Hope you had a great weekend! This week we plan to resolve last remaining game-breaking issues with two major updates for you - one for today and another for Thursday.
In today`s major update we looked into fixing most of the bugs and issues reported by players, giving priority to the more game breaking issues. To fix the last of it though we will be adding a whole new player claims system on Thursday.
Also please keep in mind that we will need to do a wipe on Thursday. We do not expect another wipe in the next foreseeable future, and there are many good reasons to justify doing a wipe this Thursday... to name a few:
It`s time to consolidate servers - as they can now support higher player population per server
We`ll finally have all the exploits fixed - right now quite a few players have millions of credits
New claim systems will fix all the problems from player bases being located all over the place lie in towns, tutorial areas e.t.c
With that said, lets look at what today`s update has to offer...
And so - presenting Update # 6 (0.69)
New Features & Major Fixes
Resolved a lot of issues with duplicate vehicles, and other issues when spawning f key to enter/exit
Completely reworked server reboots, making sever reboots go much smoother without claim or clans disappearing
Greatly expanded base construction with base ramp, foundations and new sets
Added Concrete construction set: Floor, Walls, Ceiling, Door Frame, Window, Tiller
Added Metal construction set: Door, Stairs, Ceiling, Door Frame, Wall, Window, Window Shutter
Expanded Wooden construction set: Base Ramp and Foundation
Major update to equipping and moving items - to fix all the duping, deleting and other issues when handling items
Implemented /stuck command for the chat, teleports player to nearest safe location, has cool-down
Fixes and Additions
Fixed mission and ownership tabs not closing properly.
Added a receipt to SunsetStarsaparilla to fix Distillery Exploit
Reduced Jet-pack flight duration
Fixed issue with instant death from hard landings with jet-pack
Hunter, Thirst, Stamina e.t.c will never go over 100% or drop into negatives
New way to calculate falling damage based on impact speed.
Fixed FuelCell and VehicleFuelCell problems – just one craftable and purchasable VehicleFuelCell now
Fixed exploit with Plastics
Fixed items sometimes disappearing when dragging them into vehicle component slots
Fixed items disappearing when closing inventory while dragging something
Misc and Balance Changes
Added Normal Maps for Wood Base Structures
Layout improvements to buy ferry ticket window. Texts now fit properly in all languages
Raw Meat is now stackable
Layout improvements for the death screen
Fixed Redberry Spaceport Ferry Vendor having two NPCs overlapping
Fixed 9x19mmRound loot drop amount from bad font in template
Fixed font related issues to ammo
Update # 5 - The Big One
Hey Everyone,
Thanks for all the support during the launch week. Today we are happy to present the first major weekly update, as we are now switching to weekly update schedule with bigger updates. This update fixes vast majority of remaining launch issues – from claims and server stability to clans and vehicles.
Keep in mind that there will be NO WIPE today! So please don`t worry about that:)
We are continuing full-speed work on our 6th update - due on Monday the 28. With our 6th update we are expecting to resolve last remaining game issues and add a lot of quality of life improvements.
Wishing everyone a great week ahead, our team will be available all week long on the forums and discord.
And so - presenting Update # 5 (0.68)
Fixed game crashing after doing certain actions like eating while in a Ferry or spaceship
Fixed issues with horse or vehicles duplicating when getting on and off
Fixed large number off issues with getting on and off vehicles
Fixed all issues when going back to main menu on death screen - removed that option
Complete rewrite of the Clan code - fixes all issues with being unable to use clan invites
Land and Air vehicles are now locked by default and require the vehicle owner in the driver sit
Leaving tutorial or dropping any mission now marks that quest as completed and can`t be repeated
Fixed issue with deleting a character not deleting Tutorial progress on the same server
Fixed an issue selling items not working if playing in Non-English version of the game.
Disabled Caliban ferry from Hera station due to bugs
Makeshift claim array increased to 250 items per claim (from 100)
Major AI issue fixed where sometimes Mechs, Bugs, Bears would complete disapear
Fixed duplication bug when removing part of of the items in a storage, and some refactoring
Updated Claims system - can no longer place claims in exploitable zones
Claim System reworked fixing all exploits with placing and moving base items and moving items hacking into another player base
Some legacy placement code and objects removed
Saddle item now purchasable from any Camping vendor.
