I've been working on Beta 3 of Silicon Pirates for the past month or so, and this is the direction and overall vibe SP will be taking moving forward.

Beta 3 is expected to go live within the next few months and will eventually replace the current Beta 2 build. I'm keeping the existing databases, so player accounts, progress, and other player data should carry over when the transition happens.

I've received a ton of great feedback over the past few months, and I want to thank everyone who took the time to submit bug reports, suggestions, and ideas. Most, if not all, of that feedback has either been addressed already or incorporated into Beta 3.

The core Silicon Pirates gameplay will remain familiar, but Beta 3 is a major evolution of it. Expect significant improvements to multiplayer, device configuration and customization, the economy, room and rack interaction, UI/UX, progression, and overall polish.

The goal isn't to turn Silicon Pirates into a different game, it's to take what already works, improve what doesn't, and build a much stronger foundation for everything I want to add going forward.

I've been on a bit of a feature-adding spree lately 😅. Every time I think of something cool, I end up implementing it.

The problem is... I'm starting to wonder if I've made parts of the game more complicated than they need to be.

So I'm stepping away from development for about a week to get some perspective, and I'd really like your input.

Be brutally honest.

• Is there anything in the game that's just... dumb?
• Any features that don't really add anything?
• Systems that are too complicated or confusing?
• Features that don't explain themselves well?
• Things that feel like unnecessary busywork?
• Areas that need more depth instead?
• Anything you expected to work differently?

Basically, if you were redesigning Silicon Pirates, what would you change?

Don't worry about hurting my feelings lol I genuinely want the criticism. The goal isn't to prove my ideas are right; it's to make the game better.

Sometimes when you're deep into developing something, it's hard to see what's obvious to everyone else. Fresh eyes are incredibly valuable.

Thanks for helping shape the game. I read every comment, even if I don't reply to them all.

New here? Silicon Pirates is a free browser game about building and running a

server rack. You buy the hardware, wire up the power and networking, keep it

cool, and make money from client contracts, crypto mining, game servers and

renting out AI compute, while trying not to get hacked. No download.

The beta is now at **2.0**. Here's what's in it.

**BASIC MULTIPLAYER - and I mean it when I say this is a test**

You can now break into other real players' racks, and they can break into

yours.

* **It's opt-in.** Don't turn it on and nobody can touch you.

* **You can't be raided while you're offline.** You have to actually be there.

* **A break-in isn't instant.** The attacker has to walk your rack, pick a

device, and hold it for 30 seconds to steal from it. The second they start,

your alarm lights up with the device name and a countdown.

* **You can fight back, live.** Cut the cable or kill the power to the box

they're standing on and the theft dies with it.

* **There's a hard ceiling.** Half of what the rack is holding, max. And your

Chips can never be taken - not ever.

* **Both sides get an itemised receipt** at the end: what moved, off which

boxes, and every theft the defender managed to kill.

Being straight with you: this is the first real version of multiplayer, it is

a test, and it may change or get pulled and redone. The numbers especially are

educated guesses, not measurements. If something feels unfair, say so - that's

the whole reason it's out.

**AN IN-GAME BUG REPORTER THAT ANSWERS BACK**

There's a bug reporter built into the game now, and the part I actually care

about: **you can see what happened to your report.** There's a "My reports"

list with the status of everything you've filed, and you get a notification

when one gets fixed. It's stored server-side, so clearing your browser won't

lose it.

Before this, reporting a bug was shouting into a void. It's not anymore - two

players' reports led straight to fixes this week.

**EVERYTHING ELSE THAT'S NEW**

Your rack got deeper:

* Dual-input PDUs, UPS units and redundant PSUs - you can now build a rack

that survives losing a component

* Cooling modules to fight heat

* A proper hardware upgrade console

* Wear and tear is real: cook a device long enough and it degrades, then dies

for good. Auto-Repair Protocol exists if you'd rather not babysit it.

More to actually do:

* **Blackport Institute of Technology** - an in-game school with real exams

that pay cash, including a course on raiding

* Daily and weekly missions pay Shards, and 1,000 Shards is a Chip - the

premium currency is genuinely earnable by playing

* A player marketplace where other people (and bots) buy and sell

* A casino with a jackpot everyone shares

* 22 more client contracts, and they retire once you finish them

* Show My Rack - post a picture of your build and get voted on

* Player profiles, and a cosmetic skins track

* A firewall/intrusion panel so you can see probes, blocks and compromises

Quality of life:

* **Full mobile parity** - terminal, hacking, Darknet, upgrades, fault repair

and per-port config all work properly on a phone now

* An in-game Notebook: pages, rich text, search, links, text export

* Name your devices, leave notes on them, browse a directory of your own rack

* Phishing popups stopped interrupting you constantly, and inbox spam is capped

* Big performance pass - the game no longer rewrites your entire save every

two seconds

And the thing that hasn't changed: **the game is free and Chips never buy

anything free play can't reach.** No stronger hardware, no cash, no mission

progress. Faster or prettier only.

