PATCH NOTES

This quick update includes fixes for the Alpha Guide system, ensuring proper functionality even while driving vehicles, and resolves issues affecting the player inventory for proper item management. (And yes, this should be the last patch note for the weekend… hopefully!)

This update focuses on behind-the-scenes improvements and adjustments to support upcoming features. No visible changes for now, but these refinements help set the stage for what's next. Thanks!

We are thrilled to bring you a fresh update packed with exciting features, improvements, and fixes. Thank you for your continued support!

New Features

• Slabs Rack: Store slabs efficiently with this new rack.
• Planks Rack: Keep your planks organized and accessible.
• Metal Sheets Rack: A dedicated rack for metal sheet storage.
• Cooking Pot: Boil water safely for drinking.
• Temperature Impact: Temperature now plays a greater role. Stay warm by dressing appropriately, building a fire, or seeking shelter indoors.

Improvements

• Build Menu: Double-click to select and automatically close the menu.
• Build and Craft Menus: Added buttons for menu closure in addition to keyboard shortcuts.
• Item Weight and Volume: Updated slabs, planks, and logs for better consistency now that racks and sleds improve management.

Fixes

• Fixed water shaders for the Water Collector and Water Filter.
• Fixed the issue that prevented cutting wood in FPS view.

Additional Content

• Manor Memorial: Added photos to enhance immersion.
• First Bunker: Explore the newly added bunker.
• Alpha Tester Guide: Updated with the latest information to help testers.

Enjoy this update and stay tuned for more!

We want to take a moment to express our heartfelt gratitude to our Founders for their unwavering support!As the holiday season unfolds, we’re thrilled to bring you this festive patch filled with exciting new features and exclusive gifts. Let’s celebrate together!

Build

• Interactive elements are here! Build and interact with items like doors, adding a dynamic touch to your constructions.
• Revamped Build Menu: A fresh look and feel for the build menu (still a work-in-progress, but looking great!).
• Survival Essentials: New buildable items for survival, including a water collector, water filter, and more!

Craft

• Workbench Unlocked: You can now craft and use the Workbench to kickstart your crafting journey.
• First Craftable Item Released: Time to test your crafting skills with this brand-new feature!

Exclusive Xmas Assets for Founders

• Special Gifts for Our Founders: This holiday season, we're bringing some exclusive festive cheer!
  • A complete outdoor kit featuring a hammock, bench, garden set, and a brazier—perfect for cozy winter nights (find them in the build menu).
  • Christmas Garlands to light up your builds (available in the build menu).
  • Exclusive Craft: Geodome Pod, the ultimate structure for your winter hideaway. Available to all Founders who pledged from the beginning and until January 31, 2025, inclusively.

Enjoy this new patch!

Mat

New Features and Improvements

• Optimized Landscape and Vegetation Scatter Shadows: Enhanced overall performance by optimizing shadows for landscapes and scattered vegetation areas, ensuring smoother gameplay.

Environment Updates

• Removed Vehicles for Enhanced Immersion: To further enhance the post-apocalyptic atmosphere, several vehicles have been removed from the map, deepening the immersive experience.
• Added Directional Signs Along Trails: New directional signs have been placed along main trails to aid players in navigating and exploring the map.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed Shader for Distant Grass: Resolved an issue where certain grass appeared overly bright at a distance.
• Fixed Z-Fighting in the Waterfall Area: Addressed graphical conflicts (z-fighting) in the waterfall area, creating a more visually appealing and realistic experience.

• Fixed the bug that prevented players from entering the alpha car in certain areas. 
• You can now interact with tents (set as spawn point, rest, and pack it in your backpack)
• Fixed the lake sound, which was too prominent. 

Hi survivors!

We are  very excited about this new Alpha build, which now allows you to farm wood and other resources to start building your camp in a more realistic way!
That’s right, unlimited resources are gone.
More resources to collect will be added soon, but this gives you a solid foundation to start with.
We’ve also removed the Starter Cabin and the nearby cars to make the survival experience more immersive. This is just the beginning, but we can’t wait to hear your feedback !

