This development update is inspired by a forum post on the Steam Community Hub by a player called Coda. He asks “What level of control should we expect? When does physics go from a matter of making something fly for the fun of it, to micro-managing attack angles and points of force as a tedium?”
It is a topic we are still discussing on a daily basis in the development team. It is at the very core of the game design. Trailmakers has been physics-based from the beginning which means we will always use somewhat realistic aerodynamics, gravity, weight distribution etc. At the same time, we want the game to be accessible for everyone, even if you have no prior experience with vehicle building games.
Boop!
A big part of the discussion boils down to a simple question: “What is the most fun?”. It’s not fun if an engineering degree is required to build a simple 4-wheel car - that should be easy. Soon after you do that, you want to try making something more complex like an airplane. If that only requires putting wings on your car, you are not being challenged. We want you to at least think about where you place the wings. Failing to build something the right way can be fun if the result does something hilariously unexpected.
A helicopter without counter-torque is like a fidget spinner
It’s very important that you can see what you did wrong, so you know what to improve. You see your car topple over all the time? Probably a problem with the weight distribution or center of mass. Helicopter spins your cockpit? Add counter-rotation. When you finally get it right, it’s satisfying like solving a puzzle.
Coda wants to know to what extent our physics engine will challenge the player - how detailed is it? To answer briefly: It is more important to us that our in-game physics are predictable than that they are realistic. That being said, there should still be stuff to tinker with for players who want to fine-tune their creations. These things should just be optional. For example, right now in the Alpha Demo we have optional key mapping for mechanical parts. It allows some advanced sequencing, but is not required to complete the game. We hope we can make it impactful to actually bother with fine-tuning.
Weight distribution - how not to do it
Going forward in development, here are some design philosophies we use as guidelines:
- It should be simple to build something basic.
- It should feel satisfying to succeed in building something complex.
- It’s alright if it takes a bit of experimentation before you get it right.
- You have to be able to tell what is wrong when you build something that doesn't work.
- ‘Predictable’ is more important than ‘realistic’.
- Complexity should be possible but optional.
If you have a suggestion for a development update topic like Coda had, let us know in the comments!