Space Engineers 2 is about to get a lot more explosive, and the devs just extended a major competition to give builders time to harness the chaos. The May 28 dev diary from Keen Software House reveals that VS2.3 is bringing new hinge mechanics and overhauled explosions, while the “Masters of Motion” video competition gets a deadline extension to August 31, 2026.
Masters of Motion Gets More Time to Hinge
The “Masters of Motion” Mechanical Engineering Video Competition now has a new submission deadline: Monday, August 31, 2026 – 23:59 UTC. This extension comes directly because of the hinge mechanics arriving in VS2.3, which will let creators design more complex machinery and moving structures. If you’ve been dreaming of building a walking mech or a folding cargo bay, now you have extra time to prototype.
- New deadline: August 31, 2026
- Hinges open up new mechanical movement possibilities
- Full details at the official competition page
Explosions That Actually Matter
The biggest gameplay shift in VS2.3 is the revamped explosion system. Andrea Cabras from the art team confirms that explosions are getting new textures and improved particle effects, but the real news is how they work in practice:
“Disabled or non-functional reactors will only be destroyed and will not explode.”
This means careful engineering matters more than ever. Key changes include:
- Reactor explosions: Only active reactors will detonate, with large reactors designed to cause “significant damage”
- Inventory Ammo Explosions: Ammo storage can now chain-react, destroying your ship from the inside
- H2/O2 Explosions: Disabled or empty tanks are safe, but active hydrogen tanks will blow—so store your hydrogen wisely
For players, this means ship design just got more strategic. You’ll need to think about where you place reactors, ammo containers, and fuel tanks, or risk losing everything to a single lucky hit. It’s a welcome shift toward risk-reward engineering that rewards smart builders.
