Hello all,

We've just launched a new patch, which fixes various bugs some of you have been running into regarding the new vehicle lights customisation system!


Fixes
- Fixed a saved lights set up bug that prevented further lights adjustments for police
- Saved lights set up could be loaded incorrectly when switching departments - this has been addressed
- Fixed livery menu displaying incorrect amount of options
- Vehicle menu buttons "Clear All" and "Default" could stop working - this has been fixed
- Fixed an issue where the fire ladder truck left side small cabin light tag was missing
- Fire ladder truck icons to use ladder removed while editing lights
- Traffic advisor now previews lighting when emergency lights are turned on in vehicle menu
- Traffic advisor light in-game no longer turns off together with emergency lights
- Vehicle menu mouse hover effect added for buttons
- Vehicle menu cursor rendering underneath UI fixed
- Added a memory clear when you enter/exit Vehicle Menu (Please report any crash or improvements)

Hello all,

Flashing Lights' June update is now live, introducing the vehicle lights customisation system, as well as a selection of liveries for police vehicles.




With it comes a bit of news regarding the June update. We were originally planning to include vehicle lights customisation (lightbars, grill lights etc) as well as vehicle lights pattern and colour customisation this month. In order to allow developer Nils more time to work on the major background work, we’ve re-arranged our plans a little:

June update (out now!):


- Vehicle lights customisation (lightbars, grill lights etc)
- Livery customisation for police (designed as the first step for planned future vehicle customization options, including liveries for the other departments)

July update:


- Vehicle lights pattern and colour customisation

It won’t be long until we reveal the full Q3 2020 roadmap, so keep an eye out for that! It’ll be an exciting one.




https://store.steampowered.com/app/605740


New

• Lightbar customization for player vehicles, available at Vehicle Selection menu (remember you can rotate the vehicle in-menu by holding right mouse button and dragging)
  
• Livery selection menu for police cars (base system for future Vehicle Customization)
  
• Additional lightbar models
  
• Rambar for police Vic car
  
• Vehicle IDs and order in menu changed

Fixes/Changes

• Vehicle menu changed to mouse navigation

Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team

Hello all,

Flashing Lights' May update has arrived! This month is dedicated to bug fixes, and you can find the full list of patch notes below.

As we explained when we announced the April, May and June 2020 roadmap, this month was dedicated to rounding up and fixing lots of smaller issues - we recognise that there are still larger issues present in the game, and we are continuing to work on them.

Some of the issues run deep, which is why Nils is undertaking the large scale background work. However, we also know there are lots of smaller issues, some of which have been present for a while, that we would like to address. On their own these small issues are not game breaking, but we know that once some of them are addressed it will make the game much better. We appreciate your support and understanding that bugs are a part of Early Access development.

• Active missions now cancel when a host leaves the server in multiplayer, to prevent callouts and dispatch freezing
  
• EMS players can now pick up patients with the stretcher who have been treated by other players
  
• Deliver to Court (ID 1016) and Escaped Convict (ID 1025) callouts previously got stuck and never finished in multiplayer
  
• NPC Tow and Prisoner Transport pathfinding logic now matches with that of NPC EMS, improving arrival at the scene and laying the groundwork for further AI improvements in the future
  
• NPC Tow and Prisoner Transport now use the same vehicle models as players
  
• NPC tow truck driver now gets out of the car correctly
  
• Tow truck's controls pop up now displays correctly
  
• Tow truck camera now pauses for 5 seconds before also rotating back to default position
  
• Mugging and Shoplifting call suspects no longer are missing stolen goods when frisked
  
• Fixed an issue with pedestrians levitating in the air
  
• Occasionally NPC drivers would be invisible. This is no more.
  
