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Hotfix Patch v1.0.4(+21a91030)

Greetings Director,

We're sending a quick hotfix your way to fix a couple of issues relating to profiles, the details of which can be found below:

  • Fixed an issue where profiles could become corrupted during saving. Unfortunately this will not fix previously corrupted profiles and users affected by the issue will need to restart, however the level saves themselves should still work. We apologise to anyone who was affected by this issue.
  • Fixed an issue where consultant would not display on the consultant galaxy menu screen and skins were not working.

As always, please keep reports coming in via our Official Tracker and please read our Instructions for best quality reports.

Until next time Director,

Brightrock & CULT


Update Notes: Version 1.0.4

Greetings Directors! We've been very very busy so this will be a big one.

Game Systems & Balance


[h2]Economy & Fines[/h2]
Overall, we feel players are currently receiving too much income from treatments, especially when they optimise their hospitals with upgrades and consultants. We’ve lowered the base treatment income a little bit, and increased the starting amount of credits you start with to ensure the initial construction phase isn’t too punishing.
  • Income from treatments reduced by 12%
  • Starting credits increased from 75,000 to 100,000
  • You can no longer set staff salaries to negative amounts (regardless of how passionate they may be about their job)
  • Fixed fines not applying when kicking patients out of the hospital


[h2]Treatment & Patient Health[/h2]
The impact of both research and higher level doctors wasn’t being felt quite enough, so treatments are now overall a bit harder, and patients will lose more health whilst waiting - whereas doctor levels and research levels now both provide larger bonuses.
  • Base treatment difficulty increased from -30 to -35
  • Treatment bonus from doctor rank increased from +5 to +6 (per rank)
  • Treatment bonus from research increased from +5 to +6 (per research level)
  • Danger Level 1 condition health decay increased by 36%
  • Danger Level 2 condition health decay increased by 36%
  • Danger Level 3 condition health decay increased by 36%
  • Danger Level 4 condition health decay decreased by 2.5%


[h2]Disruptive Patient Spawner[/h2]
The disruptive patient spawner is responsible for disrupting your hospital, but these disruptive patient waves weren’t being felt enough once your hospital reached a certain size. This system is now slower to ramp up, but later in it will spawn larger, more dangerous waves of patients for you to deal with.
  • Now more likely to spawn patients with lower starting health
  • Minimum wave size reduced (when the hospital is small)
  • Maximum wave size increased (when the hospital is large)
  • No longer kicks in immediately when the hospital is opened in sandbox mode


[h2]Character Mood & Needs[/h2]
Simply put, doctors were not using the Staff Lounge enough. We’ve made a round of changes to nudge them towards taking more regular breaks focused primarily on the staff lounge. Additionally, you now need to work slightly harder to keep everyone happy.
  • Adjusted the needs system so staff will now primarily take breaks to visit the Staff Lounge, and will make use of vending machines and toilets far less often
  • Characters now have a base mood of 40 (down from 50)
  • Patients will now make use of toilets and vending machines much more often
  • Patients are now more likely to use toilets and vending machines shortly after entering the hospital
  • Staff are less likely to need to use toilets and vending machines shortly after entering the hospital
  • Vizarj now need to use the toilet more frequently than other species (as it's their only physical need)


[h2]Congestion[/h2]
The congestion system was being hampered by a number of bugs. These have now been resolved, and we’ve made a few minor balance changes to smooth the system out.
  • Fixed an issue which caused Kouber Baly characters to never forget about any congestion they observed
  • Tweaked some thresholds to make congestion overall a bit less sensitive
  • Fixed an issue which caused Loamgates, escalators and elevators to produce a large amount of congestion
  • Improved some text, tooltips, and icons associated with the congestion system