Loading Time for Saved Games

Please note that loading a saved game may currently take several minutes. We are aware of this issue and are working on optimizations for future updates.

Major Features

• Woodcutting & Resource Farming: This build introduces the ability to farm wood by cutting down trees. Players can now gather logs and planks from trees to use in construction.
• Scrap Metal & Junk Collection: Explore the environment to gather junk and scrap metal, which can be used to build the first-tier metal structures.
• First-Tier Building System: With the introduction of wood and metal gathering, you can now build using both first-tier wood and metal materials, paving the way for more advanced constructions in the future.

New Features and Improvements

• Campfire: You can now store campfire items in your backpack as a temporary solution until full campfire building mechanics are implemented.
• Inventory Feedback: Added feedback when trying to pick up items with a full inventory.
• Confirmation Popup: A confirmation popup now appears when quitting the game or returning to the menu.
• Starter Cabin Removed: The starter cabin and cars that were available at the initial spawn point have been removed. Players will now start with essential survival items (tent, axe, campfire), encouraging a more immersive survival experience that invites exploration.
• Inventory Capacity Increase
  We’ve increased the inventory capacity, both in terms of weight and volume, allowing players to carry more items and resources while exploring the world. 

Fixes

• Main Menu Lights: Fixed lighting issues in the main menu.
• Login Screen: Fixed the visibility issue with the password lock icon during password entry.
• Shadows and Lighting: Corrected shadows when using torches or vehicle headlights.
• Item Outlines: Fixed outlines for items that were not appearing correctly under specific lighting conditions.
• Ocean Fluidity: Improved ocean fluidity for a more realistic experience.
• Tarp Collision: Updated tarp collision to make loot collection easier in certain areas.
• Collision Issues: Fixed missing collisions for tents and certain rocks.
• Spline Building: Fixed spline paths and materials to ensure they are correct on the roads.
• Zipline Path: Refined the path leading to the zipline for smoother navigation.
• Lookout Tower Collision: Fixed collision issues with the lookout tower.
• Flashlight Scattering: Reduced the overpowered volumetric scattering for lamps and flashlights.
• Drop Through Ground: Fixed a bug where dropped items would pass through the ground.
• UI Damage Side: Fixed the issue where the damage UI played on the server side instead of the client side.
• Switch Controls: Updated default key binding for switching monitors.
• Backlight Issues: Fixed the backlight issue with the character model.
• Miscellaneous Bugs:
  • Fixed the issue with the character exiting a tent with an axe in hand but with the arm stuck in chopping mode.
  • Fixed several decal issues on junk items.
  • Fixed scaling problems with certain HUD elements.

Building System Updates

• Roof Building: Added new flat roof options for the building system.

Before the arrival of farming in the next patch, here are some new features, improvements, and fixes that we invite you to try out now! 

Character 

• The character can now swim: watch out for your oxygen.

Vehicles 

• The Alpha Car is no longer a submarine. 
• The drone can no longer be used when in contact with water. 
• Fixed the bug where the Drone's post-process was displayed on all clients. 

Environment 

• The placeholder water volumes for the lakes have been replaced with the correct ones.
• Ziplines It is now possible to descend on a Zipline. 

Gameplay 

• The character's thirst decreases more slowly. 
• When the character is tired, we replaced the RGB post-process effect with a more natural one. 
• You can now set a tent or a bed as a respawn point. 

Miscellaneous 

• Modified the sound when deploying the tent. 
• The placeholder tent has been replaced with the Rooted tent mesh. 
• The "LOW SIGNAL" notification no longer stays on when the drone returns to the player's proximity. 
• Started work on the lighting: some artifacts or strange behaviors may appear at this stage.

Enjoy!

Mat

Alpha Testers Guide

• Added the game map to the guide tab.
• Improved guide readability.

