0.347.4 - Hard Impact

New ore density charts released

The Astrogeological Society of Enceladus released an annual update of the ore density charts this week. It includes survey data on newly discovered dense vanadium and iron veins, as well as depleted tungsten and beryllium sites. Update is free for all premium subscribers of AstroGeoWorld. 

Dealerships required to permit access to ships

Following a number of reports on faulty ships being sold on second-hand markets, dealerships are now required to grant physical access to a ship for any prospective buyer before finalizing the transaction. While sellers are not required to offer a test flight to a prospective buyer, physical inspections must be permitted upon request. 

Mass driver ammunition quality control

Conlido announced new standards in their quality control policies this week. Previous complaints about fragile projectiles damaged by launch have been addressed. With a vanadium-hardened tip and a hollow collapsable iron core in their refined design, and more consistent manufacturing tolerances, Conlido has offered a guarantee that their projectiles will deliver more consistent results. 

Salvage interface upgrades available

The AR-1500 Manipulator has new software updates available. Given the nature of salvage in the rings, these manipulators have been updated to recognize and successfully interface with microcrafts such as the Heavily Armored Lifepod. Craft jury-rigged for salvage can now recover survival craft without necessitating an immediate return to clear their cargo bay. 

Maintenance Records

• Fine-tuned AI of frigates so they didn’t try the same tricks that work on smaller ships.
• AR-1500 Manipulator can will now return to rest position when powered off.
• AR-1500 Manipulator will now catch lifepods and drones.
• Ore density rebalance. You will now find more variance between ore types and all the ores will have some profitability.
• If your ship is stranded and the recovery crew picks you up, you will now receive a message explaining what is happening.
• Fixed a number of glitches on older graphics cards related to VRAM compression algorithms.
• Lowered video ram requirements.
• Enhanced the dealer screen. You can now view the promotional video separate from the ship description and you have an ability to examine the actual ship you are buying.
• Fixed a bug that caused the stone jet particle effect to be not visible.
• Some of the asteroids ignored first impact, making them much tougher than they should be.