This is it. This is the dream game I've always wanted. A space combat game with an emphasis on simulation. Procedurally generated galaxies, simulated celestial bodes, dynamic missions that are generated from persistent factions and resources, realistic spaceflight, 5 minute ship startup procedures (optional!), management and control of all of a ship's components, simulation of the cockpit and pilot (oxygen and temperature matter; every inhale and exhale is tracked), docking and walking around stations, very extensive modding tools.
For me, the thing that sets it apart from the recent boom of space games is the emphasis on simulating a spaceship from the view of the pilot. The simulation aspects rival those of Dwarf Fortress. I'll let the developer explain it through an example:
Everything I’m about to tell you actually works right now, by the way, in various states of completeness. You’re in combat. A missile explodes near your ship and you take blast damage that degrades the engine’s cooling ability. The damaged engine now does not provide proper coolant pressure for other systems, which in turn causes them to start overheating. This increase in temperature not only begins to damage each affected system, but it also increases the internal temperature of the ship.
This increases the ship’s radiation footprint, making it stand out more against the solar background clutter and an easier target for RAD-sensing trackers. It also causes the environment system to work harder in order to keep the ship cool enough for the pilot. The increased workload of the Environment system can damage it to the point that it can’t maintain internal temperature, in which case, depending on where the ship is located, the pilot could eventually freeze or bake to death.
Now, back to the heat-damaged components. Depending on the type of systems affected the player could shut these down in order to prevent further damage. If not, these have the possibility of failing completely, igniting an electrical fire (if they’re in an oxygenated compartment) or even exploding.
Either way, their lack of function in turn affects other systems, such as shortened communication range because the tracking system can no longer lock the antenna on to a distant target. If they do suffer a critical event such as a fire, this can spread to systems in the immediate area (system component locations are also tracked), thus spreading damage to systems that weren’t even on the engine’s coolant bus.
At this point the pilot character may be starting to panic. Their heart and breathe rate increases, causing them to use more and more precious oxygen, which is also being burned away by the fire. Both the pilot and fire are creating higher levels of CO2, which in turn can overwhelm the CO2 scrubbers (assuming this a humanoid race that requires O2 and expels CO2). The situation is disintegrating very quickly – high levels of CO2, low levels of O2, excessive heat, fire, failing systems, limited comm range, etc. If the player can get it all under control they can call for help. If not, they either leave their ship by various means, or die with it.
Here is an early gameplay video, showing the player entering their ship and going through the manual startup procedure, then undocking.
If your core isn't the hardest of the hard, or you want to jump straight into the game without reading a massive flight manual, there will be accessibilty options, such as automatic startup procedures, less brutal simulation, etc.
There are two things that bug the hell out of me with games and movies that claim to be set in space: sound in the vaccuum of space and spaceships flying like airplanes. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Rogue System goes against the norm, and allows you to turn off these hollywood fabrications.
I know lots of people would love to "see" a realistic simulation of this, and for once someone is going to give it to them. In Rogue System, sounds are either internal or external. External sound volume is controlled by two things: a "vacuum level" and a player-defined "range level". Setting a range of 0, and when in a full vacuum (space) you’d hear nothing external of your ship. Increasing the range would slowly allow more and more external sounds to reach the pilot’s "ears". So the pilot gets to decide if they want a realistic or a movie-like experience.
...we have something called a FIS (Friction Induction System). The theory behind this is that a field is generated around the ship that reacts with the particles outside to form a minimal amount of friction, which causes flight to feel a bit more atmospheric. You can control the strength of it, as well as turn it on and off.
Here is the project's kickstarter page. The sole developer has built an excellent foundation for a game, and from his past experience it's obvious he knows exactly what he's doing. He is asking to fund a minimally sized development team for two years.
I want to get my hands on the finished product like nothing before. Orbiter is far from complete, and rarely updated. Kerbal Space Program is fun, but it's missing something. I couldn't become interested in Star Citizen et al because of the lack of realism (I would call it a perversion of physics). Rogue System will turn out to be amazing, I'm sure of it.
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Topic: Rogue System - hardcore space combat simulator (Read 1636 times)