- Early Access release delay into 2027 + Demo Update 0.3.32 - 3 October 2026
Hello fishers :)! I hope you've been doing well! The last update was a while back, about 3 1/2 months ago, but the new update is finally in a state where it can be released. I also have to announce that the game is being delayed into 2027. To be clear, the Demo stays up and will keep getting updated. But once again, I'm really sorry. And I recently needed a couple days to be honest with myself about it. There are multiple reasons for the delay, but mainly that the game is just not ready. It needs more fixing, more systems, more content. On Discord, Golditale and Callista have been contributing with beautiful 3D models of Riftlings and NPCs that you haven't seen yet and Mohundy has been helping out greatly too as well as our moderators and community support members! But for programming it all, I'm still just one person. I have a date in mind that lies in the first half of 2027, but I don…
- Demo Hotfix 0.3.30.2 - 24 June 2026
Hotfix 0.3.30.2 liveAnother color hotfix. Fixed: Picked colors shouldn't update incorrectly anymore (if you typed in a value, sometimes the color changed slightly)Fixed: "Painting cursor size sets to default after changing palettes"Potential fix: Sometimes customization parts like ears would reset their color. I've stumbled upon the most likely cause. This should hopefully also be fixed now. Much love
- Demo Hotfix 0.3.30.1 - 23 June 2026
Hotfix 0.3.30.1 liveA small hotfix about colors. Plus I want to mention that I know the new props can be used in ways that can harass somebody else. It was a conscious trade-off I did to add some more content before the new world prop system gets implemented. The new system will provide more options and deal with cases like placing an item over a player, or blocking a certain spot or trapping a player. For now please use the Kick feature and as a host give others Moderator permissions so that they can kick a player who doesn't stop. Kicking will remove the players props from the world. If it does turn out to be too much trouble before the new world prop system, I'll add something (it's just that whatever I built will get replaced again, so it costs time). Also, I'm loving all the new screenshots and videos in the Discord! Also about the "No Eye Blinking" option: I'm aware the new option…
- Early Access release delay into Q4 2026 + Demo Update 0.3.30 - 22 June 2026
Update 0.3.30 live & Early Access release delay into Q4 2026 Hello fishers :)Q4 2026 delay Unfortunately I have to announce another delay, and once again I apologize. It's not like too much has changed from the previous delay, and most of the current progress is visible in the Demo itself, which will keep staying up. But I would like everyone to have a great time with the initial Early Access release. And giving myself some more time to properly develop the needed systems and especially content, as well as polishing and bugfixing, seems to be the best path to get there. I'd rather announce it now, than late again. The work holidays I've had recently were productive, but I also spent a lot of time simply doing nothing, staying away from the computer and trying to relax. I'm convinced the delay is best for the game and community. If the game releases in a better state, I believe the commu…
- Demo Update 0.3.29 - 7 June 2026
Update 0.3.29 liveHello fishers! :) Happy Pride Month everybody! Screen Percentage can now be set to as low as 25% for weaker hardware. Lower values cause visual problems and I'd need to look more into it. Very low values don't automatically result in a pixelated style.Fixed: Some equipment effect texts wrapping into a second line if the number is too large Much love
- Demo Update 0.3.28 - 7 June 2026
Update 0.3.28 live Edit: I just noticed these patch notes never got published one week ago D: Sorry! Hello fishers! :) Here are some more painting updates! For now I'm making a cut for painting features here and next work on the lobby and migration issues in regards to failing to join, seeing old data, players disappearing from the lobby list and hopefully one or two adjacent features in the process. Painting disconnects and missing strokes fixed, plus other small painting fixesNew painting canvas history view and sequence savingNew Painterly style post process effectCustomization menu also features quick-save to palette nowSmall fixesPaintingFixes:The rare disconnects caused by painting should be fixed now. Instead of sending the next batch of paint data after 100ms, the system will now wait for the client to confirm that the data was received successfully and only then send new data.…
- Demo Update 0.3.27 - 24 May 2026
Update 0.3.27Hello fishers! :)This update has a focus on bugfixing, polish, painting and improving the atmosphere with new effects and critters. It's an accumulation of all the 0.3.26 public test versions that have been on the public test branch for the last weeks. There are still some (old) issues to iron out, but this update has been sitting in the public test branch for too long. Some of these issues are: Player entries disappearing from the lobby listSometimes not being able to rejoin a lobby after leaving. The game might then say "\ has kicked \", without it being true.Canvas painting or chat logs not clearing out when leaving a game and making a new lobby or single player game (in these cases, old data doesn't get cleared out. It doesn't pull data from a different lobby)This update has automatic paint syncing disabled, since it lead to some players disconnecting (too much painting…
