11 Sep 2026Developer post

Development Status #95

Dear Tankers! Welcome to our 95th Development Status. We have some news from development of Ponyri but not only. We hope you will enjoy reading this dev status :) Status report We have continued our work on the game, now spending a few weeks pushing bigger fixes (mostly - optimiz

Dear Tankers!

Welcome to our 95th Development Status. We have some news from development of Ponyri but not only. We hope you will enjoy reading this dev status :)

Status report

We have continued our work on the game, now spending a few weeks pushing bigger fixes (mostly - optimization of vehicle physics and infantry animators - less CPU usage) + progressing the development of the Ponyri DLC (more about it below).

Ponyri - Sector 1 - Taginski

CPU Usage optimization

Our biggest CPU drain was and still is - vehicle physics. The more tanks are spawned on the scene and move, the more CPU they use + all that physics is being calculated on single core of the processor.

Now after having a small talk with our friend Marco, the main dev of Easy Red 2, we want to try and implement a physics LOD (level of detail) system. If a vehicle is far away from us (or static but closer) then it’s physics will be turned off and switched to much more simple movement style.

Ponyri - Sector 1 - Taginski

The player must not notice this change but the effect can be most visible on maps with big battles and active tanks at once.

Watch on YouTube

When this is ready the next step is infantry. Infantry can aim, move, take cover etc. thanks to a running animator. If that animator is disabled (for example by us to save CPU) the infantry cannot move. This required us to leave the animations on for almost all infantry, even the ones that are 2km away to let them work normally.

We are going to change this and also release big amount of CPU - with 200-300 infantry at once fighting it out and visible by player (on any distance) this was another big problem.

Ponyri DLC

With the beginning of Q4 2026 and the end of our Gamescom-related work, the time has come to officially announce our plans for the game.

The Ponyri DLC will feature an entirely new map with new missions, a new campaign, and major AI improvements. It represents the culmination of what we envisioned Tank Squad to be from the very beginning.

Ponyri - Sector 2 - Senkovo

Everyone who purchases the DLC will gain access to a nonlinear campaign and a 24 × 24 km theater of operations divided into 20 sectors. Players will fight for control of these sectors against our new AI commander, who will oversee enemy armored operations.

From the new operational map, you and your friends will be able to plan attacks and defenses, with the ultimate objective of capturing or defending the Ponyri sector on the Kursk salient. You will also have two new vehicles at your disposal: the SU-152 and the Ferdinand.

Ponyri - Sector 1 - Taginski

Some of the DLC’s features were inspired directly by the feedback and experiences shared by our community. One of these is an AI commander for allied forces.

We noticed that some players simply want to enjoy the action rather than manage an entire army. To reduce the amount of battlefield micromanagement, commanding allied forces during battles will now be optional. This means that everyone will be able to experience full-scale battles without constantly issuing orders—just as we originally intended.

Other changes inspired by your feedback include:

Large, open environments designed for engagements at distances exceeding one kilometer.
The ability to command forces using markers on the tactical map.
Static repair and resupply points replaced with mobile units that move together with the front line.
…and many, many more smaller additions that will improve and expand your experience with the game.

We are also working on the DLC’s Steam store page. We will let you know as soon as it is finished and available.

Something Ends, Something Begins

The Ponyri DLC is the first—and possibly the last—conventional expansion for Tank Squad on this scale. It is larger than the base game itself and is our way of thanking you for the patience and trust you have shown throughout the bumpy journey from release to the present day. Without you and your support, DeGenerals would have ceased to exist a long time ago. We sincerely thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

If any of you are still undecided about purchasing the game, the release of the Ponyri DLC will be the perfect time to do so, as we do not currently expect to introduce any further changes of this magnitude. We want to move forward with new ideas and a fresh approach.

That does not mean the game will no longer be supported. Following Gamescom, we still have one or two ideas for additional DLC that we may be able to bring to life.

Environment Assets - Work in progress

Brick Water Tower

A brick water tower will be added to the railway station sector in Ponyri as part of the new environment. Its original purpose was to supply steam locomotives with water.

