In early 2019, we will be announcing the release date for Trailmakers on Xbox, and we want to celebrate the announcement with a short trailer. With the amount of creativity we have seen from the Trailmakers community, we thought it would be fun to let you make the trailer. Show those Xbox players what they can look forward to!

One lucky winner will receive an epic Trailmakers Goodie Bag!

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What an update we have in store for you today! Two huge new features have made it into this version of Trailmakers: A new multiplayer framework, and a new Sandbox map. Let us know what you think in the comments.

• New Sandbox Map - The Danger Zone!
  
  • This brand new map is packed with all sorts of new inventions to throw your vehicles at. It is available for both Single Player and Multiplayer games.
    
  • The map includes Catapults, Cannons, Blenders, a Hydraulic Press, a Silodrome, an Aircraft Carrier, a Football Field, Basketball Hoops, a Battlebot Arena, tracks in the sky and much more!
    
  • Here’s a challenge for you: See if you can transport a container from the Aircraft Carrier’s hangar to the container storage on the dock.
• We have removed the Dethrone map “King’s Island” as an optional map for the Sandbox game mode.

• New Multiplayer Framework
  For many months our programmers have been working on upgrading our multiplayer framework. All that hard work is finally ready to be shared. The performance improvements are far reaching, and not just limited to multiplayer games. Here is an example of the impact of the new framework:

We loaded up a 4-player Sandbox game with the old framework, and each player spawned this Bugatti Cheyron from the Workshop. The Bugatti is very heavy on performance because it has many moving parts, and it is close to the complexity limit.


Here is what the performance looked like with 4 players in 4 Bugattis on the old framework:

As you can see, the Server Performance dropped down to 30 FPS which has a significant impact for every player on the server, and causes a lot of lag.

This is what happened when we did the same thing on the new Multiplayer Framework:

The Server Performance stays at 60 FPS.

Of course, not every server is running on an expensive gaming computer. You will definitely still be able to bring a server to its knees if you load in a lot of large vehicles, but this new framework is a huge upgrade.

• Improved Rendering
  In Trailmakers, the rendering of our cliffs, trees, rocks etc is by default drawn indirectly by making your graphics card do all the work instead of a combination of the CPU & GPU (which can be turned on by enabling "Alternative rendering" in the settings).
  We've significantly reduced the work done by the GPU, improved our frustum & occlusion culling, decreased memory and increased occupancy resulting in a much improved performance.

• Overlapping blocks by using glitches turned out to cause strange performance and crash issues. Using glitches to place blocks inside other blocks will now be detected by the builder. We have added a system that blocks you from leaving the builder if blocks are overlapping in this way.

• NEW: Tube Sloped - We have added two new sloped tubes for the Modular Tube System. A short one and a long one.
  
• NEW: Jack-o’-Lantern - Okay we might be a little late to the Halloween party, but we made this and now it’s in the game. Or perhaps we’re just SUPER early for Halloween 2019?!
  
• Fixed the aerodynamics of some inverted aerodynamic blocks.

• Fixed the broken “Bump into X” daily challenges in Expedition mode.
  
• Fixed the profile level not progressing beyond level 10.
  
• Fixed a bug in block overkill damage distribution.
  
• Fixed a crash that users on older CPUs were experiencing when leaving build mode. To use this fix, you have to toggle the “Disable Burst Compiler” setting in the Preferences menu.

It’s the spookiest time of the year so let’s take a look at some of the grim creations made by the Trailmakers community.





Many of the blueprints for these vehicles can be found on the Trailmakers Workshop or in the #blueprints channel on the Official Trailmakers Discord server.

In case you didn’t know, there’s a lot of cool events in and around Trailmakers. Every week we have a Weekly Challenge where we post a specific theme (like HALLOWEEN!), and you guys can submit vehicle blueprints. We look at the vehicles on our Friday Developer Stream and award a special in-game Trophy Block to the one we like the most. You can find the weekly theme on our Discord or on PlayTrailmakers

Some fans of Trailmakers have taken it upon themselves to create their own competitions and tournaments. For example you can join the wheelie challenge, the pokemon battle or the battlebots arena. You can learn more about these events in the #tournament channels on Discord.

