RimWorld 1.1 beefs up mod support, adds tortured artists, ducks, and donkeys

(Image credit: Ludeon Studios)

Hit survival-strategy RimWorld may have released in 2018, but it’s clearly not done with new stuff. A new beta of the game’s 1.1 update just came out on Steam, and it’s chock full of new features and tweaks. The biggest changes are all for the game’s network of extensive mods, smoothing and improving the experience of managing mods and mod compatibility. There’s also sharper UI at scale, so RimWorld looks better in 4K. It’s still an unstable branch, so there’s a bit of work to be done yet, but if you’re raring to go on more RimWorld you can jump in now. 

Here’s a selection of the patch notes that made me laugh hardest: 

  • Added ‘tortured artist’ trait. The character has a permanent mood debuff, but gets art inspirations from low mood. 
  • Changed sandbags to be constructed of textile stuff instead of steel.
  • Added recipes to burn entire stacks of drugs at once.
  • Scars are now assigned an easy-to-understand pain category instead of an obscure number. 
  • Added ‘freed from slavery’ mood-boosting thought for pawns bought from a trader. 
  • Open caskets now look different from closed ones. 
  • Colonists attending a party gain recreation value. 
  • Pawns no longer engage in recreational acitivites when injured, unless the activity can be done in bed. 
  • Added animals: Bison, donkey, duck, goat, goose, guinea pig, horse, sheep, yak.
  • Fix: Jawless animals can still haul. 
  • Fix: Corpses wouldn’t create corpse bile. 
  • Fix: Arrested wild man don’t use nutrient dispenser and can’t receive food. 
  • Stomach is no longer a vital organ. 

Thank you, patch notes for survival strategy games. You give me life. You can check out the RimWorld 1.1 update notes in full on Steam. 

Jon Bolding is a games writer and critic with an extensive background in strategy games. When he's not on his PC, he can be found playing every tabletop game under the sun.