Cepheus Protocol News

We’re excited to announce a live AMA where we’ll dive deep into the latest progress on vehicles and other exciting changes coming to Cepheus Protocol. Whether you're interested in the new mechanics or want to hear about all the updates, this is your chance to get involved and ask questions.

[h2]📅 Date/Time: Fri, October 18, 2024, 5:00 PM [/h2]

Join us on your preferred platform:

• Discord AMA Channel – Ask your questions and listen in on voice.
  
• YouTube Livestream – Watch the live stream and get insights on the latest updates.

[h3]What We’ll Cover:[/h3]

• New vehicle mechanics and updates
  
• Additional gameplay changes
  
• A sneak peek at development of the next few months going into the New Year

Mark your calendars! In 4 days, we’ll be holding a Development Rollup to catch everyone up on progress. We’ll be answering questions from the community and reviewing overall development since last time we met. The session will be live-streamed on YouTube and will also be available as a VOD for those who can’t make it live.

https://discord.gg/Uztq6kK9?event=1289951409411854387


After years of feedback we've caved and decided to pivot our design of CERC ground units. We are designing a new base "look" and getting rid of the "GI Joe" look. Our goal is for Michael to have the first pass out by Halloween there might be some bleed over. But its his primary goal and he'll be sharing progress on the Discord every few days starting after today in our announcements chat.


We currently are pursuing a more polished "final" look for our EA release next year based on the following ideas.

[h3]Mood board images for all classes redesigns [/h3]


[h2]After this is done if there is still a demand we will consider "camo" reskins for different nations as support packs. Let us know if this is still desired in the comments below[/h2]



More physics and destruction is coming!
https://youtu.be/pCcOG3nEFlg



Only the Bradley/Abrams and basic destruction is live now

The current update we are polishing on Experimental is code named "Escalation". We will not push it to public till the following line items are implemented and ready for general play. But you can jump in and test our progress and leave your feedback at any time by installing experimental. We prefer Discord for feedback so we can jump in voice calls easily but Steam is monitored as well.

We will be discussing the Abrams and Bradley and the MRLS which will be released within the next few days and the remaining challenges and goals going into the Halloween sale and beyond to wrap up the year.

[h2]What's coming in "Escalation"[/h2]

• Localization for all Languages updated
  
• Doctrines shifted/reorganized for longevity (Armored Core, Infantry Core, Airborne Core and Utility)
  
• Sparrow Weapons added
  
• Blackhawk Weapons added
  
• VTOL + Weapons added
  
• New Doctrines implementation that is geared towards longer play taking reference from games like Total War and Sins of a Solar empire.
  
• Mortar weapon Infantry
  
• Passive upgrades and ability tweaks across the board
  
• Abilities polish pass for Infantry to finalize them I.E the Sniper gains a claymore or heavy gains an actually "deployment" system that he setups up a basic defensive fortification.
  
• New Vehicle AI/ Driving still needs some polish
  
• Helicopter AI is reworked
  
• Some performance tweaks
  
• Vehicle Formations /Infantry spots next to vehicles
  
• Infantry/Units moving at the pace of the slowest unit in move order
  
• MLRS implementation with abilities
  
• Bus evacuation(Delayed) Will be coming at the end waiting for a more finalized driving AI
• Destruction (Delayed) Working out some technical issues with save/loading. We might have to forgo full saving as it works right now fully in terms of the destruction aspect. More details on this during the discussion this Friday
• Mine Deploying Atlas (Delayed) Low priority but coming
• Armor kits for the Abrams, Bradley & Striker with defensive items (Active denial for civilian RPG hunter teams)
  
• New and revamped Airstrikes
  
• More to be announced

Hey everyone,

We wanted to update you on some unexpected issues that hit us over the last 72 hours, pulling us away from finalizing the vehicle interface:

[h2]Unreal Engine 5.4 Crash[/h2] We encountered a critical crash that would occur after a heavy civilian evac playthrough and saving the game. It also happened during longer in-game sessions. After an intensive 24-hour work session, where each programmer picked up where the last one left off, we believe we've resolved the issue.