Fixed dropping items not working sometimes
Fixed buying stuff at markets not actually buying correct items
Fixed large number of bugs that came from interacting with objects and spawning F key
Fixed most if not all Missing Items that were looted from containers or found in the world
Visual improvement to the main planet - Beta Prairie - reworked light and shadows
Major visual improvement to Beta Prairie - reworked terrain
Complete rewrite of items drag and drop, and split - fixing wide number of exploits and bugs
Split items now works correctly
Items of the same type can be combined by dragging into each other
Return to Mission screen removed as it was causing all types of bugs and issues
Exit prologue button added to pause menu screen
Respawn prompts also added to drop prologue mission in the missions window
Turned down the ambient crickets and cat screaming on BP due to popular demand.
Update # 4 - Weekend Ready
Hey Everyone,
Another day - another great update. The team continues to push extra hard to get Stars End into good shape for next week. Today`s update does great things with gameplay - especially for these who play in TPS mode, including one of the most flexible and customizable TPS cameras in the genre. Ground vehicles, FPS camera and server stability also got some loving - improving things across the board. And horses also got some carrots - with various improvements and fixes.
We continue on Monday with the big update # 5 - an no, not the weekend off - but it`s a large update that will take some time. On Monday we`ll have the last of the vehicle issues resolved, and introduce completely reworked Clan system that should work flawlessly.
Wishing everyone a great weekend ahead, and myself and rest of our team will be available all weekend long on the forums and discord.
And once again - thanks for your support and sticking with us through the hardships of Week 1 EA launch.
And so - presenting Update # 4(0.67)
Fixed major server issue with kicking all the players from the server once in a while
Completely reworked TPS camera
TPS camera zoom level added - controlled with mouse wheel
New camera settings for riding horses
Reworked TPS camera for riding ground vehicles
Shadows for the character now properly shows in FPS view mode
Hopefully fixed all the issues with horses duplicating when getting on/off
Improvement to horse animations while riding
Fixed not being able to move after drinking or eating something inside a ship
Rewrote audio system - to avoid same voice lines - like Ferry lines - being repeated for all players
Various smaller fixes and stability improvements
Changed the way global prompt works - fixing issues with pressing F multiple times
Fixed various waypoint manager errors - greatly improving server stability
Day Three - 3rd Update - Big Steps
Hey Everyone,
Thanks again for your support during the launch week, the team is pushing hard, and we are back with the third update. You can ready full details below, but to highlight things: storage containers will now work, also the several servers that`s been down from Tuesday are back. Prologue now has an intro cinematic. A lot of quality of life improvements like holding LMB to gather resources, and a lot more stability, lag reduction and other bug fixes.
Please note - that some players will loose their Claims as part of today`s big update. This does not effect characters or anything else - as this is not a wipe.
But since we completely rewrote claims code to work with hundreds claims on the server - and some players had a buggy claim before - some players will unfortunately loose their bases. Terribly sorry about this - and again - just like with previous full wipe of Day 1, or the long server timeout of Day 2 - we expect this to only happen once.
We continue working full speed - and you can expect another major Update 4 by Monday (or a smaller Update 4 by tomorrow...we`ll see) Update 4 will include reworked TPS camera with custom zoom levels, as well as fixes to all the vehicle issues, and so much more.
And so - presenting Update # 3(0.66)
Completing maintenance on several servers that were down overnight
Fixing Loot Container access bug
Intro Cinematic for the Prologue - giving backstory on the game, and cool get out of stasis sequence on spawn (it was done before, but had too many issues thus disabled on launch)
Auto gathering with Axe or PickAxe by holding LMB (same for melee weapons)
Removing interaction timer from containers and NPCs
Add chat filter for common profanities
Additional server stability improvements and lag reduction
After getting off a horse, camera sets to FPS.
Horse animation adjustments to better correspond player input
Fixed spaceport in New Raleigh when approaching it on a Ferry
Fixed exploit with duplicating objects and containers
Adjusting tutorial to make it clear how to refuel the spaceship
Adjusted descriptions and Help to indicate that there's no Lock item
Various smaller bugs fixes across the board
Upcoming Udpate # 3 Preview
Hey Everyone,
Thanks again for your support during the launch week! The team is hard at work on the 3rd update which is shaping up to be a major one.
We will need another 16-18 hours or so to complete and release it, so we figured we`d post a preview on what`s coming. Keep in mind this is just the larger fixes, we plan another several good changes and improvements to also be included with this update.
Completing maintenance on several servers that were down overnight
Fixing Loot Container box bug
Intro Cinematic for the Prologue - giving backstory on the game, and cool get out of stasis sequence on spawn (it was done before, but had too many issues thus disabled on launch)
Auto gathering with Axe or PickAxe by holding LMB (same for melee weapons)
Removing interaction timer from containers and NPCs
Additional server stability improvements and lag reduction
Resolving issues with duplicating vehicles and horses
Resolving issues with disappearing vehicles
Adjusting tutorial to make it clear how to refuel the spaceship
Various smaller bugs fixes across the board
We expect update to be live tomorrow by 11am EST, and we are expecting our 4th update to go live on Friday, with another big update for Monday.
