After three years of development, today we launched Eco on to Steam Early Access!

https://youtu.be/ud_refZuQoA

For those that bought or Kickstarted the game already, you can now link it with your steam account at the Strange Loop site by logging in and clicking the "Link to Steam" button.
Account login here.



We’re super proud of this release, and want to give a huge thanks to everyone whos supported us from Kickstarter through Alpha. This is just the beginning, we have big plans going forward and we’ll be inviting the community to be closely involved in supporting it. Stay tuned for more details as we launch our new community site.



From all of us on the team at Strange Loop a big thanks and see you in Eco.

-John K

john@strangeloopgames.com

After three years of development, today we launched Eco on to Steam Early Access!

https://youtu.be/ud_refZuQoA

For those that bought or Kickstarted the game already, you can now link it with your steam account at the Strange Loop site by logging in and clicking the "Link to Steam" button.
Account login here.



We’re super proud of this release, and want to give a huge thanks to everyone whos supported us from Kickstarter through Alpha. This is just the beginning, we have big plans going forward and we’ll be inviting the community to be closely involved in supporting it. Stay tuned for more details as we launch our new community site.



From all of us on the team at Strange Loop a big thanks and see you in Eco.

-John K

john@strangeloopgames.com

Our final alpha build before our Steam Early Access launch is now out! That makes this the last opportunity to pick up Alpha build and get the early rewards.


Alpha rewards: Meteor chunk, top-hat and goggles, and Alpha backer chat icon.



Alpha is available here: strangeloopgames.com/eco. (Note: Multi-packs come with game keys that *will* gift alpha rewards, even if gifted after Beta)



Next up: Beta. At long last after 3 years, our next release is STEAM, February 6th.


This build marks our feature-lockoff, and from here on out its polish and bug fixes. Here’s what’s in the final alpha build, 6.4:




Added initial support for playing on local worlds. Initially this is a PC only feature, we will be looking at adding support for this on OSX and Linux in the future.

You can create and load worlds locally, and play without needing to setup your own server - it does most of the legwork for you.
Added a ‘Continue’ option, which will remember the last server you joined or world you loaded. One click gets you back into the game!




Player avatars now have more accurate foot placement and new animations including running, jumping and swimming.
Torches can now be seen when carried by other players
Water is much more splashy



Added a Controls popup that tells you how to interact with things in the world when you look at them for 1 second. Shows what each mouse button and ‘E’ key do.



Introduced the concept of ‘Specialties’, which are branches of the skill tree that require research
Restructured the skill tree to place all Specialties at the root
Reorganized the skills window to be easier to navigate
Simplified skill costs

New improved tutorial to simplify introduction to Eco.



You can now rotate some blocks with Q/R, such as stairs
Fixed some issues with selection of blocks when wielding a hammer



Changed the way the Laser works: it now destroys the meteor 30 seconds after activating. Since this removes the 9 hour charging time, it instead requires double power.
Animated the lasers to turn to their target
Made the meteor easier to spot, fixed issues where the meteor was impossible to see.



Different terrain materials now blend into nearby other materials in a more stylized way. This removes most hard edges from bordering block types, such as soil next to grass, or sand next to stone.
Improved the way that the air pollution, ground pollution, and soil moisture world layers spread
Changed the units of the AirPollutionSource and AirPollutionSpread world layers from tons of pollution per 16 square meters to tons of pollution per square meter.
Made /help sort and categorize the displayed chat commands.


We’ve replaced the character controller:
Character no longer slips and slides around walls in confined spaces.
The new controller is more responsive, should feel better when moving around in precarious situations like building the walls and roofs of buildings.
Character climbs stairs without requiring jumping.
Character no longer slides off of steep slopes, like roofs.

• Fixed bug where laws and government were not saved when hitting save in the server GUI
  
• Added /dumpcarried command
  
• Fixed room requirements for the Repair Station
  
• Reduced stutter due to garbage collection
  
• Added admin commands /setreputation and /setreputationrelative
  
• Fixes phantom items in inventory
  
• Fix bug where the Cause & Effect API would fail when inspecting layer relationships in an area that isn't aligned with the world origin
  
• Fix some number formatting issues in Cause & Effect
  
• Fixes a lot of issues when holding logs with shovel, or rubble with pickaxe, etc.
  
