Feb 28, 2018
Patch 0.6.2 Live!
ASTRONEER - staymighty


Steam 'Early Access' users will receive this update today, Wednesday February 28th, 2018.

This patch addresses some issues introduced during the Basebuilding Update, as well as a quality of life addition fix for Large Storage!

UPDATES

You can find these updates in 0.6.2.0, the current build of the game. We issued hotfix 0.6.1 to Steam last week to address some of these issues, but are squeezing in a bit more, as well as issuing all of the fixes for Xbox Play Anywhere!

Large Storage on a Rover or on a Large Platform will now pass-through power! We are extremely excited that players are finding all new ways to plug different base and vehicle modules together, and realized we needed to add some functionality to large storage to account for that. Now generators, wind vanes, and solar panels connected to Large Storage will pass power through to the platform or vehicle they are printed on. Additionally, we are working on new platforms, storage units and more to keep expanding on the variety of configurations for bases. Details soon.

BUG FIXES
  • Fixed missing sounds that were not loading for fireworks and other items
  • Fixed an interaction but that resulted in players being unable to use the terrain tool after sitting in a 3-seat on a Shuttle or Large Rover
  • Fixed a bug where users were able to unpack base modules that were not on a Large Platform.
  • Fixed a bug where a battery that was plugged into a power pool would constantly tell the player it was full
  • Fixed a bug where running platforms that got disconnected would then gain infinite power
  • Fixed a bug that would result in "wireless power" for disconnected platforms
  • Fixed a bug that caused a full sediment processor to turn into Barad-dûr, resulting in the Eye of Sauron's gaze to follow your every move in your solar system.
CRASH FIXES
  • Fixed and added guards against crashes resulting from the array of connections while regenerating and merging Tether networks
  • Fixed and added guards against crashes resulting from the unpack animation failing to play
KNOWN ISSUES

We are aware of the following issues, but they didn't make this patch. Thanks to the users who have reported these, we will address them in our next content update, coming in March.
  • Corpses in the habitat from disconnected players trap players in the Habitat. Until we a get a fix in, make sure players do not disconnect while sitting in the Habitat! You can almost always jump your way out, or examine the corpse to start the despawn timer.
  • Rovers sometimes become stuck in terrain on save/load.
  • Power nuggets no longer charge batteries. They do however, still power rovers and other battery based items one their batteries have been depleted.
  • Clients in multiplayer sometimes cannot see holograms on modules or in the Catalog.
  • Invoking the use action on a printable Habitat sometimes causes the player to simultaneously grab it, causing them to rocket into space.
  • The burn-off particle effect shoots across the entire screen.
  • Large platforms are intended to create oxygen in this build. We plan on changing this behavior in an upcoming update.
  • Extractors no longer autofeed from connected storage
  • Solar Array crashes are no longer moveable via the winch.
Thanks to everyone for the feedback regarding the Basebuilding Update! Looking forward to sharing details very soon about content in our update in a few weeks.

-jt
Feb 28, 2018
Patch 0.6.2 Live!
ASTRONEER - staymighty


Steam 'Early Access' users will receive this update today, Wednesday February 28th, 2018.

This patch addresses some issues introduced during the Basebuilding Update, as well as a quality of life addition fix for Large Storage!

UPDATES

You can find these updates in 0.6.2.0, the current build of the game. We issued hotfix 0.6.1 to Steam last week to address some of these issues, but are squeezing in a bit more, as well as issuing all of the fixes for Xbox Play Anywhere!

Large Storage on a Rover or on a Large Platform will now pass-through power! We are extremely excited that players are finding all new ways to plug different base and vehicle modules together, and realized we needed to add some functionality to large storage to account for that. Now generators, wind vanes, and solar panels connected to Large Storage will pass power through to the platform or vehicle they are printed on. Additionally, we are working on new platforms, storage units and more to keep expanding on the variety of configurations for bases. Details soon.

BUG FIXES
  • Fixed missing sounds that were not loading for fireworks and other items
  • Fixed an interaction but that resulted in players being unable to use the terrain tool after sitting in a 3-seat on a Shuttle or Large Rover
  • Fixed a bug where users were able to unpack base modules that were not on a Large Platform.
  • Fixed a bug where a battery that was plugged into a power pool would constantly tell the player it was full
  • Fixed a bug where running platforms that got disconnected would then gain infinite power
  • Fixed a bug that would result in "wireless power" for disconnected platforms
  • Fixed a bug that caused a full sediment processor to turn into Barad-dûr, resulting in the Eye of Sauron's gaze to follow your every move in your solar system.
CRASH FIXES
  • Fixed and added guards against crashes resulting from the array of connections while regenerating and merging Tether networks
  • Fixed and added guards against crashes resulting from the unpack animation failing to play
KNOWN ISSUES

