Update 0.3.6.1 is a go! The sharp blade of the machete will slice anything in its path. Take on Infected, or anyone else, with this newly added iconic weapon. Additionally, firearms can now have multiple attachment slots depending on their quality.

Loot has been completely rebalanced! Food might be a bit more of a challenge to find - so keep a keen eye out for other options. If you are lucky enough to hunt some prey, you can cook your dinner at the new and improved campfire.

Once you have finished battling and hunting across Eden-Nadir, have a seat by the Firepit. Craft a campfire to start cooking meat, purifying water and turning animal fat into tallow. Also a good place to warm up and chill out.

As always, this update contains a multitude of fixes, performance improvements, map updates and rebalances.

Developer Comment:
Due to some of the game's default keybindings being remapped, it would be advisable to remove your original keybindings before launching the game (version 0.3.5.0a) if you have played before. This can be found in appdata/local/joegame_a/saved/savegames. Delete the file named “DefaultJOEPlayer_KeyBindings.sav”. This file will then be regenerated upon launching the game.

• Craft a Firepit, then use it from the inventory to place it on flat ground.
  
• Upgrade attachments can be added to the campfire. Spits, Grills and Tripods allow meat and pots to be added to the fire.
  
• Animal Fat can be added to a pot and once cooked becomes Tallow.
  
• Pots of dirty water can be purified into clean water.
  
• Bottles of dirty water can be added to empty pots on the campfire.
  
• Meat can be cooked over grills and spits.
  
• Pots can be added to spits and tripods.
  
• Firepits require Kindling and Logs to ignite.
  
• Logs which are burned become ash. Ash can be harvested from the fire.

• Deals as much damage as an axe, but costs less stamina to swing.
  
• Low to medium range.

• Major loot rebalance. Loot is now generally more scarce. Items which spawn in containers are more specific to that type container (e.g. pot and pans can be found in cookers).
  
• Firearms now have different levels of quality. Their quality level determines the number of attachment slots they can have.
  
• The weapons trader now sells all weapon quality tiers.
  
• Rebalanced baseball bat damage.
  
• Removed infected rain basking behaviour causing them to stand still. Attack movement speed remains higher while in the rain.
  
• Added new house interiors for various houses.
  
• Added a new house outside Dom’s Hardware.
  
• Activated lockpicking skill levels.
  
• Lockpicking doors and crates now have various required skill levels. Increase your skill level to open higher levelled locks.
  
• Added new beach camp safe-area. Small camps can be found around Eden-Nadir where you will be safe from horde spawns. Camps are currently being developed.
  
• Noticeboard quests now require you to complete the Sen’s Wreck quest before jobs can be taken.
  
• Fixed Noticeboard quests Various improvements to quest step triggers.
  
• Added new wash stations area to Backwater Beacon safe zone.
  
• Tutorials pop-ups can now be accessed again at any time from the Guide.
  
• Removed small bottles of water. The number and type of water containers has been simplified.

• GPU performance improvements.
  
• Lighting updates.

• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.
  
• Number of Bandages and Medkits appears incorrectly on the HUD after loading a savegame
  
• Disturbance Meter appears incorrectly on the HUD after loading a savegame.

• Fixed switch weapons causing weapons to permanently loose ammunition
• Fixed dropped items giving looting XP after saving and then loading.
• Fixed render distance for small items being too low for small items (e.g. Sheriff Sen’s key)
• Fixed holding [F] to loot containers taking all items out of the container, but then the items still being instead when tapping [F] to inspect the container’s inventory
• Fixed situations causing character’s torso to clip with the camera while looting containers in first person
• Fixed not being able to sleep at a sleeping bag even though a lit Fire Pit is nearby.
• Fixed rideable horses not pooping
• Fixed horses pooping too often.
• Fixed guards not saying anything when approaching the gates without authorization to leave.
• Fixed body bags rendering decals on top of them
• Fixed decals rendering on top of the player’s meshes.
• Players can now exit the safe lock in Sen’s Basement using [Esc] and [Tab] keys.
• Added additional small safe-camp to lighthouse beach
• Cleaned up foliage around Sen’s house
• Plus more...

• Fixed tutorial message appearing regarding nests even when visiting an inactive nest or one which has been burned.
• Fixed crafting not updating the resource counters.
• Fixed bees causing bleeding.
• Fixed interacting with locked safes causing characters to be unable to interact with other containers or open their inventory.
• Fixed quests not progressing if the character dies during the quest.
• Game now automatically saves after completing quest objectives.
• Sen’s horse no longer has a cheeky poo during dialog ;).
• Fixed invisible propane bottles.
• Fixed collision issue with house near safe zone on basement exit.
• Fixed rendering issue where driveways would have visible triangles on them when raining.
• Improve performance on burning infected nests.
• Fixed dying in water causing body bags not to spawn at the correct location.
• Fixed doors not giving lockpicking XP.
• Lockpicking now requires a more reasonably achievable amount of XP per level (i.e. Level 1 lockpicking requires 3xp rather than 10xp).
• Furniture moved about to stop blocking doorways in the attics

• Fixed quest objectives not working correctly after saving and loading.
• Fixed tents and storage containers disappearing after saving and loading.
• Fixed items inside containers disappearing after opening and closing them, then opening and closing the player’s inventory with [Tab].
• Campfires at safe-camps now offer a source of light and heat. Can be used with sleeping bags to enable sleep.
• Added tents to safe-camps which can be used to sleep in.
• Fixed keyboard inputs not focusing on dialog and sleep UI correctly.
• Disturbances caused by footsteps for walking and running have been halved.
• Fixed being unable to add vertical foregrips to legendary UMPs.
• Fixed attachments not affecting the weapon’s statistics.
• Fixed attachments appearing offset in first person.
• Increased light attenuation range of the flashlight considerably.
• Fixed being able to clip the camera through Sheriff Sen’s house floor while swimming.
• Traders now sell backpacks again.
• Fixed being able to duplicate radio calls by pressing the button to answer multiple times.
• Tentative fix for completed and failed quests causing issues with new quests of the same type being added.
• Improved general neck-rotation when looking at players for NPCs

We are at an exciting time where we are almost ready for people to get a closer look at Jaws of Extinction.

Jaws of Extinction has now been accepted onto the Steam Playtest feature. In light of this, we have decided to make an adjustment to how we are going to structure our upcoming Early Access release.

Everyone is invited to sign up for the playtest of the latest version of the game on the 1st of June through the Steam Playtest feature. From the 1st June, we will be granting testers access in batches until release into Early Access on the 1st September 2021. We will use this time to incorporate player’s feedback and develop co-op upcoming multiplayer features further.

During the course of Steam Playtesting, we may release builds of the game allowing players to test co-op multiplayer features.

Any further questions, please feel free to join the community discussion over in our Discord channel. Check out the Steam Playtest Q&A below for more details about it.


The Steam Playtest feature allows anyone interested in trying out Jaws of Extinction to enroll onto a list of playtesters from the Steam store page.

Once enrolled, we will be giving playtesters access to the game in batches from the 1st of June onwards. Steam will alert you once you have been accepted. Once you have been granted access, you will be able to play the full latest version of the game without any time limits for as long as we decide to run the playtest.


Visit the Jaws of Extinction Steam page and you will find the option to enroll in the same location as the purchase button. Click the button to sign up and you’re all set. Once Steam notifies you that you have access after the 1st June, the game will be available to download in your library.





The length of the playtest will depend on development progress between the 1st June and the 1st September. It may be decided that the playtest will open up during particular windows of time during this period as new updates are released.

It is planned that the playtest period will be complete after reaching Early Access on the 1st September, but this may change.

It will. Probably quite a lot. The playtest build of the game will be on the forefront of development. Tell us about any bugs or issues you are having and you may well find they have been updated post-haste!

If you already own Jaws of Extinction, then you do not need to apply to join the playtest. You can set your branch from the ‘Public’ branch to the ‘Staging’ branch under the ‘Beta’ tab in the game’s ‘Properties’ in the Steam client to get access to the same version as the playtest.

Join our Discord to join in on discussions, share ideas or tell us about any issues. You will be given a special role and access into a dedicated playtesting channel. Our community is very welcoming and we look forward to hearing anything you would like to share.

Join us on Discord

Jaws of Extinction 0.3.5.11 has arrived! This update contains heaps of new systems, new content, the reintroduction of missing systems and a myriad of fixes.

The new horde system puts an emphasis on stealth - stay under the radar to avoid being overwhelmed.

The playable characters have received more than just visual improvements too. You can now make new use of an array of melee items and clothing options with the new melee and outfit systems. Additionally, remember to take good care of yourself and stay clean with the new hygiene system. Take a shower from time to time or someone - or something - may catch your scent.

The new saving and loading system aims to eradicate any previous issues plaguing the game resulting in progress not being restored correctly.

Remember to keep your weapons handy - new military outposts have appeared across the region. Alerting hostile NPCs might only make matters worse as they call in helicopter reinforcements.

Developer Comment:
Due to some of the game's default keybindings being remapped, it would be advisable to remove your original keybindings before launching the game if you have played before. This can be found in appdata/local/joegame_a/saved/savegames. Delete the file named “DefaultJOEPlayer_KeyBindings”. This file will then be regenerated upon launching the game.

Old saves files will NOT be compatible with this build pre 0.3.5.11a. Old game saves will not display in the load game list anymore, so you will be required to start a new game.

The saving and loading system has been completely redeveloped following the persistent problems encountered with the original system. This new system will address the constant issue of quest progress not saving correctly amongst a plethora of other previous issues.

• Load back into your game from the main menu using the “Continue” button.
  
• Fixed issues preventing quest progress saving.
  
• Fixed horse loading with its legs in the air.
  
• Fixed issues with items not saving correctly.
  
• Fixed issues with player holster/clothing/equipped items not showing.
  
• Fixed ammo being lost when loading a saved game.
  
• Fixed ammo selection not saving.
  
• Fixed map locations not appearing after loading.
  
• Fixed time of day not saving correctly.
  
• Fixed bleeding status not saving.
  
• Fixed wellness status not saving.
  
• Fixed vehicle inventories not saving and being overwritten.

The Horde is back, with a twist. Taking it slow and quietly has never meant so much before now. When infected are close the new horde system will measure your disturbance level and will display on a meter in the top center of your screen. The more the gauge fills, the more disturbance you are causing to the infected nearby. Fill it all the way to the top and the meter will progress to the next level.

There are three levels that will progress. Hit the third and final stage and you will now have to deal with a continuous horde for three minutes. You can either hide, take cover in the nearest safezone or take them all on.

• Fixed horde infected being able to spawn in the safezone.
  
• Fixed situation causing horde infected to spawn in the ground.

