Greetings surveyors!

I’m excited to share the Side C preview update for Periphery Synthetic EP. Importantly, it significantly expands the EP with a vast new world, seven new upgrade tracks, and a variety of improvements. It also marks the final development milestone, and the fulfilment of my promise to remake my game S.E.A., before its full release early next year. Continue reading to dive into the update and learn what’s next.

Enjoy!

About the update

This release yet again doubles the size of the EP. Here’s what’s new:

Key features

• Alpha Periphery C. Enter a portal to discover a new water world that can be seamlessly explored from surface to floor. Its dynamic surface features a full daylight cycle with towering waves to conquer. Or dive deeper to survey the floor and maneuver branching caves with echolocation.
• Materials and upgrades. The world includes 10 new materials which are used to craft and upgrade several new systems. Install the Attractors to collect materials from afar, or the Distillery to extract them passively from thin air. Gain the ability to double-jump and drive sideways with the Mulligans and Axes upgrades. And use the Ballasts to quickly ascend and descend through great distances of water.
• Movement enhancements. Walking and driving feel more distinct. Never fall off ledges, and descend carefully down slopes, with more stability on-foot. Driving now feels more reckless and drifts further at faster speeds.
• Destination guide. Never get aimlessly lost again! The scanner now includes a directional cue which points surveyors toward to nearest point of interest. These include portals, caves, and other significant landmarks.
• Objective completion. The EP now has an end state and will play a notification when completed. This is perfect for speedrunners who wish to challenge themselves by completing just the primary objectives—or all the secondary ones too.
• Love elsewhere. Each of the worlds received a graphical upgrade along with some smaller enhancements. Did you know that the portals on Alpha Periphery B now work through a hectometer of sand? Or that the mountains on Alpha Periphery C2 are now twice as vast?

Price increase

The minimum price for Periphery Synthetic EP has increased to $3 USD to coincide with the content expansion. If you have already purchased the EP, then you will receive this update for free. For the next six weeks, please enjoy an introductory sale, where you may purchase the EP at its previous price of $2 USD. Community copies are still available on itch.io to claim the EP and all future content expansions for free.

I hope the new content justifies the price increase. Thanks for your understanding and support.

Feedback welcome

The preview does not release without some areas for improvement. Please let me know if you have feedback on the following items:

• Upgrade costs and the material economy.
• Whether the new world faithfully remakes the source material.
• Optimization issues such as audio stuttering or frame drops.
• Bugs or features behaving not as expected.

v3.0.0 changes

• Side C preview
  • Added new explorable world: Alpha Periphery C.
  • Added ten new collectible materials.
  • Added unlockable Attractors passive ability and upgrades.
  • Added unlockable Ballasts movement ability and upgrades.
  • Added unlockable Distillery passive ability and upgrades.
  • Added audio and haptic cues for new abilities.
  • Added underwater movement mechanics.
  • Added discoverable caves to explore.
  • Added collectible artifacts to caves.
  • Added placeholder text for sixteen new perceptions to reveal.
  • Added preset for Alpha Periphery C to cover screen.
• Core Gameplay
  • Added unlockable Axes ability and upgrades.
  • Added unlockable Mulligans ability and upgrades.
  • Added third-level Cargo Racks upgrade.
  • Fixed bipedal movement to ground when not jumping.
  • Reduced wheeled turning speed on land at slower speeds.
  • Improved slope calculations for drifting and collisions.
  • Standardized jump heights across different gravities.
  • Improved bunnyhopping when thrusters are installed.
  • Increased range of actuators and brakes upgrades.
  • Fixed cached terrain persisting between game states.
• Core Audio
  • Added direction to nearest destination to scanner.
  • Added cues for the Mulligans ability.
  • Fixed a leak with footsteps.
  • Fixed cases where title synth persists when exiting the screen.
  • Optimized and widened the panning model further.
  • Increased interface hum volume.
• Core Interface
  • Added notification when primary objective is complete.
  • Added notification when secondary objective is complete.
  • Added haptics feedback when transforming.
  • Bound gamepad B to open Functions screen.
  • Updated manual to reflect the new features.
• Side A
  • Added portal travel through sand.
  • Added alternative ways to scan celestial objects.
  • Added dynamic scale animation to terrain.
  • Fixed z-fighting between celestial objects.
• Side B
  • Enhanced mountain generation.
  • Added random visual scales to terrain.
  • Fixed z-fighting between celestial objects.
• Miscellaneous
  • Upgraded desktop builds to Electron 28.

v3.0.1 changes

• Fixed a missing material on Alpha Periphery C.

Leaving early access

This update sets the final stages for the EP’s full release in Spring 2024 on itch.io and Steam. The full release will include the text for the 33 perceptions included in the Side B and Side C preview releases. Ideally it will also ship with improvements that weren’t included here, such as enhancements to the audio mix, graphics, game balance, and user interface.

It’s possible that the full release will ship with changes that break existing saves. I promise to be transparent with those items, and find ways to reduce the impacts. Worst case scenario: I might start everyone over with a New Game Plus, where you’ll keep your upgrades but need to start over with exploration and objectives. Primarily this would be needed if changes to the terrain generation would move your discovered locations.

It’s important to reiterate that the full release is not its final release. My greater objective with the EP is to provide a platform for me to periodically expand it with new worlds and ideas. A potential Side D update could include a new moss planet, with a few new upgrades, and release in Winter 2024. These content expansions will always launch with a price increase, but always be free for existing players.

In the meantime, I’m excited to hear your thoughts on the Side C preview. Thanks for playing!

Wishlist on Steam