[p]Hey Folks![/p][p][/p][p]Update v0.14.5.5 is now available on Steam, and your clients should be updating shortly.[/p][p][/p][p]This is a feature update to our "Across the System" milestone, which improves several player-requested changes to the inventory system, among other fixes.[/p][p][/p][p]Saves from v0.14.0.0 and later should work. Note that if you were experiencing issues in the older save, this patch may fix some, but others may persist depending on the cause.[/p][p] Note: 📢 indicates changes inspired by community feedback![/p]
[p]📢Modding: FaceAnim2.aPartNames is now defined by loot.json TXTFacePartNames, instead of hard-coded.[/p]
[p]📢Modding: FaceAnim2.aLayers array driven by loot.json TXTFacePartOrder, instead of hard-coded.[/p]
[p]Modding: Added support for animated sprites, with an example "Heater Model B" in cooverlays.[/p]
[p] The biggest change in this update is to how inventory works. The ground grid is now gone, and you can pick-up and place items directly in the world.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/03035f6e4cdcb834311ba1ddac9cfc055ae36150.png"][/p][p][/p][p]The ground window created a number of issues that were pretty hard to solve. And what's more, just about every new user we watched play the game would intuitively try to drop items into the world, not the ground window. So we decided to make it work the way most users initially expect it to.[/p][p][/p][p]Players have also been asking for some improvements to the inventory UI itself. One of the biggest requests was for pockets to consolidate more efficiently. Another was to make windows remember where the user moved them. And the ability to move the paperdoll itself.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/c07435c9e84174cb671c1beb43d21a3db60bca49.png"][/p][p] So in this update, we changed the way pockets rendered to be consolidated under their parent's window, and added code to restore window positions the next time the UI opened.[/p][p][/p][p]There is also a new rule: the inventory will not close with an item on the cursor. This was necessary to avoid "ghost" items and other stacking item bugs that could break saves. Now, if a user wants to exit the UI, they'll have to find a valid home for it, or walk to a place that has space.[/p][p] We've also added a new Trash slot, in case there were situations where it is impossible to find space for a cursor item on an entire ship, as well as to let users tidy-up space more conveniently.[/p][p] You'll also notice some other, minor changes, like tooltips and item highlights now working in the paperdoll. Plus some cursor icon changes to help with usability.[/p][p] This patch also includes 2 new soundtrack pieces from Josh Culler, which you'll hear when visiting VORB/Venus Orbital and VNCA/Newcal aerostat maps. VORB, in particular, was the first place many players would see after their first, grueling torch drive trip. And it'll be nice to have something new to hear upon arrival![/p][p][/p][p]Apart from the above, the update also includes a range of fixes for things like AI behaviors, loading and saving, super fast-forward, and other issues.[/p][p] Plus, some new modding features for our more technical users![/p][p] As always, there's plenty more for us to fix, change, and add! And we'll be continuing in roughly that order. In the meantime, let us know if this patch helps you out, as well as if it reveals new problems![/p][p][/p][p]Best,[/p][p]Daniel Fedor[/p][p]Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC[/p]
Fixes for Reloading Saves In-Game
[p]Hey Folks![/p][p][/p][p]Update v0.14.4.9 is now available on Steam, and your clients should be updating shortly.[/p][p][/p][p]This is a hotfix update to our "Across the System" milestone, which fixes errors that could occur when reloading a save from the in-game Esc menu.[/p][p][/p][p]Saves from v0.14.0.0 and later should work. Note that if you were experiencing issues in the older save, this patch may fix some, but others may persist depending on the cause.[/p][p][/p]
[p]Reloading the game from the in-game Esc menu should no longer produce errors.[/p]
[p]Some players reported the 0.14.4.8 build was throwing errors when they attempted to reload a save from within the game's Esc menu. This wouldn't happen in all cases, but frequently would occur if a new game was started, quicksaved, then immediately reloaded.[/p][p] This hotfix addresses that bug, and it should now load games error-free in that situation.[/p][p][/p][p]As always, there's plenty more for us to fix, change, and add! And we'll be continuing in roughly that order. In the meantime, let us know if this patch helps you out, as well as if it reveals new problems![/p][p][/p][p]Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC[/p]
AI and Performance Improvements, Plus Kitfox Festival Begins!
