Talon Game

Refractory Studios

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Version 1.2 released; new game mode, new map, misc improvements

#1 2014-01-07 13:17:48

Do_Checkor
Beta Tester
From: Germany
Registered: 2013-09-27
Posts: 159
Website

Afterburner

So after "only" three months my broken collarbone recovered well enough that I installed 1.01 on my game rig and kick some BOTs yesterday. Was in there for an hour and it was really great.

Again: Congratulations, Scott!

One thing came to my attention though: The Afterburner. Is it just me who seems to get no feedback / feels no difference (in Killing Fields) if on or off? Is there no indicator or is my keyboard setup just not working properly?

Any thoughts?

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#2 2014-01-07 13:33:08

Smaragdadler
Member
From: Thuringia
Registered: 2013-12-26
Posts: 42

Re: Afterburner

AB is switched ON by default, means when you press AB key you actually slowdown.
To change this go in options -> player tab, and set 'Afterburner Jet Default' to OFF.

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#3 2014-01-07 14:41:06

Do_Checkor
Beta Tester
From: Germany
Registered: 2013-09-27
Posts: 159
Website

Re: Afterburner

I know, yes, but still: Should I see an icon? I'd expect some kind of audio feedback (after burner blasting) if I enabled it.

I set AB control to be on Num Enter so far.

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#4 2014-01-07 14:47:05

Smaragdadler
Member
From: Thuringia
Registered: 2013-12-26
Posts: 42

Re: Afterburner

There definitely is a distinctive afterburner "sound" effect. No icon I'm aware off.

But NOW after you have mentioned it, I'm for myself not so sure about the actual speedup/acceleration effect. Speed increase is different with "Normalized Thrust Vectors" on or off.

But this is something I don't understand exactly. With NTV off you can supposedly get more speed out of the ship (?), while switching it on makes fly mechanics for newbies more easy?

Would be nice if someone could tell me, how to use this.

Last edited by Smaragdadler (2014-01-07 14:58:17)

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#5 2014-01-08 05:30:07

Scott
Refractory Studios
Registered: 2012-08-07
Posts: 463
Website

Re: Afterburner

The AB boosts acceleration and increases top speed, but the effect is not dramatic. The top speed is effected more than the acceleration, IIRC, so it's not something you feel very strongly "off the line". I did this because while I did want a bit of a flight-simy feel and it made sense for the ships to be faster on the forward vector, I still wanted to encourage more circle-strafing dogfighting and less of the "boost past, turn and fire, repeat" pattern. So the AB is a bit weak by design.

And I'm glad you finally get to play a bit! It's about damn time!

Smaragdadler wrote:

But this is something I don't understand exactly. With NTV off you can supposedly get more speed out of the ship (?), while switching it on makes fly mechanics for newbies more easy?

Would be nice if someone could tell me, how to use this.

With NVT on you get full thrust in every direction. This means you don't have to cock the ship at a 45,45,45 degree angle to fly about quickly, which to me feels like having more freedom because I choose my direction based on angle to target, direction of incoming fire, and so on. Also, yes, it makes the game more approachable to new players.

With NVT off, "trichord" mechanics are in effect. You get more control over your speed, since you have the three levels of additive vectors to choose from. You also get the advantage of a slightly higher top speed. Additionally, you achieve your top speed at an angle offset from your gun's muzzle vector. This can be advantageous in pursuit situations because you do not have to fly straight at your target (and into his line of fire) in order to engage him at full speed. But, it is more complicated, and thus more difficult to realize these advantages.

It's your choice. It should be balanced such that a good pilot can be competitive in either mode; it's just a matter of leveraging the advantages inherent in each. It's like choosing the right ship for the situation and for your play style. Use what works best for you.

... I really have to write that up somewhere more prominent.

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#6 2014-01-08 06:02:40

sdfgeoff
Beta Tester
Registered: 2013-09-27
Posts: 103
Website

Re: Afterburner

It should be balanced such that a good pilot can be competitive in either mode; it's just a matter of leveraging the advantages inherent in each

And the fact that this question was asked it proof that they are both competitive. I've being flying with NTV on, and never wanted the extra speed. But I'll have to turn it off and at least try it one of these days.

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#7 2014-01-16 01:49:30

Do_Checkor
Beta Tester
From: Germany
Registered: 2013-09-27
Posts: 159
Website

Re: Afterburner

OK so I tested again and found the AB was always on. Fair enough. Still as the function says "AB control" I would expect it would turn the AB off as pressing it simultaneously with "forward" won't chance anything (and that is what I did). When turned OFF in the pilots section the AB control button will give more thrust - and work fine with the normal forward key aswell - but then this is not AB control but AB usage - no?

I hear a different tone now that I turned AB control off which makes sense however.

Well I seem to be alone to find this odd it seems - so fair enough smile

I would probably assign a "use AB" key and make another "permanent AB" key however. Thanks for the help!

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#8 2014-02-26 14:18:10

Hypersonic
Member
Registered: 2014-02-24
Posts: 37

Re: Afterburner

This NVT concept is awesome!

Problem with tri-chord is that to go at this fastest speed you are limited to only 8 directions (none of them closer than 45deg in your looking or shooting direction) and odds are that none of them will orient your ship in such a way too allow you to shoot in a specific direction while simultaneously traveling in a specific direction (since looking and shooting are both locked to the ship's forward vector.)

I like the Talon's ABs as well!

Problem with Descent2 AB is that it basically invalidates all non-fast-traveling weapons, the only weapons that remain effective are the fast-traveling ones like vulcan/gauss and mercury missles. The ABs seem to promote hit and run tactics allowing players to easily get out of dog fighting situations. They are essential for getting away from those insane Earthshakers though!

Last edited by Hypersonic (2014-02-26 14:40:34)

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#9 2014-03-19 22:29:36

Hypersonic
Member
Registered: 2014-02-24
Posts: 37

Re: Afterburner

(Although I did mention this in another post, I thought it more appropriate to mention it here)

I hope that the afterburners could be directional, to enable unique circle strafe dogfighting and not just quick flyby jousting maneuvers. The jetpack in Tribes 1 and 2 is directional: left, right, forward, and backward are all of equal thrust enabling the shooting direction and thrust direction to be totally independent of eachother. The acceleration is low however to not invalidate slower projectile weapons.

update:I have some questions regarding the hangar page http://guide.talongame.com/Hangar
Are those acceleration values for all directions, or does forward have higher acceleration than strafe? How does AB affect longitudinal and strafe accelerations?

Last edited by Hypersonic (2014-03-20 20:09:52)

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