📢 IMPORTANT NOTICE to server owners re: rubber-banding

We're aware of the severe online rubber-banding issue, and although we haven't fully determined the cause yet (we have a lead!) we did notice that the issue keeps increasing in severity the longer the server is live. Restarting the server usually fixes the issue.

👉 As a temporary solution, we suggest admins/owners set up their servers to automatically restart every 4–6 hours.

Patch notes

General

• Hostage Rescue: fixed restraints and hood not being removed after the hostage was released
  
• Fixed issues with kit being applied on top of existing kit in Training mode (such as when in The Farm online)
  
• Various crash fixes
  
• Cleaned up a lot of under-the-hood logic and log spam
  

AI

• Changed how gunshots are processed by the AI: now uses the same system as footsteps, which should make bots more reactive to gunfire (especially when nearby)
  
• Tweaked "Untrained" AI difficulty to make it a bit easier
  

Maps

• Docks: fixed ramp/boat connections causing bots to get stuck
  
• Docks: fixed getting stuck in spools
  
• Small Town: fixed visible hole in rocks (southwest spawn area)
  
• The Farm: fixed small light above the exit door that wouldn’t turn off when the power box was disabled)
  
• Fixed issue in Storage Facility with the landscape LOD covering part of the main tunnel entrance when viewing at distance
  
• Cleaned up some collision issues in City subway area
  

Art

• Fixed bad normal map on the MPX submachine gun
  

Audio

• Possible fix for gunshots and explosions on the map being audible from the Ready Room (NOTE: frags might still be audible)
  
• Updated player footsteps: slight attenuation change and volume increase
  
• Fixed MK14 EBR reload audio being out of sync with animation
  
• Added female voice line for "Covering" comms (G)
  

VFX

• Added footstep particles to the forest floor surface type
  

🗒️ For a detailed list of changes, please see our patch notes for the V1034 Community Test releases over the last few months here.

⛔ IMPORTANT: Clearing your old files is recommended!

If you are coming from V1033 or have not downloaded a Community Test build in a while, you need to delete all contents in the following locations (copy-paste these paths into your File Explorer address bar):

1. %LOCALAPPDATA%\GroundBranch\Saved\Config\WindowsNoEditor
   
2. Documents\GroundBranch
   

⚠️ Not doing so will cause various asset and input issues in your game.

Highlights

DX12 mode and DLSS 3 Frame Generation

• Launch GROUND BRANCH in DX12 mode
  
• Go to Settings ► Video
  
• Under the "Video" section, look for NVIDIA DLSS 3 Frame Generation and select "On" from the dropdown menu
  
• Apply the new settings
  

💡 Users of different graphics cards may experience improved performance from running GROUND BRANCH in DX12 mode, regardless of the DLSS 3 Frame Generation setting. We recommend everyone to try it out and see how their system reacts.

UI, UX, settings and accessibility

• Pressing [Esc] during single player sessions will now pause the game
  
• Added a headcam-style camera to Spectator Mode, also accessible as a debug camera ([Ctrl]+[↑])
  
• The portion of the Gameplay settings dedicated to on-screen elements has been split into the new HUD menu
  
• Colorblindness settings have been added to Settings ► Video (Advanced)
  
• The Server Browser now features an expanded info box (listing players per team, as well as active mods) when a server is clicked
  
• The Ops Board in the Ready Room now has a ↻ button to re-randomize objectives and insertion points
  
• Players can now volunteer for game mode-specific roles — such as the hostage (Hostage Rescue) or flag carrier (DTAS) — by clicking the Volunteer button next to their name in the Session Roster
  
• Servers can now allow friendly name tags in-game: these only appear when the player is pointing at a teammate from within a certain range; you can disable this feature for yourself in Settings ► HUD
  
• Callsign patches will now be displayed on the back of Headgear items
  
• The Mission Editor was updated, and validators now check for collision and navmesh issues
  
• Skin selection now features standardized swatch-like icons, especially useful for previewing camo patterns
  

Server administration

• More comprehensive server admin options/settings, including the option to restart a server in-game and to schedule server restarts for particular times of day
  
• Server admins can now lock (disable) the Ready Room test shooting range
  

General fixes and improvements

• A plethora of optimizations to various maps and game systems
  
• Cleaned up various UI elements to improve readability, formatting and consistency
  
• A load of bug fixes, including not being able to change the enemy count via Ops Board
  

AI

💡 Thanks in particular to Chris, who has cemented his reputation as our official AI guy, and to Kythera for working closely with us and helping iron out the odd AI wrinkle.

💡 One important aspect of AI presentation still missing is more varied animations, as the lack of specific motions to convey all the different AI behaviors makes bots retain a lot of their "roboticness". The lack of natural "idle" animations also contributes to this.

Prone and animation overhaul

• To toggle between your current stance and prone, hit the Prone key (default [Z])
  
• Going prone while sprinting will perform a dive
  
• Pressing Jump while prone will immediately switch to standing, regardless of your stance before going prone
  
• Once prone, you will not be able to aim beyond a limited horizontal arc, while vertical aiming will be limited by the ground at the bottom and a fairly modest upwards angle
  
• Pressing any movement key while looking/aiming off to either side will rotate your character in place to align their lower body with their upper body
  
• You can crawl in all directions by using your movement keys. You can crawl faster by holding the Run key (default [Shift])
  

Keep in mind!

❌ Going prone will interrupt certain actions, such as reloading — if you hit the dirt while reloading, make sure you have a magazine in the well and a round in the chamber!

❌ Most actions (shooting, reloading, changing items etc.) will interrupt movement while prone, and you cannot start crawling while these actions are being performed.

❌ While prone, you're also unable to perform most world interactions, such as opening doors, deploying breaching charges or interacting with mission objectives.

❌ You will not be able to go prone if there's not enough room for your character's full body length.

Other changes in animations

• Characters now react to weapon recoil against their upper body when firing
  
• Death animations have been created for crouched and prone stances
  
• Death animations from the standing position received some polish as well
  
• Leaning now uses actual poses that look more natural
  
• The Breaching Charge now has an animation for setting up the charge on doors, as well as for triggering the detonator
  
• Switching weapons got a polish pass
  
• Improved animations and hand poses for AK-type rifles
  
• Hand poses in general — such as how your character holds grenades — were also slightly updated
  
• Lastly, animations and poses were created for the new and updated weapons (we'll get to those!)
  

🐞 Your character's support (left) arm will bend in unnatural ways when moving while holding various primary weapons with no foregrip equipped. This is due to the animation rework and will be fixed in a point release.

Focus Zoom

💡 Keep in mind that the Focus Zoom function will disengage if you move, or if you move your weapon too fast.

Customization and inventory updates

• 7 new characters (Females 01–06 and Male 06), selectable under the APPEARANCE tab
  
• 4 male hairstyles (Crew Cut A, Crew Cut B, Caesar Cut and Long Cut) under the new HAIR tab
  
• 4 female hairstyles (Straight Bun, Textured Bun and Buzzcut) under the new HAIR tab
  
• 1 new beard style (Short Beard) under the FACIAL HAIR tab
  

💡 Additional hairstyles and customization options (such as hair color) will follow in future updates.

New and updated skins

• Tactical Pants: Coyote Brown
  
• Ball Cap / Ball Cap (Reverse): DCP / AOR-1 / M81
  
• Boonie Hat / Boonie Hat (Folded): UCP
  
• Helmet (HC): OCP / AOR-1 / AOR-2
  
• Headset: Foliage Green
  

💡 The old pattern shirt is still available — we renamed it Light Flannel Shirt.

🏳️ In case you missed the Intel Report and discussion: most country flag patches have been removed from the game. More details in this post.

New weapons

• SA58 OSW battle rifle ([Battle Rifle / DMR / Sniper Rifle] category)
  This modernized, highly compact version of the FAL battle rifle features multiple accessory rails. Magazine capacity is 20 rounds of 7.62 mm NATO ammunition. Can be fitted with a suppressor.
  
• Galil ARM automatic rifle ([Machine Gun] category)
  A 5.56 mm NATO rifle created for the squad automatic weapon role, the Galil ARM can fit either 35- or 50-round magazines.
  
• FAL battle rifle ([Battle Rifle / DMR / Sniper Rifle] category)
  The FAL with wooden furniture (based on the very rare FAL G-series) last seen in V1033 as the FAL (Vintage) is now replaced with a more appropriate and far more common variant fitted with a polymer stock and handguard. It still fires 7.62 mm NATO ammunition from a 20-round magazine.
  

💡 The MPX 9 mm submachine gun has also been updated with a new model.

Radio (cosmetic)

Modding

💡 Initial SDK release will include the ability to add new weapons, with further modding coming later.

Map and mission updates

• The classic Small Town map has been extensively overhauled by Will, who returns to the team after a brief hiatus
  
• The Farm has had cosmetic updates to bring it into consistency with (and indeed proximity to) Small Town — canonically establishing both maps as part of the same training complex in Camp Peary
  
• City was extended with a fun new bank area and a few other new enterable buildings
  
• Lots of other maps have had touch-ups and plenty of bug fixes here and there
  

🐞 The animation for City's helicopter bailing out may not be playing correct. We're looking into it.

💡 With the new AI and prone capability, even existing missions may play quite differently from V1033 — give them a try!

New game mode: Defuse (Lone Wolf / Online Co-Op)

• The default amount of explosives to defuse is 2, with the default timer at 15 minutes and a default defuse time of 10 seconds per bomb. These can all be customized via Ops Board before deploying.
  
