My Colony v0.90.0 Released

After taking a month off for summer travels (and sickness 🤢), I am pleased to announce that the finishing touches are being put on My Colony v0.90.0, which should be hitting all platforms within the coming days! This is a larger update in terms of scale and scope, and contains content, bug fixes, and features. So, what's new? Let's find out!

First, as always, all of the bugs that had been reported through the various app store reporting consoles have been addressed. This mainly encompass hard crashes or syntax errors, which are the types of bugs that get reported to the app stores. So if you were experiencing force close issues, they might be better with this update (although, force closures have been a bit more rare lately).

Next up, I hadn't realized that the Texture Mod feature has been broken for a few updates, since I don't use texture mods myself. Even though there was a thread in the forum prominently saying that the feature was broken 😳. Regardless, texture mods are now working again!

While fixing the texture mod code, I realized that the in-game texture mod browser is in dire need of a UI upgrade, so this has been added to the to-do list. Ideally, I want the in-game texture mod browser to have screenshots, a better description of the mod, and probably ratings and comments.

The next feature I added is available only to Desktop (Win/Mac/Linux) and Windows 10 (store) users, and allows you to change the location that My Colony uses to save data. This new setting is found at the bottom of the Game Data menu.

As the screenshot indicates, this does not move your current saved games, it only changes the game data folder. If you are on the desktop client (or the Ape Apps Launcher), you can move your old saves manually (they are found in your user Documents folder), but on Windows 10 Store installs, this is not possible due to the sandboxed nature of Windows Store apps. If you have cloud sync turned on, you shouldn't have to move anything manually. Unless you know what you are doing, then I do not suggest using this feature, but it is there for those who want it.

For this release, the sort order of the build categories in the sidebar has been changed. They now appear in alphabetical order.

It was always sort of annoying trying to find a specific category, so now that they are sorted properly, it should be easier to find what you are looking for.

I have also added two new keyboard shortcuts to the game with this update, Show Resources Screen (r) and Search Resources (ctrl+r), both of which can be customized in the Engine Settings menu. The Show Resources shortcut brings up the standard Resources statistics screen., whereas the Search Resources shortcut brings up a new popup search bar that lets you type in the name of a resource in an auto-completing form and load the stats window for that resource directly.

The Search Resource function is only moderately helpful at the moment, but to go along with it, I plan a revamp of the resource stat window in the not-too-distant future, where you will be able to launch functions right from the resource stat window, such as trading and gifting.

I made some minor balance adjustments with this update for existing structures. The Zolarg Unholy Core Mine no longer requires the Mysticism tech to build, since Mysticism requires independence, and the Unholy Core Mine is the only way Zolarg can currently get several resources. The Ancient Alien Microchip Factory now requires Gold as an input (a previous oversight). The two tall Residential Towers can now be flipped.

And now for the new content, this update adds 1 new Utility, 1 new Tech, 1 new Resource, and 17 new structures! The majority of the content additions come from the IT Industries Suggestion by @Wadaling , and represent Part 1 of the IT Content Updates.

When I first started coding My Colony in 2016, I actually built it with the ability to have multiple utilities, but I had never tested the functionality out, so I had no idea if it actually worked. When I saw the IT Industries suggestion in the forum, I figured it would be a good time to just see how much work would be required to add a second utility to the game, so I went ahead and added Bandwidth as a new utility alongside Power. Turns out that the old utility code from several years ago handled the new utility flawlessly (so far as I can tell), and virtually no coding changes were required in order to add Bandwidth to the game. Success!

The Bandwidth utility refers to data/network bandwidth, and is generated by the Small Server Building for Humans, the Slab of Processing for Zolarg, and the High Frequency Node for Alpha Draconians.

To go along with the new utility, there are new IT related structures (and a new Information Technology build category) for each race, although most are early/mid-game Human structures at the moment. The next updates will build out the tree for the other races and add later game content as well. All told, here is a color coded list of the new structures, with Black representing Human content, Red for LIS only content, Orange for Zolarg content, and Purple for Alpha Draconian content.
  • Small Server Building
  • Cybercoin Mine
  • Small Server Farm Operation
  • Galactic Stock Exchange
  • Data Interceptor
  • Small Software Studio
  • NetSchool
  • Advanced Small Research Lab
  • Tech Office Building
  • Arcade Center
  • Colonimulation Hub
  • Integrated Civic Center
  • High Frequency Node
  • Deep Space Interceptor
  • Slab of Processing
  • Circuit Foundry
  • Interstellar Pad of Thought
I am not going to go over what everything does since that will take forever and you can just try the content out for yourself, but I do want to highlight a few things here.

Obviously, the new Small Software Studio is used for generating the new Software resource, which will be hitting the GBT in the next update to the game (v0.91.0). Most of the new structures require Software in one way or another as well.

