking up a weapon you own grants double a plain ammo pickup for its type
  • Unified depth-scaled loot — enemies, chests, destructibles and props all roll one canonical, depth-scaled table; chests can drop equipment for your loadout

Added — Items & Loadout

  • Consumables actually work — medkits heal, shield cells shield, stims speed you up
  • Consumable hotbar — keys 1–4 in the Depths (Z/V/B on shifts); usable pickups slot themselves and the bar always mirrors what you hold
  • Weapon inspection — the armoury and shop show each weapon's sprite, rarity tier, description, and stat bars; armor tooltips gained a sprite preview
  • Item interactions — hover tooltips, context menus, and ground pickup for Depths objects
  • Progression guides — every progression tab explains how to earn XP/SP and what unlocks where

Added — Story & World

  • The Six Crossings — the endings terminal on Burrow F0, wired to your evidence trail: artifacts, memos, and intel are now discoverable and inspectable across the world
  • Signals & Blessings — the reward loop is live: broadcast signals, receive blessings, see them take effect in-run
  • Camp NPCs — Scav, Beacon, and Patch hold the Depths overworld camp; Burrow floors F5–F7 gained their residents

Changed

  • Permadeath — dying in the Depths ends the run and returns you to the Burrow with your unbanked haul lost
  • Burrow visual overhaul — tiled surface textures with per-floor tints, ambient dust and corner shading, rooms that end at their walls, and one unified loading screen family across all zones
  • UI unification — inventory, chest, Burrow, and GrowLabs menus restyled onto the game's shared visual language (Void Black / Visor Orange / Space Mono)
  • Combat tuning — enemy spawn depth follows your position, ammo economy rebalanced (40 starting rounds, kill scavenge), shield absorbs before health

Fixed

  • Chests unopenable due to scatter collisions and spawn-depth bugs
  • Game freeze when holding the attack key (duplicate VFX keys)
  • Cave tiles painting with the previous biome's texture until you moved
  • Loadout and progression menus failing to open in the Depths; admin mode now shows all recipes
  • Item icons 404ing to placeholder glyphs; toast notifications hanging; up/down movement speed mismatch

[v0.5.5] - 2026-03-01 — Crafting Recipe Unlocks

Added

  • Gameplay-driven recipe unlocks — All 12 crafting recipes now have real in-game unlock paths instead of only being available in dev mode
  • Wrench relationship recipes — Reaching Acquaintance, Associate, and Trusted tiers with Wrench unlocks Reinforced Armor, AP Rounds, and Weapon Upgrade Kit respectively
  • Quest: Workshop Basics — Craft 2 items for Wrench to learn the Improvised Firearm recipe
  • Quest: First Aid Training — Use 3 bandages during shifts to unlock the Field Medkit recipe
  • Entropy Shield Blueprint — New legendary intel schematic found on Floor 6 (15+ shifts) that unlocks the Entropy Stabilizer Shield
  • Experimentation milestone — Craft 10+ items total to discover the Unstable Anomaly Grenade recipe

Fixed

  • Recipe unlocks now persist — crafting:recipe_unlocked events and dialogue unlockRecipe effects now actually call craftingStore.learnRecipe() instead of only showing a notification
  • Relationship tier recipes — Wrench tier-ups now unlock real recipe IDs instead of fake placeholder IDs like wrench_associate_unlock
  • Quest recipe rewards — Quest completion now processes recipe reward types and unlocks them in the crafting store
  • Recipe unlock notifications — Now display the recipe name instead of the raw recipe ID

