This update adds some optimizations for large bases, mounts to the beetle explorer (although some cannot be unlocked yet), and fixes some bugs. It's a small update, but the mounts are fun to play with and the optimizations make a huge difference in some of the crazy saves I've been sent!

To add mounts to the beetle explorer, select the mounting wall and it'll show all mount blueprints you know. For mounts that don't take up the full height, select the wall above the mount, and you can often squeeze in a storage mount above it.

Changelog:

• Optimized performance for large bases
  
• Added mounts to beetle explorer
  
• Fixed lighting on moon
  
• Fixed memory leak
  

This is a very small update that's mostly for some bugfixes with the cryopod/timeskip quest (along with another one no one else noticed where icons would sometimes look greenish). It also has two QOL features:

• No longer pauses the game in multiplayer if you open the menu (you are invincible/immobile, but the other player can still act).
  
• Door forcefields removed when dismantle door
  

A new weekly update, and this one's a big one! You might've seen the in-progress videos of the moon and beetle explorer, but those are now both in game, along with new quests to obtain them!

[previewyoutube=ic7r197uf7M;full][/previewyoutube]

Changelog:

• Added Beetle Explorer (spaceship)
  
• Added the Moon
  
• Added the Timeskip (questline) - you might want to check in with the professor afterwards
  
• Added the ability for Com Stations to manage workers and structures.
  
• Added a com device that lets you access com stations in orbit (from anywhere) - check the vending machine.
  
• Added a repair button the to vehicle inventory window (hit X while riding a vehicle)
  
• Generators wont accept more than 1 exotic matter in exotic matter mode.
  
• Improved transparent object rendering
  
• Minor improvements and bugfixes
  

I'm not ready to share the moon yet, but I decided to post a small update as I had some minor improvements and bugfixes I figured should go live.

Changelog:

• Worker bays with occupants have green lights on edges
  
• Worker list is sorted by workers without jobs first, skill second
  
• Forcefield and glass blocks now use range of your shovel, if you have one
  
• Added power range to generator info (showing the amount of power needed if all crafting stations are off vs on)
  
• Added sideways ramps
  
• Meteors and torpedoes no longer damage objects through blocks or objects - the path to the explosion center must be unobstructed
  
• If forcefield is selected in inventory and the door does not have a forcefield, the door will give a place forcefield option instead of open/close door to place forcefields in all door blocks at once (consuming the forcefields)
  

The Beetle Explorer is not done yet - but as some players noticed, the sub can currently be used in space like a spaceship! So, to do some testing, I decided to use the sub as a spaceship and take it to the moon!

[previewyoutube=FTjfWfpc_4A;full][/previewyoutube]

The Moon is not yet complete, but I did finish the nav window which allows you to travel between planets (as you can see in the video above), and the broken pieces of the moon are quite spectacular!

I probably wont add the moon and navigation to the early access build until I add the beetle explorer, but hopefully this gives you a neat sneak peak of what's to come!

No, the spaceship isn't done yet - it is still being modelled (and could take some time for a model that big). However, in preparation, I did add an orbit area as shown in my last update, which you can now try out for yourself! This also includes several smaller improvements and bugfixes.

Changelog:

• Added Earth Orbit
  
• Added placeholder oxygen generator - the model for this isn't done yet, but it is fully functional and you get it the first time you reach orbit. Check PAI's help for details on how to use it.
  
• Added metal ramps, brick ramps, and truss ramps (check the vending machine for a new blueprint)
  
• You can build worker bots in orbit - but they move as if there was gravity (because it was simpler that way)
  
• Items are pulled towards powered belts in orbit so they can travel along them
  
• Fixed truss water bug
  
• When mined, glass now returns the item
  
• Made it clearer which tool is selected
  
• Added key that enables/disables antigravity pack
  
• Pauses the game when not focused unless focus paused option is unchecked
  

While waiting for the Beetle Explorer to be modeled (it could take some time for a ship that big), I decided to start working on Space - as what is a spaceship without Space?

