Space Engineers 2 News

Weekly Release: O2H2 Generators & Armor Slopes, Dev Diary

Hello, Engineers!

This week’s update adds two essential survival blocks: the Large and Small O2/H2 Generators, which convert ice and water into usable Hydrogen and Oxygen gas.

We’re also expanding your building options with the new Armor Slope Transition Tip and its mirrored variant, letting you add even more detail and variety to your armor layouts.

Be sure to check it out - all blocks are available now!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h3]VS 1.5 Modding[/h3]
Next big update is VS 1.5 Modding. Here are some use cases that I was recently testing:

Replace the default skybox in the game - can be done in few clicks
Replace the texture on the default Medbay block with a chrome one
Add a new Medbay block to the game - so it shows as a new block in the G-screen

During this testing we discovered some bugs and some weird UX issues, which are getting fixed, so it was pretty useful. Here are few examples of Modding in action:

Space Engineers 1 Couch Model imported and material adjusted.

Gizmo control of dummies.

Thruster with a light and gyroscope built in - you are not restricted by entity type anymore!

And a view of terminal with both light and thrust override.

The reason why we decided to add modding so early was that SE was always about our community and our modders and we want to support them as soon as possible, and also we hope that it will add extra value to the game, and help grow SE2 faster. But it’s hard to say, maybe starting with Survival would be a better growth strategy. Hard to say.

[h3]Gameplay: Colonizing the Almagest System[/h3]
The heart of Space Engineers 2's gameplay is the new colonization system. We've divided the Almagest solar system into distinct regions, each offering unique resources, challenges, and opportunities. As you complete missions and establish infrastructure in these areas, you'll increase your "colonization index" – a measure of humanity's foothold in this distant star system. This creates a clear, visible progression path while maintaining the sandbox freedom that defines Space Engineers.

Every engineering project, exploration mission, and combat encounter contributes to your colonization efforts. Complete a power station? Your colonization index rises. Establish a mining outpost? The index grows further. Defend against threats? Your settlement becomes more secure. This system gives purpose to your engineering projects within the broader narrative of humanity's expansion.

We're framing this experience as "The New Space Race" – where players collaborate and compete to establish humanity's presence across Algamest. This creates natural objectives that are always visible and clearly communicated through mission markers, HUD indicators, and detailed objective panels. You'll always know what your current mission is, where to find essential resources, and what rewards await completion – all through intuitive visual guidance.

While Space Engineers 1 excelled at engineering, physics, and sandbox elements, SE2 will enhance these foundations with stronger gameplay loops and progression systems. We've designed the game to provide a satisfying rhythm of challenges and rewards – you'll experience meaningful accomplishments every few minutes rather than hours, keeping engagement high while building toward larger achievements.

We're implementing several accessibility features to support this vision:

Backpack building for direct ore-to-component conversion during construction
Enhanced projection building with our improved ghost block system
New build planner interface streamlining the engineering process
Redesigned blueprint system facilitating knowledge sharing between engineers

Block unlocking will be tied to both your colonization progress and your building achievements – construct basic components to unlock advanced ones, with region-specific resources enabling specialized technology.

We're also considering role-based specialization paths (Explorer, Engineer, Pilot, Industrialist) that would complement the colonization system while preserving the sandbox freedom SE is known for.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Throughout all these changes, we're improving accessibility without compromising depth. Space Engineers 2 will be easier to learn but just as challenging to master – maintaining the engineering complexity our community values while welcoming newcomers to the universe we're building together.

Please let me know your thoughts - suggestions, questions. It’s time to start discussing the gameplay with you!

Full Blog Post: https://blog.marekrosa.org/

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Please join us for Space Engineers Developer Livestream!

🚀 Friday, May 9th, 5 PM UTC
🛰️ Twitch: https://twitch.tv/keencommunitynetwork
🛰️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SpaceEngineers

Image Credits: Mech by freemelody0

🛠️ Feedback & Support - https://support.keenswh.com/
🗺️ Roadmap: https://2.spaceengineersgame.com/roadmap-2/#current
🛰️ Discord: https://discord.gg/keenswh
📫 Newsletter: https://www.keenswh.com/newsletter
➡️ Connect and find us on your platform of choice: https://www.keenswh.com/connect/

https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512957012199342562
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512956388211687965
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512956388211687485

Space Engineers 2: VRAGE3 Modding Tools Preview

Our next major update for Space Engineers 2 is Vertical Slice 1.5 - Modding. With it, we’re releasing the VRAGE3 Tools to the public - the very same tools our designers and artists use to build SE2. You’ll be able to create, modify, and experiment with blocks directly in the game engine.

Here’s an early look at what that process looks like in action - uncut footage of one of our designers creating a modded block from scratch. Stay tuned for more details soon!

Want to get our teasers early and enjoy exclusive content? Subscribe to our newsletter at https://www.keenswh.com/newsletter and be the first to get the latest updates, sneak peeks, and more!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512956388211687965
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512956388211687485
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512955743573377222

Weekly Release: Connectors & Armor Slope Transitions, Dev Diary

Hello, Engineers!

