Differences

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--- version_history:2026 [2026/07/08 20:02] – Publish v0.37 Public Release + add v0.37-b2 beta entry mario
+++ version_history:2026 [2026/08/05 14:44] (current) – v0.42 – Shield Doctrine public release mario
@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 ====== 2026 ======
+==== v0.42 ====
+**//Released//**
+Status: Released
+Public Release: 2026-08-05
+Steam Branch: Public
+=== Summary ===
+Update 0.42 introduces a three-layer protection system on ships and stations, procedural NPC loadouts, armed sector stations, and a unified red enemy indicator in sector map and minimap.
+=== Changes ===
+  * **Three-layer protection system for spaceships:** Damage now hits the shield first, then the armor, and finally the hull. Excess damage immediately cascades to the next layer. Shield and armor systems use existing primary-system slots; ships without these systems have 0 maximum points, but all three bars remain visible.
+  * **Three armor systems with world blueprints:** Three passive primary systems without MK progression tiers, fully researchable and installable.
+  * **Three shield systems with research and blueprints:** The new primary-system generators smallShield, mediumShield, and largeShield, analogous to the armor systems.
+  * **Destructible and armed sector stations:** The 11 normal and 7 exotic inhabited sector stations become independent prefab variants with fixed station-system loadouts. Each station has very high hull values, dedicated armor, shield, and weapon slots, fights pirates autonomously, and retaliates against attacks. Home station and abandoned station remain unchanged.
+=== Improvements ===
+  * **Danger-level-based NPC ship templates and procedural systems:** The previous hand-crafted civilian and pirate combo prefabs are removed from the active spawn flow. Each hull now has a clean NPC template without built-in systems; danger-level profiles pick the hull, and the shared ship-systems manager then installs a complete, energetically valid slot loadout.
+=== UI / UX ===
+  * **Red display of hostile ships and stations in sector map and minimap:** Hostility is read uniformly from HostileObject. As soon as a ship or station becomes hostile, object list, minimap, sector map, and world name update automatically. Neutral objects keep their previous colors.
+  * **Short-range scanner layout adjusted:** Content is no longer clipped.
+  * **Selected sector object is pinned to the top of the list.**
+=== Bug Fixes ===
+  * **Station computer UI display error fixed.**
+  * **Precision laser display error fixed:** the misleading "MK3" suffix was removed.
+  * **Ship-system icon display errors fixed**, including the permanently repaired IonEngine icons.
+----
+==== v0.41.1 ====
+**//Released//**
+Status: Released
+Public Release: 2026-07-29
+Steam Branch: Public
+=== Summary ===
+Small maintenance build with three targeted fixes for a calmer sector-loading experience and a more consistent weapon feel.
+=== Graphics ===
+  * **Precision laser visual tweak:** The blue beam of the precision laser is now visually a bit slimmer.
+=== Bug Fixes ===
+  * **Home Sector loading screen flicker:** The sector loading screen UI no longer flickers on scene change in the Home Sector.
+  * **Shipyard maneuvering thrusters:** The maneuvering thrusters no longer start automatically in the shipyard.
+----
+==== v0.41 ====
+**//Released//**
+Status: Released
+Public Release: 2026-07-28
+Steam Branch: Public
+=== Summary ===
+Update 0.41 introduces a high-precision long-range weapon and improves savegame reliability. It also fixes a mining-loop bug and a Home Sector display glitch.
+=== Changes ===
+  * **Precision laser — new ship weapon:** A new high-precision ship weapon that fires short, focused blue-turquoise pulses for extreme-range combat. It deals devastating damage, but requires very high energy and has a long charge time.
+=== Improvements ===
+  * **More robust save system:** The save system has been hardened to handle edge cases more reliably.
+=== Bug Fixes ===
+  * **Mining loop fix:** Items added to an in-progress mining operation are now registered safely. Their mining duration is added to the running operation, and progress counters are only incremented on a successful extraction. Infinite loops are prevented.
+  * **Home Sector display fix:** A display glitch in the Home Sector has been fixed.
+----
+==== v0.40 ====
+**//Released//**
+Status: Released
+Public Release: 2026-07-20
+Steam Branch: Public
+=== Summary ===
+Update 0.40 extends the object list and short-range scanner with new Blueprint, scan, and action features. Blueprint drops are now deterministic by source ID, time-spawned civilian ships are capped sector-wide, and every ship system sprite has been unified into a single visual design.
