A message from the developer
Greetings, Space Corps Operatives!
It has been some time since we last made Contact, but rest assured, we have been hard at work. Our development team has been preparing for the game's departure from Early Access into launch, and we are excited to share with you all of the new features, enhancements, and fixes that we have been working on.
We realize that the lack of communication since our last update has not been ideal, but to offer some high level transparency into this, things shifted a few times during design, development, and testing which were necessary for us to get the game to where it is now, in a place we believe is very close to being ready for our 1.0 release. These shifts in our plans, as well as some other factors meant that we weren't able to share our progress along the way as we had intended. For that we apologize and we hope that we can make it up to you now with an overview of what to expect for the release version of Beyond Contact.
Over the past year, we have added a number of talented developers to our team, and together we have been able to push our vision for this game even further. We hope that you will enjoy the hard work and effort that we have put in, and we look forward to continuing to make this game something truly special in the months and years ahead.
We never expected the game to grow to such a large scale, and we are grateful for the opportunity to continue exploring the unique and beautiful universe of Space Corps. We want to thank you for your patience while we worked behind the scenes to make the game the best that it can be. Your feedback and support have been invaluable, and we look forward to continuing to work with you.
Thank you for joining us on this adventure!
Conquest Mode
A new way to play Beyond Contact
When Beyond Contact was originally released into Early Access on Steam, you played as Quinn Hicks in Story Mode. The Story Mode takes you on an epic adventure to save the planet of Ketern.
Based heavily on player feedback, the release version of Beyond Contact will now also feature Conquest Mode, along with new playable characters that are unlocked as you play, and an all new Habitat system. Conquest Mode breaks free from the linear narrative of Story Mode providing a free-form survival experience with some very unique mechanics for a survival crafting game. To make this possible, many new features have been added to the game including:
Territory Capture / Defense + world corruption systems New unique playable characters with their own individual skills and upgrade paths Character experience points & leveling A whole new Habitat construction & customization system New Farming mechanics Enhanced multiplayer features
Introduction to Conquest Mode
(Contains Story Spoilers)
Story Mode Recap:
The Void Corruption is a destructive, sentient life force that threatens to consume everything in its path. It twists and corrupts the Brachylon species, turning them into violent drones known as the Corrupted. The Brachylon civilization has been able to withstand the Void Corruption energies for millennia by using their ancient technologies to keep them at bay. However, as more and more Brachylons themselves were consumed by the Corruption, they were unable to maintain their equipment and Ketern was in danger of being completely destroyed.
[spoiler]Enter Quinn Hicks, the hero of Space Corps. In Story Mode, Quinn was able to single-handedly repair the Brachylon technology and save Ketern, the Brachylon civilization, and ultimately herself. However, the Void Corruption was not completely eradicated and continues to pose an ongoing threat as more of the Brachylon continue to be Corrupted. If left unchecked, the Void Corruption will spread once more across Ketern, and again consume everything in its path.[/spoiler]
Conquest Mode Intro:
In Conquest Mode, the player, or a team of Space Corps Operatives working together, uses advanced technology and combat skills, to establish a primary base of operations and outposts on Ketern. The goal is to hold back the advancing Corrupted hordes and protect the planet from the Void Corruption.
[spoiler]In a new twist, The Corrupted have been summoned by the Void to key positions on Ketern called Void Nexus that can be used to amplify the strength of the Void Corruption energies around those locations, spreading Corruption even faster. The key to victory against the Corruption is to capture and control Void Nexus by building defensible positions on them, as well as a structure that is able to remove the World Corruption from that immediate area. The more Nexus Space Corps is able to capture from the Corrupted, the more the Corruption can be contained. The Corrupted are a formidable enemy and the player must always be on guard against raiding parties.[/spoiler]
Habitats, Structures and Epochs (Weather)
In the Early Access version of the game, players would build individual structures directly on the terrain. Now, players must build larger and more sophisticated structures called Habitats, using modular parts such as flooring, walls, and airlocks. At release, there will be two tiers of Habitat in the game.
Most structures now need to be placed inside a Habitat to work. Some more advanced structures require the higher tiered Habitat. Habitats must be connected to a power supply to provide power to the structures inside them and alongside power grid management, Habitats require the player to also expand their oxygen and heat sources as their habitats grow. Alternatively players can use airlocks to build smaller, designated safe rooms that house their heat and oxygen sources, while placing their other structures in separate rooms where oxygen and heat is not supported. The modular aspect of the Habitat gives the player freedom to design a base with a variety of unique layouts and rooms for different jobs, while Habitat controls and power switches allow the player to control the power flow and Habitat doors.
Habitats also provide protection from hazards and weather and allow players to create safe places in otherwise inhospitable biomes where they can then go on to control or influence that territory.
Some Hazards such as acid and lava only require flooring to provide a safe area to operate on.
Other airborne hazards such as radiation, spores and gas require flooring and walls to protect
the interior environments from damage.
Epochs are new events in the game that represent weather challenges for both players and the environment of Ketern. As Epochs become more frequent and powerful, Habitats become more important because they protect players and their sources of food and resources.