[v0.5.4] - 2026-02-02 — Loot Pickup System

Added

  • Sprite sheet loot rendering — All pickup items now render from a single 4×8 sprite sheet instead of individual PNG files
  • Item registry — 28 item definitions with categories, rarities, sprite positions, and metadata
  • Loot tables — 7 weighted loot tables (standard/weapon/medical/high-value crates, common/elite enemy drops, boss drops) with guaranteed drop support
  • Tiered health pickups — Health Pack S (15 HP), M (30 HP), L (50 HP)
  • Tiered armor pickups — Armor Shard (5), Armor Vest (25), Full Armor (50)
  • New ammo types — Plasma Core, Universal Cell, Explosive Charge, Rare Ammo, plus sprite-sheet versions of all existing ammo
  • Credit pickups — Small (10), Medium (50), Large (100) credit drops from enemies and crates
  • Keycards — Blue (Level 1), Orange (Level 2), Red (Level 3) access cards stored in player inventory
  • Consumables — Stim Pack, Shield Cell, Supply Beacon (max 3 inventory slots, auto-apply when full)
  • Collectibles — Data Chip (sells for 200 credits on pickup)

Changed

  • Enemy drops — Now use weighted loot tables instead of hardcoded health/ammo rolls; elite enemies drop rarer items
  • Supply crates — Standard crates use loot table roller for varied contents
  • Weapon crates — Now also roll bonus ammo from weapon_crate loot table
  • Legacy pickup types — Old types (health, ammo, armor, bullets, etc.) still work via automatic mapping to new item IDs

[v0.5.3] - 2026-02-01 — New Sprite Assets & Legacy Cleanup

Added

  • New sprite assets — All enemy, boss, player, weapon, item, effect, and tile sprites replaced with dedicated DEADSHIFT artwork
  • Player fallback sprite — New shift worker silhouette replaces legacy fallback

Removed

  • Legacy enemy types — Removed xenomorph, facehugger, and egg enemy types from all game systems
  • Legacy boss types — Removed queen and predator boss types (dead code, never spawned)
  • Legacy assets — Removed all legacy/placeholder sprite files and asset packs
  • Legacy procedural sprites — Removed canvas-drawn xenomorph, facehugger, and predator sprite generators

Changed

  • Hive biome — Enemy distribution rebalanced (brood_crawler 60%, brood_spitter 40%)
  • Biome descriptions — Updated to use faction-appropriate terminology
  • Brand copy — Cleaned up all remaining legacy references in meta tags, FAQ, and marketing text

[v0.5.2] - 2026-01-31 — New Boss Types: Hive Tyrant, Apex Warden & Chimera

Added

  • Hive Tyrant (Level 15+) — Massive insectoid brood commander with 3 phases (600+ HP, 3 health bars)
    • Egg Sacs: Places 2-3 destructible egg sacs (50 HP each) that spawn crawler waves every 4s
    • Ground Slam: Leaps to player position with 1s telegraph, creates shockwave AoE (radius 3.0)
    • Phase 2: Faster egg spawning (3s), gains acid spit projectile
    • Phase 3: Enrage — 50% speed boost, continuous crawler spawning, ground slam every 8s
  • Apex Warden (Level 20+) — Ancient biomechanical guardian with 3 phases (800+ HP, 4 health bars)
    • Shield Drones: 3 orbiting drones that absorb hits, respawn after 12s
    • Shield Wall: Directional energy barrier that blocks projectiles (8s duration)
    • Plasma Volleys: 3-7 homing plasma orbs in spread pattern
    • Phase 2: Shield drones gain 2 HP each, plasma volleys increase
    • Phase 3: Permanent rotating shield wall, drones respawn every 8s, ground pound disables abilities for 1.5s
  • Chimera (Level 25+) — Hybrid brood/apex fusion with 4 phases (1000+ HP, 5 health bars)
    • Form Switching: Alternates between Brood Form (fast melee, acid trail) and Apex Form (slow ranged, vine whip, spore clouds) every 15s
    • Phase 2: Form switches every 12s, combined attacks during transitions
    • Phase 3: Form switches every 10s, longer acid trails, larger spore clouds
    • Phase 4 (Chimera Form): Both forms merge — full speed, all attacks, acid + spores simultaneously

