Welcome to Season 8’s Mid-Season update, grab a snack and an OSPUZE-infused pumpkin spice latte because you’re in for tricks.. And plenty of treats!
Read what we’ve prepared for you below, if you dare.
NEW EVENT | GHOUL RUSH
Did you hear that? That’s your cue to run!
In GHOUL RUSH, everyone starts off as a Survivor in this brand new, limited-time, Free-For-All mode. Get eliminated even once, and you’ll be doomed to spend the rest of the round as a Ghoul, hunting down the remaining unturned Contestants! Each match lasts for three intense rounds, so you'll have time to switch your tactics and seek revenge!
Earn cash as a Survivor by eliminating Ghouls and other survivors, by staying alive for as long as you can, or by making it to the end of the round as the last surviving Contestant! Once you’re a Ghoul, earn cash by eliminating Survivors.
Enter the foggy and frightening ALFA-ACTA P.E.A.C.E. Center for this event and take a fixed loadout with you, depending on your choice of Heavy or Medium Build. Once you’re a Ghoul, you’ll need to either rely on your Sledgehammer or your trusty Dagger and, of course, what’s left of your wits!
Can you survive the Ghoul Rush?
COLLECTION EVENT | THE HAUNTED HARVEST
Since Ghouls have taken over the Arena and Halloween decorations hang in every hall, it’s time for a scary new collection event! And this time, we’ve reinvented the wheel, and created The Haunted Harvest!
For the next 14 days, you’ll be given an extra daily contract. Completing this contract allows you to pick one pumpkin to smash and reveal a reward. If you complete all of these contracts, you’ll get every single reward for free, including a Legendary set! However, miss a day and one random pumpkin will rot on the stem, and you’ll only be able to unlock it by purchasing the prize.
Rewards are randomly distributed in pumpkins and pumpkins will rot in random order, so pick wisely in the pumpkin patch! You unlock the Legendary Swamp Formal set only when you have unlocked all 14 prizes (by winning them or buying them) in the Haunted Harvest! So come back every day and don’t be scared, the Haunted Harvest has more treats than tricks!
GAME MODE UPDATE | TEAM DEATHMATCH
We have disabled defibrillators and friendly totems as we believe it does not fit the current play-style for this mode. TDM is meant as a fast-paced mode, with a very short respawn timer, and to allow players to swap their Loadout anytime. Now, you don’t need to waste time, or a slot in your Loadout, on reviving your teammates or get revived before you can swap your gear.
GAME MODE UPDATE | POWER SHIFT
Bring the struggle of platform ownership into the streets of NOZOMI/CITADEL as it joins Power Shift’s maps pool! This map has always represented a fight for victory between two powerhouses, now you can continue the struggle as you ride the platform to the goal! Have fun, Contestants!
SOCIAL | EMBARK ID & DISCORD INTEGRATION
Starting today, you will now have access to new awesome social features thanks to Discord integration. Your Discord friends can now receive a party invite directly within their Direct Messages and even join your party directly if “Open Party to Friends” is toggled-on in the social menu! To do this, you’ll need to have your Discord connected to Embark ID, which you can do in-game starting today! Just go to Settings then Social then Account. This feature is not available on PlayStation at this time.
In the account menu, you’ll also have the option to change your Embark ID directly within the game. The same 30 day cooldown in-between changes applies, and it’s good to remember that your Embark ID is the same across all Embark games!
IMPROVED FEATURES | INSTANT REPLAYS
Since the introduction of Instant Replays, there have been millions of replays watched already. But the work isn’t over and today, we’re bringing a new feature to our replay system: Projectiles and Turret’s POV!
And the cherry on top, Instant Replays will now end with a smooth slow-motion effect, how cool is that?
NEW DLC | THE APOTHECARION & CHIRURGEON SETS
Medical license? Nonsense! All you need is a long mask filled with herbs and a can-do attitude!
We’ve got two new bundles available for you, each comes with 2400 Multibucks. So if you’re topping up, make sure to grab The Apothecarion or the Chirurgean set and take on the competition and the plague in the style that is out of this time.
