Survive the Nights News

Howdy! It’s been a while but we’ve got some great improvements for you all to check out! We’ve been hunkered down and focused on some much needed optimizations and feature requests! We’ve introduced new sewers in Blackrock, true offline mode, a really nice party system and some great fixes and optimization! Below is just a little showcase of a few of our fixes and features in 1.39. Be sure to checkout the changelog at the end of the blog for more details.

Unfortunately, a database increment will be required for this update. However, with version 1.0 just around the corner, this should be one of the last wipes we’ll have to deal with! We’re going to focus heavily on polishing things up for the best possible release coming out of early access!

[h3]Party System[/h3]
Probably the 2nd most requested feature next to real single player. The party system allows players to chat, share XP, it has its own ranks, custom name tags along with friendly-fire blockers! Check out the commands below.

Party commands

Party Chat

[h3]True Offline Mode[/h3]
Single player’s been your #1 request—and it’s finally here.

Full offline mode. Hop into your world-save settings, flip the Single Player toggle to ON (sets single player=true behind the scenes), connect via localhost, and play with zero internet.
Auto-pause. Step away from the keyboard: in single player the whole world freezes—zeds included. Jump back in whenever. (Online worlds still behave exactly as before.)

Heads-up: Steam achievements & stats won’t track while you’re offline; they need a live Steam connection. Also you will need to make at least one connection with internet enabled to authenticate with Steam but after that no more internet needed!


We hope this helps out those that want to play on the go or just don’t have great internet access. If you’re having any issues feel free to shoot a message over to us via Discord.

[h3]Quick Adding[/h3]
A nice quality of life improvement added in 1.39 is quick adding. You can now hold add and remove (+ and -) buttons on all machines to quickly add and remove items! This small detail really helps smooth machine interactions over.

Quick add fire

Quick add fuel/vehicle

[h3]Optimizations and Performance[/h3]
We’ve focused on a lot of optimization here. Sector lag is practically gone, the entire project just seems far more fluid. There have been major performance boosts to the server, world-loading, zombie hordes, startup, vegetation, barricades, DB, power-station load, sound dampening all kinds of really nice polish to push us towards a solid release.

Everyone should see a major improvement to performance across the board. With higher frame rates overall and significantly reduced world loading lag.

We’ve added support for AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution 3 (FSR 3), and it’s now the default anti-aliasing mode in the game.

FSR 3 boosts performance by rendering at a lower resolution and upscaling the image to maintain sharpness and detail. At higher settings, it also tends to look cleaner than traditional anti-aliasing, with smoother edges and fewer artifacts—without the same performance cost.
It works on all modern GPU types, not just AMD cards, so everyone can benefit regardless of hardware.

You can still switch to other options in the graphics settings, but FSR 3 offers a solid balance of visuals and performance by default.

[h3]Smoother Driving[/h3]
Another massive improvement is to vehicles and driving mechanics. Players will instantly noticed how much smoother driving around the map feels due to our efforts with optimization. Check out the short video below and enjoy the smoothness! Keep in mind watching the video that JB is driving and his skills are pretty unmatched so don’t be too jealous ;)

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Along with the far smoother experience when it comes to driving, we have also added the player owner tag on vehicles, so that should make figuring out who’s car is who’s much easier!

Car owner now displayed on the vehicles hover UI

Vehicle fuel usage is also now dynamic, based on engine load. This will allow players to idle vehicles and not worry about running out of fuel so quickly. Obviously you will also use more fuel based on how fast you’re going so take it easy ova hea!

[h3]Fortification Snapping[/h3]
We’ve added fortification placement snapping to free placed fortifications. Making walls and zombie blockers has never been easier, or neater!


