The 1.0 release of shapez 2 is NOW AVAILABLE with a whole new game mode, modding support, achievements, new visuals & much, much more. Vortex LTD is expecting you.
Unfortunately, pre-1.0 savegames are not compatible. However, there is an 0.1.1-old branch available on Steam that you can switch to, if you for example want to check out some of your old creations, create blueprints, or simply are not ready to do the switch yet.
Blueprints are compatible, but blueprints created pre-1.0 will show a warning in the blueprint library. We encourage you to recreate them (i.e. by placing them down, then saving them again), as we will drop support for pre-1.0 blueprints in future updates.
Before diving into the changes, I wanted to give a quick guidance on which mode to play when you dive into 1.0. The release renames the current experience into Classic Mode and introduces a new Manufacture Mode.
Certification: If you’ve not played shapez 2 before, we recommend playing the Certification scenario first. It is a ~1h long scenario that teaches you all the necessary basics and allows you to then seamlessly transition into the Classic scenario.
Classic Mode: If you’ve already played shapez 2 during early access, but it’s been a while, we recommend you to start with the Classic - Regular scenario first until you feel comfortable with the game again and you’ve built up an initial collection of space platform blueprints. The Classic scenario is the original shapez 2 experience and offers a unique blend of factory building, logistics and shape puzzles.
Manufacture Mode: Once you’ve got the hang of Classic Mode, we recommend trying the new Manufacture Mode. The mode introduces new mechanics and focuses on permanent, large-scale factories, similar to other factory games, with the goal of re-launching your Vortex Platform.
The 1.0 release is the biggest update for shapez 2 so far, and we’re super proud of it!
This isn’t just a “game is finished” release. With this update, we’re introducing a huge amount of new content and improvements on top, for new and existing players. Even if you’ve already played shapez 2 during early access, we’re very confident there’s something new for you, making it worth checking out the game again.
As always, we’ve spent a lot of time polishing the game already, and with lots of beta testers having tested the release extensively, we expect basically no bugs and good performance.
We really hope you enjoy it!
~The entire tobspr Games Team
With over 3,700 commits since the Dimension Update (0.1.1), summarizing all of the improvements coming with 1.0 is quite a challenge. We tried our best here!
The 1.0 release introduces a new game mode, called Manufacture Mode. This mode addresses one of the biggest feedback points we got during early access: factories you needed to build for a specific shape were no longer being at later stages in the game
In the new Manufacture Mode you’ll focus on re-building your Vortex Platform by trading shapes with Trade Stations and building large-scale, permanent factories.
Check out the devlog below, going into details of the new mode:
1.0 introduces 83 achievements that cover various aspects of the game, including a few hidden ones. Go hunt them all!
More information can be found here:
With 1.0 we are also introducing modding support! While we expect it’ll take a bit of time until we see a vast amount of mods, there’s already a few available and we encourage anybody interested in creating mods for the game!
Modding uses the Steam Workshop, making it easy to find, install & manage mods.
To develop mods, check out our Modding Documentation
To install mods, check out the shapez 2 Steam Workshop
While the Classic Mode remains the more “traditional” shapez 2 experience, we’ve spiced it up with additional goals at the end, introducing 4 new milestones and new shapes that can be acquired with Trade Stations. They may look similar to the Manufacture Mode stations, they don’t require you to scale up as much, unless you want to!
We’ve also added a massive amount of QoL changes, like consolidating the speed upgrades into a Global Speed Upgrade, Shape Previews working more consistently and also for trains, and much more!
Find more about the changes coming to classic mode here:
The game has visually improved a lot in all areas, with the biggest changes being Space Pipes now looking like actual pipes, a rework of all Wire related buildings, new Fluid Launcher visuals, generally more details & fidelity, various shader improvements and much more!
Manufacture Mode: An entirely new game mode and experience, encouraging you to build permanent, large-scale factories and optimizing logistics (Check out the devlog + video above!). The existing game mode has been renamed into “Classic” mode.
