Hello! After an intensive month and a half of work, today we're releasing the latest update of Space Station Designer (version 0.5.25)! As always, it includes a series of improvements, fixes, and additions. Please read on for the highlights and, if you're interested in the full changelog, you can review our live document here: [Public] Space Station Designer - Release Notes.
New Propulsion Mechanics: 'Orbit Control' and 'Attitude Control'
Up until this version, Space Station Designer featured a relatively simplistic propulsion model, where the only requirement was to install enough propulsion to support the station's mass. As part of version 0.5.25, we're introducing a completely new model that is both more challenging and realistic. This model features two new concepts: 'orbit control' and 'attitude control'.
'Orbit control' is what keeps the station orbiting at the right altitude. It's measured by a percentage value that goes from 0% to over 100%, depending on: (1) the amount of propulsion modules installed, (2) their thrust, (3) their location in the station and the torque they generate, and (4) their alignment to the station's orbit direction. All this information is clearly displayed in the 'Spacecraft Filters' screen:
Failure to attain an 'orbit control' score of 100% will result in the progressive decay of the station's orbit, which will eventually incinerate in the Earth's atmosphere.
'Attitude control' is what keeps the station in the right orientation, which becomes particularly important when it encounters orbital debris and needs to be maneuvered away from danger. The 'attitude control' score depends on several factors, such as (1) the amount of thrusters pods installed, (2) their maximum thrust, and (3) their distance to the station's center of mass.
Don't worry, all these concepts are covered in great detail in the new tutorial "Orbit Control And Attitude Control (Phase I)".
Thrusters relocation
As the station evolves and grows, what used to be an optimal location for a propulsion module or a thruster pod may not longer be the case. To resolve this, we've added a new 'Module Relocation' mechanic, that only works for modules with propulsion capabilities:
Note that each relocation consumes fuel and, thus, it decreases the module's service life, so use it sparingly!
Improvements to the 'Spacecraft Filters' screen
We've added a few nice QoL improvements to the 'Spacecraft Filters' screen, including a draggable panel with key information for each filter type:
Since the information when reviewing propulsion-related stats can become quite overwhelming, there's a mechanism to hide the modules and keep the propulsion data only:
Improvements to the information panel in the module installation screen
The extra information is not limited to the 'Spacecraft Filters' screen. We've also heavily modified the installation panel so that, before you make the installation effective, you can have a clear view on the impact the module will have across all stats:
Revamped Debris Avoidance Maneouvre (DAM)
The mechanics behind the 'Debris Avoidance Maneouvre' (DAM) have been changed accordingly in order to reflect all the newly introduced changes to the propulsion mechanics.
The dialog itself looks relatively similar than in the previous version, but there's been some changes to the rules. More specifically:
- Individual thrusters can now be throttled from 50% to 120%.
- The average thrust of all thrusters will determine the number of modules that can potentially be affected by debris during the DAM.
- Increasing the thrust of each individual thruster will decrease their service life, in order to account for fuel consumption. In addition to this, setting the thrust above 100% introduces a chance of them breaking up after the DAM.
- The 'attitude control' score determines the chances of those modules potentially affected by debris to effectively suffer damage. This score cannot be changed as part of the DAM, and that's why it's important to keep a healthy 'attitude control' score at all times, as we never know when orbital debris will show up.
As of this version, there's no tutorial for the DAM, but we've added plenty of information via the tooltips.
Closing thoughts
In addition to the changes discussed above, we've included several bug fixes and minor QoL improvements. We hope you enjoy this new version of the game! If you have any questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to contact us via the forums.
--Ignacio, Mauricio, and Nicolas (Polar Motion)