Automation - The Car Company Tycoon Game News

Work continues at a solid pace on the upcoming Al-Rilma Update, you will be happy to know! That said, we have not been ignoring the bug reports coming in for the current Ellisbury Update public build, which is why we are here today! This quick news post is going to be a bit different to what we usually talk about; it's not every day that we go into detail about some of the bugs we've faced, and how we've fixed them!

A fancy, futuristic SUV by ChilPollins.

[h2]No Sound in Automation/"Sourcing Lua data" in exporter bug[/h2]
These two bugs were, despite appearances, directly related to one another. The sound plugin we use for Automation - FMOD - would, with certain hardware/software configurations, not be able to access the hardware audio controller in affected computers. This would result in either Automation playing no sound or music at all, or hanging up in the export process at the "Sourcing Lua data" stage; this was when the exporter would try to generate the engine sounds for exported cars, and if Automation was shut out from the audio controller? It would crash/hardlock the exporter.

We've solved this by updating our FMOD version, and it should solve virtually all of those issues we've encountered of this nature, and we thank all of those who were waiting for a fix for their patience in this matter!

[h2]"No Engine" bug[/h2]
This one was a tricky one - players would create a new car or a cloned trim of a car, then attempt to add a new engine or variant, only to find that the Engine Designer had skipped ahead a step, and would enter an endless loop of Lua errors popping up. Exiting the Car or Engine Designer and re-loading the affected car would fix the problem, taking you back to the proper step, but it has been a constant annoyance since this update dropped! It was made doubly tricky to solve because there was no single reliable trigger for this bug; any time someone had it, the next time you loaded their save database, it was gone.

To solve this bug, we've basically added a check in the loading process of a car and engine, so that it properly loads the engines, and doesn't try to load data that just isn't there (or isn't supposed to be there) in the save database. We're quite confident that this bug has now been solved, and we are eagerly awaiting your feedback on this!

This modern supercar/trackday car by Ivan & kookie has a very reptilian feel!

[h2]New Bodies[/h2]
Since it's still going to be a while before the Al-Rilma Update is ready for the public, we also figured we'd add some new bodies to this patch, just to give everyone something to tide them over until then!

[h2]Cloud Saves[/h2]
As you already may have noticed, we have activated Steam Cloud saves for Automation. That means you always have the latest version of your data with you when you switch to play from your account on another computer and then also when you get back to your main system. Just make sure to carefully choose which version to synchronize with the cloud as you don't want your main data to be overwritten with an older or one-off database. You can change your Steam Cloud settings for Automation in the game properties accessed via a right-click on the game in your Steam Library.


That about wraps up this quick patch, we will be keeping an eye on any issues that come up with this patch; please let us know in the discussion forums or on our Discord so we can address them. Be sure to follow us on YouTube, Instagram, X / Twitter, TikTok and now on Threads for up-to-date news and community happenings - the Al-Rilma Update gets closer every week, and we will have more news of it in the near future!

Cheers!

Banner image by Oreology

[h2]Patch Notes[/h2]

[h3]New Bodies[/h3]

• Added 09_eu "Offender" off-roader body family
  
• Added replacement 70_us "Predator" body family
  
• Added usa_00 "Evade" body family

[h3]General Fixes[/h3]

• Updated FMOD plugin to fix various sound issues in Automation
  
• Adjusted the ray-tracing presets to reduce the overall radius of ambient occlusion.
  
• Rebaked thumbnails for all grm_mercy body families and variants

[h3]BeamNG.drive Exporter Fixes[/h3]

• Many body jbeam generation fixes and bugfixes
  
• Improved towbar behaviour
  
• Set "Export to ZIP" as the default behaviour
  
• Fixed On-Demand AWD having a torque split slider
  
• Added minimum lock slider for On-Demand AWD
  
• Added missing 2WD mode for On-Demand AWD
  
• Disabled 2WD mode for Advanced AWD by default (can be re-enabled in the parts menu)
  
• Changed naming of various drivetrain parts
  
• Adjusted tuning for clutch limited-slip differentials
  
• Returned steering wheel lock to a fixed value of 450 degrees

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

With the first part of the Supercharger Update now done and dusted, we are hard at work on the second part; the Al-Rilma Update! This is the update that everyone has been eagerly awaiting for many years, adding superchargers to Automation! But that's not all we've got planned for you...

