A new update is now available on the Default (ordinary) branch. These are the new features:
CONDITIONS: - HAPPINESS AND IMMIGRANTS///////////////////////////////
The conditions in your colony are tracked in 3 areas: Food, Security and Comfort. ('Conditions were previously called 'Ratings'.) You can raise these numbers by improving your colony. The condition trackers at the screen top now have extensive tooltips to help you improve conditions:
The image above shows what the 'security conditions' depend on. 'Food conditions' depend on the amount of (prepared) food that you have stockpiled while 'comfort' can be improved by building better shelters.
Improving the conditions will achieve 2 things: make your settlers happy and attract new immigrants:
HAPPINESS
You will now see a graphical representation of people's happiness in the side panel. The person's happiness results from a comparison between the colony's conditions (the bar) and the person's principles (the vertical line). Hover on the bars to get a tooltip explanation. (Image below)
ATTRACT IMMIGRANTS
When you have radio contact with another colony, you will now be able to see why someone is willing or unwilling to join your colony. A detailed tooltip shows the person's motivations. They are based on a comparison between the other colony and yours, as well as the person's happiness and interest in relocating.
OTHER IMPROVEMENTS///////////////////////////////
Fast-Forward button In the top left you will now find buttons for speeding up time (1X-2X-4X). This feature has often been requested so we're very happy to include it now.
Medium-size version of 'Fields of Tau Ceti' Some players have reported AI problems on the 'Fields of Tau Ceti' map. This can be a result of their CPU not being able to run such a big map which is why we're now adding a smaller version of this scenario. The 'medium' map is a cropped version of the large map.
Hotkeys for some game options added Game speed and some other game functions can now be accessed via hotkeys. The hotkeys can be changed in the Options.xml file.
Bug fixes and tweaks -Fixed problem with smoke oven (the smoking process would sometimes get stalled)
- Dog now also needs sleep
- Fixed a problem where the dog would die from starvation while chasing vermin
-The event log now gives an alert in case of AI slowdown (the result of insufficient CPU resources)
-Fixed problem with 3D models sliding when they come into view
-Corrected some animations for critters and dog
-Fixed bug so that gold pot can now be used for cooking
-Clay pile now used for making workbench and simple kitchen (mud bricks no longer needed for those)
-Increased twinkler attack damage
-Added more twinklers on Twinkler Island
-Reduced the number of animal migrations on Fields of Tau Ceti
-More people will now sleep at night (since we have fast-forward, it will result in little downtime)
- In the GUI, many numbers are now presented by fillable bars.
-Added some new terrain assets for desert and volcanic areas.
-Removed some bugs to do with building the landing / simple port and with placing items for sale in the port.
0.5.0.2: Gather crash fix
A new version containing a crash fix was just released. The error would sometimes happen when gathering from trees near the map edges.
0.5.0.0: Trade and Migration
We're back with a big update, now available on the Default (ordinary) branch.
The new features are demonstrated in this gameplay video:
Youtube Video which is commented by one of the devs. (Click the time codes on the video to skip to the demonstration of the 'Trade' features.)
TRADE///////////////////////////////
COMMUNICATION. BUYING GOODS. INVITING SETTLERS.
On 'Fields of Tau Ceti', your group now starts with radio equipment which allows them to contact a neighbor settlement and arrange trade deals. They have a small amount of cash to pay for a barge and can buy supplies and invite more colonists. To do this, they first need to set up a radio hut and build a simple boat landing at a suitable spot (which appears on the map).
You can then access the map screen and arrange for a boat to come:
SELLING GOODS
Next step is to start selling goods. To do this, you need to build a simple port which consists of a small pier and a storehouse. You assign which item types you want to sell and as soon as the goods have been placed in the storehouse, you can offer them for sale in a trade deal.
SETTLERS - SKILLS AND SPECIALIZATIONS
The characters now have clearly defined specializations such as 'Security', 'Engineering', 'Bushcraft' etc, which is indicated with an icon next to their name. If a character has a very low skill level, which is inadequate to start a task, this will be indicated with red color in the skill list.
Most characters will now be generated with random names, clothes and specializations.
ANIMAL MIGRATIONS
On 'Fields of Tau Ceti', there are now migrating herds of animals that cross the map from time to time. 'Lesser whipjaw' travels along the great river in the middle, while flocks of 'bajingan' enter from different corners and move to the west. They are voracious scavengers and can quickly devour meat left in the open but on the other hand, their hides and own meat are valuable for trading.
STORAGE/CARRYING CAPACITY
The available space for carrying or storing items is now clearly indicated with a bar in the side panel.
MUSIC We now have 5 additional tracks, composed by Jesper Lundager - the track titles are:
Prosperous Frontier. Building a Home. The Diamond Birds. Muckroot Toil. Cetian Skies.