This week’s Space Engineers 2 update adds a set of key blocks: Connectors and new Armor Slope Transitions.

The Large and Small Connectors allow grids to lock and dock to one another, and will eventually support resource transfer once the inventory system is in place. The new Armor Slope Transition and its mirrored variant let you incorporate more unique angles and curves into your designs.
Be sure to check it out, as all blocks are available now!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

The Space Engineers 1 Fieldwork Update has been released! We’ve improved PvE Encounters, including a full rework of Cargo Ship and Unknown Signal encounters. This update also adds the new Prototech Fusion Reactor, a Small Oxygen Tank, and a Large Grid Small Connector – along with a wide range of quality of life fixes and improvements.

The Fieldwork Pack includes new decorative blocks with visuals ideal for building secret bunkers, mad scientist labs, mobile research outposts, and more. Perfect for engineers working off the grid.

Our water team is optimizing the simulation and making it more stable across various test cases (water dam, underwater base, aqueduct, submarine, etc.)
The water rendering looks much better now and more flat - making spherical water for a spherical planet was a very challenging task, but it's working well now
We'll soon need to start adding sound effects for water, which I think will be substantial work - we need to detect where water falls and splashes without over-spamming the audio system, plus create muffled sounds for underwater (though this part should be easier, just needing an "if" condition and a dynamic effect in FMOD)

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
We've improved camera shake for both character and ship:

It feels great during jetpack flight - shaking during the initial charge-up period and during boost flight
It works for ship acceleration too, but it's currently too strong - we'll reduce it and implement a cooldown so after about 2 seconds it will gradually stop shaking or shake very little
We also plan to implement this for deceleration
The ship drill now causes rock debris to fly off when drilling asteroids

Our main focus is now on:

VS 1.5 Modding update - this will be amazing for modders and players, providing new tools to mod the game. We've done several playtests and the workflow is becoming more intuitive and simpler while maintaining freedom and flexibility
VS 2 - focusing on survival, planets, and real gameplay (at least the first stages). We're transitioning from polishing small creative mode details to the bigger picture of actual gameplay - turning SE2 into a game about space colonization with exploration, combat, and engineering. For me, this is the most important part and one of the main reasons for making SE2 - to reimagine the SE experience without constraints

Animations continue to see incremental improvements:

The debug gun now has better positioning and distance
We still plan to improve jump animation, uphill and downhill walk/run animations, tool usage (drill, welder, etc.), stopping animations, and more
First-person camera and animations are already very good, about 90% of our target quality

Full Dev Diary: https://blog.marekrosa.org/

https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512956388211687485
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512955743573377222
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/499444389996659942

Weekly Release: Prototype Door, Truss Blocks & Armor Shapes

Hello, Engineers!

It's time for a Weekly Release! Today, we're adding new blocks that will expand your building options and the functionality of your creations!

The Prototype Door now allows you to create functional doors that open and close, though it could require some dedication from skilled engineers. The Truss Blocks are lightweight, open-frame pieces that are great for building strong structures like frames and support beams. Last but not least, the new Armor Shapes let you create more visually striking ships and stations with unique angles and curves that elevate your designs.

Be sure to check it out, as all blocks are available now!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Also, engineers, mark your calendars! On April 28th, Space Engineers gets the highly anticipated Fieldwork Update, bringing the vibe of scientific experiments, enhanced PVE encounters, and much more.

Please join us for the Space Engineers: Fieldwork Update Release Livestream!

🚀 Monday, April 28th, 5 PM UTC
🛰️ Twitch: https://twitch.tv/keencommunitynetwork
🛰️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SpaceEngineers

https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512955743573377222
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/499444389996659942
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512953841353754357

Dev Diary & Hotfix 1.2.200.4730

[h2]Hotfix 1.2.200.4730 has been released![/h2]

➡️ Changelog: https://support.keenswh.com/spaceengineers2/pc/announcement/space-engineers-2-alpha-vs-1-2
🛠️ Support Portal: https://support.keenswh.com/spaceengineers2/pc
🛰️ Discord: https://discord.gg/keenswh