[p]Hey Folks![/p][p][/p][p]Update v0.14.4.8 is now available on Steam, and your clients should be updating shortly.[/p][p][/p][p]This is a hotfix update to our "Across the System" milestone, which makes several improvements to AI, as well as some performance enhancements.[/p][p][/p][p]Saves from v0.14.0.0 and later should work. Note that if you were experiencing issues in the older save, this patch may fix some, but others may persist depending on the cause.[/p][p] Note: 📢 indicates changes inspired by community feedback![/p]
General Changes
[p]📢 The X hotkey now cycles PDA Vizor modes, instead of just opening the PDA Vizor.[/p]
[p]Exiting to the Main Menu should now be faster, and result in significantly less RAM inflation.[/p]
[p]AI Jettison rules changed to improve framerate hitching, and prevent AI from jettisoning items for fun.[/p]
[p]📢 AI should now sleep more reliably during sleep shift (when sleepy).[/p]
[p]AI will no longer resume watching TV before they started watching it.[/p]
[p]PDA NAVLINK ship renaming will no longer pause/unpause/etc. the game while typing.[/p]
[p]Players can no longer rename NPCs or robots, which could break the game.[/p]
[p]Interactions can now append notes to PDA Notes (for modding and future use).[/p]
[p]The text on the PDA PASS app is no longer cut off.[/p]
[p]Players have been pretty excited about the new PDA features, overall. One thing many players immediately missed, though, was the directness of the old hotkey's toggling of DamageViz/PowerViz on and off. So we've switched the X (default) hotkey back to immediately toggling the Vizor overlay on/off again. It will now cycle through all available modes on your PDA (including back to Default). The L hotkey remains as-is, opening and closing the Vizor app.[/p][p][/p][p]Performance got a bit more attention this patch, with a pretty big change to the way the game exits back to the Main Menu. Previously, it would significantly inflate RAM usage each time it returned to the Main Menu. Usually to the tune of hundreds of MB, and sometimes more.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/f3a0946a2e7252df271bc01581670cc7744d991f.png"] [/p][p]This patch optimizes the way we load data, and reuses existing data more efficiently. The result is less RAM inflation when returning to the Main Menu, which also happens faster now as a bonus![/p][p] AIs also had some work done this patch.[/p][p] First, we fixed a bug where AI could jettison things for fun. And it turned out this was also a performance hog, since it could check the jettison action on every map object each time it had a free moment. AI should no longer be doing this now.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/166d87d15fec37488d246a1d6b73e2e5ac62de60.png"][TAG-80] [/p][p]We also made some changes to how the AI behaves in Sleep shifts. Previously, AI treated Sleep shift as a sort of free time, and often didn't get around to actually sleeping. Now, if they are even a little sleepy, they will prefer to sleep first, unless they have a serious survival need (like breathing, staving, etc.). Only after they are fully-rested will they pursue other activities.[/p][p] This patch also includes a few other minor UI and AI fixes.[/p][p][/p]
Kitfox Festival
[p]Also, today is the first day of the Kitfox Festival, and we're celebrating with 20% off Ostranauts till August 14th! You can also pick up the rest of the games in the Kitfox catalogue on sale during the event.[/p][p][/p][p]Furthermore, our friends at A Sharp (designers of King of Dragon Pass and Six Ages) also just announced their brand new procedural adventure game, Thousand Hells: The Underworld Heists. If you're into tactical battles and underworld mythology then this might be for you. You can watch the announcement trailer here:[/p][TAG-101][p][/p][p]and wishlist the game on Steam here:[/p][p][dynamiclink href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/3794210/Thousand_Hells/"][TAG-110][/p][p]As always, there's plenty more for us to fix, change, and add! And we'll be continuing in roughly that order. In the meantime, let us know if this patch helps you out, as well as if it reveals new problems![/p][p][/p][p]Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC[/p]
PDA Vizor, Notes, and Timer Apps, Plus AI Fixes
[p]Hey Folks![/p][p][/p][p]Update v0.14.4.7 is now available on Steam, and your clients should be updating shortly.[/p][p][/p][p]This is a hotfix update to our "Across the System" milestone, which includes several player-requested features, plus fixes and quality of life enhancements.[/p][p][/p][p]Saves from v0.14.0.0 and later should work. Note that if you were experiencing issues in the older save, this patch may fix some, but others may persist depending on the cause.[/p][p] Note: 📢 indicates changes inspired by community feedback![/p][p][/p]
[p]Officers arresting a subdued NPC no longer soft lock the game.[/p]
[p]Maintenance NPCs should now do their jobs more effectively.[/p]
[p]AI will no longer take a break mid-combat to eat or drink.[/p]
