The beta version of the major update is now available on a separate Steam branch, and any owner of the game can join in!
To switch to beta branch, do the following: Right-click the game in your Steam library -> Select Properties -> Select Betas -> Choose the beta branch from the dropdown -> The game will now update to the 'beta' branch (version 0.8.50.1EA or higher is what you’re looking for).
Please note that the beta is currently available in English only. Localizations are on the way and will be added soon.
We deeply appreciate everyone willing to help us test and polish the updated version of the game, but we want to stress once again that this is a beta that we intend to update daily. If you’d prefer to jump straight into the final version of the update, you can simply wait until it moves to the default branch — which is expected to happen in two weeks.
While mentioning every single minor change and addition would turn into an unwieldy mess, here’s the list of things we consider the most significant:
The Security Department upgrade tree has been completely overhauled. Functions, their distribution across buildings, and the order in which they unlock are much clearer and more transparent now.
The department popup has also been completely redesigned. Keeping track of current agent assignments, starting them, and canceling them is now much simpler and more convenient.
Security agents now feel much more like the rest of your staff. They have personal dossiers, can be fired, can ask for a raise, and receive gifts.
Security agents can now be sent to training.
Passive protection was too confusing, so now protection is only active and permanent: an agent will guard an employee until you tell them to stop.
Surveillance is now split into two separate actions: digging up dirt and uncovering illicit preferences. This way it’s clearer and more convenient.
Compromising material now allows you to instantly poach an employee from another studio without waiting for their current contract to expire. However, studios may sue you for unfair competition.
If you uncover illicit preferences of employees at other studios and give them an appropriate gift, you can “hook” them, ensuring that once their current contract expires, they will come to you first before considering other offers.
Competitors can now poach your employees as well. Your security agents can protect them.
Now, if someone attacks your employees in any way, you’ll always know who ordered it.
If an agent has compromised themselves with an employee, that agent can no longer surveil them.
A new category of secrets added: “Ongoing Crime.” It cannot be fully erased while the wrongdoing continues, it can only be contained for now.
The maximum ratings for both a script and the film made from it now depend on the number of story elements used. Only truly well-developed stories can now aim for widespread acclaim — which, in turn, encourages more complex plot combinations instead of exploiting simplistic pairings.
After a certain point in the game, story elements will begin to “wear out,” meaning audiences will lose interest in characters and events you use too often. So it will now be much more important to seek out new elements and experiment with fresh stories.
The maximum possible ratings are now capped at 10.
The release preparation screen is way more informative now. In particular, you can now see the effectiveness of your ad campaign week by week, and much more.
Not all advertising options are available by default anymore, some need to be unlocked.
Choosing advertising options has become more important, “more” now definitely does not mean “better”.
The list of Alliance initiatives has been updated: some of the meaningless ones were removed, and some more interesting ones were added.
Competitors are now more aggressive in proposing initiatives.
Thanks to some UI improvements, it’s now easier to keep track of story elements prohibited by the Code.
Several new upgrades are added to various departments. For example, you can now terminate employee contracts early and even recover part of the contract cost, or make your departments generate Influence Points/Reputation instead of researching.
New characters are now generated more frequently and with greater variety. Moreover, if low-skilled characters remain un-hired for a long time, they leave the show business, making way for newcomers.
Ratings and box office performance of competitor films now depend more clearly on script quality, involved talent, and invested resources — in other words, their simulation has become more authentic.
Now, once you’ve fully developed one of the Policies, you face a choice: stick with it to get additional challenges and bonuses in future Acts, or explore other Policies, like it used to be, but without the ability to deepen them later.
You can now throw parties to please your subordinates or host banquets to earn Influence Points.
The theater management screen has become more informative. Also, over time, more independent cinemas appear in the game, which you can purchase.
Persuading department heads to get involved in questionable activities is now transparent and tied to Loyalty.
Filming and sound recording equipment now becomes obsolete: after some time, manufacturers stop supporting old technologies, so you need to invest in licensing new ones — or develop your own.
The list of locations for many settings has been updated.
You now choose which films you want to submit for the Pollux in each category. Additionally, you can invest extra resources to promote your contenders.
If none of your films are nominated for the Pollux, you can choose not to attend the ceremony — though industry peers will likely see this as a sign of disrespect. But screw them, right?
Now each addict is associated with a specific type of drug. By the way, we’ve added one more — amphetamine.
Gift ordering now works differently: gifts arrive in batches rather than one by one. The larger the batch, the less time it takes to prepare each individual gift.
Added a bunch of new scandals.
Added 32 new story elements.
Added 1500 new posters.
Added 40 new production events.
Added a number of special events. Without giving too much away, let’s say you’ll get to meet a couple of characters who will play a significant role in Act 2, among other things.
A major rebalance of pretty much the entire game. In some cases, this is due to a more accurate reflection of historical context, but more often it’s aimed at smoothing the difficulty curve and ensuring the game provides a fair challenge throughout the entire Act. Department burn rates, prices, taxes, staff requests, the impact of various factors on movie ratings and box office — among many, many other things — have all been revised.
Thank you and have fun!