Garden of Witches 1.0 Launch Notes
The synergy grid is gone. The epilogue arc is finished. Mouse aiming is the default.
On 28 August 2026 Team Tapas took Garden of Witches out of Early Access. The live build is version 1.0. This page is the player-facing translation of their Steam announcement, not a paste of the patch XML.
If you last played in 2025, assume your muscle memory is lying. If you have never played, skip the history and treat this as the current rulebook.
Story: Epilogues 2 and 3
Early Access ended the extra story at Epilogue 1 — Maydel, the swamp, Singing Scissors. 1.0 continues that arc through Epilogue 2 and closes it in Epilogue 3. The developer note was explicit: people who stopped after Epilogue 1 can now finish the narrative. The walkthrough stays spoiler-light on the last scene and heavy on structure.
New witches are gathered along the way. New Scissors and Spells unlock along the way. If a name is not on the witch roster yet, it is because this wiki will not invent a portrait you have not been allowed to meet.
Combat rebuilt
This is the actual 1.0 patch.
- Attribute tags, synergy breakpoints, and runes are removed.
- Builds are Scissors + Spells + Imprints + Relics.
- Charge, Combo, Channeling tell you how a skill is used.
- Crit rules are per weapon. Default and Giant crit on the combo finisher. Broken Scissors crit at 100% Sharpness. Magic Scissors can guaranteed-crit past the first Charge gauge.
- Imprints rewrite skills (Fireball brick versus Fireball pellets; Magic Scissors Threading versus Downpour; Hunger / Frenzy on Broken).
- Relic pool is the smaller, louder 0.9.2 pool, not the Early Access junk drawer.
- Special Skill gauges were standardized; personality moved into imprints.
Read combat, imprints, and best builds before you copy a YouTube tag list.
Keyboard and mouse
The default scheme is now keyboard and mouse with free aiming and mouse-fired skills. Keyboard-only and full Xbox / PlayStation support remain. Steam Deck stays Verified. Bindings and HUD literacy are on the controls page.
Achievements, voice, price
- 31 Steam Achievements shipped with 1.0 (the achievement-for-gold meta had been removed earlier; these are real Steam trophies, not the old shop). See achievements.
- Japanese voice-over covers the main story (Chapters 1–5). Cast: Sil — Ikumi Hasegawa; Fiena — Hyosei; Abigail — Noa Honda; Limz — Mana Koshirakawa; Berry — Yukina Shuto; Chloe — Riho Sugiyama; Canele / Nahatra — Saho Shirasu.
- A live DPS UI can show damage during combat. It was in the 0.10.0 pre-launch beta (24 August 2026) and shipped in 1.0.
- Difficulty layout was retuned. Challenge Mode now unlocks after Epilogue 3, then Sil’s house becomes a Challenge cottage.
- Sil’s house gained extra interactions.
- List price stayed $18.99. Team Tapas said they would not hike it for 1.0. Launch week ran a discount on Steam and, in some regions, Stove.
What you should do on an old save
Expect a tutorial pass on the new Armory even if you already beat Nahatra in 0.8. Chapter select from the cottage Book is how you jump back to a domain without the dialogue. If a run was in progress across the 0.9.x betas, those betas warned that mid-run saves could reset. 1.0 is a full release; if something looks missing, check the Armory unlock list before you file a bug.
What 1.0 is not
- It is not a second-player patch. Still single-player only.
- It is not a mobile launch. Mobile remains TBD in old press sheets.
- It is not “the same game with two extra chapters.” The mid-game is a different verb set.
The trailer on this page is the official release-date piece. For the longer Early Access cinematic, the homepage uses Team Tapas’ Steam trailer. For how to play the new verbs, leave the trailer and open getting started.
Hotfixes after 28 August will be logged on the updates hub as they exist. Until then, treat this page as the line between archive guides and live guides. If a friend sends you a synergy screenshot tonight, send them this page back. The Garden did not get a coat of paint. It got a new verb set, and the Armory planner is how you speak it on day one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers about Garden of Witches 1.0.
Is Garden of Witches 1.0 a free update?
Yes for owners. It is the full release of the Early Access Steam app, not a separate SKU.
Do I have to relearn builds?
Yes if you learned synergies. No if you already think in Scissors / Spells / Imprints. Start at best builds.
Are Epilogues 2 and 3 optional?
They are the 1.0 story ending. Skip them only if you do not care about finishing Nahatra's arc. Structure is on the walkthrough.
Did mouse support really ship?
Yes. It is the default control scheme. See controls.