Hey guys,

We hope you had a great New Year, and a great time playing Onward this holiday. The past year has been awesome for Onward, and we've got some player stats to give you guys a recap on the year, as well as a hotfix to fix a few issues (patch notes are below).

2018 will be an even bigger year for Onward with a few major announcements coming, vast gameplay and graphical improvements to the game, new maps, weapons and gear, and continued eSport support and coverage. More info on the plans will be released throughout the year. Make sure to stay tuned on our discord and we greatly appreciate the support. Onwards and Upwards!

Best,

Dante

Link to infographic webpage

• First Time Setup: added step to select Snap Turns enabled/disabled

• Fixed some wording in the tutorial
  
• Fixed Smooth Turn value not saving/loading correctly
  
• Fixed Oculus Touch movement input problem.
  
  • Previously, required the player to be "touching" the thumbstick which required a finger to be on the top of the thumbstick. This meant that nudging the thumbstick on its outer edge did not cause the player to move.
    
  • Now, moving does not require the top of the thumbstick to be touched so nudging the thumbstick on the edge now works

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.

Hey guys,

We hope you had a great New Year, and a great time playing Onward this holiday. The past year has been awesome for Onward, and we've got some player stats to give you guys a recap on the year, as well as a hotfix to fix a few issues (patch notes are below).

2018 will be an even bigger year for Onward with a few major announcements coming, vast gameplay and graphical improvements to the game, new maps, weapons and gear, and continued eSport support and coverage. More info on the plans will be released throughout the year. Make sure to stay tuned on our discord and we greatly appreciate the support. Onwards and Upwards!

Best,

Dante

Link to infographic webpage

• First Time Setup: added step to select Snap Turns enabled/disabled

• Fixed some wording in the tutorial
  
• Fixed Smooth Turn value not saving/loading correctly
  
• Fixed Oculus Touch movement input problem.
  
  • Previously, required the player to be "touching" the thumbstick which required a finger to be on the top of the thumbstick. This meant that nudging the thumbstick on its outer edge did not cause the player to move.
    
  • Now, moving does not require the top of the thumbstick to be touched so nudging the thumbstick on the edge now works

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.

We wanted give recognition to our community for all the hard work they've put into setting up their own Onward League, and for the championship which took place last weekend. The Onward Master League has been going for around 11 months and currently has 32 teams from across the globe! We remain continually impressed with the tactics, strategy and of course skill coming from the Onward competitive community. To these teams, and all of the people involved in running the Master League, we want to congratulate them for their fantastic jobs and for helping the Onward community remain one of the best communities in VR! You guys are awesome.

Congratulations are of course in order for the league team Beginners who were crowned the victors of the championship this past weekend. They put up an excellent fight to take down Globochem in a final 4-1 victory on Downfall1. To quote NightFiree (one of the casters from the weekend): "It was a spectacular match between two well trained and practiced teams. The strategies were clearly developed and a joy to watch go into action!".

We were thrilled to see the first iteration of our spectating/casting setup in action over the weekend with some fantastic use and commentary from all of the casters, who provided incredible coverage for the matches. See the links below for the casting footage from the weekend using our new setup.

Final round of Beginners vs Globochem - https://www.twitch.tv/videos/208396326?t=06h04m55s

Some highlights from the championship - https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague/clips

More highlights - https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague2/clips

VODs from Casting team #1 (Nightfire and Silent Knight) https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague/videos/all

VODs from Casting team #2 (Lil' Synkie and Radarhead) https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague2/videos/all





For more information on the community ran Onward Master League and how to get involved, you can visit their website - http://vrmasterleague.com/Onward/

We wanted give recognition to our community for all the hard work they've put into setting up their own Onward League, and for the championship which took place last weekend. The Onward Master League has been going for around 11 months and currently has 32 teams from across the globe! We remain continually impressed with the tactics, strategy and of course skill coming from the Onward competitive community. To these teams, and all of the people involved in running the Master League, we want to congratulate them for their fantastic jobs and for helping the Onward community remain one of the best communities in VR! You guys are awesome.

Congratulations are of course in order for the league team Beginners who were crowned the victors of the championship this past weekend. They put up an excellent fight to take down Globochem in a final 4-1 victory on Downfall1. To quote NightFiree (one of the casters from the weekend): "It was a spectacular match between two well trained and practiced teams. The strategies were clearly developed and a joy to watch go into action!".

We were thrilled to see the first iteration of our spectating/casting setup in action over the weekend with some fantastic use and commentary from all of the casters, who provided incredible coverage for the matches. See the links below for the casting footage from the weekend using our new setup.