Melee is back with a completely new and improved system. Melee was temporarily disabled while the new system was being developed due to the mirard of issues the old system caused. Most notably, we have addressed the issues with melee weapons not always contacting their targets. With melee re-implemented, so too is harvesting and felling trees with axes.

• New melee system with significantly improved collision detection
  
• Different weapons deal different amounts of damage and have varying stamina requirements based on their weight.
  
• Stamina is not consumed if harvesting trees.
  
• Improved directional hit reactions from enemies
  
• Works in both third and first person.
  
• Can swing melee weapons while crouched
  
• Characters no longer move with the melee attack, improving the feel of first-person melee swings.
  
• Weapons include:
  
  • Shovel
    
  • Hand Axe
    
  • Police Batton
    
  • Four craftable Baseball Bat variants

What's that smell? It may be you! Wash regularly to avoid your smell giving you away to infected and animals. Doing tasks which might make you dirty or bloody will decrease your hygiene.

• Added new Hygiene and Odor system.
  
• Over time, oder will increase and hygiene will decrease.
  
• Doing certain activities will make you smell more, such as getting caught in spore clouds.
  
• Swimming will reduce odor but also decrease hygiene.
  
• Infected and animals are now receptive to the player's odor. Be careful of sneaking near them if they can smell you.
  
• Add new craftable wash stations, these are also available for use in the safezone.
  
• Added new craftable soap.

New outfit sets are available. Find outfits in the world then use them in your inventory to add them to your character.

• Twenty starter outfits available to collect.
  
• Visual improvements over the previous clothing system.
  
• Customise outfits further using the mod system to change the colours and textures of parts of your outfit.
  
• Change your outfit any time in the ‘Character’ panel from the selection of outfits you have already found.
  
• Changing outfits takes a short amount of time.
  
• Different outfits offer different statistics. Changing out your outfit for the situation may be advisable.

Military enemies guarding bases now have the ability to call in reinforcements if you do not stop them from raising the alarm at the radio tower.

• Kill enemies before they can interact with radio towers in military bases.
  
• Disable the radio tower by shooting the power panel to disable the tower.
  
• If the alarm is raised, a military helicopter will arrive and reinforcements will rappel into the military complex.

Enemies in Jaws of Extinction have received a variety of quality of life improvements, including overhead notifications displaying their current state.

• Added new vocals to hazmat enemies indicating their current combat status.
  
• Added new icons and sounds to show when enemies change their combat state.
  
• NPCs now have a vision timer. Previously, enemies would either see you or not. Now, enemies' perception of you will tick up for a second or so while in their line of sight. If the timer reaches maximum and you are still in their line of sight, the NPC will become alerted. This means that if you are caught in the open for a moment, you can duck in to cover to hide. The vision timer can be seen within the new overhead icons.

New lands are available to explore. Part of the new swampy region of bayou, east on Hanouten fishing village is filled with mysterious waterways and creepy shacks. The Garnet Lake Lumber Yard has seen a revamp as well as the Dry Docks on the Hanouten seashore.

• Visit the new mobile safe zone (currently in development) cruising around the waters of the Bayou.
  
• Take on a new bayou military Thanatos base.
  
• Unlock precious loot using your intellect by overcoming puzzles to unlock challenge safes and hard to reach locations.

• New Amy’s visuals with improved mesh, hair and material textures.
  
• Added new dynamic blood, dirt and wet skins.
  
• Fixed being able to shoot with the inventory open
  
• Fixed being able to aim while climbing.
  
• Fixed issues caused when climbing in first person causing the character's body mesh to clip with the camera.
  
• Fixed inventory items becoming stuck in the character’s hand if equipping a weapon from the inventory
  
• Fixed unusable iron sights on the MK18
  
• Fixed rare situation where player is unable to leave the noticeboard.
  
• Fixed being able to zoom/aim while using the noticeboard.
  
• Fixed various situations causing the character's bust to stretch.
  
• Fixed death music continually playing even after respawning
  
• Fixed death music not being controllable by the setting’s music slider
  
• Fixed circumstances causing character to get up after dying
  
• Fixed weapons losing ammo if reloading weapon that was set to use a non-default ammo type
  
• Fixed weapons modifications being added multiple times to the same weapon.
  
• Fixed facemasks clipping with the camera in first person.
  
• Fixed not being able to remove NVGs from head even if not equipped.
  
• Fixed torso clipping with camera in first person when interacting with cabinets.
  
• Fixed mesh clipping with body when reloading in first person
  
• Improved weapon attack disturbances. Lower calibre weapons make less noise.
  
• New body bag will now spawn at the location of death. The loot can be taken from the body bag or collected using the runner from the safezone

• Dawn now begins at 5am and dusk at 8pm (was 6am and 6pm)
  
• Added new improved grass, roads and other procedural foliage. Visuals suit the world better and performance cost is significantly improved.
  
• Added the random chance of setting off car alarms when trying to scavenge fuel from a vehicle or crashing into it with another vehicle
  
• Points of interest will now display on the inventory map and minimap to indicate locations you have not visited yet with an orange/yellow exclamation mark.
  
• Improved and reduced difficulty of pick locking doors on some doors
  
• Fixed collision issues with train bridge supports
  
• Fixed Drydock and Lumber Yard having no journal entry information or HUD popup.

• New Character management UI implemented, for managing outfits, equipment and weapons
  
• Fixed weapon hit markers sometimes getting stuck on the screen.
  
• Fixed problems with subtitles screen padding.
  
• Fixed missing keybinding for shoulder switch toggle.
  
• Fixed an issue where the speech system would overlap dialogue on the screen

• Added new readable notes around the world. Readable notes are added to the journal and can be re-read.
  
• Added collectable cassette tape recordings around the world. Interact with cassette tape decks to listen to the recording. The entry will also be available from your player guide to listen to at a later date.
  
• Fixed not being able to close Sen’s safe door after opening it.
  
• Fixed an issue where you could trigger the dialogue for quests by pressing "Answer Radio" after the quest was added.
  
• Fixed an issue where dragging a quest item from the vicinity menu, a container or clicking the ‘Take All’ button would not update the quest.
  
• Fixed the train station ‘Wanted’ quest directing players to the airfield.
  
• Fixed issues with quest markers not being removed from the map.
  
• Fixed not being able to answer radio calls and accept quests while in a vehicle or on horseback.

• Liam Orling now sells vehicle repair kits and will buy car parts.
  
• Brendan Skillen now sells horse feed and hay bales.
  
• Added new item - Bars of Soap. Can be looted, crafted and bought. Used to wash outfits and for personal hygiene.
  
• Added Scrap Brass crafting resource.
  
• Added Steel, Brass, Bronze, Gold and Iron Ingots. These have been added in preparation for the upcoming workbench update.
  
• Added Steel Projectiles and Ammo Cartridges.These have been added in preparation for the upcoming workbench update.
  
• Added various brass items. Can be recycled into Scrap Brass.
  
• Added Water Butt item. Can be placed for water collection and crafting.
  
• Fallen branches can now be harvested for sticks and logs.
  
• Fixed situation where recycling coke cans or food would play a consuming animation and sound at the same time as recycling.
  
• Fixed welding hose stopping you scavenging from cars if you have one in your inventory
  
• Locked vehicles will now show the required skill level to open, rather than the required tool
  
• Fixed locked vehicles requiring hotwiring allowing players to access them.
  
• Several fixes aimed at improving the Runner utility, located in the Backwater Beacon safezone.
  
• Added new Potato Plants to the world. Harvest these to gather edible Potatoes.
  
• Traders will now have a more limited supply inventory.
  
• Traders are now limited on how much of any one item they will buy on a daily basis.
  
• Traders will now sell Diving Masks and Oxygen Tanks (a.k.a. Balloons)
  
• Added Diving Mask. This will allow you to breath under water for twice as long.
  
• Added Diving Oxygen Tank. This will extend the time in which you can breath underwater by a considerable amount of time, but will require the diving mask to work. On it’s own the tank will do nothing.

• Fixed issue where NPC movement could lock up if their next destination was too close to their initial location.
  
• Fixed NPCs sometimes shooting while in the process of unholstering or while their weapon is holstered.
  
• Fixed NPC's being too likely to shoot their friends in the back.
  Improvements have been made to general combat behaviour.
  
• Deer and boar now have additional hit points, requiring more damage to take down.
  
• Animals can no longer be heart-shot.
  
• Added visible trails to NPC's gunshots.
  
• Human NPCs will now be more aware of threats in the same area if an NPC becomes alerted to your presence.
  
• NPCs will now become alerted if a bullet flies past them in close proximity.
  
• Fixed various issues contributing to NPCs getting stuck in a crouching position.
  
• NPC weapons now have visible muzzle flash.
  
• Fixed issues sometimes prevent NPCs from moving to their tasks.
  
• Fixed NPCs sometimes not turning around their central axis to face the player when starting dialog.
  
• Fixed occasional issue where NPCs could sometimes spawn through the floor and appear as if they had not spawned.
  
• Fixed NPCs sometimes spawning in unusual combat poses.
  
• Fixed various issues occuring when NPCs respawn in the safe zone upon revisiting.
  
• Fixed active infected nests not spawning any infected.
  
• Fixed issue causing NPC’s audio to stutter or not play

• All horses can now poop collectible manure again.
  
• Improved controllability of vehicles. It is now much more difficult to slide out of control when turning corners at speed.
  
• All wheeled vehicles now have a maximum speed they will reach.
  
• Added new vehicle - Small Sports car
  
• Added new vehicle - Van
  
• Weapons now holster when entering vehicles.

• Physics disabled on explosive barrels for improved performance.
  
• Major improvements to GPU rendering cost on shadows with relatively minimal costs on shadow quality.
  
• Improved culling on various assets throughout the world.

• Various issues when interacting with a campfire (redesigned campfire to be available in near future).
  
• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Various issues with UI text in crafting menus.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.

• Fixed an issues causing noticeboard quest pages to appear in the roof of the noticeboard
• Fixed repeatable quests note being repeatable
• Fixed unavailable quest displaying on the noticeboard
• Fixed collision issue with all doors (Noticeable on Sens basement door) blocking gunfire.
• Fixed being able to abandon complete quests
• Fixed crafting one item making multiple
• Fixed Workbench insta craft only crafting one item when multiple selected.
• Fixed being able to glitch through walls in the medical center
• Fixed missing foliage around the safezone
• Fixed clipping bushes on some buildings
• Fixed some driveways and roads note displaying weather effects.
• Improved performance with distance field mesh generation
• Improved performance drain caused by the steamboat in the Bayou
• Improved performance on flying birds
• Improved shader performance on road surfaces
• And more...

