Shapez 2 Early Access - FAQ

[Jelle]

Hey everyone! Glad you’re here for the Early Access release.

Here is a list of questions we get asked quite often and our answers. Please read through it before you ask your question on the Steam forum. The FAQ may be updated when more frequently asked questions arise.

General

What can I expect from Early Access?

We made a devlog about this very topic! You can find it here:

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/2162800/view/4357881096234065558

What platforms will the game be available on?

Our current focus is the Steam Version for Windows, Mac & Linux. It works on Steam Deck as well, but is not officially supported yet. We’re planning to improve this during Early Access!

Are Mac and Linux supported

Yes, both Mac and Linux are fully supported!

Is there controller support?

Console controllers are not supported at the moment, you’ll need keyboard & mouse or a controller with a trackpad to emulate the cursor (like the Steam Controller)

Is there support for 4K and Ultrawide monitors?

Yup, both are fully supported.

What is the Supporter Edition?

The Supporter Edition is a way to support us further that adds additional 40 minutes of music, rail twisters & train loops to the game! Keep in mind that the primary goal of the Supporter Edition is to support us, and the included content is a bonus as a thank you.

You can either get the Supporter Edition, which includes the base game and the extra content, or get the base game first and get the Supporter Edition Upgrade DLC later on. The total price is the same, barring any sales.

What’s the timeframe for 1.0 release?

We don’t yet have a set date, but keep an eye on our Hub and shapez 2 discord[discord.com]. We’ll let you know as soon as we do!

How big is your team?

Right now we are 8 people working full time on the game. While shapez was made by just Tobias, shapez 2 is produced by a much bigger team. We are also partially funded by the German Government and have external parties helping us out!

Will I get a discount if I already own Shapez?

There will be a "Shapez Complete Franchise" complete the set bundle which gives you a 10% discount if you purchase the following together, minus anything that you already own:

• Shapez 1
  
• Shapez 1 Puzzle DLC
  
• Shapez 2
  
• Shapez 2 Supporter Edition

Gameplay

What makes shapez 2 different from shapez 1?

At its core, shapez 2 is quite similar to shapez 1. However, the 3D world adds buildable layers to your factory and the addition of space platforms makes space a resource you’ll need to manage as well. We’ve also learned a lot from shapez 1 and the feedback it got, so we made a lot of changes and added new features to make it better!

Some of these new features include trains, fluids for painting, a flexible research system, new game modes (including Hexagonal shapes) and animated buildings that show exactly what’s going on inside!

Should I play shapez 1 before I play shapez 2?

There is no need, but you’re welcome to. The games exist next to each other and you can play whichever you prefer, or both!

How difficult is shapez 2?

The normal difficulty is intended to be accessible to many different people, even if they don’t have any experience with factory building games. There’s a tutorial to walk you through the early stages.

There are two more difficulty modes available with unique, increasingly complex shape goals. There’s also an experimental Hexagonal mode, giving you 6 segments per layer instead of 4!

How is performance compared to shapez 1?

With the switch to Unity for shapez 2 comes a lot of ways for us to optimize the simulation and performance of the game. The game runs very smoothly until 100,000 buildings and somewhat smoothly with 500,000. Most players will be able to finish the game with around 40,000 buildings. Meanwhile, shapez 1 started to lag around 5,000 buildings!

We’re planning to further improve the optimization of shapez 2, so you can make even bigger factories.

Will there be wires again?

Wires are back! They’re visually not completely finished yet, but mechanically they’re ready to go. Like shapez 1, wires offer extra depth for those who’re willing to explore it, but are not needed to finish the game on any difficulty.

Will there be multiplayer/coop?

It’s currently not in the plans, but may be something for us to look into later down the line if it’s a common request!

Are there Steam achievements for the game?

There currently are no Steam achievements for the game. They’ll be added for the full release!

Dimension Update

So, what exactly is the Dimension Update?

