V.45 Release! Act 1 - Lantanas - now looks good!

Hello! It's John Bond/Kaimatten, and I'm happy to say that V.45 has been finished!

The biggest thing to say about this patch is that the first act of the Labyrinth, Lantanas, is pretty much where it is going to be for the game's Early Access. There was a lot done regarding the game's art, and a lot of work on remaking how walls interacted with floors and such.

A big, complex addition to the game is MageRot, a sickness that overtakes people who are close to too many magical items. The more Blessings and Artifacts Iris holds, the lower their max HP will be. The first dozen or so powers are free, but eventually players must choose if they want that extra explosion trigger or if they want to keep that extra hit in between healing.

Some systems within the game are too complex for my liking. They get a bit difficult to explain to some players, but also add good depth for other players. I never want a complex system to be too essential for a player that they cannot finish the game without using it, but I also want there to be some complex systems for players who want to play the game at a higher level. Eventually the TIPS screen that was added will be fleshed out more, and we will have an Encyclopedia for those who want to learn intricacies of the game, but a lot is still being balanced and determined.

I'm also happy to show off that our forever part-time worker, Guglielmo, has a bust! Also, that the Dialogue system in game is better looking in general, with higher quality portraits and fonts.

There's a lot of little things to weigh and gauge, and I expect a lot more will change in the patches to come, but still I'm more pleased with the game as every month goes by. Also, more and more there is a higher likelihood of a Kickstarter around the end of Summer or into Fall.

The next patch will focus on making Act 2 look and play well, to be released in mid July. I'll give another update in a couple weeks!

• 🌿 V.45 Changelog: Act 1 Patch🌿
• Iris can now RANK UP after beating the Labyrinth, increasing the Labyrinth's difficulty, and adding more NPC's to find/story interaction. (A little)
•  Added variable: MAGEROT, which limits how many powers Iris can attain. Too many strong Blessings and Artifacts will lower Iris' MAX HP, allowing riskier gameplay but more strength.
• New Rival and Ability: Algol 
•  Act 1 is now nearly ready for Early Access with updated graphics and traps 
• Bust and Dialogue system now better looking
•  Added new MISC Rooms in the Labyrinth, like buying and selling Artifacts, and added some new Blessings and Artifacts.
•  Added Guglielmo and Lamni busts 
•  Remade Iris' Room to be closer to the end goal wanted for it.
• Added ability to RESTART RUN and set MASTER VOLUME in the options menu 
• NPCs can now be talked to in the Lobby (a little)
• Added currency to REROLL choices in Shops and Upgrades 
• Added 3 new enemies to Femoria from @bugbearstew 
• Iris can now gain HYPE by ALMOST getting hit, adding more risk/reward.  
•  Made some UI easier to interact with/understand
• Lots of rough draft art remade 
• Lots of misc effects and shaders to bullets and enemies to make them more noticeable Next Major patch will be focusing on Act 2, releasing in mid July!