🛠️ Development & Updates

Sector Alpha’s multiplayer development has taken a big step forward! Players can now create a room, share its code, and join another pilot for cooperative campaign gameplay. Recent updates have focused on getting both players into the same fight—and keeping their view of the sector in sync. :milky_way:

:handshake: Create a room and bring your squad

The multiplayer lobby now uses room codes to connect players. Hosts can manage joining players, and the campaign squad queue shows who has joined and who is ready.

Testing has confirmed that two players can connect, see each other’s ships, and move together through the sector.

:boom: Shared combat is coming together

Guest pilots can now deal damage and take damage during multiplayer combat. Several fixes have also improved how weapons and their effects appear across both players’ screens:

Guest lasers and missiles now register damage.

Weapon visuals and missile impacts better match the shared fight.

Damage feedback has been improved on the guest’s screen.

Barrage missile activation has been corrected.

Guest drones can now fire their lasers.

These changes give the guest pilot a more complete role in the squad’s battles. :flying_saucer:

:space_invader: Better enemy and boss synchronization

Updates have addressed frozen enemies, differences in boss activity between players, and delays in displaying respawning aliens.

Shared combat handling has also been extended beyond A-1 to the other currently implemented combat sectors, helping both players follow the same enemy and boss states as they explore.

:cyclone: Travel through gates together

Gate travel now coordinates the squad’s transition. Both players should see the travel sequence, with arrival handling designed to bring their ships into the destination sector together.

This also addresses the delay where the host’s ship could disappear from the guest’s view after jumping through a gate.

:gear: Performance improvements across maps

Recent work has reduced background rendering costs across the sector maps. The game now reuses prepared background textures and avoids repeating some rendering work while the camera is stationary.

Testing with the guest connected from a separate laptop reached approximately 22 FPS. Performance still varies by device, sector, and combat intensity, so optimization remains an ongoing part of development.

:test_tube: Multiplayer is still being tested

These are early-access improvements, and more testing is needed during heavy battles, boss encounters, and repeated gate jumps.

If you encounter a problem, please include the sector name, whether you were the host or guest, and what happened. That feedback helps guide the next fixes.

Thanks for testing Sector Alpha and helping its cooperative campaign take shape. Grab a room code, bring another pilot, and head into the fight! :rocket:

:video_game: Play Sector Alpha:

[SparroNet](https://www.sparronet.com/sector-alpha)

[Doom Games Store](https://www.doomgamesstore.com/sector-alpha)