Greetings Gaters!

We’re pleased to finally get this latest update into your hands! This is the biggest gameplay patch yet, so update your game on Steam and let us know what you think! To celebrate the launch we’re also putting the game on sale, at 25% discount for 10 days.

Despite the many changes, existing saves are still compatible. But for the optimum experience we recommend starting a new run.

Read on for the highlights - including some surprises not previously revealed! - and find the detailed changelog at the end of this message.

Invasion waves are no longer limited to Sqarb Drones: 3 new types of invader join the ranks of those pouring into the base, each requiring a unique combat strategy to deal with.


Sqarb family portrait, circa 2057

The complete set of invaders now comprises:

• Sqarb Drone: Versatile unit, which attacks power generators and breaks through locked doors (and sometimes walls)
  
• Sqarb Guardian: Heavy defensive unit, which protects other nearby Sqarbs with its energy shield
  
• Sqarb Warrior: Aggressive combat unit, which escorts other Sqarbs and attacks gaters on sight (not just soldiers!)
  
• Sqarb Swarmer: Small unit that follows Drones and attacks power generators, using the energy to replicate itself

The makeup of each wave will vary dynamically now too. Rather than a linear increase in difficulty, each wave will adapt to your playstyle and performance, for a truly unique, fair and challenging experience.

To deal with the new threat we’re introducing new weapons for your soldiers, along with upgrades and automated turrets!


The turret was too big to fit in this image, but if you like these you’ll love that

The full arsenal now at your disposal:

• Pistol: Basic sidearm available from the start, favored when assault rifles are unavailable
  
• Assault Rifle: Powerful automatic rifle, favored over pistols
  
• Plasma Launcher: Deals damage over a large area by launching a deadly plasma shell - useful for dealing with crowds of enemies
  
• Railgun: Deals massive damage but takes time to reload, due to its high-velocity firing mechanism - useful against shielded enemies
  
• Turret: Automated artillery weapon, which targets enemies in a cone in front of it, and reloads automatically

Each weapon can also be upgraded along two tech paths: Smart, which increases firing rate, and Heavy, which increases damage dealt. You’ll want to be fully upgraded by the time the late-game invasions ramp up!

To unlock advanced weapons and upgrades in the tech tree, you’ll need to use Alien Biotech Points: this is a new currency, which is accrued by your scientists when they study the remains of dead invaders.

You’ll need more than just guns to stop the Sqarbs though - but don’t worry, we’ve got you covered with new defenses, equipment, and direct invasion controls!


An excellent example of non-authorized personnel

New defenses to place in the base:

• Security Blast Door: A reinforced door, which locks automatically for non-authorized personnel
  
• Shielded Guard Post: Shielded version of the standard guard post, affording soldiers protection during combat

Assuming direct control!

Direct invasion controls, so you can better manage your soldiers and civilians:

• Combat Zone: Designate an area for your soldiers to rally during an invasion
  
• Guard Post Controls: Order soldiers to man their guard posts, or to leave them and proceed to the Combat Zone
  
• Safe Zone: Designate areas where your civilian gaters should gather during an invasion
  
• Safe Zone Controls: Send civilians to their nearest Safe Zone, or give the all-clear
  
• Lock All Doors: Lock/unlock all doors in the base with one click

New equipment, which you can craft at a Workbench and equip to individual gaters:

• Body Armor: Reduces damage received, both during missions and in the base
  
• Servo-Assisted Boots: Increases walking speed in the base
  
• Mining Exoskeleton: This one isn’t technically about defense - but when the dust settles after an invasion, and your dusty mining missions resume, it allows gaters to carry more ore

New training unlocks in the tech tree now allow any class of gater to carry Bio Samples, Specimens, and Raw Ore during missions. This means you can send more diverse teams of gaters without sacrificing loot, such as soldiers and medics to improve mission safety, or other classes to help with events.

What might on first glance seem like a small feature, we think will address what is without doubt the most requested feature right now: larger team sizes. Implementing variable team sizes would have a big knock-on effect on the design of the game; we’re hopeful that we’ve instead introduced something that will serve the same purpose.

We’d love to hear what you think about this new feature!