• To defuse a bomb, look at the LED display and hold Use/Interact (default [F]) when the prompt appears. You should see a progress bar filling up in LED display.
  
• Throw a careless grenade or shoot wildly at the bombs and you may find yourself making a lot of new friends.
  

💡 The Extraction game mode — essentially a PvE version of Hostage Rescue — is slated for a V1034 point release (a small update or patch), building on the new AI and animation work. Stay tuned for updates on this as well.

A small change to Intel Retrieval

🐞 Due to changes in underlying systems, Hostage Rescue is in a work-in-progress (WIP) state, with some bugs remaining in relation to leading and restrained behaviors. However, the core gameplay should still work (including the new Volunteer function).

Audio updates

Soundtrack

Environmental audio

• Optimized audio occlusion and diffraction when inside buildings
  
• Indoor audio now reacts to whether a door is open or closed (this can now be expanded to account for the material of the room/building)
  
• Fixed missing ambient sounds for all maps
  
• Updated attenuation for various distances to provide more spatial awareness and distance for varying sounds
  

🐞 When playing online, The Farm does not play audio for various actions. We have been unable to fix this so far, but are working on it.

Event SFX

• Power boxes now have a distinctive electric "hum" when active, and will also play a sound when switching the lever on/off
  

🐞 In some cases, the hum will not play at the start of an online round.

• Added localized beeping and explosion SFX for Defuse's bombs, as well as sound effects for closing and putting away Intel Retrieval's laptop
  
• Implemented and fine-tuned news helicopter audio and attenuation (City)
  

Mixing

• Character movement (e.g. footsteps) now sounds quieter and more balanced in the mix
  
• Reloads are less sharp and overpowering compared to other sounds
  
• Gunshots are slightly less loud in general, with suppressed gunshots now also being slightly quieter than their unsuppressed counterparts
  
• Weapon sounds now have more room reverb compared to the environmental audio and character movement
  

VFX

• Blood splatter on surfaces has been re-introduced, with new decals created
  
• Grenade effects and bullet impacts
  
  
  
  
  • New particles for smokescreen and frag explosions were created
    
  • New material-based bullet impacts were added
    
  • Various props and materials not displaying correct bullet impacts were fixed
    
  
  
• Muzzle and weapon effects
  
  
  
  
  • Muzzle flash and smoke have all been updated, and a shockwave effect was added
    
  • Ejection ports now also generate smoke when shooting
    
  
  
• Light fixture effects
  
  
  
  
  • Outdoor light fixtures now attract bugs at night
    
  • Shooting out lights now generates sparkle particles
    
  • Most light fixtures now have a proper "destroyed" version when shot out
    
  
  

This has been Build Update #047!

❓ How to join the Community Test beta branch

• Right-click GROUND BRANCH in your Steam Library and select Properties…
  
• Click 'BETAS' on the left-hand list menu
  
• Select 'communitytest - Community testing branch' from the drop-down menu
  (no password required)
  

Steam will begin downloading the files for the testing branch. Patching may take a while.

🐞 Where to report bugs

You can report bugs and issues using any of these methods:

• The in-game Bugs & Issues screen (press Esc once in-game and look along the top menu)
  
• The Steam forums: steamcommunity.com/app/16900/discussions/
  
• The #bug-reports channel on the official GROUND BRANCH™ Discord
  

Your reports help us locate and fix issues faster, so keep them coming!

Known issues

• The Breaching Charge is currently deployed at a 90-degree angle
  
• Bullets may be being blocked in odd places by a certain type of volume — please report in with the map and location if you come across it!
  
• When connecting to servers, the loading screen displays the "Returning to Main Menu" text
  
• Enemy AI may be unresponsive/idle/stuck in various contexts — if you see it, please make note of whether it was online (dedicated server? Listen server?) or offline, which game mode was being played, as well as map and location etc.

  ⚠️ Bots are particularly prone to getting stuck in doorways; we're actively working on fixing/improving this issue.

• Weapon movement, poses and animations in general are still being put back together after the prone overhaul — please bear with us
  
• Walking or running with a primary weapon equipped causes the character's right foot to "hover" before it actually touches the ground
  
• The prone stance does not conform to terrain angle
  
• Character and weapon collision while prone is pretty finicky! Let us know how it all feels to you
  
• Various combinations of hairstyles and headgear items have visible clipping or overall jankiness
  
• AI bots are not functional in Deathmatch
  

Patch notes

Maps and missions

• Various culling, collision, navmesh and navlink fixes for Depot, Tanker, City, Creek, Storage Facility, Rundown, Rig and Power Station
  
• Made the roof windows in Depot enterable again
  
• Added a few navmesh blockers to Depot to stop AI from getting stuck
  
• Fixed bank stairwell door in City not closing properly
  
• Added window frames to open window holes in Creek buildings to stop people getting stuck when trying to mantle through them
  
• Fixed bug where players were getting stuck on containers in Storage Facility lower area after vaulting over railing
  
• Added small step to side areas of Storage Facility tunnel entrance (helps AI navigate space better and cleaner movement for player)
  
• Fix for one of the Compound outside doors hitting a mesh and not fully opening
  
• Fixed up some bugs in DTAS game mode script
  
• Fixed bug in Defuse where bomb stopped going off
  
• Amended error text in Lua guard macros, to cover the extra possibility that a UObject became invalid and turned into a nil reference
  

Animation

• Fixed leaning with handgun and move forward and left or right causing hands to go all odd
  
• Fixed crouched handgun ADS being offset in certain situations (e.g. leaning)
  
• First pass hooking up prone poses for Binoculars, Breaching Charge (and detonator), grenades and Tablet
  
• Fixed and updated hand pose for holding grenades
  
• Hooked up Breaching Charge and detonator use animations

  ⚠️ Known issue: the charge model is currently deployed at a 90-degree angle.

Inventory and customization

• Fixed incorrect female belt variations being used with Tactical Shirt items
  
• Fixed Helmet (MICH) chin strap not working correctly for Male 06
  
• Fixed up issues with Headset asset
  
• Created a version of the Headset mesh for use with Fleece Beanie
  
• Adjusted Fleece Beanie to fit better with Balaclava
  
• Fixed mesh splitting on female Jeans
  
• Added female untucked short versions of belts
  
• Cleaned up various clipping issues with female clothing
  
• Fixed Male 03 helmet chin straps not set properly
  
• Fixed issue with rounds not showing in Galil ARM magazines when mag-checking
  

UI

• Updated splash screen (Default Controls) with newer version of the controls scheme graphic
  
• Updated some dialog boxes with an optional "Dot not show again" checkbox
  
• Added option to reset opted-out dialogs in Settings › HUD
  
• Small visual update to After Action Review (AAR) screen
  
• Swapped order of Combat Stats and Mission Summary tabs in AAR
  
• Visual pass on Server Browser: mod column (column icon and [MOD] tag) and expanded server info tab
  
• Server Browser now carried out mandatory mod sync when joining dedicated server
  
• Visual pass on bind overlays
  
• Cleaned up dialog box widget
  
• NoTimer round stage (Training modes) no longer displays time text at top of screen (also does not show time remaining on Tablet)
  
• Updated Invite Friends menu (is now styled similar to a dialog box)
  
• Fixed mission list duplicating when revisiting mission selection screen
  
• Added new icon (wrench) for Modding button in Admin Panel menu
  
• Updated Credits screen
  

Customize Operator screen

• Added "loading" message before the character and assets are all loaded
  
• Fixed padding and did a small visual pass on skin icon selection
  
• Related work to reduce hitching and improve handling of default item builds
  
• Added yellow custom build display for item slots in overall screen (was previously limited to inside menus)
  
• Added [MOD] tag to item slots/selections
  
• Updated MK25 pistol icon to make grip panel area less dark
  
• Fixed hidden hair casting shadow on UI character view
  

Mission Editor

• Added Time of Day (TOD) widget
  
• Made double-click outline window use the standard focus (F) routine rather than a second custom bit of code
  
• Reworking to change pawn type and fix right-drag related error
  
• Made a few dialogs hidable (e.g. select script, load mission file, save mission file)
  

VFX

• Optimization pass on VFX for the bullet impacts
  
• Fixed the respawning particle issue
  
• Continuing pass over the bullet impact scalability settings and culling settings
  
• Fix for the smoke flickering when viewed through PIP scopes
  
• Making a pass on scalability settings for bullet impacts (lots to improve)
  
• Reparented emitters with missing parents to sync culling settings
  

AI

• Upgraded Kythera AI middleware to new version (1.3.3) (may fix some bugs, but WIP)
  
• Fixed the AI aim bug, where enemy bots could not see the head of player characters — this caused situations such as leaning out of cover and not being spotted
  

Bug fixes and miscellaneous

• Added tentative fix for IsValidLowLevel crash on game exit
  
• Lots of work on mods under the hood (especially with regard to dedicated servers)
  
• Reduction in log spam overall (and added some more for good luck)
  
• Reworked a lot of under-the-hood stuff, including inventory and asset handling, validators, overlays and more
  
• Tentative fix for stuttering and "Maximum number of UObjects exceeded" crash on dedicated servers 🥳
  
• Rejigged base character class and item class in terms of how they handle inventory (in particular removed some limitations on skin inheritance, and streamlined asset loading)
  
• Fixed up occasional disconnects between TOD set in mission launch screens and TOD set in the Ready Room
  
• Updated Debug menu to add new commands
  
• Opting out with F4 now increases Deaths stat
  
• Updated HUD to support adding non-chat messages to center, upper and lower message managers (allowed changing Ready Room and Spectator messages from engine messages to far more visible center-screen, preventing the mistake of trying to hit F4 or F6 again)
  

As always, thank you for testing and providing feedback!

