We are sad to hear that after 14 years and 293 days (55 times longer than its planned lifetime) exploring the surface of Mars, Opportunity has ceased operations. So long, little explorer! On the bright side, KSP Loading is back with fresh news and updates! Do you want to learn about all the current developments of KSP? Heres the place to be, so let's get started!
KSP Enhanced Edition
Youre reading correctly, KSP Enhanced Edition is the first item in this issue of KSP Loading! Its been a while since our last update to KSP on consoles, but weve had something very special for you in the making, and were thrilled to finally shed some light and reveal all the juicy details youve been craving for!
For a while now, we have been working hand in hand with BlitWorks on a console-optimized free update for KSP Enhanced Edition, as well as its first DLC: The History and Parts Pack!
Releasing on the same day, both the History and Parts Pack and the free update are filled with content, including new parts, revamps, suits and features that console players will be able to enjoy for the first time! Without further ado, lets dive into the details:
Free Update
As we mentioned before, KSP Enhanced Edition is getting a content-filled console-optimized update that will take bits and pieces of all updates we have released on PC after 1.2.1; some of the ones that people like the most, as well as performance improvements, bug fixes, and more!
Kerbal Personal Parachutes
Personal Parachutes are coming to KSP Enhanced Edition! Kerbals with level 3 and above experience will have fully steerable personal parachutes. You will be able to deploy the chutes using the cursor or via the secondary radial menu.
Click here to see an animated gif showcasing this feature.
All part revamps up to PC 1.5
There has been a big effort on our side to give old parts a fresh new look, all with the intention of having a more sleek and cohesive part catalog. While staying true to the games original essence, the geometry and texture maps of these parts were completely redone. Some of these parts also include new texture variants to choose at will. Yes, youre getting the variant switcher, too!
New Suits
Both the recruit and veteran classic EVA and IVA Space Suits have been given a well-deserved overhaul and console players get to enjoy it, too! We knew that such an iconic element of the game needed to stay true to its identity, so we are keeping its style, while also giving it a sleeker look.
Kerbals can now be placed in external command seats in the VAB/SPH
Another highly requested feature that we are including in this update is the ability to assign Kerbals directly from the VAB/SPH into an EAS-1 External Command Seat, so that Kerbals appear in their respective command seat as the vessel is spawned.
History and Parts Pack DLC
Largely based on its PC counterpart, this console-optimized DLC will include a broad range of new parts, new space suits as well as new launch sites and runways that players can use throughout Kerbal Space Program. Additionally, the History and Parts Pack includes several missions inspired by historical moments in space exploration.
Historical Missions
10 pre-made missions inspired by humankinds own space exploration. Now you can spacewalk, pull off a crash landing, and attempt to recreate some of the most memorable moments inspired by historic events. All with our unique Kerbal twist, of course. Are you up to the challenge?
New Parts
More than 70 new parts inspired by the American and Russian Space Programs during the Space Race Era. Want to build Soyuz- and Saturn V-inspired rockets? With the History and Parts Pack you will be able to!
Vintage-spacesuit
The History and Parts Pack includes a Vintage Space Suit that will match perfectly with your Space Era-inspired crafts.
New Launch Sites
With the History and Parts Pack you will also have the ability to launch your crafts from 4 additional complexes: the Woomerang Launchsite, the Dessert Complex, the Island Runway and a brand new Mun Launchsite, not currently available on PC!
Lack of Mission Builder
Some of you may notice we havent included the Mission Builder from the Making History Expansion for PC. After some investigation, we were not confident in maintaining a solid user experience in navigating the menus and setup controls required for its use. Additionally, implementing a sharing feature which is core to the value would have required significant time investment for our team. We did not believe that the tradeoff time-wise made sense as it would have sacrificed some of the other content.
PC Update 1.7
As we revealed a few weeks ago, the development of update 1.7 keeps us busy, too! As has been the case with our previous releases, this free update will be packed with content! For instance, we continue with our endeavor to update and modernize our part catalog, but theres more up our sleeves that well be revealing along the way. For the time being check out some of the revamps that 1.7 will include in its repertoire.
Part Catalog Revamps
24-77 "Twitch" Liquid Fuel Engine Revamp
As you probably know by now, the 24-77 Twitch Liquid Fuel Engine is one of the revamps youre going to enjoy in update 1.7. The Twitch got its geometry and textures completely redone. In addition to the classic orange, a gray & orange variant was created to match with the style of your crafts. An emissive texture for the throttle animation, as well as an animated gimbal have also been included. All this will make the Twitch Engine look great when its in action!
Click here for the high-res images
LV-1 Ant Liquid Fuel Engine
The LV-1 Ant Liquid Fuel Engine is one of the parts that most desperately needed a makeover. With a decent specific impulse in vacuum and a very low mass, this engine has helped small satellites and crafts find their way in space for years, its aesthetics never stood out, though. Luckily, our art team took up the task of improving the look of this tiny engine. The geometry and texture maps were redesigned, and a new bare variant has been added, as well as a blazing emissive texture.
Click here for the high-res images
LV-1R Spider Liquid Fuel Engine
Being the radial version of the Ant Engine, the LV-1R Spider Liquid Fuel Engine allows for a greater variety of mounting points. With a reworked geometry and new textures, the Spider looks better than ever. Players will be able to choose from a shrouded and a bare variant for this engine, as well. An emissive texture for the throttle animation, as well as an animated gimbal have been included.
Click here for the high-res images
Vernor Engine
The VR-N1ER Veer-Governor, popularly known the Vernor Engine has also been heavily revamped. Our artists not only reworked this parts geometry and texture maps, but also added a pretty nozzle with a metallic look that includes an emissive texture that will glow when the Vernor heats up.
Click here for the high-res image
O-10 "Puff" MonoPropellant Fuel Engine
Being the only monopropellant reaction engine with throttle control, the O-10 Puff was selected for a well-deserved makeover. The art team added new textures for the Puff, including a new emissive texture for the throttle animation.
Click here for the high-res image
The Bug Hunt
As with every release, with update 1.7 we are determined to include a broad range of improvements and bug fixes in an ongoing effort to improve the KSP experience and reduce the amount of bugs that inevitably arise with every release. Our QA and development teams have been very busy confirming, reporting and fixing issues. For example, we recently squashed a bug where symmetry would break animations on some parts. The team also fixed a Null-Reference Exception triggered when RCS was enabled with an EVA Kerbal, which resulted in the Kerbal not being able to move. Our goal is to make each KSP release more and more stable and our team is working hard to achieve this.
Meet the team
For those who are interested in getting to know the people behind Kerbal Space Program well continue with our Meet the team section of KSP Loading until weve presented all of our team. This time its the turn for one of our programmers, Marco Samssonart Salcedo. Having worked at Squad for more than 8 years, Marco is a true KSP veteran despite his young age, and has been in the backend of KSP since the very beginning. Here are a few words from him.
I've been playing games since my childhood and started making my own simple games since I started programming in high school. I have a bachelor's in Computer Engineering and a master's in Computer Science, both with a specialty in graphics and interactive technology. Aside from games and technology, I'm a big music freak, I attend as many gigs as I can afford; I like to work out, I practice martial arts; and spending time with my family, girlfriend and cats.
Finally we want to remind you that you can share and download missions on Curse, KerbalX, the KSP Forum and the KSP Steam Workshop.
Thats it for this edition. Be sure to join us on our official forums, and dont forget to follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Stay tuned for more exciting and upcoming news and development updates!
Happy launchings!
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