We’re excited to officially confirm that Astro Protocol will launch as a full release on February 9.
We’ve also just released update 0.21, the final major update before launch. From here on, our focus will shift to bug fixing, smaller quality-of-life improvements, and adding a few more anomalies for variety.
Gameplay Changes
Several systems have been refined to improve variety, balance, and strategic decision-making:
Added Shattered Sector and Fractal Corridors map generators, creating more constrained and fragmented map layouts (not available in the demo)
Added more anomalies to increase exploration variety
United Tellus bonus changed from extending the network to +1 network range
Terraform, exterminate, and discover actions now cost energy when performed outside your network
Decreased the attack and damage of Phantoms
User Experience
The user experience has received further polish ahead of release:
Reworked the start of the tutorial for clearer pacing
Updated tutorial steps and explanations
Improved tutorial map edges
Improved minor factions menu for better readability
Added help buttons to menus for quicker access to explanations
Added a force end turn option by holding Shift + End Turn
Improved tooltips and shortened long tech names
Audio & Graphics
Added new music tracks
Various small visual improvements across the UI
Updated map edge texture
Added a new Earth planet texture
Darkened map background elements to improve overall visibility
AI & Performance
Improved AI technology research selection
General performance improvements
Improved performance on large maps
Looking Ahead to Release
With update 0.21, Astro Protocol is now feature-complete. The remaining updates before launch will focus on stability, polish, and final balance tweaks to ensure a strong full release experience.
Thank you to everyone who has played, tested, and shared feedback throughout development. Your input has been instrumental in shaping Astro Protocol into what it is today.
See you among the stars!