Posted by Lukas Franke on

Upcoming features for the summer release

It has been quite a while since our last release, but not to worry, we are still going - mostly rewriting tons of code not visible to the outside eye. While not presenting a full playtest we want to take the time to introduce the community to some upcoming changes to look forward to.

Singleplayer savegames

Probably the most wanted missing feature, the next version will include support for savegames in both skirmish and the campaigns. No more losing all progress to a stray dog eating your Tanya!

The savegame load screen in D2k
Longer missions can now be played in several takes instead of needing you to pull through in one go.

Spectator UI and new Tiberian Dawn sidebar

Our spectator UI has always been noted to be clunky and take too much space on the screen. With the next update we are happy to finally introduce a more slim and focused spectator UI.

A new spectator UI
The new transparent overlay is a huge quality of live upgrade for both casters and casual spectators.

Our second most visible update features yet another long standing UI rework that was just completed last month after sitting on the shelf for years. The sidebar in Tiberian Dawn was completely overhauled and looks better than ever.

Polished building placement previews

There is not much to say here, the images will tell the story. The tweaked placement preview in RA, TD, and D2k makes it easier to see both the building being placed and any cells that are blocked by units or debris.

On a side node for the modders reading this: With the coming update the core engine will also support placing building variants in your mod (if you like north and south facing refineries for example).

The new Tiberian Dawn sidebar
The new Tiberian Dawn UI includes a refreshed building placement overlay and brand new sidebars.

Polished map previews

The ingame UI was not the only thing getting an upgrade. We overhauled the map previews of the map chooser to look the same as ingame.

Overhauled map previews
The new previews include the positions of forests and civilian structures.

Setting support power directions

Parabombs and airstrikes have long been a point of both frustration (when taking too long to reach their destination) and joy (when immediately wiping out an army at the map edge). We kept the joy aspect, but removed the frustration! The upcoming release will allow you to conveniently select the approach vector by dragging into a specific direction while placing the power.

Directional powers
Want to avoid air defenses by sending your troopers in from the south? We've got your back.

Even more upcoming changes

The list is long, too long for this post. A few other noteworthy changes include:

  • A new time limit lobby option for multiplayer and skirmish games
  • Many fixes for queued unit orders, aircraft, and harvesters
  • Removed Mono requirement on macOS and Linux
  • A new name and artwork for the long-controversial Allied Hind in Red Alert
  • Many new tweaks and traits for modders
  • Even more bug and performance improvements

You can take a peek at our development changelog if you are interested in the entire list of upcoming changes.