Dev Blog #30
Welcome, survivors, to the highly anticipated July Dev Blog!
We've got a lot to cover this month, including a new update schedule, upcoming changes to Community Servers, an exciting content update for the end of August, and a roadmap for the rest of the year. I’ll bet my last piece of scrap that this Dev Blog is going to be a wild ride!
MOVING TO MONTHLY UPDATE SCHEDULE
Last month, we added Tugboats to RUST Console Edition, and soon, we're rolling out a host of new additions to Community Servers, which we’ll explore later in this blog. We’re now much closer to RUST PC in terms of content, giving us more flexibility with our updates. From now until the end of the year, our plan is to release monthly updates that bring more to the game beyond just bug fixes. These updates may include quality of life improvements, new content, and seasonal events. Check out the roadmap to see all the exciting things coming for the rest of 2024! We’re excited to hear your feedback on this change, as we hope it will make every wipe a lot more thrilling.
SHAKING UP THE COMMUNITY (SERVERS)
We hear you, and we know many of you server owners are eager for new features to customise your server and make it uniquely your own. With the next update, we're bringing some exciting changes.
First up, we’re introducing new Server Identifiers for your server that you can share with your community. Your server will have a unique code, ensuring your players are joining the right server and not a copycat.
Next, we’ve made significant improvements to the Welcome message. There’s now a new Rules tab where server owners can specify the rules for their server. Players must accept these rules before entering the game. Additionally, there’s a new Server Team tab that lists the server owners, admins, and moderators. Both the rules and the teams tab are fully customizable through the GPortal website or the use of command Convars.
We’ve also enhanced the item list and command list categories. The tabs now feature more detailed categories, making navigation quicker and easier. This option is togglable from the UI settings if you wish to keep your navigation how it is now.
PvE gameplay on Community Servers is getting a major overhaul! Instead of a single on/off switch, PvE will now be managed by a combination of different options. The first option allows you to control whether players can take damage from other players (PvP). The second option works similarly but for player-made structures like bases (PvB), allowing server owners to make them “unraidable” server-wide if they wish. This provides more room for experimentation and the creation of new server configurations. In the future, we plan to enhance this feature by adding time controls, allowing players to control when and where raids can take place on the server.
SERVER EVENTS ARE COMING TO COMMUNITY SERVERS
Special events are coming to Community Servers, including Halloween, Easter, and Christmas! You will be able to activate them right after update 2.0 comes to RUST Console Edition next week!
We've made major improvements to how events perform, and server owners can now turn them on or off whenever they wish. Keep in mind that only one event can run at a time on a server to avoid overloading it. Events can be paused at any time by server owners, and starting or stopping an event will kick all players from the server to ensure the process is as smooth as possible.
And yes, seasonal items will be part of the events if you have them enabled on your server! However if you stop or change the event, these items will be removed from the world. If you want to learn more about seasonal events and how to activate them in your server, please click here.
Although the WIKI has been updated to reflect the recent changes, these features will only become available with the release of update 2.0, coming next week.
CUSTOM ZONES
The Killzones feature is being improved upon with Custom Zones. This new tool allows server owners to select a shape, size, and location on the map to allow or prohibit certain aspects of the game within that area.
Within Custom Zones, server owners can control elements such as player versus player damage and base damage, enabling them to create safe zones anywhere in the map.
Or, take the opposite approach and create a coliseum area, by disabling structure damage and enabling PvP within the zone. Server owners will be able to set up their own gladiator arena for their communities. Let the best survivor win!
In addition to PvP and building damage, server owners are able to control other aspects such as NPC damage, radiation levels and restricting player building in specific areas. To learn more about Custom Zones, be sure to visit the dedicated page in our WIKI!
GEAR UP FOR INDUSTRIAL!
You’ve seen it on our roadmap, but what’s the scoop on the Industrial Update?
We’ve loaded this update with a ton of exciting new content for RUST Console Edition. This update will introduce all the industrial components you’ve been waiting for, along with a moonpool on the Oil Rig, the new nightlight feature, and, of course… Backpacks! We’ll dive into the details of each of these features in next month’s Dev Blog. We know these are features you’ve been itching to see, and we’re stoked to bring them to the game in the update at the end of August, 2024.
Industrial will hit the PTB servers early next month for testing. Don’t miss your chance to get an early peek at what’s coming down the pipeline!
NOTE: The Industrial update will require a Blueprint wipe once it goes live!
That’s a wrap for this month’s Dev Blog! We want to give a massive thanks for your ongoing support. We’re excited to see you dive into the new features on Community Servers and can’t wait to see the creative twists our server owners come up with. Have a fantastic week, survivors.
- See you all on the island
