- Build 3.27.2026.1 - 27 March 2026
Hey folks!This is a very small patch to the existing game to avoid conflicts with the upcoming playtest. As a reminder, we've re-built a lot of systems with the 1.0 version - bringing in almost two years of design and technical changes to make Drift become the game it's always been in my head. These changes don't play well if you go back and forth between the existing build - but this will make sure you can return to this version in the future. This will also stay available as a build on Steam betas after the 1.0 release.Changes:Don't load / corrupt saves from newer versionsDon't corrupt custom controls when coming back from a newer versionWe're working on a full 1.0 changelog for the playtest and are excited to get it in your hands ASAP.-Chris
- The Road to 1.0 - 25 August 2025
Hey all! It's been way too long since our last update on Drift. What started as the Space Exploration update has evolved into something much bigger - the 1.0 update.As I mentioned before, some early design decisions (mainly the static ship in an infinite field) increasingly limited what we could add and frustrated players trying to find resources. I realized we couldn't fix this with small incremental updates, we needed to rebuild the core loop from the ground up.One goal I had was to make sure the next update gave you more hours of gameplay than before, while still improving the game. Turns out that was a much bigger task than I imagined.The good news? While our tech team was helping out on an exciting update for another game, our content team expanded significantly. We started with just myself, one artist, and a sound designer (plus our amazing composer). Now we've added a dedicated a…
- Preview: Crafting, Crafting, Crafting - 27 November 2024
In today's preview, I want to look closer at the improvements to crafting in the upcoming Space Exploration update. Crafting will be key to surviving the void of space and rebuilding your ship's system to escape the collapsing galaxy. Crafting is currently available at the three crafting stations, the Crafter, Smelter and Crusher. As we expanded the technology and resources in the game, it felt natural to introduce new ways to process these materials. Well, one thing led to another and we are adding 10 new crafting machines in the Space Exploration update. I've grabbed some of my favorites to talk about today. Crafting Table The crafting table answers the age old question of "What came first, the crafter or the iron plates?" Being the handy survivor you are, you can now hand craft components with a little bit of elbow grease. Even after getting your power system online and automated cra…
- Build 10.29.2024.1 - 27 November 2024
This small update focuses on UI issues and small quality of life changes. Fixes the inventory unable to grab focus on Steam Deck after opening it twice Fix beacon icons missing from the configuration UI in some cases Add a new UI to the Long Range Scanning console to delete old results Add the world seed to the save game list Fix the Controls setting page sometimes showing no controls for the current device Thanks for playing!
- Preview: New World Gen and the Black Hole - 9 October 2024
As we continue to work toward a closed beta for the Space Exploration update, I'd like to dive a little deeper into the exploration changes coming in this new version. Updated Visuals With the addition of piloting both your large ship and the new smaller vehicles, we saw a great opportunity to reimagine how the galaxy looks and feels as you explore, mine, build, and craft. We experimented with various art styles, but naturally gravitated toward a more stylized approach—and I think it looks fantastic. New Caves The new caves are significantly larger than those in the current update, requiring you to utilize your large ship, small ships, and jetpack to uncover all their secrets. In addition to the familiar flora and crystals, you'll now find ore veins, areas filled with poison and radiation that demand special equipment to explore, and even small exploration puzzles that unlock resource-r…
- Preview: Getting around in the Space Exploration Update - 2 September 2024
It's time to check in on the highly anticipated Space Exploration update! In development since early January, this update is the largest ever for Drift. In many ways, it will make the game feel entirely new while retaining the same chill ship-building vibe that players have loved over the past year. One of the most requested features from our community has been the ability to fly your ship. With the upcoming update, we're making that dream a reality! You'll have more ways than ever to explore, giving you complete control over your journey through the stars. Sublight Engines Upon arriving in a new region, you might find that you're not in the perfect spot. With the addition of new sublight engines, you can maneuver your base to a more central location to gather resources more efficiently. And when you're ready, you'll need to move far enough from any gravity wells to make your next jump.…
- Mini Community Update: New Building Pieces and Bug Fixes - 30 August 2024
This update brings a few new building pieces requested by the community and fixes a handful of bugs and crashes. In addition, I back-ported a number of quality of life changes from the upcoming Space Exploration Update as we continue to work on wrapping that up. More to come on that in the next few days. Added a new pyramid capstone family of pieces to use in your Ha'tak builds Added an inverted version of all the Triangle Wall pieces Added beacons for all other players in the game beyond 50m Beacons of all type now snap to the edge of the screen when not in view Fixed losing mouse focus after using Alt+Tab! Fixed some VFX particles disappearing Will now only show Steam lobbies from games running the same version Fixed massive lag spike in some cases using the drill Improve game startup time Added a separate color for large asteroid pings to help avoid grappling Updated build system log…
- First Look at the Space Exploration update - 27 May 2024
Thanks to the support by this community, I've been able to put my head down and work on the largest update to Drift yet. The Space Exploration update will improve every aspect of the game and open new ways to explore. Today, I'll take a look at two exciting new features coming with this update. In future posts, I'll go into the new gameplay systems, progression and more. Improved Environment Art New modes of transport created the opportunity to re-visit some of the environments you can visit, specifically moving the art style closer to the concept art - and the early texturing tests have looked fantastic. Small Ships Flying the big ship is a huge improvement, but I like to build big and commonly got myself into trouble. Enter the small ship (name TBD: send suggestions in the comments!). This two-seater is great for moving from your base to a nearby dense asteroid field to strip mine for…
- Early Access Roadmap: Ships go ZOOOOM - 14 March 2024
In what will be the biggest update yet, I've recently started sharing details about what I'm calling the Space Exploration update on the Drift Discord. There are still a lot of unknowns as this update will have cascade effects on the entire game - but I'm excited to say the ship will FLYYYYYY. Join us in Discord or follow Drift on Steam to hear about future playtests for this update.