They can also be heard HERE
VARIOUS FIXES -Reduced the food need of humans so that they now only need to eat roughly 50% of the previous amount of food.
-Improved the way characters handle ammunition. They will now put half of a fresh magazine in their weapon and carry the other half with them.
-Increased decay rate of the 'shreds' that animals bite off from carcasses so that they rot quicker and do not fill the screen with progress bars.
-Structures now decay slower.
-Adjusted output of fish traps so that fish traps no longer run out of fish (they still break down though).
-Removed the 'Dozens of settlers' start since we now have the immigration feature, allowing you to invite people.
-Solved the crash that sometimes happened when you placed the signal pyre or the deadfall trap (this was reported by players - thank you!).
UPDATED: GAME FEATURE ROADMAP///////////////////////////////
We have re-estimated the road to release (this year) and have moved some features to possible post-release while some planned game features have been replaced with new ones. You can see the updated list under the Early Access section on the store page, it now looks like this:
Creatures can feed on food items and carcasses -DEPLOYED!
More animations / effects -DEPLOYED!
Interface graphics polished -DEPLOYED!
Possible features in the long term (after Early Access) -Modding support (maps, scenarios, game data)
-Languages (community provided translations)
-Game feature: Medical treatment
-Game feature: Electrical power
NOTE (Jan 2016): We have decided NOT to aim for making a Mac/Linux port because of the cost. Sorry!
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We hope that you are ok with this new list! Our focus is to make a great game with the resources we have and to do that we need to prioritize as we go along.
0.4.1.0: Dozens of settlers. Vermin extermination.
Hi! We're now adding the following features. (available on the TEST branch )
DOZENS OF CAMP MEMBERS:
On Fields of Tau Ceti, you can now start with dozens (around 25) camp members and 2 dogs. It will be a challenge to keep all those mouths fed, because they only have basic bushcraft tools! So we categorized it on HARD difficulty. (However, it's also available to equip this throng of settlers with other loadouts under CUSTOM settings)
VERMIN HUNTING:
You now have even more options to control the pesky scavengers:
-Dog will now hunt vermin on its own.
-PATROL task now has a setting to include vermin killing.
-Sentry gun can now be toggled to attack vermin (on Twinkler Island)
OPTIONS:
-The options dialog now allows changing the resolution (applies after restart), as well as setting the sound volume.
ADDITIONAL GAMEPLAY FEATURES:
-Characters will now consider how soon a food item spoils when selecting what to eat. They will eat the most perishable food first, saving preserved food for later.
-The side panel now tells how long an item is expected to last when stored under its current conditions.
-Added blister steel to start loadout of most expeditions on Fields of Tau Ceti.
-Added crafting of flint knife.
-Increased the durability of the better quality structures.
BUG FIXES:
-Kiln, compost pit and woodpile no longer disappear when they break down.
0.4.0.1 Various fixes
A new version was just released on the test branch. These are the changes:
- Correction to examine and find prey actions so that detection bonuses are only active inside the zone, not on the way there.
- Correction to attainable status on the production screen
- Fixed bug in producing trimmed branches
- Correction so music will resume after saving
0.4.0.0: Guns, Pickles and Steel
Hello everyone - the new version is now up on both the default and the test branch!
This update comes from our wish to see what it really requires to move up the technological ladder - how would our human settlers on the Tau Ceti planet pull themselves up from drudgery and animal attacks if they were to start from scratch after an event happened that cut them off from electricity and trade.
We sat out to make well-researched crafting chains which lift the colony up, inch by inch.
At the same time, we've made significant improvements to the UI, making sure that it's possible to plan this movement up the tech ladder.
GAMEPLAY FEATURES
METALWORKING
-We have increased the realism involved in crafting blackpowder guns from the ground up. This crafting chain now includes metal lathe, gold furnace, realistic smithies, toolboxes and steelmaking all the way up to rifle/musket/musketoon. (On Fields of Tau Ceti)
FOOD PRESERVATION
-New processes ensure that your food won't rot as quickly: Drying+salting, pickling, fermentation. Making vinegar.
CONTAINERS
-Clay pots and jars are needed for pickling and other processes with a liquid involved.
-See a more detailed description of the new crafting in THIS FORUM POST
STAND-ALONE PROCESSES Many processes such as fermentation, baking and tapping sap will now finish on their own. Once a colonist has started it, he can move on to do something else while the process completes itself.
WEAPONS -All weapons have been rebalanced to make weapon damage more predictable and less random.
-Sentries (robot machine gun turrets) introduced on Twinkler Island. You can salvage a machine gun sentry and make a spray gun sentry or a shotgun sentry (using the shotgun which appears on Hard difficulty).
EASY STARTING EXPEDITION On Fields of Tau Ceti, you can now choose a versatile starting group who are well equipped and have fewer scavengers/dangers nearby.
