Hello Survivors!

Today we have some exciting news. A new game mode! We are introducing a Basic Mode for new players learning the game and for seasoned players who want more simplified gameplay. The mode will include shorter rounds, a smaller map, a simplified ruleset, and no additional roles.

For those who like to spice things up, we also added more to the custom game mode! Enjoy a wealth of choices for how you want to enjoy your Project Winter experience. Have less than 5 players, control escape vehicle capacities, timer limits, a larger range for the number of traitors in the game, and so much more!

NEW FEATURES & GENERAL CHANGES

Basic Mode added! This is a new game mode designed to help first-time players ease into the main game mode or provide an alternative for veterans looking for a more fast-paced, streamlined game mode. It includes the following features:

• 15 minute rounds
  
• Smaller four-quadrant map
  
• Repair objectives only
  
• No additional roles (survivor and traitor only)
  
• Only blizzard global events
  
• No armory or truth serum lab
  
• Reduced pool of bonus objectives
  
• Reduced set of crafting recipes available
  
• Advanced items (combat stimulants, flares, etc.) no longer appear in crates
  

Custom Game changes:

• Minimum player limit for starting a match is now disabled for custom matches (players will not be eligible to earn points when playing with fewer than 5 or with no traitors)
  
• Minimum/maximum traitor sliders can now be set from 0 to 7, respectively (note these settings may be ignored to ensure one survivor is always present in the match)
  
• Game duration slider can now be set as low as 15 minutes
  
• Added new settings for disabling the truth serum lab or armory
  
• Added new setting for controlling whether berry bushes should respawn
  
• Added new settings for changing the traitor airdrop timers
  
• Added new setting for controlling escape vehicle capacity
  
• Added new setting to control whether power lines leading to second objective should be visible or not
  
• Custom game settings for the current match can now be viewed from the in-game ESC menu
  
• Hovering over the custom game icon in lobby browser will now only reveal settings that are changed (to make it easier to read)
  
• Updated various parts of the main menu play tab UI to go along with the addition of basic mode:
  
• Lobby browser now allows players to select a preferred game mode, which will display its description on the left and sort all lobbies of that type to the top of the browser window
  
• The host game and quick match buttons will now display a new game mode selection screen to specify which type of lobby you want to create or join
  
• The lobby screen design has been updated to be colour-coded based on the game mode of the lobby
  
• Removed option for Classic Mode on host game popup. This can still be played via a custom game with player roles disabled and all other settings left unchanged
  
• Locked lobby filter option in lobby browser now saves and persists between matches and subsequent launches of the game
  
• Added new cosmetic rarity colour for items purchased with artifacts, and improved cosmetic sorting to show newest items first for each rarity tier
  
• Improved UI for showing when escape vehicle has been sabotaged via the cabin radio
  
• Players speaking over the proximity voice channel will now have their indicators in the lower left fade based on their distance from your player
  
• Added crafting recipe item icons to tooltips of items that can be crafted or cooked
  
• Added additional messaging on the repair objectives UI to better inform new players of how to repair them
  
• Added new location indicators for most buildings and removed location indicators for environmental areas
  
• Mega blizzard notifications text updated to show timer and better indicate the mega blizzard is not immediately starting
  
• Updated visuals of tutorial page of game guide and removed video tutorial
  
• Added new message to the launch splash screens to emphasize that voice communication is recommended for playing the game
  
• Refreshed gameplay tips that appear on loading screen and reduced the time it takes for them to cycle
  
• Improved security for voice chat features
  

BALANCE CHANGES:

• Increased radius of effect for hot springs activation and sabotage
  
• Increased number of seats removed from sabotaging the escape vehicle for lower survivor counts
  

BUG FIXES:

• Fixed dying in areas where warmth changes at different rate (cabin, in water, etc.) continuing to apply if player is cloned later in the match
  
• Fixed issue where player’s items could darken and briefly becoming unusable if a ghost player disconnected under certain circumstances
  
• Fixed various areas where alternate keybinds weren’t being scaled for correctly on the UI
  
• Fixed various issues with controller navigation and button colours not being consistent with the rest of the UI
  
• Fixed solar flare audio not stopping if game ends while it’s triggering
  
• Fixed dragged player corpses being released too easily
  
• Fixed text elements not appearing on radial wheel when running at 4K resolution
  
• Fixed odd behavior of animals patrolling near steep slopes in the terrain (notably a bear near the canyon)
  
• Fixed host game popup being left on screen after an invite was accepted, if it was enabled
  
• Fixed menu screen becoming black if disconnection occurs during fade-out to playable tutorial
  
• Fixed investigate option showing on player corpses when roles are not enabled (as this provides no information unless there can be a detective present)
  
• Fixed points earned or lost for stealing resources from repair consoles awarding double the intended value
  
• Fixed players killed via bridge sabotage awarding points for survivors stopped in addition to survivors killed for the sabotaging traitor
  
• Fixed issue where player could be teleported into and trapped in a tree from solar flare event
  
• Fixed various map issues where players could get stuck in terrain or animals would behave improperly
  
• Fixed sabotaging cabin radio incrementing the “escapes called” stat
  
• Fixed issue where being downed while dragging a body was not releasing the body from being dragged for other clients
  
• Fixed cases where players could get stuck on a bridge that was repaired after a sabotage
  
• Fixed first-aid kits counting as crafted items rather than cooked items on stats page
  
• Fixed non-recyclable items not returning to correct colour when recycle mode is disabled
  
• Fixed traitors not receiving additional points for sabotaging an objective more than once
  
• [Blackout] Fixed issue where druid fire was too bright when player was near it as a ghost
  
• [Blackout] Fixed portal animation not resetting properly for players who’ve escaped and returned to the portal as a ghost
  

Keep your feedback coming!

We are eager to see the new gameplay these changes will bring! As always, we are listening and we encourage everyone to leave feedback in our community Discord in the #suggestions channel.

Stay tuned for more updates in the future, and thank you for your continued support!