Hello Warriors of Gliese!

We have a small update for you today, addressing an issue that some of you have encountered:

Bug Fixes and Improvements

• Replay Chapter Fix: Resolved an issue where players were unable to access the Latis Caverns level when using the replay chapter feature.

We're committed to delivering the best experience possible in Astor: Blade of the Monolith. Your feedback is invaluable to us, so please continue sharing your thoughts and experiences!

Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication to exploring the world of Gliese with us.

— The C2 Game Studio Team

We are thrilled to share some incredible fan art created by the children of the Astor Dev team! These talented young artists have brought their unique vision of Astor to life, and we couldn't be more proud. Check out their amazing artwork below!

Nico, the son of our engineering lead Esteban, has drawn a powerful image of Astor holding up his sword, ready for battle.

Joel, cousin of our lead level designer Mateo, has captured Astor as seen in the key art with stunning detail.

Sara, niece of our engineer Sebastien, has beautifully depicted Astor next to the sea, showcasing a moment of tranquility in the world of Gliese.

Joel strikes again! He has also drawn Astor mid-attack, perfectly capturing the intensity and action of the game.

Miguel, nephew of our director Luis, has illustrated Astor finishing off an enemy, showcasing our combat

We hope you enjoy these wonderful pieces as much as we do. A big thank you to Nico, Joel, Sara, and Miguel for sharing their talent with us!

Stay tuned for more updates and keep exploring the world of Gliese!


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We're excited to bring you another update for Astor: Blade of the Monolith! This patch includes a variety of improvements based on your feedback and our ongoing efforts to enhance gameplay and balance.

• Weapon Balance: Balanced various weapons, with special attention to the Gauntlets and Hammer. Adjustments aim to improve effectiveness and ensure each weapon feels distinct and powerful.
  
• Construct Companions Enhancement: Adjusted Construct Companions to hit harder and exhibit more aggressive behavior in combat.
  
• Boss Balance Rework: Several bosses have been reworked to provide a more challenging experience, aligning their difficulty better with regular enemies.
  
• Improved Block Responsiveness: The responsiveness of the block action has been enhanced, making parries more accurate and timing-dependent.
  
• Boss Attack Fixes: Fixed issues where some boss attacks could be interrupted unexpectedly, causing behavioral inconsistencies.
  
• Block Drop Construct Adjustments: Increased cooldown and adjusted damage values for the Block Drop construct. Now rewards skilled players with a 1.5x damage multiplier when used with a combo of 10 or higher.
  
• Aerial Combat Adjustments: Melee enemies will no longer throw projectiles while the player is performing aerial attacks, eliminating unfair interruptions.

• New Crystal Life Items: Added new crystal life items to the store:

1. Healing Crystal
   
2. Health Crystal Boost Lv 1, Lv 2, and Lv 3

• New Awakening Tutorial: Added a reinforced tutorial for the Awakening mechanic to provide clearer guidance and understanding for players.

Combat Music Intensity: Adjusted the intensity of combat music to change more gradually based on the number of hits performed in combat, providing a smoother and more natural transition.
Golem King Boss Audio: Improved audio for the Golem King boss encounter for a more immersive experience.
Collision Improvements: Enhanced tree collision mechanics to improve realism and gameplay interactions.

• Challenge and Replay Fixes: Addressed various bugs related to challenges and replay functionality.
  
• Renamed map tab in adventure menu to collectables to better reflect the purpose of this section
  

We're committed to delivering the best experience possible in Astor: Blade of the Monolith.

Your feedback continues to be invaluable to us, so please keep sharing your thoughts and experiences!

Thank you for your support and dedication to exploring the world of Gliese with us.

We are excited to bring you the second update for Astor: Blade of the Monolith! Your feedback has been instrumental in helping us identify and fix issues, as well as improve the game. We hope you continue to share your thoughts with us as you explore the mysteries and dangers of Gliese.


Community Feedback Implementation

• Hammer Rune Ability: Adjusted the hammer's rune ability to be more effective and responsive, ensuring it hits enemies more reliably and faces their direction when activated.
  
• Additional Controller Mapping Presets: Added 2 extra presets based on feedback.
  
• Improved Drowning Mechanics: Falling into deep water no longer deals damage to the player, improving the drowning mechanic for a more seamless gameplay experience.
  
• Enhanced Climbing Sequences: Improved climbing sequences, particularly in the Start Camp level, to provide smoother and more intuitive traversal mechanics.

