- The Diorama Break Demo is now on Linux + 1.4.0 Changelog - 9 September 2026
Hey hey everyone! Another month (ish), another Diorama Break update! The main highlights are:A new update with improved performance and Linux/SteamOS support!We're hiring!You can read the full news post here.1.4.0 ChangelogMigrated backend to SDL3 and overhauled renderer, greatly improving performance. Thanks to that and several other performance optimizations, the game should now run without issue on almost any device that supports Vulkan or DirectX 12 (basically any consumer PC released in the last ~10 years). See new minimum performance requirements on the store page for more detail.Native Linux support.Eliminated stage camera jitter at higher resolutions.Fixed an issue with enemy AI not being able to read player actions more than one step ahead.Fixed an issue where the warning marker would appear erroneously if a player unit was immediately targeted by an attack on the first turn of…
- The Diorama Break Demo is now Open-Source + 1.3.0 changelog - 22 July 2026
Open Source Demo!That’s right! As part of our first Kickstarter stretch goal, we promised to open-source the demo for everyone, and it's now out! Read all about it here.ChangelogAs part of this release, I took the time to clean up and rework a lot of backend stuff; here's the full changelog for Demo Version 1.3.0:Added support for custom fan localizations. Simply add one to the new "dialogues" folder in the installed build folder before launching the game in order to use it. (Right click on the demo in your library > Properties > Installed Files > Browse... > dialogues). Custom dialogue can run engine functions and potentially corrupt your save file, so make sure you trust whoever gave you the custom localization file!Several backend upgrades and stability changes.Deleted several unused assets from final build.Parallelized or deferred several startup tasks, significantly improving start…
- Less than 24 hours left to support Diorama Break on Kickstarter!! - 29 May 2026
Now's your last chance to get special kickstarter rewards and pricing; we've got a whole bunch of stretch goals left, so help us get there!See the full campaign here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/massimog/diorama-breakRemaining Stretch Goals
- Diorama Break's Kickstarter is 100% Funded!! Thank You!! - 19 May 2026
Thank you all! I can't wait to show you what we have in store for this game!The campaign isn't over yet though, and we've just revealed some new stretch goals!! Read all about it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/massimog/diorama-break/posts/4694962
- Demo Version 1.1.1 + 1.2.0 Changelog - 18 May 2026
1.1.1:Fixed a minor UI depth-sorting issue during timestop transition.Tweaked some tutorial dialogue.1.2.0:Significant improvements to Combat UI/UX:Action target previews are now slightly differently colored when previewing a startup step, and will show a faint afterimage if previewing a step after they trigger.Danger indicators will now show if a player unit is predicted to take a hit at any point prior to the current previewed step (instead of just the current one), and will indicate where along that unit's movement path the hit will occur (including during movement aiming).Reactive units will update their plans during the player aiming step, no longer requiring you to queue an action to see how they'll react.When a unit is selected, the preview step will account for their initiative and preview the board state immediately after the triggering of their last queued action, instead of t…
- Demo Version 1.0.15 + 1.1.0 Changelog - 13 May 2026
1.0.15Removed a stray root that you could get stuck in from a combat arena in Iris Forest1.1.0Fixed an issue with fonts missing a french character.Fixed a minor issue with dialogue flow in the demo's epilogue.Several dialogue typos fixed.Fixed an issue where the title screen menu would sometimes fail to reappear after choosing to take a break after a game over.Fixed an issue where multiple item collection popups in a row would fail to all display.Added a better explanation for combat turn sequencing to the tutorial.Added new tutorial text after failing the tutorial once.Added a couple more lines to the tutorial related to undoing actions and moving the camera.
- New Designer Reward Tiers Now Available on Kickstarter! - 7 May 2026
Announcing the addition of new "designer" reward tiers to our Kickstarter campaign!! More opportunities to get your ideas included in Diorama Break!Read all about it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/massimog/diorama-break/posts/4684466
- Kickstarter Devlog: How Diorama Break's Dialogue System Works - 3 May 2026
I've uploaded a new devlog to the blog discussing how Diorama Break's dialogue system was made, check it out here!If you'd like to vote on the next devlog's topic, you can do so on our kickstarter page!
- Demo Version 1.0.12, 1.0.13, and 1.0.14 Changelog - 1 May 2026
1.0.12Improvements and edits to French dialogue + a few minor tweaks to English as well.Final Boss now proceeds to next phase if no hits occur for a while.Minor fix for certain promo dialogue1.0.13Fixed a serious issue where player would be locked facing one axis when moving with the gamepad analog stick.1.0.14Added a small message at startup recommending keyboard and mouse controls.Fixed a couple of minor tree layering issues in Iris Forest.A special connection can now be made by pressing the gamepad sticks.
- Diorama Break is now LIVE on Kickstarter! - 28 April 2026
Click here to check it out!Let's all work together to make this project a big success!Can't back, but want to help the project anyway?Wishlist, follow, and leave a review on the demo's steam page!Share the trailer with your friends!Subscribe to our mailing list! We've also uploaded demo version 1.0.12 with minor some updates to dialogue!
