Hey there pilots, BallisticNG 0.9.3 is now out! It's been a long few months of development and as such this new update comes with a whole new bunch of content.

64-bit Build

If you're running a 64-bit version of Windows you'll now have a 64-bit version of the game! This allows the game to use much more memory, which is very useful for loads of high poly and high resolution custom content. Note: The beta branch is 64-bit only! If you want to partake in beta builds you will not be able to do so with a 32-bit copy of Windows.

Multiplayer Alpha

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJZGbuzg9dI Multiplayer is back after a long hiatus! This new multiplayer is very much in an early alpha state and as such you should not go in expecting a flawless experience. Multiplayer is currently only using direct connect so you'll need to pass your WAN IP to your friends in order to play. The game currently only listens on the port 25565 so the host will need to make sure they forward this port on their router, on top of this everybody wanting to play together needs to make sure the game is allowed through their firewall. Steamworks matchmaking is going to be implemented in the future, it's planned to allow both direct connect and matchmaking to be used simultaneously so you have the option to connect via IP or connect using Steam. If you want to report a bug with multiplayer see the new multiplayer bugs forum in the discussion tab or leave a message in #mp-feedback on the game's discord server!

Shorter, more diverse and less grindy campaign

The campaign has had a structural overhaul to make it much less of a chore to play through. It's much shorter with 4 of the series being removed and each series having their number of events cut down to 10 events. The first 4 series give you a lot more choice on what to play, letting you choose to first play any three of the tracks introduced to you before opening up a bit more with different gamemodes. Game content is now also locked behind the campaign, there is a list on the main menu which shows you what's you've currently got unlocked and what else to unlock you have. This campaign update will not wipe out your current progress, however because events have been deleted and moved you'll find that your progress is applied across the update differently to how it was before the update. If you want to get a fresh start you can delete the campaigns folder in UserData/Profiles/Player.

Expert Tracks

Expert tracks are a new category of track which are built to push your piloting skills to the max. These tracks unlock at rank 44 making them end game content. Expert tracks are not playable in 2280 mode or survival as they are in no way designed to be playable in these modes! Once you've unlocked them you can press up on the track turntable three times to access them. Hydrome Bed: Set just a little bit off the shore of Maceno Island, this track requires expert handling of airbrakes to take its drop u-turn and extremely tight hairpin.
Arrivon Peak: Laying just under the peak of Arrivons volcano, this track will push you to the absoluete limit as it weaves in and out of itself with very tight u-turns which require you to slow down or end up on the offroad lava streams.

Reverse Tracks

All of the game's standard tracks are now playable in reverse! You can access them by pressing up once on the track turntable.

Track Updates

Harpstone and Marina Rush have had some scenery updates. Harpstone is a major environment overhaul bringing its visual fidelity in line with all of the latest tracks. Marina Rush has had a few minor detail updates adding in some traffic and an animated tram! 0.9.3 marks the last of major environment overhauls, there is still work to be done such as making Omega Harbour's aquarium actually look like an aqarium however.

New Eliminator

The game can now handle ship respawning and as such Eliminator has had a fundemental change. It's no longer about being the last person alive but instead about racking up points by dealing damage and eliminating other people. The first person to a target score now wins! The target score is determined by the AI difficulty if you're playing in custom race and by the campaign event if you're playing in the campaign.

Animated Airbrakes

Airbrakes on all standard ships are now animated! Custom ships currently do not have access to this new feature and a new ship importer with the ability to configure this will available at a later date.

Ship Liveries

All ships now have alternative liveries! You will unlock these as you play through the campaign. There are 3 alternative liveries in total covering a general alternative, neon-panel lit varients and clean white.

0.9.4

0.9.4 is going to be the games final content update, bringing in the precision tracks. The precision tracks are going to be point to point tracks testing your skills to fly as perfectly as possible. More information on these will be coming soon! After the precison tracks the game is on the final straight and will be moving towards the 1.0 release out of Early Access!