Hey there, fellow Ylanders!

Let's talk about yet another thing that you will get to find in the next update because you asked for it ːsteamhappyː.

Several of you told us about how annoying it is you are not able to eat while exploring while riding a horse or, more importantly, hold a compass (so you can tell where you're going). This is something that wasn't initially even planned for 1.10 but since this suggestion keeps appearing, we decided to squeeze it in.





Oh, and did we mention that because you will now be able to hold items while riding you can travel through the darkness while holding a torch or a lantern?

Anyway, the moral of the story is as always - the more you talk to us, the better the game gets. Thanks for all your feedback!


That's it for today and we'll talk to you again next week. Until then stay healthy and classy, Ylanders!

Hey there, fellow Ylanders!

Firstly we would like to thank you for the huge amount of feedback we got based on the last Dev Diary. It's just awesome to see how much thought many of you have put into it! <3 We're still looking into it and discussing it, and will comment on some of the points soon.

Today we would like to share a bit more information about the Blueprints update we're planning for the next update. So far you your options to build something awesome and (re)use it in Exploration as a Blueprint were extremely limited. That shouldn't be the case anymore.

If all goes well, in 1.10 we'll introduce some rather big changes to Blueprints. Blueprints and Compositions will turn into two types of Blueprints (naming can change) - Explorer and Creator Blueprints.



Let us share a bit more about their specifics:

• Creator Blueprints are pretty much what Compositions were (and your existing Compositions, will, in fact, be considered Creator Blueprints). Within those you will be able to store pretty much everything you create in the Editor. However, those will be usable only in the Editor.
  
• Explorer Blueprints will be usable in both Exploration and the Editor. The biggest change when compared to pre-1.10 Blueprints is, that you can create those in the Editor and then use in your Exploration world. Also, they can contain much more than just building blocks. You can have a Blueprint of a house, filled with items, surrounded by a garden with flowers and trees.
  
• In 1.10 you will be able to use these only locally and we'll check if it all works as intended and improve it based on your feedback. In 1.11 we will add advanced options of sharing and monetizing for creators of both kinds of Blueprints.

Even though it will become much easier to create amazing Blueprints and use them in the Exploration, don't forget that they're still just that - something that requires your effort to get all the resources (be it materials or specific items) to build it. The more sophisticated the blueprint, the more effort you'll need to build it.

That's it for this week, as always, let us know what you think and on top of that...

Stay classy, Ylanders!

Hey there, Ylanders!

It's been a while since Ocean Odysseys was released and yet we still keep getting more and more feedback about the update - which is what we like to see!

Your feedback helps us make the game better and more enjoyable for you, and also us (the devs play Ylands too of course!).

So this week's Dev Diary will focus on making changes that may not be immediately apparent but will immensely improve the game. Let's talk about balancing and rebalancing.

A lot of the feedback you are sending our way has to do with a lot of different little elements, which is why we said that it was about time we took a sweeping look at Ylands and balanced some of its parts.






One such part, for instance is biomes. Biomes now offer little more than different flora and fauna but other than that they are quite similar when it comes to gameplay. This is something we're looking into and would like to give more meaning to the biomes and hint at what difficulty ylands you might expect in each biome, rather than give away the difficulty using the yland tier system. This is, of course, very much work in progress still, but we're excited to be exploring this direction.

Another crucial part of the game is crafting. This is yet another area where we feel we need some enrichment of the whole process. So currently we're looking at the possibility of more crafting stations and a more meaningful crafting process in general.

We also feel like the hunger and temperature systems deserve some love, which is why tweaks and reworks are being explored in this area.


What type of balancing would you like to see in ylands? Let us know!

And till next time...


Stay classy, Ylanders!

Hey there, fellow Ylanders!

Most of the features and tweaks and fixes you find in Ylands' updates do come from your feedback. However - we are players as well. And we play Ylands as well. And yes, from time to time we too get angry and frustrated by what we experience.





Some time ago we had an internal poll where we asked the team what small, easy to fix things annoy them the most. Because those are minor issues that shouldn't take that long to fix or implement, you will very likely see some of them fixed in the next update. So, here are some examples of what the devs themselves put on that list:

• Show particle/visual effect on workstation while something is being crafted in it
  
• When I travel into a new Yland, spawn the ship in the 'free-to-travel' zone instead of outside of it so that I can change my mind and immediately travel elsewhere without needing to turn the ship around and sail into the travel zone again.
  
• Be able to light a torch in hand without going to inventory
  
• Button to dismiss all "NEW" notifications from crafting
  
• Allow players to change weapons when reloading (crossbow or any weapon). Often I'm stuck reloading when I want to fight.
  