Thanks again for your support, reviews, and sticking with us through the hardships of EA launch week.
Day One - 2nd Update - Loot Fixes
Hey Everyone,
Thanks for your support and sticking with us on Day 1. We are glad to see so many new players joining us, and we are especially grateful for not getting killed with negative reviews on day 1.
The team has been at it all day and night, and we are happy to present a big Day One update 1 and 2, - that iron out majority of launch issues. As you might have noticed - servers on launch were not running that well - sometimes kicking players, and often lagging on actions. We are glad to say major of this has now been resolved.
In out second update we have also fixed all the world loot issues.
Please keep in mind - that we had to take down of a few of the servers for a long maintenance - they`ll be back in 24 hours with player data intact. Sorry again last of Day 1 issues, but yeah - just offline for a bit
This update also comes with several other important changes. This update was a huge undertaking as launch came with a rude awakening - our database needed to be upgraded. All the testing we`ve done during Alpha testing period could not prepare us for the big server issue that a large number of players - playing at once - have revealed today. The downside of small indie developer handling a big launch.
The team continues work full speed on a Day 2 update, more great updates to come!
With that said - presenting Update # 1(0.652) & Update # 2(0.653)
Fixed all world loot issues - containers and loot will create loot
Completely new database used by the game world server - faster, and more efficient
Server stability greatly improved, minimizing players getting kicked from the server
Server performance significantly improved - a lot less lag when performing actions
Over a dozen other server performance related bugs fixed all across the board
Clan invite not working most of the time is fixed
New craft-able item added - Horse Saddle, required to claim a wild horse
To claim a horse player now needs to craft a Horse Saddle
Fixed inverted mouse not working right when flying a spaceship
Fixed exploit with Prologue Winter Quest
Welcome to Stars End Early Access Launch
Hey Everyone
Welcome to Stars End Early Access Launch.
Our Early Access is just beginning... We set out to create something unique - an open world solar system, with both primal survival and space survival, complete with large PVP battles and a bit of a story. We hope you’ll like the direction we are taking, but keep in mind there’s over two years of work ahead.
Similar games in Survival Genre had years to grow and develop, and we hope our player community will give Stars End a chance as well. Stars End currently uses some store assets, that we plan to replace. You might encounter some art that you`ve seen in other games... We don`t know why these multi-million dollar games are still using store assets, but we will update ours.
We are a small team with 3 developers, but, with your help, we can expand and provide a lot more content. We are very active on our forums and Discord, and welcome ideas and suggestions. Thanks for your support!
And please keep in mind - today is Day One – and we all know what it means - The Horrors of day 1 survival game launch. Our small team has done everything that we could during our alpha testing period, and postponed launch several times to make sure the game is ready. Alas, for a small indie group with 3 developers it`s impossible to be prepared for a launch of this magnitude, as games like Stars End just can`t be fully tested until there are hundreds of players playing at once.
We still hope Day One will go OK. Just because huge companies mess up big survival launches, is not an excuse for us. We are a small indie group, but we`ll do our best to hot fix the issues as they come in, while actively communicating with our players.
Thanks for your support, and please give us a chance – we will not disappoint you!
-Stars End Team
Last Day of Alpha - Update 0.632
Hey Everyone,
Today`s major update finally completes the Early Access build. We are glad to say that in the last big push over the weekend we have managed to resolve all the leftover game breaking bugs and finally get the game servers stable. We will have one more pre-launch update tomorrow fixing the current few remaining noticeable bugs.
At this point we have the Worldwide Server running smoothly - and time has come to push it to the full capacity - with upwards of 100 players online at once.
If you have a bit of time today around 11am EST - 3pm EST, please join us and play the game on the Official Worldwide server. We`ll keep one server running for the next 10 hours, before bringing all the 15+ game servers online for tomorrow`s launch.
We also want to take a moment to say Big Thank You to all of our alpha testers! Your help during the past month was essentual in helping us prepare for Early Access launch.
And so presenting update 0.632:
Server Updates
New claim management server system due to claims filling up the scene quite fast
Server scans player locations to see if a networked claim is required for that position
Sun code merged with solar system values for better server performance
A fix for world objects not destroying for the hosting player, as the slot was getting cleared before the object was destroyed.
