Dev Diary: The Story Behind the Surviving Mars Relaunch!

[p]Hi everyone![/p][p][/p][p]Today, we’d like to answer some of the questions we’ve seen around why Surviving Mars has been relaunched, with a little QnA. More questions are always welcome, we opened a little forum thread here where we’ll collect all your questions and do our best to answer them in an additional entry![/p][p][/p][p]To begin, some background to the story of this specific project. It all started when Paradox Interactive reached out to Haemimont Games to explore possibilities for further development of Surviving Mars. Somewhere along the way, we realized that not only did we share a vision for the future of the game, we also wanted to work together more closely in general.[/p][p][/p][p]So! This is a joint entry from both Paradox and Haemimont aiming to shed light on the reasoning behind Surviving Mars and its relaunch, why we decided this path, what it means for the future, and what’s next for you as a player![/p][p][/p][h3]Why did we decide to do an entire relaunch?[/h3][p]When we started investigating the next steps for Surviving Mars, our goal was simple: to create more content for the existing game. We saw frequent requests from players eager for more, and wanted to investigate what new expansions we could potentially add for the game. As we began exploring our options, we realized it wasn’t as straightforward as it seemed at first glance.[/p][p][/p][p]The original version of Surviving Mars hasn’t been touched by Haemimont Games for several years (the last direct involvement was in 2019). Later updates and expansions were developed with the help of community content creators and a different studio, expanding the game in new directions. During that time, Haemimont continued development of their own engine.[/p][p][/p][p]So, this meant that one of the first major considerations we had to make was whether to move Surviving Mars to Haemimont’s new engine. The new engine offers significant improvements to visuals, performance, and tools, including the asset pipeline used by modders, while the old version had become outdated for things we wanted to do now. Another key motivator, and perhaps one of the biggest ones, was that moving to the new engine would mean properly supporting the new generation of consoles natively, something that would not be possible with the old one.[/p][p][/p][p]Example on how visuals and lighting is improved in Surviving Mars: Relaunched with TAA, better cubemaps for image-based lighting, screen-space reflections, and contact shadows. Original game to the left. Relaunched on the right[/p][p][/p][p]An engine shift would not just result in technical improvements, either. It would also open up creative opportunities that simply wouldn’t have been possible on the old one. The downside is of course that save files and mods wouldn’t be compatible, as we would have to re-build the game on the new engine. But reverting back would limit both the team’s ideas and the game’s potential.[/p][p][/p][p]So, with all this in mind, we decided to move forward.[/p][p][/p][p]And that’s how what started as a simple idea for an expansion, became the realization that it needed to be more than just an update - it had to be a full relaunch.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]An example on how the build menu UI has been reworked with a new structure to make it more efficient and convenient for you as a player. Original game to the left. Relaunched on the right. [/p][p][/p][h3]How the decision makes space for new (and old) things[/h3][p]When we started planning new content, we realized we also wanted to rebuild and improve existing systems, like the addition of trains in the Martian Express expansion, and the underground and asteroid systems from Below & Beyond. The implementation of these features was a really cool idea, but we wanted them to be better aligned with how we want the game to play.[/p][p][/p][p]In Below and Beyond, we listened to community feedback that the area was too narrow to build in, so we reworked the underground map to create more space for colonies and factories.[/p][p][/p][p]Expanding or reworking expansion content also comes with other limitations, you don’t want to create new expansions that depend on you also owning older ones. With the relaunch now decided, we suddenly had the technical opportunity to solve that, and the idea was simple: why not make those systems part of the base game instead? Reworking and integrating them into the new engine meant they could become a seamless part of the Surviving Mars experience and built upon going forward.[/p][p][/p][p]Aaand then we took that thought even further… why not include all previously released content? That would let us build even more in the future, and integrate features that were previously expansions but felt like they could also belong to the core gameplay - like terraforming from Green Planet, that kind of feels like it’s a natural part of the game, why not make it available for all players?[/p][p][/p][h3]When was the idea for a new politics feature born?