Open Beta Patch v1.27a (18 june 2025)

[Destragon]

I was testing around with the new max size thing for airlifts and noticed that the formula might hit heavy helicopters a little too hard? If I'm seeing this right then heavy helis can only have a max of 3k cargo space, which means they can at most transport something that has the size of 1.7. Shouldn't a heavy heli be able to at least transport buggies?

Also, you didn't respond to the thing about payload optimisation for aircraft rockets and missiles. Is that for balance reasons or did I just not see it right when I checked it?

ORIGINAL: Vic

Yes i'll be updating the mouse-over... and making note for next manual version.

Sweet, thank you.

[Vic]

Posted v1.06.07 !

Which includes some small ease of life additions as well as some further Alien Fauna finetuning.

And some tech fixes for new crashes found with the influx of new users (and thus new systems).

Best wishes,
Vic

[ASHBERY76]

The steam version player would like the beta on there too.Cheers.

[DasTactic]

I've been live-streaming a game against a regular difficulty nemesis AI and while most of what the AI did was great, there were a few design decisions it made with builds and models that compromised it.

1. After I built a single tactical bomber unit (that was too big to use around the map effectively but had great potential against hard targets) the AI suddenly seemed to only build AA units. On paper the AA units looked impressive but in combat without infantry support they are immediately over-run and so prove poor in combat. Suggest that the AI build less AA units or that there is an OOB that combines infantry with AA that the AI will favour above just AA units on their own (this may already have been addressed - the game started around 1.06.02 or there abouts).

2. The AI has consistently built tanks with low armour ratings which even though may have impressive armaments, don't have the survivability against tanks with more armour. Even my lights with 60mm howitzers but heavy armour have been able to dominate the battlefield. I'd suggest it would be good if the lighter tanks had less heavy armour options so that you were forced to bring out mediums and heavies to take on the heavier tank roles. At the moment there isn't a need to bring out anything more than just light tanks.

[Vic]

Hi DasTactic,

Noted. Thanks for sharing your thougths. will take this along in the coming days and see if i can make some improvements.

If you have a savefile (or two) to spare of those AI Aircraft and AA gun spam, please send them over to vic@vrdesigns.net

best wishes,
Vic

[Vic]

Steam Beta is coming soon if all goes well.

[Vic]

New v1.06.08 fixes a crash experienced by several players involving the AI Air HQ algorithm.

Also fixed an annoying script glitch that screwed up the DIFFICULTIEs for Client and Protectorate Stratagems.

Thanks guys, for keeping me sharp!

best wishes,
Vic

[Sieppo]

ORIGINAL: DasTactic

I've been live-streaming a game against a regular difficulty nemesis AI and while most of what the AI did was great, there were a few design decisions it made with builds and models that compromised it.

1. After I built a single tactical bomber unit (that was too big to use around the map effectively but had great potential against hard targets) the AI suddenly seemed to only build AA units. On paper the AA units looked impressive but in combat without infantry support they are immediately over-run and so prove poor in combat. Suggest that the AI build less AA units or that there is an OOB that combines infantry with AA that the AI will favour above just AA units on their own (this may already have been addressed - the game started around 1.06.02 or there abouts).

2. The AI has consistently built tanks with low armour ratings which even though may have impressive armaments, don't have the survivability against tanks with more armour. Even my lights with 60mm howitzers but heavy armour have been able to dominate the battlefield. I'd suggest it would be good if the lighter tanks had less heavy armour options so that you were forced to bring out mediums and heavies to take on the heavier tank roles. At the moment there isn't a need to bring out anything more than just light tanks.

I have noted the exact two same things in my newest game with the recent non-beta update.

[gamer78]

ORIGINAL: Vic

Steam Beta is coming soon if all goes well.

Hi,
I use Turkish Windows, from the patch notes it can create crash. I've a crash once. Delaying to play the game I've purchased because no beta section in Steam.
Cheers..

[Vic]

Steam beta patch is coming very soon.
Its a bit more complicated than doing the Matrix patches.

best wishes,
Vic

[Vic]

ORIGINAL: Sieppo

ORIGINAL: DasTactic

I've been live-streaming a game against a regular difficulty nemesis AI and while most of what the AI did was great, there were a few design decisions it made with builds and models that compromised it.

1. After I built a single tactical bomber unit (that was too big to use around the map effectively but had great potential against hard targets) the AI suddenly seemed to only build AA units. On paper the AA units looked impressive but in combat without infantry support they are immediately over-run and so prove poor in combat. Suggest that the AI build less AA units or that there is an OOB that combines infantry with AA that the AI will favour above just AA units on their own (this may already have been addressed - the game started around 1.06.02 or there abouts).

