Marek's Dev Diary: February 27, 2025

What is this

Every Thursday, I will share a dev diary about what we've been working on over the past few weeks. I'll focus on the interesting challenges and solutions that I encountered. I won't be able to cover everything, but I'll share what caught my interest.

Why am I doing it

I want to bring our community along on this journey, and I simply love writing about things I'm passionate about! This is my unfiltered dev journal, so please keep in mind that what I write here are my thoughts and will be outdated by the time you read this, as so many things change quickly. Any plans I mention aren't set in stone and everything is subject to change. Also, if you don't like spoilers, then don't read this.

Space Engineers 1

• Update 206 is nearing completion.
• Here is a little sneak peek from yesterday's team presentation:

Space Engineers 2

• VS 1.1 is almost finished and we are testing it now, release will be soon.
  
  
• Flora impostors for VS 2 - fendering all visible trees as real geometry would be too GPU intensive, so a good practice is to render distant trees as billboard impostors, which are not recognizable to the eye. Here's what the first prototype looks like.
  
  
  
  
• Animation culling - to optimize performance, animation on blocks with animated sub-parts should be culled (disabled) when the player is too far away to see it. This video demonstrates this feature, with the culling distance artificially lowered for visibility.
  
  
  
  
• The water team has made significant progress, with an updated "delete water dam" testing scene that shows improved performance and visual effects. The water surface now appears more realistic, accurately reflecting the velocity of the flowing water and various surface effects.
  
  
  
  
• This screenshot shows how the 25cm unified grid system allows for items to be placed on the Gearforge block's table, and for a light to be positioned on the block itself.
  
  
  
  
  
• Fracture simulation - because it's cool!
  
  
  
  
• Planetary flora progress
  
  
  
  
  
• Modding will come soon to SE2 (in VS 1.5) This is a modded skybox example:
  
  
  
  
• We are working to enhance first-person animations, with a focus on ensuring that the tool or gun remains steady and consistently forward-facing on the screen.
  
  
  
  
• For VS 1.1 we will also refine pivot controls to give you more precision when copying and pasting. When you copy, cut, or create a blueprint, the pivot point will automatically be set to the block you aimed at during the action. When pasting, this pivot point will be highlighted, making placement clearer.
  
  
  
  

  
  Additionally, the snap size of the pivot point now determines the default snap size of the pasted grid or blueprint, giving you better control when positioning structures.
  
  

  

  
  

AI People

• We worked on designing a relationship system for our AI-driven NPCs that creates meaningful interactions while maintaining a deterministic foundation enhanced by LLMs. This system tracks how NPCs relate to players and each other, making characters feel aware of their social connections.
  
  
  
  
  
• AI People is turning into an action RPG set in 2033 after superintelligent AGIs transformed cities and then vanished. Player leads a group of 10 survivors in a fortified estate, managing resources, defending against raiders and malfunctioning AGI tech, and interacting with other settlements.
  
  
  
  
  
• We implemented a Core Memories system where each NPC has up to five key memories that strongly influence their behavior. These one-liners adapt dynamically based on game events and can be affected by player actions or directly edited.
  
  
• We also improved action synchronization to handle over 20 NPCs simultaneously instead of just 5 sequential characters. NPCs now act independently by default and only synchronize when forming groups. This allows multiple individuals and groups to exist concurrently, with the AI Director managing their routines and action plans.

Marek's Dev Diary: February 20, 2025 - SE2: Building the ultimate space-sim & Europe: My vision for a strong, independent future

What is this

Every Thursday, I will share a dev diary about what we've been working on over the past few weeks. I'll focus on the interesting challenges and solutions that I encountered. I won't be able to cover everything, but I'll share what caught my interest.

Why am I doing it

I want to bring our community along on this journey, and I simply love writing about things I'm passionate about! This is my unfiltered dev journal, so please keep in mind that what I write here are my thoughts and will be outdated by the time you read this, as so many things change quickly. Any plans I mention aren't set in stone and everything is subject to change. Also, if you don't like spoilers, then don't read this.

Space Engineers 2

Why SE2?

We’re building SE2 because we believe in the dream of the ultimate space-sim—one that goes beyond anything seen before. We want a game where engineering, survival, and combat truly matter, where every action has weight, and where players can shape their own destiny in a vast, living universe.

