PULSAR: Lost Colony News

Hey everyone!

Devlog #80: https://youtu.be/VSGxyV4WVks

Beta 23 is now live! It’s mainly focused on adding end game content for the Alliance of Gentlemen faction. In these new missions, your crew will be stealing cargo from a W.D. transport ship, breaking a prisoner out of a secure prison, and gathering equipment in order to pull off a heist in the mansion of the notorious businessman Torsten Rowe.

In addition to the new content, we also added penalties and bonuses to player death. Your maximum health will now degrade each time you respawn. Conversely, each jump you make will increase your maximum health and can even surpass what you started with.

We made an additional pass on a few of the currently implemented Sector Commanders. The two that received the biggest changes were the Grim Cutlass and the Ancient Sentry. You can read more about the changes below!

This update concludes the faction-specific end game content that we have planned. There will be a handful of other non-faction related ways in which you’ll be able to gain Lost Colony Data fragments, which we’ll be adding in the near future. We’re excited to hear feedback on the new content as well as the other additions. Thank you for any reports!


Faction Specific Additions (potential spoiler warning!)
-New Sector: WD Transport - A W.D. ship holding cargo and flanked by armored security drones
-New Sector: Hollow Rock - Secret CU prison sector for especially dangerous prisoners
-New Sector: Old Factory - Abandoned robot factory
-New Sector: Torsten Rowe’s Estate - The Madman’s Mansion
-New Area: The Captain’s Quarters on the Estate
-New Planetside Enemy: Downed Protector - A massive creation, luckily it’s already defeated...
-New Planetside Enemy: Guard Drone - Teleporters guards to its location if it spots intruders
-New Planetside Enemy: Assassin Bot - This entity can be slowed, but not stopped entirely.
-New Item: The P.U.N.T. Chip - A missioned related item
-New Item: Estate Access Card - Grants access to the Captain’s Quarters on the Estate
-New Mission: “Open Call” - Given through long range comms (requires AOG faction, crew level 3 minimum)
-New Mission: “Break Out Conrad” - Given by NPC the Caretaker in the Captain’s Quarters of the Estate (requires mission “Open Call” completed and related quest component in cargo)
-New Mission: “Investigate Prison Cell” - Given by NPC Saliki in the Captain’s Quarters of the Estate (requires mission “Break Out Conrad” to be in progress)
-New Mission: “Retrieve Robot Head” - Given by NPC Conrad in the Captain’s Quarters of the Estate (requires mission “Break Out Conrad” completed)
-New Mission: “The Madman’s Mansion” - Given by the Caretaker in the Captain’s Quarters of the Estate (requires mission “Retrieve Robot Head” completed)
-Added 4 New Mission NPCs

Additions
-New System: Fluctuating Health - Each time your character dies, their maximum health decreases. If you character does not die in the current sector, their maximum health can increase in small increments upon warping.
-New System: Pin Screens - Screens near security checkpoints. These screens require the correct pin to be entered before they can be unlocked. The pin numbers can be found somewhere within the sector on data pads or memos.
-New System: Limited Teleportation Dock - You can teleport into certain restricted stations only if your ship is located within a specific area.
-New System: Mission Status Toggle - Allows us to show or hide different elements in a level based on the status of a specific mission
-New Item: Revitalizing Syringe - Using this consumable item will not only fully heal you, but will also increase your maximum HP to its highest possible state.
-New Sound Effects: Robot and Sylvassi will sound appropriate when damaged
-Captains can now target destroyable space objects. They appear on the top-right corner as condensed versions of normal ship targets.
-New Ship Component: CU Long Range (tweaked) - The Grim Cutlass has modified this main turret.


