TIP: If you are just here to figure out how you switch to the multiplayer beta - just scroll to the bottom. However, I recommend at least getting back and read a bit about what a beta is and what mindset you should have when joining a beta.
Finally the day has come! 🤓
Some of you have been waiting for this since the release in 2020, some since January 2023 where I started on multiplayer and some of you have no idea what I'm talking about :)
Anyway, today is the day you can JOIN THE MULTIPLAYER BETA and play with your friends in Fireworks Mania!
As mentioned in a previous post the plan is to have the multiplayer beta running from now until release, which I currently plan to be in dec. 2024.
So we will be in this beta stage for a year - assuming all goes well.
Keep in mind - It's a beta
When joining a beta you need to keep in mind that its an unfinished product.
Therefore, it is important that you join and play the game in this stage, with the right mindset.
You need to be ready to adapt to changes, because this version of the game change a lot and much more frequently than the regular version of the game. You also need to be ready to live with missing features and many more bugs than you would in the regular version of the game.
However, if you can live with the above you also get at chance to be a much more active part of the development of this game and be at the forefront of the development of the game.
Its due to early adapter like you that this game is what it is today and in the future. Thank you for that.
Remember to keep an eye on the News page
As I'm updating this version of the game a lot, I will not be posting patch notes here on Steam for each version. Instead, I have created a "News" page in the Main Menu in the game, where you can see changelog and other relevant information that you need to know.
Therefore, keep an eye on this page each time you start the game as it will change over time as there might be some really useful information there.
Known issues and bugs
First off, there are many bugs, don't worry, that's why its a beta, but as of writing, 1st of December 2023, there are two very important known bugs that I need you to know about.
[UPDATE: This have been fixed]
First of all, for many people when they Quit the game, it crashes. I'm looking into it.
[UPDATE: This have partly been fixed]
Secondly, and this is the big one, there currently is a bug in Unity, where the more audio files you have in the game the lower the FPS. The FPS will even go down overtime due to this bug.
It's a REALLY annoying bug, as it's something internally in Unity that I can't do anything about.
I'm in dialog with Unity about it and hope they fix it soon.
One way to minimize this bug, is to lower the amount of mods you enabled in your games at the time, especially fireworks mods. More fireworks means more sounds and the sooner you loose FPS.
Loosing FPS in a game, is almost the worst...so I'm really not satisfied with this! I'm doing what I can in dialog with Unity to get them to fix it, but I don't know when that will be.
Again, keep an eye on the News page in game, because that's where news about this will be posted.
Not included in public beta
Mod Tools
There is a new Mod Tools in the works to support more multiplayer features and in general more features. However, its still to early to make public, so therefore, no multiplayer Mod Tools yet.
I'll post in the Workshop part of the Discord once its ready to try out.
However, right now I don't expect that to be before summer 2024.
Dedicated server
Once you start playing the multiplayer beta you might see a few "dedicated" servers in the server list. This is obvious because I'm also working on adding dedicated server support, however, that too is still to early to open up to too many people. So that will stay in closed beta for a while.
However, you can still enjoy joining these servers, you just cannot host them yourself yet.
Submit mod to multiplayer beta workshop
Another thing you will notice when you start playing multiplayer beta is that the content of the workshop in the game isn't the same as in the regular version of the game.
See more info about how to submit mods here on my Discord.
How to join multiplayer beta
To join the multiplayer beta you need to switch to the "multiplayer-beta" branch here on Steam.
Right click on Fireworks Mania --> Properties:
Click Betas and select "multiplayer-beta" from the dropdown:
Once you close the window, Steam will update your game to the right version and will look like this in the menu:
If you wanna go back to play the regular version, you just set the beta dropdown back to "None" and you are back. You can switch back and forth as much as you like.
See you in game 🤓
- Enjoy!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1079260/Fireworks_Mania__An_Explosive_Simulator/