Bug Fixes

• Cinematic Loops: Fixed an issue where the final cinematic sequence from Kalios to Lyceum could get stuck in an indefinite loop.
  
• Respawn Glitches: Resolved a rare bug where falling into water would cause the player to respawn on top of the water instead of on solid ground.
  
• Character Behavior: Corrected an issue where Zan would walk out of cinematic scenes in Start Camp. Zan will now stay in place as intended. (He's not that shy anymore).
  
• Low Health Warning: Improved the low health status effect to alert players earlier, giving more time to react and heal.
  
• Collectable Items: Fixed the collectable item counting in levels, which previously showed incorrect totals on the map.
  
• Chapter Replay Fix: Addressed an issue in the replay chapter of "Inside the Monolith" during the fight against Haken, ensuring the encounter progresses smoothly.
  
• Fixed the bug with the achievement: Ultimate Life Form not triggering properly at all times. (Players that already bought all the upgrades can unlock it by opening a store and waiting for a few seconds)

We are continuously working on implementing your suggestions and addressing other reported bugs. Your support and feedback are invaluable to us, and we encourage you to keep sharing your experiences as you journey through Gliese. If you can, please leave us a review - it really helps let others know about the game!

You can leave a review here

From all of us at C2 Game Studio and TinyBuild, thank you for your continued support. We look forward to seeing you wield the Blade of the Monolith with newfound power and precision!

— The C2 Game Studio Team

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Follow our socials to get the latest updates on Astor:

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The Latin American Games Showcase is kicking off on June 8th, and Astor: Blade of the Monolith will be one of the highlights. This event will feature a diverse selection of over 150 games created by talented teams from across Latin America, with 73 games carefully curated by industry experts to showcase the region's finest.

June 8th, 10 AM PT (7 PM CEST)

YouTube
Twitch [www.twitch.tv]

https://x.com/LightmancerDev the developer of Bloodrush: Undying Wish, an extremely fast-paced hack n' slash roguelike set in a gothic, undying world.

https://x.com/GhostCStudio the developer of Beacon of Neyda, a side-scroller strategy game where you have to survive waves of enemies while creating and upgrading your base

https://x.com/FannyPackStu the developer of Runa & the Chaikurú Legacy, wherein you uncover the mysteries buried deep in the ruins of the ancient Chaikuru civilization, in a classic and epic 3D platform adventure.

https://x.com/ArcoGameDev the developer of Arco, a dynamic tactical RPG where your decisions shape the story. Three tales forged in bloodshed, laced with magic, and united by revenge.

Also including special guest Carolina Ravassa, a renowned actress known for bringing iconic Latin American characters to life in video games!

Don’t miss the Steam sale running from June 8th to June 15th!

Join us for a celebration of creativity, innovation, culture, and incredible gameplay from the vibrant Latin American gaming community!

Astor: Blade of the Monolith is out now, and we couldn’t be prouder! That said, we feel there are a few things we should go over with everyone!

First of all, Astor is our studio's first PC title and releasing a game like this as an indie studio based out of Colombia isn't easy!

As with any development process there are a lot of things we couldn't put in the game that we had wanted to, but we couldn’t be prouder of our achievements or any more grateful for those of you who have played it!

We also want to thank everyone who has put in a bug report so far, whether through steam or Discord - we’ve been looking at all of them and working hard on fixes, so keep up the good work! We’ve been learning a lot from people’s feedback and reactions so far, and we’ll be announcing news about the next update in the near future!

• You can report bugs through our Discord [discord.gg]
  
• Or through our Steam Forum

Next up we’d like to ask a little favour of everyone who’s been playing Astor: Blade of the Monolith on Steam - please leave us a review! Every review helps get more eyes on the game, and we’d really appreciate it if you could help us out!

• You can leave a review here

Thanks so much for playing Astor, and for all the feedback!

C2 Game Studio

Join Astor, a brave young Diokek warrior, and journey across Gliese to solve the mysterious disappearance of his creators. Face off against the sinister forces at play using your newfound runic power, and discover if the ancient Monolith truly holds the key to saving the future!

A huge thank you to everyone who shared our excitement leading up to this moment! We're incredibly excited to finally share Astor with you all! If you enjoy your adventure through Gliese, please take a moment to leave a review.

https://steamproxy.com/steamstore/app/1989320/Astor_Blade_of_the_Monolith/

Encountered a bug? Head over to the bug-reports channel on Discord[discord.gg] to let us know!