Placed components now pickup immediately for the local player to avoid duplication
Local vehicles now pickup immediately for the local player to avoid duplication
An effect controller error resolved while playing on a server
Big array issue fixed with loading data
Fixed an issue where area components could be loaded before data is received
Small code refactoring related to shutdown server command.
Changed the way players get data from the array at startup, one call per existing array entity, if it is filled, as opposed to one network call per sub array which will resolve server load and potentially errors when sending out area data.
Some misc errors fixed at startup
Fixed some misc errors when playing on a server
Bug fixes and improvements
Fixed not being able to exit a ship if going into pilot seat really fast after entering the ship.
Resolved the issue with infinite loot containers, not correctly clearing out its item slot on the server
Elevators now move on universal time rather than a networked value.
Fixed a bug with fuel not storing properly in ground vehicles
Fixed a bug with vehicle disappearing on logging out
Added a block to be able to initialize global prompt if the ui is active, which should stop global prompt being activated while already open
Further fixes to hopefully resolve container already opened messages, especially if a hosting player opens one.
Temporarily disabled LOD transitions for bushes and trees to avoid a flickering related Unity bug.
Fixed NPC sitting on nothing in Clayton Town.
In case Discord is not open, the game will try to connect to it a maximum of 5 times, instead of forever, since each attempt has a performance cost
Fixed radio auto turning off.
Workaround to not break sleeping when opening a menu or chat.
Fixed bed interaction in several places.
New Features
Improved TPS camera rotation while pressing ALT in air ships.
Some text validation in chat input text. It won't allow empty messages, new lines, and it will trim empty spaces at the beginning and the end of a message.
Improved and optimized some Tigon trees to support wind, and LOD distances adjustments.
New Invert Mouse Y setting.
Player log in and out messages will only show in the chat, instead of both chat and top notifications.
Misc
Demo hammer disabled for now due to a bug, players can pick up their pieces anyway.
Removed a bunch of debug notifications
Small fixes in localization.
Changed route 666 tooltip to Ignition
Personal server menu layout adjustments.
Stars End: Alpha Update 0.631
Game Update 0.631
The database has not required a wipe.
Server - PVE option now available for all servers. - Server list now appears in main menu sorted: Official servers first, dedicated seconds, and the rest alphabetically. Also some optimizations. - BP and Tigon arrays increased by 100. - Fixed several bugs in opening a container. - Fixed several bugs with vehicles in the world array. They now change areas correctly, removing themselves from the previous array, carrying across all vehicle parts and container items. - Fixed the world array so vehicles carry through fuel types and horse stamina correctly. - Horses begin with 50 stamina. - Fixed jetpack server error. - Fixed effect controller error. - Fixed melee attack server error. - Fixed 'out of breath' server error. - Fixed a bug with fuel not storing properly.
Balance Changes - Bandage change from 3 scrap cloth to 4. - Dirty Gauze restore 50% more health, bandage and medicated bandage restore 30% more health each. - Dirty water restores 13 should be 18. Clean water 40. - Fixed issue in which new metal scrap containers would always spawn, ignoring the probability value. - Hunger/Sleep 15% slower, Thirst 30% slower. - Trawler and Bears: reduced damage by 40%. - Satchel issue resolved.
Misc - Failsafe in case the player falls through terrain. It will activate at certain distance below terrain, or if the player is swimming in water and there's terrain above. - Added camera rotation while in TPS view while in a ship, by pressing Alt. - Enemy barrier system to prevent enemies from spawning in certain areas.
Stars End: Alpha Update 0.630
Game Update 0.630
Due to a large server rewrite, the database has been wiped.
Server - World array system replaced with a new version which instead of using one array to hold all data, has several arrays per location. Players only require the data for the area theyre in. - Old relative objects system phased out, merged with world array. - Voice chat removed for now (pending server stability) - TreeLogs now pickup faster without delay. - Fixed a leak with world items spam spawning on the server
Chat - Chat now broadcasts properly when sending a message. - Chat window sizing improvements that should better fit all resolutions. - Fixed small issue in which the chat window would lose focus even when clicking in certain areas of the window. - Opening chat window now uses the keyboard key set in the options. - Chat font changed.
Misc - Changed position of the personal server button in main menu. - AI frequency on BP decreased a little, was a bit too full on. - Changed scrap metal by metal ruins to only spawn in at 30 metres. - Broken aiming while holding weapon is fixed in TPS - Fixed errors that happened after closing inventory window while inside a vehicle - Moved ferry vendor and quest NPC in Orbital station.
