Welcome to our official newsletter, KSP Loading…! If you want to learn about all the current developments of the KSP franchise, then this is the place to be!


We have some big news for console players! The team is currently working on a new DLC for KSP Enhanced Edition! Based on the PC release of the Breaking Ground Expansion, this downloadable content will be all about exploration, experimentation, and technological breakthroughs. So put on your helmets and prepare to explore the vastness of the Kerbolar system from the comfort of your couch.

Coupled with the DLC, a free and content-filled update will be released for KSP Enhanced Edition. This update will include several of the features that we have developed over the past year. We will reveal more information about the features and the exact release date in the upcoming weeks, so stay tuned!


The KSP team is so excited about the features being worked on for Update 1.8. With this update we continue making KSP more stable and performant while adding quality of life features to improve the player experience. In addition to what you have already learned in our previous installment, we have some other neat content coming to this update.


Eve and Gilly are two more celestial bodies which are getting a make-over with new high-quality texture maps & graphic shaders. Together with Duna, Ike, Minmus and Mun, the celestial bodies will be worth revisiting, if only for the view.

Eve





Gilly




Ike


Minmus

Click here for high-res images.


At the Kerbal Space Center, we have reduced the grass repetition, improved blending between grass and concrete and tweaked some level 1 and 2 buildings with some new textures and improved shaders. All in all, the KSC will look better than ever after this update.


Click here to see the high-res images.


Some adjustments are being made to the game’s Map Mode. With this update you will be able to use docking mode and stage your craft whilst in map mode. The stage display button (formerly stage mode) now serves as a toggle to show & hide the stage stack, whether you’re in flight or map view and the map labels will now persist when going back and forth between map and flight mode.



If you’ve been following us, you’ll already know that we’re bringing a range of new solid rocket boosters to the game. From the tiny .625m stack size Mite to the titanic 2.5m wide, 144ton Clydesdale, these new boosters will offer a range of versatile solid-fuel options.  Making History owners get an extra bonus here too with the “Pollux” and a 1.875m nosecone to fit on top of it.

Click here to see high-res images.


We are also including a small quality of life feature to the NavBall suggested in the public tracker by 5thHorseman. A warp to next maneuver button is being added to have this option on hand whenever players need it.


We’d like to say thank you again to everyone who visited our Kerbal Space Program booth at PAX West! We are forever grateful for the continued support for Kerbal Space Program 2. Over 2,000 Kerbonauts visited our booth to take photos with Jeb on the Mun, watch our “behind closed doors” presentation with exclusive details sharing gameplay footage of KSP2, and all attendees received their very own KSP flag!

During PAX West we also had the chance to hold our very first KSP Community Event with content creators like Scott Manley, Das Valdez, EJ_SA, Shadowzone, Bad News Baron, and Billy Winn Jr. Also attending the event were leaders within the KSP Forum and Modders; Snark, Galileo and LinuxGuruGamer.

These pivotal community members had the opportunity to meet with Star Theory and pose questions regarding KSP2 directly to the developers. Many of these content creators have since shared their thoughts on this momentous experience across their respective channels and we encourage you all to give them a watch! Thank you all so much, it’s because of your avid support and interest in the game that we have officially grown into a franchise.


Matt, Star Theory developer who got signatures from fans at PAX West who visited our booth.

Take a look at our PAX West booth in our Instagram story videos!


(L to R: Galileo, Shadowzone, Snark, EJ_SA, Jatwaa, LGG, Das, Nate Simpson (Creative Dir. Star Theory), Scott Manley, Chuck Noble (Principal Engineer at Star Theory), BadNewsBaron, Geoff (Museum of Flight).

Scott Manley at PAXW


ShadowZone at PAXW



We also want to remind you that you still have until next week (October 2nd) to participate in our Loading Screen Contest! So submit your illustrations, screenshots, pictures and/or any form of fanart you’d like to see in KSP’s in-game loading screens! We will select a set of finalists and their art will be included in update 1.8.

Remember, you can share and download crafts and missions on Curse, KerbalX, the KSP Forum and the KSP Steam Workshop.

That’s it for this edition. Be sure to join us on our official forums, and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Stay tuned for more exciting and upcoming news and development updates!

You can also follow Squad and Star Theory on the main social media platforms:
https://www.facebook.com/startheorygames/
https://twitter.com/startheorygames[/url] [url=https://www.instagram.com/star_theory_games/]https://www.instagram.com/star_theory_games/[/url] [url=https://twitter.com/SquadDevs]https://twitter.com/SquadDevs[/url] [url=https://www.instagram.com/squaddevs/]https://www.instagram.com/squaddevs/[/url] Happy launchings!
https://www.instagram.com/star_theory_games/
https://twitter.com/SquadDevs
https://www.instagram.com/squaddevs/


Happy launchings!

Welcome to our official newsletter, KSP Loading…! If you want to learn about all the current developments of the KSP franchise, then this is the place to be!


Last week at the opening night of Gamescom we announced the forthcoming sequel and newest addition to our franchise, Kerbal Space Program 2! This sequel will be expanding upon what makes Kerbal Space Program great and will bring space exploration to the next generation with exciting new features that will delight veteran and new players alike.

We’re excited to introduce you to Star Theory Games, the developer studio behind Kerbal Space Program 2!

Learn about the new development team joining the franchise by watching the Developer Story Trailer. Watch our Cinematic Trailer below to see what we’ll be bringing to KSP2!

