# 📢 Update 0.7.2-alpha — 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!** 🌎🚀