2. The AI has consistently built tanks with low armour ratings which even though may have impressive armaments, don't have the survivability against tanks with more armour. Even my lights with 60mm howitzers but heavy armour have been able to dominate the battlefield. I'd suggest it would be good if the lighter tanks had less heavy armour options so that you were forced to bring out mediums and heavies to take on the heavier tank roles. At the moment there isn't a need to bring out anything more than just light tanks.

I have noted the exact two same things in my newest game with the recent non-beta update.

Adressed these 2 issues in v1.06.09

[Destragon]

Thanks a lot, Vic. The test mode cheat options seem pretty interesting so far. Should be useful for modders like Pymous, too, and might even be funny for crazy multiplayer games.
This is very minor, but it looks like the option to start with all models currently doesn't include jetpack infantry, quad MGs, and 1 engine medium aircraft.

Edit:
One thing I already noticed with the testing mode is that if I have all techs researched and while designing an airplane, click on the button to choose its role, it will take my PC 5 seconds to load the screen with all the engine choices.
I play with a very old CPU, but still it shows that there's a lot of room for improvement in the optimisation of the design screens. In my opinion a complete rework of the design process (like it was talked about earlier) would probably be better than spending time on optimisations for the current one though.

Edit 2:
By the way Vic, in the design log for aircraft it says that takeoff speed is "modified for air pressure and aerodynamics rating (if above 50)". What does that actually mean? Does it mean air pressure vs aerodynamics are only taken into account when the air pressure is above 50%, or is it talking about the aerodynamics? Also, shouldn't this also mention the other factors, like weight, wing size, engine power and whatever else influences the minimum takeoff speed?

Edit 3:
I just designed an ultralight plane with light plasma jet engine and it looks like it didn't benefit from the fuel efficiency optimisation. Does fuel efficiency not affect plasma jets? I guess plasma jets are already super efficient on their own.

[Che12]

Steam Keys, Air Units and more aliens, thanks VIC keep up the good work, best game of the year!

[Destragon]

By the way, not sure if you already have this on your roadmap, but it would be very fitting if jetpack infantry didn't get any malus for attacking via an airlift. Maybe even a bonus instead.

[Vic]

Posted minor patch v1.06.10

[Clux]

ORIGINAL: Vic

Posted minor patch v1.06.10

Now than we're seeing some changes to the tech tree, its there any chance we could get the small arms rebalance?

Making gas powered small arms have a firepower of 150 and moving them 1 tech group up would be useful, while also boosting regular gauss to 200 and charged gauss to 300 (while moving both of them 1 tech group up). Laser would still be more useful since it benefits from Small laser Optimization and has better pen. Also being able to use "Gauss" cannons which would have 400-800-1200 firepower but really high hard attack with barely any soft attack would be great to add some firepower to deal with polymer early on (without having to use 300mm AT guns or mass RPGs)

[Destragon]

Looking at the tech tree now, it looks a bit like you might have forgotten about Mining Techniques, which is currently the only non-air optimisation tech that is not assigned to the applied science council.

By the way, I originally thought that all of the optimisation techs would be researchable by 2 different councils. Like, I thought that for example you can research the weapon optimisation techs with either the applied science or the military research councils. I didn't realise that actually only some of the techs are researchable by the applied science council and the rest by the other councils.
Would that be a good idea though? Make all the optimisation techs researchable by applied science council + one of either military, economic, air research councils?

[EagleMountainDK]

ORIGINAL: Vic

Steam beta patch is coming very soon.
Its a bit more complicated than doing the Matrix patches.

best wishes,
Vic

Thanks for the Steam Beta patch Vic. It's the 1.06.09 right?

[Vic]

Yes it is. I am going to update the Steam open beta's at the same time as the Matrix ones. Thats the plan at least

[Uemon]

Hey, first message on the forum, so with .10 beta patch installed, basically every time i start a new game, just before i start, i get the following error message:Did not find: [game path]\graphic/shadow/critters/medium/layer1/normal/[then basically every type of life]/nofeet.png Do you want to continue? Yes / No

If i click yes, i get to play the game, but alien life doesnt have any image attached to it (so its just blank empty field);
If i click no, game shuts down.

I just reinstalled the game and reapplied the patch, and added exception to game folder in case my anti virus was deleting stuff.