- Small Bugfix Patch - 7 July 2026
Just a couple of bug fixesFixed: Upgrading a bed (or otherwise 'cargo-less' furniture) would cause a crash. Fixed: During POI defense missions, dead survivors and mercs would not be recorded at the end of the mission.
- After The Collapse – v2.0.0 is out! - 30 June 2026
Hi there!So, after a longer hiatus than I'd have liked, v2.0.0 is finally out, and it's a big one. This update has two sides to it: a major engine overhaul under the hood, and a solid chunk of new content on top. As usual, I'll go over the main changes in the article proper, while the rest is in the changelog at the end.Enjoy!Under the hood firstThis took quite a while to write, but I ported the game from .NET Framework 4.7 to .NET 10, which is essentially a complete engine migration. MonoGame, Penumbra lighting, OpenAL, everything got updated to current modern versions. The result is noticeably better rendering performance, especially on large maps and underground layers. It also fixes many minor technical issues. The downside being that Windows 10 is now the minimum requirement for 2.0. Version 1.5.1 will stay available in the Game Version/Beta tab in the game's properties on Steam. S…
- Maintenance Patch 1.5.1.1 - 24 July 2025
This is a small maintenance patch fixing the non functioning recycling bench in 1.5.1. When updating the UI, the "queue recipe" button for this bench got accidentally removed. This is now fixed. My bad it took so long, it sorta coincided with me going to vacations in July. Have a nice day!
- Update 1.5.1: New Sound Library - 27 May 2025
Hello, ATC gets a new sound library! So I am aware that some of you (especially those using Windows Home edition in parts of Europe and Asia) are experiencing audio-related issues, crashes, and bugs since v0.8, with some versions of the game behaving better than others. Sometimes downloading a Windows package helps, but other times, nothing seems to work. Because it seems to be a more common issue than I initially thought, I ported the game to a third and final sound library that doesn't suffer from the same problem (this time, it's OpenAL). As far as I can tell, this should fix any remaining audio-related problem. Of course, this is not exactly a trivial change. Audio files had to be reprocessed. The new library had to be adapted to run in place of what I was using before. Initial game loading time might be a bit longer than it used to be, at least if you're running on old hardware. Th…
- Spiderling Content Update 1.5.0 - 26 May 2025
I'm happy to announce the release of After The Collapse 1.5.0, one of the biggest content updates to date. This Spiderling Content Update brings many new features, significant UI improvements, and expanded faction content. This article only covers the main changes. As usual, check the change-log at the end for a complete list. Arakan Faction Expanded The playable Arakan faction archetype has received substantial improvements in this update. I've expanded their technology tree with themed buildings and unique game-play mechanics that truly set them apart from other factions. Arakans can now brew specialized potions, including one for cooling (providing stress reduction and happiness) and another to boost prisoner compliance, making it a lot easier to convert them to your cause. They've also gained access to the Sacrificial Pit, a powerful new building that allows trading human lives for…
- Update 1.3.5: General Update + DLC News - 28 February 2025
Hi there! Here's a new sizable update for After The Collapse. I'll also talk about the planned DLC somewhere below in this article. I know, I know, I'm a tad behind schedule. Nothing's new :) Anyway, this version 1.3.5 brings substantial improvements to the world map faction AI, game balance, and visuals. As usual I will go over the main changes only, you can refer to the full changelog at the end for the nitty gritty details. Graphics Overhaul This update includes a major visual refresh across multiple aspects of the game. All body and head armor sprites have been completely redone with a much prettier and consistent look. Same story for many of the basic resources, food, and other manufactured goods. Every single faction logo were redesigned, same goes for the vast majority of the technologies. I also replaced two of the most "out of place" trading cars with more "post-apocalyptic" lo…
- Echoes of the Machine DLC Announcement - 14 December 2024
Hi there! So, as expected, here's the long-awaited announcement for the upcoming DLC dubbed Echoes of the Machine. It should be made available in mid-March 2025. It will feature a new multi-map storyline and a ton of late-game content. Before I explain what it should contain, please understand that this is still in early development, and some of the stated features below are subject to potential changes. This article is more about giving you a general layout for the DLC than explaining everything point by point exactly as it will be. With that in mind, let's dive in! 🙂 New Story Mode I'm not going to go into the details of the story itself, obviously, but it's a separate story from the main game, still in the same universe. You will be facing an army of robots handled by a prewar AI gone rogue. Similarly to the base game's story mode, you'll visit multiple world maps, meet new factions…
- Update 1.3.1: Cats! (and stuff) - 7 December 2024
