Liftoff News

Yesterday’s update, version 1.6.6, marked a significant milestone for Liftoff. It introduced an essential engine update that lays the groundwork for the project’s future growth. These updates are crucial for ensuring Liftoff’s continued evolution, but they always come with challenges.

Engine updates are tricky; they often uncover unforeseen problems in unexpected places, sometimes beyond what internal testing can reveal. We’ve been hard at work addressing the major issues reported since yesterday's update, and today’s version 1.6.7 aims to fix several of them. We’ll continue rolling out quick-fix updates if needed.

[h2]Changelist[/h2]

• Updated: the 'Fixed drone setup' multiplayer game modifier now allows you to use modified variants of the drone setup. The game will ask you to select a compatible drone when joining the game, if any are available.
  
• Updated: the gameplay options menu now always scales with the contents rather than having a fixed size and requiring to scroll down.
  
• Updated: improved lighting for Liftoff Arena environment.
  
• Fixed: pink visuals on Intel-based mac systems.
  
• Fixed: multiplayer 'waiting for others' issue.
  
• Fixed: in multiplayer infinite race, when spectation another player while the game settings were being changed, your drone wouldn't allow to reset.
  

Thank you all for your reports and your patience, it truly means the world to us. We do everything with the best intentions, but we’re not perfect and sometimes things slip through. Knowing we have such an engaged and supportive community makes all the difference, and we never take it for granted.

Meet the Racewhoop! This little powerhouse is a 3D-printed, 2.5-inch drone that’s as versatile as it is fun.

[h2]Changelist[/h2]

• Added Racewhoop 2.5" drone frame and blueprint.
  
• Added Bushmaster 2105.5 2800KV and Bushmaster 2105.5 3600KV motors.
  
• Added Camulus T63 6-blade propellers.
  
• Added S-Line 5S battery.
  
• Added Redot Mini action camera.
  
• Added a new tournament format: Elimination with double and single elimination formats.
  
• Added a toggle to skip the countdown in races, when possible.
  
• Added a slider to set the coloring threshold for the race lap timer. This allows you to fine-tune how strictly the lap timer reports improvement or regression in your checkpoint timing.
  
• Updated the game engine for increased performance and frame consistency.
  
• Updated the flight controller settings menu to allow setting the throttle start and end values.
  
• Updated the game options menu with a dedicated 'Race' section to update settings related to race game modes.
  
• Updated tournaments to allow switching to a different drone setup in-game, rather than returning to the tournaments menu again.
  
• Fixed descriptions for several batteries where the described values didn't match internal specifications.
  
• Fixed multiplayer game modifiers not being displayed properly in the games lobby.
  
• Fixed issue where 'broken' drone setups could still register a tournament tryout.
  
• Fixed action camera skins issue where they would not allow to recolor the camera.
  
• Fixed several graphical issues in the Short Circuit, Pine Valley, Bando City, Bardwell's Yard, Hall 26, Dubai Legends and Hannover environments.
  
• Fixed drone stats not showing correctly in the drone selection option of the pause menu.
  
• Updated lighting visuals in Dubai Legends, Hall26, Minus Two and Paris Drone Festival.
  
• Fixed issue where track items with multiple checkpoints would not properly display which checkpoint to fly through during a race.
  Fixed: exploit where multiplayer game modifiers weren't applied properly when switching the game settings mid-play.
  
• Fixed issue with the race guides not properly visualizing the path if a track item with multiple checkpoints was set as a start or ending checkpoint of a race.
  

EDIT: For those who experience MP issues after the 1.6.6 release, a quickfix was released that (hopefully) fixes most of these problems. We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience.




[h2]Dquad Fixation Tournament - Finals are about to commence.[/h2]
The stage is set for the highly anticipated Dquad Fixation Tournament Finals! In the coming weeks, we’ll officially kick off this thrilling event. Our finalist pilots have been contacted and are prepared to face off in Liftoff, competing in the debut of our newly introduced Elimination Tournament format.

We invite everyone to check out the new tournament system as our finalist compete and we’re excited to roll out this format for everyone to enjoy after the Dquad Fixation Tournament Finals wrap up.

As always we thank our sponsor Dquad for making this possible!

Hear ye, brave adventurers! As the moon casts its eerie glow upon us, a challenge of epic proportions awaits! Venture forth into the realm of shadows during the Halloween event and compel every pumpkin to yield its treasure, for only then shall you unlock the coveted "Trick or Treat" achievement!

Trick me or treat me,
I don’t care what you do,
just promise to give me a prop or two.

But heed this call with valor and style, for the path to glory is paved with choices. Equip thyself with the legendary Halloween Talon skin, and let your presence be known throughout the land! May your hunt be grand, and your victory everlasting! Onward, noble warriors, to triumph and glory!

While we’ve been steadily propelling Liftoff forward (hello, shiny new racelines!), we know things might seem quieter than usual on the update front. This hasn't been the result of a slacking team! In fact, it’s quite the opposite, for months we’ve been cooking up some of the biggest, boldest features in recent years! Without going into details, here's a list of things in production

• A new drone type
  
• A new pro League tournament bracket system
  
• Fully customizable drone HUD
  
• A complete UI overhaul, giving the whole project a fresh look
  
• A reimagined track builder, rebuilt from the ground up
  

Our upcoming track builder is set to make its debut in both Liftoff: FPV Drone Racing and Liftoff: Micro Drones. Although it's not ready for prime time just yet, we’re thrilled to give you a glimpse of what’s been developed so far. Please note, this demo showcases a work-in-progress, so it hasn’t undergone the final polish you’ll see in the official release.


Multi select and edit



Drag and drop placement and manipulation



Mouse camera movement, tooltips and smooth interactions



Splines and auto placement

This update brings a fresh look to our race guides, enhances their path precision, and lets you preview further ahead on your route. We've also tackled a few bugs for better performance and refined drone customization options.

[h2]Changelist:[/h2]

• Updated the race guides' visuals.
  
• Updated the race guides' path generation to be a smoother approximation of the actual flight path.
  
• Updated the race guides to allow to go further than the next gate. The look ahead value can be adjusted in the game options window.
  
• Fixed small a memory issue which could cause framerate issues.
  
• Fixed an issue in the multiplayer game lobby where the god mode modifier was always shown as active.
  
• Fixed the Rotor Riot TanQ2 and Dquad Fixation frames to allow the camera angle and additional weight to be adjusted in the drone workbench.
  
• Fixed the Flite Test Gremlin Boar to allow to adjust the additional weight in the drone workbench.
  

[h2]Race guides[/h2]
Race guides have long been invaluable to Liftoff pilots, providing crucial direction along the racetrack. However, they have not been without their limitations. With this update, we are introducing an enhanced race guide implementation to further refine and improve their effectiveness. The race guides have been updated with improved visuals and a smoother path approximation. They now also allow you to preview paths beyond the next gate, with the look ahead distance adjustable in the game options.

This is only the beginning. As the race guides are automatically generated based on the game's interpretation of your unique track designs, they may still struggle with more intricate or creative layouts. To address this, we will soon introduce a new tool that allows track builders to refine these guidelines according to their specific creations, with the launch of our upcoming track builder update.