Reentry - A Space Flight Simulator News

Reentry has been patched to version 0.9995.EA. The Unity rendering engine has been updated to version 2021.3.24, and multiple issues has been fixed.

Patch notes:

• Unity Game Engine upgrade (2021.3.16 -> 2021.3.24)
  
• Big updates to the TEI tool
  
• ARM/SAFE logic fixes to Gemini retro jettison squibs
  
• Time scaling in VR
  
• Radio comms toggle in VR
  
• Logic corrections when trying to call lunar rendezvous and ascent tools in LEO
  
• Mission Completion logic corrections when the mission scripts completes the mission without a splashdown
  
• Text-to-speech logic updates
  
• Updates some procedures in the Gemini Pre-Launch Academy lesson
  
• Fixes to issues related to interacting with the Mercury "Jukebox"
  
• Fixed: if Gemini loses all power and power is then turned back on, the cabin lights stay dark until the switch is flicked again
  
• Log file updates
  

The 0.999 update is one of the last updates before the 1.0 milestone, and contains some bug fixes and a big update to the game manual.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with this update, you can always revert to an earlier build using the Steam Betas Tab.

Reentry Game Manual
The Reentry Game Manual has been updated and is accessible from the Main Menu -> Academy, or from the web site. This is the first iteration and it will be updated with fixes and new content along with game updates.


Virtual Reality - Pre-Testing 2
First of all I want to thank you for giving the new VR direction a test, even with its limited support for interactions. As mentioned before, the first iteration of VR (Pre-Testing 1) was all about device detection and HMD rendering. Testing so far has been positive and I'm happy to share that the next phase of VR has rolled out with this update - containing most of the basic systems to complete a Mercury mission (You will still need to press C to toggle the function bubbles and use keyboard to maneuver the ship etc).


Pre-Testing 2 will continue to test what Pre-Testing 1 (PT-1) had as its goal, but also adds support for interacting with a Mission Pad, reading/running checklists, controller bindings and mission commands. Keep in mind that this is still at a very basic level (as with the entire Pre-Testing phase) for Mercury only. This is because I want to limit the scope of testing to the most important matters.

The first main thing is binding support. The new VR implementation is based on the new Unity Input Actions system. So far I have added 4 bindable actions as a test to the Virtual Reality section of Main Menu -> Settings.

When rebinding, make sure you firmly execute the rebind as some controllers will also react on the "touched" event for some buttons. I have yet to filter this out for the various controllers out there, so if the binder triggers on the "touched" event, try to redo the binding until you get the button you want.

If anyone knows how to avoid this, please reach out to me on the #vr-development channel on Discord.

Note: You can also bind these events to the keyboard and other devices as well.

A dedicated mission pad for VR has been added and functions similarly to the old implementation. It can be toggled by using the left hands secondary button (can be rebound to for example the thumbstick button as in the screenshot above). You interact with it using the right hand laser pointer + trigger (same as interacting with the function bubbles). It will follow your left hand. You can run checklists from this pad, but some features are yet to be added such as the map.


Mission Commands will show as a wrist UI where you can use the RadioCommandProceed action to press "roger", or the laser pointer.


The next steps will be to also add a bindable key for toggling the function bubbles and tools to perform timescaling etc using the Mission Pad. This will be added as a minor patch very soon.


Fixes:

• Multiple fixes to the Career path nodes
  
• Corrected issues related to the FLIGHT and CAPCOM level-ups in Apollo MOCR
  
• Apollo CM comm button overlap
  
• Added OMNI D to the OMNI antenna sw
  
• UP TLM CMD switch RSET position set to momentary
  
• Removed middle pos for LM VHF receivers
  
• TEI and TLI tool corrections
  
• Profile->Capsule name line 1 and 2 fixes
  
• Mercury RCS strength corrections
  
• Mercury RCS logic corrections
  

Thanks to the Test Pilots, the community and to you for playing Reentry!

I will very soon start to talk about the next steps of Reentry - An Orbital Simulator, as we are crossing the 1.0 milestone - marking the beginning of a long journey towards 2.0.