• Traffic vehicles now do not do not swerve as fast as they did when you approach them with sirens on
  
• Traffic spawning stopped when player parked on road side at random locations
  
• Player character's neck rotation limited
  
• NPC Tow previously did not pick up vehicles after traffic stop chase
  
• Disabled ability to cuff and uncuff NPCs while they sit in police vehicle
  
• Added barrier to the curved steep road near the south city exit to highway, to prevent player and NPC pickup transport falling
  
• Arsonist call (2013) NPC fire truck moved
  
• Various missions' despawner location updated to prevent instant despawn after mission completed or cancelled
  
• NPC traffic obstacle detection range increased
  
• Ambulance and Tow engine sound loop adjusted
  
• Fixed various sound glitches
  
• Player no longer gets out of vehicles on sides that are blocked
  
• Fixed an issue with parked White Vic cars levitating above the ground while towed
  
• Player SUV model engine hood fix - previously you could see front lights through vehicle body
  
• Player SUV glowing seatbelt props texture adjusted
  
• NPC suspects no longer slide and fist fight at the same time
  
• Aggressive driver call (ID 1000) previously did not end the mission if a player registered the suspect at police station
  
• NPC car in in aggressive driver callout (ID 1000) no longer despawns if a tow truck has been called or is being towed by a player.
  
• Aggressive driver call (ID 1000) did not end if the host did not accept the call or was playing as EMS or FD
  
• If another Aggressive driver call (ID 1000) is accepted while previous car is being towed, the new call no longer shows the old location, bugging the new mission
  
• Missing flashlight for EMS female #2 character is no longer missing
  
• Spotlight offset altered when used from interior view
  
• Host no longer receives reputation points for police NPC prisoner transport when not playing as police
  
• Siren now syncs correctly for NPC Tow and Prisoner Transport arrival in multiplayer

We hope you enjoy this update, and cannot wait to keep on improving and expanding Flashing Lights throughout 2020! Take a look at the Q2 2020 roadmap if you are yet to do so:



As previously announced, developer Nils Jakrins is also continuing with some major background work that will ensure Flashing Lights is bigger, better, faster and stronger before the end of the year. More on that in the coming months!

Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team

Hello all,

April's Flashing Lights update is now live, delivering new content and bug fixes!

As promised, this update includes functioning vehicle dashboards, displaying speed, tachometer, fuel, and engine temp - along with three new callouts. A missing person callout along with a shoplifting callout have been added for police, as well as a new escaped convict call for the police and EMS. The latter call features a new NPC type too.

Alongside that, we have a bit of a surprise: we're testing larger servers. You can now have up to 20 players in a game, but only when setting up a lobby with a password.




Please note that on 7 May, we will be increasing the price of Flashing Lights from $14.99/£11.99/€13.99 to $19.99/£15.99/€16.99. It's been almost two years since we launched the game in Early Access. Countless updates have delivered new content, and so this small price increase reflects the substantial growth of the game since it launched. If the game has been on your wishlist and you're looking to jump in before the price goes up, now is the time.




New

• Animated player vehicle dashboards (speed, tachometer, fuel, engine temp)
  
• New police and EMS callout: Escaped Convict, featuring a new NPC type (ID: 1025)
  
• New police callout: Missing Person (ID: 1027)
  
• New police callout: Shoplifting (ID: 1026)
  
• We're testing larger servers! You can now have up to 20 players in a game, but only when setting up a lobby with a password.
  
• Player vehicle engine sound sync in multiplayer
  
• You can now turn on/off 2D vehicle dashboard with F5
  
• You can now use grab on NPCs without them being handcuffed
  
• Added dispatch debug messages in Log Window (F4), to let you know if a department is to busy to be issued a new callout. In multiplayer, only the host can see them

Fixes

• Changes to player character, player vehicles, traffic and pedestrian update cycles, potentially reducing lag on servers. Please let us know if any of you who have been experiencing lag have a better experience!
  
• Potential fix introduced for the framerate drop which appeared in the March update. Please let us know if it's better - performance will be slightly different on different PCs, so hearing reports from various players helps us massively.
  