Enhanced Farming
Beyond Contact now features three stages of food progression. In the first stage, players explore Ketern
and find food wherever they can to survive. At the beginning of the game, food is plentiful and players can easily maintain their stamina by exploring the map and gathering and consuming food as needed from plants and animals.
As the game progresses, players will want to build a base and a Habitat to keep moving through the different tiers of gameplay. This means spending more time in one place and it becomes more rewarding to relocate plants to this base to create a farm. This becomes the preferred way of harvesting plant resources.
As the game continues, weather events called Epochs start to affect the world and become more frequent and intense. These weather events start to decrease the plant life in the environment, opening up the third stage of farming gameplay, which is building farms inside Habitats.
Habitats can protect plants from hazards and weather, but only a new type of genetically enhanced plants can be placed inside them. This introduces seed gameplay where players must gather seeds, build a Botany Laboratory, research these new upgraded plants, and then place them inside Habitats in order to continue to survive.
New Playable Characters
Commander Magella: “As I sat in the Space Corps operations room, I couldn't help but feel
excited about our new team, each with their own unique style and abilities.
With this team, we were confident that we could take on any challenge and protect the galaxy
from the ongoing threat of The Corrupted.”
Kangah is a warrior who had spent most of his life as a brainwashed, cybernetically enhanced
super soldier for the hostile faction known as The Refactors, before escaping. He has the ability
to upgrade his attack and defense attributes and modify his cybernetic arm for different combat
scenarios.
Professor Zaine is a seasoned veteran of Space Corps. He is one of the most intelligent humans in the
galaxy and an expert in building large habitats and structures. He has the ability to create the
Mass Repairer, a gadget that can heal nearby structures on mass.
Blott* is an entity of mystery and wonderment. She is innately connected with all forms of life
around her and is a master botanist and gardener. She’s an expert Xenobiologist. She has the
ability to transform plants to have defensive and offensive capabilities.
*Our fourth playable character Blott is currently being developed and we are hoping to get her in for launch. If she doesn't make it in time, she will be ready for the first content patch after the game is released out of Early Access
XP & Skills Upgrading
To earn XP, the player must perform actions such as crafting items, gathering resources, killing creatures, researching, mining, trading, cooking, fertilizing, scanning, discovering new biomes and completing objectives and missions, as well as capturing Void Nexus. When the player earns XP, it appears above the character's head in-game. A new character XP bar around the character's portrait indicates when the next Skill Point can be earned.
Character levels and rewarded Skill Points require a certain amount of XP. Skill points can then be used to upgrade the skills of your character, with each character having its own unique set of upgradable skills.
Updated Story Mode (Previously Campaign Mode)
(Contains Story Spoilers)
After months of hard work and in-depth collaboration with our community, Story Mode has been further polished and finally completed. The objective of Story Mode has always been to provide a satisfying and complete story experience for the player, but it has also been enhanced with many of the new features introduced by the new Conquest Mode, making it an even more immersive and engaging experience.
In Story Mode [spoiler]players must work to save the Brachylon civilization by stabilizing the planet of Ketern, and completing the World Forge at the Brachylon Oasis. It is a challenging task, but one that is essential for the survival of the Brachylon people.[/spoiler]
As players progress through the Story Mode, they will encounter [spoiler]a wide variety of challenges and obstacles, from fierce battles with alien creatures to strategic decision-making and missions. But with determination and skill, they will be able to overcome these challenges and emerge victorious, bringing about a strong conclusion to the story and securing the future of the Brachylon civilization.[/spoiler]
Research Tree
Previously, the research interface had been a source of confusion and frustration for players as it was just a list of items. With its complex terminology and opaque system of unlocking new technologies, it was often difficult for players to understand the consequences of their actions when conducting research, and what the trade-offs, if any, they were making with each choice. But now, with the introduction of the new graphical research tree interface, this problem has been solved. The research tree allows players to easily plan and track their research paths, giving them a clear picture of the technologies they can unlock, and the strategic trade-offs they must consider.
With the new research tree, players can more easily make tactical and strategic decisions that will directly affect their chances of survival in the harsh and unforgiving world of Ketern, and her sister planets. The overhauled research interface is a major improvement, and we hope it will provide a much more satisfying and engaging experience for players.
Polish and Enhancements
There has been a large number of polish updates and fixes to the game since the initial Early Access and last public update we did. We will post a more comprehensive list at release...
In the mean-time here are a few highlights:
Countless bugs fixes and gameplay enhancements have been completed. Many of the user interfaces have received an overhaul. There’s a ton of new music, sound FXs and voiceover content. Many structures received visual updates. We have introduced new multiplayer features such as multiplayer revival mechanics and shared research to encourage cooperative gameplay.There is still so much that we want to do with Beyond Contact and we hope you are excited for us to continue developing, improving and adding new features.
Future features include ideas such as:
Additional Characters Additional Planets More Habitat structures More Creatures More Community requested featuresWhat's Next?
From now until release, we plan on sharing a deeper look into these release features including gameplay footage and some dev insights into the process of creating these new additions and what they mean for the future of Beyond Contact.
Thanks for your continued patience, love, and support.
United Worlds Congress
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