We just released a Hotfix for the Heavy Machinery Update. There's going to be another one but we wanted to get the first batch of fixes to you as soon as possible. Thank you so much for sending in all the reports and being patient with us!
Fixes
Fixed the auto-walking issue - player walking in random directions without input
Fixed keybinds for switching between buildable being set to page/up down - it's back to scroll up/scroll down now
Fixed not being able to craft ammo for the Lewis Gun
Fixed broken particles on small refinery drones in the fog
Fixed the "Disable COG front drill" quest
Fixed small drones not chasing the player
Heavy Machinery Update is OUT NOW!
The Heavy Machinery Update is finally here! Tanks, drones, guns, aa turrets, and more are waiting for you once you open your Steam library and click that little blue "update" icon!
In case you haven't seen the trailer yet, give it a watch here:
To celebrate another big release, Volcanoids is also 30% OFF right now!
Lastly, before we dig into patch notes (pun intended), MASSIVE thanks goes out to everyone who's been patiently supporting us while we brought this update to you all!
- Rich
Tanks
The biggest reinforcement COGs got since the Combat Update. There are many types differentiated by armor, guns, combat behavior, and missions.
Destructibility and Weakspots
Before we dive into the tank types, let's take a look at something they all have in common.
Pretty much every single part of a given tank (tracks, turrets) can be destroyed individually and will have some effect. For example, if you destroy its tracks on one side, the tank won't be able to drive away from you or turn fast.
Or if you destroy their turrets, they won't be able to shoot but will try to run you over.
Every tank also has parts that will critically damage the tank when hit (aka weakspots). Those are usually on the back and look like an engine but can be covered by armor, so you need to shoot off the armor first to expose them.
Destroying their tracks so they can't move and then getting behind them to hit the engine weakspot should be your priority during most tank encounters. If you put in the effort to strategically target those key parts, you will have a lot of success destroying tanks.
Combat Tanks
As the name suggests, these types are the most armored and have the deadliest turrets. Their mission is to guard key areas of the island or COG drillships. When spotting you the lighter and faster combat tanks will circle around while shooting. The heavier but slower version will drive straight ahead at you with all its firepower. Hitting the weakspots is especially important when you encounter this type of tank.
Transport Tanks
These have medium armor and only one light driver turret. Transporting materials and other types of cargo around the island is their purpose which makes them the perfect target for ambushing. As opposed to combat tanks, these will default to trying to get away from you when spotting you. However, if you manage to destroy their only turret they will try to run you over as a last resort.
You can actually shoot the cargo off of them while they're trying to escape.
Utility Tanks
Utility tanks have the weakest armor of them all and also have only one turret. Their mission is to deploy in key areas and start digging or researching. If you attack them, they too will try to get away from you as fast as possible and will resort to running you over if their turret gets destroyed.
Drones
Will be another new enemy that will shake up the combat dynamic in a major way. From the small drones that will swarm you like annoying insects...
To massive drones flying above the tree line hunting you down with their spotlights and heavy weapons. Some you will be able to outrun, some you won't.
New Guns
3 iconic weapons have been added to your armory in this update. And if you've been following the Steam posts, you know that there was an opportunity to suggest the in-game names for them. So thanks again to everyone who shared their ideas! The highlighted names below are the ones the team and I ended up choosing and that actually made it in the game.
Lewis Gun
A new light machine gun that will go by its WW1 nickname "The Rattlesnake" suggested first by: RavnosFX
Lee Enfield
A bolt action rifle that will go by the name "The Marshal" suggested by: "Peritacus" in our Discord server
C96 Mauser
And last but not least, an automatic pistol that will go by the name "The Officer's Pistol" suggested first by: Smuckers rasp berry jelly
Anti-Air Turrets
Helping you deal with the new airborne enemy will be the new anti-air turrets coming in 6 variants. As with the regular turrets, they are automatic by default but you can control them manually using the gunner seat.
Controller Support
Controller enthusiasts, we see you, and we got something in this update for you too. Volcanoids now has full controller support!
