- Version 1.1 --- Latin American Spanish and SteamOS Cloudsave Cross-Compatibility - 30 September 2026
Version 1.1 is now live! See details below for all changes. Translations AddedLatin American Spanish has been added as a language option for Astral Gunners. Along with this, we added an option for standard casing English to make the game easier to read for some people. Along with this update, some text was modified or removed in order to easier facilitate future translations. We're hoping to bring Astral Gunners to more of the world!Steam Cloud Cross-CompatibilityWe've allowed for game saves to be cross compatible between SteamOS and Windows. Astral Gunners joins the list of games that can be played on the go AND at home. Achievements AdjustedWe've removed three achievements from Steam. These are the series of "Bragging Rights" achievements. While the call to challenge is still there for the in-game achievement system, for a variety of reasons we decided it was best to remove them from…
- Update 1.0.02 - 26 November 2024
This patch is focused on just fixing some bugs and unintended behaviors. Red Gunner's Defend now gives the player true i-frames when inside the collision radius Updated bullet animations that were still blinking even when the bullet blinking setting was turned off X Gunner no longer continues to create bullets in between phase transitions in Dark World When completing the data tower section of Azuria, it is now no longer possible to clear the segment and also have the building still explode and kill the player TLB special weapon no longer does half damage when positioned very close to the boss (Could've potentially led to a scoring exploit that's not particularly fun to execute so we wanted to remove this before anyone else found it) Green Gunner can no longer use their special again while another special is currently active (The only spot this was possible was in Dystopia, and total sc…
- Update 1.0.01 - 3 July 2024
Fixed issue where entering tutorial with "VS Best" option turned on would crash the game Fixed hitbox on Gamma Gunner's missiles. Previously, the hitbox was not rotating with the sprite causing phase 3 of The Gammachine to be exceedingly more difficult than intended Added option to adjust bullet blinking Fixed issue where saved volume mixing wasn't loading correctly Increased volume of Shot 1 sound very slightly
- Astral Gunners 1.0 Released!! - 21 June 2024
The day is finally here! Astral Gunners is a feature complete video game. Thank you so much to everyone who has played the game throughout early access, and thanks to the incredible shmup community for being so supportive of our game. We're beyond excited to see players enjoy the final changes we've added to the game. Speaking of, here's everything that's been updated: CAUTION: Upon updating, save files will be reset for Version 1.0 Dark World The rematch against Dark Gunner is finally here. And it looks like Gamma Gunner and X Gunner weren't done fighting you quite yet, either. Every run now ends with a nail-biting boss rush battle. Pay attention to how the stage changes based on how well you played through the rest of the levels. System Hacks We've rebranded Power-ups to be System Hacks for this update. Instead stressing over trying to make a secondary mode that's also balanced for sc…
- Full Release June 21 - Free Demo Available Now! - 24 May 2024
Version 1.0 will feature a host of new updates to the game, and include the full story. Stay tuned for more details!
- Version 0.9.3 New Hyperspace! - 20 October 2023
Version 0.9.3 is now live! See below details on this update to Astral Gunners. This update is mostly focused on introducing the real Hyperspace and addressing critiques from players that still needed to be addressed. Thank you for your continued support. Hyperspace The true version of Hyperspace finally makes its debut! Right now it's still being used as a placeholder final stage, but will eventually become a secret bonus stage. The overall theme of Hyperspace is that it now utilizes any progression elements achieved within a run. Each shadow fight won creates a new bullet-generating portal in the stage. Assisting NPCs will reappear on this stage to help the player. The bonus waves from timeskips will play out where they left off. Shoot as many UFOs as you can to spawn bigger and bigger ones. And Golden Starshooter is back with a vengeance! A new audio track now accompanies the stage! S…
- Version 0.9.2 is now live! - 25 September 2023
Version 0.9.2 is now live! See below details on this update to Astral Gunners. If you're seeing the game for the first time due to Shmup Fest, thank you for checking out our game and don't forget to go check out all of the other incredible shmups on sale right now. Massive Changes to Dystopia The first version of this level was simply not up to the standards of the other levels. With all the changes between this update and the previous version, it's almost an entirely new level with too many changes to list in detail. Instead we'll highlight the bigger changes overall. Full song. This stage now features the full song written for the level, instead of a 1 minute looping track. As with all of the other levels, key scene changes sync up with the changing passages in the music to create a music video feeling in the level. Faster! Faster! Everything moves faster. While we may scratch the itc…
- Version 0.9.1 is now live! - 12 March 2022
Ver 0.9.1 is now live! See below for details on this update to Astral Gunners. If you're finding us for the first time today via Shmup Slam 5: Welcome! We hope you enjoy Astral Gunners. NOTE: Some of the information in this update post could be considered spoilers for players who like discovering secrets on their own. If you haven't played since the 0.9 update, we advise that players go into the options menu and clear their save data to avoid visual bugs and fully experience some of the changes. Character Personality Has Been Buffed While we're aware that Astral Gunners doesn't have a super deep story, we're glad to say we can now give the characters a bit more personality in their dialogue. The game has been updated with new portraits for every character, showing unique expressions that fit their text. Visual Update: Character Select Screen The character select screen has received a sl…
- Ver 0.9.01 --- Bug-fixes - 6 September 2021
Fixing a few bugs for 0.9 Fixed a crash that occurred when pausing in bonus stages (Hyperspace and shadow bosses) Fixed a bug where enemies couldn't shoot bullets near the beginning of Dystopia Fixed a crash that occurred when getting a game over on Dystopia in Single Level mode Added an online leaderboard for Dystopia Made the personal best high score visible when playing Dystopia in Single Level mode NOTE: We have been made aware that training mode is causing the game to crash when selecting certain levels. We are working to fix a number of issues with training mode and will update the game as soon as we can.