[p]AI will no longer romance the floor during super fast-forward.[/p]
[p]AI won't play until it dies on Arcades anymore.[/p]
[p]AI won't play loose and damaged arcades anymore.[/p]
[p]Gigs should now report target ship and range again.[/p]
[p]Pathfinders should no longer avoid valid paths through doors if the ship had a stray part dropped near the outside edge.[/p]
[p]UI now has more tooltips to help the player.[/p]
[p]Rooms/compartments have new sprite art in the MTT.[/p]
[p]Player pronouns will now correctly update in the sink UI if used after character creation.[/p]
[p]Tutorial and Ostraka updated to reflect new PDA Vizor app, and other tweaks.[/p]
[p]Mechanical and electrical parts no longer have giant stack counters on the paperdoll.[/p]
[p]Lights sampled in the ship editor eyedropper tool now update in real time while moving around.[/p]
[p]Fixes for some floors using wrong damaged and loose sprites and ACP ammo description.[/p]
[p] PDA is the star of this update, with 3 new apps to help players out in the boneyard![/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/70c9265b9d3bed8438ad374baf3b72a1f9b6eb43.png"] [/p][p]The first is a Notes app that will let players record notes in-game. The notepad can be used any time the PDA is available, including in control panels, and supports rich text using html-style markup.[/p][p] The second is a Timer app with alarm, which can be used to set a reminder in the future. When the timer expires, an alarm will beep, and the game will return to normal speed, if fast-forwarding.[/p][p][/p][p]There is also a new Vizor app.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/2d74ccdb5c9d2604ecf31874a49959b5c8188614.png"] [/p][p]This app allows players to see the game world with various data overlays, to help pinpoint certain items or areas of interest. Vizor modes include the familiar PowerViz and DamageViz, as well as some newer, more exotic views.[/p][p] [img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/8ceed80571a2aaa8e1c6b4b88d6ce8df0eaacd4a.png"] [/p][p]To use this app, the PDA must have the corresponding cartridge for that view mode. Players start with the PowerViz and DamageViz carts installed, but can both purchase and find others in the world. Some with unusual effects...[/p][p][/p][p]The PDA also must be slotted in a new forearm PDA slot, which lets players keep their hands free for other tools and containers. And to help make slots clearer, we now have slot indicators to show where an item on the cursor can be slotted:[/p][p] [img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/15353d74d8ac87465e2235da1e1be114a0915940.png"] [/p][p]Players should also notice some new AI fixes and improvements in this build.[/p][p] Maintenance NPCs should now correctly do their jobs, ranging from replacing canisters to repairing holes in walls. Combat AI should now avoid a snack break during a pitched battle, while leisure AI should stop playing arcade machines before they starve to death. And lonely AIs will stop... interacting with floors.[/p][p][/p][p]All this plus a bunch of other fixes and tweaks to hopefully improve time spent in-game.[/p][p][/p][p]As always, there's plenty more for us to fix, change, and add! And we'll be continuing in roughly that order. In the meantime, let us know if this patch helps you out, as well as if it reveals new problems![/p][p][/p][p]Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC[/p]
Hot Venus Summer Update
[p]Hey Folks![/p][p][/p][p]Update v0.14.4.2 is now available on Steam, and your clients should be updating shortly.[/p][p][/p][p]This is a feature update to our "Across the System" milestone, which includes several player-requested features, new content, and significant bug fixes.[/p][p][/p][p]Saves from v0.14.0.0 and later should work. Note that if you were experiencing issues in the older save, this patch may fix some, but others may persist depending on the cause.[/p][p] Note: 📢 indicates changes inspired by community feedback![/p]
[p]Social items no longer spill all over the OKLG floor.[/p]
[p]Double discomforts/moodlets will no longer appear on characters.[/p]
[p]Emptying ship batteries no longer causes an infinite loop error.[/p]
[p]📢New tutorial for when Roster permission is first mentioned.[/p]
[p]Aero races should now be more doable/balanced, and fixes for several racing bugs.[/p]
[p]NPC ships no longer trigger TRACK WARN alarms when nobody is at their helm.[/p]
[p]NPC ships no longer go full beans when undocking, but instead keep to a speed limit.[/p]
[p]NPC pirate and officer pilots no longer request refuel help from player.[/p]
[p]NPCs should no longer teleport outside their ships when that ship unloads.[/p]
[p]The yellow pressure suit is now equippable.[/p]
[p]AI should now stop exercising if they are suffocating to death.[/p]
[p]Items like bandages and liquids should no longer auto-slot into wounds.[/p]
[p]Reduced VREL/VCRS spikes when using rotational controls in orbit.[/p]