We are aware of the following issues, but they didn't make this patch. Thanks to the users who have reported these, we will address them in our next content update, coming in March.
  • Corpses in the habitat from disconnected players trap players in the Habitat. Until we a get a fix in, make sure players do not disconnect while sitting in the Habitat! You can almost always jump your way out, or examine the corpse to start the despawn timer.
  • Rovers sometimes become stuck in terrain on save/load.
  • Power nuggets no longer charge batteries. They do however, still power rovers and other battery based items one their batteries have been depleted.
  • Clients in multiplayer sometimes cannot see holograms on modules or in the Catalog.
  • Invoking the use action on a printable Habitat sometimes causes the player to simultaneously grab it, causing them to rocket into space.
  • The burn-off particle effect shoots across the entire screen.
  • Large platforms are intended to create oxygen in this build. We plan on changing this behavior in an upcoming update.
  • Extractors no longer autofeed from connected storage
  • Solar Array crashes are no longer moveable via the winch.
Thanks to everyone for the feedback regarding the Basebuilding Update! Looking forward to sharing details very soon about content in our update in a few weeks.

-jt
Feb 22, 2018
Astroneer's biggest update yet is all about building bases
ASTRONEER

Astroneer got a big, free update today—its "biggest update to date," developer System Era Softworks reckons—that makes significant additions to its base building and power systems.

New base platforms are the high point of the update. These "freestanding, movable" platforms can be placed and rotated individually and then connected to power sources. New fabricators—think little portable printers—were also added. You can use a small fabricator to print medium platforms straight from your backpack, or print a medium fabricator and plop it down if you need larger objects. 

Base modules and platforms are also now modular. When you print them, they'll start as prepackaged crates, which you can easily place wherever you'd like before deploying them. System Era says existing bases will automatically be updated to fit these new systems, but advises that you "use old saves at your own risk." 

Further fleshing out these base changes are yet more additions to power grids, following up on last December's big power and research update. The gist is that you can now create shared power pools by joining generators together, and use new extenders to better allocate that power. 

The official patch notes are a laundry list of details, bug fixes and smaller changes, if you want to read them for yourself. 

System Era also outlined its development roadmap in the update. With research and base building in-progress, the studio hopes to release weather and terrain improvements, as well as dedicated servers, in early 2018.

Feb 22, 2018
Basebuilding Update!
ASTRONEER - staymighty


Steam 'Early Access' users will receive this update today, Thursday February 22nd, 2018.

The Basebuilding update is Astroneer's biggest update to date. Whether underground, on a mountaintop, or on far away planets, the all new Basebuilding and Power systems will allow you to create efficient bases that are all your own. This update includes 20+ new art pieces, which includes new platforms, modules, items to print, and much more. With that being said, this update is only the beginning for Basebuilding as a system. We have already begun development on more features and content to continue growing the already robust foundation. Check out the basebuilding trailer below!

https://youtu.be/GCA80QgMTNU
UPDATES
You will find these updates in 0.6.0.0, the current build of the game.

Introduction of the Basebuilding System

Creating bases has changed fundamentally at its core. Now Astroneers can create bases however they like with a variety of new movable platforms and new ways to connect those platforms together.

We have introduced free standing movable base platforms. Three all new Platforms have been added. Two versions of the Medium Platform, and a platform for base modules, the Large Platform. These objects can now be placed and rotated individually, allowing for greater flexibility in base configurations. Lock platforms into place by connecting them to power. If you want to move them again, just disconnect all power lines.

Introducing: Fabricators. Fabricators are portable printers that allow you to make bases. Pop up the new control panel, pick what you want to fabricate, and in the end you will have a crate you can unpack immediately or bring with you anywhere you go. The Small Fabricator allows you to bootstrap an entire base from your Backpack and is used to print Medium Platforms and Medium Fabricators. The Medium Fabricator is for printing Large Platforms and Base Modules. Medium Printers and Vehicle Bays remain unchanged for now.

The starting Habitat module has received a visual update. Complete with a built in Oxygenator, Power Generation System, nighttime running lights, and 4 power connectors, the new Habitat is top of the line Exo Dynamics technology.

All printed base Modules and Platforms now come in the form of packaged crates. This allows them them to be moved or stored before deploying. Hovering over a crate on the ground or a Module on a Platform will show a hologram preview of its orientation. Base module crates can only be unpacked while on top of a platform, so keep that in mind when planning your base.


Added a new Landing Pad which automatically deploys next to a new Habitat. The Landing Pad is used to call in your first packaged items, and as zone for other players who join your session to land. Be aware that calling in new packages to the landing pad will destroy the extant ones. We plan on adding more functionality to the landing pad in the future. For now, shuttles will still land in the area in front of a vehicle bay.

Bases created in previous builds will automatically migrate to the new Basebuilding system. When loading into an old save, Platforms and Modules will be converted to their movable, packaged form. We tried to support old saves as best we could so there was no loss of items, but terrain might not always generate properly. As always though, use old saves at your own risk.

