Frontiers Reach News

More tweaks, bug fixes, and changes this update, plus a new trailer with an in depth explanation of the warmap.


[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]


- More tweaks to Q-201 bomb to address some issues with behavior. More changes coming.

- Fixed an issue that could cause some fighters to not align properly after the player respawned in a mission.

- increased glow on bullets to make them more visible.

- Tweaks to how naming restrictions work for loadouts, paintjobs, and player profiles.

- Fix for guns on AT-15 Shepherd.

- Fixed a bug on the Yahontov Major map that could cause the player to crash at lower altitude even if they had not hit the ground.

- The Hoplite now has 8 guns instead of 4 and a slight boost to agility. More changes to fighters coming in future updates.

- Modified night time lighting on Odland for mission 41.

- Increased camera distance on HF-22 Shield.

This is a patch update for the January 1st, All These Worlds update. Additionally, the Frontiers Reach Demo has been updated as well.

- Fixed a bug that could cause the keybindings menu to remain on the screen when closing the pause menu by hitting the pause button on game pad.

- Reduced GPU draw by 30-50% by tweaking ambient lighting parameters across the entire game. This also yielded lower ambient lighting washout for better visibility of various VFX both near and far.

- Fixed a bug that stopped players from being able to travel to Earth when the warmap has been flipped completely blue.

This is a massive update, and while the game is still very much the same, a LOT has changed. With this the core of development and production has been wrapped up. But bug fixes will continue to roll out as they are made and as new bugs are found and squashed. Though I should note that there is a DLC being planned for later down the line, but that is still a LONG way off.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

For these patch notes I won’t detail everything, partly because some of the patch notes I have are only relevant to issues that cropped up on the experimental branch, and partly because a number of the changes can be consolidated into a single item. That said, let’s get into it.


[h2]OVERHAULS[/h2]
- Overhauled planetary maps, expanded from 30km to 60km radius with a 22km flight cieling. Dogfights can now happen at high altitude.
- Overhauled space maps, expanded from 30km to 90km radius and 60km height. Planets now spin on space maps.
- Overhauled all planetary maps with a new terrain tool to allow for high levels of fidelity, better scaling, and larger more detailed levels.
- Overhauled all scenario by re-plotting and re-timing them to the new maps.


[h2]ADDITIONS[/h2]
- Added support for floating origin to make the larger maps possible.
- Added new Overdrive mode to the fighters so players can travel quickly across the map at the expense of lots of fuel and heat build up. Currently bound to the O key.
- Added a new RCS toggle so players can toggle the RCS system on for drifting over long distances in space, currently bound to the R key.
- Added the ability to invert the camera for look behind, currently bound to the X key.
- Added a camera zoom when in cockpit mode, currently bound to L-CTRL.
- Added new lockboxes for bonus salvage and an assault on Earth as an endgame mechanic with tweaks to how the Warmap will behave after destroying Blackstone.
- Added a new fighter, the RX-01 Garuda.
- Added the ability to add custom logos to the fighters.
- Added 2 new weapons, Beam Lasers and Flak Cannons.
- Added the first and only piece of starfighter equipment, Scanning Probe Launcher.
- Added an Easy Mode to character creation.
- Added wildlife spawns back to the Frontiers Reach map.
- Added 2 new Warmap scenarios : MBR Rig and Invasion.


[h2]TOUCH UPS & REPLACEMENTS[/h2]
- Touched up several smoke and fire VFX.
- Touched up several destruction models.
- Touched up and simplified the edges of planetary maps and how they blend with the skybox for a more seamless experience and better overall performance.
- Replaced all water with a new custom water shader for faster performance and better blending in the environment.
- Replaced the world boundary shader with a new custom version that will fade in as you get closer to the boundary.
- Replaced the entire warp sequence on the bridge for better animations and audio as you travel between planets.
- Replaced all asteroid artwork.
- Replaced all tunnels and caves artwork.


[h2]OPTIMIZATIONS[/h2]
- Optimized sky and cloud rendering by updating to the latest version of the Expanse plugin to address some transparency bugs and increase performance on all maps.
- Optimized artwork for a number of fighters.
- Optimized artwork for the Siren.
- Optimized several miscellaneous art assets for better performance across the breadth of the entire game.
- Optimized lighting and shadows for better performance across the entire game.
- Optimized code under the hood for radar and IFF tags.
- Optimizations for loading and unloading the main menu.
- Optimizations for loading and unloading levels by adding key elements to a preloading phase on game start.


