Space Thunder
Space Thunder was an April Fool's Day event taking place 1 - 6th April 2020, and then returning for the Cosmonautic Day, being available on 12 and 13th of April 2020. Event featured the Space Combat Units fighting in a realistic zero-g environment.
Contents
The Event Introduction
Space mining has always been far from peaceful, but corporations managed to rub along together. Until now, when they found on the Moon the mysterious Object 279, a powerful weapon of the first space race. There can’t be alliances and codexes when you strive to possess such an artifact, so professionals step forward.
Your employers want to control resource platforms in open space, these are perfect transfer sites. You are weapons free with the whole arsenal of combat space suits available in several variants.
Space Combat Units
Space Thunder Controls
Controls in Space Thunder were unique, as the Space Combat Units followed (somewhat simplified) Newtonian Physics. There was no "up" or "down" and unless acted with a force Unit would continue on its path at the constant speed and direction. Simplifications to the physics revolved around collisions. Impact from weapons added no acceleration to the pods, and colliding with other objects would dampen the motion, allowing players to quickly negate their motion. All of this aimed for much more accessible gameplay than with fully realistic physics, where basically the first hit off-center would add significant angular rotation to the pod, making it impossible to return fire.
The Map
Space Thunder took place on a dedicated map, centered around an extremely large space station, with added 3 asteroids on the outskirts. Map contained a number of tributes to the ISS:
- Truss-like structures with Solar Array Wings (gold-brown) and Heat Rejection System Radiators (solid white) attached.
- Canadarm2-like robotic arms
- A number of Cupolas attached to Tranquility-like modules, and external payloads in a Columbus-like configuration. In fact majority of the modules on the station have a typical design to the ISS modules built by the European Space Agency.
Distant shot of an entire map
Perspective shot of the Space Station
ISS-alike solar panels
Canadarm2-alike robotic arm
Realism
Event brought several surprisingly realistic details into the game. Notably:
- There is no sound in space. Player can hear only his own guns, thrusters, when he gets hit, collisions, leaks and internal system warnings.
- Vaccum is obeyed. Muzzle flashes are spherical, instead of having shape perturbed, as it is typical when fired in the atmosphere. Similarly ejecta from the Reaction Control systems expands in a perfect cone, instead of more bell-like shape, as it would in the atmosphere. And finally: Pierced propellant tanks accelerate spacecraft, as matter escapes into vaccum.
- Simplified Newtonian physics. Rotation and speed don't matter, everything is relative. Once accelerated, every pod, piece of debris or bullet will continue flying, there is no need to maintain thrust, Star Wars-style, nor gravity will pull them away.
