After a few small patches that made it into the game during the past three weeks, addressing some more of the most common issues you had with the game, we have moved on to fully focus our team efforts on the UE4 version of Automation.



Porting Automation to Unreal Engine 4 is no small undertaking and for that we have split up the finalization of the port into three milestones. The first (internal only) one is supposed to be done before christmas and is the foundation for all future progress as we completely rewrite how the game handles it data (almost done) and use SQL databases instead of slow lua tables in our old game engine. Another focus is to get the Engine Designer and its content for the next big update all up to speed.

https://youtu.be/0hAebHWyh98
To get a more complete picture of what we're working on, have a look at the latest Little Dev Update. Also stay in there for a little bit of an engine pr0n surprise. ;-P

Cheers!

After a few small patches that made it into the game during the past three weeks, addressing some more of the most common issues you had with the game, we have moved on to fully focus our team efforts on the UE4 version of Automation.



Porting Automation to Unreal Engine 4 is no small undertaking and for that we have split up the finalization of the port into three milestones. The first (internal only) one is supposed to be done before christmas and is the foundation for all future progress as we completely rewrite how the game handles it data (almost done) and use SQL databases instead of slow lua tables in our old game engine. Another focus is to get the Engine Designer and its content for the next big update all up to speed.

https://youtu.be/0hAebHWyh98
To get a more complete picture of what we're working on, have a look at the latest Little Dev Update. Also stay in there for a little bit of an engine pr0n surprise. ;-P

Cheers!

We just released the public version of the Lite Campaign V2 update!

It features a more fleshed out and polished version of the tycoon gameplay of the Lite Campaign V1 with additional features that give a lot more depth and replay value over V1.



Core features of Lite Campaign V1:

• Lite Campaign Mode
  
• Factory Add-Ons
  
• Inline-3 NA Engines
  
• Longitudinal FWD

Added features with Lite Campaign V2:

• Basic R&D
  
• Engineering Familiarity
  
• Improved UI
  
• Improved Engine Sounds

The Lite Campaign strings together the various car design and engineering aspects and implements them into a barebones but functional campaign mode in which you lead your company to success or failure with your car and engine designs.

For those of you who so far only dipped your toes into the tycoon part, here is a guide on how to get started. That at least to some degree makes the lack of explanations within the game a bit less of an issue.
https://youtu.be/g9QxexXZUJg
Unfortunately the "lite" in the Lite Campaign, even in its V2 release, brings a few limitations that will be lifted in future versions. For instance, it is not possible to add trims to a car already in production or to share engines between different car models. We would have loved to put that in already now but need to focus on the big task ahead.



Up next we will finish porting & rewriting Automation to Unreal Engine 4. Part of our small team has been working on this alongside of development for about a year already. We are excited to focus all our effort on that version, solving some of the long standing design flaws within Automation along the way. We'll keep you in the loop and will inform you soon about the status of the port and the new features and changes coming to the game.

Thank you all for your patience and continued support!
Enjoy your time with the Lite Campaign mode.
Cheers!

Edit: Hot Fix B161110 Fixes issue with not being able to load Tech Pool Unlocked Engines (E.g. Turbos) in Lite Campaign.

We just released the public version of the Lite Campaign V2 update!

It features a more fleshed out and polished version of the tycoon gameplay of the Lite Campaign V1 with additional features that give a lot more depth and replay value over V1.



Core features of Lite Campaign V1:

• Lite Campaign Mode
  
• Factory Add-Ons
  
• Inline-3 NA Engines
  
• Longitudinal FWD

Added features with Lite Campaign V2:

• Basic R&D
  
• Engineering Familiarity
  
• Improved UI
  
• Improved Engine Sounds

The Lite Campaign strings together the various car design and engineering aspects and implements them into a barebones but functional campaign mode in which you lead your company to success or failure with your car and engine designs.

For those of you who so far only dipped your toes into the tycoon part, here is a guide on how to get started. That at least to some degree makes the lack of explanations within the game a bit less of an issue.
https://youtu.be/g9QxexXZUJg
Unfortunately the "lite" in the Lite Campaign, even in its V2 release, brings a few limitations that will be lifted in future versions. For instance, it is not possible to add trims to a car already in production or to share engines between different car models. We would have loved to put that in already now but need to focus on the big task ahead.



