An issue affecting multiple users sneaked past beta testing into our previous release (see Bugfixes and QoL Update). So after a very short beta phase, this hotfix is now live for everyone.

Thanks to everyone who reported the issue and thanks to everyone who already tested this hotfix on beta.

• [UBR] Fixed an issue where images in the encyclopedia were distorted
• [UBR] Fixed a crash when opening specific encyclopedia entries, for example "Integrity Fields"
• This was also triggered by choosing an integrity field block in build mode

• Reverted the bundled SDL2_image library to an older version (for Windows)

Beta Branch Note: These changes are currently available on the beta branch. The beta branch is for testing experimental changes and for finding and fixing errors.

This is how you get access to the beta branch (USE AT YOUR OWN RISK):
Right-Click on Avorion in your Steam list, Properties -> Betas -> Select branch 'Beta Branch - Newest Changes & Experimental Features'.

• [UBR] Fixed an issue where images in the encyclopedia were distorted
• [UBR] Fixed a crash when opening specific encyclopedia entries, for example "Integrity Fields"
• This was also triggered by choosing an integrity field block in build mode

• Reverted the bundled SDL2_image library to an older version (for Windows)

Hello everyone!
We're very happy to announce that the patches 2.5.3 and 2.5.4 are now available on default! Thank you to everyone who participated in the beta and all the valuable feedback! And now without further ado here is a highlight of the most important changes.

In the last update, we already made docking to a station more reliable by changing the underlying assessment of what is docked. While this made things less confusing code-wise, we noticed that the UI wasn't properly reflecting the docked status. To address this, we are now introducing the following changes:

• The station's indicators now correctly show the ship as docked as soon as you are close enough to transfer resources, crew, goods, ...,
• Tractor beams no longer pull your ship all the way to the dock if you have a functional transporter. They now stop as soon as your ship is in transporter range.
• Added visual effects when nearby entities block the docking area and tractor beams have trouble locking on to a single target
• Tractor beams flash red, some of them may point to the obstructing object
• A yellow indicator at the dock shows that tractor beams aren't available, but you're still able to dock manually
• Holding F now only starts an interaction when you are close enough to transfer resources, crew, goods, ...
• The interaction dialog with the station will now automatically open when your ship has been pulled close enough
• Tapping F for a short time always starts the interaction dialog with a selected station

Some things seemed to have slipped past us concerning secondary block colors. Thank you for everyone reporting these issues and the wonderful suggestion of a color swap!

• [UBR] Ship Name blocks no longer darken the text if a custom secondary color is set
• [UBR] Added a button to swap primary and secondary colors
• Button is hidden when both colors are equal
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where blocks with colorized windows (Crew Quarters, some Hulls) did not flicker for wreckages and ships with low energy

Due to several reports of bad performance in collisions, glitches in build mode and rendering issues, we investigated and found a few troubling issues. One we're addressing now with this update: Zero or even negatively sized blocks.
These teeny tiny blocks cause a lot of issues with our engine, as it was never built to deal with such a thing. Therefore, we sadly have to introduce a minimum block size. After a lot of consideration and performance testing, we chose to set the default minimum value to 0.01 (which is equivalent to 10 cm).
While this limit is fine for general gameplay, it does impede art builds somewhat. Therefore we additionally added a galaxy-specific server.ini setting that allows for this limit to be much smaller. Be aware that this might lead to more performance issues, though.

• You can set the server-wide minimum block size in the server settings. Accepted values are between 0.001 and 0.01.
• This value is not used to limit precision / decimal places. All block sizes above the minimum are accepted by the game.
• This change does not affect existing builds
• For now ship designs with block sizes smaller than the server's limit can still be applied
• Whole ship scaling currently does not prevent smaller blocks
• These two points will probably change in a future update, especially on multiplayer servers
• Existing ships already in the galaxy will not be modified

• The Open Ship Menu Button now indicates more clearly which ship menu will be opened
• The Creative Command Center (available in creative mode) will now give all types of subsystems and turrets
• The bug where co-op flying co-pilots were no longer able to do damage was fixed and additionally co-pilots are now also able to fire torpedoes!

As usual, this isn't an exhaustive list of all the changes. If you want to know more you can find the full patch notes of both patches here: Patch 2.5.3 and Patch 2.5.4.

Have a wonderful day!

Beta Branch Note: These changes are currently available on the beta branch. The beta branch is for testing experimental changes and for finding and fixing errors.

This is how you get access to the beta branch (USE AT YOUR OWN RISK):
Right-Click on Avorion in your Steam list, Properties -> Betas -> Select branch 'Beta Branch - Newest Changes & Experimental Features'.

We've revisited docking this patch thanks to all the feedback we received from you! Even though we made docking a lot more stable with the changes from the last patch, you pointed us to some remaining issues that we are addressing now.

