Release log

What changed in Pack Shield

A plain-language history of important app updates. In-app announcements link here when a release needs more detail than a small card can comfortably hold.

September 22, 2026

1.5.1 + 1.5.2 polish for cards, clocks, and buddies

Version 1.5.2

This announcement includes the Version 1.5.1 patch plus Version 1.5.2. Together, they tighten the buddy and recovery loops that shipped in Version 1.5: name preferences are easier to update, gratitude card sharing is smoother, pledge days are more accurate, care rewards are fairer, sobriety clocks are easier to read, Shibit equipment saves more reliably, celebrations feel bigger, and pledge and gratitude cards get more visual variety.

Personalization polish

You can update your recovery-card name from Preferences, create a fresh gratitude list from Progress, and save a gratitude list straight into the share-card sheet.

Pledge and Den fixes

Pledge cards now use the current clean day instead of jumping ahead by one, and the Den no longer shows the section background animation glitch after switching views.

Care rewards are fairer

SER now controls whether care actions can be used, and care actions only award XP when they actually restore at least one stat.

Clearer buddy feedback

Care and game snackbars now name the Shibit affected by the action, and stat restore chips use the same colors as the Shibit stat rings.

Inactive buddies stay safer

Inactive Shibits no longer lose care stats while previewed or inactive, and preview guidance clarifies that care and games still affect the active buddy.

Equipment saves across buddies

Selected looks and equipment now persist for each Shibit, not just the starter buddy.

Sobriety clocks read better

Today clocks can reveal years and months when they exist, hide empty day counts, and use theme-matched colors across the static and animated clock views.

More theme options

Random Light and Random Dark themes can cycle through matching theme pools when the logo screen loads.

Level-up celebrations

Shibit level-ups now appear in the same announcement popup system as release notes, queue one at a time, and list any stat point increases.

Bigger release celebrations

Release popups now use falling confetti from under the announcement card instead of a small burst hidden behind it.

Cleaner timers and cards

The meditation timer keeps the active Shibit simple with just the buddy GIF, while pledge and gratitude cards get more randomized star placement and aligned footer styling.

Swipe polish

Swipeable rows received subtler tick feedback, including wider-element spacing and one-tick behavior for two-page rows.

Also included

  • Today care actions now follow the same resource and reward logic as Den care actions.
  • Room-matched inactive Shibits can receive XP from room bonuses.
  • WIS allocation works for previewed Shibits.
  • The WIS confirmation dialog names the Shibit affected.
  • The Den stat tray shows inactive Shibit SER and other stat tray details more consistently in preview mode.
  • Pledge and gratitude cards randomize star placement more naturally.
  • Pledge card packshield.app styling now matches gratitude cards.
  • Website screenshots were refreshed, optimized, cached, and the background animation was paused for a calmer page.
  • The release announcement system can show remote announcements from the website config.

September 19, 2026

Personalized cards, buddy polish, and steadier setup

Version 1.5

Version 1.5 focuses on the details that make Pack Shield feel more personal and reliable: a cleaner launch moment, release-aware announcements, persistent sober clock views, smoother substance selection, richer pledge and gratitude cards, and refreshed buddy profiles.

Cleaner launch and announcements

Pack Shield now opens with the Pack Shield logo before the main interface appears. Release announcements and buddy level-up cards sit above active sheets and use a short celebration effect when they appear.

Release cards match the installed version

New version announcements can appear again after an app update, even if an older announcement was already dismissed, so people see the right what's-new card for their installed build.

Sober clock views persist

Each sober clock remembers its countdown display state when moving between screens. Year, month, day, and hour totals now use compact decimal and thousand-style formatting where helpful.

Better substance selection

Substance choices now use a reusable selection sheet with category filtering and multi-select support, making onboarding and meeting reminders easier to complete without a jumpy dropdown.

More personal cards

Onboarding can collect a short first name for personalization. Pledge and gratitude cards now show the user's name, buddy, level, and current look, and gratitude cards use Intention for the day with randomized theme-aware colors.

