GROUND BRANCH News

What's going on, everybody?

We got another Intel Update for you, and this month we have news and showcases for both V1033 — our next major update — as well as a little preview of something that will be coming later on (V1034 or later). Don't forget you can always get an overview of what's on the way via our Roadmap.


As announced in late September, GROUND BRANCH is now available on NVIDIA's cloud gaming service GeForce NOW (GFN).

Earlier this month, we also fixed an issue with GFN players losing keybinds, game/video options and listen server configurations upon ending a play session. These settings were all set to save to the Steam Cloud, so everything is now kept safe.


Here's what we have this month for our upcoming major release V1033.

[h2]Pistol red dots, new models and stuff[/h2]
V1033 will finally allow you to mount a mini red dot sight (such as the RMR) to pistols that are fit for it. At this time, that includes both G19 models, the MK25 and the M17.

MK25 equipped with the RMR mini red dot sight, as teased on our Twitter

We have also added a new mini red dot sight, the Docter II, commissioned to Cody Cudmore:



As mentioned in the last report, we have also ordered an A2-style AR carry handle, as well as a brand-new M16A4 model that better matches up with the other AR-15 models both in quality and scale. The Bipod Grip is also receiving a new model. Here's a screenie with all of that stuff put together:



While we're talking popular demand, we've made the SMG/PDW pouches into doubles so you can carry as much ammo for them as you can for rifles:



[h2]Selectable shoothouse layouts[/h2]
Running the shoothouse (sometimes killhouse) on The Farm is always fun, but it can get stale with the fixed floorplan/layout.

In V1033, players will be able to choose between a number of different layouts (5 at the time of counting) — including the old layout last seen in V1030’s “Killhouse” training level — via the Target App display, right next to the shoothouse’s entrance:


Prototype of the upgraded Target App display: now has a dropdown menu to select different layouts, which are previewed on the right


Main room for one of the new shoothouse layouts

💡 We'll continue to expand on shoothouse layouts and functionality as we progress.

In case you're wondering, the existing layout (currently in V1032) remains as the first option.

[h2]Server quality of life[/h2]
One of our tasks this update is server quality of life. This mostly means a lot of little fixes and features to try and make server admins' lives easier, but there are also some improvements to the online experience for regular players.

Let's look at a first example, the Kit Restrictions menu in the Admin Panel:



This is being wrapped up now, and should allow server admins more easily to set up restrictions for the skins that different teams can use on their kit, for ease of friendly vs. enemy identification.

Another feature that has long been requested is the favorite servers feature. The UI has been there for a while, but finally it has been rigged up:



This feature is tied into Steam directly, so you can view and manage your favorite servers offline within Steam as well:



Another change that has been made is to allow server admins to specify a "message of the day" text that can be displayed as usual with the admin motd console command, while simultaneously displaying an image on the server info board (via the new tag). Changes made by admins to the message of the day or server name will also propagate immediately to all users. It's the little things.

[h2]Callsigns[/h2]
As mentioned last month, V1033 will be bringing callsigns: short IDs by which players may be more easily identified.

Callsigns are displayed as their own arm patches (though only on tops that have a velcro patch) and are limited to three alphanumeric characters (A–Z and 0–9) which can be entirely custom — within limits — or use an automatically assigned Team Element-based value (e.g. "A-01" if you're first man on element Alpha); the latter can be forced for all players by server admins.

Grayscale US flag and callsign patches applied on compatible top (Fleece Hoodie). Notice that the active checkbox overrides the player-defined callsign ("SCO") with an automatically assigned callsign ("B-05" or Bravo Five) based on the player's current Team Element.

Various UI elements have now been updated to include the new callsign system, and as part of the server quality-of-life upgrade, server admins can do whatever player name and callsign validation they wish via a new server management mutator packaged into a mod.

The specific format of these callsigns can also be chosen by the server owner.

[h2]Maps and game modes[/h2]

[h3]Docks missions[/h3]
All game modes are now made for the new Docks map, including the most complex Intel Retrieval setup so far. Some more limited Deathmatch areas have been created, and DTAS (Dynamic Take and Secure) should be a very interesting tactical proposition on this map.



Uplink should be a challenge for defenders and attackers alike, and both Terrorist Hunt and Team Elimination will of course also be present.

[h3]Depot overhaul[/h3]
The Depot overhaul continues, and as the teasers below show, it's proving to be a pretty massive one. Can you tell which areas of the V1032 version these angles correspond to?



