Grounded 2 Beat the Heat Update (0.4.0): King Dozer and More
Short version: The Beat the Heat update (0.4.0) went live on April 14, 2026, 13 days after its public test began on April 1. It added the King Dozer boss fight, Buggy Progression with Moldy Milk Molars, and the Buffin’ Barrel. Later patches touched several of these: 0.4.1 fixed a King Dozer arena corner, 0.5.0 fixed King Dozer area access, 0.5.1 expanded Moldy Milk Molar upgrades, and Rot and Ruin (0.6.0) fixed King Dozer content missing from the Grid Menu.
What changed: Before → 0.4.0
| Area | Before | 0.4.0 | What it means for you | Official line |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| King Dozer boss fight | Not stated in the notes | New lizard boss fight; an offering recipe found in the world summons it; new lizard mutation, trinket, mace and shield, armor set, furniture | The notes list the boss, its drops and the summon recipe. Health and damage numbers: not stated in the notes. Patch 0.4.1 later fixed an issue in a specific spot in the King Dozers Arena corner. | Offering recipe can be found in the world to summon the boss Fixed an issue where Player could reach a specific spot in the King Dozers Arena corner which rendered them immune to most of the King Dozers attacks. |
| Buggy Progression (Moldy Milk Molars) | Not stated in the notes; the post calls Buggy Progression new | Moldy Milk Molars upgrade buggies: Buggy Max Health in increments of 10%, Healing in increments of 20%, plus Max Stamina, Health Pool on Revive and Inventory Size | Per the notes, upgrades are tied to the player and apply to any buggy you summon. Patch 0.5.1 later listed Molar Upgrades for Mega Milk Molars, Milk Molars, and Moldy Milk Molars, and expanded tiers of upgrades obtainable through Milk Molars and Moldy Milk Molars. | Those moldy molar upgrades are tied to you as a player and are applied to any buggy that you summon, not to a particular buggy. Expanded the available tiers of upgrades obtainable through Milk Molars and Moldy Milk Molars. |
| Buggy Buffin' | Not stated in the notes | Buggies can be buffed to the next tier: more health, more damage, gathers from a higher tier (if able); cost always includes O.G.R.R. parts | The Buffin’ Barrel is the station named in the announcement. Patch 0.5.0 later listed a fix for a Host crash after a Client rejoins when their Buggy is ready to be retrieved from the Buffin' Barrel. | it is now possible to buff your buggies! This will upgrade any of your buggy to the next tier. Fixed an issue that resulted in crash for the Host caused by the Client rejoins the session after their Buggy is ready to be retrieved from the Buffin' Barrel. |
| Orb Weaver Buggy fall ability | Had a "No Fall Damage" ability | "No Fall Damage" removed; a gliding ability activated with Shift when falling | Fall damage numbers and glide limits: not stated in the notes. | Orb Weaver Buggy's "No Fall Damage" ability was removed Orb Weaver Buggy's now have a gliding ability that can be activated with Shift when falling |
| Blocking with a bow | Not stated in the notes; the post says you are "now able" to block | You can block while a bow is equipped (marked Community Request) | The notes list this under Blocking with a Bow and mark it as a community request. | You are now able to block while having a bow equipped. |
| O.R.C. abilities | Not stated in the notes | Potato Beetle and Scorpion Junior O.R.C.s get a 360 degree laser cannon; Bee and Blue Butterfly O.R.C.s get a healing device; Adult Scorpion O.R.C. can scream to boost nearby O.R.C.s | The notes say the O.R.C. waves that held these creatures were updated to include the new abilities. Damage and healing numbers: not stated in the notes. | The Potato Beetle O.R.C. now has a laser cannon on its back that can zap enemies at 360°. The O.R.C.s waves that contained them previously have been updated to include them with their new abilities. |
| Fighter armor and heavy shields | Not stated in the notes; they only say major threat was "moved" to heavy shields | Fighter armor gives bonus stun with melee finishers; major threat moved to heavy shields | This is one line under Combat Changes. Numbers: not stated in the notes. | Fighter armor gives bonus stun with melee finishers. Major threat moved to heavy shields. |
| O.G.R.R. creatures at night | Not stated in the notes | O.G.R.R.s are in the park at night, in specific locations only, after the player unleashes them with a special interaction in the Scarecrow lab | The notes tie their appearance to that interaction. Locations: not stated in the notes. | O.G.R.R.s creatures will now be present at night in the park in specific locations only after the player unleashed them with a special interaction in the Scarecrow lab. |
| Poison Gas status effect | Not stated in the notes | Reworked, along with reworked gear and Gastro Goo smoothies | Numbers for the rework: not stated in the notes. | Poison Gas status effect rework. Reworked gear and Gastro Goo smoothies |
Release dates
Every date below is the UTC date of Obsidian’s Steam announcement.
| Step | Date | Days after previous |
|---|---|---|
| Public test begins | Apr 1, 2026 | – |
| Beat the Heat goes live (0.4.0) | Apr 14, 2026 | 13 |
| Hotfix 0.4.0.1 | Apr 15, 2026 | 1 |
| Patch 0.4.0.2 | Apr 28, 2026 | 13 |
The release post does not state a version number. The public test post names the update “Beat the Heat 0.4.0”, and the next hotfix is 0.4.0.1. For how this gap compares with other Grounded 2 updates, see our Grounded 2 update schedule. For the next content update, see Into the Abyss.
