We'd said update 1.2.5 would be the finalizing touch of the demo as it currently stands, with the project awaiting its publishing greenlight to carry forward at all. As the year comes to an end, I've felt there is some closure the current prologue demo hasn't received yet, and one that I want to cement for the months of 2022 regardless of what will come of them.

As such, I'm presenting update 1.3.0 as a culmination of our rebuilding efforts for the past six months, on all fronts, and to the greatest degree possible. This is why the demo can now call itself "One Spirit: To Die a Stranger", the name the prologue was meant to receive, the demo covering its first segment as an introduction to everything that is to come.

There are no other news on the project's 2022 roadmap, as we are still working towards securing the options we need to carry on forward. The notes to update 1.2.5 still hold true, except the bit where they said there'd be no 1.3.0.

Enjoy, you guys.

MAJOR UPDATE 1.3.0 NOTES

While the 1.2.5 series of updates were meant to be, essentially, the end all be all of minor corrections and concrete improvements, the past few weeks have meant enough rethinking that it's worth to push one last revision for the demo. Unless the current build requires any hotfixing, its current state can now stay put until the coming of a future release, should it happen at all.

FIXES:

• Fixed a partial, leftover glitch from 1.2.5+ that caused the chatbox to flicker between at end of a dialogue branch.
• Tweaked the hard pauses during dinner to better coordinate with the scene's cinematic setup.
• Tweaked a couple of sprite emotions in specific scenes and moments.
• Too many minor style corrections to count.

ADDITIONS:

• The prologue now carries its proper name: To Die a Stranger, the demo being only the first segment of its plotline.
• The date intro has been polished and updated to reflect this.
• Most lore entries, specifically radio-dependent ones, have been overhauled with additional information reflecting the current state and detail of the One Spirit timeline's (OSPTL)'s lore.
• In specific points of the game, minor instances of branching dialogue have been added to allow better control of pacing, allowing you to cut some conversations short or drag them out. This is part of our design shift towards heightening player interaction, customization and also retention during longer gameplay periods.
• A few subtle dialogue triggers have also been added to reflect choices like these.
• Certain parts have had their textual length culled.
• Following the example of 1.2.0+, we have continued fusing previously standalone lines for consistency and pacing. One Spirit's interface and literary design requires these adaptations.
• The narration's font size has been reduced to allow for this approach.
• The epilogue has been entirely overhauled to set the true tone of the full game's grit and character.