[h2]Hospital Rating[/h2]
We’ve made some adjustments to the hospital rating system to better balance the difficulty of each category, instead of some categories being universally much easier than others to max out. We also fixed a very impactful bug which caused decorations inside rooms to not count towards species desires.
  • Throughput rating requirement reduced by ~20% (this requirement scales based on the size of the map)
  • Finance rating requirement reduced by ~20% (this requirement scales based on the size of the map)
  • "Good" threshold for Patient Mood increased from 80% to 85%
  • "Good" threshold for Staff Mood increased from 80% to 85%"Good" threshold for Success Rate reduced from 95% to 90%
  • Patient Health rating now has a larger impact on your overall Hospital Rating
  • Additional minor adjustments to other thresholds throughout the system
  • Fixed deaths in treatment rooms not being tracked most of the time (now those deaths really are just statistics)
  • Fixed an issue which caused decorations in rooms to not count towards species desires & hospital rating
  • Fixed hospital rating sometimes erroneously being rounded up in the UI, making it seem like you have reached 5 stars when you actually haven't (sorry, you'll need to try a bit harder!)


[h2]Pricing Changes[/h2]
  • Medibot: 20k (200 Craftium) → 40k Credits (400 Craftium)
  • Stabilising Solution: 3k (30 Craftium) → 2k Credits (20 Craftium)
  • Repair Kit: 3k (30 Craftium) → 2k Credits (20 Craftium)
  • Technique Monitor: 30k (300 Craftium) → 20k Credits (200 Craftium)
  • Bio Analyser: 30k (300 Craftium) → 20k Credits (200 Craftium)
  • Subsonic Dampener: 30k (300 Craftium) → 20k Credits (200 Craftium)
  • Regenerative Nanites: 40k (400 Craftium) → 30k Credits (300 Craftium)
  • Critter Lure: 30k (300 Craftium) → 40k Credits (400 Craftium)
  • Genetic Replicator: 25k (250 Craftium) → 20k Credits (200 Craftium)
  • Training Room: 10k → 3k
  • Training Room Matrix: 1k → 1.5k
  • Recovery Ward: 10k → 3k
  • Recovery Ward Bed: 1k → 1.5k


[h2]Other Balance Changes[/h2]
  • Reputation gains from treatment increased by 25%
  • Loamble collection reward: 1 Loamite → 2 Loamite
  • Holo-Docs now generate 50% reduced income from their treatments
  • Regenerative Nanites health boost: +15 → +20
  • Subsonic Dampener damage protection: 85% → 95%
  • Nourishment Module need reduction: 75% → 90%
  • Ohde Energy Collector: 15 credits per second → 5 credits per second



Campaign


[h2]Chapter 1[/h2]
  • Various tweaks and updates to prevent overlapping dialogue sequences


[h2]Chapter 3[/h2]
  • Fixed an issue which caused Klem Banzig's truck to occasionally block the track for longer than intended


[h2]Chapter 4[/h2]
  • Fixed some minor dialogue timing issues


[h2]Chapter 5[/h2]
  • Updated the final event patient wave to spawn 20 patients, rather than just 5
  • Fixed some scorch marks that were placed incorrectly
  • Fixed some minor dialogue timing issues


[h2]Chapter 6[/h2]
  • Fixed some minor dialogue timing issues
  • Fixed security drones being attracted to Critter lures, despite not being critters (don't listen to them if they tell you otherwise)


[h2]Chapter 7[/h2]
  • Fixed some canister objectives not displaying the full information


[h2]Chapter 8[/h2]
  • Improved the animation of Xil shuttles
  • Improved the appearance of the generator


[h2]Chapter 11[/h2]
  • Improved the appearance of some background elements
  • Fixed some canister objectives not displaying the full information



Visuals


[h2]Visual Improvements[/h2]
  • Improved the appearance of the Memory Tank decoration
  • Soft drink cans now attach to hands (and other appendages) in a more pleasing manner


