What's New

Got over COVID, it sucks.

It's a been a busy week. Following the initial release of the module based sub refactor on Monday basically every day has had a pattern of playtesting at night, and then fixing bugs and making tweaks the next day. I think this has resulted in Xenosea being in a really solid spot right now.

Module Based Sub Refactor

This is the big one, in the works for nearly a month. Submarine performance is now largely dependent on customizable internal modules. The turret and submarine vendors have been replaced with a new vendor that handles everything. You can now swap out everything from your submarine's armor, engine, turrets, torpedo launchers, even diving chambers. The same interface is used to customize a new submarine when buying it.

The set of module types in-game now is very much bare bones, with lots of room for expansion in the future. Of the existing modules, not all are available in all locations as well, so it pays to shop around.

You can get some interesting results playing with the modules, like this little speed demon. Interestingly, despite its speed (faster than any torpedo in the game) its far from invincible. 

New Submarine: Forthright

I've had the concept for this one bouncing around in my head for awhile now. The Forthright is basically an upgraded Stalwart (the starting submarine). It lengthens the hull slightly to add a second pair of gun turrets and a minisub hangar. It features excellent turret coverage, with two turrets being able to fire in every direction. It makes a natural next step for captains seeking to move on from the Stalwart, and is also used by pirates and rebels as a "poor man's" battlesub.

Wiki

If you need help finding some of these weapons and submarines you can now consult the new Xenosea Wiki. This wiki contains a mix of background and setting information as well as game mechanic information. So if you've ever been curious why the Protector and Seeker look similar, or where you can buy the Forthright, this is the place for you.

Like Xenosea itself the wiki is very much a work in progress.

Patch Notes

• Rename uranium to thorium to justify lack of nuclear weapons.
• Module based sub refactor.
• Replaced turret and sub vendors with new module vendor that handles refitting existing subs and buying new ones.
• You can now change your submarine's name when refitting it.
• AI subs now have names reflecting their behavior and faction (e.x. Northburg Patroller, Delve Trader)
• Prevent agent subs from gaining health due to inaccuracies converting between detailed and agent representations.
• Fix crash loading player sub when they have minisub hangars.
• Show ammo name and range information in aiming periscope.
• Reduced rate of standing gain.
• Added windowed display options.
• Experimentally disabling storms and ocean currents.
• Increase speed of avenger to designed speed.
• Apply correct styling to autopilot button tooltips.
• Reduce size of explosion effect for D8 AP, Helldart and Dirk.
• Fix minisubs not being saved / loaded correctly.
• Better handling of automatic mission tracking when picking up or delivering.
• Gave more clearance to docking towers 1 and 2 at Northburg.
• Smoother docking process.
• Minisubs attack from closer range, for better hit chance.
• Fix damage and visibility of D6 Slug
• Gun turrets don't count as reloading until they're done with their firing sequence.
• Fix display format for gun turret module fire rate.
• Improvements to validation in module vendor screen.
• Fixed agents deserializing as the wrong agent type. 
• Added new Forthright sub to Delve, Newhome, and Port Liberation.
• Added new Forthright pirate agents to Hudson pirate stations.
• Properly save and show player's sub type in save game summary.
• Docking sequence waits for sub to be aligned before beginning slide into dock.
• Indicate altitude delta when manually aiming torpedo.
• Reduce instability of Striker
• Fix torpedoes being sideways on mapscreen.
• Fix arbalest torpedo instability.

What's Next

My immediate next step is to look into some of the AI behaviors. AI subs should be docking at stations, but for some reason they aren't. Additionally the Cartel doesn't appear to be trying any smuggling runs, which is kind of their specialty.

Past that I want to take a pass at stations, fix some issues with alignment to terrain and maybe flesh them out with some detail.

Outside Opinions

What I could really use, though, is some outside opinions. So far Xenosea's development has largely been driven by what I see as deficiencies, or what features I'd like to see added. This viewpoint is limited however, so I'd love to hear from some of you.