Status update 04/05/14

[Nacho84]

Hello all,

I hope you're well and that you're enjoying the weekend. Just a quick post to give you an update on the development:

* We've added two new game modes: "NASA sandbox" and "Soviet Space Agency sandbox". They are similar to the GSA sandbox, but obviously the programs you can open are now restricted to the selected space agency. We've also integrated the images for the NASA and Soviet space agency complexes, so you'll get a different space complex depending on which space agency you choose.
* We've created lots of new assets for the UI. I'll integrate those into the game tonight and, as a result of that, you'll see a lot less placeholders in 0.7.17.
* User N_Molson from the Slitherine forums has been tirelessly working for the past 10 days by tweaking the game database and the game scripts. We expect more fine-tuning will be required, but at least we're confident you'll get a much better game experience and be able to achieve your objectives in a sensible timeframe.
* We've created lots of new animations for the Soviet missions. Unfortunately integrating these into the game takes a while, so we won't bundle them in 0.7.17. However, we expect to include them in 0.7.18.
* We've created two new programs for the Soviet space agency: Sputnik-2 and Mars M69. I'll integrate those into the game tomorrow and they will be featured in 0.7.17.

As always, remember to check the changelog for a more detailed view of the features we're working on. We'll do some internal testing during the week and, if everything goes well, I'll be uploading a patch to the FTP very soon for you to try out!

Cheers,

[redcoat22]

Can't wait!

[Snarfield]

Thanks for the update. I just read the change log details for 0.7.17, and I gotta say, I'm REALLY looking forward to this update, especially now that personnel gain skill level after and during missions.
I know that everybody says this, but really, thank you guys so much for making this game. I've been looking for a game like this for a long time, and it is absolutely incredible.

[Sabratha]

Woo I again congratulate you on making good decisions. The addition of sputnik 2 is something I have been advocating basically ever since I went into the beta and thus I'm very excited to see this happen!

This was, in many ways a landmark mission in space history and among the most well-known and celebrated ones in the history of the Soviet program. I do hope you will give us an alternative "descent&parachute" option for the mission though (that was supposed to be how the first dog mission would occur, but the soviet leadership forced early timetables which meant taht there was no time to develop heat shields and parachutes for the Sputnik-2).