• Fixes some items not appearing in store selection window, including coal and certain seeds.
  
• If world layers changed dirt in stockpiles to other types, such as grass or desert sand, the stockpile used to lose the dirt item associated with it. Fixes that.
  
• Fixed a server crash when claiming property with a deed crafted at a workbench
  
• Removed Stone Roof (migrated to mortared stone roof in a previous release)
  
• Fixes some server crashes related to crafting projects
  
• Fixed problems with tooltips that were too tall for the screen
  
• Fixed problems with tooltips closing even while still being hovered over
  
• Added tooltips to items showing which skill gives that item, if any
  
• Fixed not being able to walk after opening the advanced settings in the escape menu.
  
• Fixed protection on fuel supplies that prevents unauthorized players from removing fuel from them
  
• Fixed rubble placement against walls
  
• Fixed occasional crashes when performing trades

We’re pulling out all the stops to make this a great launch, and having your support has been amazing so far. Looking forward to continued support of the game into Beta and beyond, lots more places we want to take it.

-JohnK

john@strangeloopgames.com

The alpha build is available now on our website: www.strangeloopgames.com/eco

(All purchasers will get all future updates and a Steam key when we launch on Steam in Feb. 6 2018.)

Our final alpha build before our Steam Early Access launch is now out! That makes this the last opportunity to pick up Alpha build and get the early rewards.


Alpha rewards: Meteor chunk, top-hat and goggles, and Alpha backer chat icon.



Alpha is available here: strangeloopgames.com/eco. (Note: Multi-packs come with game keys that *will* gift alpha rewards, even if gifted after Beta)



Next up: Beta. At long last after 3 years, our next release is STEAM, February 6th.


This build marks our feature-lockoff, and from here on out its polish and bug fixes. Here’s what’s in the final alpha build, 6.4:




Added initial support for playing on local worlds. Initially this is a PC only feature, we will be looking at adding support for this on OSX and Linux in the future.

You can create and load worlds locally, and play without needing to setup your own server - it does most of the legwork for you.
Added a ‘Continue’ option, which will remember the last server you joined or world you loaded. One click gets you back into the game!




Player avatars now have more accurate foot placement and new animations including running, jumping and swimming.
Torches can now be seen when carried by other players
Water is much more splashy



Added a Controls popup that tells you how to interact with things in the world when you look at them for 1 second. Shows what each mouse button and ‘E’ key do.



Introduced the concept of ‘Specialties’, which are branches of the skill tree that require research
Restructured the skill tree to place all Specialties at the root
Reorganized the skills window to be easier to navigate
Simplified skill costs

New improved tutorial to simplify introduction to Eco.



You can now rotate some blocks with Q/R, such as stairs
Fixed some issues with selection of blocks when wielding a hammer



Changed the way the Laser works: it now destroys the meteor 30 seconds after activating. Since this removes the 9 hour charging time, it instead requires double power.
Animated the lasers to turn to their target
Made the meteor easier to spot, fixed issues where the meteor was impossible to see.



Different terrain materials now blend into nearby other materials in a more stylized way. This removes most hard edges from bordering block types, such as soil next to grass, or sand next to stone.
Improved the way that the air pollution, ground pollution, and soil moisture world layers spread
Changed the units of the AirPollutionSource and AirPollutionSpread world layers from tons of pollution per 16 square meters to tons of pollution per square meter.
Made /help sort and categorize the displayed chat commands.


We’ve replaced the character controller:
Character no longer slips and slides around walls in confined spaces.
The new controller is more responsive, should feel better when moving around in precarious situations like building the walls and roofs of buildings.
Character climbs stairs without requiring jumping.
Character no longer slides off of steep slopes, like roofs.

• Fixed bug where laws and government were not saved when hitting save in the server GUI
  
• Added /dumpcarried command
  
• Fixed room requirements for the Repair Station
  
• Reduced stutter due to garbage collection
  
• Added admin commands /setreputation and /setreputationrelative
  
• Fixes phantom items in inventory
  
• Fix bug where the Cause & Effect API would fail when inspecting layer relationships in an area that isn't aligned with the world origin
  
• Fix some number formatting issues in Cause & Effect
  
• Fixes a lot of issues when holding logs with shovel, or rubble with pickaxe, etc.
  
