The November playtest includes many updates which streamline the player journey and enhance the feel of planetary combat. These improvements include:
- Item crafted improvements
- Deployables Wheel Selection
- Cleaner UI
- Welcome
- Deployment
- Planet
- Manufacturing
- Backpack
- Weapons
- Missions (Contracts)
- Spectator Mode Improved
- Personal Mining
- Deployment Flow
- Full Inventory Persistence and Banking
- NPC vs NPC Combat
- Throwables
- Upgraded Textures and Loot
- Contracts
- Melee
- Threat Visor
- Death Immolation
- Spawning
- Audio
- Other Improvements
Item Crafting Completed Notifications
Deployables Wheel Selection
Deployables Selected
Cleaner UI
Planet Deployment Selection
Spectator Mode Improved
Cleaner Missions (Contracts) UI
Personal Mining
- Personal Mining has been completely re-imagined.
- The Banana Gun is no more! New Cutting Tool mesh added along with laser and impact VFX and SFX.
- The Cutting tool can now be loaded with multiple ‘Mining Crystals.’
- Mining Crystals must be matched with Surface Minerals for optimum mining efficiency
- The ‘Adaptive Weaponry' System has been expanded to the Cutting tool, allowing players to upgrade it with manufactured or looted chipsets.
- A New AR prompt highlights cuttable objects.
Deployment Flow
- Completely new deployment flow that adds more context and narrative while bringing the menus more in line with our vision for the UI with updated styles, Icons, buttons and more across the game.
- Intro video sequence ‘Syncing with the Fulcrum Interface’
Full Inventory Persistence and Banking
- All Manufacturing items from Player Inventory can now be extracted or banked.
- Players can add any of their items/equipment to their 'Deployment Hold’ which is transported along with the Vanguard down to the planet Surface.
NPC vs NPC Combat
- Upwell troops can now be found battling Militia forces in various locations on Maelstrom.
Throwables
- Locus Grenades now available to Vanguard Warclones for manufacturing and crafting.
Upgraded Textures and Loot
- New High-Quality Escape Pod
- New High-Quality shipwreck wall panel
- New Loot crates with full, partially full and empty states
Deployables and Radial Menu
- Nova Charge Deployable now available to Vanguard Warclones.
- Deployables can now be prepared for deployment from a radial menu while in session.
Contracts
- The contract system has been overhauled, featuring several new objective types.
- Contracts now draw from a diverse, randomized objective pool, increasing mission variety.
- Each contract includes three objectives, rewarding players with Kredits for each completed objective and a bonus for completing all three.
Melee
- Vanguard now brutally stab enemies with a Nova Knife.
Threat Visor
- Visual Improvement to the threat visor making enemies stand out.
Death Immolation
- When killed Vanguard Warclones and Humanoid NPCs ‘Immolate’ into a Nanite Cloud - which is now how Biohybrids are collected; automatically by walking into the cloud.
Spawning
- Improved spawn rules so that Vanguard now spawn a min distance from enemy players.
Audio
- Full SFX soundscape pass on Solstice Monsoon.
- Improvements to weapon audio for all fire-modes and fire-rates.
- Projectile whizz-by updates and improvements.
- Height based audio obstruction.
Other Improvements Include:
- Fixes and improvements to existing Activities Secure Salvage and Mining Rights
- End of session report Improvements and fixes
- Upgraded to Unreal Version 5.4.4