• Unmarked SUV spotlight brightness adjusted
  
• Fixed an issue with the rescue spreaders sync in multiplayer
  
• Player character movement animation sync optimized - this was causing lag on start/stop movements
  
• Ambulance steering wheel position adjusted to not block gauges visibility
  
• Fixed an issue with NPC suspects sometimes shooting a gun while walking
  
• Added a filter for dispatch to not issue new callouts or co-op callouts if any departments are already busy with another mission

We cannot wait to keep on evolving Flashing Lights throughout 2020. Take a chance to look at the Q2 2020 roadmap if you are yet to do so:



As previously announced, developer Nils Jakrins is also continuing with some major background work that will ensure Flashing Lights is bigger, better, faster and stronger before the end of the year. More on that in the coming months.

Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team

Hello all,

We’re excited to announce the Q2 2020 roadmap, detailing our plans for April, May and June! In addition, developer Nils Jakrins is also continuing with some major background work that will ensure Flashing Lights is bigger, better, faster and stronger before the end of the year. More on that in the coming months.






In April, we’ll be delivering three new police callouts, while also enhancing vehicle interior dashboards with functioning dials. These features, along with the player vehicle sound sync in multiplayer, brings us up to speed by delivering upon the remaining options in the previous two community roadmap votes.

May will be a little different than recent months. In addition to continuing to develop new content, you’ve asked us to fix some specific issues, and we hear you. Some of the issues run deep, which is why Nils is undertaking the large scale background work. However, we also know there are lots of smaller issues, some of which have been present for a while, that we would like to address. On their own these small issues are not game breaking, but we know that once some of them are addressed it will make the game much better. We appreciate your support and understanding that bugs are a part of Early Access development. May will be our time to look at fixing some of the outstanding issues you have all been asking for.

In June, we’ll be delivering vehicle lights customisation, including options for lightbars, grill lights, rambar lights and more. We’ll also be giving you the option to customise emergency lights patterns and colours. A vehicle lights customisation system has been one of the most requested features for a long time, so we’re glad to be able to fulfil that wish in June.


Let them know that the game is on sale at 20% off until 2 April! Or why not gift them a copy?

https://store.steampowered.com/app/605740/Flashing_Lights__Police_Firefighting_Emergency_Services_Simulator/


Thanks to the amazing support you've shown so far for our community translation project, we've already been able to complete and implement new languages. This project, using Localizor, is still ongoing, and we're still looking for players to help translate the game into remaining languages. If you're interested in getting involved, check out the Steam announcement.

Thank you very much for all of your ongoing support, and we look forward to delivering these updates and sharing more news with you down the line.

Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team

Hello all,

We're excited to announce that Flashing Light's March update is now live! Based on your feedback from the roadmap vote, today's update introduces an unmarked 'charger' type car for police, new EMS and Fire callouts, flashlights and flares for all departments, spotlights and more.



Thanks to the amazing support we've received from you, the community, we've also been able to add Czech, Italian, Turkish and Finnish language support in today's update! Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed to the community translation project via Localizor so far!

We'll be announcing our plans for April, May and June next week, so keep an eye out for the latest Flashing Lights news!


https://store.steampowered.com/app/605740/Flashing_Lights__Police_Firefighting_Emergency_Services_Simulator/




New

• Unmarked "charger" type car for police added
  
• Updated EMS callout ID 4, additional injured NPC added
  
• New callout for EMS and Fire Department: Vehicle incident with injured NPCs and trapped driver [ID 4000]. Callout can take place at 10 random locations
  
• New callout for EMS and Fire Department: Vehicle incident with injured NPCs and 3 trapped drivers [ID 4001]. Callout can take place at 5 random locations
  
• Firefighters can now use Medbags in callout 4000 and 4001
  
• Flashlight added for all player characters (On/Off key by default: E)
  
• Road flares added to all department vehicle trunks
  
• Portable scene lights added for fire department, accessible from vehicle trunks
  
• Spotlights on department cars and SUVs (On/Off key by default: P; Right Mouse Button to aim spotlight)
  