The updated Depot will also require a game modes and acoustics update in order to account for the design changes.

[h3]Ready Room hints[/h3]
Though not directly related to level design, we have also made some updates aimed at new players, with revamped hints in more prominent places, as well as "in-world" Ready Room hints to make things as clear as possible about where to go and what to do to start your first GROUND BRANCH game.



All hints are temporary and disappear after the first few sessions, though they can be reset under Settings › Gameplay to start appearing like at first launch.

Hostage Rescue (PvP) and Terrorist Hunt improvements
While we are working on a PvP Hostage Rescue game mode, we are not ignoring the PvE modes.

Besides the AI improvements discussed in Intel Report #011, the Terrorist Hunt mode is being refined with two new features that we're currently testing:

• On some larger maps, a new "AI hotspot" feature will be available where certain areas of the map spawn a larger-than-usual number of enemies, providing more of a focus and a challenge
  
• The return of the "bum rush" feature, in which the last few enemies on a map just can't take it any more, and attempt to charge down the remaining players — hopefully reducing the incidence of "where's that last damn bot?"
  

[h2]Audio[/h2]
As the long process of audio optimization continues, Mikson has put a little time aside to record a short preview of the new gunshot tails for large interior spaces, which you can check out below:

[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/qhjBa4RamQc[/previewyoutube]


Some features are an ongoing development that might see their beginnings well before they're ready for the public.

Such is the case of friendly AI, whose first steps were teased last month even though it's at least a couple of updates away from an initial playable iteration. Gotta let you all know it's being worked on, right?

So this month we're showcasing some of the upcoming female characters and related assets that we've been working with Pau Peñalver to have ready for V1034 (tentatively!). Let's take a look:



As ever, keep in mind that although these renders are made with "game-ready" geometry and textures (as opposed to high-poly and super resolutions), they do not reflect the final in-game look due to the lighting.


Thanks for keeping up with GROUND BRANCH's development, and have an awesome rest of the week.

See you on the next one!

As announced earlier this month, GROUND BRANCH was set to become available on GeForce NOW — NVIDIA's subscription-based cloud gaming service — this September.

And just as announced, players can stream GROUND BRANCH (via Steam) on GFN as of this Thursday! A pretty cool opportunity for those without a beefy PC setup to try GB out.



Let's welcome the streamers aboard!

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

Time for another Intel Report, where we go over the latest happenings in development as the upcoming GROUND BRANCH update V1033 continues to evolve.

📅 Be sure to check out last month's Intel Report (#011) in case you missed it!

[h2]GROUND BRANCH on GeForce NOW soon[/h2]
As mentioned last month, GROUND BRANCH is coming to GeForce NOW — NVIDIA's cloud gaming service — which will make the game accessible to a whole new audience of subscribers.

NVIDIA has confirmed that this will happen sometime this month:



We'll be sure to make a quick announcement when it goes live!

[h2]New coder in the house[/h2]
Last month we announced the addition of VFX Artist Charles Schmidt and Sound Designer Zack Reagan to the team, but some of you may remember that we still had a vacant senior programmer spot. And this month we're very happy to announce that is no longer the case, as Christoph Bockhahn joins us in a Senior Programmer capacity!

Chris' resumé is too humiliating for us to fully cite, but it should suffice to say that he was working for Acer before and has a master's in astrophysics. In addition to his general programming background, Chris has industry experience in UI, tech art, gameplay engineering and, of course, the mandatory Unreal Engine skills.

The biggest benefit of getting Chris on board is going to be speeding up AI development, which is of course great news for most of the GROUND BRANCH player base.

Let's all welcome Chris to the team! We'll take a quick look at some of his initial work next.

[h2]Some AI news[/h2]
As announced in February, AI is being rebuilt using Kythera AI, a specialized middleware.

Though implementation is still very much under-the-hood at this point (meaning nothing cool to showcase, unfortunately), Chris has taken the time to start prototyping a friendly AI ordering system:



[h2]Patches and callsigns[/h2]
Continuing the work on patches for headgear and shirts, we now have callsign patches in-game, for ease of identifying operators on the field.



Players can choose a three-letter callsign code, or have one generated automatically when changing name. Servers can also apply a callsign patch policy, for example to force players to have callsigns based on their chosen element (A, B, C, D), to override any selection by each player. There is no need to choose a callsign patch in the character editor — these are added automatically whenever a callsign is used.

