Volcanoids News

Hey everyone!

The team and I decided to make a pretty major change to Volcanoids. The drillships were cool and all, we had our fun with them but I think we can all agree that they are getting kind of boring and overdone at this point.

So to keep the game fresh and original we've decided that for the next update, we will remove all the drillships and replace them with airships.

As for the core gameplay mechanics, this change won't affect them all that much. For example, instead of hiding underground from the eruptions, you will have to fly away from the island for a bit and so on.



We really think this is a step in the right direction and we hope you're on board with the idea. Stay tuned for more updates, pilots!

- Rich and the team

PS: you might wanna check the date on which this was posted

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Hey everyone!

You know the drill... another major update is here and we've got a lot to cover!

Two things before we look at the new stuff though.

1) In case you haven't read the two previous posts, this update is dedicated to some of the most requested features by you guys mainly related to overall quality of life but also production, quests, and other parts of the game that needed some long overdue love. BUT there's some brand new stuff as well.

2) Volcanoids is 20% OFF for the next 48 hours! So if you (or your friend) have been waiting for a sign to finally take the drill for a spin, this might be it!

Now that we got that out of the way, it's time to answer the ultimate question:

[h2]What's new?[/h2]

[h3]Control Bracer[/h3]

The first and biggest addition is the "control bracer" aka as everybody calls it "the steampunk pip-boy". With it, we took all the different gadgets that were previously scattered all over and put them in one place.

How does that work in practice? Pulling the bracer out (using the "Q" key) will bring up a second toolbar with these gadgets. Some you already know (eg. drillship calling) and some that are new.



One of the new ones is remote access to the periscope. Basically, no matter where you are, you can always access your periscope using the bracer and quickly check on the drillship.

In the case shown below the turret takes care of the attack but if it didn't, you could just easily send the drillship underground using the control bracer as well.



Second new gadget is the camera. When you run into something and you're not quite sure what it is, you can just activate the camera, snap a picture of it and the archive (which is like our in-game wiki) will open with info about it.



But wait there's more! The camera can also work as a diagnostic tool. If you just point at things around your drillship (like a turret module) the screen will show you a bunch of useful info that was previously hard to find. And in case of the turret (and couple other things), you can use the scroll wheel to get even more information.



Last thing I should mention is the watch part of the bracer. It tells you 3 vital pieces of information:

1. Red light on the left = volcano is about to erupt soon
   
2. Green light on the right= the location you're currently in is going to keep you safe from the eruption
   
3. Time = how much time is left before the volcano erupts
   

[h3]Customizable Toolbar[/h3]

This is one of the features that has been looong overdue.

You now can:

• drag and drop items on the toolbar
  
• left-click on an item in inventory to place in an empty slot
  
• right-click a slot to remove the item in it
  
• drag one item over another to switch their places
  

[h3]Reworked Boiler[/h3]

We noticed a lot of new players getting overwhelmed by the amount of information and interactable parts the old boiler had. So we selected only the most vital parts to keep and improved them.



The new dial above the driving handles actually shows how the drillship is moving when someone's driving underground.



While the dial above the diving lever shows how the drillship is going underground, back up, deploying, and so on.



[h3]Production Changes[/h3]

TLDR version: you can now produce and refine basic items underground the same way you would if the drillship was on surface but slower.

Longer version:

Each module adds a certain amount of production/refinery/research points to the drillship. You can now see how many points each module adds by pointing the camera gadget I mentioned in the beginning on it.



The more points you have in each category, the faster you can produce/refine/research.

Now to start production you'd also need access to storage and energy.

BEFORE, the drillship would have zero points in each category on its own so you needed for example a production module + storage and energy modules to be deployed in order to start producing something.

NOW the drillship has some points in each category on its own. Storage works the same way no matter where the drillship is. And the boiler produces energy even underground.

So now even if you're underground and all modules are closed, you can still produce and refine some basic items (like ammo, small components, etc.). It will be slower than if you'd be on the surface with deployed modules (therefore had more production points) but it's better than nothing.

We decided to make this change because we noticed that a lot of you didn't like how there's not much to do underground. Especially if you're playing co-op and someone is already driving. Now one of you can be driving while others are setting up basic production lines preparing ammo and other supplies in the meantime.

[h3]Geothermal Module[/h3]

Now what if you overdo it with the production underground and the boiler isn't able to produce enough energy to cover it?

Enter the geothermal module! This new roof module that comes in two sizes (T1 and T3) gives you an alternative way to produce more energy underground.



The way you can do that is, when you drive through lava the module will convert the heat to energy and store it so you can continue producing. We added a new indicator to the travel view window that shows the energy output/input and how much you have stored.



Be careful not to stay in the lava for too long or it will destroy your modules or even the whole drillship.

[h3]More Periscope Improvements[/h3]

Periscope finally got a proper model that pops up from the ground (or the drillship) when someone's using it.



Another improvement is related to using the periscope underground. Till now, the periscope would only work in a few selected spots. Not anymore though, you can now use it anywhere.

[h3]Item Filters[/h3]

If you open your inventory you will notice these new little boxes with small icons on them. They are filters that allow you to quickly show only a specific type of items in your inventory (eg. ore, tools, ammo).



[h3]Damaged Part Prompt[/h3]

Say adios to tediously pointing the wrench at each thing making sure it has full hp. Damaged parts are now going to be marked on your UI when holding the wrench.



[h3]Worktable -> Station -> Hub Upgrading[/h3]

Once you acquire necessary upgrades you can now upgrade the worktables into stations and eventually the stations into hubs.

This is possible because we changed how they relate to each other. Each version can do what the previous one could and something extra. We also changed the station's visual to better reflect this change.



[h3]Bypass Core[/h3]

There's a way now to claim enemy drillship without needing to destroy majority of modules first. You can now use the "bypass core" upgrades that are much more expensive and harder to get, but let you capture an enemy drillship without damaging it.



[h3]Additional Patch Notes[/h3]

Fixes

• Fixed flashlight making weapon scopes brighter than the Discord light theme
  
• Fixed doors closing by themselves in enemy drillships
  

Changes/Improvements

• Hard difficulty can now be selected only if you already finished the game once
  
• Increased the time it takes for the drillship to explode when all its modules are destroyed
  
• Removed non-vital devices from submarine to make it less cluttered and easier to navigate for new players
  
• Removed non-vital devices from the starter drillship to make it less cluttered and easier to navigate for new players
  
• You can now drag and drop items anywhere outside the inventory window to drop them on the ground
  
• Hid destroyed drillship icons on travel map
  
• All interior subpart sockets (round things on the wall you can build stuff on) now require hull upgrade 2 or higher to appear
  
• The basement door and the mine gate are now visually damaged to indicate there is something behind them
  
• Optimized default module textures
  
• Optimized COG unit navigation (should no longer get stuck thinking where to go next)
  
• Player gets notified about every new item that enters player's or drillship's inventory (can be disabled in settings)
  
• Improved the damaged core model and added VFX to make it easier to spot for new players
  
• Added warning text when the drillship is about to explode
  
• Added an option to audio settings to change volume of the menu sound effects (eg. that clicking sound when you point at a button)
  
• Installing higher Core upgrade now adds extra inventory slots for the front drill default storage
  
• Installing higher Core upgrade increases default energy storage value and boiler power plant output
  
• Added sounds effects that play when you complete or acquire a quest
  
• Drillship doors now get visually damaged
  
• Backpacks on the ground disappear when fully looted
  
• Lots of adjustments have been made to the quest system
  

Before we wrap up I just wanted to address that we didn't manage to do the preview branch testing this time but we definitely want to continue doing it in the future!

And that's it for this update folks! We'll catch up on some sleep, probably do a caffeine detox, and start working on the next one.

However we'll still monitor the bug reports and in case it's needed, we'll release a hotfix update asap. So if you spot something, don't hesitate to report it through the in-game feedback system.

Thank you for the amazing support leading up to this release and hope you have a blast with the update!

- Rich and the team

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future content leak

[h3]FEBRUARY 28th, 2022[/h3]

That's 6 days away!!

As for what you can expect from this update, we dedicated it to some of the most requested features by you guys mainly related to quality of life but also production, quests, and other parts of the game that needed some long overdue love.

Pretty much every change or improvement we did for this update was based on some suggestion, request, or feedback we got from you or from watching gameplay videos.

So lots of improving here and there but we also got some completely new stuff for you as well as you'll see below.

Enough small talk let's get to the best part...

[h3]TEASERS![/h3]


















Hope you liked the teasers! Will be sharing more leading up to the release on our socials (links below). So I'll see you there and if not, then see ya on Monday!

- Rich and the team

Social Links
Join the community on Discord
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Hey everyone! The end of 2021 is slowly approaching so we figured an end-of-year development update would be in order before the team leaves for the holidays.

So first things first, let's cover what you're all here for...

[h2]Theme of the *Next Update*[/h2]

The upcoming update is going to be dedicated to the most requested features by the community regarding quality of life, the steep learning curve, production, and many other aspects of the game. There is still a lot of play-testing and figuring out how to approach the changes. But the main focus is on production, simplifying the systems, and allowing things that were not possible before.

[h2]Translated into features, you can expect stuff like[/h2]

[h3]Customizable toolbar[/h3]



We've seen so many players getting confused by the predefined toolbar. So in the next update, you will be able to just drag and drop items from your inventory into any toolbar slot like you're used to. No more hectic scrolling during intense firefights.

[h3]Remote access to periscope [/h3]



How annoying is it that the moment you decide to go exploring, you get a notification that your drillship is under attack? And now what... do you go back or continue exploring risking that you'll return to a destroyed drillship? Well, we are working on a feature that will allow you to access your drillship's periscope from anywhere so you can see how serious the situation is.

[h3]Damaged parts showing up on UI[/h3]



Say bye to running around checking each module's HP individually, any damaged parts will show up on your UI when holding the wrench.

[h3]New modules[/h3]



This module will passively produce energy when the drillship is close to lava underground.

[h3]Early-game improvements[/h3]



As mentioned in the beginning, the steep learning curve is a big issue, especially for new players and we really want to do something about that. Above is an example of one of the many improvements we'll be making. We've noticed that new players always have a hard time capturing the first drillship because they can't find the core.

[h3]Two big changes regarding production[/h3]

1. Making online storage (the collective inventory of all storage modules) function underground
   
2. Making it possible to keep production going even when underground
   

These two changes combined mean that you and your crewmates can do a lot more while waiting for the eruption to blow over. For example, you can arm yourself while heading towards the next laser cave, or set up the production line so that you can run out the door as soon as the drillship lands. No longer you'll have to sit underground with almost nothing to do, just waiting for the volcano to calm down.

So what's the point of deploying on the surface then?

Production on the surface is going to be way more efficient than underground. Also in future updates, we plan to add more survival mechanics that will make underground production more resource-heavy than on the surface.

The idea behind these changes is that we want to reward players for having a deeper knowledge of the game's systems, rather than punish them if they don't. So the better the knowledge the better you will be at utilizing all the production systems and getting the most out of your resources and time, and therefore progress much faster. And if you don't have the knowledge yet, you won't be as heavily limited as you were before.

The impact of these changes already solves some of the most requested QoL changes:

• The front drill storage no longer gets full with items, forcing you to stop driving and move items elsewhere. Now those items will just continue pilling in the free storage modules you have on the drillship.
  
• Waiting underground can be now used much more effectively since all the drillship systems continue working (e.g. production, research)
  
• Many quests are no longer going to be interrupted by the eruption and you will be able to continue doing them underground.
  

[h3]And much more...[/h3]
But that will be leaked in the coming weeks because I don't want to spoil everything right away hehe.

[h2]Rough release estimate[/h2]

The to-do list for this update is still fairly big but we are definitely aiming for Q1 2022. I'll let you know once there's a closer estimate.

[h2]New mods in Workshop[/h2]

While working on the new update, we also keep polishing the workshop guides and adding information that modders reported to be missing or confusing. To experiment with some new directions modding in Volcanoids could go, several new mods were created for you to check out!


For anyone who would like to continue fighting some more COGS after finishing the quests, this mod will send one last wave of COGs in the third area:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2688256552
Would you like to have some COGs in your crew? Well, turn yourself or a friend into one with this mod:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2683793090
This mod is great for keeping track of ongoing drillship production, as it informs you about every item that lands in your drillship's inventory.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2687954635
[h2]Happy Holidays![/h2]

Finally, the whole team wishes you a great holiday season and all the best in 2022! Hope you had fun playing or even just following the development this year. And thank you for all the support!

Rich

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[h3]First of all...[/h3]

Thank you for your patience and all the feedback on the modding guides! We are constantly reflecting on your feedback and adding more info to places that are not explained well enough. And we will continue doing that until the guides are easy to follow and clear for everyone.

So if you ever get stuck on some step, don't hesitate to post into the modding-help channel in our Discord (and tag Tomas#9155, he specifically requests that) or in the Workshop forum. And please always mention the guide you have an issue with and which section. It will help us a ton!



[h3]Main Game Fixes[/h3]

• Added Mod info window when loading saves (it informs you about the differences between mods set in main menu, and mods set in the save file)
  
• Steam launch dialog on Linux allows you to choose between OpenGL and Vulkan
  
• "Load game" menu now shows settings and delete buttons above each save (it used to show only when you hovered over them)
  
• Improved player's jumping, giving you a better chance to escape from spots where you'd previously stay stuck
  
• Fixed multiple issues where you'd get stuck in spectator view above the submarine when loading a save
  
• Fixed broken armor equipping animation
  
• Fixed issues where mods caused connection problems in multiplayer games
  
• Fixed issue with the Captain not having a proper dress code for the Halloween event
  
• Fixed wrong order of the new dragon and skeleton decals for paint jobs
  

[h3]Steam Workshop[/h3]

• Added new tags: starter, design, visual
  
  
• Starter tag - Used for any mod, that affects the starter drillships (starter drillship = the first drillship you capture in the game after completing the first few quests for the Captain)
  
• Design tag - Used for mods that adjust devices in the starter drillships
  
• Visual tag - Used for mods that change paint jobs of the starter drillships, for example, a mod that would give a starter drillship a dragon paintjob
  

[h3]Mod SDK Fixes[/h3]

• All creation scenes are now automatically duplicated and available for modders
  
• Duplicated creation scenes have the option to be reset to the default state when Mod SDK gets a new update (this is optional)
  

[h3]Mod Guide Fixes[/h3]

• In general we added and keep adding more information to all Captains modding guides based on your feedback
  
• The guides are being constantly tested, and any reported issue is being reflected
  

[h3]New Captain Mod[/h3]

• Blind Cogs - COGs are blinded from constant work in dark caves with super bright lava. It is almost impossible for them to spot you unless they are fired upon, or damaged in any other way. If that happens, they will charge in the direction of incoming fire and fight back!
  

[h3]Mod Fixes[/h3]

• Large Backpack - Fixed issue with dropped backpacks having only 32 slots, when it was supposed to be 100
  
• New Crew - Captains skin no longer stretches in random directions when wearing a modded armor
  
• Advanced Armor - Fixed issue with armor preventing revive or respawn
  
• Advanced Armor - Fixed issue where wearing armor would block you from changing skin in wardrobe
  
• Green Eruption - Is finally green again
  
• Cosmetic Modules - Now support paint jobs
  
• Submarine Pier Chests - Saving and loading now works correctly
  
• Auto Burrow - Fixed issue where clients could not change settings of this feature
  
• Additive Scene - Fixed issues with saving and loading
  
• Interior Device - Fixed wrong camera position when player was seated in the throne
  

That's it for now folks! Once again, if you get stuck somewhere in one of the modding guides, don't hesitate to reach out to Tomas on Discord or post in the Workshop forum (+ mention the guide and section).

If you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns, post them in the comments below. Stay tuned on our socials for sneak peeks from the next update. And as always...

Have a blast y'all!

- Rich and the team

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