Hey Gardeners, 
With the first playtest just around the corner, we've been busy putting the finishing touches on the test build. This is the very first time we're handing Never Wither to players, and honestly, we're both excited and a bit nervous. 
Over the past few months, we've repeatedly tweaked systems like Creature Companions growth and the pace of combat, and even scrapped a bunch of designs that we once thought were "pretty much done." Even so, this playtest is still an early version in active development, with many features still in a prototype stage—including the things mentioned below, which may change as development continues. So for this dev note, we wanted to give you a deeper look at where Never Wither stands right now:  

The Valley Fog Is Lifting 
This playtest build is expected to have about 3–5 hours of content. Of course, if you want to explore every corner of the map, collect and raise every Creature Companion, you might spend even more time. The area open for this test is "Verdant Valley"—yep, the "Valley" finally has its official name. As the first place you'll step into on Edda Continent, it features the gentlest ecosystem: rivers wind through lowlands and forests, settlements cluster along the banks, and a host of creatures roam the river beaches and woods. Verdant Valley covers about 20% of the full map's area.  

The ecosystem of Verdant Valley is basically in place—19 core creatures inhabit the region, with some species spawning mutated individuals, and 2 even more mysterious creatures that you might stumble upon traces of during your adventures. Besides that, there are 4 regional Bosses waiting for your challenge, and 8 types of Territory Facilities you can build. You'll get to experience the game's core gameplay, including: open-world exploration, resource gathering and management, home building in your Territory, collecting and raising creatures, and action combat with possession mechanics.  

The Protagonist Is Learning to Speak More Languages (But Still Not Perfect Yet) 
For the test version, we're supporting three languages: English, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. We're also experimenting with basic support for other languages, but there are still some issues with translation accuracy and UI adaptation. We can't guarantee the final quality just yet, so other languages might not be available in this test. If you're interested in helping us improve localization, please feel free to reach out—by launch, the game will support more languages!  

Some Things Arrived Early, Others Need a Bit More Time 
During a few rounds of internal testing, we realized that opening only a single region affected the overall density of the ecosystem and exploration. So we reworked part of the creature and feature rollout plan—some content is being unlocked ahead of schedule, while other things are being held back for now.  
First up, the ecosystem of Verdant Valley has been expanded:  
To make the ecosystem feel more complete, we've added four new creatures: Dewdrop, Treechelone, Shriekmandrake, and Keen Blader. Their looks and behaviors better fit them into the valley environment. For example:  
Dewdrop: Usually found in moist areas, and has stronger abilities near the water.  
Treechelone: Massive and slow-moving, with some of the best Defense around.  
Shriekmandrake: Can disrupt nearby enemies with its sounds, and you can also use it to easily gather Wood.  
Keen Blader: The valley's most agile predator, with powerful dashing and combo attacks.

Some creatures have had their acquisition methods adjusted:  
To better fit the pace of this test, we've also tweaked the rollout plan for a few creatures.  
Mudball: This one's tied to later-stage farming gameplay, which isn't part of this playtest. So for now, Mudball won't appear. We want players to clearly understand its full function and ecological role when they first meet it. But don't worry—it's already guarding your future farmland somewhere on the Plateau.  
Greymane Warrior & Keen Archer: These two were originally planned to debut in the more dangerous Plateau region, but since everyone loves them way more than we expected, we've decided to let you try them out early in this Valley test.  
That said, both have a more complete skill set and are designed for mid-to-late game roles. If players get them too early, it might affect our ability to test the early combat flow and growth curve. So in this test, once the World Tree reaches a designated level, you'll be able to get them directly.  
Of course, this is a temporary compromise, which means Greymane Warrior and Keen Archer will appear in regions that don't quite fit their ecological environment. In our long-term design, they'll both be key members of the Plateau ecosystem, taking on roles like fast regional travel and Territory Conflict.  

Important Note: This Test Is Single-Player Only 
Never Wither will support multiplayer, but for this first closed test, we want to focus on verifying the game's core loop: resource acquisition, combat feel, creature growth difficulty, scene performance optimization, and more. We think that, without help or interference from other players, it'll be easier to see whether these systems are fun and smooth enough. Plus, it means we can start testing sooner—without waiting for every multiplayer feature to be finished. 
If you and your friends both get into the test but can't play together, we get that it's a bit disappointing. But rest assured, multiplayer is one of the most important future directions for Never Wither. We're already working on features like co-op BOSS fights, Clan collaboration, Territory Conflict, and more—these will gradually roll out by launch.  

Every Creature Will Be More Unique 
Beyond the ever-improving ecosystem, we've added a bunch of new systems and features to Never Wither. Some are designed to make the relationship between you and your creatures more meaningful; others are about adding more variety and personality to exploration and combat. 
The protagonist can now customize their appearance! You can tweak things like body shape, eyes, and some local ornaments. The options are still limited for now, but we hope every Gardener can feel a sense of identity during this first playtest.  

Even within the same species, every creature will have different Aptitude—some excel in combat, others in Production Efficiency. So each creature you collect could have unique training value.  

As they grow and fight, creatures will gradually gain new abilities through Insight. By mixing and matching abilities, you can create different growth paths and play completely different combat styles.  

Some creatures, after long exposure to Corruption, develop a unique appearance. They can't learn new abilities through growth, but they'll have more dangerous and mutated skills. In some cases, they might even change their normal combat behavior.  

There's also a new Sacred Gear system—craft and equip these to boost your creatures' production, combat stats, or other effects.  

When you challenge and successfully purify BOSSes, you'll also get to learn various Resonance Spells, and can further enhance them through special events.  

The Sun on Edda Continent Seems Brighter Than Ever 
Besides gameplay, we've been working on the visuals and audio for Never Wither. You'll notice the scenery, lighting, and water in Verdant Valley look better than in our early promo art. At the same time, most of the creature sound effects and environmental music are now in place. We want this to be more than just a "playable area"—we hope it's a place you'll want to stop, look around, explore, and maybe even remember.  

The content and scope of Verdant Valley is still pretty limited—this is just a small part of Edda Continent. But we still hope more people can see what this world looked like in its beginnings. There's no NDA for this test—you're welcome to share screenshots, guides, videos, or even stream the game. We're grateful to every player, content creator, and media friend who helps spread the word about Never Wither.  

Finally, the first closed test is getting closer every day. For us, this is a truly important milestone. From this moment on, we'll finally be able to see how players explore this world, build their own homes, and leave behind their own stories. Thank you for joining us so early on this journey. Your feedback will directly shape the future of development. See you in Verdant Valley!