STORE UPDATE | LIQUID ASSETS SET
As we get closer to All-Hallows Eve, the store just keeps getting creepier and crawlier! From flaming swords to weapons that change their look based on your playstyle, there’s something for everyone…except maybe arachnophobes (sorry)! Topping it all off is the Stakeholder set, serving undead chic!
We also welcome new flags to the Arena: Ireland and Lithuania!
TWITCH DROPS | HALLOWEEN
Continuing with the Halloween theme, we’ve got all new Twitch drops for you to claim! Watch anyone streaming THE FINALS with Drops Enabled to get the Witching Drop charm (2 hours) and the Patch Splitters throwing knives (4 hours)
WORLD TOUR | TRENTILA
We’re also proud to welcome TRENTILA as the new sponsor of WORLD TOUR, which returns to standard Cashout this week. Contestants who have signed with TRENTILA will tell you that they offer the Taste of Tomorrow.
On top of all this, we’ve got plenty of bug fixes and changes to introduce! Let’s check ‘em out:
Content and Bug Fixes
Cosmetics
Adjusted skirt movement on certain cosmetic combinations in order to reduce clipping
Fixed an issue where the top of the flag capes would sometimes clip into Heavy Contestant's upper back
Fixed an issue where some T-shirt’s clipped with Crossbody items
Fixed an issue where turtlenecks had clipping issues with arms on low settings
Fixed an issue where the CNS Crossbody on the Muscular Heavy Build would not display the CNS glitch effect
Updated position of the Sword, Sledgehammer, SR-84 and Model 1887 when inspecting in the menu to better fit the view
Improved Pet animation to smoothen out the animation, regardless of player framerate
Fixed the ENVY team logo not displaying correctly on the ENVY Weapon skin for the SA1216
Fixed compression artifact on the ENVY bundle Helmet
Fixed the lightning effects from the Ned skin being visible through smoke
Game Modes
TDM
Disabled revive statues and removed Defibrillators
Fixed an issue with a spawn in SYS$Horizon that caused players to fall underneath the map
Head 2 Head
Added the Match Summary Report to the end of the round
Powershift
Added Nozomi/Citadel to the map pool
Disabled the Alien Invasion game show event to avoid unexpected overtime losses when lifted off the platform, and to avoid destruction related performance issues
Gameplay
Fixed the Turret deployment animation and Turret laser not appearing correctly in replays
Added ability for Instant Replay to show the perspective from various Gadgets such as Grenades and Turrets
Added slow-motion effect at end of Instant Replays
Fixed an issue where players were unable to move after opening the Loadout screen on the same frame as respawning
Fixed issue where the Player Card or damage log could get stuck on the screen
Removed Instant Replays from playing on friendly eliminations
Tracking effects from Sonar Grenade, Proximity Sensor, and Tracking Dart will now reveal players through smoke and will reveal Cloaked players who are standing still
Fixed issue where spamming spacebar to respawn could prolong the spawn timer
Fixed an issue that could occasionally cause melee and ranged attacks not to register on the target player. These were most common in situations such as melee attacks versus backpedaling crouched players, or shooting players who were airborne such as after using a Jump Pad
Maps
General
Updated the visuals of the construction crane rope and fixed an issue where it disappeared on low graphics settings
Bernal
Re-enabled the Suspended Sponsor Structures map variant now that the lighting issues have been resolved
Kyoto
Updated residential and hatch roof ridges to prevent vaulting unintentionally
Updated the collision of the rock meshes in the villa compound garden, allowing deployables to be placed in a more expected way
Fixed a noticeable seam in the lake of the Kyoto map for better visual continuity
Solid bushes in Kyoto have been reworked for consistent behavior with other vegetation
Las Vegas
Fixed sponsor color on Ziplines
Simplified the collision of the railing set to fix an issue where players could get stuck between railing and wall
Nozomi/Citadel
Added an extra cube for cover next to Cybercafe along The Rift, and slightly adjusted a jump pad on the Operations Center side so players can reach the new cube
Practice Range
Fixed an issue where players could get stuck in the ceiling by using the Gateway
Seoul
Fixed the Seoul Hospital skybridge so it consistently breaks when one side is destroyed
Fixed a collision issue where players could clip into background buildings