[p]Honeypot mission now correctly checks if target sees player as their lover, instead of other way around. Also, honeypot mission will no longer target the player.[/p]
[p]Items with "just right" damage amounts no longer appear all-black.[/p]
[p]Fewer stuck or glitched items in paperdull UI when handling stacks. (Especially on wounds.)[/p]
[p]Characters should no longer get more fatigued every time a save file is loaded.[/p]
[p]EVA battery charger no longer heals self when it is damaged or destroyed.[/p]
[p]Plotting a course from VORB to OKLG will no longer start the plot at VNCA.[/p]
[p]Characters should no longer t-pose if loaded off-screen.[/p]
[p]Dead bodies no longer disappear while player is standing aboard a ship docked to a station.[/p]
[p]Atmosphere scrubbers no longer cause the game to soft lock in the presence of methane or ammonia.[/p]
[p]Main menu buttons no longer get "stuck" or ignored if user dismisses intro screens with keypress.[/p]
[p]BBG logo music now waits for mixer settings to be restored before playing, to avoid volume spike.[/p]
[p]Several typo fixes.[/p]
[p][/p][p]Many of the changes in this update are things that have been suggested by players, and we wanted to try and get some of them in while they wait for ship combat to be ready.[/p][p][/p][p]First of all, players can now give items custom names! Hovering over the name of an object in the MTT now reveals a pencil icon that, when clicked, opens a dialog box for renaming the selected object. No more losing that power drill in a sea of similar crates![/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/5886e3179a304e9dd669fe03e0a4c30c4212b902.png"][TAG-204][/p][p][/p][p]We also finally added a new body type to the game. A lot of players wished for a more feminine body type so we added the option to character creation, it's purely cosmetic and doesn't affect any of the clothing sprites already in the game. [/p][p][/p][p]You can now change this during character creation, the same way you change facial features, hair, skin, etc. And a new button on the mirror's lower left corner allows you to toggle between face and body views.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/147e2e6c0910fb48b7d9b604a521a2558ee4edd8.png"][/p][p][/p][p]You'll also notice chargen has a new section for "Flirts With." This is in response to player feedback that our relationship system needed some work. Players were finding they could "win" any conversation by simply seducing the NPC, and the NPC had no preferences or ways to object. (Also, captains set to AUTOTASK would often start flirting or getting "Lover" status with other NPCs, despite players preferring otherwise.)[/p][p][/p][p]AI will now have preferences that dictate with whom they want relationships (or "loops," in Ostranauts parlance). This includes not only sexual orientation, but also monogamy vs. polygamy. And these new character generation checkboxes will tell your captain which targets are okay to automatically flirt with.[/p][p][/p][p]And in exchange for making "loop" relationships harder to attain, they now come with greater rewards. Characters can now engage in more intimate activities with their loop partner, with significant emotional rewards. Players can also, of course, ignore "loop" relationships altogether, if they wish. A manual interaction from the player is required to initiate any "loop."[/p][p][/p][p]Also, as part of this change, we decided to spruce-up the logging a bit to make it easier to read. Now, the logs will attempt to use more natural language when choosing names vs. pronouns, and matching verbs, instead of using everyone's full name all the time.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/a5434f302b68149990e9e09dbb302b1dcaa85030.png"][TAG-240][/p][p][/p][p]This patch also includes 2 new soundtrack pieces from Josh Culler, which you'll hear when visiting VENC/Encantado aerostat maps. We've also improved the air racing experience there for players interested in trying their hand at that.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]A few new performance improvements will hopefully be welcome for players with particularly large ships and/or lots of tasks to perform. We found a few ways to improve how AIs search for those solutions, as well as with gas and door logic.[/p][p][/p][p]And some long-standing bugs are finally squashed! The social moves you may have seen littered around stations should now be gone, and the dual discomfort/moodlet bug is now fixed. A newer bug with empty batteries soft-locking the game is also fixed, plus a similar one when an atmo scrubber was running on Venus.[/p][p][/p][p]Plus, a raft of other fixes and improvements, too numerous to detail completely here.[/p][p][/p][p]As always, there's plenty more for us to fix, change, and add! And we'll be continuing in roughly that order. In the meantime, let us know if this patch helps you out, as well as if it reveals new problems![/p][p][/p][p]Best,[/p][p]Daniel Fedor[/p][p]Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC[/p]
Sneak Preview: Fire in the Hold Update
