Occupy Mars: The Game News

[h2]Dear Martians![/h2]

Today we'd like to tell you a little bit more about development progress for the Early Access build.

[h3]New Interior lightning[/h3]

Some of you may have already noticed in our Kickstarter trailer that we've introduced improved interior lighting to the game. We haven't had a chance to mention it yet, but this change has made the game both more visually appealing and faster in terms of performance, as the previous lighting was quite demanding on the GPU. You can see some screenshots with the new lighting below:



[h3]New Inventory[/h3]

In addition, we have revamped the player's inventory, equipment, and consumption systems to make them more integrated and user-friendly. Putting on and taking off the helmet will now be a breeze - simply drag and drop the helmet into the appropriate slot. The same change applies to water and oxygen bottles. In the early access build, players will be able to 3D print empty bottles and refill them with substances as needed. On Mars, every item will be valuable, so after use, the bottle will be refillable.



[h3]New Tutorials[/h3]

The new tutorials in the game are not only redesigned to provide better introduction to the story, now they are also organized as a in-game virtual simulation which you will be able to revisit using different screens in the campaign mode. We've also added a special HUD tutorial where our Suit AI will guide you through the most important functions of your suit, helmet and visor.



[h3]European Rover Challenge 2023[/h3]

Just like during previous years, this year we will join forces with European Rover Challenge once again for #ERC2023! The space & robotics event will take place on 15–17 September 2023 in Kielce, Poland and like every year, the highlight of the event will be #Rovers Robotics Competition!



The European Rover Challenge is an international space & robotics event combining competition of Martian rovers with scientific and technological shows. The main part of the project is an international robotics competition, where academic teams from around the world present their mobile robot designs, competing in competitions based on real ESA and NASA missions.



The competition takes place on the world’s largest artificial Martian track, that is directly derived from the surface of the Red Planet.

In 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 we partnered with the European Rover Challenge organized annually by the European Space Foundation. During the event, we organized an e-tournament of “Rover Mechanic Challenge” – a special version of our game “Rover Mechanic Simulator.”

In the previous edition of the ERC, we provided competition winners with additional rewards such as “Astronaut survival toolkits” and this year we will support them again.



See you on Mars!
Occupy Mars Team

[h2]Dear Martians![/h2]

[h3]We have prepared a little surprise for you 😊 [/h3]

Have you been enjoying our Tight Beam from Mars miniseries? We have some great news for you! After a long break, we’re back with a new episode – this one is dedicated to Environment Research. Terrain, Mountains, Valleys, Rocks, & Caves - how do they look on Mars, on Earth and in our game? Watch in the new Episode 8 below:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

If you haven't seen the previous episodes yet, here's the full playlist.

Tightbeam from Mars is our YouTube miniseries where we compare real-life simulated Mars missions to gameplay Occupy Mars: The Game. We tell you about people, places and objects that serve as our inspiration and give you insight into various decisions that shaped Occupy Mars into the game it is today!

In the next Episode we will talk about Greenhouses & Plants cultivation on Mars.

As the end note, we’re leaving a link to our Discord server in case you’d like to discuss Occupy Mars: The Game and TightBeam from Mars with our ever growing community of like-minded Martians:



Best Regards,
Occupy Mars Team

[h2]Dear Martians![/h2]

[h3]Beta Status Update[/h3]

As the recent build v0.99.9.3 was met with positive reception and our playtesters have noted a vast improvement over the previous build, we’re moving this build from the public_testing branch to the default branch on Steam.

[h3]To whoever has yet to update the Beta to the latest version, we recommend starting a new game as saves from the previous versions might not work properly after the update.[/h3]

We thank all of you who participated in Beta for all the feedback and bug reports we have received from you so far. Occupy Mars: The Game has come a long way since we first started Beta and it’s all thanks to you. We now have a much better understanding regarding what requires our attention. That’s why we’d like to let you know that this update is the final update for Beta. Any more days spent on improving the Beta would delay the long awaited Early Access. That’s why we think it’s about time to move on to the next stage. From here onwards, we’re focusing solely on preparing a final Early Access build.

Known Issues in Beta v0.99.9.3:

• rover door can be opened partially and blocked in that position if player instantly after clicking on the door uses hotbar to pull out any tool. That can be reversed by doing the same thing,
  
• when player puts partially crushed rock in the tipper, sometimes it doesn’t crumble. In that case try to grab it and put it again in different spot in tipper,
  
• sometimes player can see "holes" in the map in places when two parts of the map are connected. Saving and reloading fixes problem,
  
• some weather effects can affect the player even if he is inside a base,
  
• abandoned bases may disappear and appear after loading the game,
  
• there might still be problems with rover extensions and/or skill points in tech tree,
  
• in some PC configurations players can experience significant drop of FPS in FPP mode,
  
• inability to skip sleeping in some rare cases,
  
• seed machine can sometimes duplicate seed tanks,
  
• some parts of abandoned bases don't disappear when the base is scrapped.
  

Important notes:

• there are several smaller but non game breaking bugs in the tutorials, there will be different tutorials in the full Early Access build so please don't report bugs regarding those,
  
• there are several non critical bugs that do not break the game but may cause inconvenience for the players, both of those categories will be fixed for EA,
  
• if you are playing on save from previous version building connectors will need to be removed and replaced due to the fix to stop you going outside through them,
  
• as we introduce new tutorials and campaign mode we have to shift focus from the beta version to prepare the build for Early Access.
  

[h3]Kickstarter Progress[/h3]

We did it! We just crossed the 80 000 CA$ stretch goal, which means that “Dexter'' goal has been unlocked! A crafting mechanic will be added to the game, which will allow you to create chemical compounds!

It’s the 10th goal of this campaign and we’re only now halfway into the campaign. In 2 weeks, we’re already 265% funded and we have 17 days left!

Just look how far we’ve come!



Next stop – “Liftoff!”, which will unlock once we gather another 10 000 CA$. Can we do it?

Big thank you to over 1 680 Martians who have supported the project so far! There are still plenty of goals waiting for us, so let’s keep going!

Best Regards,
Occupy Mars Team

[h2]Hello, Martians![/h2]

[h2]Kickstarter Progress[/h2]

Thanks to your overwhelming support on Kickstarter we’ve already reached 9 of our stretch goals!
This will serve as our roadmap for the development of updates after Early Access release. 🚀

[h3]Click here to go to Kickstarter page and read the full description ➡️[/h3]

[h2]Beta Update[/h2]

We've also updated the Beta to version v0.99.9.3 which contains a lot of fixes and improvements.
For now it's available on the public_testing branch on Steam. To enable it go to the game's preferences on Steam and select the BETAS tab:



[h3]Beta Update Changelog[/h3]
v0.99.5.0 -> v0.99.9.3

Bug Fixes:

• problem with saving the game if HDR option in Windows is enabled
  
• problem with feedback reporter (player can now send report using F4 button in a game)
  
• several various problems with loading saves
  
• problem with duplicating items while uppgrading them on the workbench
  
• problem with loading game if player had uppgraded tool before
  
• problem with broken animations of sitting
  
• problem with ECU uppgrade settings loss after loading save
  
• problem with connecting starting capsule to batteries and breaking game as a result
  
• problem with possibility to leave base through door in capsule adapter
  
• problem with rover damaging hangar while driving in
  
• several broken textures
  
• problem with scrolling in Character Creator
  
• several problems with sleeping in the rover
  
• flickering ghosts of the buildings
  
• problem with nbo button selected when tablet is opened
  
• problems with blocked interaction with the bed
  
• problem with planting withered animations breaking animations of the player
  
• problem with tablet opening breaking animation of changing a tool resulting in player stuck on the screen
  
• problem with picking up fully grown plants that are withered
  
• problem with game crashing when player pauses during tornado effect
  
• problem with disappearing fuses from the buildings
  
• problem with duplicating tools during the uppgrade
  
• several problems with rover catapulting player or rover being thrown in the air
  
• problem with game blocked when player is hit by the rover
  
• problem with ores not loaded completely to the tipper
  
• problem with game broken after CO2 scrubber is blown up
  
• problems with multiplying items via spamming interactions
  
• problem with blocked inputs(character cant move nor see in any direction) after loading game
  
• problems with workshop loosing access to electricity after building greenhouse
  
• problem with spamming messages on hud
  
• problem with capsule lever not working
  
• problem with one of rock types disappearing completely after initial drill
  
• problems with building panels not interactable
  
• problems with cables hanging in the air
  
• problems with drill/welder not unlocked after researching the technology
  
• problem with game blocked on workbench after pressing ESC
  
• problem with spectral detector not showing correct parameters of analyzed rock
  
• blocker in tutorial 2 that made impossible to finish tutorial
  
• game freeze in tutorial 3 after changing rover mode
  
• fixed movement blocker at the beginning of tutorial 4
  

New features:

• added water spots next to Cerberus starting point
  
• added possibility to fill CO2 bottles in the CO2 scrubber
  
• differentiated Hydroponic Shelves between greenhouse and workshop
  
• Fullscreen windowed mode will stay on the second monitor if player has one
  

Known issues:

• rover door can be opened partially and blocked in that position if player instantly after clicking on the door uses hotbar to pull out any tool. That can be reversed by doing the same thing
  
• when player puts partially crushed rock in the tipper sometimes it doesnt crumble. In that case try to grab it and put it again in different spot in tipper
  
• player can see "holes" in the map in places when two parts of the map are connected. Saving and reloading fixes problem
  
• some weather effect can affect player even if he is inside a base
  
• abandoned bases may disappear and appear after loading the game
  
• there might still be problems with rover extensions and/or skill points in tech tree
  
• in some PC configurations players can experience significant drop of FPS in FPP mode
  
• inability to skip sleeping in some rare cases
  
• seed machine can sometimes duplicate seed tanks
  
• some parts of abandoned bases don't disappear when base is scrapped
  

Important notes

• there are several smaller but non game breaking bugs in the tutorials, there will be different tutorials in the full Early Access build so please don't report bugs regarding those,
  
• there are several non critical bugs that do not break the game but may cause inconvenience for the players, both of those categories will be fixed for EA,
  
• if you are playing on save from previous version building connectors will need to be removed and replaced due to the fix to stop you going outside through them,
  
• as we introduce new tutorials and campaign mode we have to shift focus from the beta version to prepare the build for Early Access,
  
• this may be the last Beta build unless a hotfix for critical bugs will be needed (if they occur), but our main focus right now will be on preparing the Full EA Build.
  

[h2]Steam Base Builder Fest[/h2]

Occupy Mars: The Game participates in Steam Base Builder Fest together with the Free Prologue version.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1310520/Occupy_Mars_Prologue_2020/

On this occasion, we’d like to thank all of you who have been supporting us so far! This wouldn’t have been possible without your help. We’re not slowing down and we can’t wait until the day we can leave the Early Access version of the game in your hands!

If you’re not a part of our Discord community yet and you’d like to talk to other fans of the game, take a look at our Discord server!




Best Regards,
Occupy Mars Team

[h2]Are we there yet? [/h2]



[h3]Yes, we are! [/h3]
Thanks to all our amazing backers, Occupy Mars: The Game Kickstarter campaign has been funded in less than a day! Polished Early Access stretch goal has been unlocked!

Thank you so much, we’re overwhelmed with all the support we have received! The funds gathered so far will help us cover costs of promoting the game prior to its Early Access release and make it possible to give you an even better game on the launch day!

Currently, there are over 650 Mars enthusiasts supporting our project! We thank you all from the bottom of our hearts. We’re now sending out Beta keys to all backers who have “Instant Steam Access to Occupy Mars Beta” included among their pledge rewards. We are still improving the Beta and the next Beta build update should be ready in a few days, it will be automatically updated on Steam.

[h3]Let’s keep going! Can we reach the next two stretch goals?[/h3]



We’d also like to thank each and every one of you who spreads the word about the game. It’s also in big part thanks to you that we were able to reach the first goal!

Let’s make this game amazing together!

Click here to go to Kickstarter page

You can rewatch Kickstarter launch stream on Twitch, YouTube and Steam.

If you’d like to talk about the game or Kickstarter, reach out to us in discussion thread or visit our Discord server.



Best Regards,
Occupy Mars Team