[h2]Depot is getting a visual update[/h2]
Environment artist Will has moved on to giving Depot a thematic art pass to get it more in line with Storage Facility, which is set in the same region.

Here are some preview shots:







[h3]New Storage Facility previews[/h3]
The Storage Facility map overhaul is done, so why not appreciate some ultrawide shots of that beauty in a different lighting?







[h2]Audio optimization continues[/h2]
This month we have further optimized the audio side of things by lowering the amount of memory usage by at least half, based on performance testing on Small Town with 30 bots.

This was done by optimizing how the weapon sounds were loaded. Now, instead of all weapon sounds being stored at all times, only the ones in use during a particular mission or round are stored.

This method will also allow for easier audio modding in the future, as you only need to edit and rebuild the sound bank for the weapon you want to mod instead of rebuilding the entire weapon sound bank for just one weapon.

Combined with the CPU optimization that we detailed last month, we're looking at roughly a 50% gain in audio performance so far — not too shabby.

🎧 Weapon tails and other sounds are also continually being reworked and improved alongside the optimization work.

[h2]Doors: a game designer's nightmare[/h2]
Doors are having part of their logic redone to address one of its main issues: getting both players and AI stuck in them.

Some degree of physics simulation is also being added in order to once again allow cracked doors — that is, partially open ones — to be pushed by just walking into them.

We're also hoping to get a nicer looking effect for exploding doors while we're at it.

[h2]More VFX progress[/h2]
Work on particle effects continues as Charles converts all of the existing VFX to the newer Niagara system before reworking and improving them.

He has zeroed in on bullet impacts and has recently started improving the breaching charge explosion:

[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/PckAlIoYjDM[/previewyoutube]
[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/TPulS6VfqGk[/previewyoutube]
[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/cjcFVKh9P18[/previewyoutube]

[h2]Animations[/h2]
Though we cannot showcase it at this time for various annoying reasons, we can confirm that some basic new manipulation animations will make it to V1033.

Players will actually start seeing their character flip magnifiers on and off, flick the Specter DR's lever to the front and back, and pull their night vision goggles up and down.

🚪 A basic "magic hand" type of animation for door interactions may also be present as a placeholder. That still beats telekinesis, right?

Mike has also been busy with hand poses and reload sequences to fit the new and updated weapon models, which we'll cover next.

[h2]Weapon models[/h2]
Weapons and related assets continue to be created and revamped as needed by our trusted contractors, which — between brand-new items and replacements — has so far allowed us to add over a dozen new weapon models to V1033.

Let's make a quick list, starting with the new weapons:

• MK17 CQC / DMR
  
• Wz.88
  
• AK-105
  
• PKM
  
• PMM
  
• M24 SWS

Speaking of which, here's how that last one turned out:





Now for the replacements/updates:

• M1911A1
  
• AK-74M
  
• AKS-74U
  
• AK-105 Alpha (replacing the AK-74 MI)
  
• AKS-74U Alpha (replacing the AK-74 MI CQB)
  
• SVD
  
• M16A4 (currently in development; the old model has issues in both scaling and quality consistency)
  

And that's not even mentioning extra parts and new/updated attachments that will make their way into the game as we go.

As promised, here's the new AK-74M, as well as the AK-105 with tactical Zenitco furniture:





More renders of the AKs on the AK Productions ArtStation right here.

We can also confirm that an "A2" carry handle is finally coming for the M16/M4 series of weapons. That's right. We caved.

[h3]😔 Why the focus on visuals? We want better AI![/h3]
From time to time, part of the player base questions our priorities, which is understandable: why are we putting resources on models, effects or any other superficial thing when there are areas of development in more urgent need of attention?

Well, that is simply because not everyone on the team can do everything. For example, telling our art guys to shift their focus to gameplay code will only result in neither art or gameplay seeing progress.

So while progress may be slow in certain areas, others may (and should) continue to develop normally.

That said, AI has seen little progress in the last couple of updates, but is now getting worked on intensively, beginning with the integration of the new Kythera middleware. AI is one of the harder aspects of game development, and the results won't be immediate — it's an ongoing task that will be spread over the next few updates and beyond — but the key takeaway here is that we are now "all systems go", in all areas of development.

[h2]This has been Intel Report #012![/h2]
We hope you found this post informative and interesting enough to make the soul-crushing wait for V1033 a bit more bearable.

Thank you very much for reading, and we'll see you on the next one!