Buddy profile refresh

Menchi is now Nabe, Nabe's food is Nabeyaki, Katsu's food is Katsuyaki, and Yaki's profile now uses the fire theme with a compact list of related Japanese foods.

Buddies sheet polish

Buddy rows now keep profile info buttons, use Name: food formatting, show innate suit icons inside each buddy container, and avoid the old transition when switching active and inactive buddies.

Care and game resources feel fairer

Active-buddy care spending no longer drains inactive buddies. Inactive buddies restore hourly resources cleanly, games keep their own heart tanks, and Try Again can return to the Den when hearts are still available.

Preferences and setup cleanup

Settings has moved toward Preferences language, Recovery Setup uses clearer color separation, and setup/profile screens received small copy and spacing fixes.

Also included

  • The Pack Shield logo asset was cleaned up for the splash screen.
  • Level-up and release popups are less likely to be hidden behind other active sheets.
  • The Den sheet received fixes for a sliding background artifact in buddy and tool sections.
  • Gratitude list creation renamed Note to Intention for the day.
  • The Buddy food guide now uses Nabe: one-pot meal and updated Yaki/Katsu food labels.
  • Edit Buddy no longer shows the old Shibit name field.

September 15, 2026

Essentials, Daily Routine, Games, and Buddy XP

Version 1.4

Version 1.4 reorganizes Pack Shield around the tools people need fastest, then tightens the deeper All Tools loop with clearer Daily Routine feedback, better buddy XP rules, playable games, richer gratitude cards, and calmer Den controls.

Shorter first run

Onboarding now focuses on four steps: start, choose a recovery buddy, set a sober clock, and name what you are protecting.

Essentials first, All Tools when useful

Essentials keeps the app calmer by centering the sober clock, Rescue, Pause timers, Progress, Settings, optional support setup, and a passive recovery buddy. All Tools now keeps that same Home layout, then adds deeper controls below it.

Today feels calmer

Home is now Today, with the sober clock, what you are protecting, and Rescue placed closer to the top. The extra mode switch moved into Settings.

Sortable recovery tray

All Tools now turns Rescue and related recovery tools into a compact swipeable tray. Actions can expand for more context, and the row can be manually sorted when someone wants their most-used tools first.

Daily Routine

Daily Routine now gathers Just For Today actions, latest completed activity, enabled reminders, and scheduled support meetings into compact rows, with snackbar feedback when routine actions earn XP.

Pause timer ideas

Pause now includes clickable idea pills for countdown, ongoing, and Pomodoro timers, including breathwork, prayer, quiet time, support calls, walking outside, shower resets, rest, reading, and other short recovery pauses.

Cleaner Rescue

Rescue now keeps the immediate action, timer, support options, and protected reason in a simpler order with less setup work during risky moments.

Stable sober clock views

Sober time can now be viewed as the main clock or as days, hours, months, and years in one steady row, using subdued theme colors without making the Home layout jump.

Progress without extra pressure

Progress keeps recovery milestones, badges, calendars, and activity easier to scan. Buddy memories and buddy-specific badges stay in All Tools.

Shield as deeper support

Shield setup now explains the Screen Time path more clearly, previews the pause flow, and treats Shield as supportive friction in All Tools instead of something Essentials needs to manage from the navigation bar.

Games are easier to open

Games now open from a dedicated Games sheet on Home and in the Den. Game cards are tappable, the Play call-to-action spans the full card, and Courage only limits rewards, not whether someone can keep playing.

Buddy XP and resources behave more clearly

Active and inactive buddies now celebrate level gains, inactive buddies receive half of active-buddy XP without stat decay, SER gates care actions, and COU gates game XP while still letting games run for practice.

Shared game hearts

Tic Tac Toe, Match Maker, and Galaxy Glide now share one heart pool during play. Hearts start at three plus the active buddy's current-level HP stat, support retries while hearts remain, and compactly display larger totals.

