Hello, engineers and tech entrepreneurs!
We’re excited to open the beta test for the upcoming update “Update 3”! You can already try it out, but first let us introduce some of the new features coming in the update - we’re sure some of them will catch your eye!
Beta Access
How Do I Take Part in the Public Beta?
Every player who owns The Crust has the opportunity to download the new Public Beta version Update 3.
To join: go to Steam → game properties → beta versions → "beta - Update 3 Beta 0.99.75+".
We'd love to hear your feedback and suggestions on Steamcomunity or our Discord server.
GET ACCESS
Your feedback fuels us
Tell us what you think! We read every suggestion and discuss them daily on our Discord server and Idea Board. Help us shape The Crust together.
Updated surface map
The surface map of your base has been upgraded - there is now more space to build! We’ve also started working on new lunar maps that will be available with the 1.0 release.
To make construction more intuitive, we’ve also added a grid so you can see exactly where modules can be placed.
Improved drone movement
Along with the improvements to the surface map, we’ve also refined drone movement. They now have more space to move freely, which should help prevent them from getting stuck. We’ve also fixed a visual bug where drones would sometimes move through terrain instead of properly following the surface.
Thanks to the increased movement space, drones no longer need to go around the large hill on the lunar surface - they can now pass through the narrow pass between the two larger hills.
Drones 2.0
Speaking of drones: we’ve redesigned their task distribution system and how they handle priorities. Drones now distribute tasks more evenly: most of them focus on high-priority and (spoiler) super-priority tasks. The remaining 20–40% are assigned to other, lower-priority tasks to cover the rest of your base’s needs, including repairs, dismantling, and construction.
In addition, hauler drones will now consistently prioritize heavier loads containing 5 or more resources.
Smart Multi-Resource Storage, contracts automation
Multi-Resource Storage gets a long-awaited feature many players have been asking for: automatic filling of contracts and expeditions!
A new research unlocks the ability to connect it to the Flight Control Center, Expedition Center, Railgun, Large and Small Vehicle Assembly Facilities, or the Launch Station. Once connected, the Multi-Resource Storage will automatically open its outputs and dispense the exact amount of resources required for a contract or expedition, then close again (automatically, of course).
Long live full automation!
Super-priority system
Super-priority is the fourth priority level that temporarily boosts selected modules to the highest priority for a set time (1 click = 1 game day). Only repairs and dismantling outrank it.
Need to quickly load resources for a contract or feed starving colonists? Just set super-priority for the relevant modules - for example, for 5 days - and focus on other things, like scaling up your production!
Priority setting for living quarters
Previously, players couldn’t set priorities for living quarters, which sometimes made building them difficult. That changes now - you can finally manage them!
Just enter Priority mode and adjust the priority for the entire room. And yes, you can set super-priority too!
Delivery to the Flight Control Center
Another handy feature we announced earlier but that didn’t make it into the previous update is the ability for capsules to land at the Flight Control Center. Resources delivered this way are fed directly onto your conveyors and go straight to the production line.
Autopurchase
The game already has an autosell option - but what about autopurchase, you might ask? Well, we’ve finished it, and it’s now available in the game as well!
The setup will feel familiar: select a resource, set the price, and define the minimum and maximum volumes. This feature lets you catch the best market prices or buy up all available resources each day.
You can also combine autopurchase and autosell to make a profit. It’s up to you to choose which strategy best suits your playstyle!
Transport menu
Another handy feature introduced in this update is the Transport menu. It allows you to see all your vehicles along with their current status, tasks, arrival times, and cargo. The menu also lets you jump directly to any vehicle on the map!
Optimization
Right now, optimization is one of our main priorities, and we’re doing our best to keep improving the game’s performance.
Here’s a list of systems that were optimized in this update:
- Resource counter updates on conveyors;
- Module construction;
- A new system for managing quality for colonists, drones, and some module animations;
- A new multithreaded system for calculating the visual placement of resources on conveyors;
- Colonist efficiency calculations on modules.
Industrial Kitchen
A special module designed to automate large-scale food production for your colonists. You can connect an input conveyor supplying organics and set up an output conveyor to transport prepared food to refrigerators, as well as send it to outposts or sell it on the market.
Underground Storage
This new storage module can hold a large amount of a single resource type by extending part of the structure underground and making maximum use of vertical space.
Slag Recycling
We’ve added a new technology to the game—advanced chemical processing of slag—which allows you to extract valuable oxides or rare-earth minerals from large slag deposits using a regolith purifier, which itself gains a second life in later stages of the game.
To access slag processing recipes, you must research chemical processing technology in the engineering research tree.
New Outpost Module: The Smelter
We are expanding the functionality of outposts by developing the concept (spoiler) of trade and train logistics on the global map. In this update, we are adding a smelter capable of processing oxides into primary resources: steel, titanium, silicon, and aluminum. This already allows for the creation of more specialized outposts and the establishment of automated delivery routes for finished resources to the main base.
Story Campaign Continuation
The story continues to expand the player’s interactions with the CRUST and UNIVERSE and brings the narrative closer to its conclusion.
This new stage of the story will make use of gameplay mechanics introduced in the New Horizon and Update Two updates, including building and scaling outposts, gas extraction, constructing your own rockets, and sending interplanetary contracts.
This update also includes various bug fixes, as well as visual and balance improvements.
We wish you a smooth launch and unforgettable adventures!
Veom Studio team
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