- Bug fixes! - 6 May 2026
Fixes inconsistent sizing on VS Resolves some lockups in gameplay Fixes a furniture piece that could not be unlocked Cleared up some low-res sprites for Samar's outfits
- The VVIP Update is Here - 7 August 2025
Hi Spirit Swappers, It’s been an eventful year for our team, launching Spirit Swap, and we’re so happy to share that it’s getting even more exciting! We’ve been working since launch to add a bevy of updates for you to enjoy ~ Our VVIP Update is here! What does that mean?This is a free update for everyone who has the game! Story Mode is getting new (voiced!) content so you can spend a special evening with your fave Demashq residents. Once you’ve completed your 5-heart event with each character, get ready to celebrate a night on the town and FINALLY see 5HAGVISION live ~ fingers crossed no spirits interrupt the show! In addition to that, we’ve got fashion and fresh characters added to Endless Mode and more. Overall, here’s what you’ll find: Head backstage with VVIP tickets! Finally take your bestie (or a hot date) to the show of the season -- that’s right, you’ll get to attend a 5HAG VISI…
- Updated Builds + Froggo News - 27 February 2025
Hi Swappers! We wanted to send an update as we've got some fun tidbits post-launch that we wanted to make sure to share ~ 💗Updated Builds on Steam 💗 We've been able to update both the PC and Mac version of the game with the latest fixes, so we hope you continue enjoy swapping the day away! 🌛 Refreshed Demo now Available 🌛 We wanted to update the demo one last time to reflect the game's current quality and state (our last demo was OLD, y'all). We're happy to say it's up, so if you have a friend you think should give it a try, please send it their way! Please note that, for now, the demo is available on PC only. 🐸 Last Chance to Pre-Order Froggo 🐸 We're just over 50% for the campaign, and thanks to the kind folks at Makeship, we've got an extended timeline! You have until March 3, 2025 to pre-order the Froggo plush. Remember, our goal is 200 minimum orders for the campaign to go thr…
- Bug Fixes & Week 1 Recap! - 11 February 2025
Hi Swappers! It’s been officially one week since you’ve all started swapping ~ we hope you’re having an incredible time! We’ve all been chatting and lurking in streams, watching videos, and taking notes on all of your feedback and reactions to the game, and wanted to share what we’ve been working on in regards to bug fixes and polish since launch. Kickstarter Backers: Let us know if you didn’t get your key! As a general reminder, you should have your Steam keys by now! If you haven’t seen your key yet, please make sure to: Remember if you participated in the Beta ~ if so, you already have your key! Just right click on the game in your library, go to Properties > Betas > Select “none” on the dropdown menu. The game should update to the full release version. Check your spam folder -- it may have ended up there - to help with the search, please note all the keys were send on Feb 3rd! And,…
- 💗🌛 🟢 Spirit Swap is out now 🔥🔷🌸 - 3 February 2025
Hi Swappers! Is it….is it really time? YES! ✨✨✨SPIRIT SWAP: LOFI BEATS TO MATCH-3 TO IS OUT NOW!✨✨✨ The game is officially available to play and we couldn’t be more happy/ exhausted / nervous / excited / asdl;fjkaqweropiu 💗 Words are hard right now, mostly because we’re feeling a lot of things. Launching a game - especially right now - is scary pretty much any way you slice it, but we hope when you see the title screen, listen to the music, bop with Froggo, and flex your pecs with Ishk (you know you’ll do it), that our game that began way back in 2019 (!!!) brings you joy. OKAY! Wipe those (happy) tears: we have some housekeeping! ⬇ ⬇ ⬇ ⬇ ⬇ ⬇ The best way to support? Leave a Steam Review! Beyond picking up a copy of the game (and maybe one for a friend 😙) the absolute BEST way you can support us is by leaving a Steam review! It doesn’t have to be long or poetic - although if that’s yo…
- Under 30 Days to Launch 👀✨ - 9 January 2025