Changed

  • Campaign Sector 3 Boss: Hive Tyrant replaces Apex Flora
  • Campaign Sector 4 Boss: Apex Warden replaces Apex Elder
  • Campaign Sector 5 Boss: Chimera replaces ??? placeholder
  • Boss Rotation: Level-gated fallback includes new bosses (15+/20+/25+)

Technical

  • Boss.svelte BOSS_CONFIG extended with hive_tyrant, apex_warden, chimera entries
  • 3 new AI functions: runHiveTyrantAI, runApexWardenAI, runChimeraAI
  • Egg sac hit detection, shield drone absorption, shield wall projectile blocking, acid trail DoT, spore cloud zones
  • Kill rewards: 125/175/250 coins; Weapon XP: 250/325/400; Player XP: 300/400/500

[v0.5.1] - 2026-01-31 — Prestige System Overhaul

Added

  • Prestige Auto-Bonuses — Each prestige level now grants automatic permanent bonuses without requiring skill points: +3% damage, +2% move speed/reload/fire rate, +5% XP gain, +1 HP (every 2 levels), +1 armor (every 3 levels)
  • Prestige Tiers — Five named tiers with distinct colors: Bronze (P1-2), Silver (P3-4), Gold (P5-7), Platinum (P8-9), Diamond (P10). Tier badge color displayed in progression menu header
  • Prestige Milestone Vanity — Exclusive cosmetics unlocked at specific prestige levels: Veteran Visor (P1), Silver Sentinel suit (P3), Gilded Guardian backpack (P5), Diamond Operative full set (P10)
  • XP Catchup Mechanic — Prestige XP bonus (+5% per level) helps re-level faster after each prestige reset
  • Prestige-Gated Vanity — Vanity tab now shows prestige requirements (P1, P3, etc.) on prestige-locked items
  • Milestones UI — PrestigeTab shows upcoming milestone rewards with check marks for completed ones and next tier progress

Changed

  • Prestige Momentum Skill — Repurposed from "+3% per prestige level (damage only)" to "Amplifies all prestige auto-bonuses by 15% per rank" — now boosts all stats instead of just damage
  • PrestigeTab UI — Replaced misleading "+X% All Stats" with accurate per-stat breakdown. Shows tier name, color, and badge instead of plain number
  • Prestige Bonuses Applied Centrally — All prestige stat bonuses now flow through getBuffMultipliers(), getEffectiveMaxHealth(), and getEffectiveMaxArmor() instead of scattered manual calculations

Fixed

  • Prestige UI Lie — PrestigeTab previously showed "+X% All Stats" but only damage was actually affected. Now shows accurate per-stat breakdown and all stats are actually boosted
  • Prestige Required Skill Points — Raw prestige levels previously gave no bonuses without investing in sp_prestige skill. Auto-bonuses now apply automatically; the skill amplifies them
  • Single-Stat Prestige — Removed standalone prestige damage calculation from Player.svelte that was the only stat actually affected

Technical

  • New data file: src/lib/data/prestigeData.ts — tiers, auto-bonus formula, milestone vanity items
  • Skill effect type renamed from prestigeBonus to prestigeAmplifier
  • VanityItem interface extended with optional unlockPrestige field
  • getPrestigeAutoBonus() centralizes all prestige stat calculations with amplifier support

[v0.5.0] - 2026-01-31 — Campaign Progression & Gamepad Navigation

Added

  • Campaign Progress Store — Persistent campaign state (completed levels, sector unlocks, best times) with automatic localStorage save/load, replacing ad-hoc local state (#149)
  • Level Completion Tracking — Completing a level via the exit portal now marks it as complete in the campaign store, unlocking the next level on the world map (#149)
  • Gamepad Manager — Full gamepad support with RAF polling, standard button mapping, 0.3 dead zone, 300ms/100ms debounce repeat for d-pad/stick navigation (#150)
  • Gamepad Navigation Action — New use:gamepadNav Svelte action with focus group registry, 2D grid navigation, A-button select, B-button back, and orange glow focus indicator (#150)
  • Auto Input Mode Detection — Automatically switches between keyboard and gamepad mode based on last input device used (#150)
  • All Menus Gamepad-Navigable — Main Menu, World Map, Settings, Quick Shift, Loadout, and Pause Menu all support full gamepad navigation (#150)