Fortification snapping

[h3]Patch Notes - 1.39[/h3]

Bug Fixes

• Fixed various location-based achievements that weren’t working correctly
  
• Fix for rare electrical system errors
  

Performance Optimisations

• Major performance optimisations to server
  
• Major improvements to the environment loading system to reduce lag spikes
  
• Reduced lag when many zombies are active
  
• Reduced startup lag spikes
  
• Vegetation performance improvements
  
• Fixed low FPS caused by barricades
  
• Reduced relevancy time for pickups to decrease non-essential overhead
  
• Fixes and optimisations to database processes to improve performance and concurrency
  
• Potential fix for lag caused by the power station when many players are online
  
• Fixed background lag caused by the attribute page when it’s not open
  
• Improved sound dampening performance
  

New Features (Core Gameplay)

• Added party grouping system with:
  - In-group chat
  - Rank hierarchy (Member, Moderator, Leader)
  - XP sharing among online group members
  - Group member map and name tag visibility
  - Friendly fire protection for grouped players
  
• Added dynamic fuel consumption based on engine load
  
• Added full offline play support
  
• Added full game pausing in offline/single player mode
  
• Added hold-down controls to quickly add/remove items from machines and adjust attribute points more efficiently
  
• Reviewed and adjusted attribute skill requirements for all harvest points in the game
  

World Improvements

• Police station exit door now includes an emergency-only exit (testable in Addersfield)
  
• Prison armory exit converted to an electric door with emergency-only exit to prevent re-entry exploits (testable)
  
• Harvest machines set to “destroy only” no longer display hover UI (testable on shipping containers)
  

Building & Crafting

• Introduced flat-placement mode for barricades
  
• Enabled snapping between barricades with automatic rotation
  
• Allowed steeper and more flexible placement angles for barricades
  

UI Enhancements

• Clarified the difference between player level and attribute skill in the UI
  
• Vehicle owner is now displayed in the hover UI for vehicles
  

STN+

• Added new log barricade
  
• Adjusted blueprint recipes and added new recipe for log barricade
  

[h3]Links[/h3]
Discord: https://discord.gg/survivethenights

Changelog: https://changelog.survivethenights.net

X: https://x.com/STNgame

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/STNgame

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/a2zinteractive

Website: https://www.survivethenights.net

Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/a2zinteractive

We’re releasing a quick hotfix today to our default branch. Please check against the changelog below and report any issues directly to the team in game or via Discord.

[h3]Patch Notes - HOTFIX 1.38.2[/h3]

• Fix for items falling through interior props.
  
• Fix for AI going into vehicles when driving into them
  
• Fix for vehicles exploding/glitching when ragdolls freeze
  
• Player list (P menu) now populates immediately
  
• Player list quick links now work correctly.
  
• Player list dropdown for 'add name to chat' and 'tell player' now work again.
  
• Official scenarios updated to have friend visibility on map always on.
  
• Improvements to player movement to smooth and polish the overall movement feel.
  
• Friends are now reliably visible on the map.
  
• Added new server config option named 'playerFriendVisibility' which allows the host to determine how far friends are visible from.
  
• Bitterhold/airport/carlot achievement should work again
  
• Skill book reading time overhaul. Reading times are now between 10-15 minutes.
  

Links
Discord: https://discord.gg/survivethenights

Changelog: https://changelog.survivethenights.net

X: https://xcom/STNgame

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/STNgame

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/a2zinteractive

Website: https://www.survivethenights.net

Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/a2zinteractive

[p]We’re releasing a quick hotfix today to our default branch. Please check against the changelog below and report any issues directly to the team in game or via Discord.[/p][p][/p][h3]Patch Notes - HOTFIX 1.38.1[/h3]

• [p] Vehicles continue to spawn after initial startup when loot spawn is off but vehicle respawn is on[/p]
• [p] Fixes some instances of disappearing vehicles (affected 'Balanced survival scenario)[/p]
• [p] Fixed 'Horde mode' Setting so that it's not confusing with horde frequency.[/p]
• [p] Translations for the guide added.[/p]
• [p] Newsfeed/changelog can now be closed by clicking next to it or pressing esc[/p]
• [p] Fixes the inability to enter a password when direct connecting.[/p]
• [p] Entering the sewers via the crypt no longer teleports the player to the surface.[/p]
• [p] Fixed overly dense vegetation west of sage creek.[/p]
• [p] Fixed image resolutions in the newsfeed.[/p]

[p][/p][p]Links[/p][p]Discord: https://discord.gg/survivethenights[/p][p][/p][p]Changelog: https://changelog.survivethenights.net[/p][p][/p][p]X: https://x.com/STNgame[/p][p][/p][p]Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/STNgame[/p][p][/p][p]YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/a2zinteractive[/p][p][/p][p]Website: https://www.survivethenights.net[/p][p][/p][p]Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/a2zinteractive[/p]

We’re pushing 1.38 to the stable branch! This patch is a big one and a preemptive strike on what’s to come. We’ve really focused on some of your concerns and long standing issues with the project and plan to really flesh things out in the next couple of updates. We’ve also begun to add (or re-add depending on how long you’ve been around) a sewer system. It will eventually make its way into every town but we’ve started in Old Town of course!

