Hello Ranchers!
Hope y’all are safe and doing great!
Today, I’m excited to introduce our newest feature: The Ranchers Police District (R.P.D). 🎉🎉🎉
From the start, The Ranchers has given you tons of freedom to play the game your way. You can stick to the rules and enjoy a calm, relaxed experience, or you can mix things up—maybe even try something a little daring, like swiping NPCs' crops, cars, cows, or chickens, vandalizing public property, or even shaking up national security for a bit of mischief 😀
Ultimately, it’s your call, and you probably have your own reasons for how you play (don’t we all? 😀).
Before, if you got caught, the game would hit you with a fine to teach you a lesson—harsh and not very fun, especially in an open-world farming sim where freedom is key.
Now, things feel a bit more like real life (isn’t that what a simulation’s all about?): your actions have consequences. Each misdeed you commit will trigger a reaction from the Ranchers police, giving you the freedom to deal with it your way.
You can pay up, surrender, or even push things further with the R.P.D—at your own risk (and potential reward) 😀
Without further ado, here’s an example of how it works:
Pay your fines and carry on with your day:
If you commit a repressive crime, you'll find yourself in police custody:
When you're feeling brave and want to test your luck with the police!
Here's how the police chase mechanism works with its 5 wanted levels:
Wanted Level 1:
- Status: Code Green
- Behavior: Police drones aim for a peaceful resolution.
- Action: They won’t arrest or attack if you pay your fines. This level handles minor offenses—pay up, and you avoid custody.
Wanted Level 2:
- Status: Still Code Green
- Behavior: No lethal force is used, but they strongly encourage you to surrender.
- Action: If caught or if you surrender, you'll be taken into police custody, likely with a sentence.
Wanted Level 3:
- Status: Code Yellow
- Behavior: Police drones use non-lethal, dissuasive tactics.
- Action: Getting caught here means you'll be placed in custody with a probable sentence.
Wanted Level 4:
- Status: Code Red
- Behavior: They’re now authorized to use light lethal weapons.
- Action: Their goal is to end the chase quickly.
Wanted Level 5:
- Status: Code Black
- Behavior: Heavy lethal weapons are in play to end the chase at all costs.
- Action: The police will do whatever it takes to end the chase.
At any level, you always have a choice: surrender to reduce your sentence and bail, or try your luck evading the police.
Even if you lose the cops, their cars will continue searching for you briefly. If they catch you again, the chase restarts—but if you manage to stay hidden for a while, you'll eventually be considered evaded.
Surrender vs. Capture: What Happens Next?
If you surrender or get caught, you'll be taken into police custody and placed in a cell. There, you'll need to pay your fines and potentially serve some jail time depending on your crimes.
Getting caught results in the maximum fines and jail time, while surrendering at any wanted level will lead to lesser fines and fewer jail days.
Plus, while you're in custody, your friends (multiplayer) can join your game, visit you, and take care of your crops and cattle— isn’t that what friends and family are for? 😀
What happens if you successfully evade the police?
First off, congratulations—you’ve got skills! 😀
Your fines are wiped out, and you keep all your loot ;)
Inside the Police Station
This update introduces the police station interior, where you can visit friends in custody—or serve your own time! Let's take a look:
Hacking Mechanics
This update introduces a hacking tool that lets you manipulate various elements in The Ranchers' world.
Ever wanted to hijack an NPC's vehicle for a joyride? (We know you've got your reasons 😀)
Your hacking success depends on the security system you’re targeting. You’ll have a set number of attempts—fail too many times, and alarms (and the police) might be triggered!
As you progress, you can upgrade your hacking tool through the skill tree (coming soon) to hack faster and tackle tougher systems.
Here’s an example of hacking an NPC vehicle with a full police chase till the evasion:
This update also introduces two new shops:
QuickFix Garage:
QuickFix garages are scattered throughout The Ranchers’ open world. They can repair your damaged vehicle anytime—even in the middle of a police chase.
Auto Hue Garage:
Normally, Auto Hue lets you change your vehicle’s paint job. In trickier situations, they can even help you by changing your vehicle’s plate numbers, removing it from the police wanted registry.
Stolen Vehicle Mechanic
This update introduces stolen vehicles to The Ranchers' world. If you drive a stolen vehicle, the police chase will be triggered when you're caught—unless you visit an Auto Hue Garage to change the vehicle plates.
A stolen vehicle can display:
1. Red stolen Icon: Plates haven't been changed. The police will pursue you every time they're alerted.
2.Black stolen Icon: Plates have been changed at Auto Hue garage, allowing you to keep the vehicle without triggering a chase.
Keep in mind, stolen vehicles can still be sold—but they fetch lower prices than those acquired legitimately.
Vehicle Radios
This update also introduces two radio stations you can listen to while driving:
The Ranchers Radio
A favorite among ranchers, playing mostly country music and tunes that capture the essence of ranch life.
Sunvale Skyline FM:
A more cosmopolitan station featuring a mix of hip-hop, pop, rock, and reggaeton.
What’s Next?
With this update, we've definitely delivered that “GTA spirit” I mentioned before in previous updates, and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. Implementing the new police mechanic was a real challenge—finding the balance between action and keeping The Ranchers a chill, relaxing farming sim wasn't easy.
At the heart of it all, The Ranchers remains a game that offers immense freedom and a stress-free experience. It might be a bit different from what you're used to (isn't that why you try new games?), but I promise — you’re going to love it!
Now that this update is in the books, our next focus shifts back to the farming and ranching side of things. We're excited to finalize the suburb area and bring you the hunting mechanic!
If you're interested in helping shape the future of The Ranchers, feel free to join our The Ranchers Discord. And if you want to see more gameplay from this update, check out the live stream I recently hosted:
Thanks so much for sticking with me, and stay tuned for more updates! ❤️❤️❤️
Ethan
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1501310/The_Ranchers/