We are happy to bring you Patch 2.3.0 along with the release of Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget! Patch 2.3.0 comes with a long list of bug fixes, several Quality of Life improvements and a ton a free content for everyone.

We are extending the theme world of Park Beyond with a full new theme - High Fantasy - containing a new Flat Ride, scenery objects, modular structures and animatronics, entertainers. Everything you need to build your high fantasy or medieval park areas. To help the immersion we are also bringing you a fitting new coaster type along with the theme. The Wooden Coaster as a new main addition allows you to construct or rebuild your favorite wooden coasters with their unique supports.

But the Wooden Coaster is not the only new coaster type. Patch 2.3.0 also contains the Monorail track type, each of the new track types coming with all new coaster cars! To get a taste of Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget, we have also added the Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget Pendulum ride for everyone.

For Patch 2.3.0, we overhauled the water system in Park Beyond. Besides many bug fixes in this area, we have improved the placement feedback for water and added a live preview of the water plane. On top of this, placed water planes can now be selected - just like paths in a recent update - and you can change the water visuals without deleting and replacing the water. Water deletion with the demolish mode also received several feedback improvements.

Thank you all for your ongoing support, feedback and engagement! Happy building!

Please be aware of an issue introduced with Patch 2.3.0 in which coasters and coaster prefabs that have their "Train Pass Number" set to 1 or higher are not working correctly and won't stop at the station anymore. We will provide a hotfix for this issue shortly and apologize for the inconvenience this may cause in enjoying your creative coaster creations.

• Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget DLC
  
• 2 sandbox maps: Chicken Village and Fun-Land Farms
  
• 2 new Flat Rides
  
• New theme with new scenery objects, modular structures and animatronics from Chicken Village, Fun-Land Farms and factory locations from the movie
  
• New Coaster type with 6 new coaster cars
  
• 2 new Coaster modules
  
• Rocket Booster
  
• Catapult
  
• New Coaster prefab "Chicken Escape"
  
• New shop & decoration prefabs
  
• New entertainer costumes and impossification
  
• 2 new Flat Ride music tracks
  
• New coaster music track
  
• The Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget Pendulum Flat Ride for everyone
  
• The Monorail track type for everyone
  
• Two new track type-specific coaster cars
  
• The High Fantasy Pack for everyone
  
• Wooden Coaster track type
  
• Two new track type-specific coaster cars
  
• New Flat Ride
  
• New theme with new scenery objects, modular structures and animatronics
  
• New Flat Ride music track
  
• Added new Coaster prefab
  
• UFO Sighting (Beyond eXtreme)

• Fixed a crash when placing the clone of an object that was previously undone
  
• Fixed a crash when accessing "Car and Train Settings" in the Flying Coaster
  
• Fixed a crash on selecting a module after deleting a track segment and undoing this action
  
• Fixed a crash when switching between Mouse and Gamepad on module placement
  
• Fixed a crash caused by invalid staff duty
  
• Fixed various out of memory crashes
  
• Fixed a crash that can occur on loading specific community parks
  
• Fixed a freeze or long loading times on loading specific community parks
  
• Fixed a freeze and crash that occurs on accessing community content with an account that already subscribed to 1 GB of content
  
• Fixed a crash when repeatedly logging in and out from the community content
  
• Fixed an occasional crash related to undo/redo
  
• Fixed an occasional crash when reaching the curved path checkpoint in Mission 01

• Improved performance further when moving larger prefabs
  
• Improved performance when moving multiple prefabs at the same time
  
• Improved performance for the terraforming undo history
  
• Improved overall placement performance

• Fixed a bug that changed the campaign difficulty to 'Manager' instead of 'Visioneer' by default
  
• Fixed that occasionally the game speed is greyed out when loading mission save files

• Fixed the camera moving behind the starting point at the beginning of the mission
  
• Fixed that the SFX for the cannon are missing while in the first-person camera

• Fixed the goal "Sell 25 more of trending Hypertonic++" counting the sales of the specific item before the goal is available
  
• Fixed that certain game options are greyed out and labelled as unavailable after loading a save file of older versions

• Fixed box selection automatically activating and getting stuck after impossifying a ride using gamepad

• Fixed the goal "Build a path that connect the park entrance to the purchased island" not completing when connecting it correctly in some occurences

• Fixed a minor visual issue on the orientation phase

• Fixed inconsistencies in a challenge in which you need to place rides with a certain theme
  
