Hello everyone!
Update 1.2 is now available, bringing a large update to the game engine, Blueprint Migration and several minor changes. Do continue reading after the patch notes, as we're also hosting a Screenshot Contest and have another update for you on the Puzzles project.
Update 1.2
Update to Unity 6
The whole game has now been upgraded to Unity 6. This will give us more features to work with, fix bugs, and give us some nice quality of life improvements in the engine and the editor. Essentially, it makes it easier for us to make future updates.
Testing has shown that this also brought significant upgrades to performance and stability, especially on MAC and Linux.
If you'd like to read more about the upgrade to Unity 6 and what that process was like, be sure to check out this devlog:
Blueprint Migration
Update 1.2 also brings Blueprint Migration, a change we announced just before the launch of 1.0. This changes how blueprint are saved, making the system more robust and permanent.
Warning: This change means that blueprints made prior to Update 1.0 are no longer compatible. In order to transfer them, switch to the 1.1 update branch, place the blueprints you want to save in a savegame, then switch back to the live version (1.2) and save them as blueprint again. Update 1.1 will remain available as a separate branch.
Support for replacing/substituting mods
This one requires a bit of an explanation. After Update 1.1, it's been apparent that our update strategy for ShapezShifter wasn't going to work for the live game. When we push an update to shapez 2, we'd need to have a new version of ShapezShifter alongside the game update to prevent all mods that use ShapezShifter from breaking. But with only one version to work from, we either need to leave ShapezShifter broken for the new release, or immediately break the previous release version.
However, the game branch feature in Steam allows us to set up an experimental branch for ShapezShifter, so modders can test mods in the new game version before the game is actually updated. This way, mods may already be ready for the next game update before that update even goes live, so you can use those mods immediately.
On top of this, we are actively working on making the mod development experience better for everyone. One planned change is an automated canary system in the base game that detects breaking changes to the API as soon as they're found; they can usually be slower to catch.
Other changes
UI
The operator level screen now includes info about the game version and if the game is modded.
Renamed “Katyusha” achievement into “Space Program”.
Content
Added the song “Launched” to the soundtrack
Save/Load
Improved auto-save delay.
Modding
Mods can now reliably target a specific release version of the game to avoid crashing the game after a patch.
Bug Fixes
Fixed shadows for machines not being visible in the whole game
Fixed a fatal error when achievements.bin file is corrupted
Fixed operator shape targets eventually going over 2.14b and becoming negative (players having run into this problem may still have this displayed as negative)
Fixed non-aligned indicators for machine launchers/catchers
Fixed meshes for mirrored global wire transmitters
Fixed the astroid pump description incorrectly showing 4 pumps needed to supply one space pipe at full saturation (now shows correctly as 24)
Fixed belt/pipe catchers appearing linked to the incorrect launcher when a second launcher is within range of the catcher during gameplay
Fixed mouse over wire shape visualization only being correct when facing north
Fixed belt launchers and catchers switching to conveyor belts when pressing R to rotate while placing them in a platform notch
Fixed a possible crash if corrupt data is present in settings files while booting the game
Screenshot Contest
Now that we've had the update to shapez 2, we'd like to see an update on your factories!
Take a screenshot of the part of your factory, or factories, you're the most proud of or just really want to share. Be it insanely optimized, a creative alternative solution, a complex transport transport network, you name it. If you really want to show it, we really want to see it!
Head over to our subreddit.
Post your screenshot with the [Update 1.2 Contest] flair applied. Feel free to explain a bit about the things you screenshotted!
The deadline is August 23.
What you can win? We'll be giving away 5 upgrades to the shapez 2 Supporter Edition, giving you 40 extra minutes of Peppsen bangers, the ability to download the soundtrack in lossless quality, loops and twisters for your trains, as well as new skin for your Vortex!
If you already own the Supporter Edition, feel free to give it to a friend.
Dev Update on Puzzles
For this dev update, here's Christian, our Head of Game Design:
One of our main inspirations and guiding stars for the next puzzle project is naturally the Puzzle DLC for shapez 1. It already had all the basic loops that we envision for this project as well. However, there is one defining difference: shapez 1 was 2D and shapez 2 is 3D. That of course gives us a lot more possibilities for interesting puzzles but of course it also poses complex issues.
Part of the shapez 1 puzzle challenge was using inputs/outputs of buildings to route shapez along specific paths, which they otherwise would not be able to take. Combined with the footprint of the building, this often left only very limited viable spots where the building can be placed - similar to a jigsaw puzzle piece.
Translating that challenge to 3D requires us to think differently about the layout of conveyors and buildings in shapez 2. While they are currently optimized for convenience we might need a little more limitations to create interesting puzzles. For example:
Conveyor lifts allow players to overcome any vertical blocker, as long as one tile is free next to it.
Buildings have a smaller footprint and often have their in/outputs on the same level/in the same direction (this makes a blocker on one side usually invalidate the building outright, no matter its height).
|
|
|
|
|
The screenshots you are seeing come directly out of the sandbox version of the puzzles project, we have set up to experiment with these challenges.
|
|
|
|
These images are from the same puzzle, with the only difference between the top and bottom ones being the used building levels. As you can see, Conveyor Lifts might be too powerful! |
This its an exciting time for us as we start designing out the puzzles, and play around with buildings and blockers in 3D.
While we figure out limitations and creative solutions you can also see the set up for the first visuals and the backend framework for this project - everything is of course highly work-in-progress.
Now, go check out Update 1.2! While a lot of this update is behind the scenes, we hope the shift to Unity 6 brought some good improvements for you. Be sure to take a screenshot while you're there and send it over on our subreddit!