First off, a huge welcome to our new players; our recent influx of players who've joined us on console and PC. It’s completely normal to be closing down your machine for the day after an abundance of deaths, compounded by disorientation and dubious reactions from veteran players.

The first round of public testing for our new Warfare and Offensive map, Mortain, starts now! Taking place over the weekend, running until Monday 22 January, 11 am GMT.

We loved seeing your excitement for Mortain’s reveal in our previous Dev Brief [read here], so we’re opening the doors early for feedback. Mortain is still a few months out, so we want to collate your impressions as soon as we can, to ensure it’s polished and balanced for release.

This testing period aims to gather your insight on the overall level design – we want your thoughts on capture points, playstyles, vehicle spawns, artillery positioning, pre-placed garrisons, flow, art, and any issues you may encounter.

Please scroll to the bottom of the page for links to the forms to fill out feedback. Thank you to all of you who are taking the time to participate and help improve Mortain.


In 1944, German forces attempted a counter-offensive against the allied Operation Cobra breakout from Normandy. This counter-offensive was known as Operation Lüttich. This was planned to cut off the US spearheads, establish a German defensive perimeter in Normandy, reach the coastal port of Avranches, and seal the Operation Cobra breakout.

On the 7th of August, German forces assaulted the US-held Mortain and was successful in capturing key locations. This assault led to bitter and fierce fighting at Hill 314, with the US forces being surrounded becoming one of the recognisable heroic stands of WW2.

As this is the first full map release after taking the project on from Black Matter, we wanted it to have as much detail as possible from a sound perspective.

Mortain uses a newly developed audio system, where random ambient sounds are switched out depending on your location on the map. In short, these ambient sounds follow you wherever you go and are playing all the time, but will dynamically change when you enter a new location. This covers urban areas, forests, destroyed buildings and so on. A similar system was already in place for explosions, so it seemed like a nice progression to move this into the ambience system to support the lush areas created by the environment art and level design teams.

In the last major update, we added functionality for weapons to sound different when fired in enclosed spaces like churches, bunkers, houses and so on. We wanted this to continue in Mortain; so all interior spaces have this treatment, from pillbox-type bunkers in the forests, right up to large houses in the destroyed town. We loved seeing the positive reactions when players first heard these changes last time and would like this to continue when playing in Mortain. We really hope you enjoy the sound of this new map as much as we enjoyed creating it.

Richard Blackley - Audio Director, Expression Games

Mortain introduces extra detail not previously achievable on Hell Let Loose maps. It's important to us as a team that we strive to improve the visual quality with every new map and so I'd like to mention a couple of changes we’ve made when creating Mortain that gives examples of where we’ve improved previous workflows.

The foliage has been reworked from the ground up. On previous maps, this was procedurally spawned using the landscape materials, which added a huge performance impact when blending several surfaces. Every tree, bush and blade of grass has been hand-painted to allow us more flexible control over foliage density, variety and different species. New meshes, shaders and textures have been implemented across foliage types, which visually are a marked improvement on previous iterations.

Given the density of this new foliage, there may be cause for concern surrounding performance, however in our testing so far, foliage has shown to be very performant. Although PCs in general tend to have more processing power than consoles, console players should expect the same foliage quality as PC players without impact.

Almost every building in Mortain has been reworked with new textures, geometry and shaders, which in extreme cases have up to 100x fewer draw calls than buildings in other maps. These buildings all utilize detail normal maps, which is a technique used to enhance visual fidelity up close, while not making a significant impact on performance. This technique has also been applied to props where possible to offer similar benefits.

Something we’re proud of, is providing players with an accurate depiction of the region, so the terrain uses real-world DEM/height data and has been compared with maps from the period to ensure we stay true to the shape of the battlefield at the time, accommodating for gameplay where needed.

Being the first map without Black Matter input, there has been a tremendous effort from the team to understand how Hell Let Loose maps are built and thanks to this we believe that Mortain offers a unique experience that no other map does, but also sticks to the principles that make them so immersive and believable.

We’re looking forward to hearing your feedback, listening to any concerns and implementing changes where necessary so that when Mortain releases officially, we can offer an enjoyable experience that players are excited to play.

Ryan Thomason-Jones - Senior Environment Artist, Expression Games

Mortain is officially the first map the team at Expression Games has researched, designed, and built from the ground up with new workflows and processes.

It was important for the team to choose a map that offered something different compared to other maps we currently have in Hell Let Loose.

Mortain was not only of historical importance during WW2 and Operation Lüttich, but also the location itself and how it could support the Hell Let Loose game modes. Mortain provides our community with a new, but still ‘tied to its roots’ experience and stood out to us as a location with lots of potential.

Mortain has a lot of history both before and during WW2, with iconic and memorable locations, including the battle-scarred town of Mortain featuring the US headquarters - Hotel De La Poste, Hill 314 that was held by US forces against German attacks and the stunning Petite Chappelle Saint-Michel that sits on top a cliff south of Hill 314.

It was very important for the team to include all of these locations and do it the right way, with extensive research and careful consideration for historical accuracy, but with a little room for creative license that still felt grounded and believable.

Mortain offers an abundance of variation, one of which is the elevation of the map, including cliffs, steep slopes and hills. The map also features lots of dense forests, fields, rocky formations and farms, and it is this level of variation that will challenge squad teamwork and tactics in different ways and emphasise the importance of different roles, which we feel is critical to creating memorable Hell Let Loose battles.

I’m incredibly proud of the team and the amount of love and care they have put into the map. We hope our community enjoys playing the map as much as we’ve loved making it.

Chris Robinson - Lead Level Designer, Expression Games

For Hill 314, we wanted to take a location that is both historically accurate and exciting for a Hell Let Loose experience never seen before in a central Europe map. The high elevation provides excellent vantage points and supports rugged challenging terrain for vehicles to have to navigate. The defensive trenches provide opportunities for gritty infantry-focused crossfire battles to take place.

Carl Rutter - Senior Level Designer, Expression Games

Capture Point - Hill 314

To capture the majesty of the Petite Chappelle Saint-Michel, we decided to make that the heart of the Capture Point theme. Taking reference of the existing countryside at the time, this enabled us to cater a dense woodland experience to break up those long sight lines. The natural terrain encourages players to build their defensive network to maintain maximum control of the point.

Carl Rutter - Senior Level Designer, Expression Games

Capture Point - Petite Chappelle Saint Michel

Situated as the last bastion of the U.S. defence of Mortain, the Hotel De La Poste tells the story of how battered the town was with artillery fire during Operation Lüttich through a Capture Point blend of narrow, partially destroyed streets, fragmented urban warfare and close quarters combat.

Carl Rutter - Senior Level Designer, Expression Games

Capture Point - Hotel De La Poste

With this Capture Point, we wanted to create a fictitious yet believable outpost that the German forces could have used to scout the Allied forces at Petite Chappelle Saint-Michel and Hill 314. This camp features two netted trench systems, tiered in height to allow for infantry crossfire between them. Both trenches surround a lookout tower, which is the prime position for Officers to mark approaching enemies through their binoculars and coordinate the team's defensive strategy.

