Generation Exile News

[p]Generation Exile's first major content update is live, and our focus for this update was incorporating tons of great feedback from the community about the core city-building resources / need satisfaction visualisations as well as building out the next major chunk of the game. So without further preamble…[/p][p][/p][h3]Structure Manager[/h3][p]One of the biggest things we wanted to prioritise for this content update is making the core resources/needs visualisation much clearer. Essentially, making it far easier for someone play the game to answer the question, "Wait, why isn't that structure working?" So we have built a robust Structure Manager to provide full input and output visualisation for every structure. And if some structure isn’t getting what it needs, it’s easy to follow the links in the chain back to what isn’t delivering.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][carousel][/carousel][p][/p][h3]Grasslands+ Taiga, together at last[/h3][p]The update also includes the entirety of the third chapter of the game, where the player must manage both the Grassland and Taiga biomes simultaneously, moving resources between the two and utilising assets available only in one biome to progress in the other. This kind of inter-biome gameplay was always where we felt the heart of GenExile really is and we’re very excited to be able to start getting feedback from players about this in full.[/p][p]There are still more biomes yet to come as we make our way through Early Access, so hopefully this provides a succulent taste of what’s in store.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][h3]Stress & Traumas[/h3][p]We have added more robust support for representing the toll on your Stewards taken by a perilous life lived in a very large (but also very small) spaceship surrounded by the infinite expanse of space. Narrative Events can add (or remove) Stress and Traumas, and those can impact Stewards contributions to Tasks and enable additional character-specific Narrative Events and behaviours.[/p][p]There is more coming for these systems in future updates, but we wanted to start dripping out additional content for this now to start getting feedback on how the systems are landing with players.[/p][p][/p][h3]Many more character assets[/h3][p]Our 3D character artist spent - in his words - “a lot of time at the barber shop” and now there are even more haircuts, accessories and other character assets available, both for the player character and all the procedurally generated characters aboard the ship.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][carousel][/carousel][p][/p][h3]Resource changes / simplifications[/h3][p]Thanks to very helpful community feedback, we realised the way certain resources in the first chapter were more complicated (unhelpfully) that intended. So we’ve simplified the way the Water resource works, so there is only one “tier” of water now and the previous “filtration” systems are instead used to gather and distribute more water more easily instead. Similarly, the way Power could initially be created was needlessly complicated, so that has been revised as well.[/p][p][/p][h3]Other fixes/optimisations[/h3][p]While not as flashy, the update also includes another Supporter Collaboration, fixes for many bugs, optimisations for various parts of the game and other small additional fixes.[/p][p][/p][h3]Save file compatibility note[/h3][p]Unfortunately, due to how wide-sweeping the core code architecture changes needed to support the structure manager were, mid-playthrough saves won’t be compatible with the updated version of the game. Starting a New Journey will function seamlessly and overall progress won’t be lost, it’s just that mid-stage saves can’t be loaded. Going forward, we should be able to make save file differences between versions more seamless but for this update, the changes touched so many things, it just wasn’t tenable. And you have the option to stay on the a previous version and complete one’s current playthrough, before starting a New Journey with the update. Details on how to do so are available here: generationexilegame.com/support[/p][p][/p][h2]Thank you and come chat with us![/h2][p]We’re so excited to get this first major content update out into the hands of players. So much of this update wouldn’t have been possible without the great community of players who have already decided to jump on board for this journey.[/p][p]We’d love to get your feedback on what’s in this update, so come let us know what you think (or just chat about cool sci-fi games in general) over in our Discord: [/p][h3]https://discord.gg/dKaCuJm3M6[/h3][p][/p][p]We’ve got the next handful of days allotted to address any unexpected bugs and a few polish things for this update and then after that, our very small team is going to take a short winter hibernation at the end of what us has been for us a very long and very busy year. The saga of development and releasing this game into Early Access was not what we envisioned at the start of 2025 but we have also had so many genuinely lovely interactions with people, both those who have played the game and those who are just curious. It’s those moments that have kept us warm for this last little while and we’ll be taking that with us into the twilight of this year.[/p][p]We’ll be back in 2026 and we’re excited to get the next update for Generation Exile out![/p][p][/p][p]See you among the stars,[/p][p]Nels & everyone at Sonderlust Studios[/p]

