• Fixed ice spikes freezing the owner
  
• Reduced wolf health so the powerup becomes less dominant

Finally got the update built and working!! This one has been a bit of challenge due to hitting a 4Gb file size limit in Unity which comes with no warning and continues to work correctly in the editor - it just breaks your game when building!

Anyway, I have now implemented a much better way of managing large volumes of data by using asset bundles and it has been on my Radar to upgrade for a while - I just wasn't expecting to have to do it right now!

Essentially the new system allows me to store assets into neat external files and then load what I need from those files rather than embedding them into the scenes directly. This allows me to control exactly when things are loaded and, more importantly, allows me to dumb the information out of RAM when no longer needed.

This is most evident on the Norway map that used to consume nearly 8Gb RAM now, once assets are dumped, only uses about 5Gb. This is most important for Steam Deck users who have just 16Gb of shared RAM/VRAM and might allow them to push detail settings higher - although I haven't yet tested this or ensured that the dumping of information happens at the right point to prevent the memory crash on Norway.

UPDATES

1. Implemented new storage system for assets.

2. Added visible IR models/textures to all helicopters, weapons and weapon racks. You can now see your wingman in the IR camera view making night missions much easier.

3. Fixed a bug where opening the mission planning map after the mission had started would cause your wingman to be reset back to their starting point and strip all their weapons.

4. Fixed the wingman's gun turret so it no longer walks rounds onto target. It now fires at the target straight away.

5. Added in LOD levels for pilot and co-pilot models

6. Added in LOD levels for weapon racks

7. Optimised main rotor and tail rotor blur effects to be more performant.

These updates modify a number of core systems and while I've tested as much as possible there is a very high chance of ground breaking bugs. Please feedback anything you spot ːsteamhappyː

NEXT UPDATE

There are a few outstanding things from the failed update that I need to re-introduce. One of those is the modifications to the IR camera so that the sky appears much darker than it does currently.

I will also be implementing a few minor tweaks to the Wingman's A.I. so that they launch missiles more accurately. At the moment, if they are moving quickly, they tend to waste the 1st missile. This occurs more often with the TOWs as they launch them towards the ground with not enough time to recover.

Next week I will be focusing on the Wingman's ability to attack multiple targets, use the Sidearm missile and have configurable speed modes which will allow them to fly NOE (Nap of the Earth) when moving more slowly.

Hi everyone,

Thanks for playing the game and thanks for all the feedback! I put together a patch that addresses what I thought were the most important things to get sorted ASAP.

Please continue to share your ideas via the steam community forum and the Discord!

Discord link here btw:

https://discord.gg/67Qzr64f6v

-MattWLA


Major changes:

• Can rebind movement keys
  
• Can invert mouse pitch
  
• Can toggle ADS
  
• Made player character taller
  
• Made power swap animation quicker

Minor changes:

• Prevent mouse movements and analogue movements from being bound
  
• Pressing escape during bind capture now cancels rebind
  
• Increased sensitivity cap for gamepad aiming
  
• Added icon for mouse thumb button
  
• Can rebind inventory/travel menu
  
• Disable aim adjust option
  
• Disable auto aim adjust for mouse
  
• Higher default FOV: 95
  
• Fix binds labelled wrong in input rebinding
  
• Boost volume of hoverboard
  
• Fix insane tab menu speed boost glitch
  
• Stop auto aim when target dead
  
• Add demo msg to pause screen

Throughout the history of humankind, people from all cultures and time periods created monuments and artifacts that truly reflect human excellence. Ara: History Untold allows players to enrich their civilization's history with accomplishments like these by including Triumphs. Triumphs in Ara are a specialized type of Improvement that represent some of the greatest monuments and creations ever built.

Not only do Triumphs enhance a Nation's history, but they also provide powerful abilities that can greatly support any strategy. However, creating a Triumph is no easy feat - it often requires specialized items that have to be researched then crafted before work can begin. Triumphs also require more space, so while regular Improvements need just one zone in a region, Triumphs require the entire region.


This is a screenshot of the requirements for building a slightly more advanced Triumph, the Hanging Gardens of Nineveh.


This is a screenshot of Stonehenge in the process of being built.

