Empyrion - Galactic Survival Alpha 8.1 - June 21

[Craig234]

How the hell do you try it out? Demo isn't populated in my steam library and the only option on the game page is to purchase but it talks about a free weekend until Monday 10am

A lot of free weekends I saw end Sunday at 10AM I think though the sale ends Monday at 10AM - you sure it was Monday?

 

[Fanatical Meat]

A lot of free weekends I saw end Sunday at 10AM I think though the sale ends Monday at 10AM - you sure it was Monday?

Nearly positive

 

[DeathReborn]

Nearly positive

It was Sunday. I saw it when it said 3 hours to go on Sunday, then just bought it anyway...

 

[Blue_Max]

It was Sunday. I saw it when it said 3 hours to go on Sunday, then just bought it anyway...

Remember you can return it if you play less than 1-2 hours?

 

[DeathReborn]

Remember you can return it if you play less than 1-2 hours?

Way past that now, lol. Got multiple copies as gifts to spread the game around a bit among my mates, should be a good little MP title.

 

[Blue_Max]

Speaking of multiplayer, what a PAIN IN THE REAR! Downloading VLC on multiple machines, accounts for each, then plugging in addresses... blecch!

Looking forward to improvements there.

 

[Craig234]

I bought it, but the community sounded unpleasant in the forum.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Speaking of multiplayer, what a PAIN IN THE REAR! Downloading VLC on multiple machines, accounts for each, then plugging in addresses... blecch!

Looking forward to improvements there.

Way past that now, lol. Got multiple copies as gifts to spread the game around a bit among my mates, should be a good little MP title.

I bought it, but the community sounded unpleasant in the forum.

If you could could be kind enough to give me an idea what multiplayer is like I'd appreciate it. Do you start near each other or is it easy to meet up?

 

[Blue_Max]

You start pretty close to each other and it's VERY easy to find each other on the map.

Might've just been our unfortunate starting location close to the enemy base that we saw a lot more drones this time around... sure was easier to take them down with two guns though!

 

[Fanatical Meat]

You start pretty close to each other and it's VERY easy to find each other on the map.

Might've just been our unfortunate starting location close to the enemy base that we saw a lot more drones this time around... sure was easier to take them down with two guns though!

Thanks is there one starting planet type thing?

 

[Blue_Max]

Thanks is there one starting planet type thing?

From what little I've gathered, you have to go from one planet to the next in some sort of sequence. You can start on the easy world or skip one and start at the second one which is a bit more difficult (not recommended!)

Gain experience by gathering/building/shooting drones and go up levels to unlock the technologies needed to survive and to build the ship required to leave that world and go on to the next one.

I have to stop thinking like Space Engineers though! Many critical things (like building) are done differently. When building, your most valuable tool will be your hand-held drone (F5) which can move much more freely than you and can magically build several blocks higher than you can reach. :thumbsup:

 

[wanderer27]

@JimmiG - they made some changes to the Crafting System in one of the patches after the free weekend deal, this may have somewhat addressed some of your issues with this aspect of the game.


Haven't updated this in a while, they've been doing quite a bit of patching for bugs and new content.

Patch to version 2.2 (already) just came out on 7/14, and they've begun work on version 3.0.
2.2 adds some new features/items as well as bug fixes and performance work.

Things are moving along at a pretty good clip it looks like.

Some nice Pics of a few new items (at least to me) on the 2.2 release thread on Steam - http://steamcommunity.com/games/383120/announcements/detail/805399905351388744

Here's one version of new Meteorites :

Escape Pod smoothing :

Change to Raptors (fewer Polys for better performance) :

New Plant :

They also made changes to the performance impact Ground Fog has on Planets :

A few items I missed from version 2.1 :


New snow capped mountains on Akua:

New Creatures :

And :

Pretty encouraging to see them move from 1.0 on April 15 to 2.2 with all the fixes in between already.

Starting this week, we have begun to work on the first features of version 3.0. And, although we cannot detail all the features yet, we just want to say 3.0 will mark the first step into a more varying and ‘living’ world. Of course we will add nice features, balances and bugfixes as well ;-)

.

 

[Blue_Max]

Now if only they'd make multiplayer more viable. Coming along nicely though!

 

[Rifter]

Good little game, i got it on friday and put 15 hours into it on the weekend.

Some advice for new players i learned probably old news for some of you but:

CV seems kinda vulnerable, some turrets work in atmosphere but there AI is very broken right now and you can end up with 1 drone taking out your CV because the turrets are to broken to shoot at it. I would only land where you have established base and the CV is protected by base defenses.