If you want to be the first to try new Trailmakers blocks, maps, and other features, you should join the test squad. When we need testers for a new update, we post about it in the #help-the-devs channel on our Discord. We expect you to submit any bugs and issues you find. The most helpful bug-hunters get a special Golden Scarab block as a thank you.

We have a great new update coming out within the next few weeks - it’s something we’ve been working on for a long while. See you soon ːsteamhappyː

Today we're launching a brand new and very awesome update for Trailmakers. As the name might subtly hint at, this update is a big batch of new blocks - 38 of them to be exact. New sensor blocks, aerodynamic blocks, a modular tube system and much more. It's not all blocks though! With the new multithreaded wheel, aerodynamic, and buoyancy logic, multiplayer performance should be better than ever. There's also plenty of quality-of-life changes and bug fixes in this update. Read the full release notes below.

• Added more Daily Challenges! The Daily Challenge system is still in an early state, but we have added some more challenges so it takes longer before you run out.
  
• If you start a Daily Challenge with the Play button, you will get an arrow pointing to the goal of the challenge.
  
• The Block Hunts are now repeatable, but only gives you a reward once.
  
• There are new rewards for the Block Hunts - and the old seat rewards are now available by default.
  
• The workshop has been updated with a new look and the ability to tag and edit your creations.

• Multithreaded Wheels, Aerodynamics, and Buoyancy
  We have overhauled the wheel, aerodynamics, and buoyancy logic to make them multithreaded. Overall, this will give better server side performance, especially when using larger vehicles.

• When you switch camera angle in the builder, the nubs that are available for connection will light up briefly.
  
• The builder is getting smarter. Some blocks are now rotated when dragged out, in an angle the builder predicts you will use it. The angle depends on your camera position.
  
• Improved the way blocks are visualized and rotated in the inventory.
  
• Made it more consistent which way blocks are rotated when dragged out of the inventory.

• NEW: Speed Sensor Block - A block that can be connected to another block, and trigger at a certain speed. Configure it by selecting the block, and clicking the cogwheel.
  
• NEW: Altitude Sensor Block - A block that can be connected to another block, and trigger at a certain altitude. Configure it by selecting the block, and clicking the cogwheel.
  
• NEW: Modular Tube System - A series of pipes and 1x1 connector pieces for them.
  
  • Tube 1x1
    
  • Tube 1x3
    
  • Tube 1x4
    
  • Tube 1x8
    
  • Tube Elbow
    
  • Tube Double Elbow
    
  • Tube Tee
    
  • Tube Double Tee
    
  • Tube Cross
    
  • Tube Double Cross
    
  • Tube Tee Cross
  
  
• NEW: Aerodynamic Blocks
  
  • Cylinder 1x1x2
    
  • Rounded 2x4x2
    
  • Rounded Corner Inverted 1x2
    
  • Rounded Inverted 1x2
    
  • Wedge 3x1
    
  • Wedge 2x1x2
    
  • Wedge 2x4x2
    
  • Wedge 2x4
    
  • Wedge 3x4
    
  • Wedge 4x4
    
  • Cone 2x2x1
    
  • Cone 2x2x2
• NEW: 1x3 Block
  
• NEW: 2x2x2 Block
  
• NEW: Tank Cannon - A new “cannon” piece that is suitable for building custom weapons.
  
• NEW: Small Porthole
  
• NEW: Fang
  
• NEW: Small Tooth
  
• NEW: Large Tooth
  
• NEW: Flat Eye
  
• NEW: Eyeball
  
• NEW: Side View Mirror
  
• NEW: Round Side View Mirror
  
• NEW: Large Side View Mirror
  
  
• NEW: Golden Scarab - Sometimes awarded for finding and reporting a bug to the developers (we prefer reports on http://discord.gg/Trailmakers).
  
• CHANGED: Shield Plates have updated graphics.
  