Hi Swappers! Happy New Year! The holiday decor is stored, snacks eaten, and we are under 30 days (!!!) until we launch Spirit Swap. Ahead of the launch, we wanted to share our plans for the game: what you can expect upon release and beyond! It’s -- hopefully -- also our chance to share a little bit more behind-the-scenes and what we’ve learned as we’ve done this first game together as a team for those interested in a little of what it takes to make a game in 2025. Our major post-launch update will include Fashion 🌸 With this update, you’ll be able to dress up Samar in a selection of outfits to swap in style! While we wish we could have included Fashion in the game's 1.0 launch, the reality is that making a game is expensive—even more so because one of our tenants as a co-op is to pay all of our contractors living wages, thus expanding our costs a bit more. Adding this feature in post-l…
- We have a release date!! - 10 December 2024
Hi Spirit Swappers, WE HAVE A RELEASE DATE AHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay. breathe. Yes. Calm. Serene. ✨✨ Cast spells, be queer, and crash the biggest concert of the year Feb 3, 2025 on Steam and Xbox!! ✨✨ We just announced the news on the latest Wholesome Snack: a showcase we hold near and dear to our hearts, as it’s been a part of our journey since the Kickstarter campaign! It was only fitting we share this exciting news during the showcase. Want to see the release date announcement trailer? Look no further! (and turn up your headphones) Happy holidays and see you in 2025 We’ll keep you posted in January with more details about the game’s progress, launch, and all those fun details. But for now? Thanks for sticking with us over the years, letting us be vulnerable with you as we go through the absolute rollercoaster that is game development, and for all the feedback on the Beta. We hope y…
- Getting closer to smooches 😚 - 2 October 2024
Hi Spirit Swappers, Two weeks have passed in the blink of an eye, and it’s time for our first update since the Backer Beta has gone live! Today will be a quicker update, showing off a succession of screenshots (ooo!) and gifs (aah!) of the polish and fixes we’ve done based on the feedback we’ve received. Deepen Your Relationships: B Supports are IN! In the first version of the Beta, we only included the initial round of main narrative events -- what we’ve been calling internally the “C Supports”. These events with each character helped you meet them and get to know them. A little sampling. A taste test, if you will. Now? You can deepen those relationships further because we’ve added each character's second tier of main events. Their B Supports! Here are screenshots of a few B support moments now implemented into the game ~ The B Supports are especially significant because at the end of…
- Fresh Spirit Swap Updates! - 17 September 2024
Hi Spirit Swappers, We wanted to make sure that everyone got a hefty update about what we’re up to, as it’s been a minute. Two or three minutes, really! We mentioned this in our recent Kickstarter Backer’s update, but want to reiterate it here more widely: The year has been full of hard work as well as personal heartache and challenges for the team. We’re truly appreciative that you’ve all been patient and kind as we navigate this wonderful thing called ‘game development’ while maintaining our day jobs, and, well, everything. One of the rewards for Kickstarter Backers who supported at the Witch’s Groove tier and beyond was exclusive access to a Spirit Swap Backer Beta, and we’re proud to say that we’ve reached that milestone! The Backer Beta is live today (we’re pushing it out and sending keys RIGHT NOW), and we’re officially coming out of heads-down mode to share what we’ve been workin…
- Time-for-an-Update Thursday! - 28 September 2023
Hi Spirit Swappers, We have emerged! Crisp leaves, rainy days, and cool weather (finally) is also bringing in a wave of updates and news. Ready? Ready! Spirit Swap is coming in 2024 ✨ 2023 has been a year of incredible progress for our team. We’ve made substantial headway on the game, and are incredibly proud of how far it’s come along. I mean, just look at this early work compared to now: Attending our first-ever physical event EVER this year (more on PAX West below) meant it was the first time we got to experience the joy of watching people play Spirit Swap in-person. It was immensely inspiring to our whole team, and a huge validation of the work we’ve put in thus far. Our number one priority has been about creating the best game we can - inspired by the people and communities we love - while always considering the well-being of our team. While we’ve made strides in the progress of th…
- The new Spirit Swap demo introduces its hella queer cast - 16 June 2023
Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats To Match-3 To has been on our radar for a while now, and with its appearance at this year's Wholesome Direct during Summer Game Fest , I knew I had to go and check out the new demo. It's different to the endless demo that Alice wrote about in February, which isn't available here. Instead, you get a taster of the game's story and versus modes. And with that, an introduction to some of the characters you'll meet (and maybe even date). Read more
- Wholesome Direct 2023 & A Brand New Spirit Swap Demo! 💜 - 10 June 2023
Hey Spirit Swappers! BIG NEWS AND BRAND NEW KEY ART! Not only are we part of this year’s Wholesome Direct, but we have a brand-new demo out NOW for you to enjoy along with a page refresh! In this demo, you’ll get to know some of Samar’s friends a bit more in the Story Mode and even try your hand in Versus Mode. 👀 As with all demos, it’s a work in progress, but what we’re most excited about is getting more feedback from you to continue to improve your time in Demashq. At the end of the Story Mode, you can access our Feedback Survey, or just click here if you want to share your thoughts after playing. This limited-time demo will stay live until June 30th, so enjoy it while it’s out! Thank you so much, and we hope you enjoy playing! Love, The Spirit Swap Team
- Merry Monday! - 1 May 2023
Hi Spirit Swappers! We have emerged! It’s now spring, and like the beautiful butterfly, we Wait. While yes, we are emerging like beautiful butterflies with lots of cool things to share, we also wanted to say that it’s been a while because we’ve been heads down developing Spirit Swap in addition to balancing our day jobs and Life(™). We’re sorry for the quiet period, but happy to say that we’ve gotten to a point in the game’s progress where we’re able to hop back into sharing mode. We’ve got a lot, so let’s get started! Polish Till It Shines! 👀 Updated environments? IN! World map? DONE. Amazing emotes? CHECK. Gradients for days? YES. In addition to working on core features, a good chunk of time has been on polishing and making sure the game looks colorful, joyful, and full of that *special sauce*. We could just sit here and describe it all to you, but I remember learning in 5th grade ab…
- Wintry Wednesday - 21 December 2022
Happy Holidays, Swappers! We first want to share our appreciation for you all and hope that you all have a wonderful holiday season and new year! After the excitement of Indieland 2022 (thanks again to The Completionist and everyone who was a part of the team!) we’ve been hunkering down on Versus Mode, polishing the Endless mode even more based on the showcase and your feedback, and prepping for the end of the year! SHINY TRINKETS FOR YOUUU Each of Samar’s friends has a trinket that you’ll be able to acquire as you get to know them, and we wanted to share a few of them with you today! In game, each trinket will allow you to equip a different spell – each with its own effect on the board – but narratively, they also illuminate aspects of each character’s personality. We won’t share all the details today, but perhaps you’ll be able to guess who’s represented here in the three trinkets bel…
- Flashy Friday! - 12 November 2022
Leaves are falling and the spirits need swapping… It’s been an eventful time for the Soft Not Weak team! We’ve been busy at work polishing up some LOVELY snippets to show off, and we boy oh boy are we excited to show them off! In addition to that, we have an UPDATED DEMO for you all to try! Ready? Set? GOOOOOOOO: Indieland 2022 and our UPDATED DEMO! First things first! We’re lucky and honored to be a part of Indieland 2022! Not only is this event an amazing fundraiser for a good cause, but Jirard and the team behind Indieland always curate a fantastic showcase filled with indie games to keep an eye on. To celebrate, we’ve decided to release an updated Endless mode demo, chock full of polish and juice we’ve been working on to help bring Samar’s forest to life! Below we’ll break down a lot of the details that you’ll see, but if you’re itching to get going, you can start playing the demo n…
- PAX West Friday! - 2 September 2022
