Hi Aurochnauts! ????????
Welcome to April's Mission Briefing: Developer Update for Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life with your latest update on the game ????
Make sure you are subscribed to our Mars Horizon Newsletter to get these updates direct to your inbox and join our Discord to talk to other Mars Horizon and Space fans.
????????What have the devs been working on this month? ????????
We’ve turned our afterburners up to maximum this April as we rocket towards another successful milestone. The key underlying systems that govern our surface view gameplay are now in a playable state! Rovers are deployable upon the surface of Mars and can impart on extra-terrestrial excavations.
Our hex based gameplay is now tangibly tessellated with the fog of ignorance, providing a wealth of necessary tactical decision making as rovers are piloted across the hazardous terrain of distant celestial bodies.
Supporting the rovers from the atmosphere are our flybys and orbiters. These payloads, despite never interacting with planetary surfaces directly, provide invaluable information in the form of surface scans. All of this functionality is in game and is granting the whole team a great deal of perspective on how these systems feel when interacting.
Dust storms, volcanos, chemical rain, and more hazards are all taking shape. These perilous environmental events display the true dangers of our neighbouring planets. Players will have to map out their steps very carefully when searching for the essential ingredients that make up the potential for life.
Breathing a sonic soul into our solar system has been a focus this month. Work on the implementation of the soundscape of Mars Horizon 2 has begun in form of background music for all scenes. Payload sound effects and stingers for all UI are providing real depth to gameplay interactions.
The entire team has been getting hands on with the build and we couldn’t be more excited for what the next month holds.
- Matt Holmes, Producer for Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life
???? Something is on the Horizon ????
Earlier this month, we met up at the Auroch Digital offices to record something which we look forward to sharing with you in the future.
Stay tuned for more info soon... ????
???? Participating in the Earth Appreciation Festival ????
Through Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life's inclusion, we were delighted to be part of the Earth Appreciation Festival, which took place on Steam between the 23rd and 29th of April. The annual event, which is ran by our friends at Stray Fawn, Slug Disco, and Mechanistry, celebrates the beauty of our green planet and the marvellous diversity of life as we see it.
Thank you for having Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life be part of the festival and hopefully everyone who experienced the event was able to check out some great games that celebrate our planet! ????
✨ Mars Horizon in 'Best Games About Space' List ✨
We were delighted to be included in Mezha Media's 'Best Games About Space' shortlist with the original Mars Horizon! ????????
Mars Horizon is in fantastic company as the other games on the list are all tremendous examples of stellar space games.
Thanks again to Mezha Media for including us and we encourage you to check out all the games on the list, too!
???? ESA Launches 'Lunar Horizons' Game Mode in Fortnite ????
Our partners for Mars Horizon 2: The Search for Life, the European Space Agency (ESA) announced earlier this month that they have been working with Epic Games to include a realistic Moon mission, which is available to play in Fortnite!
Lunar Horizons is available now in Fortnite, where it can be experienced using code 3207-0960-6428 or by searching for ‘Lunar Horizons’ in Discover. We hope you enjoy checking it out!
????️Join the official Mars Horizon 2 socials????️
With the new direction of Mars Horizon 2 and the screenshots we shared this month, there's never been a better time to follow our social channels! This will ensure that you don't miss out on the cool content we'll have to share throughout the development journey and some behind the scenes looks at what we get up to. ????