• Make it more obvious that the player is receiving damage

Do some of those annoy you as well? Are there other things that you think could be easy to change but would make a difference?

Next week we can talk about any ideas you throw at us. Until then stay healthy and classy!

Hey there, Ylanders!

The latest patch is out!

We've fixed up some issues and tweaked a few things based on your feedback, so here it is:


Highlights

• Tweaked shark damage values.
  
• Diving gear resistances updated.
  
• Terrain generation fixed.
  
• Spawning to a different place after reconnection fixed.
  
• Tutorial: Cannot use crafting after reconnection fixed.

Fixed/Tweaked/Removed
Fixed: Exploration: Some mountains grew taller than they should be after the update.
Fixed: Player can appear at a random beach after reconnecting if they previously had ship summoned near shore.
Fixed: Weather: It is raining inside built from blueprints.
Fixed: Crafting stopped working during the tutorial after reconnection.
Fixed: When crafting items that cannot fit into full inventory, quantities of ingredients are not updated.
Fixed/Removed: Machine guns (and related recipes) that remained - unintentionally - in players' worlds. The removal was necessary to prevent balancing issues with updates 1.10 and 1.11.
Tweaked: Diving gear resistances to shark attack.
Tweaked: Damage dealt by shark.

Hey there, fellow Ylanders!

Update 1.9, Ocean Odysseys, is finally out and we're glad that you like this latest expansion of Exploration world.
We've fixed and balanced a lot of issues based on the feedback you provided after playing the Experimental game branch ("beta"). We're extremely grateful and will continue to monitor your ideas and comments so that we can further improve what we've released.

Any new update always brings a lot of questions, so we'll do our best to answer the ones you've been asking the most. If you don't find what you're looking for below, don't despair - we'll be doing a special live stream soon and you'll be able to ask us, once again, about anything.






Where can I find _______ (new resource)?
Sometimes finding a specific resource can be tricky, especial given they're sometimes to be found in the murky sea depths. This needs some exploring (hence the Exploration :) ). What can help you, though, is the description shown after selecting the resource you need.
That being said - it's possible, that some resources are harder to find than planned or not easily identifiable. That's something we're already looking into and it should be, at least partially, improved in one of the upcoming patches.

Where are the submarines?
Submarines would be cool, but they are not currently planned. That's not saying we may decide to add some faster way of propelling through the waters. If any larger vessel type makes it into Ylands in the future, you will find it way up high, not way down below :).

How does the ship damaging work?
Ships can be now damaged by either dealing direct damage to the ship, colliding with other objects, or sailing in severe weather.
The amount of collision damage depends on how fast you're sailing and which part of the ship gets hit. Weather damage does not apply when a ship is anchored, in shallow waters, or stationary during a storm.
Outside of construction mode, any entities built on the ship will redirect damage to the ship hull (with some exceptions).

Why does it snow/rain inside again?
This has already been fixed on our internal version of the game and should be released in a patch sometime next week.

I was teleported to a completely new location when I died, why?
This has already been fixed as well (at least we've been able to reproduce at least one way this could have happened). This is one of the reported issues related to respawning and those will be fixed in the next patch or the one coming after that.

Why am I forced to go explore underwater? (most recipes require underwater resources now)
This is intentional. We want to keep enhancing the underwater world and force players to explore it and don't consider it a place where you go once in a long time. We're taking more steps towards making the undersea exploration much more rewarding.
However, once again, this is something we'll be watching and analyzing in the upcoming weeks so it's possible we may decide to tweak it somehow.


We hope you're having fun underwater and will talk to you soon. Until then - stay healthy and classy!

Hey there, Ylanders!

Update 1.9 is finally here, featuring sharks and brand new underwater biotopes!




As its name suggests, Ocean Odysseys introduces a brand new underwater world to Ylands, featuring extra underwater terrain to explore, new underwater biotopes, and the return of sharks, along with other fish.

There’s also an improved multiplayer mode, new devices to aid navigation, damageable ships, and a loot container. We’re not exaggerating when we say that update 1.9 renews, expands, and improves upon the overall Ylands experience in a major way.

A quick overview of what's happening in 1.9:

Sharks. Better stay in your boat!
Underwater biotopes full of life and surprises
Ships can suffer damage and even sink
Useful new ship devices
Friends' locations are displayed on the map



Sharks
YES! Sharks are back and they’re more dangerous than ever - though you still have a chance to escape them. There are multiple underwater predators, waiting to pounce on unprepared explorers.




Underwater biotopes
Craft diving gear and explore underwater life. You can visit 9 new biotope types, gather new resources, discover new random encounters, and admire and catch fish from fish shoals.