❓ How to join the Community Test beta branch

• Right-click GROUND BRANCH in your Steam Library and select Properties…
  
• Click 'BETAS' on the left-hand list menu
  
• Select 'communitytest - Community testing branch' from the drop-down menu
  (no password required)
  

Steam will begin downloading the files for the testing branch. Patching may take a while.

🐞 Where to report bugs

You can report bugs and issues using any of these methods:

• The in-game Bugs & Issues screen (press Esc once in-game and look along the top menu)
  
• The Steam forums: steamcommunity.com/app/16900/discussions/
  
• The #bug-reports channel on the official GROUND BRANCH™ Discord
  

Your reports help us locate and fix issues faster, so keep them coming!

Known issues

• Recoil is currently unclamped, meaning sustained automatic fire will eventually clip weapons into the character; this also affects weapon sway in low stamina
  
• Enemy AI may be unresponsive/idle/stuck in various contexts — if you see it, please make note of whether it was online (dedicated server? Listen server?) or offline, which game mode was being played, as well as map and location etc.

  ⚠️ Bots are particularly prone to getting stuck in doorways; we're actively working on fixing/improving this issue.

  
  
• Weapon movement, poses and animations in general are still being put back together after the prone overhaul — please bear with us
  
• Walking or running with a primary weapon equipped causes the character's right foot to "hover" before it actually touches the ground
  
• The prone stance does not conform to terrain angle
  
• Aiming (ADS) is offset with pistols while crouch-leaning (particularly to the left)
  
• Character and weapon collision while prone is pretty finicky! Let us know how it all feels to you
  
• The Tablet (map) is currently offset to the bottom while crouched, and unusable while prone
  
• Various combinations of hairstyles and headgear items have visible clipping or overall jankiness
  
• AI bots are still not hooked up to the Deathmatch game mode
  

Patch notes

Maps and missions

747

• Updated all relevant 747 missions with new collision and patrol point checking
  
• Fixed issue with light portal flickering light in 747 cargo hold
  
• Fixed various collision issues
  
• Fixed some other lighting issues
  
• Replaced fan in terminal office with new style fan that can be shot out and powered up and down by the local power box
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Arena and Arena 2

• Updated missions with collision checker
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

City

• Made pole lights leading down to subway actual lights that are on/off and destructible
  
• Made bollard lights destructible
  
• Added proper destroyed light meshes to outdoor lights
  
• Fixed various collision issues and culling bugs
  
• Fixed up all missions (except Last Man Standing) with the new actor collision checking feature of validation scripts
  
• Cleaned up some geo collision that was way too big, and fixed some other geo and collision bugs
  
• Fixed some lighting issues
  
• Changed some wall pictures in City bank
  
• News helicopter updated to fly a little smoother, and animations added for hover and evasion
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Compound

• Updated nearly all missions with new collision and patrol checker
  
• Fixed invisible wall collision under staircase in unfinished building
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Creek

• Various collision and culling bugs fixed
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Depot

• Fixed mesh culling and collision issues
  
• Fixed over-penetration of bullets through some metal objects
  
• Fixed incorrect normals on rocks
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Docks

• Fixed up missions (except Last Man Standing) using new actor collision checking feature of validation scripts
  
• Cleaned up less than optimal collision on a few assets
  
• Filled in empty buildings/trailers
  
• Added glass windows to the construction trailers
  
• Cleaned up collision on a few of the metal staircases
  
• Made red light on electronics box destructible
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Power Station

• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Rundown

• Various collision and culling bugs fixed
  
• Cleaned up navmesh
  

Small Town

• Fixed up various missions using new mission collision checker and patrol route checker
  
• Nav link tweaks for ladder
  
• Added pillars to basement and removed cinder blocks
  
• Fixed misaligned Humvee windshield
  
• Rebuilt navmesh
  
• Mini graphical overhaul:
  
  
  
  
  • Fixed some foliage meshes using billboard as base LOD on lower foliage settings
    
  • Adjusted billboard distances, generally pushed them back further
    
  • Wind/sway tweaks
    
  • Color correction and improvements in mask clipping and materials
    
  • Improved vista forest material/visuals
    
  • Fixed crossfade billboards not correctly disabling when toggled off
    
  • Added support for virtual texture blending with landscape, rocks and embankments
    
  • Landscape material work, adding some wet muddy areas
    
  • Fern color correction
    
  • Added leaves mesh scattering to dead leaves landscape layers
    
  • Added some cinderblock scatter
    
  • Increased bounds of a few floor pieces in B building (potential fix for disappearing floor)
    
  • Remade bullet hole decals, higher res and cheaper
    
  • Landscape material displacement tweaks
    

Storage Facility

• Fixed various collision issues
  
• Fixed incorrect normals on rocks
  

Tanker

• Fixed various collision issues
  

The Farm

• Potential fix for flickering billboard trees
  
• Slight foliage color tweaks
  
• Landscape material/textures improvements
  
• Added leaves grass layer
  
• Hornbeam trees: fixed roughness not coming through correctly
  
• Other material tweaks and corrections
  
• Improved 747 fuselage material so it has a bit more detail up close
  
• A bit of landscape painting
  
• Pushed blocking volumes in water a bit further out
  
• Reduced intensity of water waves
  

Inventory and assets

• Fixed heads becoming detached from player if a single skeletal mesh fails to load
  
• Updated hostage sack to add or remove overlay based on view target status instead of player being locally controlled or not (makes sack visible in third person)
  
• Standardized fixed iron sight alignment for the AKM and Wz.88 for consistent behavior
  
• Trimmed female head meshes in the neck/shoulder area to reduce mesh clipping in some postures/animations
  
• Reworked helmet chinstrap morph targets and added new ones for female heads
  
• Realtime Virtual Texture (RVT) incorporated into various maps/landscape materials (for nicer blends between props and landscape)
  
• Mini overhaul of master materials
  
• Fixed broken wrist mesh for "Riot" enemy type
  
• Switched MARPAT Desert skin on the Helmet (HC) to AOR-1
  
• New skins:
  
  
  
  
  • Gun Belt: M81
    
  • Ball Cap: DCP, AOR-1 and M81
    
  • Boonie Hat: UCP
    
  • Helmet (HC): AOR-2
    

Animation

• Corrected directional animation blend times to fix hitch when changing directions
  
• First pass on prone and crouch death animations
  
• Adding correct notifies for mag check
  
• Updated character and weapon animations for AK-type rifles
  
• Added new hand poses for the new AK models
  
• Fixed Galil ARM mag check
  
• Fixed wrong position on AK-type fire selector
  
• Updated pose for leaning
  
• Created specific flex-cuffs poses
  
• Updated hostage sack to apply as a mesh
  
• Sway and canting rotation are now applied separately (only applies Z aspect of sight offset while not engaging the sight - fixes issues with firearm being more centered then usual, especially when using canted sight)
  
• Added new drop-down animation to the AI characters
  

AI

• Enabled feature to auto-generate drop-down nav links (uses vaulting animations as a placeholder for now)
  
• Fix for AI tracking the player when just losing sight of him, now shoots at the last known location rather than at the current player position
  
• Updated noise investigation behavior for Guard AI — who will now investigate noise more in the direction that the noise is coming from instead of a more general "scan" behavior
  
• Tweaked AI difficulty, increasing the gap between highest and lowest level to create more variance
  
• Increased memory time for the AI, so they will search longer for lost targets
  
• Added search pattern BT so on lost target they search randomly — the longer they search, the bigger the radius gets
  
• Updated the weights used for more passive/aggressive behavior; generally speaking, Guard AI are now more likely to behave passively (seeking cover, going prone etc.), while Patrol AI will be more aggressive (running, sprinting towards the player instead of seeking cover etc.)
  
• Updated and re-enabled custom AI settings in Lone Wolf and Host Game screens
  

Gameplay and bug fixes

• Fixed dead bodies not being cleaned up in between rounds
  
• Made it so you can go prone under the Ural style trucks in various maps
  
• Stopped massive log spam caused by inventory tags being updated before assets have finished loading
  
• Added Time of Day (TOD) statuses to BP_SkylightOverrideVolume, so it can apply fading or desaturation at specific times of day only
  
• Added actor collision checking to mission validation Lua scripts
  
• Added new actor.IsColliding() lua library function, which determines if the actor is more or less colliding with map assets
  
• Small improvements to mission validation scripts
  
• Defuse game mode now prints to log the actual bomb actor name as well as the selected bomb zone
  
• Added stamina and sway effects for:
  
  
  
  
  • Going to prone
    
  • Getting up from prone
    
  • Going from crouched to standing
    
  • Leaning
  
  
• Fixed bugged water collision
  
• Modding admin UI update (WIP) and quite a few modding changes behind the scenes
  
• Fixed smoke effects blocking Use/Interact prompts (to be replaced by better fix later)
  
• Fixed Deathmatch loadout issue
  
• Fixed UseFriendlyNameTags entry in DefaultGameRules array in DefaultZooKeeper.ini (should be true, was read as false)
  
• Fixed up Ready Room range door not replicating properly
  
• Optimized tracing for interaction, Ready Room name and in-game player names
  
• Changed PhysMat for dirt to not allow bullet penetration
  
• Added gameplaystatics.TraceVisible() lua library function for doing a simple visible trace between two specified locations
  
• Added gameplaystatics.GetPatrolRouteLinkedActors() lua library function for getting a list of linked patrol route actors
  
• Added full patrol route checking in all PvE validation functions, including a new visible trace to make sure the route is not blocked (as a first approximation check at least)
  
• Minor bug fixes to Team Elimination in relation to fixed spawn missions (Arenas, Paintball) and displaying insertion points in dependence to whether auto-balance is enabled
  
• Removed AI spawn checking from Deathmatch validate script (since opponents are bots now)
  
• Added various new validations and checks for firearm blueprints (in anticipation of modding opening up)
  
• Changed various firearm-related assets to fix issues with sight replication and sights used by non-controlled characters
  
• Updated arm sway values on Main Menu guys to prevent them getting tired
  
• Various crash fixes relating to pointers missing a UPROPERTY() macro
  
• Fixed issue where the light custom collision box was set to not effect navmesh
  
• Restricted Focus Zoom to primary and secondary weapons only (no longer usable with Binoculars, grenades etc.)
  
• Updated modding manager to grab installed mod list from subscribed mods instead of scanning locally (mods soon to come!)
  

Sound

• Removed unused Wwise node that may have been setting voice to male all the time
  
• Fixed AI bark spatialization
  
• Minor tweaks to AI attenuation
  
• Fixed missing suppressor tails
  
• Slightly adjusted footstep audio and some attenuations
  
• Fixed power box audio bug
  
• Added Ready Room ambient music
  
• Fixed audio in City rooms
  
• Loading screen mutes sound until fading away (should stop short burst of sound when joining a map)
  

VFX

• Re-enabled eye adaptation on the VFX material (was causing smoke effects to glow in low-light and under night vision when disabled)
  
• Changed surface link for electronics to use metal bullet-hole decal (was previously using a paper decal) — fixes odd impacts on e.g. power boxes
  
• Fixed up flashbang, frags, big bomb (Defuse) and breaching charges so they won't cause deafness or prolonged visual effects (e.g. for headcam)
  

UI

• Updated skin icons (the triangle/square swatches for item colors or camo patterns)
  
• Updated weapon customization UI to not show the "Muzzle" attachment category when no muzzle device is available for the weapon
  
• Created custom UI for customizing Galil ARM
  
• Progress on Modding menu
  
• Admin modding UI now added to modding menu (from Main Menu)
  
• Tweaked drop-down arrow in mission property array widget to be more visible in mission editor
  
• Added W, E, R controls to the outline widget (as well as main window) in mission editor
  
• New map thumbnails for Small Town, City and The Farm
  
• Loading screens rejigged
  
• Hint widget adjusted to stop shifting/resizing during load
  
• In Spectator Mode, HUD no longer shows distance prompts if camera style is headcam
  
• HUD now correctly hides Next/Previous Player prompt when player is following another character
  
• Partial visual update for Admin Panel (mainly Skin Restrictions menu)
  

As always, thanks for testing and providing feedback!

❓ How to join the Community Test beta branch

• Right-click GROUND BRANCH in your Steam Library and select Properties…
  
• Click 'BETAS' on the left-hand list menu
  
• Select 'communitytest - Community testing branch' from the drop-down menu
  (no password required)
  

Steam will begin downloading the files for the testing branch. Patching may take a while.

🐞 Where to report bugs

You can report bugs and issues using any of these methods:

• The in-game Bugs & Issues screen (press Esc once in-game and look along the top menu)
  
• The Steam forums: steamcommunity.com/app/16900/discussions/
  
• The #bug-reports channel on the official GROUND BRANCH™ Discord
  

Your reports help us locate and fix issues faster, so keep them coming!

Known issues

• Enemy AI may be unresponsive/idle/stuck in various contexts — if you see it, please make note of whether it was online (dedicated server? Listen server?) or offline, which game mode was being played, as well as map and location etc.

  ⚠️ Bots are particularly prone to getting stuck in doorways; we're actively working on fixing/improving this issue.

• Changing directions (WASD) with a primary weapon equipped will cause visible "hitches" in the weapon movement
  
• Weapon movement, poses and animations in general are still being put back together after the prone overhaul — please bear with us
  
• Leaning is bound to feel particularly strange, due to the combo of new poses and the ongoing animation work (all WIP)
  
• Walking or running with a primary weapon equipped causes the character's right foot to "hover" before it actually touches the ground
  
• The prone stance does not conform to terrain angle
  
• Aiming (ADS) with a pistol while crouched is offset (when leaning left)
  
• Character and weapon collision while prone is pretty finicky! Let us know how it all feels to you
  
• The Tablet (map) is currently offset to the bottom while crouched, and unusable while prone
  
• Various combinations of hairstyles and headgear items have visible clipping or overall jankiness
  
• AI bots are still not hooked up to the Deathmatch game mode.
  

Patch notes

Maps and missions

Ready Room (RR)

• Added a few scenery assets to the RR
  
• Fixed occasional issue with unusually dark RR
  

747

• New Defuse mission
  

City

• Lowered and reduced thickness of bank windows to better allow players to fire out of them
  
• Added new Terrorist Hunt (Bank) variant
  
• Base Hostage Rescue mission split into separate (Central) and (Bank) variants
  
• Set up ceiling fans in City:
  
  
  
  • They now turn on/off in accordance to power boxes and are now destructible
    
  • Added smooth start up and power down
    
  
  
• Fixed collision issue around bank windows
  
• Skylight override volumes tweaked and updated to use the new desaturation system (so that e.g. the inside of the bank is not tinted orange at night)
  

Compound

• Added Defuse mission
  
• Fixed up ceiling fans to power boxes
  
• Fixed a few props that were being culled out too quickly and creating "invisible" walls you can't shoot through
  
• Updated doors on Compound for better AI navigation
  

Creek

• Added Defuse mission
  

Depot

• Added Defuse mission (Compound variant)
  
• Fixing various reported bugs
  
• Fixed up all Depot PvE missions in respect of compound tower that was rotated/moved
  
• Disabled subsurface scattering on ferns to potentially stop them glowing when using NVGs
  
• Fixed some culling issues
  

Docks

• Added Defuse mission
  
• Fixed up a load of missing physical materials (determines footstep sounds and bullet impact VFX)
  

Power Station

• Added Defuse mission
  
• Made it so you can crawl under all electrical equipment
  

Rig

• Added new Defuse and Defuse (Decks 3 and 4) missions
  
• Fixed up some issues with AI on Deck 4 in Terrorist Hunt missions
  

Small Town

• Removed unnecessary collision from smaller foliage instances
  
• Changed tags on Defuse mission to make more readable zone names
  
• Removed leftover blocking volume
  
• Fixed small collision issue where players could get stuck between rocks
  
• Rearranged low sandbags on building A ledges for better prone sniping
  
• Set all rock collision to use "Complex as Simple" method, improving collision when prone
  
• Fixed two lights in building D that used a different kind of light fixture for their broken state
  
• Adjusted nav link for ladder on where AI could get stuck
  

Storage Facility

• New Defuse mission
  
• Fixed a bunch of missing PhysMats in materials
  
• Cleaned up collision with Ural truck to allow crawling under it
  
• All tunnel lights are now connected to a power box
  

Tanker

• Converted arcade machines to turn off when power is off and be affected by blast damage
  

AI

• Added clamp to ReactionTimeBase AI setting
  
• Adapted old AI vision blocker in smoke grenades to conform closer to the bounds of the current smoke effects
  
• Reduced the number of maximum Kythera nav mesh tiles to be regenerated at any given time by half
  
• Rejig of foliage collision and AI detection (now easier to hide in foliage and more consistent AI response to foliage)
  
• Fixed crash relating to pathfinding
  
• Updated nav mesh for Compound
  
• Updating cover generation parameters to be a bit less restrictive
  
• First pass on new system for AI visibility blockers in Small Town foliage
  

  ⚠️ We're particularly interested in feedback for this. Sneak around the Small Town bushes and let us know if the AI appears to react "authentically" in terms of visual detection.

• Removed Kythera component from main menu characters so they don’t initialise the Kythera systems
  
• Updated how AI interacts with doors (now uses input based navigation through door instead of nav mesh)
  
• Kythera nav mesh is no longer forced to regenerate when doors are opened or closed (getting rid of the hitch)
  
• Updated Kythera nav meshes for various maps
  
• Changed suppression handling of AI: now the AI will take cover from the general shot direction way more often and try not to stand in the open as much
  
• Fixed an issue where Guard AI would leave their post and go a long way to investigate a dead body
  
• Fixed an issue where dead bodies could be "newly discovered" by the same AI multiple times
  
• Adjusted GBKytTargetSelector so it includes dead bodies
  
• Updated SpatialQueries asset to make cover point generation less restrictive so that the AI takes cover in more situations
  
• Updated footstep hearing
  
• Added visibility and hearing multipliers to GBWorldSettings, so AI perception can be tuned per-map
  
  
  • Increased visual and audio detection by 50% in City, Compound and 747
    
  • Decreased visual and audio detection by 25% in Small Town and Rig
    
  
  
• Tweaked AI vision, increased default vision range, lowered primary FOV, increased secondary FOV weight
  
• Fixed an issue where AI would go back to unarmed state after being suppressed
  
• Nav mesh work on Compound, updated door navlink locations to avoid AI getting stuck
  
• Updated barks for different AI states
  

Game mode/gameplay

• First pass on focus zoom feature: slight zoom-in effect when in ADS while holding the Focus Zoom key (bound to LCtrl by default)
  

  ⚠️ Experimental feature!

