- Dynamic World Map and Voyage Manifest š“āā ļø - 23 August 2026
Ahoy crew, welcome below deck! I've been working on another 3D element for the game recently: the new and improved world map! The old map looked great, a beautiful hand-crafted perspective drawing, but it was by nature static and "baked-in" to that particular view, and those particular islands. So over the past month I've been revamping the entire system to be more dynamic. I'm also still waiting for my baby boy to grace us with his presence. When he's born I'll be taking a few weeks off. When I return I hope to be able to share some more exciting news with you... As always I must sincerely ask, why is the rum gone? Ben August summary Dynamic World Map (rebuilt from scratch!) Pathfinding for voyage routes Gamepad and mouse controls for navigation and zoom in/out Voyage Manifest (new and improved voyage setup screen) Dynamic World Map This new dynamic map allows for complete user controlā¦
- New "Ship Log" will have EVERYTHING š“āā ļø - 27 July 2026
Ahoy crew, welcome below deck! Another month has flown by. I'm rapidly approaching the due date of my third child now. While we're in a bit of a development limbo period, I've been busily chipping away at the game. In this month's newsletter I'll share a summary of progress and a deep-dive into an upcoming new feature: the "Ship Log" menu. Smooth sailing, Ben July summary Steam Cloud saves working on the playtest beta branch Rework of card visual prefabs to allow for a selection outline Ship Log begun: 3D system Sorting/Filtering system to allow deep player control Controller navigation The upcoming "Ship Log" feature This has been a big piece of work over the past month. Most of the time game menus are flat, with 2D images, text and panels drawn straight onto your screen. But Davy Jones' Deckhand is a bit of an outlier, in that so far we have done almost everything in screen-space UI.ā¦
- UI rework, souls, and a secret mini-game š“āā ļø | 'Below Deck' June 2026 - 29 June 2026
Ahoy crew, welcome below deck! I'm cutting it fine for a newsletter this month. Last week my family and I were wiped out by illness, as is the current trend in winter with young kids. We hit another milestoneā¦ thank you for 3,000 wishlists! We gained more than 1,000 new wishlists since our newsletter last month when I announced hitting 2K, thanks in no small part to Frosty Fest. We weren't in the actual showcase, but we still enjoyed our best month of growth so far. We still have a long way to go, but it's nice to see some traction building up even in these early stages of development. The Frosty Games Fest showcase is on YouTube if you want to check out some awesome ANZ indie games. A favourite of mine was the beautifully hand-drawn Apothecurse by Lesser Key Studios in Dunedin. Keep reading for some insights into the design changes that have been happening over the past month. Why is tā¦
- Frosty Fest creator broadcast - 4 June 2026
Don't miss playthroughs from some of our favourite creators here: https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/watch/76561199825638096 Play the latest demo build:Check out the Frosty Fest Steam page:https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45423962/sale/FrostyGamesCelebration2026 Featured in this broadcast:The Geek Cupboard
- Strategems live stream - 27 May 2026
Don't miss playthroughs from some of our favourite creators here: https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/watch/76561199825638096 Featured in this broadcast: The Geek Cupboard
- Davy Jonesā Deckhand demo post-mortemš“āā ļø | 'Below Deck' May 2026 - 20 May 2026
Ahoy crew, welcome below deck! My lovely wife shared this image with me a few days ago as I was wrapping up the final touches on a huge funding application, the last huge task in a huge month of deadlines and crunch. It was a good hint. I was getting right towards the far edge of "Strain", productivity starting to decline. When I hit submit, suddenly my throat hurt. I'm off sick now. So I'm taking it a little easy this week. I do still want to update you all on how things have been going with the demo launch. Thanks for being here! Ben Demo launch post-mortem Key demo stats: Players: 320+ Median playtime: 43 minutes (1hr 43m average) Wishlists gained: 700+ ANZ Indie Showcase: Watch the VOD Play the demo here Weapon stats The saber seemed to be the most consistent winner. Broken Mop was chosen less and seemed to also be the toughest to win with. The Broken Mop can be a great time if youā¦
- The Davy Jones' Deckhand demo is live! - 6 May 2026
Whether you've been checking out the playtests or this will be your first voyage, now is your chance to set sail. No purchase needed. Just download, play, and let us know what you think. Leaving a review on Steam helps us immensely! The demo gives you a full taste of the game - the parry system, tonnes of artefacts, deckbuilding, and the story that sets it all in motion.We've put everything into this game and we can't wait for you to finally get your hands on it. Fair winds and following seas.Ben and the Cass Bay Games Team
- Demo patch 0.1.0.4 - 5 May 2026
Bug fixes Fixed issue with opening Discovery List while wave ending locking up the game Fixed hover tooltip on attacks getting swapped when stances switched Fixed notice when you collect artefacts from locker barrel sometimes not showing image Fixed rare lockup bugs if you spam continue/enter during tutorial Cannon resurrection is faster after the first time you do it Crab minions now have a scaling move so you can cheese them for two long for hp!
