Reentry - A Space Flight Simulator News

Reentry version 0.6 has been in development for a while, and will introduce many new changes to Project Mercury. This post aims to briefly cover the main parts of 0.6, as well as showing you another feature in planning: Mission Control Live



True Scale System
The major work we did with version 0.45 can be seen in-action through the True Scale System. This is currently only available in Mercury, but it changes how Reentry works with the floating points limitation. TSS now allows you to maneuver in a true scale environment with seamless ascent (no transition), and a much more realistic sized Earth. Zooming no longer affects the scale of Earth like it did before, and the "floating rocket parts" are no longer a thing.

Failures
With random failures, mission scripted failures, or failures triggered by a troublemaker in the Mission Control multiplayer module, you now have to pay much more attention to all of the internal systems. If a fault is detected, you will need to work the problem and figure out if the mission can continue or not. A basic implementation of the Mercury Abort Modes are also available, where the Escape Tower is used to drag the capsule away from a failing launch vehicle (see video below)



New missions & in-game Mercury Mission Editor
Version 0.6 will also add a few new missions for Mercury, where your abilities will be tested outside of the Academy. A new mission editor has been created, allowing you to create Mercury missions directly in the game.


Mission Control Live
The Mission Control Live module is a multiplayer mode scheduled for version 0.7 where multiple players can join a game session as Mission Control for an astronaut. The Mercury Control Center has been remade with a focus on details, gamification and functionality. I have been doing a lot of research into how it looks, feels and works, as well as how one person or a team can be Mission Control, following realistic flight plans, or private training sessions.

Here are some comparison pictures from real life, vs. what I have in Reentry




The mission control room is populated with custom avatars where each player can design his or her own character to be used as a mission controller (and eventually as the face of your astronaut).



Saturdays stream
Many of you saw the stream on Saturday where the Test Pilots and I were playing the new Mission Control Live module for Reentry, with Serpatron in the capsule. Unfortunately, we were unable to bring him down due to an unfortunate event where the retros were jettisoned too early.

If you wish to see the session, you can do so here:
Mission Control Perspective:
https://www.twitch.tv/wilhelmsenstudios

Astronaut Perspective:
https://www.twitch.tv/RealSerpatron

When will 0.6 or Mission Control Live be released?
I do not yet have an ETA on when version 0.6 or the Mission Control Live feature will be released. Version 0.6 will need to be released before Mission Control Live can be a part of the game. Mission Control Live will hopefully make it into 0.7.

Tune in this Saturday to see a dev-stream from Reentry 0.6! The stream will start on April 18th at
20:00 GMT / 1 pm PDT.

The stream will happen here on Steam and on Twitch:
Main coverage:
https://twitch.tv/wilhelmsenstudios

In addition, there will be another live stream directly from the Astronaut here:
https://www.twitch.tv/RealSerpatron

Tune in this Saturday to see a dev-stream from Reentry 0.6! The stream will start on April 18th at
20:00 GMT / 1 pm PDT.

The 0.5 update of Reentry is finally out!
A lot of work is still left, but 0.5 shapes the basics of Lunar Ascent, and Atmospheric Entry.

Details on the update can be seen in these two posts:
https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/882140/view/1709617390888004911

https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/882140/view/1803068984041913973



I hope you will enjoy the update! :)

Version 0.5 has been in development since the summer, and is going to be a great update for the Apollo program + some new things for Mercury and Gemini! With the release of version 0.45, I finally had the tools needed to get the Lunar module from the surface of the Moon back to the CSM.

You got a glimpse into what you can expect from version 0.5 in the previous post, but today we will take a look at other things 0.5 will introduce, and also talk about Atmospheric Entry for the Command Module. I will mostly use pictures do describe these features.

The initial plan was to release the lunar ascent, rendezvous and docking as one release, and then another release containing atmospheric entry for the Command Module. However, this has changed, 0.5 will have both Lunar ascent, rendezvous, docking and Atmospheric Entry. The bits are now in the hands of the Test Pilots!

Lunar ascent, rendezvous and docking
As most of the Lunar Ascent and rendezvous parts of this update was covered in my previous post, this post will cover the things that 0.5 will bring in addition to that. If you have not read the previous post, you can find it here:
https://steamcommunity.com/games/882140/announcements/detail/1709617390888004912

Atmospheric Entry
Apollo Atmospheric entry should now work again. There are many parts that needs more development cycles such as the EMS and procedures, and the autopilot during the entry programs (P60's), but at least it's now possible to perform an entry with the Command Module again!
The Atmospheric Entry Academy lesson has been remade to reflect the changes, and is now much better.

The EMS is a great tool during entry, and will show you the G load, distance left and suggested guidance. This is still in development, but it's enough to make you understand what it's capable of.


When drag increases you will now see a much more realistic plasma effect during entry.


Landing & Splashdown
When the blaze is over, you now enter a much better splashdown area. It's very important to arm the ELS system, or else you will crash. With the ELS system active, and set to AUTO, the apex, drogues and main chutes will deploy automatically. But verify this, and if a fault happens, you can deploy manually by setting the ELS to MANUAL, and use the altimeter to check when to trigger an action.


First thing you will see is the release of the APEX cover, shortly followed by the two drogues. The descent rate should slow down to about 200 ft/s or less, and the capsule should stabilize/hang from the two chutes. Do not use the RCS system at any time during landing, or the ropes will burn.


Then the three main chutes will deploy, and the descent rate should slow down to about 32 ft/s.


Followed by splashdown


Improves cockpit ambience
A new Cockpit Ambiance System is in the works, and will eventually roll out to all of the supported spacecrafts. This system generates a more true-to-life cockpit atmosphere with radio static noise, and the famous beep sound effect on radio messages. Lot's to be done, but feel free to give it a try.

Graphics & Performance settings
Render Probes
One of the major issues with Apollo is the amount of system resources it requires, and the amount of graphics used to render it all. The Earth, the Moon, the Saturn V stack with the CSM, and the Lunar Module, and both the virtual cockpits. That's a lot of draw calls. One of the biggest bottlenecks for performance is the reflection probes used to render reflections on materials. You now have an option to turn these off, or improve their quality.

Improved CSM Model
Small changes has been made to improve the quality of the Command Module and the Service Module.


Main Window Glare
The improved reflection probes can now render reflections on the main windows of a virtual cockpit. If you have a lit cockpit, the reflections will be more intense, while if you turn off all the lights, there won't be much to reflect at all.


Basic Crew Models for the CSM and LM
I'm working on a Crew Model and Astronaut Avatar system, used to create your own Astronaut. While this is in progress, I have enabled the option to render basic models of the crew in the CSM and the LM.



Off-screen Switch Indicator
Ease-of-use is very important for me, and TP SwGustav suggested adding a UI indicator pointing towards a switch when it's outside of your view. An off-screen switch indicator was introduced, and will be visible if a checklist or mission instruction needs you to change a switch not rendered. This will then point you in the direction you should turn the camera to find the switch.


All-in-all, with the introduction of Lunar Ascent, and Atmospheric Entry, version 0.5 will bring a lot on the table. Academy lessons has been added. In addition, a lot of issues has been fixed (and probably introduced too), thanks to all the bug reports and feature requests you have made.