- Demo Version 1.0.10 + 1.0.11 Changelog - 19 April 2026
1.0.10Fixed a specific piece of library text.1.0.11Some dialogue typo fixes.Improved the player's facing behavior when rubbing up against a wall, especially when using a gamepad.Added a small additional save point in Iris Forest.
- The Diorama Break Demo OST is now available! - 17 April 2026
Download it here!https://dioramabreak.bandcamp.com/album/diorama-break-demo-ost-first-breakWe'll also be uploading it to Youtube over the next week and a half in anticipation of the Kickstarter! Check out the first track here:Thanks again to dante (https://soundcirclet.net) for mastering everything and putting it all together (and, of course, for composing all the music!)
- Demo Version 1.0.8 + 1.0.9 Changelog - 15 April 2026
1.0.8Fixed a potential GPU memory leak related to combat target previews.1.0.9Minor enemy AI fix.Another slight balance tweak for final boss.Fixed an issue where auto-advancing dialogue would not show up in the log.UI code stability tweak to mitigate a crash potentially related to gamepad shortcuts.
- Demo Version 1.0.6 + 1.0.7 Changelog - 14 April 2026
1.0.6Fixed a crash that occurred when dying more than once.Fixed an issue where you could not enter the same player name(s) between runs.1.0.7Removed an warning that was spamming the debug logs.Further balance changes to final boss to prevent unintentional softlocking.Slightly changed final boss attack names.
- Demo Version 1.0.4 + 1.0.5 Changelog - 11 April 2026
1.0.4Fixed a cutscene in Pro's house triggering incorrectly after being defeated in combat.Slightly increased selectable radius of actions select buttons.1.0.5Fixed an issue where the first game over message would always play even on subsequent game overs.Player stats now update properly immediately when changing equipment.Fixed an area in iris forest using an incorrect footstep surface.Fixed a possible softlock that could occur after walking back out of a cutscene trigger in the training area.Couple dialogue typos fixed.Enemies now take their targets bumping into them into account when targeting attacks, mitigating degenerate bump strategies against reactive foes.
- Demo Version 1.0.3 Changelog - 9 April 2026
Shortened some action descriptions that struggle to fit on screen.Enemies will no longer wait until the last possible moment to interrupt attacks targeting them.Fixed issue where full aim range (rather than just the aiming bounds) would show up when targeting the action as well.Movement actions now always show their full aim range when targeting too.Movement actions no longer show an attack preview on the grid.Fixed a few dialogue typos.Tweaked spacing for certain menu elements and shortened certain action descriptions.Fixed an issue where the first reactive timeline pip during the final boss would render as committed.An important choice can now be made with the space barFixed an issue where the game would softlock immediately after reviving a party member
- Demo Version 1.0.2 Changelog - 8 April 2026
Fixed a crash after beating PolemaFixed an issue that was causing music to reset erroneously during a stage transitionFixed an issue where combat music in iris forest would not loop after a phase transition if near the end of the loopFixed a missing title for a rest point dialogue causing a crash
- The Diorama Break Demo is now on Steam! - 8 April 2026
The full, finished, still-entirely-too-full-of-compromises Diorama Break demo is here!And in case you didn't notice, there's also a shiny new trailer up on the store page!A huge thank you to everyone who played and left feedback on the beta! Many of the improvements since February would likely not have happened without you. While I'm sad I wasn't able to get to everyone's feedback (especially for more recent respondents), you've all given me a lot to think about for the full game.While there's still a ton that could be improved with this demo, I've committed to not letting the "good enough" be the enemy of the "totally shippable bro". With that said, and even if I'll probably still be working on this demo for weeks to come, this is nevertheless a version I'm truly proud of and ready to share far and wide.And speaking of the full game, I can finally confirm that we'll be launching a Kick…
- The Diorama Break Chapter 1 Demo is out now on Itch.io in OPEN BETA! - 21 February 2026
While the full game is still in early development, over the past 14+ months we've been working hard on a demo of the game's first chapter. We're happy to announce that this demo is now available in OPEN BETA on Itch.io: https://massimog.itch.io/dioramabreakWhile this version of the demo is fully playable from start to finish, some polish, balance tweaks, and quality of life features are still forthcoming (particularly audio improvements). Once these planned changes and player feedback has been implemented, a full demo release is planned for Steam sometime in March!Look forward to it!
- PAX West 2025 Retrospective - 4 September 2025
I'm back home after presenting Diorama Break at PAX West; the show was a big success, launching us from complete unknowns to almost 1000 wishlists on Steam! To celebrate our new followers, I thought I’d write up a quick retrospective while the trip is still fresh in my mind, for those curious about what something like this looks like from the developer’s POV.Read the full retrospective here: https://blog.massimogauthier.com/p/pax-west-2025-retrospective