Busy busy busy -- Things have really started ramping up over the summer! In addition to going full steam ahead with implementation (we went in-depth with Versus and Endless modes this month but don’t quite have anything we’re ready to show… yet), the main thing we wanted to share is that we’re participating in a couple of events coming up this weekend! Out and About! We’re participating in two events! The first is PAX West: Alex and Jenny are both taking part in the panel, “A Case for Cozy: Why we (really) need wholesome games!” This panel will be live-streamed on the Twitch channel for PAX, so be sure to tune in on Sunday if you’re interested in hearing more about why we should celebrate the gentler side of the game industry. In addition to two of our team participating in PAX West, we’re also showcasing Spirit Swap at the Gayming Live Indie Festival! From Sept 2 - 16th, Spirit Swap (a…
- Marvelous Monday - 1 August 2022
It’s gettin’ hot in heeeere…. But really, we hope you're staying hydrated and cool! We've had mini heat-wave hit the Pacific Northwest, and we've been WARM to say the least. In the meantime, we've been dreaming what the weather would be like in the beautiful city of Demashq, and thought we'd share a few more peeks at the background visuals that we've worked on! Postcards from Demashq We’ve been polishing up the environments for each of the characters over the last few weeks, and WHEW, things are looking good! From the beautiful sunset of Ishk’s Muscle Beach to the neon lights (and probably cool temperature!) of Kedsi’s LAN cafe, the world is starting to come together beautifully thanks to the efforts of Sam and Abelle! Here’s a peek at the line art (by the wonderful Sam) for Kedsi’s LAN Cafe (we’re saving the finals for the future!) Kedsi’s LAN Cafe is inspired by the LAN cafes Alex use…
- Fancy (Graphics) Friday - 1 July 2022
Hi Spirit Swappers! WHAT A MONTH! June was the time for not-E3 festivities to get into full swing, oh, and a little something called Pride? You may have heard of it! ^_^ We were especially happy to be a part of the Wholesome Direct and Future of Play (which you can watch here and here, respectively). And, the DEMO. We released a limited time, narrative-focused demo to show off some of what we’ve been working on, and we were blown away by the feedback y’all gave us. (That’s why this update is a liiiittle later than normal, since we’ve been crunching numbers and going through every single bit of feedback!) Let’s dive into this month’s update, and I’ll tell you more: Demo Feedback Most of what we’ve been doing since the demo (after taking a little rest) has been going through all the feedback and adjusting our priorities based on that! We really appreciate everyone who took the time to ans…
- June 2022: Demo Notes - 11 June 2022
The demo is live! We’re really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the narrative demo that we’ve shared for Spirit Swap -- and if you’ve played it, please remember to fill out the feedback form (found here). This demo is still a work-in-progress toward our final vision of Spirit Swap, and we wanted to illuminate a few details for you: some larger bugs and polish we’re aware of and still working on…and even ~secrets~ you can try out if you’re looking for a challenge! UI/UX: Input We’re working on making sure the control schemes are consistently displayed in the demo: right now, they switch between keyboard and gamepad (which is good for keeping you on your toes, but not for clarity!) Here’s a quick overview of controls: Keyboard Controls: WASD or Arrow Keys -- Move cursor J / Space -- Confirm (dialogue and swap) SHIFT / K / ALT -- cast spell ESC -- Pause Gamepad Controls: D-pad -…
- Brand-New Spirit Swap Demo Available! - 11 June 2022
Hi Swappers! A special update from the Spirit Swap team! We alluded to the fact that we’d have a shiny new demo available in the near future, and we’re excited to tell you: THE FUTURE IS NOW! That’s right! There’s a limited-time, narrative demo for Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To available for you to play now on Steam. This demo is a small taste of our story mode gameplay. In it, we’ll introduce you to Leon and Mo, two of Samar’s best friends. What’re they up to? What’s on their minds? You gotta play to see! A few things to keep in mind: ✨This is a LIMITED TIME OFFERING. The demo will only be available for one week (June 11th - June 19th, 2022), so download and play during that time period! After the 19th, we’ll be reverting back to our previous endless mode only demo. Fill out the feedback survey. Part of the reason the demo is available for a limited amount of time is because th…