Final round of Beginners vs Globochem - https://www.twitch.tv/videos/208396326?t=06h04m55s

Some highlights from the championship - https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague/clips

More highlights - https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague2/clips

VODs from Casting team #1 (Nightfire and Silent Knight) https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague/videos/all

VODs from Casting team #2 (Lil' Synkie and Radarhead) https://www.twitch.tv/onwardmasterleague2/videos/all





For more information on the community ran Onward Master League and how to get involved, you can visit their website - http://vrmasterleague.com/Onward/

This update will introduce some new features, mechanics and quality of life fixes to support both our casual and competitive players!

Co-op vs AI Operations is now available on all of our maps! Maps that are too small/restricted for the evac helicopter to land will have it hover above, and smoke will appear on the ground to indicate the victory zone. Volk weapons have been added to player loadouts, more loadout points, and a new armored Volk Heavy character.

Spectating is now available in two forms! For non-competitive lobbies, once the round is active, for any players staying in the loadout area/returning to it after death, a VR headset will spawn on the table, which they can pick up and put on to fly around the level while the match is still in progress. For competitive lobbies, there are two slots for players that can use a mouse and keyboard to follow the match, with some useful tools at their disposal.

For more info on spectate (including keyboard controls for desktop spectating), see the wiki section on it!

• Fixed rare case of objective not spawning for some players (usually 2D spectators)
  
• Fixed being able to holster a grenade after the pin was pulled causing being unable to grab anything
  
• Fixed VIP vest retaining primary weapon mags from previous spawn (although they have no weapon to use the mags with)
  
• Added push to talk for desktop spectating players (defaulted to T)
  
• Added round time to scoreboard when spectating in VR

• Bazaar: Fix for Evac heli not landing
  
• Loadout tent: Fixed an issue where team chat could become non-functional when players leave the game
  
• Main menu: Lowered ambient and flyby sound volume by 25%
  
• Competitive: Fixed an issue where players potentially wouldn't be able to join a lobby with 1 player slot open

• Spectator Modes
  
  • Added new VR spectating mode for non-competitive lobbies which allows any player to pick up a VR headset from the Tent table and free roam the map while the round is in progress.
    
  • Added new desktop spectating for competitive lobbies which allows up to two players to spectate, using mouse & keyboard (images below)

• AI Update
  
  • Added AI Volk heavy soldier type armed with a machine gun and heavy armor helmet. The Volk Heavy will appear on Evac and in Hunt rounds with high AI counts
    
  • Co-op vs AI Operations available on all maps (Hunt and Evac missions)
    Added to remaining maps Suburbia, Subway, Jungle

• AI: Player loadout points allowed increased from 8 to 18. Your AI loadout is saved separately from your PvP loadout.
  
• AI: Player loadouts include all primary weapons (Marsoc and Volk).
  
• AI: Added weapon variety to AI forces
  
• Loadout Tent: Going into teamchat will dramatically reduce other team's voice volume'
  
• Turning (snap and smooth turn) enabled in main menu and Loadout Tent
  
• On your vest, up to 3 mags will be visible for your selected primary weapon to display how many mags you have left (previously only 1 mag was shown unless you had no mags left)
  
• Settings: Added smooth turning option (can now choose disabled, snap turns, smooth turns)
  
• UI: Added hover tooltips to some Settings
  
• UI: Added Volume sliders for Master and Music
  
• Competitive: Introduced a new round reset mechanic. If a team fully wipes (suicide/team kill/back to tent) within 30 seconds of the round starting, the round will reset (ignoring any deaths) and retain the current score, objective location and team faction.
  This is to address issues in competitive matches where players can have issues while spawning

• Quarantine: vs AI, moved player spawns around (a particular player spawn was very difficult)

• Fixed timing issue of being healed as round ended (witnessed in league match)
  
• Fixed two players killing the same target at the same time awarding two kills instead of one
  
• Fixed Graphics Settings incorrectly always showing "High" text regardless of saved preferences
  
• Fixed small height offset that was causing player cameras to be slightly above the ground.
  
• Fixed issue where players can be flashing between two positions when on slopes
  
• Oculus: Fixed intro Splash Screen re-centering to incorrect rotation
  
• Vive: Reverted grenade throwing velocity to how it was before v1.0
  
• Quarantine: Fixed occlusion flashing on stairs that are open vs AI
  
• Suburbia: Fixed grass material showing odd brown lines
  
• Bazaar: Fixed incorrectly inaccessible blue room

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.

(Images of Competitive 2D spectating designed for tournament casting)

This update will introduce some new features, mechanics and quality of life fixes to support both our casual and competitive players!