All holograms have received a visual update. They should now be much more readable at all times of day.

The introductory landing sequence has been updated. We will continue to improve on the introductory sequence in future updates.

Implemented an all new Power System


Changed the Power System over to a system that uses streaming shared power pools. That means items that need power pull from available power generators on a connected network. All Modules, Rovers, and crashed solar arrays have been migrated to use this new power system. To see how a network is doing, check out the new power indicators on platforms.

Cable and Cable Connector Art has been updated. Cables and their Connectors are now indicators for how much power is running through a network. When the indicator is red, the network needs power and all Modules connected to it will not run at optimal efficiency. As you add more power, the indicator will begin to expand, and connected Modules will run faster.


Added a new directional power tool, Extenders. Extenders are printable in bundles of six from your backpack. Extenders provide directed power flow, which redirects excess power from one pool to another. Drag a cable from the extender to indicate the direction of power and where you would like it to flow. Power flow is indicated by the large chevron on the cable.

Added small standalone platforms for small power items. When placed on the ground, Small Solar Panels, Small Generators, Small Wind Vanes. and Worklights will now deploy standalone bases with two Power Connectors on them. Use these to add power to your network, power bespoke standalone platforms, or as extenders that also add power. Small worklight bases also contain spikes can now stick to any terrain surface regardless of orientation.

Interaction Updates

A new interaction verb “Use” has been added to the game. Holding Use (by default E on keyboard and X on the Gamepad) triggers using an object. It is also used to get in and out of vehicles and the Habitat.

A new interaction verb “Examine” has been added to the game. Holding Examine (by default Q on keyboard and Y on the Gamepad) triggers examining an object or its control panel.

Holding Q on keyboard or Y on Gamepad will now open the Catalog whether or not the Backpack is open. This is a change from the double-Q / double-Y interaction from previous releases.

  • Shoulder buttons can now toggle items in the Backpack Auxiliary slots on and off.
  • Interactions that need to be held rather than tapped, like Use and Examine, now have a visual indicator ring around them.
  • Platforms and Modules can be rotated using Z / X keyboard and RB / LB on Gamepad by default.
  • When standing close enough to power slots, Gamepad users will auto-select slots that can pull connections.
  • The Backpack printer can now be used with the directional pad and A button, rather than having to use the Gamepad cursor.

Other Updates
  • Small Generators now auto-pull nearby Organic resources when actively generating power.
  • Small Generators will now automatically turn on when an Organic resource is added.
  • Firework rocket has been added to the Catalog as an unlockable object. Happy Lunar New Year!
  • Control Panel buttons, including the Research Platform, have been updated to change color and icon depending on whether pressing it will start, stop, or cancel a process, or if there is insufficient power.
  • Tutorial help menu carousel has been updated to include Basebuilding, Power, and Interaction changes.
  • Informational widgets that appear at the bottom of the screen have received updated visuals.
  • Optimized rendering of hovering info text that appears over holograms, along with other minor framerate optimizations.
  • Made several changes to the gravity system to improve stability of Rovers.
  • Medium Generators now provide about 30% more power

If you want to see the other stuff that happened this month that didn't make it, check out our vlogs for weekly insight to what the team is doing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P1IZkCB0zo&t=25s

BUG FIXES

  • Fixed several issues causing Rovers to float when outside of physics range. There should now be fewer instances of Rovers going on a beautiful journey into space.
  • Unified the simulation of the vehicle chain. This should mean many less vehicle physics freakouts going forward.
  • Fixed an Xbox One crash that sometimes occurred when players were transitioning into Multiplayer games, improving overall stability.
  • Fixed a PC crash that sometimes occurred when players were transitioning into Multiplayer games, improving overall stability.
  • Fixed a minor issue where large rocks would not despawn when dislodged, causing untidy bases.
  • Fixed an occasional bug where the mouselook camera would do a single wild 360 degree swing.
  • Fixed an issue where players were sometimes able to pick up things inappropriately while seated.

ROADMAP HIGHLIGHT

The following major features are continuing during development, but are not included in this release. Now that we are in Alpha, you can expect to see all of these items implemented during the first half of 2018. Click here to see the full roadmap.

Dedicated Servers - (Q2 2018)
We now have our final plan for implementation and player workflow when it comes to dedicated servers and have begun implementation. The rollout plan is to have servers provided through a 3rd party during Early Access for stress testing, and then DIY hosted servers at a later date.

Basebuilding - Implemented & In Progress
Its finally out! As mentioned above, we still have plenty more we want to add to this system. We would love your feedback once you get your hands on it.

Research 2.1* - Implemented & In Progress
The next steps include working on items that instantly grant you research points, and unlockable blueprints that can only be found out in the world and never be unlocked via the catalog. Expect this to keep getting more content for our next few updates.

