Massively multiplayer pirate game Atlas received a 'Mega Update' today, which fills the world with '40% more' islands and unique land masses, and changes the layout of the map. There are also new deep sea environments and submarines to explore them with, plus giant crabs to battle and eventually tame. A trailer for Atlas 1.5 is above.
Maybe most interestingly, the update also introduces a new game mode called Colonies, which is meant to encourage more cooperation and less griefing. A press release from Grapeshot Games describes it:
"In 'Colonies,' hosted on a fresh new network, players claim 'Island Settlements' where they can set customized PvP hours to have the much-coveted 'offline raid protection.' Anyone can build - with specialized rules - on other settlers' islands, and players benefit from cooperating with other settlers within an island to reduce its 'upkeep' cost."
It's possible this new game mode might be more appealing for solo players and smaller groups, who will have less to worry about when it comes to being completely overwhelmed by larger pirate collectives. The original PvP mode is still in place, now called Empires.
You can read the full patch notes for Atlas 1.5 here. The update is currently live.