Roof Modules
The last big-ish feature is the ability to place production, refinery, and research modules on the roof (instead of just on the walls). Which is something mostly players that love to optimize their drillships to the maximum will appreciate.
FAQ
Q: Can the tanks and drones be driven or used by players? A: Not yet, we weren't able to fit it in this update but it is something we would love to pursue in the future. Will keep you updated!
Q: Can the anti-air turrets also shoot at enemies on the ground? A: Yes they can, but they have more blind spots than the regular turrets if the enemy gets close enough to the drillship.
They Come Tomorrow.
In the meantime, I'll let the trailer speak for itself.
BLOW THAT PIECE OF JUNK OUT OF THE SKY
With the upcoming ANTI-AIR TURRETS
Using any of the 6 variants, those drones will think twice before attacking your ship!
And if you're a hands-on type of guy/gal, you will be able to connect them to the gunner seat and blow them out of the sky yourself!
Literally:
To be continued...
PS: check the first comment
They Are Coming
Hey everyone!
The next major update is getting close so let's shine some light on what's been hiding behind some of the recent teasers!
As far as the release goes, the current plan is to release the update around the end of this month (September).
I know the wait has been long but as you'll soon see, I really think it will be worth it. So thank you so much for being patient with us!
For now, I will share that there will be different types for different purposes and that you will be able to destroy or disable them in A LOT of ways. We didn't want them to be just bullet sponges.
You can see concepts for the military and refinery tank below. Keep in mind these were just concepts and will look much different (less modern, more steampunk) when the update releases.
(you might recognize this one from a certain blueprint)
Attacks from above
Another thing that will spice up the combat dynamic will be the new DRONES!
The smaller types will be guarding the lower airspace of the island.
While the much larger drones will hunt you down from above the trees.
And since you guys seemed to like the April Fools' airship so much, we tried to figure out how to add one in a way that would make sense for the scope of this update. So this other large drone below is our attempt at it. It's not the big-scale (even though it is pretty big) airship you were probably hoping for but it was the best we could do with the given time and resources.
New Guns
This update will also bring you 3 new craftable weapons inspired by real-life models:
Lewis Gun (machine gun)
Mauser C96 (automatic pistol)
Lee Enfield (bolt action rifle)
A lot of people asked if these will be replacing the old guns and the answer is NO. They will be added alongside the current weapons. But we do plan to rebalance the old ones.
And as far as their new names go, we are still selecting the winners, so stay tuned.
See them all in action below!
To be continued...
Something's in the air
We Need Your Help
If you haven't heard yet, we will be adding 3 new guns (amongst other things) in the upcoming major update:
The Lewis Gun
The Lee Enfield
The C96 Mauser
But we don't want to just use their real names, what's the fun in that? And if you've been following the development for some time, you know we have a history of giving things terrible names.
So that's why we need your help! Enter the...
Gun Naming Contest
Comment below this post what names YOU would give to these guns and the team and I will:
Select one name for each gun that we liked the most from the comments
We put the names on the guns in the upcoming update
We give you credit in the update patch notes (if we pick your name)
And once the update releases, you (might) find yourself shooting a gun that you named yourself!
Now you don't have to suggest names for all 3 guns. If you came up with a killer name just for the Lewis but got nothing for the other two, post just the one! Just make sure it's clear what gun you're suggesting a name for like: "Lee Enfield - Steamfield"
Once the update releases, the names will appear whenever you point at the guns in your inventory, crafting table, etc.
The contest will end on Sunday, August 14th.
Excited to see what you guys come up with!
- Rich
Whole-lotta-fixes Update
Hey everyone!
Even though we're going full throttle at the next major update, we still wanted to push out a smaller update in the meantime fixing bugs that have been lingering in the game for quite some time now.
So that's what this update is.
That being said the upcoming major update (that I've been carefully teasing) is getting closer and there will be a more detailed Steam post about it soon!
Lastly, Volcanoids is 30% off during the Steam Survival Fest right now so if you have any friends that were looking to give the game a try, now might be a good time to recruit them for your crew.