[hr][/hr]

[h2]Stay connected[/h2]
Discord / Steam Community Hub / Reddit / Twitter / Instagram / Facebook

Hey, everyone!

It's been around a month since our last dev blog (#010), and because we are now aiming for monthly entries, the time has come again to showcase some more progress and talk about other recent developments.

Intel Update is now INTEL REPORT!
We are renaming our series of dev blog entries from "Intel Update" to Intel Report. The reason is that some players would simply glance over the title, spot the word "update" in it, and immediately proceed to type "did we get an update?" in the nearest text box, prompting confusion and aggravation in an otherwise incredibly peaceful and welcoming community.

As some of you will know from our recent job ads, we have been looking for reinforcements in a couple areas: VFX (visual effects) and programming being the main ones.

We hope to have news on the programmer role very soon, but in the meantime, we are proud to introduce new BlackFoot Studios members Charles Schmidt and Zack Regan!

Charles is our first dedicated VFX Artist. He was previously a gameplay designer and visual effects artist for Operation: Harsh Doorstop, and is now giving the particle effects in GROUND BRANCH some much-needed love. He will be working on making hit impacts, muzzle blasts, smoke, blood and all kinds of visual effects in the game look and perform better.

Zack's joining us as an additional Sound Designer whose skillset nicely complements Mikson's, with valuable Wwise and Unreal Engine integration experience. Formerly a member of Code Blue Games, Zack is also a composer, so we might be seeing some new tracks in GB down the line.

Welcome to the team, guys!

💡 We'll be checking out some of their initial work in a bit, so read on!

As a pre-alpha game on Early Access that also happens to have a handful of fairly unique features, GROUND BRANCH is bound to have its performance fluctuate over the course of development as we add, remove and generally change things around. And although we always keep track of the worst performance offenders, fixes are rarely straightforward and may take some time to figure out.

It's no secret that performance in V1032 is less than stellar, with certain aspects of audio and asset modularity being some of the major culprits. Here are some of the steps we have been taking to address them so far:

[h2]M4, MK18 and HK416D asset optimization[/h2]
Though beautifully modeled and textured by Bakr Asaad, the M4 and HK416 families of carbines are using around 12 texture sets per weapon as of V1032. The models were created with very granular customization in mind, with each individual part having its own texture set.

If you go online and your team is using an assortment of different M4- and HK416-based weapons — easily some of the most popular guns in the game — that could be loading upwards of 30 texture sets for those weapons alone in your GPU's memory. Not ideal when you already have in-depth character customization, meaning a whole lot of other assets to render.

For V1033, we had those weapon models rebuilt to use only 3–4 texture sets each, while preserving as much of the quality and fidelity of the originals as possible. This change may not be as impactful as the more CPU-intensive issues such as those caused by dynamic lighting and audio, but every bit helps and it had to be done at some point.

Updated HK416 with optimized texture sets

[h2]Audio optimization[/h2]
Zack has been working closely with Mikson to address one of the biggest performance issues in the game: audio complexity causing excessive CPU usage.

To better understand the problem, think back on all of the different sounds your character makes in GROUND BRANCH when moving around or firing a weapon. There's the footsteps, the rustling clothes, the crackling gear… And when shooting, there's the mechanical weapon clicks and clings, the muzzle blast, and even a dedicated sound effect for distant gunfire in case someone hears them from afar. These sounds are individual audio layers, and every time a character moves or shoots, all of these layers are "broadcast" to everyone. Needless to say, the more characters in the game, the more demanding it becomes.

To tackle the problem, the duo has rearranged the entire audio project to support first-person perspective vs. third-person perspective sounds. In practice, this means they can significantly reduce the amount of simultaneous sounds and layers that are played by determining when to play each of them.

For example: the player firing the weapon doesn't need to hear the layer for distant gunfire, so we can now tell the game to only play it as a third-person sound, i.e. for other players. Conversely, other players don't need to hear (and are unlikely to notice) the mechanical weapon layer of your shots, so they will no longer be played for them.

As another example, movement sounds can be preserved as layered audio in first-person, but for third-person playback we can now play an optimized version where all of the layers have been combined into a single sound effect. So you'll still hear a high-fidelity, multi-layered playback when you move your own character around, but the sound generated by other players will be a simplified version of that. That's far fewer sounds to play.

🎧 Audiophiles using high-fidelity equipment may notice subtle differences, but the vast majority of us will only notice the glorious gains.