[h2]Visual Fixes[/h2]
  • Fixed an issue which caused Tenki patients to occasionally violently detach from beds mid-treatment
  • Fixed Parasitology VFX issues when the room was built on the upper floor
  • Fixed the dot-matrix displays on the exterior of the hospital occasionally skipping
  • Fixed a visual issue on the 'brain vomit' in the Dreamarium
  • Photonymphs extracted in parasitology will now actually be removed from the patient. Timing updated on visuals.
  • Fixed some missing VFX on the Electromagnetic Pest
  • Glubs extracted by the Doctopus in Parasitology will no longer remain floating in the air
  • Fixed canister avatars in the Dramarium not receiving the correct material



User Interface


[h2]UI Improvements[/h2]
  • Doctors now display their currently-assigned room in the staff management panel even when they are on break (and you can also lock and unlock them whilst they are on break)
  • Added a dedicated "default" cursor mode button next to the other cursor mode buttons (this improves the flow when switching in and out of other modes, such as the crafting mode)
  • Clicking on any of the "Inspect [X]" in the objective panel will now pan the camera to that thing
  • Added a Support link to the pause menu (PC only)
  • The initial loading screen will now display "Loading..." in your own language, instead of internal debug messages
  • Mousing over any whereabouts text will now display the full message in a tooltip, even if the original text was truncated due to its length
  • Most room upgrades and consumables now list numerical information in their tooltip (eg: how much of an XP boost you gain from the Technique Monitor) (Note: this change is English only for now, other languages will gain this in an upcoming update)
  • Character skins are no longer categorised as art in the galactic exchange


[h2]UI Bug Fixes[/h2]
  • Fixed an issue which caused some UI panels to refuse to open (or close immediately upon being opened)
  • Fixed the research room build wizard erroneously suggesting that you place another Hyper Computer (you can not, in fact, place another Hyper Computer)
  • Fixed hospital rating reward toasts not popping up in sandbox mode
  • Fixed the galaxy menu transition effect sometimes appearing behind certain screens (like the galactic exchange)
  • Fixed in-game Loamite counter not updating after spending Loamite in the galactic exchange
  • Fixed staff trait icons being coloured incorrectly in some circumstances
  • Fixed only the top half of the consultant hero portraits being clickable
  • Fixed a rare issue where the hospital rating panel wouldn't close
  • Fixed consultant rank up toasts missing not actually including the name of the consultant that's levelled up
  • Fixed the reward trail VFX not playing properly when the game was paused
  • Fixed an issue which caused the holographic brains in Cerebral Rehab to be completely invisible
  • Fixed staff level labels spilling out of their box in the staff management screen
  • Additional safeties added to the recruitment panel portraits



Other


[h2]Game Settings[/h2]
  • Added an accessibility option to disable screen shake effects
  • Added a control option to enable free look when holding the middle mouse button
  • Added control options to invert pitch & rotation
  • "Subtitle Size" has been renamed to "Dialogue Text Size"
  • "Environmental Dialogue Volume" has been renamed to "Environment Volume" (it always was environment volume


[h2]Localisation[/h2]
  • Updated some German localisation to use slightly more modern language
  • Fixed some text in the room creation panel bleeding out in certain languages
  • Improved the appearance of the consultant skill tree when playing in some languages
  • Fixed some missing localisation in the hospital rating panel
  • Fixed the "save template" button text bleeding out in some languages
  • Fixed some typos in the French localisation


[h2]Other Changes[/h2]
  • Improved the way recruits are generated - the frist recruit can now be anything, instead of being a guaranteed trainee (instead, the last recruit will now be a guaranteed trainee if you don't already have one available)
  • Babylo Getaway (the first sandbox map) is now unlocked after completing Chapter 2 (not Chapter 1)
  • When starting Sandbox a new sandbox you now begin with 500 Craftium