Stability

Fixed a crash when switching tools
Fixed a crash in render

We are solving Target-based grid control edge cases
Color picker will be included in undo-redo for paint gun in a future update
Character is not holding a Gun correctly while using the jetpack
After entering a cockpit for the first time after starting the game, the character may peek through the cockpit - this will be fixed in an upcoming update.
Keyboard and mouse controls are not customizable yet, but they will be!
Toolbar block groups and sizes (block selection via R key) are a temporary mechanism and will be redesigned in a near update.
We’re aware of incompatibility at launch of Space Engineers 2 on Intel Arc A-Series and Core Ultra Series 1 built-in Arc GPUs. We are working with Intel to enable the game experience and will provide relevant updates as development progresses.
Performance
- Performance optimization is ongoing. For Alpha release, we’re targeting 16x Red Ship grids at 60 FPS on recommended hardware.
- Autosave may cause brief lags during gameplay.
- Performance optimizations of ship collisions and destruction are ongoing, so it won’t be lag-free at this moment. We will be continuously improving it in the following updates.
- PCU values per block may appear higher compared to Space Engineers 1, reflecting SE2's increased detail and more precise performance measurements. While the current total PCU limit is set at 400,000 in VS1, we plan to raise this threshold in future updates as we implement scheduled optimization improvements.
Space Engineers 2 Workshop
- In-game Blueprint interface - Additional features and improvements will be introduced based on player feedback.
- Displaying Steam Workshop Collections in-game is planned.
- Blueprint screen refresh can be slow in some cases - it should be fixed in the next update.
- Your owned Private items are not currently visible in the in-game Workshop browser.
- We are addressing edge cases where re-publishing, renaming, tag display in the Steam interface, and sorting may not work as intended.
- Offline mode improvements - we are working on better handling when Steam is offline.
The current GUI (Graphical User Interface) and HUD (Heads-Up Display) are works in progress. Our team is prioritizing core functionality first. Once we've confirmed all features are working as intended, we'll enhance the visual design and overall aesthetics.
Some blocks are decorative-only for now (for example, the Assembler is present but cannot produce components)
The inventory system will be implemented in a future update
Fracture models will receive additional visual updates in future versions.
The paint tool’s limited palette is temporary; future updates will include RGB/HSV color settings and custom palettes.
Work on enhanced sound effects is ongoing, including jetpack audio
The Alpha releases in English language, more localizations will follow
Tutorials will be added closer to the end of development.

Image Credits:

Pirate's Lair by GREENPOWERSPIDER

Thank you for helping us make the game better!

Space Engineers 1: The Fieldwork Update release is around the corner!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
VS 1.2 was released on Monday and it seems players are happy with our choices: target based grid control, off-center camera, and more!
Dampener curves - A month ago (after we reworked the target based grid control and also the thrusters), I felt that the deceleration/dampening of the gyro and thrusters didn't feel good, the follow (slowing down) was too long and slow, and I wanted something steeper, with stronger end - but at the same time not instant cut and not linear feel. So I scheduled a call with Logan (one of our gameplay programmers), to configure those curves and playtest it, but after a few minutes we realized the curves actually feel quite good (both thrusters and gyros), so we left it as it is (what you have in VS 1.2). I think that they got fixed by designers in the meantime, after configuring gyro and thruster parameters a bit. I was quite relieved because this could have turned into a never-ending battle.
Mike (our concept artist) is finishing the concept of one of the main characters. What do you say? He belongs to the Legion of Engineers faction.
Had a discussion with Mikko (our level designer) and the designers, and we will try to add simple objectives to the Creative Mode, like repair this ship and transfer it to that cave station, or fly through an obstacle course, shoot the target figurines, etc. The reason is to give players some goals, something to do beyond open-ended creation. The plan now is roughly 1 hour of objective-based gameplay, and we will evaluate it later. Most likely in VS 1.6 (PS: everything is subject to change) I am looking forward to this. We already have a prototype of our Mission Scripting Framework done, and it worked on some missions, but now the focus is VS 2, so there wasn't time to develop it further. However, it seems that the objectives for Creative mode can be done with what we currently have.
We want SE2 to be much more goal oriented, with specific measures and progression players will want to strive for. SE1 is more open ended, players make their own goals. SE2 will have a meta loop and progression, with some measures that players can understand and strive for. This week we were finishing discussions on this topic with the designers, and I feel very good about the current direction of it. Will let you know later.
We finished the design of safe speed. Safe speed is already in the game, collisions under 20 m/s don't cause damage. But we need to go further: we need to communicate it well on the HUD, plus there will be an "adaptive cruise control" system for setting up the max speed (so you don't go beyond safe speed), or you match your speed with some other grid, etc.
We set the main principles of the new build planner, block packages, and area welding. It's a huge topic, and it still has to be written as a design doc, but in general:
- Players can use assembler to output "block packages" (which is basically a block inside the inventory, so we will rename it to blocks). This will reduce the complexity of thinking, because you will see you have 3 gyros in your inventory, so you know you can weld three gyros. You don't have to go to the lower level of components. Of course, the component system from SE1 will stay as it is. Block packages are here just as another layer on how to simplify things.
- We will also keep "backpack building" we already prototyped in SE2: building from raw ore, where the backpack automatically turns the ore into components and you weld the block without worrying what kind of components you need.
- Build planner will automatically add blocks you are projecting to the planner queue, and then you can with one click retrieve those queued items from some inventory or order their production. We really want to streamline this process, make it as intuitive as possible, so players can just use it without thinking. This is one of the things that bothered me in SE1.
- Area welding: different welders will offer the ability to weld an area (more blocks at the same time) instead of point welding, where only one block at a time is welded and only where you point at.

https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/499444389996659942
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512953841353754357
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1133870/announcements/detail/512954475614307366