The co-op multiplayer patch is finally here! I spent the last week with numerous test games to remove the last issues and to make sure everything is stable. However, please be aware that multiplayer games are very complex and you might run into a situation where the game does not behave as expected. Please report any problems by starting a discussion in Steam's Community Hub or by writing an e-mail to support@galactic-crew.net. I highly prefer e-mails because the e-mail client is always opened and I can react faster to new messages.
Multiplayer
The major feature of this update is the new co-op multiplayer mode. You can either use TCP/IP for playing in a LAN network or when using networking tools like Hamachi or you use Steam's communication layer. I recommend to use Steam's communication, if you and your friends have a Steam copy of the game.
Starting a multiplayer game works in the same way as starting a continous singleplayer game. Click on "New Game" in the main menu and configure your game. You will notice new buttons in the bottom right corner. After you configured the game, you can decide to start a singleplayer game or to start a multiplayer game over TCP/IP or Steam. If you start your game using TCP/IP, tell your friends your public IP address and port number. They can join your game by clicking the proper button in the main menu. If you start a game using Steam, press Shift+Tab to open the Steam overlay. Now, you can invite your friends to the opened game. It may take a moment for them to connect to your lobby.
Now, you can select the rights and characters for each player. Each player must have at least one assigned character. The player rights state what each player can do. For example, you can decide which player is allowed to trade or recruit new crew members.
The multiplayer games itself work like normal singleplayer games, but with good friends. I highly recommend to use a tool like Teamspeak, Discord or Skype for communication while playing the game.
Multiple save games
Another new feature are multiple save game slots. Instead of having a single savegame slot, you now have ten! That means you can start a new game without overwriting your previous one. This perfect for testing new bonus cards or game mechanics or to organize your multiplayer games.
New languages supported
In addition to the existing language supports, Galactic Crew now supports Arabic, Thai, Korean and Chinese. Please note, that I can only provide player support in English or German.
User interface
Each crew member in your crew overview had a red health bar and a green action bar. The action was a relic of an early concept, that was discarded. The bar was replaced with a yellow experience bar. Now, the bar shows the progress to the next level-up.
An icon bar has been added to each ship's status bar. It shows the condition for each piece of equipment on your ship. You can also click on them with an attack cursor or repair cursor to attack or repair them!
The threat level display in the top center of the screen got a tool-tip showing the progress for the next threat level.
Improvements
When mining asteroids, the amount of experience you get depends on the quantity of resources you mine. So far, you got experience for using mining laser turrets, but not for using mining drones. This has been changed. You can use the passive skills of an engineer for a higher chance of additional resources that result in additional experience.
Instead of using a fixed screen refresh rate, the game now uses the highest screen refresh rate that is supported by your screen and your graphics cards with your current screen resolution.
Bug Fixes
- Removed spelling mistakes in German translation
- The game could freeze during the start-up when using a certain anti-virus software
- The game could crash when changing the streamed music, e.g. after jumping to a new system
- Solved a compatibility issue with older sound cards
- Small memory leaks in two user interface controls were removed
- The drone booster equipment was indestructible
- If you bought items from a spacestation or shipyard, they weren't listed in the rewards list.
- Using the field manual or life-enhancing drugs on planets and in dungeons did not work
- The Scan Systems ability of the pilot could be used several times in the same system
- When a medic tried to resurrect a living crew member, the medical supply was still used.
- The source selection has been moved in the main menu, because it wasn't possible to select all options from the previous location.
- The mouse cursor was not reseted after resurrecting a dead crew member on planets or in dungeons.
- After loading a saved Explorer game or after solving a mission as Explorer, tool-tips revealed secret information on the Galaxy Map.
- The empty space between sections in the main menu's Credit section was too large.
- After teleporting in one particular dungeon, the crew members were attacked by a pirate while loading the dungeon.