New Shapes: Added 2 new shapes (X and Y), used in the Manufacture Mode and Classic Mode Trade Stations.
Classic Mode Extension: Classic Mode (Regular/Hard/Insane) has been extended with additional content and new shapes, introducing 4 new milestones! (Check out the devlog + video above!)
Global Speed Upgrade: Consolidated the individual Stacking, Cutting & Painting speed upgrades into a global speed upgrade, to avoid machine ratios changing during upgrades - they should now stay consistent.
New Tutorial: The tutorial has been fully reworked to contain colored shapes, specific lessons explaining cross-layer conveyor belts better, and many more improvements, to make it more interesting and easy to get into shapez 2.
Spiral Map Generation: Added support for spiral map generation and made it the default (configurable when starting a new game), leading to more interesting map generation,an emphasis on the use of trains and your factories spiraling out of control.
Badges: Completing a scenario now grants a unique badge, visible in the main menu. Collect them all to gain operator bragging rights.
Vortex LTD Lore: Lore elements have been added throughout the game. Find out more about Vortex LTD history by completing milestones!
New Codex: The codex has been vastly extended, now containing over 150 pages explaining all game mechanics This includes tutorials for Wires & Make Anything Machines, pre-built Blueprint Examples and much more!
Train Spacers: Train stations with gaps now require a Train Spacer platform (This was a technical requirement in order to support the train shape previews - see below)
Infinite Pipe Throughput: Pipes now have infinite throughput. However, they are still limited by the fluid launchers/catchers between platforms, which are now the primary limit.
Black & Uncolored Fluids: You can now create black fluid by mixing white with white, and uncolored fluid by mixing black with white, allowing you to for example remove paint from shapes.
New Music: Additional 10 minutes of music from the original composer, the fantastic Petter “Peppsen” Sumelius, and 10 more minutes if you own the Supporter Edition. Bangers included.
200% Train Throughput: Trains got a massive throughput buff, increasing their package size from 180 → 360 shapes and 1,800 → 3,600 Liters.
Added upgrades to increase platform capacity so you can build more factory per factory.
Custom map generation shape weights logic has been changed to now work with a weight based system, instead of iterating through all the possible shape types.
The base level in space has been shifted one level up, so shape asteroid miners are now on the bottom layer.
The layout of the simulated (un-)stacker has been changed to a more intuitive layout, with the input/output on the side.
Streamlined Hexagonal Scenario: now starts directly in space, similar to the other Classic scenarios.
Added simulated CCW rotator.
Added 2x2 and 3x3 displays.
Global wire transmitters now also support integer and color channels.
Changed train wait stop interval to 60 seconds (from 120).
Fixed + Train Shape Previews: Shape previews now work consistently and even support trains, while now also being displayed at the end of space belts/pipes.
Automatic Space Floor Selection: Zooming in towards a space platform will now automatically adjust the selected space level, allowing for a more seamless transition (can be disabled in the settings).
Better Placement: Refactored the (space platform-) placement to work similar to the machine placement, which means “Shift” to override and various other placement features should now work as expected.
Allow filtering “Empty” shapes in the shape filter.
Added an optional setting (disabled by default) to allow Q/E to also switch space levels while in machine mode, if going below the lowest or highest level in machine view.
Improved platform selection raycast logic, to allow selecting space platforms more accurately
Improved statistics screen so there’s more to stare at.
Organized the toolbar categories & entries to be more intuitive.
Added error indicator when attempting to place shape/fluid asteroid miners on the wrong space level.
Added ability to (un-)pin operator shapes from the Operator Shapes screen.
Disable screen border panning by default, as it could cause more harm than good.
Display mode and scenario in the operator screen, for easier verification of screenshots.
The shape inspector now shows statistics for the currently selected shape, as well as all available shape codes & fluids, and includes a back/forward button for previous shapes.
“Replace” now saves a blueprint immediately.
Rename right shift to “RSHIFT”, so it is easier to distinguish between left / right shift.
