Survivalist: Invisible Strain News

Hello everyone, it's Easter patch day! It's the usual bug fixes and translations, but I did slightly break my "no more features" rule for one minor change - if you have something equipped which can't be used as a weapon or thrown (like a bandage, antigen, match, wood etc) and you press the Aim button (i.e. right-click on the mouse or LT on the gamepad) you will automatically equip a weapon. I can't see any downside to this and it makes it much less awkward and confusing if you get attacked while you happen to have something like that equipped - your instinct is to press Aim but prior to this change nothing would happen and it would take a few seconds to figure out why not, during which time you'd probably be getting bitten or beaten to death. It's especially awkward on gamepad because you can't just hit the shortcut keys to equip a weapon. Anyway, pretty small change, hope it doesn't have any unforeseen consequences.

Aside from that, I've removed the text saying Early Access and the version number from the bottom of the screen - it was useful but ugly and Early Access is ending soon, so if you want to know your version number check Settings / Patch Notes from now on. Here's the full change list:

• Removed Early Access Version text from bottom right corner of screen
  
• If you have a non-weapon equipped (e.g. bandages) and you press aim, automatically equip a weapon
  
• Fix for hint text telling you how to equip a weapon if you don't have any weapons
  
• Don't show keyboard shortcuts on weapons in equipment selector menu when using gamepad
  
• Fix for Pick Up action sometimes not saying (Stealing) when people nearby would consider it so and attack you
  
• Fix for people accosting you after you pick up a body even though you are crouching with a full camo meter
  
• Fixes for your character sometimes running or walking off back to their previous location as soon they wake up after being rescued
  
• Fix for true statements in the drinking game with Ava sometimes being things like 'Someone and someone are getting on pretty well!'
  
• Don't allow Kelly to be targeted with a bow while she's playing dead
  
• Fix for Kelly sometimes leaving you and then immediately being at war with you
  
• Fix for sometimes not being at war with Kelly if you say 'You shouldn't have tried to rob me, now reap the consequences!'
  
• Fix for a place on the Story Mode terrain where you could get stuck sliding
  
• Fix for people's health sometimes not being reduced when punched during feuds
  
• Fix for characters sometimes T-posing in multiplayer after turning into invisible strain zombies
  
• Fix for rare crash on loading screen
  
• Updated Czech, Brazilian Portuguese, German, Indonesian, Latin American Spanish and European Spanish translations
  

And v241 is going into the main branch!

[h3]What's this publicbeta thing?[/h3]
v242 will be in the "publicbeta" branch for a while, before pushing it to the main game. If you want to try the latest features as they come out (and help test them!) it's a good idea to start using this branch. But keep in mind:

• Because it's the bleeding edge it could be less stable
  
• If you want to be able to play online co-op with someone you'll need to be on the same version as them
  
• If you go back from the "publicbeta" branch to the main branch you may not be able to load savegames created on "publicbeta".

To use publicbeta, just right-click on Survivalist: Invisible Strain in your Steam library and go to Properties, then Betas and in the drop-down select "publicbeta".

Hey everyone, it's patch time! It's all about those bug fixes and translations these days, here's the change list:

• Fix for 'You still haven't given me the reward you promised earlier!' speech to Carter not working if spoken at a distance (e.g. if surrendering)
  
• Fix for equipment variation sliders on character creation screen not highlighting in red when selected with gamepad
  
• Fix for Survivalists being able to dig graves on a particular patch of road
  
• Fix for Malachi having a bad opinion of you if you lie successfully to him in one situation (when he shouldn't realize you lied)
  
• Fix for dialog options that can't be used, because you have the wrong personality for them, sometimes not being visible
  
• Fix for speech bubble from PiP being shown a bit further down on Steam Deck or other screens with taller than 16:9 resolutions
  
• Fix for crash in editor when inputting incorrect hex numbers for colors
  
• Fixed some bugs in speech formulae and added support for not '!' operator and scope brackets
  
• Fix for not being able to use mods you've already downloaded if you are offline
  
• Fix for some mods not working on Steam Deck
  
• Allow corpses to roll for longer before freezing if they are on a rocky slope, to fix cases where you're unable to pick up a corpse because it rolled onto a slope and you can't reach it
  
• Fix for FEMA not attacking you if you rescue someone they had quarantined and they see them loose, also increase the amount of gold needed to surrender after breaking someone out of prison
  
