Full notes
Full Mad Metal update
Read the full published notes in a cleaner layout. The original post stays linked below.
What changed
- Gameplay
- Fixes
- Balance
- Performance
- UI and audio
- Maps
Mad Metal changes
We've been hard at work improving the game this year based on player feedback. A lot has changed so if you tried an earlier version of the game, give it another spin!
Mar. 12, 2026 (live)
The game is now DRM-free and can be run offline without requiring Steam. In such a case, saves will be stored locally and achievements will be locked
Added quick-turn ability to all enemy vehicles to make them more agile
AI are now better at avoiding obstacles
Fixed the first campaign mission's street barrier not closing/opening correctly
Mar. 5, 2026
Shotgun is now able to simultaneously shred armor, dismember components, and incapacitate drivers
Fixed a bug that prevented shotgun from dealing damage
Improved performance of projectiles, beams, missiles, and shotgun particles
Fixed a bug that caused failure of audio playback for some projectile impact sounds
Mar. 4, 2026
Fixed an issue that prevented players from loading campaign checkpoints
Fixed an issue that prevented players from saving/loading a vehicle configuration
Removed slow-motion when dismembering enemy vehicles
Improved vehicle handling and weight
Reduced stutter when playing voice lines
Mar. 2, 2026 *Critical bug fix*
Fixed a critical bug that prevents unlocking/equipping vehicle components
Decals now also apply to body kits
Mar. 2, 2026
Optimization pass to reduce CPU loads across all maps Mar. 1, 2026
Significantly improved performance of the open-world maps using proximity-based streaming
Reduced the distance required to progress to the next realm from 2304 to 1500.
Using right stick on the gamepad no longer navigates the UI, allowing you to rotate your vehicle without losing your hover selection March 1, 2026 Vehicle Cosmetics
Dirt accumulates as you drive
You can now customize your vehicle's skin, paint, and decal loadout
Vehicle components you equip now have a significant impact on speed, acceleration, handling, ramming damage, center of mass, vehicle sounds, and overall vehicle performance
Feb. 28, 2026 Audio Improvements
Improved vehicle audio for: turbo flutter, turbo whistle, engine fan, engine rev, gear change, reverse beep, tire skid, and tire surface sounds
Feb. 27, 2026 - Dirt accumulates as you drive - Steam Deck support: runs well on the default graphics preset - You can now customize your vehicle's skin, paint, and decal loadout - Vehicle components you equip now have a significant impact on speed, acceleration, handling, ramming damage, center of mass, vehicle sounds, and overall vehicle performance
Feb. 25, 2026 - Improved vehicle audio for: turbo flutter, turbo whistle, engine fan, engine rev, gear change, reverse beep, tire skid, and tire surface sounds
Steam post image
Feb. 23, 2026 - Complete overhaul of vehicle physics including improved weight distribution, TCS, ESC, ABS, and smart suspension load rating adjustments - Significantly increased weight of vehicles to prevent unrealistic air time - Vehicle components you equip now have a significant impact on speed, acceleration, handling, ramming damage, center of mass, vehicle sounds, and overall vehicle performance - Corrected inconsistencies in the vehicle stats UI Feb. 16, 2026 - Added 3 new character drivers: Plague Doctor, Claire, Iron Hunter - Fixed a bug in campaign mission 3 that caused the force field to disappear - Reworked campaign mission 1 to include first pass of lip-sync and facial animations
Feb. 13, 2026 - Added vehicle audio for: turbo flutter, turbo whistle, engine fan, gear change, reverse beep, tire skid, and tire surface sounds - Reworked vehicle physics to be more responsive and less "slippery"Feb. 10, 2026 - Added 5 levels to each deathmatch with progressively increasing difficulty - Added a new driver and sidearm for the Falcon vehicle: "Virel", a plague doctor with a Lanchester machine gun - Fixed a bug that caused the missile launcher reticle to flicker and cause frame drops
Steam post image Feb. 03, 2026 - Reworked campaign mission 2 to improve performance, visuals, and lighting - Fixed a bug that caused the camera to stall after leaving Scotty's Motor - Fixed a bug that allowed vehicles to shoot 360 degrees and through buildings. Now they require direct line of sight.