INTERFACE (UI)
PRODUCTION MANAGER The screen formerly called Inventory now has many filtering and sorting options. See this video for a demonstration/tutorial of the new features:
https://youtu.be/q5TaT2r7Klc
-Tracking. Up to 5 different items can be 'tracked'. The player can display input/output or tools involved in the recipes for that item.
-Many filters can be added to help find objects with particular properties.
-Display options:
1. Show only objects that are Available at the moment
2. Show objects that are Available or Attainable (based on the resources that have been discovered)
3. Show ALL items and structures in the game (encyclopedia)
-A filter button can display items that are attainable by salvaging components.
-Each object now has the amount button divided in 3: available/being produced/part of something.
-Building of structures is now also done from the Production Manager.
RESOURCE DISPLAY -The player can now keep track of resources that have been found in the surroundings by using the Resource Display. The resources will show up as dots on the mini-map and can also be displayed on the game area by clicking the SCAN button.
OPTIMIZATION
We have once again improved the performance of the game, allowing for even more agents (animals and characters) as well as larger maps. The improvements are:
-Hierarchical pathfinding (using the high level map representation to create waypoints) in order to reduce CPU usage.
- All map representations (terrain, threat and discomfort) are divided into sectors. The sectors are added and removed dynamically to reduce memory usage. The terrain map is now its own layer that is shared by all agents/factions. Their specific threat maps get added on top. The separation into sectors and layers is also done for the high level representation.
This optimization should fix the out of memory crash on the large maps.
WHAT'S NEXT
We will continue to work on the nuts and bolts of tech advancement and are also implementing the migration mechanic now. Meanwhile, we begin moving to a new, substantial system: The colony's opinion. We want the settlers' opinions to directly affect what the player is permitted to do. We are currently designing this, so stay tuned for a dev update!
Soundtrack now available on Youtube
We now have the songs from the game available on Youtube:
http://youtu.be/2ldlsMD7cow
All tracks composed by Martin Hasseldam.
Tracklist:
[00:00] - Settle
[15:13] - Unfamiliar Starlight
[18:49] - Life in the Wilderness
[26:39] - A New World
Working on: Increased realism in production/processes. Mini-map.
Hi! Here are the things that we're currently doing:
Standalone processes (Well underway)
We are making improvements to processes to increase the realism and fix some holes in the current gameplay. It will be possible to have a production which can run on its own without a worker present. This will improve the kiln, smoking and cooking processes because it frees up the worker who can then go do something else instead of being present the whole time (like we have now).
It will also make sure that characters don’t run off with tools that are being used for a process before it has finished. The current gameplay has some hacks where tools are simulated as inputs in order to prevent this. One example is the production of salpeter.
It also makes us able to have new processes such as:
-Alcohol distillation
-Brewing
-Automatic production
-Structure printing (automatic building of structures)
-Many kinds of chemical processing
Processes and substances (Started)
We have also begun preparing the code and UI that will allow us to have things like water, electricity, liquid fuel, gas etc in the game. Basically a thing that cannot be described as an item because it does not have a fixed size or location - we call these things "substances" and we're trying to make the code flexible enough that it can be used for concepts that we haven't even thought of yet. We also use the term "substance" for heat and moisture.
This area involves:
-how liquid, gas and electricity is contained and transported in pots, barrels, pipes and wires.
-how items and substances change their properties when influenced by heat and moisture.
This will give us more options for doing things such as drying meat for example. A piece of meat should be able to either dry or rot, depending on the conditions where it's stored. The player should be able to look at a meat item and see what the current condition of the item is and if it's on the right track to become meat jerky or if it's rotting or burning. We've begun doing some UI layouts to organize all this information which you can see below. In this case the meat is influenced by the air, by being on fire and by rainy weather and is on its way to burn to ash:
UI Improvement to mini-map and resource display (Almost done)
We have been wanting to improve this area for some time and we're now implementing it so that you have a handy way of keeping track of all the resources and animals you've discovered as well as the things and people in your colony:
Trade/migration (On hold)
You may remember that we started working on this area some time ago - the reason why it was put on standby and we shifted focus to production related features is that we needed to open up for more possibilities for the content makers so that they can add more crafting features, items and structures. It's important that we keep the different team members active and sometimes this means that we have to change tracks and clear out bottlenecks.
0.3.2.2 Crash fix and Steam overlay
A minor update was just released on the test branch. It contains a crash fix for save/load as well as in-game Steam overlay support.
0.3.2.1 Animation and bug fixes
A new version was just released on the test branch. These are the changes:
- Animation fix (walking-in-place bug)
- Fixed a bug where characters would try to hunt animals far away, then abandon the attempt right after. Also added feedback to the task list for this situation.
- Fixed a crash that would happen when the area near the camp did not have any items.
- The dog will now wander about when idle.