Drones and Vehicles

• Fixed the marker position that was not accurate.
• UI and sound design improvements.
• Drone inputs are now configurable.
• Vehicles near the starter cabin now have low battery levels.

Character Equipment

• Added t-shirts (currently randomly placed in inventory upon spawn).
• The Drone Companion is now attached to the backpack.

Environment

• Added road intersections and road signs.
• Fixed a bug preventing proper scattering of props along the paths.

Video Settings

• Added an option to disable Volumetric Fog.

Miscellaneous

• Added a UI input to exit the tent if other players do not want to sleep.
• Fixed the passenger player's position, controlled by a client, which was not stable.

Known Bugs

• When a player disconnects, their character and the vehicle or drone they were controlling disappear.

New Feature: QA / Alpha Tester Guide

A guide for Alpha testers is now available in the TAB menu to help new players while we work on releasing the in-game tutorial. Be sure to check it out for tips and instructions.

Vitals

• Character vitals are now correctly calculated even when inside vehicles. 

Gameplay

• The Police Drone is now pilotable. 
• Fixed an issue where the respirator was blocking the use of the antidote injector. 

Vehicles

• The Alpha Car and Forklift now require Unicells, which can be found in the World. 
• Death in a vehicle is now properly handled and no longer causes save file issues. 
• Fixed pilot and passenger poses/positions for a more realistic in-game representation. 
• Fixed forklift position and added a dedicated forklift pilot pose. 
• Resolved an issue where the character was pulled back when entering a vehicle in FPS mode. 
• Backpacks are now hidden inside vehicles to prevent visual clipping and other related bugs. 

Environment

• Initial implementation of US-style roads on the map. 
• Added micro Points of Interest (POIs). 

Controller Overhaul

• Complete overhaul of controller bindings, icons, mapping, and multi-action support for a more intuitive and responsive gameplay experience. 
• Drone is partially functional with the controller. 

FPS Improvement

• Smoother FPS experience, particularly when crouching, crawling, mantling, and vaulting.
• Fixed camera jumping latency when switching from TPS to FPS views. 

Miscellaneous

• After death, players now respawn with the correct clothing.
• Fixed barn doors in cinematics to ensure they function correctly. 
• Resolved an issue where the flashlight was not properly destroyed after death or quitting the game. 
• Backpacks are now destroyed when the player is destroyed.

This new update introduces the basic building system in unlimited resource mode. The goal of this session is to push the boundaries of our building system, test the save functionality, and assess multiplayer replication. Resource gathering and the use of ghost structures will be enabled in future updates.
Exploring the map is about to get more challenging with an increased presence of bacteria in certain areas. Stay safe, use your respirator, and stock up on resources before venturing out!

We will soon be hosting a building contest on our Discord server, so get ready and start practicing!
Found a bug? Please use the in-game Bug Report feature.

Gameplay

• The environment now impacts your vitals.
• Clothing provides protection against harsh weather.
• Campfires offer warmth within a small radius.
• Tents and beds allow you to rest and advance time (currently by 8 hours).
• Tents and beds also serve as respawn points after death or loading a saved game.
• Berries can now satisfy hunger and thirst.
• Added a respirator to protect against areas or species infected by bacteria.

Build System

• The core building system is now available.
• Unlimited resources are provided for now to help you push the building system and identify its limits. Have fun and practice! A contest is coming soon on Discord.

Vehicles

• Multiple players can now travel in the same vehicle.

Inventory

• The inventory has been moved to the new menu. This is a very early work-in-progress.

Save Game

• The save system is now active.
• It saves your character, including their vitals, inventory, and position in the world.
• It also saves any constructions you've built in the game.

Environment

General improvements to the environment:

• Enhanced existing Points of Interest (POIs).
• Added new POIs in graybox stage.