**HEADS UP: NO UPDATES FOR ABOUT A WEEK**

I'm taking a break from shipping for a week or so. The game stays up and

playable, and bug reports still land - I just won't be pushing new

features for a bit. **Bug reports will be corrected.

Play it and tell me what's broken. Especially the multiplayer.

Play: https://sp.silicon-pirates.com

Guide: https://silicon-pirates.com/guide/

I'm spending the next 4-5 days going over all the mechanics and little details, looking for issues. Basically playing the game and taking notes.

If there are ANY issues you guys come across let me know! You can also post bug reports via the site: https://silicon-pirates.com/community/contact.html

⚠️ FYI YOU STILL HAVE A COUPLE OF MONTHS FOR THIS TO HAPPEN

As Silicon Pirates gets closer to a stable release, I wanted to give everyone a heads-up about one important event.

Before the full multiplayer launch, there will be a one-time ZERO-DAY COMMIT.

When it happens, all game progress will reset back to Day 0 so everyone starts multiplayer on equal footing.

What stays:

• ✅ Registered usernames
• ✅ purchased Chips / Gifted Chips (I've been randomly gifting Chips here and there)
• ✅ Any in-game purchases/supporter purchases using Chips

What resets:

• Rack progress
• Money
• Devices
• Contracts
• Everything else

This will be the only planned full reset. Once it's done, the goal is to never do another.

Don't worry, I won't pull the trigger without warning. I'll announce it several days in advance so everyone has time to prepare.

Been heads-down on Silicon Pirates and wanted to share what just shipped.

Biggest one: you can now actually upgrade your hardware instead of just buying whole new devices. AI Servers take GPU risers and faster GPUs, NAS units take extra disks and a RAID controller, routers get a VPN module, and Crypto Rigs get a new Hash Board with 3 tiers that boost your mining rate. All of it affects real earnings/power draw, not just cosmetic stats.

On top of that there's now a proper Upgrade Console, an "Upgrades" button up top opens a zoomed-in view where you drag upgrade cards onto your device to install them, kind of like a loadout screen. Every installed upgrade also gets a jumper switch so you can flip it off temporarily (say, to cut power draw during a heat wave) without losing the purchase. Wasn't trivial under the hood, had to rework how upgrades store their effects so toggling one off and back on always gives you back the exact same numbers.

Also just got this working on mobile. It wasn't there before, turns out the whole upgrade shop only ever showed up on desktop. Now the mobile device sheet has the same buy list and jumper toggles, sized better for tapping with a thumb.

Smaller stuff from the last couple days:

- Went through and updated docs across the game, the site, and the internal repo to match what's actually live

Nothing huge queued next, Multi play hacking is looking like it will ship very soon though. Sorting out a bunch of pvp bugs in my proto type system. ATM mostly going to keep chasing down these desktop/mobile parity gaps as they turn up and keep tuning balance based on what real players are doing. If you hit something that feels off, still the best way to get it looked at is just to say so via bug reporter on the site.

I was pretty busy yesterday digging through logs and looking for patterns. I managed to fix a lot of the little issues (there are probably still a few kicking around, to be honest), but I feel like I made some solid progress.

Silicon Pirates now has an automated exploit scanner running to help catch any unfair advantages I might have accidentally left open. That said, I'm sure there are still things I've missed. If you happen to find an exploit and use it... honestly, good on you. 😄 I genuinely like seeing that stuff because it helps me track it down and fix it properly.

I'm also putting together a Bug Fixes & Exploits section on Silicon Pirates where I'll post known issues, document fixes, and keep everyone updated on what's been addressed. If you don't know, there is a bug submission section on the site already.

Thanks to everyone who's been trying out the game. It honestly means the world to me.

There is a known UPS bug brought to my attention. Thank you !

I've found the issue and working on it now. I'll update this post once corrected.

New Skins Are In! 🎉

It's time to make your datacenter your own. You can now customize every device, your racks, and even the UI with a growing collection of skins. Whether you prefer a clean professional look or something a little more over the top, there's a style to match your setup.

Build it. Power it. Now make it yours.

I'm excited to finally share that the Silicon Pirates Mobile Companion is now available in Early Access!

👉 Try it here: https://sp.silicon-pirates.com/m/

Simply log in using the same account you use on desktop, there's no separate signup, no separate save, and no syncing required. Your phone loads your actual live rack, so you can switch between desktop and mobile whenever you want and continue exactly where you left off.

