⚠️ NOTICE ⚠️ This update will completely wipe your saved game settings, but not your item builds or loadouts. That is necessary to ensure certain updates do not conflict with old files. Sorry for the inconvenience!
CTE Update #003 is, we hope, the final testing build for version 1030. There have been plenty of optimization passes and bug fixes, some content and effects updates, UI/HUD improvements and more. Let's go over the highlights:
What's new
Performance optimization
Dynamic lighting and maps have received several optimization passes to improve framerates on all systems. Remember to let us know how the game performs for you now—along with your system specs!
Maps
Optimization and cleanup pass on all maps.
Creek should now have less instances of hitting invisible barriers and being detected behind cover/concealment.
747 now has a ladder behind the small hangar leading to a roof platform.
Power switch boxes will now be disabled if damaged, causing the power to be cut off.
Systems and mechanics
Weapon handling
Weapon sway has been updated with a more subtle effect:
Low arm strength is represented by a jitter that gets more pronounced over time.
Low stamina will add an up/down breathing motion to the mix.
You can now use the Steady Aim function by holding the Sprint key (default [Ctrl]) while stationary to temporarily stabilize your weapon.
Most weapon attachments now have a weight value set, which should have some effect on weapon inertia, arm strength depletion and overall stamina.
Most non-apparel character assets (e.g. helmets and armor) and equipment (binoculars, explosives) have also received a weight value.
Weapon customization
Offset rails should now only accept appropriate sights: backup iron sights and low-mount mini red dots (e.g. RMR, Micro T-1).
Scope rails (for "piggybacking" optics) should similarly only accept low-mount mini red dot sights.
The MP5 RIS handguard now accepts the AN/PEQ-15.
Miscellaneous
The last few AI enemies—depending on how many were set—will now rush to the player’s position. (Note that they may get stuck on the map!)
You may now display your framerate (Settings > Video > Show Framerate) and net info (Settings > Gameplay > Show Net Info) in the top-left corner of the screen. (Note: Show Framerate might cause your resolution to be reset.)
Time of day is now randomized at map load. (It can still be set in the Ops Board, but won’t be always set to 1200 hours unless changed.)
AFK detection system: After 2 minutes of inactivity, players will get a prompt. Failure to respond to it will result in them being removed from the mission area and sent back to the Ready Room.
When playing online, you can now select the Mute All, Mute Talking and Unmute All shortcuts at the bottom of the screen.
You can now drop (default [J]) and pick up more types of items, such as grenades.
Audio
Ambiences for City (first pass) and Creek.
Improvements in acoustics on City, 747, Creek, Depot and Ready Room.
Gunshots and placeholder reload sounds for M110 and M110K1.
Breathing sounds for breath control and fatigue (the latter stopped working a while ago—needs fixing).
First pass on the general gunshot mix update (mainly levels).
New assets
The M110 and M110K1 semi-auto rifles have been added to the sniper rifle/DMR class. Variants of the venerable KAC SR-25, they both fire 7.62 mm NATO rounds from a 20-round magazine. (Known issue: They cannot attach a suppressor yet.)
The Rangefinder has been added to the Equipments pouch tab. Proper functionality is yet to be implemented; it currently works just like the regular Binoculars, but has a Night Vision mode accessible via the Reload key (default [R]).
New suppressor for 9 mm pistols.
New AK suppressor (generic placeholder).
New NVG (AN/PVS-15) model. (The accompanying mount/arm has yet to be implemented.)
New PMAG magazine.
New skins:
Indigo and Black (Jeans)
Tan (Headset)
Coyote Brown (T-Shirt)
Visual updates
Temporal antialiasing (Temporal AA or TAA) now uses new default parameters to create a sharper image that vastly improves on the blurriness of the regular effect, although it may also negate the smoothing where it may be desired. You can tweak these settings via these lines in your Engine.ini file (located in %LOCALAPPDATA%/GroundBranch/Saved/Config/WindowsNoEditor). We encourage everyone to try different values and let us know how it looks and performs:
Blood effects now include impact mist and surface splatter.
Tac lights have a new, more authentic effect. The brightness output and color temperature is also slightly different between each model and based on real-life values.
There should be less instances of red dot/holo reticles not being visible against backgrounds. Some sights also have less brightness steps—subject to change. (Known issue: reticle brightness changes may not be noticeable on some lighting conditions and sights.)
Many assets have received a color and brightness correction:
Items that were previously grayish, particularly weapons, should now appear darker and closer to their real-life color.
Skins now more closely resemble their real-life counterparts and should better match other items of the same color.
The MK18 Mod 1 now uses the more authentic FDE (flat dark earth) handguard color regardless of the skin selection. (Known issue: AN/PEQ-15 units mounted on them no longer switch to the tan version.)
The MK25 pistol now has a threaded barrel.
User Interface (UI)
Updated Customize Operator screen:
The Loadout section (under Weapons Kit) gives players a summary of all ammo, ordnance and equipment in the loadout.