Gratitude and share cards

Gratitude lists can now hold up to 13 capped entries, can be edited from the share sheet, and export alongside pledge cards with stable theme colors, readable text, buddy level, look, and packshield.app.

History opens back into details

Progress history now surfaces gratitude lists and can reopen pledge cards, gratitude cards, daily reviews, meeting actions, and meditation sessions from recent activity.

Buddy and Den polish

The buddy section keeps the Essentials feel while All Tools adds stats rings. The Home and Den stats trays show the same level pill, optional care and game notes sit below their action rows, and Den game tiles are tighter.

Settings reorganized

Settings is grouped around Recovery, Protection, Buddy, App, Account and data, Help, About, and Safety, with clearer labels for switching between Essentials and All Tools.

Also included

  • Navigation labels now read Today, Pause, Progress, Shield, and Settings.
  • Selected tab capsules have more breathing room around labels.
  • The protected reason editor now ticks only the reason text, and the info and edit controls line up with the What you're protecting header.
  • The Progress calendar header has more top room.
  • XP labels now use the clearer spaced format, such as 20 XP.
  • Care restores now scale with SER and COU allocations for Health, Hunger, Hygiene, Home, Strength, and Hope.
  • Game start overlays now clarify when COU is empty and a game is for fun without XP.
  • Support meeting actions now use the shorter Attended label.
  • The Den preview mode avoids spending resources or changing stats for inactive buddies.
  • Buddy wording was softened to recovery buddy, Buddies, looks, rooms, Den, and care cues where it fits.
  • Support copy now uses support person language more consistently.
  • Synthwave Den is now Synthwave Suite.
  • The Shield extension now sends people toward Pause, Rescue, support, or a limited emergency unlock with calmer wording.

September 15, 2026

Gratitude, meditation, and fuller Shibit progression

Version 1.3

Version 1.3 expands the recovery loop after Version 1.2 with daily gratitude, meditation, richer reminders and achievements, alternate-look clarity, deeper Shibit XP/stat systems, and a cleaner Care-first Den.

Daily gratitude

Create a daily gratitude list, count it toward Daily Flow, save it with your Shibit, and export a space-styled share card.

Meditation timer

Meditation is now its own timer-backed daily action with Shibit memories, Daily XP, reminders, and achievement progress.

Expanded Daily Flow

Daily Flow now includes Pledge, Gratitude, Meditation, Shibit care, Pause, and Review, with gratitude and meditation routed from reminders.

Support toolkit additions

The quick-support toolkit now includes Gratitude and Meditation alongside Rescue, Talk, Meetings, Shield, Pause, Plan, and Restart.

Looks and collection clarity

Shibit alternate looks now have animated preview sheets, flavor text, owned/equipped states, look bonuses, and clearer room bundle styling.

Shibit XP and stat growth

Look XP bonuses apply to rewards, inactive Shibits receive 50% passive XP, and Shibit stat growth now explains how base stats influence HP, HUN, HYG, and HOM.

Care-first Den

The Den now opens to Care first, then Games, Looks, and Rooms. Active risks, treatment actions, pulsing care prompts, and guide-sheet routing are easier to use.

Room polish

Room previews, owned/equipped labels, classic look thumbnails, and room selection persistence were cleaned up to reduce visual jumping and clarify ownership states.

Home cleanup

Home removes the old Status section, restores the sobriety-clock plus button, improves stat breakdown explanations, and opens the Badge Wall directly from tapped milestone badges.

Also included

  • Risk pills and treatment pills were normalized across Home, The Den, and the risks sheet.
  • Treatment actions now confirm from the risks sheet and can handle multiple active risks treated by the same action.
  • The mood badge can route into The Den's Care tab.
  • Snackbar XP copy reflects look XP bonuses where applicable.
  • Release announcements refresh when the app returns active so new release cards are easier to surface.

September 14, 2026

Daily Flow, Shield handoffs, and clearer action polish

Version 1.2

Version 1.2 tightens the daily recovery loop that shipped through build 43: smarter Shield handoffs, clearer Shibit progression, Daily Flow with Daily XP, editable stake language, and more consistent action polish across Home, The Den, Settings, and release guidance.