• Added a ride camera for the Thrillinator coaster

• Added missing help screens
  
• Fixed team goal “Winner Takes it all” not accomplishing after fulfilling the requirements

• Added a starting subsidy for high nausea rides when choosing the throw-up option in the pitch meeting
  
• Added a new throw-up exclusive team goal
  
• Added a new Newphoria exclusive team goal
  
• Added missing help screens
  
• Updated interaction stand rewards
  
• Extended the playable area slightly

• Extended the playable area slightly in Multiples of Mayhem (Beyond eXtreme)
  
• Fixed "Impossify Everything" Sandbox goal being accomplishable by impossifying two of the same kind of Flat Ride

• Fixed visitors standing inside trash cans when using them
  
• Fixed visitors proceeding towards incorrect areas while exiting certain impossified Flat Rides after relocation
  
• Improved condition for the "All the rides we like are closed" thought to be thought by visitors
  
• Fixed visitors still holding onto their souvenir while in rides
  
• Fixed certain agent affects disappearing after loading a savegame

• Fixed janitors standing inside trash cans when emptying them
  
• Fixed the idle animations of ride operators not displaying correctly
  
• Fixed multiple issues with colour customization of entertainers and impossified entertainers
  
• Fixed staff hair clipping through hats and different headgear

• Fixed some incorrect tags on Flat Rides

• Added lights to additional coaster cars
  
• Reduced time for the UI to fade out in the ride camera
  
• Fixed train size being reset to 1 when a train is respawned if the train size hasn't been changed by the player, yet
  
• Fixed various car styles so that their restraints are opening/closing properly at the station
  
• Fixed occurrences in which illegal tracks could be placed with gamepad/controller
  
• Fixed coaster failing to open automatically on manually connecting the entrance path before exit path from the overview panel
  
• Fixed changes made to the car/train being saved on exiting the Course Editor directly from the Car and Train Settings without accepting the Save Changes pop-up
  
• Fixed the Save Changes pop-up not showing when selecting the hooks button from the Car and Train Settings
  
• Fixed the Flying Coaster resetting to the station after going through certain modules
  
• Fixed ride editor not showing any costs for unchanged concept rides
  
• Fixed that the tracks are not updating on changing the gid settings in the coaster editor
  
• Fixed the train size resetting to default on exiting the Car and Train settings
  
• Fixed the elevator module being visually deformed after undoing and redoing its placement
  
• The safety test now fails when a split car with different facing directions stops at the station
  
• Fixed that you automatically increase the height of tracks after deleting the elevator module
  
• Fixed track nodes adjusting their height randomly on their own
  
• Fixed split trains sometimes getting stuck on merging near a station
  
• Fixed tracks snapping up or down after releasing the height adjustment button
  
• Fixed some inconsistencies in the “Tracks are too long” error message
  
• Fixed the track height automatically adjusting on performing undo on a windtunnel module

• Improved height adjustment during gamepad path placement to no longer rely on focus point and making it behave like in the coaster editor
  
• Improved intersections updating their path texture when changing adjacent path textures
  
• Improved collision detection with curved paths near land extension borders to reduce cases of "You don't own the land extension" errors
  
• Improved path supports reacting to path changes with more accuracy and faster
  
• Added a collision highlight to objects colliding with a path being placed
  
• Fixed multiple occurrences of flickering paths
  
• Fixed the multiselect staying active when selecting a path and waiving the selection again
  
• Fixed a missing highlight on path railings
  
• Fixed paths snapping to the ground on specific maps under certain conditions
  
• Fixed path snapping no longer working after height adjustment under certain conditions
  
• Fixed that you cannot see the placed paths and tangent line during tunnelling
  
• Adjusted the “metal bars” thumbnail to fit the placed path better

• Improved snap setups of trims and fixed various snapping issues related to them
  
• Walls can now be snapped at any angle to each other when placed in object space
  
• Fixed issues with fences not snapping correctly
  
• Fixed the "Automatic Path Connection" option not being available in Placement Settings while moving or cloning any placed core or when placing a prefab
  
• Fixed the shop core not being included in the object count of a prefab
  
• Fixed custom and prefab coasters not having display colours to identify the assets in Object Group Editor mode
  
• Fixed maintenance of rides getting reset to 100% when performing undo/redo after the maintenance goes down
  
• Fixed an incorrect cost display when editing custom prefabs that contain a coaster

• Fixed that under certain conditions the maximum shop queue length is exceeded by a lot
  
• Fixed that shop queues limited by other queues can go across the path resulting in visitors queuing up in the middle of the path
  