- Early Access release delay into Q3 2026 + Instrument news - 11 May 2026
Hello fishers! :)I was going to post this announcement in combination with a bigger update, but I'm still working on it. That update has a big focus on bugfixing, painting and better atmosphere through improved visuals, new effects and critters. If you are interested in seeing the update early, you can opt into the public test branch on Steam by using the code "benchstacking" (Right-click Demo > Properties > Game Versions & Betas > type the code into the "Private Versions" field. The patch notes are in Discord under #dev-updates or #demo-public-test. I know not everybody uses Discord, but currrently it would take me too much time to compile these public test patch notes properly and keep them up to date on Steam as well. I'm aiming to have patch notes in general soon shown in-game as well. For safety you should back up your save files (in C:\\Users\\Username\\AppData\\Local\\RiftFishing…
- Demo Update 0.3.24 + 0.3.25 - 12 April 2026
Hello fishers :)! Update 0.3.24 liveThis update mainly adds player storage, item renaming and item history. I'm currently focusing on some core systems like these that will be important to work for Early Access and make a lot of sense to fish-battle test now. StorageClose to each shop is a big storage chest. Interact with it to open your global storage.Storage starts out with 2 storage tabs (max 8) and 70 slots each (max 350 each). Both can be upgraded and the tabs can be renamed.With storage open there are new context menu options for: Storing, taking and storing all / taking all.You can shift-click items to quickly move them over to storage / inventory.You can't do any use / learn / equip context commands for items in storage.Item renaming & historyThe shop has a new item: Scribeseal. You can use it to rename any non-stacking item, by dragging the item into the popup window. You can r…
- Demo Update 0.3.21 - 3 April 2026
Hello fishers :)! Update 0.3.21 liveGeneralAdded: "Turn In Place" feature to turn your character by 180°. It's bound to Middle Mouse Button by default.Changed: "Reset Camera" is now unbound.Fixed: Spinball should be a bit more frame performant if there are thousands (added LODs). They also have less network overhead and go dormant (no network cost) when not moving. It's surely also the amount of spinballs (thousands in one map) that causes frames to drop, but before I limit the amount of spawnable objects, I'd like to see how far performance improvements go.Fixed: Standing in the middle of Heartlake (on a bench) won't trigger cave lighting anymore.Fixed: Rift notification in the top left appears reliably for clients now.Fixed: Can't use "Interact" (usually E or LMB) through confirmation boxes anymore. Preventing accidently closing menus like shops. LobbiesAdded: Lobby renaming with simp…
- Demo Update 0.3.17, 0.3.18, 0.3.20 - 1 April 2026
Hello fishers :)!Today 0.3.20 is going live, but here is also a catch up with the 0.3.17 and 0.3.18 patch notes Update 0.3.20 liveIt's April Fool's! I've prepared a small surprise: A new Riftling + Quest (dangly attachment reward) has been added, the fish jingle is especially nice on this one.New inventoryThanks to everyone who tried out the new inventory in Discord #demo-public-test ! Warning: If coming from 0.3.18 your inventory contents will be jumbled a bit! The new inventory comes with better performance, visuals, 7 hotbar slots / inventory columns, a context menu (favorite, lock, set custom flags, discard etc.), sorting a cleaned up shop with more functionality and a proper buyback system. Items are now marked as owned and the currency is now officially called "Coins". The "Tier" stat has been removed from items. The 3D item preview looks correct now. There are now 3 loadouts for…
- Demo Update 0.3.16 - 12 March 2026
Hello fishers :)!This time local chat is being added!Update 0.3.16 liveLocal chat has been added. A very faint ring appears while typing, indicating the range.Following hats can now have multiple colors: Alien Antenna, Baseball Hat, Top Hat, Winter BeanieFixed: Muted & Blocked players's emotes, expressions and PocketPal indicator can't be heard / seen anymore.Small fixesHappy fishing!
- Demo Update 0.3.14 + 0.3.15 - 11 March 2026
Hello fishers :)!Update 0.3.14 liveThis update is focused on player safety, since we have seen an uptick in player reports.A friendly reminder to keep things welcoming for everyone: Rift Fishing is a shared space, and we want all players to feel comfortable here. Treat public lobbies as public spaces. Hidden, Friends Only and Invite Only lobbies are better suited for hanging out on your own terms. Lobbies will now show if they are 18+ next to the Lobby Type in the lobby menu (P).Added a simple profanity filter to the chat settings. This is defaulted to on. This filter will be improved and expanded with time.Players who get warned, or suspended from online lobbies, will now get an in-game notification.Regular fishing rod is now free, so players can't accidently lock themselvesUpdate 0.3.15 liveFixed: /me command works with profanity filter onChat settings icon is now a gear symbol Just a…
- Rift Fishing is part of the Women's Day Sale - 6 March 2026
Hello fishers :)!We are proud to announce that Rift Fishing is a part of Steam's Women's Day Sale event! Please feel free to give our Demo a try! :)You can find the sale with more free demos and games up to 90% off by clicking here!And our Demo can be found here:Happy fishing!