[p]Hey Folks![/p][p]As many of you know, our next planned milestone (v0.15) adds ship-to-ship combat to the game, and is entitled "Fire in the Hold." We've received a lot of questions about the next milestone, ranging from what might be in it, to when it's coming, or even whether it is still being planned.[/p][p]We've already begun working on the new features, and we've been roughly splitting our time equally between making new stuff, and improving the user experience on existing stuff (a.k.a. our "hardening" phase). It's too soon for us to predict when you might get your hands on the combat milestone, but the current plan is to release pieces of it incrementally, so you may see some parts of it sooner than others.[/p][p]Here’s some details can we share about ship-to-ship combat:[/p]
Missiles
[p]As you might expect, one of the main weapon types we're planning to include is some sort of guided missile. Our current thinking is that this munition is fired from a launcher, separates from the ship a moment or two, and then accelerates towards a target, as seen in the following screenshots:[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/a67d09d090a4da7e5273bd5ccc899c3ca6b9584d.png"][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/3121edd989871c709fda68228d292e7437e4d99b.png"][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/7142a5dd5520ad5264acf25672608e6c203f1dc0.png"][/p][p] Here, we've engaged another ship at a range of about 60 km, and fired a volley of missiles at it. Missiles are likely to be a long-range weapon in Ostranauts, fired at targets dozens, or even hundreds or thousands of km away. They may have a minimum range.[/p][p]And so far, these weapons are likely more for situations where you simply want the other ship gone. Their explosive, indiscriminate damage pattern means the other ship may not be much more than a nest of twisted metal and trash if it hits.[/p][p]Testing so far suggests these missiles are hard to evade, given their much higher maneuverability than human-laden ships. But they can be shot down, and will eventually run out of propellant.[/p][p]We also anticipate having defensive measures to help shoot them down (e.g. see below) and/or jam their guidance systems, which can be an incentive to saturate your target with many missiles at once, hoping one gets through.[/p][p]For those reasons, we'll likely make missiles a purely manual-fire weapon, letting the user decide when and how many to use.[/p]
Direct Fire
[p]We're also experimenting with direct fire weapons (including rail gun and coil gun types), as a way to contrast the damage pattern and trajectory of guided missiles.[/p][p]Rail guns and coil guns will accelerate a dense, penetrating munition at high speeds towards a target, traveling in a straight line at constant velocity. Their impact effect is not unlike a micrometeoroid, often punching a hole through ship hulls, equipment, and crew(!) alike, in a narrow channel/path.[/p][p]And while this weapon's range is technically infinite, in practice, they are typically employed in short-to-medium range. Roughly up to 30 km. This is because even at high velocities, the propelled round can still be inaccurate at long range, particularly if the ship (and pilot) is nimble enough.[/p][p]For this reason, the targeting of direct fire weapons works a bit differently than the missiles above. The targeting computer will only begin tracking on a target within this effective range, and takes several seconds to acquire a firing solution:[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/d0f1315aba5327d412da09a1ca0a2a53a21def6f.gif"][/p][p]The orange arc seen here is an indicator of both the firing arc and the relative certainty of a hit. As the targeting solution improves, the arc narrows, until it reaches a full-solution and auto-fires (in this case, launching a comically large bullet-shaped ship).[/p][p]As part of our prototyping and playtesting, we've experimented with both autofire and manual fire, and will likely make both an option. Currently, autofire happens if the weapon is enabled and the user has begun locking a target. Manual fire can happen at any time, and the accuracy of the shot will be dependent on the arc's narrowness.[/p][p]And, of course, we'll likely experiment with different combinations of firing arc, reloading time, targeting time, ranges, velocities, etc.[/p][p]The version we have here turned out to be fairly effective at taking out an incoming missile or two, but was easily overwhelmed by volleys of larger numbers. As a result, we'll likely be experimenting with an even shorter range, higher rate-of-fire defensive cannon in the near future, specifically for this purpose.[/p]
Fire