• Fixed the luxury toilet Candyville prefab containing a basic toilet

• Added clearer error messages
  
• Improved purge notification for exclusive DLC content
  
• Improved visibility and scroll speed of the scroll bar
  
• Fixed owned prefabs that could not be subscribed or downloaded again after being shared as a new version
  
• Fixed certain error messages not being displayed correctly
  
• Fixed that shop impossifications are reset on starting a Community Park
  
• Fixed a wrong error message triggering after accessing community content related to account age setting
  
• Fixed custom tags not updating dynamically on overwriting an existing prefab

• Animatronics now use an idle animation when the action animation is not active

• Water brushes now have separate visuals displaying the water level around the cursor
  
• Water level is now previewed during placement
  
• Improved the feedback for legal and illegal water placement
  
• Water is now selectable after placement and the chosen water texture can be adjusted
  
• Improved feedback on water deletion with the demolish mode
  
• Terraforming now displays the cost tooltip
  
• Fixed the “flatten to plateau” functionality behaving differently when using it around rides

• Fixed lab expansions being unlockable with a double-click

• Added a search bar to the help center to ease the search for specific help screens
  
• Added a tip for issuing staff orders in the help center

• Fixed the camera getting stuck in first person view when the selected visitor would leave the park

• Fixed issues with the dynamic cursor not working correctly or ignoring settings

• Added an option for rides to disable night lights
  
• Fixed certain Flat Rides not responding to night settings
  
• Fixed occurrences of trash floating in the air when dropped by visitors on uneven paths
  
• Fixed shop vendors sometimes snapping during their animations
  
• Fixed visitors sometimes not unequipping their purchased items

• Fixed various occurrences of cut off text
  
• Fixed occurrences of tooltips not disappearing
  
• Fixed various cases of highlighters not displaying correctly in interfaces with gamepad/controller
  
• Fixed that the focus is lost when a help screen triggers while height adjusting during placement
  
• Fixed multiple outdated or missing images in help screens
  
• Fixed “Start Map” and “reset settings” button being truncated with specific UI scaling
  
• Fixed that ATMs and Toilets spamming the notification feed
  
• Added a back button to the community content
  
• Fixed a visual corruption on the custom prefab ride ratings if it has more than 5 stars in any category
  
• Fixed that tooltips for specific team goals are overlapping with their description

• Improved culling of audio emitters like flat rides
  
• Fixed audio desyncing on higher game speeds

• Options can now be reset manually to default values

• Updated censored profanities
  
• Improved labels for camera button prompt and general button prompt settings

• Fixed a game freeze occurring if an autosave is created during mission outros

• Fixed wrong button gamepad button callouts being displayed when using a PlayStation 5 controller in the Community Content section

We're changing the prices of a few c-stack items! While most costs are getting reduced, some by up to 1/3, the Lycan7 is having it's c-stack cost increased from 25 to 100. If you haven't already, make sure to pick it up before the change happens on Monday the 18th of December, it's a great SMG.

• From 500 C-stacks to 200 C-Stacks
  
  • CAR4 Monument
    
  • KU59 Ruthless
    
  • A114 Sentinel
    
  • Mosconi12C the Poacher
    
  • R880 Porch King
• From 300 C-Stacks to 150 C-Stacks
  
  • Bison Long Ranger
• From 300 C-Stacks to 100 C-Stacks
  
  • All Enforcer gloves
    
  • All High Torques gloves
    
  • All Harsh Grabbers gloves
• From 25 C-Stacks to 100 C-Stacks
  
  • Compact7 Lycan

SBZ_Sebastian

Hi Kerbonauts!

For Science! launches in a few days on December 19th - here's a deep dive video with key members of the KSP team that covers what'll be available in the update (with some sweet new gameplay!).


ICYMI - for more information about For Science!, check out our:

• Science and tech tree developer video with Tom Vinita, Feature Lead
  
• Atmospheric rendering progress and improvements development blog from Ghassen 'Blackrack' Lahmar, Graphics Engineer
  
• Performance check-in from the engineering team

We're in the final countdown!

---

Keep up with all things Kerbal Space Program 🚀
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I’m glad you asked. Shaders are tiny little programs that run on your computer's GPU, running a massive number of operations in parallel to create many of the wonderful effects you see in modern computer games. We use shaders all over Foundry, and since I spend a lot of time thinking and working on them I wanted to share a bit of the work I’ve been doing on our new unified object shader.