What the notes say, row by row
The release post says the update is bringing “a new boss fight, a new buggy progression system, and a wave of content, improvements, and community-requested features across the park.” Here are the lines behind the rows of the What changed table above:
- King Dozer: “you might find King Dozer, a massive horned lizard and one of the most dangerous creatures we’ve added yet.” The patch notes add: “Offering recipe can be found in the world to summon the boss”.
- Moldy Milk Molars: “Those moldy molar upgrades are tied to you as a player and are applied to any buggy that you summon, not to a particular buggy.” Two listed upgrades: “Buggy Max Health - Increases the maximum health of your buggy by an increment of 10%.” and “Healing - Any source of healing other than the natural health regen receives a buff for each upgrade with an increment of 20%”.
- Buggy Buffin’: “it is now possible to buff your buggies! This will upgrade any of your buggy to the next tier.” and “The cost of upgrade always contains some O.G.R.R. parts”.
- Orb Weaver Buggy: “Orb Weaver Buggy’s “No Fall Damage” ability was removed” and “Orb Weaver Buggy’s now have a gliding ability that can be activated with Shift when falling”.
- Bow block: “You are now able to block while having a bow equipped.”
- O.R.C. abilities: “The Potato Beetle O.R.C. now has a laser cannon on its back that can zap enemies at 360°.”
- Fighter armor: “Fighter armor gives bonus stun with melee finishers. Major threat moved to heavy shields.”
- O.G.R.R. at night: “O.G.R.R.s creatures will now be present at night in the park in specific locations only after the player unleashed them with a special interaction in the Scarecrow lab.”
- Poison gas: “Poison Gas status effect rework. Reworked gear and Gastro Goo smoothies”.
The full notes are much longer, with new buildings such as the Buggy Buff Hut and EverChar Roasting Spit, an Easter event and a long bug fix list. This page covers only the rows above.
Later patches that changed it
Each row is a later Steam announcement line that names something Beat the Heat added: King Dozer, Moldy Milk Molars, buggy upgrades or the Buffin’ Barrel. Each line is quoted from the linked announcement.
| Patch | Date | Official line |
|---|---|---|
| 0.4.1 | May 27 | “Fixed an issue where Player could reach a specific spot in the King Dozers Arena corner which rendered them immune to most of the King Dozers attacks.” |
| 0.4.1 | May 27 | “Fixed an issue with Ladybug ram attack dealing multiple hits while sprinting around the King Dozer hitboxes.” |
| 0.4.1 | May 27 | “Fixed an issue with the items in the upgraded Buggy’s storage being deleted after the Player’s death.” |
| 0.5.0 | Aug 11 | “Fixed an issue where access to the King Dozer area was blocked even after repairing the valves.” |
| 0.5.0 | Aug 11 | “Fixed an issue that resulted in crash for the Host caused by the Client rejoins the session after their Buggy is ready to be retrieved from the Buffin’ Barrel.” |
| 0.5.0 | Aug 11 | “Fixed an issue where there would be unnecessary brackets in Moldy Milk Molar tutorial text.” |
| 0.5.1 | Sep 24 | “Added Molar Upgrades for Mega Milk Molars, Milk Molars, and Moldy Milk Molars” |
| 0.5.1 | Sep 24 | “Expanded the available tiers of upgrades obtainable through Milk Molars and Moldy Milk Molars.” |
| Rot and Ruin 0.6.0 | Oct 20 | “Fixed an issue where “King Dozer” content was not available in the Grid Menu.” |
Counting from release day (Apr 14), 0.4.1 came 43 days later, 0.5.0 came 119 days later and Rot and Ruin 0.6.0 came 189 days later.
What this means for players now
Only what the notes state:
- The 0.4.1 notes list a fix about a specific spot in the King Dozers Arena corner, and the 0.5.0 notes list a fix about access to the King Dozer area. Both are quoted above.
- The 0.5.1 notes say: “Expanded the available tiers of upgrades obtainable through Milk Molars and Moldy Milk Molars.” We cover the rest of that patch in Grounded 2 Patch 0.5.1.
- The Rot and Ruin notes list a fix for King Dozer content missing from the Grid Menu. They don’t say which menu items were missing.
- Not stated in the notes: how many Moldy Milk Molars exist or what each tier costs.
Newer update news is on the Grounded 2 page.
How we checked this
We read the Beat the Heat release post, its public test post, and every later Grounded 2 announcement up to Patch 0.6.0.5 (Nov 4, 2026), from copies of Obsidian’s Steam announcements saved on Nov 7, 2026, and checked each quote above word for word against them. We haven’t played the update to test these changes ourselves. If Obsidian has posted newer patches that touch Beat the Heat content since then, they are not listed here.