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Bitfighter Changelog

What's new in Bitfighter 019f

May 8, 2017
  • New Features and Improvements:
  • New GameController/Joystick subsystem with many more joysticks supported
  • Spy bugs are hexagonal
  • Armor heal rate is reduced
  • Editor: Can set teleporter delay
  • Voting can use /y or /n
  • Updated fonts throughout game
  • Game playback UI and control improvements
  • Other help and menu improvements and clarifications
  • Lua API: new events onCoreDestroyed, onObjectEnteredZone, onObjectLeftZone
  • Lua API: new FloatCounterMenuItem for editor plugins
  • General Fixes:
  • Fix several crashes in Windows 10
  • Music system fails less often
  • Player names show correctly with /shuffle command
  • Sensor animation is disabled since it is a passive module
  • Voting resets properly on level change
  • Fix some robot zone crashes
  • Robots properly trigger events when entering/leaving zones
  • Fix game time updating with levelgens
  • Fix crash with /pm and unknown player name
  • Editor Fixes:
  • Fix awful editor bug that would overwrite files
  • Fix crash with undoing a teleporter move with a plugin
  • Other Changes:
  • OSX PPC support is dropped. Bitfighter 019e is the last supported version for this platform
  • SDL 1.2 support is dropped

New in Bitfighter 019e (May 12, 2015)

  • General Fixes:
  • Host-on-server shutdown disconnects all players now
  • Several game and UI crashes
  • More/Fewer Bots now respect all server limits
  • Team switch delay is disabled if you're the only one left on the server
  • Server permission fixes
  • Don't kick busy/chatting players so fast if multiple levels are cycled
  • Commander's map doesn't flicker if you hold down the key
  • Editor Fixes:
  • Fix several vertex rendering issues
  • Fix some crashes
  • Fix for walls disappearing with 0-point barriers
  • Moving multiple vertexes behaves better
  • Prevent ID duplication in the editor with copy/paste
  • Prevent level upload if you haven't saved it
  • Changed level filename is now saved while switching gametypes
  • Improvements:
  • Voting time can be set to unlimited
  • Performance improvements
  • Build system improvements
  • Better debian compatibility
  • Vsync enable/disable in the INI
  • Minor instruction updates

New in Bitfighter 019d (Jan 3, 2015)

  • Fixes:
  • Fix downloading recorded games
  • Other minor game recorder fixes
  • Images uploaded to pleiades are more consistent
  • Fix HTF score saving/loading precision
  • OSX crash
  • LineItem rendering fixes
  • Several game crashes
  • Fix seeker sound being heard from everywhere
  • Partial fix for chats disappearing when changing levels
  • Fix several Lua API contructors
  • Prompt before uploading to the level database from the editor
  • Partial fix for inconsistent turret rendering in the editor
  • Fix non-global Text/LineItems not being rendered
  • Fix saving last login name
  • Fix some memory errors
  • OSX 10.4 compatibility fixes (does anyone still run this?)
  • Fix polywallify editor plugin
  • Fix showing level name on the master server when testing a level
  • Features:
  • Windows 64bit support
  • Move to LuaJIT for levelgens and robots. This increases performance significantly.
  • /map command can take case-insensitive names
  • Experimental 'Host on Server' option. This can be used to upload a level set to a remote server started with -hostondedicated flag.
  • New icons! Slightly less ugly.

New in Bitfighter 019c (Apr 2, 2014)

  • This is a another bugfix release mostly to address a major crash in the Lua API.
  • New Features:
  • Vertex-edit mode in the editor. Press 'insert' to toggle (default on)
  • New editor plugin: Polywallify - correctly convert barriers to PolyWalls using their outlines
  • Bug Fixes:
  • Fixed a severe crash with Lua scripts
  • Lua documentation fixes
  • Fixed notifier crash when losing internet connectivity
  • Possible fix for really high ping problems
  • Fixed /rate command
  • Fixed /mprev command
  • Fixed /add command response
  • Fixed autologin setting
  • Editor: Fixed game timer seconds loss
  • Editor: Fixed tab-completion of file names with special characters on the level-select screen
  • Editor: Fixed scale tool with super large PolyWalls
  • Editor: Fixed crash with global chat
  • Editor: Fixed centroid calculation with LineItems
  • Editor: Various plugin fixes
  • Other Changes:
  • Verify author field is filled out before uploading to pleiades
  • Un-mix file delimiters in paths on Windows