• Fixes some items not appearing in store selection window, including coal and certain seeds.
  
• If world layers changed dirt in stockpiles to other types, such as grass or desert sand, the stockpile used to lose the dirt item associated with it. Fixes that.
  
• Fixed a server crash when claiming property with a deed crafted at a workbench
  
• Removed Stone Roof (migrated to mortared stone roof in a previous release)
  
• Fixes some server crashes related to crafting projects
  
• Fixed problems with tooltips that were too tall for the screen
  
• Fixed problems with tooltips closing even while still being hovered over
  
• Added tooltips to items showing which skill gives that item, if any
  
• Fixed not being able to walk after opening the advanced settings in the escape menu.
  
• Fixed protection on fuel supplies that prevents unauthorized players from removing fuel from them
  
• Fixed rubble placement against walls
  
• Fixed occasional crashes when performing trades

We’re pulling out all the stops to make this a great launch, and having your support has been amazing so far. Looking forward to continued support of the game into Beta and beyond, lots more places we want to take it.

-JohnK

john@strangeloopgames.com

The alpha build is available now on our website: www.strangeloopgames.com/eco

(All purchasers will get all future updates and a Steam key when we launch on Steam in Feb. 6 2018.)

Until then, all purchasers past-and-present will get these alpha rewards, a Meteor Shard and a Top Hat and Goggles, as a way to say thanks for your support all these years! We couldn’t have made it this far without you.

Once we release on Steam these rewards will no longer be available to new players, and we will be dropping the price to $30 (Any accounts or invites purchased before then will retain the rewards).

Also just released 6.3! Check out the feature list here:
http://www.strangeloopgames.com/eco-on-steam-feb-6th-alpha-rewards-6-3-released/

Video preview here:
https://youtu.be/CRDSk7P3PKU

Until then, all purchasers past-and-present will get these alpha rewards, a Meteor Shard and a Top Hat and Goggles, as a way to say thanks for your support all these years! We couldn’t have made it this far without you.

Once we release on Steam these rewards will no longer be available to new players, and we will be dropping the price to $30 (Any accounts or invites purchased before then will retain the rewards).

Also just released 6.3! Check out the feature list here:
http://www.strangeloopgames.com/eco-on-steam-feb-6th-alpha-rewards-6-3-released/

Video preview here:
https://youtu.be/CRDSk7P3PKU

We’re moving to a new two-week release schedule, into beta and beyond.
We’ll be announcing a beta date soon, sometime in Q1 2018, coming up quick!  We’ll be launching to Steam then too.

Check out what’s new in this release:




 
You can now place markers in the world to keep track of important locations. Markers display with an arrow on the HUD, making navigation between points that much easier.

• Drop one by clicking the button on the mini-map panel, or typing ‘/mark’
• Clicking on coordinates in descriptions and tool-tips will drop a marker at that point.
• Contracts will mark the places you need to do work with world markers.

• Moved most of the interaction code from server to client. As a result of this, Players should notice snappier interactions.

• Started adding in objects that grant players benefits via the new Player Housing system, like beds and rugs.

New chat command system to improve usability and modability.

• Commands like ‘/help’ and ‘/?’ now list all usable commands, along with their descriptions and syntax.
• You can read more about their use in the documentation here.

Made improvements to the avatar creation menu.

• You can now recolor your backpack.
• Add option to toggle between walking and idle animations.
• Add ability to cancel changes.

With the lead-in to beta + Steam launch we’re going to start live streaming development Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Subscribe to us on YouTube to catch those live and ask us questions.  Get to know the team and give us feedback on what’s next! Here’s the first one from Craig where he demoed the 6.2 release:


Thanks all, lots more to come as we lead into Steam Early Access launch, great to have your support leading up to it, we’ve come a long long way.
— Team Eco

We’re moving to a new two-week release schedule, into beta and beyond.
We’ll be announcing a beta date soon, sometime in Q1 2018, coming up quick!  We’ll be launching to Steam then too.

Check out what’s new in this release:




 
You can now place markers in the world to keep track of important locations. Markers display with an arrow on the HUD, making navigation between points that much easier.