First pass on the Encumbrance meter – Gives players a rough idea of whether the loadout is "Light", "Medium" or "Heavy" in terms of encumbrance on a scale of 5 to 55 kg. Each of the three weight categories is currently only a simple abstraction, and there's no actual upper limit on how much the player can carry.
Minor art/style pass on various elements.
Added minimap to Spectator Mode.
Tracks the position of friendly players in the map.
Pressing the Right Mouse Button shows additional display options.
The HUD stance indicator has been updated with new icons that display all weapon positions as well as character stances:
Leaning is no longer displayed (unnecessary at this point and at odds with the much more useful weapon position indicators).
Gameplay settings have yet to be updated to allow the player to control which icons to display. (They still only allow the option for Standing and Crouched.)
Updated VOIP (Local and Radio) icons.
Fixed/updated the display names for all skins to be consistent across items.
Ensured the full display name for item skins (within menu selection) and their short version (visible in the selection swatch triangle) were also consistent.
Updated Default Controls screen layout. (You can also now disable it under Settings > Gameplay.)
Updated pop-up Hints.
Minor art pass on HUD interaction prompts for better readability and a less intrusive appearance.
Minor art pass on Radial Menu for weapon attachments.
Known issues
Dynamic lighting on maps is still a work in progress. You are likely to see issues with sudden eye adaptation and exposure changes—among other issues—so please bear with us!
Spectator Mode (shortcut: [F6]) may display no lighting scenario and/or a pitch-black sky.
Pouches for the Plate Carrier are not switching to their tan skin variation when that would be the best match for the vest.
Headsets are similarly not matching the skin of some headgear items.
Helmets that use the ARC rail version of the Headset attachment are using the regular version instead.
This is a relatively small update, so we'll simply list the main things to look out for, test and give us feedback on.
What's new?
Engine changes to load additional DLLs required by Steam dedicated servers. This should make dedicated servers usable again, but we need broader testing to make sure, so let us know and be sure to hop on our Discord if you need help setting yours up.
Improved server/client loadout sync logic.
Refactored item skin handling to fix various 1030 issues and prepare for 1031 changes.
Updated pickup logic to handle no-dump-pouch situations better.
First pass on new Spectator Mode overlay.
Optimization pass on maps Tanker Ship, 747 and Creek.
More level design work on Creek.
Lots of lighting bugs fixed on City, 747, Small Town, Power Station and Tanker Ship.
MPX underbarrel attachments fixed.
Added controllable Time of Day to training maps – use the newly placed Ops Boards to change it.
Various UI/HUD element updates, changes and improvements.
⚠️ NOTICE ⚠️ These release notes are for the 1030 testing build, not to be confused with the actual (and upcoming) 1030 release.
If you have been looking closely, you may have noticed a new app showing right underneath the regular GROUND BRANCH entry in your Steam Library:
GROUND BRANCH CTE (Community Test Environment) is a separate install for those who want to test updates before the actual, official release.
Test updates may be less stable versions of the game and will generally require further testing and feedback before they go out to a larger audience. They may also contain feature ideas and game modes that may or may not make it into a main update or the final game, so keep that in mind when playing!
If you own GROUND BRANCH, you automatically own the CTE and are free to install it at any moment.
The advantage of having a separate install of the game for testing purposes (instead of using a Beta branch) is that you can always switch between versions without having to re-download. CTE too buggy? Simply close it and launch the regular game. Don't want to worry about possibly unstable/buggy updates? Then save some storage space and keep only the regular game install. Want to compare versions? You can do so much more quickly with separate installs.
Today, we are rolling out our first actual CTE release: a testing build for the upcoming 1030 release. Before we get into what this update entails, a little disclaimer: Because CTE Build Updates will be more common, they will also be more concise and stripped-down than our usual release notes. If you're looking for pretty pictures and prose, stand by for the official 1030 release!
What's new
Code
Encumbrance System (first pass)
Stamina and weapon control
Inertia and acceleration
User Interface (UI)
Listen servers
You should now be able to host you own game lobby without the need to setup a dedicated server. To do that:
INTEL UPDATE #006
Alright, everyone—we got some expectation management to do.
As laid out in Intel Update #005, we've been struggling to get the new character rig (the skeleton) worked out and ready for the new animations and character assets, which were the core of upcoming update 1030.
So, earlier this month, we brought on board experienced freelance animator Mike Munk (a former Tripwire developer with Red Orchestra, Rising Storm and the Killing Floor series under his belt) to have a look at the new rig and help us make sure things were being done correctly and as future-proof as possible. The diagnosis wasn't great: upon inspection, it was determined that getting the skeleton in shape—so that it won't be a source of headaches down the road—would take several weeks; possibly a couple months.
Well, 1030 has been in the works for a long time now, and we don't want to leave you all without a new major update for that much longer.