[previewyoutube=S1Fk_1Y-fNs;full][/previewyoutube]

I probably spent more time than I should have on rendering the Earth and atmosphere, but I think it came out really cool! Plus, I'll be able to reuse that on the Moon (although, the Earth will look smaller in the sky there).

You can move around in all 3 dimensions without any restrictions in space - but there's no oxygen, so until the Spaceship is done and I add oxygen generators you can place in space stations you build, it is pretty inhospitable. However, I'll include the orbit area in the next update for you to play around in (later this week, or next Tuesday at the latest), along with a bunch of other fixes!

In other news, I added trading cards to Aground Zero! All of the trading cards include original concept art for the game - so check your badge progress and click on the card to view the full concept art. You should've automatically received trading cards based on your playtime if you've already been playing the game.

While we have nothing in game to share this week, we've been hard at work adding the first spaceship to the game - and it is quite the big one! The Beetle Explorer has a control area with a view at the front, a single fixed laser cannon, and an interior with wall mount slots you can use to customize it as a small mobile base. Able to function in the air, space and underwater, it is quite a versatile vehicle!

[previewyoutube=KhTdWP2r8Ls;full][/previewyoutube]

The Beetle Explorer will not be buildable in game until the next major update, but while you wait, you can check out the amazing concept art made by Jacob Carroll, and imagine how you'll customize it and where you will fly it once you can build it!

This update has a bunch of minor improvements and ways to decorate and improve your base, as well as dealing with water more effectively. You can see a video of some of the changes in the last video update:
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1795570/announcements/detail/6664834251009519608?snr=2___

Changelog:

• Added doors (check the blueprint printer)
  
• Added forcefield and glass blocks, plus a sand item to craft glass
  
• Drains don't block water, and will continue to drain anything that enters while powered. Forcefields were added to old saves around drains so that water cannot enter the 3 blocks above like before.
  
• Added water vaporizer.
  
• Space is now ascend, Shift descend for the sub and anti-gravity pack. You will hover in place once flying until you hold shift to hit the ground.
  
• You now exit teleportals the same side you enter (can place the back of all of them against walls)
  
• Added ability to dismantle subways.
  
• Added surface props and paint blueprints to vending machine
  
• Click+drag added for bucket until full (can scoop up lots of thin water)
  
• Added checkbox to allow/disallow NPCs access to teleportal
  
• if NPCs have nothing to do, they now stay in their bed in the bunker.
  
• Fixed a bug where you would sometimes collect items on belts
  
• Added large text accessibility option
  
• Increased effectiveness of cooked foods
  
• Added power warning to generators if there's not enough power generation
  
• Increased bot limit to 20
  

I'm starting up weekly Tuesday updates again! If there's not a game update, I'll post a video update like I did before, and since I haven't posted any update in a while, I decided to include all the cool new things I've been working on in this update:
[previewyoutube=C4qOwiBwTiQ;full][/previewyoutube]

The video includes Glass (made from Sand, it is like a Truss block but blocks water), Forcefields (blocks water, but allows objects to pass through), and Doors (they don't block water, but forcefields can be placed inside like in the video). Drains have been changed and are no longer block water (you need a force field to do that), but that means they can drain a lot more water. Thin water can remain where there are no drains, but the new Water Vaporizer can quickly remove that.

I have a few other changes I want to make for this update before uploading, and when that's done I should have everything I need to get started on the next content update, which will be pretty exciting!

This update has a lot of minor improvements and bugfixes.

Changelog:

• Added bgm for flooded city.
  
• Added log list to Pai's help
  
• Added crafting limits
  
• Added cancel button on assembler that gives raw materials back
  
• Laser drill can now kill bats instead of the fabricator (which was tougher/unintuitive)
  
• Splitters will now rotate to distribute evenly between structures with the same priority.
  
• Splitters will now prioritize generators and factories that have less of the required material (to try to keep them all balanced).
  
