Café Management Roguelike “HIPS N NOSES” Reveals Major Combat Overhaul

South Korean indie developer PepperStones has revealed a major combat overhaul coming to HIPS N NOSES, its colorful café management and action roguelike hybrid that has already amassed more than 33,000 wishlists on Steam.

In HIPS N NOSES, nobody sleeps except Mela, the only person capable of dreaming. After opening a café that helps its customers recover lost memories, Mela spends her days getting to know the people who walk through its doors, learning about their needs and serving drinks tailored to their individual tastes.

At night, things get considerably more dangerous.

When Mela falls asleep, she enters a constantly changing dream world filled with monsters. These nighttime expeditions allow players to collect Memory Flowers, which become ingredients used back at the café. The two sides of the game feed directly into one another, with conversations and café management influencing what players need to seek out when they enter the dream world.

PepperStones introduced a major overhaul to HIPS N NOSES’ combat, giving players more control over how they build and develop their party in The new Tokyo Game Show. At the heart of the update is a new tag system, which allows players to apply tags to each party member’s weapons and skills, customize their combat builds, and strategically shape their preferred progression path.

The café is getting some extra help, too! The updated demo introduces a new part-time staff system that helps players keep up with the growing workload as their café expands. Staff can assist with preparing and serving drinks ordered by regular customers, making it easier for players to manage everyday orders while focusing their attention on the café’s special customers.

Key Features

• Run a Café in a World That Never Sleeps – Meet a colourful cast of customers, listen to their stories, and learn what they need before crafting drinks specifically for them.
• Enter a World of Dreams – When the café closes, explore Mela’s dreams and battle monsters in action roguelike combat.
• Master Card-Based Combat – Build and adapt your approach as you make your way through the dream world, with a major overhaul to the combat system debuting at Tokyo Game Show.
• Gather Memory Flowers – Collect special ingredients within dreams and bring them back to the café to help restore customers’ lost memories.
• Two Worlds, One Gameplay Loop – What happens in the café informs your journeys into dreams, while what you discover at night gives you new possibilities during the day.
• Get to Know Your Customers – Build relationships with the people who visit Mela’s café and uncover their stories as you progress.

HIPS N NOSES is currently in development for PC and is coming soon to Steam Early Access. A playable demo is available now on Steam.

About PepperStones

PepperStones is a South Korean independent game studio founded in 2021 by two friends who met in middle school. Its debut title, Wetory, launched on PC and consoles with global publishing support from Gravity. The team is currently developing HIPS N NOSES, bringing together café management, character-driven storytelling, and action within a colourful dream world.