Build a HV first before SV. I went straight to SV because i figured it can go into orbit too and fly faster(well it can fly period i guess lol) so better all around, i was so wrong because i didnt take into account the fact that the SV lacks ANY turrets that are auto firing, so its completely vulnerable when you leave it somewhere unsecured(like you fly it to mining spot land at top go down into shaft to mine come back and a NPC/drone has killed your SV), so basically SV only useful for travelling from secured base to a secured CV or another secured base. And maybe mining in space on asteroid or moon where you can keep it in sight and defend it with small arms yourself.

Underwater biom's are hard to find, i struggled to find seaweed for biofuel for the longest time and i just needed to swim a little farther and i found so much seaweed i could power my drill for a lifetime. So thoroughly explore the underwater sections for materials.

Some people suggest building a CV instead of a base, and use CV as mobile base. i recommend against that for reasons listed above, its likely drones will kill it while you are away from it on planet. That and they take ridicules amounts of fuel.

 

[wanderer27]

Good little game, i got it on friday and put 15 hours into it on the weekend.

Some advice for new players i learned probably old news for some of you but:

CV seems kinda vulnerable, some turrets work in atmosphere but there AI is very broken right now and you can end up with 1 drone taking out your CV because the turrets are to broken to shoot at it. I would only land where you have established base and the CV is protected by base defenses.

Build a HV first before SV. I went straight to SV because i figured it can go into orbit too and fly faster(well it can fly period i guess lol) so better all around, i was so wrong because i didnt take into account the fact that the SV lacks ANY turrets that are auto firing, so its completely vulnerable when you leave it somewhere unsecured(like you fly it to mining spot land at top go down into shaft to mine come back and a NPC/drone has killed your SV), so basically SV only useful for travelling from secured base to a secured CV or another secured base. And maybe mining in space on asteroid or moon where you can keep it in sight and defend it with small arms yourself.

Underwater biom's are hard to find, i struggled to find seaweed for biofuel for the longest time and i just needed to swim a little farther and i found so much seaweed i could power my drill for a lifetime. So thoroughly explore the underwater sections for materials.

Some people suggest building a CV instead of a base, and use CV as mobile base. i recommend against that for reasons listed above, its likely drones will kill it while you are away from it on planet. That and they take ridicules amounts of fuel.

Yeah, I lost a few CV's early on myself that way - a HV or two as well.

Definitely advise setting up a good Base, there's just too much to defend without having to rebuild all the time.
I actually lost my Replicators once so it was pretty much Game Over at that point (stripped the CV).

Build my Base in the side of a Mountain now.
I dig a tunnel into it and set up the main facilities fairly deep into it.
This saves a bit on defensive power drain, though I don't know how bad that is right now, fuel used to be a lot more scarce.


I see the 2.3.2 Patch came out a couple days ago for a crash bug.


.

 

[wanderer27]

It's hard to believe, but apparently August 5 was the 1 year Anniversary for Empyrion going live on Steam.
With as much as has changed on this, I thought it'd been around a lot longer than that.

Here's a link with kind of a Historical review of the progression the past year with some various screen shots :

http://steamcommunity.com/games/383120/announcements/detail/798646638311234980


Quick video clip for upcoming 3.0 Anniversary update :

.

 

[ArchAngel777]

I am so very impressed with this game. Very entertaining. Me and my son is currently on the first planet. I can't wait to what is in store... Also, even if these devs abandoned this product, I felt I got my money's worth already at 19.99 a piece. This alpha is better than most game's beta... Again, very impressed.

 

[wanderer27]

Got so busy yesterday I totally missed it - Alpha 3.0 was released yesterday . . . plus a quick Hot fix for the Motorcycle.

Before getting into 3.0, here's a couple of pics I should have posted from the Anniversary thread to give folks a reference of how far this game has come in only a year's time.

You'll see updated references in the 3.0 quote:

Akua pre-Alpha

Original Desert Planet and Ship and Water.

Alpha 3.0: Anniversary Update
August 11 - EmpyrionGame

Hi Galactic Survivalists!

A few days ago, we celebrated with you the first anniversary of “Empyrion - Galactic Survival” and released a first test candidate of the Anniversary Update on our Experimental Branch. After having hunted down bugs and added a few other refinements and effects, Alpha 3.0 will go public right now!

As you might already know, this update is about beautification and adding new elements to improve and create more authentic worlds, including increased density of forests, more deco effects and trees, ambient airborne lifeforms, individual ground textures for different biomes, NPCs and animals wandering around in herds, thunderstorms and meteor rain as new distant effects on some planets...and much more. Read through the whole list of features and have a look at the screenshots below or just load the update and take your new Motorbike for a ride and explore!

Tip: If you want to known how far we already got in terms of creating living worlds, just have a look at our 1-year comparison screenshots in the Anniversary Update Blog: http://empyriononline.com/threads/1-year-anniversary.7027

The Anniversary Update also introduces an improved version of the PDA, adding a first iteration of a Mission-Reward mechanic to the game. We have prepared several missions for you to try out. More missions are about to follow. We have also created a new topic in our feedback forum to discuss this new feature: http://empyriononline.com/threads/missions.7076/

As a closing comment, we want to make an announcement for everyone who plans to visit Cologne, Germany next week: “Empyrion - Galactic Survival” will be at Gamescom 2016!

