Today we released an update that adds a new game mode called “New Game+” to the game. It becomes available only after you’ve fully completed the Story mode, as it requires the player to have a certain level of gameplay experience.
What is “New Game+”?
The game map looks the same as in Story mode, but resource generation at mines and the quests offered by towns are randomized. The player chooses where on the map, and from which mine to start the game. Towns, ranches, and other locations also do not unlock automatically - the player unlocks them when they see fit. This way, you can tailor the pace and difficulty of the game to your preferences.
In this mode, the player must also build factories and choose their locations. Tip: If the focus of the game shifts to another part of the map and previously built factories become unnecessary, you can remove them. In that case, the cost of building new factories in new areas of the map will be lower, since it depends on the number of factories already on the map.
The objectives for buildings such as weather stations, bridges, depots, stadiums, and others are fixed. They are the same as in Story mode. However, for cities and ranches, there are 4 task options, and the player must choose 2 of them that they consider most suitable at that point in the game. In other words, when selecting a task, you need to consider which resources you’ve found in the mine and can easily use in production. Sometimes there are situations where the needed resource hasn’t been found yet. In that case, the best solution is to use the market.
Also in this update:
Fixed a bug where, after purchasing an upgrade that increases the number of resources in mines, the upgrade was not applied to newly purchased mines
Fixed the display of mica in the warehouse (there was an issue with image clipping)
Now, clicking the fast-forward button automatically resumes the game from an active pause
Bandit camps can no longer grow while being eliminated. However, if the elimination process is stopped, the growth timer will reactivate
Other minor improvements and fixes.
What’s next? What’s the status of “Sandbox” mode?
“New Game+” is a hybrid between a linear Campaign and a fully random “Sandbox” mode. As we mentioned earlier, development of the “Sandbox” mode - with randomly generated maps, mines, and everything else - is proceeding in parallel. We’ve already implemented random map and mine generation, and now the biggest challenge is linking city quests to how mines are generated (in “New Game+,” this link doesn’t exist, which is why situations where a necessary resource is missing can sometimes occur). In other words, you can expect the “Sandbox” mode to appear in the game within the next few months.
But we already have grand plans for what to do after “Sandbox”! In addition to plans to introduce liquid and gaseous resources into the game - each with their own unique extraction methods - we’re working on something very interesting. But we’ll announce that later in a separate post :)
We’re looking forward to your feedback on today’s update! Let us know if you enjoyed the new game mode!