UFL v0.59 early access launch patch notes

Developers Strikerz Inc has released a fresh set of patch notes ahead of the launch of UFL early access, which will be available on all current-gen consoles.

After a previous round of delay, players can get their hands on the upcoming football simulator on December 5. Grabbing a Starter Pack will help you to get seven extra days of gameplay, and a handful of other benefits. Before that, let’s look at all the changes coming to the game ahead of the early access release.

Complete UFL early access patch notes

UFL was originally scheduled for a release in the month of September. However, the developers decided to push back the launch based on community feedback, and come tomorrow, owners of the Starter Pack will be able to enjoy all the content.

UFL early access patch notes Gameplay changes

• Improved animation selection based on player movement. 
• Adjusted ball rebound force during pass receptions, sprints, and bursts. 
• Air ball receptions are now smoother, with delays and glitches in receiving such passes fixed. 
• Fine-tuned ball direction and rebound force during interceptions. 
• Optimized algorithms determining interception success. 
• Added new animations for failed interceptions. 
• Tweaked through passes (ground and lofted) for improved accuracy and better stick-based direction control. 
• Redesigned crosses into the penalty area: improved ball behavior and player interaction. 
• Reduced charge time for passes and shots, especially for ground passes. 
• Enhanced responsiveness when executing passes and shots. 
• Fixed bugs with player switching during lofted passes. 
• Improved player movement and positioning during crosses into the penalty area. 
• Players at the near post now automatically attempt to clear the ball rather than control it. Switching to these players is now disabled. 
• If the ball heads under the crossbar, taller players are more likely to clear it successfully, while shorter players might miss. 
• Increased speed and smoothness of turns, especially for sharp turns (e.g., 180 degrees). 
• Players without the ball are now slightly faster than those with the ball, enhancing game dynamics. 
• Improved responsiveness: players react faster to commands, making controls more comfortable. 
• Fixed animation bugs to ensure smoother and more synchronized movement. 
• Goalkeepers are more effective against shots from long distances and/or at low speeds. 
• Enhanced goalkeeper reactions to crosses and low-driven passes, improving their confidence in intercepting the ball. 
• Increased penalty save success rates. 
• When throwing the ball, goalkeepers now aim to bypass both opponents and teammates, increasing successful throw accuracy. 
• Updated goalkeeper animations and behavior logic.  
• Added new animations for different types of tackles, including long-range lunges, 90-degree tackles from a sprint, and side-tackles from lateral movement. 
• Improved calculation systems for successful tackles. 
• Enhanced animation selection during active defending. 
• The ball now moves in more logical and predictable directions after a passive tackle. 
• Passive tackles will no longer activate if the defender is positioned behind or to the side of the opponent. 
• New animations added for passive tackles. 
• Improved physical interactions during tackles, with more diverse movements in physical battles. 
• Introduced mechanics for missed shots when a player is pushed off their trajectory. 
• Defenders react faster to lofted passes and can catch up with attackers of comparable speed when the ball is played into space, improving the balance between attack and defence. 
• Improved collision physics and player interactions. 
• Refined head and torso movements in various gameplay situations. 
• Updated logic for divisions and leaderboard progression. 

Complete UFL early access patch notes AI and Bot changes

• Increased baseline width for attacking players. 
• Improved logic for identifying open spaces during attacking runs. Runs are now less linear, focusing more on exploiting gaps between defenders. 
• Midfielders and attackers will now make attacking runs more frequently. 
• In the opponent’s final third, players on the opposite flank will more actively shift into the half-space and make attacking runs toward the far post. 
• Players now better account for opponent positioning and movement when getting open for passes. 
• Midfielders will push forward more frequently when positioning for passes in the opponent’s final third. 
• Increased baseline width for defensive players. 
• Reduced the influence of ball positioning on defensive shape width. 
• Improved player positioning when marking opponents, with a focus on maintaining a half-position between the ball and the opponent. 
• Fullbacks now have greater freedom to press opponents during marking. 
• When passing the responsibility of marking a ball carrier, the second defender will wait for the first to close the gap before engaging. 
• Reduced the distance defenders follow attacking runs, preventing the defensive line from being pulled too far toward the penalty area in a single run. 
• Defensive players no longer immediately react to attacking runs by opponents. 
• Increased the influence of team tactic settings like “Depth” on where the defensive line engages the opponent. 
• Fullbacks will push forward more actively in attack when individual tactic “Attack Support” is set to the “Attacking Runs” instruction.  
• Enhanced the impact of wide and narrow formations in the “Attacking Width” instruction on the positioning of flank players. 
• Completely revised AI-controlled player movement dynamics. The number of sprints has been significantly reduced to create a more measured gameplay rhythm and make player movement more predictable and situational. 
• Increased spacing between the trio of central midfielders during both attack and defence. 
• Players from both teams’ midfield and attack will remain inside the penalty area for a brief period after a corner or free kick. 
• Fixed goalkeeper positioning during free kicks at the moment of the strike. 
• Fixed camera focus on the ball after a throw-in replay. 
• Reduced time for goalkeeper interception animations. 
• Fixed striker positioning for pass reception when the ball carrier stops. 
• On easy difficulty, the bot behaves like a novice player, utilizing limited gameplay features and having a constrained perception of game situations. 
• The bot no longer blindly chases the ball; instead, it reacts to the situation: 
• Maintains distance from the player when appropriate. 
• Closes gaps aggressively when the ball carrier plays forward. 
• Focuses on preventing progression toward the goal. 
• Utilizes various movement modes available to the user. 
• Bots use passes more frequently. 
• Bots no longer retreat from the opponent’s goal unnecessarily. 
• Bots no longer get stuck running in circles. 
• Bots now perform crosses in certain situations. 
• Improved accuracy of through passes by bots. 

UFL early access patch notes Audio and Video changes

• Added an option to display FPS during gameplay. 
• Improved HUD functionality, including in-match statistics display. 
• Refined the Match Results screen. 
• Added new dirt effects on kits. 
• Fixed several bugs related to UI, localization, and crashes. 
• Adjusted in-game announcement volume. 
• Tweaked crowd reaction volume. 
• Added whistle sound echoes. 
• Enhanced commentator lines and ball sound effects. 
• Enabled maximum speaker volume for DualShock. 
• Adjusted vibration feedback. 
• Seasonal update to the player list. 
• Added new players. 
• Removed unavailable players. 
• Updated ratings, attributes, and player costs. 
• Refreshed photos for 1,100+ players. 
• Added new equipment items. 
• Added new stadiums. 
• Refined stadium lighting and environment visuals. 
• Updated the list of local clubs. 
• Added three new skin series. 

It will be interesting to see the gameplay changes in UFL and how much work the developers have managed to do in the last couple of months. If you’re eager to jump in right away to check everything out, you have to purchase

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