More info on this event coming very soon!

Have another look at the short preview video of Alpha 3.0:

YouTube™ Video: Anniversary Update - Preview
Views: 7,793
A work-in-progress showcase of new footage from the upcoming "Anniversary Update" (Alpha 3.0) of Empyrion - Galactic Survival To test these new features, join our Experimental Branch:...


Please note that you can continue your old save games in Alpha 3.0 - they are fully compatible! However, to see all the new shiny features you have to start a new game.

P.S: As always, and because we added a lot of new stuff to some of the playfields, please run the Performance Survey so we can gather direct feedback about your current FPS: http://survey.empyriongame.com

Changelog: Alpha 3.0 (Build 547)

Main Features:

1. Motorbike:
- Added first version of motorbike

2. Missions and PDA improvements:
- Added first version of missions and faction missions
- Added tabs to PDA: Tutorial, Missions, Faction Missions Knowledge Base
- Improved event processing system for more flexible action configuration

Missions:

Notice for players: Faction Missions are still heavy work in progress, but we did not want to hold them back. Please read the READ FIRST that is included in the Faction Missions PDA tab. This includes a Howto and the known issues.

Notice for creators: If you are using your own PDA.yaml, please do not use "StructuresSpawned" and "CheckWhat" anymore (see new format in PDA.yaml)

3. Living World:
3.1 Better decorations and more diversity:
- First version of changing terrain textures depending on biome to increase diversity
- Added new plants and trees on Akua - tweaked deco
- Tweaked grass textures on Akua
- Replaced bush on Akua with version that is harvestable (-> fruits can be picked up)
- Increased beach area around lakes on Akua (height + 1)
- Added Alien Honey to worm plant on Akua
- Tweaked LOD levels on some trees
- Plant pixie stalk is now better arranged (closer together)
- Shadow during day now less dark on many playfields

New dense forest on Akua:

Here you see 3 biomes coming together (open plains, forest and rocky area), each with its own terrain texture:

3.2 Better deco effects:
- Added possibility that particle effects on a planet are now dependent on e.g. biome, day/night (Example Akua: Fire flies during night only in forest, Dandelions during day in Open Plains etc)
- Added birds on some planets (Akua, Omicron, Masperon)
- Added meteor showers on Omicron
- Added lightning and thunders on Masperon (see first screenshot on top of page)
- Added butterflies on Akua
- Added flies to worm plant on Akua
- Added pollen particle effect on Omicron
- Added dandelion particle effect on Akua
- Changed texture on Ahax Plant (harvest stage)
- Replaced Aloe Vera plant with high-quality version
- Added proper harvest state for Pixie Stalks on snow planet
- Added better LODs to several plants (higher poly models)
- Tweaked water color on Akua
- Slightly increased light intensity on Omicron

Birds on Omicron:

3.3 Improved NPC behavior and overall visuals:
- Added herd behavior for many NPCs
- Smoother overall movement for NPCs (walking and turning)
- Improved pathing of NPCs on terrain: they should get stuck less often and don't walk on steep mountains any more (e.g. Akua)
- Lizard Mule is now on Akua. Added own texture for Lizard Mule Baby. Lizard Mules flee now when being attacked.
- Triceraptos does not drop milk anymore.
- Added Parasaur to Ningues.
- Improved shader on many NPCs
- Improved terrain shader
- First version of 'round' cutout box to integrate POIs better into terrain (will be improved)

Some NPCs are now walking around in groups / herds:

Improved placement of POIs on the terrain (smoother cutout). Here as an example with the new Transporation Hub:

4. New Player Jetpack Model
- Added new jetpack model to player (male/female) + updated textures of player

5. Better Escape Pod landing:
- Better Escape pod exit: damage model, screen fading, no grass removal and escape pod will not fly away in SP when exiting while flying.
- Some tweaks to Escape Pod controller -> more reactive now.