[h2]SteamCMD Tool Issue[/h2] We also faced a problem with the SteamCMD tool incorrectly updating the game on upload. We've spent significant time troubleshooting this and are still in contact with Valve to ensure it doesn’t happen again. To mitigate this, we’ve reorganized the game into multiple .pak files. This change aligns with newer engine standards and should improve load times and reduce patch sizes, though we initially planned to implement it closer to the 1.0 release. In the future, we intend to adopt a newer packaging format to better conform with Unreal Engine 5 loading standards, but that will come later as a result of our research into this issue.

This might also be a growing pain with Steam’s interaction with Unreal Engine 5.4.2, which, as many of you know, comes with bugs/issues when using the latest versions of software. Rest assured, we will continue to sort these out and work tirelessly until any remaining issues are eradicated.

As of now, the first issue should be resolved, and we've mitigated the Steam download bug by adjusting how we package the game. We're still awaiting a definitive answer from Valve, but we’ve made the necessary changes to keep things moving forward.

Unfortunately, these setbacks caused us to lose 1-2 days, so our estimate for the vehicle interface release has been pushed to early next week—assuming no further stability issues arise.

[h2]Bonus Update[/h2] One of our technical artists added a new "line" highlight system to make it easier to tweak settings. Take a look here! Live now



Thank you for your patience and understanding!

— The Halcyon Winds Dev Team


[expand]
[h2] Bug Fixes & Improvements: [/h2]

[h3] Late Load Crash: [/h3]

• Implemented a speculative fix for a crash related to a Discord forums post reported by a user during late load.
  
• Added additional safeties for loading crashes, including `LateLoadUnit` midway checks in case a unit is destroyed during load.
  

[h3] Goldencrest [/h3]

• Placed move proxies around the area. While this doesn't fully resolve backtracking issues, it helps mitigate some ignored move orders. Fully fixing this will require further work after we finish the interface work in a few days.
  
• Edited cranes in the construction site for better alignment.
  

[h3] Helipads: [/h3]

• Updated Helipads with a larger vertical 'clear landscape object' presence. This change should prevent evac choppers from getting stuck under cranes in the construction zone.
  

[h3] Character Handling: [/h3]

• Added `IsActorBeingDestroyed` checks to `LoadCharactersDelayFinish`, `GetTargetGarrisonTag` in `Base_Character`, and `HasTagWithSubstring` in `CPFunctionLibrary`.
  

[h3] Memory Management: [/h3]

• Cleaned up `memcopy` issues.
  

[h3] Shaders: [/h3]

• Speculative fix for a water shader recompile issue that would occur on first load of the game where the water would be invisible for up to 10-20 seconds while it "compiled" live
  

[h3] Save-Load System: [/h3]

• Committed a fix for `UPROPERTY()` that addresses save-load issues.
  

[h3] User Interface: [/h3]

• Added a mouse-over highlight to settings in the options menu.
  
• Introduced a speculative fix for the next patch to resolve the 'jittering on load menu when paused' problem.
  

[hr][/hr]

Please note the following going forward: Restart your game/steam to get the update if needed
[/expand]



[expand]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zz49hElQa8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZA_1INK--I

[h3]Letter from the Producer[/h3]
https://steamcommunity.com/games/979640/announcements/detail/3718325557390407190

[h3]New Roadmap system [/h3]
We now have a new system for our community to follow along on development. This website will break down all the major systems that are coming each patch. It will not include hotfixes/bug fixes. Sections inside TBD can be included randomly if we are ahead of schedule.
View the Roadmap
[/expand]



[expand]
Your support helps us grow the team and create a better game for everyone!

[h3]Support Us on Patreon[/h3]
Join our Patreon community to gain exclusive access to behind-the-scenes content, early builds, and other perks.

[h3]Check Out Our Merch Store[/h3]
Show your love for Cepheus Protocol with our official merchandise! Every purchase directly supports the development of the game.



[h3]Cepheus Protocol Anthology[/h3]
Immerse yourself in the gripping narrative of the Pangu Virus outbreak through multiple perspectives. Follow the dedicated heroes of the Center for Epidemic Research and Control as they battle to contain a devastating alien virus that transforms innocents into terrifying creatures of unimaginable power.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1707120/Cepheus_Protocol_Anthology_Season_1/

[h3]Watch the First 40 Minutes of Cepheus Protocol Anthology Season 1[/h3]
Get a sneak peek at the intense and dramatic opening of Season 1.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eWbDibGMrU
[/expand]

If you're experiencing crashes/instability, please try a Steam Verify/Display Drivers update before contacting us.