[h2]Additional Bug Fixes[/h2]
  • Fixed canisters very occasionally not being able to find a path to a treatment room
  • Fixed a rare occurance of calls not appearing when they should
  • Fixed some occurrences of patients sitting in the air, opposite a bench
  • Fixed an issue which caused patients to attempt to vomit mid-treatment
  • Fixed an issue which caused patients carrying Ultra's Warp Buddies to occasionally teleport mid-treatment
  • Fixed an issue on console where the game could lock up when opening the consultant roster
  • Fixed an issue which caused litter underneath placed objects to stick around forever, causing complaints of mess that never went away (as they couldn't be cleaned up)
  • Fixed the Overflow Tank decoration not being placeable anywhere but a Skin Lab
  • Fixed patients killed by malpractice being incorrectly marked as being killed by a malfunction (own up to your mistakes, please)
  • Stabilising Solutions can no longer be used on patients that are mid-death (it's too late for them, sorry)
  • Fixed some of Twiggy Pop's dialogue being a bit too quiet
  • Fixed an issue where 3 star hospital rating rewards would sometimes not be unlocked despite your rating being significantly higher
  • Fixed an issue where sometimes interaction points in rooms could be blocked by decorative objects, making the room non-functional
  • Fixed various issues with the system that teleports characters and other objects away from newly-constructed rooms
  • Fixed an issue where consultants would sometimes not enter the hospital with their previously-selected skin
  • Fixed long queue notifications for reception desks being offset from the desk
  • Fixed an issue which caused staff to not train in the Training Room despite being manually assigned there
  • Fixed a very rare issue which caused all movement logic in the game to cease functioning
  • Fixed lenses painting tiles in outer space, instead of just inside the hospital
  • Fixed various issues with consultant personal goals
  • Fixed several sandbox events showing the wrong condition icon in the objective panel
  • Fixed an issue which caused Medibots to sometimes be highlighted in red when placing them
  • Lens highlights should now correctly disable during cutscenes
  • Fixed an edge case where returning shuttles would not be detected by the level script - after a short window the script will now continue regardless
  • Fixed Baz's Lucky Tooth not actually speeding up the merchant cooldown
  • Fixed characters sometimes not facing forwards in their character portraits


As always, please keep reports coming in via our Official Tracker and please read our Instructions for best quality reports.

Until next time Director,

Brightrock & CULT


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First Week & State of the Game

Greetings Director,

Welcome back to Galacticare Wednesday! It’s been just under one week since Galacticare took its first stride to the stars - and what a week it’s been!

Before we get into that though check out this awesome cake featuring the undeniably attractive Baz.



[h2]150,000 Directors[/h2]

We’re very pleased with how the game has been received thus far, with over 150,000 new directors joining Galacticare’s ranks across all platforms and stores!



We’re incredibly pleased with how well the game has been received. The style, sensibility, humour, narrative, visuals and gameplay are all resonating well, and that means we already have something special on our hands.

But that doesn’t make it perfect, and it was certainly never going to be perfect. We’re tracking feedback and engaging with the community daily across Steam, Discord and beyond to work out where we can deliver improvements so that everyone can enjoy the game more. So please read on, but also drop us a line in the comments, discussion threads or our Discord - we’re really eager to hear your feedback!


[h2]Patch 1.0.4[/h2]

As you may already be aware, we’ve deployed two updates since launch: v1.0.2 and v1.0.3, but we’re not stopping there and are hard at work on v1.0.4, which fixes several commonly-reported issues:
- Decorative species desires not being fulfilled by decorations in rooms
- Doctors not using Training Room when manually assigned
- Doctors only using the Staff Lounge very infrequently
- Consultant goals not progressing
- Congestion issues
And much, much more.

This update also brings an initial set of balance tweaks based on community feedback, as well as a number of camera control options (including the ability to disable camera shake).

We’re hoping to have v1.0.4 with you as soon as possible. It’ll be coming to Steam first, followed by GOG and PS5 shortly after. Xbox & PC Game Pass builds are currently slightly behind due to platform certification requirements, but we’re hoping to get closer to parity in the coming weeks and months.