Weather and Hazards - (Q2 2018)
As a part of Terrain 2.0 we will also be introducing an entirely new weather and hazard system to challenge players. First on the list is fixing the wind system so it is more predictable and players can rely on it as a source of power generation.

Terrain 2.0 - (Q2 2018)
Not much has changed here. The terrain system is now stood up, and final tools are being implemented to account for item placement in the world. Adam has begun generation of terrain and exploration of new planets and biomes.

Thanks for reading all of this! Really excited to get these sweeping changes into the hands of players.

-joe
Feb 22, 2018
Basebuilding Update!
ASTRONEER - staymighty


Steam 'Early Access' users will receive this update today, Thursday February 22nd, 2018.

The Basebuilding update is Astroneer's biggest update to date. Whether underground, on a mountaintop, or on far away planets, the all new Basebuilding and Power systems will allow you to create efficient bases that are all your own. This update includes 20+ new art pieces, which includes new platforms, modules, items to print, and much more. With that being said, this update is only the beginning for Basebuilding as a system. We have already begun development on more features and content to continue growing the already robust foundation. Check out the basebuilding trailer below!

https://youtu.be/GCA80QgMTNU
UPDATES
You will find these updates in 0.6.0.0, the current build of the game.

Introduction of the Basebuilding System

Creating bases has changed fundamentally at its core. Now Astroneers can create bases however they like with a variety of new movable platforms and new ways to connect those platforms together.

We have introduced free standing movable base platforms. Three all new Platforms have been added. Two versions of the Medium Platform, and a platform for base modules, the Large Platform. These objects can now be placed and rotated individually, allowing for greater flexibility in base configurations. Lock platforms into place by connecting them to power. If you want to move them again, just disconnect all power lines.

Introducing: Fabricators. Fabricators are portable printers that allow you to make bases. Pop up the new control panel, pick what you want to fabricate, and in the end you will have a crate you can unpack immediately or bring with you anywhere you go. The Small Fabricator allows you to bootstrap an entire base from your Backpack and is used to print Medium Platforms and Medium Fabricators. The Medium Fabricator is for printing Large Platforms and Base Modules. Medium Printers and Vehicle Bays remain unchanged for now.

The starting Habitat module has received a visual update. Complete with a built in Oxygenator, Power Generation System, nighttime running lights, and 4 power connectors, the new Habitat is top of the line Exo Dynamics technology.

All printed base Modules and Platforms now come in the form of packaged crates. This allows them them to be moved or stored before deploying. Hovering over a crate on the ground or a Module on a Platform will show a hologram preview of its orientation. Base module crates can only be unpacked while on top of a platform, so keep that in mind when planning your base.


Added a new Landing Pad which automatically deploys next to a new Habitat. The Landing Pad is used to call in your first packaged items, and as zone for other players who join your session to land. Be aware that calling in new packages to the landing pad will destroy the extant ones. We plan on adding more functionality to the landing pad in the future. For now, shuttles will still land in the area in front of a vehicle bay.

Bases created in previous builds will automatically migrate to the new Basebuilding system. When loading into an old save, Platforms and Modules will be converted to their movable, packaged form. We tried to support old saves as best we could so there was no loss of items, but terrain might not always generate properly. As always though, use old saves at your own risk.

All holograms have received a visual update. They should now be much more readable at all times of day.

The introductory landing sequence has been updated. We will continue to improve on the introductory sequence in future updates.

Implemented an all new Power System


Changed the Power System over to a system that uses streaming shared power pools. That means items that need power pull from available power generators on a connected network. All Modules, Rovers, and crashed solar arrays have been migrated to use this new power system. To see how a network is doing, check out the new power indicators on platforms.

Cable and Cable Connector Art has been updated. Cables and their Connectors are now indicators for how much power is running through a network. When the indicator is red, the network needs power and all Modules connected to it will not run at optimal efficiency. As you add more power, the indicator will begin to expand, and connected Modules will run faster.


Added a new directional power tool, Extenders. Extenders are printable in bundles of six from your backpack. Extenders provide directed power flow, which redirects excess power from one pool to another. Drag a cable from the extender to indicate the direction of power and where you would like it to flow. Power flow is indicated by the large chevron on the cable.

Added small standalone platforms for small power items. When placed on the ground, Small Solar Panels, Small Generators, Small Wind Vanes. and Worklights will now deploy standalone bases with two Power Connectors on them. Use these to add power to your network, power bespoke standalone platforms, or as extenders that also add power. Small worklight bases also contain spikes can now stick to any terrain surface regardless of orientation.

Interaction Updates

A new interaction verb “Use” has been added to the game. Holding Use (by default E on keyboard and X on the Gamepad) triggers using an object. It is also used to get in and out of vehicles and the Habitat.

A new interaction verb “Examine” has been added to the game. Holding Examine (by default Q on keyboard and Y on the Gamepad) triggers examining an object or its control panel.