Fish shoals
There are 18 kinds of fish shoals for you to admire during the long deep dive. You can even catch fish to get food or rare resources.


Underwater environment lighting
Small change for sure, but a welcome one. It makes sense that you want to see where you’re swimming, right?


Oxygen management
Take a deep breath for your underwater adventure. New diving gear will come in handy at this point, as it lets you dive deeper and swim faster.


Underwater cave generation
This is just the beginning of a largescale underwater adventure. While you may only find small caves at the moment, the foundation for cave generation is now in place and will be expanded upon considerably in the future.


Ship devices
When you want to experience a proper ocean odyssey, you definitely need as much information about your surroundings as possible. So let's build new equipment for your ship that warns you before you run out of fuel, tells you how fast your ship is sailing, enables you to find deep waters with random encounters more easily, and lets you know the status of your ship’s health.




Damageable ships and boats
Now there’s another reason for you to build cannons on your ships because it’s possible to attack players with your ship on certain ylands. But be careful what you wish for because what goes around, comes around – meaning those ships can fire back at you! Keep an eye on your ship’s health, and keep the Repair hammer and resources close because you’re going to need them. Not only in case of naval battles, but ships can take damage in a collision with obstacles and even in severe weather, better put down the anchor when the large waves comes.


PvP
Let's play pirates! You’ll now find a new PvP setting in your server settings that lets you decide whether you want other players to be able to attack your properties from the sea or even engage in naval battles.


Playing with friends
Friends and clan members are able to see each other on the map by default. But if you’re a fan of hide and seek, just change the settings! We also tweaked the friends list, so it's now clear who can join in the game and who you can invite. An improved spawn system will summon you much closer to your friend's avatar. Now you can jump straight into playing with your friends without having to find each other on the huge maps!



Loot container
Dying in the game is unpleasant, that’s for sure. But it’s even worse if you die with a full inventory because collecting everything again is such a struggle. That’s why we’re adding a loot container in 1.9, which keeps everything from your inventory in one container.



There are of course many more changes, improvements, fixes, additions and tweaks. We honestly can't wait to hear what you guys have to say about this update. The best person to sum up the Ocean Odysseys is none other than the Project Lead, Aleš Ulm, himself:

“For a long time, the seas in Ylands have offered bare, empty depths with an uninteresting seabed, Update 1.9 changes that in a big way. Players will now be able to look for resources and enjoy gorgeous underwater life, both harmless and dangerous, while exploring new depths.”

Well, 1.9 is finally out, let us know what you think and most importantly...

Keep Exploring!

And even more importantly...

Stay classy!

Hey there, Ylanders!

If things go right, the next Dev Diary you'll read will be about the successful release of update 1.9.

Once again, it is a big one. For a long time, the seas were just dull places with not much to do. With 1.9, though, you will get various gorgeous underwater biomes with interesting Random Encounters and resources. You will craft pieces of diving equipment to reach deeper places and travel to other regions to get specific fish while avoiding deadly sharks.



All this - and all other features and fixes both big and small - are based on feedback and wishes you've provided us with. Also, many of these features were tweaked based on the specific feedback you provided by playing the Experimental build of 1.9 in the past few days. These adjustments are either already present in the 1.9 update you'll get later next week or they're being tested and will be introduced in some of the future patches.

This time many of you decided to help us with fine-tuning the update before its release, so let us thank you again. Getting your feedback is a tremendous help and that's why for 1.10 we will focus on cooperating with you even more and in earlier stages of the development process.

We hope that when you get your hands on Ocean Odysseys you will like what we've created together.

So see you underwater next week and until then... stay healthy and classy!

EDIT: With the full release of the update, the Experimental (or the "beta") is no longer available!!!

Hey there, Ylanders!



The time has come. Your first look at Ocean Odysseys, the 1.9 update, is here. In today's Dev Diary, we will tell you how to access it, what we know still needs fixing and even confirm some rumors that have been circulating the forums! Let's DIVE right in!


First thing's first. No more cryptic messages, beating around the bush or vagueness. 🦈SHARKS are back! More dangerous than ever. And also more varied - there are 5 different kinds and a sawfish too!















In the past we have asked you to help us test updates before their actual full release. As always, we're grateful for the help and we're excited to hear your feedback. That being said, please, whenever you report anything amiss in the Experimental version, let us know that you're playing the Experimental version and not the live version of the game.

The Experimental is available for Steam players only.




Step 1: Back up your saves. Find the "<steam installation folder>/userdata/<your steam id>" and copy the whole "298610" folder. And keep it in a safe location.
Step 2: Go to your Steam library and find Ylands. Right click the game in the side menu and select "Properties". Select "Betas" and type in ExperimentalIWillBackUpMySaves
Step 3: The Experimental version will begin updating/downloading. You may need to do this manually. After this is complete, you may begin playing. You will continue on the progress from last Experimental or will start a new game if you've never played Experimental before.