Up next we will finish porting & rewriting Automation to Unreal Engine 4. Part of our small team has been working on this alongside of development for about a year already. We are excited to focus all our effort on that version, solving some of the long standing design flaws within Automation along the way. We'll keep you in the loop and will inform you soon about the status of the port and the new features and changes coming to the game.

Thank you all for your patience and continued support!
Enjoy your time with the Lite Campaign mode.
Cheers!

Edit: Hot Fix B161110 Fixes issue with not being able to load Tech Pool Unlocked Engines (E.g. Turbos) in Lite Campaign.

Another few fixes and general round of polish with this quick update after the big update yesterday. We're out of major things that need fixing or are feasible to fix for now, which means that the public release of the Lite Campaign V2 will be tomorrow in case nothing major bugs out.

Fixes & Polishing

• Added R&D tab stats & fixed labels
  
• Fixed tires blowing not setting competitiveness to zero
  
• Fixed issues with testing page for incomplete car
  
• Fixed issue with graphs not reopen in engine designer scenarios
  
• Fixed error going into familiarity page
  
• Fixed finances page in case of no spending, income, etc.
  
• Fixed error on undo/reverting in engine scenarios

Please have a final go at it and see if you encounter any old issues that have not been fixed or new issues that have emerged!

Cheers!

Another few fixes and general round of polish with this quick update after the big update yesterday. We're out of major things that need fixing or are feasible to fix for now, which means that the public release of the Lite Campaign V2 will be tomorrow in case nothing major bugs out.

Fixes & Polishing

• Added R&D tab stats & fixed labels
  
• Fixed tires blowing not setting competitiveness to zero
  
• Fixed issues with testing page for incomplete car
  
• Fixed issue with graphs not reopen in engine designer scenarios
  
• Fixed error going into familiarity page
  
• Fixed finances page in case of no spending, income, etc.
  
• Fixed error on undo/reverting in engine scenarios

Please have a final go at it and see if you encounter any old issues that have not been fixed or new issues that have emerged!

Cheers!

Another quick update with more important fixes. We want to release the public version of the Lite Campaign V2 before the end of the week.

Additions & Features

• Reopened scenarios, car scenarios roughly rebalanced
  
• Added stats for average market Prestige / Reliability
  
• Added techpool penalty strings to all trim designer parts

Bugfixes & Polish

• Fixed issues with engine variant selection not selecting first item
  
• Fixed instance of projects getting stuck in engineering
  
• Fixed issue with running costs page in sandbox mode
  
• Fixed platform designer tooltip to show techpool use
  
• Fixed issue with engine production match function
  
• Fixed issues with techpool not updating when unlocking part
  
• Fixed old company-bound trims not showing up in sandbox
  
• Fixed tool tip issues in engineering section
  
• Fixed factory "assign" button displaying when it shoudn't
  
• Fixed drivetrain tech not showing in R&D panel
  
• Fixed engine factory displaying empty slots initially
  
• Fixed issue with region unlocking & sales
  
• Fixed being able to change difficulty after sign-off

Please try out especially the fixes to sandbox mode where trims / variants were disappearing, we think this is now fixed!

Have fun, cheers!

Another quick update with more important fixes. We want to release the public version of the Lite Campaign V2 before the end of the week.

Additions & Features

• Reopened scenarios, car scenarios roughly rebalanced
  
• Added stats for average market Prestige / Reliability
  
• Added techpool penalty strings to all trim designer parts

Bugfixes & Polish

• Fixed issues with engine variant selection not selecting first item
  
• Fixed instance of projects getting stuck in engineering
  
• Fixed issue with running costs page in sandbox mode
  
• Fixed platform designer tooltip to show techpool use
  
• Fixed issue with engine production match function
  
• Fixed issues with techpool not updating when unlocking part
  
• Fixed old company-bound trims not showing up in sandbox
  
• Fixed tool tip issues in engineering section
  
• Fixed factory "assign" button displaying when it shoudn't
  
• Fixed drivetrain tech not showing in R&D panel
  
• Fixed engine factory displaying empty slots initially
  
• Fixed issue with region unlocking & sales
  
• Fixed being able to change difficulty after sign-off

Please try out especially the fixes to sandbox mode where trims / variants were disappearing, we think this is now fixed!

Have fun, cheers!

Sorry for the longer wait for this update, we had various team members out of office at different times, delaying the compilation of the improvements and fixes into this patch.