Now this hefty update is behind us, we can focus on the last big area of content before our 1.0 launch: Alien factions and 4X gameplay, bringing a new level of strategy and consequence to claiming territory on the star map. This will also see the introduction of the long-awaited Diplomat gater class.



We’re constantly listening to your feedback and using it to improve the game, alongside fixing bugs and adding polish. So please continue to let us know your thoughts about the game - whether it’s here on the Steam forums, on our Discord, through our player suggestions website, or through the in-game feedback tool itself.

As we near our all-important 1.0 launch, we’ll need all your support to help us make as big a wormhole-splash as possible! If you’ve not yet reviewed the game on Steam, now would be a great time to do so, which will boost us in the algorithm and help us reach as wide an audience as we can. Or if you’re waiting for the 1.0 launch to pick up the game, then a wishlist on our store page would also be a huge help.

And as mentioned, for anyone who’s considering purchasing the game to check out the latest update, it’s on sale at 25% discount for 10 days!

We’ll be in touch again as we move closer to the 1.0 launch. But for now, we hope you enjoy the new patch, and wish to thank you for your continued support.

Until the next Exogate activation!

Safe travels,
Maxime MILLET
Creative Director, Xeno Bits

Please note that previous saves are still fully compatible, but due to many balancing changes you will have a better experience by starting a new game.

• New Sqarb units will appear alongside the usual Drones during invasions, each requiring their own strategy to deal with: Warriors, Swarmers, Guardians.
  
• Adaptive difficulty for invasions: each wave will now adapt to your performance, so it always offers a fair but challenging experience.
  
• New weapons for defending the base: Pistols, Plasma Launchers and Railguns can now be unlocked!
  
• New tech tree resource for unlocking weapons and upgrades: Alien Biotech Points, which accrue when scientists study invader remains. They grant access to new weapons, as well as Smart and Heavy upgrades, which increase firing rate and damage respectively.
  
• New defensive objects to place: Security Blast Doors, which automatically lock for invaders; a shielded version of the Guard Post; automated Turrets, which deal massive damage, but take time to reload.
  
• New direct invasion controls: designate a Combat Zone where your soldiers will rally, and one or more Safe Zones for civilians to gather at. Also order soldiers to leave or return to their Guard Posts (they are sent there automatically 3 days before an invasion), send civilians to or from their Safe Zones, and quickly lock or unlock all doors.
  
• Civilians now flee when they spot an invader - especially useful since Sqarb Warriors aren’t picky about whom they target.
  
• New equipment to craft at a Workbench and assign to each gater: Body Armor, which reduces damage received; Servo-Assisted Boots, which increases walking speed in the base; Mining Exoskeleton, which allows gaters to carry more ore during mining missions. There are also new shelves to build in the Armory to store this equipment.
  
• New unlocks that allow all classes of gater to handle and carry Bio Samples, Specimens, and Raw Ore during missions, opening the door for more diverse team configurations that won’t sacrifice loot gain.
  
• New unlocks to improve Foundry processing speed and efficiency, getting you more refined material sooner. You can also now filter which ores are processed by each Foundry.
  
• New Workbench crafting queue: crafting tasks for equipment and exosuits can now be queued, rather than initiated one at a time; the queue can be managed from the Workbench’s detail panel.
  
• We’ve added the complete list of all contextual tutorial pop-ups to a Tutorial Codex, which can be found on the pause menu.

• The Common Items section of the build menu has been reorganized into Security and Weapons, to make it easier to navigate given the new objects now available
  
• Pistols replace Rifles as the new default weapon for soldiers, unlocked with the Security category in the tech tree. Assault Rifles are now unlocked through the Advanced Weaponry category, using Alien Biotech points
  
• The Assault Rifle now fires in bursts rather than continuously
  
• Alien Culture Data Packs are now automatically assigned to empty Culture Study Consoles
  
• Improved soldier AI at Guard Posts - they will each now try and target a different invader
  
• An engineer no longer needs assigning to a Workbench to craft items - any available engineer will take up the task
  
• Health bars now appear above the heads of invaders and soldiers involved in combat
  
• Hitpoints now appear on invaders to show how much damage was dealt to them
  
• Exonium Generators will now only activate if there is not enough energy available from other generators, to avoid them draining your exonium reserves unnecessarily - unless you activate them manually
  
