Progress Update #31

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of our progress updates blog! Yes, it’s been the longest stretch without a new blog post, but rest assured, we've been hard at work on Unitystation, balancing real life and development. We haven’t slowed down one bit, and we have plenty of exciting updates to share with you this time!

As always, we'll be highlighting the most noteworthy contributions, but if you're interested in diving into every single fix and change, be sure to check out our Changelog Page. There's a lot to see!

Bartenders, rejoice! We've added some new features to the bar that will allow you to truly make your workplace your own.

First up, we’ve introduced functional bar signs that you can customize. Simply unlock them with a valid ID card that has bar permissions, and then interact with the sign to change its graphics. There are plenty of designs to choose from, so explore and find the one that best fits your bar's vibe.

Additionally, the jukebox has received a complete overhaul. Inspired by VA-11 Hall-A, the jukebox now operates using vinyl records. As the bartender, you'll find a box filled with all the classic tunes you’ve been enjoying so far inside the cabinet in your office. Next to the box, you’ll see a special key used to open the jukebox’s record tray. Once open, you can remove any records inside or add new ones from the box—or maybe even some you’ve found while exploring the vast universe.

With these new features, you can now personalize the jukebox's playlist to match your own taste, giving your bar a unique atmosphere and making it truly your own.

Some of you might have noticed that the box of records has more songs than you remember were available before, and that's thanks to M0N7Y5 who composed and produced 7 new clownish songs that were all included in this addition.

Thanks to Autumn, M0N7Y5 and Gilles for their contributions!

MaxIsJoe has brought some much-needed order to the chaotic clothing slots in your inventory. Ever since we made the slots dynamic with the introduction of the new body parts system, the clothing slots in the UI have been randomly sorted as a consequence of players not always having the same body parts—you wouldn’t wear shoes if you didn’t have feet, right?—. While the body parts system has been a great addition, the randomness of the slot order was a bit of a mess for the user experience.

But not anymore! Slots are now consistently sorted in a fixed order, starting with the head and torso and ending with the limbs. This change makes it much easier to glance at your inventory and quickly locate the slot for that life-saving helmet.

A big thank you to Max for making this improvement!

If not, it’s at least a lot closer, thanks to Autumn’s contributions!

Here’s a quick rundown of the new features:

• Volume Pumps: These are like pressure pumps but can move 200L/s. They won’t operate if the output pipenet is at 9000 kPa or higher.
• Passive Gates: These gates even out the pressure between two pipenets, as long as the output pipenet has less than 101 kPa.a
• Pressure Valves: These valves only allow gas to pass if the input pipenet is above a set pressure (default is 101.325 kPa, but it can be adjusted using the nettab). A pressure difference of at least 10 kPa between the input and output is required.
• Temperature Gates: These gates only allow gas to pass when the input temperature is lower than the threshold. You can switch this to higher temps using a screwdriver on the gate. A minimum pressure difference of 10 kPa between the pipenets is also required.

What does any of that mean? Honestly, I have no clue—I’m just a space clown! But I’m sure some of you nerds will be thrilled to know that this is now possible

Usually, when you cut someone open, it’s painful and messy—not that I have a lot of personal experience, but I’m guessing that’s how it goes. For the longest time in Unitystation, though, doing surgery was merely an inconvenience, more like a walk in the park.

Well, not anymore! Thanks to MaxIsJoe, surgery can now be dangerous. Performing any surgical procedure can apply bleeding stacks to the patient (or victim), so you’d better make sure they don’t bleed out before you’re done closing them up!

If you’re unsure how to proceed, be sure to check out the new hover tooltips that guide you through the necessary tools and steps to successfully complete your procedure.

I can quit anytime, I swear. It helps me relax during work. What do you mean no smoking in atmos?

Well, thanks to MaxIsJoe, smoking isn’t just a way to look cool like in the movies—it has actual effects now! Nicotine will give you a speed boost, so feel free to light up when you need that extra edge. But be careful with those drags; overdoing it might fill your lungs with toxic smoke and cause some damage.

Thanks to Autumn, certain items now have a chance to block melee attacks if they’re in your active hand. This opens up the possibility for some epic melee fights and even the addition of shields! Existing items have been updated with this new property, so get ready for sword fights to be a whole lot more interesting!

Prepare to exercise your right to bear arms, and the more arms, the better! Thanks to Autumn, dual wielding is now a reality in Unitystation. You can now equip a weapon in each hand and fire them simultaneously, doubling your damage potential. But why stop there? Tri-wield or even quad-wield if you can manage to get your hands on some extra arms—and, of course, extra weapons!

Simple execution, but an amazing addition! Autumn has introduced Jumpboots to the arsenal of mining tools. These beauties allow you to leap over 5 tiles, including lava, with just a 6-second cooldown. Perfect for navigating dangerous terrain and making those daring escapes!

And we are out of time for now! I left a lot of stuff unmentioned, so make sure to explore the Changelog page or just jump into the game and discover what else we've been cooking up. Until we meet again.

Thank you to all our patrons, contributors, players, and friends for being awesome and keeping this project alive!