Changes
-Captains can move cargo to other cargo slots (including hidden cargo slots) without having to be near a repair depot.
-Enemy AI Aiming has been tweaked. They are slightly less accurate and sometimes take longer before shooting / in between shots.
-Enemy AI weapon distribution has been altered. They are less likely to be equipped with the really powerful weapon varieties.
-AI behavior for Repel Invaders and Defend Self (Ship) has been improved. AI will now begin to search for potential intruders.
-Enemy AI crews will now have talents randomly applied to them.
-AI movement has been tweaked
-Updated default AI priorities regarding the Defend Self (Ship) behavior. This is a slight tweak and won’t give a prompt to players to reset to default AI priorities.
-The Grim Cutlass now has improved shields and upgraded cyberdefense. Its crew has also been given upgrades.
-The Grim Cutlass’s crew now starts with better weapons.
-The Caustic Corsair has had its toxic interior effect removed.
-The Ancient Sentry’s EMP ability has been replaced with an overcharge generator in its core.
-The Ancient Sentry now has two destroyable systems embedded in its hull. The first system allows the Ancient Sentry to repair itself over time. The second system allows it to fire missiles. Destroying each system will prevent the Ancient Sentry from performing that specific ability.
-The jump count restriction for the W.D. mission “Weapon Demonstration” has been removed. This allows crews to leave and revisit once they are a higher level / better equipped without the mission failing.
-Targeting drop-down option in the TAB menu for captains has been changed to two options: Auto-target and clear target. You can still click on the ships directly in the upper right to target them individually.
-Tweaked the current ship target visuals
-Decreased likelihood of cargo inspections. They should no longer be assigned until chaos level 3, and they should also be rarer.
-Heavy Pistol has been tweaked, it fires slower and does a bit less damage
-Elite versions of humanoid enemies have had a few tweaks

Fixes
-Fixed an issue with extracting special components, now preventing them from also dropping when the same ship is destroyed
-Fixed a naming issue with the I.M.P.A.C.T. prototype.
-Fixed a few issues occuring on BSOs (boardable space objects - stations with windows)
-Improved the networking on missiles exploding in space
-Fixed animation issue that could result in characters repeatedly playing the death animation based on where they died.
-The language filter should produce fewer false positives.
-Improved visuals for Burst Rifle
-Automated Trading Station shopkeepers should now be easier to talk to in certain situations
-Fixed a lighting issue on the W.D. Cruiser
-Fixed crew bot issue that broke their ability to navigate the ship after they play Liar’s Dice
-Fixed a sound issue on the Ant Colony Planet


Beta 23.1 Release Notes

Beta 23.1 is now out! It should hopefully help with alleviate a crash issue that was introduced in Beta 23. Thanks for sending in those reports!


Additions
-Piloting and Captain’s Chair UI for enemy ships now shows when shields are fully offline by hiding the shield integrity bar.

Fixes
-Fixed an issue that could cause a crash on certain computers
-Fixed a networking/timing issue found on the Downed Protector in one of the new AOG missions


Thanks for your time!

Best,
The Leafy Games Team

Hey everyone!

Devlog #79: https://youtu.be/VIRNC3R83Uo

Beta 22 is now available! It focuses on creating end-game content for the W.D. Corporation Faction. The update includes multiple missions leading up to the climactic “Forsaken Flagship” mission.

Besides that, we’ve done a lot of work related to hand-held weapons. The weapons should feel nicer when looking around. We’ve also worked on the heavily requested feature of two-handed weapons. All grenade launchers should now come as two-handed weapons, as well as the Burst Pistol (now called the Burst Rifle) and the Hand Cannon (now called the Splitshot).

We’ve also reworked weapon ammo by adding an additional feature. You can now reload weapons anywhere as long as you have an ammo clip in your inventory. Holding R will reload the gun you currently have equipped.

An ammo clip will spawn in the ammo crate each time a fuel capsule is consumed (either via jumping or recharging programs). The crate won’t store more than one ammo clip so remember to pick them up! This new ammo system has allowed us to rework some of the existing ammo amounts certain guns have, so be on the lookout for those changes as well.

We’ve also added the ability to send items directly to other crewmembers. Captains can use this system to better equip their AI bots, and players can use it to send items or resources quickly to one another.

Beta 22 also includes various additions, improvements and fixes!

WD Content (potential spoiler warning!)

