Today we move V14 from the public beta branch to the live branch of the game! While the bulk of this post is dedicated to the changes and additions in V14, please pay attention to the next section of this post so there is no confusion.

Branch Setup

• If you want to keep playing your V13 save with the old map, you need to swap to a secondary game branch created by the developer. Your V13 save will not work in V14. The new branch is called "V13 (No Support)" - and, as stated, will allow you to play V13 but will come with no further support.
  No bug fixes, no new content, etc.

• If you are playing on the current public beta branch with an established V14 save, you can access that save in the live branch after updating.

• If you are brand new to the game, or have no V14 save from the public test (beta) branch, you will need to start a fresh save.

To access the V13 branch OR the public test branch, right-click on [b]The Infected in your Steam library and hit properties. There you will find a BETAS tab. BETA will put you into the V14 public testing branch while V13 will put you into the branch designed for V13 save game files.[/b]

Note from the developer: The timing and scale of this update is something that I had never done before for The Infected. I contracted out to two studios for new asset work - one for the map and one for the new AI. Both sets of assets came out great. Unfortunately, as development progressed on the map asset, it became clear there would be a considerable delay due to unexpected circumstances. TLDR: I took possession of the map to stick to my timetable versus delaying the update for what could be months. I have made tweaks to it and will continue to do so because there are still things that can be fleshed out.

Now - patch notes!

New Map Environment

Notable changes:

• This is a far more rocky and rugged terrain with a large amount of new cliff and mountain meshes. The map overlay is just a guide, we encourage folks to explore and look around.
• Fish have been added to _most _bodies of water.
• New types of POI and buildings.
• New foliage
• Waterfalls and rivers.
• New cave systems.

Looting POIs

Many Infected players are used to our typical looting system- where items appear on or around tables, cabinets, etc. Lootable containers have been added to the POIs in V14. You'll want to explore and interact with many objects you encounter in your travels. (Examples; garbage bags, ovens, fridges, and more!)

New ATV Vehicle

Added a new early game vehicle type- an All Terrain Vehicle (ATV). While the ATV is at first presented to you in a broken-down state, the new tutorial section will lead you to repair the vehicle- teaching newcomers their keybindings and rewarding all with a faster method of transport. It even comes with a small storage chest! Be sure to check the local environment carefully as you search for vehicle parts, especially the lighthouse.

Fishing System

Say goodbye to poking fish with your spear, and say hello to a new way to fish! A new fishing mechanic has been added alongside a fishing pole & bait. You can now also store your fishing pole on the weapons rack.

Itempedia

The Itempedia has been completely overhauled and now exists as an interactive book in the game. Additionally, you can craft directly from the Itempedia, provided you have the materials in your backpack. Click the item image, and the required materials will automatically be added to the crafting table. There's a filter tab system to navigate alongside a new tab specifically for medical-related items.

Tech System

Like the new Itempedia, the available technology blueprints are also displayed via an interactive book. However, you no longer need to locate a book to learn a new technology recipe. Instead, in V14, players need to discover pages of the technology book in POIs. Players will be informed of the specific technology they have learned when a page is found, and a green checkmark will appear on the page.

AI/NPC's

3 new AI types have been added to replace the old vambie models. They have new looks, animations, sounds and behaviors. Fighting each type of AI will require a different strategy or some trial & error. Don't be afraid to head into the settings and adjust them to your liking until you get a hang for things. And don't forget to use that shield!

1. Vapirs: Infected humanoids with vampire traits. (1 boss and 2 minions)
2. Garwalfs: Infected humanoids with the look of werewolves. (1 boss and 2 minions)
3. Diggers: Infected humanoids with brutish aspects. (1 boss and 2 minions)

Land Claim Pole and Noise/Light System

The Land Claim Pole is a new construction item that resembles a signpost and is required for the construction & placement of some 'placeable' items within the game.

Interaction:
-You can add text to the Land Claim Pole, similar to regular signposts.
-You can toggle on the 'land claim radius,' which shows you the space covered by that specific claim pole and is used to calculate the amount of noise & light being produced within that radius.
-You can choose to display or hide a noise and light meter.

