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Witchfire “The Ghost Galleon” update adds new content

by Adam Cook on April 10, 2024

Early access title Witchfire has added a host of new content via a new update called “The Ghost Galleon”, developer The Astronauts has announced.

The update name (The Ghost Galleon) refers to a new calamity event, which the team describes as: “a spectral ship infested with demonic minions of the Witch”, adding that the update “includes a host of new content, including player classes, fearsome foes, new events, weapons and spells for the preyer’s arsenal, as well as a shop vendor offering novel items”.

Check out the new trailer, showing it all off, below:

Alongside the new features available in today’s patch, The Astronauts team has implemented careful redesigns of Witchfire’s level progression and Calamity systems, based on Early Access feedback. Players will begin the game with souls-style classes, granting boosts to certain stats and unique gear. Classes include Slayer, Berserker, Hunter, Shadow, Saint and Penitent— this final class is for Witchfire veterans seeking an extra challenge.

A new feature, called Gnosis, will allow players to “over-level” (slightly) without a corresponding uptick in enemy difficulty. Gnosis is the preyer’s understanding of dark magic. As this occult knowledge expands, players gain power and uncover hidden paths and events in the game. The update also adds a Calamity Meter on the HUD, which calls attention to player actions (and missteps) that make Calamities more likely.

Adrian Chmielarz, Creative Director and Co-Founder of The Astronauts said: “I like when gameplay matches lore,” adding: “The Witch launches Calamities at preyers as they venture further and further into her realm. The threat of a Calamity is immense, but so is the reward. The witch tends to launch these assaults when players are wounded, at their weakest— which hasn’t always been well-received by players— but this design still feels exciting to me. So we’ve kept the soul of it, but redesigned it to feel more fair. It’s a feature that both teaches you how to play by pointing out mistakes, and motivates you to do better. Yet it’s also an element great players can abuse: trick the Witch into thinking you’re losing, then strike back and reap the rewards. This supports two main pillars of our design philosophy: Competence and Autonomy”.

Here’s a breakdown of the major changes available in the just-released patch, though the team says there is more than this…

3 New Calamities (including the Ghost Galleon)
New Activity: Vault Raiding
6 New Classes
5 New Weapons
4 New Spells (plus 4 redesigned spells)
New Shop Vendor
7 New Magical Items (fetishes, rings, relics)
10 New or Variant Enemies
5 New Events
6 New Traps
Calamity Redesign
Gnostic Knowledge & Level Progression
Quality of Life Updates & Bug Fixes

The full list of patch notes is available on the official blog, here. You can also read our early access impressions, where Mick said: “Witchfire is incredibly polished in terms of mechanics and visuals, and I’ve seen almost no bugs or glitches at all so far. It’s a gorgeous, heavily atmospheric game, and its world is steeped in secrets that will only get denser as we move through early access. Despite only two areas and two story bosses, the way Witchfire handles progression and ramping difficulty is exceptional, offering a genuine challenge while also rewarding even short forays into the darkness. This is one of those early access experiences that make me ravenous for more, and I can’t wait to see what other macabre wonders The Astronauts cook up moving forward”.