Holding Q on keyboard or Y on Gamepad will now open the Catalog whether or not the Backpack is open. This is a change from the double-Q / double-Y interaction from previous releases.

  • Shoulder buttons can now toggle items in the Backpack Auxiliary slots on and off.
  • Interactions that need to be held rather than tapped, like Use and Examine, now have a visual indicator ring around them.
  • Platforms and Modules can be rotated using Z / X keyboard and RB / LB on Gamepad by default.
  • When standing close enough to power slots, Gamepad users will auto-select slots that can pull connections.
  • The Backpack printer can now be used with the directional pad and A button, rather than having to use the Gamepad cursor.

Other Updates
  • Small Generators now auto-pull nearby Organic resources when actively generating power.
  • Small Generators will now automatically turn on when an Organic resource is added.
  • Firework rocket has been added to the Catalog as an unlockable object. Happy Lunar New Year!
  • Control Panel buttons, including the Research Platform, have been updated to change color and icon depending on whether pressing it will start, stop, or cancel a process, or if there is insufficient power.
  • Tutorial help menu carousel has been updated to include Basebuilding, Power, and Interaction changes.
  • Informational widgets that appear at the bottom of the screen have received updated visuals.
  • Optimized rendering of hovering info text that appears over holograms, along with other minor framerate optimizations.
  • Made several changes to the gravity system to improve stability of Rovers.
  • Medium Generators now provide about 30% more power

If you want to see the other stuff that happened this month that didn't make it, check out our vlogs for weekly insight to what the team is doing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P1IZkCB0zo&t=25s

BUG FIXES

  • Fixed several issues causing Rovers to float when outside of physics range. There should now be fewer instances of Rovers going on a beautiful journey into space.
  • Unified the simulation of the vehicle chain. This should mean many less vehicle physics freakouts going forward.
  • Fixed an Xbox One crash that sometimes occurred when players were transitioning into Multiplayer games, improving overall stability.
  • Fixed a PC crash that sometimes occurred when players were transitioning into Multiplayer games, improving overall stability.
  • Fixed a minor issue where large rocks would not despawn when dislodged, causing untidy bases.
  • Fixed an occasional bug where the mouselook camera would do a single wild 360 degree swing.
  • Fixed an issue where players were sometimes able to pick up things inappropriately while seated.

ROADMAP HIGHLIGHT

The following major features are continuing during development, but are not included in this release. Now that we are in Alpha, you can expect to see all of these items implemented during the first half of 2018. Click here to see the full roadmap.

Dedicated Servers - (Q2 2018)
We now have our final plan for implementation and player workflow when it comes to dedicated servers and have begun implementation. The rollout plan is to have servers provided through a 3rd party during Early Access for stress testing, and then DIY hosted servers at a later date.

Basebuilding - Implemented & In Progress
Its finally out! As mentioned above, we still have plenty more we want to add to this system. We would love your feedback once you get your hands on it.

Research 2.1* - Implemented & In Progress
The next steps include working on items that instantly grant you research points, and unlockable blueprints that can only be found out in the world and never be unlocked via the catalog. Expect this to keep getting more content for our next few updates.

Weather and Hazards - (Q2 2018)
As a part of Terrain 2.0 we will also be introducing an entirely new weather and hazard system to challenge players. First on the list is fixing the wind system so it is more predictable and players can rely on it as a source of power generation.

Terrain 2.0 - (Q2 2018)
Not much has changed here. The terrain system is now stood up, and final tools are being implemented to account for item placement in the world. Adam has begun generation of terrain and exploration of new planets and biomes.

Thanks for reading all of this! Really excited to get these sweeping changes into the hands of players.

-joe
Jan 17, 2018
Patch 0.5.1 Live!
ASTRONEER - staymighty


Steam 'Early Access' users will receive this update today, Wednesday January 17th, 2018.

This update is a followup to the Research Update! The team took some much needed time off for the holidays and were going to hold off on updating till February, but decided to keep to the "update every month" schedule to spend time fixing some bigger crash bugs and add another feature to the Research system!

Updates
You can find these updates in 0.5.1.0, the current build of the game.

Research System now uses Multi-Phase rates
This release we've made a big update to the research system that debuted in our last update. Now every research subject contains multiple phases with different Byte values. Some items have their most valuable phase early, some much later, and some in between. So if you really want to maximize your research operations, you have lots of new decisions to make about what to research, when, and for how long. To help you make these decisions and figure out how much you want to min-max as a player, the Control Panel on the Research Chamber now shows a timeline of all the current item's phases.

If your current research subject has moved into a lower-rate phase, and want to replace it something that's higher value, you can stop the current research operation and and load in the new subject right away. But be careful, stopping a research operation early means sacrificing any uncollected points! So don't be reckless, okay?


