A new version of the Zero Gear beta is live on Steam, go check it out!

1.0.1.3 Change Log

* New Target mode map: PACHINKO!!!
* Experimental gamepad support, only tested with the 360 controller so far, please give feedback!
* Fixed the checkpoint random reset bug, you should no longer be reset while going through the correct checkpoint
* Stunt tracking added, you will gain boost after a sound and particle effect fire off after performing a barrel roll or flip
* Air steer force increased so it is easier to do rad stunts
* Pressing Apply in settings will now close the settings GUI
* Added a button to reset controls to default in settings GUI
* Servers in your country are specially indicated
* Removed ability to color player names so the names are colored according to teams in Goal mode (server names can still be colored)

Just a few errors from yesterdays build to correct, and a few other things thrown in. Version 1.0.1.2 is now live on Steam.

1.0.1.2 Change Log

* The game will no longer throw error: “OGRE EXCEPTION(10:MyGUIException): ComboBox::setIndexSelected : index number 8 out of range [8]” if the min players is set to 8 in the server settings file
* The game will no longer throw error: “RaceServer.lua: 1042″ when resetting at the start of a race map
* Quick Play now defaults to 4 min players and a random map order
* New default camera angle in the garage
* Added another checkpoint towards the end of Chill Mountain
* Red arrow point loss rate decreased from once every 2 seconds to once every 3 seconds, this means you lose less points while in red mode
* Point loss particle effects in tag now show the correct points lost
* Client and server log files added to error report in case of a crash

4 days after our beta went live we have a new update for everyone! Here is the changes:

1.0.1.0 Change Log

* Kart physics modified, the kart is much heavier now as well as other subtle tweaks
* Air steering is now only engaged by pressing the steer direction after leaving the ground
* Some maps updated to work better with new kart physics
* Camera adjustments, closer to kart, fixed distance, crosshair added to aim mode
* Ice cube will not ice the player who dropped it behind them when it obviously shouldn’t
* Win score changed from 500 to 400 in Tag mode
* All players given springs in Target mode and bumpers removed until they are functional again
* Soccer ball/hockey puck larger and easier to hit
* Country code added to the server browser so you can see how close a server is to you
* Rank sorted correctly in the server browser now
* Setting added to enable the screen blur effect on boost as some players were reporting problems
* The game responds to input correctly after closing the settings or server GUI while in game
* The map change timer works correctly in the server settings GUI
* Map name and server name added to the player roster GUI
* Laps/Place GUI is now visible in spectator mode
* The goal GUI now tells the user which goal they need to shoot the ball/puck into
* The signal GUI will warn the user if they connect to a server with a very large ping
* Upon pressing the reset key, a GUI pops up to notify the user they will soon be reset
* GUI is now visible in Skate
* Newb loading screen key layout image simplified
* Music updated and Hyperduck accessory added (quack quack!!)
* Sound errors no longer print out to the log which seems to prevent the game from slowing down over time
* Bug in sound priority system fixed which should prevent more important sounds (music, engine noises, etc) from cutting out on some sound cards
* Fixed the “Failed to find receive data peer” bug that happened sometimes after exiting the game and starting it again quickly

Go check it out!

We are pleased to announce that the very groovy chaps over at HyperDuck music studios are producing the official soundtrack for Zero Gear. Their bouncing, pounding, surging and chirping tunes will be assisting you in your physical mischief in game. Here is a sample from their work, Zero Gear’s main menu track:

Zero Gear OST Sample

Make sure you stay tuned for a very big update tomorrow, you are not going to want to miss it if you have been following the game and yearning for a chance to play!

We recently got the 12th and last map before release put into the game. It is a little hard to appreciate how many maps we have made over the last 2 years, so I decided to put them all together in one graphic for visualization. Hopefully you will all be exploring them soon. We can’t wait to add even more maps and game modes after release!