Long time, no see! We are getting anxious (and excited) for the next patch to hit Default, and we thought you might be too! With October rapidly approaching we wanted to take a few minutes to provide you with a brief progress report to update you on the status of the current, and massive, dev cycle -- and provide you with an idea of what you can expect from the upcoming patch, and our plans for the next few updates.
Current Cycle
Wow! This cycle has been a long one, the last Default patch was in June, but it's for good reason and we believe the the improvements will have been very well worth the wait! A lot has changed, a whole lot -- here are just a few things that are currently on Edge branch, which will be making their way to the Experimental branch next week, and finally to Default in October. Here are a few highlights:
- BIG Performance Gains
Edge players are reporting massively improved performance. - Luggage Tracking & Mechanics
Change port types on Hubs, upgrade hubs, and watch each individual piece of luggage during its journey. - New Pax Graphics
Rich new animated agent graphics for a more immersive & less cartoony experience. - More Data & Reports - Needs & Timings reports, Perfect Ops breakdown, 6+ new pax/agent overlays, and numerous reporting & data improvements.
- Bank Loan Overhaul - Completely updated bank loan system with credit ratings, bigger loans, and larger interest ranges for a more realistic fiscal premise.
- Expand in ALL Directions - By popular demand, you can now buy more land in any direction! Even across the street!
- A Real Main Menu
No longer will you be dumped into a default airport when you open the game! - Construction Improvements
Better supply pile positioning, fast inventorying of dismantled objects, lower performance impact. - Pax AI Update
Smarter pax, more maintainable code, and better performing AI. - MANY BUG FIXES and LOTS MORE
Of course we fixed a ton of existing bugs, along with the new ones created along the way. Lots more, too! Check out the Edge change log if you want to see what else we've got for you in the upcoming October patch, or check back here when in drops in a few weeks!
What's Next?
We are currently in burn-down mode on this cycle, and we're already starting to look towards the next cycle a bit. We've still got a lot more planned and much of it already in the works -- here are the key items that we you can expect to see in the cycle following the October patch. Be sure to check out the SimAirport Roadmap for the complete view of what's to come though!
Planned for the Next Cycle
- Tutorial. Finished! Will hit Edge same day the October patch ships!
- Staff Scheduling. Under way! Hits Edge the first few weeks of cycle.
- Cafe Overhaul. Under way! Hits Edge the first few weeks of cycle.
As always, plenty more will sneak its way into the next cycle too -- but generally we expect it to be a bit smaller, and more rapid, as we move back towards the rapid & iterative development cycles that you were used to.
Thank you!
We want to extend a huge thank you to the community who continues to support us; especially those of you who are playing SimAirport and providing feedback, bug reports, and save game files to us in the Edge forum on a daily basis -- we truly couldn't do it without you. Our most sincere thanks to you, and to everyone in the community!
In closing, here's a quick screen grab to give you an idea of just how truly MASSIVE an undertaking this cycle has been -- we're as excited as you are to see it hit Default, and we're even more excited to dig back in on the next cycle!