- Build 2.22.2024.1 - Hotfix - 22 February 2024
This update addresses a few minor issues with the latest Community Update. Fix a startup crash on macOS Fix some menu navigation using a controller Fix triangle walls not snapping correctly to other ship pieces Fix drills causing a crash when fully destroying an asteroid Thanks for playing and keep an eye on Discord for a sneak peak of the next update!
- Creative Mode, Controller Support and more! - 1 February 2024
Community Update 2 is here! In addition to working on the next major update to Drift, I've been collecting quality of life updates, bug fixes, new ship pieces and a new visual style into a new massive update. I'm excited to finally have it in your hands and look forward to your feedback! Creative Mode When starting a new game or loading an existing save, a new game option can be selected to disable resource costs, enable infinite survival and other options which allow a build focused game session. Angled Pieces In the spirit of building, I decided to bring forward an exciting feature from the upcoming Content Update - angled ship pieces! In my limited testing, it's created so much more interesting builds and I'm excited to see what you build with it. Some limitations apply with the current sets of pieces but I'll continue to expand this for the next update. Build From Storage When not i…
- Community Update 2 Preview - 21 December 2023
Since the release of the Sand Update, I've been working on the next Community Update. Like most updates, I've let it get away from me and I've grabbed a few line items from future updates in addition to adding a few unplanned ones. But I'm excited to share with you what you can expect in the next update, which should be ready first thing in 2024. Creative Mode Starting in this new update, when starting a new game or loading an existing save, advanced game options can be selected to disable resource costs, enable infinite survival and other options which allow a build focused game session. Angled Pieces In the spirit of building, I decided to bring forward an exciting feature from the upcoming Content Update - angled ship pieces! In my limited testing, it's created so much more interesting builds and I'm excited to see what you build with it. Some limitations apply with the current sets…
- Build 12.16.2023.1 - Hotfix - 17 December 2023
Fixes a crash that could happen on game load or while exploring the field. Big thanks to everyone who reported and helped test - this was tough to track down and get right!
- Build 12.11.2023.1 - Hotfix - 12 December 2023
A quick follow up solving some crashes. Removes multiple ways you could crash when changing life support and power. Fixes a crash after dying and needing to respawn Thanks to everyone in the Discussion Boards and Discord for helping find these!
- Build 12.7.2023.1 - Hotfix - 11 December 2023
The last update introduced some edge cases I'm not happy with so this solves the same problems in a new way. In addition: Fix vertical movement when using boosters and looking up/down Fix asteroid anchors not attaching to rocks on load if in the nearest chunk Fix some strangeness with the build error message Please continue to report any issues here or on Discord!
- Borg Update: Large Bases & Tech Tree Changes - 6 December 2023
This update includes two fixes that I don't want to hold back until Community Update 2 due out later this month. Large Bases As we start to see larger builds, performance and life support have both dropped. This update includes fixes for both, though more improvements are planned. At a minimum, you can now Borg Cube an entire Asteroid Cave and still get breathable air. Tech Tree Changes An oversight or typo in a previous update had some crystal research showing up before key exploration technology. This has now been changed and will work with existing saves. If you've been stuck on crystals and don't have launchpads, this is for you. We continue to work on engine updates and even have some pretty great visual updates for Community Update 2. Thanks for playing!
- Celebrating the Sand Update - 30 November 2023
We're continuing our largest ever discount to officially celebrate our first major content update. Enjoy 30% off Drift for the next two weeks as we finish up the last pieces of the next Community Update. If you have any feedback you'd like to see addressed in this update, join us on the Steam Disccusion Board or Discord! What's all new in the Sand Update? Desert Biome There is a new striking biome to be found in the field. Covered in sandy, silicate dust and with a plethora of resources to be found, the desert biome holds a lot of mysteries - shipwrecks, islands and more! Launchpads Getting off the ship and up to speed can be a chore - but not anymore! The new launchpads give you an explosive start to your journey into the field. Long Range Scanner Tired of leaving things to chance? The Long Range Scanner, with a little help from data cards littered through the field, will guide you to…
- Build 11.10.2023.1 - Hotfix - 13 November 2023
This is a small patch to fix the crafting recipes for Crystal Processor and Crystal Circuits. This decrease the total crafting time of the crystal processor by about 40%. Fix wrong crafting times for crystal components Fix flashlight lens forever coloring an equipment slot The Use hotkey will not longer cycle on survival items
- Early Access Roadmap: October 2023 Update - 24 October 2023
With our first major update behind us, this felt like a great time to re-visit the roadmap and adapt it to what I learned during the last five months. You'll see the size of content updates has increased with smaller community quality of life updates planned between. Feel free to join us in Steam Discussions or Discord to talk about what you would like to see in future updates as well!
- Build 10.12.2023.2 - Critical Hotfix - 13 October 2023
Fixes saves very quickly expanding in size and causing auto-save issues.