We’re glad you asked. The Dimension Update (0.1.0) is our biggest update yet, bringing some new features to the game and reviving some old ones, based on community feedback. You can find full details in our devlog!

Can I use my old save file(s)?

Savegames from 0.0.9-rc7 (the current version) are partially compatible, but might load with issues (i.e. Tunnels will be gone etc.). Savegames from previous versions (i.e. if you played on 0.0.8) are unfortunately not compatible, but we will make the current version of the game available as a branch on Steam, so you can continue playing. Loading an old game into 0.0.9 and then into this update should make it load (with the aforementioned issues).

Are there any more big updates planned?

The next major release after the Dimension Update will be 1.0, which we’ve got some big plans for. After that, we will continually update the game based on player feedback.

Will there be a new game mode, as mentioned in the devlog?

Unfortunately not in the Dimension Update. This was widely requested, and is something we’re working on, but we wanted to prioritise other in-demand features and give a polished, enjoyable experience. Keep your eyes on this space though!

Getting involved

How can I participate in the development process?

Join the shapez 2 discord[discord.com] to discuss the game and give feedback! We also run a lot of discussions and surveys there.

Where can I make suggestions?

While we do read the steam forums, we have a suggestions portal[shapez-2.nolt.io] where you can share your ideas! The community can then cast their vote. If it gets a lot of upvotes, it has a bigger chance to make it into the game in some way!

Where do I report bugs?

You can report bugs through the shapez 2 discord[discord.com] or right here in the Steam forums!

Do you have a development roadmap?

Not yet! We use the suggestions portal and community discussions to determine what we’ll be working on next.

Once we’ve gathered a ton of feedback and suggestions from the community, we’ll be able to make a plan on what changes and additions to prioritize.

Will there be modding support?

Official Modding support is planned for some time later down the line. We’ll keep you updated on any developments!

That’s not to say it’s impossible to mod it right now though…

I’m a content creator, where can I find your branding?

We have a press kit for shapez 2 here[impress.games]!

---

[raditz]

Originally posted by BadgerBot:

Well that de-escalated quickly x). EA in this case just means a great fully functional well working game but with development still engaged, don't worry.

Yeah, bought it. Nice so far, except Unity is cancer so I had to take everything to the lowest so my PC doesn't want to take off (I have a strong PC so FPS wasn't affected, it's just the usual stuff Unity making the GPU running in circles).

[raditz]

Originally posted by Ficus:

为什么流体管道的流量为7200/min ，而发射器的流量为1800/min？这使得我的流体结晶器没法达到满效率。——一个来此中国玩家的疑惑
Why is the flow rate of the fluid pipeline 72000/min, while the flow rate of the emitter is 1800/min? This makes it impossible for my fluid crystallizer to reach full efficiency. ——A question from a Chinese player

Ni hao. I guess you are supposed to use multiple emitters? 7.200 / 1.800 == 4.

[十六夜祭]

The guidance of the interstellar train was not detailed enough. I couldn't know from the game whether the train was allowed to transport two different types of goods on a circular railway while carrying two carriages. If I could and I didn't know how to operate it, I tried various attempts but still couldn't. I could only see the icon of the second type of cargo flashing at the loading station, but I couldn't accumulate the quantity.

[Ole Hockey Thighs]

Why is this game considered early access? It seems like a complete and virtually flushed out game and I'm curious as to what features it's missing to have it be considered early access.

Originally posted by BadgerBot:

Well that de-escalated quickly x). EA in this case just means a great fully functional well working game but with development still engaged, don't worry.

That's not what Early Access means. Early Access means it is still missing key features and not that there are some bugs that might need to be addressed; as that could be said for any game. Bug fixing goes on throughout the life of the game until the devs stop support for it.

I'm not trying to be rude but we need to define the words we use and use them by that definition. If "Early Access" can mean anything from major features are missing to there are still bugs in the game, then all games are early access and early access means absolutely nothing.

