After 6 months of big changes and 6 weeks of beta tests, version 1.8 may be complete.
How will we know? Let's check in with Starmap 1.8, created long ago to guide this part of the journey.
Looks like a big ✔ next to all the major points.
Here are some of the final touches coming to all players as of today:
- NPC ship captains exist :O
- You can get trade missions from a Sigorn captain (if you're friendly with them).
- Pirates can offer missions where you smuggle illegal goods into Limoquee space.
- Alien corpses found on planets will sometimes have stories explaining what happened to them.
- The Eaters will now judge you based on how many other factions you're friendly with.
- New feature: "Mark for Transport". Tired of making multiple trips to the shuttle when you find lots of big loot? Just mark it for transport and those days are over!
- Once unlocked in any game, rare plants will spawn in all games, but not much in lower sectors.
- "Fake ID" and "Credentials" now require you to pay a bribe to get into stations where you otherwise would not be welcome. Higher levels reduce the effect.
- Docking at faction embassies can reduce your reputation with their enemies. (For example, docking at a pirate base can reduce your rep with the Sigorn, Bankers, and Limoquee.) This happens once per sector.
- Pirates and Eaters will actively go after big stacks of commodities left on the map.
- Cyber-skills picked up are now automatically equipped to any officer who can use them.
- Nebulas are now continuous clouds with nice round edges.
- I changed how away team hit points are calculated so small away teams aren't so useless ;)
- I introduced "pay it forward" daily codes.
There are, of course, the usual host of fixes and quality-of-life changes. Enjoy!
What's next?
1.9 will be the final push to (let me check my math...) 2.0 , which means
leaving early access!
That's probably still a year away...
1.9 is going to start *big*. The long awaited, much requested, feared-and-lamented-by-me
UI OVERHAUL
The plan is to emphasize the play area and keep the UI as sleek and out-of-the-way as possible. Here are some mock-ups we've done:
Space, with the map zoomed out:
The new installation screen:
Zoomed in on the away team:
For those who are perfectly happy with everything the way it is... Right now, the plan is to offer a "classic mode"... check it out:
And for everyone who uses the UI DLC, don't worry! We'll make lots of special UI skins for the new UI too.
Other plans for 1.9 include:
- A mega-quest about the Narcratu invasion
- Learning more about the Engravers
- Finding a way to fight the nano-pocalypse
- More rooms and quests from asteroid bases
- Crafting system overhaul
- Introduction of "commerce planets"
- Much much more...