• CHANGED: Many aerodynamic blocks have updated graphics.
  
• CHANGED: Armoured Seat, Go-kart Seat, Cockpit, and Operator Seat are no longer locked behind Block Hunts.
  
• Many old blocks have been renamed for greater consistency.
  
• Removed the empty “Antennas” category and replaced it with a “Facial Features” category in the accessories tab.

• Fixed a bug where rotating and undoing two blocks could make them clip into other blocks.
  
• Fixed a bug where undoing while not having anything selected would do nothing.
  
• Fixed the welding bug, hopefully for the last time. This bug sometimes caused vehicles to invert hinge rotation after spawning, and other weird stuff.
  
• Fixed the chickens so they are no longer cannon-resistant.

If you update Trailmakers today, you can try a brand new version with some great features. The major feature of this update is the series of logic blocks and a sensor block. These blocks will make some advanced vehicles possible, but they can be tricky to use if you have not worked with logic gates before. Experiment with them, and check out what other players have built with them on Steam Workshop and our Discord.

• Added Daily Challenges! This is the first version of the Daily Challenge system. In future updates we will add more awesome challenges, and expand the system with more rewards.
  
  
• Removed the side cameras and the top-down camera.
  
• Added a new Sticky Orbit camera that orbits the vehicle but follows the vehicles rotation.
  
• Made seats configurable. You can now select which parts of a vehicle are controlled from a given seat. That means you can make passenger seats or a seat for a turret controller.

• Made scroll-to-zoom and panning with the arrow keys less aggressive when the camera is close to your vehicle.
  
• The camera no longer shifts back and forth while deleting blocks.
  
• Added a button to the configuration menu of blocks that removes the keybinding.

• NEW: Logic Blocks - Connect these blocks with other configurable blocks by selecting the logic block and clicking the cogwheel. You can use the check marks to select which blocks the logic gate is connected to.
  AND - Output if ALL input is NOT zero.
  OR - Output if ANY input is NOT zero.
  XOR - Output if ONLY ONE input is NOT zero.
  
• NEW: Distance Sensor Block - The Distance Sensor can be connected to other blocks by clicking the cogwheel and then the checkmark on other blocks. The connected blocks will activate when the Sensor triggers. You can configure the distance of the sensor and trigger it when it detects environment, blocks, or players.
  
  
• NEW: Spiked Wheel
  
• NEW: Rounded Corner Block
  
• NEW: Small Rounded Corner Block
  
• NEW: Porthole
  
• NEW: Paddle
  
• NEW: Straight Suspension
  
• Spinning Servo: New graphics
  
• Shield Plate 2x1: Fixed a bug where you couldn’t color the nubs with secondary colorpicker
  
• Headlamps and Taillights - These blocks are now configurable. You can bind a key to turn on the lights.

• Fixed the weird levitation of the rear end of some vehicles caused by wheels rubbing together.
  
• Removed lag spikes that would occur when loading in new gameplay areas.
  
• Fixed the ramp.
  
• Made the wheels not collide with their own structure. This might break some vehicles with “alternative types of propulsion”.

When you update Trailmakers today, you can try a brand new version with some great features. We’ll be back in August after a lovely Summer break with more new features, fixes and improvements!

• Implemented a new Splat Map system that makes the environment much better looking.
  
• The Game Mode images in the Main Menu have a new look.
  
• New “True Reflection” system has improved the look of the blocks, the water, the character models etc.
  
• Controller usage is now enabled by a toggle in the Preferences menu from the main menu.
  
• You can now toggle between the speed display being MPH or KPH.
  
• The UI has been tidied up in numerous places, such as the Block Configuration menu!
  
• The pressing Space to fly “bug” in Sandbox mode is now officially a feature! When your character is not in a seat, just press and hold Space to fly up into the air using the high powered Maker Tool Beam ™ (please stop reporting it as a bug).
  
• The character will now actively move out of the way if you happen to build over them in Build mode. No more vehicle dropping on their head when leaving Build mode!

