March is ending, which means it's time for its devlog. I'd like to reiterate that all the features you're seeing in these devlogs are for the proper version of Alien Horizon, which is being developed in the background, and is currently planned for November at the earliest. Preview alpha is going to get two more updates (one of which is very soon) with different content than this. With that out of the way, let me show you more of what I've been working on:
Water crossing
Of course, since water exists in the game and infrastructure can be built above ground, bridges are a possibility in the rewrite. Not just over water, though, a bridge is simply an elevated road, so you can build them anywhere you want. They also don't have to be straight and can even have intersections on them. If you do build them over water, you only need access to one side to build them, so connecting islands is a possibility. Just like other infrastructure, bridges can be built up to 16 meters tall. Any deeper water is not bridgeable, but this is rare with current terrain generation.
Water also isn't entirely impassable - surveyors are completely amphibious and can float on water at a significant speed penalty. Other vehicles and even colonists can still ford over water as long as it's 70 cm or less deep, although also with a speed penalty.
Free tank connections
One thing that often annoys me when playing is the limitation on where a storage tank or pressure vessel can connect to pipes. It's always the opposite of the entrance, but sometimes I need the entrance at a different angle. In the rewrite, storage tanks and pressure vessels can connect to pipes from any side that isn't the entrance, giving you much more control. It should also make it easier to understand where to build them for new players and help with mistakes when aligning them. In case you don't want the tanks to connect to a particular pipe, you still can manually control which of these connections are active. Keep in mind that this only affects one tile storage tanks and pressure vessels, massive ones are still limited. Silos are also unaffected.
Next time, you can look forward to seeing how the starting area is selected and changes to exploration. Or you can hop on the official Discord server, where more features are already presented. I hope you've enjoyed this devlog and see you next month!