New in Bitfighter 019b (Mar 10, 2014)

  • New Features:
  • New Lua plugin method to manipulate the editor UI
  • Bug Fixes:
  • Fix a few crashes
  • Fix a memory error
  • Lua: Fix bf:findObjectById() in editor plugins
  • Lua: Fix teleporter not being triggered when ship is placed on it
  • Lua: Fix TextItem/LineItem not updating clients with new geometry when changed
  • Other Changes:
  • Script menu hotkey changed to F4 (from F9)
  • Network performance improvements with some items changing geometry

New in Bitfighter 019a (Feb 17, 2014)

  • New Features:
  • Nickname tab-completion in chat
  • Color picker in the Editor (press C on the team-select screen)
  • Can now type numbers in many editor menus
  • INI key bindings for editor keys
  • New /map command to go straight to a locally hosted map
  • New editor plugins
  • Experimental: Record games
  • Experimental: Level playlists
  • GameJolt integration
  • Bug Fixes:
  • Fix Editor help rendering in OSX
  • Fix crash with bot zone generation on some levels
  • Fix several UI rendering artifacts
  • Fix weird minimization bug on OSX
  • Fix Lua Timer bug with Timer:scheduleRepeating persisting across levels
  • Warning boxes now all say "Press ESC" to dismiss
  • Fix various Lua API crashes
  • Fix various Lua API inconsistencies
  • Fix another energy desync
  • Hopefully fix Boost double-tap problem
  • Fix sensor working against cloak
  • Fix Robot lines being removed by editor (again)
  • Fix viewing enemy mines/spybugs/text when dying or /idle
  • Fix Seeker targeting teammates in team-Rabbit
  • Fix forcefield rendering in editor preview
  • Fix hat-trick badge with hostile goal zones
  • Fix uploading screenshots to Pleiades on OSX 32bit
  • Fix rendering of some objects when /idle
  • Other Changes:
  • Allow Neutral/Hostile Core in editor
  • Robot options should be simpler and more intuitive
  • Message your on-deck loadout
  • Adjust sensor to not detect cloak so soon
  • Show snap targets when dragging a barrier in the editor
  • Allow more characters in file names (be careful!)
  • Lua API: new Event.GameOver
  • Allow transfer of much larger levels to/from Pleiades
  • Better screenshots for Pleiades
  • Identify local servers in server menu
  • More zoom in the editor
  • Google Code-In contributions by: Alex Velea, Dariel Kremov, Geoffrey Mon, grypoB, Jacob Logan, Joey Watts, JohnAudi, Mandar Juvekar, Ondrej Skopek, Phillip Reeder, Tomek Zalewski

New in Bitfighter 019 (Dec 2, 2013)