The silver lining
So we made a difficult decision which, in retrospect, seems kinda like a no-brainer: let's release everything else. If it's not dependent on the new skeleton, why not put it out there and give everyone some new stuff to start trying out? Postponing the animation and character work sucks and we're beyond frustrated about being forced to delay the main attraction in the update, but as the old adage goes… it is what it is. Might as well make the best out of the situation, so that's what we're gonna do.
If we cut the animation and character work from 1030, you get a smaller update, yes, but you get it a lot earlier and have something to play with while we get the rest of the package sorted out. It also means less potential for new bugs, as well as getting older bugs (such as the VOIP randomly not working) fixed ahead of time.
What will remain in 1030?
Although we've been forced to push the new animations and character assets back, update 1030 will be far from underwhelming. Here's where it currently stands (for detailed descriptions and media, see Intel Update #005):
Remaining features
Everything we've announced for 1030 that is not related to the character and animation rework will still be in the update:
Delayed features
All character and animation-related work will be pushed back to a later update:
To-be-confirmed features
These may or may not make their way into 1030:
We've also updated the Early Access roadmap to reflect these changes and other minor ones.
Some sneak peeks to make up for it (not in 1030!)
As previously shown, 3D artists Dan Conroy and Pau Peñalver have been working diligently on some new assets for GROUND BRANCH. Here is a little update on their progress:
M110K1
Mr. Conroy got the gas block, gas tube, dimpled barrel and flash hider/suppressor mount done for this upcoming battle rifle/DMR. It might not seem like a whole lot of progress, but that's because he paused work on it for a while to work on the…
Rangefinder
More info on this later, but expect night vision and, well, rangefinding capabilities.
Belts
Pau has been working on more character assets. Here's the new Battle Belt:
And here's the upcoming Gun Belt (with the new, fully textured chest rigs in the back):
Magazine pouches
Lastly, here are some initial (high-poly) pouch renders:
Whelp, that's all!
These weren't easy news to break out, but we're done.
We hope to have a working test build for 1030 (along with more news) soon. Rest assured we'll keep you all posted and, as always: thank you so much for all your support and patience.
Hang in there, and we'll see you on the next update!
—The BlackFoot Studios Team
The GROUND BRANCH Roadmap
As promised in Intel Update #005, we put some time aside to work on an updated roadmap for GROUND BRANCH.
We hadn't had a proper one for a long time, and it was about time we sorted it out. But before we take you to it, let's go over a few things that are important to know beforehand.
The roadmap is a general outline of upcoming features, content and improvements
It is not a final or definitive list, and it is not100% comprehensive. Because the game is in a pre-alpha stage, our scope is relatively open-ended. As such, we will be adding items to the board as we progress, but there is a chance we may remove from it as well.
How it works
The first list (READ ME) is simply an instructions column. The cards inside it explain the board.
The second list (Coming Up) is for the next update, with each card representing a feature, content or improvement that is scheduled for the upcoming version of GROUND BRANCH—in this case, 1030.
The third list (Near-Future) works the same as the previous one, but is for, well… near-future updates. It currently lists likely features for updates 1031 and 1032.
Subsequent lists simply contain planned features organized by category, in no particular order. Many of these cards will branch out into multiple, more detailed ones as they get closer to inclusion in an update.
Cards with a text icon 𝌆 have descriptions or further details inside. Simply click/tap the card to view them.
The roadmap board is read-only for the public. There is no need to create a Trello account or login.
Hit that color label
The little capsule-shaped color labels in each card represent categories. Click/tap one and it will reveal the meaning for all of them so you get a better idea of what kind of card it is.
Oh, hello! It's been a while. We hope you've been well, safe, and at home as much as possible.
Let us maintain our usual transparency and address the elephant in the room straight away:
Yes, version 1030 is taking a lot longer than expected. The aim of this Intel Update is to explain why, and also get you up to speed on what we've been working on. That will of course involve some well deserved previews to reward your valued patience and continued support. So let's get to it.
Why is it taking so long?
One of the biggest deals about upcoming update 1030 are the new animations that artist Toadie has been working on. Whether they're improving on existing motions and poses or adding to in-game actions that currently use placeholders or even nothing at all, every animation is being done on an entirely new character rig, also known as a skeleton.
As is true for many aspects of game development, things like migrating to a new skeleton, re-targeting existing animations, and then integrating the new ones by Toadie are all multi-layered tasks with a lot of parts that can break and ultimately delay the entire process. As a very small team with a single programmer (Kris), that limits us further. That limitation is starting to go away, however, but more on that in a bit—keep reading!
Is there an ETA?
In late 2019, we hoped to have 1030 released some time between February and March, and that prediction eventually turned into "hopefully March or April". Those, of course, were rough estimates, and much of that time ended up being spent fixing lingering issues with version 1029.
Currently, the main battle is getting the new skeleton and animations to the same level of stability that 1029 had, except prettier and smoother. Although the version of the game within our internal UE4 project already has some of the new and improved animations and poses in place, there are still some very obvious issues with bone orientation and janky limbs here and there that need cleaning up.
