Timberborn News

Hello, everyone!

We're happy to reveal that Timberborn's next major content patch, Update 7 - Ziplines & Tubeways, goes live on...



We've just announced this as part of Triple-i Showcase, a very cool event focused on very cool indie games (that's Timberborn, apparently).

Watch our Triple-i trailer for a quick summary of what's coming and when:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]


With the new update, tons of good stuff will be added to our beaver city-building game. Here's the non-exhaustive list of what's coming to Timberborn on May 8, 2025.

[h2]3D Terrain[/h2]

In Timberborn Update 7, in-game terrain goes 3D. You can now overhang terrain blocks and put them on any flat surfaces such as roofs or platforms. This allows you to grow fields and forests anywhere, even in the form of multi-level hanging gardens. Your beavers can now also dig tunnels and create artificial caves!

[h2]Ziplines[/h2]

Folktails, our nature-friendly faction, gets to ride ziplines! Why use the dirt paths when you can set up express zipline connections spanning the entire map? Both beavers and bots can use ziplines to travel and transport goods across different heights, high above buildings, and over the map's topography.

[h2]Tubeways[/h2]

The Iron Teeth beavers, our industrious bunch, now integrate tubeways into their cities. These modular, branching tubes speed up the travel and goods transit in all directions, even in the narrow corners of the settlement, straight upward, or underwater. And yes, you can run tubeways through tunnels.

[h2]And more![/h2]
Timberborn Update 7 - Ziplines & Tubeways also features map reworks, balance changes, and bug fixes, not to mention performance upgrades, modding improvements, and quality-of-life tweaks.

Spoiler alert: before the update launches on May 8, 2025, you can get an early look at the new features by checking out the Experimental Branch as explained here.

And if you don't own Timberborn yet, no worries. Get it below or add it to your wishlist now!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1062090/Timberborn/

Hello, everyone!

A fresh batch of tweaks of all kinds is now live on the experimental branch! Thank you for your ongoing feedback.
[h2]Balance[/h2]
We've heard rumors that some of you don't take the well-being of your beavers seriously enough. Tsk, tsk, tsk.

• Work speed now always increases by 20% with each well-being milestone.
  
• The work speed bonus at maximum well-being is now 260%, up from 170%.
  
• Default work speed bonus for bots is now 65%, up from 45%.
  
• Bots' Condition 1 work speed bonus is now 110%, up from 90%.
  
• Bots' Condition 2 work speed bonus is now 170%, up from 120%.
  

[h2]Misc.[/h2]

• Crash reports are no longer sent when the game is modded. Broken mods have always been the most common crash cause, making it harder to identify the issues broken on our end that we can actually fix.
  

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• In Windowed mode, the cursor's tooltip no longer clips with the cursor itself.
  
• In the map editor, water should no longer magically teleport underground after making edits to submerged terrain layers with the game paused.
  
• A building with terrain on its roof can no longer be deleted with the button in the building panel (when it's the only thing that supports that terrain).
  
• Pressing RMB while selecting an area with a tool no longer exits that tool as it should only cancel the current action. The Demolish tool was the worst offender here, as it also broke in half when you did that.
  
• It is once again possible to select the Motivatorium by clicking its bottom part.
  
• With the Flexible Start unlocked, the starting district's default name is now always District 1 rather than increasing by 1 with each new start location. Just imagine what would happen after getting to "9".
  

Hello, everyone!

We hope your International Beaver Day was full of love, laughter, and wood-chomping. Today, we’ve got another round of experimental Update 7 tweaks for you, including changes to the overhanging terrain that make it less blocky. Please let us know what you think.



[h2]Overhanging terrain[/h2]
Much of your recent feedback focused on replacing the Natural Overhangs with overhanging Terrain Blocks now that 3D terrain allows the player to use it like that. Removing Natural Overhangs was part of a large-scale update that allowed us to implement modular tunnels, among other things. With the update live, Natural Overhangs became obsolete - they would still require maintenance on our end while duplicating some functionality of the regular terrain.

We’ve always seen the old Natural Overhangs as a temporary, not very elegant solution. The feedback reflected that, with many players asking why the Natural Overhangs behave unlike regular terrain. You couldn’t grow anything on them, they wouldn’t transfer irrigation or contamination, and beavers could remove them in a rather anti-climatic way.



Having said that, we agree they were prettier, so we’re now trying to bring some of that visual charm back. See above.

• Overhanging terrain is now less blocky and more arch-y on the bottom and the sides.
  

[h2]Maps[/h2]
We continue updating the built-in maps to make them work better with Update 7 features.

• Revised Terraces.
  

[h2]Balance[/h2]
Since the Underground Pile was hit with the nerfbat, we can go easier on its cost.

• Lowered Underground Pile’s cost from 20x Logs, 80x Planks, 40x Gears to 20 Logs, 40x Planks, 20x Gears.
  

[h2]Map editor[/h2]
Since adding measures to area-selecting tools was met with such a warm reception, we’re expanding that feature.

• The Terrain Sculpting tool in the map editor now displays measures of the selected area.
  
