Tank Squad News

[h2]Dear Tankers![/h2]Welcome to our 89th Development Status.

[h3]Force Pool Creator[/h3]
Over the last two weeks, we’ve also been working on introducing a customisable resource pool for both the campaign and procedurally generated missions. We started by prototyping such a panel.



When creating a procedural mission, we’ll initially be greeted by a screen where we can choose which factions are to fight each other, along with basic settings such as prestige, whether we want a limit or not, how long the campaign should last, and the multiplier for the enemy resource pool.



On the left-hand side, there will be a list of available units to add to the custom resource pool. These units will be divided by type. The central panel will display the companies, squads and units that are already assigned. You will be able to remove them there and add others. You will also be able to add new companies and create new squads. Currently, we have a limit of 9 companies, each comprising 9 squads/platoons. A squad can contain up to 4 tanks, and infantry squads can contain up to 20 units.



Why 9? Everything is based on the numbers on the tanks, the German ones. The first digit is the company, the second is the platoon, and the third is the unit. So it won’t go higher than 994.

On the right-hand side is a purely informational panel. This shows a preview of the selected unit/squad/company, its name, description and prestige cost. At the bottom, there will also be buttons for adding and removing units, and for modifying squads and companies, e.g. their names or emblems.



We’re also thinking of allowing editing of the enemy resource pool, so that you can switch between resource pools to make changes.

Filters
You will be able to filter units by year. This will help you build a resource pool for a specific time period. We are considering extending this to include months as well, so that, for example, when creating a resource pool for a campaign set in the early months of 1943, Panther tanks would not be available.



Presets
We are considering enabling the saving and loading of resource pools as presets. These presets could also be made available as mods on the Steam Workshop.





[h3]Procedural Missions[/h3]
We have started working on procedurally generated missions. The types and number of objectives, the map, the starting location, the direction of attack and the positions of the troops will all be randomly generated. However, we plan to provide players with filters so they can customise the options as they see fit, including the participating factions, the maximum number of objectives and the maps on which the scenario is generated. Each mission created in this way will be unique — we plan to use existing maps, as well as locations that were rarely visible or overlooked during regular missions. It's also worth mentioning that you'll be able to create a procedural campaign, i.e. a series of procedural missions with access to repair stations.



Currently, we have a working prototype in which gameplay proceeds without player intervention — both sides of the conflict clash in a battle for a capture point. This AI commander will be used for both procedural and standard missions, providing automatic support to players by utilising the available force pool, which will eliminate the need for unit management for those who prefer not to manage units. We are convinced that completing this stage will be a significant step forward, making it easier for us to implement other new game modes in the future.

The map shows the distribution of objectives and their relative positions on the Luchki map (the first mission of the campaign). The blue points (A–D) are potential starting locations and the red points (1–7) are objectives. As with regular missions, there will also be opportunities to receive side missions.

[h3]Main menu changes[/h3]
We’ve added new buttons for procedural missions to the menu and tweaked the layout slightly. The ‘Create a Session’ tab has been removed. Instead, there’s now a section on the left-hand side categorising game types—namely Campaign, Skirmish, and Procedural—and only after selecting the relevant type can you choose to play in single-player mode or host a session. The session search function at the bottom remains unchanged.





[h3]Steam Spring Sale![/h3]
Our game is now 25% off. The sale will last till 26 of march!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1498130

Thank you and have a good weekend!
DeGenerals

[h2]Dear Tankers![/h2]Welcome to our 88th Development Status.

[h3]Patch 1.2.0 summary[/h3]
First, a brief summary following the release of patch 1.2.0, which finalizes the latest roadmap.

To correspond with the patch, we launched a 7-day sale offering a 25% discount. We received a record number of wishlist entries. In the history of both Tank Squad and Tank Mechanic Simulator, we cannot remember ever experiencing such a significant increase in registrations in one go. Could it be that people are waiting to buy because they see potential? Ultimately, we surpassed the peak number of players from the Tank Squad launch. We are extremely happy that you appreciate our work and our efforts to improve the quality and performance of the game.

[h3]Roadmap 2026[/h3]


As far as this year's roadmap is concerned, the plans are as follows. Regarding the next major update (1.3.0), we intend to release procedural missions and implement AI fixes.

The bigger topic this year will then be the release of DLC with a new Ponyri campaign, which will differ slightly from the current one. As we mentioned in the previous dev status, the map itself will be huge, so we want to create a view of the operational map.