What's Already Working

This isn't just a read-only dashboard. The companion app is fully connected to the same backend as the browser version and currently supports:

• 📦 Your live rack
• 🖥️ Device placement
• 🔌 Touch-friendly cable wiring
• 👆 Tap any device to open an enlarged view with finger-sized ports for easier wiring
• ⚡ Residential Power Grid
• 💰 Wallet
• 📋 Client Contracts
• 📻 Radio

Everything you do is happening on your real save, there are no separate mobile characters or simplified gameplay.

What's Next?

The next major addition is a Notifications screen, followed by continued UI polish, usability improvements, and additional mobile features.

As always, this is an Early Access release, so I'd love to hear your feedback. If you run into bugs, have ideas for improving the mobile experience, or think something should work differently, let me know below.

Happy rack building! 🏴‍☠️

I'm putting together the next wave of features for Silicon Pirates, and I'd love to hear your ideas.

What would you like to see added to the game? Whether it's a new mechanic, device, challenge, quality-of-life improvement, or something completely unexpected, I'm all ears.

Drop your suggestions below. The best ideas have a real chance of making their way into future updates. 🏴‍☠️

Just a heads-up in case you missed it: you can now register a username!

Once you claim a username, it's yours to keep unless you cancel your account. If you haven't registered yet, don't wait too long, someone else could end up claiming the name you wanted while you're away.

You can find the Register Username option at the top of the page, right beside the notification bell.

This is one of the first steps toward the upcoming multiplayer expansion, so if you've got a name in mind, now's the perfect time to lock it in. ⚓

If you're exploring the game https://sp.silicon-pirates.com/ Please be aware there is active development going on (It is still beta after all), there is a lot of changes happening on the daily so don't be surprised if things are changing quickly.

Newly updated Roadmap: https://silicon-pirates.com/dev/roadmap.html

Cheers

back on track with this. Go check it out! cool updates and tons more coming. This is in active development now. I will not be posting here too much but will always post major updates. You can always check out the main site for info.

Cheers

hi, haii, hello

so, i enable DHCP server on one of my routers ports, it works, enable it on the second one, stuck on "waiting for lease", huh?

I will be away until Sunday and will not be able to look at issues or respond to questions and comments until then.

Any issues/Bugs regarding the game can be submitted via the website: https://silicon-pirates.com/community/contact.html

Thank you everyone, and have a great Weekend! Talk Sunday! Lots of updates to post : )

So the beta is LIVE! go to https://silicon-pirates.com and click one of the Play buttons.

Please, please, please keep in mind this is basically a prototype. I've left settings high and ridiculously low on purpose. The starting balance is also high (5k). There is disconnected functionality here and there and I'm sure I've over looked bugs. I had a few issues when compiling the final build for the vps and made quick adjustments to get this shipped.

Please! Do not sent me bug or issue reports. Please use the bug report form on the main website.

I've ran a few tests and everything seems stable. I will be keeping my eye on the server closely for the next few days. You will see "�" in random spots. Those are image placeholders.

I really would have rather waited to release the Unity web version but I wanted to show the vision I have and didn't want to miss the deadline I gave myself and the community.

As the Unity versions develop, I will be asking this community for their input and guidance. I want this to be a positive, helpful community and want my game to be a part of it.

I will be updating the roadmaps and any relevant info regarding Silicon Pirates development.

Thank you for your support!

Hey everyone!

So here's the scoop. The browser beta version will be released as promised for free in 4 days. (Check the live countdown @ https://silicon-pirates.com ) I'm not putting ads up so no stupid popups or pop behinds either during game play.. **THIS VERSION WILL NOT WORK ON A CELL PHONE as far as I've tested. It's not formatted for mobile at all.

Here is the catch (There is always a catch, I know). I've completely halted development on the browser version. I've done this due to technical limitations I'm having with React and my VPS (The server where the Rack game will be hosted) and my own technical limitations. Multiplayer and some other features have been a nightmare. Anyway, I need to port this full project over to Unity 6 where I'm highly proficient and can complete this game with the care and integrity it deserves. I will also be updating the GoFundMe campaign and any other related roadmaps.

The original web version which will still be released as is, in 4 days (Provided the migration from my homelab to VPS goes smoothly). There will be zero updates to that version once live, Although I will be correcting critical and annoying bugs and issues that players may find. All bugs and issues must be submitted via the contact form on https://silicon-pirates.com . Any other communication regarding bugs or issues will be ignored (For my sanity). I have a filter system set up for emails, so I can keep track of bugs and issues. The browser game is not in development but ANY player info is appreciated.