  • New features:
  • UI changes everywhere. More sleek and shiny
  • Font changes everywhere. This improves rendering performance in many cases
  • Level database! with upload from editor. See http://bitfighter.org/pleiades/
  • Loadout, Goal, Nexus zones have icons instead of text
  • LineItems have a 'Global' option to be viewd by all teams. This is default
  • Weapon changes:
  • Bouncer uses slightly less energy and stays alive the more it bounces (with an upper limit)
  • Phaser does slighly less damage
  • Triple does more damage and uses more energy (2 hit kills now)
  • Burst uses twice the energy
  • Seeker uses half as much energy, does less damage, shoots faster, and does area damage
  • Mines do not explode unless a burst is within proximity circle. Also Mines in a mine field will not all detonate at once
  • Module changes:
  • Shield uses slightly more energy
  • Armor is slightly stronger, resistant to impulse forces, and it takes 2 asteroids to kill you. Also remove Bouncer advantage against armor
  • Turrets do not hurt themselves with their own weapons
  • Asteroids split when you run into them
  • Many Lua API changes, additions, and enhancements. See http://bitfighter.org/luadocs/ Notable ones include:
  • Geom library enhancements. These are very useful with editor plugins
  • Removal of old addLevelLine()
  • More control of many game objects, like a ship's loadout
  • Added a Lua debugger
  • Increase limits on points for most objects
  • Increase limits in the level parameters section of the editor
  • Add ability to change points-per-minute in HTF gametype
  • New server permissions level: Owner. They can kick admins if needed
  • New editor plugins: 'draw_stars' and 'item_select'
  • Levels are saved with real coordinates now. Levels created with 019 are *not* backwards-compatible.
  • No more 'GridSize' level parameter.
  • New plugin dock for the editor (F9)
  • No blanking out background when going idle
  • Add ROBOTS in-game menu to add remove bots easily
  • Add ROBOTS menu when hosting game
  • Add option to have robots intelligently force balanced teams
  • Add marks for regenerative turrets and forcefield projectors
  • Teleporters are repairable
  • 3 new badges! Raging Rabid Rabbit (RAB), Hat Trick (SOC), and Last-Second Win (CTF)
  • Removed score penalty for being killed by Asteroid/Turret in Rabbit gametype
  • Always select first weapon when changing loadout
  • In-game help system. Can be turned on/off in the OPTIONS menu
  • Increase game object limit. We'll see how this goes...
  • Add /rate command for levels that are in the online database
  • You can now edit text in the middle of the word in all the various interfaces
  • Added several text effects for things
  • In-game kill streaks (not recorded in stats yet)
  • Command /shownextlevel to see what the next level in rotation is
  • Command /undeletelevel to undo most recently deleted level with /deletecurrentlevel
  • Editor: Add ability to rotate objects about their center of 'mass'
  • Remove showing keyboard keys in joystick mode
  • Levelgens upload/download with levels now
  • Bug fixes:
  • Fix team sorting with ratings
  • Standalone fixes
  • Fix /shuffle
  • Fix several /idle issues
  • Several Lua API problems, crashes, and memory leaks
  • Turrets no longer target cloaked players with a resource item
  • Fixed score transmission updates using up bandwidth
  • Fix most window bugs on Windows and OSX
  • Normal weapon-damage rules apply to single-team Rabbit gametype
  • No repairing of other players in single-team Bitmatch
  • Keep currently selected weapon when respawning
  • Fix commander's map zoom glitches
  • Fix some energy desychronizations
  • Miscellaneous editor bugs
  • Fix several rounding errors that led to objects inching around slowly in the editor
  • Fix screensaver problems on some Windows systems
  • Fix some 'punching through firewall' issues
  • Other changes:
  • Asteroids give off different sounds when a different size is destroyed
  • Minor S_Bot AI changes
  • Triangulation now done with poly2tri
  • CMake is used for Windows now, too
  • Lua scripts are now run in sandbox. No 'io' for you!
  • LineSmoothing option is back (adjustable in the INI). Turning this off helps speed up rendering on less powerful hardware (but looks much uglier)
  • Several performance improvements with network, UI, and game logic

New in Bitfighter 018a (Mar 2, 2013)

  • New features:
  • Add an /announce command for server administrators
  • Add /showids command to see each object's ID (in test mode only)
  • Added CMake build system for Linux and MinGW
  • Server option to disallow team changing. Check in the INI
  • More statistics tracking: distance, objects engineered, asteroids, turrets, and force-fields killed
  • New ZC and Core default maps
  • Bug fixes:
  • Standalone install fixes
  • Server voice chat enabled by default
  • Nexus team spawns spawn appropriately now
  • Fix crash when exiting Editor
  • Fix Editor full screen scaling issues
  • Several idle fixes
  • Fix asteroid initial velocity
  • Fix Zone not triggering EnteredZone event
  • Fix Zone not getting IDs
  • Fix odd crash with Zone Control and returning flags
  • Fix Rabbit 'carrot' color
  • Fix robot default Names
  • Fix Editor saving IDs of objects to file
  • Fix ForceFieldProjectors from jumping to incorrect walls in the Editor
  • Fix levelgen scripts not actually working
  • Fix really old bug where bursts only added horizontal force to moving objects
  • Fix timers in Lua scripts
  • Fix/add several Lua API methods on many objects
  • Fix teleporter not teleporting multiple people when triggered
  • Fix not being able to chat when engineering a teleporter
  • Fix possible Windows update problem
  • Fix crashes with Robots picking up various items
  • Fix phantom forcefields being in games after using the Editor
  • Don't publicize testing/debug servers on master
  • Fix loading of joystick presets on Linux
  • Fix fading UI when typing a message on death
  • Several SpyBug fixes related to kickback and destruction
  • Allow larger barrier width in Editor curve tool
  • Fix crash in OSX with provided a predefined nickname
  • All wall corner snapping for PolyWalls
  • Fix multiple vertex selection in Editor
  • Fix other crashes
  • Fix connection speed bug
  • Fix Robots not having the proper colors in Rabbit
  • Fix /random level display when voting
  • Fix weird Editor vertex problem on PPC (endian problem)
  • Fix Lua API crash with Soccer ball
  • Other changes:
  • Lua API change: Constructing objects that require points must use a Lua point.new() instead of simple coordinates
  • Small rendering performance improvements
  • Server processing performance improvements
  • Update lua-vec to use Lua 5.1.5
  • Increase default Core health to encourage longer Core games
  • Kick old authenticated logins if you rejoin a game