Changed

  • WorldMap.svelte — No longer accepts completedLevels/currentLevel as props; reads directly from campaign progress store (#149)
  • +page.svelte — Removed manual campaign localStorage management; delegated to campaign progress store (#149)

Technical

  • New store: src/lib/stores/campaignProgress.ts — writable store with auto-persistence following progressionV2 pattern
  • New store: src/lib/stores/gamepadManager.ts — gamepad polling, button/direction event callbacks, input mode tracking
  • New action: src/lib/actions/gamepadNav.ts — focus group registry with linear and 2D grid navigation
  • levelComplete event dispatched from Scene → Game → +page on portal entry for campaign levels

[v0.4.9] - 2026-01-31 — Enemy AI Overhaul: Flanking, Retreating & Group Tactics

Added

  • Retreat Behavior (Ranged Enemies) — Brood Spitter retreats at 80% chase speed when player within 3 units or health below 25%. Apex Marauder retreat distance increases from 3 to 5 units when wounded (#165)
  • Flanking AI (Fast Enemies) — Brood Hunter approaches from the opposite side when 2+ enemies already chasing from the front. Apex Scout circles wide then closes in from behind when frontal chasers detected (#165)
  • Group Coordination — Melee enemies (crawlers, drones, hunters, scouts) push apart when within 1 unit to prevent stacking. Anchor/flanker role assignment when 3+ enemies within 6 units (#165)
  • Desperate Mode — All DEADSHIFT enemies gain 20% speed boost below 15% HP. Ranged enemies (Brood Spitter, Apex Marauder) suffer ±0.4 rad accuracy spread when desperate (#165)
  • Brood Crawler Reinforcements — Wounded crawlers below 25% HP call 1-2 additional crawlers as reinforcements (once per enemy). Plays crawler screech sound (#165)
  • Apex Energy Burst — Apex Stalker, Marauder, and Scout trigger defensive energy burst below 15% HP: knockback self backward, 0.5s invulnerability, 10s cooldown. Purple/white particle burst with new procedural audio (#165)
  • Energy Burst Sound — New energy_burst procedural audio: low-frequency pulse + electric discharge + static crackle
  • energyBurst Particle Preset — Purple-to-white additive radial burst for apex energy burst effect

Technical

  • EnemyRegistryEntry gains aiRole, desperate, reinforcementCalled fields
  • New registry methods: getEnemiesInRange() (all factions), countChasersFromFront() (frontal chaser detection)
  • Shared pre-AI computation block runs separation force, role assignment, and desperate mode for all DEADSHIFT enemy types before per-type AI

[v0.4.8] - 2026-01-31 — Corrupted Synthetics Phase 2

Added

  • Inter-Enemy Communication System — Expanded enemy registry with health, type, buffs, and heal requests enabling real-time cooperation between synth enemies
  • Synth Repair (Healer) — Seeks nearest damaged synth ally within 12 units, stands still to heal at close range, flees player when no allies need help. Green heal beam particles between healer and target
  • Synth Commander (Buffer) — Broadcasts damage (+30%) and speed (+15%) buff aura to nearby synths every 8s. On death triggers berserk mode (+50% damage, +30% speed for 8s) on all nearby allies. Orange buff particles and red berserk particles
  • Synth Shock EMP — Now fires EMP burst on successful melee hit: stuns nearby enemies + disables player ability for 3s
  • Synth Heavy EMP Immunity — Heavy tanks ignore all EMP stun effects
  • Synth Mainframe Boss — 720 HP stationary boss with 8 health bars
    • Shield Generators: 2 destructible shields (60 HP each) that block 25% damage each
    • 4-Phase AI: Phase transitions at 75%/50%/25% HP with 2s invulnerability
    • Laser Sweep: Fan of 5 plasma bolts with cooldown scaling by phase
    • EMP Pulse: Area EMP in phases 3-4 that disables player ability
    • Minion Spawning: Spawns synth_patrol, synth_shock, and synth_heavy by phase
  • 4 New Particle Presets — synthHealBeam (green), synthBuffAura (orange), synthBerserk (red), synthShield (blue)
  • Shield Hit Sound — Metallic clang + digital deflection procedural audio
  • EMP Ability Disable — New disableFor(seconds) method forces ability cooldown

