Space in a New Light | Update 35 Preview

[bshapiroalbert]

Hey Everybody, there's a new preview of our next update, Space in a New Light, available!

Immerse yourself in a universe more awe-inspiring and realistic than ever before with our next-generation graphics in the biggest visual update to Universe Sandbox ever!

• The most realistic visuals Universe Sandbox has ever had.
  
• Hot objects will emit light based on their temperature.
  
• Objects will only glow in areas where they’re hot instead of the entire object glowing based on average temperature.
  
• A host of other improvements, not only to graphics but to our user interface, object multi-selection, and more!

Learn more about these new features:
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/230290/view/4452466204163967359

See the full list of new features in this preview version:
https://universesandbox.com/whatsnew-preview

We’ve updated our minimum hardware requirements with this update to include

• 4 GB dedicated video memory (up from 2 GB). 8 GB will be recommended.
  
• Apple: macOS 11.0 or later, Silicon CPU (M1 or newer), meaning that Intel Mac will no longer be supported.
  
• Windows: Windows 10 21H1+, Direct X version 12

We’ll ensure all users affected by this change can always access the version of Universe Sandbox from before this minimum requirements update.

If you find any bugs or have any feedback or suggestions, please let us know in this thread, through our in-game feedback system, or on our Discord.

To opt into the Universe Sandbox Preview
1. Exit Universe Sandbox
2. Right-click on the game title in your Steam Library
3. Click on ‘Properties’
4. Select the ‘Betas’ tab
5. Set the dropdown menu to ‘!preview-version’
6. Close the Properties window
7. Steam will now update Universe Sandbox to the experimental build
8. Once updated, launch Universe Sandbox

[bshapiroalbert]

Originally posted by Kanarek:

I have encountered a serious crash (I've described it in the Support section of Steam discussions) and I have begun wondering if playing the game is safe to my computer. Can such crashes potentially damage my PC? I lack the knowledge to know this myself. I would like to test the update and provide meaningful feedback but not at the risk of my PC.

Thanks for reporting this. We definitely don't want you to experience any major crashes while playing Universe Sandbox.

I was unable to reproduce the issue myself following the steps you provided and I've replied to your message and report directly in your forum thread and we want to look into the potential cause.

We never want Universe Sandbox to cause a crash on your computer (and it never should) since we know that can be frustrating. If Universe Sandbox is causing frequent crashes, you may want to refrain from testing it, however crashes shouldn't occur often and are most likely to only cause you to lose unsaved work if you have any other applications running.

All that said, it's up to you whether you want to continue testing our preview version and I'm happy to try and answer any other questions you have.

[gregory.knapp]

Originally posted by bshapiroalbert:

Originally posted by gregory.knapp:

Thanks for the new information.

Does this mean that it won't be long before the update is in full release?

We still have a few known issues and a bit of polish we want to do before we release the full update. We also want to get lots of feedback from our community on things they like (or don't like) and bugs they find.

Depending on what gets reported, it may take a little longer to get the graphics update ready for a full release. We want to make sure it's in good shape and isn't full of bugs or other issues at full release. And we may run into other unforeseen challenges that make things take a little longer.

In the meantime, I'd recommend checking out the preview version. One of the reasons we released it for testing is because we know everybody has been waiting to try it out for a long time, and any and all feedback is appreciated.

Then I'll remember not to disturb you while you work.

[Kanarek]

I have taken a picture in the Preview version and would like to share:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3373925418

[justdeltaxd]

Hey Universe Sandbox Team, have you guys ever considered adding aurorae borealis to the game?

[Frozenduck75]

When I loaded up the preview on my M1 Macbook Air all the planets looked grey and black and I couldn't get them to appear normal no matter what I did.

[bshapiroalbert]

Originally posted by Frozenduck75:

When I loaded up the preview on my M1 Macbook Air all the planets looked grey and black and I couldn't get them to appear normal no matter what I did.

Thanks for reporting this. We're aware of these visual issues currently showing up on Mac computers and are looking into a solution.

Originally posted by justdeltaxd:

Hey Universe Sandbox Team, have you guys ever considered adding aurorae borealis to the game?

Thanks for asking. We haven't thought much about it because the physics of the aurora require simulating some somewhat complex electricity and magnetism effects that we currently don't simulate in Universe Sandbox. That doesn't mean we won't ever add it, but it won't be anytime soon.

[Bad Axe Man]

Lets hope this super mega update doesn't explode our houses when we try to play it

[somefoolouthere]

Is there a better chance of displacements coming back with these new graphics?

[SkullKid0155]

I noticed a bug (or missing detail) with the rendering of black holes, the photon sphere does not show up. The gravitational lensing is superbly accurate, but the photon sphere just isn't there.

[Kanarek]

Stars used to have spots on their surface. In the Preview version, this feature appears absent. I wonder why. A star's surface looks plain, for example Sun.

[Kanarek]

I have taken another picture in the Preview version and would like to share:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3378452879

[bshapiroalbert]

Originally posted by SkullKid0155:

I noticed a bug (or missing detail) with the rendering of black holes, the photon sphere does not show up. The gravitational lensing is superbly accurate, but the photon sphere just isn't there.

Thanks for asking about this. Aphoton sphere around black holes requires many light sources close to the black hole to be emitting photons from all directions that fully bend around the black hole. We don't simulate individual photons around a black hole, and don't include any specific, separate rendering for a photon sphere (and haven't in the past as far as I know).

You should be able to replicate the effect by surrounding a black hole with a sphere of stars or other light sources so their light is always bent around a black no matter what direction you view it from.

Originally posted by Kanarek:

Stars used to have spots on their surface. In the Preview version, this feature appears absent. I wonder why. A star's surface looks plain, for example Sun.

These star textures are still there I believe, they're just washed out by the intensity of the light given off by stars, and the Light Intensity slider is currently broken (we're working on a solution to that).

[SkullKid0155]

I've noticed another bug, the black holes seem to be stuck with an exaggerated scaling regardless of object scale settings, resulting in them being visible at galactic scales when there is no way they should be.

[Kanarek]

Originally posted by SkullKid0155:

I've noticed another bug, the black holes seem to be stuck with an exaggerated scaling regardless of object scale settings, resulting in them being visible at galactic scales when there is no way they should be.

I have noticed the exact same bug, however I have not reported it yet.

[bshapiroalbert]

Originally posted by SkullKid0155:

I've noticed another bug, the black holes seem to be stuck with an exaggerated scaling regardless of object scale settings, resulting in them being visible at galactic scales when there is no way they should be.

Thanks for reporting this. We're aware that black holes are currently always rendering on top of other objects, making them visible in all scenarios. We're looking into ways we can improve this to make their visibility more realistic.