[h2]Historical Roots in the California Gold Rush[/h2]
Goldencrest Island, located off the coast of San Francisco, has a rich history that dates back to the mid-19th century. Discovered during the height of the California Gold Rush, the island quickly became a bustling hub for prospectors. Early settlers named it Goldencrest due to the island’s hilly terrain, which was believed to contain rich veins of gold, due to the fact the hills seemed to sparkle when the sun fell. While large deposits were never found, the name stuck, symbolizing hope and prosperity.

The island was taken over by the US Navy and served as a checkpoint for ships coming and leaving San Francisco during the California Gold Rush and the American Civil War, as the state's population boomed.

[h2]World War II Military Outpost[/h2]
Fast forward to the early 1940s, Goldencrest Island took on a new, strategic significance. During World War II, the United States military established a significant outpost on the island to defend the West Coast against potential Japanese attacks. The island was fortified with bunkers, anti-aircraft guns, and a small naval base. Soldiers and their families lived on the island, creating a tight-knit community amidst the ongoing war.

[h2]Post-War Abandonment[/h2]
Following the end of World War II, Goldencrest Island's military significance dwindled, and it was eventually abandoned. For over fifty years, the island remained largely untouched, a forgotten relic of a bygone era. Nature began to reclaim the land, with the once-bustling outpost transforming into a ghostly, overgrown reminder of its past.

[h2]Modern Renovation and Revival[/h2]
In the early 2000s, interest in Goldencrest Island was rekindled by investors and developers who saw potential in its prime location and historical charm. A massive renovation project was launched, aimed at modernizing the island while preserving its historical elements. Over the next two decades, Goldencrest underwent a dramatic transformation.

Today, the island boasts high-rises and luxury apartments that offer stunning views of the Pacific Ocean and the San Francisco skyline. It has become a hotspot for beachgoers and tourists, with pristine beaches, upscale resorts, and vibrant nightlife. Offshore gambling facilities have turned Goldencrest into a mini Las Vegas on the sea, attracting visitors from around the world.

Despite its modern amenities, Goldencrest Island has not forgotten its roots. Historical tours and museums dedicated to the Gold Rush and World War II periods offer visitors a glimpse into the island's storied past. The blend of historical preservation and contemporary luxury makes Goldencrest Island a unique destination, celebrating its rich heritage while embracing a vibrant, modern future.

• Preloading New Content: This patch includes significant changes that lay the groundwork for exciting upcoming features. We've preloaded assets and systems to support new vehicles and Operator content, which will be rolled out in future updates. This ensures that when the new content is released, it will integrate seamlessly with the existing game environment. It is 4.9 GB in size.
  
  
• Performance Improvements: We've begun leveraging the latest performance enhancements offered by Unreal Engine 5.4. By optimizing various systems, converting more assets to Nanite, and tweaking materials for better LODs and HLOD utilization, we're already seeing improvements in the game's performance, making it smoother and more efficient. While we're still exploring the full potential of these tools, the progress we've made so far is already enhancing the current content and laying the groundwork for the new features we have planned. You should expect a solid 40-60% performance boast depending on hardware!
  
  

(Click Show details for a full breakdown of the changes)

[expand]

New Features
• Minigun added to the Heavy.
  
  General Fixes & Improvements
• Fixed translucent glass materials not interacting with fog properly.
  
• Fixed various LODs and enabled Nanite on several meshes.
  
• Enabled Nanite on OpenWorld landscapes.
  
• Slightly optimized post-process effects.
  
• Updated HLOD setup.
  
• Fixed various invisible objects.
  
• Added translucent glass LOD materials to world vehicles.
  
• Adjusted scalability.ini settings.
  
• Various optimizations throughout the game.
  
• Added performance cost graphs to the options menu.
  
  Building & World Adjustments
• Lerp adjustments to re-imported building BPs.
  
• Fixed traffic light orientation.
  
• Fixed buildings that were offset by re-import.
  
