Hey yall! It’s time for another Superbug Sunday Specifics. Today I want to talk about the original scope of the Mutations update. There’s a lot to show off, so let’s not waste any time!

If you remember seeing the Mutations Teaser Trailer over 2 years ago - first of all, thanks for sticking around for so long, and second - it’s finally time to talk about Weapon Mutations! 

Part 1a: Weapon Mutations 

In SUPERBUG’s Mutations Update, you can find "Mutations" to change and upgrade your weapon in your runs. Just like in vanilla SUPERBUG, you always start with the Missile weapon - but every so often, you'll be given a room to choose from one of three Carriers, two of which always containing a Weapon Mutation you don’t already have.

The third Carrier, of course, always contains an Antibiotic - restore 1 life, or if your health is already full, gain 50,000 points.

As shown in the GIF above, each Carrier in this room has a Personal Barrier, rendering them indestructible to weapon damage. In order to claim their drop, you have to choose one to destroy with contact damage by boosting into it. By making this choice, you remove the other two carriers, and can’t claim their reward.

Every time you reach one of these mutation rooms, you’ll be given a different selection of weapon mutations, following a pattern of sidegrade-upgrade-sidegrade-upgrade-sidegrade. Therefore, as you progress, you will gradually get stronger, but you will also need to select a random variety of different weapons. For the full release, there are planned to be FOUR weapon types (including the base Missile weapon), each with three tiers.

Now, let’s check out a preview of a choice Tier I mutation and a choice Tier II mutation. First is the Tier I Repeater; this weapon was shown in an early state in the aforementioned Mutations Teaser Trailer, but received some major overhauls, thus earning the spotlight for today. The Repeater is a rapid-fire burst weapon; it has several stock, but shoots faster than it can recharge, so using it in moderation and up close is key for optimal damage. 

Next is the Tier II Chunk: The Cluster. As you might expect, instead of firing explosive Chunks, this weapon creates your very own Clusters. And yes, these clusters can hurt you. Now, I’ll let the video do the rest of the talking:

I hope you’re as excited for what you see here as I am - the Weapon Mutations of SUPERBUG’s Mutations update adds much needed depth to ongoing gameplay, and it synergizes well with other new things like Boost Features and Minibosses. Not to mention the strategic element to choosing your favorite or the strongest weapons, and…

… Did I say Minibosses!?!?!?

Part 1b: Minibosses

Yeah, we’re also adding Minibosses. Everybody give a warm welcome to our new friend, Penicillin:

This boss fight is something I've been working on for almost 3 years (on and off, of course)... it's truly a labor of love from me. While it's kind of SUPERBUG's "bread and butter" boss fight, making Penicillin has carved a way forward for some of the best content SUPERBUG has to offer. Instead of explaining too much, I'll let the full fight speak for itself.

I hope you like this boss as much as I do.  Of course, boss fights were more or less guaranteed to happen eventually; fitting them into SUPERBUG's gameplay loop was an exciting and satisfying challenge. These encounters really make the game's more hidden strengths shine through compared to regular levels. There's a lot I could say about the development behind this fight, so I'll spare you the time and write about it another month.

Part 1c: Lastly...

With all this information out in the world now, we should quick talk about the future of SUPERBUG. I really don’t want to be withholding this update from the public for so long as I talk about it in Superbug Sunday Specifics each month, but there is still so much yet to be shown, and more still for me to develop. I did say what I announced here was merely the original scope of the Mutations update; the true scope is in reality far beyond this. I should say - SUPERBUG: Mutations is nearly an entirely new game at this point, so I’m treating the release of the update like that. 

Realistically, SUPERBUG: Mutations might be available as late as the end of 2026, nearly 4 years after the originally-announced window. However, I have intentions to release a demo version without the major features, some time near the middle of 2025. It will be accompanied by more release information, something I have big plans for that will be discussed when the time comes. In the meantime, Superbug Sunday Specifics will continue with development thoughts and major reveals, as we build up to the game’s new debut.

Until next month, you can find us at the usual places, Discord, YouTube, Bluesky, or Instagram. 

Take care; Borbo and friends.