by Stacy Jones on Jan 29, 2010
Technical Director Cyrus Preuss has posted the third part of his developer diary series discussing the physics engine for Black Prophecy. In his latest release, Preuss discusses physics interaction in the game, and while much of it is very technical, Preuss does a good job explaining it in simple terms that most people can understand. While the physics of the game will offer some interesting dynamics to gameplay as it takes into account a given set of variables for physics encounters, it's not without its limits. Preuss goes on to explain the difficulties of finding a good balance between fun and realism, but in the end, the team leans more towards fun gameplay over the realistic physics.
Of course a game like Black Prophecy, with action-oriented dogfights, does not claim to implement realistic velocities like they would be possible in space or with future technologies. Dogfights between single space ships that move with a velocity of e.g. 50.000 km/h are simply unthinkable. In this case you would have to deal with relative velocities of 100.000 km/h. The probability to hit your enemy under such conditions is relatively low. Classic dog fights are impossible even at velocities of modern jet planes. Therefore the ship velocities are heavily reduced, rather catering to the intended game fun instead of realism.
You can read more from Cyrus Preuss in his latest developer's diary.