Greetings, Hard Chip players!

Modifications listed here are in the playtest build on Steam.

New update coming in! Iterations number "I-lost-the-count". This update covers versions 0.0.5.6 to 0.0.5.9. Let's see what's new:

A fresh batch of participants who requested access to the Hard Chip Playtest build has now been granted access to test the latest release! Please see if you're one of the lucky individuals selected!

To get into the next stage, now opening the door gets you to an entirely different place from before. The previous place was an ending with a raymarched scifi space station interior. It was cool, but it didn't allow interactions and new puzzles story-wise. Now the opening gets you to a terminal listing the next parts you need to design!

And those next parts are steps to build a 4Bits cpu register (this is still being determined though!)

Challenges SRLatch alternative, MSDLatch, SRBitCell have been removed to simplify things and avoid confusion.

A video will explain it all:

So all interactions and new objectives will come from those terminals. They are meant to be easy and diegetic: get to a machine's terminal, try to make it work, get your next part to build, design this part and then repair the machine through a nice reboot command. The story mode was completely remade to use them.

They could also deliver story bits and tips in the future. They are quite versatile, code-wise.

This is a little, but the metal trace will have less rounded corners to get closer to the actual look of a CPU's circuitry.

For reference concept art here:

This is a big change. Before:

Now:

For a long time, all inputs were stacked on top of each other at the 0,0,0 location. This was ok for 3 or fewer inputs as always 1 and always 0 terminal are always respectively at the 6th and 8th layers leaving layers 0,2 and 4 for those inputs. But more than 3 inputs meant different input positions altogether. Then when you use blueprints with different input positions, it resulted in spaghetti pasta to wire it all. Messy. And in the end, you rework your blueprints to have those inputs a die level anyway.

Now, the rule for challenges will be inputs at the die level on the left, and outputs on the right. Simplifying it all with less friction.

Take note: all your previous savefiles won't work anymore.

If you are using advanced patterns to build up circuits (meaning you don't follow the schematics). Those gates will come in handy! You could have built them before, but now you can validate them automatically! Available in the Bonus Stages section!

1. Escape now unselects/cancels blueprint add/cancels mosfet add, and return to select mode then escape editor;
2. Challenge name splashed on start (as they can be interesting context clue);
3. Help modals rework after a playtest session: Hint to compact help; Hint about inputs canceling the validation when touched; Help modal same font pass;You can click outside the help modal to turn the page or to close it; Hint to use lines of blocks instead on clicking one block at a time;
4. Don't start BlueprintIntro automatically
5. Build menu show selected block;
6. Showing grades ranking hints with a (?);
7. Restart level from scratch button (highly requested);
8. Adding help command;
9. Campaign scripts tweaked after playtest session;
10. Max simulation speed tuned down;
11. Camera arrow keys control when in starting area;
12. Fix Door in the main Menu bug;
13. Fix crash on build up beyond the die limit;
14. Fix crash on Select on large maps
15. Fix Camera behavior between level;
16. Fix Crash fix on no readout in savegame;
17. Fix "exit" command line exited the game (lol);

As always, your feedback/suggestions/comments are instrumental in making this game. Join our Discord server!

Thank you for playing Hard Chip, and stay tuned for more updates and new features!