So I ask again, if this game is a fully flushed out game with only minor bugs outstanding, why is it Early Access? Are the devs simply unsure of themselves? Because they really shouldn't be as the only issues I've seen are when you LGIO the game and push it to it's absolute limit and even then 99% of it worked just fine.

[raditz]

Originally posted by Ole Hockey Thighs:

Why is this game considered early access?

Early Access means it is still missing key features and not that there are some bugs that might need to be addressed;

I agree and this is why I wrote the studio made a serious mistake by tagging the game EA, as people like me (reasonable players with "EA experience") are scared away.
This game is full and complete. End of story. Sure, they want to upgrade, make changes, add stuff based on player feedback, etc, etc, but that's not EA.

Didn't play a lot with it, but some and so far so good, so based on FAQ details + my personal experience, it's safe to buy this NOT EA game :)

[Xevar]

Please we want Multiplayer :) Its necessary for games like this imo <3

[Filter62]

Originally posted by Ole Hockey Thighs:

Why is this game considered early access? It seems like a complete and virtually flushed out game and I'm curious as to what features it's missing to have it be considered early access.

Originally posted by BadgerBot:

Well that de-escalated quickly x). EA in this case just means a great fully functional well working game but with development still engaged, don't worry.

That's not what Early Access means. Early Access means it is still missing key features and not that there are some bugs that might need to be addressed; as that could be said for any game. Bug fixing goes on throughout the life of the game until the devs stop support for it.

I'm not trying to be rude but we need to define the words we use and use them by that definition. If "Early Access" can mean anything from major features are missing to there are still bugs in the game, then all games are early access and early access means absolutely nothing.

So I ask again, if this game is a fully flushed out game with only minor bugs outstanding, why is it Early Access? Are the devs simply unsure of themselves? Because they really shouldn't be as the only issues I've seen are when you LGIO the game and push it to it's absolute limit and even then 99% of it worked just fine.

It's fully flushed out game that open for major ideas and major gameplay changes, that's why early access. Early access doesn't always mean half-baked abandonware. Yeah they could just release it as 1.0 basically yeah, it's more polished than many 1.0 releases from EA, but developers decided to tag it EA, it's their decision, so that's it kinda.

[amok]

Originally posted by Xevar:

Please we want Multiplayer :) Its necessary for games like this imo <3

No, we do not want muliplayer.

This is a puzzle game more than anything else, and imo, puzzle games do not lend themselves to MP. Adding MP to this game will only dilute from this being the best game that it can be.

Focus on making this a good SP game, then when the game is completed, they could look into some kind of MP. Though I am not really sure what that would look like or how it would play. You cannot 'see' other players in the game, you cannot interact with them. You would still only be parallel playing, though on the same field. I see very little difference in playing this in some kind of MP, which is not already acived by sharing the blueprints with your friends, that you can already do, without drasticaly changing how the game work.

[Filter62]

Originally posted by Xevar:

Please we want Multiplayer :) Its necessary for games like this imo <3

No.

[Larry Knuckles]

Originally posted by Filter62:

Originally posted by Xevar:

Please we want Multiplayer :) Its necessary for games like this imo <3

No.

Indeed. Can’t think of anything worse than MP tbh !

[haseon-on]

I played on windowsPC for about 8 hours.
The best game of this year!
Before travelling, I prepare Steam Deck and just installed Shapez2.
I could'nt see even title , when start [loading..] suddenly the game crashed again and again , go back to steam launcher.

What should I do?
I could play other steam games on my Steam Deck.

[zdziech]

Multiplayer would be great

[Rena]

Is anyone else getting "unable to accept invite" from Discord? Pretty sure I'm not banned since I've never been in the server before.

[Mein_Leben!]

Are there plans to release this on GOG when the game is finished?

[Earlchaos]

I just wanted to say "Shut up and take my money" :) Great update from Shapez 1!