Game version 3765 (2nd of September, 2023)

The third developer’s iteration contains more new features than any release in the past two years. It opens up new ways for players to approach the game.

However, some features are being left behind. One of the most notable changes is the removal of the feature that allowed players to hover over a deposit to initiate the build mode for extractors or hydrocarbon plants. This feature was computationally expensive and is no longer part of the standard FAForever experience. However, it is still available as a UI mod for those willing to accept the performance penalty. You can find the ‘Hover to Build’ UI mod in the vault.

Another feature with reduced functionality is the ringing feature. You can now only ring extractors with storages, while all other options are integrated into the new Context-Based Templates feature. You can read more about this in the features section. This change was made because the old ringing feature was computationally expensive and could cause stutters and frame drops for players. Therefore, it has been limited to its most commonly used functionality: the ability to ring extractors with storages.

Lastly, any functionality that relied on the old spread attack implementation will no longer be operational. The previous implementation was susceptible to abuse and could even crash the game. We hope that the new implementation will better serve your needs as a player.

With appreciation towards all the contributors that made this iteration possible,

Best regards, Jip

Features

Mobile Factories

A long-standing functional myth has now become a part of the FAForever experience! All Tech 3 Aircraft Carriers, plus the Tempest, the Atlantis, and the Fatboy, can now build using a separate build module attached to the unit. The build module is located at the back of the unit. Clicking just over the back (on land/water) will select the build module. All factory hotkeys interact with these build modules.

We’re open to ideas from players on how we can further improve this feature, especially in terms of user interactions.

The Megalith remains unchanged, while the CZAR temporarily loses its ability to build. We were unable to finalize it, but we hope to include it in a future patch.

Advanced orders

We’re enhancing existing advanced orders and introducing new ones. The most notable change is the complete reimplementation of the Spread Attack feature from the ground up. This wouldn’t have been possible without the dedicated work of Strogo, RTD, and KionX.

All of the mentioned orders are linked to hotkeys. In the key bindings menu, you’ll find new world-wide-web icons next to hotkeys. If the world-wide-web icon is present, you can click on it to learn more about the hotkey on the FAForever wiki. We highly recommend checking out the Wiki; it even includes short videos that can explain concepts better than a thousand words ever could.

The following hotkeys have been improved or added:

  • Distribute orders (formerly Spread Attack)
  • Distribute orders (for the unit your mouse is hovering over)
  • Copy orders (for the unit your mouse is hovering over)
  • Load into transports
  • Filter engineers
  • Cycle templates (see below: Context-based templates)

Advanced map shaders

We’re excited to announce the introduction of advanced map shaders that map authors can now apply to their new maps. Existing maps will remain unchanged. These new shaders enable you to incorporate properties such as shadows, ambient occlusion, normals, and albedo textures directly into the terrain. This integration makes them an integral part of the rendering pipeline, rather than applying them on top of the terrain, as decals typically do.

Context based templates

An alternative use of the build templates system! With this new feature, you can cycle through build templates that adapt to the context of your selection and your mouse location. FAForever includes a set of default templates for this feature. The functionality is fully customizable, allowing you to remove existing templates or add your own to cycle through via UI mods.

You can find the hotkey by searching for ‘Context.’ It defaults to ‘Tab’ for new players or those who have reset their keybindings.

Other features

  • (#5321) Pausing engineers will also pause reclaiming props.
  • (#5300) The score graph now uses square root scaling to make it easier to view the first few minutes.
  • (#5326) We’ve improved CPU resource utilization to reduce frame stuttering for CPUs with 6 or more logical cores.

In practice, many CPUs have 6 or more logical cores. If we detect that your CPU has sufficient cores, we change the process affinity to ignore the first compute core. The first compute core is often used by processes, including the OS. When the game ignores the first compute core, the render thread (which is otherwise locked to the first compute core) has more room to operate and is less influenced by other processes and the OS. As a result, you’ll experience fewer stutters and overall better frame times.

  • 9e73421 On average, there is a 5% performance improvement (both in simulation and UI) across the board. A free Cybran Cookie for anyone who can explain how it works without asking the assembly magicians.

  • 120d32 Added a new hotkey to load all units of your selection into the transports of your selection.
  • (#5333) Added tread crushing damage to the Fatboy.
  • (#5367) Added the standard Cybran build effect to the Megalith.
  • (#5362) Added links to the Wiki to explain hotkeys in the key bindings menu.
  • (#5360) Sped up the death animations of a wide range of structures.
  • (#5312) Extend depth preview to help indicate when the water is deep enough for submarines
  • (#5365) Add high quality water textures that map authors can now use
  • [fe6db21] Improve the Damage over Time (DOT) effects of the Mercy

Bug fixes

  • (#5317) Bombers with multiple projectiles are now less likely to miss their target when micromanaging them.
  • (#5294) Gifted structures now properly copy the orientation.
  • (#5335) Fixed a bug that occurred with the navigational mesh for non-square maps.
  • (#5329) Disabled intel and maintenance costs of units inside a carrier.
  • (#5374) Fixed upgrading structures losing their control groups.
  • (#5371) Fixed invulnerable props being removed when building on top of them.
  • (#5371) Fixed light particles when building structures being visible through the fog of war.
  • (#5343) Fixed a bug that could cause the simulation to freeze.
  • (#5303) Fixed a bug that could cause weapons to reset their targets prematurely
  • (#5368) Reduce aliasing of water when anisotropic filtering is enabled through the Nvidia settings

Contributors

Unlike previous changelogs we no longer list the commits of each individual contributor.

With thanks to the following people who contributed through coding:

  • RabidPope
  • Gordenwunderlich / Nex37
  • Hussar
  • BlackYps
  • Basilisk3
  • speed2
  • Grandpa Sawyer
  • Hdt80bro
  • Maudlin27
  • Relent0r
  • Jip
  • Deribus

With thanks to the following people who contributed through binary patches:

  • 4z0t
  • Strogo
  • KionX
  • RTD

With thanks to the following people who contributed through model, texture and effect changes:

  • MadMax
  • Deribus
  • Jip

And, last but certainly not least - with thanks to those that took part in constructive discussions:

  • CheeseBerry
  • Tomma
  • Nex37
  • MostLostNoob
  • FemtoZetta
  • Sheikah
  • ComradeStryker
  • Resistance
  • Maudlin27
  • MadMax
  • IndexLibrorum
  • Derp
  • Deribus
  • Magge