Thursday, September 30, 2021

ETS2/ATS 1.42 Update Open Beta

We love to bring you new game updates, especially ones that have been highly requested by our community! Today, we are happy to share with you that the 1.42 update is now in Open Beta for both Euro Truck Simulator 2 and American Truck Simulator and is ready to be tried and tested by you, our #BestCommunityEver. 

Please keep in mind that this Open Beta is a work-in-progress build. If you plan on participating in this Open Beta, you can contribute by reporting any bugs you may encounter in the appropriate section(s) of our official forums. Your feedback and reports are extremely valuable for our team and we thank you in advance for taking the time to help us out.

Whilst our updates usually feature many new updates and changes, this update is focused more on introducing one new and big feature to our Convoy online multiplayer mode alongside some smaller updates and general fixes. With that in mind, let's take a look at what the 1.42 update has in store!

Convoy MOD Support

Support for third-party modifications in Convoy was a very loud request from our community when we first released our multiplayer mode. Since that time, our teams have made it a high priority on their list to support the use of MODs. 

However, this was not an easy task for our team, especially when it came to the challenge of profile recovery when a crucial MOD is removed or changed, and visualizing what MODs are missing from the Steam Workshop when players join a server that contains modifications. We have done our best to overcome these hurdles, however, there may be a few things that might need tweaking and changing before we are fully satisfied with the results.

We have also created a completely new UI to accommodate MOD support. When you enter the session browser, you will see a new section on the right side listing the MOD compatibility requirements for the server. We have also included new icons for servers to let you know which servers have MODs enabled and which do not. 

Previously, next to the server session, we indicated if you could or could not join the server using a red or green icon depending on if the session was full or due to problems with map compatibility or even with different game version numbers. We have now introduced an orange icon, which indicates you cannot join the server now, but via the new MOD synchronization UI you can download the missing modifications and join then!

If a modification is missing and it is available via the Steam Workshop, you will be able to download it via the Steam browser which will be overlaid in-game, so you do not need to exit the game to subscribe to it. This will be accessible by a new window that opens when you try to join a session where you have some missing MODs. This window will show you all your currently installed modifications on the left side and all the modifications the server is using on the right side.

If the server is using a modification that is NOT available on the Steam Workshop and downloaded via a third-party site, then you will need to source the modification yourself. Unfortunately, our system will not be able to check what version of the modification the server has or where it is sourced. Once you have everything required by the server, the confirm button will become available and you will be able to join the session.

We expect a majority of popular modifications to work from the get-go with this update, however, there may be some compatibility issues with others. Also, in some rare situations, using MODs in Convoy sessions during Open Beta might lead to corrupted profile saves. It is recommended to backup your profile data before switching to this beta branch. However, may you encounter a situation where your saves or profile gets corrupted or damaged, we really need you to report this to us with as detailed feedback as possible on our forum (ETS2/ATS).

MOD authors please be aware that some modifications will require some adjustments to work properly in Convoy. Sound modifications will be heard locally by the user, but other players will not hear them as remote trucks use a simpler soundbank (or they may just hear default truck sounds) if the modification is not configured to do so. Vehicles, Trailers, and Cargo modifications must also include proper traffic models for other players to see and interact with. 

Our teams will continue working hard throughout the Open Beta and beyond to overcome the difficulties that may come with using third-party modifications in the convoy mode. Your help and contributions during the Open Beta will be extremely valuable to our teams, so please submit your bug reports and feedback on the appropriate sections of our forum (ETS2/ATS). 

We look forward to seeing the many wonderful and creative MODs that will be used whilst convoying together with friends! We also plan to release a new FAQ in the future with more up-to-date information as we continue to work on the Convoy feature. You can find our first Convoy FAQ blog here, which answers the community's most popular questions!

Third-party modifications were used to create illustrative screenshots for this blog article. By choosing these publicly available MODs to make such screenshots we make no claim or endorsement of any kind that these MODs or their authors are officially supported, recognized, preferred, or recommended by SCS Software.

Force Feedback Update

1.42 also brings an update to our Force Feedback profiles for steering wheels and controllers which are compatible with Euro Truck Simulator 2 and American Truck Simulator. 

However, our QA doesn't have access to all the various controllers on the market, so during this Open Beta, we ask that you help us by submitting your feedback along with information about the wheel you are using. This will significantly help us make tweaks and changes so that all wheel users can benefit from this update.

Changelog

Gameplay

  • Initial MOD support for Convoy multiplayer

UI

  • Convoy session modification UI added for MOD compatibility and downloads.

Other

  • Force feedback improved and available for more controller types on more systems (Linux)
  • Steering wheel animation range setting

So enjoy all the new additions, but please remember: It's only an open beta, not a stable public version - so you may encounter bugs, instability, kinks, or crashes. It's completely okay if you want to wait for the final release. But if you're interested in helping us to get there faster, we'll appreciate all of your feedback on our forum and your bug reports in these sections - ETS2/ATS.