[h2]Structure Resources UI/UX Revamp Preview[/h2][p]As previewed a little last week, we're continuing to make a major area of focus for our first content update (coming later this month!) improving the game's core UI/UX and allowing players to clearly and easily understand what any given structure is doing. To that end, we're building stateful and responsive visualisations of any given structure's behaviours. And as a small preview (albeit one where the visuals are still work-in-progress), here's the new resource focus highlighting UI showing precisely where the selected Cricket Farm is receiving its resources from:[/p][p] [/p][p]There will also be a new panel in a selected structure's "info pane" that shows its various inputs and ouputs and if any of them isn't functioning, additional information about why. The goal is to make diagnosing and addressing those structure production chains more straightforward.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Another Supporter Collaboration[/h2][p]We have selected another registered Supporter to add a name (their own or another) to GenExile's procedural character generation name database! This isn't the only kind of Supporter collaboration we'll do, but the response to this has been really positive thus far, so want to keep letting more folks put their own personal stamp on GenExile.[/p][p]And how does one become included in future Supporter Collaborations? Easy! If you have the Supporter Sustainability Pack, join us on Discord and send a DM with your receipt to the admin and you'll be included in the pool for future collaborations: [/p][p]https://discord.gg/dKaCuJm3M6[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Unity Awards Steam Event[/h2][h3]https://store.steampowered.com/sale/TheUnityAwards2025[/h3][p]The Unity game engine hosts an annual award showcase for the best games and game development utilities made with, well, Unity. And for the last few years, this has also included a corresponding Steam event where a bunch of those nominated games are on sale.[/p][p]As an Early Access title, we didn't want to seek nomination (yet) but as part of this Steam Event, the organisers from Unity also included some titles simply made using the Unity engine, including Generation Exile! There are indeed all kinds of great games in here, so take a gander via the link above.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Folks may not generally be aware, but GenExile's lead programmer has been covering Unity in various forms for a long time via his YouTube channel GameDevGuide. Matt usually provides in-depth tutorials on how to implement discrete game dev features via Unity, but occasionally there's a high-level update, including his most recent video about everything announced at the 2025 Unite conference. At Unite, the roadmap for the next couple years of Unity updates is laid out, so anyone curious about the behind the scenes aspects of game development might find the (wonderfully) boring news of interest:[/p][p][/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p][/p][h2]Content Update Beta Preview[/h2][p]There isn't a new patch this week, as we're fully heads down getting everything in place for the first big content update coming later in December. However, we're planning to offer a playable beta preview of that update approximately a week before it goes fully live, so if you're like to get in on that early, come join us over in our Discord! https://discord.gg/dKaCuJm3M6[/p]

[p]Our big December content update is just a few weeks away but in the meantime, here's what we've been focusing on this week![/p][p][/p][h2]Gameplay Help Pages[/h2][p]We have added a few web pages to help explain some of the core concepts in GenExile:[/p][h3]https://sonderluststudios.notion.site/generation-exile-help-pages[/h3][p][/p][p]In the long term, we want GenExile to be self-contained as much as possible in terms of explaining all the what/how/why of playing the game within the game itself. However, during Early Access, keeping robust onboarding up to date can be a bit challenging, as we're frequently revising and iterating on systems. And as onboarding is the part of the game that perhaps requires more playtesting than anything else, we don't want to accidentally slow down progress on the current Road Map targets by returning too frequently to those onboarding portions.[/p][p]We'll of course continue to refine and improve some of the core "teaching" portions of GenExile, but these help pages can also help serve as a contingency measure in the meantime.[/p][p]Are there any things you wish had been explained more clearly that we could add to these pages (and then eventually fold into the onboarding itself)? Let us know over in Discord! https://discord.gg/dKaCuJm3M6[/p][p][/p][h2]Structure Function Graph UI[/h2][p]This is not in patch v0.5.4b, but as a preview for part of what will be coming in the December update, here's something we're working on to improve some of the core gameplay UI/UX. As we've mentioned in a couple prior updates, making the answer to the question, "Wait- why isn't this structure working?" extremely clear is an important goal now that we have received a bunch of hands-on feedback from Early Access players. We're going to be adding a responsive "structure function graph" UI panel that will appear when any structure is selected.
[/p][carousel][/carousel][p]This UI panel will show the "flow" of any given structure- what resources it requires and what it creates. And when a structure isn't functioning, whatever part(s) of that "chain" aren't working will be highlighted, allowing players to more quickly diagnose what part of the production flow has gone off the rails and address them.[/p][p][/p][h2]Patch v0.5.4b[/h2][p][/p][h3]Full Patch Notes[/h3][hr][/hr]