This minor patch will correct the following issues:

• Overexposure in Mercury for some (minor thing that was introduced in the previous update)
  
• HTC Vive controllers can now move hands (no input binding yet)
  
• UMA Rebuild to render the character in the Character Editor
  

Again, thank you all for the quick feedback and reports! :)

I just rolled out a minor patch to correct the blocking issue where the function bubbles in the Mercury cockpit stops reacting to mouse input.

In addition, I started creating some new logic that will be used to handle states between non-VR sessions and VR sessions (such as hiding the gloves etc).

Again, thank you all for the quick feedback and reports! :)

The 0.998 update is mainly about fixing issues and continuing to iterate the game towards its first major milestone, the 1.0 update. It will mainly fix some blocking issues and critical issues reported lately.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with this update, you can always revert to an earlier build using the Steam Betas Tab.

A word about VR
A few patches ago the old Virtual Reality (VR) implementation was moved to a dedicated branch as Unity deprecated the VR API that my old VR implementation was based on (preventing me to update the game to the latest and most modern version of Unity). While VR as a main focus is still a post 1.0 feature, I wanted to take this opportunity to speak more about its future in Reentry.

The plan for VR is to start testing the basics of a new VR rendering framework, and iterate on it as I get feedback from the community. I want to first of all test the core logic such as device recognition, rendering and basic interactions. I will do this in the Mercury program, and use this as the playground to learn as much as possible about device detection and basic rendering using the new API.

I'm happy to share that this approach starts today with this update. The beginning of the new VR-implementation has now become an alpha-feature that you can toggle on from Main Menu -> Settings -> Alpha Features.

The primary goal of this first iteration is to get feedback of device support, and I wish to limit it to this. For those who wish to join me in this development journey with regards to suggestions and feedback are welcome to join the official #vr-development channel found under the Alpha section on our Discord server,

With this first implementation you will be able to start a mission in the Mercury Program. I have implemented a very simple interaction model for now where you can use the controllers to control a laser pointer (on the right controller) that should be able to interact with all switches onboard. Using the A and B button, you can move switches and selectors to configure the panels.

For those familiar with VR development, the current implementation will try to initially only use the new OpenXR API built into Unity, with the VR Interaction Framework as its core.

Once I start to get feedback on device support, I will iterate on this implementation to add support for the mission pad so you can interact with to execute checklists and so on, and then move into a more sophisticated interaction model where you can use the controllers directly on switches instead of using a laser pointer. When this is done, you will have basic VR support that will let you complete any mission in Project Mercury!

If you wish to test this, enable VR from the alpha feature to toggle the VR section in Settings. From here, you can enable VR. The moon landscape will then render in the VR headset. The Main Menu will render on your monitor and you will need to configure settings and select missions from here. Once you start a mission, the game will start to render Mercury in the HMD.

I want to take this opportunity to thank you all for the suggestions and feedback during the old technical preview phase of VR, I learned a lot from this, and I'm very excited to start this new phase of VR support in Reentry.

A big shoutout to all the Test Pilots, the Community and those who help new players there, and for helping me shape this game into what it is today.


0.998 release notes:

• Blocking issues fixed: Unable to launch the Gemini Campaing Mission 1
  
• Fixes to blocking MOCR session logic bugs
  
• Many fixes to the new Career path/tech tree feature
  
• Updates to save states
  
• Multiple fixes on mission scripts and typos
  
• Multiple fixes on checklists and the checklist guidance system
  
• Starting the new Mercury VR implementation
  
• Fixed: Gemini Lock On light can occasionally get stuck in the lock on state.
  
• Fixed: Gemini Encoder stopped working when docked
  
• Corrected UI scaling issues related to the Mercury Failure Toggle window
  
• Corrected km to nmi conversion in TEI academy lesson
  
• Mercury and Gemini ascent guidance updates
  
• Fixed: In the Apollo academy mission #10 Transposition and Docking, RCS thrusters A1, C1, and A2 are turned off at the beginning of the mission and there is no prompt to turn them on. They are needed to complete the docking.