Why DLC? As you may or may not be aware, we aim to keep you informed about our activities and plans, and we always write openly and honestly. Since the release, we have constantly released updates, fixes and new content, which we as players appreciate from other developers.

This is what we did with our previous game, Tank Mechanic Simulator. Before releasing two DLCs featuring tanks, we introduced several new tanks through updates. Unfortunately, Tank Squad is not selling very well. The launch was underwhelming, and we failed to deliver a good game on time. It was also a mistake to release the game as a full release rather than via Early Access.

For those who are not familiar with the situation, here's why we released the game in May in its current state:

Originally posted by author

Last April, we (DeGenerals) split with PlayWay. PlayWay took full IP rights to TMS and we took Tank Squad. We had to release Tank Squad as it was in order to survive as a company.

Despite the difficulties, we took up the fight for survival. We managed to improve the game's ratings, changing them from 'Mostly Negative' to 'Mostly Positive', which is now 'Mixed'. Now, about 20–40 people play the game every day.

We accomplished almost all of the goals set out in the previous roadmap, and we are already formulating a new one. We are trying to attract more players, but we need your support. This is why we have decided that the new campaign will be DLC.

One issue is what to do with Ferdinand: should he be added as part of the DLC or released in a free update? Another idea was to make Ferdinand a vehicle himself in the DLC. Following lengthy discussions within the team, we have decided that Ferdinand will be included in the add-on. The remaining question is whether someone without the DLC who joins a session will be able to drive or spawn Ferdinand. This is probably not possible, but we will continue to consider how to resolve this issue.

In terms of new vehicles, one thing we know for certain is that we want to incorporate the option of creating your own Force Pool into the game. This would open up possibilities such as adding any vehicles to missions/campaigns, including those that did not exist in a given time period.

In the meantime, between the release of major patches (1.3.0) and DLC, we plan to release smaller updates containing fixes and new features. There will also be discounts.

We are considering switching to the new Unity 6 engine, which would allow us to make significant visual improvements to the game.

Unfortunately, if we fail to attract more players, it may be difficult to implement some of our plans outside the roadmap, such as adding a mission/scenario editor.


[h3]Sd.Kfz 251[/h3]
I have just started working on Ferdinand, but I took a break to prepare the SdKfz 251 model for use in Tank Squad. Robert has been waiting a long time for this vehicle, so now is the perfect opportunity to include it.



While we're at it, we'll try something new: tanks and vehicles with a suspension system don't use dice, which is a good way to make the suspension behaviour of vehicles such as the Sd.Kfz 251 or Opel Blitz more realistic.



Firstly, we will create a base vehicle and then proceed to add further variants.

• Sd.Kfz.251/1 Ausf.D standard version with two MG42s;
  
• Sd.Kfz.251/2 Ausf.C Schützenpanzerwagen (Granatwerfer) with an 81 mm mortar and MG42;
  
• Sd.Kfz.251/3 Ausf.C version with a radio that could be used as a command vehicle in the game.
  

Creating the Sd.Kfz 251 for the next update is also a good approach for the Ferdinand tank. I want to make some changes to the material structure and texture appearance of both vehicles to improve their quality and overall appearance in the game. Time will tell.




Thank you and have a good weekend!
DeGenerals

[p][/p][h2]Dear Tankers and Mechanics![/h2][p]
[/p][h3]Situation report[/h3][p]This is the second patch as part of hotfixing and patching bugs encountered in the game this week. In the meantime, we are working on AI fixes, which is one of the main issues. We will write about this and our plans for the coming weeks and months in the next development status update.

[/p][h3]Changelog 1.2.2[/h3][p]Below is the full list of changes being made:

Added:
[/p]

• [p] An option in gameplay tab to enable or disable notifications (sound/voice overs) when enemy is spotted
  [/p]
• [p] Option to not apply camo to wheels (vehicle customizer)
  [/p]
• [p] Support for 2560x1600 resolution
  [/p]

[p]Fixed:
[/p]