• Improved the invaders’ detail panel
  
• Added the correct icon for the Alien Culture Data Study in the tech tree
  
• Reworked psychological diagnosis - a medic will now only go to the desk when a gater requires diagnosis
  
• A medic’s social need will now decrease after treating a gater
  
• Medics will only interrupt non-critical tasks to go and treat other gaters
  
• A Nuclid alien gater will take longer to repair themselves after a Meltdown
  
• You can now cancel an active research project from the Current Research panel in the tech tree
  
• It will now take longer to reach the Sqarbs’ homeworld
  
• A soldier’s weapon damage bonuses are now visible as a tooltip when hovering over their class name on their detail panel
  
• Alien gaters joining the initiative from mission events will now be level 5 instead of 10
  
• Sqarbs patcher cost was increased by 10 Exonium and 5 Cobbium
  
• Gaters will get more XP after recurring missions

• Engineers will no longer craft at the Workbench if they are carrying something
  
• Better AI management for Engineers refilling Exonium Generators
  
• The maximum monthly wage for applicants to a Recruitment Campaign was not the one used by those hired
  
• Gaters assigned to a Nap Pod were sometimes asking for a locker
  
• The Recruitment Campaign list was sometimes corrupted
  
• Fixed the animation of soldiers using the Dance Station
  
• Fixed a bug where the Arcade Cabinet was still playing after the gater left
  
• Fixed a bug where the Patent Writing Console was still active after the gater left
  
• Fixed a looping animation bug when a female Engineer fell unconscious
  
• Fixed a bug when selling a Meal Dispenser while new stock was being delivered
  
• Fixed a bug where the ICU was still playing sound when a gater died before reaching it
  
• Fixed a bug where the wrong gater could be assigned to a new team
  
• Fixed a loading bug where gaters on their way to use the Bench Press had the wrong animations

- Easter Battle Royale starts on 3/27, ends on 4/1
- New old items in the store
- Fix bug where instruction to close large map was not showing up
- Update SSL certificates
- Fix bug where AK SMG would not be selectable if not logged in
- If you self destruct, it counts as a kill for whoever damaged you last
- Fix server crash under very rare circumstances

Hello! This is Otter Cat.
Version 2.0 update has been completed

Other types of defense games have been updated
You can select it by clicking GameStart in the lobby UI

The second game is in endless mode
Please keep killing the mobs

When you first start, you must select a game type


You can summon and evolve.


Summon bosses and get lucky! Greed is not good


Upgrading your weapon makes it more powerful.


You can hire workers


Complete the game with your desires and choices

InGame Shortcuts (Keyboard)
Esc: Game Menu
Tab: GameSpeed Control (requires Unlock)
Space: Move camera to default position
` : Camera fixed

-Select Target
C: Summon and Evolve
X: Sell (only available in GameType Build)
Key 1~5
- Build: select Build
-Spawn: upgrade Unit

thank you

Gameplay

• Added a Camera quick swap. Holding down the Camera Swap button will jump directly to the last camera used.

DLC

• Changed existing 2023 KTM bikes to 2023/2024 year-model. Owners of the 2023 KTM pack DLC will gain access to the 2024 stock graphic kit, Red Bull KTM graphic kit, and Alpinestars Supertech Ward KTM team jersey and pants.
  
• 2024 St. Louis, Foxborough, and Nashville tracks have been added for their upcoming releases in the 2024 Monster Energy Supercross pack.

Customization

• Fly Racing Lite jerseys and pants have been added to the locker in Black, Red, Denim, and Custom colors!
  
• Pro Taper Evo handlebars now have a Custom color variant available on all MX bikes.
  
• WP Suspension is now available for KTM, Husky, and GasGas MX bikes.
  
• Added three more Rival Ink graphic kits for 2023 OEMS. Formula (Honda), Rapid (Husqvarna), Primed (GasGas).
  
• Rainbow Scorpion wheels now have a Custom color variant available on all MX bikes.

Gameplay

• Fixed a bug which could cause AI to ignore instructions regarding maximum speed and lane position tolerance.
  
