The Apex (0.4.0) released for PUBLIC!

After a long gap, The Apex returns with a massive update! The original scale for this update was much, much smaller but as you will see, this update alone has received more content than all previous updates combined! I intended to release 0.4 with the wrap up of the intro (which was also on a much smaller scale) along with a few story events mainly revolving around the 2 characters Joanne and Stacy (around 6 different events shared between them), but the update kept getting bigger and bigger as I worked on it.

As it is now, update 0.4 is releasing with over 30 different events between 9 different characters! That's not even mentioning the full implementation of an explorable open world with a dynamic day-to-night system! As it is now, there are 5 major locations to explore, each with many sub-sections! The characters you meet in this world will have their own schedule and locations they tend to visit so make sure to look for them! That's not to mention the MASSIVE art update, where I have gone through and majorly improved the art for every single character in the game!

A phone system was also implemented to help you navigate the world of Daylight City! You can message, receive messages or even call different love interests that you will encounter! The phone also provides a hint system for each character's story, so make sure to check there if you can't progress with a certain character. Not to mention an inventory system (which I had to learn to create from scratch) was added, which was supposed to work in tandem with a new system where you could collect wildlife as they dynamically grow around the world to store them and potentially use them as gifts, although this is quite restricted at the moment due to the lack of time to fully apply them to gameplay! Expect them to play a major role in future updates! Last but not least, the game is fully audio-supported! All the crunchy sound effects are mixed and mastered by me so it's all original work here, baby! That and also a few new music tracks that I am personally quite fond of, but do tell me if you disagree :P

Links to download the game (~400MBs):

Windows: MEGA Pixeldrain GoFile

Mac: MEGA Pixeldrain GoFile

It is REQUIRED for you to start the game from scratch! If you play an old save, expect to run into A LOT of bugs!

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Full Changelog:

-Completion of the intro! A lot of dialogue rewrites and new scenes were added/changed within the "intro" section. A whole new "park" event with its own location and cutscenes was created for early game. There was also a new minigame added when you face SuperSonic in the intro

-Full implementation of an open world, with a unique day and night system. Time of day changes dynamically and also changes the environment around you, while also being tied to certain events that are time sensitive! The locations you explore all have unique sounds and events tied to them, with an explorable environment that allows for more development in the future

-Over 30 different story events for up to 9 characters. Joanne, Stacy, Imani and Nia have received the most attention for this update, with each of them having at least 4 different events, all with their unique cutscenes and dialogue

-A complete update for the artstyle! Every single character received a massive update to their art making them look so much nicer!

-Many new cutscenes, each with dozens of hours of sweat and tears poured into them

-A brand new phone system with dynamic text messaging, phone calling and a hint system for each character! You might receive text messages from certain characters at different times of days, or they might not send you anything at all if you haven't gotten close enough to them yet

-An inventory system that allows you to store items you collect throughout the world (will be much more dynamic in future updates)

-Certain items could "spawn" within the world over a certain amount of days. You could then collect and store these items, which could be used as gifts in the future (not fully implemented yet)

-Fully implemented audio, with over 40 sound effects, 10 sounds and 5 new music tracks!

-A complete code rehaul behind the scenes which will allow for an easier time working on future updates (still currently updating it every day)

-Many, many bug fixes and dialogue changes. Too many to even name here

Thank you for trying the game out. Please support it in anyway you can, even if you can't do it financially! Maybe give it good ratings on different forums and spread the word about it! Thank you for your time!