[p]And what if one of these munitions hits something a little more...spicy? This update is called "Fire in the Hold," after all, right?[/p][p]This is a work in progress of our new fire effect, showing both the particles it spawns, and how it can act as a light source.[/p][p]Our goal for the fire mechanics is to reuse much of the existing systems we have in-game for heat generation, respiration, suffocation, and structural damage. And possibly reuse a large portion of the \[redacted] spreading mechanics to control the growth of the fire across flammables.[/p][p]Fire is likely to be a serious threat to ship crew, even if an attack does little other damage. It will quickly consume breathable O2, increase cabin temperature, and do damage over time to most things it touches. So adding tools and methods to deal with it will also be important.[/p]
Behind the Scenes
[p]Of course, none of the above would be very fun if it merely existed out of context. Some of the additional work we've done is a bit harder to show in neat, tidy images, and includes:[/p]
[p]Making different types of sensors vary in what they see.[/p]
[p]Making some sensors reveal our ship more to others.[/p]
[p]Modeling hit damage on remote ships vs. our on-screen ship, including relative ship orientations.[/p]
[p]Prototyping ways to present combat info and controls to the player.[/p]
[p]Adding logic to control when AI pilots fight vs. flee.[/p]
[p]Adding logic to control when AI pilots call for help.[/p]
[p]Building systems for weapon munitions and reloads.[/p]
[p]Plus, we have a number of important questions we need to keep in mind as these systems come online, including:[/p]
[p]Where will most of the fighting in-game happen? And why?[/p]
[p]What if players don't want to fight?[/p]
[p]What do these weapons look like on the ship? What resources do they use?[/p]
[p]Hopefully, these tasty morsels of information help tide readers over for a bit as they wait for the next milestone. It's easily one of our most anticipated and requested features, so we want to make sure we have time to get it right. But rest assured, we are working on it![/p][p]As always, if you have any questions or other feedback, we're keen to hear it! The best place to post is as a reply to this Steam announcement, which we'll monitor for at least a few days. But we will also keep an eye on our Discord's #suggestions channel, and comments to the Reddit link to this post. Thanks for reading![/p][p]Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC[/p]
New Tutorial System, Reactor Fuel Changes, and Other Fixes
[p]Hey Folks![/p][p]We have a new update (v0.14.3.21) available on Steam, and your clients should be updating shortly.[/p][p]This is a hotfix to our "Across the System" update, which adds a new tutorial system, addresses reactor autopilot behavior, and fixes several other issues.[/p][p]Saves from v0.14.0.0 and later should work. Note that if you were experiencing issues in the older save, this patch may fix some, but others may persist depending on the cause.[/p]
[p]New games will no longer spawn a fountain of blood at 0,0.[/p]
[p]Powered items should be more CPU efficient now.[/p]
[p]Ship brokers will no longer treat 100% restored items as damaged.[/p]
[p]Ship brokers will no longer assess ship values incorrectly if it had precious gases in containers.[/p]
[p]Gig Nexus lockers are now accessible all the time.[/p]
[p]Gig Nexus will now only take items relevant to the gig when turned-in.[/p]
[p]Floors purchased from the sundries kiosk on OKLG will no longer leak air when installed.[/p]
[p]Items turned-in to Gig Nexus no longer become invisible ghost items in the game.[/p]
[p]Tooltips should get stuck on screen less often.[/p]
[p]Added some more null exception handling to address newly found cases. (E.g. pathfinding, haulers, stations, trade routes.)[/p]
[p]Save games will no longer ignore lot items nested inside lot items, which can occasionally occur.[/p]
[p]A lot of our feedback still cites lack of a tutorial as a major barrier to enjoying the game. So we've been working on better in-game tools to help with that shortcoming. This new new tutorial system is called Ostraka.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/a6844b9bc7329657bbf59d1c9c9bde9a3d33729f.png"][TAG-160][/p][p]When starting a new game, any tutorial-related objectives will now open a relevant Ostraka page, and pause the game so players can read it at their leisure. If the topic has multiple pages associated with it, the arrows at the bottom right will navigate those pages.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/4fc0deac7c1a7e0e8fec9c0e9e7726b2d9c26058.png"][/p][p]Players can also jump forward and backward through the chapters to review old pages or peek at new ones any time, by using the chapter navigation tools.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/dd0a447ddd14e7cc36c7f38ddc736604f3cfdb17.png"][/p][p]Current chapters include early game basics on OKLG, flying your ship, salvaging an example derelict, and returning to OKLG to sell goods. And we intend to add to the chapters over time. We hope the Ostraka will help new players scale the steep learning curve a bit more comfortably![/p][p]This patch also includes several changes and fixes to the reactor system. Historically, autopilot would be able to do things with the reactor that players couldn't do manually. And the fuel estimates it produced did not reflect actual fuel usage.