Please check our modding wiki to get details pertaining to mods for the game.

If you wish to participate in the open beta, you can find this version in the public_beta branch on Steam. The way to access it is as follows: Steam client → LIBRARY → right-click on Euro Truck Simulator 2/American Truck Simulator → Properties → Betas tab → public_beta → Public Beta 1.42. No password is required.

Wednesday, September 29, 2021

Texas - Guess where we are #1

Perhaps you remember the work-in-progress prefabs from the upcoming Texas DLC, that we have shown on our blog some time ago. Well, it’s time to shake things up a bit and show you some screenshots from the actual map. Can you guess which places they are?

Let us know in the comments or any of our social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) and a few lucky winners who will guess the places correctly will receive a Texas Steam key after the release.

But until that happens, don’t forget to add Texas map expansion to your Steam Wishlist and stay in touch with all the latest news regarding this enormous state!

Friday, September 24, 2021

New Iberian Roads

From the scorching temperatures of the Tabernas Desert to the bustling city of Madrid, Iberia has been a popular destination for truckers since its release in April. Based on feedback from our community since its launch, our map team thought it'd be good to revisit the map expansion and bring some new additional content. 

Their main focus is to bring new country roads alongside the many highways of Iberia for you to use and explore. For those who prefer to take the more scenic routes while trucking, we know how much you'll appreciate it! 

So where will be these new roads located? The first new addition can be found north of Madrid, linking together the A-1 and A-2 highways. This new road (N-234) passes alongside the city, which also happens to be located by the River Douro, the mouth of which can be found in Portugal! 

The second new road can be found in the south of Portugal, starting near the city of Sines, passing by the city of Beja and ending in Spain, just above Seville! These new roads will not only provide truckers with alternative routes whilst out on delivery, but also more beautiful scenery and areas to explore in Iberia!

This content is being created by our new map designers as a part of their training program. However, we have been impressed by their work so much that we decided to use it and bring it to the Iberia expansion in the near future, most probably still this year. We always try our best to have some extra capacity to occasionally revisit/reskin some parts of the older in-game worlds, that's something you already know about us. Maybe you'll start seeing more of these extra additions across our released DLCs from time to time as well, who knows.

We hope you'll enjoy this new and free additional content that is coming to the Iberia expansion! 

Thursday, September 23, 2021

ATS & ETS2: Volvo Construction Equipment DLC

Volvo Construction Equipment is among the world’s leading manufacturers of articulated haulers and wheel loaders, and one of the world’s foremost manufacturers of excavation equipment, road development machines, and compact construction equipment. With over 180 years in the business, Volvo CE continues to lead in their field and in technology and safety. 

Today we are excited to announce the arrival of this premium brand to both Euro Truck Simulator 2 and American Truck Simulator! The Volvo Construction Equipment DLC (ATS, ETS2) includes 5 different branded construction machinery from Volvo CE's line-up for drivers to haul and deliver across Europe and the USA. This DLC pack will include:

A25G (Articulated Hauler)

The Volvo A25G is a medium-sized articulated Dump Truck, weighing in at over 22 tons and measuring at over 3.3m (11ft) in height and 10m (33ft) in length! This machine is most commonly used in agriculture, mining, construction, and highway maintenance.

SD160B (Soil Compactor)

The SD160B is a Soil Compactor that weighs 16 tons and measuring 3m (10ft) in height and 6m (20ft) in length! This machine is perfect for working on foundations, buildings, pavements, and other structures.

EC220E (Crawler Excavator)

The EC220E Crawler Excavator is the ultimate digging tool. Weighing up to 25 tons, 3m (10ft) in height, and 9.7m (32ft) in length, it is used in mining, road building, civil engineering, general construction, and more!

EW240E Material Handler (Excavator)

The EW240E Material Handler is made for all jobs large and small! At over 9.4m (31ft) in height and weighing 28 tons, it is the ultimate machine for the job at hand.

L250H (Wheel Loader)

The L250H Wheel Loader is a heavy-duty machine weighing 34 tons, 3.6m (12ft) in height, and 7.3m (24ft) in length! It is the perfect machine to dig, move, load, and more at any job site.

We are proud to be working with the Volvo Group to bring you these new additions to both of our trucking titles which also includes 2 new cargoes for drivers to deliver to and from construction sites; a large excavator bucket and large machinery tires.  

 
For those who plan on hauling Volvo Construction Equipment in both ETS2 and ATS, be sure to check out our special sale bundle, which will contain the DLC for both games at a special 50% discount (essentially receiving content for both games for the price of one!) 


Looking for a show to watch today in the evening? Then join us on our Twitch and YouTube channels ar we will host a live stream in which we plan to showcase and haul some of these new mighty machines!


We look forward to seeing your screenshots and videos of you hauling Volvo Construction Equipment with your rigs! Be sure to share them with us on our social media platforms (ETS2 Facebook, ATS Facebook, Twitter, Instagram). Happy Hauling!