Smarter Shield handoffs

Screen Time shield actions now route into the Shield tab with the blocked app or site context preserved, so Open Shield, contact support, and emergency paths can present a better next step.

Expanded stat guides

The Den now explains Health, Hunger, Hygiene, Home, Strength, Hope, Wisdom, Serenity, and Courage with clearer descriptions and more useful guide-sheet context.

SER and COU action pools

Care and play choices now surface how Serenity and Courage affect hourly recovery action capacity, making resource planning easier to understand.

WIS point allocation

Wisdom now has a clearer role in point allocation for care and play capacity, tying long-term Shibit growth back to practical daily choices.

Perk previews

Room bundle, look, base, and room details now call out their perks so collection choices feel less mysterious before players equip or purchase them.

Suite polish

Suite bundle previews and room styling were tightened so store and Den choices read more clearly across themes.

Daily Flow and Daily XP

Daily Flow on Home now tracks Daily XP for Pledge, Shibit care, Pause, and Review. Incomplete actions stay left, completed actions move right, and expanded cards show subdued XP until completion turns them green.

Swipeable compact flow

The collapsed Daily Flow row now uses a clipped swipe tray so action icons can move horizontally without overlapping the Daily Flow title or accordion control.

Rescue as support status

Rescue moved out of the required daily checklist and into Support Status, where it can read Ready, Active, or Done without penalizing days when no urge needs rescuing.

Editable primary stake

The protected default reason is now My life, and it can be edited without becoming deletable. Clearing it restores the safe default.

Sobriety clock management

The main clock stays on Home, while add, show-on-Home, edit, reset, and delete controls now live under Recovery support in Settings.

Also included

  • Emergency and support flows now use typed Shield actions instead of loose string matching.
  • Per-base Shibit care state is preserved more consistently when switching avatars.
  • Old Myself stake defaults migrate cleanly into the new My life primary stake reason.
  • Guide sheets received clearer spacing, badges, and pagination for smaller screens.
  • Action colors were separated so Feed, Restart, Shibit, Care, Rescue, Soothe, Meetings, Water, Medicine, Shield, Support, Reflect, Plan, Den, and Pause are easier to tell apart wherever they appear.
  • The hold-to-pledge button now has a richer gradient treatment while preserving the same hold interaction.
  • Release announcements can stay short in-app while linking here for the full detail list.

September 12, 2026

Mood, risks, themes, and timer alerts

Version 1.1

Version 1.1 pulled together clearer Home language, richer Shibit care systems, refreshed Den guidance, stronger Pause timer alerts, and visual cleanup across themes and rooms.

Mood and risks

The Den now has dedicated Mood and Risks guide pages, active risk badges, treatment badges, clearer untreated-effect copy, and a mood pill beside Shibit level.

Home and recovery flow

Home now uses clearer sobriety clock wording, improved recovery action colors, rotating stake reasons, compact risk chips, and a more direct Den shortcut.

Shibit stats and care

Stats now better explain your recovery buddy, the Shibit, including Health, Hunger, Hygiene, Home, Strength, Hope, Wisdom, Serenity, and Courage.

Themes and suites

Theme previews and suite rooms were tuned so color overlays feel present without flattening the artwork, especially on synthwave and suit suite rooms.

Pause timers

Timer completion now uses a stronger in-app alarm with haptics, while local notifications stay scheduled for background or locked-screen timer endings.

Shibit collection refresh

Several Shibit bases and looks were refreshed, renamed, or reorganized so the collection lines up better with the current pack direction.

Also included

  • History and stake displays were tightened up for easier scanning.
  • Settings copy now consistently refers to sobriety clocks instead of timers where appropriate.
  • Game and care resource language now uses Courage and Serenity more consistently.
  • The App Tour badge and dark-theme contrast received readability polish.
  • Stats and guide sheets received spacing, pagination, and badge color refinements.