If you’ve been keeping up with ICARUS, the latest update brings some performance tweaks that promise to make your experience smoother. Plus, we’re getting introduced to some epic new bosses that will test your skills.
Notable Improvements:
- Added 40% elemental damage resistance to all tamed creatures; this ensures they take the same damage from physical and elemental sources.
- QuickMove now prioritizes Processor inventories, notably on the Electronic Food Trough Ctrl-Click will go where needed.
- All Pistol and Rifle ammunition icons redesigned.
This Week: FPS Improvements
What’s the TL;DR?
- ‘Light Shadows’ are now significantly cheaper to run.
- Lights have an increased radius.
Light Shadows
If you’ve ever played a game where shadows seem to eat up your frame rate, you know how frustrating it can be. ICARUS has tackled this issue head-on! The team has optimized over 100 light-emitting deployables, making shadows less of a burden on your GPU. They’ve switched to using Distance Field Shadows, which not only boosts performance but also softens shadow quality for a more realistic look.
How Does It Work?
The cost of rendering shadows is tied directly to the number of triangles within the light’s radius. With many meshes in ICARUS, this can get pricey for your GPU. Thankfully, Distance Field Meshes provide a simplified version of these meshes, allowing for softer shadows without sacrificing too much visual fidelity.
Expectations
If you want to see these improvements in action, make sure your “Light Shadows” setting is turned on! This change will only impact players who have their shadow quality set to High or Epic—so check those settings when you log in!
Light Radius Increases
This update doesn’t stop at shadows! Most light-emitting sources have seen their radii increased as well. Previously, some lights were almost useless due to their small radius. Now, with reduced costs from shadow changes, expect brighter bases and potentially fewer light sources needed overall!
Going Forward
The developers are committed to balancing visual quality with performance costs. While they can tweak the resolution of Distance Field Meshes for better visuals, it comes at a price—literally! They’ll be monitoring player feedback closely as they continue refining these features.
Next Week: New SMG Craftable Firearm
A new craftable SMG (Submachine Gun) is coming next week! The recent redesign of bullet icons gives us a sneak peek into what we can expect from future ammunition styles. Stay tuned for more details about this addition!
Coming Soon: Meet the New Great Hunts Bosses
This week also introduces three formidable bosses for players tackling the Great Hunts Campaigns. Get ready to face off against:
Rimetusk
The Rimetusk boasts thick ice-like armor and summons Vespers during battle. Its powerful stomp attack is one you’ll want to avoid at all costs!
Garganutan
This creature uses its surroundings strategically during fights thanks to its enhanced intellect from chemical experimentation gone wrong.
Quarrite
The Quarrite consumes mineral deposits to strengthen its armor before rolling over prey—definitely not something you want to encounter unprepared!
Your support makes these updates possible! More details on these updates can be found at Original Source.
Changelog v2.2.46.134262
New Content
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- All shadow casting lights now use Distance Field which massively increases performance.
- Most lights receive radius increase due to performance increase from DF shadows.
- Add missing Fill lights where needed.
- ‘Basic’ lights temperature decreased 5k to 4k to differentiate them from others.
- Add emissive texture for Brutalist lights.
Fixed Issues
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- Add 40% elemental damage resistance to all tamed creatures; this ensures they take the same damage from physical and elemental sources.
I’m super excited about these updates and can’t wait to see how they affect gameplay! What do you think about the new bosses? Are you ready for the challenge? Let me know in the comments below!
I am Mihaela and stay tuned for more!