Patch Launching Today and Patch Notes

Fellow Command & Conquer fans,

Today we’ll be launching our major update for the Command & Conquer Remastered Collection.  As mentioned in the post last week, our goal with this update was multifold:

1. Complete several of the top community requested features which just missed the launch date
2. Implement some additional quality-of-life improvements
3. Address many of the top bugs which have been seen in the launch version
4. Iterate on our Quickmatch ruleset

Below you will find the full list of Patch Notes for this update.  But before we get too deep into the detailed list, there are some higher-level items to mention as part of this patch.

Stuttering Issue:

This patch aims to improve the framerate stuttering issue some people have been experiencing since launch.  Admittedly this issue has been complicated to address.  Effectively what we ended up having to do was refactor the way textures are loaded by the game and push the majority of that loading before you get into gameplay.  This will have two primary impacts for everyone going forward:

1. Loading the overall game may take longer than before
2. Loading the first map may take longer than before

These longer load times would be most seen after a fresh restart of the computer.  While we understand this extra loading time may not be ideal, our testing indicates gameplay performance should be improved across the board, and this felt like a worthwhile tradeoff.  We want to continue gathering feedback / data on this issue, so if you have been experiencing the stuttering issue with the launch version, please let us know if this patch improved your gameplay performance.

Mod Compatibility:

Because this patch includes updates to the TiberianDawn.dll and RedAlert.dll files, it’s likely that previous mods will no longer be compatible with this updated version of the game.  Modders will need to update their mods with the latest code and refresh their mods on the Steam Workshop.  Certain mods may also need to be repackaged to be compatible with the new texture process above, and we’ve provided a script / tool to assist with this in the root install directory for the Command & Conquer Remastered Collection, within the folder called “SOURCECODE/SCRIPTS.”

Once a mod has been updated on the Steam Workshop, players will need to follow a few steps to update and reactivate their mods:

• Disable the mod in the Mods Menu
• Unsubscribe from the mod in the in-game Workshop Mods menu
• Quit and restart the game
• Re-subscribe to the mod via the Workshop Mods menu
• Activate the mod and restart the game as prompted
• The updated mod should then work as intended

Players may experience some issues if they try to activate mods that are not updated to the patch version.

Detailed Patch Notes:

With those items in mind, please see below for all the updates made in this patch:

New Features:

Added the ability to host Private Game Lobbies:

• The host must check the Private Game box in the setup screen
• Hosts can then choose a four-digit passcode for their game
• Private games will show an icon in the Join Lobby list
• Attempting to join a Private Game will require the passcode
• Host invited players will not need to enter the passcode to join

• Added a Player Panel in-game to view player names, factions, team colors, and status. This can be accessed via the Players button on the Sidebar.
• Added the ability to mute a player’s chat while in-game.  This can be done from the new Player Panel and tapping the mute checkbox next to their name.
• Added the ability to overwrite saved games.  Note: Tiberian Dawn and Red Alert saved game names are not exclusive, so be aware of overwriting saved games from one title to the other.
• Custom Missions can now be manually saved and loaded.  Note, due to the underlying system this will currently only work for manual saves via the Pause Menu, and will not work for Quicksaving.
• Added the ability to see your Quickmatch stats and Leaderboard position if you’re not in the top 200 (Players must complete at least three Quickmatch games first)
• Added the ability to choose your sub-faction in Red Alert Quickmatch games
• Added the ability to choose Random faction in custom games
• Added support for the Origin Video Broadcast feature
• Added the Jukebox to the Main Menu Options / Audio menu.  You can now customize your playlist here and listen in its entirety without needing to load into an actual game.  Note: The Jukebox won’t override menu music, as the menu music is tightly connected with all the UI flows.

Quality of Life Improvements:

• The “Deploy” hotkey will now apply to all items with the Deploy Cursor, including un-garrisoning troop carriers, laying mines, activating the MAD Tank, and triggering the Chrono Tank
• Add the ability for multiple units to be queued on the Tiberian Dawn Repair Facility, the same as the Red Alert Service Depot
• Reduced the Hard Difficulty balance in Tiberian Dawn.  We’ve effectively split the difference between Normal Mode and the launch version Hard mode.  If you happened to already beat missions on Hard mode (Or somehow received the Achievement), then wear that with a badge of honor.
• Adjusted how you cancel queued in-progress units in the Sidebar.  The first “cancel” click will now pause the in-progress unit, with the next click canceling items in the stack.  This will allow for quicker pausing to manage economic cashflow.
• Prioritized and reduced the cooldown of the EVA line “Our base is under attack”
• Changed the balance of being in low or zero power in Red Alert.  There is now a maximum of a 4x build time increase for being at zero power (Compared to roughly 27x in the legacy title), which will ramp depending on the amount of low power.
• The Build Time tooltip will now update to reflect an increase in build time due to low power
• Added the ability to load a saved game from the Replay Mission dialog
• We’re experimenting with new Harvester logic, where Harvesters will now return to the original tile they harvested from and prioritize the fullest tile.  This should help optimize Harvester behavior within certain resource fields.
• Made it so Middle and Right-click scrolling no longer removes a structure placement selection
• Removed AI takeover from Multiplayer games.  Exiting the game will now destroy all your units and structures.  This was a top community request to prevent the prolonging of games.
• Removed the Ready checkmark as a button in multiplayer lobbies.  You can now only Ready up via the button in the bottom-right corner which should reflect the active state.
• Added the Command Line “MOD_DEBUG” that will disable the Client/InstanceServer timeout when the debugger hits a breakpoint in the mod DLL.  This Command Line will also allow the game to be paused and stepped through frame by frame with F1 and F2.  Note: Online play will be disabled if this Command Line is enabled. Note: MOD_DEBUG requires at least one mod be installed and enabled.
• Added the ability for turrets to stop force firing on the ground by using the “Guard” command
• Adjusted disabling the profanity filter so it will now also disable profanity in Custom Map names and Custom Mission briefings
• Added an Author field when custom maps are selected to highlight who created them
• The Installation and Intro Logo movies must now be skipped with the ESC key.  This is to help ensure no one accidentally skips these meaningful videos on their first playthrough.

