Patch 5.2a (Open Beta)

[morness]

Open Beta 5.2a – Update 3: Additional Improvements

Thank you for your ongoing support! Based on your feedback we have one additional improvement to the network speed that we would like you to try out, as well as 3 additional bug fixes. Please let us know what you think and hopefully we’ll be ready to update the live branch next week.

Additional Improvements:

• Altered the calculations involving network speed granularity to address the issue players were seeing where the game felt too fast or too slow.
  
• Loading into multiple treaty mode games no longer crashes.
  
• Units now behave correctly when unloaded from transport ships (in replays).
  
• Line of sight circles should now correctly follow units (in rare cases they would be misaligned)

Open Beta 5.2a – Update 2: Additional Improvements

Feedback from 5.2 has been positive so far and we have identified an additional area for optimization based on the community’s observations around late game performance. We have included this improvement, along with a few bug fixes, into this small update. So far our internal testing has shown improvement but we look forward to hearing what you think before we transition this build to the live branch!

As we look to the future of Age2 we wanted to provide a brief overview of what we have in store. Moving forward we will continue the Open Beta Program and give you, the community, an opportunity to provide feedback on a regular basis. We want to maintain focus on community issues and additional bug fixes. In patch 5.3 we will be tackling a variety of campaign issues, addressing bugs from previous expansions as well as custom campaigns. Currently we expect our future patches to focus on the following: patch 5.4 will focus on custom scenario bugs; patch 5.5 will look into ongoing AI improvements; and patch 5.6 will look at the multiplayer lobby issues. Based on your ongoing feedback we will continue to make adjustments as we monitor the forums.

Again, thank you for your support as we work together and keep moving forward!

Hotfix on Feb 20th

• Fixed crash for monk tooltip when playing with Russian language.

Improvements:

• Additional network speed improvements (best case is 17% faster)
  
• In game ping/lag/turtle icons have been updated to appear in the correct situations:
  
  • Yellow ping circle appears for players above 200ms ping.
    
  • Red ping circle appears for players above 400ms ping. Used to be 700ms.
    
  • Turtle icon shows up for each player that cannot maintain 90% of the simulation frame rate. Previously only showed up for the slowest player.
• Villagers should no longer stop and attack wolves (ordering a move command will now take priority so users can move villagers if desired)
  
• Additional AI improvements when pathing around walls and gates

Patch Notes – Open Beta 5.2

This open beta has significant improvements to the network speed system. Our testing has shown a noticeable improvement on faster connections and we encourage everyone to take a look at this build and let us know what you think!

We have also included some bug fixes and balance improvements based on your feedback. Moving forward we will continue to monitor the forums and work towards addressing the issues that are important to you.

Improved Network Speeds:

• Removed the added network delay on game start
  
• Lowered the minimum command delay to allow max performance on faster machines
  
• Improved the throttling system to allow for faster network speeds (where applicable).

Community Focused Fixes:

• Saving during a game should no longer cause a desync when watching the replay
  
• Full Random should no longer select maps the player does not own
  
• Rise of Rajas main menu music should now randomly be selected
  
• Player units should no longer get stuck in forests or be able to pass through walls
  
• AI should attack correctly and no longer freeze during a game
  
• AI improvements when sn-enable-patrol-attack set to 1:
  
  • Soldiers should no longer get stuck in animation loops
    
  • Soldiers should now attack the wonder correctly
    
  • Villagers should now respond to weak units attacking
    
  • Villagers should now attack towers correctly inside town-size

Additional Bug Fixes:

• Spectators should no longer crash when opening the tech tree in the game lobby
  
• AI Huns housing bonus should now function correctly with the original dataset
  
• Le Loi 5 AI should now attack correctly
  
• Bayinnaung 1 cinematics should now appear correctly

Balance Improvements:

• Malay cheaper fishing ship cost removed
  
• Malay Battle elephants 25% cheaper (rather than 20%)
  
• Malay age up bonus decreased from 100% to 80%
  
• Elite Rattan Archers +1 bonus attack vs infantry removed
  
• Elite Camel Archers +1 bonus attack vs infantry removed
  
• Elite Karambit warrior pierce armor reduced from 2 to 1
  
• Arquebus speed modifier on bombard cannons and bombard towers removed
  
• Harbors reload time increased from 2.5s to 3s
  
• Harbors HP reduced from 2200 to 2000 (docks are 1800)
  
• Elite Arambai search radius increased by 2 (so they target easier)
  
• Manipur Cavalry effect now split evenly over armor classes 21 and 11 (so researching masonry negates 50% of the effect)

How to access the Beta Branch:

• In Steam, right click on Age of Empires II: HD (while the game is not running).
  