Patch Notes
Changes
Added more scrap recipes for destroyed parts that can be scrapped into copper ingot
Added autoupgrade to Wide Stations and Hubs, all upgrades now install automatically except Segment
Changed order of recipes in Research station
Increased stock value of all ingots
Increased default drillship storage on the start
Changed default mode of HUBs to Queue when built
Removed Military COGs from T1 ships to make the first combat easier for new players
Adjusted repair kits to allow stack, it will keep used repair kits in different slot
Changed icon in Volcano Heart quest to properly show the icon of entry to the last level
Fixes
Description of an icon does not fit and wrong texts
Quests dead end
Quest ‘Explore nearby mine’ doesn’t lead to nearby mine
Client cannot finish control bracer quests
Quests ignore cog pickaxe
Texture streaming setup
Hand computer adjustments for camera
Player - hand computer was moved into Skeleton, revert this change
No completable quests available
Quest: Find Upgrade advanced production incompletable
SuperSoaker mod crash
Find grenade instead of produce grenade
Host does not see armor breaking up effect when destroyed by client
COGs without weapons - STR updated
Stuck in the loading screen
Upgrading drillship core with override core freezes quest
Quest Disable COG Front Drill leads me underground to tunnels for no reason
Boiler is reflecting lava
Intro cinematic black screen
Quest Hardened Drill - Find COGs heads
Building menu mentions Q for rotating items but it brings out the bracer
Cannot load enclosed savefile without mods - stuck on entering the game
Find cogs head quest
Broken fog near lavapools (particles, distortion layers, etc..)
Quest ‘Prepare for attack’ tells you to find materials
Station wide refinery needs refinery module to operate
Quest: Upgrade refinery worktable not possible
Find Upgrade starter refinery
Find upgrade starter research
Free hands animations visible and offset
Cannot access boiler inner storage
Interior houses have doors and doubled walls and pipes (z fighting)
Please change Level of detail to be related to tangens function with FOV
Refinery T3 recipe only in hub
Dropcrates are missing the icon on top
Client cannot put armor on himself
Storage door description old
Quest control drillship with bracer bug
FrontBoiler - lighting retest on master
Player keeps walking animation when accessing any device
Broken detonator animation
Recheck duplicating items in mp
Modded SMG has free hands
Handcomputer display and diodes blinking/corrupted - arm shaking
Updated front boiler model
Fix hand computer mesh, player can see through
Quest saying explore house but it leads into the mine
Dropping crates can be hear all over the map
Player looking weird while using camera
Stuck on entering the game
Drillship override core 1 needs T3 component
Periscope can see through itself
Advanced research quest available after tutorial
Cannot access storage through wide stations
producing the pistol turret takes too much time
Grenade empty hand
Grenade off hand bug
Player armor destroyed but still visible
Lavapool missing sounds
Energy production doesn’t update
Hand computer is spazzing in 3rd person when holding armor
Command function called on pure server (no client)
All objects have a purple texture
Can’t hide the Control Bracer toolbar using the dev console
Story intro screen shows a black screen halfway in
Players got into T2 without destroying laser device
Starting new game results in hand bug
Hidden mods prevent worlds from loading
Quests do not check if pickaxe is in player inventory
Fixed many issues on stuck quests, by adjusting recipes - Mine Coal quest - Gatling - Advacned Research T3 - Modified tracks - Drillship core and engine - Geothermal module - Hand mortar - Power plant T1
Big thanks to folks who brought our attention to these bugs by sending reports!
See y'all around!
Rich
Social Links Join the community on Discord Follow us on Twitter for more teasers
A bolt action rifle as many of you correctly guessed from the clip in the previous teaser!
I also saw some folks in the comments asking for a higher-quality version of the previous teaser to use as a wallpaper. Here it is in 4K: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/folders/196lwm-Lz5lRpjMOXSbmLLjj-2Imx8kwt
Last but not least, in case you haven't picked up Volcanoids yet, it is now 20% off during the Steam Summer Sale till July 7th!