If you want to catch up, in previous Foundry Fridays I talked a bit about our first person rendering solution and touched on our lighting system. Before we delve into our new Foundry shader I think a little background on shaders is in order.

First you need to understand that almost everything you see in a video game is made out of triangles, and each triangle has three points that define it, which we call vertices.


These vertices are often spaced out more than each pixel on your screen. We frequently perform operations that move, animate or color each vertex.


A simple Vertex program will transform the object space position of each vertex into clip position, and perform some operations on the texture mapping. The really cool thing about vertex programs is that they only define the data at each vertex point in a triangle, and then the data is “interpolated” (blended) between each point when you sample the data later at the fragment (pixel) level. Imagine one vertex is blue, the other is green, then the middle point between the two will be teal.

The interpolated data from the vertex data is then transferred to a fragment shader (one fragment shader per pixel of the shader being drawn on screen). The fragment program then decides what will be drawn on screen. Here we sample a texture, given a uv coordinate to output a simple texture without any lighting information. If you want lighting or any fancy features from here you need to add a ton more code.



Unity has a really nifty feature called surface shaders. These shaders let you create consistent and powerful shaders with relatively little code. That’s because instead of defining the final “output” in a fragment program, you write a surface description in a special surface shader. This includes descriptive things like the color of the object and the reflectivity of the surface. Because we are just describing a surface we are not responsible for how the final pixel looks, and instead another shader operates on this data all at once at the end to create a consistent look with all other surface shaders.



Shader programs are designed to be as small and efficient as possible, but at the same time we ask them to do so many different things. A solution to this is to make each “feature” you have in your shader optional by compiling two versions- one with the feature and one without. Key shaders often have many different options and for each option, O, we have a total of 2 to the power of O shader variants.



Ok so now that we have that out of the way, lets talk about the new Foundry shader that we are moving towards using across most buildings, and characters. This shader utilizes surface shading and multi-compiled shader features. The “Default Foundry Shader” has numerous features we are experimenting with that can be mixed and matched and may one day find their way into the game.



Rim lighting takes the normal and view direction of the fragment and determines if it’s looking at a glancing angle for highlighting. You are probably most familiar with this effect in Mario games like Galaxy. This can add definition to the edges and silhouette of a building or character. Here I apply an extremely obnoxious amount of rim light to the drop pod to help visualize how the light is applied.





Factories in Foundry are pretty and clean, but what if they were dirty? Using a tri-planar “noise” texture I can selectively apply smudges on buildings (or entire factories) using the wear mask feature. You could imagine how this might play into a gameplay system in the future, but for right now it’s just an experiment.

An old screenshot test of what a “dirty” base might look like.

Buildings and characters can have selective tinting at runtime. Areas on the model are masked out to receive tinting and then this shader feature modifies the HSV value of the fragment to a new tint. We are already using this tinting system for the player “skin” selection option from the Next Fest demo, but here you can see that it’s not limited to predefined colors- it could even be animated or applied to buildings.



Shaders allow you to dramatically change the way your game looks and feels, but it’s easy to go overboard and create a performance nightmare. Surface shaders help keep things consistent and shader features let us optimize the amount of code actually run per surface to just what is needed. Foundry’s visuals and shaders are constantly evolving and I'm excited to see where we improve them next!

- Mark Laprairie

Follow us on socials:

• Discord
  
• Twitter
  
• Reddit
  
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• Paradox Forum

Stay tuned for more news!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/983870/FOUNDRY/

Come watch Denseacat, our level designer and writer, showcase the Playtest version of our game. While the stream is pre-recorded, we're here to answer any of your questions about the gameplay or how to play. Just drop us a message in our Community Hub or on Discord

Don't forget to follow Denseacat on Twitch for some great indie game development streams.

Want to try the Playtest yourself? You can! Just request access for the session, running from 7 PM CET on December 15th to 7 PM CET on January 2nd

Greetings, Commanders!

We trust you're all in good spirits. In this update, we're excited to share about some of the steadfast guardians who will accompany you in unraveling the enigmas of Epsilon City. From our recent playtest, you might remember meeting three furry commanders so far - Mira, Glitch, and Stray. Without further ado, let’s delve into the unique traits and abilities of each character, exploring what makes them an indispensable part of your team!


Glitch is an elite Special Agent in the Anomaly Response Bureau, an organization dedicated to researching and addressing mysterious events such as Epsilon City’s sudden outbreak. Renowned for his exceptional close-combat abilities, he excels in one-on-one confrontations, masterfully wielding his sword to outmaneuver adversaries.

