by Bod9001
Hey, people! Yes, it's that time again for another progress update blog post (and don't worry, we'll change the name sometime since it's not exactly "weekly" anymore).
Over the past month, we've dedicated a lot of effort to fixing bugs that you all discover during our weekly Saturday playtest sessions. You can find a detailed list of all the changes on our Changelog Page. Nonetheless, we have some exciting updates to share with you today, so let's dive right in!
But maybe you do—and now you can! Thanks to MaxIsJoe's efforts, the health system for objects now supports fire stacks, similar to how we manage creatures. This means objects will visually show when they are on fire.
For a bit of fiery fun, a huge assortment of station objects have been dipped in gasoline and are now flammable. Just make sure you keep a fire extinguisher close at hand.
In a somewhat controversial move facilitated by a mix of bribery and blood sacrifices, Nanotrasen (NT) has begun hiring Hellspawns, partly due to the increasing number of fires aboard the station. These unique new crew members, known as Tieflings, find the station's normal temperature unbearably cold. To cope, they're often seen wearing snug, warm jumpers.
Tieflings come with some distinctive traits: their unusual feet mean they can't wear standard shoes, but they benefit from a significant resistance to fire and have the ability to see in the dark, making them uniquely suited for some of the more perilous tasks on the station.
For the longest time we have had the same question on our Discord, "voice chat when?", and the answer always was "when you code it". Well, as part of this year's April Fools new feature, Bod decided to code it and here it is!
Unitystation now has an optional voice chat! It was a little bit of a quick implementation, so it is not quite perfect but it works. It can be enabled and disabled by admins, and it is disabled by default.
AtnerNT has introduced some exciting updates to the way anomalies are handled in Unitystation. Now, players have the option to purchase unresearched anomalies at a significant expense. While costly, these anomalies provide valuable research opportunities.
Additionally, the process for handling reports has been reworked. Instead of using data discs, reports will now automatically print on paper. This allows for more customization and tweaking to your heart's content. Be mindful, though—if the information is incorrect, the financial return will be less.
On another note, the long-awaited repair of the photocopier is complete! Celebrate your printing joys as this essential piece of equipment is now fully functional, enhancing day-to-day operations on the station.
Bod9001 has been busy enhancing the mapping capabilities in Unitystation, bringing several significant upgrades to the system. First and foremost, we've introduced a new feature that includes gizmos for selected objects. This is especially useful in scenarios like setting up a maintenance generator, where specifying an area is crucial.
Moreover, the ability to show and hide layers has been refined, proving particularly beneficial for intricate tasks such as mapping out pipes and cables. This level of control allows for much cleaner and more efficient map development.
We've also improved the Variable Viewer (VV), enabling users to set object or component references to other items within the scene or to prefabs, which enhances the flexibility and power of customization.
Lastly, we're excited to offer a sneak peek at our map saving and loading functionality. While saving has been fully implemented, loading is still under development. We are making good progress and look forward to rolling out this complete feature soon, which will significantly streamline the map creation and modification process.
And that's a wrap for now! We have some thrilling developments simmering in the oven, particularly with in-game mapping becoming more tangible, bit by bit, tool by tool. Stay tuned for another progress update next month!
As always, we owe a huge thanks to our patrons, coders, players, and friends. Your support makes all of this possible. A heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you!