- Rift Fishing Demo Gameplay Livestream - 6 March 2026
Hello fishers :)!Streaming some pre-recorded Rift Fishing Demo gameplay throughout the next weeks while some events are running!
- Demo Updates 0.3.6 to 0.3.13 - 6 March 2026
Hello fishers!Here is a list of updates that have happened in the recent week:Hotfix 0.3.6 liveOne new tier 3 fish addedBoat has now 3 modes: Stopped, normal speed, fast speedBoat has smooth movement between start / stop / speed upPlacables can now be on the boat, introducing the first moving light sources (campfire on wooden boat, what could go wrong!)Fixed 'Fortune' effects missing their tooltipFixed kick/ban buttons showing up for players who are not admins (the buttons didn't trigger anything)Fixed saved images not being named correctlyAdded chat button: Collapse and Expand. A collapsed chat still lets you type, for speech-bubble-only communicationAdded toggle: hide player names + speech bubbles with F2 (if the host uses this, their own name will be hidden for everybody, this will be fixed)Hotfix 0.3.7 liveSecurity stuff: After last night I focused on checking all things security, f…
- Demo Hotfix 0.3.2, 0.3.3, 0.3.4, 0.3.5 - 25 February 2026
Hello fishers :)!There have been some hotfixes for the Demo of which I haven't posted the patch notes yet on Steam discussions, plus hotfix 0.3.4 released just now.The most important bits might be better networking for characters, the boat moves smoothly now, as does the Spinball Toy (even tho it still has some multiplayer desync problems), as well as bunny sounds.Hotfix 0.3.2 liveThe blue cat is back, despite improving the networking (I've never made a networked game before :s). I'll implement a crude fix for now, that will periodically and after certain actions update the player customization. This way player customization should fix itself over time, keeping the blue cats at bay. After some testing today, I think I found the problem, but it will need more time to properly fix. If you do see the blue cats, you can try typing "/updateall" into the chat box to update all other players a…
- Demo live, save games & hotfix - 23 February 2026
Hello fishers! :)The Demo is live! I've noticed too late that the Demo save files share the same location as the Playtest save files. It shouldn't cause any major issues to keep your old save file, but if you experience issues with inventory or settings, then please create a new character.You can find your save games in the folder C:\\Users\\Username\\AppData\\Local\\RiftFishing\\Saved\\SaveGames Here you can also completely delete save files, or even delete the Options.sav to reset your general options in case something is acting up here. Happy fishing!This delayed announcement also comes with the first hotfix: Hotfix 3.0.1 liveFixed: Selecting Day/night time does not workFixed: "Control stuck after opening UI with Q and closed with Esc while fish is caught". This also fixes the "fish caught" window and/or animation being stuck when having the Options / PocketPal menu open or simlar. P…
- Rift Fishing Demo in 2 days - 21 February 2026
Hello fishers! :)The Rift Fishing Demo is very close! Specifically on Monday, February 23rd, 2026 03:00 AM PST.I'm sorry that it has been so quiet from my side, but a lot has been happening behind the scenes. My full-time job holidays ended shortly after the playtest and that job is currently taking quite a bit of time away from developing Rift Fishing. Things have been pretty stressful and I needed every minute I can get to focus. I won't be able to reply to questions for now, while I'm still working through the weekend.In regards to the Demo itself, expect it to be a more polished version of the Playtest. The focus was on bugfixing, especially for networking / multiplayer and a fishing minigame rework. Not all known bugs are fixed. There's a bunch of other smaller additions and quality of life features.I'm still working full steam on the Demo itself and will also be patching and updat…
- Steam Playtest 1-day extension - 11 January 2026
Hello fishers! :)Thank you all so much for playing and testing the game! So many bugs have been found already, that we're getting many, many duplicate bug reports. Don't worry for now in regards to reporting more of them! If you have trouble joining your friends, please use public lobbies for now!Also feel free to join our Discord (https://discord.gg/riftfishing), there are many helpful community members and the most up-to-date information. It's very late here and I'd just like to announce that with the amount of active players the Playtest will be extended by one day, exactly 24 hours. That means until 06:00 AM EST / 11:00 AM GMT of the 13th of January.Much love