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/2ded05bd5b1091e684f7072182a550cb335c051a.png"][TAG-180][/p][p]This patch addresses FLOW and CYCLE sliders to produce the same thrust both with and without autopilot, and rectifies fuel usage so autopilot's predicted fuel use matches what is actually used by the reactor. Note that autopilot is typically less fuel efficient than a skilled pilot would be![/p][p]NPC pilots also received some updates to improve their flying, as well as fixes to avoid spawning them unnecessarily. And AI workers should now be a bit more efficient in finding their next task. Powered items also had some improvements to cpu efficiency, all of which should help with performance. [/p][p]The new character "infinite skill point" exploit has finally been fixed (sorry!), and now characters will only get free skills the first career term.[/p][p]With the help of some player saves, we were finally able to find and fix the cause of some floors voiding rooms after a save/reload! It turns out this was happening whenever someone purchased floors from a different map than their ship (e.g. OKLG Sundries kiosk), and that floor was stacked in a barter zone, then later installed in a room. Typically, this appeared with the Testudo "Spring" floor types, since they were purchased more often. But this could happen with any stackable room part.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/34518042/05e5c28796f638a558217b6de5d4acd340be0486.png"][/p][p]Finally, Gig Nexus locker behavior was also changed, so now players can access the locker at any time, and gigs will only take required items, instead of all items. And we fixed a number of other miscellaneous bugs.[/p][p]As always, there's plenty more for us to fix, change, and add! And we'll be continuing in roughly that order. In the meantime, let us know how things are working for you in the new patch[/p][p]Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC[/p]
Retrofit Hotfix for Brain-Dead NPCs
Hey Folks!
Okay, one more hotfix. This one tries to repair any brain-dead NPCs that spawned in the brief window where 0.14.3.15 was live. Our 0.14.3.16 hotfix stopped the flow of *new* NPC zombies, but couldn't fix any that broke through.
This patch will look for brain-dead NPCs, and attempt to reverse-engineer what pledges each is missing. Then it will add those.
It's still optimal to restart any games that began in 0.14.3.15, or revert any save that was played using 0.14.3.15, as that will produce the most accurate NPC training. But for those who missed these update notes, or more stubborn players ;), this will hopefully help.
As always, thanks for your patience, and for playing our games!
Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC
Hotfix for Missing AI Issues Introduced in 0.14.3.15
Hey Folks!
Just a quick hotfix here to address a bug introduced in yesterday's 0.14.3.15 patch.
It seems any newly-spawned characters in yesterday's build lacked their usual survival, reply, and other pledges after spawning. This was due to them attempting to pathfind (unnecessarily) to their pledge goals on spawn.
This patch fixes that error, so newly-spawned characters skip pathfinding when adding their pledges.
Note that if you played the game using 0.14.3.15, any newly-spawned characters will be broken. And it is best to revert to a save from before 0.14.3.15 and continue from there. (Ditto for new games started in 0.14.3.15.)
Sorry for the issues this created! That one's on me, personally.
As always, let us know if you encounter any other issues. And thanks for playing Ostranauts!
Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC
AI Fixes, Performance Optimizations, and Modding Updates
Hey Folks!
We have a new update (v0.14.3.15) available on Steam, and your clients should be updating shortly.
This is a hotfix to our "Across the System" update, which addresses performance, AI issues, and modding issues, and other reported bugs.
Saves from v0.14.0.0 and later should work. Note that if you were experiencing issues in the older save, this patch may fix some, but others may persist depending on the cause.
Added the ability to train Business Admin skill using training manuals.
Construction Engineering skill training now displays correctly in the MTT.
AIs sitting in chairs should no longer forget to breathe.
Non-crew NPCs should no longer attempt to do tasks assigned by the player.
Captain should no longer get stuck clearing inventory space.
AI-pilots should stop maneuvering now when players dock to them, avoiding catastrophic damage.
Hauler ships should not loiter around station docking zones as much anymore.
Police shouldn't bother with unmanned player ships anymore, and cause them to fall into gravity wells.
Police should no longer abduct players on undocking if the player waits until the last minute before boarding police ship.
Super fast-forward should no longer teleport player crew on other ships to stations when used.