• Additional lights for tow truck and van (On/Off key by default: P)
  
• Additional lights for Fire Department and EMS trucks (lights control panel on/off key by default: P)
  
• Face masks introduced as an option in character customisation menu
  
• Translations updated for the following languages thanks to community translators: Traditional Chinese, German, French, Brazilian Portuguese
  
• New languages added thanks to community translators: Czech, Italian, Turkish, Finnish
  
• You can now view previous info pop ups (Key by default: F4)

Fixes

• Mission complete UI should no longer get stuck on screen
  
• Grass performance improvement
  
• Performance spikes in city reduced
  
• All vehicle headlights beams adjusted
  
• When moving a stretcher, the physics should no longer push the player forward
  
• Vehicle steering adjusted (might need reset your steering sensitivity in Settings > Controls)
  
• NPC tow truck previously didn't pick up red car from aggressive driver callout
  
• Fixed an issue where players couldn't reload weapons after getting out of vehicle
  
• Emergency lights adjusted: removed white on rear side of the lightbar
  
• CPR animation no longer includes mouth to mouth
  
• Tow truck hook input is now inactive while using chat
  
• Fixed an issue where towing the same car twice from callouts would stop working
  
• EMS truck's right side mirror now works while using interior view
  
• Updated NPC emergency vehicles on callouts
  
• Updated police and firefighter NPCs on callouts
  
• Removed EMS NPC on callouts as now firefighters call for pickup
  
• Tow truck players, in multiplayer, can now tow all wrecks from driver rescue calls
  
• "Grab stretcher..." message changed

Hello all,

The Flashing Lights February update is now live, introducing a player-controlled tow truck and towing callouts to match, along with a brand new arsonist callout! Read towards the end of this announcement for the full patch notes.



Don't forget all of the exciting additions coming up in the March update, and remember that we have some major background work going on too.

New content has always been a priority and will continue to be so throughout 2020. However, we also recognise that Flashing Lights’ foundations need work, which is why we’re focusing development on some major background work over the coming months. We’ll be releasing more details on what exactly this means in the future, but rest assured that the game should look and run better once this work comes to fruition.




Did you know that tow truck racing is a thing IRL? Find out more interesting tow truck facts in our blog - we even have one Flashing Lights code to give away to a lucky commenter!



New

• Tow truck for police (use the arrow keys to operate and the J key to connect/disconnect)
  
• Vehicle impound area added at police station parking lot
  
• Tow callout "Vehicle blocking driveway or access" [ID 1023], 10 random locations
  
• Tow callout "Vehicle parked without permit" [ID 1024], 7 random locations
  
• Ability to tow Aggressive driver car [ID 1000]
  
• The ability to tow ticketed vehicles to impound
  
• The ability to tow suspect cars from police assistance callout [ID 1005]
  
• The ability to tow wrecks from vehicle incident callouts in multiplayer (except calls involving spreaders)
  
• New parking ticket category for areas in the city with permits only - any vehicle without permit can be towed for points. Look out for "Warning - Permit Only" signs
  
• Arsonist callouts for police [IDs 1018-1022] and for fire department [IDs 2013-2017] - in multiplayer, a police player can tag along and help out a firefighter player on the mission and vice-versa
  
• Suspect surrender chance increased in general, with an additional chance increase by every shot hit

Fixes

• Fixed an issue with water spray sometimes ignoring fire
  
• Fire should no longer go out by itself after water spray has stopped
  
• Engine sound and waypoint system now turns off when NPC gets out of their vehicle
  
• Vehicle wheels now detect dirt roads, the grip has been adjusted
  
• Tickets no longer disappear after leaving and returning to same area

Note: We have updated our privacy policy as we have introduced a third party tool that helps us with understanding how the game is performing. If you wish to read the updated privacy policy, you can do so here - jump to the 'WHEN YOU PLAY (SOME OF) OUR GAMES' section for the new stuff.