• Fixed dual Lerp positions that were offset on re-import.
  
• More adjustments to world-building BPs.
  
• Adjusted Lerp positions for the Police Station in Grid 7.
  
• Fixed overturned fences on the TI Power Plant, renamed them, and adjusted collision/nav blocking.
  
• Rebuilt navmesh after these changes.
  
• Rebuilt collisions for road bridges in Grids 1, 7, and 8.
  
• Rebuilt navmesh for the large mansion in Grid 7 (Chelsea's House).
  
• Fixed more spline mesh alignment issues caused by the UE 5.4 update.
  
• Progress on landscape detail pass, adding cliff meshes to elevations and nav modifiers for better navigation around verticality.
  
• Expanded water to reach further into the backdrop.
  
• Adjusted size of nav mesh bounds to envelope the entire island, including the path spline for the Carrier.
  
• Further refined the beach landscape for smoother transition points (LCAC still erratic during transitions and random instances over open water).
  
• Lowered the continental shelf to create more room for the Carrier to 'float'.
  
• Rebuilt open-world landscape Nanite data.
  
• Added Calypso landscape to be Nanite-enabled.
  
  Calypso/Goldencrest Island Updates
• Nav fix for Calypso.
  
• Fixed up the Carrier to have a proxy movement volume and base, then rebuilt navmesh.
  
• Fixed errors in the level graph.
  
• Fixed several duplicate world-building names.
  
• Fixed FOW volume size.
  
• Fixed collision complexity settings on some build location meshes (with one mesh still having errors).
  
• Fixed issue with a Location Volume's collisions not registering in Unreal.
  
• Fixed ambient splines not having world buildings assigned to them.
  
• Made adjustments to all ACS in Calypso.
  
• Tested location volumes for errors.
  
• Set up city lighting for the metro area of Calypso.
  
• Fixed Calypso G7+G8 not being part of the Calypso Landmass (impacting evac and infection spreading systems).
  
• Updated Calypso's user-visible name to Goldencrest Island.
  
• Updated the description in the Main Menu for Goldencrest Island.
  
• Old saves will still show 'Calypso' in the Load Game menu but will function correctly.
  
• Speculative fix for shared vision dependent crash.
  
• Fixed autosaves not working in Goldencrest Island.
  
• Added a large water plane underneath the water tiles.
  
• Fixed collision issues with removable fence assets.
  
• Updated the minimap for Calypso ~Derek.
  
• Updated Calypso City lighting and tree placement progress.
  
• Commit of build machine stuff ~Derek.
  
• Fixed navigation being missing for proxy movement for LHA6 (allowing movement and landing on the Carrier again).
  

Please note the following going forward: Restart your game/steam to get the update if needed
[/expand]



[expand]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zz49hElQa8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZA_1INK--I

[h3]Letter from the Producer[/h3]
https://steamcommunity.com/games/979640/announcements/detail/3718325557390407190

[h3]New Roadmap system [/h3]
We now have a new system for our community to follow along on development. This website will break down all the major systems that are coming each patch. It will not include hotfixes/bug fixes. Sections inside TBD can be included randomly if we are ahead of schedule.
View the Roadmap
[/expand]



[expand]
Your support helps us grow the team and create a better game for everyone!

[h3]Support Us on Patreon[/h3]
Join our Patreon community to gain exclusive access to behind-the-scenes content, early builds, and other perks.

[h3]Check Out Our Merch Store[/h3]
Show your love for Cepheus Protocol with our official merchandise! Every purchase directly supports the development of the game.



[h3]Cepheus Protocol Anthology[/h3]
Immerse yourself in the gripping narrative of the Pangu Virus outbreak through multiple perspectives. Follow the dedicated heroes of the Center for Epidemic Research and Control as they battle to contain a devastating alien virus that transforms innocents into terrifying creatures of unimaginable power.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1707120/Cepheus_Protocol_Anthology_Season_1/

[h3]Watch the First 40 Minutes of Cepheus Protocol Anthology Season 1[/h3]
Get a sneak peek at the intense and dramatic opening of Season 1.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eWbDibGMrU
[/expand]

If you're experiencing crashes/instability, please try a Steam Verify/Display Drivers update before contacting us.