[h3]Fixes (Major)[/h3]
Survive the Nights is a beast, as such it sometimes has a nasty side. We’re a tiny team tackling a massive task and unfortunately (depending on how into early access you are) you all are our testers, even if some of you might not realize that. We’ve had our fair share of big time issues and bugs throughout the development process. Some of these issues are caught before you get your hands on builds but quite a few aren’t.

1.38 should be considered our first in a few major tune ups. This build along with the next couple that follow will have a hard core focus on getting this puppy polished up. We’ve created a pretty damn cool zombie survival game now it’s time to make sure it functions as it should. The core of development is in, our backbone is solid and we’re ready to polish and improve!

Zombies
Many of you have pointed out in recent videos, Discord chatter and reviews that there are zombie issues. The biggest of them being “zombie re-animation!”, chances are you’ve experienced this at some point, shooting a zombie only to have it pop right back up and continue to attack you. We’ve made some great progress in tracking what was causing that issue and think we’ve put a pin in it!

Storage Containers
We’ve had a few issues with storage containers and duplications/persistence. We’ve found a few issues and the backend/database methods have been adjusted. This should ensure a far more reliable system along with the removal of the duplication issue.

Single Player
Some players don’t have great internet service and we get that. Survive the nights was never intended to be a single player experience but we do have that option now. In the past builds players playing solo had to maintain an internet connection, making playing not fun if you’re not fortunate enough to have decent interwebs. 1.38 will only require a simple initial connection to verify the steam game, after that connection solo players shouldn’t have any issues continuing play.

Other major fixes include clearing up persistent issues with vehicle seats showing as occupied and a variety of single player problems that have now been resolved. These fixes bring more stability and reliability to your sessions, no matter how you choose to play.



[h3]Quality-of-Life Polishing[/h3]
We’ve taken the time to refine and polish the survival experience across the board. Fortification systems now work as intended, reaching full strength, behaving properly with locks, and no longer triggering just because you walked through an open doorway.

Other notable changes include fixing item persistence in stoves and machines, restoring functionality to work lamps, resolving strange fall damage from ladders, and ensuring locked doors stay locked after a restart. Even niche issues, like problems in “Night of the Living Dead” scenarios or with the /hordedifficulty command, have been addressed.

Core systems improvement harvesting is now a proper player skill, opening the door for future progression mechanics. We also overhauled the in-game tutorial, making it easier for new survivors to get their bearings.

[h3]Performance Improvements[/h3]
Performance tuning was a huge focus for this update. From faster startup times to reduced lag around vegetation and barricades, 1.38 makes the world run smoother. We also optimized the relevancy system for pickups (reducing server clutter), and made several backend improvements to our database and server processing — all of which should contribute to more stable gameplay, especially on populated servers.

We’ve also implemented a potential fix for lag around the power station when many players are online — a common pain point that should now be less noticeable.

[h3]New Tutorial[/h3]
A major step up from our previous tutorial the 1.38 new player tutorial is a self contained, fully voiced and far more immersive. It should really help new players wrap there minds around Survive the Nights and the voice over just adds a great touch.



[h3]Sewers, Graveyards, and Crypts (All Very Zombie-Conducive)[/h3]
If you’ve been here for a while you might remember the original stress tests. These tests featured a tiny chunk of island and a town that would eventually become oldtown. This small town featured a sewer system. There were a few above ground buildings (changed to public bathrooms) in town that allowed entrance to the system.

1.38 re-introduces the sewer system, bigger and better. This is just the begging of our underground adventure to! We plan on expanding sewer systems under all towns and using the same mechanics to introduced structure basements!

We’ve also re-introduced the graveyard behind the church in Oldtown. There’s a spooky crypt there that holds some secrets so be sure to check that out!







[h3]Oldtown Sewer System[/h3]









[h3]Workshop (Arcade Game Project)[/h3]
We’ll be including the arcade github project in this update. Documentation will follow, just have to find some time for it. If you’re into this, and have an arcade in mind by all means go for it! We’ll introduce the actual workshop item in the following update, likely 1.39.