Kienan Southern - Junior Level Designer, Expression Games

Capture Point - German Recon Camp

The Destroyed German Convoy captures the theme of a true story based on fleeing German forces that was stopped in their tracks by artillery fire. We knew these events happened but were unsure of where exactly. Because we found the story compelling, we decided to use this event as a Capture Point theme and provide routes along a main road that vehicles would have to either carefully navigate, or employ their strategic battle plan to circumnavigate the area.

Carl Rutter - Senior Level Designer, Expression Games

Capture Point - Destroyed German Convoy

Our approach to map creation follows a series of stages from our internal workflows and processes, with feedback and reviews to follow each stage. With Mortain we focused on the layout and theme of the Capture Point first, going through several rounds of iteration and feedback to make sure that they flowed nicely, and were believable, before expanding this process out into what we call “Transitional Areas”. A “Transitional Area” is defined as a space in between that connects each of the Capture Points, to allow the player a seamless transition from area to area.

With a close collaboration with the art team, we have been able to create a believable map from the ground up that not only looks amazing but also functions well for a Hell Let Loose experience. The art team was given the flexibility and freedom to add their artistic flair on top of the existing blockouts, and really bring the story of the map to life.

Carl Rutter - Senior Level Designer, Expression Games

Mortain - Tactical Map - Work in Progress


Mortain - Transitional Area - Early Blockout



Mortain - German HQ - Early Blockout



Mortain - German HQ - Early Blockout


Mortain - Le Hermitage Farm - Early Blockout



Mortain - Destroyed German Convoy - Early Blockout



Mortain - Town - Early Blockout



Mortain - Hotel De La Poste - Early Blockout

With regard to playtesting, it was important to not only enjoy the fruits of the teams' labour but to highlight and catch any fundamental issues with how the map flows and functions. Dedicated Commanders, Officers, and Tank Commanders, who had a lot of experience with Hell Let Loose, were assigned beforehand, to ensure that no matter what stage of development the map was at, the match would be played as close to authentic as possible. Following the conclusion of the match, a debriefing session was held, to discuss any issues/feedback from the team, these were always captured and collated so that we could take appropriate action to strengthen the map.

We were also not afraid to contrive our playtests to cater to specific scenarios, for example: If we were unsure of how a particular Capture Point worked from a Level Design point of view, we would spend time focusing only on the single Capture Point and address any feedback afterwards.

Carl Rutter - Senior Level Designer, Expression Games

• [WIP] The client will crash when choosing to leave the server.
  
• Floating Artillery - Offensive only - Functionality OK
  
• [Mortain] The user is unable to place down outposts or garrisons when standing on rubble piles or sidewalks

It’s essentially finished. The content is all planned and dates have been set. We just need to do our due diligence and ensure that all disciplines agree on timelines, to ensure we can deliver promised content on time. Then we can focus on turning an exhaustive spreadsheet into an appealing asset. We’re hoping to share this in February! We’ll keep you posted.


These PTE sessions are a way for you as a community to feedback on Hell Let Loose work in progress, which means we can look to implement your feedback before a patch or update is released. Although we can currently only hold public testing sessions on Steam, we encourage everyone to take part to be able to share feedback.


You are welcome to both stream and record PTE footage, but as these sessions are showing unfinished work, it’s always good to let your individual communities know that the footage is from a PTE session, where you might encounter unfinished items, bugs and other issues.


Once you have completed a game and are ready to provide feedback, please use the forms below!


Check your Steam Library for the Hell Let Loose (Public Testing) application, or re-download it from the Steam store, you’ll want to boot this version up to take part in the PTE!

Once you’re in and have selected a server, you’ll be able to test out the new game mode!

Submit Feedback: https://forms.office.com/e/ZcW9ccDYbi

Share Bug Reports: https://forms.office.com/e/UWa8kRYhMQ

Please note:

Because PTEs are run on development servers that have logging activated, you will experience a slight decrease in performance. You will also not earn any XP and your progress will not be carried over to the live game.

Hello everyone,

Welcome to our final Developer Briefing of the year. This edition will focus on 2024, showcasing a glimpse of our plans for the year ahead. Thank you for your continued, valuable feedback throughout the past twelve months — your insights helped us shape Hell Let Loose, and we believe we’re now heading in the right direction. Patch 14.6 is behind us, with work underway on 14.7, which will be the first update of 2024.

We plan to reveal the new Roadmap early next year to showcase upcoming content. Meanwhile, let’s have a look at some early-in-progress assets. These are all works in progress and are expected to be released across multiple updates throughout next year. The following WIPs are not an exhaustive look into next year, just a few snippets of content to expect.


A new commander uniform, inspired by US Army Officer George Patton; a revered practitioner of mobile-tank warfare in the European and Mediterranean theatres during WW2 – his illustrious military career only marred by brash and erratic behavior.

“Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way.”




This new uniform is a part of the Winter rework. The coat is covered with the residue of frozen conditions.




We’ve updated the rain VFX workflow on Purple Heart Lane and enhanced the puddle placements to be procedurally generated – improving the look of wet roads.






Going into 2024, we are planning to clean up some key UI elements that continue to cause poor User Experiences across HLL. Each one contributes to a lack of understanding for newer players, complex onboarding systems, accessibility, clarity, and legibility flaws, and mounting design debt that prevents flexibility to adapt to future developments in the game.

For the Tactical Map, there have been lots of considerations surrounding all aspects of the design. However, our main focus was highlighting the most important information, reducing clutter surrounding the player, and providing clarity on the state of the game.

Designs not final






For the Field Manual, we understand that onboarding new players and helping existing players is not where we want it to be. We are continuing to look into different ways we can enhance the Field Manual to support those who need help understanding the core mechanics of the game.

Designs not final




Updated on the right – the fire is completely reworked to improve performance and reduce the blown-out look of the original. VFX particle behaviour has also been reworked as well as adding in LODs that were missing on the original.




We’re implementing this primary British cruiser tank – used in the early part of WW2 – with the British Rework update Part Two. Sporting a more powerful cannon, the MK3 still boasts an impressively short reload time of 6 seconds – clearing the path for firing more rounds to finish enemies. This tank demonstrates fantastic engagement opportunities owing to its flexibility, allowing it to strategically peek over ridges in most maps.




The second part of the British Rework will introduce the Gammon Bomb (No.82 Grenade) to Hell Let Loose. Developed as a replacement for the Sticky Bomb; a volatile grenade known for being temperamental and dangerous – the Gammon Bomb served as an improvised alternative primarily used to destroy parked aircraft or vehicles.




Mortain is a new map for Warfare and Offensive modes, due early next year. This map is based on the US defense of the French town of Mortain, which sits in a shallow valley – where the US rallied against German troops amid Operation Lüttich. The battle took place in August 1944, in Normandy, France.

Units from the 30th Division, including the 2nd Battalion, 120th Infantry, and two tank destroyer platoons, were dispatched to relieve the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry. Their directive was to defend the town of Mortain, strategically utilising Hill 314 (also known as MontJoie) as a tactical defensive and overlook position.

During Operation Lüttich the town was destroyed, left in ruins with only a few buildings standing. The destroyed version of the town will be featured in the map.

Offering a plethora of notable locations – both historical and natural – Mortain features themes of contrasting areas throughout. Rock formations permeate the map alongside hilly areas of countryside and farmland.