Technical

  • EnemyRegistryEntry stores health, maxHealth, type, buffs (commanderDamageBoost, commanderSpeedBoost, berserk), and healRequest per enemy
  • Registry query methods: getNearestDamagedSynth(), getSynthsInRange(), updateBuffTimers()
  • Buff timers decay each frame via enemyPositions.updateBuffTimers(delta) in main game loop
  • synth_repair and synth_commander added to wreckage biome spawn distribution (10% each)

[v0.4.7] - 2026-01-31 — Corrupted Synthetics Faction

Added

  • Corrupted Synthetics Faction (Phase 1) — 4 new enemy types with cold-blue visual theme (#166)
    • Synth Sentry: Stationary turret, fires laser every 1.5s when player in range
    • Synth Patrol: Chase + melee combatant, patrols corridors
    • Synth Shock: Charge-burst melee attacker with 1.5x speed burst
    • Synth Heavy: Ranged tank, maintains 4-8 unit distance, fires explosive rounds every 3s
  • Synth Procedural Audio — 10 new sounds: sentry lock-on beeps, laser fire, patrol alert, shock charge, EMP burst, heavy launch, synth death cascade
  • synthSpark Particle Preset — Blue/white additive electric sparks on synth deaths
  • Campaign Integration — Synthetics spawn in Sector D (~25% weight) and Sector X (~20% weight), plus wreckage biome

Technical

  • 6 SpriteSheetConfig exports for all synth types in animation system
  • Synth XP awards added to weapon and player progression tables
  • Kill rewards and economy entries for all synth types
  • Phase 2 placeholder AI for synth_repair and synth_commander

[v0.4.6] - 2026-01-31 — Sprite Sheet Rendering & Dev QoL

Added

  • DropPod Sprite Sheets — 6-frame horizontal strip replacing colored boxes (falling, landing, landed, opening, open, empty)
  • SupplyCrate Sprite Sheets — 6-frame horizontal strip with state-based animation
  • Dev Mode World Unlock — All worlds and levels unlocked when running in dev mode

Fixed

  • World map scroll overflow — changed from min-height: 100vh to height: 100vh; overflow-y: auto

[v0.4.5] - 2026-01-31 — Adaptive Music Engine

Changed

  • Music Engine Rewrite — Replaced procedural generator with adaptive 3-layer score system inspired by 28 Years Later
    • Layer 1: Atmosphere — Biome-specific drone + pad + texture (always on)
    • Layer 2: Heartbeat — Sub-bass lub-dub with intensity-driven volume
    • Layer 3: Guitar — Delayed tremolo sawtooth arpeggios in D-minor (tension+ only)

[v0.4.4] - 2026-01-31 — Prestige System UI

Added

  • Prestige Tab in Progression Menu
    • Current status display: prestige level, lifetime XP, and cumulative stat bonus
    • Progress bar showing current level vs required level 30
    • Gold "PRESTIGE NOW" button when eligible, disabled with requirement text otherwise
    • "What You Gain" and "What You Lose" info panels with clear reset warnings
  • Prestige Confirmation Flow — Modal with full reset summary, confirm/cancel actions, and success notification showing new prestige level and bonus
  • Reactive Prestige Info — Prestige badge and info in the progression header now update reactively when store changes

