2024 is here, and it's going to be an exciting one for Flashing Lights! We're glad you're here for the journey as always - let's get to it!
February - Mission Editor - Fixes & improvements - Bank added to city - Bank callout - Swat van
Spring - AI backup
First up, we have the mission editor arriving in February, which will allow you to create and share your own callouts! Thank you to all who have already played the unstable version of this update and have been sharing fantastic feedback.
Also in February, we will continue to focus on bug fixes and improvements, as well as adding a bank and an exciting new callout involving the building. We're also delighted to announce that we'll be adding a swat van, enhancing your vehicle collection.
In Spring we'll be adding AI backup which has been hugely requested to enhance single player gameplay.
We can't wait to get these updates out and continue improving the game this year! Thank you as always for your support.
Mission Editor Unstable Update Now Live
An early version of the mission editor is currently available on the unstable branch, where we have just released an update. This adds more mission types and has made EMS patients available for use in your missions! We're excited to hear what you think.
To access the unstable branch you can do the following: - Load up Steam and head to your library - Right click on Flashing Lights and then select "Properties" - Head to the Beta tab and in the drop down select "unstable_test_branch" (no password needed) - This will then download the new update for you
Thanks, The Flashing Lights Team
Flashing Lights - 2023 Recap!
Hello all,
As 2023 nears its close, we wanted to say a massive thank you to each of you and offer a sneak peek at what's next!
This year has been another busy one, which included the 1.0 launch back in May, the release of the Pickup Truck Triple Pack DLC, tons of Steam achievements, the free Visor Lights DLC, the Thunder Sport Sedan Pack and a big focus on bug fixing, optimisation and general improvements.
None of this would have been possible without you, the community. We are eternally grateful for you all playing the game, sharing your excitement, feedback, bug reports, and posting screenshots and videos! And we also want to say an extra special thank you to our team of community mods, the Flashing Lights 'CSOs' and 'MSTs', who help to keep the community welcoming, friendly and fun!
Mission Editor Available on Unstable Branch
We now have an early version of the mission editor available on the unstable branch for you to play and offer feedback if you wish to.
To access the unstable branch you can do the following: - Load up Steam and head to your library - Right click on Flashing Lights and then select "Properties" - Head to the Beta tab and in the drop down select "unstable_test_branch" (no password needed) - This will then download the new update for you
What's To Come in Early 2024?
We're looking forward to an exciting 2024 for Flashing Lights! In early 2024 we plan to release the mission editor, AI fixes, AI backup, bug fixes, improvements and more. In the new year we will be revealing an updated roadmap with more information, so keep an eye out!
Mission editor - work in progress feature:
18 December 2023 Unstable Branch Patch Notes
New - Mission Editor [Armed suspect NPC; Two crashed vehicles; One police vehicle; 11 Environment props; Fire modules] - Added Christmas tree in central park and Christmas hats
Fixes - EMS players in single player couldn't interact with driver patients in "Motor Vehicle Collision" [ID 3000] - Fire calls "Structure Fire" [ID 2000] auto-completing - Fire calls "Structure Fire with Possible Entrapment" [ID 2003] getting stuck - NPC spawner for missions could select wrong mission or skip spawning - Firefighters dropping carried patients with input "Hand" (1 by default), blocked the ability to interact with them to call for transport - Player characters sometimes didn't stop burning when the affecting fire was extinguished - FEX model wheel fixes for distanced rendering - Added missing audio channel for spike strips, which were ignoring volume settings
Thanks again, and we hope you all have a happy holidays and a great new year!
Thanks, The Flashing Lights Team
Thunder Sport Sedan Pack DLC Out Now!
Hello all,
We're excited to reveal the Thunder Sport Sedan Pack, a new DLC which includes...
Police Thunder Sport Sedan - Sheriff livery - Black and white livery - White livery - Unmarked black livery
EMS Thunder Sport Sedan
Fire Thunder Sport Sedan
Plus, venture into the sandbox mode in-game to access the civilian version of the Thunder Sport Sedan.
The Thunder Sport Sedan Pack costs $2.99/£2.49/€2.99 - but make sure to take advantage of the 25% launch discount and purchase via the Chief Edition bundle for additional savings!
Patch Notes
We've also just launched a small patch for the base game, adding support for the new DLC as well as a few bug fixes.
New - New car "Thunder" DLC support - Thunder mod support (Tag name DCH)
Fixes - Potential crash fix when opening Vehicle Menu for lower specs computers - Changing vehicles during game could break pickup truck spawning - Visor lights on fire engine and rescue trucks had incorrect mirrored scale on the right-hand side
Coming Soon
We're hard at work on the next free update which will introduce a mission editor, allowing you to create your own missions. Keep an eye out for news!
Thanks, The Flashing Lights Team
Free Visor Lights DLC Out Now!
Hello all,
We've just dropped a free Visor Lights DLC for Flashing Lights!
Customise your police, fire and EMS vehicles further than ever before with the free Visor Lights DLC!
This pack gives you access to a large variety of visor light types, and allows you to customise them extensively - including colours and light patterns.
Head over to the Flashing Lights store page and scroll down to the 'content for this game' section to download the DLC. We hope you enjoy playing with and customising the new visor lights - let us know how you get on!
Base Game Update
We've also released a small update to the base game today, which includes triple flashers for windshields and rear windows!
New - Game support for free Visor Lights DLC - Added "Attached Flasher Triple" to windshield and rear windows flasher group
Fixes - Fire Engine side flasher spot had blocked interactivity - Mods could fail to load on first load, especially fire engine mods - Lightbars optimized for long distance rendering
That's all for now.