• Fixed Worker Bots
  
• NPCs can now take items from bunkers if needed at workplace
  
• Storehouse can manually request items from other storehouses.
  
• Added click and drag for belts, drains, cables, ladder, painter
  
• Fixed Friend Locator if you never get the Cryopod Locator quest.
  
• On death, if you hit reload, it will restore health and oxygen (to avoid endless death loops).
  
• Increased defense and damage of turrets (player built and enemy)
  
• Made it easier to shove NPCs around
  
• chests can have priority set like storehouse, but defaults to low
  
• Friend shows quest indicator and has increased health, making it less likely to kill it by accident
  
• Assembler on update stays on selected item
  
• Crafting structures now show the required item count below the item (so it doesn't overlap the inventory count).
  
• Added down arrow on buttons that change recipes/fuel
  
• survivors get +1 max on their starting skill, so they can reach level 5
  
• Structures now show how long things take to produce
  
• Changed deep cave generation - new games will start with more caverns, and bats cannot spawn near start.
  
• Shift+click for factories put extra resources into the empty slots.
  
• Enemy subs no longer start spawning until you reach the surface, and they cannot attack you out of water
  

I wanted to add some last minute polish and improvements before the Early Access launch on Thursday. None of the updates here are major, but many of them are quite nice!

Changelog:

• Added Seaweed - you can find it underwater in new saves and collect/place it, but it's purely decorative.
  
• Added ore detector (you can craft it in the lab) - lets you find nearby ores that you have unlocked in the mining rig.
  
• Replaced placeholder icons
  
• Added allow request from storehouse option to crafting structures.
  
• Added ability to set priority for different items in a storehouse.
  
• Belts entering teleportals will now go through the teleportal (if it is active) - it will always send items to the same location (see the output arrow when building/dismantling them). However, structures will not request items through teleportals, nor will splitters automatically use teleportals.
  
• Splitters will now prioritize sending food to bunkers with less food (not closest).
  
• Adjusted recipes, some items now need cables instead of wires to produce.
  

• Added subway music
  
• Added meteors to surface
  
• Added way to change what kind of ramp to place
  
• Added language option (only english for now)
  

Mark your calendars, Aground Zero is launching into Early Access January 18th, 2024! We also made a new launch trailer:

[previewyoutube=OyY-Sw9fhKg;full][/previewyoutube]

I hope youre as excited as I am - the Early Access launch will bring you from being stranded underground, to building an underground base, ascending to the surface and building vehicles. We have lots more planned for Early Access updates too - like the first spaceship, new areas, and a moon base!

Were also going to do a launch stream where we will talk about the game and hit the big release button together: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1795570/view/3896241210503044028

Wishlist the game if you havent already, and definitely let us know if you have any suggestions or feedback!

Aground Zero launches in Early Access January 18th at 2PM EDT! Join us in stream for chatting about game and hitting the big green launch button!

I hope everyone is having a great final week of 2023! There's a lot of news about Aground Zero, so lets get to it!

Early Access
First, we decided to do an Early Access launch for Aground Zero. We've been considering this for a while, and given how well Early Access went for the original Aground, we decided to do it again! The Early Access launch will start with all the questlines up to the Surface, including most of the planned content on the Surface! However, there will still be more to come, including an ending, Spaceships (yes, we're adding those), and potentially other features based on player feedback - like a magic path.

Our Early Access launch will be in January 2024 (we'll be announcing the exact date soon, along with a new trailer), and you can check out the Early Access section of our storepage for more details about our plans for Early Access.



Demo Update 0.2.0
While a lot of our work has been on the Subways, Surface, and post-demo content, we've also been making a lot of improvements that affect the demo, so I decided to update it! Consider this a holiday present from me!

Changelog

• Performance optimizations
  
• Edited character textures
  
• Improved NPC pathfinding - they can now use teleportals (but will not change the destination of them).
  
• NPCs will now fire laser guns if they have them in their inventory to shoot enemies
  
• Bunkers will now request food from storehouses
  
• PAI can perform an emergency teleport to the starting location if you get stuck
  
• Updated logo
  
• Repaired cryopods now let you advance time when sealed inside.
  
