Thunder Lotus' cozy game about death, Spiritfarer, has a free update available today that introduces a new spirit, the ability to travel at night, and more. Since the game launched in the summer of last year, Spiritfarer has sold over 500,000 copies and was nominated for prestigious awards from some of the industry’s leading events, including The Game Awards. This year, updates to the game have been relatively minor, but today’s content drop, which is the first of the game's major updates in 2021, will change that.
Back in February, the game’s developers made Spiritfarer's roadmap public. It detailed the introduction of several new spirits, the first of which was slated to appear in the spring. In total, Spiritfarer fans can expect to encounter four different spirits this year. The next one is scheduled to arrive sometime in the summer while two more will be debuting in the fall. Each new character will bring with them fresh features, like new boat buildings, and general quality of life updates. Each spirit will also introduce a new facet of the narrative which follows the protagonist, Stella, as she grows food and makes friends with her follow shipmates before ultimately sailing them peacefully into the afterlife.
Developer Thunder Lotus Games released a short introduction trailer today highlighting the new spirit, named Lily, and several changes coming in the free update. The video begins by showing off the expanded fishing feature. Fishing has been an important part of Spiritfarer since launch, allowing players to catch important ingredients to help feed hungry passengers. This recent update now allows players to fish with a friend while the game is in co-op mode. The trailer then turns to focus on the main star of the new content, Lily.
Lily, a shimmering mass of purple butterflies, is sure to bring a particularly personal narrative to the game, since the spirit is Stella’s younger sister. Though Spiritfarer’s subject matter can be heavy, the developers have painted the game’s newest passenger as an uplifting “guiding light.” The enlightening new character will come into the game near the end and, after speaking with Lily, players will be able to navigate the ship at night. Navigating in the dark is not the only change coming to the game; players will be able to see each island’s name while fast traveling, bus stops will be easier to see, and later this summer, Gustav’s reworked story, which earned backlash in its initial form due to its ableist language, will be debuted.
As the first of several free updates coming this year, Spiritfarer’s fresh spring content looks like a great way to tempt players to pick the title up. There are still two other updates coming in the summer and fall that will introduce even more to the game, which might sail the small, indie project past even larger milestones.
Spiritfarer is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Source: Thunder Lotus Games/Youtube