Co-op vs AI Operations is now available on all of our maps! Maps that are too small/restricted for the evac helicopter to land will have it hover above, and smoke will appear on the ground to indicate the victory zone. Volk weapons have been added to player loadouts, more loadout points, and a new armored Volk Heavy character.

Spectating is now available in two forms! For non-competitive lobbies, once the round is active, for any players staying in the loadout area/returning to it after death, a VR headset will spawn on the table, which they can pick up and put on to fly around the level while the match is still in progress. For competitive lobbies, there are two slots for players that can use a mouse and keyboard to follow the match, with some useful tools at their disposal.

For more info on spectate (including keyboard controls for desktop spectating), see the wiki section on it!

• Fixed rare case of objective not spawning for some players (usually 2D spectators)
  
• Fixed being able to holster a grenade after the pin was pulled causing being unable to grab anything
  
• Fixed VIP vest retaining primary weapon mags from previous spawn (although they have no weapon to use the mags with)
  
• Added push to talk for desktop spectating players (defaulted to T)
  
• Added round time to scoreboard when spectating in VR

• Bazaar: Fix for Evac heli not landing
  
• Loadout tent: Fixed an issue where team chat could become non-functional when players leave the game
  
• Main menu: Lowered ambient and flyby sound volume by 25%
  
• Competitive: Fixed an issue where players potentially wouldn't be able to join a lobby with 1 player slot open

• Spectator Modes
  
  • Added new VR spectating mode for non-competitive lobbies which allows any player to pick up a VR headset from the Tent table and free roam the map while the round is in progress.
    
  • Added new desktop spectating for competitive lobbies which allows up to two players to spectate, using mouse & keyboard (images below)

• AI Update
  
  • Added AI Volk heavy soldier type armed with a machine gun and heavy armor helmet. The Volk Heavy will appear on Evac and in Hunt rounds with high AI counts
    
  • Co-op vs AI Operations available on all maps (Hunt and Evac missions)
    Added to remaining maps Suburbia, Subway, Jungle

• AI: Player loadout points allowed increased from 8 to 18. Your AI loadout is saved separately from your PvP loadout.
  
• AI: Player loadouts include all primary weapons (Marsoc and Volk).
  
• AI: Added weapon variety to AI forces
  
• Loadout Tent: Going into teamchat will dramatically reduce other team's voice volume'
  
• Turning (snap and smooth turn) enabled in main menu and Loadout Tent
  
• On your vest, up to 3 mags will be visible for your selected primary weapon to display how many mags you have left (previously only 1 mag was shown unless you had no mags left)
  
• Settings: Added smooth turning option (can now choose disabled, snap turns, smooth turns)
  
• UI: Added hover tooltips to some Settings
  
• UI: Added Volume sliders for Master and Music
  
• Competitive: Introduced a new round reset mechanic. If a team fully wipes (suicide/team kill/back to tent) within 30 seconds of the round starting, the round will reset (ignoring any deaths) and retain the current score, objective location and team faction.
  This is to address issues in competitive matches where players can have issues while spawning

• Quarantine: vs AI, moved player spawns around (a particular player spawn was very difficult)

• Fixed timing issue of being healed as round ended (witnessed in league match)
  
• Fixed two players killing the same target at the same time awarding two kills instead of one
  
• Fixed Graphics Settings incorrectly always showing "High" text regardless of saved preferences
  
• Fixed small height offset that was causing player cameras to be slightly above the ground.
  
• Fixed issue where players can be flashing between two positions when on slopes
  
• Oculus: Fixed intro Splash Screen re-centering to incorrect rotation
  
• Vive: Reverted grenade throwing velocity to how it was before v1.0
  
• Quarantine: Fixed occlusion flashing on stairs that are open vs AI
  
• Suburbia: Fixed grass material showing odd brown lines
  
• Bazaar: Fixed incorrectly inaccessible blue room

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.

(Images of Competitive 2D spectating designed for tournament casting)

Onward has Oculus SDK support!
We're starting a version numbering system with Onward v1.0.0

• Onward on Oculus Home and native Oculus support
  
  • Native Oculus support in Steam: when launching Onward from Steam, you are prompted with the option of playing with SteamVR software (as previously) or playing with just Oculus software.
    
    
  • Available for purchase on Oculus Home
    
    
  • Cross-Platform: all players play on the same servers with each other, regardless of hardware or what store they purchase Onward from.
    
    
  • Save data (options, preferences, loadouts) are the same across all platforms and hardware

Will I get an Oculus Home key for owning the game on Steam?
We're not currently looking at giving out keys for current Steam owners. However, you are able to play Onward through Steam directly using the Oculus SDK right now.