We’re working hard to patch everything that gets reported to us, so if you encounter any issues please do give us a shout on our support site and follow the instructions on how to report issues to the highest quality.


[h2]Difficulty[/h2]

We’ve been following the discussion surrounding the game’s difficulty with great interest, and we agree with the sentiment that Galacticare should provide a more challenging gameplay experience for more experienced management game players.

Galacticare has long been envisioned as a game with a very low barrier to entry, while also having a number of additional systems for more experienced players to play with. The goal was that these systems were all opt-in, and not required in order for less experienced players to be able to succeed at the game.

In essence: It’s all actually working as intended, but our intent wasn’t quite on target.

We’ve come to the conclusion that lowering the barrier to entry this much has resulted in a number of these gameplay systems feeling superfluous for players who are experienced in the genre. If you’re already doing well, why make use of upgrades, consultants, and other tools?

It’s still very early days, but we’re looking into a number of options to provide that challenging experience without compromising on the low barrier to entry (which, based on feedback, is preferable to a large portion of the audience!).

v1.0.4 will bring a few minor balance changes, and we’ve begun testing a much wider set of difficulty-focused balance changes internally this week. We’ll have more information on that soon™


That’s about all we have for you today, thanks for taking the time to read through and thank you for trying out Galacticare! We expect that there’s a bright future ahead!

Until next time Director,

Brightrock & CULT

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Update Notes: Version 1.0.3

Greetings Directors,

We're pleased to bring you version 1.0.3, the first of many (but hopefully not too many) updates aiming to fix the issues found in the lead up to release and a few issues the growing community has found.

  • Fixed patients occasionally turning into cars, busses, and trucks
  • Fixed an issue with the Staff Lounge construction help text asking you to do the impossible - all staff lounges are valid and worthy
  • Various fixes to Canister behaviour
  • Fixed an issue with unlocking decorative objects from the Galactic Exchange
  • Fixed various issues with data and portraits failing to load in the recruitment panel
  • Fixed the auto-scrolling text in the new species introduction panels
  • Various improvements to objective signposting in Chapter 1
  • Various stability fixes for the wonderful trains featured in Chapter 3
  • Fixed various missing tooltips
  • Fixed the "My Pet Hospital" achievement not tracking progress correctly
  • Fixed an issue which caused hundreds of unwelcome patients to occasionally swarm the hospital
  • Fixed an incorrect icon being used to represent smelliness
  • Minor fixes to Colossal treatment in Chapter 9
  • Fixed some rooms very rarely not allowing any patients to queue up and use them
  • Fixed an issue which allowed certain Craftech items to be placed infinitely (oops)
  • Fixed the end of level cutscene trigger being a bit wonky in Chapter 2
  • Fixed unwelcome, useless canisters overstaying their welcome in Chapter 11
  • Fixed some Craftium blueprints unlocking earlier than intended
  • Fixed the hospital finances screen being less accurate than a Hollywood studio balance sheet
  • Fixed holes being left behind when moving windows and other wall decorations
  • Fixed consultant levels appearing incorrectly in the galaxy menu
  • Fixed reward toasts not popping up in sandbox mode
  • General stability improvements
  • Various fixes to dropdown lists
  • Many fixes for overflowing text when not playing in English
  • Various localisation fixes
  • Fixed canisters occasionally being invisible


Once again, please keep reports coming in via our Official Tracker. Please read our Instructions for best quality reports.


Until next time,

- Brightrock Games

Two Point Hospital has a major rival as new management sim hits Steam

Two Point Hospital was just about everything I wanted from a revival of the classic Bullfrog days of Theme Park and Theme Hospital. It maintained everything that made those old games so special, and yet introduced a complete freshening up across the board so that it all felt new again. But where do we go from there? Developer Brightrock Games has the answer, taking the hospital sim into space with new management game Galacticare, which has just launched on Steam.


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