• Select Properties.
  
• Select the BETAS tab.
  
• From the drop down, select Open Beta – Patch 5.2.
  
• Exit and restart Steam to ensure the update installs correctly.
  
  • To go back to the Live Build, select None in the BETAS tab dropdown.

[Sids]

Originally posted by Prosecutor Lurker#nihilo-satanis:

Originally posted by Andreas Lilja:

Probably a new DLC. It's been going for 2+ weeks now.

What would be the point of releasing a patch out of the blue.

That's nice. So those people don't feel ripped off.

TBH, I've never noticed any issues with RON. Admittedly, I don't play online, but unless that's a disaster, I don't see how they be too upset.

[morness]

Originally posted by John the Apostate:

Originally posted by LBr_bruce2:

People talking about 5.3 patch, but some news about the development of 5.2? It is spectacular to see the top players playing in steam and with DLCs, but for this to keep the MP should be smooth and stable. Or they stayed on voobly.

Morness has basically said they want to fix some pathfinding bugs before they make 5.2 official. Progress on that is...unknown.

It's not looking very likely that we'll be able to make the open beta live at this time. We've internally fixed the pathfinding issues in the main branch that is going towards 5.3, but couldn't get it repaired in the 5.2a open beta despite a few attempts -- sometimes branches diverge enough to make surgery risky. We'll create a new open beta at some point in the near feature, that will contain everything -- MP performance, campaign fixes, with some pathfinding improvements (not all of them), and then the next patch will be considered a big update.

It wasn't just the pathfinding problems we ran into, we uncovered several issues inside the multiplayer performance side as well which were fixed over a couple of updates. That open beta was super valuable and allowed us to get into a stronger position overall.

[Maennchen]

Originally posted by morness:

It's not looking very likely that we'll be able to make the open beta live at this time. We've internally fixed the pathfinding issues in the main branch that is going towards 5.3, but couldn't get it repaired in the 5.2a open beta despite a few attempts -- sometimes branches diverge enough to make surgery risky. We'll create a new open beta at some point in the near feature, that will contain everything -- MP performance, campaign fixes, with some pathfinding improvements (not all of them), and then the next patch will be considered a big update.

It wasn't just the pathfinding problems we ran into, we uncovered several issues inside the multiplayer performance side as well which were fixed over a couple of updates. That open beta was super valuable and allowed us to get into a stronger position overall.

Hello Morness,

I would like to thank you for the further development of the game and for the addressing of these topics in 5.3.

Please remember, however, everyone: It is important to us that a new beta (5.3) will come soon.

Best regards

[TheSerpent]

Originally posted by morness:

Originally posted by John the Apostate:

Morness has basically said they want to fix some pathfinding bugs before they make 5.2 official. Progress on that is...unknown.

It's not looking very likely that we'll be able to make the open beta live at this time. We've internally fixed the pathfinding issues in the main branch that is going towards 5.3, but couldn't get it repaired in the 5.2a open beta despite a few attempts -- sometimes branches diverge enough to make surgery risky. We'll create a new open beta at some point in the near feature, that will contain everything -- MP performance, campaign fixes, with some pathfinding improvements (not all of them), and then the next patch will be considered a big update.

It wasn't just the pathfinding problems we ran into, we uncovered several issues inside the multiplayer performance side as well which were fixed over a couple of updates. That open beta was super valuable and allowed us to get into a stronger position overall.

can u expand on pathfinding improvements please?

[TheSerpent]

Watch this from 27:00 onwards to see the "warning you are being attacked by" sound bug:

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/127339835

[King Jon]

Originally posted by morness:

It's not looking very likely that we'll be able to make the open beta live at this time. We've internally fixed the pathfinding issues in the main branch that is going towards 5.3, but couldn't get it repaired in the 5.2a open beta despite a few attempts -- sometimes branches diverge enough to make surgery risky. We'll create a new open beta at some point in the near feature, that will contain everything -- MP performance, campaign fixes, with some pathfinding improvements (not all of them), and then the next patch will be considered a big update.