Jaws of Extinction 0.3.4.8 is live right now! Try out the new weapon system, with improved projectiles, a more responsive HUD and a revamped bow system. Improve your weapons with new attachments. Watch out for infected nests across the island - fire might just save you from the onslaught. Bug fixes and new quality of life improvements included too!

Developer Comment:
It would NOT be advisable to use old saves on this build, pre 0.3.4.0a and to delete old game saves. Use at your own risk of extra bugs and crashes. Make sure to load all saves from DX12 version of the game.



Video shows 0.3.4.7a, this was due to a hot fix applied after video was rendered.

• Implementation of an improved weapons system for primary weapons, secondary weapons and bows/arrows. This system is designed to fix some of the more troublesome parts of the old weapons system and allow for attachments and skills system integration to be considerably more straightforward.
  
  • Projectiles now have travel time and drop over distance.
    
  • New interaction when aiming bow. Hold down the trigger button for longer to increase your accuracy as you draw back. Just remember that keeping a bow drawn for a long time can be hard work.
    
  • Melee weapons have had to be temporarily removed while the melee system is reworked - so remember to watch your spacing!
    
  • Accurate HUD crosshairs will now show you exactly how accurate your weapon is. Shots will never go outside the radius of your crosshairs at the time you fire them. The crosshair accurately scales with FOV and window size too.
    
  • Crouching makes you slightly more accurate.
    
  • Moving makes you somewhat less accurate.
    
  • Can now move while aiming ARs and pistols while crouched.
    
  • New camera movements which dynamically change as the player aims/moves.
    
  • Special arrows (e.g. fire and explosive) have been reimplemented.
    
  • Rebalance of ammo damage. Infected can now be killed without heart/head shots within a reasonable number of high-calibre bullets.
• New infected now prowl the streets.
  
  • (PROTOTYPE) Watch out for hazardous ‘Type 3’ infected. Their heads are already split open and will spew noxious spores in a cloud around them consistently.
    
  • (PROTOTYPE) The Reeker lurks farther out. He cannot be slain with a simple head or heart shot. He is very strong and resistant to fire.
• Nests
  
  • Nests are a new type of enemy spawner that will continuously churn out infected every few seconds. If you kill one another will spawn.
    
  • Destroy nests using fire, but be aware it will take time for them to burn out and any flaming infected may also light you on fire.
    
  • Nests have a random chance of appearing at a number of locations across the map.

• Railway Exiles now have buildings along the train tracks.
  
• First part of “Cross Bridges” town has been added, leading to “Cross Bridges Safezone” , the next safezone to be added to the world of Eden-Nadir.
  
• Abandoned building site has been added to the outskirts of “Cross Bridges”, another place the Exiles have taken up camp with a chance of good loot if you are willing to look for it.
  
• Additional farm areas were added around the supermarket “Swanfields”.
  
• Small airfield added past the farmlands, some good loot to be found.
  
• New industrial areas added past “Extraction zone H”, ready for the new Valkyrie faction to move in.
  
• New roads and road textures added to fit the style of the world more.
  
• Bird sound traps have now been updated to allow players to shoot and burn them to prevent them from sounding off. Their corpses can also be harvested for feathers and meat.
  
• Ambient birds will now fly around the map again, only crows for now, but seagulls, pigeons and more will come.

• Added ‘Unstuck Mode’ to the admin manager panel. Look at a location and click ‘Unstick Me’ button to be teleported to that location.
  
• Added a Suicide option in the pause menu. Clicking this will kill the character.
  
• Inventory will automatically increase by 28 slots / 4 rows when inventory is getting low on slots to add items.
  
• Added new item: coffee. This can be purchased at coffee vending machines (safezone eatery) and will regenerate 10 hunger and hydration as well as giving you an Energised buff for 60 seconds. Coffee costs one buck.
  
• Added additional vital "Morale". This will affect the confidence, enthusiasm, and discipline of the character in many aspects: movement speed, accuracy while using firearms and more
  
• Heat, Endurance, Constitution, Stealth, Strength, Armour, Respiration protection, Eye protection and thermal conservation buffs now all show on the Character tab of the inventory.
  
• Skill level, bucks, integrity and kill stats now display down the right hand side of the inventory.
  
• Fixed being able to click on the image in the player guide which now opens the guide entry.
  
• Journal entries now show the status of quests: active, complete or failed.
  
• Journal entries now display the categories the entry belongs to.
  
• Tentative fix for game not ending steam sessions causing issues next time the game is started without restarting Steam.
  
• Trade windows will now show relationships and current standing with the trader. This is all part of us slowly introducing the integrity system.
  
• Noticeboard quests will now show relationship and current standing with the quest issuer. This is all part of us slowly introducing the integrity system.
  
• Weapons HUD now no longer appears unless the character has a weapon equipped.
  
• Restructure to logic for notifications to correct issues with some notifications getting missed from the display.
  
• Holding “Action” Button will display a wheel menu with additional options.
  
• Updated ‘Guide’ map and mini map to show new locations.
  
• Updated visuals for ST-RV watch.
  
• Using the load functionality from in-game will now display a list of save files to load from instead of loading the last known save.
  
• Trader UI and Player inventory will now display a description and statistical comparison when hovering over items. This allows you to compare your equipped weapons and equipment with the items in your inventory.
  
• Fixed game version displayed in pause menu displaying incorrect version as well as on save game version numbers.

• Catching on fire will now only reduce 25% of wellbeing/wellness before auto extinguishing.
  
• Fixed issue with player still overheating when respawning on death.
  
• Set facemasks to use character dissolve when the camera is too close to the player.
  
• Sleeping at a sleeping bag will require a burning campfire/fire pit or burning barrel.
  
• Sleeping at beds, tents and sleeping bags now offers full control on how long you want to sleep for.
  
• Sleeping will now give the player an “Energised Buff” that will reduce the amount of stamina that drains and will increase it’s regeneration rate.
  
• Tactical tent and sleeping bag will now show icons on both main map and mini map
  
• Tactical tents can now be picked up when inventory is empty.
  
• Random chance lockpicking will now continue progress from where it fails.
  
• Fixed unnecessary camera movement which happens when the player stops moving, making it hard to aim.
  
• Removed unnecessary leaning mechanics. Players can still switch shoulders by pressing [R-Alt] or [Mouse-Thumb Button 1].
  
• Camera shake no longer applies if the character is turning on the spot.
  
• Improved right-click zoom while weapons are unequipped.
  
• Fixed issue with the ladder at the top of the lighthouse causing the player character to get stuck in ladder animation.
  
• Added attachment system. Weapons now have attachment slots seen in the 'Character' tab. The rarity of the weapon will determine the number of slots. For example, a standard common weapon has one attachment slot. Weapons with increased rarity will be available in the near future.
  
  • Optical attachments - Increased zoom while aiming.
    
    • Holographic sight
      
    • 4x ACOG scope
  • Suppressors - Significantly reduced radius which shots will be heard. Audible SFX are different.
    
    • Pistol Suppressor
      
    • SMG Suppressor
      
    • AR Suppressor
  • Extended Magazines - Increased ammunition capacity.
    
    • Pistol Extended Mag
      
    • SMG Extended Mag
      
    • AR Extended Mag
  • Grips
    
    • Vertical Grip - Improved time to ADS
      
    • Angled Grip - Slightly improves accuracy and slightly improves time to aim.
• Added hit feedback system.
  
  • Small UI markers will appear to show you where your bullets have landed.
    
  • Grey markers means that the bullet did not hit any valid target.
    
  • Red marks means that a target was hit.
    
  • Use markers to adjust aim to account for bullet drop over distance if necessary.
• Improved hand positions on weapons.
  
• Fixed issues preventing HUD updating with ammo information correctly.
  
• Fixed issue when switching weapons causing weapons to not to shoot correctly and ammo to drain quickly.
  
• Fixed occasional issues when switching ammo type caused the weapon to use an incorrect ammo type.
  
• Fixed issues occuring when changing weapons and interacting with an animating object from your inventory (e.g. food, drink, etc).
  
• Arrow keys no longer control the building menu and can longer cause issues where building holograms become visible, even though the building menu is closed.
  
• Expanded player buffs, with additional “Safe” buff, this is automatically enabled upon entering a safe location like a safe zone and will regenerate morale.
  
• Temporarily removed the building menu pending implementation of a new and improved building system.

• The “Y” key for toggling radio channels has temporarily been disabled.
  
• Fixed an issue where quests could be abandoned more than once.

• All change machines in buildings are now lootable with the chance of giving bucks and parts.
  
• Fixed an issue where repair kits did not work if the item had "0" condition.
  
• Repairing items now has a timer like recycling and will take a small amount of time to repair each item.
  
• Military crates will now only ever spawn one weapon.
  
• The rarity of mechanical parts have been reduced, increasing the chances of finding them in containers.
  
• Modified the chance of traders selling lockpicks.
  
• Fixed issue with getting "0" sticks when harvesting bushes
  
• Coffee added to the game. Consuming this will give 10 hunger and hydration as well as 3000Kj of energy and a 60 second energised buff.
  
• Explosive barrels have made their way back into the game from the prototype days. These red barrels can be used to damage enemies.
  
• Added small propane tanks that can be collected and placed to use as an explosive trap when shooting them.
  
• Metal barrels (Non Explosive ones) can be searched for scraps and resources.
  
• Scrap piles around the map can be searched for scraps and resources.
  
• Wooden Pallets can be searched for wood planks, scraps and resources.

• Infected will now rattle and bang locked doors trying to get through.
  
• Infected now have a chance of setting other infected and the player on fire if they themselves are on fire.
  
• Infected are no longer attracted to molotovs / fire.
  
• Infected will now be extinguished by the rain if on fire.
  
• Stopped NPCs looking super wet and having strange rain decals applied to them.
  
• Fixed issue with collision from horse saddles still blocking the player after Sheriff Sen has left the safezone.
  
• Replaced all Trader NPCs with updated visuals
  
• Thanatos Hazmat soldiers visuals have been updated ready for the enemy tier system to be implemented.
  
• Fixed issue causing game to lock up when talking to some NPCs around the safe zone.
  
• Fixed occasional issues where an NPC in the safezone would appear as though they were in a combat animation when revisiting the safe zone.
  
• Fixed issues causing NPCs to not respond to gunshots.
  
• Fixed issues where NPCs would play weather related animations while idle even though it wasn't raining.

• Horses and vehicles now show location icons on both the main map and mini map again.
  
• Added the ability to flip the vehicle from the wheel menu by holding the “Action” key on the vehicle.
  
• Added a new saloon car vehicle varent.
  
• Found vehicles can now be sold to Liam in the safezone.
  
