Phantom Brigade News

[h2]🆕 NEW FEATURES[/h2]

• [p]Added texture streaming to reduce memory use. When enabled, the game will continuously adjust texture sizes depending on objects in camera view, saving approximately 1-1.5Gb of memory depending on the scene. The new option is on by default, but can be toggled through the graphics settings.[/p]

[p][/p][h2]⚖️BALANCE CHANGES[/h2][p]▲ - a buff was applied[/p][p]▼ - a nerf was applied[/p][p]⮂ - a tradeoff occurred[/p][p]🦾 - a change was made based on community feedback[/p][p][/p]

• [p]▲ Increased the number of baseline workshop slots (2 → 3). This brings the fully upgraded workshop to 6 slots.[/p]
• [p]Adjusted thruster balance:[/p]
  • [p]▲ T4 Atlas: Thrust increased (80 → 90), heat reduced (60 → 45)[/p]
  • [p]▲ T5 Hotrod: Thrust increased (80 → 85)[/p]
  • [p]⮂ T6 Sidestep: Thrust reduced (60 → 45), heat reduced (64 → 60), power output increased (1 → 3)[/p]
• [p]Adjusted optimal ranges for railguns:[/p]
  • [p]▲ RA1 Thermite: Range shifted out (41-74 → 56-89)[/p]
  • [p]⮂ RA3 Striker: Range reduced (36-71 → 33-60)[/p]
  • [p]▲ RS Barrage: Minimum range reduced (15 → 8 )[/p]
  • [p]▲ RF Flux: Minimum range reduced (14 → 7)[/p]
• [p]▲ Adjusted the post-combat effect of the Shieldmaster pilot trait to repair the entire mech instead of the shield (to account for shields no longer persisting damage after combat)[/p]

[p][/p][h2]🛠️ Fixes[/h2]

• [p]Fixed incorrect rarities on multiple modules leading to wrong subsystem reward drops and item drops[/p]
  • [p]Advanced reactors[/p]
  • [p]Armor plates[/p]
  • [p]Reactor & thruster shunts[/p]
• [p]Fixed action dragging on the timeline not matching the mouse position on resolutions other than 1920x1080[/p]
• [p]Fixed base assault scenarios not responding to generator destruction until next turn[/p]
• [p]Fixed a number of bugs preventing mods from adding new rarities[/p]
• [p]Fixed a number of bugs preventing mods from adding new equipment models[/p]
• [p]Fixed a bug preventing mods from adding new pilot names[/p]
• [p]Fixed Mechs always displaying as Heavy in the briefing squad UI[/p]

[p][/p][h2]🪲 Known issues[/h2]

• [p]For some users, the game may take up to 5 minutes to launch.[/p]
  • [p]We're unsure of the cause at the moment and are continuing to investigate - if you are having trouble launching the game (no game window appears after a minute, the game sits on a black screen for a minute, etc) it may be that it's still initializing. If the game continues to fail to launch, please email logs to [email protected] - these will help us troubleshoot the issue. Thank you![/p]
• [p]The game crashes on Intel Arc GPUs due to DX11 support limitations[/p]
  • [p]For now we recommend installing and using DXVK as a workaround[/p]
• [p]Discord overlay may not be compatible with the game and may prevent keyboard inputs from being registered[/p]
• [p]Combat prediction holograms can stop working, failing to show bullets, current facing direction, and other important combat actions[/p]
  • [p]If you run into this, relaunch the game. We are actively working to reproduce and resolve this, so please look forward to a future hotfix.[/p]
• [p]Sometimes, UI in salvage screen cannot be clicked[/p]
  • [p]To work around this, use the buttons at the top of the columns to change the entire category, then adjust the ones that you can click. We are still troubleshooting this issue[/p]
• [p]Bosses or base defenses may have overlapping UI icons if multiple boss fights are completed in the same game session[/p]
• [p]Some pilot traits don't display their effects in the briefing squad UI[/p]
• [p]Backpacks are not listed in the briefing squad UI[/p]
• [p]UI during transition event after first capital battle can be confusing; some players report being stuck after the first fight in the capital province, with the screen being blurred and province movement locked. The campaign requires you to camp at that moment. Please check the bottom left corner of the screen and confirm camp to proceed. If you do not see the camp button in the bottom left corner of the screen or if the button is unresponsive, please submit an in-game report to help us investigate this issue further.[/p]

[p][/p][p]We'd like to thank our amazing modding community! Make sure to check the Workshop to see what other players have created (or check the SDK if you're interested in making your own)[/p][p][/p][p]We've been working hard on the next update and can't wait to share it with you. We really appreciate your continued support! Please stay tuned for more details and keep the feedback coming, your input is invaluable to us![/p]