Petite Chappelle Saint Michel

Fight for control of the famous Petite Chappelle Saint Michel from Mortain. Set atop the steep inclines of Hill 314, we have accommodated on-foot infantry routes by providing ample surrounding natural woodland cover for players to ambush their enemies and opportunities to be able to use the natural terrain to their advantage. While the Armour units must forge a path through the dense forestry, or navigate the winding dirt roads leading up to this rural central Capture Point.

Hotel De La Poste

Set in the beating heart of urban Mortain, fight over the iconic Hotel De La Poste. Infantry players must navigate the destruction of nearby shelled buildings, using rubble to their advantage amongst the devastation. Building defences at key locations can soon turn the tide of battle. Meanwhile, Armour squads have been provided routes to navigate the narrow streets of the town around the U.S’s last stand Capture Point.

Mortain is the first map built from the ground up after the departure of Black Matter. We wanted to take the principles of how Hell Let Loose maps are currently built, continuing to honour the core aspects of how the level and art is made, but also improve on them wherever possible.

We have updated Foliage, which allows us to create dense luscious forestry areas without performance impact. Stories, references and documents from the time have been thoroughly researched, to recreate historically accurate buildings where possible, and give Hell Let Loose players a glimpse at what war was like for the soldiers during that period. We look forward to talking more about these features, our process and sharing information about the development of the map as a whole soon.

The team is incredibly talented and dedicated. We’re always listening to player feedback, so we are incredibly excited to get it in front of players when the time is right. But for now, please enjoy these images that give a preview of what you can expect from Mortain, and we look forward to being able to share, test, and play it with you all in 2024

- Ryan Thomason-Jones, Senior Environment Artist

Thank you for your continued support, we look forward to seeing you next year! Have a wonderful Holidays and New Year. There's much more to share in 2024!

Hey everyone,

Patch 14.6 is now live! This update focuses on bug fixing and refining gameplay, with the addition of two night map variants: Stalingrad and Kharkov.

We’ve also made improvements to vaulting, and addressed some of the rain issues on Purple Heart Lane — we’re looking to fully resolve this in 14.7. Please see full details in the changelog below.


We’re continuing to implement more night variants with this update, to offer a variety of experiences for each map. In the weeks ahead, we’ll be giving you a first look at an entirely new map and tanks for Warfare and Offensive.


Kharkov Night | Wide open snow-covered fields illuminated only by the moon and flames



Stalingrad Night | A derelict battlefield permeated with destruction



The largest Soviet airborne operation of World War II took place during fighting around Vyazma in January and February 1942. German forces were partially surrounded, and the Soviet command developed a plan to cut them off. For nine days, more than 7,300 paratroopers were dropped under adverse weather conditions. The operation was a disaster, with the majority of airborne troopers becoming surrounded themselves. The depleted survivors fought their way out during the next several months.

After the Dnieper operation, there were further small-scale missions; however, the airborne forces continued fighting primarily in an infantry role. Airborne soldiers were dropped in actions against Japan in 1945 as well. In that theater of operations, their missions were largely to secure territory rather than take it from the enemy.

• [Added] Kharkov Night
  
• [Added] Stalingrad Night

• [Added] Red Skies (The Soviet Airborne uniform)

• [Changed] It was found that a previous vaulting bug fix had inadvertently introduced opportunities for the server and client to become de-synchronised, during vaulting under certain network conditions. This would sometimes cause vault initialisation to fail, leading to unwanted behavior. This fix was reworked to solve the issue while maintaining the synchronisation of the client and server.

• [Fixed] Undefined splash VFX where the raindrops
  * - Please be aware this does cause an issue wherein rain will not appear on Xbox consoles and will also not appear on shadow settings below “Epic” on PC due to legacy issues with the setup of Rain, we’re planning to have this fixed in the next update as a high priority
  
• [Changed] Visual Rain effects were previously broken on Xbox Series consoles, we have had to disable the rain for now on Xbox Series consoles however are looking into these rendering issues as a priority
  
• [Fixed] The options changed in the 'Audio' tab do not persist after closing and reopening the game
  
• [Fixed] "Gameplay" and "Control" options don't persist when relaunching the title
  
• [Fixed] When destroyed, AT Guns produce no explosion VFX
  
• [Fixed] Explosions VFX will move several meters away from their location when a rebase is triggered in the game world
  
• [Fixed] The 'drystone wall' asset used throughout French maps has collision in places that look passable without having to vault over the wall
  
• [Fixed] The Churchill MkIII bounces on its wheels when the player enters and exits the pause menu
  
• [Fixed] Hovering over the block button in the scoreboard displays a placeholder texture
  
• [Fixed] The MK-II Helmet is clipping with the headphones of the support class
  
• [Fixed] Joining every time in a new server will trigger a functionality issue for the VOIP
  
• [Added] The user can now skip the boot flow

• [Fixed] [C3] A large log pile asset will cull at an observable distance
  
• [Fixed] [F4] Wooden Bridge over a trench has a blocking volume, not allowing a player to cross

• [Fixed] [G4] Standing in sector G4 causes performance issues

• [Fixed] The raindrops look unnatural
  * - Noted on Xbox the rain droplets will not appear, this is due to underlying rendering issues which we’re looking to resolve as soon as possible
  
• [Fixed] Distant water reflections on PHL are displaying major corruption
  
• [Aware Of] Missing procedural grass due to terrain materials not rebuilding
  * - We’re aware of an issue on Purple Heart Lane from the previous update wherein grass is not appearing correctly, we’re looking to resolve this as soon as possible.

• [Aware Of] Missing procedural grass due to terrain materials not rebuilding
  * - We’re aware of an issue on Foy from the previous update wherein grass is not appearing correctly, we’re looking to resolve this as soon as possible.

• [Fixed] [F1] Multiple assets are misaligned
  
• [Fixed] Soviet side artillery guns are misaligned with the terrain, with the leftmost gun trapping the player once entered
  
• [Fixed] A specific yellow house asset has draw distance issues from 20m

Hey everyone,

Public Testing for our new Skirmish Mode variations is now live for 24 hours on the Hell Let Loose (Public Testing) Steam App!

A huge thank you to all of you who participated in our first PTE for Skirmish. We appreciate the time taken to share feedback; the insights into your experience have been instrumental in helping us tweak and improve gameplay, and we’re working hard to remedy the issues.

We’d like to take this opportunity to reinforce that Skirmish is optional – this mode offers a shorter gameplay experience for players looking to learn the mechanics and immediately throw themselves into the action.

If you missed last week’s PTE, you can read about Skirmish, for a full explanation of what the new mode entails: [Click here]


We’ve redesigned El Alamein to deliver an improved gameplay experience that accommodates Skirmish. Map visuals and layout have been enhanced and improved – bringing graphical consistency to the level with an overall colour and tone pass. We’ve transformed the roads to increase visual quality; populated many open, empty areas; and new military posts have been set up across the map. Please see the full list of adjustments and improvements in the changelog below.



The roads in El Alamein have had a major overhaul to increase the visual quality


The Oasis location has been extended and now includes two towns connected by a bridge that overlooks it



This PTE includes two new variations of Skirmish Mode that we have been developing named Phased and Majority.

Both these variations play out quite differently compared to Foy and Kharkov Skirmish which involved both teams fighting for control over a single Capture Point.