• Vehicles can now be salvaged for fuel again with a garden hose and jerry can.

• Removed older fog effects spawned from street lamps causing significant CPU cost.
  
• Enabled Output velocities during base pass & Output velocities due to vertex deformation to eliminate blurring and ghosting caused by TempAA AntiAliasing.
  
• Fixed Crow sound traps due to an underlying performance hit being caused by them.

• Game may not reload properly when saving and loading in a vehicle
  
• Quests may stop working correctly after saving and loading
  
• Character Dialogue screens, Sleep menu loosing keyboard focus. (Can be overcome by clicking a button on the UI)
  
• Various issues when interacting with a campfire.
  
• NPC’s textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• New startup video to be implemented in near future.
  
• New Protagonist character updates, textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Mouse wheel sometimes stops being responsive in the building menu.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Various issues with UI text in crafting menus.
  
• Discrepancies with save game names.
  
• In rare circumstances, the player's weapon may appear invisible or inside the character's head.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• Baseball bats cover too much of the screen in First Person perspective.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.
  
• Animals will scream like human-beings when run over with a vehicle.

Jaws of Extinction 0.3.3.2 is live right now! Keeping an eye on the forecast is a good idea at the best of times - especially on Eden-Nadir. Drop in to take a look at the new seasons and weather system. Biting frost during snowfall and monstrous thunder and lightning storms are now amongst the threats all survivors must be mindful of.

The skills system is making a return too. Although still in an early stage, your character will now grow in confidence with the skills they apply as they loot, shoot and protect themselves.

This patch also contains heaps of fixes and quality of life improvements, many of which are aimed at sorting issues found with quests, game crashes and loading saved games.


Developer Comment:
It would NOT be advisable to use old saves on this build, pre 0.3.3.0a and to delete old game saves. Use at your own risk of extra bugs and crashes. Make sure to load all saves from DX12 version of the game.

• Added a new season and weather system integrated with four seasons, all accompanied by different types of weather including rain, thunder storms, fog and snow storms.
  
  • More variations of weather types.
    
  • Should no longer rain every five minutes in game.
    
  • Completely random weather type selected when the game begins.
    
  • Seasons will change the probability of weathers types occurring.
    
  • Roads will still have puddles after rain and storms.
    
  • Weather will blend into similar weather types depending on the season.

Developers notes:
We have finally managed to re-introduce seasons and weather types from previous versions of the alpha. This version of the system brings some amazing looking weather visuals, using Unreal Engine’s Niagara particle system available to us now in UE4.26.

This has laid the foundations for us to start implementing a more realistic temperature system that will require you wear sensible clothing. Being wet or dirty will also have an effect on the character’s temperature. This is all to come a little further down the line with protagonist and apparel updates.

• Player skill system Only enabled on looting currently, but the first stage of the skill system has been re-introduced. Looting chests and picking up items in the world will give you experience points towards your looting skill.
  
  • XP only gained from looting houses and items found in the world
    
  • Leveling your looting skill will:
    
    • Reduce noise made when looting
      
    • Increase the chances for higher tiered loot
      
    • Increase the number of items found when looting

Developers notes:
We know many of you have been waiting for us to start re-implementing the skills system. Well, this is a heads up that we have made a start on it. Still with no UI in the player inventory I'm afraid, but we feel that mastering the mechanics behind it first will help with the design and functionality of the UI, so that will come as we test the system further.

Currently as of this patch, XP will be gained from looting houses and picking up world items. This will then automatically increase your level in the looting/scavenging skill

• Updated game engine to “Unreal Engine 4.26.1”.
  
• Fixed D3D/DX12 crash after selecting character on main menu.
  
• Unreal Engines 4.26 Volumetric cloud system integrated into weather cycle. These will only be available on EPIC visual settings. Reducing the ‘Effects’ settings will change the performance of clouds.
  
• Fixed game crash caused by loot spawners in certain buildings.
  
• Fixed issue where rain could appear inside buildings.

• Inhaling spores from infected will now drain the character’s oxygen. The O2 gauge will display and loss of O2 will eventually start to cause damage.
  
• O2 gauge now stays on the screen until completely replenished.
  
• O2 now replenishes twice as fast.
  
• Face masks, respirators and gasmasks will no longer appear in front of the camera when in the first person perspective.
  
• Doors will no longer allow you to open them while swimming.
  
• Adjusted vaulting/climbing to prevent sliding forwards until character is ready to move again.
  
• Fixed arrows getting stuck on invisible collision around doors.
  
• Fixed issue where character is unable to speak with NPCs after picking up certain items.
  
• Weather will now display on your ST-RV watch, symbolizing the type of weather that is coming or is currently active.

• Fixed various quest elements not saving.
  
• Fixed being in the area of a quest not triggering quest unless player leaves and re-enters the area.
  
• Fixed Sen's house key spawning before Sen finishes his dialog telling the player to find the key. Picking up the key too early would prevent the quest from progressing.
  
• Players can no longer interact with the damaged pipe until the player has been instructed to by the objective.
  
• You can now abandon all noticeboard quests at any time from the player guide
  
• Fixed issues preventing players from turning in notice board quests.

• Lockpicks can no longer be sold to traders.
  
• Traders will no longer purchase items of $0.00 value.
  
• Brendan no longer sells lock picks.
  
• Fixed money making exploit where lockpicks can be bought in stacks of 10, but sold individually. Selling all 10 back to Bruce would get you more than you paid, and then Bruce would have 10 stacks of 10 lockpicks to sell back to you.
  
• Fixed issue where player was unable to craft lockpicks.
  
• Fixed loot sparkle appearing without loot when loading a save game.
  
• Fixed various errors caused by world items.
  
• Respirator lock boxes have been added around the map.
  
• Building items such as campfires, furniture and work benches have now been moved to the player crafting menu and removed from the building menu.
  
• Player crafting menu will now display all items when first opened.
  

• Fixed audio attenuation of sounds relating to NPCs actions (e.g. sweeping, raking, etc).
  
• Fixed missing icons on rabbits / pigs when attempting to harvest them
  
• Fixed Sen barking at player after loading from a saved game even though you have completed his quest and he is not at the safezone.
  
• Fixed static horses that were not wearing equipment before saving but after loading, would be wearing equipment.
  
• Fixed some horse colours not saving.

• Significantly improved performance while the inventory is open.

• Various issues when interacting with a campfire.
  
• NPC’s textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• New startup video to be implemented in near future.
  
• New Protagonist character updates, textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• Inventory does not add extra rows as it gets full causing issues when taking items at full capacity.
  
• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Mouse wheel sometimes stops being responsive in the building menu.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Various issues with UI text in crafting menus.
  
• Discrepancies with save game names.
  
• In rare circumstances, the player's weapon may appear invisible or inside the character's head.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• Save files do not properly sort by date.
  
• Baseball bats cover too much of the screen in First Person perspective.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Occasionally, interacting with the bow causes pistols to reload one bullet at a time.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.
  
• Animals will scream like human-beings when run over with a vehicle.

Update 0.3.2.9 is hot off the press! This update comes packed with new content including new bow-wielding enemies, new locations and a brand new quest line. Check out the latest NPC dialog interactions including the first introduction of voiced NPCs. Get your hands on some extra loot using the new lockpicking dynamics. Alternatively, take a break from the town and venture forth into the wild and track down new animal wildlife. This comes alongside heaps of gameplay updates and bug fixes.


Developer Comment:
It would NOT be advisable to use old saves on this build, pre 0.3.2.0a and to delete old game saves. Use at your own risk of extra bugs and crashes. Make sure to load all saves from DX12 version of the game.

• Added skill based lockpicking for locked doors in high tier buildings and rooms. Locked doors which can be picked may have good loot behind them.
  
• Added simple chance-based lockpicking. As long as you have lockpicks in your inventory, press the action key [F] and hope for the best - just keep going until it is unlocked.
  
• Fixed arrows not visually appearing in the bow when used for the first time.
  
• Fixed situation causing arrows not to disappear from the bow if firing non-common arrows.
  
• Fixed situation where ammo selection would not always update unless the ammo was selected a second time.
  
• Fixed arrows not always being recoverable if they hit the ground.
  
• Fixed pressing [T] to answer the radio skipping the first part of dialogue.
  
• Arrows which are shot into the player will disappear after a short time, but can be collected.
  
• Sleeping system has been updated now with animations. Player has the ability to sleep at a sleeping bag or a tent as well as them being a spawn point and a way to store your loot.
  
• Character will no longer jump when pressing [Space] while in dialog with an NPC
  
• Fixed any items picked up using the vicinity search only giving one of that type of item.
  
• Fixed Trystan using female walking animation.
  
• Fixed weapon movement in hand when aiming in third person.
  
• Improved turning on the spot animation tolerances.
  
• Improved tightness of character turning speed when aiming with a weapon.
  
• Improved issues causing additional unnecessary movement when aiming with the bow.
  
• Fixed hearing equipment and footstep sounds twice while holding the bow.
  
• Fixed aiming with bow in first person after using the bow causing bow draw sound and an arrow to appear in the player's chest.

Hot on the heels of the coop development, we want to make sure that we get a lot of the base mechanics down that we have been planning for a long while. In this update we are introducing lockpicking.
We have two systems in place to challenge you while you are under pressure. One is a chance based system for locked containers that just requires your patients and plenty of lockpicks.
The second system is for locked doors, this will require a little more skill. Work the pin around the lock using the left and right movement of your mouse then lock it in with the spacebar. The error tolerance will be different for each door that you encounter as well as the amount of pins you will be required to pick.
Other systems with the player character have been fixed and tweaked to improve functionality, playability and aesthetics.

• Partial implementation for keyboard and controller support on the main menu.
  
• Dialogue UI system updated to make the conversation flow more naturally including a “SKIP” option in the bottom right corner of the screen.
  
• Character Tab in inventory has updated design. Not complete but testing the layout for feedback.
  
• Fixed an odd light band around Trystans neck in the main menu.
  
• Stamina/Overburdened warning has now been moved to the centre of the screen.
  
• Mini-map no longer rotates with the player. It now always faces north.

• Sheriff Sen can now be found outside the medical center in Hanouten’s “Backwater Beacon” safezone. Talking to him will send you on your beginning journey with Sen.
  
• Reintroduced Sheriff Sen’s Car Wreck quest, with additional features and story.
  
• Added a new conversation system that shows your character speaking with NPCs. After conversing, a transcript of the conversation can be found in your player guide.
  
• NPCs will contact you via the radio just to chat or to give you quests.
  
• Added a new in-game cinematic camera system that will use cameras during dialogue with NPCs. This system is just a base system which we are building on for all dialogue and story elements.
  
