Patch 0.8.7.0 Notes ( Squad System & VOIP )

Hey everyone. This is the last big patch before the end of the year. This patch introduces the first iteration of the squad system (only as a flat list of squads for now, but in the future we want a full hierarchical system with wings and fleets).

This also includes voice-over-IP (VOIP). There are a lot of technical considerations behind VOIP, so make sure to report any audio issues you might encounter. Also of interest, this patch revamps the weapon projectiles effects (going from simple 2D billboards to 3D in most cases), an update to the bloom filter (there's also a slider to tone it down in the graphical options, if you don't like it), a new active ability for the corvette to repair targets at a range (the repair beam) and much more. One limitation is that due to lack of time, the waypoints system isn't squad-shared yet, but note that we've introduced a new squad-target mechanism (default: ctrl-T if you're the squad leader) that shares the leader's target with all the squad members.

As usual, please report any bug you've found and have fun. Most of the game systems have now been implemented into the game, so next year we'll be moving on to the major gameplay loop upgrade, introducing new shields mechanisms, rebalancing some weapons, adding orbital bombardment (nukes, already in WIP), the carrier revamp + new hauler, massive AI improvements (AI attacking bases, flying in squads..) and battles sub-objectives/staging. It will likely take the first half of the year, at least, to implement all of these. During the second half of the year we'll finally start the polishing phase, tutorials and mission editor, with a tentative release date in EOY 2022 or H1 2023.

-Flavien Brebion



[h2]Squad system[/h2]

• Added the squads menu to the in-game menu system (TAB)
  
• Players can create their own private or public teams, or quickly auto-join any squad that has an open position
  
• The first player to create a squad becomes its leader, and has leader-restricted management options over the squad
  
• The leader can promote another member as the new leader
  
• The leader can rename the squad, or write a new description that will show up in the squads list
  
• The leader can kick/ban a member, but also clear all the bans. Note that this is persistent only until the server reboots
  
• The leader can change the squad access rights (private/public)
  
• Note that it will be possible to password-protect squads, but this is not implemented yet (option is disabled for now)
  
• The player can mute/unmute any squad member. Note that this is persistent only until the server reboots
  
• Implemented the squad MFD to show the list of squad members, including name, distance, rank, ship class (colored by health status)
  
• It is possible to target a squad member's ship via hotkeys alt-1 (leader) to alt-8 (other squad members)
  
• Added a key for the squad leader to share a target amongst all squad members (default: ctrl + T)
  
• Squad members show up as icons + their name in the starmap
  
• The waypoints system is not compatible with the squads implementation just yet (but this is coming..)
  

[h2]VOIP Implementation[/h2]

• Added a control to select the recording device in the audio settings menu (the game will default to Windows's default recording device)
  
• Added a voice meter in the audio settings menu to see the recording volume level
  
• Added a loopback option in the audio settings menu, to listen to yourself talking
  
• Added the ability to mute players
  
• Added the ability to toggle voice chat/VOIP in the audio settings menu
  
• Added a push-to-talk option + a key binding. If left unused/unassigned, voice recording will be permanent. By default push-to-talk is enabled and the default hotkey is "C"
  
• Due to moving the push-to-talk key to "C", we had to move around the other radial menu keys. "X" is now the voice commands menu (previously on "C"), "B" is now the flight menu (previously on "X") and the formations cycling mode was moved to the "N" key.
  Basically we shifted all the radial menus one key to the right to leave room for the push-to-talk key "C".
  
• Added an audio slider for the sound effects volume, and another one for the voice playback volume
  

[h2]Balance / Gameplay[/h2]

• Reduced Flak canons generated heat by -20% when firing
  
• Reduced Flak canons spread by -15% (this should improve their precision a little bit)
  

Note: some technical problems were detected with Flak detonation, which due to the physics step does not always explode at the accurate/predicted target location. This will be investigated and fixed in a later patch.

• Introduced a new MK4 "weapon" ability for the corvette: the repair beam
  
• This beam can repair the hull or turrets of a selected target at a pretty fast rate
  
• Multiple beams can stack, however this will draw energy faster
  
• The beam repairs weapons at a faster rate than the armor/hull
  
• Added a "beam booster" weaponry upgrade that increases even more the repair rate, reduces the energy cost, at the expense of shields regeneration
  
• Fixed typos in AMS laser damage upgrade (this was overheating way too quickly, making the upgrade useless)
  

[h2]HUD / UI / menu fixes or improvements[/h2]

• Fixed modal dialogs that could be clicked outside of window to get closed (note: contextual menus can still be clicked outside to close them)
  
• Fixed quick mouse right-click (rotation) on starmap that caused waypoints context menu to open accidentally, it should now be more stable
  
• Damaged weapons can now be sub-target selected again (this is needed for the corvette repair beams)
  

[h2]Visual effects[/h2]

• Remade all weapons projectiles. The new projectiles are no longer simple billboards, and most of them have some extra 3D geometry to better show their shape in the distance, making them more easily recognizable in battles. They also have extra animations, twitling tails and more details, making them have a higher visual impact during battles.
  

• Improvements to HDR bloom filter: better fade off/range, better quality
  
• Added a slider to control bloom intensity in the graphical settings menu
  
• Revamped all
  

• Fixed smog streaks (smog particles being strangely aligned) due to a floating-point precision issue
  
• Fixed smog being sometimes rendered on top of other projectile/effects, hidding them despite them being closer
  
• Fixed bouncing projectiles not having a proper offset off the hit surface, intersecting geometry
  

• Added new Moon bobblehead (bobbleheads are currently randomized every time you spawn. Later they'll be tied to your account's persistent rewards)
  

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• Fixed a server crash related to the mission system
  
• Fixed issue with mapping of ground bases that was repeated multiple times per second, causing some slowdowns/framerate stuttering at spawn times
  
• Fixed server crash bug if an admin tries to kill a planet/moon
  
• Fixed ships that could still fire their weapons during their death sequence
  
• Fixed collision issues happening between ships and geometry in the hangar/spawn locations
  

[h2]Other[/h2]

• Fixed localization issues in keybindings menu and weapons/loadout MFD
  
• More localization/strings updates for 0.8.6.0