• The station's indicators did not consider functioning transporters, leading to inconsistent input hints. The indicators now correctly show the ship as docked as soon as you are close enough to transfer resources, crew, goods, ...
• Tractor beams no longer pull your ship all the way to the dock if you have a functional transporter. They now stop as soon as your ship is in transporter range.
• Added visual effects when nearby entities block the docking area and tractor beams have trouble to lock on to a single target
• Tractor beams flash red, some of them may point to the obstructing object
• A yellow indicator at the dock shows that tractor beams aren't available, but you're still able to dock manually
• Holding F now only starts an interaction when you are close enough to transfer resources, crew, goods, ...
• The interaction dialog with the station will now automatically open when your ship has been pulled close enough
• Tapping F for a short time always starts the interaction dialog with a selected station

• Creative Mode Command Center now includes all available turret types when using the "Guns Guns Guns" button

• Minimum Block Size is a server option now (Default and recommended is 0.01; Allowed values are between 0.001 and 0.01)

• [UBR] Torpedoes in default weapon group can be fired again (regression in version 2.5.3)
• [UBR] Fixed player ships exploding or jumping out of sector after a previous server crash
• This prevents ships from being replaced by an older version when reaching a target sector after a hyperspace jump
• Conflicts in case of inconsistent ship databases are now resolved by keeping the currently piloted version
• [UBR] Fixed a crash when a bluetooth headset was connected while the game was already running
• [UBR] Fixed a log error when refine ore autopilot orders were terminated
• [UBR] Fixed a crash in pirategenerator.lua
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where generated turrets, fighters and torpedoes could be weaker than expected in sectors that are close to the center
• Fixed an issue where going back from a window to a dialogue box resulted in the wrong option being selected or a crash (e.g. from hire crew window back to shipyard dialogue box)

• Stacktraces now contain the names of involved external libraries
• Updated bundled SDL libraries (for Windows)

Beta Branch Note: These changes are currently available on the beta branch. The beta branch is for testing experimental changes and for finding and fixing errors.

This is how you get access to the beta branch (USE AT YOUR OWN RISK):
Right-Click on Avorion in your Steam list, Properties -> Betas -> Select branch 'Beta Branch - Newest Changes & Experimental Features'.

• [UBR] Ship Name blocks no longer darken the text if a custom secondary color is set
• [UBR] Added a button to swap primary and secondary colors
• Button is hidden when both colors are equal
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where blocks with colorized windows (Crew Quarters, some Hulls) did not flicker for wreckages and ships with low energy

• Changed the Hud menu button to open the Ship Menu slightly:
• While in Build Mode it will always open to the currently built ship
• Added icon and extended tooltip to show whether the menu will open to a remote or the flown ship
• “Inventory is almost full”-Warning is now shown at 50 remaining slots instead of 5
• When flying an alliance craft the warning is displayed for the alliance inventory

• Co-op flying now allows co-pilots to fire torpedoes if they own the corresponding weapon group
• Creative Mode Command Center now includes all available subsystems when using the "Gimme Systems" button
• Equipment Docks no longer sell Co-'n-Op Reconstruction Kits in galaxies with perma destruction enabled

• Cargobay::addCargo and Entity::addCargo no longer accept negative cargo amounts.
• If you want to fill the entire cargo hold use math.huge as amount

• Non-admin players can no longer access the debug menu of crafts (when admins have used addScript; restriction does not apply to galaxies with DevMode=true)

• Saved Designs window:
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where the refresh button did not work (in Workshop folders)
• Fixed automatic refresh for workshop sub-directory when item download finishes
• The parent folder button no longer skips multiple parent folders
• Removed non-functional "Rename" context menu entry for workshop items
• Fixed an issue where errors during upload of a workshop item led to incomplete workshop items and unending “uploading…” shown in UI
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where docking detection did not work reliably
• [UBR] Fixed an issue with co-op flying where co-pilots were no longer able to do damage
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where large ships could become stranded in rifts if the extraction was to be through a wormhole
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where a player could become stranded in a rift after logging in
• [UBR] Repairing NPC ships at relation status ceasefire will no longer be seen as breaking the ceasefire
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where fighters were no longer controllable after renaming their mothership
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where the Reconstruction dialog was not closable when a destroyed player ship had the same name as an alliance ship
• [UBR] Fixed an issue in the Hire Crew window where the slider and the textbox disagreed on how many crew members to hire
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where hyperspace jump energy would always include subsystems in the Build Mode's stats overview
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where production capacity and speed up would always include subsystems in the Build Mode's stats overview
• [UBR] Fixed Research stations producing unusable turret blueprints
• [UBR] Ship group numbers in the ship list (galaxy map) are now centered so that their position no longer conflicts with active map command icons
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where turrets on autofire would target invincible entities
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where joining a password-protected dedicated server from Steam friend list was not possible
• [UBR] Fixed station's push beams not letting go of ships that were given a new order during undocking
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where it was possible to build blocks with zero thickness in voxel grid mode
• Fixed an issue where it was possible to use templates to build blocks with zero thickness
• Server now enforces a minimum block size
• Fixed an issue where grid snapping did not work in voxel grid mode while matching a hovered block’s shape
• Fixed a background rendering issue in sectors near rifts
• Fixed an issue in rift sectors where thunder sfx were not 3D

• Upgraded SteamAPI to 1.60
• Removed workaround introduced in 2.3.2 and 2.4.1 for Linux server startup issues with Steam Clients from that time. These issues have been resolved in recent Steam Client versions.

