Greetings Gaters! Development on the next patch is progressing smoothly here at Xeno Bits HQ, and we’re confident we’ll have it in your hands very soon. Last time we looked at the [url=https://steamcommunity.com/games/1681060/announcements/detail/3970553774461695370?snr=2___]new kinds of Sqarb invaders[/url] you can expect to see in your base; but of course, with new invaders come new defenses to light them up! [h1]New Weapons[/h1] [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40912365/e35d2ecb9581125c532e90e802f8bf900f17f719.png[/img][i] Exogate branded and ready to rock[/i] Pistols now replace Assault Rifles as the core weapon for your soldiers, with rifles becoming an upgrade in the tech tree - alongside two brand-new weapons: the Plasma Launcher and the Railgun! Your full loadout now looks like this: [list] [*] [b]Pistol[/b]: Basic sidearm, favored when assault rifles are unavailable [*] [b]Assault Rifle:[/b] Powerful automatic rifle, favored over pistols [*] [b]Plasma Launcher[/b]: Deals damage over a large area by launching a deadly plasma shell - useful for dealing with crowds of enemies [*] [b]Railgun:[/b] Deals massive damage but takes time to reload, due to its high-velocity firing mechanism - useful against shielded enemies [/list] You can also now enhance weapons with two types of upgrade: Smart, which add AI-assisted targeting systems, and Heavy, which use tougher materials and higher-grade ammunition. Expect damage dealing and firing rates to increase with each upgrade. And that’s not all: Did we mention automated Turrets, which can be upgraded in the same way? Place them at strategic locations, station your soldiers safely behind the front line, then watch them turn those empty corridors into shooting galleries! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/40912365/b5448cc61679d8a8c8699e2a8dff058fca72ac11.png[/img][i] There’s no need to stay frosty with automated sentries on the lookout[/i] [h1]And There’s More![/h1] We’re also adding Security Blast Doors and Shielded Guard Posts to the build menu. The gate room already has a blast door of course, but now you can build them anywhere in the base! They’re more heavily armored than regular doors, and will automatically lock out non-authorized personnel. Shielded Guard Posts do exactly what you’d expect, providing cover so your soldiers can snipe those pesky Sqarbs as they go past. There are a few small surprises we haven’t told you about yet, but we’ll save those for the Patch 0.8.7 launch day post - which is coming very soon! Thank you for your continued support of the Initiative. We’ll see you soon through the Exogate! Safe travels, Maxime MILLET Creative Director, Xeno Bits