New model for damaged escape pod:

Changes / Improvements:
- Drones are not visible on the large map M for the whole planet anymore: now drones will be only visible when closer than 250m
- Map / HUD view distance for objects of other players (private and/or faction) are reduced to 250m on planets and 1250m in space (instead of 500m / 2500m)
- HUD object names are only displayed below distances of 200m / 500m (planet / space)
- Added new POI to Omicron: transportation hub (thanks to Vexray)
- Saving player data on kicking him from server to avoid exploits
- Re-balanced player sentry gun: - Higher RoF - More hitpoints - More damage - More gun elevation / depression
- Added New Image Effects: Screen Space Reflections + Bloom
- Added Light Shadows and Sky Reflection quality options to Video Settings
- Increased range for Brightness Slider
- Added better SV on Creative Akua.
- Slightly increased given Unlock Points for levels 19 and 20 (added 30 UP).
- Added damage states to consoles, atmo thruster, sentry guns and laser turret
- Added number of devices in struct info txt and server output info line
- Improved sound loop with thrusters (better zero crossing in wav)
- Adapted tutorial message after Escape Pod crash
- Updated Tutorial: added motorbike
- No collision on Varon Root anymore
- Large grey rocks: Tweaked occlusion strength on Rocks. Adapted LOD group (now: earlier switch to LOD1)

Bug Fixes:
- Fixed problem in Resume Game menu that made it impossible to resume any game if only one of the savegames had a problem
- Fixed: Ground/terrain rebuilding like an invisible layer with drone wrecks nearby
- Fixed: Deco sometimes not removed from POI
- Fixed: Player Avatar Movement issues in Multiplayer
- Fixed: Rocks sometimes create holes next to or below themselves
- Fixed billboards and LODs on Alienpalm tree Omicron
- Fixed: Multitool T1 & T2 imbalance: HP removal per hit inconsistent
- Fixed: Creative Menu Fresh Start leads to error
- Fixed grass shader: grass is overbright when sun is low (i.e., morning or evening)
- Fixed problem when leaving cockpit -> player remained in sitting animation for 0.5sec
- Fixed: light of player drone and flashlight shining through walls (you must turn on shadows for this change to take effect)
- Fixed: Hangardoor 13*7 and 14*7 has invisible gap between frame and blocks
- Fixed: Rocks and Trees sometimes vanish when plants are picked up nearby

Thanks for reading!

Yours

Empyrion Dev Team

 

[wanderer27]

Quick Patch notes :

Alpha 3.2.1: Patch
August 16 - EmpyrionGame
Hi Galactic Survivalists,

We have just released another hotfix because we identified major performance problems when flying with large vessels on a dedicated server (performance issues were noticeable also for other players on the playfield). This resulted in severe lagging/stuttering of vessel movements. To improve the situation, we temporarily switched off the colliders of flying vessels. The downside of this performance workaround is that you cannot collide with another moving vessel (or vessel that has a player in the cockpit). So if you want to dock with your SV/HV to a CV you have to ask the pilot to temporarily exit the cockpit. We are working with high priority on a fix - but for now you should notice a significant gain in performance.

Changelog: Alpha 3.2.1 (Build 560)

Changes / Improvements:
- Reduced lags of moving ships and improved performance when other vessels are moving in a playfield
- Added explosion to small and large generator (BA, CV) when destroyed

Bug Fixes:
- Fixed POI shooting through terrain (SP only) - you must start a new game for this fix to take effect
- Fixed motorbike bouncing when disembarking (MP only)
- Fixed weapon bobbing when exiting a cockpit with weapon in hand (MP only)
- Fixed error that randomly appeared on planets with lightning and thunder effect (MP only)



Also heads up, Empyrion is on sale for 50% off right now ($9.99) until 8/22




.

 

[Harabec]

Wow, I don't know how I missed this. It's as close to my idea of sci-fi exploration as it gets. With the discount it costs very little (especially compared to No Man's Sky at 6 times the cost...). Bought it, hope I'll enjoy it

 

[Blue_Max]

Some months later this game has lost all excitement, but Space Engineers is still going strong!
Space Engineers would be the *perfect* game were it not for some notable glitches and performance issues once they introduced planets. Unlike Empyrion, we muscle through those glitches to enjoy the S.E. awesomeness.

 

[wanderer27]

Some months later this game has lost all excitement, but Space Engineers is still going strong!
Space Engineers would be the *perfect* game were it not for some notable glitches and performance issues once they introduced planets. Unlike Empyrion, we muscle through those glitches to enjoy the S.E. awesomeness.

Sounds like you got some mileage out of it anyway.


Also, like SE, Empyrion is still in development - I'd say it's not too bad for still being Alpha



.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

For $10 I'm thinking of getting this. I do have questions.
What's the point of a base on a planet? Do things attack it and is there stuff to defend?
When in space do you get attacked by pirates and stuff? Where is the conflict in this game?

 

[wanderer27]

For $10 I'm thinking of getting this. I do have questions.
What's the point of a base on a planet? Do things attack it and is there stuff to defend?
When in space do you get attacked by pirates and stuff? Where is the conflict in this game?

Things are still being added, but there is both local inhabitant threats and Alien threats on each planet (haven't checked Space yet).

I've only done the SP aspect of it (there is MP).

You need a Base primarily to build multiple devices, and your Base will be an Enemy target.

This is from the Alpha 1.0 Launch which may answer some other questions.

.

 

[wanderer27]

Actually here's a clip from September 2014 - a lot has changed since this :

.