• Drop one by clicking the button on the mini-map panel, or typing ‘/mark’
• Clicking on coordinates in descriptions and tool-tips will drop a marker at that point.
• Contracts will mark the places you need to do work with world markers.

• Moved most of the interaction code from server to client. As a result of this, Players should notice snappier interactions.

• Started adding in objects that grant players benefits via the new Player Housing system, like beds and rugs.

New chat command system to improve usability and modability.

• Commands like ‘/help’ and ‘/?’ now list all usable commands, along with their descriptions and syntax.
• You can read more about their use in the documentation here.

Made improvements to the avatar creation menu.

• You can now recolor your backpack.
• Add option to toggle between walking and idle animations.
• Add ability to cancel changes.

With the lead-in to beta + Steam launch we’re going to start live streaming development Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Subscribe to us on YouTube to catch those live and ask us questions.  Get to know the team and give us feedback on what’s next! Here’s the first one from Craig where he demoed the 6.2 release:


Thanks all, lots more to come as we lead into Steam Early Access launch, great to have your support leading up to it, we’ve come a long long way.
— Team Eco

We released Eco Alpha 6.1, with over 375 bug fixes since the last release, and the introduction of Player Housing.
You can get the alpha on our website at http://strangeloopgames.com/eco



New to 6.1 is Player Housing, which will be the second way (next to food) to earn skill points. The better furnished your house is with the more variety of rooms, the faster you’ll gain skill points.



Adding furniture of matching categories to a room (ie bathroom, living room, bedroom) will provide a room bonus to the property owner, and having multiple rooms of various types will apply a ‘balanced house multiplier’.

The goal of this feature is to put more individual incentive into the game, increasing the quality and size of your house in order to increase your skills. Important to the group, yes, but it can easily get out of hand, and finding a balance of resources put towards individual needs vs. the needs of the group will play a big role.

With 6.1 we’ve added the basic system to try out, still in the works are a whole slew of housing objects to add, which will arrive in 6.2. Let us know your feedback.



Also in this build:

• Holding shift allows you to sprint, at the cost of additional calories. If you have zero calories, you can’t sprint.
  
• Holding control allows you to move slowly. Doing so also prevents you from falling off of ledges.
  
• Diving below the surface of water now requires calories. Swim underwater by holding control. If you have no calories, you can only swim on the surface.

Over 375 issuesfixed since 6.0.3. (!)



Beta Steam launch is coming up quick, so your feedback is extra useful now. Cheers and as always email with any questions or feedback.
— Team Eco

The alpha build is available now on our website: www.strangeloopgames.com/eco

(All purchasers will get all future updates and a Steam key when we launch on Steam in early 2018.)

We released Eco Alpha 6.1, with over 375 bug fixes since the last release, and the introduction of Player Housing.
You can get the alpha on our website at http://strangeloopgames.com/eco



New to 6.1 is Player Housing, which will be the second way (next to food) to earn skill points. The better furnished your house is with the more variety of rooms, the faster you’ll gain skill points.



Adding furniture of matching categories to a room (ie bathroom, living room, bedroom) will provide a room bonus to the property owner, and having multiple rooms of various types will apply a ‘balanced house multiplier’.

The goal of this feature is to put more individual incentive into the game, increasing the quality and size of your house in order to increase your skills. Important to the group, yes, but it can easily get out of hand, and finding a balance of resources put towards individual needs vs. the needs of the group will play a big role.

With 6.1 we’ve added the basic system to try out, still in the works are a whole slew of housing objects to add, which will arrive in 6.2. Let us know your feedback.



Also in this build:

• Holding shift allows you to sprint, at the cost of additional calories. If you have zero calories, you can’t sprint.
  
• Holding control allows you to move slowly. Doing so also prevents you from falling off of ledges.
  
• Diving below the surface of water now requires calories. Swim underwater by holding control. If you have no calories, you can only swim on the surface.

Over 375 issuesfixed since 6.0.3. (!)



Beta Steam launch is coming up quick, so your feedback is extra useful now. Cheers and as always email with any questions or feedback.
— Team Eco

The alpha build is available now on our website: www.strangeloopgames.com/eco

(All purchasers will get all future updates and a Steam key when we launch on Steam in early 2018.)