• Fix for FEMA or Survivalists picking a prisoner up and taking them to a fire if you knock them unconscious
  
• Fix for characters sometimes breaking stealth or dropping carried bodies to find warmth or change clothes (they should only do that if they are very cold)
  
• Some fixes for Carter, Malachi and FEMA outcomes of Vanished quest
  
• Fix for not being able to scroll the invaders panel on the map screen with gamepad
  
• Updated Brazilian Portuguese, Czech, Indonesian and Traditional Chinese translations
  
• Fix for someone saying 'You had to attack %2'
  

As of this patch (v241, that is) I'm going to start compiling the build without the "Development Build" setting, which means you don't get that text in the bottom right of the screen saying "Development Build" and, in theory, it's a little faster - though I didn't notice any difference personally. It also means I get less detailed information when people report crashes, which is why I've waited so long to do that. But I can't keep having a thing saying "Development Build" on a game that's finishing development!

Also the previous patch, v240, has been promoted to the main branch :)

[h3]What's this publicbeta thing?[/h3]
v241 will be in the "publicbeta" branch for a while, before pushing it to the main game. If you want to try the latest features as they come out (and help test them!) it's a good idea to start using this branch. But keep in mind:

• Because it's the bleeding edge it could be less stable
  
• If you want to be able to play online co-op with someone you'll need to be on the same version as them
  
• If you go back from the "publicbeta" branch to the main branch you may not be able to load savegames created on "publicbeta".

To use publicbeta, just right-click on Survivalist: Invisible Strain in your Steam library and go to Properties, then Betas and in the drop-down select "publicbeta".

Hello, I've released a new small patch in publicbeta. This one is mainly focused on fixes for bugs at the beginning of Story Mode, in cases where the player does something a bit unexpected. Here are the changes:

• Fix for Carter being able to join you too early if you fight and defeat the FEMA Patrol, which causes a number of later quest bugs
  
• Fix for a situation where it was hard to have a conversation with a character because they were aware of a zombie that was inaccessible to them, and their AI kept wanting to attack it but failing
  
• Fix for Kelly trying to rob you after she's already joined you if you shoot her with an arrow before you reach her
  
• Lock player in place while talking if you surrender to Kelly at the beginning of story mode, to avoid new players unintentionally cancelling the surrender by moving around
  
• Fixed various glitches around the starting quest in story mode
  
• Stopped trash containers around Tent City from belonging to them so it's not considered stealing if you their take rags and empty bottles
  
• Editor crash fixes
  
• Updated Brazilian Portuguese, Czech, Indonesian, Latin American Spanish, Polish, Russian and Spanish translations
  

I've also promoted the previous patch, v239, to the main branch.

[h3]What's this publicbeta thing?[/h3]
v240 will be in the "publicbeta" branch for a while, before pushing it to the main game. If you want to try the latest features as they come out (and help test them!) it's a good idea to start using this branch. But keep in mind:

• Because it's the bleeding edge it could be less stable
  
• If you want to be able to play online co-op with someone you'll need to be on the same version as them
  
• If you go back from the "publicbeta" branch to the main branch you may not be able to load savegames created on "publicbeta".

To use publicbeta, just right-click on Survivalist: Invisible Strain in your Steam library and go to Properties, then Betas and in the drop-down select "publicbeta".

Hello, it's announcement time - the game will leave Early Access on the 25th of April! That means I consider it finished, though I'll keep on fixing any bugs that crop up, and updating translations as needed. I'll be moving on to my next project, which could be a sequel or could be something else. It'll be a while before I figure that out, but if it is something else it'll have a lot of Survivalist's DNA still in it.

And it's also coming out on XBox Series S/X on the 25th of April! The page on the XBox store is now live. The original Survivalist started life on XBox Live Indie Games - the junior sibling of the old XBox Live Arcade - and I still sometimes get people telling me they played it back then and followed its development and Invisible Strain onto Steam. So it's pretty cool for the sequel to be able to return there!


