Hi there,

We continue to improve the prologue based on your feedback, and this time we focused on customization options and interface updates:

• HUD updated
• Map now correctly displays open and closed gates
• Added tutorials for HUD, health, mental metabolism, and Amalgam
• Added gamma settings
• Added separate language settings for voiceover and text (you can now listen to Daniil complain in his mother tongue while still reading everything)
• Added animation for kicking trash bins (yes, it’s a thing)
• Fixed bug with body display in inspection
• Fixed mouse and gamepad stick sensitivity
• Fixed issue with "double" button presses
• Fixed gamepad hint, added quick slot switching
• Fixed gamepad icons in the mindmap
• Fixed various graphical bugs
Thank you for your feedback!
In the near future, we’ll be adding Chinese localization to Quarantine.

As the “mental metabolism” system and the way it influences resources is unique, we’re experimenting with UIs to communicate them. A new (and probably not the last) version will be available in the next patch.

Meanwhile, the core team is returning to development of the main game. Stay tuned for more updates!

Replacing burnt-out spotlights,
Ice-Pick Lodge

Hi there,

Throughout the week, we’ve been working on a critical issue affecting quality of the gameplay: crashes.
We’re happy to let you know that the issue has been resolved, and a hotfix was uploaded yesterday. The patch is already available for download.

The main cause of the crashes has been fixed, but let us know if you encounter any new crashes in the game, we’ll do our best to address them in upcoming patches.

Next week, we’ll be back with a balance patch.

Have a great weekend!

Why does a theatre need a bouncer?
Ice-Pick Lodge

Hello,

Quarantine only started yesterday, but today we’re already making some adjustments.
We've released a small hotfix that addresses a few issues (the ones we could fix quickly):

• Added mouse sensitivity settings
  
• Fixed a couple of bugs (for example, the revolver staying in aiming mode after death)
  
• Slightly improved stability

Over the course of the week, we’ll be releasing a larger patch, where we’ll tweak the balance of “mental metabolism” (the Apathy/Mania scale), work on better explaining some of the more unconventional mechanics, and most importantly, try to resolve crashes.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t fix them in just one day. We’ve determined that the crashes are mostly caused by NVIDIA driver failures. Since we have to gather information on these crashes indirectly by reproducing them ourselves, it will take some time (and, sadly, unlike Daniil we can’t harvest it from the dying). At the moment we recommend playing the game on the latest NVIDIA drivers.

A huge thank you for your kind words and feedback in reviews and surveys. We’re reading everything carefully! It’s incredibly helpful to know what you think, so please keep sharing your impressions and filling out the in-game feedback form.

Clearing stones and flowers from the stage,
Ice-Pick Lodge

Hello, dear friends.

Today, we are thrilled to announce that Pathologic 3: Quarantine, the free prologue to the upcoming game, is now available.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3389330/Pathologic_3_Quarantine/

This is your first glimpse into Pathologic 3.
The Bachelor arrives to the Town-on-Gorkhon for the first time, discovering its secrets and inhabitants. Or does he?
The prologue offers a chance to explore the transformed world of the game, some of its new mechanics, characters, and locations.

Save a town from a mysterious plague.
Learn the stories of its unusual inhabitants.
Shape their lives with your decrees.
Diagnose patients. Face the Plague.
Connect the dots.
Find out who killed the immortal man.
Correct your mistakes in the past.

Welcome to Pathologic 3.

The first run begins,
Ice-Pick Lodge

Hello, friends! The clock is closer and closer to its final tock.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3389330/Pathologic_3_Quarantine/

For today's tick, enjoy the new trailer for Pathologic 3: Quarantine. Quarantine is the free prologue to Pathologic 3 that will be released on March 17.

Prepare to dive into the dark world of Pathologic 3 and uncover the story of a young doctor, the search for immortality, and a mysterious plague that changes everything.

Add Pathologic 3: Quarantine to your wishlist so you don’t miss the release!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3389330/Pathologic_3_Quarantine/

Hey,

The development of Pathologic 3 continues, and so does our conversation. Today, we’ll talk about a mechanic that is unique to Bachelor’s story — something you’ve never seen in the series before.

This devlog is available in both text and video formats.

