Recently, many developers prefer not to release a finished project, but to let the gamer play in beta so that users themselves can point out errors that occur during the game, so that they themselves test the innovations and so on. It would seem that this is rather stupid - who, if possible, wants to play an already full-fledged ready-made game to spend time on the beta version, which is still full of errors? But in fact, fashion is a rather strange thing, and it is “early access”, “beta versions” and other similar things that have recently become the most fashionable. People are in a hurry to be the first to try out a new masterpiece and in some way join in the formation of the final image of the game. Naturally, not all developers do this - in most cases, indie developers who do all the work themselves do it. Therefore, it’s even easier for them - they don’t have to go deep into the costs of testing, since gamers themselves are happy to test the content. As for this particular article, here we will focus on such a project as Starbound Unstable. What it is? This question is asked by many gamers who discover this game in their library in Steam. And this question will be given a detailed answer in this material. You no longer have to think about why you need the game Starbound Unstable, what it is and how to use it.
The essence of the base game
Of course, if you can’t imagine what the original game is, it makes no sense to talk about Starbound Unstable - what are these, what are the differences, and so on. Therefore, first you should get acquainted directly with the game itself. This project is also a tribute to fashion - since the release of the Minecraft game, gamers have been obsessed with sandboxes, that is, games in which there is a huge interactive world, there is no specific goal, and all you need to do is survive in every way possible, using the environment. As for Starbound, this game more closely resembles the logical follower of Minecraft, Terraria. In fact, "Terraria" is a kind of clone of the original project, which changed the design from three-dimensional to two-dimensional. As a result, you also need to travel around the open world, build shelters for yourself, get resources, develop in order to fight more and more powerful and dangerous monsters. Well, now it's time to talk directly about the Starbound project. This is a kind of "Terraria", which the place of action has chosen not a fantasy, but a fantastic cosmic world. Naturally, changes in the game took place, and quite impressive - even a kind of plot appeared, but the similarity of the two projects cannot be denied. And this is not surprising, given the fact that a member of the team that created Terraria was responsible for the development of the latter. The result was a pretty good product that was able to meet the needs of the general public of gamers. And now that you have an idea of ​​the original game, it's time to figure out Starbound Unstable - what is it and how to use it?
What it is?
When you open your game library in Steam, you expect to see the acquired Starbound game there. However, she is not alone there - you can also see Starbound Unstable nearby - what is the difference between these two games? Generally speaking, Anstable is what the project should be based on its name. Gamers who know English will quickly translate that this is an “unstable” version of the game. What does this mean? This means that Starbound Unstable is a beta version in which you can find all the latest chips, features, new items, features, and so on. All the new content that developers want to add to the game, they first add to the version of "Anstable", where for some time gamers test it, burning with the desire to be the first to try all the new products. Well, then, when everything is tested, the content is transferred to the main version of the game. So if you like to be the first in everything and want to test new content yourself, then you should definitely try out Starbound Unstable. What is the difference between these two versions you already understood - it's time to familiarize yourself with the consequences of using Anstable.
Instability
You now have a basic understanding of how Starbound differs from Starbound Unstable. However, how do you use Anstable? As the name implies, the gameplay in this version is extremely unstable. After all, all the new items that are added there can simply be flooded with bugs - and because of them, the game can even crash, the gameplay sometimes does not save, the screen freezes, and other various problems are encountered. However, complaining about them makes no sense - it should be so. If you want to play a polished and properly functioning version, then you should start the original game. There, of course, there will be no new functions, but then there can be no problems in principle with unverified innovations. So here everyone already chooses for himself. And if you are asked what is the difference between Starbound and Starbound Unstable, then now you can safely and extensively answer, telling the person who is interested in what it is better to play, depending on what exactly he wants from the game process.