• We have changed the start of the Expedition in several ways - give it a go even if you’ve played it before. This is just the start when it comes to changes to Expedition...
  
• There’s a brand new tutorial car, created by community member OffaLimb who won our competition to design a new tutorial car, congratulations!
  
  
  
  
• Power Cores are now physical objects in the Expedition meaning we can make the ways you collect them a little more playful.
  
• Functional blocks are now found in new Block Boxes rather than the T-Crates. Accessory blocks are still found inside T-Crates.

• The much-requested UNDO feature has made its way into the game. If you make a mistake while building, hit Ctrl+Z to undo it.
  
• Two new block categories are added to the menu - Electrical and Balance.

• Many basic building blocks have received a graphical overhaul to make them more bright and vivid. So intense.
  
• When picking colors on blocks, the secondary color-pick will now change the color of the attachment-nub.
  
  
  
  
• NEW: Dispenser Blocks - A new range of blocks that dispense physical objects in the game world. Use them to cause chaos, or maybe map out custom race tracks?
  
  • Metal Crate Dispenser
    
  • Beach Ball Dispenser
    
  • Concrete Wall Dispenser
  
  
• NEW: Detachable Block - Put this between two blocks to make them detach from each other with the press of a button.

• Added Dynamic Resolution option in Preferences.
  
• Added more graphical settings that allows the game to run on lower-end PCs.
  
• Added an Alternative GPU rendering toggle intended for usage by users on integrated GPU cards.
  
• Lots of tiny improvements have reduced RAM usage by a lot.
  
• Improved how we handle LOD around the world.

• Fixed some issues with the Steam Workshop.
  
• Numerous terrain fixes across Expedition mode.
  
• A number of collectibles within Expedition decided to hide themselves, we put them out in the open again.
  
• Updated the tool tip on the Armoured Seat to make it clearer that it can’t be used in Expedition!
  
• Fixed mirroring on the Bulldog Engine and Helicopter Blade.
  
• The character will now die faster when touching lava. Ouch.
  
• Enabled Secondary colour tinting on blocks it wasn’t previously enabled on.
  
• Fixed the ramp.

This is the second water-themed update for Trailmakers, and we call it “Submarine”. While the first water update, “Build-A-Boat”, was centered around surface-vehicles, this update is focused on the sub-surface. The list of changes might seem small, but once you try the new blocks you will discover just how big this update really is.

• There’s new Loading Screen Hints!
  
• We removed our Redshell implementation. If you’re curious what this means, you can read more here.
  
• Gifs recorded with F6 now include post processing effects.

• The Ocean around Sandbox Island has been updated with cliffs, caves, coral, plants, small fish... and a very big fish.
  
• The ineffective Piranhas have given up and moved on somewhere else!

• When loading into Race Island you’ll now start at a new Checkpoint which is next to the new Underwater Race. How convenient!
  
• A new race has been added to Race Island - the Underwater Race. Build a fast submarine, and see if you can beat the other racers on the leaderboards.
  
• The Ocean around Race Island has been updated with cliffs, caves, coral, plants and fish.

• NEW: Diving Bell - A seat that will not eject you when submerged. Time to build some submarines!
  
• NEW: Buoyancy Control Device - A block with an inflatable and deflatable airbag.
  
• NEW: Weight Block - Small, compact, 30 kg of weight in a 2x2x1.
  
• NEW: Heavy Weight Block - Same as above, but 50 kg.
  
• NEW: Rubber Shark Fin - To scare the bejesus out of swimmers.
  
• CHANGED: Gimbal Jet - Now has a particle effect to better visualise it being in use.

• We fixed an issue for users with Controlled Folder Access being enabled which prevented us storing saved Trailmakers data (Save Game and Saved Blueprints) in the Documents folder. If you do have Controlled Folder Access enabled the storage location will default to C:\Users\Username\Trailmakers.
  
• Fixed the Start Zone for the Three Bridges race on Race Island being larger than life.
  
• Fixed being unable to Teleport to Checkpoints which you hadn’t visited in Race Island.
  