Together with his extraordinary bravery, it has made him well-suited for such high-stakes situations. He also possesses a range of area-of-effect abilities, allowing him to engage multiple adversaries at once. This combination of precise swordplay and extensive combat capabilities makes him an indispensable asset in any battle within Epsilon City.


Mira is a dedicated physician-in-training in Epsilon City. While on her way to work, she found herself unexpectedly at the center of a sudden outbreak. Thrust into an unforeseen crisis, she rose to the occasion, using her medical knowledge to discern how best she could contribute to the city's aid.

She is not only a skilled healer but also a tactical asset during battles. She excels in long-range combat with her trusty gun, bolstering allies and providing crucial care. Accompanied by her intelligent medical robot, Peanut, Mira's unique abilities enhance her supportive role, making her an essential figure in various combat situations.


Meet Stray, a local police officer in Epsilon City, characterized by his tenacity and expertise in defense and various disruption tactics. Following the outbreak, he vigilantly roams the city's streets, tackling marauding otherworldly beings and relentlessly searching for his missing wife and daughter.

Armed with a sturdy shield and a powerful hammer, Stray excels in protective tactics and managing large groups of adversaries. His unique stats are tailored to enhance his tanking abilities and crowd control, making him a crucial member of your team and a pillar of safety for his allies and the city's residents.

We hope you've enjoyed getting a glimpse into the diverse characters of Anomaly Collapse. But that's just the start! Beyond these three characters, we have many other fascinating characters with their own special abilities and stories to introduce to you. Stay tuned for upcoming reveals as we continue to expand our captivating roster!

If you haven’t already, please consider supporting us by wishlisting the game on Steam and sharing it with your friends. Your support means everything to us, and we're excited to continue this adventure with you!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2082410/Anomaly_Collapse/

Remember to follow Anomaly Collapse here on Steam and on Twitter for the latest updates. Your journey through the supernatural realms of Episilon City is just getting started, and we're thrilled to be part of it. Thank you for your support, and here's to many more adventures together!

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The journey to Homeworld 3’s March 8th launch is one over 20 years in the making. It started with a simple idea: Let’s take the cinematic space combat of Homeworld 1 and set it amid majestic superstructures that transform empty space into topographically-rich battlefields teeming with opportunities to ambush, retreat, defend, and deceive. Though that idea proved too technologically complex to realize in Homeworld 2, it also was too badass for us to leave it behind.

Now here we are. Homeworld 3 launches in just under three months. Three months! The end of this incredible journey is in sight. We couldn’t be more excited (and humbled, hopeful, nervous — there’s a lot of emotions swirling around us these days).


This month has been packed with big Homeworld 3 news. A few weeks ago, Homeworld 3 was revealed to be the 8th most anticipated launch of 2024 at the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted. Then we debuted an extra special mini-documentary all about the making of Homeworld 3 and the journey to this moment. Good things come in threes, right?

In this Dev Update, we’re going to explore how War Games’ roguelike systems are creating a game mode we hope you’ll play for a positively disgusting number of hours. Then — for those of you who would rather shoot at your friends — we’re going to rip the tarp off of Skirmish mode and talk specifics. Lastly, we have a special message from Lead Producer Iain Myers-Smith and Game Director Lance Mueller are taking a moment to reflect on the journey to this moment. Iain and Lance also braved BBI’s spooky attic and found the game development equivalent of a baby book so we could look at how much our little Homeworld 3 has grown over the years.



I think Lance put it best when he said Homeworld 3 is built using the rule of thirds. One third is the Homeworld you know and love. One third is better — technical innovations, graphics, and accessibility features that bring Homeworld into the modern era. And one third is something entirely new. Something like War Games.

War Games blends RTS games and roguelikes to create something entirely new. Either alone or with two friends, you brave a series of randomized combat encounters and outfit your armadas with game-breakingly powerful upgrades to turn the tides against relentless enemy assaults. Like any good roguelike, our hope is that the seemingly endless permutations of upgrades, fleet compositions, objectives, and bosses results in an experience that keeps you and your friends saying “One more run?”.

But how do we achieve that exactly? Well, let me tell you about Artifacts.


