Connected Worlds

Release Date: 11/6/2026

Version: 0.7.2-alpha

Development Stage: Alpha

📋 Overview

Update 0.7.2-alpha expands Orbitale's social experience with direct messaging, multiplayer chat, improved friends management, and a redesigned achievements and statistics interface!

This update also introduces global achievement rarity, multiplayer sleeping, new planetary music, and numerous gameplay and networking improvements.

👥 Friends & Messaging

• Friends are now organized by online status and alphabetically.
• Added favorite friends, displayed in a separate section above the regular friends list.
• Favorite friends are sorted by online status and name.
• Favorites can be managed from the three-dot menu or player profiles.
• Added direct messaging between friends, including offline messaging.
• Messages remain accessible even when friends are in different solar systems.

💬 Multiplayer Chat

• Added in-game text chat for multiplayer solar systems.
• Chat includes player messages and announcements for:
  • Players joining or leaving.
  • Achievements and deaths.
  • Planetary travel.
  • Shared tool, skill, rocket, and spacesuit upgrades.
• Chat automatically scrolls to new messages and fades after inactivity.
• Added minimize and reopen controls.
• Added a HUD setting to disable multiplayer chat.

🏆 Achievements & Statistics Overhaul

• Redesigned achievements and statistics with a new book-inspired interface matching Orbitale's visual style.
• Combined Achievements and Statistics into one menu on the title screen and pause menu.
• Added lifetime achievement tracking across all solar systems.
• Lifetime achievements display the real-world date they were unlocked.
• Individual solar system achievements continue using their in-game unlock dates.
• Added global achievement rarity percentages based on Orbitale player profiles.
• Lifetime achievements are sorted from most common to rarest.
• Global rarity values update as players earn achievements.

📊 Expanded Lifetime Statistics

• Added Time in Game and Time in Menus.
• Total Time Played now includes both gameplay and menu time.
• Lifetime statistics include:
  • Total Time Played
  • Time in Game
  • Time Underground
  • Time in Menus
• Player profiles display Total Time Played.
• Individual solar system statistics retain their existing format.

🎵 Audio & Presentation

• Added unique background music for the Moon and Mars.
• Added an application icon for Orbitale.
• Improved macOS distribution to avoid the previous unverified-app warning.

🛏️ Multiplayer Sleeping & Respawning

• Every player can now set their own respawn location using a bed.
• Beds can only be owned by one player at a time.
• Interacting with another player's bed displays its owner.
• Breaking a bed removes its ownership and associated respawn point.
• Nights can be skipped when at least 50% of connected players are sleeping.
• Added a sleeping progress bar showing how many players are asleep and how many are required.
• Nighttime speeds up once the sleeping requirement is met.

🌐 Multiplayer Improvements

• Improved guest movement synchronization, particularly repeated jumping and climbing.
• Reduced delayed movement corrections and rubber-banding.
• Improved guest-side damage responsiveness.
• Fixed guests sometimes becoming stuck while descending ladders.
• Improved ladder dismounting behavior.
• Leaving a multiplayer session voluntarily now returns directly to the title screen.
• Connection interruption screens are reserved for unexpected disconnects.
• Default player names now include a unique four-digit number (Explorer####).

🏠 Building & World Interactions

• Stairs are now solid by default, while retaining their pass-through toggle.
• Placing flowers on grass no longer converts it to dirt.
• Grass can continue spreading beneath flowers placed on dirt.

📦 Item Improvements

• Dropped items are now moved to the nearest available empty space if they would spawn inside solid terrain.
• Placing a block where an item is located now pushes the item into nearby open space.
• Improved dropped-item behavior around terrain and building changes.

🔧 Additional Fixes & Refinements

• Improved consistency of player interactions across multiplayer sessions.
• Continued interface and quality-of-life improvements.
• Improved multiplayer movement and synchronization reliability.
• Refined the transition between multiplayer sessions and the title screen.

⚠️ Alpha Development Notice

Orbitale remains in active alpha development. Multiplayer, online social features, and cross-platform gameplay are continuing to receive fixes and improvements.

Some synchronization issues, connection problems, or unexpected behavior may still occur.

Backing up important solar systems before hosting multiplayer is recommended.

Thank you for playing Orbitale! 🌎🚀