- Version 0.9 is now live! - 5 September 2021
Ver 0.9 is now live! See below for details on this major update to Astral Gunners. To fully experience every change in this update, we advise that players go into the options menu and clear their save data. New Level: Dystopia That's right, we've got an entire level added in this build. With this level, we've completed the pattern of having a level associated with each playable character. The Violet level, Dystopia, features tight corridors, security robots, a race against a robot samurai, and a confrontation against the scythe-wielding X Gunner. Please note: while there are 3 SP Medals to collect on this level, the shadow fight that would normally appear after collecting all 3 is not yet added to the game. Updated Title Screen The title screen has been updated to feature more than just an image of Light Gunner vs Dark Gunner. It now features every major character in a face off. Charact…
- Cloud Save Functionality Added - 14 January 2021
Cloud save functionality has been added and tested. If any users run into any issues with their cloud saves, please let us know in the Steam Forums.
- Ver 0.8.43 --- Power-Ups!!! - 22 December 2020
With developing Astral Gunners, we have two big goals in mind. The first is to create a deep and enjoyable scoring system that encourages competition between players. The second is to try and create an entry-point game for newcomers to the bullet hell genre. Today's update is focusing on the latter of those two goals. We're adding power-ups to Astral Gunners. These are a series of effects that can be equipped that change how the game is played. From summoning a miniboss to slowing every bullet on screen, each power-up has a unique effect. In total there are 18 power-ups to unlock, and a total of 5 categories of power-ups. An important thing to note for arcade purists: you do not need to play the game with power-ups, and we are still designing the game to be beatable at every difficulty with no power-ups. We have added an online leaderboard filter that allows you to view with power-ups o…
- Ver 0.8.42 --- Single Level Mode and Weekly Leaderboard - 9 December 2020
An exciting update today for score chasers. We're adding a weekly arcade leaderboard as well as Single Level Mode for those who want a more bite-sized approach to scoring. Additionally, we've made a few small updates along with these changes. Full patch notes: https://steamcommunity.com/app/893900/discussions/3/2986413884514566459/
- Astral Gunners OST is now available on Steam! - 4 December 2020
For all those looking to listen to the soundtrack of Astral Gunners at any time, you can now purchase the soundtrack in the Steam store. Additionally, a bundle with both items is now available at 10% off. We will be updating this OST free of charge as more music is added to the game. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1439810/Astral_Gunners_Soundtrack/
- Ver 0.8.41.01 - 4 December 2020
Fixed a bug where destroying asteroids and mines crashed the game.
- Ver 0.8.41 --- New Achievements, Violet buff, QOL updates, bugfixing - 3 December 2020
Version 0.8.41.00 is now live! Not a whole lot changes with this update, as we're still working on extra modes and a new level that aren't ready quite yet. Focusing on game clarity and easing the early learning curve for players with this update. Highlights: Two new achievements: FREE QUARTER and MEDAL JUGGLER Violet gets a buff, now able to produce extra gems by defeating enemies with their sword Pause menu now has options and move list submenus Full patch notes: https://steamcommunity.com/app/893900/discussions/3/2963895252172866182/
- Ver 0.8.40.00 Available Now! Training Mode, Character Balance, and More. - 18 November 2020
Version 0.8.40.00 is now live! This patch includes a Training Mode, which will allow you to set up specific scenarios to practice. Whether you just need some stress free time to figure out a boss pattern, or want to play a certain moment on loop to maximize scoring potential, we hope this is a useful feature for players looking to improve. Additionally, we've made some changes to the characters. Light Gunner received some significant buffs, and Violet Gunner is a bit easier to use now. Movement speeds for the characters have been adjusted, and Shot 1 damage for everyone is increased. Thank you to everyone who has been playing Astral Gunners and sharing their feedback. We'll have more updates soon! Full patch notes: https://steamcommunity.com/app/893900/discussions/3/2963893984908809425/
- Astral Gunners Early Access Available Now! - 2 October 2020
Astral Gunners is available right now in early access. Starting today you can shoot evil robots, dodge a barrage of bullets, and prevent the galaxy from being consumed by darkness! The game will be on sale for 15% off during the first week. Read development plan here! Share your ideas and feedback here!
- Astral Gunners Early Access Release Oct 2nd - 21 September 2020
We are finally at the point of bringing Astral Gunners to players. In these final months of development, we are looking to work with shmup enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts to make the best game we possibly can. Check out the new trailer on the store page! As of early access the game will include: 5 Playable Characters 5 levels, four being full feature levels and one being a scoring challenge 4 hidden boss battles 4 difficulty options A deep and rewarding scoring system (seriously we're excited to see players break this) A level select system that allows you to choose your route and change which levels NPCs can show up in A progression system based around unlocking credits by completing achievements, ensuring no run feels like wasted time when starting out Local co-op