During development, we discovered references containing a rather important piece of information: the brick water tower itself was built in 1949. This means that it did not exist during the fighting in 1943.

That did not discourage us, as the structure remains historically significant. However, for the sake of authenticity, we also decided to create the historically accurate structure that stood there at the time: a Shukhov water tower.

We will show you the completed model in the next Development Status update. For now you can see how current twin towers are standing in the game ;)

Other UI, Localization, and General Improvements

We are working flat out on the Ponyri expansion to make it the best it can be. In the meantime, we have reviewed and fixed several smaller issues. They may seem minor, but they still contribute to the overall feel of the game and represent another step toward making it more polished.

Avatars

We fixed an issue affecting player avatars retrieved from Steam and generated within the engine. It turned out that Steam avatars use sRGB color data, while our project operates in the Linear color space. As a result, Unity interpreted the colors incorrectly and brightened the midtones, creating a “washed-out” appearance. The source of the problem has now been identified and fixed.

Manual

The game’s manual can be accessed both from the main menu and during gameplay. We fixed the way it is displayed in-game—the panel can be opened by pressing F5, but other interface elements, such as the button used to close it, did not previously appear alongside it. The only way to close the manual was by pressing Escape.

Force Pool Creator

We have improved the panel’s functionality. When selecting a mode such as a procedural game, the player and enemy faction selection screen will now load correctly, without the previous loading error.

Clicking on formations or individual units within a formation will also display the appropriate image and description on the right-hand side. Previously, some textures did not always load or display correctly.

We have also added support for clearer game-mode descriptions in several places:

Session Browser
Session Creation
Loading Screen
Battle Map

As a result, whether you are the host or a client, the correct name will now be displayed for the type of game being loaded—whether it is a standard campaign, a procedural campaign, or a regular skirmish mission. Wherever these names appear, they will now be appropriate to the relevant context.

In the Session Browser, we have also added information showing which faction is being played in each session and improved the Game Stage descriptions. They will now display “In Battle” or “Repairs” when players are currently repairing their vehicles.

This may be a cosmetic change, but previously, when a session was in the repair scene, both the mission and the Game Stage were labeled “Repair Station,” which was unnecessarily repetitive.

We have also improved the titles and descriptions displayed when leaving or ending a session and returning to the main menu. Everything should now feel more consistent.

New Website Layout

Before Gamescom, we brought our website back online after it had been unavailable for some time. We have also been working on adding better content to it. All of the current information is sourced from Steam.

We would like to bring back something resembling a blog or company-wide development status updates. We are also considering opening our own merchandise store. Perhaps some mugs, or limited boxed editions of Tank Squad featuring a cool display tank for your shelf? We have plenty of ideas and enthusiasm. Time will tell.

Feel free to visit—just please don’t DDoS us. ;)

https://degenerals.com/

You can also read our history and what we went through all these years :)

https://degenerals.com/#our-history

When new patch?

We will most likely release the new Patch 1.3.8 next week.

Thank you for your support, we are working. See you next time!
DeGenerals

Original post

04 Sep 2026Developer post

Update 1.3.7

Dear Tankers and Mechanics! We're back from gamescom and immediately straight to action. This update brings in more optimization (this time the size of the meshes we use got decreased, so it should bring from 100-200 MB less on memory usage), issues with pathfinding through bridg

Dear Tankers and Mechanics!

We're back from gamescom and immediately straight to action. This update brings in more optimization (this time the size of the meshes we use got decreased, so it should bring from 100-200 MB less on memory usage), issues with pathfinding through bridges, other sound modifications and so on.

