South Korean indie developer PepperStones has revealed a major combat overhaul coming to HIPS N NOSES, its cafe management and action roguelike hybrid. The updated playable demo makes its debut at Tokyo Game Show 2026, alongside a new animated trailer. The game has already passed 33,000 wishlists on Steam.
Visitors to the show will be among the first to try the new combat system at the KOCCA Korea Pavilion in Makuhari Messe, Hall 3 / Booth 03-C03.
What the new combat demo changes
At the heart of the overhaul is a new tag system. Players apply tags to each party member’s weapons and skills, customise their combat builds, and shape their own progression path instead of following one fixed route.
The updated demo also introduces a part-time staff system. Staff help prepare and serve drinks ordered by regular customers, so players can keep up with a growing cafe while giving their attention to the guests who need it most.
A cafe by day, a dream world by night
In HIPS N NOSES, nobody sleeps except Mela, the only person who can dream. She opens a cafe that helps customers recover lost memories: she meets the people who walk through its doors, learns what they need, and serves drinks tailored to their tastes. At night she enters a constantly changing dream world filled with monsters, where combat is card-based and Memory Flowers are the reward. Those flowers become ingredients back at the cafe, so the two halves of the game feed directly into one another.
Where to try HIPS N NOSES at Tokyo Game Show 2026
The demo runs at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan, from September 17 to 21, 2026. Visitors can go through the full day-to-night loop, from meeting customers and preparing drinks to entering dreams, fighting monsters and gathering ingredients. More of the show’s lineup is in our Tokyo Game Show 2026 coverage.
HIPS N NOSES is in development for PC and is coming soon to Steam Early Access, and a playable demo is available now on Steam. PepperStones was 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.
Giancarlo Viterbo
Giancarlo Viterbo is a Filipino Technology Journalist, blogger and Editor of gadgetpilipinas.net, He is also a Geek, Dad and a Husband. He knows a lot about washing the dishes, doing some errands and following instructions from his boss on his day job. Follow him on twitter: @gianviterbo and @gadgetpilipinas.
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