Enjoy the Alpha! Thanks for your support <3
Mat

Bug Fixes

• Player Spawn Issue Fixed a bug where player spawning caused inventory issues for some players.
• Starting Items Resolved an issue where starting items sometimes failed to appear for certain players.
• Settings Load Bug Fixed a bug that set the Field of View (FOV) to 0 when loading settings.
• Texture Rendering Fixed a random texture rendering bug affecting certain assets.

Updates

• Alpha Tester Guide Updated the Alpha Tester guide with the latest information.

Vehicles

• Vehicle Headlights (Still WIP) Added lighting effects to vehicle headlights.
• Vehicle Sound (WIP) Introduced vehicle sound effects.

Localization

Added support for the following languages. Note: Full translation is still in progress. Some game elements may not yet be translated.

• Chinese
• English
• French
• German
• Russian

• Fixed the minor camera glitch that caused a slight jump whenever the camera reset itself after moving the mouse.
• Fixed the issue with player interactions while moving; you can no longer interact while mantling or jumping.
• Fixed the character snapping to the wrong location in the forklift.
• Fixed the in-game bug reporting system.

• Reworked procedural generation of the forest
• Fixed inconsistent road segments
• Fixed weather issues in the main menu
• Improved headlight lighting
• Small adjustments to car physics
• Added car rear view
• Fixed camera rotation when exiting a vehicle
• Improved car collision mechanics (you can now move to the back seat)

We have implemented a temporary workaround to address the issue with texture rendering. This measure aims to improve the visual experience for players while we work on a permanent fix for the problem. 

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Route Improvements and Fixes:

• Improved and Debugged Main Routes: Enhancement and debugging of several main routes.

Vehicle Enhancements:

• Vehicle Interaction Bug Fix: Resolved the issue where client players would be teleported into the vehicle during an interaction.
• Alpha Car Flip View Added: Introduced a flip view for the Alpha Car camera (default key: V).
• Increased Vehicle Headlight Power: Enhanced the brightness of vehicle headlights.
• Forklift Piloting Bug Fix: Fixed the bug that caused the player's head to disappear while piloting a forklift.

Audio and Visual Adjustments:

• Weather Volume Control Added: Added volume control for ambient weather sounds in the audio settings.
• Weather Cycle Adjustment: Modified the duration of the day/night cycle.

Guides and Missions:

• Alpha Tester Guide Update: Stay on track with the Alpha test by completing the discovery missions outlined in the updated Alpha Tester Guide.

Optimization and Performance

• Performance Improvements: Numerous new elements such as the open world and many POIs have been added, requiring significant optimization. We are aware of the performance issues and are working on them. Please adjust your graphics settings for better performance and use Discord to provide feedback in the appropriate channels.

Important Information

• Save System and Bug Reporting: These features will be available soon again.
• Map Loading Screens: Map loading screens are being reworked, resulting in temporarily less visually appealing load screens. This is expected.

Character Updates

• Turn in Place Fix: Corrected the character's turn in place animation.
• Micro Movements Fix: Improved basin handling for small lateral movements.
• Vitals Update: Player vitals now include temperature.
• New Clothing Options: Added new clothing for characters.

Gameplay Enhancements

• Ladders: Players can now use ladders.
• Day/Night Cycle: Introduced a realistic day and night cycle.
• Weather System: Added dynamic weather conditions.
• Resting in Tents: Players can now rest in tents.
• Open-World Expansion: Half of the map is now available for Alpha testing.
• Rooted Alpha Car: Available for alpha testers.
• Forklift Use: Players can now use forklifts.
• Deployables: Introduced deployable items, accessible via the Pie menu.

Points of Interest (POIs)

• Manor (WIP)
• Forest Cabin (WIP)
• Hunter Cabin (WIP)
• Observatory (Zone Under Construction)
• Zoo (Zone Under Construction)
• Communication Tower (Zone Under Construction)
• Resort (Zone Under Construction)
• Fisher Town (Zone Under Construction)

Building, Crafting, and Farming

• Build System: The building system is not yet public, but the wood tier is available at the spawn point.