[p]Phantom Brigade 2.0 brought a lot of new and reworked content to the game, including an expanded soundtrack featuring six new songs from the game's wildly talented composer, Riley Koenig. We've had a lot of people ask if they'll be able to purchase the new songs on Steam, and we finally have an answer: not only have we released an expanded soundtrack that includes all the new songs, we're also giving it to existing soundtrack owners for free! Because you're the best.[/p][p][/p][p]Since the soundtrack now includes all the 2.0 songs, we're going to be slightly raising the price -- but fret not! For the next two weeks, you'll be able to get the entire expanded soundtrack for half of the original price![/p][p][/p][p]We hope everyone is enjoying Phantom Brigade 2.0 (well, technically, 2.1)! And if you were disappointed that this news post didn't have any information on future game updates...[/p][p][/p][p]... you'll have to hold your breath just a little while longer.[/p]

[p]Happy Holidays Brigadiers! To celebrate the festive fun time, not only is Phantom Brigade 50% off, but we've also teamed up with some other awesome games with brand new bundles! [/p][p]So if you're yet to checkout Phantom Brigade 2.0, now's a great time to get an even bigger discount in a bundle! Or if you're a long time player, you can still take advantage of the savings by completing the set![/p][p][/p][h2]Mech Warrior 5: Mercenaries[/h2][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]Hey we get it. Sometimes you want to strap in to one GIANT mech and stomp through buildings. We've teamed up with our buddies at Piranha Games to bring you a bundle with Mech Warrior 5: Mercenaries so now you can switch between tactical turn based decision making, and stompy explodey fun times.[/p][p][/p][h2]Tactical Breach Wizards[/h2][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]We LOVE tactical Breach Wizards! If you're a fan of tactics game you CAN NOT miss out on this one. A match made in heaven with Phantom Brigade 2.0 as you'll be seeing into the future to plan out the perfect turn. You'll love it if you 're a fan of Phantom Brigade but you wish it had 100% more defenestration.[/p][p][/p][h2]Warhammer 40,000: Battlesector[/h2][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]There is only war in Warhammer 40,000: Battlesector! We love our 40k tabletop roots and think you'll love the game too. It has an action packed single player campaign plus if you want some more multiplayer in your strategy bundles, this is the one for you![/p][p][/p][p]That's it for the new bundles! All the existing bundles can still be found on our store page.[/p][p][/p][p]We super stoked to be ending the year on such a high note with you all. Thank you again for being with us on this journey and showing up to play Phantom Brigade 2.0. We're excited for what 2026 will bring![/p][p][/p][h3]Happy Holidays from all of us on the Phantom Brigade team!

[p]Oh, hello again Brigadiers.[/p][p]Gosh darn we totally forgot to mention two other very small, super not important or heavily requested features also included in patch 2.1.0.[/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p][/p][h3]THEY SAID IT COULDN'T BE DONE (well... we said that) BUT HERE THEY ARE! [/h3][p][/p][h2]Full Battle Replay + Combat Saves[/h2][p]We had a few breakthroughs and while they're both super janky and a bit broken, we figured it was better to let you play around with these experimental versions over the break rather than keep them under wraps. That said...[/p][p][/p][h3]REMINDER!!! These are Experimental features.[/h3][p]We recommend creating a manual save (which will not be overwritten by autosaves) and then backing up your save folder (on your desktop, not on Steam Cloud) so that you have something to restore, should something break with either of these features.[/p][p]We've done some testing, and they mostly work, but there could be some some sneaky bugs that we don't know about![/p][p]NOTE: Replay of any kind doesn't work fully with mid combat saves. If you load a mid combat save and attempt a replay, you won't be able to see anything that happened before the save was made. [/p][h3]Combat Saves[/h3]

• [p]You can now save in combat during the planning phase by opening the pause menu[/p]
• [p]The current known issues with this feature are as follows:[/p]
  • [p]Pilot effects and statuses are not applied on load[/p]
  • [p]Any in-flight projectile (bullets, missiles) will be missing on load[/p]
  • [p]Animation states are not saved[/p]
  • [p]Replay data (last turn or full battle) is not saved[/p]
  • [p]Level destruction is saved for pieces that were fully destroyed - if a building was collapsing when the save was made, there may be floating pieces on load[/p]

[h3]Full Battle Replay[/h3]

• [p]You can now rewatch the full replay of a single battle![/p]
• [p]Be warned - we recommend ensuring your PC has plenty of RAM (16GB+, with 16GB pushing the limits). Replay stores a lot of information, and if you play turns out at slow motion, additional information is stored - it is very easy to run out of memory. This feature has the potential to crash your PC if you do not have enough memory to use it correctly.[/p]
• [p]The current known issues with this feature are as follows:[/p]
  • [p]Since it's much longer, there will be more discrepancies between actual gameplay and what is replayed[/p]
    • [p]This goes for shots missing or hitting when they did the opposite in actual play, animation states not being displayed correctly and playing back weird, and more[/p]
  • [p]Risks setting your PC on fire if you have a lower-end PC[/p]