Hi! this is a small / medium patch prior to a big announcement you'll get next week. As usual, this update should be compatible with prior save-games and existing, compatible, mods. Cats (and pets) Cats have been added to the roster of pets your survivors can have. There are 4 different colors, and they have a much more varied animation set than other pets. They do sleep, have 2 different idle animations, and will actively avoid combat (making them a lot more survivable than dogs for instance), They are also only "roughly" following their owner, instead of sticking to them like glue. It's part of a larger rewrite of the pet system. The mood bonus given by pets depends on the species. It's not meant to be a judgement on the cat vs dog debate (it is), but just as a way to balance them. In short, cats provide the most happiness, but won't defend their owner. Dogs provide the next highest b…
- Maintenance Patch 1.3.0.2 - 16 October 2024
Hi, This is a simple patch fixing 2 problems in the latest update. Expect another patch in the coming days, following by an announcement. Bug Fixed: Truce immediately stopping with bandits (regression bug 1.3.0) Raids would occur even if you're underground and never breached the surface (regression bug 1.2.8) Mod uploader stopped working (regression bug 1.2.8)
- Update 1.3.0: General Update - 2 October 2024
Introducing the 1.3.0 Update for After the Collapse! Hi there! This new update brings a wealth of exciting new content and features to the post-apocalyptic wasteland of After the Collapse. Let's dive in and take a look at what's new! Weapon Variants: This is the first step in introducing procedurally generated loot. This update introduces rare, modified weapons to the loot and trade tables. From armor piercing and shock ammo to elite rifles with boosted stats, the total number of weapons has been multiplied by about 8. While there's still some work to be done (it'd be nice to have multiple modifiers per weapon), and while armors haven't been touched yet, it's still an important step toward more varied loot tables. The Last Stand Rework: This old wave survival scenario was severely outdated when compared to the other ones, as it didn't take into account any of the most recent improvement…
- Update 1.2.8: Dynamic Raids and Events - 15 May 2024
Hi there! Let's get the bad news out of the way: this update is only partially compatible with older save-games (saves will load, but it'll be buggy). It's possible to rollback to 1.2.5 to finish your game if you need to. I'll explain how-to in this very article. As usual, the full change-log is at the bottom of this post. Now, let's get to the good stuff! Dynamic Raid System It's not really a secret that the event system was starting to show some cracks, especially when it comes to enemy raids. Until now, ATC was relying on an extensive list of semi hard-coded raiding groups, which would unlock as the player discovers technologies or reaches population thresholds. Each time I added a mob to the game, I also needed to add a new "raid" file for that mob to show up, and it would interfere with other events (more raid files = other event less likely to spawn). In short, it was really getti…
- Update 1.2.5: General Update - 2 April 2024
Hello! This is a mid-sized update with no particular theme. It is compatible with existing saves and mods, but due to changes in the way damaged weaponry is handled, you may need to redo your weapon and armor maintenance stations' queues. This short article details the main changes while the change-log at the bottom lists every single change, as usual. Enjoy! Combat AI Your survivors (and relevant enemies) can now automatically switch between melee and ranged weapon based on the situation. It takes into consideration the ammo left in the ranged weapon, the DPS, and range of each weapon before taking a decision. For instance, they'll still use their shotgun at point blank, even if they also have an axe, but they will likely switch to said axe if they are just wielding a pistol, or if they need to reload. On top of that, if you order a survivor to attack a door or a window to breach into…
- Update 1.2.4: Prisoner and Survivor Management - 23 February 2024
Hi there! As promised, here's a new update focusing on the prisoner system. With the recent introduction of a prisoner-centric faction archetype, the Arakans, it really needed some love. Of course, it's far from the only change in this update, which should make your whole population easier to manage. As usual, the full change-log is at the bottom. I highly recommend to give it a look, as many important details will only be mentioned there. I am a bit short on time today, so the article is shorter than usual, while the change-log is more detailed to compensate. Enjoy! Prisoner System First thing first: Compliance. This value, used to determine how close is a prisoner to riot or to join you, now works pretty much as you'd guess. Treat prisoners well and give them good individual cells, and their compliance will grow steadily: The higher quality the individual cell, the more compliance wil…
- Update 1.2.3 - 12 January 2024
Hey there! I hope you all had a good holiday season. Let's hope this year will be better than the last. Here's a small patch for 1.2 focusing on recent player feedback. It's fixing a few bugs and balancing issues. It's nothing major. Unless some major crash or bug pops up, this will likely one of the last "hotfix" for the Rebirth update, next patches will add proper content (on top of the usual fixes and tweaks). Expect a full devlog in a few days. 1.2.3 Changelog Balance: During the Main Story, "experienced" trait progression is reset in between acts, so new players don't get overwhelmed by 30+ settlers crying about the lack of a proper bedroom Balance: Reduced the ratio of pandemonium infected recruits (15%->10% in Rare, 30%->20% in Common, 95%->90% in Everyone difficulty settings) Balance: Enforced limits to the amount of boss level hordes being active on the map at the same time (on…