  
  If it's not bound to LCtrl by default, bind it under Settings > Controls > Keybinds > Focus Zoom)

  
  
  
  
  • Aim sensitivity scales appropriately when focus zoomed
    
  • Focus zoom disengages when player or player head moves significantly
    
  • Additional vignette effect when zoomed (stacks with Hold Breath vignette)
    
  
  
• Changed Defuse game mode to display bomb group names on Ops Board
  
• Added new DefuseValidate Lua script
  
• Fixed up some Defuse missions after using the aforesaid validation function
  
• Minor tweak to IntelRetrieval and TerroristHunt validation functions to provide better dumps of guard point/squad mismatches
  
• Created new PoweredItem blueprint (BP) class as a mirror image of the LightFixture BP class, but for things that aren't lights (e.g. ceiling fans). This ties into time of day and Light Zone Controllers so that power boxes turn them on and off, and they can be powered or not at particular times of day
  
• Improved collision checks for doors
  
• Improved collision checks for players to ignore volumes (fixes lean being preventing due to audio volumes, etc.)
  
• Stopped firearm firing when going to and from prone
  
• F4 and F6 now prompt player to confirm intention to leave game before taking effect
  
• Fixed use of timer.Clear(self, name of timer) instead of timer.Clear(name of timer) in various Lua game modes
  
• Rejigged kit restriction detection and handling
  
• Misc updates to Lua game mode libraries:
  
  
  
  
  • In general, for indicating an error state in functions supposed to return tables, they now return an empty table rather than nil
    
  • Created actor.GetOverlappingPlayers() to remove need to use GetOverlaps() and specify GBCharacter class.
    
  • Updated player.Kill() to bypass any and all damage reduction/prevention, and to prevent use in the Ready Room
    
  • Updated vector.VectorNew() to ensure it returns nil value if supplied with incompatibility values rather than returning NaN
    
  • Hooked up ai.Create in AI Lua library
    
  
  
• Fixed news helicopter not appearing in City in multiplayer
  
• Added restrictions to stop Use/Interact actions while prone, to prevent hostages being lead by someone prone, and to stop hostages going prone
  
• Bug fixes to a few game modes
  
• Skylight override volumes extended so as to permit desaturation of skylight lower hemisphere color
  

Graphics

• Removed Use Simple Character Shadows video setting as it offered negligible performance gain and caused various rendering issues when not in direct sunlight
  

Inventory

• Adjusted rear sight of FAL a bit forward
  
• Added missing top rail to FAL
  
• New item skins:
  
  
  
  
  • Headset: Foliage Green
    
  • Helmet (HC) (non-cover version): OCP and MARPAT Desert
    
  • Tactical Pants: Coyote Brown
    
  
  
• Tweaked hue of MARPAT Desert camo pattern
  
• Minor color tweaks to existing headset skins
  
• Reworked channels in Helmet (HC)'s color mask to allow camo pattern on the helmet shell
  
• Updated existing Helmet (HC) skins to account for the above channel changes
  
• Cleaned up Combat Pants and Combat Shirt skins:
  
  
  
  
  • Made whole zipper "area" of the shirts' collar use the same color as the actual zipper teeth
    
  • Fixed knee pad and stretch material inconsistencies between different skins of the Combat Pants
    
  • Fixed various overly bright colors (especially shoulder velcros on Combat Shirt)
    
  • Changed Khaki skins to a more authentic version
    
  
  
• General color correction on various skins
  
• Tweaked MARPAT Woodland pattern hue to be slightly more red (affects all skins that have it)
  

General fixes

• Fixed bombs having 00:00 displays after round reset
  
• Adapted bomb timer display to cope with 2-hour long rounds (you crazy guys)
  
• Improved interaction with doors having multiple components, e.g. doors with glass elements in City
  
• Added visualization of movement radius for Guard Point in mission editor (when selected)
  
• Set Big Bomb and DTAS flag to receive all lighting channels (problem was dark bombs in some parts of maps), and also for the new hazard sticker on the power boxes
  
• Fixed visual texture bug with Male 03 arms
  
• When opening doors, UE4 navmesh is no longer being updated
  
• Stopped missions without a valid map being displayed in mission selection list (e.g. Ranch)
  
• Converted 747 generator cable spline mesh into static mesh to remove warnings and fix collision
  
• Fixed extra long ceiling fan and cleaned up placement based on new mesh
  
• Fixed up lighting groups on Compound and Storage Facility (to fix lights that did not turn off when power turned off)
  
• Fixed missing geo on bottom of flatbed truck
  
• Also made flatbed truck into a blueprint that allows parked supports to be extended or not
  
• Fixed light poles in Small Town not casting a shadow
  
• Updated GBSightComponent to stop updating when player is using DebugCamera or similar command
  
• Updated master hair blueprint to improve hair bun handling: fixes issue where hair bun is added, then hair mesh is updated to a version that does not include a hair bun socket
  
• Changed handling of sound banks in Laptop and Big Bomb (may or may not fix crash issue)
  
• Various map bug fixes for 747, City, Storage Facility, Depot, Rig and Power Station
  

Server/online

• Made kit restriction UI/ZK stuff save to GroundBranch\Defaults for standalone and listen server and to ServerConfig if dedicated server
  
• Added SERVER_SHUTDOWN_TIME_MAX check back into CheckServerShutdown() (restores absolute 48-hour uptime limit)
  

Animation

• Zeroed out the rotation on handgun aims (partially fixes crouched pistol offset when aiming; left lean is known to still be offset)
  
• Fixed issues with PKM or MK46 not showing tray opening animations until equipped again
  
• Fixed being able to go prone mid-air
  
• Updated SVD to add support for locked back bolt etc. to match up with reload animations (work in progress)
  
• Work on crouch lean offsets (work in progress)
  
• Corrected sight-to-eye curve values for crouched handgun animations
  

VFX

• Created and implemented new smoke grenade VFX textures (better coverage, especially at ground level)
  
• Decreased spark color alpha value (brightness intensity) to address a bug report
  
• Fix for smoke hanging around after round reset
  
• Light destruction adjustments: the red sparks should no longer happen (strange smoke behavior a work in progress)
  
• Adjustments to the size/life of the light destruction sparks
  

Sound

• Minor audio level bug fixes
  
• Partial fix for bullet cracks
  
• Changed sound location for big bomb from bottom of the barrel to the top (fixes some issues with bomb beeps being in the wrong spatial volume)
  
• Reduced complexity of acoustic portal handling in doors (possible FPS spike mitigation)
  
• Adjusted the rate of fade from one room to the next, and adjusted the check interval rate for portals
  
• Setup reload audio for Galil ARM and SA58 OSW
  
• Adjusted some missing tails and reverbs
  

UI

• Created and assigned proper minimap (Ops Board and Tablet) textures for The Farm, Arena, Arena 2 and Paintball
  
• Visual cleanup and other minor visual tweaks to Watch App (wristwatch face features)
  
• Added keybinds for spectator night vision and headcam in Settings > Controls
  
• Very minor font/formatting update to bomb LED screen
  
• Added key shortcuts for translate, rotate and scale gizmos (W, E, R) in the mission editor
  
• Fixed corruption of mission actor names when loading a new mission in the mission editor
  
• Hid GuardPointType field in mission editor (not used in V1034)
  
• Fixed some UI bugs in mission editor
  
• Fixed incorrect version number on HUD
  
• Player blips put back on the Ops Board in training game modes, e.g. The Farm
  
• Custom properties (tint and scale) applied to player blips on Ops Board when in training or unknown mode
  

As always, thanks for testing and providing feedback!

❓ How to join the Community Test beta branch

• Right-click GROUND BRANCH in your Steam Library and select Properties…
  
• Click 'BETAS' on the left-hand list menu
  
• Select 'communitytest - Community testing branch' from the drop-down menu
  (no password required)
  

Steam will begin downloading the files for the testing branch. Patching may take a while.

🐞 Where to report bugs

You can report bugs and issues using any of these methods:

• The in-game Bugs & Issues screen (press Esc once in-game and look along the top menu)
  
• The Steam forums: steamcommunity.com/app/16900/discussions/
  
• The #bug-reports channel on the official GROUND BRANCH™ Discord
  

Your reports help us locate and fix issues faster, so keep them coming!

Known issues

• Enemy AI may be unresponsive/idle/stuck in various contexts — if you see it, please make note of whether it was online (dedicated server? Listen server?) or offline, which game mode was being played, as well as map and location etc.

  ⚠️ Bots are particularly prone to getting stuck in doorways; we're actively working on fixing/improving this issue.

• Changing directions (WASD) with a primary weapon equipped will cause visible "hitches" in the weapon movement
  
• Weapon movement, poses and animations in general are still being put back together after the prone overhaul — please bear with us
  
• Leaning is bound to feel particularly strange, due to the combo of new poses and the ongoing animation work (all WIP)
  
• Walking or running with a primary weapon equipped causes the character's right foot to "hover" before it actually touches the ground
  
• The prone stance does not conform to terrain angle
  
• Aiming (ADS) with a pistol while crouched is offset to the right
  
• Character and weapon collision while prone is pretty finicky! Let us know how it all feels to you
  
• The Tablet (map) is currently offset to the bottom while crouched, and unusable while prone
  
• Various combinations of hairstyles and headgear items have visible clipping or overall jankiness
  
• The SA58 OSW does not have correct reload animations hooked up
  

Patch notes

DirectX dialog

⚠️ You may need to restart Steam to see this option.