The Al-Rilma Update, summarising all of the main points we're hitting.

Before we get going, a bit of a disclaimer; all of the in-game art and content we are showing in this post is work-in-progress, and does not necessarily reflect what the final product will look like!



After a long wait, they're almost here!

Yes, finally! We are adding superchargers to Automation. It's been a long time coming, but now they're now just around the corner. All engine configurations will have access to superchargers in three different forms; centrifugal, roots and screw-type superchargers. Each has their own advantages and disadvantages, which will make for some very interesting design choices!



Very big turbochargers with a small inline-3 engine attached to them.

As mentioned in the roadmap for the Supercharger Update, we promised Automation players that we would be adding sequential turbochargers, as well as twincharging (turbochargers combined with superchargers) as part of the Al-Rilma Update. But, due to a happy set of circumstances - namely, the fact that they are feasible for us to model at the same time - we will also be adding two different styles of compound turbocharging!

What is compound turbocharging, you ask? That's where you have two turbochargers acting on one another - in sequential compound turbochargers, you have one turbo spooling to not only build boost, but also help another, larger turbocharger spool up faster, and in pure compound turbocharging, you have one turbocharger directly feeding its output into a second turbocharger, to add even more boost! These setups will be perfect for those wild, ultra-high-performance builds.



We're working to make engine volumetric and combustion efficiencies realistic.

With the re-worked engine simulation from LCV4.2 and the Ellisbury Update, we felt - as well as the community - that something didn't quite feel correct. That something happened to be how engines behaved at part throttle settings. With the Al-Rilma Update, we are creating a much more detailed and accurate simulation of engine volumetric efficiency - basically, how efficient is the engine at moving air through it - and revisit combustion efficiency along with it. This now produces more believable engine behavior and results!



Multiplayer will be returning to Automation!

Multiplayer will be returning after a long absence! For those of us who weren't here during the late Kee Engine days of 2014 and 2015, Automation used to have a scenario-based multiplayer mode, where players would compete in time-limited scenarios to see who could build the most suitable car/engine for the randomly generated challenge put before you. It's a very fast-paced and hectic experience, but it's immensely fun and it will make you a better Automation player in a hurry! Both engine-only and full car scenarios will be available for that.

Multiplayer scenarios are balanced around the competitor car database and thus automatically rebalances itself when game balance changes. Normal curated singleplayer scenarios will return to the game as soon as it no longer is as heavily in flux as it is now, which will be with the third Supercharger Update - Terso. The much needed return of a whole series of proper tutorial scenarios is scheduled for then too.


[h3]New simulation, the Standalone Track Editor and a new track![/h3]

An image of the new standalone track editor, still under construction.

The first phase of our test track revamp in the Ellisbury Update saw new visuals and a heavily-revised UI, but the old simulation calculations remained. While they are functional, they are not particularly realistic. In this upcoming phase of the test track revision, we will be putting in an entirely new set of calculations to more accurately model how a car goes around a track. Along with that we are making a powerful and very user friendly standalone track editor for Automation, so that you can create your own tracks quickly and easily; anyone who has done track modding in the past knows just how cumbersome the old custom track system was!

Also coming in the Al-Rilma Update is the new Narnilla track. This is a very old-school, European-style racing circuit, with lots of elevation changes, narrow rights of way and pavement of (occasionally) dubious quality. It's also the track where we did our art test some months ago, where you the community chose the art style that you liked the best. Here's a snip of the winning entry:

George made the winning art test entry and now is working on the full track.

Eventually, we will be re-doing all of our track art in this style, both for the tracks we currently have, as well as the new tracks we have planned that will be coming out as part of future updates.


[h3]New Design Rooms, Factory Environments & More![/h3]

We will be adding three new design rooms for you to use and enjoy, and for Campaign players, we will be adding new environments for your factories to be part of; no longer will your factory be just in an empty field of green grass, with nothing else surrounding it, they will be part of a more "lived-in" feeling world now. Have a look for yourselves:

New 40s design room.

New factory environments.

3D-scanning some carburetor models, and the (untouched) results from which we will be giving the existing carburetor models a much-needed clean-up!

[hr][/hr]

That about covers the Al-Rilma Update as it is right now, we encourage you to watch the Dev Update video above, and let us know in the comments here what you think. Also, be sure to follow Automation on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok for fun and informative content every day!

Cheers!