• Fixed issue where the player can get a quest from Sen twice.

Some changes to the main menu and user interface have been made, with the beginnings of UI control for keyboards and gamepads. We have made a start on the main menu making it fully controllable via key and button input. Currently we have only managed keyboard input control but controller support for both the main menu and in-game user interface will follow as soon as we are happy with the results.
As you may know, we have always intended for JoE to be a story based, RPG, survival style game, so now we are off the starting line with our quests system, we have started to introduce a new cinematic system. Without the aid of pre rendered cut scenes, this will be a way that we will immerse the player in conversations and points of interest regarding the story and interactions with non-playable characters.

• Players can now craft Lockpicks at a workbench.
  
• Zippo Lighter item now required to craft Molotov Cocktails.
  
• Solvent, Sulfuric Acid, Nitric Acid & Kerosene Lamp have been disabled from spawning temporarily.
  
• World item spawners and container loot items have been better balanced with amounts, types and chance of spawning.
  
• Balanced loot in containers to be more relevant to the type of container being looted and that chance for successful loot spawn.
  
• Updated visual appearance of various items when dropped by the player.
  
• Spawners will no longer spawn multiple of the same item (e.g. no more multiple can openers).
  
• Clothing repair kits have been introduced into world spawning.
  
• Additional lootable containers added to the world such as boxes, trash bags, safes, lockers and more.
  
• Fixed issue where spawned world items did not have the correct material / skin.
  
• Trying to loot containers (chest of draws, wardrobes, trash bags, tool chests etc.) in the line of sight of friendly NPCs (safezone only) will cause the NPC to bark at you (visual dialogue only at the moment) and stop you from opening the container. In future releases this will affect your integrity with the NPC and the safezone.
  
• Fixed Infected "Bucks" loot drop only ever paying one buck.
  
• Added sparkles to loot items to make smaller items more visible.
  
• CX Alaris description corrected to state that it takes .40 instead of .45 ammunition.
  
• Small items (including arrows) are slightly easier to look at for pickup.
  
• Old Rucksack now has a higher condition meaning it will last longer before breaking.

There have been a variety of updates to items in the world, starting with the addition of craftable lockpicks at workbenches so that players can produce their own picks. Additionally, clothing repair kits are now available for in-the-field clothing repairs.
There have been some quality of life improvements for items. This includes updating out-of-date descriptions, the removal of currently unusable items, stat adjustments, as well as adding a sparkle effect in order to improve their visibility when on the ground.
Loot spawns have been rebalanced so that loot which spawns is more relevant to the type of container that it is found in. Furthermore, loot spawns will no longer spawn several of the same item, causing an abundance of the same object in the same place.

• Vehicle parts can now be repaired with a vehicle repair tool kit. They can be purchased, crafted or found in garages.
  
• Vehicle parts can now be looted from lockers and garage containers.
  
• Improved the handling of vehicles as well as allowing players to rotate the camera around the vehicle in third person or look around while in first person without having to hold down keys.
  
• Introduced a second Quad Bike vehicle with better handling and speed. Will spawn randomly in the world as well as can be purchased from Liam Orling in the Hanouten “Backwater Beacon” safezone.
  
• Players can now rotate the camera around vehicles with their mouse in the vehicle trader window.
  
• Horses will now have apple icons floating above their heads when they are feeding.
  
• Reduced the cost of horses to $750
  

Based on feedback from the community, we have made some adjustments to the way vehicles handle and feel as a whole. Now with the ability to rotate the camera around the vehicle freely without the aid of pressing or holding keys, we feel that driving is a more pleasant experience overall.
With that said, parts can once again be found in the world as well as repair kits for the parts, so if your oil filter needs changing, remove it from the vehicle and use a repair kit to replenish it’s condition, ready to be placed back in the vehicle.
We have also added a second quad bike, that handles differently to the original one. Additionally we made it free to feed your horse in safe zones as well as reducing the cost of purchasing a horse from Brendan at the stables.

• Added new ‘Exiles’ NPCs. The Exiles are people who care not for maintaining any kind of society and will gladly prey upon innocent survivors. They have claimed various territories across Eden Nadir. They are dangerous to encounter and may attack you with their primitive weaponry.
  
• Exiles will drop a variety of loot, but do not carry any military loot or modern weaponry.
  
• Fixed various situations causing NPCs to slide during their animations on entering combat.
  
• Fixed movement issue caused when punching an NPC who is crouched.
  
• Infected are generally more aware of their surroundings and will hold their interest longer on disturbances around them.
  
• Fixed infected weather behaviour. Infected are more aggressive when it rains but will not roam as much as they stand still in the rain to absorb moisture.
  
• Infected now move at different speeds reducing the amount they bunch up together.
  
• Fixed various issues associated with infected climbing.
  
• Fixed human NPCs making infected sounds when performing melee attacks.
  
• Fixed sleeper wake up sound playing as a 2D sound.
  
• Fixed some performance issues where NPC’s and their weapons would not cull at a reasonable distance.

• Added new wild rabbits.
  
• Added new wild boars.
  
• New animals are huntable and can be harvested for pelts, fat and meat. The amount received depends on what kind of animal is harvested.
  
• Fixed several circumstances which could cause animal NPC behaviour to lock up.
  
• Improved audio attenuation for several animal sounds.
  
• Fixed several animals spawning in trees.

• Shooting firearms is more likely to disturb NPCs.
  
• Fixed circumstance which could cause NPCs to get stuck in a t-pose.
  
• Various significant fixes which improve NPC navigation and movement.
  
• Various adjustments to NPC spawners to aid in dynamic navigation generation.
  
• Friendly NPCs and Traders
  
• Vehicle trader window will now hide character when in use.
  
• Fixed some friendly NPCs rapidly moving between locations and always yawning.
  
• Improved NPC walking animations for male and female characters.
  
• Fixed ‘Buy All’ function in the trade window only charging players for one unit of the item rather than the full stack.

In this update, we are adding the roster of NPCs threats you might encounter on the island. The Exiles are a hostile group of humans who have resorted to wilderness survival to stay alive. They are typically found on the outskirts of towns or in camps in the wilderness. Their choice to rely on dependable low-tech survival methods means you’ll be fighting against enemies wielding bow and arrows.
In terms of non-hostile NPCs, we’ve added new huntable wildlife across the island. In addition to deer, you may now encounter rabbits and wild boar. If you can catch them, they can be used as a source of meat, hide and animal fat.
There have been plenty of general updates for the NPCs as well, mostly regarding combat behaviour and navigation. Several movement and animation issues have been fixed which improve both hostile and friendly NPCs.

• Completed the “Supermarket” POI west of Hanouten, known as “Swanfield Supermarket ''. This is a high tier location with lots of enemies and high loot rewards. The building requires lockpicks to enter.
  
• Added “Orlings and Son” POI west of Hanouten. After the damage to the property and the death of his father, Liam left his business behind, leaving lockers of equipment and tool boxes full of goodies.
  
• Reintroduced “Tilley's Garden Center '' POI to north east of Hanouten with an abundance of high tier resources and tools. Explore the area and discover what happened in the past.
  
• Added a new and improved train model.
  
• Horses can now be hitched at safe zones and NPC living quarters. These hitching posts provide free replenishment for your horse.
  
• Additional world narrative scenes have been added for the player to discover and follow the trail of past lives.
  
• Fixed grass clipping through roads in safezone.
  
• Fixed decorative hedges around houses blocking projectiles (Bullets).
  
• Fixed rain appearing in Kenneth’s House.
  
• Fixed shooting range blocking projectiles.

Some great new locations added to this update, with the re-introduction of Tilly’s Garden Center as well as “Orlings and son’s”, a large supermarket, new mesh update for the lighthouse and the new location for the old bath ruins.
The three main points of interest, each have a story to tell and will require you using the new lockpick system to gain entry. These will all come with high tier treasures waiting to be plucked.
We have also started to add in more world narratives. These are small scenes that tell a short story, but will be down to the player to discover what these are. In a future update you will be able to gather clues from these locations to uncover the story and anything that may have been left behind.

• Fixed issue with certain assets slowing down dynamic navigation generation.
  
• Optimised various assets interacting with navigation generation.
  
• CPU optimisations for NPC animation logic.
  
• Temporarily stopped train moving until CPU optimisations can be made.
  
• Updated in-game map [M] and mini-map to reflect new regions built on the island.
  
• Reintroduced doors into the world. These can be opened, locked and picked.
  
• Improved GPU-bound shadow generation for various assets across Hanouten.
  
• Optimised mesh animations for static NPCs such as birds on the ground and safe zone horses.
  
• Fixed issues with doors not saving and loading their properties correctly.
  
• Exit saves have been disabled due to save corruption, but you can still manually save and exit.

A handful of general game systems have received optimisations and fixes this patch, starting with a variety of issues when saving and loading. Several major savefile related issues such as the locked states of doors and quest information are now saving and loading properly.
Performance-wise, our navigation system, along with several other high cost systems, have received attention due to their previously poor performance. Several animation systems have been optimised too. Performance improvements will, as always, continue throughout development.

• Various issues when interacting with a campfire.
  
• NVGs can clip with the camera when in first person perspective.
  
• NPC’s textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• New startup video to be implemented in near future.
  
• New Protagonist character updates, textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• Inventory does not add extra rows as it gets full causing issues when taking items at full capacity.
  
• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Mouse wheel sometimes stops being responsive in the building menu.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Various issues with UI text in crafting menus.
  
• Discrepancies with save game names.
  
• In rare circumstances, the player's weapon may appear invisible or inside the character's head.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• Save files do not properly sort by date.
  
• Baseball bats cover too much of the screen in First Person perspective.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Occasionally, interacting with the bow causes pistols to reload one bullet at a time.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.
  
• Animals will scream like human-beings when run over with a vehicle.
  
• DXD3D Crash, Failed to create DXD Device
  
• Probable Solution guides:
  https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?p_faqid=772
  https://www.drivereasy.com/knowledge/failed-to-create-d3d-device-solved/

Seasonal greetings one and all! Version 0.3.1.0 focuses on a variety of NPC additions and improvements, new sleeping functionality and a stockings-worth of other new features and fixes.

Furthermore, a new area of Eden Nadir has been opened up with the addition of Sen’s watchtower hideout. Saddle up your horse with new storage saddle-bags before you explore the news lands.

Several NPCs have received a facelift as well as the addition of some new friendly folks in the safe zone.

Developer Comment:
It would NOT be advisable to use old saves on this build, pre 0.3.1.0a and to delete old game saves. Use at your own risk of extra bugs and crashes. Make sure to load all saves from DX12 version of the game

• Fixed weapon HUD elements disappearing after loading a save game.
  