We're happy many of you like the new Secondary Block Colors and the Photo Mode. A few issues sneaked past beta testing, so here's a bugfix patch!

• [UBR] Fixed an issue where Cargo Bay patterns were too dark with default secondary color
• Fixed an issue where Alternate Hull patterns and Armor patterns were too bright with dark primary color and default secondary color

• Field of View slider can now be set in steps of 5 instead of 10
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where the Field of View slider could be set to zero.

• [UBR] Fixed an issue where rift missions would not be initialized correctly
• [UBR] Fixed an issue with color identification which led to travel hub not working correctly
• Fixed an issue where the Chameleon Subsystem did not highlight ships anymore
• Fixed an issue where Creative Mode Command Center wouldn't work for alliance ships

We're happy many of you like the new Secondary Block Colors and the Photo Mode. A few issues sneaked past beta testing, so here's a bugfix patch!

Beta Branch Note: These changes are currently available on the beta branch. The beta branch is for testing experimental changes and for finding and fixing errors.

This is how you get access to the beta branch (USE AT YOUR OWN RISK):
Right-Click on Avorion in your Steam list, Properties -> Betas -> Select branch 'Beta Branch - Newest Changes & Experimental Features'.

• [UBR] Fixed an issue where Cargo Bay patterns were too dark with default secondary color
• Fixed an issue where Alternate Hull patterns and Armor patterns were too bright with dark primary color and default secondary color

• Field of View slider can now be set in steps of 5 instead of 10
• [UBR] Fixed an issue where the Field of View slider could be set to zero.

• [UBR] Fixed an issue where rift missions would not be initialized correctly
• [UBR] Fixed an issue with color identification which led to travel hub not working correctly
• Fixed an issue where the Chameleon Subsystem did not highlight ships anymore
• Fixed an issue where Creative Mode Command Center wouldn't work for alliance ships

Update 2.5 with secondary block colors and a photo mode is now live for everyone! With this update we introduce the long awaited secondary block colors! Most blocks now have the option to color their patterns independently from the main block color. And to top it off we added a photo mode so you can show off your building (and coloring) skills!

Secondary block colors are here! With these you can color in the blocks' patterns just as you like it. Look at this example of devs trying to show off their artsy talents ¯\_(ツ)_/¯:

I'm sure that you can do much better than us!

And to highlight some of the effects of the secondary color, here is a short list of the main changes:
All generator-type blocks (Energy Containers, Energy Generators, Shield Generator, Hyperspace Core...) can have their glow color replaced. Before the glow color was depending on their material, but now you have the option to color them in any color you like.

The same applies for the engine glow and the thruster flames. Before you had to change the material, now you can color them with the secondary color!

And for a bunch more blocks you can now color the pattern. Before these patterns always had the same color and you had to adjust your block color until they matched. Now you can color the pattern to fit your vision instead!

These are just some examples, you'll find more changes in game! If you want to know exactly which blocks are changed take a look at the patch notes down below.

Making screenshots has always been kind of a pain-in-the-butt-type thing in Avorion. And this is why we now implemented the perfect tool for that: Our photo mode! Now you no longer have to find the perfect sector with the perfect lighting and the perfect planet you want to have in the background. Just use the photo mode to switch sector styles, and once you've found a style to your liking, adjust all the other things right there! Reposition the sun and the planet, recolor the sector, add more stars, and many other things!

Additionally you can add a vignette effect or apply one of the filters until you've found the perfect visuals for your build. Or you can apply rift visuals for the eerie feeling. Have fun!


For everyone craving more details, here are the full patch notes:

• Update 2.5
  
• Patch 2.5.1

And last but not least: Thank you everyone who participated in the beta and gave us feedback! You guys rock!

Beta Branch Note: These changes are currently available on the beta branch. The beta branch is for testing experimental changes and for finding and fixing errors.

This is how you get access to the beta branch (USE AT YOUR OWN RISK):
Right-Click on Avorion in your Steam list, Properties -> Betas -> Select branch 'Beta Branch - Newest Changes & Experimental Features'.

• Secondary colors for armor and hull blocks with alternate patterns now have the same brightness as the primary color
• You can now build armor blocks without camo pattern by choosing the same color for primary and secondary color
• To match the default primary color, look for a colors named "Iron Ore", "Titanium Ore", etc.

• Armor blocks now use separate texture files again, so that they can be modded independently of hull blocks
• Texture mods still need to be updated
• Armor blocks of different materials no longer share the same mask

• Disabled mouse over sounds for empty places in color window (build mode)

edit 2024-06-12:

• Fixed camera speedup not working for some directions
• Made camera controls independent of current steering mode