[v0.4.3] - 2026-01-31 — Weapon Progression HUD

Added

  • Weapon XP Bar in Gameplay HUD
    • Weapon level badge (WLV N) and tier name displayed above ammo counter
    • Thin XP progress bar colored by current weapon tier (Stock → Prestige)
    • Updates reactively on weapon switches and XP gains
  • Weapon XP Gain Popups — Floating +N WXP text on enemy kills, fades up over 1.5s, handles rapid kill queuing
  • Weapon Level-Up Notification — Center-screen banner for 3s showing:
    • Weapon name and new level
    • Tier change callout (e.g. "NEW TIER: Veteran") in tier color
    • Attachment slot unlock at milestone levels (5/15/30/50/75/100)

Technical

  • Derived stores (currentWeaponLevel, currentWeaponProgress, currentWeaponTier) combine progression state with active weapon

[v0.4.2] - 2026-01-31 — Abilities, Attachments & Skill Effects

Added

  • 13 Abilities Wired into Gameplay
    • 7 Passive Abilities: Thick Skin (-1 flat DR), Steady Aim (-20% spread), Fast Loader (+25% empty reload), Runner (+15% speed when not shooting), Scavenger (+30% ammo drops), Executioner (+25% dmg to low-HP enemies), Iron Will (future knockback reduction)
    • 6 Active Abilities bound to [F] key: Adrenaline Rush (+30% fire rate & speed, 8s), Energy Shield (immunity, 4s), Pulse Scan (reveal enemies, 10s), Overclock (+100% damage, 6s), EMP Blast (stun nearby enemies, 5-tile radius), Emergency Heal (+3 HP instant)
    • Ability cooldown HUD with active duration bar, cooldown bar, and READY indicator
  • 12 Weapon Attachments Wired into Gameplay
    • Scopes: 10/20/30% spread reduction (Iron Sights, Red Dot, Holographic)
    • Grips: 15/25/35% additional spread reduction (Standard, Angled, Bipod)
    • Muzzles: Flash Hider (-50% noise), Compensator (+8% fire rate), Suppressor (-40% enemy detection range)
    • Magazines: Extended (+20% mag size), Drum (+50% mag size)
  • 31 Skill Tree Effects Fully Wired
    • Combat branch: Weapon Training, Armor Piercing, Weak Points, Vital Strike, Trigger Discipline, Speed Loader, Headhunter, Combat Mastery
    • Survival branch: Thick Skin, Vital Organs, Reinforced Suit, Ablative Plating, Combat Medic, Vampiric Rounds, Last Stand, Refuse to Die
    • Utility branch: Light Feet, Sprint Efficiency, Endurance, Second Wind, Scavenger, Lucky Find, Motion Tracker, Resource Master
    • Special branch: Adrenaline Rush, Berserker, Explosive Rounds, Chain Lightning, Overclock, Null Field, Extinction Protocol
    • Blast radius AoE, wall slide, blink dash, pierce, rarity modifiers, ammo efficiency, overdrive
  • EMP Stun System — Enemies within blast radius are stunned for 3s with blue visual tint
  • Scan Glow Effect — Enemies highlighted with green glow when Pulse Scan is active

Technical

  • Centralized abilityEffects.ts combat modifier system (~15 ops/frame)
  • Cached skill effect lookups for per-frame performance
  • Ability runtime with instant-duration ability support
  • EMP blast coordination via shared store with timestamp deduplication

[v0.4.1] - 2026-01-30 — Combat & Enemies

Added

  • New Enemy: Brood Hunter (#131) — Elite ambush predator
    • 40 HP, fast melee with burst rush attacks
    • Can start dormant and ambush unsuspecting players
    • Single cyclopean eye glow in darkness
    • 10-frame sprite sheet with idle, run, attack, hurt, death animations
  • New Enemy: Apex Scout (#134) — Fast flanker
    • 30 HP, fastest Apex unit with hit-and-run tactics
    • Retreats after attacking, erratic approach movement
    • Narrow visor slit glow in darkness
    • 10-frame sprite sheet with full animation set
  • Extended Weapon Arsenal (#156) — 5 new projectile types
    • Acid Sprayer, Cryo Cannon, Mining Laser, Nail Gun, Shock Baton/Energy Sword melee
    • Status effects: Burn DoT, Slow, Freeze, Stun, Armor Melt, Pinned
    • Smart Gun auto-aim targets nearest enemy
    • Nail piercing with 30% damage falloff per enemy
  • Weapon Balance Tuning (#160)
    • Adjusted damage, fire rates, and magazine sizes across 8 weapons
    • Rarity tiers now feel meaningfully different in DPS