A lot of important changes and fixes bring big improvements to this build of the Lite Campaign V2. Have a look here:

Additions & Changes

• Big overhaul of all engine sounds
  
• Implemented "dynamic difficulty" adjustment on first car
  
• Improved saving times, greatly speeding up month ticks
  
• Added highscore list and functionality
  
• Added techpool column in engineering time listing
  
• Added "Lab Costs" to R&D screen
  
• Added V1 to V2 save compatibility
  
• Added engineering familiarity rating into part tooltips
  
• Added tooltip for body introduction year and cargo space
  
• Added dependency between factory/plot prices and economy
  
• Added check for save & exit in lite campaign
  
• Added safety question for cancelling productions
  
• Added previous factory settings + colours to factory setup stats
  
• Changed region economy graphs to show all 3 regions at once
  
• Changed SPFI unlock year to 1978 (from 1982)
  
• Color coded effective tech on R&D panel

Bugfixes & Corrections

• Fixed instances of trims disappearing in sandbox
  
• Fixed display of future tech to +10 years from current year
  
• Fixed fuel type showing up in list of next techs
  
• Fixed junior engineers not adding to skill pool
  
• Fixed "show cancelled cars" buttons in production list
  
• Fixed market list mode
  
• Fixed engineering / factory sliders working with mousewheel
  
• Fixed issue with income/spending graph
  
• Fixed familiarity progression (now slightly slower)
  
• Fixed graphs triggering before final testing tab
  
• Fixed scrap money calculations
  
• Fixed issues with cancelled car desirability calculation
  
• Fixed issue where going into lite campaign broke sandbox
  
• Fixed issue with non-production car breaking markets screen
  
• Fixed issue with changing platform year in sandbox
  
• Removed irrelevant secondary factory add-on section

With this most of the bigger issues should be sorted out, but there are more fixes and changes to come before we move on to making the UE4 version of Automation happen.

At this stage the campaign offers quite a challenge with the new mechanics in place and we're looking forward to hearing of your experience with it. Please continue to report bugs and other issues on the forums and with the bug reporting tool, that is all very helpful to us!

Have fun with this update.
Cheers!

Sorry for the longer wait for this update, we had various team members out of office at different times, delaying the compilation of the improvements and fixes into this patch.

A lot of important changes and fixes bring big improvements to this build of the Lite Campaign V2. Have a look here:

Additions & Changes

• Big overhaul of all engine sounds
  
• Implemented "dynamic difficulty" adjustment on first car
  
• Improved saving times, greatly speeding up month ticks
  
• Added highscore list and functionality
  
• Added techpool column in engineering time listing
  
• Added "Lab Costs" to R&D screen
  
• Added V1 to V2 save compatibility
  
• Added engineering familiarity rating into part tooltips
  
• Added tooltip for body introduction year and cargo space
  
• Added dependency between factory/plot prices and economy
  
• Added check for save & exit in lite campaign
  
• Added safety question for cancelling productions
  
• Added previous factory settings + colours to factory setup stats
  
• Changed region economy graphs to show all 3 regions at once
  
• Changed SPFI unlock year to 1978 (from 1982)
  
• Color coded effective tech on R&D panel

Bugfixes & Corrections

• Fixed instances of trims disappearing in sandbox
  
• Fixed display of future tech to +10 years from current year
  
• Fixed fuel type showing up in list of next techs
  
• Fixed junior engineers not adding to skill pool
  
• Fixed "show cancelled cars" buttons in production list
  
• Fixed market list mode
  
• Fixed engineering / factory sliders working with mousewheel
  
• Fixed issue with income/spending graph
  
• Fixed familiarity progression (now slightly slower)
  
• Fixed graphs triggering before final testing tab
  
• Fixed scrap money calculations
  
• Fixed issues with cancelled car desirability calculation
  
• Fixed issue where going into lite campaign broke sandbox
  
• Fixed issue with non-production car breaking markets screen
  
• Fixed issue with changing platform year in sandbox
  
• Removed irrelevant secondary factory add-on section

With this most of the bigger issues should be sorted out, but there are more fixes and changes to come before we move on to making the UE4 version of Automation happen.

At this stage the campaign offers quite a challenge with the new mechanics in place and we're looking forward to hearing of your experience with it. Please continue to report bugs and other issues on the forums and with the bug reporting tool, that is all very helpful to us!

Have fun with this update.
Cheers!