[h2]CHANGES[/h2]
- Changed targeting computer so it is now possible to lock on to a target even if the currently equipped weapon is not guided.
- Changed respawning to a checkpoint so player will no longer spawn all the way back in the hangar.
- Changed travel speed of friendly transports.
- Changed the warmap so that battles can be won even when players have only contributed salvage to the node and not run any missions on them.
- Changed how missile/incoming alerts are trigger, this is a minor change and still being worked on.


[h2]FIXES[/h2]
- Fixed a bug in the AI for NPCs that made them behave unexpectedly.
- Fixed a bug that kept the player fighter from yawing, pitching, and rolling, when the throttle and the velocity was at zero.
- Fixed keybindings for pitch and yaw axis.
- Fixed Track IR not working at all and changed how the toggle works.
- Fixed Warmap not recording some victories.
- Fixed an error with the mission token for mission 41.

We're locked in for the Jan 1 2025 update and that update is going to be off the chain!

With that said, if you haven't noticed, Frontiers Reach is now on sale! And now is a great time to get prepped for launch on January 1st.


[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]


This new, MASSIVE, update includes a major expansion of ALL playable levels. But this isn't just an expansion of these levels, the terrain has been completely overhauled. Several plugins have been updated for vastly improved performance. New weapon systems have been added. And last but not least an all new fighter has been added to the line up.

You can get an early look at all these changes by checking out the experimental branch with the password below.

TestBranchDoode



With that, I wish all of you the very best this holiday season and will see you all next in the new year when we finally launch the All These Worlds update to the main branch.


Happy hooning pilots!

I don't want to sell you a big dream that would take decades to make, but I do want to share with you a vision. A vision I've had since 2015.


I've already gone over some of the particulars of this vision, but in this blog I want to use some concepts I've worked up with Midjourney to give you a breakdown of the user experience in a more granular approach.


Before I start I should note that some time within the next 12 to 24 hours the last experimental build for Frontiers Reach 1 will be going out. After this, there will be no further updates until the official build goes live on Jan 1.




Frontiers Reach 2 was always intended to be a small scale and very intimate multiplayer experience. I had some of the best times of life playing games that I could share with my closest friends, and I believe pretty strongly that this kind of multiplayer experience is the bread and butter of games.

So when you load into Frontiers Reach 2, you'll always start out on your carrier.



Your carrier is your mobile base of operations. It's how you get from one star system to another, it's where you customize your vehicles and build loadout presets, and if you're part of a larger organization, it's where you'll manage that organization and how you interact with it. Your friends will also have carriers of their own, but if they join your game they will leave their carrier and board yours. All of their presets and equipment loadouts will still be accessible.

One day you and your friends decide to go help a local town deal with some raiders who have been particularly bothersome. These cats have even gone so far as to conduct large scale aerial raids and today they're planning another one. So the locals call up to your carrier and ask for assistance.

Having agreed to help in the fight you depart and join a larger force of fighters to intercept the raiders in atmosphere, high above their base.



Once you're in atmosphere some time goes by as you're traveling to your destination until you finally catch the raiders on radar and engage them in a fierce battle in the air.



However in the heat of the battle, you and one of your friends get shot down. Your friend does not survive and is forced to respawn on the carrier. You on the other hand survive and manage to bail out.



Though you were really high up your suit and equipment protect you all the way to the ground. Which is a dense jungle with many hazardous flora and fauna. However you are confident and undeterred. And so you decide to do something about the air defenses that the raiders set up in anticipation that someone might try to attack their base. You proceed on foot until you find the air defense system and blow it up.



With the air defense system destroyed, the battle is quickly turned in favor of you and the local defenders and your friend who was forced to respawn on the carrier has a clear path to come and pick you up.



After retrieving you, you and your team agree to meet up in the town belonging to the locals who hired you for the job you just completed.



After landing at the local airfield you head for a pub where you can link up, talk shop, speak to contract holders, and discuss your next move.



According to some of the rumors going around the room, there is talk of a cavern of alien origin not far from the town, that is said to behold riches of extraordinary design and purpose. So you and your friends decide to take the plunge into the depths to see for yourselves.



What you will find there is foreign, alien, and not in any way shape or form friendly to humans.


That's it for now pilots! Keep an eye out for the next experimental build and happy hooning!