Updated railing modules and placement in garden area to better indicate where there is a death pit and where there is a safe area to drop
SYS$HORIZON
Fix for middle backdrop building blocking players and bullets
Fixed the floating square mesh so it breaks when relevant architecture is destroyed
Slightly adjusted the size of a floating cube between the Library wings to avoid an unintended angle where you could shoot the feet of other players
Brought back the missing destruction VFX and SFX in the Campus area
Performance & Stability
Improved in-game UI performance
Reduced some stutter caused by increased memory usage
Updated the recommended NVIDIA driver version to prevent potential compatibility issues
Improved performance in the Social section
Resolved a rare client memory stomp crash when updating animations
Fixes to our most common crashes
Private Matches & Spectator
Fixed a bug where it was possible to change your Loadout after reconnecting to Ranked Cashout in Private Matches
Improved spectator experience with interaction sounds and progress visualization
Social
Discord Social Integration
You can now connect/disconnect your Discord account to your Embark ID in Settings > Social > Account.
This feature is available on Steam, Xbox and Xbox on PC. It is not available on PlayStation
Connecting your Discord account will now enable THE FINALS to provide you with enhanced social experiences so you can share your Party size, game mode, and Time-in status in your Discord Rich Presence
You’ll be able to see your Discord friends who play an Embark Game in-game
Will allow you to invite your Discord friends to join your in-game party on Discord, even if they don’t have the game running
Will allow your friends to join your open party directly from Discord
Social Friends Screen updates
A unified friend list that combines both Discord and Embark friends into one list
New icon for the invite friend button
Improved performance for very large friend lists
You will always be shown at the top of the party list
You can now set your party to Open to Friends on the Social Friends screen, which allows any in-game friends to join your party by clicking on your player profile in the Social Friends screen and selecting the option ‘Join Their Party’. This setting is set to off by default. Dev Note: The open/closed state is reflected in the rich presence; a yellow party icon is shown with party size when it is open, and a gray lock is shown if it is closed in a closed party.
You can now change your display name in-game by going to Settings > Social > Account and choosing Edit Embark ID in order to update your name. Dev Note: Your Embark ID can only be updated once every 30 days.
Specializations
Grapple Hook
Activating the Grapple Hook will now cancel any ongoing interactions
UI
Fixed teams sometimes having different positions in the HUD scoreboard versus the overlay scoreboard
VFX
Fixed a collision issue which could result in destroyed glass particles floating in the air
Optimized the Ultimate BP smoke FX so that it no longer obstructs the player view when aiming down sights
The effect visible on characters detected by Gadgets has now been updated to be more visible in smoke
Weapons
General
Fixed an issue that allowed players to skip manual/lever action animations by quickly swapping items, artificially increasing their fire rate, that impacted the following weapons:
BFR Titan
CB-01 Repeater
M26 Matter
Model 1887
SA1216
M60
Reworked the base model for a much needed facelift Dev Note: The new model only applies to the base M60, and new M60 skins going forward
Riot Shield
Updated walk animations when the shield is up to align better with the shield’s collision
Removed hit reaction animations in 3rd person if a Contestant is hit while shielded to minimize collision mismatches
Security
Fresh update from the Anti-Cheat team.
Denuvo AntiCheat turned out to be a perfect complement to our existing tools. Rollout will start with this release, and complete by the end of next week.
Anybrain, which we have spoken about earlier, is also becoming a part of our ever expanding toolbox to fight cheaters from all angles.
We have also been hard at work targeting gamepad spoofing, releasing updated detection capabilities with this release.
And finally, please keep sending in player reports and any other information you believe could be of value to us, it really helps us in our work to keep THE FINALS exciting, fair and secure!
// Tom and Magnum
