v0.4v0.4 — The World Tour

Hold on tight: this is by far the biggest Toponauts update yet. The game has a new name, a new logo, now speaks five languages, and you can explore not just the Netherlands but also Belgium, the United States and all of North America. On top of that, the helicopter flies smarter, the menu loads in a flash, and you can now play right away without an account. We built this with a lot of love — and we're really curious what you think! Here's what's new, better and different, part by part.

🎨 A new name & a new logo: welcome to Toponauts

TopoHeld is now Toponauts. The name fits better with where the game is heading: no longer a Dutch word, but a name that works in every language — for little explorers flying off into the whole wide world. The new name comes with a new logo: a globe superhero with a red mask, which you'll spot as the app icon, on your browser tab and whenever you share a link. For those who already know us: the web address keeps working for now — you don't have to set anything up again, only the name and the look have changed.

🗣️ The game now speaks five languages

The entire Toponauts interface is now available in five languages: 🇳🇱 Dutch, 🇬🇧 English, 🇪🇸 Spanish, 🇫🇷 French and 🇩🇪 German.

• Automatic language choice. Toponauts looks at your device's language and picks it straight away — a Spanish child simply starts in Spanish. You can always switch yourself, and your choice is remembered.
• Everything translated, down to the details. Not just the buttons and screens, but also the in-game messages, the shop, signing in and out, the class and teacher flow, and even the names of the hundred “ranks” you can earn.
• Country names in your language. Germany shows up as “Germany”, “Allemagne” or “Alemania” depending on your language — countries and continents are displayed neatly translated.

The game content (practice lists, explanations and hints) is now fully available in Dutch and English; Spanish, French and German will follow as we build out the matching countries.

🗺️ Pick your country first — and discover new continents

The biggest change in content: language and country are now separate. You can play in Dutch but practise the geography of America, or learn the provinces of Belgium in English. When setting up, you simply choose your country, and the new 🌍 button lets you switch between them easily. Three new destinations have been added:

• 🇧🇪 Belgium — complete. The first extra country, fully worked out: all the provinces and their borders, the rivers, the municipalities, and — especially for Flemish schools — a link to the school methods (ZILL plus four Flemish publishers) in the “Choose your method” picker.
• 🇺🇸 United States — extensively built. The 50 states with their borders, a drill-down per state (zoom in on one state and practise its cities), plus rivers, lakes and mountain ranges. The wording adapts to the country (“state” instead of “province”) and the learning track adjusts automatically.
• 🌎 North America as a continent. Alongside Europe there's now a second continent to fly across: North America, with sixteen countries and their capitals. The Netherlands belongs to Europe, the US to North America — the continent follows your chosen country.

✈️ Smarter and nicer flying

We took a good look at how it feels to fly, and improved a few things:

• No more long, dull stretches. If a target was far away (think Honolulu in “Capitals of the USA”, way out in the ocean), you were sometimes underway for almost twenty seconds. Now the helicopter speeds up automatically over empty stretches — up to four times as fast — and slows down neatly as you approach. It never gives away the answer, but it saves a lot of waiting.
• You can see how hard it is — and why. Every place now shows stars (☆☆☆☆☆ to ★★★★★) reflecting how well you already know it. The more stars, the less help you get — the game grows along with you. As you improve, “less help” appears on screen, so you feel it: getting better = a fresh challenge, not a punishment.
• Always the right map view. The map now zooms in precisely on the list you're playing, including the new countries. One far-flung island (like Hawaii) no longer stretches the view unnecessarily, and you always start nicely centred.

👤 Play right away, without an account

From now on you can get going immediately without first creating a profile. Click “▶︎ Play now” and you fly straight onto the map. Arrive via a shared link or via Google, and the game starts right away too. As a guest everything works: you earn coins and can browse the shop. The only difference is that your progress isn't saved — want to keep your stars and coins, then you create a real pilot profile in one click. A friendly message in the menu explains it.

🌐 Easier to find for anyone searching

Behind the scenes we've made Toponauts much easier to find. Every practice topic (provinces, capitals, rivers, and so on) now has a tidy landing page — with clear explanations and frequently asked questions — in both Dutch and English. Search as a parent or teacher for “practise provinces of the Netherlands” and you land directly on the right exercise, ready to start straight away (free, no account needed).

⚡ Faster, smoother and more complete

• The menu now loads almost instantly. Where opening the practice lists used to take about ten seconds, it's now a fraction of a second.
• Smoother back and forth. Switching between game and menu is quicker because lists are cleverly remembered, and the heavy map data is only loaded when you actually need it.
• All the rivers are drawn in. The major European rivers (Danube, Rhine, Volga, Seine, Thames, Po, Tagus, Loire, Ebro, Garonne and more — sixteen in total) are now drawn as real lines on the map, from open map data. A list of rivers ought to be drawn in, after all.
• And besides that: plenty of small bug fixes and polishing rounds that make a game feel finished.

From a Dutch topography game to Toponauts — five languages, three new destinations, smarter flying and instantly playable for everyone. We're incredibly proud of this step and would love to hear what you think — use the “💬 Idea or bug” button in the game. Hop in, choose your language and country, and fly around the world! 🌍🚁