The only honest answer to "1030 when?" is still, unfortunately, "We don't know." We have yet to fully figure out just how much needs doin' in the animation department, but we can say with certainty that, at the time of this post, we're talking weeks rather than days. Could be a few weeks (🤞), but it could be a little longer too.
What will be in 1030, after all?
Contrary to what the hype (that's on us) may suggest, version 1030 will not be an entirely new game, but it should add a considerable degree of polish and functionality to the game. Here's what it will boil down to:
Animations
As laid out before, a completely new character rig is being implemented and serving as the basis for all the upcoming animations. Expect actual transitions between weapon postures, new character poses for stances, some reworked reloads and a generally more natural feeling character.
We are hoping to get out the new prone stance in this update, but this is the area that is subject to the most change. Thus, it is not yet clear what state—if any—it will be in at this time.
Here's some of the WIP animation work that Toadie has shared over the months on Twitter:
And here's an exclusive look at the (also WIP) poses and transitions for the High/Ready/Low weapon positions when obstructed, i.e. too close to an obstacle:
Like everything else in the GROUND BRANCH Early Access, animation work will be an ongoing iterative process, and 1030 will be just an initial taste of what's to come in that department. We'll keep adding polish, new sequences and accompanying actions for both players as well as A.I. over the course of development.
Encumbrance system
1030 will include the first iteration of the encumbrance system. This initial pass will add stamina, which is affected by both loadout weight and movement—the more you carry and the faster you move, the less stamina you'll have. The less stamina you have, the less you will be able to sprint and the more weapon sway you will experience when aiming.
Arm fatigue is also tracked independently, so even if your stamina is at maximum levels, your aim will still become less stable over time from holding your weapon at the Ready (muzzle forward) and Engaged (ADS) positions. Heavier weapons also mean more arm fatigue, so you might want to think twice before taking an LMG or mounting a dozen attachments to your AR.
Inertia and effects on ready times are also coming, but we'll save the details for the Build Update.
Soundscapes
Small Town, Depot, Storage Facility and all training maps are set to have day and night soundscapes, also known as environment or ambient sounds. Our intrepid sound engineer Mikson hopes to be able to get even more maps done in time for 1030. Hell, he says he might even be able to get them all done by then. Rookie mistake, Mik, but we're rooting for ya.
Anyway, here's a little demo we released a few days ago:
One cool detail he's snuck into these soundscapes are the crickets: they'll go quiet once the player is close enough to their location, which is not only clever but also has the interesting prospect of alerting other players of one's presence nearby. We're cool with all of this as long as he keeps them away from our faces.
New character assets
As we have previously shown in this album right here, there's a load of new character assets making their way into GROUND BRANCH. Most of the existing apparel (as well as arms and hands) is being replaced with new, shiny models, and a few additional items will be added as well. What we have not shown yet are these bad boys:
New PvP maps
John has put together a couple maps for PvP: one is an upgraded version of the test Paintball map…
And the other one branched out from the concept of the old Nature Area benchmark map:
Shootable/interactive lights
John has also rigged up a basic implementation of interactive lights, demonstrated in the video below:
[previewyoutube="6CUnda7JkxM;full"]
As shown, the system will allow lights to be shot out and also switched off. Although the video uses a basic light switch for the demonstration, the switch can be anything the player interacts with to turn a given light (or a set of lights) off: a regular light switch, a lever, a distribution board…
The aim for 1030 is to have the system in place for Depot and the training maps so we can get the initial experimentation going.
New weapons
We have a few shooters coming to 1030:
A tac'd out FAL with accessory rails and the G3A3 are two additions to the battle rifle department, with the later mostly serving as an OPFOR weapon.
Now that we finally have a bolt-action animation, the M24 SWS is making its return to GROUND BRANCH as the one true sniper rifle in the armory.
Cool, so that sums up 1030. What else is going on?
We're glad you asked. Here is some intel on things to look forward to later in development, i.e. at some point after 1030:
Dev Team expansion
As we hinted at earlier, our core BlackFoot Studios staff consisting of John, Kris, Scopey and Mikson has received some reinforcements. Toadie (aka toadie2k), as you already know, has been handling animations for the past several months.
But we have yet to officially introduce Daniel Conroy, our newest collaborator. Dan is a hard surface artist now in charge of weapon and general equipment models, having previously worked on VR shooter Onward. You can check out some of his work and background here, and you can get a load of what he's been working on below:
↑ Leave a comment if you know the name of this rifle. First person who can name at least 4 main parts gets the impressed Obama meme.
There are a few additional members joining our ranks soon, but more on that at another time.
Art overhaul
A lot of what we've shown so far reflects the art overhaul process that will be happening over many months to come. We've been working hard on the details of apparel, gear and weapons we'd like the game to have, and we want them to not only have variety and authenticity but polish and art consistency as well.
