Hello Everyone! Today we’ve got another development blog for you but we also wanted to address the requests we’ve had to release the update early. We understand that you guys are willing to put up with bugs in the game in order to play it before it’s finished, however the multiverse update still hasn't hit a point where we're happy with its quality enough to bring it into the public beta. We deeply regret that we’ve not been able to hit our initial estimate and humbly ask for your continued patience.
In today’s devblog I wanted to talk more about how Multiplayer & the level editor will actually work in Besiege. Many of you have many different assumptions or ideas about how it will function, so I wanted to try and clear all that up so everyone knows what to expect. As part of this we're going to be taking a look at the level settings menu.
In addition to working on the Multiverse, we also have a couple of new Valfross levels on the back burner. No release estimation yet but we’ll keep you updated. But for now lets get into some more Multiverse stuff! I thought the best way to present this post would be in FAQ format, so that the information is clearly divided and easily consumable! So, without further ado, here it is!

How do I play a game with my friends?

Besiege’s multiplayer will not have servers in the traditional sense, instead all players will be able to create their own multiplayer sessions, which other players can then join via IP address or through the Steam friends list. The player that creates the multiplayer session is considered the Host and has access to additional options such as god powers, the ability to kick or ban players and the ability to turn off global simulation to ensure players can edit the level unhindered. The Host’s computer handles all of the game’s physics calculations which means that other player’s computers are barely put under any strain at all. It is therefore wise to have the person with the best computer host the session.

What about performance in multiplayer?

Generally speaking if your host can normally handle 700 blocks in singleplayer then they should be able to handle 700 blocks spread across all players in a multiplayer session. Not per player, but 700 blocks total! Mostly it is the Host who will experience lag at high block counts, but the players may notice odd desync behavior if the host is lagging.

Can you share levels on the workshop?

Yes!

Can I make a basket ball game in the level editor?

How will mods work with Multiplayer?

Unfortunately we do not currently offer official modding support for Besiege, so we can’t know exactly how mods will work with Multiplayer. However it is likely that, when the mod loader is updated to the new version of Besiege, if all players have the same mods installed they will likely function in multiplayer. (Please note that a lot of the game has been re-written in the multiverse update so it may take some time before the modders update the loader)

What’s the maximum allowed players?

At the moment the player limit is set to 8, which can be decreased if you so choose.

Can I sculpt/mould the terrain in the level editor?

Unfortunately you can’t sculpt or mould the terrain of levels at this time. We might explore this option later on and add it in a later update. However, there are terrain objects which you can use to build terrain, like those used in the new sandbox level.

Will there be a server Browser?

No, at least not on launch. Besiege’s multiplayer was designed with playing with your friends in mind more than playing with random players but this may be something we add to the game later on.

Will there be a dedicated server?

We have been working on a dedicated server mode for Besiege but to be honest we’re not expecting it to be very useful, the dedicated server has very similar performance requirements to the normal game. It is very CPU intensive and renting a server with a CPU good enough to run a multiplayer session will be very expensive.

Can I impose rules in my level?

Absolutely! There are a variety of options which can be saved to the level:

Can I limit or turn off blocks?

Yes! In the level editor you can disable specific blocks or limit specific blocks per player, for example allowing each player to use only one bomb on their machine. You can also set a total block limit for each player to help with server performance or balance.

Can I make people use specific machines in my level?

Indeed you can! You can specify 1 or more machines which can be used with your level and all others are prevented. This option is designed for more strict PVP sessions or racing type levels.
Then upon joining the game players will be presented with the selection of machines you specified in the level options.

That's it for this dev blog, we hope that this answers some of your questions about the multiverse update! Cheers everyone, Von