Vectorio News

[h3]Community Discussions Podcast | Power Management (Ep 1)[/h3]

Today, we had our first community discussion podcast over on our Discord server. This is an opportunity for the community to voice their ideas and feedback on specific topics, each and every week!

This week, we deep dived into Power Management. Watch the podcast below!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[h3]Podcast Timestamps[/h3]

You can find a list of timestamps in the YouTube video description for quicker navigation. I recommend skipping the intro if you've already read the "Power Rework" post. (CLICK HERE TO SKIP)

The first section of the video is dedicated to talking about local power networks, and how it may or may not fit Vectorio. The second half dives deeper into the power rework and what the goals of it are, and how it's meant to strategize the gameplay of Vectorio more than it's current implementation does.

[h3]Power Rework Post[/h3]

If you aren't aware of the proposed upcoming changes, I recommend taking a look at this post. The video only touches on a brief summary of it, but this post goes deeper into the goals with the power rework.

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/2082350/view/3681182908908723466

[h3]Questions? Comments? Concerns?[/h3]

Please let me know! I want to involve the community as much as I can in every step along the way. If you want to join the discussion, feel free to hop in our Discord server as well!

Discord: https://discord.gg/auDgRJqtT9

Hello everyone!

The next patch has been tested on experimental and all changes have been confirmed to go live. This update is mainly focused on QOL improvements & general stability.

Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Let me know below or on our Discord server: https://discord.gg/auDgRJqtT9


[h2]v0.1.3 Patch Notes[/h2]

[h3]New Additions:[/h3]

• Added the ability to copy settings (MMB) and paste them on pre-exisiting buildings.
  
• Added texture mipmaps to drone ports to help lessen the light strobing artifact that happens at certain zoom levels. This may be applied to additional buildings in the future.
  
• Added new damage and destroyed warning system (toggleable in settings)
  
• Added bloom intensity slider to settings
  

[h3]BUG FIXES:[/h3]

• Fixed turret heads becoming off-centered
  
• Fixed layout-rebuilder on inventory UI
  
• Fixed units skipping into base on reload
  
• Fixed buildings remaining linked to an outpost core after being object pooled
  
• Fixed drones remaining linked to their previous targets after being object pooled
  
• Fixed turret targetting system to not target objects that have been object pooled
  
• Fixed Atomizer turret from causing bugs
  
• Fixed explosion sounds for Artillery playing in the distance when off-screen
  

Hello everyone!

The next patch is now available for testing! You can access it on the experimental branch by following the instructions below if you wish to get access to the fixes now. Please note experimental updates can be unstable, so it is always recommended to backup your saves if you wish to avoid possible conflicts.

[h3]How to opt into experimental:[/h3]

1. Locate Vectorio in your Steam library
   
2. Right click and go to "properties"
   
3. Find the "betas" branch
   
4. Using the dropdown, select "Experimental"
   

[h3]Experimental Info:[/h3]

• Testing Cycle: ~24 hours
  
• Experimental Saves: Disabled
  
• Backwards Compatible: Yes
  
• Update Type: Hotfix
  
• Contains Spoilers: No
  

[h2]Patch Notes[/h2]

The following is a list of changes pushed to the experimental branch. While changes are usually tested beforehand, please note that some may require further testing to validate.

[h3]New Additions:[/h3]

• Added mipmaps for certain textures to help negate the strobing effect at certain zoom distances
  
• Added new warning system to notify you when buildings are damaged or destroyed
  

[h3]Bug Fixes:[/h3]

• Fixed turret heads becoming off-centered
  
• Fixed layout rebuilding on inventory panel
  
• Fixed units skipping into base on reload
  
• Fixed buildings remaining linked to an outpost core after being object pooled
  
• Fixed drones occasionally flying away to previous route after being object pooled
  
• Fixed Atomizer laser not affecting buildings and sometimes causing the game to bug out
  
• Fixed turret targeting system from retargeting onto object pooled enemies
  

[h2]Tentative Additions:[/h2]

The follow has been tenatively added to the release view for v0.1.3, but is not yet ready to undergo testing in the experimental branch. These changes may be pushed into v0.1.4 in order to get the fixes available on v0.1.3 available to everyone on the live branch in a shorter timeframe.

• Ability to daisy chain reclaimers to make expansion efforts easier
  
• Ability to hold control to lock the axis you're building on
  

Hello Everyone!

