Hi miners, 😄
Thank you very much for your continued support, bug reports, and feedback. In this update, we are focusing on production flow upgrades, employee improvements, and a major overhaul to the Toxic Event system to make gameplay feel more active and challenging over time.
Some of the changes in this update may not be fully experienced in the demo version. Several features are being prepared for the full gameplay experience, so please stay tuned for the playable release of Mineral Mining Simulator in Early Access.
Here is what we prepared for this week updates.
Main Updates
1. Upgradeable Utility Machines and Conveyors
We added a new upgrade feature for Utility Machines and Conveyors.
With this system, you can increase their level so they can run at higher speeds. To upgrade them, you must first reach the required player level and have enough money to pay for the upgrade.
Once upgraded, conveyors can move items faster, which should help a lot when transporting materials across longer distances in your facility.
2. Automatic Supply Station Can Now Pick Up Dropped Items
We expanded the functionality of the Automatic Supply Station so it can now pick up items that have fallen onto the ground, not just items stored inside the Storage Machine.
This should help players clean up dropped materials more easily and route them back into the next processing pipeline or any other connected setup.
3. More Employees Added
We added 2 more employees to help support the growing workload in your facility.
This should give players more flexibility when expanding automation and managing multiple production tasks at once.
4. Toxic Event System Overhaul
We overhauled the conditions for how Toxic Events can occur. Here are the main changes in this update:
The chance for a Toxic Event to occur has been adjusted, while still keeping the maximum limit of 2 active Toxic Events at the same time
If a temporary mining point that appears after neutralization is left unused and no Drill or Survey is placed there, that location can still become a valid chance point for another Toxic Event
If a temporary mining point has already been used and its resource is fully depleted, that position can also become eligible again for another Toxic Event
With this updated system, Toxic Events should appear more regularly over time, making the challenge feel more present during gameplay while still giving players the opportunity to benefit from temporary mining points.
5. Equipment Can Now Be Placed on Platforms
We added the ability for Equipment items to be placed on top of Platforms, not just machines.
This means vertical areas can now also be used for useful support items such as:
Box Generators
Trash Bins
Other equipment items
This should make vertical setups more practical and flexible.
6. Employee Restocking Behavior for Packaging Updated
We updated employee behavior for restocking packaging so workers now prioritize the machine that needs to be refilled sooner, instead of only prioritizing the closest machine.
Distance can still affect the result in certain situations, but machines with more urgent packaging needs will now be given higher priority.
7. Box Content Merging Added
Players can now merge the contents of one box into another box, as long as both boxes contain the same item type.
This should make box management more convenient and help reduce unnecessary partially filled boxes.
Improvements
1. Employee Menu Now Shows Toxic Event Inactive Status
We updated the Employee Menu so it now shows which employees are currently inactive due to a Toxic Event.
This should make it easier to understand why a worker is temporarily not doing their task.
2. Focus Commodity Category Order Updated
We updated the order of item categories in Focus Commodity selection.
The new order is now:
Supplier Item
Packaged Item
Unpackaged Item
This change applies across all menus that use Focus Commodity selection.
3. Crate Packer Employee Settings Updated for Unpacked Items
We updated the Crate Packer Machine Employee Settings so it can now also select unpacked items.
In addition, when selecting that category, the UI will no longer show grade information for those items.
4. Truck Delivery Capacity Upgrade Control Updated
We updated the default control for upgrading Truck Delivery Capacity.
The default key is now is "C" on keyboard, the controller will follows.
5. Employee Restock Limit Increased
We increased the item limit in employee restock settings from 500 to 1000.
This should help players manage larger facilities with fewer limitations in restocking configuration.
Bug Fixes
1. Employee Sometimes Standing Still Inside Machines
Fixed an issue where employees could sometimes end up standing still while clipping into a machine.
2. Reversed Gem Packaging Text on Quality Grader Machine (Mirrored)
Fixed an issue where the Gem Packaging text on the Quality Grader Machine (Mirrored) appeared reversed.
3. Cannot Access Monitor on Cut & Polish Machine (Mirrored)
Fixed an issue where the monitor on the Cut & Polish Machine (Mirrored) could not be accessed properly.
4. Ground Item Pickup Now Moves Directly into the Box
Fixed an issue where picking up an item from the ground could briefly make it sink first before jumping into the box. Items will now move directly into the box.
Once again, thank you very much for your support, feedback, and reports for Mineral Mining Simulator. We will continue reviewing feedback and improving the game step by step, especially for automation flow, employee behavior, and overall gameplay clarity.
If you encounter any bugs or defects, please report them through the in-game report feature or through the Steam Discussions page. Suggestions are also always welcome and help us make the game better over time as we move closer to the Early Access release.
See you in the next update!