Dear STARDROP Community
It's been 3 days now since we launched into Early Access. I wanted to first thank everyone for their amazing support and incredibly useful feedback. I'm still looking through all the bug reports. The PT's are trying to reproduce what they can so I can go in and try to fix it.
Rare But Critical Bug Found
Just prior to launching STARDROP into Early Access a critical bug was reported. One that was a desktop crash and one that has never been reported in the almost three years I've been working on the game.
As it turns out it's an engine crash and not our fault. It only happens on a few rare occasions as far as we know, most likely depending on the hardware. Seems to be video cards or video card drivers. Unfortunately we still have don't have a fix for it and it's in the hands of Epic to properly fix it.
We do offer a work around fo the bug for those who are experiencing it so they can at least continue the game. It seems that the game is stable and does not crash again.
I won't go into the whole thing here, we've created a forum thread prior to launch to make sure people were informed and wanted to bring it up here again just to be sure.
Forum Thread:
Important - Rare Bug Found - Update #2
New Content Incoming
With that out of the way, I wanted to announce that I am on the verge of continuing the narrative of the main game. I have already created several new levels prior to Early Access and cannot wait to work with the VA's on the new scripts.
I'll be working towards the first narrative content update which will obviously take place on board the STARDROP which should be quite an important update no doubt.
Without spoiling too much I wanted to share a screenshot of one of the interior parts of the new chapter:
New Updates & Bug Fixes
I have released a new update for the game which fixes a number of bugs, tweaks and a new feature that I think some of you will be very happy with.
New
- A new experimental option has been added under "GAME OPTIONS" called: WALK SPEED with two options; "NORMAL" and "FAST". Some people stated they would prefer increasing Aryn's walking speed and now with this option they can choose so. The walk speed itself will be considerably faster, the running speed is not scaled up as drastically. However, because of the new walk speed the androids will be scaled accordingly so they walk faster in general as well. Not only that but they can hear Aryn from further away so players will need to be extra careful and make sure to use the sneak function to remain undetected. As a minor side effect, the stamina mechanic itself as well as the stamina HUD bar seems to be disabled when using fast mode, this will be fixed in a later update and other possible bugs or side effects that may occur when using this new feature. We will continue to monitor and listen to feedback for possible future tweaks.
Tweaked
- Fixed scrollbars on various interfaces not showing up. I haven't been able to fix the scrollbars themselves (As mentioned, they broke during an earlier UE4 engine updrade). I have made sure that the scrollbars are at least properly visible. They work fine on the DataPad, but on the computer interfaces you need to click below or above the actual scrollbar for it to "scroll".
- Tweaked the screens on various interfaces to reduce glare issues making the text unreadable due to bloom. I might tweak them some more in the future but at as it stands right now, it's a great improvement.
Fixed
- Fixed a camera glitch where the player camera would end up in a weird angle/position if the datapad key command was pressed in quick consessions.
- Androids would stop moving when they heard the player and the player is hiding in a spot the androids cannot reach, This has been fixed and the androids sould now default back to their normal routine.
- Fixed android heads turning and looking at the player when they're not supposed to notice them.
- Fixed a collision problem with a door panel on the Odyssey side mission which would keep the player from interacting with it.
- Disabled the door panel on oddysee for a door that will never open. This is to avoid confusing players thinking they can interact with it.
- Fixed the engine room puzzle on board the SD-01. The generators down at the engine room will now turn off properly again. Indicating that the proper conditions required for solving the puzzle regarding the time limit not being met are now properly visualized to the player.
Liked The Game? (Or Not) Leave Us A Review
Reviews for Early Access games are crucial, Obviously we'd rather have just positive reviews but I prefer honest reviews over anything else. That said if you played the game then it would mean a lot if you would be so kind to leave a review.
Not just for the score of the game, but also to be able to read more opionions about the game and experiences from players which is always invaluable.
Onto The Next Update
I will obviously continue to attempt to fix bugs and sort out other issues but I will also start work on the next chapter. I cannot yet determine when it will be released but as mentioned earlier, it will be an important one.
So that's it for now. Thank you all for your support and we hope you had a blast playing the game. We cannot wait to share what will be coming next.