• Developer Story Trailer
  
• Cinematic Trailer

So what can you expect in 2020, when Kerbal Space Program 2 comes out of the VAB? These are just some of the features, you’ll be able to enjoy:



Improved Onboarding

Rocket science can be a bit overwhelming sometimes and one of the things that Star Theory has set their minds towards is helping facilitate newcomers on their journey to become space explorers. With new animated tutorials, improved UI, and fully revamped assembly and flight instructions, it will be easier than ever to put your creativity to the test, all without sacrificing any of the challenge from the original game.


Next Generation Technology

Kerbal technology is taking major steps forward in Kerbal Space Program 2. With next-generation engines, parts, fuel, and much more, prepare to venture farther within and beyond the original star system!



Colonies

Long term colonization of celestial bodies has become a priority for Kerbalkind. Gather resources to construct buildings, space stations, and habitations, as well as find and process unique fuel types. Eventually, these colonies become advanced enough for vehicle construction, propelling them towards deep space and beyond. It’s time for Kerbals to become a type 2 civilization!


Interstellar Travel

With their next-gen tech, colonies, and resource gathering, Kerbals will reach new levels of exploration: interstellar travel. That’s right, in Kerbal Space Program 2, you’ll be able to discover extrasolar systems with whole new celestial bodies to explore. Among them: Charr, a heat-blasted world of iron; Ovin, a ringed super-Earth with relentless gravity; Rask and Rusk, a binary pair locked in a dance of death; and many more to reward exploration. What mysteries await in these alien worlds? It will be up to you to find out!



Multiplayer/Modding

Modding has always been an essential part of KSP and with Kerbal Space Program 2 it will continue to be so. The technological developments made to the foundations of Kerbal Space Program 2 will build on the beloved modding capabilities of the original game, as well as deliver on the long-requested addition of multiplayer. Soon players will be able to share the challenges of deep space exploration. We’ll reveal more details on these and more features at a later time, so stay tuned!


Click here to see these and more screenshots in high-res.


Want to see the behind-closed-doors presentation of KSP 2 gameplay? Come by booth 1909 during normal show hours to chat with the developers, take a photo with the Jeb statue, see the presentation, and grab a PAX West exclusive KSP Flag! If you take a photo there be sure to tag @KerbalSpaceP and use #BuildFlyDream.


We are all very excited for what’s coming in 2020, but until then, there is still plenty of KSP for everyone to enjoy! Squad will continue to support the current game, and as some of you may have seen, there is some really cool stuff coming in the next update for the game [Click here to read Squad’s statement in regard to the [url=https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/187313-we-are-excited-about-kerbal-space-program-2/]KSP 2 announcement[/url].

Squad’s goal will always be to provide the best experience for all KSP players. The gameplay experience will be improved even further for KSP 1 with the 1.8 update. Here are some more details of what you can look forward to in this latest update.

Celestial Body Visual Improvements

If you’ve been following KSP on social media, you might have already learned that new high-quality texture maps & graphic shaders are being implemented for various celestial bodies. In update 1.8 you’ll find high quality texture maps for Mun, Duna and a few other Celestial Bodies that will be revealed along the way.

If there are any concerns that the update might hinder the game’s performance on your computers, rest easy knowing you’ll be able to select the celestial bodies’ shader quality in the settings to low (legacy), medium or high. Even for the legacy option, you can expect texture stretching errors to be vastly improved. With the high-quality option, pixel density will be maintained regardless of camera distance to the celestial body, as well as a lack of tiling problems. All in all, celestial bodies will look sharper and more realistic. Take a look for yourself.

Unity Upgrade

Update 1.8 brings an improvement that Squad has wanted to introduce for some time now - an upgrade to the underlying engine of the game to Unity 2019.2

With this upgrade there are some long-desired performance and graphic improvements, some of which come out of the box, and some which will allow further enhancements down the road.

These include:

• KSP will now run under DX11 on the Windows platform (DX9 will no longer be supported) which allows many graphical improvements, such as those on the planetary textures.
  
• A new PhysX version with the associated performance and precision improvements.
  
• GPU instancing to improve rendering performance.
  
• Incremental garbage collection to reduce frame rate stutters, particularly in modded installs.
  
• And many others.

While this version will have a larger impact on many mods, more than 1.6 or 1.7, the process has been tested and is relatively fast. Still, there will be several changes, due to the introduction of the Roslyn compiler, which brings full C#7 support and moving to full .NET 4.x API (.NET 3.5 support is deprecated). There will be continued efforts to reduce significant impact for Modders, but the belief is this time around the benefits of this upgrade far outweigh the drawbacks.

New Parts for Breaking Ground

Update 1.8 will also include some exclusive treats for owners of the Breaking Ground Expansion. A new set of fan blades and shrouds will continue to push the creativity of KSP players even further. By combining these fan blades with small electrical rotors and the new shrouds, you’ll be able to increase the performance and thrust of your propellers. Use them to create drones, ducted fan jets, or anything you can imagine.


Improvements are also being made to robotic part resource consumption, with better info on consumption and new improved options for power-out situations.

Remember, you can share and download crafts and missions on Curse, KerbalX, the KSP Forum and the KSP Steam Workshop.

That’s it for this edition. Be sure to join us on our official forums, and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Stay tuned for more exciting and upcoming news and development updates!