• Fixed a bug preventing some vehicles from being accessible after leaving an Online playlist match.

UI

• Combined the series overview and roster menus so all of the data for an in-progress series is visible in one place.
  
• Removed the Personal Results from Results post-race menus when Spectating.
  
• The Selector Highlight in event selection now extends to the width of the list pane in more menus.
  
• The first vehicle is now highlighted in the Garage menu when changing the brand filter.
  
• The Lap List split times displayed when completing a lap now display the correct times when riders are finishing the race.
  
• The Lap List split times are now displayed when Spectating from a trackside camera.

DLC

• Fixed time trial start position in 2024 Seattle.
  
• Adjusted deformation in 2024 Arlington and Detroit to be more aligned with the track composition.
  
• Fixed issue in Birmingham where a large object would occupy the northwest corner of the stadium when using a wide FOV.
  
• Updated the 2024 Suzuki Team Kit so the front plate now includes the branding at the top of the plate.

Online

• Further reduced minimum lap times permitted on leaderboards.
  
• Further improved reliability of lap time tracking and validation between client and server.

Animation

• Adjusted idle poses so that the rider's foot and ankle appear more natural and correct for motocross boots.
  
• Adjusted grip position to better align with handlebars and rider hands.
  
• Handlebars no longer wiggle oddly when going from an idle pose to a riding pose.

Other

• Improved performance of terrain deformation, thus slightly improving performance game-wide.
  
• Improved memory utilization slightly game-wide. Crashes should be reduced everywhere, but especially in 2024 Supercross tracks.
  
• Fixed a few crashes found in crash report logs.

Gameplay

• Frame rates exceeding 60 FPS may experience visual errors and inconsistent gameplay behaviors, especially when exceeding 120 FPS.

Online

• Custom cameras and custom camera controls are not functional when spectating Online.

For those who already own or crave the TerraScape soundtrack, we have a surprise just in time for Easter: the latest song, 'Verbal Transition', is now available.

We would like to take this opportunity to once again thank our partner AudioCreatures, who designed the sounds and created this wonderful soundtrack for TerraScape!


May you find a whole lot of Easter eggs!





Join our community:

The purpose of these dev blog updates is to answer the question “What are those Defiance people up to ?!?”

I believe in transparency in all aspects of life but especially work.

But THIS week at THIS exact moment in time, I can’t share something Really Big I’ve been working on for months. It all comes to an apogee next week Apr 2nd. (I use the word apogee as a throw back to that great shareware company in the 90’s)



I usually break up the update into sections of initiatives, but I’ll just do a bullet list of stuff going on:

• I think I can test the Rivals build tomorrow.
  
  
• We’re having design meetings about the player’s life span and the nature of time. Time is a central pillar of the game concept, but how we implement and express this is what we’re working on
  
  
• I’ve put a lot of time into planning how we get to 1.0. I’ve said this on the forums already, but I have a better idea of when the game will be 1.0 than when a particular feature or update will be available. This is related to The Big Thing.
  
  
• A fan recently asked if we will be updating the Roadmap. Yes. Based on The Big Thing we need to update it. We know better what the game is, versus last year when we posted the roadmap. As developers we need to listen to the game and you our faithful co-adventurers, on what it needs and how we add to it, not just ploughing through feature lists.
  
  • I can already see the concerned looks and hear the questions “Are you cutting features?” We’re still making the same game and pursuing the same play experience of being a powerful Archmage in a semi-realistic fantasy world, the experience you see represented on the roadmap. It’s more about how we are tackling it. Some features we didn’t think of will need to be added. Some will no longer fit as well as we once thought. Some will be pushed to post 1.0 free updates and some might simply need to be cut. This is game dev.
  
  
• We’re having design meetings about map events and how you play through Points of Interest, track monsters, and gather resources.
  
  
• We’re ideating the kinds of region problems that can occur and how the player can resolve them in different ways.
  
  
• We’re dealing with overlapping vacations of three people which is causing some difficulties to keep everything moving. When 33% of the staff are gone, it’s hard to get things like patches out the door. Phil is back later this week.

We’re exploring how we can do the town view better in the new UI. I’m thinking a top down view might be better than the 3/4 view we have. When I look at the time and cost of making the 3/4 view look really good, I need to explore other options before deciding.