⚠️ DX12 may cause the game to crash upon exiting.

AI

• Stopped AI auto-spawning at AI spawn points when levels load
  
• Fixed a bug where AI would have too much accuracy for the first shot
  
• Made sure to shoot 100% accurate when the AI intends to miss a shot
  
• Fixed an issue where Veteran AI would be unresponsive
  
• AI settings reaction time will always be above 0 (override INI settings if necessary), otherwise it will break
  
• Tweaked accuracy settings for AI for all difficulty levels
  
• Tweaked time it takes for AI to aim at their target
  
• Fixed a bug where AI in status Idle could go back to unarmed after engaging an enemy/hearing a gunshot
  
• Increased and/or added random delays for various AI actions so they don't happen at the exact same time for multiple AI
  
• Fixed an issue where AI could go back to unarmed after witnessing another being killed right next to it
  
• Added randomization to movement when losing sight of target, now either walks, jogs or sprints (sprint has lowest probability)
  

Customization and inventory

• Cleaned up some more fit/clipping issues with hairstyles, beards and the Ghillie Hood (still work to do)
  
• Ball Cap (Reverse) now uses regular Head (Center) patch selection rather than callsign patch
  
• Minor color tweaks to black Hiking Boots skin
  

Audio

• Fixed Galil ARM missing third-person sounds
  
• Rearranged main menu music to be a better loop
  
• Bombs in Defuse game mode now have beeping sound
  

UI

• Minor cleanup on loading screen elements:
  
  
  
  
  • Server names should no longer overrun game tips (needs testing for edge cases)
    
  • After-Action Review (AAR) insertion upon going back to main menu should no longer have a white border around it
    
  
  

General fixes

• Changed PhysMat type for Creek embankment meshes to fix footsteps sounding like wood board flooring
  
• Fixed missing friendly name tags in Ready Room and (when selected) play area
  

⭐ A little message from BlackFoot Studios

❓ How to join the Community Test beta branch

• Right-click GROUND BRANCH in your Steam Library and select Properties…
  
• Click 'BETAS' on the left-hand list menu
  
• Select 'communitytest - Community testing branch' from the drop-down menu
  (no password required)
  

Steam will begin downloading the files for the testing branch. Patching may take a while.

🐞 Where to report bugs

You can report bugs and issues using any of these methods:

• The in-game Bugs & Issues screen (press Esc once in-game and look along the top menu)
  
• The Steam forums: steamcommunity.com/app/16900/discussions/
  
• The #bug-reports channel on the official GROUND BRANCH™ Discord
  

Your reports help us locate and fix issues faster, so keep them coming!

Known issues

• Enemy AI may be unresponsive/idle/stuck in various contexts — if you see it, please make note of whether it was online (dedicated server? Listen server?) or offline, which game mode was being played, as well as map and location etc.

  ⚠️ Bots are particularly prone to getting stuck in doorways; we're actively working on fixing/improving this issue.

• Changing directions (WASD) with a primary weapon equipped will cause visible "hitches" in the weapon movement
  
• Weapon movement, poses and animations in general are still being put back together after the prone overhaul — please bear with us
  
• Leaning is bound to feel particularly strange, due to the combo of new poses and the ongoing animation work (all WIP)
  
• Walking or running with a primary weapon equipped causes the character's right foot to "hover" before it actually touches the ground
  
• The prone stance does not conform to terrain angle
  
• Aiming (ADS) with a pistol while crouched is offset to the right
  
• Character and weapon collision while prone is pretty finicky! Let us know how it all feels to you
  
• The Tablet (map) is currently offset to the bottom while crouched, and unusable while prone
  
• Various combinations of hairstyles and headgear items have visible clipping or overall jankiness
  
• The SA58 OSW does not have correct reload animations hooked up
  

Setting up a Community Test dedicated server (DS)

Patch notes

AI

• Fixed a bug where AI would turn instantly when visually detecting players:
  
  
  
  
  • Now respects ReactionTime set in AISettings before firing, and has a turn rate limiter
    
  • Added ReactionTime delay to audio bark when hearing a gunshot, so that they do not react immediately
    
  
  
• Tweaked perception for suppression: AI should be a bit more reactive towards fire in their direction
  
• Fixed a bug where the AI wouldn't turn properly towards the player when sprinting to cover
  
• Fixed a bug where the aim for the AI would be off when the player character was prone and rotating their upper body (AimTarget for AI is now based on bone position)
  
• AI visual perception now scales with stance (minimum when prone), movement (increases when players are moving / running / sprinting) and the time and loudness of the last firearm discharge
  
• Slightly increased AI visual detection range
  
• Decreased primary and secondary visual detection cones by 10 degrees
  
• Decreased influence of secondary cone
  
• Increased AI noise detection range
  
• Increased AI noise detection uncertainty (they will be less sure of where shots are being fired from)
  
• Increased randomization in AI shooting cadence to avoid the repetitive 1 shot › 1 second pause › 1 shot pattern
  
• Updated behavior for investigating noise and last known target position for guard AI:
  
  
  
  
  • Guard AI will no longer leave their guard point, but remain in proximity
    
  • Guard AI will usually check (look around) when they perceive something, but will not go investigate
    
  
  

General fixes

• Gave Male 06 his eyeballs back
  
• Fixed bugged MPX reload that had floating mags
  
• Updated Galil ARM:
  
  
  
  
  • Fixed missing weapon animations (bolt movement, ejection etc.)
    
  • Hooked up correct Galil animations (reloads etc.)
    

    ⚠️ Still missing reload sounds

    ⚠️ Still missing gunshot SFX for other players (online)

  • Created default build (fixes missing magazine in default build)
    
  
  
• Reverted Join from friend invite (mod version) to original (should fix Host Game connection issues)
  
• Added calls to clear character camera effects when switching character (e.g. returning to Ready Room) or when using the Customize Operator menu, so that hopefully headcam and NVG effects don’t transfer over when players die or change loadouts
  
• More fixes for hair and headgear fits
  

UI

• Added Prone, Stance Up and Stance Down to the Controller keybind list (Settings › Controls)
  
• Bound Prone to [Face Button Right] + [Right Shoulder Button] as default
  
• Cleaned up appearance of Controller keybind list to match that of Keyboard/Mouse
  

VFX

• Increased bird flock height by 3 meters
  
• Dirt footstep effects: decreased sprite size, adjusted lifetime, and made the effect more subtle
  

❓ How to join the Community Test beta branch

• Right-click GROUND BRANCH in your Steam Library and select Properties…
  
• Click 'BETAS' on the left-hand list menu
  
• Select 'communitytest - Community testing branch' from the drop-down menu
  (no password required)
  

Steam will begin downloading the files for the testing branch. Patching may take a while.

🐞 Where to report bugs

You can report bugs and issues using any of these methods:

• The in-game Bugs & Issues screen (press Esc once in-game and look along the top menu)
  
• The Steam forums: steamcommunity.com/app/16900/discussions/
  
• The #bug-reports channel on the official GROUND BRANCH™ Discord
  

Your reports help us locate and fix issues faster, so keep them coming!

Highlights

• The new Prone stance is accessible via the Z key (default)
  
• Players can also change stances by binding the new Stance Up and Stance Down keybinds
  
• First pass on new enemy AI — we have rebuilt the AI from the ground up and it is neither fully tested nor feature-complete, so please bear with us as we collect feedback and iterate during this testing period
  
• Six female characters can now be selected under the Appearance tab
  
• A few hairstyles are now available for all characters, along with a shorter beard for male characters
  

⚠️ Weapon modding is still set for addition in the final V1034 release, but it is not currently available in the public testing.

⚠️ As mentioned previously, the new AI is far from final and will continue to be worked on over several updates.

Known issues

• Enemy AI may be unresponsive/idle/stuck in various contexts — if you see it, please make note of whether it was online (dedicated server? Listen server?) or offline, which game mode was being played, as well as map and location etc. (this may be an issue with legacy mission setups rather than the AI, so let's figure it out)
  
• Changing directions (WASD) with a primary weapon equipped will cause visible "hitches" in the weapon movement
  
• Weapon movement, poses and animations in general are still being put back together after the prone overhaul — please bear with us
  
• Leaning is bound to feel particularly strange, due to the combo of new poses and the ongoing animation work (all WIP)
  
• Walking or running with a primary weapon equipped causes the character's right foot to "hover" before it actually touches the ground
  
• Prone does not conform to terrain angle
  
• Aiming (ADS) with a pistol while crouched is offset to the right
  
• Character and weapon collision while prone is pretty finicky! Let us know how it all feels to you
  
• The Tablet (map) is currently offset to the bottom while crouched, and unusable while prone
  
• Various combinations of hairstyles and headgear items have visible clipping or overall jankiness
  
• The Galil ARM and SA58 OSW are lacking bolt/ejection and charging handle movements (in the weapon themselves)
  
• The default Galil ARM and SA58 OSW builds are missing a magazine
  
• The SA58 OSW does not have the correct reload animations hooked up
  

Patch notes

Maps

City

• Major overhaul at street level (new enterable central buildings, enterable peripheral buildings and a large new bank section)
  
• Missions rejigged to conform to and take advantage of new features
  
• Cleaned up a lot of collision issues
  

Compound

• Calls to prayer added using new Time of Day alarm system
  

Creek

• Fixed specular value on creek embankment material so it better matches the ground
  
