We are thrilled to announce that the 1.59 Open Beta for American Truck Simulator is officially available. If you decide to jump in and test these new features, we would be incredibly grateful if you could report any bugs or unexpected behavior in the dedicated section of our official forums.
Your contributions are vital to our development process, and we sincerely appreciate the time you invest in helping us refine the game. Here is a closer look at what the 1.59 update has to offer.
Advisor Update: Finance & Damage Widgets
We have heard your feedback loud and clear. A common request regarding the updated route advisor was the need for immediate visibility of vehicle damage and financial status. While we are busy developing a comprehensive overhaul of the UI, we wanted to address these concerns immediately rather than waiting for the full rollout. Consequently, we have prioritized integrating these highly requested widgets right away.
These new additions provide at-a-glance monitoring for truck, trailer, and cargo damage, along with your current bank balance and a seven-day average profit summary. You can toggle these widgets on or off via the Widget Settings menu; when enabled, they appear conveniently in the bottom-right corner, just above your GPS.
Tow to Road
The “Tow to Road” feature is designed to minimize frustration during your travels. If you find your truck overturned or stranded in difficult terrain, this tool allows for a swift recovery. It is especially beneficial for multiplayer convoys, as it enables drivers to rejoin the group without the significant delays typically associated with traditional service station towing.
Simply navigate to the Service menu (F7 by default) to find the “Tow to Road” option. After a nominal service fee, you will be relocated to the nearest safe point on the road. You can find more details on this feature on our official blog.
Skills UX Redesign
We have revamped the visual presentation of the Skill Screen to improve clarity. While the mechanics remain unchanged, the interface is now much easier to read. You can effortlessly track your current progression, view upcoming milestones, and use new tooltips to explore different skill ranks. The redesign also ensures a smoother experience for players navigating with a game controller.
Quality of Life Improvements
Our commitment to a seamless user experience continues with several refinements:
- News Banner: Refreshed visuals, better readability, and improved tooltips.
- World Map: More intuitive controller navigation, including an “undo last pin” function and reorganized pin management controls.
- Save System: Standardized icons and clearer “Overwrite” labeling.
- General UX: Consistent skipping of garage upgrade cutscenes and improved D-pad accessibility throughout the menus.
Traffic Sound Rework
Traffic audio has been rebalanced for a more authentic atmosphere. Engine noise from a distance is less intrusive, while the subtle sound of tires against the road has been enhanced. Additionally, randomized honking patterns reduce audio repetition, leading to a more immersive ambient soundscape.
Height Blend & Detour Maintenance
We’ve optimized the Height Blend feature to allow for GPU memory efficiency through derived normal maps. Furthermore, we have temporarily disabled the “Detours” feature for maintenance. We are currently rebuilding this system to ensure it meets our quality standards; please note that this does not impact random road events, which will continue to function as normal.
Changelog Summary
- Gameplay: Introduction of the “Tow to Road” recovery feature.
- UI/UX: Finance/Damage widgets, redesigned Skill Screen, and various navigation/readability refinements.
- Visuals: Height Blend optimizations.
- Sounds: Rebalanced traffic audio.
- Other: Temporary suspension of the Detour system for maintenance.
Please remember: This is an Open Beta. You may encounter occasional bugs or instability. We encourage you to participate only if you are comfortable testing pre-release software. Your feedback is essential, so please do not hesitate to share your findings on our official bug report forum.
For information regarding mods, please consult our modding wiki. To join the beta, navigate to your Steam Library, right-click American Truck Simulator, select Properties, choose the Betas tab, and select public_beta from the drop-down menu.