Enjoy the new features and improvements in Rooted, and continue to share your feedback to help us enhance your gaming experience!

Gameplay Enhancements

• Controller Support in the PIE Menu: Players can now select and use items directly through the PIE Menu using a controller.
• Improved 3C on Controller: Improvements to the Character, Camera, and Controls (3C) for a smoother gameplay experience on controllers. Added a mode where the camera rotates with the player. This can be disabled in the Input Settings by unchecking the “Rotate camera with movements”.
• Character Jump Issue Fix: Addressed an issue where character jumps were occasionally getting stuck. Player feedback is essential for further adjustments.

Technical Updates

• Client Movement Orientation Fix: Fixed a problem with the orientation of player movement on certain assets for client players.
• Minor Bug Fixes and Stability Improvements: Ongoing improvements to ensure a smoother gaming experience.

Community and Services

• Launch of Services Page: Visit our new services page at https://rootedthegame.com/services.
• In-Game Chat Feature: A new feature allowing players to communicate more effectively with each other during gameplay.

Special Rewards

• Christmas Skins for Early Pledges: Exclusive skins added for all pledges made no later than January 31, 2023. Sorry for the late! :)

As you explore the latest updates in Rooted, we encourage all Alpha testers to share your experiences and feedback in our Discord community channels: https://discord.gg/rootedthegame

Encountered a bug? Please report it directly through our in-game Bug Report system. Your contributions help us continuously improve Rooted.

Thank you!

• Fix (workaround) for the display bug of materials in Unreal Engine version 5.3
• Fix of minor bugs

• Fixed the bug that prevented clients from seeing all items during a late join.
• End of the Halloween event

Thank you for your participation and feedback on the Halloween event!

• Return of item consumption animations
• Flashlight no longer casts shadows from handheld items
• Backend sessions rework
• Pie menu improvements
• Clients now spawn with vitals adjusted for the Halloween event

• The session is now properly terminated when exiting the game through the menu.
• Spatialization and interaction with Halloween cinematics are fixed (for good!)
• Halloween loot boxes now appear exclusively in Halloween mode.
• Fixed the interaction loot box issue.
• While performing an action, it's no longer possible to play an emote.

Everything you need to know here! KNOWN ISSUES

• Problem with Materials rendering. Workaround: change your quality presets (video settings) and go back to your prefered settings.
• Clients do not see all the pickable items in the World. Will be fixed soon.

• Fixed the sound spatialization of the chest which could mislead
• Modified the spatialized sound around the chest
• Spatialization of cinematic sounds with ghosts
• The player is hardly infected upon spawning in classic game mode
• The 4 exclusive Halloween items are now added to your inventory even if it's full
• Fixed the bug disconnecting players after one hour of gameplay

3C Enhancements:

• Dynamic player camera management based on the environment.
• Modified crouch animations in FPS.

Settings Update:

• It is now possible to modify the Field of View in settings.

Audio Additions:

• Added sound for opening the inventory.
• Added sound for the holographic tablet.

Bug Fixes:

• Minor bug fixes.

Minor patch:

• Improvements to the Bunker door (sound replication, UI modification).

Audio Fixes:

• Fixed sounds that were not properly replicated on client stations.

New Features:

• Introducing the "Alpha Tester's Guide": Follow the main steps or the detailed steps to make the most of the Alpha.
• Added 3 different types of military food rations.

Gameplay Improvements:

• The door in the church leading to the catacombs can now be opened from both sides.
• The cart can no longer be grabbed from the same side by two people simultaneously.
• Eating or drinking while moving the cart is no longer possible.
• Players can now use/consume an item directly from the inventory (TAB).

Fixes:

• Fixed an issue with narrow passages interaction that could be spammed.
• Fixed the flashlight remaining at the death location.
• Improved cart wheel behavior for clients.