[h3]First pass results[/h3]
After this initial optimization pass was done, Mik and Zack ran a profiler on maps Run Down, Small Town and Tanker to see how CPU usage responded to the changes.

Each map was ran three times in single player (Terrorist Hunt) with 30 AI bots, first in V1032 and then in V1033 to compare. Here are the peak averages:

[h3]Run Down[/h3]
V1032: 53.38%
V1033: 36.28%
-17.10% CPU usage (~32% decrease)

[h3]Small Town[/h3]
V1032: 46.34%
V1033: 37.07%
-9.27% CPU usage (~20% decrease)

[h3]Tanker[/h3]
V1032: 46.17%
V1033: 22.03%
-24.14% CPU usage (~52% decrease)

The peak average for these maps in V1032 was 48.6% CPU usage, which was brought down to a 31.8% peak average in V1033 — or a 34.6% decrease. Not bad at all for a first pass.

It's worth noting that these numbers are strictly for CPU usage — not framerates — and we'll be running more tests as the optimization continues. There's more performance to be gained on the audio side of things alone, and certainly more scenarios to test on (e.g. multiplayer).

[h2]NVIDIA GeForce NOW[/h2]
While not directly related to optimization, cloud gaming services allow players with low-end PCs to enjoy games that their machines can't natively run. And with GROUND BRANCH having an ambitious array of features that can test lower-end hardware, we have received a lot of interest in GeForce NOW support.

Well, we have mentioned before that support for GeForce NOW is planned (it's been on our Roadmap since around February), but we have recently discovered that we might be able to support it a lot earlier than expected! Steam has a feature that allows NVIDIA-approved games to be linked to GeForce NOW as long as Steam Cloud saves are setup and working. Which, by the way, they are now, and enabled by default — you can change that by right-clicking the game in your library and selecting "Properties":

☁️ Steam Cloud saves will only be required for GeForce NOW users.

NVIDIA has yet to greenlight the integration, but our end is all setup and could potentially lead to GeForce NOW support before V1033 is even here. Fingers crossed!


As shown in the previous dev blog, V1033 will be introducing some new weapons, which require not only new sound effects, but also animations.

One such new weapon is the Russian PMM pistol, which has a fairly unorthodox reload due to the magazine release being located at the bottom of the grip. Here's the non-retention version (sorry, no audio on these videos):

[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/jM0nq4tvTb0[/previewyoutube]
Next is the MK17 (SCAR-H), which was using the AR reload in last update's Gunshot Audio Preview video. Notice the charging handle on the right side — this was done to reduce the likelihood of clipping with the supporting hand, as well as provide a more unique reload style:

[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/gwWH7pBd1Mc[/previewyoutube]
Shotgun shoot and reload sequences are also being updated, with slight changes: you will be able to load 1–2 shells at a time (depending on how full the internal magazine is) while keeping it pointed downrange and ready to fire — so you can more effectively keep your weapon full while still being in the fight — or take the time to break the weapon down into your workspace to more efficiently load shells into the magazine until full. These two reload types will be done using the two different Reload inputs (tap vs. double-tap), just like in V1032, with their speed increased slightly.

[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/f3aVCj3emW0[/previewyoutube]
[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/2-GV46OS3X4[/previewyoutube]
Mike has also started working on basic door handling animations, which we'll begin showcasing next month.


Our new VFX artist Charles has also kept busy in his first couple of weeks, having put in some work on bullet impact and explosion particles.

Here's a quick demo of the concrete hit effects that he's put together so far. Notice how the angle of the shots affects the direction of the impact debris — shots will produce impact effects at a similar but opposite angle, rather than always fly out of surfaces at a perpendicular (90°) angle:

[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/aof0XywGA7o[/previewyoutube]
As the video shows, impacts will also produce larger secondary debris.

📈 These effects also have lower shader complexity than the previous ones, which could have a positive impact on performance in more intensive situations.

Charles has also started prototyping collision logic, with the preliminary goal of making explosion particles react appropriately to their surroundings and not go through walls etc. Here's a quick demo:

[previewyoutube]https://youtu.be/zQ9l8AKF04A[/previewyoutube]

Storage Facility has been receiving a makeover by Will since its layout redesign in V1032. This art pass adds some welcome character to the facility, with the concept of a repurposed Soviet-era mine, and adds a lot of background detail suggestive of its location.