-New Mission Sector: WD Weapons Demonstration Area
-New Mission Planet: AOG Secret Hideout
-New Area: WD Control Room (located within WD HQ). Requires special security clearance to access.
-New Mission Sector: The Forsaken Flagship
-New WD Mission: Track Down Security Drone (acquired through long range comms, requires WD rep 5 minimum, crew level 3 minimum, near WD sectors)
-New WD Mission: Weapon Demonstration (acquired through long range comms, requires WD rep 6 minimum, crew level 5 minimum, near WD sectors, mission ‘Track Down Security Drone’ completed)
-New WD Mission: Planet Bombardment (acquired through long range comms, requires WD rep 7 minimum, crew level 7 minimum, mission ‘Weapon Demonstration’ completed)
-New WD Mission: Report to Sullivan Vorcolp / The Forsaken Flagship (acquired through long range comms / NPC ‘Sullivan Vorcolp’ in the WD Headquarters Control Room, requires WD rep 10 minimum, mission ‘Planet Bombardment’ completed)
-New WD Mission: Additional Tasks (acquired through NPC ‘Oskal Shardes’ in the WD Headquarters Control Room, requires mission ‘The Forsaken Flagship’ to be in progress)
-New Weapon Type: Unstable - This weapon’s upgrade bonus will degrade every few jumps, these normally start at +5 and crews will need to occasional upgrade them if they want to keep that +5 bonus.
-New Weapon (unstable): The W.D. Heavy - Held with two hands. Capable of firing powerful shots at long ranges. If the projectile doesn’t kill on impact, the force alone will likely push the target back.
-New Weapon (unstable): The S.P.I.K.E.R. Prototype (Sporadic Point Industrial Kinetic Energy Reducer) - Held with two hands. Creates a field of ice when fired. The ice deals damage to enemies traversing through it, and it also slows them down.
-New Weapon (unstable): The I.M.P.A.C.T Prototype ( Internal Manifold Projection Arc / Combatant Thrower ) Generates a powerful force effect to keep enemies from approaching you.
-New Creature Variant: Adamantine Drones - These creatures have been genetically modified to withstand incredible amounts of damage.
-New Creature Variant: Waste Wasps and Crawlers - These creatures have also been genetically modified to grow bigger and more dangerous.
-New Creature: The Impossibility - A sphere of mysterious force that seems to feed on the bodies of its foes. If an Impossibility kills a crewmember, it will regain some of its health.
-New Creature: Large Infected Crawler - A larger, more imposing version of the Infected Crawler.
-New Creature: Infected WD Crewmembers (Male and Female) - These individuals are lost to the Infected and will attack anyone on sight.
-New Creature: Mindslaver - This large Infected organism instinctually cultivates infections.
-New Creature: Heart of the Ship - This parasite uses a ship’s own energy source as fuel to grow and spread.
-New Enemy: Bandit - Can be any faction or race
-New Enemy: Elite Bandit - A stronger version of the Bandit.
-New Ship enemy: Infected Drone - A security drone that has been corrupted and controlled by the Infected.
-New Ship Enemy: Infected Fighter - A fully formed Infected Fighter grown from the chassis of an infected drone. It is capable of launching spore pods.
-New Ship Enemy: Infected Grappler - An orgasim that will defend a newly forming infected ship.
-New enemy spawning system - Will occasionally spawn enemies out of sight, which then attack the players. Used on the Forsaken Flagship Mission Scenario.
-Improved Infected Spore Pods - Better about tracking and connecting to ships
-Improved Infected Crawlers - Much better about boarding ships. They also have a proper death animation now.
-9 new NPCs for Weapon Demonstration mission
-6 new NPCs for Planet Bombardment mission
-11 new NPCs for Forsaken Flagship mission
-3 readable logs in AOG Secret Hideout (Planet Bombardment) mission location
-4 readable logs in Forsaken Flagship mission location
-New dialog for some NPCs at W.D. Headquarters in reaction to certain mission completions

Additions

-Two handed weapons have been added. They function similarly to pistols.
-New Ammo System: Guns can now be reloaded on the fly. Pressing and holding [R] will start the reloading process. You must have an ammo clip in your inventory to reload. The ammo clip will be consumed during the process. This only reloads the gun you currently have equipped.
-New Kickback System - will slightly move your aim upwards when firing certain weapons.
-New Item: Ammo Clip - used to reload weapons
-Ammo Clip configured to randomly appear in general stores
-Some Ammo Clips have been added to the Wasted Wing Scenario
-New Ship System: Ammo Drop - By expending a fuel capsule (during a jump or program recharge) an ammo clip will be formed in the ammo crate. Pressing [R] will pick it up.
-New System: Send Item - Players can now send items to other crew members. Sent items will appear in their inventories. Players can send any item they currently have in their inventory. Players can also send items to Bots. The captain can also use this system for bots (you can have a bot send you an item it is currently holding).
-New Notification: You will be notified if an item has been sent to you.
-New Notification: You will be notified when a weapon in your inventory degrades (for unstable weapons)
-New AI Behavior - AI will prioritize the weapons they use in combat based on the numbering in the equip slots (AI will tend to favor a weapon in slot 2 over slot 4).
-New AI behavior - AI will attempt to get better positions during combat