Phased Skirmish is based on two or more phases during a match with one team attacking and the other defending. Each phase can include several Capture Points that must be captured by the attacking team to progress to the next phase. The Defending team always has initial control over the sectors with pre-placed garrisons to support their defensive tactics.

• The attacking team must capture all Capture Points in each phase
  
• Defending team must prevent the attacking team from capturing all the Capture Points

El-Alamein and Driel Bridge are our two Phased Skirmish maps

• German Africa Corps are the defenders, British Eighth Army are the attackers
  
• Map orientation is east to west
  
• The match is structured around two phases, with Capture Points located in the middle sectors of the map
  
• Only the territory in the middle sectors can change hands by gaining control of the relevant Capture Point(s)
  
• Only the hard capture radius is active

• Germany are the defending team, Great Britain are the attacking team
  
• Map orientation is north to south
  
• The match is structured around three phases, with Capture Points located in key sectors around the bridge
  
• Similar to offensive mode, the attacking team can gain control over the majority of the map sectors except for the HQ sectors
  
• Only the hard capture radius is active

Majority Skirmish is based on both teams fighting for majority control over several Capture Points. All Capture Points are unlocked and can be captured and retaken at any time throughout the match. When the match ends, the team with the majority control over the Capture Points wins!

• Capture and hold the majority of Capture Points when the match ends

Driel (non-bridge version) is our Majority Skirmish map

• Germany and Great Britain teams are fighting for majority control over all of the Capture Points
  
• Map orientation is north to south
  
• Only the territory in the middle sectors can change hands by gaining control of the relevant Capture Point(s)
  
• Soft capture and hard capture radius are active

We wanted to try out two different versions, one that focuses on the bridge and one that doesn't.

We also wanted to see what different variations of Skirmish mode the Driel map could support and test both versions in the PTE to see what our community thought about each one and whether or not players prefer one more over the other.

Many of the rules and details from the Foy and Kharkov Skirmish still apply, such as…

• 40 minutes match duration
  
• Limited armour and recon squads
  
• New Forward Position
  
• Smaller map size

• Match duration is 40 minutes with 3 min warmup
  
• Skirmish mode takes place on a smaller map. Playable space is 1.4km x 1.12km (10x8 Skirmish grid)
  
• Sectors and grid sizes are also smaller to reflect the new map size
  
• Grid square is 140 compared to 200 in Warfare
  
• Skirmish mode features a new type of garrison called the Forward Position. Forward Positions have a distance rule of 140 meters from each other. The radius is visually shown on the tactical map
  
• For Driel Majority Skirmish, We show on the tactical map the soft capture i.e. 2x2 grid square where the Capture Points reside

• Currently, the tactical map has not been updated
  
• Some performance issues on the El Alamein level have been highlighted. We are currently doing a full level pass where we are tackling assets that are not performant and reducing the draw calls of smaller assets to increase the frame rate of the level for release
  
• New HQ locations for Skirmish mode
  
• New Capture Point locations for Skirmish mode
  
• Populated open and empty areas with trenches, buildings, and military outposts to provide more cover and improve the overall flow of the map
  
• The map visuals and layout have been enhanced and improved, with an overall colour and tone pass to bring visual consistency to the level
  
• The roads in El Alamein have had a major overhaul to increase the visual quality
  
• The Oasis location has been extended and now includes two towns connected by a bridge that overlooks the Oasis
  
• A large number of exposed empty areas have been populated with winding canyons that provide more cover for infantry and visual interest
  
• Various capture points now have new themes and storytelling added
  
• New mine tunnels have been fully implemented into the map, creating alternative paths and refuge areas for infantry spawns
  
• New military posts have been set up across the map
  
• Trench visuals have been improved and redressed in multiple locations around the map.
  
• Added a variety of trees and vegetation
  
• Heavy optimisation of the level has been implemented and is currently an ongoing task.

• Currently, the tactical map has not been updated
  
• New HQ locations for Skirmish mode
  
• New Capture Point locations for Skirmish mode

Based on the 30th November PTE feedback we have made a temporary improvement change and reduced the opacity of the Forward Position radius in the tactical map



These PTE sessions are a way for you as a community to feedback on Hell Let Loose work in progress, which means we can look to implement your feedback before a patch or update is released. Although we can currently only hold public testing sessions on PC, we encourage everyone to take part to be able to share feedback.

You are welcome to both stream and record PTE footage, but as these sessions are showing unfinished work, it’s always good to let your individual communities know that the footage is from a PTE session, where you might encounter unfinished items, bugs, and other issues.


Once you have completed a game and are ready to provide feedback, please use the forms below!


Check your Steam Library for the Hell Let Loose (Public Testing) application, or re-download it from the Steam store, you’ll want to boot this version up to take part in the PTE!

Once you’re in and have selected a server, you’ll be able to test out the new game mode!

Submit Feedback: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=dzO7_29vdE2wkFIXThwvGavPYX8LIbRMtn3WncW9OkpUNUcwUVNESVkxREc3VFlVQU9TWDZMMUU1NC4u


Share Bug Reports: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=dzO7_29vdE2wkFIXThwvGavPYX8LIbRMtn3WncW9OkpUNlpORllYSk8wWkhQT0pHNlRETkRTUFFZNC4u



Because PTEs are run on development servers that have logging activated, you will experience a slight decrease in performance. You will also not earn any exp and your progress will not be carried over to the live game.

Hey everyone,

Public Testing for Skirmish Mode is now live for 24 hours over on the Hell Let Loose (Public Testing) Steam App!

The Skirmish Game Mode will be coming early next year and we want to make sure we’re able to get feedback from players as soon as possible to action your thoughts and opinions!

This PTE will be played on Foy and Kharkov.


Skirmish is a gateway experience for new players of Hell Let Loose! This game mode allows players to get straight into the action and experience some of the core mechanics of Hell Let Loose with fewer moving parts.

This is a quicker 50vs50 experience for some of our core audience who want to hop in for a few games and immerse themselves in the battle immediately.

Players will still need to use tactics, strategy, and core tenets of success; communication and teamwork will bolster your chances of gaining victory.

Featuring a new type of Garrison - the Forward Position, each side will be limited to one Armour squad and one Recon squad; the Commander can only spawn in medium tanks and no artillery pieces will be placed on the map.

Both teams start with control over their half of the map while the middle sector is neutral with a single Capture Point. Both Teams must fight, attacking and then defending this single Capture Point. Only the middle section of the map and the single Capture Point can change hands. The team that controls the Capture Point, at the end of the game, is declared the winner.

Players within the active sector count towards the capturing power.

• Capture and hold the Capture Point.
  
• Controlling the Capture Point after the time limit expires.

• Match duration is 40 mins with 3 min warmup
  
• Skirmish mode takes place on a smaller map. Playable space is 1.4km x 1.12km (10x8 Skirmish grid).
  
• Sectors and grid sizes are also smaller to reflect the new map size.
  
• Grid square is 140 compared to 200 of Warfare.
  
• Skirmish mode features a new type of garrison called the Forward Position. Forward Positions have a distance rule of 140 meters from each other. The radius is visually shown on the tactical map.
  
• For Foy and Kharkov Skirmish, We also visually show on the tactical map the soft capture i.e. 2x2 grid square where the Capture Point resides

Skirmish will be a selectable option from the main menu, it will not be included in the normal map rotation.