Fixed

  • Building Door Bug (#162) — Doors now appear on both left and right walls at ground level
  • Fixed ammo type mappings for 6 weapons in Supply Crates and Drop Pods

Sprite Assets Created

  • Brood Hunter 160x16 sprite sheet (10 frames)
  • Apex Scout 160x16 sprite sheet (10 frames)
  • Batch rendering configs for 5 new projectile types

[v0.4.0] - 2026-01-26 — Audio & Marketing

Added

  • Main Menu Score — 6-layer procedural composition inspired by "Brave Soldat"
    • D minor key with industrial/dread atmosphere
    • Layers: Industrial Pulse, Corporate Dread, Tension Strings, Warning Pulse, Choir, Climax
    • Dynamic intensity slider for testing
  • Complete Sound Effects Library (82 procedural sounds)
    • Player SFX (17): Footsteps, jump, dash, weapon fire, reload, hurt, death, heal
    • Brood Enemy SFX (8): Crawler screech, drone chitter, spitter attack, acid sizzle, hunter growl, death, egg burst, broodmother roar
    • Apex Hunter SFX (9): Cloak activate/shimmer, stalker footstep, plasma bolt, disc throw, blade slash, target lock, apex death, elder roar
    • Item/Environment SFX (12): Pickups, crate open, drop pod landing, doors, terminals, alarm
    • UI/Menu SFX (35): Button hover/click, menu open/close, tab switch, slider, notifications, level up, skill unlock
  • Landing Page for deadshiftgame.com
    • Hero section with glitch effects
    • Features showcase
    • Faction overview (Brood & Apex)
    • Beta signup integration

Documentation

  • Social Media Marketing Implementation plan
  • Audio system technical specifications
  • Sound design philosophy per faction

[v0.3.0] - 2026-01-22/23 — Progression & Customization

Added

  • Weapon System (12 weapons)
    • Pulse Rifle, Shotgun, Flamethrower, Smart Gun, Plasma Caster
    • Shock Baton, Acid Sprayer, Cryo Cannon, Grenade Launcher
    • Mining Laser, Nail Gun, Energy Sword
  • Weapon Progression
    • XP system with scaling requirements
    • 10 visual tiers: Worn → Standard → Polished → Military → Tactical → Elite → Prototype → Apex → Corrupted → Void
    • Procedural tiers beyond 100: Infernal, Frozen, Toxic, Void+, Divine
    • Milestone unlocks: Scope (5), Grip (15), Muzzle (30), Magazine (50), Mastery skin (75), Prestige (100)
  • Attachment System
    • Scopes: Iron Sights, Red Dot, Holographic, Sniper
    • Grips: Standard, Angled, Bipod, Tactical
    • Muzzles: Flash Hider, Suppressor, Compensator, Energy
    • Magazines: Standard, Extended, Drum, Energy Cell, Organic
    • 300,000+ unique weapon appearance combinations
  • Skill Tree (4 branches, 31 skills)
    • Combat (Red): Weapon Training, Armor Piercing, Weak Points, Vital Strike, Trigger Discipline, Speed Loader, Headhunter, Combat Mastery
    • Survival (Blue): Thick Skin, Vital Organs, Reinforced Suit, Ablative Plating, Combat Medic, Vampiric Rounds, Last Stand, Refuse to Die
    • Utility (Yellow): Light Feet, Sprint Efficiency, Endurance, Second Wind, Scavenger, Lucky Find, Motion Tracker, Resource Master
    • Special (Green): Adrenaline Rush, Berserker, Explosive Rounds, Chain Lightning, Overclock, Null Field, Extinction Protocol
  • Abilities System
    • Passive (7): Jump Jets, Mag Boots, Smart Holster, Threat Detection, Nanite Ammo, Dead Man's Switch, Company Veteran
    • Active (6): Emergency Boost, Trauma Kit, Barrier, Pulse Scan, Auto Turret, Orbital Strike
  • Character Customization
    • 8 Helmets: Standard → Void
    • 10 Suit Colors: Company Yellow → Void Purple
    • 6 Backpacks: None, Standard, Oxygen Tank, Ammo Rig, Jetpack, Trophy Rack
    • 480 unique appearance combinations
  • Supply Drop Systems
    • Supply Crates: 6-state animation (Sealed → Opening → Open → Empty)
    • Drop Pods: Orbital delivery with 6 states
    • VTOL Dropship: Corporate supply runs (4 states)