• Fixed Steam chat menu pops up over game
  
• Fixed not being able to request a recovery for your vehicle from Liam after saving and loading
  
• Fixed horse materials not changing on horse style selection
  
• Fixed NVGs & Gasmask in front of the camera in first person perspective
  
• Added extra pathway down to underpass road, that leads to old house and evacuation zone.
  
• Fixed vendor display, used when talking to Ken in the looking for vendor dialogue tree.
  
• Adjusted horse turning to reduce sensitivity and also decrease turning ability when moving at speed.
  
• Moved cliff from underpass that could cause player to roll a vehicle
  
• Moved lamp on Kens desk to left side to stop interfearing with the dialogue

• Fixed foliage not crumbling or trees falling when harvesting on loaded save games.
  
• Fixed speaking to children breaking dialogue
  
• improved horse shaders to look more realistic
  
• Some lamps around the world will come on if there is heavy cloud cover.
  
• Fixed horse saddle bags not saving and loading
  
• Created new trace for projectile for improve bullet hit detection
  
• Adjusted infected spawns around hanouten and surrounding area
  
• Fixed various non-climbable foliage which allowed player to climb.

Well we had a week of HOTFIXs and we were all set to release HOTFIX 0.3.0.8a, but thought as we had added so much new functionality while we were fixing and reworking features, we have decided to release this HOTFIX as a complete mini patch. So here are the details for alpha version 0.3.1.0a

• Expanded the map out to the west, opening up Sheriff Sen’s hideout location (a watch tower) and the start of what will be an apartment complex area.

Developers notes:
We are currently working on reintroducing Sheriff Sen back into the game as a quest giver, but this time instead of just being available via the radio. You will also be able to meet him in person in the Backwater Beacon safe zone and his hideout.

• Reworked Brendon’s (horse trader) barn, ready for more functionality.
  
• Fixed raining inside the barn and medical center.
  
• Added static horses hitched around the safe zone.

Developers notes:
Brendon’s barn has slightly been reworked, ready to add functionality for horse retrieval and hospitalisation that will be coming in the near future. This will allow the player to pay Brendon to retrieve a lost or downed horse and return it to the barn. If the horse was downed in action you will be required to attend to the horse daily until healed.

• The bed in the medical centre where the character spawns will now allow you to sleep until morning between the hours of 1900 and 0600.
  
• Tactical tents will now allow you to sleep until morning. Hold [F] by default to start sleeping. They also act as a large storage container (tap [F] by default).
  
• Removed debug key inputs causing instant bleeding.
  
• Fixed various issues associated with loading and saving. This includes issues where the loading system could get stuck causing some game elements things not to initialise properly.
  
• Fixed model viewer not showing correctly after loading a save game.
  
• Fixed weapon attachments being affected by decals on the ground.
  
• Fixed ST-RV arm being affected by decals on the ground.
  
• Improved firearm trace to avoid hitting foliage such as leaves and bushes.
  
• Fixed ladders on infested ‘nest’ buildings causing the player to get stuck in the climbing animation.
  
• Fixed health bar getting in the way of the respawn button on some screen resolutions.

Developers notes:
One of the notable updates for players is the ability to now sleep until morning using the bed you spawn at in the medical center at Hanouten’s Blackwater Beacon safe zone. You can also sleep by placing down a tactical tent that can be crafted, purchased or found in the world.
The night will still take time to pass, although it is sped up by 400% and will take a maximum of 3 minutes to pass the entire night cycle. You can only sleep during the hours of 19.00pm and 6.00am, at the moment we have allowed the player to only sleep until 6.00am passing the night hours and replenishing 100% of your energy and 50% of your wellness. We have plans to expand this and allow players to exit sleep at any time and also set the time they want to sleep till.

• Fixed ingame map which would stop working after death or game save load.
  
• Fixed weapon HUD not updating when picking up ammo.
  
• Updated loadings screen text.

• ATV / Quad bike will now show on map and compass.
  
• Horse movement has been reworked, the [A] and [D] keys (as well as the directional arrow keys) are used for steering the horse now and the camera can freely be rotated using the mouse without the aid of pressing the [Left Alt] key.
  
• The horse walking speed has been removed and the default is now trotting, with tapping [Shift] to canter and holding [Shift] to gallop.
  
• Saddle bags can now be added to the horse by holding [F] to access it’s inventory.
  
• Train has now been set to use constant MAX speed, to prevent issues with the train stopping or slowing down.

Developers notes:
We decided to rework the horse movement as it never felt right and was always a little awkward to control, we feel the horse is now one of our favourite means of transport around the map. Following community feedback we have created saddle bags for the horse. These can be purchased from traders in three different sizes, small, medium and large. The storage for the horse is slot based like containers in 12, 24 and 36 slot sizes. You will be unable to remove or swap a saddle bag if the bag has items in it. You will need to remove everything before swapping or removing.

• Speaking to Kenneth will now give you the option to locate characters / traders, selecting a NPC from the dialogue list will move the player camera to their place of work.
  
• Improved infected and human NPC’s patrolling logic. They no longer try to move longer distances together causing them to create ‘conga lines’. Instead, they now individually patrol their own local areas.
  
• NPCs can no longer exert force on each other when bumping. This could sometimes cause NPCs to quickly bounce off each other and move at high speed.
  
• Improved NPCs ability to move past each other without getting stuck.
  
• Fixed situation causing infected to lock up if they are trying to scavenge but have no accessible scavenging locations.
  
• Fixed navmesh inconsistencies allowing NPCs to get stuck on geometry.
  
• Added new animations for Maia around the safe zone construction area.
  
• Traders now buy items at a deflated rate.
  
• Bruce will now sell at a 30% inflation rate. Other safezone traders will sell at only a 5% inflation rate.
  
• Brendan now sells horse tack (a.k.a saddle bags).
  
• Fixed runner’s dialogue asking you to speak to Kenneth if you have already spoken to him.
  
• Runner will now also explain what service he offers.
  
• Traders will now auto restock at midnight everyday.
  
• Fixed lootable dead NPCs not holding any loot, but then creating new loot when interacting with them again.
  
• Dead enemies will no longer show a loot prompt if they spawned without loot.
  
• Fixed Tinned Cow being sold by traders who should only sell equipment.
  
• Tentative fix for NPC not spawning in the safe zone after loading a saved game.
  
• Armed NPCs are now more accurate
  
• Fixed Leilani who could become inaccessible by moving into the shooting range even though it was closed at night.
  
• Fixed not being able to trade with Lexi due to a dialogue tree error.
  
• Fixed not being able to sell weapons / equipment to a trader that are duplicates of weapons / equipment you have equipped.
  
• Fixed players and NPCs being able to climb in the air near houses with burglar alarms.

Developers notes:
The main bulk of NPC updates affects the navigation and activities of NPCs. Since the last update, a number of weaknesses were noticed that could lead to strange behaviour or inactivity. NPC navigation has been improved for all NPCs so they are now able to identify smaller terrain features better. This prevents cases where NPCs could get stuck on low height geometry thinking that it was traversable. There is a tradeoff with regards to the speed at which navigation can be dynamically built. However, improvements to prevent NPCs getting stuck in a loop when navigation is not available have also been made to both counter this and mitigate situations where NPCs freeze up without navigation.
Some tweaks to NPC combat have been made but nothing too major. The changes are mostly orientated around navigation and mercenary accuracy. Future updates will more specifically investigate NPC combat behaviour, especially infected who sometimes struggle to identify targets.

• Various issues when interacting with a campfire.
  
• NVGs can clip with the camera when in first person perspective.
  
• NPC’s textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• New startup video to be implemented in near future.
  
• New Protagonist character updates, textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• Can sometimes see facemasks when looting and crouching in first person.
  
• Inventory does not add extra rows as it gets full causing issues when taking items at full capacity.
  
• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Mouse wheel sometimes stops being responsive in the building menu.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Various issues with UI text in crafting menus.
  
• Discrepancies with save game names.
  
• In rare circumstances, the player's weapon may appear invisible or inside the character's head.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• Lantern doesn’t appear in the player's hand when equipped.
  
• Save files do not properly sort by date.
  
• Baseball bats cover too much of the screen in First Person perspective.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Occasionally, interacting with the bow causes pistols to reload one bullet at a time.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.
  
• Train needs textures to be completed.

Jaws of Extinction 0.3.0.0 has arrived! The last few months have seen Eden Nadir transform. The world has been completely reworked with two main goals - a new approach to performance and delivery of a more authentic and interesting environment. Today, players will be able to explore the new Hanouten and its surrounding areas again for the first time packed with new points of interest ranging from demolition sites to dangerous caves.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg though! A plethora of bug fixes, performance improvements and other enhancements have all been implemented. Take a look at the new and improved UI, new looting options and the addition of a NPC who will track down lost loot… for a price

It would NOT be advisable to use old saves on this build, pre 0.3.0.0a and to delete old game saves. Please start a fresh game.

• Fixed saving and loading issues where loading a save game could cause players to fall from the sky, then sometimes teleport to where they left off sometime later.
  
• Fixed clipping issue with players head when opening inventory in first person
  
• Fixed issue where Lexi’s dialog and trade menu would overlap. Closing trade menu could cause dialog to get stuck on screen even though the conversation was over.
  
• Deer have been reintroduced across the landscape
  
• Bird audio triggers have been reintroduced into the world.

• Added injured patients to the medical building (player spawn).
  
• Fixed foliage icon being intermittent when looking at foliage.
  
• Fixed foliage not being harvestable after looting house containers.
  
• Fixed Weapon, Health HUD and mini map overlapping inventory screen.
  
• Fixed Weapon, Health HUD and mini map overlapping building menu.
  
• Fixed quick access icons not displaying med-packs and bandages after reloading a save game.
  
• Fixed getting stuck in the 4x4 vehicle when flipped on its side or on it's roof.
  
• Fixed 4x4 flying away into the sky when flipping it back over.
  
• Fixed offset popup icon on bins.
  
• Fixed supply quest items still appearing after the quest has been completed.
  
• Fixed supply quest counter not initializing properly to the correct value when loading a save game.
  
• Fixed axe model being affected by decals in the world.
  
• Fixed CX8 Alaris pistol having a sell and buy price on $0.00.
  
• Tentative fix for when player loads a save game but unintentionally is placed in the medical centre instead of where they left off.
  
• Stopped camera moving position when opening inventory.
  
• Fixed issue with lighting going very dark in settings other than "Epic" (This will require the world to be reloaded if set in game, not at the main menu).

• Fixed crash often occurring when loading a save game.
  
• Fixed issue where various items could not be interacted with/picked up after loading a save game.
  
