Hello everyone!
I’m thrilled to announce that the new and free 1.6.3 update for Interstellar Space: Genesis is now officially available to all players!
This update has been on the unstable branch for beta testing to make sure there were no major issues, for the smoothest official release possible. I’m happy to report that testing went very well, so we should be in very good shape. Thanks to everyone who played the unstable build and provided feedback!
This update is available in all stores. On Steam it will auto-update. On GOG it will also auto-update on GOG Galaxy. If you don’t use GOG Galaxy, you’ll need to download the offline installers for the new version in your GOG account. The new DRM-free version is also available on Humble Bundle (*) and Itchi.io (check for the latest version 1.6.3 on those stores).
Note (*): It may take a day or two to be available on Humble Bundle.
1.6.3 Update – Features and Improvements
New Special Systems
This was a popular feature request by the community, and something we really wanted to add more of at some point. So, we added 2 new special systems in for 1.6.3!
Inertial Destabilizer
Want to see your rival ships spin out of control and see their hull shredded to pieces? Wait no further! 1.6.3 adds the Inertial Destabilizer special system, available in the ‘Propulsion’ tech branch.
This system creates ripples in the space-time fabric on and around the target ship, causing inertial havoc. The target ship is torn apart and spins out of control (ship spins randomly). 4-8 damage is applied to structure points multiplied by the size class of the ship. Shields and armor can’t protect the ship and are not damaged. The destabilizer has a range of 30 squares and a 1 turn cooldown.
Gravity-well Projector
Another feature request was the ability to deny rival ships from leaving combat. The Gravity-well Projector special system can be equipped in cruiser ships or above and it denies FTL travel from combat. Don’t worry, it only blocks rival ships from fleeing! The Gravity-well Projector special system is also available in the ‘Propulsion’ tech branch.
A Gravity-well Projector exerts a gravitational pull that stretches the fabric of space effectively creating ‘holes’ in the space-time continuum which disrupts any attempt at FTL travel. A gravity well projector inhibits FTL travel. Enemy ships cannot flee from the battlefield as long as this system is operational.
QoL improvements
This update also includes several quality of life improvements. Namely, a new option for fewer’ Planet Specials’ found in systems, between ‘Few’ and ‘Average’.
Now, you can choose a higher level eco-engineering development if the technology is available to allow for it, with no need to develop eco-engineering in sequence.
Also, now possible to decrement (and not only increment) the number of players in the ‘New Game’ setup screen. Also the ability to decrease and cycle back on the difficulty level instead of only increasing it, and decreasing the galaxy size, and not only increasing it until the right desirable size is obtained.
The ‘Representative Solar System’ option choice now persists. If player sets to ‘OFF’ it will remain so, until set to ‘ON’ again. Among other improvements and bug fixes.
You can see the full list of changes below.
Version 1.6.3 – Full Release Note
Full change log here.
Compatibility and finishing an ongoing game
Due to the extension of the changes, saves from previous versions may not be compatible with the 1.6.3 update. For a better experience, it is advisable that you start new games to enjoy the new features and improvements fully, and to not have bugs
To everyone who helped beta test this update, please revert to the main branch by choosing ‘None’ in Steam’s Betas tab. You can then resume playing with the official version now. Saves from 1.6.3 Beta are fully compatible with 1.6.3, so you can continue your games normally.
If you want to finish your current game with the previous version (1.6.2), please go to the Steam client -> Games -> View Games Library -> Right-Click on Interstellar Space: Genesis -> Choose Betas tab -> Select the “old_version” branch.
On GOG Galaxy choose the previous 1.6.2 version by choosing Options -> Manage Installation -> Set “Automatically update to newest version” to off and choose the 1.6.2 version. On Humble and Itchio please download the “Previous version” build.
Thanks
I want to thank everyone who has helped test this update. Big thanks to everyone who has bought the game, and the expansions, so far. Thank you!
We hope you enjoy the new free 1.6.3 update! If you haven’t bought the Natural Law expansion yet, please consider buying as it adds 2 very nice playable races to the game, that will have their own Evolution tree with the Evolving Empires expansion, among other features and music tracks. The Evolving Empires expansion adds two major new features: Evolutions and Minor Civilizations. It also includes 7 new leaders and 2 new music tracks. If you have a few minutes to spare, and have been enjoying what we do, please leave us a review on Steam! ❤️
Have fun!
Adam Solo
Praxis Games