An art overhaul wouldn't be complete without a new UI, which we have yours truly working on. Here's a little mock-up concept of where it's currently headed—but keep in mind that it's merely a (very WIP) concept and does not necessarily reflect final features, items or visuals:
Other news
Roadmap
You guys have been asking for a proper roadmap for a while now, and we finally managed to put some time aside to work on one. We'll be making it public very soon.
HUGE news incoming
We have some seriously exciting news coming out very soon and the future of GROUND BRANCH is looking very, very good indeed. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is all.
We've fixed an issue introduced with patch 1029.3 that caused some Windows 7 users to not be able to launch GROUND BRANCH.
⚠️ Coming from a previous version of the game? Issues with controls, loadouts, assets or settings?
We strongly recommend players coming from an older version of the game to delete all files located in %LOCALAPPDATA%/GroundBranch/Saved/Config/WindowsNoEditor (paste file path onto your File Explorer address bar and hit [Enter] to go to folder). NOTE: This will remove all saved settings and loadouts.
For those who can afford it, we suggest a full reinstall: it may fix broken/missing features introduced in this version, as well as issues with controls, assets, settings and even performance. To ensure a clean reinstall, you need to manually delete all files located in these folders:
All dedicated servers must be updated to work with the current version. Make sure yours is up-to-date so players can enjoy the latest version of GROUND BRANCH!
Fixed Windows 7 compatibility
We found that after updating Wwise (the audio middleware we're using) to work with UE4.24, it was trying to use xinput1_4.dll—part of a library that is not available on Windows 7. We've removed the references to those libraries, as they're not required by the game.
Yep—that's it!
This has been Build Update #024!
If you missed our last update, be sure to check it out here as it has some important news and some nice previews.
Be safe, be well, and we'll see you on the next one.
—The BlackFoot Studios Team
Version info & change log
Game version: 1029.4
Client
Steam Build ID: 4817136 Size: 33 MB
Dedicated server
Steam Build ID: 4817141 Size: 12 MB
CODE
* commented out references to XInput.lib & dinput8.lib in AkAudio_Windows.Build.cs
BUILD UPDATE #023
⚠️ Issues starting the game since the update?
If you're unable to launch GROUND BRANCH since updating, please download and install the latest version of Microsoft Visual Studio (x64: vc_redist.x64.exe) from here.
How's everyone doing?
Staying inside? Fingers off face? How long has it been since you washed your hands? A while? Then go wash 'em again. We'll wait, it's fine.
You know Covid-19 is out there and it's everywhere. And the initial belief that it is rarely dangerous to the young and healthy is appearing less and less reliable every day. We don't need to remind you to be safe, stay inside and take it seriously, but we will anyway: Please be safe, stay inside and take it seriously.
• • • • •
Before we move on to this build's contents, we'd like to give you all a little update on things.
A little update on things
As some of you might recall, we had originally planned for 1030 to hit sometime around February or March. But as no plan survives first contact, that simply proved impossible—our last patch, primarily intended to fix the "Requesting Rules" and other connectivity bugs, didn't. After a lot of aggravation, Kris chased down some Steam/Steamworks plugin issues and migrated the engine and base code from 1030 (which was and remains in development) to retro-fix the 1029 problem. It seems to have eventually worked out, so that's what we're putting out here.
When is 1030 coming?
We know you're probably very eager for 1030 and we truly share your frustration—we can't wait to play it ourselves. But in addition to all the time and effort spent on the persistent 1029 bug, there's also the issue that 1030 is set to be a massive update, which means a massive amount of work and a massive number of things that can break. With that in mind, there's no real ETA on version 1030 of GROUND BRANCH at this time, as any forecast can be thwarted just as easily as it can be made.
Token of gratitude
Everyone's patience and support has been greatly appreciated, and as a little "thank you" gift, we've compiled all the awesome upcoming apparel that the very talented Pau Peñalver has modelled so far for GROUND BRANCH right here, including a lot of process images for those interested in 3D and surface work. Pau has been working on these new assets for a while, and although we've shared some of these pics before, there are a few exclusives in the mix and the whole album may be fresh if you're a newcomer.
⚠️ Coming from a previous version of the game? Issues with controls, loadouts, assets or settings?
We strongly recommend players coming from an older version of the game to delete all files located in %LOCALAPPDATA%/GroundBranch/Saved/Config/WindowsNoEditor (paste file path onto your File Explorer address bar and hit [Enter] to go to folder). NOTE: This will remove all saved settings and loadouts.
For those who can afford it, we suggest a full reinstall: it may fix broken/missing features introduced in this version, as well as issues with controls, assets, settings and even performance. To ensure a clean reinstall, you need to manually delete all files located in these folders:
All dedicated servers must be updated to work with the current version. Make sure yours is up-to-date so players can enjoy the latest version of GROUND BRANCH!
Fixes and changes
Server connectivity
Connectivity issues should hopefully have been fixed for good this time around.
[WIP] Climbing
As a result of moving some base code from 1030 into 1029, the core functionality for climbing is now available to preview. It’s really just the core functionality—there are no animations yet and it looks unsurprisingly funky, but it does open up some interesting gameplay possibilities and it should be a fun ability to try out.