With this small update we're attacking some of the remaining issues and have a potential fix for one of the largest remaining sources of game crashes.

[h3]General Fixes [/h3]

• Possible fix for race condition crash occurring during demographic calculations
  
• Fixed various strings in campaign tech tree chart that either were missing or not showing up
  
• Fixed chassis, body, and family techpool resetting on facelifts
  
• Fixed variant names not automatically populating, causing exporter issues
  
• Fixed issue with bad scale of distributor level of detail
  
• Fixed airbox art issues
  
• Updated safety regulations, Hetvesia now is toughest, Fruinia less so but nuanced
  Fruinia ups its regs for 1960 when they open the floodgates to Archanan sh!tboxes, while Hetvesia tries to avoid subjecting their citizens to the cardboard builds coming over from Fruinia.

We're keeping an eye on what issues might remain.
Cheers!

With this patch we are wrapping up the focused development of the Ellisbury Update. If things break or issues pop up, we'll address them via smaller hotfixes. So what is in this patch? Have a look!

[h3]General Fixes & Improvements[/h3]

• Implemented familiarity gain dependence on the difference between Quality and TechPool
  
• Updated campaign safety regulations to better match the new safety stat progression
  
• Added a lock/unlock all fixtures button to Advanced Fixture Controls
  
• Added poster layout with single masked car image to allow auto-cropping to .png
  
• Added part type in tooltip for research timeline items
  
• Added VRAM usage indicator and warning system
  
• Fixed pushrod heads causing the headers to be angled incorrectly
  
• Fixed error in car body BodyEditor_10sSupercar02-Coupe_Update_1_0_Preview
  
• Fixed issue with traction graph scaling when using AWD scaling with force, not acceleration
  
• Fixed limit to awareness option not working correct in markets drop down
  
• Fixed tooltip inconsistency for engine family
  
• Fixed techpool UI not updating when switching entertainment category
  
• Fixed disabled addons not telling you why they are disabled
  
• Turned off a plugin that was crashing on startup for some people
  
• Possibly fixed a crash with loading of mods
  
• Made safemode not load mods
  
• Improved performance going into car and engine designer loading
  
• Disabled being able to edit the sandbox company in the company manager.
  Note: This may require cars to be moved out of the edited sandbox company.
  
• Added a database clean-up on entering car and engine manager to save corrupted items
  Note: If you have a database with thousands of orphaned items, this may take a minute!

[h3]Art & Car Bodies[/h3]

• Added a new family of car bodies named grm_mercy
  
• Revised DAOHC head art
  
• Fixed a shading issue on left rear quarter panel of 10sSupercar02 family
  
• Fixed missing interior polygons on FLAT DAOHC Classic Blocky valve cover

[h3]BeamNG Exporter[/h3]

• Adjusted automatic torque converter sizing for more correct stall/launch rpm
  
• Greatly reduced low load automatic shift point RPM values
  
• Adjusted dual clutch launch RPM values to prevent clutch from engaging at idle
  
• Corrected motion ratio issue with Macpherson suspension
  
• Adjusted steering limiter beams on Macpherson front to prevent wheel full lock "jacking"
  
• Increased max steering angle of Macpherson and Live Axle to match Double Wishbone
  
• Overhaul of damper stiffness exporting for more correct damping values
  
• Fixed swaybar stiffness exporting softer than it should, and sometimes inconsistently front to rear
  
• Further tweaks to tyre sliding friction and Stribeck values to improve handling during slides
  
• Fixed Advanced AWD having no bias offset at low drivetrain quality
  
• On-Demand AWD offroad locked enables at trim year + drivetrain quality of 2016

We're keeping a close eye on what more needs fixing.
Cheers!

A quick hotfix for new and old issues that were discovered in the latest version!

[h3]Hotfix 3 General Fixes[/h3]

• Fixed memory leak / infinite loop in engine designer causing game freeze
  
• Fixed changing factory tooling time and costs on retooling start
  
• Fixed campaign top bar emissions UI not working correctly in campaign hub
  
• Fixed BeamNG exporter crash if BeamNG is not installed
  
• Fixed steel custom paint always having scratches in beamng
  
• Fixed balancing mass 0-100 slider value converted when using [lb]
  
• Tweaked difficulty presets in campaign to max out at 500 M$
  
• Last patch's changes to export cars' suspension & tires is now actually in

Cheers!