• [p] Issue when ballistics simulation used to predict hits (white cross following mouse when aiming) shown red/yellow/green colors incorrectly - now it should calculate the penetration better
  [/p]
• [p] Position of vfx shot for mosin nagant 1895
  [/p]
• [p] Morton Counter attack should now happen correctly
  [/p]
• [p] Pokrovka counter attack should now happen correctly
  [/p]
• [p] ZiS-3, maxim, 62k AA gun had incorrect AI detection collision pivots - very low near ground, resulting in AI tanks not seeing them at all if the gun was behind a sandbag wall.
  [/p]
• [p] AI tanks should now shoot at a target that they see but their line of fire is blocked by a sandbag, wooden wall etc.
  [/p]
• [p] C1M6 Ozerovskii Logging Plant missing trees are not missing anymore
  [/p]
• [p] Morton terrains should now be correctly visible
  [/p]
• [p] You can correctly use Loader hatch in Panther A to get into the tank (only in total control mode)
  [/p]
• [p]\[UI] Fixing Quarter Master Rect Transfrom, was showing wrong widths of some UI panels
  [/p]
• [p] Various issues with AI navigation, tanks exposing their side to enemy, our gunner not able to shoot at very close range
  [/p]
• [p] Tiger wheels became invisible too fast when they became detached - fixed that
  [/p]
• [p] Vehicle tracks did not became visible after they were fixed by AI - now this should work[/p]
• [p]Error when AI hull mg gunner or whoever had additional mg under control in the vehicle used all ammo in reload[/p]
• [p]Vehicle Crosshair + Aim Prediction mode are now correctly applied when the game is running (during battle) [/p]

[p]Removed:
[/p]

• [p] Removed indestructible sandbags from C1M6 scenario
  [/p]
• [p] Removed endless spawning for enemy infantry during C2M3 scenario
  [/p]

[p]
[/p][h3]Sale[/h3][p]Our game is now 25% off. Today is the last day of our sale!

[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]
Thank you for your support, we are working. See you next time!
DeGenerals

[/p]

[h2]Dear Tankers and Mechanics![/h2]

[h3]Situation report[/h3]
After releasing the big patch 1.2.0, several bugs appeared that we had to fix. Over the weekend, a new build was released, actually two, but there was no event. Today we made another build with fixes marked as 1.2.1. This week you can expect another update with more fixes - there is a lot to improve.

[h3]Changelog 1.2.1[/h3]Below is the full list of changes being made:

Added:

• Small push when tank gets hit
  
• Battle exit points for SM1 and SM3 scenario
  

Fixed:

• Fixing varius issues
  
• Issues with custom settings not properly managing shadow quality settings[Fixed] After crew repair tank, driving forward at full speed Fix
  
• Destroyed vehicles slipping on ground
  
• Fixed vehicle keep position after repair
  
• Fixing tanks not shooting issue + ammo being restored on despawn
  
• AI movement bugfixe
  
• Stug III G, Panzer IVH customization issues
  
• Counter attacks now should work
  
• Game correctly removes destroyed vehicles points from capture zone
  
• Issue where modded content with many textures in single mod didnt properly synchronize on multiplayer session
  
• Issues with a modding
  

Modified:

• AI speed modifier on different surfaces
  

Removed:

• Offset from setting destination on ground
  

[h3]Sale[/h3]
Our game is now 25% off. The sale will last till 27 February.

[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]

Thank you for your support, we are working. See you next time!
DeGenerals

[h2]Dear Tankers and Mechanics![/h2]

[h3]News in Patch 1.2.0[/h3]
Of course, there are plenty of changes, fixes, and improvements in terms of game performance. Please see the more detailed description below, where we discuss the most important things we have done since December. At the very bottom, you will also find a changelog with all the changes.

UI overhaul
We described the changes to the UI in previous Development Status reports #87, 86, and 85. First and foremost, the changes affected the appearance of the main menu and in-game elements. The new Battle Map design comes to the fore here, where the map is rendered across the entire screen and the selection of units or troops has been completely reworked.



We have also improved the overall support for widescreen displays. The game should now correctly adjust the UI to the given resolution.

Originally posted by author

The main menu and Battle Map are just the beginning of bigger changes. You can expect further improvements to the interface in upcoming updates. We take your feedback and reports seriously. If something isn't working, we try to fix it, and if something isn't working at all, we try to change it for the better ~Dev Michal ”Winters"

Roadmap 2025 & Steam Workshop & Modding tools
With the release of patch 1.2.0, we would like to finalize and summarize the 2025 roadmap that we published shortly after the game's release in May. During this time, in addition to working on the game itself, improving performance, and actually fighting with the project and Unity itself, we managed to bring the game to a state where it can be played with decent FPS. It's still not perfect, but it's definitely better than it was in May when we had to release the game to survive as a company.



We released the Soviet campaign, added the missing tutorial and periscopes to tanks. We added several new static guns and two versions of the KV-1, thus expanding the pool of Soviet tanks.

The last few weeks have been marked by UI improvements, further optimization efforts, and literally squeezing every last drop of performance out of the engine by performing some design tricks.

