Greetings, Platform Managers!
The Board of Directors is pleased to announce that the Contracts Expanded Update is now live!
As always, you’re welcome to consult the full patch notes from the R ‘n’ D Department at the conclusion of this post, or simply update your game to experience these changes firsthand.
Drill Core Inc. and its partners, collaborators, or derivatives will not be held liable for any loss of life, wellbeing, or ‘emotional distress’ caused by any recent technological developments or discoveries.
Contracts Expanded
Previously, every contract at Drill Core Inc. had one singular goal: to reach a specific depth on the Planet you’re mining, and detonate the Core. We know, however, that our esteemed Platform Managers are capable of much more than simply depleting a planet’s resources and blowing it up, which is why there are now three new contract types to truly encapsulate your skills:
Competitive Contracts: Faced with a rival Platform Manager from one of Drill Core Inc.’s competitors, and will be tasked with completing the contract before they do. You’ll have access to a brand new Competition Office to help you gain a tactical advantage through whichever means necessary. Note from the R ‘n’ D Department: this rival Platform Manager is not a multiplayer feature.
Resource Shipment Contracts: Assist various Drill Core Inc. internal initiatives by providing a designated amount of a specific resource - simply mine the Planet for all you can, and leave the hollow husk behind in the name of Drill Core’s unstoppable expansion.
Field Trials: Assist the Department of ‘Useful’ Constructions with
sketchyinvaluable research by constructing buildings and turrets from a selected pool made available to you. Platform Managers will only need to construct the set amount in order to complete the contract, but will not be able to unlock any other building or turret types, and nothing can be demolished. We have a budget to adhere to, you know!
Diligent employees will need to consider these new objectives carefully when planning their strategy for undertaking these new contracts, but we’re sure you’re up to the challenge.
These new responsibilities in the Platform Manager role will not be compensated.
Accelerated Gameplay Mode
Of course, the Board of Directors highly approves of any employee looking to maximize their profits; that’s why the R ‘n’ D Department has worked hard to provide a brand new Accelerated Gameplay Mode to all Platform Managers. In this mode, events unfold at a much faster rate, and you’ll likely find yourself with a greater number of constructions by the time you’re ready to detonate your Core.
Naturally, this doesn’t necessarily mean that contracts will be easier to complete; in fact, you’ll need to keep a much closer eye on how your Platform is developing in order to adjust to this expedited timespan.
Here’s an overview of how Contracts will differ in this mode:
Building costs do not increase with each additional floor
New floors, Turrets, Turret Upgrades, and Buildings will have a greatly reduced cost
The required depth for most Contracts is significantly reduced
Technology bonuses are around two times as impactful
Block durability is reduced by 30%
Factory efficiency is increased
Days are 30% shorter in duration
Daytime Ability cooldowns are reduced by 40%
Some Daytime Abilities are rebalanced
Whilst Accelerated Gameplay Mode is not without its challenges, it should offer all Platform Managers the chance to optimize their profits productivity.
Elite Aliens
Speaking of new challenges, the R ‘n’ D Department has demanded suggested we advise Platform Managers that recent reports suggest that new forms of Aliens have begun to evolve on some planets: Elites. Whilst they are not quite as powerful as some of the Bosses that experienced Platform Managers may have encountered, they do pose an increased threat level and are much more resilient than their younger counterparts.
We are of course confident in all employees’ ability to handle these new threats, but we do remind you that Drill Core Inc. does not offer compensation, health insurance, or life insurance for work undertaken on behalf of the company.
Collectibles
Due to the HR Department’s insistence that a sense of ‘pride and accomplishment’ is integral to employee profitability productivity, the Board of Directors has elected to allow Platform Managers to accumulate small Collectibles during the completion of contracts.
Accessible from the Findings Archive in the main console, these Collectibles consist of over 80 helmets, weapons, and gadgets that the most diligent of Platform Managers may recognize…
Please note that these Collectibles are not to be used for monetary gain. Any Platform Managers found to be attempting to profit from Drill Core Inc.’s generosity in any way will be terminated.
Platform Skins
In keeping with the HR Department’s insistence informed reasoning, they have also suggested that allowing employees to better customize their workspace may improve ‘morale’; therefore, you will now be able to select new Platform Skins from the upgrade console, with one cosmetic upgrade per Platform Type.
Any damage to Drill Core Inc. Platforms will be invoiced to employees directly, with a 6580% APR on all repayments.
New Gamepad Controls
The R’n’D Department has been hard at work in creating a new control scheme for all Platform Managers currently utilising a gamepad in their mining operations, allowing for significantly more control, and therefore profits, during contracts.
Radial menus are now in place for frequent actions and abilities, with cursor-style pointing a thing of the past.
The R ‘n’ D Department would like to inform all employees that this is currently an experimental feature, and any feedback on these new controls is welcomed.
New Steam Community Items
We’re also excited to share that our most dedicated Platform Managers will be able to show their commitment to Drill Core Inc. with brand new Steam Community Items that are now available! Find them here.
Of course, this is far from the full extent of everything that’s included in the Contracts Expanded Update, and we welcome all employees to review the full changelog at the end of this memo for additional details, or to update Drill Core now to begin ‘enjoying’ them.
We strongly encourage all employees follow the corporate TikTok and Twitter accounts for a clear line of communication with Drill Core Inc., and also join the corporate Discord server to take part in company-wide conversations.
With lukewarm regards,
The Drill Core Inc. Board of Directors
Full Changelog:
Features:
New Mission Types (Competitive Contract, Resource Shipment to Headquarters, Field Trials).
Faster Gameplay Mode has been added.
New Platform Skins has been added (2 for each platform).
Collectables added (80+ different accessories from sсi-fi culture). They can be found on all planets in blocks.
Elite enemies will appear during gameplay.
New gamepad controls.
Other:
When drilling down becomes available, a small reminder will now appear in the interface.
Visuals of all lasers have been updated (they no longer look like stretched images).
Updated HUD.
Added steam community items (cards, emoticons, backgrounds).
Balance:
Boss HP reduced on higher difficulties.
Bosses will appear more often now. Required depth lowered for most difficulties.
Factory performance in Swarmlite production mode increased by 10%.
Explodrone no longer damages workers.
Number of positive planetary conditions for contracts increased by 1 on most difficulties.
Ion Core shields increased from 5 to 12.
Ion Core stun duration increased from 5 to 8 seconds.
Ball Watchtower ball size increased by 25%.
Lucky Number upgrade now reduces the cost of buildings on 3-6-9-etc. floors by 2 iron in normal mode and by 1 in faster gameplay mode.
Most of the blocks that used to kill workers immediately now do a lot of damage, and workers can get stuck in them if they survive.