• [p]Improved feedback for task resolution effects that advance Crisis/Fortune tracker[/p]
• [p]Fixed a few crashes originating in narrative events[/p]
• [p]Additional performance improvements in certain 3D vignette scenes[/p]
• [p]Various other small bug fixes[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][h3]Generation Exile Sustainability Edition bundle is 48% off for the Games from Vancouver Steam event![/h3][p][/p][p]This bundle includes Generation Exile itself, the Supporter Pack DLC and the Early Access soundtrack for Generation Exile, composed by Ben Prunty (composer of the soundtracks to Subnautica: Below Zero, Into the Breach and FTL)[/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]While not everyone at Sonderlust resides in Vancouver, GenExile started here and it's where we all met in person for the first time when we summoned everyone outside of Vancouver to come into the city for a multi-day studio retreat. And it didn't even rain that much when everyone else was here![/p][p]We're tremendously excited to be participating in the first Games from Vancouver Steam Sale, which highlights just how many incredible games were made right here. The Vancouver game development community is truly one of the best in the world, with some of the kindest, most passionate people creating some of our favourite games.[/p][p]GenExile's project lead Nels has played over 275 hours of Darkest Dungeon II, not because of the great fondness he has for the folks at Red Hook (but that is true!), but because it's a really good video game.[/p][p]So take a peek at this excellent collection of local, artisanal farm-to-table (developer's computer-to-your computer) games and slide a few in your collection as we head into the rainy/cold/sweltering months ahead, depending on your hemisphere and biome.[/p][h3][/h3][h3]https://store.steampowered.com/sale/GamesFromVancouver[/h3][p][/p][p]And in a very narrowcasted addendum- if you do happen to reside in or are visiting the Lower Mainland on November 29th, the Vancouver Game Expo will be happening at the Roundhouse Community Centre in Vancouver. Unfortunately, Sonderlust won't be in attendance as we're fully heads down just working on our first major content update, but heaps local studios that we are tremendously fond of will be and there's no question it will be a very excellent time. Event details can be found at https://vangameconnect.ca/[/p]

[h2]First Supporter Collaboration - Your Name in the Game![/h2][p]GenExile now has its first Supporter Collaboration! And we're starting with (potentially) the most personal of collaborations.[/p][p]We've selected one registered Supporter to add a name (their own or another) to the GenExile's character name database! This is the collection of names used by the procedural character generation system in GenExile when it populates all the denizens of the ship (and their offspring... and then their offspring...).[/p][p]And how does one become included in future Supporter Collaborations? Easy! If you have the Supporter Sustainability Pack, join us on Discord and send a DM with your receipt to the admin and you'll be included in the pool for future collaborations: https://discord.gg/dKaCuJm3M6[/p][p]Should you not yet have the Supporter Sustainability Pack, that can be solved with but a click:[/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]This won't be the only kind of Supporter Collaboration we'll do, but we thought it would be a good way to start this off and show our appreciation to folks who have invested their trust in us by letting them put a personal thumbprint on the game. Genuinely, a huge thanks to everyone who has opted for being a Supporter, it really means a lot to everyone at Sonderlust.[/p][p][/p][h2]Games from Vancouver Steam Sale[/h2][p][/p][h3]https://store.steampowered.com/sale/GamesFromVancouver[/h3][p][/p][p]While not everyone at Sonderlust resides in Vancouver, GenExile started here and it's where we all met in person for the first time when we summoned everyone outside of Vancouver to come into the city for a multi-day studio retreat. And it didn't even rain that much when everyone else was here![/p][p]We're tremendously excited to be participating in the first Games from Vancouver Steam Sale, which highlights just how many incredible games were made right here. The Vancouver game development community is truly one of the best in the world, with some of the kindest, most passionate people creating some of our favourite games. GenExile's project lead Nels has played over 275 hours of Darkest Dungeon II, not because of the great fondness he has for the folks at Red Hook (but that is true!), but because it's a really good video game.[/p][p]So take a peek at this excellent collection of local, artisanal farm-to-table (developer's computer-to-your computer) games and slide a few in your collection as we head into the rainy/cold/sweltering months ahead, depending on your hemisphere and biome.[/p][p]And in a very narrowcasted addendum- if you do happen to reside in or are visiting the Lower Mainland on November 29th, the Vancouver Game Expo will be happening at the Roundhouse Community Centre in Vancouver. Unfortunately, Sonderlust won't be in attendance as we're fully heads down just working on our first major content update, but heaps local studios that we are tremendously fond of will be and there's no question it will be a very excellent time. Event details can be found at https://vangameconnect.ca/[/p][p][/p][h2]Patch v0.5.3a[/h2][p]Another smaller patch this week as we remain heads down and focused on the December content update. As much of the work for that update is highly interconnected, it's not feasible to trickle it out piecemeal. But there are some optimisations we can include now, and have done so! Plus ongoing bug fixes and similar will be delivered as soon as they are tested.[/p][p][/p][h3]Full Patch Notes[/h3][hr][/hr]

• [p]Added Supporter-selected name to character name DB[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where development level points would not be restored upon loading a save game during one specific early development level[/p]
• [p]Performance optimisations on various 3D narrative event scenes[/p]
• [p]Updated some structure text to be clearer[/p]
• [p]Adjusted character creator panels to be more intuitive[/p]
• [p]Other various bug fixes[/p]