[/h3][p]As mentioned earlier, our original plan was to release a new expansion for Surviving Mars, and that’s when the idea of the Martian Assembly was born. However, given everything we’ve discussed above, we decided not to release it separately. Instead, we wanted to include it as the cherry on top of the relaunch - so there was also something fresh and exciting for you as a returning player, beyond the technical improvements alone.[/p][p][/p][p]We realize that much of the rebuilding and extensive work behind Surviving Mars: Relaunched might feel a bit “under the hood,” especially if you already own the majority of previous expansions and content, meaning the addition of those to the base game may not feel very new even if some are reworked. That’s why, rather than releasing the Martian Assembly as a separate expansion as was the initial idea, we chose to make it a key part of the relaunched experience and something new to explore and enjoy for those of you who return to Mars.[/p][p] [/p][p]Haemimont offered multiple ideas for potential expansions but this is the one that gained the most traction on both sides. Politics add to the game in ways that were untouched before and allowed for new ways to create your own perfect society on Mars.[/p][p][/p][p]If you want more details on the Martian Assembly feature, check out the more extensive Dev Diary on the topic here » Dev Diary#7 - Factions & Politics[/p][p][/p][p] The new political system - Martian Assembly[/p][p][/p][h3]How did we approach the relaunch with existing players in mind?[/h3][p]We know many of you have been with Surviving Mars for a long time, and it was incredibly important for us to keep you, our dedicated players, in mind throughout the decision to make the relaunch. We want you along for the ride![/p][p][/p][p]As explained above, that was one of the reasons we decided to add the Martian Assembly feature, to give returning players a real reason to come back and something new to explore in the relaunch, rather than having it feel just like a technical refresh. But to be clear, we hope you see the relaunch as much more than a texture update. It’s a full rebuild on a new engine that brings together all previous expansions, refreshed and integrated for better stability and performance. And we hope you see why we decided to release it as a new game for all the reasons mentioned above.[/p][p][/p][p]If you prefer to stay with your current version, that’s completely fine. Your original game is still available, and remains as it would have if we decided to not continue development for the project any further. However, the thought of being able to create and develop even more new content genuinely excites us, and we hope you feel the same. Please keep in mind that new content and updates will only be developed for the relaunched version.[/p][p][/p][p]As an additional little gesture, we’re offering a discount on the new base game for existing players, inviting you to join us on this new adventure. Think of it as the price of a major new expansion, but with significant remaster-level improvements, a number of expansions included that you may not already own, and the promise of more content to come. If you opt for the Ultimate Edition there is a discount on that too. Find more exact details about the price and how the discount works here » Surviving Mars: Relaunched Upgrade[/p][p][/p][p]We sincerely hope you’ll join us in this new chapter and feel we kept you in mind when putting together Surviving Mars: Relaunched![/p][p][/p][h3]Wait, there is an Ultimate Edition? What does that mean?[/h3][p]We have an entire year ahead planned (no kidding!). With Surviving Mars: Relaunched, we are launching Prime Mission, an expansion pass that allows you to tag along for more expansions to come, and it is included in the Ultimate Edition. The Ultimate Edition also includes a discount on the pass (yes, a discount with another discount for returning players!).[/p][p][/p][p]The expansions in Prime Mission are ideas and fantasies we’ve wanted to explore, that became possible now with the integration of previous expansion systems now integrated into the base game.[/p][p][/p][h3]Here is the content upcoming: [/h3][p][/p][p]Feeding the Future (planned for Q2 - 2026)[/p][p]Expands deeper into the culinary experience. Because without some food variety, you would probably go insane after a while right?[/p][p][/p][p]Machine Utopia (planned for Q4 - 2026) [/p][p]Isn’t it a dream to not have to deal with people? Joke aside, a fantasy that we know a lot of you share is to have more machinery and automation that is not as reliant on staffing for your production.[/p][p][/p][p]So, these are a taste of what the relaunch unlocks, more connected systems that play nicely together, and the possibility to release more expansions going forward. More info on Prime Mission content and our plans for next year will be shared soon![/p][p][/p][p]That was all for this little entry, don’t forget to join us in the discussion below, and if you have specific questions you don’t want us to miss, add them here » Question and Answers[/p][p][/p][p]See you soon![/p]