- UI fixes - 10 August 2026
Various UI fixes
- Hotfix - 26 July 2026
- wave 1 crash issue - ultrawide monitor issues
- Hotfixes - 24 July 2026
### Hotfix Update - Fixed movement, health, regeneration, and attack-speed upgrades. - Fixed wagers not applying when entering Wave 1; improved descriptions and added favorite loadouts. - Added Seed and wager payout details to the results screen. - Fixed pause/slow-motion movement exploits and HUD currency display. - Improved friendly Bear AI and Steam leaderboard reliability. - Reduced duplicate/Legendary shop offers and temporarily removed Bananammerang.
- The Overjuiced Update - 24 July 2026
THE OVERJUICED UPDATE Hey everyone! The Overjuiced Update is here, and it adds three major new gameplay systems to High Fructose: The Juice System Frog Challenges and Wagers Achievements Improved END-OF-RUN screen LOTS of UI Improvements And probably others I'm forgetting...haha I have also rebuilt the shops, updated the HUD, improved the settings menu, added new progression screens, and packed in a lot of combat and UI polish. Let’s get into it. THE NEW JUICE SYSTEM Juice is a brand-new combat resource that powers your auto-firing weapons. (orange bar in the center of the screen) Automatic weapons consume Juice while they are shooting. When you run dry, they stop firing. To get them back online, you need to get into melee range and cut some fruit. CUT FRUIT > BUILD JUICE > POWER YOUR WEAPONS > GET BACK IN THERE I added Juice because I wanted automatic weapon builds to stay active. As y…
- More optimization, improved game feel - 15 June 2026
**Optimization & Combat Feel Update** Hey everyone, I’ve been working on another update focused on performance and game feel. This update includes more optimization work to help the game run smoother, along with improvements to sword combat. Sword swings now have added camera movement to make attacks feel more impactful and responsive. If the camera swing effect feels too strong, you can tone it down in the settings. You can also turn it off completely if you prefer a more stable camera. Thanks for playing and for all the feedback. More updates are on the way!
- High Fructose is 50% Off During Bullet Fest! - 10 June 2026
High Fructose is 50% Off During Steam Bullet Fest! 🍓 High Fructose is currently participating in Steam Bullet Heaven Fest and is available at 50% OFF for a limited time. I've continued working on performance improvements, bug fixes, balance updates, and new content as development moves toward the full 1.0 release. Thank you to everyone who has played the game, shared feedback, streamed it, or told a friend about it. Your support means a lot and helps keep development moving forward. Enjoying High Fructose? If you've been having fun with the game, please consider leaving an honest Steam review. Reviews help more players discover High Fructose and make a huge difference for a solo developer. Thanks for playing!
- Bitsummit fixes - 3 June 2026
I watched tons of people play at Bitsummit in Japan, so I made some fixes. - made the UI way clearer to complete recipes - performance optimizations - tutorial fixes
- High Fructose Heads to BitSummit Japan! - 3 June 2026
High Fructose Goes to BitSummit Japan! Hey everyone, I wanted to share some exciting news: High Fructose was nominated for an award at BitSummit in Kyoto, Japan! The game did not win but it was a huge honor. Getting to showcase the game in Japan was an incredible experience. I met players from around the world, connected with other indie developers, and even got to meet Ari Gibson, the artist behind one of my favorite games, Hollow Knight. Outside of the event, I explored Kyoto and got to see the area around Nintendo's headquarters, which was a pretty surreal moment for a lifelong gamer. I also visited some incredible temples. One of them made me feel like I had stepped straight into the Fire Nation from Avatar: The Last Airbender. You'll see what I mean in the photos below. I also learned that wagyu beef might be my new favorite food. YUMMMMMMM Thanks to everyone who has supported High…
- Small update - spawn fix and progression ui - 11 April 2026
Fixed an issue with enemies not spawning during the shrine charge objective. I also added a new progression UI to the loading screen. It now shows how far you’ve come, how many waves are left, and which waves have boss fights.
- Adding hand crafted levels and personal update - 10 April 2026
First Update With Some Handcrafted Levels! Movement is a huge part of this game, so I’ve been paying close attention to how the levels affect that. Procedural levels are great because they add variety, but they can also hurt the kind of flow I want movement to have. Handcrafted levels let me shape that experience more intentionally, which means better flow, stronger encounters, and spaces that are just more fun to move through. So with this update, I’m starting to mix handcrafted levels into the waves. I've only added 2 new ones so far but I currently have 5 prototyped and will be adding them soon. That doesn’t mean procedural levels are going away. In fact, after a lot of playtesting, I found they actually make certain objectives more interesting.... especially charging the shrine, since its location can change from run to run. That randomness keeps the objective fresh and makes each r…
- Gamepad updates and life event - 19 February 2026
Gamepad progress: I’ve been ironing out some gamepad issues, and this update includes a chunk of those improvements. It’s not perfect yet, but it’s moving the right way. Personal note: I’ve been a bit slowed down because I had eye surgery after a rare retinal detachment (doctor said it’s super uncommon for someone my age). I temporarily lost vision in my left eye. If healing goes as expected, I should have vision backin my left eye in a couple of months. Hope you’re all doing well!