Update to the lighting system has been implemented
In this patch we included an overhaul to the lighting system. The main goal was to get the game running using the ACES tone mapper, so we could then get the game running in HDR in a future update. That meant spending lots of time recreating the look of Astroneer in a completely new system. We aren't completely done tweaking this, but overall this approach is a huge step in the right direction.

If you want to see the other stuff that happened this month, check out our vlogs for weekly insight to what the team is doing. The most recent one shows off the new Basebuilding system:
https://youtu.be/W78XPyYHneo

FIXES

BUGS
  • [AS-1522] - Fixed a number of issues that were causing save files to be deleted when the game crashed or the application was closed. In the most common case, this occurred when very large saves took enough time to write out that the user had time to close the window before the file finished.
  • [AS-1958] - Fixed an issue causing inconsistent playback of Gas Hazard audio
  • [AS-2097] - Fixed a minor issue where the Astroneer could still walk around when scrolling through the pages of the Help screen.
  • [AS-2104] - Fixed an annoying Multiplayer bug which prevented the Client player from exiting a flipped vehicle in Multiplayer games.
  • [AS-2113] - By adjusting a few things in the engineering team’s favorite part of the code, local wind effects should now only spawn for the relevant player rather than all players in a Multiplayer game.
  • [AS-2158] - Fixed a bug where the Research platform remained in the "completed" state if it lost power while in that state.
  • [AS-2172] - Base platforms no longer have "ghost" slots on the front that store only Compound. Goodbye, secret Compound storage.
CRASHES
With automated crash reporting coming online last month, during this release cycle we focused on fixing some of our most common crashes. There are a dozen or so more, but are pretty technical so I tried to summarize them here.
  • [AS-2148] - Fixed a crash that occurred when entering the pause menu
  • [AS-2150] - Fixed a crash that occurred while printing an item
  • [AS-2153] - Fixed a crash that occurred while opening your backpack in certain situations
  • [AS-2155] - Fixed a crash that occurred while loading a save game
ROADMAP HIGHLIGHT

We just completed a comprehensive overhaul to the roadmap! Now you can see projected time frames for upcoming content, as well as our ideas for free post launch content. The following major features are continuing during development, but are not included in this release.

Dedicated Servers
We currently have a dedicated server running with a third party that we can connect to. There are plenty of bugs still yet to deal with, but we are getting closer and closer to public launch.

Basebuilding
We have already completed a couple of playtests, but this is feeling really great right now. If you watched the above vlog, you can catch some glimpses of basebuilding in action, but here is an image that Spencer made during one of our recent playtests that sums up a lot:



(none of the above art is final*)

Research - Implemented & In Progress

We just keep going! This update As with all of the new systems we are shipping, these are just base implementations that we will now work on expanding. Multi Phase items are now in, and the next steps include working on items that instantly grant you research points, and unlockable blueprints that can only be found out in the world and never be unlocked via the catalog. Expect this to keep getting more content for our next few updates.

Terrain 2.0, Weather, and Hazards

This is still in a similar place as last update. Zabir is working hard on ironing out some of the last authoring tools that the art team will use to create planets, biomes, and weather. The next step here will be generating one of the existing playable planets with the new system for testing!

Also, the first versions of aggressive flora were shown off in the last vlog. We are now working on making variations that utilize some of the cool behaviors Andrew created.

Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for details of our next update, which will probably be our biggest one to date!

-joe
Jan 17, 2018
Patch 0.5.1 Live!
ASTRONEER - staymighty


Steam 'Early Access' users will receive this update today, Wednesday January 17th, 2018.

This update is a followup to the Research Update! The team took some much needed time off for the holidays and were going to hold off on updating till February, but decided to keep to the "update every month" schedule to spend time fixing some bigger crash bugs and add another feature to the Research system!

Updates
You can find these updates in 0.5.1.0, the current build of the game.

Research System now uses Multi-Phase rates
This release we've made a big update to the research system that debuted in our last update. Now every research subject contains multiple phases with different Byte values. Some items have their most valuable phase early, some much later, and some in between. So if you really want to maximize your research operations, you have lots of new decisions to make about what to research, when, and for how long. To help you make these decisions and figure out how much you want to min-max as a player, the Control Panel on the Research Chamber now shows a timeline of all the current item's phases.

If your current research subject has moved into a lower-rate phase, and want to replace it something that's higher value, you can stop the current research operation and and load in the new subject right away. But be careful, stopping a research operation early means sacrificing any uncollected points! So don't be reckless, okay?


Update to the lighting system has been implemented
In this patch we included an overhaul to the lighting system. The main goal was to get the game running using the ACES tone mapper, so we could then get the game running in HDR in a future update. That meant spending lots of time recreating the look of Astroneer in a completely new system. We aren't completely done tweaking this, but overall this approach is a huge step in the right direction.