How can I play Onward on the Oculus SDK through Steam?
This will be a launch option for the game. If you have SteamVR running on your computer, it'll default to the SteamVR version of the game. If you don't, it'll give you an option!

Will I be able to play against players on a different platform to me?
Onward is fully cross-platform between Steam and Oculus players. Your settings and preferences will also carry over between the two platforms.

I have been told in the past to disable ASW and other reprojection methods, do I still have to do this?
Nope! After a recent patch, ASW and Interleaved reprojection methods are fully supported by Onward. The game should run well 'out of the box'.

I tried Onward during the free weekend and I didn't really like the controls on Touch, can I change these?
We took a lot of the feedback from the free weekend and used it to help us shape a better default control scheme for Onward. We also added options for players to further tweak the gameplay and controls to suit their preferences.

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.

Onward has Oculus SDK support!
We're starting a version numbering system with Onward v1.0.0

• Onward on Oculus Home and native Oculus support
  
  • Native Oculus support in Steam: when launching Onward from Steam, you are prompted with the option of playing with SteamVR software (as previously) or playing with just Oculus software.
    
    
  • Available for purchase on Oculus Home
    
    
  • Cross-Platform: all players play on the same servers with each other, regardless of hardware or what store they purchase Onward from.
    
    
  • Save data (options, preferences, loadouts) are the same across all platforms and hardware

Will I get an Oculus Home key for owning the game on Steam?
We're not currently looking at giving out keys for current Steam owners. However, you are able to play Onward through Steam directly using the Oculus SDK right now.

How can I play Onward on the Oculus SDK through Steam?
This will be a launch option for the game. If you have SteamVR running on your computer, it'll default to the SteamVR version of the game. If you don't, it'll give you an option!

Will I be able to play against players on a different platform to me?
Onward is fully cross-platform between Steam and Oculus players. Your settings and preferences will also carry over between the two platforms.

I have been told in the past to disable ASW and other reprojection methods, do I still have to do this?
Nope! After a recent patch, ASW and Interleaved reprojection methods are fully supported by Onward. The game should run well 'out of the box'.

I tried Onward during the free weekend and I didn't really like the controls on Touch, can I change these?
We took a lot of the feedback from the free weekend and used it to help us shape a better default control scheme for Onward. We also added options for players to further tweak the gameplay and controls to suit their preferences.

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.

• Fall damage added.
  
• New Options: Scope Smoothing On/Off (default on).
  -When on, scoped weapons will sway slower, similar to lowering mouse sensitivity.
  -When off, very minimal smoothing is applied, similar to having very high mouse sensitivity.
  Useful for gun stock users who do not need the smoothing assistance
  
• AI: Now shoot suppressive fire

• AI: adjusted attacking variables to cause AI to peek in and out of cover more often

• Jungle: Fixed metal vehicles being penetrable
  
• Downfall improved some building colliders
  
• Downfall fixed getting stuck in terrain by crashed heli
  
• Oculus: Fixed thrown objects sometimes not getting correct velocity
  Caused grenades to drop straight down sometimes
  
• AI: Fixed round setup not performing correctly for non-host clients
  Caused Quarantine stair blockers to not be disabled on AI mode correctly
  
• AI: Quarantine fixed evac heli rising out of the ground
  
• AI: reduced radius around AI characters blocking player movement
  Previously was too difficult to get close enough to AI to knife them

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.

• Fall damage added.
  
• New Options: Scope Smoothing On/Off (default on).
  -When on, scoped weapons will sway slower, similar to lowering mouse sensitivity.
  -When off, very minimal smoothing is applied, similar to having very high mouse sensitivity.
  Useful for gun stock users who do not need the smoothing assistance
  
• AI: Now shoot suppressive fire

• AI: adjusted attacking variables to cause AI to peek in and out of cover more often

• Jungle: Fixed metal vehicles being penetrable
  
• Downfall improved some building colliders
  
• Downfall fixed getting stuck in terrain by crashed heli
  
• Oculus: Fixed thrown objects sometimes not getting correct velocity
  Caused grenades to drop straight down sometimes
  
• AI: Fixed round setup not performing correctly for non-host clients
  Caused Quarantine stair blockers to not be disabled on AI mode correctly
  
• AI: Quarantine fixed evac heli rising out of the ground
  
• AI: reduced radius around AI characters blocking player movement
  Previously was too difficult to get close enough to AI to knife them

Stay updated on Onward, converse with the community, test builds, and participate in organized competitive events by joining our Discord!

For additional information, visit our wiki.