‘Starbound’ Out Of Early Access, Already Updated To Fix Memory Leak And Other Launch Issues

After years’ worth of early access development, procedurally generated Starbound is now officially launched. The 2D side-scrolling space adventure gives players an upgradable ship and a nearly endless universe to explore. The game released and shed the early access moniker on July 22, and today developer Chucklefish is quick to address launch issues with patch 1.0.1 and 1.0.2.

Patch 1.0.1 addresses a few specific issues both large and small that could be immediately rectified. Mislabeled key bindings, errors in descriptions, and specific mission errors in multiplayer are included in the changelog on the official Starbound site. Other changes include making Erchius Ghosts immune to lava, rectifying bugs in the server ban command, and fixing a problem with transferring players between worlds.

“With our concurrent players peaking at 62,000 on Steam over the weekend, I think it’s safe to say Starbound‘s launch out of Early Access was a success! There are always going to be a few kinks to work out after a big update, though, so since Friday night we’ve been scanning the forums/subreddit/social media to figure out what issues people have been having and how we might fix them.”

Patch 1.0.1 went live on July 25 and patch 1.0.2 is live today. Patch 1.0.2 addresses a memory leak affecting a number of users after the launch. Although other issues persist, Chucklefish developers are patching issues as they reveal themselves.

“We’re aware of the other issues being reported and are actively working on another patch for later this week, but this was something we were able to fix for tonight.”

Starbound boasts seven playable races each with their own distinct ship. Players start their journey by choosing their race and gender by customizing a 2D avatar. Eventually, by visiting different planets and systems, players expand their ship with new sections, collect enough upgrades to make their Matter Manipulator even stronger, and recruit crew to help them on their journeys. Completing quests and defeating bosses unlock major additions while simple exploration is rewarded with valuable side quests as reported by the Inquisitr. Colonizing planets with custom structures lets players attract settlers to their cities for another layer of gameplay, too.

All of this is possible as a solo player or with friends thanks to the game’s optional cooperative abilities. Players can drop in and drop out of multiplayer at will fairly seamlessly. Heading out on an adventure with a friend is easy since players can visit each others’ ships and teleport directly to them from a teleporter. Additionally, Starbound features modding support providing a wealth of continued play to an already robust and practically endless title. The Steam Workshop is the easiest way to download and use Starbound mods on Steam. Popular mods include one that adds mech gameplay, a mod for picking up containers with their contents intact, and one that adds a new playable cat race.

Small bug fix update incoming! https://t.co/4d5518K3ZU pic.twitter.com/ykA923JlUo

— Starbound (@StarboundGame) July 25, 2016

Three different difficulties are available to players looking for a specific set of challenges. Casual mode is perfect for players looking to enjoy Starbound without the worry of food management. Survival mode creates the need to eat in order to stay healthy and forces players to lose their inventory upon death. Finally, Hardcore mode turns on permadeath for those looking for an extreme challenge.

Players can pick up Starbound now from retailers such as Steam, GoG, and Humble Bundle for $14.99. With thousands of players starting up Starbound every day since its launch, the ambitious title is clearly attractive to a wide variety of players. Builders will likely enjoy the plethora of block types used to construct their colonies, explorers will probably like discovering different planets, and adventurers will find plenty of foes to slay across the universe. The small price tag and flexible modding capabilities of Starbound surely help, as well.

[Image via Chucklefish]