As Critter Cove enters Early Access, dev shares roadmap and details of future updates

There are always new games being released which hope to break into the cozy market, and the latest is Critter Cove. The 3D animal-based game takes inspiration from all of the usual titles, and was released into early access on September 10. 

Before the game was even available to play, developer Gentleman Rat Studio revealed some of the updates which have already happened due to player feedback from the demo. It also revealed a roadmap for the game’s first two major updates, set to arrive at some point during early access.

If you’re hoping to dive into Critter Cove and have previously played the demo, you’ll be happy to know that your save file from the demo can carry over into the full game. This is something that the dev team hopes to continue with future updates, although it has been acknowledged that there may be issues with this moving forward. 

Updates to the demo

If you played the demo, you’ll know that there were some pretty standard features which were missing from it. However, the devs have put a ton of effort in to improving Critter Cove in time for the early access launch, with a lot of improvements and adjustments coming as a direct result of player feedback:

• New locations
  • Sunken City
  • Hotter Tropic
  • Boomerang Bay
  • Five Little Crabs
  • Rig’s Outpost
  • Underwater areas to explore
• New quests and critters
• New plants, seeds, and recipes
• Recycler and underwater farming
• Improved and additional relationship building
• Radio to track weather and tourists
• Fins and wetsuits
• Fishing*
• Tourism updates
  • Sales carts
  • New recipes for tourist activities
  • Upgrade and decorate the town
• Additional customization, including a mirror to change character appearance
• Wall and floor customization in player house
• Museum ready for donations
• Clothing and furniture shop

*Gentleman Rat Studio revealed on Twitter that its has removed the Fishing minigame from the early access build for the moment, due to ‘accessibility issues’. You can still fish, just without the minigame aspect. 

First major update

The first major update, which doesn’t have an estimated date of arrival as of yet, will increase the size of Critter Cove by a third, while also introducing further quest lines and other game play features.

Gentleman Rat Studio has said that while this is the planned course of updates over the coming months, there is a possibility that things will change depending on player feedback and priorities as the game goes through early access.

Here’s everything we can expect in the first major update:

• New locations
  • Reflection Pool
  • Research Island
  • Villager Island
  • Botanical Island
• Robo-helpers
• Copperbottom’s Story quest line
• New quests and critters
• Further customization options
• Crafting upgrades
• A whole new museum wing and gift shop
• Control remapping
• Steam achievements
• Options to change who lives in the town
• Bakery and Gym

Second major update

Again, there is no ballpark date for when to expect this second update, but it will add a lot of basic features to Critter Cove, as well as new areas to explore:

• New Locations and points of interest
• Expanded player housing
• Woolington’s Story quest line
• New equipment
  • Sea Scooter
  • Plunger Launcher
  • Metal Detector
• Townsfolk relationship enhancements
  • Seasonal celebrations
  • Birthdays
  • Home visits
  • Nicknames
  • Catchphrases
• Tourist attractions
  • Carnival
  • Ferris Wheel
• Further customization options
• New quests and critters
• Additional weather effects
• New recipes and salvage items
• Boat upgrades, including a new ship type
• Additional town buildings
  • Clinic
  • Dye system at the clothing shop
  • Salon
  • School