Noise and Light Mechanic:

In previous game versions, the aggressive AI was located in POIs and more randomly worldwide. They would target the player and frequently raid the home/base when the player was in residence.

In v14, we have introduced a new system that puts players in control of their fate. While some tweaks are being made, the overall design is as follows: placeables will generate noise or light, which you can track via the claim pole meter display, and once a meter is maxed out, a base attack is triggered.

Animal Husbandry

The_ Barn _is a new craftable structure (like the greenhouse) that works within the new animal husbandry mechanic. The Barn has its own butcher table and can house two animal types: goats and chickens.

Chickens: Can be tranquilized and, once picked up, are added to the backpack. You can add them to your kept animal list by interacting with the Barn. Chickens produce eggs that are used to craft complex foods.

Goats: Can be tranquilized, picked up, and carried to the Barn. Goats produce milk that is used to craft complex foods.

The Garage

The garage, previously used to summon the truck, has been updated to also summon the ATV.

Bush (New foliage type)

Similar to trees, you can cut down with a bush with your axe - they yield 10-15 sticks instead of logs.

Various New Items

• Tires that can be found in the lighthouse (for the ATV)
• Veggie Mix (used in the crafting of some complex foods)
• Milk, drop from goats in the barn. (used in the crafting of some complex foods)
• Eggs, drop from Chickens in the barn. (used in the crafting of some complex foods)
• Tranquilizer Arrow
• Fishing Pole and Fish Bait
• Small Ration

Changes to Caves and Ores

Acquiring ore within caves has been updated!
Placing an extractor inside of a cave is no longer restricted to pulling just one type of ore. Instead, you can gather all three ore types (Aluminum, Cobalt and Copper) by either random acquisition or by specifically targeting a type you desire.
Iron acquisition has not changed - placing an extractor anywhere not within a cave system will yield Iron.

Other things of note

NEW- Tree regrowth option in settings.
NEW-- Toggle to disable lighting effects in settings.
NEW - Wind system, wind turbines will no longer give a steady income of power. Probably wise to use a combo of wind and solar now.
NEW - Can now harvest dead animals in the wild without the need for the butcher table - the trade off is that you receive far fewer resources.
NEW - Various UI Button click sounds.
NEW- Added a suicide button to in game pause menu with confirmation buttons, useful if stuck.
CHANGE - New Tutorial/tasks
CHANGE - Log wall meshes texture change
CHANGE - AI settings options changed to accommodate the new AI.
CHANGE - No more shield delays, looks strange but a must to use the shield well.
CHANGE - Various food recipes have changed, consult the itempedia.
CHANGE - Instancing build parts, results in massive performance gains when players have huge bases.
CHANGE - Metal Spikes HP reduced from 500 to 350.
CHANGE - Barbed Wire HP reduced from 750 to 500.
CHANGE - Removed fish oil from the Antidote and swapped it with tallow because in winter only game mode, no fish are available.
CHANGE-Plank size in inventory adjusted from 1 x 6 to 1 x 5.
CHANGE- Default button for BLOCK is now Right Mouse Button. New players will have RMB as default, old players will still have T bound but it is recommended to change to RMB.

Bug Fixes

The following are descriptions of commonly reported bugs that have been fixed.

BUGFIX - Destroying the Jack O'Lantern ghost when no pumpkin was even added, would return a free pumpkin.
BUGFIX - Various UI Bugs.
BUGFIX - Could grab weapon using the mouse wheel while in the truck.
BUGFIX - Constructing and moving gates would sometimes result in the gate door collisions not properly being set.
BUGFIX - Armor not working against any Vambie Hits
BUGFIX - as soon as you press "E" to use the cart if you immediately press the Shield button you have the shield up while moving the cart, but then if you press E you drop the cart but the shield stays up and you can't interact with anything
BUGFIX - If you're using the Bow, do not try and raise the shield right after firing or it breaks it and you can't use the shield
BUGFIX - Metal Tip Spikes durability would be restored to its max after moving it.
BUGFIX - Build a greenhouse above your base building it will keep 23 degrees below without need for adding any coal or wood.
BUGFIX - Some characters such as (.,/) is new game names would cause loading issues.
BUGFIX- Spamming axe was allowing players to fast chop trees.