-New sound effects have been added for the new content
-New networking implementation for flight packs. Players in flight should look much smoother and less laggy.
-New additions to internal campaign editor
-Added a visual indicator for voice chat above characters in the world
-New Character Visuals: Male and Female WD Executive Uniform
-New Character Visuals: Male Commander Uniform
-More variation in space backgrounds
-Added a system for the Teleport Screen to display when teleportation locations are obstructed
-New Talents: Quick Reload I & II: General talent to reduce reload time

Changes

-The Heal, Mini, Fire-Killer, Pulse, Repair and Stun Grenade launchers have updated art assets, they are now two-handed weapons.
-First person weapon visuals have been improved, with less movement and wonkiness when looking around.
-First person scanner has also been improved.
-Some weapons can now hold more ammo.
-Pulse Grenade Launcher damage has been reduced
-The Hand Cannon has been changed to the ‘Split-Shot’ and is now two handed.
-The Burst Pistol has been changed to the ‘Burst Rifle’ and is now two handed.
-Slightly changed end credits sequence
-Edited dialog of NPC ‘Remhan Zesho’ at W.D. Headquarters
-WD Hub NPCs should have different dialog if you are not aligned with the WD faction
-Added some more props to the Captain’s Quarters section of the Estate
-The Burrow, Cornelia Station, Ant Colony, Artifact Planet 4, Bandit Base, Bandit Caves, FB Delivery Mission 2, Cave Planets 1, 2 and 3, Lava Planet 1, Mining Station Planet, and Toxic 3 have gotten some improved textures.
-Some tweaks to Infected Carriers
-Made some tweaks to AI navigation which should help them from getting stuck in certain types of environments
-Tweaked the inventory object system to help show larger items in the display
-Manually charging programs will now also refill ammo supply

Fixes

-Fixed a UI issue related to abandoning missions
-Fixed an issue on the Roland related to equipping auto-turrets from the expanded ship component menu
-Fixed an issue with a WD mission giving Fluffy Biscuit Co. reputation
-Fixed a root motion issue with an NPC in the W.D. hub
-Fixed animation on NPC ‘Bolgath’ at the Burrow
-Added a credit reward to WD mission “Remove Obstructions”
-Fixed a collision issue found on the WD Annihilator
-Fixed a lighting issue on the snow observatory planet
-Fixed a bug with dropping and picking up items on ships
-Fixed an issue with a mesh on lava planet 1
-Removed seasonal props from the Roland-Class starship
-Fixed a visual issue when interacting with the Barber station at the WD Hub.

Looking ahead, Beta 23 will include end-game content for the Alliance of Gentlemen Faction, nicknamed “The Madman’s Mansion”!





Beta 22.1 Release Notes

Beta 22.1 should be out now! It mainly focuses on some bug fixes that have been reported. We also made some slight tweaks to gun combat based on the feedback we got on our last update.

We’ve also taken some time to update our trailer since our last one was filmed with version Beta 1. We hope you like it!

Link to new trailer: https://youtu.be/J3Zl97oGoN4


Changes
-Slightly tweaked how damage works for players and crew bots
-Tweaked space background at Outpost 448 (Sector 0)

Fixes
-Ammo clips should no longer be seen as equippable or upgradeable items
-CU stop asteroid mission should work better in regards to the destructible columns objective
-Fixed an issue with the Twister enemy type


Thanks for your time!

Best,
The Leafy Games Team

Hey everyone!

Beta 21.6 is now available! We’ve added a few new systems focused on getting us to be more informed as developers. We’ve added in an optional analytics system to help us start getting a clearer picture about how the game is played and what we might need to work on more.

We’ve also added an in-game bug reporting system which may make the reporting process easier for some. We have a field to include an email address if you’d like the possibility of us contacting you with potential workarounds or further questions. Just know that if you don’t include an appropriate way for us to respond we may not be able to tell you of known ways to resolve common issues quickly.

