Knights of New Boston - we've got another update here for you with further improvements to the matrix, fixing up a few small bugs in the recent glut of new matrix maps, a new scheme for how ignored / dismissed Recruits are handled, a fix for anyone with a stuck Scourge recruit, improved consistency of Hacking tags on missions and more.

A big thanks to everyone playing, posting and hitting F10 this week! We've seen a huge wave of new players come onboard so it is so helpful to get fresh eyes on Early Access. Keep an eye on this page, more updates and more good things are coming.

If you enjoy the game and our special way of doing Early Access, please take a moment to leave a review! Remember you can always edit it later.

Spiked Nodes React!

This has been a visual goal for a while but with the addition of the new Access Gate it is more important than ever to be able to see the status of the node while you're planning your path. There are a few other places we need to have the UI and visual react to spiking - like the pop out node description to the left of the node - but we're excited to take this first enhancement and run with it.

CPUs that have been spiked become more unstable, reddish and stretch and distort as the quantum structure struggles to maintain coherence after the spike. Access Gates and APU - now defeated and lifeless - become gray and lit only by flickering light, their security functions now extinguished.

Ignored and Rejected Recruits

In the original setup for recruits, if you ignored or rejected them they would be purged from the game, completed removed. There were exceptions to this in the plan, like the sibling from the KEMCO Salvage storyline who would transition back to a character known to be living on the streets of New Boston, a relation to one of your mercs and a potential story character for future arcs.

We've now upgraded all non-Underground Hub recruits to work this way. Any recruit that you encounter and decide not to accept is moved into the Dismissed state, which leaves them (hidden unless you filter) on your Roster, and marks them as great story pickup for future story arcs.


This helps build up your history of characters in the city who you've been in contact with and who might someday be a better fit for your team. While you can't go back to them today and re-request the option to recruit them, that is way we are heading. This set of dismissed mercs will become your backup pool (assuming they aren't picked up by some story first).

Notably, Underworld Hub has a slightly different setup where an ignored recruit simply goes on a long cooldown and then will recur in the Hub. So, we did not change that process with this update.

This is a rare type of update that only affects games from this point forward. We can't do anything to fix the issue that in older games these recruits were purged. It isn't damaging to games, and all new added recruits will fill into this pool in old and new games, so it has some impact but will be long-term minor and is currently no impact (as you can't re-recruit these folks).

Stuck Scourge

If you happened to ignore the Scourge recruit during the recently added ERA storylines and let the timeline expire without interacting with it, a bug occurred where instead of getting the final recruit prompt and being forced into making a Yes/No decision, the Scourge just quietly stuck around as a Recruit but with no further way to interact.

The next time you load your game the issue will be resolved and the recruit option will be back.

Missions Missing Hacking Tag

There were a number of missions missing the Hacking tags, which would let you know it could be valuable to bring a Hacker along. We've done a sweep of these and believe they are fixed across the board.

Reload issues

We're grinding down any F10s right now that are reported as reload issues- where something isn't quite right if you go back to the main menu and reload your game. This update fixes an issue where VIPs using the Vita-Shield buff (invulnerability) would get the buff back even if you had shot it down.

The River inDusted Hover-Evac

We fixed a map issue that was preventing anyone - player or enemy - from seeing across the bridge or river in the back of the Dusted Hover-Evac level.

v1.8.127 - #157: Lights Out - 10/11/2024

- Matrix CPU, APU and Gates now visually respond to being spiked, changing their node appearance
- Fixed issues with 2 of the new hosts having disconnected data nodes (thanks for the F10s!)
- Improved some of the routing and pathing options in the new hosts after review
- Fixed bug where ignoring the recruit of the ERA storyline Scourge could result in a hung state - option to recruit will reappear now
- Improved scheme for ignoring / dismissing story or timeline recruits - new Dismissed Recruit status allows them to appear in future stories or repeat recruit offerings
- Fixed some invisible walls blocking sight over river / bridge in Dusted Hover-Evac
- Fixed multiple missions missing the Hacking flag that have matrix terminals
- Fixed duplicated victory/defeat text at the end of HEARTBREAK RUSH job
- Fixed issue reloading level with VIP shield returning unfairly
- Fixed issues with expensive / cheapest sort in cold storage, inventory and market when categories were mixed