- Demo launch next week (4th May)š„³ | 'Below Deck' April 2026 - 29 April 2026
Ahoy crew, welcome below deck! The next few months are going to be leviathan-huge... We've got the demo launch, Steam Deck Builders Fest, ANZ Indie Showcase, Ocean Fest, Strategems Fest, and Frosty Games Fest. Demo launch: this is it crew! Our demo drops next week, right alongside Steam Deck Builders Fest. This is our biggest milestone to date and we need YOUR help to get the game out to as many new players as possible. The best thing you can do is simply... play the demo for at least an hour and then leave a review! Launch times: USA (PDT): 10am, 4th May UK: 6pm, 4th May New Zealand (NZT): 5am, 5th May Australia (AEST): 3am, 5th May What else is on the horizon? Steam Deck Builder Fest - May 4-11 ANZ Indie Fest & Showcase - May 8-15 Steam Ocean Fest - May 19-26 Steam Strategems Fest - May 29-June 5 Steam Frosty Games Fest - June Behind the scenes: Merchant ships Post demo we're going toā¦
- Deck Builder Fest Stream - 29 April 2026
Check out Davy Jones' Deckhand playthroughs from:The Geek CupboardJustWrightGamingTalaVTDeepSpaceMatt
- Demo on the horizon š®š“'Below Deck' March 2026 - 23 March 2026
Demo on the horizon Ahoy crew, welcome below deck! We've got exciting news to share this month. Our first ever public Steam demo is coming in early May for Steam Deckbuilder Fest. We'll be officially announcing our participation on the 30th of April. This is a big milestone for our game, and we'd love your wind in our sails as we launch the demo! The best way to support us is by playing the demo during its limited window. The demo will go live a few days before Deckbuilder Fest starts and run throughout the duration of the festival, 4th ā 11th May PT. The next best way to support us is to make sure you've wishlisted. After that you could hold your friends and their families hostage until they wishlist too. We're working very hard on making this a delicious, salty taster of our full vision for Davy Jones' Deckhand. It will feature some updates to the core combat loop, plus a first look aā¦
- Demo strategy on a budgetš°š“āā ļø | 'Below Deck' February 2026 - 23 February 2026
Ahoy crew!Below Deck, our monthly development newsletter, is back for 2026. This month Iām going to open up about some of the big challenges ahead, and strategic decisions weāre currently making at Cass Bay Games. Youāll also get an early look at some new bosses and gameplay updates.Yours piratically,BenReady for another boss fight? Nik Scarr has been cooking up some brilliantly grotesque bosses that you can look forward to facing in an upcoming playtest and in our Steam demo in May.Sea Swine Meet the hog-fish boss that poisons you with every bite! The sea swine (or Porcus Marinus) has a loveable Kunekune face, but itās not to be trifled with.See a timelapse of Nikās art process creating this big cutey:Thessaly, The Sea WitchFound in a ship graveyard where time flies by and yet feels stagnant, this awful sea witch once traded Davy Jonesā an eight pointed compass that points to a movingā¦
- Frosty Mini Fest broadcast - 9 December 2025
We'll be broadcasting all week to celebrate being part of Forsty Mini 2025!Watch the stream here.Creators included:The Geek Cupboard: TalaVT : Deep Space Matt:
- An interview with composer, Dr Ewan Clark š“āā ļøš¼ | November 2025 - 26 November 2025
Ahoy mateys, welcome Below Deck!Itās been a while since I shared a behind the scenes interview with a member of the Cass Bay Games team, so Iām excited to introduce you to Ewan Clark. Ewan is an incredibly gifted music composer, and Iāve been itching to work with him again since he scored two of my short films a decade ago.Iāll also give some behind the scenes insights into our growing sound team.Yours piratically,BenAn interview with Ewan Clark, Composer At Cass Bay Games, weāre very lucky to be working with Wellington-based, award-winning composer and orchestrator, Dr Ewan Clark. Ewan specialises in music for film and television, and is now making his debut in games with the exciting, adventurous score for Davy Jonesā Deckhand. He holds an MMus from the Royal College of Music and a PhD from the New Zealand School of Music.Weāve asked Ewan a few questions for this edition of Below Deckā¦