Steam post image Jan. 29, 2026 - Added new level: New York A.D (After Destruction) - Fixed a bug that caused gamepad input to fail upon loading a game
Steam post image Jan. 25, 2026 - Fixed an issue with the Reaper's scythe not triggering - Rebalanced stats for all vehicles, weapons, and vehicle parts, and added QoL adjustments to the UI to make stat comparisons clearer - Optimization pass for the New York "Midtown Lockdown" map to reduce real-time shadow count - Locked the Scorpion, Sour Diesel, and Grafter vehicles for demo purposes - Rebalanced energy drain and recharge rate for active abilities Jan. 22, 2026 - Added adjustable aim assist - The camera no longer auto-recenters while firing or while aim assist is engaged - Fixed a bug that prevented vehicle materials and colors from saving and loading correctly - Fixed an incorrect hotkey indicator when attempting to open the reward screen - Reduced paint vibrancy - Fixed a bug that caused UI sounds to play twice when using gamepad or SteamDeck Jan. 21, 2026 - Improved lighting, water reflections, and overall fidelity of the New York "Midtown Lockdown" level
Jan. 20, 2026 - Added a custom original soundtrack (6 songs) - Reduced RAM usage by another ~300MB - Fixed a bug that caused the controller to not register some inputs - Fixed a bug that caused the Scorpion engine to stall
Jan. 18, 2026
Fixed a bug that caused the credits to appear instead of the vehicle customization UI - Reduced build size by a further 800MB (from 10.2GB to 4.8GB and now 4.2GB) without removing content - Reduced RAM usage by ~300MB
Jan. 17, 2026 - Weapon turret rotation no longer depends on timescale so you can enter slow-motion with reliable aim - Fixed a bug that prevented the shotgun from shooting - Fixed a bug that caused some vehicles to shoot themselves - Fixed a bug that caused the outer shell of the Furgon (the yellow and red truck) from disappearing and/or displaying improper bullet hole textures when fired on
Jan. 16, 2026 - New campaign missions with an additional 140+ professional voice lines - New custom songs from the OST - Addition of "Relics" and achievements in the main menu - Fully compatible with Steam Deck - Dozens (hundreds?) of bug fixes not worth mentioning xD - Reduced build size from 10.2GB to 4.8GB including the addition of 2 new levels
Jan. 12, 2026 - Added more vertical elevation in the Desert Valley map - Reduced bounciness of vehicles when landing from an airborne state - Added a new indicator and cursor when switching between primary and secondary weapons - The open-world maps now begin with a random time of day. Each time of day introduces a game modifier that affects the way you play. Ex. at night, weapons don't overheat and during the blood moon, you lose health every second but healing effects are doubled etc...
Jan. 11, 2026 - Fixed slippery controls again
Jan. 10, 2026 - Fixed slippery controls - Vehicles now have TCS, ABS, and ESC stability systems - Radius of pickups doubled from 50m to 100m - Magnetization speed of pickups tripled from 10m/s to 30m/s
Jan. 09, 2026 - New Vigilante police truck with grappling hook ability - Added gamepad aim assist (mouse people don't really need it) Jan. 07, 2026 - Added TESSELATED TERRAIN! - MORE DESTRUCTIBLES! Break walls and small objects to forge your path - Major graphics and performance overhaul (144fps+ with a 3080ti on Ultra) - No more TAA and blurry textures! DLSS and downscaling have been removed.
Jan. 06, 2026 - Added destructible to most maps- Fixed a bug that caused the security guard in the campaign to disappear- Reintroduced DLSS but at a much higher resolution (less performant but fixes blurriness) - Fixed several bugs related to gamepad and cursor stability - Fixed Reaper's Scythe not dealing damage - Fixed extremely high collision damage against targets that can usually one-shot them - Enemies who crash into you won't instantly blow up - Fixed a bug that prevented dismembered objects from being cleaned up Jan. 05, 2026 - Temporarily removed DLSS to prepare for an optimization overhaul - Fixed a bug that made drivers vanish into narnia Jan. 04, 2026 - Removed aim assist as it was causing a 50% drop in framerate - I'll reintroduce it when I get my shit together (sorry) Jan. 03, 2026 - Added a dedicated reward screen - Added aim assist and indicator - Fixed an issue with the guided missile not guiding - Fixed a bug that caused the red health screen to occupy the entire viewport Jan. 02, 2026 - Added a shop to purchase items and upgrade your main base (not real money)
Jan. 01, 2026 - Fixed a bug in the New York City map that failed to spawn enemy vehicles - Added destructible walls that you can shoot or drive into - Fixed a bug that caused police cars to jank into heaven If you played an earlier version of the game, try it again and let me know what you think! If you like the game and would like to support the development, consider reviewing the demo and wishlisting! Thank you for helping us rank in the Indie.db 2025 top 100 games!
Stay Metal 🤘
Hakim Elayday
Mad Mechs Inc.
Source
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