A replacement for Warfare or Offensive game modes. We remain focused on giving players an authentic Hell Let Loose experience with new large maps for Warfare and Offensive game modes going forward, but we’d like to offer a substitute for players who want to play a shorter mode.

It is not aimed at Hell Let Loose players who only play certain roles, for example, players who specialise in artillery, etc.


These PTE sessions are a way for you as a community to feedback on Hell Let Loose work in progress, which means we can look to implement your feedback before a patch or update is released. Although we can currently only hold public testing sessions on PC, we encourage everyone to take part to be able to share feedback.


You are welcome to both stream and record PTE footage, but as these sessions are showing unfinished work, it’s always good to let your individual communities know that the footage is from a PTE session, where you might encounter unfinished items, bugs, and other issues.


For today’s session, there is a list of unfinished items / bugs that we’re aware of, including:

• When calling in commander abilities or summoning vehicles, the chat message will not display the region name, simply being blank instead.
  
• Redundant capture progress UI is present on all Skirmish maps.
  
• The 'Skirmish' gamemode hint is missing
  
• The 'Spawned on a Forward Position' hint is missing
  
• HQ spawn hint mentions artillery guns in Skirmish mode.
  
• Supply/Ammo Drop can be placed in out of bounds areas of Skirmish maps
  
• The Foy tac-Map requires updating
  
• The map key is placed over the US HQ Spawn 2 which interferes with trying to view and interact with that area of the map.
  
• Listing for Foy Skirmish in the Enlist screen has placeholder name & thumbnail.
  
• There is no road leaving US HQ 1 that joins the main battle theatre.

We will work on getting as many of these issues fixed prior to the launch of Skirmish Mode next year.


In today’s PTE, we’re looking to primarily get your feedback on the new game mode along with the following questions about the implementation of it:

• Do you understand why we’re adding this game mode?
  
• Did the points you were attacking make sense for the map you were in?
  
• Does this game mode offer a good experience for both new and existing players?
  
• Was the game length too short or too long?
  
• Was armour too powerful or too dominant in the match?
  
• Did you play Recon? If so did that role have a meaningful impact on the match?
  
• How did the exclusion of Artillery impact the experience of this game mode?
  
• Do you feel that the commander’s Bombing Run type ability is too powerful for this game mode?
  
• Did you understand how to use Forward Positions?
  
• What are your thoughts on showing the placement radius of the Forward Position in the tactical map?
  
• Thoughts on showing the soft capture 2x2 grid squares on the tactical map?
  
• Any general thoughts on tactical map locations

Once you have completed a game and are ready to provide feedback, please use the forms below!


Check your Steam Library for the Hell Let Loose (Public Testing) application, or re-download it from the Steam store, you’ll want to boot this version up to take part in the PTE!

Once you’re in and have selected a server, you’ll be able to test out the new game mode!

Submit Feedback: https://forms.office.com/e/Yw9M0v9Etk

Share Bug Reports: https://forms.office.com/e/P5jWYQTchx



Because PTEs are run on development servers that have logging activated, you will experience a slight decrease in performance. You will also not earn any exp and your progress will not be carried over to the live game.

Hey everyone,

Back into the ruthless darkness of war!

We’re so excited to see you on the frontlines in Patch 14.5! Battle on the dusk time variant of El Alamein which requires you to adapt to new dynamics — dusk lighting conditions sees the map permeated with fog — paving the way for different approaches to becoming the victor, accompanied by new British & German sub-factions (The British Eighth Army and German Africa Corps)

This Patch hosts new content and focuses on enhancing your experience with an abundance of bug fixing and tweaks.

Patch 14.5 will be going live today and will begin rolling out across console and PC from 14:00pm GMT.

Please read on to find the changelog for today’s patch.









A bridge too far, too dark. We’ve also implemented Driel Night.







Assert yourselves on the field with the new THOMPSON M1928A1 (North Africa) submachine gun, offering two drum & mag variants — and the SMLE No.1 Mk3 rifle.







If you’d prefer a more damaging influence, you can operate the Churchill Tank MK3.





The British Eighth Army & The German Africa Corps





DLC - Pea Dot Uniform (Aka The Erbsenmuster 44)





Based on player feedback the team has been focusing on resolving some of the points raised during the PTE, including:

• Feedback with regards to the audio mix
  
• Armour values evaluated and updated
  
• Turning speed evaluated and updated

• Removed the Panther tank from El Alamein due to historical inaccuracy.

• Comments regarding the “Waxy” look of the British uniforms
  
• Validate the scale of the MK II helmet.
  
• Change the texture of the current Luftwaffe belt buckle to be more historically accurate.

• Colour values to be looked at and updated based on feedback that the uniform looks faded.

• [Added] El Alamein - Dusk Time (Historically Correct)
  
• [Added] Driel Night

We've implemented new load screens for all maps, across the menu, basic training, and practice range.


Following community feedback, the Bren now features bipod functionality.



[Changed] The FOV slider range has seen the following changes:

• Previously - 90-120
  
• Now - 60-120

This is to allow all players a wider range of FOV settings which can help prevent the “Fish Eye” effect seen on larger ultrawide and super ultrawide monitors, players should note that the default FOV setting is still 90 so if you wish to change this you will need to go into your settings menu.

• [Added] British Eighth Army
  
• [Added] German Afrika Corps
  
• [Added] SMLE No.1 Mk3 rifle
  
• [Added] THOMPSON M1928A1 (North Africa) submachine gun
  
• [Changed] Added a Bipod to the Bren
  
• [Added] Churchill Tank MK3
  
• [Changed] Loadouts between North Africa & Europe
  
• [Changed] DAK Loadouts
  
• [Added] British 8th Army Uniforms
  
• [Added] British Helmets
  
• [Added] German Desert Helmet
  
• [Added] German Desert Cap

• [Added] Pea Dot Uniform (Aka The Erbsenmuster 44)

• [Fixed] Sound effects for going prone or crouch are missing in both, 1st and 3rd person views
  
• [Fixed] Players can experience voip not working when they change from one voice channel to another without letting the previous key go until they've swapped
  
• [Fixed] Walking over dead / downed bodies causes water SFX to occur
  
• [Fixed] Trench sandbag bullet collision is larger than the asset
  
• [Fixed] Update 14 maps have a placeholder name when viewed through a server browser
  
• [Fixed] VOIP keybindings do not work after completing a match
  
• [Fixed] Lee-Enfield Jungle Carbine has no sound haptics when reloading
  
• [Fixed] Second loadout of the Tank Commander role can be usable from the level 1
  
• [Fixed] Lee-Enfield No.4 Mk 1 has considerable weapon sway that impairs crosshair visibility.
  
• [Fixed] Constant low bandwidth causes the title to display the EULA and reset the user's settings data.
  
• [Fixed] User is softlocked in deploy screen after being kicked from a unit
  
• [Fixed] The Field of View setting does not accurately reflect the actual field of view when playing in Ultrawide, leading to fisheyeing at high FoV or on extremely wide screens
  
• [Fixed] "Missing string table entry" prompt appears when players below career lv30 attempt to choose Commander role
  
• [Fixed] When spawning players, garrisons can ignore collisions of nearby objects, including itself, in extreme cases even the terrain.
  