We investigated further why the game sometimes crashes when using a fire extinguisher in tanks, and added further safeguards. We’ve also fixed the selection of wrecks at the end of a mission; a silly bug meant you couldn’t select anything

We are cooking ;)

ːtms_hammerː Changelog 1.3.7

Below is the list of changes being made:

Added:

The map will focus on our vehicle (if we're spawned) when we open the map in overview mode (with options to call in arty)
New video quality setting for decal draw distance
Small bump when player hits a tree or bigger building

Modified:

Increased the distance of decal draw for Very High quality preset from 350m to 400m
Increased the render distance of decals for very low and low
Info Panel minor improvements
Interactions, intro for adding button icon for a key (for future steamdeck, gamepad support) - not visible yet
Interactions, aim circle replaced by a small diamond, when usable is under interaction (for example NPC)
C1R1 and C2R1 repair station outline quality changed, removed blur. Improved aesthetic feeling
AI Commander on procedural mission will first check if any vehicle squad is assigned to main objective rather than side
Reduced the memory usage of few assets in the game, in effect consumed RAM should be lower

Sound Modifications:

Added new Diesel Engines and samples for internal and external sounds.
Created a new dormant mixer bus called 'Effects_Engines_Internal' for future internal vehicle sound migration for volume slider.
Created dormant events called Engines_Vehicles_Internal_ that contains internal sound channels only for future internal volume solider and finer control.
Increased the internal sounds of the Panther and Tiger by ~4db to bring the sound in line with the other tanks.
Replaced the internal and external engine sounds for KPIII_IV banks - merged tracks and engines into single loops to reduce voice build up (2 sounds reduced to 1). Reduced the tree,bush,wood big and wood small destruction sounds to close (-6db) and internal (-2) - so its not so intense.

Fixed:

Few issues with kill feed showing friendly fire when player drowned his vehicle
Issue with buildings that occluded environment behind them when the building was already destroyed (they should not occlude it upon destruction)
Error with missing wreck selection panel
Tank wheels visual rotation for client
An issue with procedural missions and few old maps that game has shown few objective indicators on units that were counted as trigger to end the objective - and these indicators were static instead of following the unit. Now these indicators will appear more appropriate + will be dynamic
An issue with vehicle weapon and other UI that stayed on or never appeared when player changed the difficulty preset while playing (for example from default to sim or viceversa)
An issue with force pool creator menu sometimes missing an icon in unit/squad summary
Potential crash when using molotovs/fire spreads
Issue on Psel River procedural, one side objective had incorrect spawn position
Issues regarding trucks, their destruction and various physics

Patch 1.3.6

Please take a look if you haven't had a chance to read about changes and new sounds that came with the previous patch. Click here

After Gamescom 2026

We attended Gamescom this year; it was our first time there. We exhibited in the business zone at a large Polish stand organised by PARP.

We’ve had a number of discussions, made plenty of new contacts and identified opportunities for potential new collaborations. If anything comes of it, you’ll definitely hear all about it :)

Next to us was an Italian stand with games, including our friends from Easy Red 2. Best wishes to Marco and the whole team!

Tank Squad is on SALE -30%

Today is last day of our 30% sale. Make sure to check it out! The promotion ends today September 4.

View game page

Thank you for your support, we are working. See you next time!
DeGenerals

Original post

23 Aug 2026Developer post

Update 1.3.6

Dear Tankers and Mechanics! In this patch we are addressing issues reported by players about crashes As a quick reaction we decided temporarily to block all molotovs and other fire sources which are the main cause for the game to crash. Its a temp solution since we are heading to

21 Aug 2026Developer post

Update 1.3.5

Dear Tankers and Mechanics! In this patch we are releasing new fixes, optimization and sound overhaul of the game. Optimization Another big news is that we're bringing in a sizable optimization for used memory (the game should consume around 400-600 MB less than it did). More FPS

Dear Tankers and Mechanics!

In this patch we are releasing new fixes, optimization and sound overhaul of the game.

Optimization

Another big news is that we're bringing in a sizable optimization for used memory (the game should consume around 400-600 MB less than it did).

More FPS in battles - around 5-10 more when there are many static tanks. This is because we've added a system that switches the physics of static tanks totally off - which saves a lot of performance. (shout out to @Marco from EasyRed2 for this idea ;))

In the next month or two we're going to include the same approach to moving tanks that are very far away from the player or outside the view of the camera - to further reduce the CPU usage.

This is also the case for infantry - we want to also alter their animation cycle and just don't use it at all if the player does not see it or that infantryman is very very far away - but that's in September - October.

Sound rework

Our new sound designer - nicknamed Yellow King - has started proper rework of how the game handles the sounds.