Important Note 1: We recommend starting a new game with a guest account.
Important Note 2: We are aware of several larger issues, which we're working on fixing or have already finished fixing but haven't included them in the Experimental. You may find them in the highlights section below.

• Sharks. Better stay in your boat!
  
• Underwater biotopes full of life and surprises
  
• Ships can take damage and even sink
  
• Useful new ship devices
  
• Friends' location is displayed on the map

• Shark in the main menu doesn't have any animations
  
• There are no Mystery Ylands in the Exploration
  
• Underwater Random Encounters are not generated
  
• Water surface integrity issues
  
• Text in Playlands is not shown properly (only key codes)

We can't wait to hear what you think, Ylanders! And that's it for this week, but soon, we'll be back with a full release of Ocean Odysseys!

Stay classy, Ylanders!

Hey there, fellow Ylanders!

For quite a long time we've been promising you the Ylands roadmap showing what to expect until the end of this year, so, without further ado, here it is.


Before we tell you a bit more about what you're seeing, there are three points we would like to make.

• What you see mentioned in 1.9 is ready and you will get it quite soon. As for the other two updates, please bear in mind that those are plans, not promises. Even though this is what we're planning/working on, many of these things still require a substantial amount of prototyping and testing and some features, like the Blueprint overhaul, will need a lot of feedback coming from you. If we're not happy with the state of some feature or if it needs major changes based on your feedback, instead of delaying the whole update, the feature can slip into the next one.
  
  
• The second thing is quite obvious and related to the first one. Most of the 1.10 features (not to mention the 1.11 features) are still in the very early phase, so with many features we won't be able to discuss details just yet. We feel it's better, at this point, to say that we simply don't know instead of providing information that can become obsolete at the very next design meeting.
  
  
• Thirdly, please understand that these are really only some of the features (although the major ones) and each update has usually dozens of various additions and improvements and hundreds of fixes. There are so many things that we plan but are not named (like Exploration resource balancing, gamepad support, improving clans etc. etc.). So if you don't see "your" feature in this list, it doesn't mean we're not working on it.

So, now to the updates themselves.






UPDATE 1.9

The upcoming update 1.9 is pretty clear - we've already talked about most of the things it brings and very soon you will be able to try it out yourselves.


UPDATE 1.10

In update 1.10 we would like to create something like "parallel" Exploration. A world where you will be able to fully unleash your creativity by letting you import ylands created with all the features that the Editor offers. Anyone will be able to travel from the "real" Exploration world to the parallel world or within the parallel world and ... explore. If you are not interested in this parallel Exploration world, you can just ignore it and you will never be bothered by it. However, those who decide to travel there and explore other players' creations, will be rewarded.

We can imagine how many questions this brings - from "what if players break the original Exploration by bringing in the things from the parallel one" to "won't the parallel Exploration be filled with half-made and broken ylands that will just be a waste of time". Don't worry, we'll discuss this with you in detail in the upcoming weeks.

The Blueprint overhaul is something we've been promising for a long time. We want to merge Blueprints and Compositions and give players an option to create Blueprints in the Editor that they (and others) will be able to use in Exploration. So far, it's been us who players had to buy Blueprints from, but this was never our primary goal. So with the new Blueprints, it will be you, the players, selling what you create to others for coyns. There's no reason why those skilled creators shouldn't, for example, be able to pay for the server they rent with the coyns they make from selling their creations. It goes without saying that for any Blueprint to be built, the players will still need to gather all the ingredients, there's no easy way around this - nice things always require some effort. :)

As for the Crafting improvements, there's not much to be said. We already have something cool that makes crafting UI way more intuitive - unfortunately, it came a bit too late to be included in 1.9.


UPDATE 1.11

And that gets us to 1.11. Dark Dungeons are something new to Ylands. Imagine dangerous places where you will venture to search for artifacts, slay new monsters and learn more about the world of Ylands, about its lore. We hope that whether you venture to the darkness alone or with friends, you will enjoy more interesting enemies and a fixed/improved combat system.

FPS camera is the single most requested feature. When we removed it, we said it was temporary and that it would return - and it will.

We are planning to make some improvements to Playlands as well. Not anything big, though, just some changes that would make it possible even for single players to have fun without having to play with others. We see it as an option for you to pass the time when tired of exploring or waiting for your friends to come online.



This is a lot and it's only understandable that you will ask questions and provide your ideas. We won't definitely be able to answer all of them, but we'll do our best to read them all!


Have a great time and stay safe and classy, Ylanders!