The Big Playtest Update: new inventory, room signs, rebuilt children, and 40+ fixes

This is the biggest update since launch. Everything in it comes from people playing: streamers, commenters, and my own late-night runs on every device I own. Thank you all. Here’s what changed.

A new look

The yellow “Backrooms” interface is gone. The Cradle now wears its own colours, off-white on black with a dark red accent, matching the new itch page. The menus, subtitles, inventory and ending cards all follow it, and the hard-to-read hints are now clear.

A real inventory

Players kept losing track of what they carried, and of when they’d used something.

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• Tab opens a ring of your items as 3D models. Turn it with A/D, the mouse wheel or a swipe, then examine any item up close.
• Using an item now says so. Open the basement door with the key and a card appears: «Использовано: Ключ от подвала → Дверь подвала».

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• Used items disappear. Keys, fuses, the tape and the reels are gone once they’ve done their job, so your pockets stay honest.
• Fuses go in one at a time. No more finding all three before the box takes any. Put each one in as you find it; the power comes back with the third.

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• The name tags in Block D are much easier to aim at, catch the torch light a little, and no longer get mixed up with hiding under the bed.

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You’ll always know where you are

“Which room is which?” was the most common question. Every room in the sanatorium and the station now has a Soviet-style sign: a plaque on the door, a sign beside it, or one over it. Point at a sign and its name appears in your language.

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The transmitter hall finally has a sign you can see, lit under the tunnel lamp. No more guessing which steel door you need.

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There’s also a naming fix: one room had two names, «шлюз» and «аппаратная», which sent players to the wrong door. It’s only ever «Аппаратная» now, and the objectives tell you to open it first.

A building that looks lived in, and abandoned

The first-floor walls no longer repeat. Each wall has its own wear, water stains, damp and a Soviet two-tone paint line. The radiators are off-white cast iron with chipped paint, instead of green on green.

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The children, rebuilt

The children in gas masks were rebuilt from scratch. The old models stretched their arms like rubber when they reached out, and their walk was stiff.

BEFORE

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AFTER

• New rig: they now bend at the elbows and knees properly, with no stretching.
• A new walk: a small child’s gait, with heel, toe and a slight sway.

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• The gas mask is its own model now, with the hose hanging loose. The bags are gone.

The lift actually moves

The freight lift used to teleport you, and you could see out through its walls. It’s a closed steel car now. The doors shut, the motor hums, the car shakes, and light slides past the slot in the door as you go up or down.

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Fixes you asked for

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• The corridor end is dark after Continue. The intro’s darkness only happened in a new game; Continue brought the light back. Fixed.
• Floating rubble hanging over the pits is gone.
• The dining hall counter is a proper Soviet canteen counter, not a piece of wall.
• Dying in Block D no longer resets the radio. Tune it once and the door code works, even after the Nanny catches you.
• Catch scenes can be skipped from the second time you see them: hold any key.

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• The transmitter terminal says «ОТКРЫТА» once the hall is open, even after a checkpoint.

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• The final choice spends a reel only when you pick, not before.
• In the boiler room, Gromov’s call now plays before the tape, not after it.
• One of the endings got its jump scare back. I won’t say which.

Voice

• «Ветро́в» is pronounced correctly everywhere. The AI voice kept guessing the stress; now it’s always on the О.

⚠ The transmitter scene, rewritten

The first visit to the transmitter was confusing. A green screen suggested everything was ready, and Gromov’s lines didn’t quite make sense. Now Vetrov sees the reel deck empty and radios Gromov, who sends him down to Block D. And if you’re carrying something else that would fit… he hesitates. For now, orders are orders.

Phones and tablets

• iPad: full screen fits the screen properly on iPadOS 18. If Safari’s swipe-down takes you out of it, the game pauses and your next tap brings full screen back.
• iPhone: add the game to your Home Screen from Safari and it plays full screen. See my previous post for the steps.
• Tested on: iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 16 Pro, iPad Pro M1, iPad (A16) and Pixel 6 Pro.

Performance

• A first-run check: on first start the game measures your computer and picks a graphics level that fits. Laptops with weak built-in graphics get a smoother start.
• A new 30 fps limit option for older machines.

That’s it for now. If you played before, this is a good time for another run. Chapters lets you jump straight back to any part.

As always, tell me in the comments what you find. Half of this update came from your reports. 🎧