Artifacts are the big experience-defining system of War Games. If you’ve played other roguelikes, you might know these as boons, relics, or auras. Whatever you call them, they have one purpose: break the rules of the game you’re playing in spectacular ways. In War Games, an Artifact might result in something small — like giving your strikecraft some bonus speed. Or it might be something that turns your whole combat strategy on its head as your slow, tanky Assault Frigates transform into destructive close-quarter bruisers you send screaming into the enemy frontline.

Artifacts are, mostly, grouped into what I called Patterns and Upgrades. If Homeworld 3 were a fantasy RPG, then:

• A Pattern is like your ship’s class — it describes what that ship can do and where its strengths and weaknesses are. Applying a Pattern to a ship can radically change its capabilities, like turning those aforementioned Assault Frigates into deadly frontline brawlers with the Berserker Pattern.
  
• Upgrades then let you specialize that Pattern (or class). Instead of being a total overhaul, Upgrades zero in on a specific characteristic and enhance or tweak it. You might enhance a ship’s speed or range, or give it a special ability, for example.

Patterns are also mutually exclusive. You can’t pick two for the same ship. Once your Assault Frigates are Berserkers, you’ll need to wait for your next run before you can make them Wardens. Most Artifacts have one or more benefits and a penalty. Extra damage output and speed at the cost of taking more damage — or firing slower.



Once you apply a Pattern to a ship, though, your mad-scientist experiments are just getting started. Each Pattern unlocks associated and unique Upgrades that let you further customize your ships. Upgrades take the tactical niche of the Pattern and extend it, multiply it, tweak it, refine it.

For Berserkers, you might choose an Upgrade that reduces their damage but gives them passive self-repair, vastly increasing their durability in a fight. Or maybe you think playing it safe is for suckers and opt to choose an Upgrade where they take more damage but also deal more damage? Sure, you might sacrifice a lot more than you would otherwise, but at least your Support Frigates won’t be bored. And, hey, a pyrrhic victory is still a victory.

Berserkers are just one of over 30 Patterns that will be available at launch. Each one represents a tactical table flip on Homeworld’s meta. Consider the Ranger Pattern for your Recon strikecraft that increases their vision and weapon range. This Pattern is all about out-ranging your opponents, seeing them before they see you. It’s quietly one of the more powerful options for a build. One of its Upgrades, Ranger - Precision, takes all your vision bonuses and adds them to the damage output of the unit, making them very effective and very inexpensive glass cannons.

Each Pattern has three associated Upgrades, and many Upgrades can be taken multiple times. They stack, too. No diminishing returns trying to keep you in check. If you find a powerful strategy, we want you to leverage it. Go nuts. Break the game.



So far we’ve zeroed in on the impact of just one Pattern. All of this theorycrafting gets exponentially more fascinating once you start applying multiple Patterns to different ship classes. One of the first pairings that a lot of our playtesters found was combining the Ranger Pattern, for Recon ships with massive vision, and the Sniper Pattern for the Ion Cannon Frigate. The Sniper Pattern all but disables the vision of the Ion Cannon Frigate, but in exchange massively extends its weapon range. It becomes a sniper in need of dedicated spotters. This kind of synergy is ridiculously fun in co-op. You and a friend coordinating spotting and sniping in perfect unison, all in the spirit of jolly cooperation. Check out this stream by SpiffingBrit to see a strategy like this in action.

A number of Artifacts are able to drop by default. Others are unlocked by earning Profile Experience Points, which are awarded for killing ships, keeping yours alive, completing objectives, and more. Finally, there are some Artifacts restricted by Challenges — little achievement-like tasks you’ll have to go out of your way to complete. Since War Games is a cooperative experience, nothing asks you to play suboptimally or in a way that should frustrate your friends (“Hey, bud, mind explaining why you have 40 Resource Harvesters?”). Challenges instead nudge you to step beyond your comfort zone, like trying different starting fleets. They range in complexity and difficulty, from the simple “Kill X enemy ships in War Games” to completing specific objectives to simply winning runs.

Artifacts aren’t the only variables you contend with in War Games, however. Each run you embark on will task you with surviving three consecutive missions. These are chosen from a small pool of levels, and, adding even more variability, each mission pulls from a pool of objectives that you have to complete.



Not only will you need to account for the terrain of each level your missions are based in, but you’ll also have to adapt your strategies to the objectives you’re given. If you need to hold out at a given position, Artifacts that increase movement speed are going to be less desirable than those that increase weapon range or durability. But be careful when locking yourself into a specific niche. If your next objective is to ambush some enemies transporting high value goods, that extra mobility will sure be helpful.

