The end of an era

Steam post image Liftoff 1.0 is dead, long live Liftoff 1.0.

Having just released one of our biggest and most popular updates with Marina Bay, the obvious question is: what's next for Liftoff?

For more than a year, we've been working toward what we internally call Liftoff 2.0. It's not a new game, but rather a symbolic milestone for the project. Over Liftoff's ten-year lifespan, virtually every piece of code and content has been reworked.

While we're not presenting this as Liftoff 2, the reality is that the simulator you purchased in 2015 no longer exists. Not a line of code left untouched. What you're playing today is, in many ways, what we would have considered a true sequel back then.

Liftoff 2.0 has never been a single, clearly defined release. Instead, it's been an ongoing process that you've already experienced through many of our updates over the past few years. We're now approaching the point where this era of Liftoff is coming to a close, allowing us to start looking ahead at what comes next for the project.

We're not quite there yet, though. This blog post is meant to give you an inside look at what's still left on our Liftoff 2.0 to-do list before we reach that milestone.

Level updates

We're not just adding new levels to Liftoff, we're also giving some of our older (yes, 10-year-old!) maps a well-deserved makeover. Over the past few years you've already seen refreshed versions of Liftoff Arena, Hangar C03, and most recently, Bando City.

Next up is Permafrost. It's one of our favorite environments: huge, beautiful, and packed with things to explore. Its biggest weakness, however, is that everything tends to look the same, making it easy to lose your bearings and miss content. Steam post image

To fix that, we're replacing part of the forest with a fjord featuring a scenic coastline, navigable icebergs, and a brand-new shipwreck to explore. The result is a cooler-looking map (literally), stronger visual landmarks, denser points of interest, and even a small performance boost. We expect this update to land later this summer, bringing some much-welcomed freezy refreshment ;) We hope to release the Permafrost update next month.

New UI

The moment you launch Liftoff you’re currently greeted by a UI that still reflects its 2015 origins. Very soon, that will change, as we introduce a more modern visual style, the biggest update to the first impression of Liftoff in a long time. Steam post image

That said, there’s no need to worry. The current UI has been a reliable workhorse for over 10 years, and we know many of you can navigate it with your eyes closed. That familiarity is staying exactly as it is. Everything remains in place, and you’ll still find all features right where you expect them. Steam post image

This revamp is first and foremost a visual refresh, but it also brings a few quality-of-life improvements. The interface will be easier to read thanks to stronger contrast between content and framing, and more consistency across the entire project. We’re also adding small but meaningful tweaks, including improved loading behaviour, subtle UI customization options, and a redesigned track builder interface that finally matches the rest of the experience. Steam post image We’re planning to roll out an Experimental Branch this summer, featuring the new UI and an updated track builder.

New track builder

One of the last major parts of Liftoff that still reflects its original implementation is the track builder. Over the past two years, we've been developing an entirely new system that's both more powerful and much easier to use.

Players of Liftoff: Micro Drones have already had a chance to experience the results of this work. Last summer, we introduced the new track builder there, where it has already proven its flexibility and ease of use.

We're now preparing to bring those same tools to classic Liftoff, replacing one of the oldest remaining systems in the simulator with a modern, far more capable editor. Want a preview of what that Like? Go try it in Liftoff: Micro Drones now!

And yes, even more is inbound. At this point, “Liftoff simulators” is just code for “we’ve lost control, but in a fun way.”