Hello engineers!

A new video was just released on my main YouTube channel discussing the history and current state of the power generation DLC! NOTE: this video does contain a sponsored segment and is not a normal development update. For those who don't know, I was a YouTuber before Steam Engine Simulator was released and at this point I still rely on sponsor support and Patreon to sustain myself. You can skip to 01:04 to skip this segment or use the timestamp included in the video.

Work officially started on this DLC in July of 2023. A new developer, Hjorgun, put together the initial prototype which was completed in October and by December the DLC had most of the elements that were originally envisioned.

To me though, the final result was just not good enough to release and considering the greater than expected number of wishlists, I decided against releasing it.

The game mechanics were redesigned with a more detailed economy that intends to keep the game engaging and encourage the player to operate the engine as efficiently as possible. The basic mechanics are:

• Fuel can be purchased to run the steam engine and generate electricity
  
• Buildings can be constructed in the city to expand population capacity
  
• Building upgrades can be purchased which increase profit margins
  
• The player must occasionally maintain their infrastructure (replacing snapped cables, etc.)

There are some emergent mechanics from the simulation itself, like power generation being less efficient when demand is lower (due to parasitic losses in the engine being more significant in relation to the engine's output).

Most of the components of the DLC are complete with the exception of the mailbox and a single gauge cluster in the lower right corner. The mailbox will be where the player receives letter from concerned citizens, advisors and the other simple NPC's in the game.

Thanks for watching.

- Ange

Greetings steamers!

The revised core mechanics of the new Power Generation DLC are now complete and I feel ready to reveal some in-development footage. Check out the video on my second channel and let me know what you guys think.

- Ange

Hey guys, if you want to learn about what's happening in the Engine Simulator universe, please check out the latest update on my YouTube channel!

Hey guys!

Judging by the "RIP dev" and "where DLC?" comments on both Steam and Discord, I can tell that a lot of you are upset, and I completely understand why. I originally intended for December to be a tentative release date (ie plus/minus a few weeks) but in retrospect, this was definitely a mistake on my part.

The DLC is in a complete and playable state right now, undergoing testing with a small group of 30 play-testers. Honestly, I'm just not 100% happy with it as it is now and I had to make the difficult decision to not release in December. With such an unexpectedly high number of people wishlisting/waiting for this DLC and many having very high expectations, I can't in good conscience release something which I'm not 100% comfortable with releasing. I hope you guys can understand.

I'm going to learn from my mistakes on this project and not announce the exact date right now. I know a lot of you are excited and want to know an exact date or a rough estimate but I'd rather prioritize the quality of the game over releasing on a particular schedule.

This game appears simple on the surface because of its 2D graphics, but underneath, it performs a lot of computation and features a very detailed physical simulation. Cutting corners on physical accuracy in order to achieve better gameplay is not a valid option for me and undermines the purpose of the game. This DLC had to be carefully designed to present an interesting and fun challenge without sacrificing the essence of the simulation or unbalancing the game's minimalistic aesthetic.

The DLC will cost between 1-5 dollars. So, why isn't it free? Steam Engine Simulator started mostly as a "meme" and I had put only a few weeks of effort into the project. At this point, I have over 350 hours of in-game time, just from testing during development. I have undoubtedly put over 1000 hours into developing this game. To remain sustainable (ie survive), I need some form of income. YouTube ads and sponsored segments are pretty unpopular for obvious reasons and while I greatly appreciate my Patreon supporters, I don't want to rely on crowdfunding forever. The traditional business model of selling a product feels simpler and more honest to me, compared to pushing ads or accepting crowdfunding donations. The base game will always remain free and I'll continue updating it into the future. Hopefully you guys understand why it just isn't feasible for this DLC to be free.

I really appreciate everyone's patience and the numerous people testing the new beta release and providing feedback. I am taking all feedback into consideration to release the best possible product for you guys. Thanks everyone and happy New Year!

- Ange

Greetings steam engine operators!

To prepare for the release of the Power Generation DLC, a public beta-testing branch (called beta) has been created for the base Steam Engine Simulator game. The game has received many performance and interface improvements as well as improvements to the physics engine which were needed for the upcoming content. You may find that it plays slightly differently compared to the previously released version of the game. I'd love to hear your feedback and straighten out as many bugs as possible before the release of the DLC. Feel free to join the Engine Simulator Discord Server[discord.com] to report issues and get development updates.

Thanks everyone!

I know that the new control style has not been popular with everyone. My rationale for this change was:

• With radial adjustment, adjusting the sensitivity is as easy moving the mouse further away or closer to the center of the widget
  
• With practice you can quickly open and close the valve but also adjust it very precisely, especially using the Shift key
  
• Many players actually complained that the PREVIOUS control style was not intuitive and requested that the valves be adjusted like valves in real-life
  
• When you master the movement, it is immensely more satisfying than dragging linearly which does not match the reality of what would be happening in real-life

I have around 350 hours of play-test time in Steam Engine Simulator and after getting used to the new control-style, I very much prefer it over the previous one. For players that have a few hours already in-game, it will take some time to get used to. I'll leave the radial controls for now and if people don't like them even after getting used to them, I'll add a setting to revert to the old control-style.

- AngeTheGreat

• Generally improved and more consistent performance
  
• Water pump pressure changed from 50 psi to 100 psi
  
• Water valve now controls water flow rate instead of water pressure
  
• Holding shift now allows the mouse to finely control valves and other components
  
• Pressure relief valve is now controlled with an adjustable stop
  
• Visual indicator added to show when tank is overflowing
  
• Quality calibration no longer adjusts the quality down if the user manually sets the quality
  
• Reduced instability noise when tank is fully filled
  
• Demon mode heat transfer coefficient increased

As always, please let me know if you encounter any issues as your feedback is critical to improving the game. Thanks everyone!

• New achievements
  
• Fixed a bug where display is jittery when zooming and panning at the same time
  
• Physics engine robustness improvements
  
• Removed unnecessary files from game folder

This game will not be expanded much from where it is now, however, I am working on an engine building game that will have many of the features you guys want. That is an entirely different project called "Engine Simulator 3D". You can also download the prototype of this project (not currently available on Steam) called "Engine Simulator" which does allow you to build and test gas-powered engines. Please check out my YouTube channel (all links in the game) to learn more.

In order to get some of the more insane achievements, some people have attempted running their games for many hours consecutively. A few have experienced the application freezing while doing this. I'm looking into it. I'm not sure what's causing it yet, but don't worry, your stats won't be lost if this happens as the game saves them periodically.

Some players have reported that Microsoft Defender in Windows 11 flags this game as suspicious or potentially containing a virus. I can assure you that this game does not contain any viruses or malicious code. I've already submitted a false-flag report to Microsoft and hopefully this will be patched soon. If you do notice anything suspicious about the game or have any questions at all, please let me know.