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Each bundle combines Astor: Blade of the Monolith with another action-packed adventure game! Enjoy 15% off each bundle during launch week and 10% off thereafter.


🔷 Astor: Blade of the Monolith + Asterios: Curse of the Stars

Discover the truth behind the city’s curse in this Action/RPG inspired by Greek and Roman mythologies.

https://steamproxy.com/steamstore/bundle/41489/

🔷 Astor: Blade of the Monolith + KAKU: Ancient Seal

Journey through elemental regions with your companion, solving puzzles and engaging in dynamic combat across an expansive open world.

https://steamproxy.com/steamstore/bundle/41966

🔷 Astor: Blade of the Monolith + The Gunk

Revive the planet, eradicate the gunk, and restore nature in this gripping, exploration action-adventure.

https://steamproxy.com/steamstore/bundle/41860/

______________________________________________________________________________________

Follow our socials to get the latest updates on Astor:

X (formerly Twitter)
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Harness the power of the Runic Swarm on an epic quest to solve the mysterious disappearance of Astor's creators, and piece together clues that could change the fate of the world!

• Intense battles against 16 different enemies and 10 formidable bosses across 20+ hours of main story and side quests.
  
• Four unique weapons (Sword, Hammer, Spear and Gauntlets).
  
• Master dynamic skills and combos, summon powerful constructs, and tailor your combat style.
  
• Explore diverse landscapes and uncover remnants left by the ancient creators.
  
• Test your skills in combat challenges and take on the New Game+ mode for an even greater challenge!

https://steamproxy.com/steamstore/app/1989320/Astor_Blade_of_the_Monolith/


Follow our socials to get the latest updates on Astor:

• X (formerly Twitter)
  
• Instagram[www.instagram.com]
  
• Facebook[www.facebook.com]

[discord.gg]

Welcome to our deep dive into the artistry behind Astor: Blade of the Monolith. In this blog, we'll delve into the evolution of the game's art style, the process behind developing characters like Astor, and the challenges and breakthroughs encountered along the way.


The art style of Astor: Blade of the Monolith underwent significant evolution throughout its development journey. Starting with a flat toon style, the team eventually transitioned to a stylized modern rendering approach.

Early inspirations from games like Zelda Breath of the Wild set the tone, guiding the team towards a balance between shapes and color palette reminiscent of that beloved title. However, it was decided that the team wanted to avoid a cell shaded look, and later took influence from Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. That game inspired a shift towards adding more detail and realism while maintaining a cartoon-like visual identity resulting in the game’s captivating blend of modern rendering techniques and saturated toon-like textures that immerse players in a visually stunning world.


Achieving a harmonious balance between realism and fantasy was crucial in crafting an immersive world for players to explore. By employing modern realistic rendering techniques, the team added depth and dimension to materials, enhancing the game's visual fidelity without compromising its stylized aesthetic. Careful tuning of parameters ensured that the game retained its unique style while offering high-definition details akin to modern gaming experiences.


Astor, the enigmatic protagonist of Astor: Blade of the Monolith, underwent an extensive process of development to ensure he felt both unique and integral to the game world.

Iterations were plentiful as the team sought to create an iconic character with whom players could relate. Ultimately, Astor emerged as a Diokek - a reflection of bravery and fragility in a genre dominated by strong heroes.

His design speaks to the essence of humanity, embodying the potential for greatness and the pursuit of dreams.

Character design in Astor: Blade of the Monolith was guided by a desire to ensure each character served a purpose within the narrative. The Diokek were initially conceived as adversaries, but killing them felt really bad, so they evolved into a whimsical and magical race worthy of protection - and the race of the player character.

Conversely, the Hiltsik emerged as twisted versions of the Diokek, their creepy demeanor adding depth to the game's universe. The decision to integrate masks into the characters' bodies further enriched their identities, linking soul to form in a literal and symbolic manner.


The journey of creating Astor: Blade of the Monolith was not without its challenges. However, two significant decisions shaped the game's art style: making Astor a Diokek and incorporating realistic properties into materials. These choices, though daunting, ultimately propelled the game towards its final iteration!

That’s all for our art devlog, keep an eye on all of our social channels to keep up with the latest information on Astor: Blade of the Monolith!

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