• Fixed an issue with Continuing Expedition setting you at the start of the World rather than your last visited Checkpoint.
  
• Fixed an issue with you sometimes spawning into Race Island in the middle of the Race Track.
  
• Squashed another stuck in Build mode bug!
  
• Fixed an issue with the Piston Block not responding to T and G bindings.
  
• Fixed an issue with the Rotating Servo returning to it’s default position at a different speed to that it was set to.
  
• Fixed an issue with the motion blur effect being applied to blocks inside Build mode.
  
• Fixed an issue with certain vehicles self accelerating. Spooky.

When you update Trailmakers today, you will be able to play a brand new version of Trailmakers with a bunch of new features. We call the update “Block Hunt”, named after a new mini-game in the Sandbox. We have added a bunch of cool new Seats to the game, but instead of giving them to you for free you will have to work for them. That’s where the Block Hunt comes in!

• Block Hunt - Explore the Sandbox to find strange beacons hidden in the sand. Activate one to start a Block Hunt. The Block Hunt will send you on a dash to activate a series of beacons before time runs out. Complete the hunt in time, and you will be rewarded with a seat block!
  
• The Sandbox Island map is now completely displayed, no more shroud! This means you can open the map up [TAB], and fast-travel by clicking the Checkpoints making it easy to find the perfect spot to build, experiment and blow up!
  
• Points of interest such as the Ball Puzzles, the Block Hunt start beacons and the Football field are now visible on the map!

• Two new races have been added to Race Island. The Archipelago Race and the Grand Island Tour. These races have Start Zones in the water to encourage the use of pontoon-based floating vehicles.

• We updated the tutorial to make things clearer to a new player.

• NEW: Go-kart Seat - This seat provides very little protection, but is super lightweight.
  
• NEW: Armoured Seat - This seat is indestructible. You will never get ejected from it, and it can’t explode.
  
• NEW: Cockpit - This seat disables tilting air control, but has great aerodynamics!
  
• NEW: Operator Seat - This seat just looks radical.
  
• NEW: Drag Racing Wheel - High top speed, good traction on tarmac.
  
• NEW: Truck Wheel - Good universal traction, but not built for speed.
  
• NEW: Slim Wheel - Very lightweight but fragile wheel.

• CHANGED: Piston - You can now toggle “Auto Reset” of the piston to its starting position when letting go of its activation button. There is also a slider for setting the Starting Position and it has more power. That’s always good, right?
  
• CHANGED: Rotating Servo - You can now set the max angle to 360, and set a hold position
  
• CHANGED: Steering Hinge - New option to "hold position".
  
• CHANGED: Large Hinge - New option to "hold position".
  
• CHANGED: Gimbal Jet - New graphics.
  
• CHANGED: Small Tailfin - New graphics.

• You can now build and repair your vehicle while in the water. This feature is only available in game modes where the Piranhas are harmless - Sandbox and Race Island.
  
• The build button and the repair button will now work even though you are in motion. You no longer need to slow down. This feature is disabled in Dethrone where it would give an unfair advantage.
  
• We have improved the mirroring in the builder as demonstrated in the gif below. Select one or multiple blocks, move the camera to face the surface you want to add a mirrored selection to. Click the duplicate button [Insert].

• Improved “aiming” at a vehicle you want to enter build mode with.
  
• Every block available in the game is now displayed in the builder interface. The ones you have not unlocked yet are greyed out. Hover over them to find a hint about how you can unlock them.
  
• In the Blueprints menu, it should now be much clearer if a blueprints is unavailable due to locked blocks.

• Fixed bug with blueprints from workshop not disappearing upon unsubscribe.
  
• Fixed a bug where the game acted weird if more than one controller was plugged in.
  
• Fixed an issue with the mouse invert enabling when using the In Game Feedback menu.
  
• Fixed an issue with Transforming between a vehicle with the standard seat and the VIP seat.
  
• Fixed the Trailer Hinge rotating incorrectly.