One of the more important structures for the Zolarg is the Interstellar Pad of Thought, which now allows the Zolarg to generate a bit of Antaura without having independence. There were previously a ton of structures for Zolarg that were only available for independent colonies, and I want to start allowing subcolonies to have these structures too, to encourage being a part of a commonwealth. And with the new Circuit Foundry, Zolarg can now build Microchips also.

The Advanced Small Research Lab and the Integrated Civic Center offer modest upgrades to the existing Small Research Lab and Civic Center, two structures which have long had requests for upgrades. Most of the other new buildings generate large amounts of cash in exchange for Software and Bandwidth.

I think there is a lot of opportunity here to go back and add Bandwidth and Software requirements to existing buildings, ones that are clearly tech related. Over the next few updates, I plan on making these changes, but it will have to be done slowly, with a few buildings at a time. I don't want somebody to log in and have their entire colony go down because they are out of Bandwidth! So be sure to start building up your networking infrastructure!

There is probably more I can say about v0.90.0, but I grow tired of typing, lol. The v0.9x series of My Colony updates is going to feature heavy on new content, and most if it is going to be coming from the Game Ideas, Suggestions, and Feedback forum, since there is currently a lot of good stuff in there. The next update will be Part 2 of the IT update, and will probably be mostly Zolarg and Alpha Draconian. Then there will probably be a Part 3 to top it off. I will also make engine improvements and feature additions with each release, but I am not going to do any major rewrite of a core game component as I was frequently doing with the v0.8x series. I am in a content adding mood.

After v0.99.0 is done, I am going to increment the game to v1.0.0 instead of to v0.100.0. This doesn't really change anything in the way I will work on the game, it just seems stupid to have so many releases of the game without actually calling it v1.0.

So that's all for this update! It should be live on the Web and on the Ape Apps Launcher right now, and will be hitting the other platforms as soon as it is approved by the various app stores. So thanks for playing, thanks for the feedback and support, and stay tuned for more!
4y
#2
well, just to point out, ctrl+r is the reload shortcut in most of the browser. would create a problem for players playing on it....
Archmage Of Nations Of Oz[NOZ]
Invincible
Join The NOZ discord server today!!
https://discord.gg/aFUB4NU
4y
#3
i wounder how big 1.0 will be? im curious to see
4y
#4
Well, it was nice while it lasted. Still not at being able to get crystal, and no room left, so can't build new buildings. 4 months into the current game (the longest I think so far), and I will have to blow the current game away and start over. Time for colony # 149 now. Oh well.
4y
#5
BigMoTheDragon said:Well, it was nice while it lasted. Still not at being able to get crystal, and no room left, so can't build new buildings. 4 months into the current game (the longest I think so far), and I will have to blow the current game away and start over. Time for colony # 149 now. Oh well.

I think you had brought me a new idea about crystal grower.


Invincible said:well, just to point out, ctrl+r is the reload shortcut in most of the browser. would create a problem for players playing on it....

Lol 😂
You can help by EXPANDING IT.
4y
#6
Excuse me, here is just some propagandas.
IT ideas Vol.3 posted!
https://www.ape-apps.com/viewpage.php?p=32293
You can help by EXPANDING IT.
4y
#7
Could bast roll out a faster way of making software soon? The current building is slow and barely makes any. And I dont have the space in my colony right now.
Join my Commonwealth! WAst4IOO : and join the NOZ discord: https://discord.gg/Vy6UZhhfA2
Owner of Komet Labs!
4y
#8
Luker124 said:Could bast roll out a faster way of making software soon? The current building is slow and barely makes any. And I dont have the space in my colony right now.

In my original set of idea, I’ve also propared a stronger software producer IT studio complex. And I am planning to add the idea Semiauto AI compiler for mid-to-late stage production of softwares, in my new post.
But I do agree the production is still a bit slow in Small IT Studio even at 100% efficiency.
You can help by EXPANDING IT.
4y
#9
Small server building does not produce bandwidth. Placing advanced small research or sm software gives bandwidth JUST from build instead of needing bandwidth to build it gives build amount as resource. At this point no building is using bandwidth to run or needs it to build and amounth or bandwidth as resource depends on buildings Built as it gives instead of needs it to build.
4y
#10
Ps bandwidth is also not listed in stettings... resource pss all buildings that require bandwidth to run do not use bandwidth to run

bastecklein

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Member Since
September 2nd, 2017
My Colony





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Ape Apps, LLC is an independent software development company founded in 2010 by Brandon Stecklein. Over the years, Ape Apps has published over 400 apps and games across various platforms. You can get in touch with Brandon on Twitter or by leaving a post on his wall @bastecklein
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