It's been fantastic getting to watch everyone get their hands on the game and enjoy it. The reception seems super positive so far, and I'm extremely excited to continue working on the game alongside all of you. We have a long way to go, but we're off to a great start!

As many of you have probably noticed, I've spent a considerable amount of time the past few days cleaning up bugs players have been running into, and getting them patched in a timely manner. I want to ensure the playability factor is there before I begin working on any significant changes and new additions to the game; that mainly being the first major update (which will take a few months in development) and reworking some of the systems in the game.

One of these systems is power management. It has been abundantly clear you guys do not like the power system in the game atm, and for good reason. It serves no real purpose other then to slow you down, and is clearly not a fun challenge to try and solve. So, it will be receiving the first rework!

[h2]Power Management Rework[/h2]

The rework to power is mainly to contrast it nicely with heat, where the two are meant to have similar implications in the game and bounce off one another nicely. Right now, heat does a fairly good job at that, requiring you to balance your heat output to not attract too many enemies.

Power however, feels underdeveloped in this area - it serves no real purpose other then to hinder your progress, and the solution is just "spam generators until the little red notification goes away". It's clear that power was not fully thought through, and so it will be first mechanic I focus on updating. I am doing this sooner rather then later because I believe this mechanic will heavily impact how the game plays, and having it in a good place before starting any major content updates is essential.

[h3]Proposed Changes:[/h3]

Below is a list of the proposed changes that have been drafted thanks to a discussion poll on our community Discord server. A lot of great feedback was collected, and here's what we came up with...

1. Logistical buildings will no longer require any power to function. They will ONLY produce heat.
   
2. Turrets will no longer output any heat. They will ONLY consume power to function.
   
3. The initial power capacity you start with will drop drastically
   
4. The amount of power defenses consume will drop drastically (see below for examples)
   
5. Generators will output significantly less power, and all will require resources to function
   
6. Every defensive structure will be getting a MASSIVE buff to accomodate for this
   

Link to the discussion: https://discord.com/channels/766378337047543829/1143268255247646930


As you can see, these are some pretty heavy changes that will impact the game balance quite a bit. In this system, heat and power will bounce off each other much more naturally, creating a system where you need to strategically balance both. This will also incentivize being smart with how you construct your turrets, as each one will have a much larger impact on your base and how well it can defend itself.

[h3]Rework Balancing Example:[/h3]

In the below example, the values go off the basis of the Initial power supply being 100w, and generator effectiveness being reduced (compared to what they are now) and requiring resources.

• Repeater power consumption decreased to 1w (Range & Damage buffs applied, to make the repeater capable of dealing with light enemies in a more reliable fashion)
  
• Shotgunner power consumption decreased to 3w (Damage & Firerate buffs applied, possible range reduction to make shotgunner more of a close-range defense built for waves)
  
• Ranger power consumption decreased to 5w (Range & Accuracy buffs applied, so that it can reliably take out larger units. Possible nerf to firerate, to make fast-firing units more appealing)
  

This creates a system where each defense feels like they have a bigger impact on the game, but you'll have a limited number you can work with at any given time based on your overall resource throughput. This also creates instance where you need to decide between wanting to store & use a resource, or putting it towards power for increasing your power pool.

[h3]What do you think?[/h3]

Please let me know you think! This rework will go underway sometime next week once I've had time to discuss with the community what the new values of things should be, and there's a more solid idea of exactly how this system will work. It will go up on the experimental branch and be open for feedback.

In the meantime, you can expect v0.1.3 and v0.1.4 over the course of this week, bringing more bug fixes and QOL improvement to the game. I am committed to working on Vectorio full-time so we can make it the best tower-defense / automation game it can be, and I hope this commitment to you all will continue to show as early access progresses, and discussions / feedback are actioned promptly.

Thanks for reading,
~ Ben

Hello everyone

A hotfix has been deployed to both live and experimental. This hotfix addresses a major issue with region boosters that would cause storages to take away resources on reload, resulting in negative resource counts. Additionally, this hotfix adds a new drone type to help with later-tier expansion.

Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Let me know below or on our Discord server: https://discord.gg/auDgRJqtT9


[h3]v0.1.2a Patch Notes[/h3]

New Additions:
- Added a new builder-type drone, Fabricator. Much faster drone that can help with bigger expansions.

Bug Fixes:
- Fixed an issue that would cause boosted storages to take away resources on reload
- Fixed an issue with boosted drones not moving from their port when deployed