+=== Changes ===
+  * **Blueprints in the object list:** Blueprints are now displayed in the object list of the Objects UI window.
+  * **Direct attack and scan actions in the object list:** The object list now supports direct attack and scan actions for eligible targets.
+  * **Scan icon button in the object list:** A new icon button enables direct scanning of an object from within the object list.
+  * **Manual short-range scanner button:** The short-range scanner window can now be opened at any time via its own dedicated button.
+  * **Localized Blueprint rarity labels:** The rarity of a Blueprint is now shown in the short-range scanner using the existing localized UI labels, instead of the English internal enum name.
+  * **Civilian ship cap (sector-wide):** Time-spawned civilian ships are now limited to a maximum of twelve ships per sector. The limit is shared across all active spawners.
+  * **Civilian ship slot release:** Destroyed or despawned civilian ships automatically free their slot in the sector-wide limit.
+=== Graphics ===
+  * **Unified ship system sprites:** All ship system sprites have been reworked into a single, consistent visual design.
+=== UI / UX ===
+  * **Conditional action icons:** The action icons of an entry in the object list are only shown when the respective action is available for the target.
+  * **Localized warning symbol tooltip:** The spaceship warning symbol in the home sector now has a localized tooltip.
+  * **Blueprint tooltips in short-range scanner:** Blueprint entries in the short-range scanner list now have a dedicated tooltip.
+=== Improvements ===
+  * **Stable Blueprint drops by source ID:** Blueprint drops are now selected reliably by their source ID and no longer depend on the periodically reset Unity random seed.
+  * **All 800 Blueprint templates droppable:** As a result, all 800 Blueprint templates can now be selected as drops reliably.
+  * **Savegame-compatible civilian cap:** The sector-wide civilian ship limit is fully compatible with existing savegames.
+  * **Existing Blueprints unchanged:** Already generated Blueprint entries remain unchanged. The new selection method only applies to future Blueprint drops.
+----
+==== v0.39 ====
+**//Released//**
+Status: Released
+Public Release: 2026-07-16
+Steam Branch: Public
+=== Summary ===
+Update 0.39 improves control, the first-session flow, NPC behavior, and sector performance. It adds configurable keybindings and consistent Steam Deck controls, while making the first jump clearer and tightening pirate behavior, Blueprint handling, and a range of smaller systems.
+=== Changes ===
+  * **Full keybinding system:** The former static control overview is now a dynamic, scrollable binding list with separate keyboard-and-mouse and controller sections. Custom bindings are saved globally and loaded automatically on the next game start.
+  * **Improved onboarding and first sector jump:** The flow from the home sector to the first jump is clearer and more robust. New saves now begin with the intended story introduction and complete starting equipment. The player's ship can be selected directly in the home sector and shows its status, warnings, and a highlight ring on hover. Sector jumps are only enabled when all required conditions are met, and the Shipyard provides a direct recovery path.
+  * **Steam Deck controls:** Core Steam Deck controls now follow a standard Xbox-compatible gamepad layout for sticks, the D-pad, ABXY buttons, triggers, shoulder buttons, and Start.
+  * **Optional trackpad and back-button bindings:** Trackpads and back buttons remain optional additions rather than replacements for core controls. The right trackpad can act as a mouse, its click as a left mouse button, and back buttons can be assigned as additional bindings for existing controller buttons.
+  * **Improved pirate pursuit:** Pirates no longer pursue targets almost indefinitely. They abandon chases more reliably and can be lured near civilian ships to distract them.
+  * **Improved beginner tip:** The first hint now points directly to the player's ship instead of the Star Map menu.
+  * **Movable tips window:** The tips window was reduced from 910 × 650 to 760 × 520 pixels, opens on the left side of the screen, and can be moved by its title bar. Its position is retained within the current scene and reset when changing scenes.
+  * **Ship scale pass:** Several spaceship sprite sizes were adjusted for more consistent scale between ships.
+  * **Louder hyperspace jump sound:** The sound effect for jumping into hyperspace is slightly louder to make the jump feel more powerful and immersive.