• Reworked terrain and collisions to reduce possibility of getting stuck on trees
  

Depot

• Optimized grass meshes
  
• Switched guard tower at main gate to the mirrored version
  
• Added some cover plates to top platform area of Depot guard towers (gives more cover to that area for AI and players)
  
• Tweaked grass wind settings
  
• Increased draw distances for log foliage and some door frames
  

Power Station

• Added light blocker mesh to stop sunlight coming into Power Station tunnel when sunlight is at very low light angle
  

Rig

• Added the vista from Tanker
  
• Fixed some poor tiling on the legs/superstructure
  
• Texture sharpening
  
• Replaced all industrial doors with new ones, improved opening directions, yaws and clutter around them for better movement
  
• Fixed some inverted or bad normal maps
  
• Replaced wood interior doors with newer version
  
• Replaced roll up doors with newer version
  
• Converted glass blueprints to Depot style
  
• Some PFX optimizing
  
• Material tweaks
  
• Optimized light settings
  
• Improved bloom and light shaft settings, same as Depot
  
• Fixed DFAO bleeding on some interior wall meshes
  
• Reduced complexity of derrick railings
  
• A few material tweaks
  
• Set some small props to Projectile collision profile
  
• Sun light optimization
  

Small Town

• Consistency and cosmetic overhaul
  

Storage Facility

• Fixed some props and decals hidden in walls
  
• Fixed some reflection captures that were in the void
  
• Tweaked signage
  
• Material tweaks
  
• Fixed inverted phone
  

The Farm

• Consistency and cosmetic update
  
• Extended distance of some foliage and added a bit of unevenness to the Farm shooting range terrain to help with foliage culling leaving the terrain bare at distances
  

Tanker

• Added new life raft pods, tweaked draw distances for large meshes
  
• Cleaned up collision with Tanker internal staircase railings
  

Weapons and attachments

New weapons

• Galil ARM
  
• FAL
  
• SA58 OSW
  

Updated weapons

• MPX (new model)
  
• Adding back in old metal AKM mag due to popular request
  
• Fixed bad normals on FAL magazine
  
• Fixed bad setting for metallic texture on 1P78 Kashtan sight that made it black in shadow
  

Optics and attachments

• SRS model and textures updated
  
• AN/PEQ-15 lasers now emit from the correct apertures depending on type selected (visible/IR)
  
• Laser beam point light effect reworked slightly
  

Customization

• Created male and female subtypes of clothing
  
• New Flannel Shirt style (previous version renamed to "Light Flannel")
  
• Some pouches removed on rigs and vests to accommodate new radio asset
  
• Updated/cleaned up a lot of inaccurate color schemes for various tops and pants
  
• Changed cap and reverse cap to have callsign at the back
  
• All country patches removed except those representing dev team countries (US, Australia, Brazil, UK, Germany, Canada and Spain)
  
• New patches added:
  
  
  
  
  • Blackbeard
    
  • Too Deep
    
  • Tertia Optio B
    
  • United States B (R)
    
  • United States B (L)
    
  • United States IR (R)
    
  • United States IR (R)
    
  • US–UK Friendship Flag
    
  • SCOPetrol
    
  • Ram Airways
    

AI

• Migrated from Unreal AI system to Kythera AI middleware (huge change)
  
• Main updates in behavior:
  
  
  
  
  • New target acquisition based on engagement time and distance
    
  • New perception system, with different cone of visions that take lighting and time of day into account
    
  • Basic suppression (firing at last known location)
    
  • Crouching and going prone when no cover is available nearby
    
  • Holding fire when another bot is in the line of fire
    
  • Replaced pathfinding/navmesh system with Kythera solution, including ORCA avoidance
    
  • Scouting out of windows
    
  
  
• AI loadouts updated to take account of new kit and disappearing pouches
  
• At lower skill levels, AI fire tracers with increasing frequency and have more frequent muzzle flash effects
  

Character and controls

• Added female characters (new heads and clothing assets)
  
• Morph targets added to create female variations of existing kit
  
• Various under-the-hood changes to integrate with new Kythera AI systems
  
• Hair styles added for both male and female models, with different options according to head type and gender
  
• Updated eyelash meshes created and added for all characters
  
• Radio and PTT module added to relevant platforms
  
• New beard style (short/spotty)
  
• New prone action mapped to Z key by default
  
• Stance Up / Stance Down keybinds now available, as an alternative stance control scheme to move between standing, crouched and prone (uses only two keys)
  

Graphics

• New headcam-style camera for Spectator Mode and Debug (Ctrl + Up arrow)
  
• Updated DLSS and Streamline plugins
  
• Underwater effects added to all water volumes which can be entered by going prone or looking down while crouched, depending on depth
  
• Added various new branch, log and tree assets
  
• New colorblind graphics settings, including colorblind correction modes and custom reticle and laser colors
  
• Main menu max FPS is now capped to value of new MainMenuFPS config variable (default 60 FPS)
  
• Spectator Mode night vision now cycles through green and white phosphor settings (previously only green)
  
• Replaced static normal texture for callsign patches with a procedurally generated normal, to make the letters stand out (literally)
  
• Added specular and AO (ambient occlusion) into the patch decal chain, to remove AO and to set a constant specular value on body patches (previously there was some speckle in shadow caused by underlying AO)
  
• Small pass on tracers (visuals and onset)
  
• Callsign patches now added to the back of helmets (or to the back of the NVG counterweight, if equipped)
  
• Specular AO mode enabled
  
• Brought the post-processing on the UE4 debug camera into line with the normal character post-processing
  
• Changed AA samples to 16, since it was causing issues/artifacts with DLSS SR
  
• Reworked handling of DLSS FG when in main menu and when the game is starting
  
• DLSS FG (Frame Generation) will be turned off in the main menu, only be enabled when game starts
  
• Added smooth Time of Day transitions for TimeOfDay console command
  
• Big pass on consistency and values of colors and brightness of inventory/outfit items (let us know if you catch any inconsistencies!)
  
• Changed default resolution from 1280x800 to 1920x1080 (may need some further work for Steam Deck)
  
• Various tooltips converted to GB standard
  
• Fuse boxes, DTAS flags and other gameplay props set to never distance cull
  

Animation

• Introduction of prone posture and transitions
  
• Overhaul of all movement animations and poses
  
• New animations for body and head recoil (reacting to weapon recoil)
  
• Updated MK17 animations with polish pass
  
• Updated M24 character animations so they were mesh additive
  
• New mag check animations
  
• Prone death animations
  
• Created SA58 OSW animations
  
• Created Galil ARM animations
  
• Polished FAL animations
  

VFX

• Overhaul of all bullet impact and other VFX
  
• Reworked smoke materials, especially with regard to ambient lighting
  
• Smoke grenades tweaked to last longer and to have different smoke propagation
  
• New muzzle flashes: suppressed, flash hider, and AK-specific FX created
  
• New shell ejection smoke FX
  
• Added color control for the muzzle flash smoke elements
  
• Adjusted the M67 Frag dirt explosion
  
• Reworked Breaching Charge and door explosion effects
  
• New blood impact effects
  
• New manhole/steam FX in City
  
• Bug system added to various lights (bugs circle lights at night)
  
• Dynamic light system now uses separate VFX for shooting out the light when on vs off
  
• New footstep FX
  
• Set physical materials for a large number of materials that were missing one
  
• Lights can now be blown out by grenade explosions
  
• Created FX for light fixture destruction
  

Servers and multiplayer

• Added server-configurable door to block off firing range in Ready Room
  
• Server browser and dedicated servers updated to transfer new information relating to mods and player names
  
• Server browser now displays a list of players and a list of mods that are active on all servers
  
• Enabled some engine anti-cheat settings
  
• Added AllowVotesWhenAdminPresent property (if FALSE then no votes can be started, except by admins, when an admin is online)
  
• Added server setting for ready countdown time (default 45 seconds), which is used unless overridden by the map list
  
• If a dedicated server is started up without a map list, a basic one is generated (previously dedicated servers would just hang until restarted with a maplist.ini added)
  
• New rules (e.g. DisplayFriendlyNameTags) are now added and are editable if not already present (e.g. because using a legacy Server.ini file)
  
• Added server restart settings to admin/server settings widget
  
• Added new ServerRestart admin console command, which is by default only enabled for admins, and causes the immediate restart of the server.
  