SE1 was just the beginning. SE2 is our chance to push the boundaries—to create the space game we've always wanted to play. A game where players build, explore, and fight for survival and the colonization of Almagest, a raw and untamed frontier filled with danger and opportunity.

This isn’t just a sequel. It’s our vision for the future of space simulation—a world where creativity, skill, and ambition define your fate.

SE1 Alpha Footage recreated in SE2

FighterPilot O5 has recreated the classic SE1 Alpha Footage in SE2. Thanks very much for the effort and for reading my mind because I was honestly considering asking Janusz to do it.

What I worked on this week:

• Music Design: We designed an adaptive music system to fit different locations and situations—sandbox mode, campaign mode, and dynamic moments based on player actions.
• Character Art Expansion: We recently hired an amazing new character artist, growing our team. This means SE2 will feature a greater variety of characters, suits, and skins.
• Character Animations & First-Person Camera: We are improving how the first-person camera moves, making sure it feels natural and immersive. One example: the first-person camera isn't just a single point but behaves more like a position on a stick, which means its rotation also introduces unintended movement. This results in unnatural optics, and we’re working on refining the offset system to make the camera feel more stable and immersive.
• 3D UI Prototyping for Partial Copy-Paste: We have been working on a new 3D UI system for copy-paste mechanics in the game.
  
  
  
• Jump Animation Improvements: We are working on more natural jump animations—detecting whether the jump starts from the left or right foot, then adjusting fall/landing animations accordingly.
• We are having a discussion whether projections (blocks or blueprints) should cast shadows or not. My opinion is that they should because it will help with depth perception of the scene, player will be better aware of where exactly is the block/blueprint being projected. For illustration, here’s a screenshot with one bug where only part of the projected block is casting a shadow (the alpha masked grid inside of it).
  
  What is your opinion? Leave your comments.
  
  
  
• Future Plans: Unifying spectator mode and character controls to ensure smooth transitions between gameplay perspectives.

AI People

Why AI People?

Our vision is to revolutionize AI NPCs and move beyond scripted interactions. We want NPCs that feel alive, form relationships with players, and generate emergent narratives over time. Whether they are your companion, rival, or life partner, every AI character should feel distinct and dynamic.

What I worked on this week:

• Emotion System: We designed an emotion simulation for NPCs where their emotional states change dynamically based on player interactions and inter-NPC communication. These emotions affect behaviors and decisions and are conveyed through HUD, sound, voice, and animations.
• Daily Plans for Agents: NPCs now follow structured daily routines that adapt dynamically. Initially, we are implementing predefined schedules (e.g., farmer, soldier, etc.), but over time, LLMs will generate personalized daily plans with both structure and variability.
• LLM API & Perception System: We refined how NPCs interact with the LLM to optimize performance and avoid unnecessary computational load. NPCs now have a Level of Detail (LOD) perception system, meaning they are aware of events in their immediate vicinity while ignoring distant, irrelevant occurrences. This ensures that prompts to the LLM remain efficient and contextually relevant, allowing NPCs to react dynamically to their surroundings without overwhelming the system.
• Backstory Integration: AI People is set in a world where AGIs emerged in 2030, quickly surpassing human intelligence. Their incomprehensible goals reshaped cities into vast computational centers, disregarding humanity. Society collapsed into chaos, and by 2033, the AGIs mysteriously vanished, leaving a transformed world behind. Our AI NPCs are aware of this past, shaping their behaviors and interactions within this new reality.
• Balancing Player Control & NPC Autonomy: NPCs act independently while collaborating with the player, balancing personal goals with player requests. They can decline unreasonable tasks, prioritize their own needs, and manage schedules realistically. The goal is a dynamic system where players have influence, but NPCs remain true to their character and motivations.

Marek’s Blog: New Visuals

We are working on a long-overdue visual update for this blog—something I’ve wanted to do for years. Our amazing 2D artist, Aleksandar Serafimovski (Alek), has created new concepts that will give the blog a fresh yet timeless aesthetic.

Alek, who is responsible for all 2D art in SE2, websites, banners, and more, has poured his creativity into this redesign. Here is one of the first drafts.