New in Bitfighter 018 (Dec 6, 2012)

  • Headline Changes:
  • New weapon: Seeker
  • Engineered Teleporters
  • Energy recharges faster if you are idle for 2 seconds or more
  • New music (more than 1 song this time!)
  • Sensor module changes
  • More badges!
  • New features:
  • New weapon: Seeker
  • Teleporters can be engineered
  • Energy recharges faster if idle for 2 seconds or more
  • Simplify energy recharge rules -- no longer change rate in friendly, hostile, enemy, or neutral loadout zones
  • Added /mnext and /mprev commands to cycle music
  • Added /random to randomly jump to another level
  • Added /idle command to let you go 'away from keyboard' without game penalty. There is a 5 second delay when wanting to rejoin
  • Bot auto-balancing option added to server (See INI)
  • Levelgens can now stay alive and react to game events... the dawn of triggers and switches is here. To be continued in 019.
  • Can merge two polygons in editor (select both, press J, just like joining two line segments)
  • Chat flood protection
  • Core game scoring is more intuitive
  • More badges: BBB ranks, Zone Controller, Level Contest Winner
  • Sensor module changes: passive detection at a certain radius, active placement of spybugs (removed double-click placement)
  • Better Lua documentation (but still a work in progress)
  • Tracker music now supported (via libmodplug)
  • New menu/game/credits music
  • Music now fades in and out
  • New command line option: -nomusic
  • OSX has an updater built in
  • Migrate Windows and Mac to SDL2 framework
  • Migrate to GLES 1.0 in preparation for possible Android/iPad releases
  • Migrate to LuaWrapper for internal Lua binding
  • Bug fixes:
  • Fix credits scrolling
  • Robot decision making has been reduced to limit CPU usage
  • Fix precision and language on editor arc script
  • Fix chat instructions
  • Fix 'Allow Robots' level option not saving
  • Fix not being able to type in lobby if the server list is empty
  • Fix editor bug with dragging CoreItem
  • Fix same-team turrets not firing at objects in front of you
  • Fix self-repair circle feedback
  • Fix accessing global chat from NameEntry screen
  • Fix several memory leaks
  • Fix some /commands and their documentation
  • Other changes:
  • Major overhaul to robot scripting -- increased efficiency, and set stage for future enhancements. Breaks some existing bots.
  • Restore white color of Core panels
  • Performance improvements to game logic
  • Screenshots taken at default canvas size (800x600) unless in editor. Improves consistency and quality of shots.
  • Remove launcher scripts for all platforms
  • Add new joystick profile (Firestorm Dual Analog 3)

New in Bitfighter 017b (May 10, 2012)

  • Bug fixes:
  • Fix several client connection crashes
  • Fix several server connection and robot crashes
  • Fix F5 not exiting global chat
  • Fix 32-bit Linux music crash
  • Fix editor crash with copy and pasting force fields
  • Fix loading/testing editor levels and several objects end up at (0,0)
  • Fix robot Lua method 'setThrustToPt()'

New in Bitfighter 017a (Apr 2, 2012)

  • Cores altered significantly
  • First achievement implemented (25 flags)
  • Better idle handling of players
  • High scores menu and better help menus
  • Lots of bug fixes

New in Bitfighter 017 (Mar 31, 2012)