If you want to see the other stuff that happened this month, check out our vlogs for weekly insight to what the team is doing. The most recent one shows off the new Basebuilding system:
https://youtu.be/W78XPyYHneo

FIXES

BUGS
  • [AS-1522] - Fixed a number of issues that were causing save files to be deleted when the game crashed or the application was closed. In the most common case, this occurred when very large saves took enough time to write out that the user had time to close the window before the file finished.
  • [AS-1958] - Fixed an issue causing inconsistent playback of Gas Hazard audio
  • [AS-2097] - Fixed a minor issue where the Astroneer could still walk around when scrolling through the pages of the Help screen.
  • [AS-2104] - Fixed an annoying Multiplayer bug which prevented the Client player from exiting a flipped vehicle in Multiplayer games.
  • [AS-2113] - By adjusting a few things in the engineering team’s favorite part of the code, local wind effects should now only spawn for the relevant player rather than all players in a Multiplayer game.
  • [AS-2158] - Fixed a bug where the Research platform remained in the "completed" state if it lost power while in that state.
  • [AS-2172] - Base platforms no longer have "ghost" slots on the front that store only Compound. Goodbye, secret Compound storage.
CRASHES
With automated crash reporting coming online last month, during this release cycle we focused on fixing some of our most common crashes. There are a dozen or so more, but are pretty technical so I tried to summarize them here.
  • [AS-2148] - Fixed a crash that occurred when entering the pause menu
  • [AS-2150] - Fixed a crash that occurred while printing an item
  • [AS-2153] - Fixed a crash that occurred while opening your backpack in certain situations
  • [AS-2155] - Fixed a crash that occurred while loading a save game
ROADMAP HIGHLIGHT

We just completed a comprehensive overhaul to the roadmap! Now you can see projected time frames for upcoming content, as well as our ideas for free post launch content. The following major features are continuing during development, but are not included in this release.

Dedicated Servers
We currently have a dedicated server running with a third party that we can connect to. There are plenty of bugs still yet to deal with, but we are getting closer and closer to public launch.

Basebuilding
We have already completed a couple of playtests, but this is feeling really great right now. If you watched the above vlog, you can catch some glimpses of basebuilding in action, but here is an image that Spencer made during one of our recent playtests that sums up a lot:



(none of the above art is final*)

Research - Implemented & In Progress

We just keep going! This update As with all of the new systems we are shipping, these are just base implementations that we will now work on expanding. Multi Phase items are now in, and the next steps include working on items that instantly grant you research points, and unlockable blueprints that can only be found out in the world and never be unlocked via the catalog. Expect this to keep getting more content for our next few updates.

Terrain 2.0, Weather, and Hazards

This is still in a similar place as last update. Zabir is working hard on ironing out some of the last authoring tools that the art team will use to create planets, biomes, and weather. The next step here will be generating one of the existing playable planets with the new system for testing!

Also, the first versions of aggressive flora were shown off in the last vlog. We are now working on making variations that utilize some of the cool behaviors Andrew created.

Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for details of our next update, which will probably be our biggest one to date!

-joe
Jan 13, 2018
The weirdest patch notes of 2017
HITMAN™

The patch note is an underappreciated art form. Among the dry details of damage buffs and bug fixes are occasionally brilliant puns or revelatory details about the absurd complexity of videogames. Dwarf Fortress is the undisputed king of unintentionally hilarious updates ("Cleaned up the bear situation"), but we've also written about some of the all-time greats from Ark: Survival Evolved, Rust, and World of Warcraft.

Absurdity is always with us, though, and the good gods know we've needed every laugh we could find in 2017. To find the very best ones, I dove through the 2017 community updates and patch notes from all kinds of games. Deep, open-world survival games are always good for a laugh. After all, they model systems like pooping and sleeping, and a mention of "shitting the bed" is already 90 percent of a joke.

H1Z1

12/13

  • Blood effects have been changed back to the classic mist effect. 

12/7

  • Toxic Cargo Pants have been updated to be more consistent 

11/15 

  • Shooting from a passenger seat should no longer result in hitting a teammate in the backseat. 

8/29 

  • Old rocks have been removed and replaced with new, varied rock formations.
  • Players should no longer fall out of their parachute. 

7 Days to Die

via reddit user u/nettech09

10/26 

  • Some general improvements to zombie jumping
  • Fixed: Snakes are fireproof

8/31

  • Fixed: Businessman Zombie when killed can have his head dislocated when he falls backwards 
  • Fixed: Vultures can fly underwater
  • Fixed: Bears and wolves walk on water 

8/04

  • Fixed: Wrong open sound on eviscerated remains
  • Fixed: Dysentery description does not mention that it is lethal 

6/06

  • Added: Moldy Bread is a science crafting item
  • Changed: Fat zombie cops are bigger
  • Changed: Zombie soldiers are less generous with the rocket launchers
  • Fixed: Breaking down a car on the sloped road will create a hole in the world 

Oxygen Not Included

10/5

  • Stress vomiting Duplicants infected with Hypothermia should no longer vomit "Hypothermia germs" 

8/31

  • Fixed a crash that could occur if a Duplicant died while using a wash basin 

3/02

  • Algae distillery has a much longer conversion interval
  • Duplicants no longer use the massage table during red alert 

Ylands

12/9

  • Horse is no longer perceived as a threat when sleeping 

Medieval Engineers

via reddit user u/zacrynix

12/12

  • Fixed a crash when you walk on the exact north pole. 