It's also patch time! This one is all bug fixes and translation updates. The European Spanish translation is now complete, mostly by copying the Latin American Spanish translation to fill in the gaps, and changing "ustedes" to "vosotros" in a number of places. Thanks to SheamusHD for advising on that! Here's the full changelist:

• Some fixes for bits of terrain in Story Mode where you can get stuck sliding for a few seconds
  
• Bullets use the ricochet effect when hitting helmets instead of the smoke effect
  
• Use the language selected in Steam as the default language the first time you play
  
• Updated Brazilian Portuguese, Czech, Hungarian, Latin American Spanish and European Spanish translations
  
• Fix for being able to continue targeting someone's head if you switch weapons even if you don't have the required skill with the new weapon
  
• Fix for your camouflage meter dropping when zombies hear a radio that you threw
  
• Fix for situation where someone kept trying to vault a fence that was just next to a car door they were trying to get into
  
• Fix for save tokens being found on the map in Story Mode if you start a new game in save anytime mode, or on new players (they will be replaced with equivalent gold)
  
• Fix for situation where people would give using the toilet higher priority than roles set to Urgent
  
• Fix for enemies reacting differently if you're crouching in a building or vehicle, from if you're not crouching
  
• Fix for not being able to hover over invader icons on the map page with a gamepad when zoomed out
  
• Fix for rare crash in brain scan page
  
• Fix for fog of war covering everything for a few frames after you load a game
  
• Fix for crash when roads are deleted
  
• Fix for crash when a large number of objects was added to the world in a mod map
  
• Fixes for compatibility with 'SIS Extended: Regrow', 'SIS Extended: Adaptive Combat' and 'SIS Fishing' mods
  
• Possible fix for you being unable to escape a zombie bite if they bite you at the same time as you start to choke or assassinate someone
  
• Close crafting dialogs etc when someone joins or leaves a network game (fix for various bugs caused if they are open)
  
• Out Of Sync fixes
  

That's in the publicbeta branch now, as v239. I've promoted the previous patch, v238, to the main branch.

[h3]What's this publicbeta thing?[/h3]
v239 will be in the "publicbeta" branch for a while, before pushing it to the main game. If you want to try the latest features as they come out (and help test them!) it's a good idea to start using this branch. But keep in mind:

• Because it's the bleeding edge it could be less stable
  
• If you want to be able to play online co-op with someone you'll need to be on the same version as them
  
• If you go back from the "publicbeta" branch to the main branch you may not be able to load savegames created on "publicbeta".

To use publicbeta, just right-click on Survivalist: Invisible Strain in your Steam library and go to Properties, then Betas and in the drop-down select "publicbeta".

Hello, a few announcements today. I've released another small patch to publicbeta, v238, with the following bug fixes:

• When someone starts a feud with a player avatar character, the player automatically equips a melee weapon if they have one (similar to how they automatically equip fists for a boxing match)
  
• Possible fix for Carter's squad sometimes killing you after you agree to work with them
  
• Fix for player accidentally starting a war by hitting a nearby neutral character with a melee weapon while in a feud with someone
  
• Fix for crash when snowball fights take place near the edge of the map
  
• Fix characters pointing rifles/shotguns at the ground when crouching and aiming
  

Secondly the previous patch, v237, is now in the main branch.

Thirdly, I made this post a "regular update" to make it more visible and give some warning: I'm going to do a small price increase soon to $11.99. That's 48 CNY, 11.79 euros, 14,000 JPY, £9.99 GBP, 13,500 KRW, etc. I need to do this 30 days before I release the game out of early access so that I'm allowed to do a launch discount (which will probably be 25%, probably in late April). After that there'll be the usual periodic sales. But if you want to get the game at its current price, now is the time. I'll do the price increase on Monday so this weekend will be the last chance to get it at the old price.

Lastly, this game will be coming to XBox Series! Once I've locked down a launch date with them I'll announce it and that will probably also be the date that it leaves early access on Steam (or around the same time, at least).

[h3]What's this publicbeta thing?[/h3]
v238 will be in the "publicbeta" branch for a while, before pushing it to the main game. If you want to try the latest features as they come out (and help test them!) it's a good idea to start using this branch. But keep in mind:

• Because it's the bleeding edge it could be less stable
  
• If you want to be able to play online co-op with someone you'll need to be on the same version as them
  
• If you go back from the "publicbeta" branch to the main branch you may not be able to load savegames created on "publicbeta".

To use publicbeta, just right-click on Survivalist: Invisible Strain in your Steam library and go to Properties, then Betas and in the drop-down select "publicbeta".