Before we take a look at what's new, we would first like to thank everyone who took part in the Open Beta in the past few weeks. Your feedback really helped us fine-tune everything that was added in this version and made it possible to give you a polished set of features in this update. Now, let's take a look at what's in store!
Cargo System Redefined
Until now, what seemed like the game combining a trailer with cargo, such as a piece of machinery, was actually a manually created model, with each trailer-cargo pair stored separately on disk. This approach required an enormous number of unique models, making it harder to add new content efficiently and taking up disk space.
In the redefined cargo system, the code automatically merges cargo and trailers based on simplified rules. This means that each cargo will define its own model, loading methodology, and lashing method. This will make the work of our vehicle team much easier as it no longer requires our 3D artists to manually create pre-baked trailer-cargo pairs.
While there may be issues in the first iteration, it's a worthwhile goal to refine the system, as it not only improves efficiency but also saves disk space and memory by eliminating the need to store countless pre-made combinations. This project may also lead to other possibilities for both of our games, especially with dynamic cargo (un)loading and more. You can read about how this project was executed in our recent Under the Hood blog.
Truck Adjustment Menu Redesign
The Truck Adjustment Menu has been completely redesigned to provide a more user-friendly experience. Previously, each option for adjusting your driver's FOV, seat, mirrors etc had separate menus with different layouts. Now, they share a cohesive interface, making adjustments much more intuitive and easier. The new design also takes on a similar visual from our previous UI overhaul and is optimized for both a mouse and a controller, ensuring accessibility for all users.
For keyboard and mouse users, adjustments are now more streamlined with the use of the WASD keys for navigation, along with buttons for finer tuning. Meanwhile, controller users will find the new system much smoother, with the left stick controlling adjustments, the right stick handling camera movement for mirror positioning, and the D-pad or shoulder buttons navigating the menu.
The addition of shoulder button support makes menu navigation more fluid for controller players. This update makes adjusting mirrors and seats much easier, particularly for those using controllers, ensuring a more seamless and enjoyable driving experience. Accessing the Truck Adjustment Menu remains the same. You can use the F4 by default, a custom-assigned key of your choice, or through the adviser services menu.
PhysX System Implementation
In 1.54, we are adopting the NVIDIA PhysX physics engine as an alternative to the current Bullet physics engine for low-level simulation of physics in the game world that players interact with. This shift allows players to experience more precise collision detection results and more robust behaviour during scenarios involving collisions between vehicles and obstacles or other vehicles. PhysX also offers our teams better debugging tools, which indirectly benefits players by helping resolve bugs more efficiently.
One of the most noticeable improvements brought by PhysX can already be experienced in our recently introduced Driving Academy game mode. For example, collisions with cones and obstacles are now more accurate and objects no longer appear to "levitate" slightly above the ground after interaction, a flaw that occurred with Bullet. While players may not see drastic changes, certain interactions should exhibit slightly improved behaviour.
During the Open Beta, many players expressed concerns about hardware limitations due to recent news that 32-bit version of PhysX would no longer be supported by certain GPUs. However, the PhysX implementation we use runs entirely on the CPU, meaning players can enjoy PhysX without worrying about graphics card compatibility.
With the release of version 1.54, PhysX is now the default physics engine for all gameplay. Players who prefer the previous Bullet physics engine can switch back by using the "-bullet" command line argument in their Steam launch options.
Driving Academy - Volvo FH Series 5, Volvo FH Series 6, and Iveco S-Way
We have implemented both the Volvo FH Series 5 and Volvo FH Series 6, as well as the Iveco S-Way into Driving Academy. These beautiful trucks were added to Euro Truck Simulator 2 in December, and now you can try them out in various challenging scenarios in Driving Academy!
Driving Academy Rewards
Everyone who has already completed or will complete the entire first module of Driving Academy will receive special rewards to use inside the game on the same profile they completed the academy with - a hanging blue traffic cone cabin accessory and a customizable Driving Academy paint job for your truck. So make sure to complete your scenarios and grab your rewards, there will be more to come!
Changelog
Gameplay
- Cargo System Redefined
- Driving Academy Rewards
Vehicles
- Volvo FH Series 5, Volvo FH Series 6, and Iveco S-Way added to Driving Academy
Visual
- Truck Adjustment Menu Redesign
Other
- PhysX Implementation
We hope that you will enjoy the new features, changes, and more that come with this update! Remember to follow us on our Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, and YouTube, and share your pictures or videos from the game. We'd also really appreciate it if you could sign up for our newsletter to stay informed, even when you're not able to check out the blog or our socials. Keep on trucking!
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