[img]https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//35665597/1b7e83c3aee9fb6f9b36b47cc4c904a5ffa60b87.jpg[/img] Greetings, pilots! We got some great news to share! [i]Zharkov: The Vortex[/i], the second major [i]EVERSPACE 2[/i] content update, will be ready to download on the experimental branch on Steam for all Early Access pilots in just a few hours from now — WOOT! It’ll drop at the end of our Friday’s gamedev & community stream; more details at the bottom of this news. [h1]Lots of New Features, Tweaks, and Fixes[/h1] Since the [url=https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1128920/view/3059610062005482098][i]EVERSPACE 2: Contracts/Hinterland[/i][/url] update dropped in April, our team has been super busy working to deliver another meaty content update with lots of new stuff to discover and to do as well as a slew of improvements and bug fixes to you. The preliminary changelog is currently sitting at a whopping 110 entries and will be pinned on the [i]EVERSPACE 2[/i] Steam Community Hub after the experimental build goes live. 😅 While we’re pleased with the state of production of this pre-release build, daring test pilots eager to check out the new content should expect to run into issues, so please be reasonable with your feedback and report any problems you might encounter to help us fix those for the official release, scheduled for August 4. Also, let us know what you think about the overhauled game balancing as we’ve addressed complaints about some difficulty spikes in the first half of the current content as well as the game becoming too easy around level 10 and higher. Now, before anyone asks, YES, your game progress will carry over! However, we cannot guarantee that saves created on the experimental branch will be fully backward compatible, so back up your save game files unless you want to start all over anyway. Also, it’s worth mentioning again that a game reset at full release is very much likely, yet will be worth your while. Along with overhauling various in-game cutscenes, we’re also polishing and adding new content to existing locations you wouldn’t want to miss out on. In fact, many environmental graphic assets in [i]Ceto[/i] and [i]Union[/i] are still placeholders, some of which are currently being overhauled by the talented folks at [url=http://www.thelightworks.com/?source=rockfishgames_steam]The Light Works[/url]. [img]https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//35665597/0994de9fca14dfa9639cee7f6a1b5e9c00fda734.jpg[/img] [i]We’re excited for Tobias Richter, Managing Director of The Light Works, and his team to join our roster of veteran art outsourcing partners. They’ll be helping us add the final touches to various structures and buildings of Prescott Starbase and other places of interest throughout Ceto and Union.[/i] [h1]New Content Sneak Peek[/h1] We’ve already shared a sneak peek of the third, all-new star system [i]Zharkov[/i]. You’ll see lots of new content, features, and QoL improvements in the teaser gameplay trailer as well as our weekly gamedev & community streams linked below. So without any further ado, let me hand things over to Erik, our beloved Community Ambassador, to give you a tour of our imminent big content update: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7Pr0K9F0ZI We hope that this sneak peek got you excited about exploring [i]Zharkov: The Vortex[/i]. Of course, there’s even more to discover, like new, fully voiced, main and side mission story content, another familiar character joining the roster of companions, and an increased level cap... but let’s not spoil more than we already have! While we very much appreciate anyone spreading the word about our next big update on the internet, please be mindful when sharing any new gameplay footage and especially story content that we haven’t shown yet. Alrighty, don’t stop being awesome and swing by the [i]ROCKFISH Games Show[/i] on [url=https://www.twitch.tv/rockfishgames]Twitch[/url] and [url=https://www.youtube.com/c/ROCKFISHGames/]YouTube[/url], on July 23 from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm CEST / 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm EST / 11:00 am to 1:00 pm PST! Erik will be playing the experimental build and when he’s finished, we’ll press the button for you to jump right into [i]Zharkov[/i]. 🚀💥🙌 Keep it civil on the forums, and see you in space! Michael and your dedicated ROCKFISH Games Team