  • Headline Changes:
  • Cores altered significantly
  • First achievement implemented (25 flags)
  • Better idle handling of players
  • High scores menu and better help menus
  • Lots of bug fixes
  • New features:
  • Core now features shootable panels
  • New menu music
  • Pulse: new kinetic component to the Boost module. Uses all available energy; speed is dependent on available energy
  • Voice chat mute by player with /vmute
  • 25 Flags achievement/badge: return 25 flags during nexus in an official game with not flag spawns or preset flags
  • High Scores screen selectable from main menu
  • Other enhancements:
  • Ctrl+left-click no longer translates to right-click on Windows or Linux
  • Can drag & copy in the editor with ctrl+drag (meta+drag on OSX)
  • Editor performance gains when copying large numbers of objects
  • Can now use variable substitution in chat messages; designed primarily for bots, ideal for explaining how to do something Use %XXX% where XXX can be the name of a keybinding (get the names from the INI), or %playerName%. Vars are case insensitive.
  • Hostile load-out zones always drain energy, even if moving
  • Hostile FFs allow flags through again
  • Save previous level's loadout as on-deck for the next level, if the next level has load-out zones
  • Music for menu and in-game is separate. Bitfighter looks for menu.ogg in the 'music' folder, anything else will play in-game
  • New help page for in-game indicators like scoreboard marks
  • Scroll wheel can be used in menus and in-game weapon switching
  • In case of unrecognized joysticks, use a default profile from the INI so users can edit it
  • Fancy text effect when returning more than 100 flags in nexus
  • Idle players are grayed-out in the scoreboard
  • Idle players are no longer included in game statistics if they've been idle the entire level
  • Idle players may be kicked if they've idled too long
  • Server will suspend if all players go idle
  • Server command line options: -nolevelchangepassword, -noadminpassword
  • Bug fixes:
  • Sparks from previous levels are cleared when a new level loads
  • Fixed bullets not shown in commander's map with sensor module equipped
  • Mac basic shortcut keys work
  • Fix game shutdown crash on PPC
  • Fix Mac fullscreen crash by forcing fake fullscreen for now (you will have to hid the dock)
  • On Windows, fix playing music spiking the CPU and not allowing the bitfighter process to finish
  • Fix gametype instuctions (F2)
  • Restore movement in quickchat menus
  • Fix repair distance behavior. This may allow healing at a slightly longer distance
  • Fix music not being played from local music folder on Mac
  • Fix some memory leaks
  • Fix some connection issues
  • Fix several random game crashes
  • Fix s_bot on Retrieve gametype
  • Fix some Editor object copy problems
  • Fix Editor not reading in 2-point walls with both points the same
  • Keypad numbers should work as regular numbers in-game
  • Fix mouse menu scrolling
  • Single-team game leaderboard should now always display correctly
  • Fix inserting vertices into diagonal barriers
  • Fix black screen of death when chatting + idle on level change
  • Fix several player idle/spawn-delay issues
  • Better handling of idle players and balancing teams
  • Fix animation of Core not spinning when game time was set to unlimited
  • Fix Core stuttering with time changes

New in Bitfighter 016 (Feb 1, 2012)

