Black Prophecy dev diary gives peek at game's physics
by James Egan 
Nov 26th 2009 at 12:00PM
Filed under: Sci-fi, Game mechanics, New titles, Black Prophecy
Now that the sci-fi MMO Black Prophecy is free to keep moving forward, the game's developer Reakktor Media is revealing more about the title. Recent dev diaries focused on Black Prophecy's art direction but now Technical Director Cyrus Preuss is kicking off a short series on the game's physics. The physics in any game can be important, perhaps moreso in a space-based MMO where players can move about in any direction and potentially interact (and collide) with many other ships in a single area.
Cyrus boils a complex subject down to some easily understood explanations of how game physics work in the first installment, and will explore more on the topic in the coming weeks. He writes, "But you don't need to be afraid that I will confront you with highly complex equations or formulas. With this diary I also want to provide a look behind the scenes to those who didn't take the advanced physics or mathematics courses in school."
Fans of Black Prophecy or those curious about the underlying game physics in an MMO can follow along with Cyrus' dev diary on the official game site.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Graill said on 1:54PM 11-26-2009
Well, that said nothing, gave an indication of what their engine wont handle and cannot perform, scary stuff. Going to be cutting edge in ship and weapon physics? Not looking like it. Sounding more like on the rails EVE everyday.
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Aerton said on 1:10AM 11-27-2009
Indeed, a rather generic description of physics that would fit any physics engine.
I'd much more like to know if the game uses Newtonian model of flight, like in Elite 2 Frontier, where you keep moving forever and need to use thrusters to stop. Or much more common submarine-like physics where friction slows down and stops you eventually once you stop the jets.