UPDATE: The video showing the highlights of .3 visually is now up here: https://youtu.be/IaLunW37ibU

Hey all!

With a new month comes a new update, and after several months of development, .3 is ready for internal testing! Since it’s a foundational update, much of the work was done behind the scenes, but here’s a partial list of the main additions:

• Command Modes. Now you can work within a main command mode (Political, Military, Economic, Demographic) and all of your data, Project choices, and Actions will be filtered towards furthering that particular part of your strategy.
• Project System added. Project Bar and Screen added, as well as filter for Command Mode
• Trade System added, along with fleets, trade hubs, trade zones, and the concept of Importance with resources
• Province generation revised to be more balanced
• Manufacturing system balanced vastly downward in relation to the Trade system
• Houses more fully implemented
• House Banners functionality added
• Holding concept implemented (the idea that Houses own planets, systems, etc. and gain tax from them)
• Redesigned Main UI
• Relationship States added and finalized
• Emperor created (you!) as unique object in game
• Cultures added and initialized among the galaxy within 3 ‘zones’ (Imperial Cultures/Inner Ring, Border Space Cultures/Second Ring, Outer Rim Cultures/Third Ring
• GPP generation revised
• Game rethreaded to allow turns to generate while the player is still interacting with the map (i.e. no ‘loading new turn pause screen’)
• Trade Fleets added – they move on the map, show lines to their destination, etc
• UI revised significantly for new Command Mode system, more to come
• Political and Economic Galaxy Map filters added
• Additional core Actions added

So that’s .3 – and I’m happy to say that it is pretty damn stable so far! So what’s coming for .4? Glad you asked! By June, Imperia should have the following:

• Constellations
• Updated System and Planet UIs
• Military and Demographic Galaxy Filter Modes
• Main Game Screen redesign
• House Setup Screen/New Game Setup screen
• Emperor Setup Screen
• Power mechanic implemented
• Complete work on Project creation and add Core Projects
• Add core Actions for Characters
• Add Religions
• Add Options screen (save, load, etc)

There’s some other design work behind the scenes as well to prepare for future releases, but this is the stuff that you will see when you play. Very excited to release a new video in the next few days showing what we’ve done. As always, remember that we’re showing work that’s done way before a normal studio would – as we’ve always done, we’re showing people every step in the journey, and keep in mind that a ‘normal’ studio probably wouldn’t start showing work until about another 3-4 months in the process. Hopefully you like what we’re doing and we’ll keep doing it!

-Steve