Strong Europe: My Political Vision

A Sovereign, Powerful Europe

Europe must take responsibility for its own future. We cannot remain dependent on external powers for security and economic stability. To build a Great Europe, we need:

• A European Army capable of defending itself.
• Less regulation to encourage innovation and economic growth.
• A cultural shift towards entrepreneurship, ambition, and risk-taking.
• Smarter governance—fewer bureaucratic layers, more efficiency.
• True unity—a powerful united Europe, not fragmented nationalist states.
• Pan-European leadership—visionary leaders who unite the continent through strength and ambition.

With 450 million people, Europe has the potential to be a global economic and military powerhouse. But to achieve this, we must stand on our own.

Final Thoughts

SE2 is evolving rapidly and VS 1.1 will be released in coming weeks. AI People is shaping up to be something truly groundbreaking. At the same time, I remain deeply invested in the future of Europe and believe we must take bold steps toward sovereignty and strength.

I would love to hear your thoughts! Please share your feedback, suggestions, or ideas - what excites you most, and what would you like to see next?

Marek's Dev Diary: February 13, 2025 - SE2 Workshop, planets, water bug & AI People vision

What is this

Every Thursday, I will share a dev diary about what we've been working on over the past few weeks. I'll focus on the interesting challenges and solutions that I encountered. I won't be able to cover everything, but I'll share what caught my interest.

Why am I doing it

I want to bring our community along on this journey, and I simply love writing about things I'm passionate about! This is my unfiltered dev journal, so please keep in mind that what I write here are my thoughts and will be outdated by the time you read this, as so many things change quickly. Any plans I mention aren't set in stone and everything is subject to change. Also, if you don't like spoilers, then don't read this.

Space Engineers 2

Cenda (Jan Hlousek, Tech Director of SE2/VRAGE3) and I spent a week traveling through beautiful South Africa's nature and rural areas and did some field testing of VS2 Planets.

You can see us here, including a music track from SE2 soundtrack:

The SE2 team is finishing VS 1.1 (Workshop). It will go into the final testing round next week and could be released soon after. It will bring Steam Workshop integration and an in-game browser, along with many other improvements - including mouse sensitivity and mouse inversion settings - because you asked us to add it.

Lukas and I were working on sound improvements for VS 1.2, mainly ship sounds (boost sound, speed-dependent sounds) and drill sounds (idle drill, contact with voxels or blocks). It's feeling much better now. Another significant improvement where Lukas went all out are the destruction sounds - when you shoot with the debug gun and incrementally damage blocks, and then when the final stage of block breaks or explodes. He created custom versions of sounds for all types of blocks. It really sounds meaty and satisfying.

We've finally implemented grass and trees into VS2 - of course, this is just the first stage, and we plan to make them several times more beautiful.

The debug gun tool got a new 3D model (we still need to improve the animation and projectile trail rendering).

We are improving the precision of highlight interactions (when you aim at a block and see the highlight), so no invisible occluders will interfere with the raycast from your crosshair.

The water team encountered a funny bug, so I'm sharing it here with you 😀

Gearforge - a brand new block for VS2 Planets and Survival, for our improved survival mechanics.

The SE1 team is finalizing the update 206, and they'll even bring some improvements from SE2 to SE1. I really like this approach. We even joked that this is the only time when stealing is a good thing. 

I also love all the new blocks that the SE1 team is creating - they're really a bunch of talented artists!

AI People

We are now working on MVP 1, with a deadline at the end of February.

Currently, AI People is more of a scene-creation tool than the living, breathing world we envisioned. NPCs lack the depth, memories, and goals that would truly make them feel alive, leading to repetitive interactions and a lack of surprising, shareable moments. To address this, we're focusing on three key changes: giving NPCs long-term memories and evolving personalities, implementing a dynamic goal system so they pursue their own agendas, and introducing "Wildcard Events" for unpredictable, shareable moments. We want to create a world where NPCs aren't just responding to you, but forming alliances, starting rebellions, falling in love, and creating stories you'll want to share.

I'm really curious to see how the end result will look and how close we'll get to our original vision: AI People as a living world with goal-oriented, lifelike NPCs.