Here is the concept coming from TTRPG:




Here is a UI wireframe mockup:


I think we can better show variety of locations and scale with this approach. Thoughts?

Hello Aurochnauts,

Delayed in orbit? Rest assured, the latest transmission from Digital Tabletop Fest 4: Roll of the Dice has arrived to keep you entertained! During the recent Steam festival we had a panel to discuss Mars Horizon 1 and Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life with ESA!

Tess and John from Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life were joined by European Space Agency experts, Alexia Mallet, Modelling and Simulation Engineer, and Pantelis Poulakis, Mission Project Manager discussing the risks and challenges with missions to Mars and how this real science translates to Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life.

• 📺 Watch the panel on our YouTube channel now! 📺
• 🚀 Learn more about our partnership with the ESA.

Follow us on Social:
Sign up below to stay up to date with all the Mars Horizon news, including when you can play betas and demos!

• 🐤 Mars Horizon 2 Twitter
  
• 🖥️ Mars Horizon 2 TikTok
  
• ✉️ Sign up to our newsletter
  
• 💬 Join our Discord (we have a Mars Horizon 2 suggestions list – let us know your thoughts!)

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2281620/Mars_Horizon_2_The_Search_for_Life/

We are live on Kickstarter! Today, we launched our crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter - offering fans a unique opportunity to be part of the development for a stunning indie classic in the making, providing exclusive rewards and a chance to be immortalized in the game itself!

Go pledge today and be a part of the history of Songs of Silence - as well as getting an early bird discount on the game itself. You’ll also find an exclusive art book, a vinyl pressing of the game’s OST and more! This campaign will help us to polish Songs of Silence to the lustrous sheen we’ve always dreamed of - every pledge makes a difference.
To go along with the launch, we’ve also updated the free demo here on Steam. See the patch notes below.



Campaign Map 01:

• Update Campaign Map 01 with new balancing, dialogs and gameplay improvements.
  
• New intro sequences - incl. option to skip.
  
• New tutorial giving guidance in Campaign Map 01.
  
• New starting combat skill for Lorelei.

Skirmish:

• Skirmish available from the start.
  
• Faction "1000 kingdoms" available including many new heroes, units and locations.
  
• Reworked unit, hero and card balancing of "1000 kingdoms".
  
• New skirmish map available.
  
• Full iteration on skirmish map balancing.
  
• Strong AI improvements for the skirmish maps specifically.

General Improvements:

• New main menu with additional settings.
  
• Improvements to performance and stability.
  
• Improved movement system: you can now move through your own units and cities.
  
• Improved UI to highlight information more easily and make tooltips more accessible.
  
• Changed morale system: enemy armies to not flee the battle anymore. You can now defeat them in one go.
  
• Lots of polishing, bug fixing and smaller details.

You can find our campaign here:



Cheers,
Your Chimera Entertainment Team

Hello Aurochnauts,

Delayed in orbit? Rest assured, the latest transmission from Digital Tabletop Fest 4: Roll of the Dice has arrived to keep you entertained!

Tess and John from Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life were joined by European Space Agency experts, Alexia Mallet, Modelling and Simulation Engineer, and Pantelis Poulakis, Mission Project Manager discussing the risks and challenges with missions to Mars and how this real science translates to Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life.

• 📺 Watch the panel on our YouTube channel now! 📺
• 🚀 Learn more about our partnership with the ESA.

Follow us on Social:
Sign up below to stay up to date with all the Mars Horizon 2 news, including when you can play betas and demos!

• 🐤 Mars Horizon 2 Twitter
  
• 🖥️ Mars Horizon 2 TikTok
  
• ✉️ Sign up to our newsletter
  
• 💬 Join our Discord (we have a Mars Horizon 2 suggestions list – let us know your thoughts!)

Hello wonderful Fera community, we have our first Dev Diary update for you. Our Game Director Peter McLaren does a quick deep dive into the new development updates leading into our upcoming Beta milestone for Fera: The Sundered Tribes.

Please enjoy and share/signal boost if you can, thanks for following along and keep your eyes peeled here for more updates as we get closer to our summer launch!