• Fixed Jullian Skye not spawning in after taking his bounty quest.
  
• Fixed missing or incorrect quest markers.
  
• Updated loading screen text.
  
• Fixed old dialog belonging to Jess Foster indicating that Kenneth Hughes is in his office downstairs.
  
• Fixed not being able to harvest foliage
  
• Harvestable foliage now displays an icon indicating interaction ability
  
• Moved medical pick up items to not be so hidden at game start spawn
  
• Fixed Wick’s shop not spawning lootables
  
• Fixed missing interior on some buildings
  
• Fixed not being able to get to basement of some houses

This list of patch notes is a summary of the key changes since the game’s last major update. There have been many additional bug fixes and improvements in addition these key changes.

We’ve recently upgraded to using DirectX 12. Steam should pop up a message when you launch asking which version of DirectX you want to use. Please make sure you open the game from the Steam library (not from the Steam Downloads screen) to ensure the DirectX popup appears. We’re currently investigating why the option doesn’t appear when opening the game from places other than your library.

• Hanouten Fishing Village is now more akin to a village, with more space between houses for gardens and other features.
  
• Hanouten is now designed to feel more authentic for a settlement of its size, with a wider variety of points of interest and generally more varied scenery.
  
• Roadways more spacious and terrain elevation gentler to encourage vehicle transport through the area.
  
  • New major locations to discover:
    
  • New train station with (work in progress) travelling train.
    
  • New guarded contamination zone
    
  • New boat yard
    
  • New drydock
    
  • New hidden caves
    
  • New lootable roadside shops
    
  • Redesigned Lake Garnet Campsite
    
  • New farmland, barns and farmhouses
    
  • New waterside logging facility
    
  • New demolitions area
    
  • New housing construction area
    
  • And many more...
• Added hidden military crates across the map.
  
• Added bodies consumed by fungus around the map. They may still have something of interest on their person.
  
• New redesigned houses. Improved interior spacing and window access for shooting. Some houses have complete interiors which tell a narrative about the people who used to live there. Some have placeholder/partial interiors at present. All houses will have complete interiors in future.

Developers notes:
We are aware that a lot of the houses still only have the basic interiors and we will be working on unique interiors for each house with each patch we release from now on, each one taking an average of a day to complete so should not take too long to get them all done.
This will also include being able to claim a house and barricade windows and doors to stop infected and players coming in through openings in the structure, this should also be available within the next few updates.

• Complete redesign of Backwater Beacon Safe Zone. The layout is arranged to improve access to key facilities. More space has been afforded to regions within the safe zone making the area feel less cramped and more comfortable.
  
• New runner facility to collect loot. For a fee the runner will collect lost loot for you. Return the next day to recover your precious items from him.
  
• Armoury features an improved shooting range which closes during the night.
  
• Player will spawn (and respawn if incapacitated) in the Medical Centre inside the safe zone instead of on the beach.
  
• New friendly characters and entertainment facilities.
  
• New location banners to help the player identify the facilities available to them.
  
• New tutorial area designed to teach players the basics of movement (tutorial elements will be updated over time).

Developers notes:
The Hanouten safe zone is mostly complete, featuring all the major facilities that the player will need. There are some semi-developed non-essential areas such as NPC housing which will be built on further in future updates. Additionally, in future updates the new training ground will be expanded to cover a few more of the basics. The shooting range will track your accuracy when you shoot the targets, but we presently need a way to display scores and scoreboards.

• Added new bleeding audio and visual effects to emphasise when the player must act to stop bleeding.
  
• New consumable hotkeys. Press [5] to use a health item. Press [6] to use a bandage to stop bleeding. The system will automatically select the best health item to use. For example, if you are missing 50 HP and have two health items, the item which recovers closest to 50 HP will be used.
  
• Player is now given a basic bow starting weapon and some arrows near the start of the game. Firearms can still be purchased or found in the world.

• New radar with minimap visible on the UI instead of the overhead compass.
  
• Tidier and more readable health, stamina and weapons display.
  
• Player assigned item shortcuts have been removed, replaced with the new consumable hotkeys.

Developers notes:
We have future plans for improved designs for the inventory, character management, player skills and guide as well as new functionality and expansion that should also make the light of day before Early Access Release on Steam, depending on other systems being put in place.

• Lootable cupboards and containers. You can now loot directly from many containers, drawers and cupboards, in addition any loose objects which may appear around houses and other lootable buildings. Items can also be stored in these contains (although these items will not currently be saved when reloading a save-game)
  
• Harvestable objects such as trees will now show an icon when you have the appropriate harvesting tool out e.g. trees will show an harvestable icon when you take an axe out.
  
• New searchable scrap piles. Searching piles of scrap can provide useful resources. Doing so creates noise however, and may attract unwanted guests.
  
• Trees will now fall down once chopped with an axe.
  
• Some foliage will breakup when interacted with like rocks and nettles (This will expand to other items, pending feedback)

Developers notes:
In previous builds scrap materials were littering the streets everywhere. Visually this cluttered the environment but it also meant that the resources were so common, there was not much gameplay value in finding them. The idea behind the significant changes to looting is to balance scrap resources better, while also providing more rewarding gameplay elements. You can now search piles of junk and bins for deposits of scrap resources. Doing so will create noise while you search (during a short timer, 5 seconds to search), but you will be given now multiple resources used for crafting.
Our reasoning behind allowing players to store items in house cupboards and drawers is to give the player storage options if the players choose to hold up in a building. We are aware that this system is not saving properly at present however and we will allow game save features for cupboards in the next patch.

• Redesigned pickup items for performance/multiplayer using a custom built pooling system.
  
• New hitscan projectile system. Improved performance without particularly affecting gunplay.
  
• Hostile human NPCs no longer have pinpoint accuracy.
  
• Fixed major bug where player could instantly die to an NPC projectile.
  
• Fixed several animation issues regarding the character’s legs. Leg animations are smoother and are no longer prone to getting stuck in one orientation while the player moves in another.
  
• General implementation of multiplayer systems in preparation for multiplayer release. The changes should not be noticeable in singleplayer.

Developers notes:
The move to using hitscan traces instead of spawning projectiles has had a variety of benefits, mostly relating to performance. The actual gameplay effect this transition has had is more-or-less unnoticeable. We have plans to take this trace system further in future updates. We have made a prototype using traces which handles bullet velocity, air resistance, damage fall off and gravity. This will allow shots to arc over distances and provide bullet drop for long distance shooting. Gunplay will remain much the same over shorter ranges. This will allow us to bring slower projectiles such as arrows shot from bows on the system so that we can remove the need for spawning projectiles altogether.

• Reduced world tile size to mitigate consistent lag spike when moving around the world.
  
• Improved implementation of Levels of Detail (LODs) for landscape tiles.
  
• Hierarchical Levels of Detail (HLODs) generated for world architecture assets, enabling objects to be drawn from further away but with reduced triangle counts on distance meshes.-
  
• Fixed issue where equipping items would noticeably impact the frame rate.
  
• Removed semi-broken player ragdoll system which would trigger on death and replaced with more performant and visually improved death animation.

Developers notes:
Although we are seeing increased performance on our test machines following us fixing underlying issues associated with the old map, we are fully aware that this may not be reflected on all systems. We have other phases of performance development we would like to complete before Early Access release on Steam, so this should cover our recommended reg specs very soon.

• Various issues when interacting with a campfire.
  
• Camera position shifts when opening inventory, causing various clipping issues.
  
• NPC’s textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• New startup video to be implemented in near future.
  
• New Protagonist character updates, textures and LODs require updating for performance and visual quality.
  
• Can sometimes see facemasks when looting and crouching in first person.
  
• Inventory does not add extra rows as it gets full causing issues when taking items at full capacity.
  
• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Mouse wheel sometimes stops being responsive in the building menu.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Mouse sensitivity while dragging the map around can be difficult.
  
• Various issues with UI text in crafting menus.
  
• Discrepancies with save game names.
  
• In rare circumstances, the player's weapon may appear invisible or inside the character's head.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• Lantern doesn’t appear in the player's hand when equipped.
  
• Save files do not properly sort by date.
  
• Baseball bats cover too much of the screen in First Person perspective.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Occasionally, interacting with the bow causes pistols to reload one bullet at a time.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.

Hey everyone!

We are aware that things have been a bit quiet for Jaws of Extinction recently and we wanted to let everyone know that all has been going well behind the scenes. We have been busy over the last couple of months addressing our top priority issues and preparing for the game's next stage of release.

In order to overcome some of the major issues present in the current build of the game (notably performance and some design elements), we took a step back to definitively rectify these problems. The good news is we’re almost there.

We plan on releasing a playable test build the first week of December to all current owners of the game. We would really love to hear everyone’s feedback on their experience!



You may have also noticed that the game is currently unavailable to purchase on Steam. This is so we can ensure that all features that have been affected by our rework are fully reimplemented for our Early Access release in the new year (Feb 2021). Jaws of Extinction is now visible to everyone on the Steam store front. The game can be found via searching Steam and listed in game categories.



Performance has always been the most talked about subject on Jaws of Extinction and we felt that before we started fleshing out the rest of the world of Eden-Nadir we needed to get on top of the games performance once and for all.

We needed to take some drastic measures - so that is exactly what we did. We have redeveloped the environment from the ground up. This has given us the opportunity to restructure our approach to performance while also allowing us to improve upon the world’s look and feel. For example, the village of Hanouten now feels much more like a village, rather than a town. Generally, the layout of the environment is now cleaner whilst also implementing more interesting places to explore.



All buildings / houses being used in the world have now been exclusively made for Jaws of Extinction by our lead 3D artist, Chris.
This update to buildings provides visual, gameplay and performance improvements.

For example, the windows of houses are now much improved. They have been resized allowing players to aim weapons through them properly. The old building’s windows would get in the way of your sightlines.

Furthermore, the new houses will have the following features in future updates:

• Building, claiming and fortification
  
• Jumping and vaulting through windows
  
• Ability to clean up housing interiors

We are making cooperative multiplayer available for the February Early Access release, which means getting many gameplay features sorted in preparation.
Multiplayer development is ongoing and while we are still working getting gameplay elements ready, we have tested several internal multiplayer builds of the game with each other (and actually had a lot more fun that we were expecting from just technical tests!).



We agreed with a recurring piece of community feedback that the look of the characters didn’t always match the visual quality of the world. We have therefore re-examined our character’s art and given them some love. This update will allow characters to appear clean, dirty, bloody and wet depending on what happens during your journey. The updated character art will be released before the February Early Access release.



For current owners of the Jaws of Extinction, you will have access to an updated build of the game with the new map, performance and gameplay features. You should notice many improvements.

