Today we released Update 0.1.6, a smaller update focused on gameplay improvements and bugfixes before the Steam release on Friday. Since the last update introduced a new game mode, all old maps have been removed from the game, so its time again to create new ones. Today we start with a new winter map:
Like the current desert map, it has been split up into smaller areas that are easy to access. However, it also contains a lot of cover and is slightly bigger than the desert map. Lets see how this works out ingame for now. It still can be adjusted later if needed. Besides the new map, the battle chat has been finally reworked. The regular static chat window has been replaced with a more temporary version, fading out the messages automatically. The message input field also has been hidden by default and only shows up after pressing enter. Sending messages to the enemy or own team has been simplified as well, and should be much easier to understand now.
And thats it already about the new features. As written above already, this update was focused on bugfixes only, so check out the most important changes here:

• Object pooling/caching should be fixed now, improving the game performance by keeping reuseable objects like explosions or UI windows in memory between battles
• The damage counter should be displayed correctly now
• The ticket counter should always show the correct ticket amount for both teams now
• VSync and Map Particle options have been added to the settings menu to improve the performance for older devices and to (hopefully) fix tearing on Linux
• AI tanks should now prioritize capture zones that are captured by the enemy team
• AI tanks shouldnt get stuck inside map objects or water anymore
• Map collisions near water have been improved
• Localization improvements for English, German and Polish

Of course the update also contains many more smaller background changes, too many to list here. Better server performance, client optimizations, NPC adjustments, smaller bugfixes and localization changes, and so on And please note that this is the final update before Steam release on Friday, March 22. The game should be playable on Steam for free at around 19:00 CET that day. We expect at least a few new players then, so please be nice and say hello to them if you see them! :) Thats all for now. See you on the battlefield!