• Bugfixes/minor improvements.
  

The subways are mostly done now in the playtest, and I also did a lot of quality of life improvements so I decided to update the demo too! While I don't plan to add more content to the demo, I did add a river of water that will spawn in a new save (and shows off the new water mechanic).

Changelog that affects the Demo:

• Added water and an underground river
  
• Added buckets
  
• Added footstep sounds
  
• Added a clear option to the painter to remove paint
  
• You can now climb ladders from any direction (even if the ladder is behind you)
  
• Adjusted the shield so it no longer works with 0 power
  
• Other adjustments and minor improvements
  

It's been a while since our last public update on Aground Zero, so I figured it was time to update everyone!

Development progress is going smoothly, the next area (the subways) are mostly complete and I just recently added water (the last major feature of the game). However, when I went through the amount of models left to finish and the rate at which the modeler is making them, I realized we weren't going to be able to release this year. So, we've tentatively postponed the release date to "Early 2024," potentially with an early access release in late 2023.

While I am sure many of you are disappointed about this, here is something fun to lighten the blow:

[previewyoutube=MxDMVXi1LB8;full][/previewyoutube]

Maybe worker bots are exactly what our dev team needs.

I finally finished the split screen co-op I was testing during the Steam Next Fest - you can now play with up to 4 players on the same computer (or remotely with Steam Remote Play)! You can watch the dev stream where I tested co-op for basically the first time here:

[previewyoutube=Ub7gLms3akw;full][/previewyoutube]

This update also includes a lot of improvements and fixes based on feedback we received during the Next Fest! I hope you enjoy, and definitely let me know if you have more feedback!

Changelog:

• Added split screen co-op
  
• Splitters will now rotate to redirect items to factories directly from rigs/producers
  
• Assembler can now queue multiple of the same item
  
• Now shows how many remaining items needed for structure while building
  
• Added notifications and reminders if you cannot do something
  
• Now shows power cost and size (4x4x3 etc) in structure hover info
  
• Smoothed out jumps - they now increase height if you hold jump key longer
  
• Added invert y axis option
  
• Minor improvements and bugfixes
  
• I might have added a secret area to the game (new saves only)
  

There were a few bugs and issues in the demo, so I decided to post a small update before the Next Fest!

Changelog:

• Added locator for teleportals
  
• Added brightness slider
  
• Fixed falling through world bug
  
• Option to turn output arrow on structures (not just blueprints)
  
• Fixed linux controller bindings
  
• Fixed bugs with item dispatch
  
• Minor bugfixes and improvements
  

Join the devs as we play through Aground Zero and talk about development!

This will be an hour long stream during the Steam Next Festival - follow along and try the demo yourself!

Another team playthrough - where we continue from where we left off the day before.

Join the devs as we play through Aground Zero and talk about development!

This will be an hour long stream during the Steam Next Festival - follow along and try the demo yourself!

It's been about a year since we posted this coming soon page, and in that time we've made a lot of progress! With our Steam Next Fest coming up for Aground Zero, I figured it was time to update everyone.

The store page has been revamped with a new logo, screenshots, gifs, description and a new trailer! You can see the trailer here:

[previewyoutube=AeJj_MpjQBk;full][/previewyoutube]

This trailer show a lot more clearly what you do in Aground Zero - certainly there's mining and voxels, but it's far more about base building and NPC workers. There's also a secret clip at the end of the trailer, after the logos!



The main content for the upcoming demo is already done - including core base structures, 8 recruit-able NPCs and the Professor. There's still some polishing to do and incomplete animations, but we're getting pretty close which is really exciting and I can't wait to see what everyone thinks!



We are running a closed playtest in advance of the Steam Next Fest - if you're interested and okay with unfinished elements, let me (terra0nova) know on our Discord, where we have a private channel to discuss the playtest.

Look forward to more updates as we get closer to the Steam Next Fest!