When you update Trailmakers today a new realm of water based possibilities will open up for you! This is just the maiden voyage for our water updates, and we have a titanic amount of things planned to further improve the Trailmakers experience on water!

• New Nautical Blocks - We’ve added three different sized Pontoons which will provide buoyancy to your creations! Alongside a new Underwater Propeller you’ll be exploring the high seas like never before!
  
• Improved Water Graphics - We’ve made our first improvements to how watery the water looks, both from above and below the depths… and buoy is it pretty!
  
• Even More Aerodynamic Blocks and Accessories - We’ve added a few more aerodynamic blocks to give you even more options when creating your vehicles. There might also be some new Accessories to find in the Expedition...

• The time for the player to be thrown from their seat when submerged in water has been tweaked to be more forgiving. Underwater exploration is still but a dream, for now…
  
• Updated lighthouse model.
  
• Being underwater now looks like you’re underwater!

• The Boat blocks have washed ashore on one of the many islands around the Expedition world!
  
• We added the Flat Connector blocks to Expedition!
  
• There’s five new accessory blocks to be found around the Expedition Islands!

• The leaderboards have received a visual overhaul.

• NEW: Small Pontoon - A block that provides buoyancy in water. You can find it in the “Frame” category for now.
  
• NEW: Medium Pontoon - A block that provides buoyancy in water.
  
• NEW: Large Pontoon - A block that provides buoyancy in water.
  
  
• NEW: Underwater Propeller - Provides propulsion in water. Works when submerged!
  
• NEW: Small Wedge 1x2 - Aerodynamic block.
  
• NEW: Small Wedge 2x2 - Aerodynamic block.
  
• NEW: Round Block 2x1 - Aerodynamic block.
  
• NEW: Shield 2x1 - Armor for your vehicle.
  
• NEW: 80s Exhaust
  
• NEW: Black Antlers
  
• NEW: Hood Pipes
  
• NEW: Metal Barrel Hood
  
• NEW: Wrench Bumper
  
• A number of blocks have received a visual overhaul including, but not limited to: Small Cannon, Large Cannon, Hover Block, Monster Truck Wheel, Trailer Hinge, and Boombox.

• Fixed some issues related to Steam Workshop.
  
• Fixed an issue with scrap not being removed correctly in Dethrone.
  
• Fixed an issue when attempting to send a leaderboard score whilst having network issues.
  
• Fixed really old Blueprints not having a game version associated with them.
  
• Fixed an issue where other players in Race Island would hear other players countdown timers.
  
• Fixed an infinite Challenge leave countdown tick tick tick.
  
• Fixed the Go-Kart Wheel being flipped 180 when dragging out from Inventory.
  
• Fixed the missing Hover Block visual effect.
  
• Fixed the repeated hint pop up when breaking crates which contained a reward the player had already collected.

Hi Trailmakers!

Today I want to talk to you about a very cool fan-made initiative called the Trailmakers Suggestions Trello - a place where you can let us know which features you would most like to see in Trailmakers.



Some enterprising players on our official Discord server (please like and subscribe) have taken it upon themselves to create and curate a very large list of feature suggestions for future Trailmakers updates. As developers, this is by no means a checklist that we feel we have to complete before 1.0, but it is a great source of reference for when we discuss updates internally.

When considering a new feature, we have to weigh a lot of factors first. Do we (the developers) want it in the game? Do the players want it in the game? Is it good for new players? And for old players? Is it time consuming to develop? The Trello list is one of the places we refer to when we ask ourselves “what do the players want?”. Some of the features on the list will be added, some will be solved by adding other features, and some of them will probably never make it to the game.

Since launch we’ve implemented these highly requested player suggestions:



If you want to vote for any of the suggestions on the list, all you need is to make a Trello account. If you want a feature added to the board, go to our Discord and post it in the #feature-suggestions room - a helpful moderator will either add it, or let you know if it already exists.

You can find the Trello here: https://trello.com/b/aSShFsXY/trailmakers-suggestion-list
And our Discord server here: http://discord.gg/Trailmakers