- Update 1.2.1 & 1.2.2 - 13 December 2023
Hi, This is a small patch to fix the issues found in 1.2, most of which are related to the Arakan playable faction archetype. There's no need to reset your progress or anything like that. The main visible change, beside a few minor graphical improvements, is the new bone carving station. As the name implies, all bone-related recipes (mainly a thing for cannibals and mutants) have been moved there. It means that the bone armor is now available right from the start, possibly making the very early game a bit easier for those factions. 1.2.2 Changelog Fixed: Possible crash in "Scenario->Custom->Equipment" menu if one of the items provided in the scenario doesn't exist (outdated mod issue) Fixed: If a survivor is being "summoned" by the pharmacy while their inventory is completely full, they would get stuck in place Fixed: Similar issue with doctors not having the room in their inventory to…
- After The Collapse 1.2.0: Rebirth Update - 7 December 2023
Hi! Here's a very massive update for After The Collapse, hence the skip in the usual version numbering system. It covers multiple new systems, new quests, a slicker UI, heavily improved graphics, new critters, and a ton of fixes and balance changes. As usual, the full change-log is at the bottom of this post. I will also cover the reasons why there has been no update in a year at the end of this article. The important bit is that updates will start rolling out again at a regular pace. Visual and Audio This will be the first thing you'll notice when launching the game. All background images, static cut-scenes, portraits, and illustrations during events and quests have been redesigned or replaced by much higher-quality assets sharing a similar art style. That's about 200 new or replaced images in total. Additionally, all main story cut-scenes have voice-over narration and dialogs, in Engl…
- 1.0.1 Balance & UI Update - 5 October 2022
Hello! Here's the 1.0.1 update. Namely, the version which probably should have been released initially, but well, hindsight is always 20/20. On top of the usual improvements, tweaks and fixes, there are 2 main arcs for this update: a proper balance pass at the story mode while fixing its remaining problems, and the much requested job management tools. Enjoy! Story Mode The main change in this story-line is that there's a soft cap to the maximum amount of people you can control. This includes expeditions and workers at production center. The cap increases in each act. It's 25 people in the first act, 50 in act 2, 75 in act 3 and 150 in act 4. This is unique to story mode, the other scenarios and sandbox modes are still uncapped, obviously. The rational for this change is pretty simple, it's to make this mode more difficult for veterans (limiting their ability to grind the whole world-map…
- Devlog: general news, 1.0 status, and next updates - 27 September 2022
Hi there! After those first few hectic weeks, I think it would be a good time to take a breather with an article summarizing how everything went, my future plans, and so on and so forth. We didn't have a proper devlog in months, after all. I first want to welcome all the new players! I know the initial 1.0 release was a bit rough (especially in story mode), and I'm very sorry about that. Still, most of the major bugs got fixed quickly thanks to everyone's prompt and detailed feedback. 1.0 Release Status All things considered, 1.0 was a relatively solid release. It had 3 major "Day 1" bugs which tripped people over in a way I'd rather have avoided. All were literal typos in the code base. It's not bad code, it was just a case of coding fatigue after the last few months. They were all caught and quickly dispatched. It doesn't mean that 1.0 ain't without faults. We wouldn't be at the 4th h…
- Update 1.0.0.4 (Hot-Patch 4) - 24 September 2022
Hi people! Here's the 4th bug fixing patch for the 1.0 release. As usual, it's fixing most of the reported issues and includes a few user requests. A larger update will follow soon, unless enough bug reports pile up to justify another hot-patch. I will post an article about the 1.0 release, my future plans and everything else in a few days. People who are in the middle of a game, especially in Story Mode, should pay close attention to this changelog as, when loading your game, some of your production centers might be automatically abandoned and you might want to know why. Cheers. Artificial Intelligence Farmers will no longer try to plant seeds in an outdoor farm if the current weather is damaging the plants (blood rains, acid rains and cold waves), they will continue to care for the rest of the farm, though. I added a toggle in the Faction menu to globally prevent or allow survivors to…
- Update 1.0.0.3 (Hot-Patch 3) - 19 September 2022
Hi there! Here's a new hot-patch, fixing the majority of the reported issues. There are still a couple problems that I'm actively investigating. Those will be subject of a follow-up patch before the end of the week. Feedback and suggestions are taken into account and will be subject of their own minor update very soon, but right now, I'm mostly focusing on fixing issues. Thank you for your understanding :) Balance The options to prevent survivors from gathering dead bodies and dropped loot are now the default ones when starting a new game. Made it so to prevent suicidal runs. Slightly tuned down abomination raid's strength in act 3 and 4 (It's still meant to kill an undefended base). ContentYou can finish exploring production centers that you own, no need to abandon/reclaim them anymore. Yes, you can still find recruits there, I know it doesn't make a LOT of sense, but it's better than…
