Sky in 2024: A Look Ahead

2024 is getting started, and we’re very excited about what it’s going to bring to Sky. This year Sky turns five, and it’s at times hard to believe just how much the game has grown—and how the community has helped it thrive! There are so many more adventures and celebrations ahead (not to mention a PC launch!), and we’re working to bring those to life in 2024 and the years to come. Those won’t all fit in one blog post, but we thought we’d share a glimpse of the many things on the horizon—we’ll have yet more to share in the months to come.

Last year, we talked about our love of festivals, and wanting to bring those vibes to Sky with the introduction of Aviary Village. Season of Revival laid the foundation—this year is full-on building mode!

For starters, in Sky’s next Season we return to Aviary Village and add some of the things we’ve hinted at in the past. So for those of you who have daydreamed about your own living space in Sky, your dreams will soon become reality! We’re also leveling up what we refer to as Player Creations, and giving aspiring thespians of all levels more ways than ever before to express and connect. Sky is your stage, and we want to see your creativity bloom.

Speaking of blooming, three of Sky’s most memorable events will of course return in the first half of this year. Players should look forward to experiencing the transient beauty of Days of Bloom, making a difference in Days of Nature, and celebrating the mosaic of Sky’s community in Days of Color. We’re working on some surprises too, like a new type of collaboration for an event, or maybe for a Season (or maybe both??).

Not to mention, Sky has a milestone anniversary coming up. All that we can say for now: get ready for Sky’s biggest, best birthday party yet.

Another focus for 2024 is updates that make Sky feel more vibrant and interactive, whether you’re a social butterfly or a solo adventurer.

Inspired by early versions of Daily Quests, a new quest system coming this year connects you with the Spirits you’ve met on your journey, making them a more robust and deeper part of your day-to-day experience. And—to share an idea in very early WIP stages—we’re even looking to take what we’ve learned from the Season of AURORA Encore Concert to develop a feature that would let us, thatgamecompany studio staff, interact with players directly in the game!

Based on player feedback, we’ve put our heads together for features that let you connect with Sky friends even if you aren’t online at the same time, and extra ways to send and receive Hearts. For folks sharing and looking at Player Creations, our designers and engineers know that your friends’ creations are a priority for you, so we’re keeping up the work to make it easier to see cool stuff from your friends.

The year will go beyond new features or birthday parties or Seasons, though. One long-term focus for 2024 is improving the way we handle issues that impact you, from bug fixes to the way we share news about the game.

We hear the concerns you’ve shared about wanting the gameplay experience to be smoother. In the shorter term we’re doing things like restructuring our tech to better prevent server issues, and in the longer term we’ll continue to strengthen anti-hacking and player safety measures, among other things.

Also important to mention: quality of life improvements. A few examples of what we’re working on for this year:

• Adjusting avatar damage mechanics, especially in Eye of Eden

• Wait for it—UI changes that make it easier to find the emote you want in the expression menu

• On the engineering side, increasing capacity to more easily and quickly bring fixes to all platforms and still ensure that everyone can play together on the same patch

And outside of Sky’s realms? We know you’ve wanted more insight into what’s in store for the game, so this year we’ll bring you extra news, update posts, and more to keep you better informed about what’s happening in Sky, and what’s coming down the road.

This is only a quick glance at what we have planned for the year, and of course, it’s all work-in-progress, so details for features and content will change between now and their release. Ultimately, the Sky community is what makes the game shine, and this year we want to give you ways to shine in return. There’s a whole lot more to share in the months ahead—until then, we’ll see you in the skies!