• Underground Ruins, Water Sources, and Badwater Sources now require continuous support from the bottom of the map. In other words, you can't dig tunnels under them, or place them on a terrain that has some gaps on lower layers.
  

[h2]Misc.[/h2]

• Localized the Update 7-specific in-game text.
  
• Made some tweaks to the Polish translation.
  
• The layer tool now correctly (we hope) switches levels before confirming the deletion of some hidden objects or terrain.
  

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• Fixed terrain visuals at low camera angles.
  
• Fixed the incorrectly looping building animation.
  
• Fixed the construction site for Terrain Blocks not appearing.
  
• Fixed Tunnel construction sites slightly clipping through terrain.
  
• Badwater Discharge no longer works before being finished.
  
• In the map editor, some objects - such as Berry Bush - can no longer be overridden by other objects - such as Water Sources.
  
• On savefiles with old Natural Overhangs replaced with overhanging terrain, colliding objects are now correctly removed.
  
• The Priority tool now correctly selects multiple Terrain Blocks downward.
  
• Fixed a crash caused by plants that were removed due to backward compatibility.
  
• Fixed a crash in the map editor caused by using terrain tools.
  
• Fixed a crash caused by beavers sitting in the Motivatorium below the bedrock level.
  

Hello, everyone!

Thank you for your reports and feedback after yesterday's "Tunnel update"! We've got a bunch of important tweaks for you.

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• Fixed the flickering Ruins preview in the map editor.
  
• Fixed some quirky Layer tool behaviors when deleting buildings.
  
• Fixed the Demolish tool deleting objects placed above Paths (such as Platforms) when trying to demolish just the Paths. This bug also affected setups like Teeth Grindstones placed under Platforms.
  
• Fixed the Terrain Sculpting tool taking wrong coordinates when pulling overhanging terrain out of cliffs.
  
• Fixed the Relative Brush tool tiles being rendered in the wrong positions when the mouse cursor is over cliffs.
  
• Fixed incorrect behavior of the Terrain Sculpting tool when being used from some camera angles.
  
• All objects are now properly deleted when using the Demolish tool - no more flying stairs or oaks for you. Seriously, guys, don't break the immersion.
  
• After terrain collapses, its planting spots are correctly cleared.
  
• Fixed a crash related to unfinished Tunnels not blocking removal of whatever was supporting that would-be Tunnel.
  
• Fixed a crash caused by the Earth Repopulator trying to capture and eject innocent beavers that were minding their business inside Tubeways.
  

Hello, everyone!

For some reason, you were not that thrilled about the next-gen update we teased yesterday, but in the actual patch we’ve got for you today, there is some quality stuff! Your beavers have finally learned how to dig tunnels and to overhang terrain! On top of that, we’ve got plenty of quality-of-life tweaks, balance changes, bug fixes, and more.

As a fair warning, today’s additions to 3D terrain required overhauling many of the game’s core systems, so we now ask you for your feedback! If you encounter any bugs or weird behaviors, please let us know here on Steam or on our Discord channel. Thanks!



[h2]Tunnels[/h2]

Your beavers now finally know how to dig into walls. You can create tunnels of any width and, when combined with regular digging, depth. Need to transport something but there’s a huge landmass in the way? Just cut through. Want a cave? Find a mountain and dig a hole!

• New building: Tunnel (2000 SP; 1x Dynamite, 1x Extract, 6x Plank). With the power of dynamite, beavers remove a terrain block from the side and install a Platform to support the ceiling. Use the layer tool to easily plan out larger digging areas inside landmasses.
  

[h2]Overhanging terrain and 3D terrain physics[/h2]

We’ve added the ability to overhang terrain. The overhanging terrain needs to be attached to something and you cannot have more than three unsupported terrain blocks protruding sideways. This is how much the now-obsolete Natural Overhangs allowed. The cool thing about the overhanging terrain is that it is, well, terrain. It can be watered, contaminated, and grown on.

• Your beavers can now build overhanging terrain, up to three blocks to the side. This matches the size of the old Natural Overhangs.
  
• As soon as you remove supporting terrain further than the allowed limit of three overhanging blocks, everything beyond that limit is destroyed. This also applies to buildings. Please be careful.
  
• Added the ability to sculpt overhanging terrain - still within that three-block limit - to the map editor.
  
• Replaced Natural Overhangs in the game and in the map editor with regular terrain blocks.
  

[h2]Layer tool[/h2]
We’re expanding the usability of the layer tool since now you can turn your beavers into moles build tunnels.

• Added the ability to select a particular layer by clicking any tile on that layer with a new keybinding (by default: Alt+middle mouse button). Click that layer with the keybinding again, and the layer visibility resets.
  
• When trying to delete buildings in a way that causes objects on layers hidden by the Layer tool to also be deleted, the terrain is temporarily uncovered so that you don’t accidentally delete too much of your beavers’ livelihood.
  

[h2]Maps[/h2]
With the addition of 3D terrain, Ziplines, and Tubeways, we’re reviewing the built-in maps to make them facilitate the new features better.

