The Steam release

Roadmap

To Steam

Overview and purpose

This page captures the features, capabilities, bugs, and general tasks of particular concern to the future Steam release of Beyond All Reason (BAR). This page groups and prioritizes these concerns to aid organization, tracking, and communication of the team's progress towards the first Steam release.

This list will be used to help the team ascertain the readiness of BAR for Steam release. Such a decision will be made by the team, considering all factors including those that have not been captured here

Priorities

A “must” item means that we cannot, under any circumstances, Steam release without this item completed. A “should” item means we cannot Steam release without either completing it or having a viable workaround.
Everything here is of course subject to change.

Scope

Only items (such as features, capabilities, bugs, general tasks, et cetera...) that impact the release of BAR to Steam are considered in this document. It may not necessarily contain every such item if that would interfere with the purpose of this document (for example, small tasks that can be resolved quickly enough that recording them here is not worth the effort.)

Roadblocks

Chapters

Last update: 1 May 2025

InternationalizationGameplayGFX / SFXMappingEngineNew ClientMiddleware server
⚫ Not Started
🔴 Started
🟠 Work in Progress
🟡 Almost Ready
🟢 Ready
lead teammembers
Watch the fort

Internationalization

Must
  • 🟠 Full game internationalization, in at least the major European languages WIP
  • 🟡 German (~90% done), Spanish (~95%), French (~100%), Czech (~75%) WIP
  • 🔴 Support for glyphs from other languages
Should
  • 🟠 Far-eastern languages
  • 🟡 Chinese Simplified 95% done
  • 🟡 Polish 90% done
  • 🟢 French 100% done and in-game
  • 🟢 Russian 100% done and in-game
  • 🟡 Hungarian 80% done
Want
  • ⚫ Voice internationalization - A lot of notifications are generated using robotic text-to-speech with added post-processing, English voice. English still isn’t fully ready. Internationalization is possible with TTS voice - though not (yet) on par with quality of English voice.
  • 🟠 Other languages:
    Portuguese 95% done
    Spanish 90% done
    Korean 85% done
    German
    Czech
    Ukrainian
    Turkish
    Dutch
    Italian
    Finnish
    Swedish
lead teammembers
Everyone

Gameplay Content

Must
  • 🟠 Seamless first play experience: The first play experience, from the point the player clicks Download in their Steam library to issuing the first command to their Commander, must be seamless - it must be error free with zero points of friction. Most steps are relatively easy without Steam:
    - Download from site
    - Install application
    - Run application
    - Connect to server
    - Create account
    - Find or Create first game
    - Load first game
    - Issue first command

  • 🔴 Single-player campaign 2 faction-specific storylines around 15-20 missions each 
  • 🟡 (Fully scripted) Tutorial mission. First mission has been made and operational
  • All (or most) missions except the tutorial must be playable in coop mode with an arbitrary number of players. As shared commander or multiple teams
  • 🟡 Improve AI’s further so chances of bugging/stalling/getting stuck is further reduced. As AI is very(!) important, we need it to work as well as possible. There still are some situations AI handles poorly. 
  • 🔴 Make AI and units avoid walking into lava (needs engine update)
  • 🟡 Finalize on Raptor & Scavenger game-modes Ideally including new skinned-mesh texture animations
Should
  • 🟡 Continuous improvement of Balance Zecrus
  • 🟠 In-game cutscenes between missions. With new Tactical Ultra-Responsive Brilliant Optics for BAR Camera
  • Narration.
  • 🟠 Add multiple AI behavior presets Like turtle, aggressor, defensive, balanced, easy, medium, hard
  • 🟡 Improve specific gameplay options/modes and make them work f.e. Play as Scavengers or Raptors
  • 🔴 Remake Ruins and all blueprints with better balance/unique styling And ideally new/more varied models/structures
Want
  • 🟠 Ability for players to create their own missions/scenarios, using in-game tools and a text editor to create basic missions, along with the ability to share these missions and play them cooperatively with friends. Making scenarios is currently possible in-game + with editing a text file
  • 🟢 Ability for players to create/save presets of settings for their favorite play-style, so they can jump in their ideal game faster And share this with friends/community
  • 🔴 New Game mode for fully dynamic battles games based on a ‘seed’ so other players/teams can share/compete in their survival / victory-rates / times. Game-master-AI controlled events like dynamic weather changes f.e. Solar eclipse, sand/thunderstorms, acidic-rain, solar-flare, random dropship-events, awakening of underground Raptor hordes, Scavenger attacks, etc.
  • 🟠 Control gamemode renewed mode is in the works but needs to be improved
lead teammembers
IceXuick
Floris