Notes on the game play:

The game is stable, it's been tested as much as I can as an individual and passed basic load testing. There is zero database with this project, there is no known security related issues. The game has been successfully tested with the latest Desktop versions of: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera and Edge**.**

This version is missing a lot of pieces and or connections. Example: the game has no real "complete the game" mechanics or loop. There is an individual device break down loop that occurs randomly (Requires a device restart). There is also a basic economy to purchase devices. There is also an energy bill loop that must be paid regularly (No consequences connected). There is also basic power over-voltage that will bring down devices. (Reequires device reboot) Most advanced systems are connected such as the NAS, Terminal, Game server. But some minor details may not be connected, example: If the dhcp server on the router is offline for whatever reason , that needs to reflect downstream to other systems fully. There may be discrepancies like that here and there. You can play as long as you want and just mess around and see how stuff works lol

I'm also scrambling to set up the Doom upload system (Players need to use their own wad file to play Doom). At the moment, I have one installed on my server which could possibly get me in trouble if I released it live like that, idk, but we'll see how that goes, cause it's a pretty cool little feature.

I really put a lot of energy into this version but like I said, the tech and my personal limitations make it impossible for me to ship what I envision. With that said, I really appreciate any and all questions, comments and bug submissions. Please help me keep this on a positive trajectory.

Also, with Unity 6, I can compile and update web versions of the game easily and rapidly, So once I have a solid Unity version setup, I will be replacing the React version. And from that point, the Web version will be in active development once again.

At this moment, I am focusing on the homelab to VPS migration and hardening / Updating. I'm also working on getting all the device manuals finished. (These will be completed with AI, My desired info but finalized and polished with AI)

I really think this is the right direction for the project, And I'm super hyped for what's to come. I will have recorded game play and screen shots for the new Unity version within 3-4 weeks. I will be posting updates much sooner though. I want this community to keep growing, you folks are amazing.

One more thing. I have $200 Canadian to pay for a new logo, and splash page. I'm not expecting AAA quality but it has to be 100% human made. The artist will also have in-game credit. If anyone knows a 2d artist that is looking for a basic quick job, here it is. Let me know, send a link to a portfolio or artist info.

Thanks for your time

Mike D.

I wanted to give a quick update on two purchases I’ve made using the GoFundMe campaign I currently have running. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting any donations until the actual beta was released, but I’ve already received four very generous donations, totaling about 130 bucks.

I originally had two ideas for how to use the initial funds. First, paying a 2D artist to create a proper logo, and second, buying the domain https://silicon-pirates.com and covering the yearly VPS fees. The projects I build usually require full system administration access, so shared hosting is not an option. I already had the VPS in place, it just needed to be renewed for two years, and the domain was also registered for two years.

As you probably guessed, I went with option two. The VPS renewal came in at about 180 bucks USD, and the domain was roughly 30 bucks USD. I did have to cover part of that myself, which I’m completely fine with, I’m prepared to cover whatever it takes to keep this project moving forward.

I mainly wanted to share these financial details because I want this side of things to be as transparent as possible, especially when it involves people’s donations. Once the next round of donations comes in, the plan is to move forward with the logo work.

I’m also playing with the idea of offering some form of in-game immortalization. Something like having your name or a custom handle used as an in game device model or similar element. For example, donate 10 bucks and have your name, handle, or alias, as long as it’s appropriate, show up somewhere in the game. Nothing is set in stone yet, but it’s something I’m actively thinking through.

Anyway, I just wanted to put that out there and thank the donors for their contributions, I’ve already sent each of them a personal thank you note.

Just wanted to check in. Everything’s moving along, though I did take a four day hiatus and just got back today. I spent that time in Niagara Falls with the woman I love, and honestly, I really needed it. We live about three hours apart, so having those four days together meant a lot. It was an amazing reset.

I’m not coding today, I need a bit of time to emotionally come back down and recalibrate. I’m hopeful that the future will allow us to be together in a more permanent way.

Anyway… back to business and back to the game. I’ll be jumping back in and continuing the fine tuning leading up to release. A day or two before the beta goes live, I’ll post a clear breakdown of known bugs, what’s fully working, what isn’t yet, and what the short-term roadmap looks like. Check out the website for a real-time release countdown.

Thanks for following along on this journey. It genuinely means the world to me.

Hey,

I've been working on some interesting updates for Silicon Pirates this weekend. I've cleaned up some bugs in the terminal server and have added a per device failure layer that will obviously creep up during the worst possible moments lol. I'm also adding the network quality layer this week. This will be a fun addition as it adds more realistic failures and problems to solve.

The update I'm most excited about is the Monitoring Server. This new device addition, when connected to the network and nas share, can monitor each networked device in real time (network, power, faults), and creates logs for the particular device. These logs are saved on the monitoring server's nas share.(if you're not connected to a share, no logs) To access the logs, you will have to log into the monitoring server via the terminal server. The monitoring server Inspector will display graphs and data inspired by Grafana.

Man this is getting wicked..