v0.05 — From Single Stand to Smart Factory Lines

v0.05 is the biggest “systems” update so far. The core focus was moving the game from early single-stand play into multi-stand production lines, with stronger automation, better reliability, and cleaner UI.

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Production Lines Are Real Now

Equipment is now a managed system

Equipment is no longer a throwaway placement concept. It now behaves like owned factory assets:

  • Equipment ownership/inventory added
  • Equipment swapping supported
  • Stand equipment visuals added in-world

This sets up better long-term progression because equipment can now be treated as part of your operation strategy, not just a one-off toggle.

Car transfers between stands

Cars can now move from one stand to another, enabling line-style workflows:

  • Car stand to car stand movement added
  • Job priority adjusted so car movement fits production flow better
  • Research integration added around routing behavior

This is the foundation for “specialized stations” and dedicated line throughput.

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Automation and Operations

Auto-order parts

Supplier automation got a major step forward:

  • Auto-order parts system added
  • Ordering tied into model-driven part requirements
  • Works with supplier workflows instead of bypassing them

Office desks + office workers

Office automation entered the game loop:

  • Office desk placeable added
  • Office worker assignment logic added/fixed
  • Office systems can help automate repetitive management actions

This starts the shift from player micro-control toward staff-assisted operations.

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Stability and Recovery Improvements

A lot of crash/stall edge cases were addressed:

  • Fixed freeze case when part shelves are full
  • Fixed crash case when no valid path exists
  • Added “no parking spots” alert so blocked production states are visible

These are high-impact fixes because they target situations that used to halt progression.

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UI/UX Overhaul

Car stand UI was reworked multiple times

Stands are now much easier to read/manage:

  • Stand panel updates
  • UI simplification pass
  • Rework to allow equipment management even before selecting a model

Global UI consistency

  • Global button styling pass
  • Menu centering improvements
  • General UI cleanup pass

Result: less friction, fewer mismatched patterns, faster interaction.

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Research and Progression

  • Research system refactor completed
  • Research display reorder pass done
  • New research gating integrated with line features

This helps keep new automation/routing tools paced behind progression rather than dumped all at once.

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New Scenarios

Two new scenarios were added:

  • Scenario 4: time-pressure production challenge
  • Scenario 5: automation-focused line challenge

These are designed to stress the newer systems and push players into modern factory workflows.

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Dev Tooling

  • Developer console added for faster testing/debugging

This has already sped up balancing and systems iteration significantly.

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And yes, Hank is in the game

  • Hank (dog sprite/animation) was added in-game

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v0.05 Summary

v0.05 is where Car Factory Tycoon stopped being “just build one car stand” and started becoming a real operations game:

  • Manage equipment as assets
  • Move cars between specialized stands
  • Lean on office/supplier automation
  • Handle line bottlenecks with better feedback
  • Play scenarios that test full-system flow

Next up is expanding automation depth and continuing reliability hardening as more line complexity is added.