Windrose might get wind

As a survival game, Windrose is an extremely forgiving one. Your weapons and gear never degrade. If your pirate ship sinks you can rebuild it with a mere 20 pieces of wood. You can't die of hunger or thirst, and your NPC pirate crew, well… they can't die at all.

It's such a streamlined survival experience that when you're sailing your ship across the sea, you can go in any direction you want at top speed at all times. That's because despite the title of the game, there is no actual wind in Windrose.

That might change in the future, says Kraken Express. In a devlog posted today, the studio outlined the first major update to the early access pirate survival game that includes a new biome, new pirate ship classes, more of the main story and sidequests, and yep, wind. Maybe.

First, the studio gave players a look at the next biome, the Ashlands, a region that "suffered from volcanic eruptions long ago, leaving its mark on the settlers who lived here, and on those who came after." There, players can expect "a variety of new islands with new enemies, items, resources, recipes, points of interest, and, of course, a new challenging boss."

Also on the roster for the update are new building pieces and decorations, plus new ship classes and variants. There are also plans for NPC ships to behave more "naturally," meaning they'll actually sail in formations instead of simply steering back and forth in circles as they do now.

And also: wind, perhaps.

"We are also aware of the popular request to add wind influence on sailing to the game," Kraken Express said on Steam. "We’ll definitely be exploring this idea as well, and we originally intended to."

I expect a bit of resistance from some players at the idea of a wind system. One of the selling points of Windrose is that you can just jump in your ship and speed off to combat and adventure without a bunch of speedbumps (or whatever the equivalent of a speedbump is in the ocean) getting in the way. Sailing isn't meant to be challenging, it's meant to be fun, and it is.

One of the games Windrose is heavily inspired by, Valheim, has a wind system that means sailing directly into the wind can only be done at very slow speeds with the sails unfurled. I personally think that helps Valheim feel more like a real adventure where the ocean is a treacherous place, but at the same time, sometimes you just want to get from Point A to Point B without a bunch of drama. Valheim's wind system can sometimes turn a quick ocean voyage into a real slog.

Kraken Express is keeping that in mind as it experiments with its own wind system.

"But let us be crystal clear: we want it to be fun and simple," the studio said. "Windrose aims to be an adventure, without some of the more hardcore simulation aspects."

There's still no word when this first major update will arrive: "As always, we'll be sharing more details, including an estimated release window, as development progresses."