• [Fixed] Panzer 4 reload audio is longer than the reload animation
  
• [Fixed] Focus is lost from the "Leave Unit" prompt when the player is kicked
  
• [Fixed] Unexpected viewpoint in Recon tank Gunner seat - no reticule / scope overlay present
  
• [Fixed] Following a crash, Barracks/Cosmetic settings are reset to default.
  
• [Fixed] The user is able to initiate the vault off edges of various assets
  
• [Fixed] If the user dives to prone into a blocking volume while trying to climb up, there is a chance that they will start to float up into the air client side.

• [Fixed] [J6] [J7] [J8] Missing texture at sewer entrance in multiple sectors

• [Fixed] Wooden plank asset doesn't have any collision with the player or bullet collision
  
• [Fixed] [F2] The wall presents multiple visual issues in sector F2
  
• [Fixed] Warfare warm-up wall is changing the intensity of the color
  
• [Fixed] [F5] Misaligned texture in F5 on Driel Map
  
• [Fixed] Covered tires present no bullet collision
  
• [Fixed] [F2] [F9] Multiple grass assets are floating above the ground
  
• [Fixed] [E10] There's a house that presents LoD issues with shadows starting at 25m
  
• [Fixed] Multiple sandbag assets have wood SFX/PFX
  
• [Fixed] [C10] Player is floating when walking above the fence in sector C10 on Driel map
  
• [Fixed] [TPP] Barrel asset presents extended collision
  
• [Fixed] Windshields of the aircraft present bullet collision issue
  
• [Fixed] Flickering texture while using binoculars in sector G1 on Driel Map
  
• [Fixed] H5 Covered Artillery have Flickering texture effect in sector H5
  
• [Fixed] Some covered pallets and a barrel have shadow LoD issues
  
• [Fixed] A tree stump is missing bullet collision
  
• [Fixed] Ceramic pots have metal PFX and SFX
  
• [Fixed] Metal boxes from trenches have wood PFX and SFX
  
• [Fixed] [D2] Wooden grenade boxes have stone SFX and PFX
  
• [Fixed] [D5] Longboats present LOD issues

• [Fixed] Wheelbarrow has no bullet collision
  
• [Fixed] Leaf piles are out of place on a Desert map

• [Fixed] Rarely, the Player is spawned under the map on the enemy territory

• [Fixed] [D5] A wooden water trough is floating above the ground
  
• [Fixed] [B8] A couple of apples are misaligned with the ground and appear as floating
  
• [Fixed] [E5] A pipe is clipping through a barrel
  
• [Fixed] [D8] Player spawned on an Outpost in an out of bounds area and got stuck

• [Fixed] [H8] Bullet Collision is missing on a specific tomb asset inside the church
  
• [Fixed] [G8] Light effect is too bright inside a house model

Hey everyone,

Public Testing for Patch 14.5 is now live for 24 hours over on the Hell Let Loose (Public Testing) Steam App!

Patch 14.5 will be released later this month, and we want to get your feedback on updates to the British forces, plus the brand new El Alamein dusk map.


These PTE sessions are a way for you as a community to feedback on Hell Let Loose work in progress, which means we can look to implement your feedback before a patch or update is released. Although we can currently only hold public testing sessions on PC, we encourage everyone to take part to be able to share feedback.


You are welcome to both stream and record PTE footage, but as these sessions are showing unfinished work, it’s always good to let your individual communities know that the footage is from a PTE session, where you might encounter unfinished items, bugs, and other issues.

For today’s session, there are a list of unfinished items / bugs that we’re aware of, including:

• Final Textures for the Churchill Tank still need to be implemented
  
• Incorrect Helmets shown in the German Africa Corps loadout
  
• Some Loading screen hints will still display old hints
  
• Changing up gears in the Churchill Mk.III when starting to turn shows rapid deceleration not seen in other tanks
  
• The British M1928A1 Thompsons have US Thompson icons on the in-game inventory HUD
  
• With the British M1928A1 Thompsons, when leaning, then aiming and moving around, the gun will be off centre
  
• The tracks of the Churchill Mk.III will be askew when it is spawned on slanted terrain
  
• The turret of the destroyed model of the Churchill Mk.III is slightly floating above the hull
  
• The front & rear bogey of the Churchill Mk.III does not spin or follow the track travel
  
• The turning radius of the Churchill Mk.III is worse than the Tiger tank at both slow & fast speeds
  
• The top of the Churchill Mk.III heavy tank has an area where there is no player and bullet collision
  
• Low Framerate seen in [I6] of the El Alamein Dusk Map
  
• The mask from the DAK Helmet - Goggles have corrupted texture while in the deployment screen
  
• When ADSing, the M1928A1 is not centred on the screen
  
• The Churchill Mk.III gun will clip into the body of the tank if the gun is rotated 180° backwards and depressed to its bottom level
  
• The loading screen to the main menu contains generic text
  
• The flamethrower fuel can is clipping with the DAK and Khaki Drill uniforms
  
• The German Support's flamethrower fuel can clips through the ammo box/radio of the Erbsenmuster DLC uniforms
  
• The Erbsenmuster DLC uniforms have no icon when viewed in the Barracks or the Change Role menu
  
• The bipod of the Bren Gun has closing animation in barracks and deployment screen
  
• The British Eighth Army Anti-Tank Ambusher loadout has AP mines in 2 inventory slots
  
• The bullet impact of the M1928A1 Thompson can be heard from a distance of 45m
  
• In the Churchill MkIII, the word 'Loading' overlaps the name of the tank gun in the UI.
  
• The DAK german assault role presents 2 grenades instead of 4 when using the Standard Issue loadout on the night versions of Driel/El Alamein
  
• The DAK and Khaki Drill uniforms present misalignment issues
  
• The weapon sway of the deployed Bren Gun differs from the undeployed version and can obscure the crosshair for a second
  
• The British Thompsons have excessive weapon sway obscuring the crosshair, unlike the US Thompson
  
• The Bren is not yet zeroed to 100 metres in both deployed & undeployed modes
  
• The British M1928A1 Thompson is not yet zeroed to 100 metres
  
• The SMLE No.1 Mk III is not yet zeroed to 100 metres
  
• When ADSing the M1928A1 is not centred on the screen
  
• The DAK - Uniform is clipping with Erich's head in game and in barracks
  
• German DAK uniform and the four new helmets doesn't present any preview icon or description in the in game Barracks
  
• The first loadout and second loadout of the 8th Army British Tank Commander are presenting the same weapons
  
• The first loadout and second loadout of the 8th Army British Sniper are presenting the same weapons
  
• The Thompson M1928A1 has incomplete name in game and in Barracks
  
• Fourth loadout of the British Anti-Tank is available from the first role level in the 8th Army
  
• Third loadout of the British Rifleman is available from the first role level in the 8th Army
  
• Multiple maps loading screen presents coordinates instead of the operation name
  
• Classes that have the British Thompson M1928A1 in the Barracks screen are not holding the weapon

We’re working through this list for Patch 14.5, but getting your thoughts and feedback at this stage will help us determine any required changes before the patch is released!


In today’s PTE, we’re looking to primarily get your feedback on the initial British forces weapons and loadouts, as well as the Churchill Mk.III heavy tank.

Players who took part in the last PTE will have already been able to try out the new Driel night map, as well as the El Alamein dusk variant coming in Patch 14.5, however, as we are looking for your feedback on changes to the new British 8th Army subfaction, only El Alamein will be available to play in today’s session.