To climb, press Jump (default Spacebar) near an object and your character will climb—or rather sorta float—onto it. Climbing is currently limited to objects that are about chest-height. That height will be tested and revised as we go, and we’ll be sure to add sensible limits to what can or not be climbed along the way.
Because it’s only a core functionality with no animations, basic collision will keep players from vaulting through smaller windows and similar openings without sufficient room for a standing character, so keep that in mind when rounds start flying!
Jumping height decreased
Now that we can (very crudely) climb and vault, jumping is no longer needed to get players out of dead-ends and is now limited to a short leap. No animation for that either—we’re working on getting those in for 1030.
[WIP] Sound occlusion
We’re slowly migrating the sound occlusion from UE4’s built-in solution onto Wwise. It’s only a first pass, but you should notice a clearer distinction between sounds that happen outdoors while you’re indoors and vice versa, for example. There is currently no distinction for windows, doors and such openings yet, however, which means that when shooting out of a window you will hear gunshots as if they were on the other side of a wall. The same applies for, say, hearing close fire through an open doorway—sound occlusion will kick in despite there being no obstacle between yourself and the shooter.
Also, have you checked out the official GROUND BRANCH FAQ yet? It's got a comprehensive insight into what's coming and what isn't, and should answer most questions newcomers have.
We’ll leave you with a quick reminder to stay at home, keep your hands clean and hang in there.
—The BlackFoot Studios Team
Version info & change log
Game version: 1029.3
Client
Steam Build ID: 4794648 Size: 2.1 GB
Dedicated server
Steam Build ID: 4794655 Size: 214 MB
GENERAL
* updated engine 4.23 to 4.24 * changed base game code * jumping is now done via tap and height is much lower * basic climbing (no animation) is possible by pressing and holding Jump near objects * replaced usage of third-party Steam/Steamworks plugin to in-house implementation * updated all affect C++ and Blueprints * rebuilt lighting on all maps due to engine update
AUDIO
* increased occlusion on spatial audio volumes via Wwise
Build Update #022 is here with version 1029.2, a hotfix patch that should take care of the connectivity issues that have been keeping multiplayer rather broken, as well as a few other miscellaneous fixes.
› This is a crucial update for online play!
If you're a server admin, be sure to update your dedicated server. In other news:
🔥 SALE: Save 25% on GROUND BRANCH 🔥
This year's Steam® Lunar New Year Sale will run from January 23rd (1pm EST / 6pm GMT) to January 27th, during which time GROUND BRANCH will be 25% OFF.
Spread the word, maybe even gift a copy, and let's get that player count up!
⚠️ Coming from a previous version of the game? Issues with controls, loadouts, assets or settings?
We strongly recommend players coming from an older version of the game to delete all files located in %LOCALAPPDATA%/GroundBranch/Saved/Config/WindowsNoEditor (paste file path onto your File Explorer address bar and hit [Enter] to go to folder). NOTE: This will remove all saved settings and loadouts.
For those who can afford it, we suggest a full reinstall: it may fix broken/missing features introduced in this version, as well as issues with controls, assets, settings and even performance. To ensure a clean reinstall, you need to manually delete all files located in these folders:
All dedicated servers must be updated to work with the current version. Make sure yours is up-to-date so players can enjoy the latest version of GROUND BRANCH!
Fixes and changes
Server connectivity
Being stuck while requesting rules, servers requiring frequent restarts and other related connectivity issues have been fixed. As always, thanks for all the reports that helped Kris zero in on the problem and purge it.
A.I.
A bug in the enemy A.I. perception has been mitigated to make it more reactive, particularly at close quarters. Their detection at range may have been compromised in the process, but we haven't been able to determine for sure. (We opted to not hold the connectivity fix back any longer, so we'll be fixin and tweakin' this bit of the A.I. as we go.)
Miscellaneous
Hitting Cancel when requesting rules now stops the request and removes the overlay instead of kicking you back to the Main Menu.
[Online] Sidearm holsters are once again visible.
General cleanup on Depot map—mainly collision and things that defied gravity.
Bushes have been optimized for better collision and overdraw.
Tweaked placement of the suppressor on the M17 pistol to line up properly.
[Online] Magazines make a sound again when dropped, and only become interactive (i.e. able to picked up) after they collide with something.
FIxed SDASS Custom not cycling the action when firing mid-reload.
Updated old Breaching Charge blueprints to ensure the correct number of charges is carried.
What's next?
Big update 1030 is still under development and we're estimating to have it ready within the next few months. Version 1030 is set to bring in all-new character assets (arms, apparel, camos…), new animations by seasoned Arma 3 community modeller and animator Toadie—as well as the accompanying actions/functions for them—and other sweet stuff like new gear, ambient map sounds, and more.
We'll get an Intel Update or two out in the meantime to keep everyone posted and provide some sneak peeks. Stay tuned!