Graphics & Sound

Must
  • 🟢 RLMGUI framework First working version in engine now.
  • 🟡 Re-design UI Preparations/research first designs are done - now in phase to finalize on layout and design theme
  • 🟠 Re-build UI with RMLUI RMLUI is now in the engine ready for building widgets & blocks!
  • 🟡 Improve unfinished/unpolished UI parts for uniform styling
  • ⚫ A lot more Sound notifications + upgrade from Allison V3/V4 to V5 Roughly 80-120 notifs for tutorials mainly
  • 🟡 Improve/replace legacy textures with new Cortex done, Armada candidate for a remake, Legion mostly ready
  • 🟢 Missing cursor animations
  • 🟡 Fix Broken Attack & Defense Range Rings with new/better improved Optionally fully replacing engine range rings
Should
  • 🟠 Upgrade GUI to have a more character/design BAR Soul
  • 🟠 Add more dynamic ambient soundscapes to maps Many sounds are gathered, need mastering
  • 🔴 Add more/unique sounds to Scavenger and Raptor Units and weapons
  • ⚫ Design modal(s) for use in Scenarios/Campaign f.e. Tutorial Guide-book
  • 🟡 Clean up & upgrade of some particle effects Mainly for shell/unit explosions
  • 🟠 Find a proper/universal fix for live-stream stutter When recording/streaming with specific settings (jitter)
  • 🟢 Upgrading all Lights 2.0+ Add Distortion 1.0 effects With new GL4 tech + shaders
Want
  • 🟡 Improve overall quality of the UI with better scaling/anti-aliasing RMLUI can fix this
  • ⚫ Add (more) subtle animations & sounds RMLUI can fix this
  • 🔴 Easier UI configurability RMLUI can fix this
  • 🟠 NightMode Nightmode (fixed) setting or Day-Night Cycle + some new mechanics like less solar energy income
lead teammembers
NIKUKSIS
ICEXUICK

Mapping

Must
  • 🟡 Fix a handful of maps with older tech / or (slightly) broken parts/features
  • 🟡 Finalize a list of ‘BAR Certified’ maps, and which ones included in the release
  • 🟢 Centralize map data into BAR infra to Rowy Marek
Should
  • 🟠 Add ±10-20 more maps to support asymmetrical play. Aimed at PvE/Coop/Solo players.
  • 🟡 Also some more FFA and Metal maps are welcome. 
  • 🔴 Upgrade (some) maps with proper atmospheric & sound effects Like fog, mist, fireflies, dust, sand-whirls, river/water/sea sounds, etc - Some work on Dynamic Sound Scape system Damgam /IceXuick is partly done.
Want
  • 🔴 A fully new set of Civilian Structures to be used as ‘ruins’ Like previous civilizations/settlements/outposts.
  • 🔴 A high-quality set of feature models Like cliffs, boulders, rocky-ridges and other natural/organic features, for more rich maps, with a higher quality design / atmosphere.
  • 🟠 Centralize all Mapping objects/models/textures to game instead of map
  • 🟠 Relatively easy to use Scenario toolkit Already possible with this guide from Beherith

lead teammembers
IVand
Tarnished Knight
Beherith

Engine

Must
  • ⚫ No github blockers
  • 🟢 Find weird small bugs with culling and grass popping
  • 🟠 Fix problem were changing resolution Can have very noticeable buggy effects
Should
  • 🟡 Extensive cross-platform and cross-hardware testing and validation
  • 🟡 Per-frame sim load variance reduction Anti-micro-stutter
  • 🟢 Better/new way for rendering Special Effects Like Cloak/Distort/Shields
  • 🟢 Inclusion of volumetric lighting For effects, units, weapons and explosions Beherith
Want
  • 🟡 Some additional multithreading optimizations Tarnished Knight
  • 🟡 Improve unit pathing and movement, minimising path issues such as clumping of air units and eight-way movement of sea/land units QTPFS Tarnished Knight
lead teammembers
Jazcash
Marek

BAR New Client

Must
  • 🟠 Feature parity with Current Lobby Practically testable
  • 🟢 Singleplayer Skirmish
  • ⚫ Multiplayer Battles
  • 🟢 Scenarios
  • 🟢 Maps section
  • 🟡 Replays
  • 🟡 Login
  • 🟠 Chat /Friends
  • 🟢 Downloads
  • ⚫ Completed interface with news, guides, tutorials, commands
  • ⚫ Basic integration with Steam
  • 🟠 Matchmaking
  • ⚫ Tournaments
  • ⚫ UI for keyind customization
Should
  • ⚫ Internationalization Probably will be a Must-have
Want
  • ⚫ Integrate superbly well with Steam
lead teammembers
Perfi
Marek

Middleware server

Must
  • 🟠 Tachyon protocol check more info here
  • 🟡 Matchmaking and finding
  • 🟠 User documentation For administrative functions
  • No github blockers Label should be made - not started
  • ⚫ Improve server scalability to thousands of users and load test
  • ⚫ Tournament integration
Should
  • ⚫ Contributor documentation
  • ⚫ Achievement system
  • ⚫ Internationalisation
Want
  • ⚫ Community polling system
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