Thanks, The Flashing Lights Team
Hotfix 13/10/2023
Recent changes to how the game handles microphones did not have the desired effects and caused further issues. The game now reverts to the microphone option as set by the operating system
Community Spotlight: Screenshots!
Hey all,
Today, we wanted to do something a little different and highlight some of our favourite screenshots that you've shared.
Please enjoy the following shots which we found to be either nicely composed, funny, or both!
We've just launched an update which fixes a handful of bugs and continues to improve multiplayer optimisation. This is part of our continued efforts to improve the core game quality and experience. As always, your feedback and bug reports are very helpful, so keep them coming!
Patch Notes
Fixes - Multiplayer optimizations - NPC speeding vehicles increased and fixed sandbox menu speeding option - For some save configurations random vehicles could get stuck loading - Tow truck stuck in vehicle menu - Ban data adjustments for additional filter - Microphone selection added to Audio Settings menu in game - When using the vehicle menu, the player vehicle will now spawn at the nearest supported station
What's Next?
Late 2023 Mission Editor Bug fixes and improvements
Early 2024 K9 for Police and Fire Departments AI Backup
We look forward to continuing to enhance Flashing Lights and add new content and hope you're looking forward to it too! Thanks for your continued support!
The Flashing Lights Team
Bug Fix Update Arrives Next Week!
Hello all,
We wanted to offer you a quick update and let you know that we'll be launching a bug fix and optimisation update next week! This is part of our continued efforts to enhance the core game quality. Thanks as always for all of your feedback and bug reports.
Unstable Version
While the final version of the patch won't be ready until next week, we do have an unstable version live now that you can play if you want to jump in and offer any feedback.
Please join the Discord and read the latest announcement for info on how to access the unstable branch!
Fixes - Build 270923-2 [UNSTABLE] - Multiplayer optimizations - NPC speeding vehicles increased and fixed sandbox menu speeding option - For some save configurations random vehicles could get stuck loading - Tow truck stuck in vehicle menu - Ban data adjustments for additional filter - Microphone selection added to Audio Settings menu in game - When using the vehicle menu, the player vehicle will spawn at the nearest supported station
UPDATE NOW LIVE | Optimisation and Bug Fix Update + Updated Roadmap
Hey all,
We have just pushed our latest update, featuring bug fixes, improvements and optimisation to the public branch. Thanks to everyone who helped test the update and offered feedback!
This update, now available for all players, focuses on improving the multiplayer experience. We have seen improvements in frame rate in multiplayer, especially in lobbies with larger player counts and especially for mid to high end PCs.
This update is part of a continued focus on improving the core game experience, and we welcome your ongoing feedback and bug reports. Do let us know how you get on with the update!
Full Patch Notes
Fixes - Multiplayer player character, vehicle and NPC position and rotation optimizations - Multiplayer client vehicles optimized - Multiplayer player vehicles and characters could be randomly controlled by wrong clients - Infinite loading at menus - Name change in multiplayer fixed - Corrupt save files giving unexpected results or freezing the game - Added auto-backup for save "Stats" files, if save file gets corrupted game will check backup - Sandbox mode "Host Only" updated to allow clients to use the menu to accept civilian invite - Other player vehicle doors could be open while closed on their screen - Other player vehicle wheels merging up in car body - Various optimizations for singleplayer - Anisotropic level adjustments for all textures to improve texture quality, especially for different view angles - Removed radio chatter for pickup trucks except the police - Leaving a game could hangup if the player pressed Yes/No multiple times
Updated Roadmap
We're happy to announce our updated post-launch content roadmap. Take a look:
September 2023 Bug fixes and improvements
Late 2023 Mission Editor Bug fixes and improvements
Early 2024 K9 for Police and Fire Departments AI Backup
That's all for now! We hope you enjoy today's update.
Thanks, The Flashing Lights Team
Optimisation and Bug Fix Update Now Available for Community Testing
Hello all,
Nils has been hard at work improving optimisation and performance (especially in multiplayer) and fixing bugs. The update is now available on the unstable branch, and we want as many of you as possible to play it and let us know how you get on!
With this update we have seen improvements in frame rate in multiplayer, especially in lobbies with larger player counts and especially for mid to high end PCs. Please do jump in and play the new update and let us know how your performance is! As always, we will be reading all of your comments on this announcement, on the Steam forums, our Discord, social media etc.
How to access the unstable branch and play the new update: - Load up Steam and head to your library - Right click on Flashing Lights and then select "Properties" - Head to the Beta tab and in the drop down select "unstable_test_branch" (no password needed) - This will then download the new update for you
Full Patch Notes
Fixes - Multiplayer player character, vehicle and NPC position and rotation optimizations - Multiplayer client vehicles optimized - Other player vehicle doors could be open while closed on their screen - Other player vehicle wheels merging up in car body - Various optimizations for single player - Anisotropic level adjustments for all textures to improve texture quality, specially for different view angles - Removed radio chatter for pickup trucks except the police
What's Next?
While adding new content is of course important, it's vital that we continue to improve the quality of the game as is. With this in mind, we have put all content updates on hold temporarily. We will be getting feedback from you on today's optimisation and bug fixing update and continuing to work on improving the game for the coming weeks.
We are still fully committed to adding the new content which was previously announced (Mission editor, K9 for police and rescue and NPC backup for singleplayer), it'll just be at a later date. Watch out for news soon on an updated roadmap where we'll let you know when we expect these updates to be released!
