Crew, we have a major update coming and we need your help to test it!
The Lost Frequencies update is now LIVE in the permanent beta branch of Steam.
This update completely reworks the Sonar you get at the beginning of the game and makes it into an active mechanic.
How the new Sonar works
Previously the Sonar would "vibrate" when in proximity of randomly spawned events and encounters. It would do so passively by changing the amplitude of a wave that surrounded your ship, in a somewhat subtle way. This led to many players missing the Sonar mechanic entirely and the world feeling more empty than it was supposed to be.
That's why we reworked it.
Now, the Sonar will alert you when there's stuff that can be found around you. When the Sonar buzzes, you can enter Search mode. While in Search Mode, Signals will approach your Airship - you'll need to lock onto these signals by pressing LMB (or A on the Controller) at the right time. When you do so they'll be highlighted for you and you'll be able to explore them and find out what's down there.
Why the Rework
Once again, this update stems from your feedback.
After the Character Creator, the second most common feedback was that the world felt a bit "empty" with not much to do while traveling or inbetween contracts.
This update is the first step in addressing that.
We tried to make the Sonar more meaningful by making it an active mechanic while also adding more interesting encounters and "sonar-exclusive" rewards you can find around the world.
New missions, a ton of new rewards
Lost Frequencies comes with 8 different missions you can find using the Sonar, including new wave-based encounters, timed deliveries and more.
These new missions bring a ton of new potential rewards including 10 new Epic Videogames, 17 new Chroma Paints and Recipes!
That's right, Recipes are now a collectible item you can find around the world - no more guesswork or datamining!
The Sonar also brings its own upgrades that can be purchased in Shops around the world and that will make Search Mode more forgiving.
We're also introducing a new enemy variant: The Gunblade Goblin. It's got guns, it's got blades, it's got gunblades!
New world UI
With this update we're also introducing a much needed revamp of the world UI.
The new UI features a clear indication of the Mood of each pilot, their health status and aspirations. Plus, we're introducing a "Low Supplies" warning, a "Damaged Mech" warning, a counter for Activity Tokens and a Wages timer.
Overall we tried to give you all the important informations you need while traveling around the Wastelands, while also improving the readability and usability of the UI.
How to access the Beta
You will find a Beta branch right here on Steam called "Permanent Beta".
You can access the Beta branch by right clicking on NITRO GEN OMEGA > Properties > Betas and choosing it from the drop-down menu.
The Beta comes with an important warning: BACK UP YOUR SAVEFILES.
Loading an existing save file might make it incompatible with the regular version of the game. Handle with care.
Your savefiles are located in %localappdata%\\Overdrive\\Saved\\SaveGames
Also, starting with this version we're experimenting with a handy auto-backup feature for savefiles. Your savefiles should be automatically backed up the first time you launch the beta. We might experiment in the future with allowing you to restore backup directly from the game. In the meantime, be safe out there and do your own backup!
What needs testing
With this update we're also laying the foundation for more quests to come in the future - technically the first step is all the sonar missions we added. We did a lot of work under the hood to ensure forward compatibility of your savefiles but we might have missed an edge case somewhere.
Additionally we reworked some things under the hood of the battle system.
We're particularly interested in:
Load your savefiles and let us know if everything is in order. Are your quests all in progress?
Are you noticing any changes in the battles? Any orders not working?
Are you enjoying the Sonar? :)
Please let us know your thoughts here on the Steam forums or on Discord. We have a pretty nice community going on there so check it out! Join the Discord
More cool stuff to come soon. We've been sharing the latest on our development streams on Twitch.
Lock onto those signals!
GP