WARNING! Strange as it may sound, a devlog about gameplay mechanics contains spoilers about gameplay mechanics. If you want to experience the game with a completely fresh perspective, consider skipping it.

Every game in the Pathologic series tells the story of a person in a plague-ridden town. If that person is Haruspex — a self-taught surgeon who relies on intuition, a scalpel, and his knowledge of the Steppe — you get Pathologic 2, a survival-focused game where a doctor literally plunges his hands into human flesh.

But if our protagonist is Daniil Dankovsky — a renowned medical scholar, an observer, an analyst, someone who only resorts to laboratory research in the most exceptional cases — then the story takes a different turn, and the gameplay must change accordingly.

That’s important to us: we strive to make both the visuals and the mechanics reflect the protagonist’s subjective perception of the world and fit their story. That’s why Pathologic 3 introduces a fundamentally new approach to gameplay.

Finding himself in a city ravaged by the Sand Plague, Daniil, as a true scientist, notices something strange. Some patients don’t die within five hours as they’re supposed to. Could it be that… the Sand Plague is weakened by other diseases? If that’s the case, then by studying infected patients and uncovering the cause of this anomaly, one could develop a vaccine. An imperfect, temporary solution… but what if it’s the first step towards salvation?

And so, from doctor and researcher, Dankovsky is forced to become a detective. You enter a hospital hastily set up in the town’s theater. Examine a patient’s medical file. Talk to them. Observe them. But something doesn’t add up. A misdiagnosis? Symptoms misinterpreted? Or… Are the patients simply lying?

Not every complaint should be taken at face value. A hand wound could be the result of a street fight, or it could be an early sign of ulceration. A patient may blame their headache on the flu, but you’ll notice symptoms of Steppe Fever. And when you come across darkened eyes, changes in pupil shape, and other anomalies, even common sense won’t be enough. You’ll need to learn to read symptoms and search for clues beyond hospital walls.

A patient’s neighbors, or a forgotten item left at home, might reveal what’s been happening to them in recent days, helping you make the right diagnosis, save a life, and get one step closer to a vaccine. Staying in the makeshift hospital won’t be enough — you’ll have to search for the truth.

Luckily, Dankovsky is a keen observer with a sharp analytical mind. He has always played the role of a detective in his battle against death. He has everything he needs to uncover the truth.

Of course, there’s a simpler approach: collect samples, use a microscope, and get a clear answer. You’ll see which organ groups are affected, this will be reflected in the patient’s file, and the mystery will become much easier to solve.

But… Where will you get the necessary reagents in a city ravaged by disease? Even if your research helps rule out several incorrect diagnoses… The reagents will be depleted, and the next patient might not be so lucky.

Every day, new patients will come to you. If you manage to save them all today, you’ll be one step closer to developing a vaccine for the Sand Plague. But the disease mutates, and a new vaccine is needed every day. If the city is to survive until the 12th day, you’ll have to work hard.

But… Put yourself in the shoes of an ordinary townsperson. Would you agree to be injected with an untested vaccine during an epidemic? And that’s assuming you even understand what a vaccine is — an uneducated factory worker might not. And if people are subjected to unexplained injections every day, they will start forming conspiracy theories and even riot.

Be careful when issuing city-wide mandates and enforcing quarantine measures. Frightened citizens won’t accept overly strict rules — if you push too hard, they will come for you and kill you before you can save the town. Unfortunately, a doctor from the Capital must fight not only the plague and death itself but also his own patients. Bachelor may risk his life to save them, yet still be seen as a tyrant, a tormentor, a madman.

Sometimes, exhausted Dankovsky closes his eyes and thinks: if only death could simply be killed. The locals believe the plague is brought by a Steppe golem — Shabnak, a monster from legend. If it were real, if he could shoot it with his fancy Capital-made Prototype gadget, he would take the risk, no matter how impossible it seemed. Anything would be better than fighting people who resist their own salvation…

In the following updates, we’ll talk about how to maintain the delicate balance of life in a dying town, and how to keep your own sanity intact. After all, what happens behind the microscope in the hospital is only the surface layer of Pathologic 3.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3199650/Pathologic_3/

Bringing up the lights before we take the stage,
Ice-Pick Lodge