Additions
-Added optional analytics to help us be more informed, especially when making balancing decisions
-Added in-game bug reporting via the main menu or escape menu
-Added an option to use a virtual cursor instead of the default hardware option, this is primarily for those having cursor issues like the ones reported on many Linux machines.
-Added an option to abandon missions
-Added a hardware incompatibility menu that can detect a common video card issue and inform the player automatically of a possible workaround

Changes
-Keeper Beam overall damage reduced
-Starmap now shows filled diamonds for visited sectors and unfilled diamonds for unvisited sectors in the galaxy
-Oculus plugin updated for better compatibility with newest versions of Oculus software

Fixes
-Fixed a collision issue found on the WD Cruiser
-Fixed a culling issue found on the WD Cruiser
-Fixed collision and potential root motion issue on storm planet
-Fixed rotated chair on Roland
-Fixed an issue with radiation areas that could cause them to work improperly







Beta 21.7 Release Notes

Beta 21.7 is now available! This fixes a pretty serious bot issue that managed to make it into the previous build. Thanks to those who’ve been sending in reports!

Fixes
-AI crew bots should no longer start falling and dying when they go out of sight
-Bug reporting menu now should always unlock the cursor so you can use and close it






Beta 21.8 Release Notes

Beta 21.8 is now available! It contains some fixes based on user reports. Thanks everyone who is sending in reports and feedback!

Beta 21.8 also includes a possible fix for an issue that caused the game to not start on certain hardware. It seems so far the first-gen Intel Core processors are the most commonly affected but any processor without the AVX instruction set could have been affected. Let us know if anyone who had game startup issues after Beta 21.5 is still experiencing the problem on this build. We are unable to fully verify the fix since we don’t have the appropriate hardware on hand and we thank you for your patience in getting this sorted out.

Fixes
-Possible fix for issue with Oculus integration on certain older hardware without AVX support that caused the game to not start
-Fixed bug in the intruder alert system that caused it to report false positives in certain situations (Fluffy Biscuit crews, investigator drone from cargo inspection)
-Fixes to AI targeting for the fight with The Source in the Wasted Wing
-Possible fix for rendering / game issue on artifact planet 1



Thanks for your time!

Best,
The Leafy Games Team

Hey everyone!

Beta 21.5 is now available! It’s an update focused on fixes and some changes based on player feedback. Thanks for the reports and suggestions!

Changes
-AI Priorities menu has been tweaked to make it easier to edit/update bot behaviors when they might be changing quickly. Priorities now sort themselves on a fixed timer to allow for easier selection
-Grim Cutlass will be more deadly and overall tougher at higher chaos levels
-Caustic Corsair will be more deadly at higher chaos levels
-Scanner Mode: Research Materials talent is now unlocked by default and no longer needs to be researched
-Ship log should now contain the reason your ship was flagged in cases where it may be unclear
-Autosaves should no longer be created while in a race
-Look at IK tweaked for players sitting in the captain’s chair

Fixes
-Sylvassi stats tweaked to have slightly less starting armor (12 to 10)
-Internal/hidden missions were incorrectly showing messages and announcements
-Fixed issue with SteamVR input processing that made it impossible to process scrap while using SteamVR controls
-Fixed voice chat / microphone not working on newer versions of macOS
-Fixed visual issue with your arms and hands disappearing if you were pointed up
-Look at IK is now disabled for yourself to help prevent animation issues

Thanks for your time!

Best,
The Leafy Games Team

Hey everyone!

Beta 21.4 is now available!

Additions
-New Sector Type: Scrapyard - This station sells unprocessed scrap. Some pieces of scrap are more expensive than others to capitalize on more desperate crews. The more expensive scrap components don’t come with any additional benefits. These sectors also include a repair depot.

Changes
-Seasonal props have been removed from the game

Fixes
-Fixed an issue relating to certain items when dropped onboard ships
-Ion Storm visual on starmap should work better when loading from a save
-Removed the delay on the Asteroid mission, this should help prevent crews from warping prematurely and allow them to be brought to the CU supply station for a new reactor core
-Players are invulnerable for a short period after teleporting
-Fixed a few minor issues found on Mueva 7
-Fixed an internal error that could occur when starting a new galaxy
-Fixed a networking issue that would sometimes not display unlocked teleporter locations to clients after loading a save

Thanks for your time!

Best,
The Leafy Games Team