Road to Alpha: Feature List Announcement news

Hi Galactic Survivalists!

As promised, today we will reveal the list of features that will make it into the upcoming Alpha Release.

Main Features
- Added structural integrity SI (only for bases at the moment): buildings will collapse if not supported correctly
- Added basic tutorial system (PDA)
- Added dense grass and large decorations (trees, large rocks, underwater deco, etc) viewable from far away (trees can be harvested for wood logs)
- Added possibility to completely configure a planet by yourself (terrain, textures, deco, NPCs, etc)
- New block rotation system that shows rotation axis
- New block shape management system:
- craft basic block and choose from block shapes via selection menu (RMB when block group is selected in toolbar)
- Shift + RMB now removes block in Creative mode
- Added more materials: wood, concrete (wood logs, wood planks, cement) and hardened steel (replacing the armored blocks)
- Added player drone to facilitate building

Individualization for Building
- New block customization: any side of a block can be colored / textured individually
- New color and paint system:
- 31 colors available from new color tool menu
- all 3d models are colorable (cockpit, turrets, thrusters, generators, deco blocks and other devices)
- New system to apply textures / symbols / letters to each side of a block individually
- Added a first set of textures, letters, numbers and symbols

Gameplay
- Added "Spawn at home base": For example, you can tag your CV in Orbit, any Base or Space Station and respawn on this CV/Base when you die on a planet. (only one Home base can be tagged at any time)
- Clone Chamber has been added to set a definite Home-Base spawn point (Without a Clone Chamber you will spawn in a random location close to your home-base tagged base or vessel)
- Added auto-grouping feature in Control Panel
- Improvements to space map: other faction's icons are no longer displayed except they are near the player (before everything was seen on space map)
- Improvements to all maps: own objects (private or faction) are now colored greenish
- ALT now toggles a free-move camera
- Added filter (text area) and entity type filter-toggles (SV,HV,CV,BA, ALL) to constructor windows
- Turrets can now be activated/deactivated in control panel
- Founder/Admin of a faction can now set a structure of this faction back to Public/Private
- New rotation tool: allows to rotate blocks after placement

Blueprints
- Blueprint menu now also shows blueprints with forbidden blocks (with red color and a hint), not allowed to put in factory or publish (Alien Core and any Monster-Spawner)
- BP placement: Added possibility to move BPs vertically with Page up/down
- Changed: blueprints now spawn without damage
- Workshop: Published (or updated) items are now automatically tagged according to their structure type (e.g. "Hover Vessel")
- Blueprint now saves the control panel grouping info

Console Commands & Server
- Activated console to enter many commands for singleplayer (godmode, teleport, item menu etc)
- Added many new server commands (similar to singleplayer) and a new permission group (Gamemaster)
- Added customizable, periodic auto-shutdown of playfield servers + server message (configured in dedicated.yaml)
- Server messages are now colored to easily see them
- Added saw attachment for HV and chainsaw for player

Blocks & Crafting
- Re-enabled Alien Container and Alien Core for use in Creative Menu
- Added Spawner blocks to Creative menu
- Added new block shape: Inverted Corner Thin
- Added new railing blocks
- Changed Starter Block Base to “Core only”
- Added water jug (produced by Water Generator)
- Water generator can now be crafted in Survival Constructor

World
- Added new temperate planet Oscutune
- Added many new POIs (thanks to Dead8Eye)
- Added Talon Guardian NPC (no loot yet)
- Added ambient sounds according to the biome a player is in (e.g. on Akua: forest, water, open plains, mountains)
- Spawning of NPCs now depend on biomes (e.g. on Akua: Woodwalker in forest, Slime at water, etc)
- Tweaked loot of many NPCs

Major Visual Improvements:
- Atmospheric scattering
- New water shader (edge blending for water shores, refractions, waves, etc)
- New underwater view
- New water droplet effect when leaving water
- More details are shown when close to objects (also terrain)

Tweaks - Gameplay:
- Backpack is now visible 500m on map (before 50m)
- Control Panel now shows damage for all units (not only for essentials as before)
- Increased speed of Ion Cannon shots by 30%
- SV/HV/CV does not allow to fire any more if not powered
- Better planet map preview

Tweaks - Visual & Audio:
- Updated many models (all handheld weapons, many devices, deco objects etc) to PBR shader
- Replaced truss and walkway blocks with new models
- Updated basic hull texture (less dark panel lines)
- Tweaked muzzle fire of laser pistol/rifle to blue/red
- Added new volumetric laser shot effect to Laser Rifle and Pistol
- Improved effect when drilling
- Tweaked terrain textures on Alien planet and moon
- Added new lava shader + lava fog and improved under-lava shader
- Added ground fog and fireflies on Masperon
- Tweaked many terrains (especially Omicron and Masperon
- Added bullet impact effects on water
- Sound tweaks:
- lower sound volume when drilling
- Slightly reduced distance at which sound from devices is heard (02/water generator, gravity generator, generator)
- Updated sound for drill
- Exchanged model of survival constructor
- Improved texture on non-illuminated stairs
- Better smoke on destroyed enemy drone
- Tweaked terrain textures to make resource veins better visible

And what about bug fixes? We are still in the midst of working on them. We'll add a condensed list when we have finished this phase of the Alpha preparations!

Please remember that the current Alpha version will not only add big new features like structural integrity, new biome decorations, new painting & texturing possibilities, new block management and more, but also changes a lot of the invisible back end stuff needed to enable those features and – moreover – pave the way for the more demanding features like galaxy, shields, pole barrier removal, oxygenized rooms, custom textures, which will not make it in the Alpha but are planned for the upcoming and future development stages.

Finally, we would like to introduce the first iteration of “Structural Integrity for planetary bases”. A more detailed blog will follow soon.

So let’s crush some block, shall we?



Happy Easter!

Eleon Dev Team

P.S: Last but not least, the following video shows how easy it will be to color and texture blocks in the upcoming Alpha: