[Spaced Out! Update] - 456658

[Ipsquiggle]

Hello everyone!

The public testing branch is being updated again today! So far the update features the new Radbolt Engine which allows rockets to quickly travel long ranges, but with a lower module count.

We've also got two more features almost ready to go but they didn't quite make it into today's patch: Plant mutations and the Interplanetary Launcher. Keep your eyes peeled for those in the next couple patches!

We've been going full tilt on new features since January. It is important to us that the overall scope of both multi-asteroid play and radiation are in the game and playable for you to experience. We know that there are a number of issues in the game right now that you've brought up, so after this update goes out in 2 weeks, we're going to shift gears to addressing feedback, stability, and balance. We really appreciate all the support and encouragement that you give us, as our small team has to really balance priorities during development. We want you to know that your concerns have been heard and we will try to address them over the coming updates, starting with adding a larger "classic" asteroid size to the asteroid selection.

As always, we're reading your feedback and greatly appreciate the bugs you report. Thank you so much for playing the game in Early Access, stay safe and take care!

What does this testing branch contain so far?

Here are the changes we've made so far in this update, loosely categorized:

Spoiler

 

Features

• Added Radbolt Engine.
• Added Radbolt Propulsion tech. Moved Cryofuel Propulsion and Monuments techs to a higher tier.
• Radioactive elements now emit radiation in the world (ores are still work-in-progress)

Changes

• Translations updated
• Modified line weight for consistency on rocket modules
• Added new section to the end of the nuclear meltdown song

Fixes

• Fixed Rocket Engines leaking resources across the grid while in space
• Fixed Rocket Pad flickering when launching a rocket.
• Fixed crash selecting a rocket destination on the edge of the starmap.
• Rocket Platform scaffolding now properly tints on overlays
• Fixed detached Duplicant arm in the Payload Opener animation
• Adjusted Radiation build menu icon to match overlay icon

 

 

 What is open testing?

"Open testing" means players get to test-drive new content early and give us feedback and suggestions before it goes live. Because this is an unfinished and in active development version of the game, it's pretty likely you'll encounter bugs, crashes or balance issues while playing these builds. We'll try to fix any problems that crop up as quickly as we can, but it's possible you'll lose progress in your games while playing on the Testing branch.

Regarding performance, the Testing branch has additional debugging tools enabled to help us track down crashes. This makes the game run more slowly than the live version of the game.

Please also be aware that once a save is loaded in the Testing branch, it cannot be reopened again in the previous Live branch or previous builds.

What do I do if I find a crash or a bug?

Post it up on the Bug Tracker and we'll fix it as soon as we can. If you can attach a copy of your save file to your report, that helps us even more as we can pinpoint the source of problem more quickly.

Do I have to play the open testing build?

Nope! If you'd prefer to only play a stable build, you can continue to play in the current Default branch until the game launches in full. Playing the Open Testing build isn't necessary, but it helps us a lot to receive your feedback and reports - if you're interested, try it out!

How do I become an open tester?

There's no sign up or registration for becoming an open tester. If you own Oxygen Not Included plus the Spaced Out! DLC and want to join the Testing Branch, all you have to do is play the Open Testing build on Steam.

How do I play the open testing build?

You can switch your branch on Steam using the instructions below:

Spoiler

How to change branches in Oxygen Not Included (Steam)

• You must own the Spaced Out! DLC
• In Steam, click on Library > Games.
• Scroll down to Oxygen Not Included.
• Right-click and select Properties.
• Go to the BETAS tab.
• In the dropdown, select the name of the branch you want to play. In this case, the branch name is "public_testing"
  • This branch does not require a password.
• In that same Properties window, go to the Local Files tab and press "Verify Integrity Of Game Cache."
• Your game will be updated to the the previous branch.
• Launch and play Oxygen Not Included

 

View full update

[syjnk]

(Jaw droppin')

Couldn't expect Radbolt engine for this update! Amazing!

Can't wait to experience test branch.
What a Great Job, Devs. Thanks!

Edited March 19, 2021 by syjnk

[Primalflower]

haha, i wish I could eat next to the rocket launchpads!

gassy moo reproduction....

[Pulstar]

Nucular engine, I like this,

[Guest aresd]

1 hour ago, Ipsquiggle said:

starting with adding a larger "classic" asteroid size to the asteroid selection

I wait it all day all night. The fictional resource teleport just annoys me. It would be better if you came up with an opportunity to break through an asteroid and get to its other side (another projection, section) than such a pointless crutch

Edited March 19, 2021 by aresd

[studley92]

Thanks to the team for their hard work! We appreciate it!

[Gurgel]

Excellent, also the plans for the near future. 

[pether]

Wow! Does this plastic ladder suggest that nuclear engine is really cold and doesnt melt it?

We knew you guys are working on it, but tbh nobody expected it so soon! Good job!

[evilcat19xx]

7 hours ago, Ipsquiggle said:

Radbolt Engine which allows rockets to quickly travel long ranges, but with a lower module count

The issue with lower module count is that they need lots of micro management. The animation is super cool btw.

7 hours ago, Ipsquiggle said:

so after this update goes out in 2 weeks, we're going to shift gears to addressing feedback, stability, and balance.

That is great.

There are some small but annoying features in the game. Such as: Max module limitations are too low. Or how we can build a steel rocket without any steel and ...

7 hours ago, Ipsquiggle said:

starting with adding a larger "classic" asteroid size to the asteroid selection

We all know who asked for this 

 

Thank you for the update! 

Edited March 19, 2021 by evilcat19xx

[RageLeague]

The radbolt rocket is actually really strong. It can store 4800 radbolts, and it consumes 200 radbolts per tile, giving it a max range of 24 tiles. It significantly outclasses the petroleum engine, and even the hydrogen engine, assuming you have 2 fuel tank and 1 oxidizer tank(any more would make the rocket useless unless you only want a solo nosecone module). It allows 4 max modules, giving it 3 free modules, which is on par with the petrol and hydrogen engine if you go with 2 fuel tanks. It has an engine power of 30, which is okay, I guess? Given that it doesn't need fuel tank and oxidizer to support it, it will probably end up with the same average speed as petrol engine.

A significant advantage that you need to consider is that radbolt rockets are quite small when maxed out, so you don't have to dig a lot to land on the magma asteroid.

The only problem with it is that it doesn't produce any power, so you have to run a hamster wheel inside your rocket and probably a battery.

Edited March 19, 2021 by RageLeague

[The Plum Gate]

...was just playing for three hours and didn't notice this, game crashed the drivers, and here I am reading about an update for the game and the drivers.

I must have just sat down then these things happened.

[yoakenashi]

6 hours ago, Ipsquiggle said:

We know that there are a number of issues in the game right now that you've brought up, so after this update goes out in 2 weeks, we're going to shift gears to addressing feedback, stability, and balance. We really appreciate all the support and encouragement that you give us, as our small team has to really balance priorities during development. We want you to know that your concerns have been heard and we will try to address them over the coming updates

Klei ONI SO team: you guys are awesome; keep up the great work. And thank you for putting up with us rowdy/demanding bunch of players

[Nuclearpower]

Hrrrrrr, ohhmmmm, yeahhhh Nuclear powered Space Flight.....No need for the interplanetary launcher anymore but thanks anyways

[Khullag]

am i the only one who is unhappy with these module count limitations being so restrictive?

i don't use debug tools to test stuff when the patch comes out (meaning i didn't know the higher tier engine stats), so last patch (when radiation was introduced) i started a new colony and made my way up to the end of the tech tree. i was so excited to finally be able to setup a rocket which will have a battery module, gas module to hold oxygen (i've tested the system on smaller rocket: oxygen is supplied to the command module and co2 is put back into the gas tank and it worked great), big command module and some useful payload module like research module or solid cargo.

and when i finally was able to build top tier hydrogen engine, i realized that because of this max module limitation i can't build anything useful. i had to drop either battery module or gas tank to be able to fit research/solid cargo. what's the point of implementing this system (with power/gas/liquids ports inside the command module) which suggests that you should use battery module instead of hamster wheels inside, gas tank module instead of algae diffusers & co, when such system basically cuts you off from actual intended purpose of the rocket (to transfer goods or to research)?

so TLDR: when i played until unlocking the most powerfull engine in the game and tried to build a rocket with it, after realizing that it still doesn't allow me do what i want (and i tested all other engines and combinations) - my disappointment was immeasurable and my day was ruined. i just closed the game and didn't touch it since then, hoping that at some point these module requirements would be rebalanced.

Edited March 19, 2021 by Khullag

[AzulCrescent]

Hope the steel deconstruction bug will be fixed in the next update! Been enjoying the DLC so far except for that one bug!

[stgo]

7 hours ago, Khullag said:

so TLDR: when i played until unlocking the most powerfull engine in the game and tried to build a rocket with it, after realizing that it still doesn't allow me do what i want (and i tested all other engines and combinations) - my disappointment was immeasurable and my day was ruined. i just closed the game and didn't touch it since then, hoping that at some point these module requirements would be rebalanced.

I totally agree, I expected to build a large command module use gaz and liquid tank to provide for the dupe but that's impossible to have long range rocket and all of that

[N00bieMeap]

19 hours ago, Ipsquiggle said:

We've also got two more features almost ready to go but they didn't quite make it into today's patch: Plant mutations and the Interplanetary Launcher

So it's happening

[Meltdown]

1 hour ago, stgo said:

I totally agree, I expected to build a large command module use gaz and liquid tank to provide for the dupe but that's impossible to have long range rocket and all of that

And this doesn't even include a separate module for cargo/rower/trailblaizer. 4-module limit works fine for short 1-tile trips to the closest planetoid, so there is no benefit from extreme range of new engine. Sure, in that niche it can work as an alternative for small petroleum engine, but that is kind of dissapointing, given the emphasis made on the long range component. I hope we will see some balancing in engine's module capacity in future.

[Electroely]

32 minutes ago, Meltdown said:

And this doesn't even include a separate module for cargo/rower/trailblaizer. 4-module limit works fine for short 1-tile trips to the closest planetoid, so there is no benefit from extreme range of new engine. Sure, in that niche it can work as an alternative for small petroleum engine, but that is kind of dissapointing, given the emphasis made on the long range component. I hope we will see some balancing in engine's module capacity in future.

I personally think the Radbolt rocket is one of, if not the best engine right now.

The hydrogen and petroleum engines require both fuel tanks and oxidizer, so with just one fuel tank their 7-module limit goes down to effectively 5. Hydrogen engine gets 9 tiles per fuel tank, which isn't enough for a round-trip to many destinations (in fact, with 9 tiles I can only reach Irridiated Forest, Oily Swamp and Tundra).
With 2 fuel tanks, you have a rocket that's much taller (harder to build a platform for) and significantly slower than a Radbolt rocket with the same modules (minus the 2 fuel tanks and oxidizer).

I feel like the Hydrogen and Petroleum engines will require that either the world height limit is raised or modules are made generally shorter to be convenient to use: One of the main reasons I find the new Radbolt engine so good is that it can reach far planets without having to dig this far into them, which can take a while with only 1-2 dupes and Jetpacks with limited fuel & oxygen:
 

Spoiler

Just before this update I was thinking to myself "How in the world am I supposed to land a 30-tile tall rocket on this tiny asteroid?"

My 13-tile tall Radbolt Rocket will easily make the cut, so I'm using it over my Hydrogen Rocket that I had built and fueled shortly before this update.

[The Plum Gate]

Some of these issues could be solved by a limited multi-module module. 

Battery+gas+solids where the configuration could be modular and configurable or even swappable.

Rover, gas, battery

Battery, Battery, gas..

Having some option to select a source and destination tabk on the rocket port input and output filters, etc.

[RageLeague]

The only potential problem you have to deal with with the radbolt rocket is the nuclear fallout, the lack of power generation, and getting it fueled in the first place. Other than that, it's better in every way than other rockets.

[The Plum Gate]

Radbolt space taxi.

[The Plum Gate]

[sakura_sk]

I think Beeta hives need a bit more care.. 

  

Seed: SWMP-C-599565987-0

[DaClown]

6 hours ago, N00bieMeap said:

So it's happening

That is something I am excited to hear.

  

13 hours ago, Khullag said:

am i the only one who is unhappy with these module count limitations being so restrictive?

i don't use debug tools to test stuff when the patch comes out (meaning i didn't know the higher tier engine stats), so last patch (when radiation was introduced) i started a new colony and made my way up to the end of the tech tree. i was so excited to finally be able to setup a rocket which will have a battery module, gas module to hold oxygen (i've tested the system on smaller rocket: oxygen is supplied to the command module and co2 is put back into the gas tank and it worked great), big command module and some useful payload module like research module or solid cargo.

and when i finally was able to build top tier hydrogen engine, i realized that because of this max module limitation i can't build anything useful. i had to drop either battery module or gas tank to be able to fit research/solid cargo. what's the point of implementing this system (with power/gas/liquids ports inside the command module) which suggests that you should use battery module instead of hamster wheels inside, gas tank module instead of algae diffusers & co, when such system basically cuts you off from actual intended purpose of the rocket (to transfer goods or to research)?

so TLDR: when i played until unlocking the most powerfull engine in the game and tried to build a rocket with it, after realizing that it still doesn't allow me do what i want (and i tested all other engines and combinations) - my disappointment was immeasurable and my day was ruined. i just closed the game and didn't touch it since then, hoping that at some point these module requirements would be rebalanced.

I want to add I am not thrilled about the early game for rockets being all about sending dupes to other asteroids or that dupes are absolutely required for rockets to travel to and from asteroids.

Real life space programs are overwhelmingly non-crewed missions using various kinds of machines to explore and develop the solar system. While crewed missions have gotten a lot of press they are a very strict minority of celestial object to celestial object missions. And sending crewed missions is *harder* than sending uncrewed missions.

This mirrors something that bothers me in the begining to end game design of ONI where the amount of duplicant labor required to do useful work increases in general to a computationally unsustainable degree into the late game. The rocket and multi-asteroid designs at current bolster that.

I am excited about the rovers and landers and orbital labs, but if the rockets require dupes all the way to the end game content then I am going to end up using them as sparingly as possible and focus on maximizing the development of my first two starting asteroids as much as automation will permit me to. I would love to see more stellar engineering requirements and mechanics for setting up orbit to orbit infrastructure for automated missions especially given the significant material requirements of sending a dupe to and from an asteroid via rocketry without killing them or risking their well being or significantly splitting my attention and effort between multiple bases or significantly increasing the computational overhead of running an ever growing number of dupes.

 

My end game goal for ONI is and has been since the Early Access era to setup living and working conditions that allow the dupes to work less and less. My ambition has always been to eventually setup a habitat that takes care of my dupes without my intervention and requires no dupe labor or operation.

Edited March 20, 2021 by DaClown
Elaboration