Github - Runelink2/STN-Workshop: STN Workshop



[h3]Patch Notes - 1.38[/h3]

Bug Fixes (Critical)

• Major fix: Resolved issue causing zombies to occasionally pop back to life
  
• Major fix: Storage container duplication issues resolved
  
• Major fix: Single player mode no longer requires a constant internet connection
  
• Fixed scenario where vehicle seats incorrectly remained occupied
  
• Fixed problems affecting single player mode functionality
  

Bug Fixes (Quality‑of‑Life)

• Corrected an error that prevented fortifications from reaching full strength
  
• Fixed issue preventing interaction with certain locks while in fortification mode
  
• Fortification mode no longer triggers when walking through open doorways
  
• Addressed a persistence bug with fixed machines (e.g., wood stoves) that caused items to reappear
  
• Fixed fall damage occurring when dismounting ladders
  
• Worklamps now function correctly again
  
• Resolved issues with Nazi zombies and Night of the Living Dead scenarios
  
• Doors with locks now default to the locked state after a server restart
  
• Fixed the /hordedifficulty admin command
  
• Fixed scenario preventing connection to a server after using Steam relays
  

Performance Optimisations

• Reduced startup lag spikes
  
• Vegetation performance improvements
  
• Fixed low FPS caused by barricades
  
• Reduced relevancy time for pickups to decrease non‑essential overhead
  
• Server performance optimisations
  
• Fixes and optimisations to database processes to improve performance and concurrency
  
• Potential fix for lag caused by the power station when many players are online
  

New Features (Core Gameplay)

• Full tutorial overhaul with many improvements
  
• Harvesting has been upgraded to function as a player skill
  
• Players can now sit only in chairs that have been placed in the environment
  
• Reintroduced hand warming by fire
  
• Improved tree‑chopping — players can continue chopping from any interaction point
  

New Features (World & Exploration)

• Established a new sewer network beneath Oldtown, featuring multiple ground‑level access points
  
• Added a graveyard area in Oldtown complete with a crypt entrance leading to the sewers
  
• Added manhole functionality to serve as entry points into the underground sewer system
  

Audio Enhancements

• Added an improved audio reverb system with strong effects in sewers and military tunnels, plus reverb in tall buildings; weapon sounds now respond to environmental acoustics
  
• Smooth reverb transitions between different acoustic types
  

UI Enhancements

• Updated waypoint system: larger icons, improved off‑screen indicators, fading when targets are obscured, and pulsing effect on yellow waypoints
  
• Crosshair now appears early when targeting interactable objects for easier aiming
  
• Crosshair instantly appears (no fade‑in) on interactables and smoothly fades out when no longer targeting
  
• Increased crosshair size for better visibility
  
• Added glow effect to crosshair when hovering over interactable objects
  

Admin Commands

• Introduced a command for smoothly zooming to a designated time, reducing visual jarring
  

Workshop

• Developed a foundational workshop project that supports the creation of arcade games for in‑game machines
  

Asset Imports

• Imported sewer‑related assets
  

[h3]Links[/h3]
Discord: https://discord.gg/survivethenights

Changelog: https://changelog.survivethenights.net

X: https://x.com/STNgame

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/STNgame

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/a2zinteractive

Website: https://www.survivethenights.net

Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/a2zinteractive

We’re releasing a quick hotfix today to our default branch. Please check against the changelog below and report any issues directly to the team in game or via Discord. *Please note: world save data will be wiped

[h3]Patch Notes - HOTFIX 1.37.2[/h3]

• Sleeping bags can now be removed again.
  
• Fixed arcade machines not being able to be placed.
  
• Fixed lock hovers.
  
• Light bulbs can now be placed in light fittings again.
  
• Database increment (world save data will be wiped)
• Attached parts should go missing from vehicles less frequently.
  

Scenario Fixes

• Night of the Living Dead scenario now working again.
  
• Nazi Zombies scenario working again.
  

Links
Discord: https://discord.gg/survivethenights

Changelog: https://changelog.survivethenights.net

X: https://xcom/STNgame

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/STNgame

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/a2zinteractive

Website: https://www.survivethenights.net

Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/a2zinteractive