Update process
Separately, it is worth considering how recently introduced functions become full-fledged and migrate to the original game from the state of the tested. At some specific moment, including the very initial one, both projects work on the same patches, that is, they look exactly the same and have an identical set of functions. But every day at night there is an update of Anstable, which adds a certain function. Sometimes new functions appear much less often, and sometimes several new elements can be added at once. Gradually, gamers begin to use these functions, that is, test them - the developers follow this process, collecting feedback and independently catching bugs and glitches that appear, fixing them, and then updating the game again. And this happens until all the planned functions become fully functional and smoothly polished. Then they all gather in a common patch, and with its help the original game is updated. It is then that the “zero moment” comes when both games become completely identical - until the next update of Anstable, when new functions are added that require testing.
Launch Issues
Given the fact that this version is unstable, you may have certain problems with the launch. The reason may be the compatibility (or rather incompatibility) of the newly added features. Do not worry - if this problem is not yours, then a large number of gamers will quickly inform the developer that something went wrong. In games such as Starbound, developers always have close contact with players, especially those who are constantly involved in testing at Anstable. So if your Starbound Unstable does not start, then do not panic - either wait, or take part in resolving the problem yourself by writing in detail about exactly what problems you have at startup. The more detailed data you provide to the developer, the greater the likelihood that your problem will be solved.
Cheats
Many gamers ask if cheats can be used in Starbound Unstable. The answer is in the affirmative - you can safely use codes that are also suitable for the original version. And you can do this on the same conditions, that is, in a single game without the possibility of obtaining achievements. True, in “Anstable” achievements are not given to you, but the multiplayer mode is still present, so you should be careful about this issue. After all, if you use cheat codes on official servers, then you can be banned very quickly and make it impossible to test new features that will be introduced in the near future. Simply put, the rules remain exactly the same as in all computer games on the Steam platform - if you use codes, then this should not affect other players and statistics in any way. If you want to play with friends or dream of getting into the top ten best gamers, then you should refuse to use codes and play honestly.
Server
Given the fact that this game is largely assumed to be multi-user, Starbound Unstable has servers, but in much more limited quantities. The fact is that gamers themselves can create their own servers with their own rules, but this applies to the main project - Anstable is a beta version, so you only have access to the servers that developers provide you with to test new features. That is why you will not be able to use cheats, have fun the way you want - because all this is limited to the fact that this version of the game is a test one. If you want to play on some original server, there is only one way out for you, as in all previous cases. You can install the original game, and there you can already use absolutely all the features that are provided by the developers, including creating your own servers, as well as connecting to third-party servers created, for example, by your friends.
Modifications
The same applies to modifications, which in recent times have become just a huge amount. Many gamers want to improve this project in every possible way by adding part of their own creativity to it, but you can only do this with the original project, and then you may have difficulty, because while the game is being updated on an ongoing basis, you will need to rewrite the code each time new patches coming out after testing on Anstable. As for the Starbound Unstable game itself, you won’t be able to install the mod at all, since the game is updated every day, so there is no sense in modifying the game code at all - it changes continuously and your modifications will work for no longer than a day.
Crack
It's no secret that this game is English-language, but in the original version there is already support for several languages ​​at once. Unfortunately, this feature is not available in Unstable. And for the same reasons that were described above, you can not install the crack for Starbound Unstable. Steam indicates which languages ​​are available for selection in the game in its most recent version, but the developers do not want to overload the test servers, therefore they use only English in Anstable. If you want to install the crack, then the same thing can happen as in the case of mods - the language will be displayed normally only until the first update, after which you may begin to have problems. So the crack for Starbound Unstable is just a dream. If you want to test the new features of this game, you will have to learn English.
Colonies
Now you know absolutely everything about Anstable - in the end it remains to give a few large examples of what functions were first introduced in the test version of the game, and then polished and transferred to the main version. The first big example is colonies. Yes, at a certain point in time you did not have the opportunity to build colonies on new planets - but then in test mode you got a chance to create your settlements for local residents and collect taxes from them, the function took root and is now very popular in the game.
Planet design
Initially, the appearance of the planets that you visit during your space adventure left much to be desired. But over time, thanks to Anstable, their appearance became much more interesting and attractive, as well as diverse and even bewitching.
Combat system
Most of all during the testing on "Anstable" the combat system underwent changes - it became much more realistic, the enemies became much more diverse, as well as dangerous.