Hey everyone, Welcome to Dev Brief #119! This week we've been busy prepping for Update 9's imminent arrival so today's Brief is a bit shorter than usual. Hopefully today's news on Update 9 will more than make up for it... [h1]Update 9: Blood and Steel - Dropping March 25th[/h1] We’re excited to announce that Update 9: Blood and Steel, will be dropping on the 25th of March. The team has been very hard at work on final bug fixes for the update - including actioning community feedback from the PTEs. Update 9: Blood and Steel will include the following: [list] [*]Melee combat [*]Server Admin Camera [*]Implement correct weapon zeroing for all firearms [*]Part one of the armour system rework [*]Meta / Garrison Placement Changes [*]Community Voice Overs [*]Steam Achievements [*]Barbed Wire functionality [*]Added and refined localization [*]MG34 [*]Additional loadouts [*]Continued Bug & Crash fixes [*]Warmup Staging Period for Warfare Mode [*]XP level increase [*]Sound Improvements across the board (BAR to footsteps to death) [*]UI Changes [*]Max level Increase [*]Improved optimisation [*]Grass and Foliage spawning improvements [*]Utah Beach Offensive mode for both German and US forces including beach landings [*]Weapon visual quality overhaul [*]Improved Damage Occlusion System [/list] On the day we'll be aiming to put Update 9 live at roughly 11am GMT / 12pm CEST, but this may shift slightly. Once the patch is live we'll also be sharing the full patch notes for your reading pleasure! [h1]The Soviet Crewman[/h1] Today we’re keen to give you the first look at the Soviet Crewman. While we don’t want to confirm the total number or type of vehicles just yet, you can expect to see a robust line-up of iconic and numerous tanks populating the Soviet lines, which we’ll reveal over the coming months. [img]https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//34012997/73b05f1ac58a47e5c221982a740e38f766040fda.png[/img] [h1]Some Big News[/h1] We recently announced some big news around the future of Hell Let Loose as a title. You can find out more and it and discuss it with the team over on our official subreddit [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/HellLetLoose/]r/HellLetLoose[/url]. [h1]Onwards to the weekend![/h1] That wraps up today's brief! We've got an exciting week ahead of us and can't wait to welcome you to Update 9: Blood and Steel, so grab your shovels and sharpen your blades, it's almost time to get up close and personal. Have a great weekend, we'll see you on the frontline.