Remember that the Flashing Lights community localisation project is still ongoing - if you wish to help translate the game from English to another language, you can find out more here.

We hope you have a great time with the new update!

Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team

Hello all!

Flashing Lights currently supports a wide range of languages for the majority of the interface.

We have used a professional translation service for these translations, however mistakes can be made and can be quite difficult to spot without a good knowledge of gameplay and the language displayed.

We have a huge community from many different regions around the world, and we often get requests to open up the translations for the game so that you may help contribute to the game and help correct any mistakes.

Because of this, we have decided to partner with the wonderful people over at Localizor, an online community-led translation service where you can help out in translating games in exchange for some rewards. This means that our community can help translate Flashing Lights and earn rewards while doing so.



While we are starting by mostly reviewing the game's existing languages and getting them improved thanks to your help, we would also love to use Localizor in order to get the game translated into new languages. If you would like to see Flashing Lights support a language that it doesn't already, please let us know by reaching us via the official Discord or by email at support@excalibur-games.com.

If you would like to join in on this community translation project, then you can simply do the following:

• Head over to the Localizor platform: https://www.localizor.com/ and create an account
  
• Select Flashing Lights from the available games on the platform (You can also help translate other games if you wish)
  
• Read the global documentation for tips on translating Flashing Lights
  
• Select your chosen language and start submitting translations
  
• If your translation receives enough votes, it will be added to the game in a future release
  
• Earning votes gets you Localizor coins, these can be redeemed for rewards from the Localizor coin shop

Watch out for the tow truck update coming soon! Here's a little teaser to tide you over:



Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team

Hello all,

While the next major Flashing Lights update will release towards the end of this month, delivering a driveable tow truck, tow truck callouts and more, we have a small bonus update for you today.



Along with a handful of bug fixes, getting in and out of vehicle animations have been added, and NPC suspects shooting with firearms now reload their guns.




New
- Player character animations for getting in/out of vehicles
- NPC suspects shooting with firearms now reload their weapon

Fixes
- Fixed an issue with door tags randomly disappearing preventing interaction with vehicles
- EMS calls no longer get stuck if you apply a fraction kit or bandages before mission message notification
- Armed NPCs shooting and hitting the player is now filtered locally to prevent player hit damage because of lag, around corners or position de-sync
- You can now can jump from a standing position
- Sound of crashing into road signs and barrels is now connected to game's main volume settings
- Random floating handcuffs behind pedestrians now reset on spawn
- Christmas hat removed

Remember to check out the roadmap for what's to come in the February and March updates!



Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team

After an intense two weeks of community voting on what we should prioritise in Q1 2020, the final roadmap is here! We were absolutely blown away by the amount of you who participated in this vote on the official Discord, with at least 3,300+ individual voters - thank you!

1. Driveable tow truck + callouts - 3345 votes
   
2. Unmarked “charger” car for police - 2384 votes
   
3. Additional vehicle interior and exterior lights - 2371 votes
   
4. New police callout: arsonist (fire department players assist in multiplayer) - 2119 votes
   
5. Flashlights, flares and portable lights for fire department - 1823 votes
   
6. New police callout: Escaped convict/fleeing suspect search - 1705 votes
   
7. New police callout: Missing person - 1675 votes
   
8. Additional vehicle incident FD callouts: Rescue trapped drivers/put out fire - 1637 votes
   
9. Additional vehicle incidents EMS callouts: new locations/multiple injured NPCs - 1615 votes
   
10. New police callout: Shoplifting - 1433 votes

Keep in mind what we announced earlier on this month - we have a clear vision of 2020's major updates, with substantial background work ongoing.

New content has always been a priority and will continue to be so throughout 2020. However, we also recognise that Flashing Lights’ foundations need work, which is why we’re focusing development on some major background work over the coming months. We’ll be releasing more details on what exactly this means in the future, but rest assured that the game should look and run better once this work comes to fruition.

Thanks,
The Flashing Lights Team