+  * **Camera-dependent sector particles:** Persistent particle systems in safe sectors now pause their simulation completely when outside the camera view and resume without expensive catch-up simulation when visible again.
+  * **Audio and effect pooling:** One-shot ship explosion sounds and effects are reused through a sector-local pool. Effects are released based on their actual state, reducing unnecessary creation and destruction.
+  * **Clean NPC sleep state:** Sleeping NPC ships now stop audio and particle effects completely. On waking, only the effects required by the responsible gameplay systems are started.
+  * **More efficient sector updates:** Expensive checks during sector runtime are throttled more deliberately or driven by events. Movement, weapon control, collision reactions, and smooth animations remain fully active per frame.
+=== Bug Fixes ===
+  * **Blueprint decryption button:** Fixed an issue where the button could become clickable again while decryption was still running in the Station Computer.
+  * **Localization strings:** Corrected several localization strings that were displayed incorrectly.
+  * **Blueprint weapon accuracy:** Blueprint weapon inaccuracy on the player's ship is now calculated correctly.
+  * **Blueprint reliability:** Fixed several issues related to Blueprints.
+  * **Ship and sector selection state:** Ship and sector selection states are now synchronized more reliably.
+  * **Sector jump validation:** Invalid or incomplete sector jumps are now reliably prevented.
+  * **Additional regression coverage:** Added further tests for ship selection, jump readiness, and the game-start flow.
+----
+==== v0.38 ====
+**//Released//**
+Status: Released
+Public Release: 2026-07-11
+Steam Branch: Public
+=== Summary ===
+Update 0.38 deepens the cargo loop and tightens ship handling. Persistent cargo drops in the sector tie combat and salvage together; cargo weight now affects flight dynamics; every ship in the game gets a new sprite set.
+=== Changes ===
+  * **Persistent cargo drops in the sector:** The previous "destroy" buttons now drop ship cargo at the current ship position. Works in flight and from the extraction screen. Nearby active loot containers are preferred; otherwise a new lootable container cluster spawns. Dropped cargo is persisted per sector and per savegame and is restored on the next sector entry. Station cargo stays put and is not teleported into the sector.
+  * **Cargo weight affects flight handling:** The player's cargo hold fill level increases the ship's effective weight linearly. An empty hold has no effect; at 100% fill the ship is 10% heavier, about 9.1% slower, and less rotation-agile. The effect remains noticeable against the existing speed caps.
+  * **New sprites for all spaceships:** Every spaceship in the game has been re-sprited.
+  * **Sound effects for blueprints and data scans:** Decrypted blueprints get their own sound effect; the sector now plays a sound when a data scan finds new data.
+  * **800 blueprints for ship systems:** The game now contains 800 ship system blueprints in total. Pirate debris fields can now spawn multiple blueprints at once.
+  * **Blueprint management in the station computer:** The station computer now has a dedicated blueprint manager. Decrypted blueprint entries show the same ship-system tooltip on hover as blueprint systems in the shipyard; encrypted blueprints and other list entries remain unchanged.
+  * **Category icons for blueprints:** Blueprints show the matching system slot icon from `Assets/Sprites/Ship System Slots/`, tinted with the existing category colour. The icons appear in the short-range sensor and in the blueprint lists and detail views of the station and ship computers.
+  * **Automatic cleanup of identical blueprint duplicates:** Decrypted blueprints are merged automatically when their template, affixes, and gameplay-relevant values are identical in their UI-rounded display. Existing savegames receive a one-time, idempotent migration; installed blueprint references are remapped to the remaining copy.
+  * **Tooltip system overhauled:** The tooltip system is now more robust and reacts faster.
+=== Bug Fixes ===
+  * UI colour no longer fails to update when the alarm state changes.
+  * The pirate laser no longer sticks: target information is now stably cached for the shot.
+  * Shipyard: building certain ship systems was incorrectly blocked — fixed. The currently installed ship system is now shown more clearly in the sidebar.
+  * Fixed a tooltip bug where some ship system tooltips failed to show their data reliably.
+  * Fixed a blueprint bug where blueprints could actually be lost when switching stations.
+  * The heavy flicker during manual laser fire has been reduced.
+  * Fixed a tooltip display error in the station computer.
+  * Fixed a tooltip bug where some ship system tooltips failed to show their data reliably in the shipyard.
+----
 ==== v0.37 ====