Steel Beasts 4.3103 Released

[Rinix]

eSim Games is happy to announce the release of Steel Beasts ? version 4.3103.

This is a full installer. Uninstalling 4.397 first is recommended, but not required.

Get the full installer HERE: https://www.esimgames.com/downloads/

Release notes:

Steel Beasts 4.3103 Full Installer (ca. 4586 MB, 23/05/2025)

[Rinix]

https://www.esimgames.com/sb-4-3103-full-installer-available-for-download/

This new version comes with a battalion scale single player operation ? and a lot of bug fixes. New features will have to wait, though. We wanted to minimize the time of interruption so we chose a conservative approach for this new release. Otherwise this would have taken at least six months, possibly a full year longer, and we considered that option as unacceptable.

[Rinix]

[Rinix]

[Rinix]

https://www.steelbeasts.com/topic/18143-fragment-detail-in-aar/ It turns out that there was one more feature removed: the fragmentation view in the AAR has been nerfed. People are upset, including thewood:

What you should be very sorry for is being the only game I have ever played that actively and permanently removed features, even for technical reasons.  In my opinion, significant features.  While GHPC is adding things like that to catch up with SB, you guys are actively moving in the other direction.  It just brings full validation that you'll throw the consumer under the bus for your defense customers.  Obviously your right to do that.  But I wonder how many "hidden" feature removals are just undiscovered.  And now that the precedent is set, it'll be a lot easier to continue doing it.

Ssnake responds:

...
I don't think that this criticism is justified. The number of things added to Steel Beasts has always vastly exceeded the number of things removed except for this one time. And the next upgrade will bring a lot of new features again.
...
I understand that you're upset, but "throwing under the bus" is a wee bit exaggerated. We all understand that our recent decisions won't be celebrated. We never declared them as a "good thing". We regret that we had to make these decisions, but we had to make them. I've never made a secret that the money we need to keep doing the work that we do comes primarily from the governmental business. Be glad for that - without it, Steel Beasts would have died as an obscure indie game history footnote some 20 years ago. But while money is a necessary ingredient to keep the lights on, it's never been our prime motivator.
As far as "hidden features" are concerned, they're all in plain sight: The User's Manual describes all features in the Classroom version of SB Pro, for everybody to read.

[Rinix]

[Rinix]

Info about installing 4.3103 alongside 4.397:

They can coexist peacefully, as long as you are disciplined in naming conventions. 4.3 103 can open scenario files, maps etc. generated with 4.3 97, but it doesn't work in the other direction. Therefore, if you edit anything in 4.3 103, it shouldn't be something that you plan ever using again in 4.3 97.

With some files (record files, hotkey assignments) it can get even more iffy. You may want to create a new user profile in 4.3 103, and you may want to back up (=export) your hotkey file in 4.3 97, just in case. It's probably worth checking the User's Manual, Chapter 2 ("Installation"), and there the section on File Structure, to see what other files might deserve attention (I'm working from memory here, I may have missed something).

[Rinix]

[Rinix]

The following items on my Steel Beasts wish list have been fulfilled with version 4.3103:

General:

• Server list with custom names