So that we can get some full matches in, this session will only last 24 hours, and will have a limited number of servers available.


Once you have completed a game and are ready to provide feedback, please use the forms below!
For this session, we’re looking for your feedback on:

1). The new British 8th Army and German Africa Corps uniforms

2). Churchill Mk.III Tank

3). British 8th Army Weapons & Loadouts

4). New loading screens


Check your Steam Library for the Hell Let Loose (Public Testing) application, or re-download it from the Steam store, you’ll want to boot this version up to take part in the PTE!

Once you’re in and have selected a server, you’ll be able to test out the items in the below changelog and share your feedback using the below forms:

Submit Feedback: https://forms.office.com/e/yinA9Q3FLL

Share Bug Reports: https://forms.office.com/e/Auxv1CmQA3

Please note:

Because PTEs are run on development servers that have logging activated, you will experience a slight decrease in performance. You will also not earn any exp and your progress will not be carried over to the live game.



Patch 14.5 is the first instalment of the British rework, complete with new loadouts, uniforms, and vehicles for North African (8th Army) & European Theatres.

• British 8th Army
  
• German Africa Corps

These new subfactions will be available for El Alamein, increasing historical accuracy for the current British forces.

• Introduced new British Desert uniforms
  
• Introduced new German DAK uniforms
  
• Introduced El Alamein (Dusk Time)
  
• Introduced new loading screens
  
• Increased FOV (Field Of View) range to 60 - 120 to allow more variations of monitor sizes / player requirements

• Erbsenmuster DLC

• SMLE No.1 MK.III

North African Theatre: the SMLE No.1 MK.III will be available to Rifleman, Medic, Support, Anti-Tank, Engineer as standard issue, the Officer NCO Loadout and to the Spotter Scout Loadout.

European Theatre: the SMLE No.1 MK.III will be available to the Rifleman, Medic, Support, Anti-Tank, Engineer roles as standard issue, and to the Spotter Scout Loadout.

• Bren & Bren Bipod

North African Theatre: the Bren with bipod will be available to the Machine Gunner Veteran Loadout and the Automatic Rifleman Loadout as standard issue.

European Theatre: the Bren with bipod will be available to the Machine Gunner Veteran Loadout, and the Bren gun will be available to the Assault Raider Loadout and the Automatic Rifleman Loadout as standard issue.

• Thompson M1928A1

North African Theatre: available to Automatic Rifleman with drum as new loadout, Drum Gunner, as well as Commander, Officer, Spotter as standard issue with a stick mag. The Thompson M1928A1 will also be available for the Anti-Tank Ambusher Loadout, the Assault Veteran Loadout with stick mag and the Assault Raider Loadout with drum mag for the North African Theatre.

• Churchill Mk III (Heavy Tank) - Please note that the current implementation of the tanks textures are work in progress and will be changing before release.

[Fixed] Players can experience VOIP not working when they change from one voice channel to another without letting the previous key go until they've swapped

[Fixed] No. 5 Mk I has no sound haptics when reloading

[Fixed] Panzer 4 reload audio is longer than the reload animation

[Fixed] When spawning players, garrisons can ignore collisions of nearby objects, including itself, in extreme cases even the terrain

[Fixed] Vaulting over double walls shows animation hitches in third person view

[Fixed] Sound effects for going prone or crouch are missing in both, 1st and 3rd person views

[Fixed] Unexpected viewpoint in Recon tank Gunner seat - no reticule / scope overlay present

[Fixed] Low bandwidth causes the title to display the EULA and reset the user's settings data

[Fixed] Following a crash, Barracks/Cosmetic settings are reset to default




[Fixed] [D2] Wooden grenade boxes have stone SFX and PFX

[Fixed] Metal boxes from trenches have wood PFX and SFX

[Fixed] Ceramic pots have metal PFX and SFX

[Fixed] A tree stump is missing bullet collision

[Fixed] [TPP] Barrel asset presents extended collision

[Fixed] [C10] Player is floating when walking above the fence in sector C10 on Driel map

[Fixed] [E10] There's a house that presents LoD issues with shadows starting at 25m

[Fixed] [F2] [F9] Multiple grass assets are floating above the ground

[Fixed] Covered tires present no bullet collision

[Fixed] [F5] Misaligned texture in F5 on Driel Map

[Fixed] Multiple sandbag assets have wood SFX/PFX

[Fixed] [F2] The wall presents multiple visual issues in sector F2

[Fixed] Wooden plank asset doesn't have any collision with the player or bullet collision

[Fixed] Windshields of the aircraft present bullet collision issue

[Fixed] Some covered pallets and a barrel have shadow LoD issues

[Fixed] [G1] Flickering texture while using binoculars in sector G1 on Driel Map

[Fixed] [H5] Covered Artillery have Flickering texture effect in sector H5

[Fixed] Warfare warm-up wall is changing the intensity of the color




[Fixed] Leaf piles are out of place on a Desert map




[Fixed] [E5] A pipe is clipping through a barrel

[Fixed] [D5] A wooden water trough is floating above the ground

[Fixed] [B8] A couple of apples are misaligned with the ground and appear as floating

[Fixed] [D8] Player spawned on an Outpost in an out of bounds area and got stuck




[Fixed] [G8] Light effect is too bright inside a house model




[Fixed] Player may spawn under the map on the enemy territory

Hey everyone,

We’ll begin rolling out Patch 14.4 again from 3pm BST this afternoon!

Thank you all so much for your understanding and patience while we worked to determine the reason why only some servers were working when we first released the patch on Thursday last week.


There were three unexpected issues that we ran into - two that were only affecting GTX hosted community servers, and another where seemingly at random, some users would hang on a loading screen when joining a map.

Working with the game server providers, we determined that two of these issues were the result of the same root cause - a misconfiguration of servers, where there was a missing certificate on the server.

We also found that GTX hosted servers had a single missing command line parameter compared to all other GSPs. These issues have now all been rectified and confirmed to fix the issues across all GSPs.


As part of resolving these issues, we have since agreed with the GSPs to ensure certain tests and changes are carried out on a GSP Steam testing branch prior to releasing a patch or update to you.


The Luftwaffe Eagles DLC will be reactivated with Patch 14.4, and those who have already purchased the DLC will once again be able to re-access it in the game.


Nvidia filters have been disabled on Hell Let Loose in response to consistent community feedback around the use of the filters to negate the intended darkness of night maps and have a better advantage against other players.


We mentioned on Friday that there are still other factors to take into consideration to improve fairness when playing on night maps, however, players using these filters to gain an advantage will no longer be able to use them.


We understand that there are some players in the competitive community who utilise these filters, and others who do not. We wanted to make it clear that this move does not mean that we aren’t looking to support the competitive scene.

While Hell Let Loose is not geared towards being a competitive title, we are enamoured to have such wonderful communities organising tournaments and events - having been growing their very own competitive scene.

In our Developer Interview and AMA earlier in the summer, we mentioned wanting to start looking at both feature improvements such as the in-game admin cam that players use to capture and cast tournament footage, as well as re-evaluate where and how we showcase and support competitive activity.

We are in the process of scoping admin cam improvements to a future update, and are working on plans to better formalise teams and tournaments, so that we can put together a schedule that highlights the amazing work these communities are doing, and will be reaching out to community leaders directly as part of this and inviting them to a separate Discord server where they will be able to help guide these conversations.