• Added shutdown options to Server.ini in ServerConfig, including new "shutdown at hour of day" option (previously servers only restarted after specified length of time)
  
• Added vote settings to server settings admin menu
  
• Added VoteDelayFromRoundStart setting to vote.ini — votes not allowed until X minutes of play have elapsed
  

Game modes and gameplay

• Added Randomize Objectives feature to Ops Board and to game modes (OnRandomiseObjectives)
  
• Added pause feature (in single-player only) when in game menu is accessed
  
• Added player volunteer feature to game modes and server roster (players and admins can set a "volunteer" flag that can be read by a game mode to determine who to pick for a random role such as flag carrier or hostage)
  
• Changed mission setting process in UpdateMissionSettingsTable() in GBGameMode to only set (and thus record as changed) mission settings that were actually changed
  
• Intel Retrieval, Terrorist Hunt, Team Elimination and Uplink updated to incorporate Randomize Objectives feature
  
• Flashbangs do not always stun if they are more than 0.5 meter above player's eyes (to prevent bangs through floors)
  
• Fixed bomb mission actors, and added Lua callbacks for when bomb takes damage from projectiles and grenades, and a test mode in which shooting a bomb causes immediate detonation
  
• Rejigged/repurposed old PVE “Defuse” game mode, intended as mod example. Added missions for Small Town, City and Rundown
  
• New short range friendly name tags (if server rule UsesFriendlyNameTags is TRUE)
  
• Teamkill warnings for the team killer should now display every time it happens
  
• Team balancing code moved into Lua library and added to Team Elimination and Uplink modes
  
• Team Elimination, Uplink and Hostage Rescue modes are changed so that if auto balance is off, defender spawns are shown in the ready room (otherwise they are obscured until round start)
  
• NVG automatically flips up now when equipping tablet, and automatically flips back down when tablet is put away
  
• Pathable news helicopter added to City map (flees when shot at)
  
• Passing a nil AI class reference to ai.GetControllers now returns default AI controller class
  
• Added new Rig Hostage Rescue (Living Quarters) mission
  
• Created new door sign component and added it to doors in Rig crew quarters area for easier call-outs
  
• Changed spawning behavior so that if spawning mid-round, there is no player freeze and gun starts in (mid) ready (* isn’t it ADS now?)
  
• Added time of day alarm system, optionally providing events based on astronomical time (e.g. sunset, midday, sunset) rather than hours
  
• Changed mission editor to send player back to ready room after edits
  
• Underwater mode added, in which weapons cannot be fired or brought to ADS, and breathing is limited, forcing the player out of prone when breath runs out; if the player cannot move out of the water, they will quickly take drowning damage
  
• Hackable laptop now auto-equips after hack (to avoid accidentally leaving behind in intel retrieval, etc.)
  
• Added Player Stance property to PlayerStart mission actor, so players can spawn in either upright or crouched
  
• New library calls available to game modes to kill or damage players, and to spawn an effect at a player
  
• Female characters who become hostages in Hostage Rescue are made male during captivity (because some of you are weirdos)
  
• Added double-click-to-zoom-to-actor functionality in the actor list in the mission editor
  
• Improved validation for TH missions by alphabetically sorting the list of guard point names in the event of a discrepancy with number of guarding squads (may also automate finding odd one out)
  

Audio

• Implemented new dynamic reverb system that accounts for the size and layout of indoor areas
  
• New main menu music and stingers from Venus Theory
  
• Depot audio level updated
  
• Updated City level audio, added idle vehicle sounds as well as ambient city sounds such as sirens and horns
  
• Updated level audio for Depot, Creek, Run Down, Power Station
  
• Resynced reload audio for AKs, ARs, FALs, G3A3, M1014, MK14 EBR and handguns
  
• Added dynamic window audio and fixed missing audio
  
• New sounds for news helicopter (City)
  
• Implemented power box interaction and electrical hum
  
• Music manager subsystem added
  
• Created underwater filter and set up water foley sounds
  
• Female characters now have a female voice playing in the Comms Menu (G)
  
• Acoustic portals now open and close and the correct time
  
• Stray acoustic portals are now autodetected by coincident doors
  

UI

• Renaming of various settings names and other UI elements
  
• Ready Room locker hints hopefully less confusing now
  
• Server, game mode and mission details added to the Esc menu
  
• Swapped Rotate and Pan camera actions when click-dragging in Customize Operator screen (for character and for items)
  
• Added is-modded and has-kit-restrictions filters for server list
  
• Split up Gameplay settings into an additional screen (HUD)
  
• New stance icon for Prone and related UI changes and additions
  
• Holding down Ctrl will hide UI elements in Customize Operator screen
  
• UI pass on admin server settings menu (mainly prettifying names)
  
• Reduced opacity of AI hotspot marker
  
• Tweaked mission editor UI a bit to make key shortcuts work in more cases and to fix minor UI issues
  
• Added match info screen to loading screen
  
• Hid advanced AI settings button (new AI settings need to be dialed in first during testing)
  
• Added some new loading screen tips
  

Bug fixes

• GetShadowIndex() == 0 silent crash fixed
  
• Capsule shadows should be handled better by character items
  
• Fixed bug where sometimes dragging spinbox (e.g. in mission settings) would result in a value 1 more than expected
  
• Fixed the ‘T count’ bug where you can't change the terrorist count on the Ops Board (may also fix other related bugs in custom modes and similar)
  
• Fixed up NVG, Binoculars and Rangefinder to remove overlay if not in first-person view
  
• Fixed incorrect velocity settings for 7.62×39 mm (AKM) round
  
• Fixed broken laptop placements in City, Docks, and other maps
  
• Tweaked the autobalance code to NOT balance teams with only 1 player playing if the ideal team size difference is 0 (i.e. symmetric game modes like Team Elimination that aren't attacker/defender-based)
  
• Fixed IR strobes still flashing after NVG turned off
  
• Fixed NVG overlay remaining sometimes after removing NVG
  
• Tablet screen is now blurry again (consistent with overall NVG effects)
  
• IR strobes reduced in intensity
  
• Reworked NVG bounce algorithm (causing lens misalignment) to be more FPS-invariant
  
• Improved the logging when an item fails to spawn
  
• Body patches now have working normal maps (depth/texture)
  
• Hostage run exploit patched
  
• Fix for laptops causing collision when not active
  
• Rangefinder NV mode fixed up a bit
  
• Fixed resurrect command not working via admin menu, and added missing SuperKick and ResurrectAtMe options
  
• Activating debug camera now destroys associated player state so no more phantom players appearing in roster and stopping SP games from starting
  
• Fixed Tablet missing a dropped item class, causing issues with picking up
  
• Updated grenade code in relation to inconsistent throw location
  
• Fix for eyewear items not taking on proper skin when leaving character editor
  
• Changed default player freeze on round start to last until end of pre round wait period rather than for the pre round wait duration (in case players spawn in late)
  
• Fixed no validation for bad ASCII characters when setting name in character editor
  
• Fixed Patches dialog not preventing background clicks
  
• Custom collision component added to dynamic lighting blueprint to fix problem with (e.g.) shooting a pole breaking the attached light
  
• Fixed reticles not changing size when zoom is changed while not ADS
  
• Placement of Breaching Charges prevented while 'frozen'
  
• Use of detonator for breach charge prevented while 'frozen'
  
• Fixed out-of-level exploit in Rig Top Deck Deathmatch, Last Man Standing and Team Elimination missions (stairs East of shack 5)
  
• Tentatively fixed bots running out of cargo door in 747 Terrorist Hunt (Interior)
  
• Big pass on collision in Creek to try to eliminate instances of getting stuck on trees
  
• North-facing doors now register a close event properly
  
• Fix for equipment and weapon attachments showing shadows when "Use Simple Character Shadows" is set in settings
  

⚠️ This report is not an exhaustive list of V1034 features!

For the most up-to-date list of expected V1034 and later features, see our roadmap. You may also want to check out our Intel Reports for June (#015), July (#016), August (#017), September (#018) and October (#019).

🍂 Steam Autumn Sale: GROUND BRANCH is 25% OFF!

Preparing for (and fixing things around) prone

Underwater effects

💡 Even if we end up preventing players from going underwater, the effects will be useful for non-gameplay camera purposes such as Spectator Mode and screenshots.

AI development

💡 Why are there 2 cones of vision?

• The wider cone (gray) is the actual visual perception cone for the AI: any enemy activity picked up within it will raise alertness.
  
• The smaller cone (red) is used for target selection: targets within this cone will be engaged according to priority — more on that in a future report.

• Distance: the closer to the target, the faster the AI will identify it
  
• Angle: targets that are in the primary cone of vision (red) will raise suspicion more quickly than targets in the secondary cone (gray)
  
• Time of day: broad daylight makes detection easier by increasing the range/length of the cone, while nighttime makes it shorter
  
• Light sources: proximity to artificial light sources can make targets more easily detectable
  

💡 Please note that these videos and visualizations are merely for demonstration purposes and don't necessarily represent final AI detection behaviors or values.

💡 For earlier AI-related news and demos including grenade usage, shooting out of windows, cover system and world interactions, make sure you've checked out Intel Reports #017, #018 and #019.

Time of Day alarm system

💡 The system can also be rigged to work with "normal" or "actual" hours, for example to have a bell sound every hour.

Other developments

Female voices coming to the Comms Menu and other audio updates

🔊 Audio reverb is also being updated. Whereas in V1033 the reverb is essentially binary, accounting only for whether you're "outdoors", in a "large room" or in a "small room" — with no in-betweens — in V1034 reverb should dynamically adapt to the size and layout of rooms.

Making sure you retrieve that intel

Patching out certain patches

Bugfix corner

• Fixed reticle not updating when scope magnification levels are changed by the player while not in ADS (aim down sight) mode.
  
• Fixed lights being blown out when shooting poles and other parts of light fixtures rather than the bulbs or light strips themselves (a particular issue on Small Town and Depot, for example), and some new VFX has been added for lights shot out while off, and also to add some visual feedback when multiple shots are required to take out a light (for example the large floodlights in Depot).
  
• Tweaked various outfit and gear skins to:
  
  
  
  
  • No longer mismatch with other items of the same skin (especially camos)
    
  • Have better consistency in camo pattern scaling
    
  • Tone down excessive brightness (most noticeable in desert patterns/colors)
    
  
  
• Breaching Charges can no longer be placed or detonated while the player is "frozen" (e.g. at round start).
  

So when is V1034 coming out?

And this is it for this month's Intel Report!