The hope is that once you start to sink your teeth into War Games, you’re going to be delighted by just how much the experience changes with each run. What strategies worked one time might not be so favorable the next time. You’ll always have to make impactful decisions and manage the risk and reward of your fleet compositions. Throw in a few friends, and the experience deepens in new ways as you specialize your fleets and coordinate to cover each other’s weaknesses.

As you play War Games and develop strong strategies and learn which tactics are most appropriate given the objective, you’ll naturally win more and more. That growing sense of mastery is one of the big emotional goals we want you to experience. But, at the same time, we also don’t want War Games to become boring. So we’ve been cooking up something special since we showcased the mode last summer: Our modular difficulty system.


This is a purely optional feature aimed at those who want more spice in their War Games. Before embarking on a run, you can set the difficulty to one of 10 different tiers. Each tier adds a unique modifier that’ll change the game up in some unfavorable (but exciting) ways. The kicker is that higher difficulty tiers also include the lower-tier modifiers. If you just want a pinch of spice, you might select Difficulty Tier 1, which results in larger waves of enemies to contend with throughout your run.

Climb the tiers, and those modifiers start to stack up in some grueling ways. One reduces the quantity of RUs in the engagement zone, making every loss sting just a little bit more. Another adds a second objective to a specific mission, doubling the work needed to achieve victory (and the likelihood you won’t). As you push yourself into higher difficulties, the pressure will slowly increase until you’re taking on missions that only The Demigods of RTS Games will be able to conquer.

It won’t ever be mandatory to engage with the difficulty system. You won’t need to worry about missing out on certain Artifacts, Fleets, or levels — all of that is unlockable regardless of what difficulty you play on. There will be some aesthetic rewards, though, like special profile pictures that’ll signal your mastery of War Games. This new difficulty mode gives you the option of adding some hot sauce to this tactical burrito — how hot is entirely up to you. If you win five runs of War Games in a row, maybe try the next difficulty up. It just might add a little more spice — one more thing to consider when choosing Artifacts or your approach to an objective. Another complication to encounter, adapt, and overcome.




While War Games offers an innovative and fresh way to play Homeworld, there’s also nothing quite like the thrill of clashing against a human opponent — or a good old fashioned comp stomp. Skirmish Mode has been a staple of Homeworld since the very beginning, so there was never any doubt that we’d want to include it in Homeworld 3

For the uninitiated, Skirmish Mode is where you can go head to head against friends, strangers, and the computer in classic deathmatch-style brawls. In Homeworld 3, Skirmish Mode supports up to a max of six players and you can set teams freely. Engage in a chaotic free-for-all, square off in 2v2v2 or 3v3 — or go with some other permutation like 4v2 or 5v1. You can also substitute in computer players with differing difficulty levels or adjust settings like how many resources players start with or whether the game ends when your mothership is destroyed.



All of this is supported by matchmaking, which has filters to help you find the exact type of Skirmish you’re looking for along with geographic filters to control what regions you’re playing in.

When Homeworld 3 launches, we’re going to have six skirmish maps available to fight in — each one a unique battlefield with its own terrain and layout that you’ll learn to exploit as your fleets clash with opposing teams. But, thanks to our partnership with Mod.io, you’ll soon have dozens (if not many more) Skirmish maps to choose from thanks to our brilliant community of modders.

Regardless of what platform you’re playing on, the in-game Mod.io browser will let you seamlessly download custom, player-made Skirmish maps anyone can make using the Unreal Editor. If you’ve never modded before, we’ll also provide some light documentation that’ll teach you how to make your own Skirmish maps. While we won’t officially support any mods beyond Skirmish maps, intrepid modders are welcome to use the Unreal Editor to experiment and dig even deeper.



One final reason you may want to venture into Skirmish mode is because it’s also where you can play as the other major faction in Homeworld 3: The Incarnate. We’ve been tight-lipped about this enigmatic armada because of their role in Homeworld 3’s story, but what I will say is that Incarnate fleets present a unique departure from the strategies and strengths of the Hiigaran navy. You’ve heard of strength in numbers, right? Well, Incarnate flip that philosophy around with an emphasis on Corvettes that can dish — and take — a beating. There’s plenty of fun nuances to discover with Incarnate ships, like Resource Collectors with a special ability that’ll make them useful in a fight.




Hey everyone, Iain here.

As someone whose job is so often focused on planning for the future, it’s easy to forget to stop and take a look at how far you’ve come. It’s been over four years since we first announced Homeworld 3 — and longer still since we actually decided to make it. To say it’s been a unique road we’ve walked is an understatement.