- Small bug fixes - 2 February 2026
Fixed some minor bugs
- New Wave Objectives System - 31 January 2026
What Changed Before: Every wave had the same goal.... survive and kill enemies until the timer runs out. Now: Waves have different objectives that mix up the gameplay! Available Objectives 🔫 Kill Waves: Eliminate enemies to complete the wave - the classic experience you know. ⚡ Shrine Bubble Charge: Find and charge ancient shrines scattered around the arena while fighting off enemies. Stand near shrines to fill their energy and defend them as they charge. 💀 Survival Mode: Hold out against endless waves 💀 Boss Mode: Kill boss to go faster 🍳 Recipe Rush: Complete recipes to make the wave complete faster.
- New Hub Environment & Tutorial Improvements. Engine upgrade to Unity 2022 - 11 January 2026
Hi, Chris here! This update is a big one... mostly behind-the-scenes improvements that set the game up for much better things moving forward. What’s new: • A brand-new hub environment you’ll notice right away • Tutorial improvements to make onboarding clearer and smoother • A full engine upgrade from Unity 2021 → Unity 2022 Upgrading the engine was a huge undertaking, but it unlocks better performance, stability, and flexibility for future updates. This patch is all about building a stronger foundation so I can keep improving the game in meaningful ways. More visible features are coming soon! Thanks for playing and sticking with the project ❤️ Chris
- Recipe Improvements & Bug Fixes - 2 January 2026
Hey Chris here! Some quick updates here: Recipe Progress Improvements - Recipe progress now persists when switching between recipes. You can now swap recipes mid-wave without losing kill progress. Bug Fixes - Fixed an issue where players could get stuck in certain geometry. - Fixed a bug where completing a recipe kill could incorrectly trigger Overdrive instead of finishing the recipe.
- 🔫 Weapon Handling Overhaul + Huge Performance Boost - 31 December 2025
Hey, Chris here! I just rolled out a gameplay + performance update focused on control, feel, and smoothness: 🔫 Manual Aim for Precision Weapons Some weapons like the AK47.... now use manual aiming instead of auto-aim. It still auto fires but you have to aim. Not everything requires aim, though weapons like the Bear Cannon and Lightning Staff are still fire-and-go, so you can mix high-skill gunplay with more chaotic power weapons. ⚙️ Massive Optimization Pass Big performance improvements across the board... smoother gameplay, faster response, and fewer frame drops. 🛠️ Dozens of Bug Fixes A ton of small fixes and polish that make everything feel tighter and more reliable overall. Jump in, try it out, and let me know how it feels!
- Lots of tweaks - 23 December 2025
- polished tutorial - adjusted default values in settings for new players - added new audio for owl - switch deck continue button on death screen - fixed issues with music speeding up for skulls - made the greed skull scaling more fair - added a ui indicator to show when skull effects are active - fixed negative cash issue in the shop -
- The Juice Update - 22 December 2025
🔥 TLDR – Big Update Highlights Major Glory Kill overhaul – now player-controlled and skill-based Key rebinding is now supported More settings options Separate volume sliders for Music and SFX HUD can now be hidden Movement update Momentum is preserved when jumping Full air control Bunny hopping added (Quake-style, optional but very fun) ----------------------------------- ⚙️ Settings & Quality of Life Updates This update adds a bunch of long-requested flexibility: Full key rebinding support Expanded Settings menu Separate sliders for Music and Sound Effects Option to hide the HUD for a cleaner, more immersive experience Small things, but they go a long way toward making the game feel better to play. ----------------------------------- 🔪 Glory Kill Targeting Update I just finished a major overhaul to how glory kills work, and I’m really excited about this one. The Problem Previously, g…
- Tutorial Improvements & New Hub | 20% Sale Ending Today - 14 December 2025
Tutorial Improvements & Hub Update I just pushed a big tutorial update focused on clarity, pacing, and helping new players get into the flow faster. If you’ve bounced off early before, I’d love for you to give it another try and let me know how it feels. What’s New • Improved tutorial clarity and pacing • Better onboarding for first-time players • Overall smoother early-game flow In Progress I’m currently building a brand-new hub environment. It’s still a work in progress, but it’s shaping up nicely. Sale Ending Soon The 20% sale is ending soon if you or a friend were on the fence. Feedback is always appreciated! It genuinely helps guide development.
- Overpowered level 4 Weapon Update! - 11 December 2025
Level 4 Uber Weapons Update Hey everyone! Quick update on the weapon combining system. The Level 4 Arsenal I've added 7 max-level weapons that you can't buy — you have to earn them by combining: Piercer (AK47 Level 4) – Bullets penetrate infinitely and explode on kills Grizzly Mayhem (Bear Cannon Level 4) – Every 5th shot spawns a MEGA bear Reaper (Shotgun/Blunderbuster Level 4) – Executes the highest HP enemy below 30% health Zeus's Wrath (Lightning Staff Level 4) – Chains to 5–8 enemies and stuns them Phoenix Shuriken (Ninja Star Level 4) – Bounces up to 5 times and sets enemies on fire Nova Cannon (Plasma Staff Level 4) – Fires 10–12 homing pellets at unique enemies Reaper (Shotgun Level 4) – Executes highest HP enemy below 30% health How it works Buy the same weapon twice in the shop and they'll combine into the next level. Keep doing this until you hit Level 4. It's pretty satisfyi…