Audio Enhancements:

• Sound design: Added sounds for cinematic doors, flashlights, item pick-ups, and more.

Miscellaneous:

• Addressed 250 bug reports.

• Minor fixes related to item interactions.
• Added and modified materials.
• Minor additions related to the catacombs' level design.

May your weekend be as bug-free as we aim our game to be!

IMPORTANT:

Due to the fix in the input settings panel, players may need to redefine their key bindings.

Graphics and Audio:

• The graphics, audio, and input settings panel is fixed.
• Numerous collision and texture fixes.
• Fix for the replication of the opening animation of cinematic doors.

Environment and Accessibility:

• The bell tower is now freely accessible.
• Added feedback to the bunker's armored door.

Player Interaction and Items:

• Improvement of the interaction area of the cart for easier handling.
• Player can no longer crouch, crawl, jump, and other minor fixes when using carts.
• Increased the interaction zone for items.
• Rework of interaction and feedback with Circuit Breaker and Electrical Panel (WIP)
• Food and Water levels decrease more rapidly

In-game Content:

• Addition of drink variants.

API and Tracking:

• Update to the API allowing for tracking of movements and interactions (no personal data is recorded).

Miscellaneous:

• Fixed the display issue of player names that no longer shows your own, as it sometimes used to happen.
• Improved navigation for reaching targets for clients. Interacting with cinematic doors, or carts should be a bit easier
• 1580+ bug reports addressed (including redundancies).

• Fixed the inventory which now allows client PCs to consume, drop items, etc.
• Added a cinematic door for catacomb access in the church.
• Removal of the cart.
• Fixed the widget on the cinematic doors.
• The cinematic doors SHOULD appear open for all players.
• Death is back. Remember to manage your vitals.

IMPORTANT: We are reworking the inventory system and there are still bugs present on the client side. We have disabled death to prevent client PCs from dying without being able to consume anything.

FIXED

• Performance improvments
• Sessions now display the build version.
• Inputs for "Push to Talk", "Crawl" and camera Switch are customizable in the Input Settings.
• Mouse sensitivity has been added to the Input Settings.
• "Unstuck Me!" no longer sends a bug report after excessive use (like, you really overdid it haha).
• Fix of the audio settings that are now functional (yes, you can lower the volume in the main menu, incredible).
• Fix of the global settings panel
• You can no longer overtake your teammates with your super-fast crawl.
• Items now stack in the inventory
• We added a cereal bar to start counting the number of water bottles. Bon appétit!
• Audio feedback when the character eats, drinks, or receives an injection.
• The chat has been temporarily disabled while it undergoes a rework.
• Sessions can now be protected with a password.
• UI feedback regarding thirst and hunger.
• Hunger and thirst now decrease much more slowly.
• Fixed an issue with the radial menu no longer remaining displayed on the screen.

• Hot Fix to add the DLSS option in the Graphic Settings

• Bug that limited the number of displayed sessions is fixed.
• DLSS is no longer displayed for AMD graphics cards.

Welcome to the first Alpha!

Important! Many updates will be sent in the coming hours and days. Do not hesitate to come back regularly to provide feedback on the new features!

The solo experience is currently much more stable than the co-op version. However, don't hesitate to play with your friends!

The ALPHA will take place in 4 phases, each with its own set of features. More information here.

GRAPHICS SETTINGS: we are working on resolving the settings change between the main menu and the game map.

OBJECTIVE: Discover the Monastery in Rooted.

• Explore the entire Monastery, inside and out.
• Get used to your character's movement and skills.
• Look for initial items to aid in your journey.

FOCUS ON:

• Character Experience: How does controlling the character feel?
• Environmental Bugs: Any issues with walls, floors, or character glitches?
• Session Management: Ease of creating/deleting sessions and joining friends.

IGNORE:

• Controller support - Not fully integrated yet.
• Sound design - The team is still working on it.
• Multiplayer / Co-op: we are still working on it and will ask for your feedback later on.