It wasn't just the pathfinding problems we ran into, we uncovered several issues inside the multiplayer performance side as well which were fixed over a couple of updates. That open beta was super valuable and allowed us to get into a stronger position overall.

I'm confused about what this means. Does this mean that there won't ever be a patch 5.2 released? And that you'll instead just skip 5.2 and go straight to 5.3? If the current 5.2 open beta patch isn't the latest version of the game (and there's already a build with 5.2's fixes in it as well as a start on 5.3's fixes), then why bother spending any more time working on it?

I can understand how this happened, and this isn't a criticism, but will this new open beta you mention be a 5.3 open beta or another 5.2 open beta? And if it is a 5.3 open beta, what will be released officially as 5.2? Seems like a bad idea to release 5.2a if it makes pathfinding worse than 5.1 and also a bad idea to waste any more man-power fixing 5.2a for release if the current state of the 5.3 build already is superior (i.e. contains the pathfinding fixes that you can't work into 5.2).

[Furious]

Do the developers have a date where they would recall 5.2 would be coming out??. just wondering when to return to steam AOE HD. baught the new dlc in december and havent really had a good game sins it came out. :(

[Foraning]

I'm wondering what the developers are doing. How do they manage to make almost 20 year old game more laggy and buggy even with a multitude of patches?

[CheeseOnToast]

Originally posted by Foraning:

I'm wondering what the developers are doing. How do they manage to make almost 20 year old game more laggy and buggy even with a multitude of patches?

Care to clarify on the bugs?

[Mister Mycelium]

Originally posted by CheeseOnToast:

Originally posted by Foraning:

I'm wondering what the developers are doing. How do they manage to make almost 20 year old game more laggy and buggy even with a multitude of patches?

Care to clarify on the bugs?

This

[morness]

Originally posted by TheSerpent_:

Originally posted by morness:

It's not looking very likely that we'll be able to make the open beta live at this time. We've internally fixed the pathfinding issues in the main branch that is going towards 5.3, but couldn't get it repaired in the 5.2a open beta despite a few attempts -- sometimes branches diverge enough to make surgery risky. We'll create a new open beta at some point in the near feature, that will contain everything -- MP performance, campaign fixes, with some pathfinding improvements (not all of them), and then the next patch will be considered a big update.

It wasn't just the pathfinding problems we ran into, we uncovered several issues inside the multiplayer performance side as well which were fixed over a couple of updates. That open beta was super valuable and allowed us to get into a stronger position overall.

can u expand on pathfinding improvements please?

I'm not the one working on it, but at a high level, there have been improvements on preventing units from going through walls, making blind waypoints into inaccessible areas work better. For example, if you send a scout off to explore, it won't get confused while still trying to approach the place you clicked. There are a few other things, but I'm not sure what they are yet.

[Maennchen]

Hi Morness,

please don't forget the pathfinding of the transportships. Thx.

[NIKFS]

Originally posted by luckyjoker:

Hi Morness,

please don't forget the pathfinding of the transportships. Thx.

Maybe the spectator bugs concerning transports as well, although 'jesus monks' do look funny ^^

[Terminator]

Originally posted by NIK_F_S:

Originally posted by luckyjoker:

Hi Morness,

please don't forget the pathfinding of the transportships. Thx.

Maybe the spectator bugs concerning transports as well, although 'jesus monks' do look funny ^^

According to the patch notes this is fixed:

Originally posted by morness:

Open Beta 5.2a – Update 3: Additional Improvements

Additional Improvements:

• Units now behave correctly when unloaded from transport ships (in replays).

Is it still there?

[NIKFS]

Originally posted by Terminator:

Originally posted by NIK_F_S:

Maybe the spectator bugs concerning transports as well, although 'jesus monks' do look funny ^^

According to the patch notes this is fixed:

Originally posted by morness:

Open Beta 5.2a – Update 3: Additional Improvements

Additional Improvements:

• Units now behave correctly when unloaded from transport ships (in replays).

Is it still there?

Hmm, will checkt it tomorrow i guess^^