Just a bit of cross promotion, because if you enjoy my games and like top-down shooters with brutal close-combat you'll love JACKAL - which I've just announced on Steam.

Here's the announcement trailer:


You can wishlist the game now!
And please help out and share the word!
Have fun,
MM

Hello everyone,

This is a minor update bringing in a number of bugfixes and necessary in-depth netcode changes under the hood to address abuse. The random crash on start issue some users have observed on Windows should also now be fixed.
This should hopefully only bring in positives for gameplay, including making some actions/menu actions happen immediately when they would wait for a client-server-client ping previously. Since those changes poked at an unusually vast amount of logic for a minor update, please report any vanilla issues we might have missed in testing!

Mods are expected to require manual intervention but we are providing a compatibility path to ease the transition. As usual, modders are welcome to reach out for further details and assistance.

For any staging users, the updated staging build should come with a slight delay (hopefully the same day). The staging build features additional internal engine changes.

Full changelog:


netcode:
[fixed] made a bunch of things avoid unnecessary network interaction, reducing bandwidth and latency of some actions (thanks bunnie)
[fixed] netcode security fixes (thanks bunnie)
[added] `getNet().legacy_cmd = false;` to force new command behavior, now the default in vanilla KAG.as (thanks goldenguy)
[dev] when legacy mode is `= false`, commands may only go client->server or server->client, removing the bouncing behavior (where client->server would automatically ping server->client) and preventing commands from running within on the same host (e.g. commands no longer run client->client or server->server).
check sanitization PRs in kag-base for details and examples.
the default is _enabled_ for compatibility but you may need to set it to `false` as described above in legacy mods.
a large portion of game scripts were modified, so mods changing vanilla code may need to bring back code from the 4541 build tag.
[added] added function callbacks for cgridmenu (thanks bunnie), see e.g. https://github.com/transhumandesign/kag-base/pull/1804 (thanks bunnie)
[added] `getNet().legacy_cmd = True` in vanilla by default

misc bugs:
[fixed?] crash on start for certain users on Windows (thanks bunnie)
[fixed] wrong font being used on tips and queue button when game state banners are shown (thanks mugg91)
[fixed] on certain platforms, in some scenarios, the ballista texture would be incorrect (thanks terminalhash)
[changed] Material bombs don't despawn in tutorial level 1 (thanks mugg91)
[modified] no longer error out scripts on exception (thanks asu)

scoreboard:
[modified] scoreboard heads will remain visible when players are dead (thanks asu)
[modified] adjusted scoreboard class icons (thanks asu)
[modified] spectators show as a full team now (thanks asu)
[modified] adjusted scoreboard scroll speed (thanks asu)
[fixed] scoreboard scroll speed incorrectly scaled past 30fps (thanks asu)
[modified] adjusted some fonts and line thickness (thanks asu)
[fixed] shark steam achievement (thanks goldenguy)

modding:
[added] `SMaterial::SetZBufferCompareOperation` (thanks goldenguy)

gameplay changes:
[fixed] crate button being hard to press at high speeds (thanks potatobird)
[modified] lowered number of ticks for inventory tapping, may revert if behavior is too surprising (thanks bunnie)
[fixed] some bugs with the pickaxe in certain circumstances (thanks bunnie)

minimap:
[added] TDM spawns get their icon (thanks mugg91)

KNOWN ISSUES:
- steam achievements may no longer be working
- bucket sprite might desync when emptied but not held
- missing team names with Cyrillic fonts in scoreboard
- mods may need updating (see changelog)


Hi folks,

This small update brings bugfixes for some newer and older issues. We sneaked in some improvements to map voting, to the cinematic camera, and added 15 new TDM maps.

We took some steps to improve map votes at the end of CTF/TTH rounds. It no longer nags the user quite as much and the random option was replaced with a 3rd map to vote for. Also, hovering a map will also show a zoomed preview to make it easier to discern its features.
Our goal was to make map voting a little less tedious, and hopefully people feel more interested and satisfied in the process.