[p][/p][h3]How to enable Experimental features[/h3][p]Select "Options" from the main menu and scroll down to the experimental tab. [/p][p]Then simply toggle on the features you wish to enable... Done![/p][p][/p][h3]Full Battle Replay[/h3][p]This can be accessed after at least two turns have passed during combat by selecting "Replay" as normal, and then selecting the new "Full Replay" option beside the Replay control UI bar:[/p][p][/p]

[p]Pro tip: Press + on your numpad to hide the UI to view your experimental full combat replay in all its (janky) glory![/p]

[h3]Combat Saves[/h3][p]Simply pause and save your game during the planning phase of combat to save at the current turn. This can be loaded the same way! Campaign saves that have made use of this feature at any point are clearly marked in yellow in the load menu. [/p][p]NOTE: As mentioned in the notes above, when loading into combat you'll see some weird stuff, like texture snapping and floating weapons. But hey, it's experimental![/p][p][/p][p]Okay, that's it for real. We're excited to see all your cool full battle replays! Be sure to join our Discord and @ us on socials with your tactical plays![/p]

[p]Hello Brigadiers! We've been blown away by all the kind words and the overall reception of the 2.0 update. You all showed up in your droves and brought so many new players with you too. Phantom Brigade has never been more hype, thank you![/p][p]Before the team is off for a well-deserved break over the holidays, we've been putting together two surprises for you: a Supporter Upgrade for die-hard fans, and our first patch addressing difficulty balance, stability and a few extra QoL features (scroll down for our detailed patch notes).[/p][p][/p][h2]Supporter Upgrade[/h2][p]Love Phantom Brigade and looking to show your support for our team in an extra special way? This upgrade lets you stand out on the battlefield with these optional cosmetic options:[/p]

• [p] Exclusive look for your mobile base, both inside and out[/p]
• [p] Exclusive helmet for your pilots[/p]
• [p] Exclusive liveries for your mechs[/p]
• [p] A heart on the main menu, because your support made our day a little brighter
  [/p]

[p][/p][p]
But most importantly, you’ll be directly supporting the ongoing development of Phantom Brigade. If this sounds like something that you're into, thank you so much! If not, just continuing to play and share your good vibes with us and your friends is awesome
[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p](you'll want to check this out, we promise)[/p][p][/p][h2]Patch 1: 2.1.0-b7989 [/h2][p]Our first proper patch! We've been reading every single one of your Steam reviews, forum posts and bug reports. All this feedback is amazing and really helps us hone in the most important parts. Thank you, keep it coming, and we'll get back to reading it after the break.[/p][p][/p][h3]🔧 Modding Update[/h3][p]We have exciting news for those of you who like to use or create mods! We have updated the Mod SDK to support Phantom Brigade 2.x. The updated SDK can upload your mods to the Steam Workshop (now reopened!) and allows you to modify everything new in PB 2.x, from adding new provinces and changing the campaign to adding new events and pilot traits.[/p][p]If you have previously downloaded the beta version of the 2.0 SDK over the past few weeks, make sure to update to the latest release from the [c]main[/c] branch to get all the changes aligning with PB 2.1. Make sure to check the updated Wiki for documentation and new tutorials. We look forward to seeing what you create![/p][p][/p][h3]🆕 New Content and Features[/h3]

• [p]Added the ability to skip the tutorial when starting a New Campaign[/p]
  • [p]At any time during the first province tutorial, it's now possible to skip the tutorial by going into the pause menu and selecting 'Skip Tutorial'[/p]
  • [p]This will move you to the end of the tutorial with all the gear you would have gotten (essentially starts a Quick Start campaign)[/p]
• [p]Added a new Difficulty setting: Pilot Fatigue Chance[/p]
  • [p]This can be changed at any time in the difficulty settings[/p]
  • [p]0% chance means no pilots will gain fatigue, 100% chance is the default behaviour[/p]
  • [p]It's also possible to have pilots sometimes gain fatigue via the 25%, 50% and 75% settings as well[/p]
• [p]Added two new Game setting in options: Damage Scrolling and Damage Priority[/p]
  • [p]This was a highly requested QoL feature that we definitely wanted to get in for this patch! Thanks for waiting[/p]
  • [p]Damage Scrolling[/p]
    • [p]You can now entirely disable stat scrolling on weapons, or customize the speed at which the numbers change[/p]
  • [p]Damage Priority[/p]
    • [p]You can change which damage stat (per second, per action or per hit) is displayed first[/p]
• [p]Added Endless Mode to post-game[/p]
  • [p]After liberating all provinces in Fyrland, Kaskad will begin a counterattack on a few select provinces[/p]
  • [p]As long as you want to keep liberating provinces, they'll keep attacking[/p]
  • [p]You could feasibly play forever if you wanted![/p]
  • [p]Important: if you have already completed the game, you will need to reload your final [c]Before Travel[/c] save file to continue in endless mode - loading a save file from within the final province of the campaign will not allow you to continue due to overworld initialization already having taken place[/p]
• [p]Added a ton of new base upgrades that were intended for 2.0, but didn't get finished in time[/p]
  • [p]Camp duration reductions[/p]
  • [p]Normal overworld driving speed increases[/p]
  • [p]Overdrive speed increases[/p]
  • [p]Overdrive dissipation increases[/p]
  • [p]Salvage bonuses[/p]
  • [p]Workshop projects completed on victories[/p]
  • [p]Workshop projects completed on defeats[/p]
• [p]And finally, an updated .exe icon with our 2.0 logo[/p]