In case you missed it the first time, here’s the final changelog for Patch 14.4!



[Added] Carentan Night Map

[Added] Sainte-Mère-Église Night Map




[Added] Dive to prone feature improved and re-implemented

[Improved] Vaulting

[Improved] Mantling




[Disabled] Nvidia Filters




[Fix Submitted] Player deploys with incorrect loadout and cannot switch

Lovingly known by all as the ‘loadout bug’, we believe our fix to be holding strong, and may finally have eradicated this particular bug. Like many fixes, we won’t know whether it has successfully prevented all instances of the loadout bug until it hits the live game - so we’ll be keeping a close eye on your feedback as you get hands on with Patch 14.4, so make sure to use the support link to report any issues.


[Fixed] Throwing last grenade will replay 'Equip grenade' animation after throwing

A last remanent of the grenade bug - animation support has been carried out to resolve an issue whereby the animation of equipping a grenade would briefly play while throwing the last grenade in your loadout, this has now been fixed.



[Fixed] Texture binding present on vehicle explosion VFX

[Fixed] When all gamemodes matches comes to an end the game will hang for an additional 9 seconds before showing results screen

[Fixed] Kar98 reload is partly missing on PS5 pad speaker

[Fixed] Weapons can be fired without any input after quick switching to a grenade.

[Fixed] [Additional Content Hub] The user cannot rotate the character using a controller on either PC or console

[Fixed] Player model has metal decals when shot

[Fixed] Voice communications don't work as VOIP is unable to reconnect.

[Fixed] Flamethrower emits excessive lens flares when firing on night maps




[Added] [All Platforms] Luftwaffe Eagles

PlayStation 5 players will now be able to purchase this DLC!

Luftwaffe Eagles

As part of the German Luftwaffe forces, the Fallschirmjäger were the first paratroopers to feature in large-scale airborne based operations. The Fallschirmjäger were also known as the ‘Green Devils’ thanks to their forceful fighting spirit and tactical superiority. However, following the causalities in the Battle of Crete, they were mainly used as ground-based troops.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2623000/Hell_Let_Loose__Luftwaffe_Eagles/

This downloadable content contains:

Fallschirmjäger Uniform (Available to the German Assault, Anti-Tank, Medic, Machine Gunner, Officer, Rifleman, Automatic Rifleman, Engineer and Support roles).

The M38 Fallschirmjäger helmet is featured in the promotional art, but it is not included with this DLC.
It is already present in the base game and is unlocked at Rifleman level 8.



With each patch, we’re striving to continue improving your experience with the existing maps, including by increasing stability through various map optimisations, such as LOD fixes and collision issues.

Some assets can be too dense in triangle complexity, meaning that the LODs set up for them are not switching effectively enough to keep the triangle complexity compared to the screen size optimal.

Mesh LOD optimisation involves ensuring that assets not only LOD in a manner that is not noticeable by the player, but are also crucial to ensuring that we minimise overdraw on complex meshes. Any amount of overdraw from complex meshes contributes to a strain on the GPU, which can affect performance and stability.

While these optimisations require time and manual attention, we are also working on capturing some of your reported issues - including LOD changes and invisible collision. You will hopefully see some improvements with each and every patch.



[Fixed] Wooden gate asset has no bullet penetration

[Fixed] [D1] A specific fence post is missing bullet and player collision

[Fixed] [D5] The player is unable to shoot through the wooden plank gaps with the tank




[Fixed] [G7] A bush at sector G7 exhibits a visible LOD change when viewed from a short distance




[Fixed] The wooden stairs and floor of a specific building do not have bullet penetration

[Fixed] [F4] Small gap in rock cliff




[Fixed] [B4] Misaligned wheat crops that float sideways




[Fixed] Flames PFX are missing on some charred tree stumps




[Fixed] Assets inside a barn have stone PFX and SFX

[Fixed] [D6] A fence presents draw distance issues from ~53m

[Fixed] [F2] A stone wall is misaligned with the ground

[Fixed] [H8] The player can get permanently stuck in a tree in the top left quadrant of H8 sector in SMDM village




[Fixed] Two of the forward Garrisons are incorrectly placed and will be destroyed after the Attackers capture the 1st sector

[Fixed] Performance drops while looking at a heavy smoke through the binoculars


Cover & Banner Image by [233C] Chrysallia

Hey everyone,

We hope you’ve all been enjoying Patch 14.4 Patch 14.3.

We wanted to make sure we could provide PC players an update on this, and can confirm that, today, we’ve been in talks with the various game server providers for Hell Let Loose and have been trialling a potential solution. However, to avoid as much disruption as possible, Patch 14.4 will not be re-released until we’re confident this solution has been effectively tested.

While this issue was unexpected, we’re already working on making sure this won’t happen again by collaborating with the GSPs to ensure certain tests and changes are carried out in a different environment before we then release a patch or update to you.



Since posting the Patch 14.4 changelog yesterday, our contacts at Nvidia have since disabled the use of filters when playing Hell Let Loose, and while there are other factors to also take into consideration to improve fairness when playing night maps, it now means that players using the filter settings to improve their visibility on low-visibility intended maps, will no longer be able to use them. We will be exploring this matter further as we fine tune the experience.



Those of you who have already purchased this DLC will regain access to it as soon as a new patch rolls out, however, we want to make sure everyone can play the game first and foremost, which is why our testing is still underway.

We’d also like to apologise for the confusion around this particular DLC.

Some players have mentioned the discrepancies between the Fallschirmjäger uniform shown in Developer Briefing #196, and the Luftwaffe Eagles DLC available in the Additional Content Hub.

Earlier this year, we endeavoured to keep our communication with you as transparent and authentic as possible, which included using Developer Briefings as a place to share our development progress, keeping you informed of new weapons, vehicles, tanks, forces, and maps, etc - where the assets that are shared are classed as work in progress. Because of this, it does mean that what is shared through these briefings won’t necessarily always be the final product upon release. Time constraints, design changes, and issues when testing the uniforms are just some things that can have an impact on the final outcome of a DLC.

The helmet shown in the Luftwaffe Eagles DLC artwork on the Additional Content Hub is the M38 Fallschirmjäger helmet, which already exists in the game and is unlocked through progression on Rifleman Level 8. This uniform has 8 slight variations - one for each of the infantry roles, two of which were shared in Developer Briefing #196.



For now, we’d like to say a big thank you for your understanding and for bearing with us as we work to come to a solution, and will aim to provide a further update of progress no later than Monday, 23rd of October.


Cover & Header Images Provided by [233C] Chrysallia

Hey everyone,

We’ve, unfortunately, been experiencing some issues with getting PC player servers back online after releasing Patch 14.4, and have been working with our partners to investigate why some servers are working, and others aren’t.

We believe the best thing to do here is rollback the patch, so you are able to get back into Hell Let Loose while we continue to investigate this.

Rolling back a patch has its risks, and this does, however, mean that anyone who has bought the new Luftwaffe DLC on PC will no longer be able to access it until we have completed our investigations and a new patch can be released.

This change will not affect Console players. We’re deeply sorry for any inconvenience this may cause you, and will endeavour to keep you as updated as possible while we continue to look into this.