  • Headline Changes:
  • New game type: Core
  • Weapon and module changes and upgrades
  • Better voice chat for all platforms
  • Screen shots fixed
  • Soccer pick-up dropped and soccer ball inertia added
  • Gameplay:
  • Added Core game type. Destroy enemy cores to win. Core health can be set in the editor.
  • Added loadout presets. Players can save loadouts with Ctrl-1/2/3 and load them with Alt-1/2/3. Loadouts are saved via INI and can be viewed with the /showpresets command.
  • Upgraded Sensor increases passive viewing range and allows spybug placement without using a weapon slot. Spybugs are now placed with double-click
  • Added spawn shield. Protects newly spawned players for several seconds until they move, activate a module, or fire a weapon
  • Energy recharge rate increases while idle and doubles while idle in a loadout zone. Hostile loadout zones drain energy.
  • Removed soccer ball pick-up. The ball is now “heavier”, and other objects, like TestItems, are heavier as well.
  • Triples consume about 20% less energy than in the 015 series
  • Bouncers are more effective against the Armor module
  • Loadouts no longer carry over from level to level -- now you start a new level with the default loadout
  • Added top scores in single-team games like Rabbit and Bitmatch to lower right corner
  • Player ratings are determined by kill/death ratio. If you die more, your rating is negative
  • Forcefield engineer abuse has been greatly reduced. Note: Original forcefield behavior can be accessed through 'EngineerUnrestricted' instead of 'Engineer' in Specials
  • Team bitmatch suicides no longer hurt team score
  • Teleporting onto a loadout zone triggers loadout change, just like flying onto one
  • Client:
  • Added music sub-system. Plays Ogg Vorbis music files. You can test it by placing files in the 'music' sub-directory
  • Fixed screenshots; now use PNG format
  • Fixed voice chat for all operating systems, with improved quality
  • Reduced leave/join spamming in lobby
  • Allow /mute in server lobby
  • Fixed some game lobby bugs with leaving/joining being out of sync
  • Added scoreboard marks for admins (@) and level changers (+)
  • Joystick profiles are now kept in a separate INI, joystick_presets.ini, that can be adjusted and added to for your joystick
  • Smaller text should look crisper throughout the game
  • Line smoothing is now officially part of the game
  • Removed -jsave and -jplay cmd line options. It's been ages since they worked, and it's unlikely they ever will
  • -help cmd line option now displays meaningful help
  • Added engineer to help screen
  • Added Bitfighter icon for the taskbar
  • Diagnostics work a little better and will not show joystick info if none is attached
  • Allow for more than 32 different types of game objects for future expansion
  • Reduced CPU usage on diagnostics screen
  • Reduced CPU usage for overlapping asteroids
  • Migrated from GLUT to the SDL framework. This brings several improvements like faster rendering on Mac and nicer Input programming.
  • Fixed message rendering problem with disabled loadout indicators
  • Multi-line chat is now indented to prevent spoofing
  • Prevent impersonations with spaces in a username
  • Editor:
  • Added mouse wheel zooming in the editor
  • Implemented 2-tier snapping in editor -- hold space to disable grid snap, but still snap to wall corners and other items; hold shift-space to completely disable snapping
  • Added plugin system for the editor -- users can write scripts to generate items in the editor and bind them to hot keys. Includes simple curve generation tool as a sample.
  • Added editor option to disallow robots
  • Added 'tab' filename completion in editor levelname entry screen
  • Added mouse wheel scrolling for existing level names on levelname entry screen
  • Removed dedicated wall-editing mode (Ctrl-A)
  • Game statistics not recorded when testing a level from the editor
  • Hosting:
  • Added /leveldir admin command to change folder where levels are read. Change affects current session only, and will not be saved in the INI.
  • Added /ban and /banip for persistent server ban lists.
  • Added /resetscore command
  • Added /shuffle command for admins
  • Removed optional hostAddr cmd line parameter for -dedicated . Specify host address (only rarely needed) with the existing -hostAddr option
  • Removed -server cmd line parameter; not sure it really ever worked at all
  • Incorrect admin and levelchange password entries are now logged in server log
  • Fixed rare crash with bot zone generation
  • Console command history now working in a sane manner
  • Bots & Scripting:
  • Robots are smarter with forcefields
  • Robot team messages now only go to the team
  • Robots only spawn if a valid script is detected
  • Removed deprecated getMove() method -- if your bot still relies on this, it will no longer work
  • Migrated onTick() to a standard event -- this will let bots unsubscribe to onTick events if they like (bot start out subscribed to onTick by default). See wiki for how to use this to make the bot sleep for a time.
  • Added nexusOpened and nexusClosed events. See wiki for details.
  • Lua added copyMoveFromObject, Lua getCurrLoadout and getReqLoadout can now be used for ships
  • LUA scripts print to the OGLconsole

New in Bitfighter 013e (Dec 28, 2010)

  • New unstretched fullscreen mode
  • When entering filename for editor, arrow keys select existing file names
  • Can take multiple screenshots without crashes (Ctrl-Alt-Q)
  • Enhanced menu system (more colors, more flexibility internally)
  • New hosting menu where players can specify passwords and server name
  • Can now supply a reason when using /shutdown command (e.g. /shutdown 30 Need to change levels; will restart shortly!)

New in Bitfighter 012a (Jan 16, 2010)

  • Fixed crashing issue during connect to remote server