Patch notes for version EA 0.5.4 – August 9, 2018

[docs.google.com]

Steam build number: 311261New features- As announced, we have taken a look at the issues behind poor performance and inefficient memory usage when loading and playing savegames. We have now improved memory usage patterns which should result in shorter loading times and better performance in general (in particular when playing for extended periods of time and after loading savegames) in EA 0.5.4.- To further improve performance, we have now implemented that only characters which are currently in the field of view of the camera are animated and not as before, every character on the map.- Up until now, the amount of available products in the market hardly had an impact on price development. This has now been changed, so you should check more frequently if prices have shifted and if you need to optimise your supply chains. As part of these changes we have extracted many economy-related parameters from the code so that we can iterate more quickly in the future when it comes to the in-game economy.- The re-work of the visualisation of selected characters is completed as of EA 0.5.4. You will now see a small bluish circle around all your characters. The circle of your dynasty leader will be gold-coloured. When you select one of your characters, the white circle will be highlighted more visibly. It should therefore now be easier to identify and select your own characters, especially within larger crowds.- Character portraits which are displayed above buildings now display the profession and dynasty affiliation of a character. This should make it easier to select the correct character.- The colour of the clothing in character portraits now also correctly reflects the dynasty colours. In order to reinforce this effect, we have replaced the blurry dynasty coat of arms in the background with the dynasty’s colour. Furthermore, we have adjusted the angle and distance from which character portraits are taken.- When losing a game, it is no longer necessary to quit the entire game in order to begin a new one. Instead, you can now load a savegame or simply return to the main menu.- Several maps have been re-worked in order to improve, performance as well as economy, available space for new buildings and arrangement of city districts. The following maps have been revised so far:- Magdeburg- Augsburg- Visby- ParisBug fixes- Employees who are being controlled by the master AI will now immediately resume their activity after a savegame is loaded.- Transporters will now resume their previously defined trade routes after a savegame is loaded.- AI-controlled dynasties previously only reproduced if a marriage partner was already defined at the start of a scenario. Dynasties without marriage partners did not work towards achieving marriages, therefore leading to their eventual extinction. We have now implemented changes which will result in the AI socially interacting with other characters (paying compliments, entering relationships, marrying). The AI is currently not yet acting towards greater strategic plans when doing so, but this fix is merely the first improvement and we aim to continually improve this behaviour with upcoming updates.- Characters should no longer get “stuck” as often when attempting to interrupt another character. The causes of this bug were particular distances and angles between the two characters.- Abilities which interrupted the activity of NPCs will no longer interrupt their other routines. NPCs that just loiter around should therefore appear less frequently.- The building menu of level 2 and 3 businesses should now open with a double-click on the building, as is already the case with level 1 businesses.- Deceased characters will now no longer appear in residential buildings.- Characters watching juggling performances will now no longer stand inside each other.- The shadow calculation was improved so that shadows shouldn’t be cut off very close to the camera anymore.- The white outline of selected characters should now also include their backpacks.- Several texts were corrected, e.g. for henchmen, innkeepers, and news concerning the hospital and far distance travel.Art- The following buildings have been optimised and were given 3 additional LOD-levels.- alchemist levels 1 - 3- barracks levels 1 - 3- warehouse- Additionally the roof colour of all residential buildings without thatched roofs has been changed, thus making them easier to distinguish.Known issues- Certain barrels are currently missing textures.- There are some errors in the behaviour of AI-dynasties which can lead to AI characters not finishing certain actions under specific conditions. We will continuing working to fix that system.- In very rare cases you may get a crash related to missing items in a save game. We already found the issue and will fix it.Important informationIf you are experiencing difficulties with loading and saving the game, you may attempt to delete all files from the folder “Games” in the installation directory of The Guild 3.It is quite possible that some problems that you have in your game are caused by missing or corrupted files. In this case, the following can help: right-click on "The Guild 3" in your Steam library, then Properties - LOCAL FILES - REVIEW FILES TO ERRORWhat we are planning for the next patch- A re-work of the HUD, making it easier to understand, navigate and find information.- Based on community feedback, we want to change the rules according to which the player avatar is selected.- We will complete the refactoring of the skills system in order to allow our designers to begin repairing, improving and iterating on character skills.A short outlook...We will shift our main focus to character skills and improve the construction of buildings.**********We value your feedback!If you have the time, we would appreciate it if you could fill out a short survey regarding the changes we made in patch EA 0.5.4: Google Form Please note: we do not collect any personal information other than your feedback - you will remain completely anonymous. This survey will end on August 22nd 2018.