• Revised Lakes, Craters, and Mountain Range.
  
• Replaced all Natural Overhangs on all built-in maps with terrain. Custom maps undergo similar changes automatically - nothing should break here.
  

[h2]Balance[/h2]
The addition of the Tunnels - as well as your feedback after our recent changes - warranted some extra number tweaking.

• The regular Scrap Metal recipe in Mine and Efficient Mine now requires input of Treated Plank 1x.
  
• The efficient Scrap Metal recipe in Efficient Mine now requires input of 1x Treated Plank, 2x Extract.
  
• Lowered Underground Pile’s capacity from 1800 to 1000. It was a little OP, admit that.
  
• Updated Platform’s cost from 2x Log, 4x Plank to 6x Plank.
  
• Updated Double Platform’s cost from 4x Log, 4x Plank to 8x Plank.
  
• Updated Triple Platform’s cost from 6x Log, 4x Plank to 10x Plank.
  
• Increased all attractions’ need gains to 0.6 per hour.
  
• Tweaked how much the needs satisfied by decorations and attractions deplete each day.
  
• Beavers now accelerate as soon as they enter Tubeway Stations, and not just when inside Tubeways. Every millisecond counts when trying to hit the quota!
  

[h2]Visuals and audio[/h2]
Everyone likes pretty shadows!

• On the Ultra preset, in-game shadows now use 8K resolution.
  
• As the above affects the game’s performance, the default graphics quality is now set to High rather than Ultra. If you made any changes to the default settings before, this shouldn’t change your currently saved settings. If you have never changed anything and are on Ultra by default, the game will switch to High.
  
• Changed the maximum number of objects affected by light sources to 6 on Ultra and to 4 on High.
  
• Updated the collider system for units to make the colliders more accurate and units easier to select.
  
• Cleaned up some unit animations.
  
• Terrain now casts a shadow even when it’s hidden by the layer tool.
  
• Buildings’ ambient sounds now fade out at larger distances.
  
• Added missing Update 7 sounds.
  

[h2]Quality-of-life[/h2]
Two numbers and an “X” equals happiness.

• When using any area selection tools - to plant trees, build multiple platforms, plan out a tunnel etc. - the size of the selected area is now displayed in the middle of the screen (for example "5x5").
  
• Replaced the highlight shown when adding new Zipline connections with a directional marker that points you to the nearest connectable buildings. The marker is shown only when placing new Zipline buildings.
  
• Plants’ drought resistance is now displayed in their description.
  

[h2]Performance[/h2]

• Cleaned up save files to remove unneeded information and reduce saving times by about 10%.
  
• Made minor tweaks to increase the performance related to large Tubeway networks.
  

[h2]Misc.[/h2]

• Added missing Update 7 flavor texts.
  
• Replaced "Water-dependent" with "Badwater-dependent" in badwater buildings' descriptions.
  
• Underground Pile now informs about its underground depth (2).
  
• Updated the description of the Terrain Block to cover how arrows work.
  
• Keybindings used to control in-game speed are now correctly distinguishable on the Key bindings screen.
  
• Renamed the "Pause/unpause selected building" to simpler "Pause selected building".
  
• Updated the description for Solid Tubeway.
  

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• Fixed the lag occurring when drawing paths, connecting new buildings to existing paths, and selecting such buildings.
  
• Fixed beavers’ models stuttering when moving along paths.
  
• Beavers under platforms should no longer block their construction.
  
• Contaminated beavers are now correctly cleared from the Bee sting condition, and the poor victim’s model reflects that.
  
• Fixed a bug with water not irrigating the terrain above if it was more than 1 tile deep.
  
• Fixed a bug with Water Wheels’ direction not affecting how connected Power Shafts rotated.
  
• Bot builders no longer wield their hammers in a really weird way.
  
• Fixed beavers breaking their elbows when idling.
  
• Ruin models no longer stick outside of their tiles.
  
• Fixed the levitating beavers being able to build stuff from unfinished stairs.
  
• Fixed a bug with crops being dry or contaminated when they shouldn't be, after loading the save.
  
• It's now possible to build Teeth Grindstones under overhangs.
  
• Stumps no longer trigger the Entrance blocked warning. A simple stump is not a match for a determined beaver, is it?
  
• Moving the cursor over a higher layer of terrain now correctly blocks area selection tools.
  
• The district-wide beaver/bot setting is now correctly applied to workplaces that were not connected to a built path (but were connected via stairs in construction, for example).
  
• Buildings can no longer be selected through a layer of terrain.
  
• In the map editor, the construction grid toggle now works as intended.
  
• Fixed a tiny typo in the Maple Pastry good’s need.
  
• Fixed the game hanging around in Processes when closed with Alt+F4.
  
• Limited the number of used threads to 8 to prevent crashes and stuttering. We keep working on this.
  
• On Apple Silicon, the game no longer uses halved amount of threads for physics simulation.
  
• Fixed a crash caused by Badwater Sources vanishing due to compatibility reasons.
  
• Fixed a crash occurring when you removed mechanical buildings from really big networks. Like really, really, really big networks.