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On Xbox Series X, the update measures approximately 5.61GB in size.
The Grounded team has been silent since thegame’s last update in May of this year, though.
All the tools you need to bring your wildest dreams to life in Grounded.
Well, we finally have a definitive answer.
Disclaimer:This interview has been edited for grammar and clarity.
What is the Make It or Break It Update for Grounded?
All the tools you need to bring your wildest dreams to life in Grounded.
Just its “traditional” changes and new features are enough to make plenty of Grounded players excited.
Hell, you’re able to even spawn any number of every creature in Grounded.
However, it goes so much further than that.
It has been a while since Grounded’s last major update, but the wait will have been worth it.
There are even full-blown logic gates.
Even the few examples the Grounded team showed me were incredibly impressive.
Playgrounds is to Grounded what EventLab is to Forza Horizon and Forge is to Halo.
Playgrounds is available in both single-player and multiplayer, and you can also use anyone’s code to download their Playgrounds.(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)
That meant fleshing out the Backyard, the story campaign, the survival experience, and the gameplay.
Just over a year after its launch, though, Obsidian was feeling very confident about where Grounded was.
Shortly after therelease of the Grounded Super Duper Update, Brennecke and his team knew it was time.
The update adds proper animations for basketballs, and Playgrounds adds a working score card. Whhhhhaaaaat!???(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)
We just started getting a few things in here and there and it turned out to be pretty awesome.
Even so, they had no clue what the feature would end up becoming.
Smaller teams put togetherPentimentand Grounded, with considerably more limited resources.
Design a glorious combat arena that… Well, that kills everyone inside of it, it looks like.(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)
Brennecke also wanted to make Playgrounds as accessible as possible, though.
It runs well on older hardware, not only Xbox One but also older PCs.
“[Playgrounds] runs well on older hardware, not only Xbox One but also older PCs.”
The control you have over the Backyard with Playgrounds is immense.(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)
We’ve seen it in Minecraft, Halo Forge, and in every game that supports mods.
Being able to have players create in the same ecosystem as they’re playing the game is powerful.
“[Forza Horizon 5’s EventLab and Halo Infinite’s Forge] were big inspirations for us.
The entire time Obsidian was building Grounded, the idea for Playgrounds lingered in the background.
“Back when I was in high school, that was when Quake came out…
I was really into making Quake mods.
I think that got me into game development,” he told me.
Players will be able to rest easy with this update, but it wasn’t quite as simple for Obsidian.
“It opens it up for every bang out of player.”
It’ll inspire new creators in video games.
We are definitely going to be adding more to it and seeing where we can take it.
Making Playgrounds happen is pretty similar to trying to fight the Koi Fish in Grounded.
For example, Obsidian wants to give players more ways to share their creations.
“[We want to add] a way to browse through other creations.
We have a shareable code, but we would like to expand on that,” Brennecke said.
Invite your friends and create your own version of the Backyard.
He wouldn’t elaborate on what this means, but I’m excited by the possibilities.
I also know that the Grounded team is exploring control over creature AI.
For now, all spawned creatures will follow their default behaviors.
This is a modest example of a Grounded base, and players don’t even have access to Playgrounds yet.
However, Obsidian is exploring tools to control creature hostility, pathing, and more.
If that feature comes, Playgrounds really will have all the scripting tools players need for fully custom adventures.
If you might be thinking that Playgrounds sounds like the future of Grounded, I wouldn’t blame you.
Grounded is far from finished — Obsidian still has a lot of fuel left in the tank.
“There are some teases in this update of what’s to come.
I’ll leave it at that.”
Grounded still has a very healthy future of support ahead of it.
Grounded is unbelievably beautiful at times. I can’t wait to see how the Backyard continues to evolve.
However, Brennecke and I also took some time to discuss an inevitability: the end of Grounded.
“There will be a stopping point to updates sometime.
Then we’ll think about what’s next for Grounded as a whole.”
One day, Obsidian will have to close the curtain on Grounded (well, the game, at least).
That was always the plan, though, and Obsidian is prepared for it.
There will be a stopping point to updates sometime.
Then we’ll think about what’s next for Grounded as a whole.
The Grounded team has deliberately handed players all the tools they need to grow beyond them.
Even when that day does eventually come, Grounded isn’t finished.
This isn’t a one-off game for Obsidian Entertainment or Xbox.
Grounded is here to stay, even after the original survival game receives its final update.
Brennecke took every opportunity to reiterate how exuberant he was about it.
I asked Brennecke what he hoped to see following the update’s release.
“you’re able to make anything in your dreams and wildest imaginations.
“That’s more powerful than anything that our development team at Obsidian can do,” he concluded.
I have absolutely no reason to argue.
Time to build our own Backyards.