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed an issue where restarting a mission would sometimes change the difficulty back to Normal
• Fixed an issue where units could no longer be controlled after loading a saved game in which those units were selected
• Fixed an issue where Unit Queueing was getting disabled after loading a saved game
• Made an adjustment to Soviet Mission 5 where the MCV wasn’t loading onto the Naval Transport and getting the mission into a broken state (This was inconsistent for us to reproduce and hope it's now fixed)
• Made an adjustment to GDI Mission 8 where Civilians will now avoid Tiberium tiles, and the trigger-happy Civilian has been removed from the map entirely
• Fixed a memory leak which was causing instability in Multiplayer matches
• Fixed an issue where the Nod Cargo Plane could be targeted and destroyed
• Fixed an issue where units would move at hyper increased speed if players set certain units to Formations
• Fixed an issue where double-tapping to jump the camera to a control group was sending the camera to a random location on the map
• Fixed an issue where mines were considered buildings and preventing games from ending
• Fixed an issue where preview images were not displaying in the Workshop Mods menu
• Fixed an issue where the Mods Menu was not auto-refreshing after subscribing to mods
• Fixed a prominent crash where the Windows Input Method Editor (IME) was required to input characters
• Fixed an issue where the power indicator on the power bar was incorrect compared to legacy behavior
• Fixed a legacy issue where the Capture the Flag flag art was off-centered with the surrounding rings
• Fixed an issue where the Harvester was unable to path to a Refinery on River Raid
• Fixed a legacy issue where units would sometimes be instantly repaired by the Service Depot
• Fixed a legacy issue where the Advanced Communications Center could be captured in multiplayer and by the AI  (Since the Temple of Nod can’t be captured)
• Fixed an issue where the faction icon was seen incorrectly for Skirmish saves
• Fixed an issue where the video Introduction button was being disabled after navigating back and forth from Custom Maps
• Fixed an issue where it would rarely show “Mission Accomplished” in Quickmatch after losing the game
• Fixed a crash when saving the game during the Temple Strike mission
• Fixed an issue where player names were not able to be highlighted during the first 30 seconds of an Observer Mode viewing
• Fixed an issue where the incorrect portrait was being displayed for the Red Alert Artillery unit
• Fixed an issue where the green docking cursor was shown when selecting enemy Harvesters
• Fixed where the Phase Transport was displaying the incorrect portrait when added to a Custom Mission via the Map Editor
• Fixed an issue where the laser from the Obelisk of Light was graphically corrupted in legacy graphics mode
• Fixed an issue where the multiplayer lobby list was not taking up the entire vertical space
• Fixed an issue where settings were not getting applied if tapping certain areas of the UI
• Fixed an issue where GDI Mission 8 was not getting added to the Mission Select screen after destroying the Airstrip in GDI Mission 6
• Fixed an issue where units could pass over a river in Blue Lakes
• Fixed an issue where the Laser Orcas would not properly load from saved game
• Fixed a crash if aircraft were destroyed outside the map boundaries
• Fixed an issue where User Map details were not being displayed by guest players in a lobby
• Fixed a crash when selecting the Workshop Mods button multiple times in a row
• Fixed a misspelling of the word “Affected” in the Paradox Equation mission briefing
• Fixed an issue where an extra Dr. Chan was appearing in Nod Mission 10
• Fixed an issue where the Map Editor was not compatible with older versions of .Net Framework
• Fixed an issue where if a Quickmatch fails to load properly, the game will send you back to the Main Menu after a 60-second timeout (Instead of being stuck in an endless loop)
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Bullseye
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Central Conflict Extreme
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Destruction Derby
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Gold Coast
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Normandy Landings
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Lakeland
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Land Ladder
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Lotsa Lakes
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Naval Conquest
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Open Warfare Mega
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Pilgrim Fathers 2
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on River Rampage Mega
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Rivers Wild
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on Scapa Flow
• Fixed mismatching tile issues on United Kingdom

Quickmatch:

If you didn’t see the post from last week, we already made the following changes for Quickmatch on June 16:

• Increased the Game Speed from Normal to Fast
• Reduced the Starting Units to zero
• Removed Aftermath units from Quickmatch in Red Alert  (due to extreme balance issues)
• Added two more maps to the Tiberian Dawn map rotation:

1. Monkey in the Middle
2. One Pass Fits All

With this patch, we are making additional Map Pool adjustments based on community feedback:

• Adding “Eye of the Storm” into Tiberian Dawn
• Adding “Four Corners” into Tiberian Dawn

• Removing “Path Beyond” from Red Alert
• Removing “Snow Garden” from Red Alert
• Removing “Warlords Lake” from Red Alert

• Adding “Arena Valley Extreme” into Red Alert
• Adding “Bullseye” into Red Alert
• Adding “North by Northwest” into Red Alert
• Adding “Things to Come” into Red Alert

Overall, we hope this update improves your experience with the Command & Conquer Remastered Collection.  Thanks for your ongoing support, and please continue to provide your feedback here on the subreddit, in social channels, and with our support teams.

Cheers,

Jim Vessella

Jimtern