- A pirate and a crab take on PAX Australia š“āā ļøš¦ | October 2025 - 23 October 2025
Ahoy mateys, welcome Below Deck! One year ago we started the Below Deck newsletter, alongside the official start of production. Time has flown by and Davy Jonesā Deckhand has come a long way in a year. Check out this before and after comparison.It has been a wild, epic adventure so far. In a year weāve taken an idea and built it into an extremely fun demo that has been played by nearly 100 players, with an impressive median playtime of over 2 hours, weāve travelled to Germany to pitch at Gamescom, and now just returned from PAX, Australiaās largest gaming event. We havenāt had a lot of time to stop and reflect or celebrate, but itās been a very successful year! The team at Cass Bay Games are so grateful to everyone who has followed our newsletter, joined our playtests, and been cheering us on. In this edition of Below Deck Iām going to share about our PAX Australia exploits and give youā¦
- PAX Australia broadcast - 6 October 2025
We'll be broadcasting all week to celebrate being part of PAX Australia!This broadcast has now finished.Creators included:The Geek Cupboard: https://www.youtube.com/@TheGeekCupboard TalaVT : Deep Space Matt:
- PAX Aus, Games Made in NZ sale, & our upcoming demo š¢ | September 2025 - 22 September 2025
Ahoy mateys, welcome Below Deck! Things are cooling off from Gamescom in Germany, and heating up for PAX! Weāre just a few weeks away from our second business trip of the year, this time to Melbourne, Australia. Tep and I are rather relieved it's just āacross the ditchā and not another epic 30 hour journey this time.We are approaching the end of our CODE KickStart funded phase of development and now looking ahead to whatās next. Securing more investment is high on our list of priorities, but before that weāll be aiming to make a great impression at PAX and promote our upcoming Steam demo. Weāve worked very hard over the past year and itās time to share our efforts wider. There is no exact date set for the demo yet, but keep your eyes on our socials and upcoming newsletters for more info. Yours piratically,BenExclusive look at our upcoming PAX booth (Spoiler alert!)Look at this epic bootā¦
- Games Made in NZ Broadcast - 20 September 2025
To celebrate the Games Made in New Zealand Steam sale we'll be broadcasting all week!Update: This broadcast has now finished.https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/watch/76561199825638096Creators included:The Geek Cupboard: TalaVT: Deep Space Matt:
- Creator playthroughs - 11 September 2025
Update: This broadcast has now finished.https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/watch/76561199825638096 Creators included:Deep Space Matt: The Geek Cupboard: TalaVT: https://www.twitch.tv/talavtSalt Goblin:
- A Gamescom exhibition expedition š¢ | August 2025 - 27 August 2025
Ahoy mateys, welcome Below Deck! Tepene and I just got back from a whirlwind trip to Germany. Thirty hours of travel, four nights in Cologne, and then straight back again. Weāre tired. Our feet hurt from being on our toes non-stop working the booth at Gamescom, and our backs hurt from sitting through the long haul flights. Despite all this, weāre absolutely buzzing from the event.It was a real āpinch-meā moment being there alongside the very best of the NZ games industry, and amongst 80,000+ developers from around the world. Before leaving on Friday we also got to catch a glimpse of the 300,000 game consumers and fans descending upon Cologne to immerse themselves in their favourite IPs and discover new games.In this edition of Below Deck Iāll share some pictures and stories from our first Gamescom experience!Yours piratically,Ben Davy Jonesā Deckhand at the New Zealand Pavilion at Gamesā¦