Also, have you checked out the official GROUND BRANCH FAQ yet? It's got a comprehensive insight into what's coming and what isn't, and should answer most questions newcomers have.
Oh, and don't forget:
🔥 GROUND BRANCH is 25% OFF until January 27th!
So let your friends know and grab an extra copy if you're feeling generous! Every purchase helps us take the game further.
We hope 2020's been treating you well so far, and we'll see you on the next update.
—The BlackFoot Studios Team
Version info & change log
Game version: 1029.2
Client
Steam Build ID: 4598942 Size: 416 MB
Dedicated server
Steam Build ID: 4598947 Size: 40 MB
FIXES
* FIXED Depot issues * Possible to get into river at boat spawn * Large rocks around river area do not extend into ground * Various trees not properly grounded and sticking above terrain * Hovering wall section above ground * Barrels hovering above ground * Electrical box hovering above ground * Various places getting stuck on collision along river edge * Various large rocks no properly grounded with terrain * FIXED M17 suppressor not lined up properly * FIXED missing polygons in end of Depot bridge (remade section) * FIXED wall clipping issues on User Arena 2 map * FIXED map list generator using "GameMode" instead of the "Game" to specify which game mode class a map should use * FIXED Admin UI not displaying message overlay when executing a command or filling a request * For whatever reason, the existing version would not be visible on screen no matter what you did (replacing it with a copy of the pre-connect overlay used by the server browser fixed the problem) * FIXED encoding/decoding GBHolster in relation to replication * FIXED Server Browser filtering by game mode * FIXED being able to place the EBR Extended Rail on another EBR Extended Rail * FIXED WBP_UseItemMenu overriding mouse left/right, causing mag dumps if used while firing * FIXED dropped magazines not being interactive or making noise on client due to previous changes to GBDroppedItem class
CONTENT
* Optimized polygons on bush models for better line check collision and reduced overdraw
CODE
* added info to RelativePriority >= EBTNodeRelativePriority::Same error in UBehaviorTreeComponent::RequestExecution() * cleaned up and named all Blackboard Based Condition decorators in attempt to locate buggy bEnemyLOS one * removed duplicate Has bEnemyLOS? decorator – hope it doesn't break the BT * updated FSightGroup::AddSight() to add IsValidLowLevel() check to each GroupdSightComponent, as they keep getting GC'd or something while be added
* updated GBFirearm * added IsLowLevelCheck() checks to GroupedSightComponents usage * added FMath::Max() check to prevent possible divide by zero in FSightGroup::AddSight(). * added additional logging to AGBGameSession::ApproveLogin() to help track connection issue * modified AGBGameMode::PreLogin() * now call Supe::PreLogin() before call GBGameSession->ApproveLogin(), if error message is empty * added additional logging to help track connection issue * updated WBP_ServerBrowser * added timeout when getting rules to auto-fail after 10–15 seconds * hitting cancel when requesting rules now stops the requests and removes the overlay instead of kicking you back to the Main Menu * added hack to UZKMapList::Init() to replace usage of "GameMode" with "Game" in existing map list entries * added bGameModeParamRequired member variable to UZKSettings class * Makes sure that "Game=" is always included in any command related to changing the map Defaults to true. Made optional so that if the plugin is used with a game that only has one game mode etc., it'll skip the check * updated UZKCommands::HandleChangeMap( ) to check if "Game" option exists before allowing command to execute if bGameModeParamRequired is true * updated UZKMapList::GetNextMapListEntry() to check if "Game" option exists in an entry before considering it as valid if bGameModeParamRequired is true * updated UZKMapList::StartMapList() to use the first valid map entry instead of the first entry * updated UZKAdmin::FileRequest() to return true if the request is valid, but there are no lines to return * updated GBPouch encode/decode implementation based on recent changes to GBHolster * updated BP_BreachingCharge & BP_Pouch_BreachingCharge * cleaned up or removed old logic * moved handling of detonator to pouch * made sure detonator exists when pouch is decoded or refilled * moved AGBItem::OnBeingDropped() call to GBDroppedItem class so that it is called on both the server and client * updated GBFriearm * created OnBeingDropped() so that client has a chance to force audio loops to end when firearm is dropped (in case OnBeingUnequipped() fails) * updated OnRemovedFromCharacter() to ensure that SetRecoilCount() is call on the OldParentCharacter * updated AM_Reload_PumpAction to try and improve pump action reload syncing * updated BP_SDASS_Martial * added timer when fired without hand on foregrip that will loop back to pump when hand has been placed back on the foregrip. * forced reload to always use ChamberSingleRound due to the ChamberRound section always failing to sync properly :(
This is a small patch mainly intended to fix the various game crashes and connectivity issues introduced in version 1029.
⚠️ Coming from a previous version of the game? Issues with controls, loadouts, assets or settings?
We strongly recommend players coming from an older version of the game to delete all files located in %LOCALAPPDATA%/GroundBranch/Saved/Config/WindowsNoEditor (paste file path onto your File Explorer address bar and hit Enter to go to folder). NOTE: This will remove all saved settings and loadouts.