[h3]🔁 Changes[/h3]

• [p]Changed the equipment available when starting a new game via Quick Start[/p]
  • [p]Now, all equipment that is gained during the tutorial is rewarded immediately in Quick Start[/p]
  • [p]Pilots will be randomly awarded experience based on the final experience levels of pilots in tutorial (it's different every time though!)[/p]
• [p]Removed the tutorialization regarding the overworld from Quick Start[/p]
• [p]Changed which missions have forced escalation[/p]
  • [p]This was artificially inflating the difficulty of some missions - some missions had promoted squads when they shouldn't have[/p]
  • [p]Only Assassination, Demolition and Break-in will have promoted squads at 1 star now[/p]
• [p]Changed how unit integrity is summarized at the end of combat to no longer include shields[/p]
  • [p]Damage is now summed up only on body parts and backpacks[/p]
• [p]Rebalanced the difficulty spike post-Western Pass[/p]
  • [p]Major Payload's first and second loadouts were swapped so that guided missiles are not used in the first mission he appears in[/p]
  • [p]Adjusted the heat dissipation values of armour equipped by the Experimental and Spec-ops factions to lower the firing rate of high-heat weapons such as railguns[/p]
  • [p]Reduced the number of units per Spec-ops squad that can spawn with a railgun[/p]
• [p]Rebalanced the cargo carrier mission in the Western Pass[/p]
  • [p]Turrets level lowered to 1[/p]
  • [p]Flanking tanks level lowered to 1[/p]
  • [p]Flanking tanks loadout swapped to the Oneshot ML[/p]
  • [p]Player squad limit was increased to max (4 mechs)[/p]
  • [p]Player squad starting positions are now spread across both sides of the carrier[/p]
• [p]Rebalanced the costs of the base upgrades[/p]
  • [p]If you already unlocked them, they'll stay unlocked[/p]

[h3]⚒️ Bugfixes[/h3]

• [p]Fixed backpacks not having liveries[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue in the backpack rarity weight table where the chances of dropping an uncommon or rare backpack as loot were basically zero[/p]
• [p]Fixed enemy squads in the patrols of breakthrough provinces sometimes not having weapons when spawning (due to a faction mismatch)[/p]
• [p]Fixed cutters having inverted hit detection[/p]
• [p]Fixed a softlock that could occur when a save was made while the base was in interaction distance of a point of interest on the map - returning from the base menu in this state would prevent any further actions[/p]
  • [p]This was a regression from 2.0.3 patch and IS retroactive - any impacted saves should now be fixed[/p]
• [p]Fixed turns being allowed to execute and new actions being allowed from replay mode if a new unit was selected[/p]
• [p]Fixed the 'Display Autosaves' box disappearing if it was checked and only autosaves existed[/p]
• [p]Fixed an exception related to overworld UI that could get the user stuck in the fog of war[/p]
• [p]Fixed enemy pilots being unkillable under specific circumstances[/p]
• [p]Fixed UI not updating when a pilot had their trauma limit modified[/p]
• [p]Fixed duplicate death crashes being calculated and dressed with effects twice[/p]
• [p]Fixed behaviour of mechs after ejection being inconsistent[/p]
• [p]Fixed concussed units sometimes getting up after crashes[/p]
• [p]Fixed ejection during a crash potentially causing animation issues[/p]
• [p]Fixed a number of small bugs related to crashing and collisions to reduce extreme behaviours[/p]
• [p]Fixed units falling through indestructible points (in particular pits in the power plant map)[/p]
• [p]Fixed collision trigger events generating even when they could not be resolved - may slightly improve performance when many units are dead on a map[/p]
• [p]Fixed units getting stuck in a crash loop until they were dead[/p]
• [p]Fixed units ragdolling and getting detached from their in-world positions[/p]
• [p]Fixed a handful of typos in various languages[/p]