It’s rare (and maybe even unheard of) to announce a game before even beginning pre-production and involve the community from day one. But, for us, it was always the obvious choice. The reality is, while Gearbox and Blackbird Interactive have worked tirelessly to be good shepherds to this series, Homeworld doesn’t endure because of us. It lives because of you.



You who carve Hiigaran crests in your Halloween pumpkins. Or get Homeworld tattoos. Or write us letters waxing nostalgic about the first time you booted Homeworld 1 up, unaware of how a humble strategy game would leave an indelible mark upon your life. Who cheered and rallied behind us when we endeavored to make Deserts of Kharak and, now, Homeworld 3. Homeworld lives because each of you, in your own way, has carried the memories of this series forward.

Thousands of you shared your thoughts and feelings with us throughout this journey. Sharing what Homeworld means to you, what defines it as a game experience, and where you wanted to see Homeworld 3 go. We have taken that all to heart and crafted what we hope will be your best Homeworld experience to date. A game that will evoke the same emotions that made the original Homeworld such a timeless treasure. And now, after years of toiling, the moment is quickly approaching where you’ll get to judge that for yourself.



When we announced Homeworld 3 was beginning development at PAX West 2019, we were overwhelmed by the response. We read all the articles, social media comments, and emails we could. We laughed at just how many of you responded with one simple phrase: “Shut up and take my money!”

Well, now it's time for me to shut up.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1840080/Homeworld_3/

This weekend you have more things to do than ever! Hurry up and take the long-awaited level 200 to get into the Labyrinth of Light, and upgrade your weapons to Pure White!

On the way to greatness, as always, good magic will help you.

Saturday:
❄x2 drop
❄x3 varnish

Sunday:
❄x3 experience
❄x3 varnish

Don’t be distracted by unnecessary things and grab the rates before they run away!

'Ey friends, it's been a couple weeks, eh?

If you didn't kinda check out the HUGE NEWS yesterday, we announced when the second Premium Expansion Pass for Friends vs Friends, Nerdvana, will be releasing January 16th, so get your decks ready for that!

You might be super curious about what's going to be coming with that, but why get hyped about something that comes out next month when you can get hyped about something that comes out NEXT WEEK?!?!


A new update to the game is coming next week!!

Check out this SNOWIFIED Rooftop that's gonna be perfect for those snowbullet battles:



And of course, it wouldn't be a holiday update if you couldn't dress up and give your friends gifts, right? And what better way to do that than, uh, shoot them?



The update with all of these goodies will go live on December 19th, so make sure you get ready for a proper snowbrawl then!


We mentioned it in the announcement yesterday for Nerdvana (EEEEEEEEEEEEEI'MSOEXCITED!!!) that, when Nerdvana releases, y'all aren't going to be able to purchase the Deluxe Edition Content anymore.

SO if you want to get two-Premium-Passes-for-the-price-of-one, make sure you pick it up in the Deluxe Edition NOW!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2432020/Friends_vs_Friends_Deluxe_Edition_Content/


Soooo to be honest, the Mayor of Friendtown is sick right now, and I'm just kinda trying to fill his shoes. I have no idea what's usually written in these sections.

I went back and read some of the other Bulletins and, uh, it looks like he's using this column instead of a therapist? So I guess I can give that a go?

Um, my mother always thought that I had too much energy as a kid, and wanted me to be a teacher. And then I went to school where I studied Spanish and Political Science to, uh... make video games and live in Friendtown? And that's why I'm bad at buying gifts for people.

...

You know, that was actually kinda nice. I can see why he likes doing this.

Hope I didn't make things feel too different for y'all, this is the Not-Mayor of Friendtown, signing off.

...

Oh and next week we'll cover more of Nerdvana.

Not-Mayor, OUT!

The handing out of presents is not far off! At 16 CET the new wiring to the LEGENDARY DUNGEON portal will finally be completed, revealing access to the new Legendary Dungeon Massive Winter Spectacle and Gingerbread Brawl.



Check out the official teaser now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQ143Xis-CY

From roasted almonds to baked intestines? There really is something for every taste here. Make sure you don't burst from all the noshing and gift yourself the new Legendary set instead!

Join the start of our Legendary Dungeon Massive Winter Spectacle and Gingerbread Brawl on Twitch from 16 CET: https://www.twitch.tv/sfgameofficial

Be engrossed in the livestreams and gain free rewards for your characters!