But it also introduced pathfinding AI to Teardown by way of its killer robots, more physics interactions with elastic cabling, dynamic weather effects like tornadoes and snowstorms, and straight-up GMod-style thrusters to slap on vehicles. When Teardown's massive Part 2 update (opens in new tab) arrived this month, it brought a host of new tools, new maps, and new missions. But more than supporting modders through documentation and test levels, every update has also given modders entirely new avenues to explore. Tuxedo Labs might be a small team, but it's embraced this scene wholeheartedly, providing example maps and templates to get people started. There are vehicle frameworks for creating complex tanks and helicopters. Teardown's destruction model is impressive, but it doesn't accurately simulate structural integrity, and there are mods out there that aim to remedy this with hacked-together solutions for making structures crumble and collapse under their own weight. Others seek to enhance what they see as the game's shortcomings. It's an incredible case for Teardown as a horror game. Earlier this year I wrote about Basilisco, a giant horrific snake-bird-robot that relentlessly pursues you through foggy Russian towns while shrieking VHS howls. Yet.Īnd then there are the mods that straight-up reinvent what Teardown can even be. It's just a shame it doesn't come with a fully articulated GLaDOS to take a sledgehammer to. It works flawlessly, a vision of Portal that comes with the risk of accidentally setting fire to the entire facility. There's also the obligatory Portal Gun mod, which even lets you see through your portals (albeit at a dramatically lowered framerate), and an entire set of Aperture-themed test champers to plug your way through. The Garry's Mod comparison crystallised after realising the Teardown workshop has a straight-up GMod Physgun, letting you fling entire buildings around your head. Why settle for the base game's pistol when you can shred apart skyscrapers with miniguns or melt through steel beams with an industrial incinerator that puts the tiny default blowtorch to shame. With the Steam Workshop, that toolbox is constantly expanding beyond the basic sledgehammers and explosives. While some of these maps have heists built into them, most are just open sandboxes, waiting for you to go to town with all the tools at your disposal.

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