Greetings Pilgrims;
In this all-new 1.5 update, we have added an extensive suite of customization options. Along with those options come a few new pieces of gear, technology, and tools to help you acquire and analyze alien samples, unlocking additional options.
First Some Fixes
Addressed several issues with drones
Fixed an issue with platinum drills
Fixed some language errors
Added some stability to prevent crashes during large, fast item transfers
Reduced some colonist demands performance-wise
Tweaked some numbers for alien bugs to try and find the right balance across all difficulty settings
Now on to the main course
How Do We Customize
To access the new customization options, you will need to build a "Colony Customization Center" located on the "Basic Base Constructor".
I wanted to keep this new facility accessible early on, including in the demo, but it does have a hefty funding cost to unlock. However, it is cheap and easy to make once unlocked.
With this new facility, there are four sections. "Base Customization", "Light Customization", "Colonist Customization", and an "Alien Sample Analyzing Station".
You can access each section by interacting with the corresponding stations in the room.
What Can We Customize
For the base, you can set a color variant and choose from a variety of textures. The default remains the one you have known so far, but you can now use a bunch of new textures to mix up the style of your base.
For lights, you can set colors for both regular lights and the red alert light.
For colonists, you can set the primary, secondary, and tertiary colors for their uniforms and change their names.
Customization Progression
To unlock additional color and texture options, you will need to acquire and analyze alien samples. These samples can be collected using the new "Alien Sample Collector" tool found on the "Tool and Power Constructor". Once equipped in a quick slot, they can be used and consumed much like other foods and potions. Provided you are inside one of the radiation caves or on an expedition, you will acquire a numbered sample for that area. If you consume a sampler in a non-alien area, it will be consumed and return no sample.
Once you have a sample in hand, you can head to the analyzer in the "Colony Customization Center," open the menu, and click to analyze that sample. Each sample only needs to be analyzed once.
Once a sample has been analyzed, a portion of the variations will unlock for the other customization menus. What unlocks is based on the sample collected.
Additional Gear
I have added a chest armor that protects you from radiation inside the radiated caves.
I have added an underwater helmet that allows you to breathe underwater(New underwater caves and adventures may be coming soon).
You can find both of these new pieces of equipment on the "Basic Manufacturer" and must first be unlocked in the "Research Center" to gain access to them.
What Is Next
Obviously, if there are any reported issues, I will move quickly to address them, but my long-term plan is no updates for a while. I aim to collaborate with artists to create entirely new visuals for machines and facilities. If successful, I would love to redo the base visuals and take their quality up, while also remaking or resizing some modules to make them more uniform and logical. Base building is part of the game's puzzle, but some sections feel odd compared to others. Implementing uniform dimensions, rotation options, and snap changes would significantly advance base building.
I expect this next major step to take 6 months or more, but it will be well worth the effort. Stay up-to-date on the latest work by joining the game's Discord. I will be available to fix issues and communicate with anyone. When ready, I will start working on what I consider the 2.0 update for the game. It will be challenging and time-consuming, but ultimately, it will make the game better. Following that update, if things work out as I envision, I plan to do a free DLC planet.
Thank you for your continued support, and I hope you'll continue to watch this game as it develops towards its final form.