Despite the many prerequisites to crafting a Triumph, the results are well worth it. Triumphs serve as impressive centerpieces to each City they're a part of while also providing powerful boosts. Also, only one of each Triumph can be built in a world, so the first Nation that is able to start construction on the Hanging Gardens of Nineveh will be the only Nation in the world to have them.



This is a screenshot of a completed Stonehenge.

These are just some of the earliest Triumphs to build in Ara, and we're excited to showcase more in the coming weeks. Be sure to stay tuned!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2021880/Ara_History_Untold/

What is Public Staging?
It is the modus operandi of working with a second version of the game, on which new patches and updates can be applied and tested before they are integrated into the regular live version of the game. This means that one or more updates can first be tested before they are made available to all players in Early Access.

Some of you probably have not done this before, so we have a small guide:

Prerequisite:
You must have Wild West Dynasty in your library – obviously.

The procedure

• Open your game library.
  
• Right click on Wild West Dynasty.
  
  
  
  
• Open properties.
  
• Select the tab "BETAS".*
  
  
  
  
• Enter this password into the field below the drop-down menu: fQZQ9qeeJhpa
  
• Click on "CHECK CODE".
  
• Use the drop-down menu and select “public_staging”. This is the public stage version.
  
• Click on "Close".

Steam should now download this version of the game.

IMPORTANT! PLEASE SAVE YOUR GAME ON THE LIVE VERSION AS A BACKUP COPY BEFORE ACCESSING THE PUBLIC STAGING BUILD!

Just in case something goes awry!

The saves can be found here:

Windows > user > Your user name >AppData > Locallow > MPS > wwd

*Steam labels all those builds as "betas” even if they are technically not betas, don’t let it confuse you!

The notes

• Hoof sounds
  
• Additional plant and flower seeds, season specific (new seeds can be bought in Taxation)
  
• Dung (can be picked up near the cows in Taxation and used as fertilizer)
  
• Flower pots (crafted at Workbench (Tinkerer)
  
• Collectible flowers on the map

• Moved the sun
  
• Adjusted map
  
• Changes to starter cave
  
• Streamlined quest indicators on compass
  
• Items after picking up full chest will be returned to inventory
  
• Blood decals for several animals
  
• Removed left over NPCs
  
• Improved thunder mug counting (early pick up will not break quest)
  
• Bucket weight
  
• Muzzle flash for all colt models, missing hit layer for rifle
  
• Made bigger animals harder to kill
  
• Optimized shop window (looks, mechanics and performance)
  
• Fields can now be placed and used without a barn
  
• New decals for field states (fresh, seeds, watered, plants)
  
• Fields now need fertilizer (craft from Dung at Workbench (Tinkerer))
  
• Dryer and pantry functionality: dryer turns harvested plants into seeds, food items stored in the pantry spoil more slowly
  
• Crashed wagon destruction
  
• Changes to directional keys work on foot and on horseback
  
• Improvements to first person tool animations
  
• Improved horse movement (less chances of getting stuck)
  
• Rabbits spawn further away from Taxation and will no longer terrorize the citizens there
  
• Plants now need 2 seasons to grow
  
• More resources can be bought in Taxation (seeds, dung, and fertilizer)
  
• All languages

• Ghost material not appearing on every LOD of walls
  
• Loading of houses if game was saved in a different language than used for loading
  
• Disappearing fences on save/load
  
• Settler assignment issues on save/load
  
• Disappearing arms in first person for several items
  
• Tool animation in first person (stone axe, wooden hammer)
  
• Disappearing mother in certain camera angles
  
• Several buildings could not be destroyed
  
• Work benches not showing in inventory after crafting
  
• Vendor interaction prompt missing for Momma J.
  
• Improved butter cookies to make them eatable
  
• Recipes using wrong type of corn
  
• Healed wounded boars on the prairie
  
• Lake collider
  
• Ranged weapon damage (+ headshot damage multiplier)
  
• Weapon weight
  
• Falling and teleporting Roger
  
• Dialogue loop with The Stranger (A Friend in Need)
  
• Player crafted oil barrel functionality
  
• Bed indicator
  
• Potential fix for “spreading blackness” issue in specific cases
  
• Placing farm plot on another farm plot
  
• Water tower requiring city to build
  
• Floating planks in several buildings
  
• Floating thunder mug
  
• Key binds cannot be exited with ESC
  
• Key binds not always saving correctly
  
• Jack Just’s disappearing head
  
• Some floating plants

• Fixed an issue where the game would sometimes crash when leaving the Cave System.
  