The cinematic camera was improved in a few ways. It should now be much more obvious how to temporarily disable it, and that will now be remembered across rounds. If you don't like it, you now have the option to permanently disable it in settings (under the Misc tab). Additionally, we tried to address unnecessary motion and shakiness when tracking a lot of players. We may adjust this even further in the future, and feedback is welcome.

Full changelog:


[fixed] catapults could not be unpacked (thanks gingerbeard)
[fixed] players not gaining velocity when thrown from a catapult (thanks gingerbeard)
[fixed] incorrect catapult button icons (thanks gingerbeard)
[fixed] the ballista arm facing an incorrect direction after being unpacked (thanks gingerbeard)
[removed] map voting: no more dimmed screen to nag the player (thanks guift)
[modified] map voting: 3 maps to select instead of 2 + 1 random vote (thanks asu)
[added] map voting: hovering a map shows a zoomed in version of the map (thanks asu)
[fixed] map voting: rewrote heaps of logic, easier to mod/tune and less sync bugs hopefully (thanks asu)
[fixed] incorrect seclev loading made some clients think they were admin when they weren't and vice versa (thanks asu)
[dev] moved "/" command prefix to a unique place (thanks epsilon)
[fixed] synced up flag animations across outposts/ballistae/warboats/flags (thanks kos)
[modified] reworked some emotes (thanks noahthelegend, asu)
[modified] cinematic camera motion adjusted to be less shaky (thanks asu)
[modified] slightly improved next map behavior wrt camera, starts straight centered and zooms in (thanks asu)
[fixed] cinematic camera setting was not preserved on next map (thanks asu)
[added] v_camera_cinematic and setting in Misc. to permanently disable the cinematic camera if desired (thanks asu)
[added] small notice on top left that is contextually brought up to indicate cinematic camera status, and a hint to toggle it with RMB (thanks asu)
[modified] toggling the cinematic camera with RMB will only take effect after the camera "death lock" is gone to reduce accidental clciks (thanks asu)
[fixed] archer grapple going through red barrier (thanks asu)
[fixed] drill now gets team colored in the builder shop (thanks asu)
[fixed] siege arms (cata/balli/bow) attached to a vehicle would mismatch vehicle direction (thanks gingerbeard)
[modified] boats are now much more robust against bombarrows: 8-9 to sink a warboat, 3-4 to sink a longboat (thanks gingerbeard)
[fixed] hid the respawn timer in warmup instead of having an incorrect one (thanks asu)
[fixed] TTH/CTF solo tutorials incorrectly showed map votes (thanks asu)

[modified] TDM mapcycle: added 15 (thanks noahthelegend for changes, maps from biurza, noahthelegend, ferrezinhre), see PR #1640

[updated] accolades for UKC 16-19 (thanks shamwow)


Hi folks,

It has been a while! We are happy to announce that the much-awaited 2023 update is out now (build 4409)! This update brings a lot of changes to the game, and we hope you enjoy them. Various folks from the community have been working on this update for a long time, and we are very excited to finally get it out to you all.

I'd like to start out by thanking everyone for their patience including those of contributors. As the game is fully developed by the community, it can be challenging to decide on what should be added, what meets the standards of a game enjoyed by many and the find the time to make it all happen. Everyone involved in KAG is a volunteer, so as always anyone passionate about the game is welcome to join development through participation on Discord & GitHub!

There's many changes, small and big, let's expand on them below (I'll spoil the first one: it's no longer Christmas!):

General & Community
- Winter/Christmas has been disabled - the game is now relevant to players on the northern hemisphere again!
- Added missing accolades
- Modified account age in scoreboard to go above 10 (X), and a minor refresh to omse scoreboard icons
- Updated German and Russian translations & Fixed some text in the game not getting translated
- Being AFK will now move you to spectator instead of kick you if the server is less than half-full
- TTH game start sound is now the same as CTF
- Resupply information moved to builder HUD
- Ballista bolt/shell naming consistency
- ... And many other minor fixes or tweaks to things like GUI/HUD, visuals or sounds