Gamescom 2026 - meet us!

Our team is going to Cologne to take part in Gamescom 2026. We're going to be part of the Polish PARP stand in the business area. We want to take the opportunity and find some business partners for further work on this game - who dares wins!

Tank Squad is on SALE -30%

To celebrate the release of Patch 1.3.5 and our trip to Gamescom, we’re launching a 30% off sale on our game. The promotion starts today 21 August and runs till September 4 (2 weeks). The sale starts at 7:00 pm / 19:00 CEST GMT+2 Polish time/central european summer time.

View game page

New Steam Store layout

We have finally rolled out the long-planned update to our Steam store page. The final changes were implemented right before launch. Since then, Steam has published updates regarding image sizes and the types of content allowed on such pages. We’ve also added videos to the description with captions. The entire page has been translated. Update to the layout will be launched with this patch.

We’d like to take this opportunity to thank a few members of our community for their help with translations, spotting mistakes, and making corrections in Spanish, German, and Russian. A heartfelt thank you to: Adeptus Manulus, Divadov, Kitalbi

Changelog 1.3.5

Below is the list of changes being made:

Added:

An option called Voice Overs and Kill Feed Filter to filter out voice overs and kill feed depending on context. For example setting this dropdown to OnlyPlayer is going to filter out all notifications that the local player is not part of.
Faction image to campaign selection menu, both for new campaigns and saved campaigns to make the selection easier to understand (especially for procedural campaigns)

Modified:

Introduced a prototype of fake suspension system for vehicles (Big optimization when vehicle is static)
Change how many times a second calculations happen for units, should result in less CPU usage (another optimization)
Type of few hundreds of meshes have been changed to use less RAM (results in around 400-600 MB less per mission in RAM)
T-34, Panther, Tiger, Pz IV/III and Kv-1 engines now start dropping volume further away from the camera
Changed how the game handles molotov fire spreads, trying to remove the crash that happens when player uses fire extinguisher in his tank
Ammo rack explosion now causes additional vfx of explosion + sound + tears off various mountable parts
Sound Update: Comprehensive audio mix, optimization, and asset update across engine, weapon, flyby, impact, and reloading event groups:
- ENGINES & VEHICLES
  - Made drop off primary tank engine sound more gradual/further away (for third person). Increased the 200hz dip in panthers/tigers by 2db. Moved the master High filter down by 5Hz, this should bring in some deeper bass by an average of 1db. Increase T-34 primary by 2 db (it was quieter than panther)
  - T-34 / KV-1:
    - Added positional events (50m to 150m) utilizing new far-field wave assets.
    - Widened spatializer stereo curves for players within 10m. When play is close, stereo, when further back from the vehicle, sound shrinks.
    - Configured loop-cuts upon engine shutdown and restricted AI idle stacking.
    - Attenuated master EQ below 100Hz to eliminate sub-bass mud.
  - PANTHER:
    - Applied identical spatializer, loop-cut, and master EQ adjustments.
    - Integrated internal tread squeak foley with a 10% trigger probability.
    - Reduced rumble
  - TIGER:
    - Configured positional events (50m to 150m) and tread squeak foley.
    - Attenuated master EQ below 50Hz (retaining more low-frequency bass).
    - Reduced rumble
  - JU-87:
    - Added pitch-to-distance attenuation curve (1.04x at 0m to 0.76x at 500m).
    - Applied notch EQ at 4.6kHz to reduce high-frequency distortion.
- FLYBYS
  - Flybys Big:
    - Added 4 new flyby wave assets; relocated flybys to 'Shots/Flyby'.
    - Widened player stereo spatializer within 10m.
    - Reduced max distance from 1500m to 50m to aggressively prune silent voices.
  - Flybys & Ricochets:
    - Restricted max distance from 1500m to 150m for bus preservation.
- IMPACTS & ARTILLERY
  - Offmap Distance Shots:
    - Reduced instrument duration to 1/4 of runtime to terminate long reverb tails.
    - Applied high-pass filter below 100Hz and cut brown rumble at 500Hz.
  - Offmap Impacts:
    - Adjusted close channel cutoff to 500m; advanced far channel trigger to 250m.
    - Added debris foley channel, close-up small arms bass shot, and far reverb.
    - Reduced instrument durations to 1/4 of runtime; reduced lead-up on Impact 04 by 8%.
  - Offmap Incoming:
    - Merged redundant events; added medium and far pitch-bend channels.
    - Restricted far voice trigger probability P(X) to conserve bus overhead.
    - Shortened tail release times; added incoming shell whistle instruments.
  - Offmap Katyusha & Nebelwerfer:
    - Reduced instrument runtimes by 1/3rd to free up voice capacity.
    - Added processed Katyusha voice overlay to Nebelwerfer far channel.
  - Impacts 88mm Penetration (All Vehicle Strikes):
    - Reduced all instrument sizes/durations by 50%.
    - Constrained Close-Internal channel reach to 20m to focus player hits.
    - Replaced global parametric EQ with custom close-internal compression and EQ.
    - Added metal nocking, scraping, buckling internal foley, and AI penetration cue (50m).
    - Pruned legacy 'Tank_Cannon_Hit_Close_03.wav'.
  - Impacts (Grenade, Panzerknacker, Large, Lights, Medium, Panzerfaust, Molotov):
    - Disabled master spatializers on grenade/large impacts for direct stereo near-field mixing.
    - Added dirt foley channels, close bass shots, and far-field reverb layers.
    - Pruned legacy/distorted assets (Large_Far_01, Small_Far_01, Medium_Close_02, grenade_1).
    - Adjusted max distances (Lights: 1000m, Medium: 1000m/1200m, Panzerfaust: 1500m).
    - Added a fire woosh instrument to Molotov events.
- RELOADING
  - Reload Heavy, Light, Medium, Very Heavy:
    - Configured distance parameter boundaries to stop reload audio outside vehicle.
    - Aligned event timelines with tank-specific reload rates (Heavy/Tiger: ~6s, Light/T-70: ~3-4s, Very Heavy/Maus: 8s).
    - Integrated mechanical wheel squeaks, handles, door closures, and heavy reloading assets.
    - Applied custom compressor and subtle space reverb to Heavy events.
- WEAPONS & SHOOTS
  - Cannon Shots (Heavy, Medium, Light, T4):
    - Replaced legacy T4 assets with 6 new high-quality large-caliber close samples.
    - Heavy, Medium, Light: Configured custom stereo curves, compressor, and parametric EQ.
    - Bypassed master pitch shifter to avoid artifacts.
    - Implemented 'interior_ext_mute' high-pass routing to allow distant shots to penetrate cabin.
    - Added Very Far channels (88mm+ identifier), bass layers, and re-worked far assets.
  - Small Arms Shortened:
    - Shortened Mortar, M1895, DT, PTRD, PZB39, and Wickers events to free up bus capacity.
  - FG42:
    - Shortened release tails on Close, Far, and Interior loop events; added steel click foley.
  - G41 & K98k:
    - Added Very Far channels, small arms reverbs, and close/far bass shot layers.
    - Trimmed silent start-margins on 10 far-field K98k wave files to eliminate trigger latency.
  - Luger P08:
    - Reduced far-field cutoff distance; integrated reverb and bass layers.
  - MG34 & MG42:
    - Added dedicated close-up metal loop assets and special far-field reverb channels.
  - MP40 (Loop & New):
    - Modified EQ (boosted bass/highs, cut mid) and added landing bass shot.
    - Added mid and far channels with distance-dependent pop/hiss reverb balancing.
  - Smoke Grenade Launcher:
    - Shortened event runtime to preserve voice limits.
  - Soviet Mosin-Nagant & SVT40:
    - Added Very Far channels, close/far bass layers, and reverbs.
    - Applied 3-band EQ on SVT40 master bus to boost mids.
  - Incoming Fire (MG):
    - Added internal bullet ricochet clatter foley to simulate tank hull hits.
  - Shell Drops:
    - Added 8 brand new rifle/MG brass shell casing drop assets.
- NEW CHANNELS & ROUTING
  - Added positional tracks for Panther, KV-1, and T-70.
  - Enables separation of tank track behavior from base T-34 master systems.
  - Moved the JU87 Dive Bomb event into the Effects bank, out of music (muted music = muted dive sound)