• Fixed an issue with the falling rock physics.
  
• Fixed a level 10 skip.

Hello friends! Due to the fact that many people had to stay at home in isolation due to COVID-19, we decided to add another Let's Play Together competition in the middle of the week, just for fun-with different crazy levels and (alas!) no prizes. We think it is clear by now this extra LPT is a permanent addition too :)

The rules are the same: log in to our Discord server, keep it running, play a competitive level, complete it with 5 stars and have fun!
Visit our Discord server (#lets-play-together channel) to learn more.

This week's level is

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2990777999

Just open the game - there's a link right on the main menu screen.

Good luck everyone!

Set against an alternate history backdrop in the year 1910, Sand presents a world where humanity has made astonishing strides in space exploration. Thanks to groundbreaking advancements in discovering new energy sources, the Austro-Hungarian Empire spearheaded interplanetary conquests, blazing a trail of expansion through the cosmos. However, their ambitions would be met with an unexpected and devastating twist.

Once a bountiful haven of untapped resources, a planet named Sophie was struck by an enigmatic ecological disaster. The aftermath forced its inhabitants to hastily abandon their once-prosperous settlements. Now, players are tasked with the exhilarating challenge of venturing into this forsaken desert landscape, where the remnants of an era bygone and hidden wealth await those bold enough to seize the opportunity.

Sand introduces an innovative twist to survival in harsh environments with Tramplers. These awe-inspiring walking machines are designed to navigate the treacherous islands that once lay submerged beneath a vast sea.

Darkest Greetings Underlord,

Far above the warmth of your dungeon, something stirs in its antipode; cold, unfeeling beings, drifting in the void, “tending”, and “tinkering”, and mopping up strange vomit, and driven overall by the benign intent to “make things better”. Sickening, really.


These feckless automatons have managed to reach our realm of Kairos through tears in the fabric of space. Fortunately, our creatures reacted appropriately to the intrusion of these machines, and have bashed every such intruder to death with hammers.


An early look at the new skin. Coming this year for owners of Galacticare!

Your workers are now busy havesting the dead machines’ steel, Underlord, and you’ll soon get to see them adorn their meaty bodies with the metals harvested from these useless, smiling invaders when the tome known as Galacticare is safely stored within your Steam “Archive” following its release later this year.

No doubt we shall also find some way to make your presence known in their world as well Underlord… speaking of which.


Rest assured that the time will come when our powers will wax once more, but for now we must bide our time and observe. Fortunately our cultists have developed a way to pierce the aether so that you may partake in a “demonstration” of the latest developments for the next few days while the Steam Fest runs.

Indeed until the 26th of June you may now experience this “Galacticare” for free via the Steam demo.


Should you find yourself short on time, or wish to speak to the development imps we have sent forth to survey this new realm, then you can join them via the gameplay streams on Twitch, Youtube and Steam:

• Wednesday June 21st @ 18:30 UTC (20:30 CEST / 11:30 PDT)
  
• Saturday 24th @ 23:30 UTC / (00:30 CEST / 16:30 PDT)

Until next time Underlord,

Brightrock Games

Join our community on Discord
Follow us on Steam

Greetings scientists!

From day one, we have spoken about how your Airship will be fully customizable and can be shaped to suit your specific needs or moods...well we meant it!

Our latest video showcases some of the modules and painting options available to all when Early Access launches on June 22nd! ːsteamhappyː

Check it out here:


Additionally, we invited a few content creators to play Forever Skies and you can see their Lets Plays below:

Fisk - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Gpob6xYwV8&t=14s

Blitz - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNURZCVmJXU

Raptor - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuLh1K8qm5w&t=886s

GameEdged - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gZRqhYpgtY

Z1 Gaming - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ncr7E3FnnPE

We hope you will enjoy these! We cannot wait for you to get into the game!