Launcher v0.1.133 (latest published) · reviewed 2026-10-10 against PLAN.md

Known limitations

Aliens Online Revival runs the original Windows game (v2.21) against a new server. A lot works, but not everything is finished or verified yet. This list is published with every AO Launcher release and on the website, so you know what to expect before you report a bug. Each item names the PLAN gate that tracks it, in brackets.

Found something that isn't listed? Tell us on Discord and include your launcher version.

Before you play

• Use the latest AO Launcher (v0.1.133); update from inside the launcher. You need v0.1.129 or later to pick up the Retrieval Core; older launchers show an Alien Egg there. Releases v0.1.76 through v0.1.85 can leave Aliens frozen. The launcher leaves the original v2.21 Alien movement and melee enabled, and its Alien position reports help AI Marine targeting; they do not complete shared AI synchronization [SYNC-1, AI-2].
• The mouse stays inside the game (new in v0.1.130). Press F10 in the game to free it, for example to drag the window, and F10 again to capture it; Alt+Tab and minimizing free it too. Untick Keep the mouse inside the game under the launcher's Advanced settings to turn this off.
• Other players hear your gun click when it is empty (v0.1.132), as in the original game. Older launchers click only for you.
• The Available Sectors list reads "Alpha Sector (Online)" in green (v0.1.131) with the number of players online right now. Older launchers draw the selected sector in red, as the original game did.
• The Windows game needs your own copy of Aliens Online v2.21. Project Luna, the browser client at luna.emeraldsolitaire.com, is an early beta; Windows and browser players in the same mission are not verified yet [CLIENT-1, MIXED-1].
• Signing in with Discord: if you already have a password account, sign in with the password first and use Profile → Link Discord. Signing in with Discord first creates a separate, new account.

Playing together

• Shared missions are still being verified with several players at once. Occasionally one player may not see an alien that others can. The server probes for missing actors and retries delivery, but recovery and local movement can still disagree. Fully reconnect if an alien remains invisible and report the map, faction and launcher version [SYNC-1, AI-2].
• Unexplained disconnects still happen now and then, most often in the first couple of minutes of a mission. We're tracking them down [STAB-1]. After a disconnect, the launcher (v0.1.123+) stops the stream of WinSock error dialogs, and v0.1.124 also skips the "Lost TCP connection" popup; if you still get a dialog, tell us its text or error number [STAB-1]. If the game shows WinSock error 10057 while starting, turn on Advanced → Delay first sends to avoid connect errors and relaunch; v0.1.128 turns it on for new profiles.
• Server restarts end missions in progress. A planned restart usually gets a countdown in the game chat first.
• Private tables, invitations and four-player rosters work only partly [LOBBY-2]. The COM button and some cross-faction chat are unfinished [LOBBY-3].

Missions and modes

• "(exp)" in a mission's name means experimental: that map and mode haven't been confirmed working end to end yet. You can still play it; expect rough edges, and please report what you find. Eradication, Timed Eradication and Demolition on LV-426B Terraform carry no label [MODE-ALL].

• Eradication and Timed Eradication are the modes being finished first. Winning, timing out, the summary and the return to the lobby are in place, but haven't yet been confirmed across repeated runs [MODE-ERAD, MISSION-2].

• Demolition has been completed end to end on one map (LV-426B Terraform). Other maps may not finish correctly [MODE-DEM].

• Capture, Retrieval and Stranded are implemented but have no recorded complete run yet. A mission may not end when it should [MODE-CAP, MODE-RET, MODE-STR].

• Queens and Empresses (claiming and playing the royal aliens) aren't fully verified in combat [ROYAL-1].

Combat and progress

• Marine kills, service points and promotions are saved. The server-side Alien victory, FTL and medal rule follows the decoded v2.21 formula and corrects two shipped client defects; native Alien settlement still needs an N1 confirmation [PROG-2].
• Grenades and splash damage are credited by the server, but haven't been confirmed with several players watching the same explosion [COMBAT-4].
• Squad cameras and portraits in the HUD are unverified in fireteam missions [HUD-1].
• Stripping a fallen Marine's body gives ammunition once per body. That works in tests but hasn't been confirmed in a live multiplayer game [COMBAT-7].

Features being tried out

• Practice mission (S.C.A.R.E.): nothing you do there is saved: no deaths, ranks or medals. This is by design.
• Retained Alien corpses ship in v0.1.115, but their appearance, movement clearance and cleanup cap still need native gameplay confirmation [STAB-1].
• AI Marines join small Marine squads and hunt lone Alien players. They're new, so how they look and move in the game is still being checked [AI-1].
• Queen eggs and faster joins exist but are switched off unless an admin turns them on for a test.
• 60 fps missions: missions run at 60 fps by default, and 60 is the most (a higher target_fps is lowered to 60). Since v0.1.127, slow lifts and doors keep their designed speed at any frame rate. Before that, the LV-426B lift into the vents could play its sound without moving. This still needs confirming in play [SIM-1].

The full, always-current picture is on the roadmap.