Sprite Assets Created

  • 12 weapon pickups and held sprites
  • 20 attachment variants across 4 categories
  • 8 helmet variants, 10 suit colors, 6 backpacks
  • Supply crate, drop pod, and VTOL animations

[v0.2.0] - 2026-01-21/22 — Rebrand & Biomes

Changed — THE REBRAND

  • Name: Original concept → DEADSHIFT
  • Tagline: "Clock In. Survive. Clock Out."
  • Theme: Generic concept → Corporate Horror
  • Concept: Expendable contractor on hostile space stations

Added — Brand Identity

  • Logo: Skull with clock eye (left) + crosshair eye (right)
  • Color Palette (Horror Edition):
  • Faction Designs
    • The Brood: Insectoid hive creatures, chitin carapace, bioluminescent eyes
    • Apex Hunters: Cybernetic stalkers, featureless masks, orange visor glow
    • Shift Workers: Industrial pressure suits, Company yellow, expendable

Added — Procedural Generation

  • Terrain Generator (Python)
    • Multi-octave Perlin noise for organic caves
    • 4-pass cellular automata smoothing
    • Biome blending at boundaries
    • Structure template placement
    • Flood-fill connectivity checking
  • 4 Biomes
    • Station: Industrial decay, flickering fluorescent, corporate dread
    • Hive: Organic infestation, bioluminescent, acid pools
    • Jungle: Terraforming gone wrong, toxic spores, filtered sunlight
    • Wreckage: Destroyed ships, emergency red, hull breaches

[v0.1.0] - 2026-01-16 — Initial Development

Added

  • Player Sprite (16×16)
    • 8 animation states: Idle, Run, Jump, Fall, Attack, Hurt, Death, Crouch
    • Company Yellow suit color
  • Basic Enemy Sprites (16×16)
  • Core Concept
    • Survival horror roguelike
    • Procedural generation (Terraria-inspired)
    • Two hostile factions
    • Corporate dystopia theme

Technical Foundation

  • SvelteKit + Svelte 5 framework
  • Three.js with Threlte integration
  • Rapier physics engine (WASM)
  • Orthographic camera for 2D pixel art

Statistics

12Weapons
31Skills
13Abilities
12Attachments
12Recipes
82Sound Effects
10Enemy Types
4Biomes
300K+Weapon Combos
480Vanity Combos

Upcoming

v0.5.0 — Core Gameplay Integration

  • Prestige system with UI and rewards
  • Boss arena implementations
  • Save/load persistence
  • Knockback system (unlocks Iron Will passive)

v0.6.0 — Polish & Effects

  • Screen effects (scanlines, film grain, chromatic aberration)
  • Performance optimization
  • Balance pass on weapons and enemies

v1.0.0 — Launch

  • Steam Early Access release
  • Kickstarter campaign
  • Full tutorial and onboarding

DEADSHIFT

EXPENDABLE INDUSTRIES
Loading... 0%
Initializing content systems...
Loading dialogue trees...
Registering items...
Connecting event bridges...
⚠ All progress is property of The Company