Where other zombie games in the genre have asked "How will you die" (Project Zomboid), Cepheus Protocol dares to ask "How will you survive". Giving you the tools of a recently created new branch called CERC its now your job to tackle how to handle the spreading Pangu Virus. We are dedicated to continuing to work with our community to keep refining Cepheus Protocol till its a true gem.

It should be noted that while we embrace critical feedback it should be given in a manner that is respectful and conductive of actually having a conversation. I.E Don't say X is Bad fix it. Say X is bad because of X,Y,Z . Then we can start to have a meaningful conversation. It should be noted naturally all suggestions cannot be implemented but we will keep them in mind for a possible addition in the future depending on scope budget etc.



The Development update video linked above will have further details. After all of this is implemented we will convert all current vehicles to this system and implement the Abrams, MLRS and Bradley to officially start the CERC/Doctrines card outlined here.

Development Update from Jun 13, 2024
https://youtu.be/6zz49hElQa8?t=1032

Note: we will not be allowing full destruction but like mentioned in the last update on Youtube partial destruction in the terms of street lights, fences, walls etc. Preplaced assets in the world to make areas like the center park in Treasure Island far more dynamic so vehicles and explosions can affect the world.

[h2]What is Chaos Vehicles?[/h2]

https://youtu.be/-lkEOEEKYD0?t=63

[h2]What is Chaos Destruction?[/h2]

https://youtu.be/u3ktiewcLpo?t=32
If your getting crashes/out out of memory issues check out this post
https://steamcommunity.com/games/979640/announcements/detail/4365760665713106999



We will be allowing users to customize what weapons appear in what "slots" for each helicopter allowing for in-depth customization on the vast amount of gameplay situations that can occur. A few examples would be mix/matching different weapon combinations based on need.

I.E Missile pods for saturation of an area without a need for accuracy vs say Hellfire missiles which would lock on and track their targets and be fired much slower 1-2 every few seconds. Then you toss in gatling guns/MGS for constant suppression/saturation and you have a party

[h2]VTOL [/h2]
it wil feature an unarmed version and armed version. It will allow you to cycle between hover/flight mode and will not feature any transport capacity for lifting vehicles.


https://youtu.be/E5M-VsOi9o8


[h2]Little Bird[/h2]



[h2]Blackhawk[/h2]





Originally intended to be a "demo" map only it was repurposed as additional content and for lower spec machines. When we feel the game is more feature complete we will revisit the demo.

I have earmarked some issues/corrections that need to occur on Calypso including renaming the map, some level design changes and bug fixing. I estimate at least till Wednesday to the point we are completely done.



[h2]Pass 2 8.2.24[/h2]





Vehicle AI is an extremely slow process of updating references to a new "Shared" Interface/Actor Components. Which meant thousands of lines of code that had to be refactored and reconfigured. We finished the C++ aspect of it earlier this week but now we are working through the Blueprint components and improving/updating logic as we go to better practices. In some cases we are down converting BP logic to C++ for refinement purposes/streamlining the workflow.



Currently the list in the picture shown below is what remains till we can even play in our editor and do the vehicle porting aspect. It's a big step and has taken us weeks to accomplish based on on its sheer size. The Abrams and co will come shorter after all current vehicles are ported over.

[h2]So Order of Operations.[/h2]
Vehicle AI Interface stuff -> Port all Current Vehicles -> Experimental -> Abrams, Bradley, MLRS & C5 Galaxy -> Resume CERC/Doctrines roadmap.

I don't have an estimate yet for this. But we believe it to be quite soon for the porting aspect. We will know more once we fix the remaining compile errors and start testing in our SDK

Last Vehicle AI Video update

https://youtu.be/YMNZ6juA3e0



Part of the work is also making it easier for me to switch over to ⁠road-to-coop which will be a channel that after we "push" all the current vehicles over to Chaos Vehicles i will be shifting over to.

I will effectively be working on systems that are mundanely simple that wouldn't change like Shooting, Health etc. I.E the "Core" components and learning GAS. (Gameplay Ability System) It would effectively make a lot of "abilities" replicated natively and streamline the creation of new ones.

if you want to consider supporting us check out our patreon or Discord pledge system everything helps!