The save/load UI should now load faster when there are a large amount of save files.
Performance optimization to remove redundant animator calls per-frame.
Sensor lights should now turn off when they lose power.
Ships can orbit planets clockwise now(!)
Paperdoll helmet now hides hair, beard, and glasses that used to stick out.
Modding: moved Installables (and other derived types) to be generated after all mods load, instead of after each mod.
Modding: JsonPersonSpec replaced the aInteractions list with a single strLootIAAdds string.
Modding: Added new console commands for summoning NPCs, teleporting, changing relationships, and advancing plots.
Fixed several more situations that could result in null exceptions.
This update largely focuses on some AI fixes, performance and modding improvements, and some bug fixes. But first, a new training option.
Characters can now train Business Admin using manuals found/purchased in the game. This skill is used to identify item values in the MegaTooltip (MTT). Previously, this skill was only obtainable in character creation, or through hiring crew, and some players requested ways to learn it like other skills. (Also, the Construction Engineering skill should display correctly now in the MTT.)
With the help of players on our forums, Reddit, and Discord, we were able to find and fix a number of AI issues.
Some players astutely noticed many NPCs were suffocating around chairs, and some even caught them in the act. This turned out to be a timer bug that prevented the AI from renewing their pledge to refresh helmets if needed while in long-duration tasks (like sitting).
NPCs were also spotted doing player's crew tasks in some cases. And this turned out to be an incorrect filter on the task-claiming code, combined with incorrect work shift scheduling on off-duty NPCs. Both should be fixed now.
And some players noticed their captain would get stuck in a task, usually when their hands were full. (Possibly sometimes involving log messages about inability to access cigarette stubs or other junk.) This turned out to be a bug in our trigger for clearing up inventory space, which forbade players from using the final step.
Moving on to AI pilots, we've adjusted our hauler pilots' behavior to account for being too close to dock. Previously, they could get stuck loitering just outside dock for this reason, but should now dock normally.
AI pilots would also ignore when a player had docked with them, and the continued maneuvers would (in short order) destroy both ships. They should now have better self-preservation in such cases.
Police were absconding with some players when they undocked, and it turned out that this was a special case our last fix didn't cover. Namely, if the police got back to their ship, and the player was still on their own ship, the police would begin the undocking process. If the player then crossed over ships before undocking finished, both would disappear. The police will now do a final check right before undocking.
And in a related fix, AI police should no longer dock with unmanned player ships, which could cause them to get stuck and fall into planets.
Super fast-forward was causing some player-owned ship crews to disappear mid-trip, and end up teleported onto stations. This turned out to be the region clean-up code incorrectly targeting non-visible player ships when the trip crossed regions, and is now guarded against.
Turning to performance, some players with 100s(!) of save files reported that the save/load UI took ages to load, and general loading performance suffered. We've rewritten that UI to gradually load the save file list, instead of doing it all at once. And this way, the UI appears instantly, and fills over time. As a bonus, game loading times are slightly improved!
Another performance improvement involved animated characters getting reset every frame. It turns out that character animation states were being reset over and over to the same value, wasting cpu and memory each time. Fixing this has caused a slight, general in-game performance improvement.
Three other bug fixes of note involved sensors and orbits. Many sensors were apparently not turning off when power was cut, and this was due to a missing variable on them. Orbiting craft would not display orbit tracks when orbiting clockwise. This was due to a sign error that failed to detect orbits in any direction besides counter-clockwise. And the paper doll hair/beard/glasses could clip through the helmet, so that mask was adjusted to avoid this glitch.
Finally, we have a few changes that may interest modders.
First (and most significantly), our mod-loading order was adjusted to make all derived types (most notably, installables) generate after all mods are loaded, instead of after each mod. This should allow modders to make changes to installables without losing Quick Action Button options on them.
We also changed the JsonPersonSpec type's aInteractions list with a single strLootIAAdds string. This new field is looking for a single loots.json name, and that Loot is now how the list is generated. This allows randomized loot, or shared loot types between PSpecs, for easier maintenance. Also notable is that the list of interactions will now execute immediately after the character is spawned, instead of waiting for their first chance to act.
We also added a few new console commands, which you can learn about via the "help" command
As always, there's plenty more for us to fix, change, and add! And we'll be continuing in roughly that order. In the meantime, let us know how things are working for you in the new patch
Best, Daniel Fedor Founder, Blue Bottle Games, LLC