Maps
- SmallCTF sees 16 new maps added and 3 removed
- CTF sees 22 new maps added, 19 maps removed and 17 maps tweaked
- TDM sees 31 maps newly added or modified and 19 removed
- Map loading & refreshing is now faster
- Servers can now easily change the default red barrier settings
- ... Enjoy over 100 unique changes and refreshed mapcycles

Gameplay
- Boat changes: custom capture zones per-boat, warboats don't cost gold anymore, longboats don't decay when left alone, more change and various fixes
- Arrows break when attached to a door or platform when it's opened
- Items that are on fire can no longer be put in inventory
- Bombarrows flash when airborne
- You can no longer pop vehicle wheels while it is being captured
- And dozens of fixes like:
- Spikes no longer attached to stone wouldn't deal damage
- Seeds couldn't be placed as a builder when you were out of materials
- Drills set on fire by a fire arrow would not cool down
- Cursor appeared behind modded message boxes/website prompts
- ... And many more



Highlights
- Emote pack support
Support was added to add custom emote packs, similar to head packs! This is not yet being used, but please share your ideas or contribute to spriting new ones if you can!

- ChatCommands system
Chat commands just got a whole lot more organised! This is both handy for server owners/moderators and players alike. Commands no longer appear in chat, and have changed a little. Write "/help" instantly get all commands available to you in chat, including a description.



- Holiday event change
This one is fairly minor but also includes a call-to-spriters!



First of all, a new holiday even has been added. KAG's birthday! It's a pretty small one and additions are welcome, but enjoy balloons on various places like CTF tents and boats, and a festive party hat! That last point involves the another major (behind the scenes) change to holidays, custom holiday heads are now easier to add and can be added very quickly! Do you have any ideas for holidays that should have a custom head and are an experienced spriter? Submit one! For example: a bunny head for easter, a spooky hat for halloween or a something crazy for new year's!

- Cinematic camera
We've got a new fully automated cinematic camera! It smoothly follows everything in the game, zooming in on heated moments or runs with the flag in CTF, making sure you never had to manually go around again! You can toggle this uring right mouse button, should you wish to take control again.

- Wallclimb rework
Wallclimb was fundamentally overhauled. Non-deterministic behavior was removed, meaning you will be able to achieve good wallclimbs more consistently. If you're used to old wallclimbs, fear not: you will not need to relearn it. Wallclimbs are now limited to two per wall, but the boost they give was buffed. These changes combined, the maximum reachable height from a simple wallclimb is roughly the same as before.
The way wallclimbs are granted now depends on your velocity. When you jump from the ground while hugging a wall, your first wallclimb will only be granted when you're about to fall. Because wallclimbs override your velocity, this makes walljumps automatically closer to ideal. Further, wallclimbs and walljumps made when very close to the ceiling was made more consistent than before.
We also reduced the delay between jumping/falling off the ground and being able to walljump or wallclimb. Combined with the above, this means you can perform small jumps (e.g. by tapping W) to trigger a walljump earlier than what was possible.
Finally, arrow climbs now let you wallclimb again, effectively allowing you to reach higher heights.
We hope these changes make climbing feel much more consistent, snappier, and increase the value and depth they provide to gameplay.



PATCH NOTES:

Hi folks,

As some of the people know who have been around for a longer time, you used to be able to submit maps on the THD forum, with a chance of them being added to the official mapcycle. As the majority of the community is active on Discord nowadays (as opposed to the forums) we have decided to open up a forum channel on Discord and close the THD sub-forum for submissions.

As always, everyone is invited to contribute to the future of KAG - whether it's mapping, modding, general development, or testing upcoming updates in the relevant Discord channels and on GitHub. Especially mapping is a great way to get involve with your community contribution, as maps are fairly easy to create and you may be able to play your creation on official servers if it gets accepted! Here are a few examples of popular maps in the mapcycle:

          
           Snatchmark

          
          Elantris

          
          Rioter

Yes, maps are indeed made by simply drawing a png image. If you wish the learn more, join the Discord, and view the pins in the #mapping channel and feel free to ask for help there. As mentioned before, you are of course also free to participate in the other topics too, such as testing the upcoming update and contributing to/discussing development!

Have fun!