For those who can afford it, we suggest a full reinstall: it may fix broken/missing features introduced in this version, as well as issues with controls, assets, settings and even performance. To ensure a clean reinstall, you need to manually delete all files located in these folders:
All dedicated servers must be updated to work with the current version. Make sure yours is up-to-date so players can enjoy the latest version of GROUND BRANCH!
Fixes
Kris went over the code side of things to fix the crashes and connectivity issues brought on by 1029. Thanks for all the reports and crash logs!
Cleaned up some bad navmeshes in Depot, Small Town and 747 so bots won’t get stuck in (or not go to) certain areas. Bad navmeshes!
What's next?
Patch 1029.2 will fix a few less pressing issues from 1029 that didn’t make the cut.
This has been Build Update #021!
The GROUND BRANCH community is on Discord, the Steam® Community Hub, Reddit, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Reach out with your questions, suggestions and issues and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. Also, make sure you check out our official FAQ—it’s guaranteed to have some As for your Qs.
🎄 Holiday break 🎄
We’re taking a little time off the game for a week or two to enjoy the holidays. You may still see some of us around here and there—can’t leave y’all unsupervised that long—it just won’t be as common. Afterwards, we’re back to working on the 1029.2 hotfix and the big 1030 update.
Thank you all so much for a great year in the development of GROUND BRANCH. We feel like it’s really coming together and we wouldn’t have gotten this far if you all hadn’t hopped on board. Sharing our vision in this passion project with new players, veterans, streamers, content creators and orphans of the genre alike has been fantastic and we’re nothing but thankful for all the support.
Happy Holidays, everyone! We’ll see you in 2020.
—The BlackFoot Studios Team
Version info & change log
Game version: 1029.1
Client
Steam Build ID: 4502655 Size: 119 MB
Dedicated server
Steam Build ID: 4502665 Size: 28.1 MB
FIXES
* FIXED various AI navigation issues in 747, Depot and Small Town
CODE
* cleaned out unused functions from GBGameViewportClient * removed usage of ConstructorHelpers from GBBotManager to fix related crash * updated GBFirearm * moved some logic from OnBeingUnequipped() to OnRemoveFromCharacter() to ensure that logic is called even if the firearm being equipped isn't detected. * added check in BeginDestroy() to prevent it trying to stop sounds on a dedicated server to hopefully fix a crash related to the server removing listeners in Wwise when there are none. * updated GBItem::UpdateSkin_Implementation() to try to fix crash related to a MID not being created correctly by engine due to the primitive component owner being invalid in some way.
* created M_Widget3DPassThrough based on suggestion to correct washed out look for web-based MOTD * see https://forums.unrealengine.com/development-discussion/rendering/91810-browser-3d-widget-looks-washed-out * created UGBGameplayStatics::IsNetReady() * takes PlayerController, finds the matching net connection (if any) and returns the value of IsNetReady() * updated GBGameMode * moved adding players to waiting queue from HandleStartingNewPlayer() to PostLogin(). * updated NewPlayerWaitingTimer() to use UGBGameplayStatics::IsNetReady() to make sure a player can received RPC's before attempting to call ClientInitialSync(). * updated GBCharacter::NetMulticastPlayVoice_Implementation() * added IsAlive() check to prevent trying to start playing voice for dead/dying character * changed check(VoiceAudioComponent) to return if VoiceAudioComponent is a nullptr instead. * VoiceAudioComponent could be null if the character is out of range of any players that can hear it or sound is disabled :| * Fixes crash related to VoiceAudioComponent coming back as null and the check() failing. * updated GBPlayerController to only created a VOIPManager if sound is enabled. * updated GBVOIPComponent * instead of emptying entire audio queue into buffer if not enough samples are ready, it will now only dequeue enough to meet the current requirements. * also changed loop to use !IsEmpty() instead of return value of Dequeue(). * hopefully fixes Dequeue() causing crash for some reason :neutral_face: * updated GBGameMode * removed call to PlayerController->ClientInitialSync() in HandleStartingNewPlayer(). * added !WaitingPlayer->IsUnreachable() check to NewPlayerWaitingTimer() * Should fix crash related to calling ClientInitialSync on a player who did not connect correctly resulting in the "Unreachable" flag being set and no RPC's working (hence the crash). * updated GBFirearm * moved sight sorting to FSightGroup::AddSight() * updated FSightGroup::GetActiveSight() to use IsValidLowLevel() instead of nullptr check and IsValidLowLevelFast() * added UPROPERTY() macro to SightGroups member variable * hopefully these changes fix the crash related to GetActiveSight()
* attempted fix for crash related to using ConstructorHelpers in GBGameMode * classes used by game mode are now null by default when game mode is created. * PostLoad() and PreSave() will check if these classes are still null and set if them to the proper defaults they actually are. * removes the need for the ConstructorHelper function that was failing, so fixes the crash
