When designing the Four Divine Abidings, one of my goals was to let players experience the game in the way they prefer. While starting mostly active, like many other games of the incremental genre, I aimed to gradually introduce idle play options that would be not much less efficient compared to active playstyle.

Some notable features I integrated:

A tool which performs most manual actions for you, when unlocked and upgraded. At higher levels it even becomes more effective than clicking.

A long offline time upgradeable up to 52 hours with fair calculations: exactly the same as the game was running.

Idle rewards bonus that specifically applies when you dont do most of the manual actions. And this bonus applies to offline time as well!

Click cooldowns: non-stop clicking is impossible. This allows to balance the game properly for any playstyle.

Non-losable progress: the game always moves forward. There are no situations where a full game restart is a preferable option. No matter the players' choices, the progress happens, though with different pace.

Another design goal was to make active playstyle engaging. Since the game length is measured in weeks, pure clicking as the main mechanic cant hold its place for that long. So I introduced features to keep players experience engaging throughout the whole game:

For the early game: 3 distinct mechanics for clicking: actual progress, energy restoration and stats boosts. A total of 9 clicking areas make the process more diverse. At the same time all of these mechanics are optional and its up to you when and how to engage.

For the mid and late game: 202 milestones to complete and dozens of narrated tasks to follow. All of these activities favor mindful engagement, build customization and planning. This is the spot where players who like crunching numbers can engage the most.

Several layers of intertwined game mechanics to experiment with. Through some months and many rounds of testing these are balanced to keep you trying different ones and feel rewarded most of the time.

Evolving game loops. There is no single most effective setup for the whole game. At different stages, and for different tasks, some setups and play approaches are more effective than others.

As support for the broken mouse convention: optional 2x game speed. If you really want, you can click A LOT :))

Summary: the game can be very idle and very active. One can turn it into a meditative experience with very little active engagement, or make active actions almost constantly, or a mix of both. Its up to you to choose.

I got a valuable opportunity to make the Four Divine Abidings a free game. This means there is no a slightest conflict of interest:

All quality of life features are available from the beginning.

All content is accessible for free.

Fair offline calculations upgradable up to 52 hours.

No pay-inducing progress walls.

I've actually enjoyed several full playthroughs of the game myself : )

There will by an optional $5 Supporter DLC introduced for those who whish to express their gratituted; 100% of proceeds will go to godotengine.org - an engine where the game was crafted, free and open source.

The game will release on Steam on the 10th of July 00:00 GMT (9th of July 17:00 PDT).

Game Highlights

+ Narrated gameplay with dozens of tasks to follow.

+ The game is content-complete and can be finished.

+ 202 Milestones to claim, many providing unique permanent buffs.

+ 31 Steam achievements

+ 32 Skills and Insights to master.

+ Additional 20 Skills for Rebirth mechanic.

+ 9 Spiritual Tools introducing new mechanics and game loops.

+ Full support of both idle and active playstyles.

+ Many intertwined, evolving layers of strategic progression to keep you engaged throughout the entire game experience.

+ Hand-painted art, which many people find beautiful; soon getting its own offline exhibition.

+ Cloud save support.

[img src="https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images/45611635/07de6da9f2dbe9c74aaba969d154827e5261a453.png"][/img]

Some time ago I started with an idea

To create something different - an idle game that actually helps you slow down. A mindfulness-themed game that lets you grow and progress while practicing real contemplative principles. The twist? You don't need to constantly click or grind. Progress happens naturally, reflecting the idea that sometimes the best action is knowing when not to act.

Why?

Gaming helped me through some tough times, but I noticed something missing. While there are hundreds of games about fighting, building empires, or chasing high scores, almost none explore inner peace, mindfulness, or contemplative wisdom.

After my own meditation and mindfulness practice changed my life, I realized I could create something unique - a game that's actually good for your mental health. A digital space where you can encounter timeless wisdom while having fun.

How

The game design itself teaches mindfulness concepts:

• Automatic progress reflects letting go of constant striving

• Cyclical gameplay mirrors the natural rhythms of life and meditation

• Mindful choices over frantic clicking encourages presence

• Visual meditation through carefully hand-crafted, calming aesthetics

Every system is designed to embody contemplative principles rather than just reference them. You're not just reading about letting go - you're experiencing it through gameplay.

Then I poured 3000 hours and my heart into implementation

And made this happen. At the same time I got a valuable opportunity to make the game free.

I'm putting the finishing touches on this gaming experience. Follow along as I share development updates, mindful gaming philosophy, and sneak peeks at the meditative world I'm creating.