Here are some shots of the map at around 90% completion:

A view from the dock area showcasing the distant backdrop art pass

The open area right in front of the tunnel's main entrance; notice the abandoned elevated conveyor belt structures

High ground section (warehouse)

John has also been working on a new map idea — working title "Docks" — that may or may not make its way into V1033 as well:





We showcased the new M1911A1 in the last dev blog, and you can see some new angles of that on artist Bakr Asaad's portfolio here.

In the meantime, we have also ordered a new .45 suppressor from Cody to go with it: a legacy Ti-RANT 45S from Advanced Armament Corp. (AAC):



Other weapons are also getting some love in V1033, with the AK-74 family and SVD having received remakes by AK Productions. Be sure to check out their portfolio here for the full galleries and other work they have made.

Here are some previews of the AKS-74U (with both factory and Zenitco parts), as well as the SVD (with both wooden and polymer furniture):

📷 We'll be showcasing the new AK-74M, AK-105 and other assets by AK Productions in a future update.

As is the case with the upcoming MK17 (SCAR-H), these weapons will be added as individual pre-built configurations at first, though you will be able to swap out parts like stocks and handguards down the line when we set things up to support that level of modularity.

The new M24 is also in the make. Here's the latest progress shot, just before entering the low-poly stage:

The M24 will be fitted with the MIRS (Modular Integrated Rail System) and a threaded barrel for suppressor mounting


We're investigating how to address one of the most frustrating aspects of the enemy AI: their perfect eyesight at night, making stealthy gameplay nearly impossible.

Initial prototyping is being done using some logic to read pixels and check them for brightness. That is then hooked up to a render capture component attached to the AI, which will be taking snapshots of all the lighting currently affecting players.

The idea is that if you're caught in one of these snapshots and the brightness reading is determined to be high enough for detection, then you get spotted and the AI reacts. Otherwise, it is told to ignore your presence. Remember that once you give bots basic abilities — like "when you see a player, shoot" — it's a subtractive process of telling them not to based on a set of conditions, whether it's because they shouldn't be able to see through walls, or because they shouldn't be able to see you in pitch darkness.

Unfortunately, we have nothing palpable to show at this time, but should hopefully have some kind of demo in the next Intel Report.


Modding in V1033 is still very much a work in progress, but there are two main developments we can talk about at this time.

Firstly, all current kinds of mods (such as game modes and missions) will now be packaged and uploaded to an online repository (details to be finalized), and this should greatly simplify the delivery of mods to users, and propagating updates to mods. Server owners should be able to select mods to be active on the server, and these should automatically be distributed to players joining the server. The days of players having to drop .csv files into their game installation should be over!

Secondly, there will be some new kinds of modding — most notably custom patches, as well as mutators. These mutators are Lua scripts (like game modes) that are intended to extend and/or replace basic game functionality, without requiring a more complicated solution using the SDK (which is still on the way). The full feature set is yet to be confirmed and is likely to be extended over time, but provisionally mutators will allow server owners to customize match structures, map changes, default/allowable player names, custom callsigns, and other server behaviors. They may also be able to do things like pistol-only modifications to any game mode, and so on. Much is possible, but not everything may make it to V1033.

We'll share more details of the modding system at an appropriate time. But we know the community is clamoring for more modding possibilities, and we are doing our best to get this in-game at the earliest appropriate opportunity.


We appreciate you taking the time to read this post, and hope to keep a steady stream of previews and progress showcases going. Thanks for your continued support, and we'll see you next month!

Hey everyone,

This is just a quick announcement to let everyone know that we will be shutting down the CTE (Community Test Environment) app in the next 48 hours.

Although it has helped us with broader playtesting in the past, the concept of a separate app generates too much player confusion that can't really be worked around. As an example, it is impossible to simply shut down the CTE app when not in use (prompting many new players to ask which app they should play), and something as simple as putting up any kind of notice (e.g. to let players know if CTE is in use or not) requires Valve personnel to do it.

In addition, we noticed that the vast majority of players would immediately migrate to CTE once a new test version was released, leaving the main install mostly deserted — which rendered the benefit of having two separate apps that players could alternate between null. Many players also had issues with app visibility, and so on.

As a result, future playtesting will be done using the (relatively) new Steam Playtest (which works much like a separate app, but without the issues we were having with CTE) or simply via a separate Beta branch of the main app, usually accessed via password. We will be looking into both of these options before making a decision, and possibly trying them both out.

So if you notice GROUND BRANCH CTE dropping from your library, don't panic! We're just trying to make playtesting more straightforward in the future.

Thanks for reading!