Playing Our Games Using Itch.io

Hello guys, how is it going?

As you all know, we have been using the Itch.io platform to distribute our games, meaning that every month (or two) you access the site through our links to download the latest installment of Shale Hill Secrets.

What many people don’t know is that Itch has a launcher that works as a game hub - something like Steam, for example. And you can use it to install and play SHS directly there!

Why are we making this post? Because we think that using the Itch.io app will make it a lot easier for you guys to play our games. The most significant benefit is that updates are handled automatically. Also, it uses a smart patch system, so that you won’t have to download the whole game every time we update it. This means that instead of a full 2.5GB download, a smaller 300MB update will happen, for example.

And what about the saves? Don’t worry. They will keep working normally, as well as the Patreon login system. You just need to load up the game and it will find your saves and progress automatically.

But, how do I use it then? Let me show you!

1) First of all, download the Itch.io app. Click here, or access their homepage and click on “Start Download”.

2) Choose the folder you want to use and click on “Install now”.

3) Once the software has been installed, open it. Now, you must log in. You can create an Itch account by clicking the “Register” button or you can enter yours if you already have one.

4) After successfully logging in, it’s time to do a little configuration to play our games. Inside the app, click on the button placed on the right side of your name and go to “Settings”.

5) Now, in the tab “Profile”, scroll your screen until you see the “Content” option. There, you’ll have to check “Show content marked as adult in search & browse”.

6) Remember to save your changes by clicking on the “Save” button at the bottom of the page.

7) Another change you might want to make is to your privacy settings. If you want to “hide” that you're playing something, an adult game for example, do the following: using the menu on the left, click on the tab “Privacy”. Then, uncheck the option “Make my public activity on itch.io visible to my followers and other users of the site”. Again, remember to save your changes before leaving the menu.

8) Configurations made, now it’s time to download Shale Hill Secrets. You can start by using the “Search” bar, on the top left of your screen. There, just input the name of our game “Shale Hill Secrets”.

9) As you can see, Itch.io will promptly suggest the right choice. Just click over it and the app will take you to the game page. There, you will find an "Install" button on the bottom of the screen. Please, pay attention to click on the right button (like in the image below). Do not click on "Download now".

10) In "To location", you have the option to select the directory in which you want Itch to install the game. This may be useful in case the default disk is full.

11) Click "Install", the download will start right away. You can check the progress on the left side of your screen; Click over the thumbnail to check the status of the download.

12) Download finished, just click “Launch” to start the game and have fun! Now the game will always be available in your library. For now on, you can play Shale Hill Secrets using the Itch app. It will keep the game up-to-date automatically and you don't have to worry anymore about downloading it manually.

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That’s it guys, we hope some of you find this tutorial helpful and start using the Itch.io platform to play our games. We are not receiving anything from Itch, and this is not an advertorial, paid article, or anything like that. We just think that this will make your life easier.

All the best,
The Love-Joint Team.