We added basic support for the Steam Workshop. We added a tool that allows you to create and upload mods to the workshop. We described what and how in the PDF documentation, which can be found in a folder in the game's installation directory on Steam.



That's not all. We have more ideas in mind, including your suggestions for the game's development. After the patch is released, we want to sit down and work on a new roadmap, and as soon as it's ready, we'll publish what we'll be cooking up over the next few months. We hope you'll stay with us, but we also hope that new players will join us and that those who doubt us will see that we're trying our best to fix this game and make it better.

[h3]Optimization[/h3]
We managed to improve the game's performance even further by implementing a few tricks. Among other things, when the player's camera is not “looking” at units, their animations are disabled. This trick allowed us to increase the FPS. In addition, we made changes to the rendering distance of track animations in order to improve the performance of tanks on the scene.

We still have two open issues ahead of us, which should further improve optimization in the future, but we are reaching a certain wall that we cannot overcome without a revolution. The issues mentioned above are infantry/crew animations, which start to put a heavy load on the CPU when there are many of them on the screen, regardless of how far they are from the player's camera, and the optimization of the amount of data that the game sends during battle to synchronize gameplay.

[h3]What next?[/h3]
We are preparing plans for a new roadmap. We are continuing to work on Ponyria, procedural missions, an editable force pool, and new vehicles. You can expect more information about these issues in future development status updates.

[h3]TMS 02/20/2020[/h3]
Exactly six years ago, we had the opportunity to release our first game, Tank Mechanic Simulator.



[h3]Game discount[/h3]
Today we are launching a discount on the game. The 25% discount will last for the next 7 days.



[h3]Changelog 1.2.0[/h3]
Below is the list of changes being made:

[expand]
Added:

• Added behaviour for enemy units to shoot while moving and replaced Pak40 with Pak38
  
• Waterbox to the lake on C1M6 environment scene
  
• Swamp area for navmesh for C1M9/C1M10
  
• Terrain Tesselation Quality as video setting option
  
• StuG to Proving Grounds force pool
  
• [UI] Localization for new Main Menu items
  
• [UI] Main menu click & hover sounds
  
• [UI] Click & hover sounds to various panels
  
• Synchronization of direction of penetrating shot as well as direction of ricochette
  
• [UI] KW IS(r) icon
  
• [UI] Main menu overhaul
  
• [UI] Battle Map new design
  
• [UI] BattleMap SpawnSelector, WreckSelector, OffmapSelector buttons & animations backend added
  
• [UI] In-game panels (wide screen support)
  

Modified:

• Game version from 1.1.2 to 1.2.0
  
• [UI] HQ improvements over wide-screen
  
• [UI] Intro improvements over wide-screen
  
• Optimized C1R1 scene (german repair section)
  
• [UI] Spectator
  
• [UI] Pause Menu
  
• [UI] Battle Map before more drastic changes
  
• [UI] Battle Progress
  
• Drastically decreased CPU needed for animations
  
• Counterattacks and hunting should now be more aggressive
  
• Movement speed for units
  
• Reworked how ai calculate destination points
  
• Optimizing character animators when we can't see them (performance boost)
  

Fixed:

• [UI] Play commander VO is now shorter
  
• [UI] UI Scale changed to UI Scale match; moved slider to VIDEO tab
  
• [UI] Intro canvas scaler
  
• [UI] Engine icon fix
  
• Vehicle being able to run down player disabled on repair scene
  
• Vehicle flip-death logic disabled on repair scene
  
• Wooden barrack won't be destroyed by MG fire
  
• Binocular item now disables properly after reentering a tank
  
• Removed too many captured tanks from german campaign captured platoon
  
• KV-1C GER black interior placeholder no longer visible outside
  
• Tiger I H1 radio and driver hatches material
  
• Main menu UI bug with locked tutorial button after leaving Steam lobby
  
• [UI] Battle Map bottom buttons scaling on low resolutions (Steam Deck etc.)
  
• [UI] Weird looking player details panel after selecting one of them
  
• Ammo bug for bought wrecks or captured vehicles
  
• Vehicle Customization menu now correctly keeps the icons loaded if you re-enter the menu
  
• Shadows of various tanks should now be better balanced
  
• Increased distance of last Level of Detail for T-70
  
• Issue with shadow cascades not working as they should in custom video settings
  
• Decal on the front of the Stug is reversed
  

[/expand]

Thank you for your support, we are working. See you next time!
DeGenerals