11/28

  • The Janitor will now clean up any static grids in the center of the planet. 

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds

via reddit user u/beerye 

12/27  

  • Fixed the issue where the falling speed meter text was showing abnormally in Portuguese 

12/11

  • Fixed the issue where player's footstep sound was silenced when player moved diagonally or wore particular shoes 

12/8

  • Fixed the issue where while vaulting in FPP, player could look inside own body 

Lone Echo

8/30 

  • Repeatedly punching the dummies will no longer result in a crash. Swing away. 

Prey

via reddit user u/everypostepic 

8/2

  • Fixed crash when mimicking bass guitar in the Yellow Tulip.
  • Player can no longer bypass ceiling collision by mantling GLOO. 
  • If the player manages to fully GLOO the greater mimic while it is in mid-lunge toward the player's face, the facegrab animation will no longer play and trap the player. 

5/31

  • Superfruit no longer appears shrunken and flat when fully grown.

As I slogged deeper and deeper into the year, dozens of tabs open across three monitors and a laptop, I started to get a little delirious. It was in this moment that I fell in love with the long-suffering community managers and blog writers who compile patch notes. These poor people cry out for help with little quips, "just to see if anyone is still reading this." My friends: I see you, and I love you. 

Astroneer

12/18

  • Fixed a few other instances of Client players getting stuck in a wheelie while driving a Rover in Multiplayer games. 

10/12

  • Fixed an issue where Rovers would fly into space when loading a save from a rover seat 

9/15

  • Fixed a rare crash, that according to engineers was “super weird, and something that should never occur,” involving the game trying to access non-existent Rover wheels.
  • Fixed an issue where items would go on a beautiful journey into space if not collected from an dead Astroneer before a second death occurs. 

Hitman

via reddit user u/newbzoors 

7/13

  • We've fixed an issue that could cause the toilet in the Marrakesh school to behave erratically after 47 kicks it onto Zaydan. This could occasionally result in 47's death. Seriously. 

Total War: Warhammer

via reddit user u/flavahbeast 

10/25

  • FIXED an issue with the AI proposing peace right after entering a war with the player
  • FIXED a staircase in Lothern Siege battle map which would cause chariots to spontaneously combust
  • FIXED CA Cinematics Team’s obsession with slaying High Elves. May require further testing…
  • FIXED Spearmen unit in Tor Elithis Rogue army T-Posing
  • Skavenslaves: more salt added to diet; now 25% more delicious 

8/9

  • Under-Morking no longer automatically leads to over-Gorking, and vice-versa. The waxing or waning of Morrslieb may affect this. Or it may not. 
Jan 2, 2018
These are the top 100 Steam games of 2017
Left 4 Dead 2 - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (Alec Meer)

Another year over, a new one just begun, which means, impossibly, even more games.> But what about last year? Which were the games that most people were buying and, more importantly, playing? As is now something of a tradition, Valve have let slip a big ol’ breakdown of the most successful titles released on Steam over the past twelve months.

Below is the full, hundred-strong roster, complete with links to our coverage if you want to find out more about any of the games, or simply to marvel at how much seemed to happen in the space of 52 short weeks.

(more…)

Dec 18, 2017
Astroneer research update makes huge changes to research and power systems
ASTRONEER

Astroneer, you may recall, is a crafty little survival game set in space. Chris gave it a look earlier this year, and developer System Era Softworks has been plugging away at it in Steam Early Access ever since. Its latest update is a doozy, and brings sweeping changes to the research system. 

Under the new system, when you research item using a research chamber, you receive accumulated data in the form of 'bytes' rather than a random item. From there, you spend bytes on new blueprints via the new backpack catalog. You can earn bytes by researching research chests and resources, with more researchable items due in future updates. 

The updated research chambers are at the heart of the new system, so System Era singled them out in the patch notes, saying: 

"The Research Chamber uses the new streaming power system to operate. That means rather than having base modules use a power bar that has to continue refilling, modules using the new mechanic search the network for sources of power and then stay connected to them as long as the power keeps coming in." 

Thanks to this new power system, players can also overclock their research chambers to improve their output. However, you can't stop the research process without destroying the research subject. 

The research update also brought a few usability tweaks to the UI, an improved tutorial which keeps up with old saves, and automatic crash reporting to help with ongoing bug stomping. You can read the full patch notes, and a roadmap of upcoming content, here. 

...