Fixed:

Incorrect voiceover sound for procedural missions - location Village
Issues with navmesh on Vasylevka map (C1M4) - factory buildings had incorrect shape of navigation obstacles and units drove/ran into them
Aim Range will be reset when player spawns with new vehicle and controlled weapons change
Critical issue with inability to spawn if player wanted to play battle tutorial first
UI problem with specator ui menu where the details of selected unit were filled with some default text that should not be there
Molotovs now correctly attach to vehicles they hit
An issue with appearing unit markers for incorrect objective types (for example on Morton Defence for attacking soviet units)
An issue that procedural missions sometimes could not start properly and camera was underground
An issue with incorrect scale of various UI elements in orders menu
Tigers and Panthers on procedural map should now be better kept from always spawning
An issue with main menu session creation menu or head quarters menu not always properly keeping track of what mission the player had selected
Issue with spectator UI unit list where the details about faction and squad were not shown properly
Issue with inability to select various enemy or allied wrecks at the end of procedural missions

Thank you for your support, we are working. See you next time!
DeGenerals

Original post

14 Aug 2026Developer post

Development Status #94

Dear Tankers! Welcome to our 94th Development Status. welcome back, long time no see. We have some news from development and also regarding gamescom. We hope you will enjoy reading this dev status :) Ponyri 1943 - progress We are reaching a state with the DLC where the sectors, o

Dear Tankers!

Welcome to our 94th Development Status.

welcome back, long time no see. We have some news from development and also regarding gamescom. We hope you will enjoy reading this dev status :)

Ponyri 1943 - progress

We are reaching a state with the DLC where the sectors, one by one, are getting implemented and are connected to the operational system map. This is going to allow us to properly test the missions in context of what is going on in the operational map - not like the linear campaign we’ve had previously.

WIP of the interact able table with the operational gameplay situation.

Sectors

The game now has a system that correctly controls the sector state. This system understands the context of an upcoming battle on a selected sector, for example which part of the map is the entry point for a given faction - based on direction from where a given unit had entered the sector in the operational map

We’ve attacked from the East so the game allows us to spawn from the eastern entry point. Defenders have access to other entries so their reinforcements are going to come from there.

Another example would be that if the sector is marked as having the feature of an artillery battery or AA battery then this objective will be available when fighting over that sector.

Next we want to include more features for sectors, like a given sector is an ammo base or repair station which is going to grant bonuses to anyone who controls it.

The whole operational gameplay part design is to be as easy as it can be. We’re not creating Hearts of Iron V - the amount of details it is going to have will increase in time but we want it to be easy.

Testing new sector gameplay. An error with selection of entry points caused both Wehrmacht and Red Army to spawn on top of each other resulting in melee combat between tanks ;)

UI - Battle Order

When prototyping the Battle Order menu (which controls the whole operational gameplay system) we were basing on a few already tested games. Inspirations came from Gates of Hell, Red Orchestra 2 (multiplayer campaign voting map), Easy Red 2 (hey Tomislav I know you’re here winking face Steel Division 2 and Close Combat series (with campaign map/sector).

We lack proper animations and camera work but the basics are here that allow us to play and test.

We’re attacking Tagiński Sector

Enemy tank battalions are going to be a menace. Enemy commander wants to win the campaign too you know

Ferdinand - Work in progress

At the end of July and beginning of August, I got back to work on the Ferdynand. I started by sculpting the exterior of the model, beginning with the wheels, the hull and the entire superstructure. I familiarised myself with the documentation and all the technical details and nuances concerning the early versions of the Ferdynand and the later versions known as the Elefants.

The version we’re creating for the Ponyri DLC is the Ferdinand from July 1943, so we won’t see a better commander’s cupola or an MG mounted on the front armour plate here.

The next steps involve attempting to model the interior. We make no secret of the fact that this is a time-consuming undertaking, especially as we want to retain a great deal of detail inside. We may not manage to create a highly detailed interior straight away – we still have a few vehicles left to build.