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Project Escher

Versions

Our Game Version History and Release Notes

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Off The Grid: Bad Dream (Project Escher)

Build Version History & Release Notes

Studio: Rare Castle Engine: Unreal Engine 5 (currently 5.8.2) Platforms: PC (Windows). PS5 package (Untested). Status: Demo prototype. Six milestones across two prototyping cycles. Milestones 1 to 4 complete.

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How builds are numbered

MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH-prototype

MINOR goes up when a new system, mechanic or block of playable content is finished and working. PATCH goes up for fixes, stability, polish and packaging. MAJOR stays at 0 until the commercial release, which will be 1.0.0.

Every build carries the prototype tag. The demo works and holds together, but it is not polished, and we would rather say so.

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Version History

First prototyping cycle: the adventure half

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Version	Date	Engine	Milestone	Headline
0.1.0	18 Nov 2025	5.4	1	The Inner Monologue
0.2.0	24 Nov 2025	5.4	2	Dialogue, traffic, interaction, inventory
0.3.0	19 Dec 2025	5.4	3	Vehicle driving, cinematics, van dialogue. Demo 50%.
0.4.0	3 Jan 2026	5.7	3	Half Chapter Demo Release
0.5.0	22 Feb 2026	5.7	4	Possession, the Shadow, the palace room escape. Demo 66%.

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Between cycles: gamepad and stabilisation

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Version	Date	Engine	Headline
0.6.0	12 Aug 2026	5.8	Full gamepad support and project-wide stabilisation
0.6.1	1 Sep 2026	5.8.2	Fixes, engine update, PS5 package

Second prototyping cycle: the action half

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Version	Status	Milestone	Headline
0.7.0	Not started	5	Action-combat prototype
0.8.0	Not started	6	The complete demo prototype

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Release Notes

FIRST PROTOTYPING CYCLE: THE ADVENTURE HALF

November 2025 to February 2026

0.1.0-prototype · Milestone 1: The Inner Monologue

18 November 2025 · Unreal Engine 5.4 · Demo ~17% Devlog · Video

Added

Inner Monologue System. Thoughts, memories and emotional cues the player moves through rather than reads. Fully scripted and voice acted.
Unified first and third person camera, switchable in play
The High Road, the demo’s opening, a road cutting through a forest
The protagonist, the Doomer Man

Known issues

MetaHuman hair lag and stuttering

The first milestone of a planned six, each two weeks long and each ending with a public video.

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0.2.0-prototype · Milestone 2: The World Answers Back

24 November 2025 · Unreal Engine 5.4 · Demo ~33% Devlog · Video

Added

Dialogue System. Characters respond to context, timing and narrative flow.
Vehicle Traffic Simulation, building on the initial system by volunteer contributor Mohamed Rooby
Interaction System for examining, using and activating the world
Inventory System, tied to puzzles and story progression
The Psychic, the second character

Changed

Inner Monologue extended to real-time thought
More accurate vehicle steering
Faster walk and sprint

Known issues

MetaHuman hair lag and stuttering

Finished in one week instead of two.

0.3.0-prototype · Milestone 3: Cinematics, Driving & the Half-Demo Mark

19 December 2025 · Unreal Engine 5.4 · Demo 50% Devlog . Video

Added

Vehicle Driving System. The camper van, drivable.
Van Dialogue System. Conversation inside the moving van.
New cinematic sequences
The Driver, the third character
Expanded story chapter

Fixed

Full bug pass across the first half, tested end to end

Known issues

MetaHuman hair lag and stuttering

The point where separate systems became one connected experience. The first half of the demo is grounded in the physical world. Everything after it moves off the grid.

0.4.0-prototype · Half Chapter Demo Release

3 January 2026 · Unreal Engine 5.7 · Demo 50% Submission announcement . Video

Added

Health System, with a pulse graph in the UI
Main menu, on a C++ front-end framework built by Sayan Nandi
The first half of Chapter One, complete and self-contained

Changed

Engine upgraded from Unreal Engine 5.4 to 5.7

Known issues

MetaHuman hair lag and stuttering

The first build to leave the studio, and the one submitted to the PlayStation MENA Hero Project on 31 January 2026.

0.5.0-prototype · Milestone 4: Possession, the Shadow & the Palace Room Escape

22 February 2026 · Unreal Engine 5.7 · Demo 66% Devlog · Video

Added

The Off The Grid dreamscape, the second half of the chapter begins
The Palace Room of the Pantheon Off The Grid
Soul & Body Possession system
The Shadow, a new character with its own systems
Palace room escape puzzle
New story extending Chapter One

Known issues

MetaHuman hair lag and stuttering

Closes the first prototyping cycle.

BETWEEN CYCLES: GAMEPAD AND STABILISATION

February to September 2026. Continuous work on controller support, stability and fixes.

0.6.0-prototype · Full Gamepad Support & Project-Wide Stabilisation

12 August 2026 · Unreal Engine 5.8 · Demo 66% Announced 15 July 2026 · Article . Video

Added

Full gamepad support across virtually every system, with PlayStation controller icons
Quick Menu, fast access to actions within a controller’s smaller button count
Contextual hints for actions, controls and interactions
Skip cinematics, and skippable intros for levels 1 and 3
Adaptive driving camera that eases back to its resting position
Think button cue when a new idea is available

Changed

Input rebuilt from the ground up across every mechanic
Engine upgraded from Unreal Engine 5.7 to 5.8
Fewer traffic vehicles, for performance and a more believable road
Quieter car engine
Dialogue system enhanced
Stability improvements across possession, the Shadow, interaction and items, driving, dialogue and inner monologue

Fixed

Delay before the opening cinematic
Blurry beards in the opening cinematic
UI blur caused by the upscaler
Lighting during the car conversation
Hair ignoring fog in cinematics
A robotic-sounding dialogue line
Gamepad menu breaking when opened and closed quickly
Hints reappearing after a level restart
Game menu not closing cleanly, or breaking a cinematic if opened just before one
Car speed display staying on screen after leaving the car
A Shadow line playing out of place when the room key is used immediately
Model issues in the room level
Music not keeping up with fast changes
A character’s light flickering while she speaks
Level 2: the final line occasionally playing the wrong voice line

Known issues

MetaHuman hair lag and stuttering

0.6.1-prototype · Fixes, Engine Update & PS5 Package

1 September 2026 · Unreal Engine 5.8.2 · Demo 66%

Added

Animation and locomotion groundwork for the second cycle, not yet active in play
PS5 package, not yet tested on PS5 hardware

Changed

Engine upgraded from Unreal Engine 5.8 to 5.8.2
Inner Monologue now stops when a conversation begins

Fixed

MetaHuman hair lag and stuttering, present since the first build
Player colliding with the vehicle when getting in and out
Think and Forget action controls
Level 3: first inner idea not unlocking after skipping the intro
Level 3: phone ring not triggering if the door was tried before the Shadow conversation ended
Level 3: talk action not appearing at the phone

Known issues

PS5 package untested on hardware

SECOND PROTOTYPING CYCLE: THE ACTION HALF

Announced 14 August 2026. Not yet started.

0.7.0-prototype · Milestone 5: Action-Combat Prototype

Weapons from flintlock pistol to two-handed melee. Bullet-time. A Crystal system that purifies or harnesses. Vessel enemies that fight back. The goal is proof, not polish: the first half proved the dream could be explored, the second must prove it can be fought through.

0.8.0-prototype · Milestone 6: The Complete Demo Prototype

The adventure half and the action half, joined into one complete, playable demo.

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Let’s Get Started

Ready To Make a Real Change? Let’s Build this Thing Together!

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