Railbound News

Update v1.10 introduces some major under-the-hood changes as well as what we hope to be a permanent solution for some bugs we’ve been struggling with since release.

[h2]Patch notes for Railbound v1.10:[/h2]

• Fixed crashes related to shadow mapping on certain devices,
• > We’ve finally figured out what plagued certain Android (Samsung S10 and others) and PC (laptops with Intel HD Graphics cards) devices and devised a fix for it,
• > For those interested, we strongly assume it was related to sampling oversized shadowmap textures via bilinear filtering using SampleCmp; once we tweaked the shaders it got better,
• > After this update PC players should no longer need to switch to the [intelfix] branch or use the Focus Mode in order to be able to play the game,

• Fixed Steam Deck input issues,
• > Now you should be able to play the game using regular controls without issues,
• > The issue was caused by two independent problems - one was related to our code that checks for whether a device supports touch and defaults to that input method if possible, and the other was the fact that mouse input (triggered by RS and the right touchpad) counted as a gamepad interaction,

• Reworked the level decoration system,
• > On the surface everything should look the same, but on the inside, we’ve revamped the way we store decorations - instead of Prefab Variants we now keep that information in Serialized Assets,
• > Thanks to that we’ve been able to decrease the game’s size by 30MB on all platforms (that’s roughly 15-30% depending on the platform!) and give ourselves an option to reduce loading times in future patches!

• Improved directional input responsiveness in level select / game,
  
• Fixed being able to see a grey skybox on some levels in World 8,
  
• Fixed wrong hint overlay in the hidden level,
  

Thank you for your continued support of Railbound and we hope this update helps you enjoy the game even more. We've got more stuff planned for 2022, so stay tuned :)

- Luke from Afterburn

v1.06 brings in (what we hope is) a long-awaited fix for certain devices struggling with long loading times and freezes, as well as some additional minor improvements.

[h2]Patch notes for Railbound v1.06:
[/h2]

• Updated Unity version to 2021.3.9f1,
• > This should fix issues with VSync on MacOS & other various problems,
• Updated game logo during loading screens,
  
• > Because it took a whole week for one of us to notice that we were using the older version in-game,
• Updated layout in 3-3A to prevent unwanted solution,
  
• Improved long loading times / freezes on certain devices,
  

[h2]Known issues for Railbound v1.06:[/h2]

• We've heard complaints about the game being unstable on Windows 11 when using integrated graphics cards (like the Intel HD 620); we're investigating a fix,
  
• [Steam Deck] Input is not working as intended, for a workaround please refer to https://steamcommunity.com/app/1967510/discussions/0/3426698343833828352/#c3426698343835002953

In patch v1.05 we introduce a feature that players have been asking for since launch - Slow Motion Mode. Now during gameplay, you can switch between seeing the game at 0.5x, 1x or 2x speeds, which should help you figure out what’s happening on more complex levels with a large number of moving elements.



[h2]Patch notes for Railbound v1.05:[/h2]

• Added Slow Motion Mode,
• > Use this new button to slow down the speed of the game and get a better look at where your carriages are going!
• Updated level structure:
• > updated layout for levels 2-5A, 4-5, 4-8B, 6-6, 6-8, 6-8A,
  
• > added new level 2-5A (old 2-5A is now 2-5B),
  
• > added new level 6-8A (old 6-8A is now 6-8B),
  
• Fixed railway cars clipping into barriers in certain cases,
  
• Fixed tutorials on 1-3 and 1-9 not reacting properly to removing junctions,
  

[h2]Known issues for Railbound v1.05:[/h2]

• [Steam Deck] Input is not working as intended, for a workaround please refer to https://steamcommunity.com/app/1967510/discussions/0/3426698343833828352/#c3426698343835002953
  
• [MacOS] Using the V-Sync toggle in Settings can sometimes freeze the game, this is related to a Unity issue which should be fixed once we update the editor: https://issuetracker.unity3d.com/issues/mac-metal-player-freezes-when-vsync-is-turned-on-with-button-onclick-event
  

Update v1.04 adds a brand-new feature: Focus Mode. You can enable it in Settings > Accessibility and once active it will load levels without decorations (trees, rivers, etc.) - see the attached image for an idea of what to expect.



With this mode enabled, all distractions will be hidden, and you can focus just on the puzzle. An additional benefit of Focus Mode is that loading times for levels will be shorter which should allow players experiencing these issues to play the game while we work on a more permanent solution.

TL;DR - if you’re experiencing crashes or problems with loading times, Focus Mode might help.

[h2]Patch notes for Railbound v1.04:
[/h2]

• Added Focus Mode,
  
• > It can be found in Main Menu > Settings > Accessibility,
• > When enabled, levels will be loaded without decorations, improving loading times & performance while also making it easier to focus on the puzzle,
• Fixed version number in main menu being cut off by screen edges on certain devices,
  
• Fixed arrow buttons in settings not changing their sprites when interacted with,
  

[h2]Known issues for Railbound v1.04:
[/h2]

• Steam Deck input is not working as intended, for a workaround please refer to https://steamcommunity.com/app/1967510/discussions/0/3426698343833828352/#c3426698343835002953
• On level 1-9 the tutorial can sometimes improperly point the player to tap on a tile that is untappable,
  
• On some devices the game crashes during loading,
  
• [MacOS] Using the V-Sync toggle in Settings can sometimes freeze the game, this is related to a Unity issue which should be fixed once we update the editor: https://issuetracker.unity3d.com/issues/mac-metal-player-freezes-when-vsync-is-turned-on-with-button-onclick-event

[h2]Patch notes for Railbound v1.03:[/h2]

• Improved stability on some devices,
  
• Fixed black stripes (zebra-like) appearing on in-game objects on certain devices,
  
• Fixed the selection marker appearing in a wrong position when navigating to the “Other” tab in Settings using keyboard / gamepad,
  
• Fixed not being able to skip more than 1 level when navigating the level selection using keyboard / gamepad,
  
• Fixed smoke billowing from tunnels after a train crash not having the correct color,
  
• Fixed world selection UI not having the proper highlight after returning to main menu from a level,
  
• Fixed arrow buttons above/below category buttons in settings not being interactive,
  
• Fixed being able to unlock the “Complete all Bonus Levels in World” achievement without completing all bonus levels in that world,
  

[h2]Known issues for Railbound v1.03:
[/h2]

• Steam Deck input is not working as intended, for a workaround please refer to https://steamcommunity.com/app/1967510/discussions/0/3426698343833828352/#c3426698343835002953
• On level 1-9 the tutorial can sometimes improperly point the player to tap on a tile that is untappable,
  
• [MacOS] Using the V-Sync toggle in Settings can sometimes freeze the game, this is related to a Unity issue which should be fixed once we update the editor: https://issuetracker.unity3d.com/issues/mac-metal-player-freezes-when-vsync-is-turned-on-with-button-onclick-event