Redevelopment has been fairly extensive though, so although almost all features are still available as are the current build, expect some differences to narrative/quest elements which will be worked on moving forward.

Additionally, since the map has undergone significant redevelopment, many house interiors are under construction and the playable area is currently smaller. However, map quality (visually and performance-wise) is now higher. Map content and building interiors will appear regularly with updates.


Stay safe and well, and we look forward to hearing your thoughts on the new build!
-JoE dev team

New patch 0.2.29.6! Hope you’re all ready for a new major update featuring updates to world performance, new vehicles and creepy new infected visuals.

Be wary of the new NPC mechanics. Headshots on infected will now create a hazardous plume of spores, blurring vision and hampering aim. Remember - professionals aim for the heart. Heart shots are now the safest way to take down infected threats.

Developer Comment:
It would NOT be advisable to use old saves on this build, pre 0.2.29.6a and to delete any files stored in the save directory regarding key bindings and game saves.

• Unreal Engine 4.24.3 to 4.25.3 update.
  
• Implemented Wwise Sound System.
  
• Minor improvement for save files to reduce risk of corrupting save data.

• Optimized textures with higher compression and lower resolution.
  
• World tile size has been increased x3 to reduce load and unload performance spike (spikes will still occur, but much less often).
  
• Leaf foliage changed to a low poly version.
  
• Reduced the density of foliage around Hanouten.
  
• Improved optimisations on Skylight system.
  
• Significant cleanup of redundant elements in Character/Controller.

• Trystan is now a playable character that can be unlocked by relevant Kickstarter backers and early adopters with a product key. Trystan will be available to all players upon official Steam Early Access release (when the game leaves pre-Alpha).
  
• Characters can now fight with fists to defend themselves in close quarters. Consecutive punches can knock down enemies.
  
• Characters can now perform stealth takedowns on enemies by approaching from behind (currently knife is automatically used, but will be introduced as an equipable item at a later date).
  
• Character’s attributes now affect gameplay:
  
  `Speed - affects characters top speed.` `Energy - affects the amount of energy the character has from an average person to an athlete. ` `Stealth - affects how hidden a character is in camo or foliage cover` `Constitution - affects the amount of damage the character will take and chance of bleeding.`
• New SFX for landing
  
• Added bleeding system. Taking damage from melee, projectiles and explosions have a chance of causing bleed damage.
  
• Added new recoil visuals for shooting weapons in first person.
  
• Water wading animation reintroduced.
  
• Added player bark system, for characters to respond to actions, interactions and situations.
  
• Added SFX when siphoning fuel from vehicles.

• Scavenger quests added to the noticeboard, collect items for NPCs in supplied backpacks and return to collect rewards.

• New start up menu, with updated character selection and credits screens.
  
• New bleeding visual on player health display.
  
• New colour scheme for vitals on the HUD.
  
• Each protagonist will now have their own saves.
  
• Stealth tutorial added, when reaching the top of the stone stairs from the starter beach.
  
• Inventory filter system, click on the icons next to “Auto Manage” to filter items in your inventory by category.

• Bandages now only stop bleeding and replenish 25% well-being.
  
• Added three tiers of respirators. Can be equipped to prevent coughing and disorientation.
  
• Added gas mask. Can be equipped to prevent coughing, disorientation and blurred vision.
  
• PainKillers - stats been updated. Will now give replenish 40% health & 25% wellness.
  
• Adjusted prices on full and empty Jerry Cans.

• New models for infected (stage 2 only).
  
• New SFX for infected.
  
• New kill mechanics for headshots on infected (shooting in the head will cause spore clouds that will cause the player to cough and have blurry vision unless face and eye protection is equipped).
  
• New heart shot instant kill mechanic added.
  
• NPCs will no longer completely body block the player in combat.
  
• Introduced sleeper infected who may (or may not) be triggered by your presence and stand up to get you.
  
• Infected now become empowered by water when in shallow water as well as rain.
  
• Vehicle recovery system implemented - talk to Liam in the Backwater Safe Zone if you lose any type of engined vehicle. Liam will recover your vehicle and bring it back to the safe zone 23 hours later.
  
• Jess Arling has now been renamed to Jess Foster.
  
• Added a new welding mask which Liam will wear while welding.

• Bird disturbance system added. Creep past flocks of crows to prevent them notifying nearby enemies of your presence.
  
• Added loot spawns to all new car models.
  
• Added exile camp added between Hanouten and Bayou, ready for hostile ‘Exile’ characters to be added with high tier loot.
  
• Skeleton near starting location moved nearby to new shed location.
  
• New skeleton added to beach area.
  
• Added environment inspection areas (will display with a UI magnifying glass, to indicate something can be examined)
  
• Moved west safezone entrance blockade so the west entrance can be used by vehicles.
  
• Added 4x4 Jeep vehicle.
  
• Lighting adjustment to make the world look less washed out.
  
• Moved an ATV spawn to near the starting location.
  
• Adjusted foliage blocking ladders on building ruins.
  
• Added climbable radio towers (ready for new mechanics).

• Fixed weapon sometimes disappearing after using the ST-RV watch.
  
• Fixed invisible body parts after hitting spacebar and left/right mouse button to change perspective to third person when in first person.
  
• Fixed infected vaulting on fire from molotovs and fire arrows.
  
• Fixed being unable trade with Haymish
  
• Removed Liam's dodgy sitting animation with arm twist.
  
• Fixed weapon condition not updating on popup.
  
• Fixed placeholder barks being audible after interaction/trade.
  
• Directional keys moving character when using them with the building menu.
  
• Fixed some cabinets in houses not being lootable despite glowing.
  
• Fixed floating STRV widget is sometimes visible floating inside the character's waist.
  
• Fixed Amy respawning with incorrect trousers, if trousers other than the prison scrubs have been equipped.
  
• Fixed throwables not being removed from the character’s hand in some instances.
  
• Improved issues affecting character’s ragdoll.
  
• Fixed issue where changing perspective whilst looking at vitals would show character with no arms and STRV display incorrectly.
  
• Fixed infected audio not stopping after death.
  
• Fixed Player Building Tool delete utility not turning off if player exits building bar by pressing [ B ].
  
• Fixed loot highlight visuals appearing incorrect after using the Player Building delete utility.
  
• Fixed Player Building delete utility still being visible after closing the Building Bar.
  
• Fixed only getting only one bullet when buying ammunition.
  
• Fixed high sell prices on hide and being able to buy them back for free.
  
• Fixed being able to buy backpack for free
  
• Fixed prices on Jerry Cans where Empty Jerry Can was worth more than a Full one.
  
• Fixed small cube appearing inside the burning barrels.
  
• Fixed embers from the fire barrel having a 'sun ray' coming from them when looking North.
  
• Fixed player character holstering their firearm when skipping quests.
  
• Fixed weapon HUD incorrectly displaying after holstering firearms when initiating dialogue with NPC.
  
• Fixed issue with crafted improvised health kit not displaying third ingredient for crafting.
  
• Fixed items not being present in ATV’s inventory after loading a saved game.
  
• Fixed purchased ATV spawning in with no parts or fuel.
  
• Fixed various NPC related errors occurring
  
• Fixed Spark Plugs and Oil Filters stacking instead of swapping out inside vehicles.
  
• Fixed number of noticeboard quests the player can take after reloading the game having completed quests in the past. The number of quests the player can take from the noticeboard at any one time should be one.
  
• Fixed un-equippable items appearing in the Character Management Window
  
• Fixed dead NPCs making a noise when running them over in the vehicle.
  
• Vehicle skins now included in save data.
  
• Fixed issue when leaving a trader on the ‘Sell’ tab, interacting with them again opened on the ‘Buy’ tab but UI functionality was locked to ‘Sell’.
  
• Various text grammar/spelling issues on popup messages, NPC dialog and item descriptions.
  
• Fixed taking a second notice board quest after completing the first but not getting credit for it.
  
• Fixed [Q] & [E] only rotating placeable items in one direction.
  
• Fixed Amy having no feet when wearing shoes.
  
• Fixed setting Fullscreen Mode causing the game to crash on startup.
  
• Fixed typo on loading screens.
  
• Fixed loading a saved game where the player has skipped the initial Sen quest, causing the Sen quest to appear on the UI after reloading the game.
  
• Sen's basement door has red locked text even if you have the key to open it.
  
• Fixed not being able to recycle vehicle parts.
  
• Fixed issues where character would immediately re-enter vehicles after pressing [F] to exit.
  
• Fixed the ‘Buy Vehicle’ UI remaining on the last skin you inspected when leaving and re-entering the trade UI.
  
• Fixed missing siphoning tool tip which would appear as a white box.
  
• Fixed not being able to loot some chests around the world.

• Can sometimes see facemasks when looting and crouching in first person.
  
• Some double tiered garages still have no interiors.
  
• Some houses are still using random item location spawners.
  
• Dumpster near a slice of life not culling at reasonable distance, may need replacing.
  
• Inventory does not add extra rows as it gets full causing issues when taking items at full capacity.
  
• Torch doesn’t illuminate directly towards the center of the screen making it difficult to examine objects in close spaces.
  
• Mouse wheel sometimes stops being responsive in the building menu.
  
• Game is missing left-handed support.
  
• Safezone music stops when moving towards Kenneth house.
  
• Mouse sensitivity while dragging the map around can be difficult.
  
• Occasionally safezone guards keep their guns holstered.
  
• Various issues with UI text in crafting menus.
  
• Discrepancies with save game names.
  
• In rare circumstances, the player's weapon may appear invisible or inside the character's head.
  
• Swapping an item with a Jerry Can in the fuel slot on the quad causes the other item to be placed in the fuel slot.
  
• Lantern doesn’t appear in the player's hand when equipped.
  
• Save files do not properly sort by date.
  
• Baseball bats cover too much of the screen in First Person perspective.
  
• Opening inventory can cause cameras to clip through walls.
  
• When LED light runs out of battery, it unequips but does not re-enable belt chem-light.
  
• NPCs can have ‘black beams’ coming out of their eyes when running the game using FXAA.
  
• Occasionally, interacting with the bow causes pistols to reload one bullet at a time.
  
• Sleeping bags placed on foundations or flat ground can sometimes be placed at an unusual angle.

THINGS TO REMEMBER BEFORE PURCHASING JOE

We are aware that the game is currently very demanding on performance and bugs can cause problems during gameplay. JoE is in constant development by two developers and a single 3D artists. We are keen to resolve issues as promptly as possible, although please understand that they are to be expected as the game continues into development. Please make sure to read the following statement from our Steam store page before considering your purchase, as always your support is appreciated.

COMMUNITY LINKS

Steam Community Forums
Official JoE Discord Server
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