Dark Mode: You can now enable an experimental dark mode in the settings, which is lighter on the eyes. It will be further refined in future updates. Perfect for those of you building factories at 3 am.
Space Pipe Visuals: Space Pipes now actually look like pipes! (Check out the devlog + video above!)
All New Wire Visuals: All wire-based buildings have been fully visually reworked! (Check out the devlog + video above!)
New Icons: Reworked almost all icons in the game.
Improved visuals of all train-related content: Trains, Loaders, Stops, Packages ,etc.
Improved visuals of the Space Belt and pipe lift.
Improved visuals of the Shape / Fluid Miners.
Improved crystal visuals.
Improved rendering of space platforms while hiding upper levels or in machine view.
Improved wire shaders.
Improved fluid shaders.
Improved glass shaders.
Updated main menu background to reflect 1.0 content.
Added level number to each lane of Space Pipes/Belts, to make it more clear on which machine levels shapes/fluids are travelling on.
Various color blind improvements.
Improved visuals of connectors between Space Belts/Pipes and machine platforms.
Changed the color of fluid related platforms like fluid train (un)loaders.
Added small intro cutscenes when starting a new Certification / Manufacture Mode game.
Improved readability of various platforms in overview mode.
Fixed extractors/pump meshes being too long.
Tons of LOD & UV fixes.
Reworked Milestones screen: Reworked the Milestones screen to be more intuitive, better display which milestones you already unlocked and which shapes you need to deliver next.
Reworked Operator Level screen: Reworked and cleaned up the Operator Level screen, with the ability to now pin/unpin individual operator shapes.
Reworked Shop screen: Reworked the Shop screen to improve the display of upgrades to show which machines & platforms are unlocked from upgrades, as well as a visual rework of the (speed-) upgrades.
New Codex: Reworked the Codex to contain much more information (>150 pages) and features, including breaking down articles into individual pages, throughput information, back/forward button, search feature, ready-to-copy blueprint examples, and much more! Great for some light reading.
New Recipes screen: Added a new recipes screen, showing all available conversions of trade stations / operator levels, both in Manufacture and Classic Mode.
Machine Videos + Throughput: Almost all machines now show a small video during placement, explaining how they work and visualizing their throughput. (Can be disabled in the settings)
Reworked the summary screen when unlocking a new milestone to be less overwhelming.
Reworked and cleaned up menu screens when creating a new game.
Added more visually pleasing notification when unlocking new technologies, completing shape goals or unlocking achievements. Happy chemicals go brrr.
Allow using hexagonal and quad shape parts interchangeably in Location Markers and Blueprint Icons, ensuring icons work across all modes.
Savegames now display a “Completed” badge in the menu.
Added a warning icon when a blueprint might be incompatible in future versions.
Added more statistics in the side panel during placement of platforms, i.e. display the shape package size while placing train loaders or the platform capacity cost.
Added indicators when switching from machine to space view and vice versa.
Changed “/m” to “/min” (i.e. 60 / min) to make it more clear its “minutes” not “meters”.
Various polishing in all areas. Everything is now spick and span.
Updated all images and videos in the game to reflect the new visuals and mechanics.
Updated Unity to 2022.3.62f2.
Lots of performance improvements in all areas.
Improved rendering performance.
Improved blueprint placement performance.
Various memory / RAM improvements, fixed multiple memory leaks.
Added debug.performance-chart command with further options, to debug where performance bottlenecks are.
This release includes over 500 bugfixes. It would be too many to list all of them here. However the game should be very stable, and we are not aware of any critical issues after extensive internal and closed-beta playtesting.
If you still encounter any bug, the easiest way is to report it on our discord, in the #bug-reports channel. Should you not want to use discord, you can also for example post on the Steam Forums or email us at [email protected]!
Thank you for reading until here - we hope you have a lot of fun with 1.0! It was quite a journey and we put a lot of effort into it, so we hope you’ll enjoy the game as much as we do!