Suggested Feature: KSP1 Files able to be played on KSP2

[Dr. Kerbal]

I don’t know if this has been confirmed but, will it be possible to covert KSP1 files to KSP2?I was wondering this because I thought it would be. Imagine playing your old KSP1 saves on KSP2. I not sure if this is possible. But. I’m just asking, will this new feature in KSP2?

Edited April 25, 2021 by Dr. Kerbal

[Guest]

It's not technically feasible if KSP2 is anything more ambitious than a graphics update + interstellar DLC for KSP1 (which it appears to be). A craft converter might be technically possible but a lot of work since all the parts would need to be ported over and some of them have pretty complex characteristics (the robotics f.ex). Maybe something an ambitious modder could attempt.

[pandaman]

I seem to recall that it was confirmed officially somewhere that this will not be possible.

My thoughts...  Even if it was somehow possible to load up a KSP 1 save (with craft automatically 'converted') all of the planetary surfaces are going to be re-modelled, and therefore different everywhere, however similar the basic geography may appear, so anything on the surface could potentially be a major problem.

There may be a chance of a mod that can sort all that out reliably, but frankly I very much doubt it. 

[Guest]

That would put a lot of design constraints on the new game.

[Starhelperdude]

while in theory that would be cool, in practise this prob. wouldn't be

[PlutoISaPlanet]

I doubt it

[MechBFP]

No

[Overfloater]

No, it's an impediment on them trying to develop a better product. One of their ways of achieving that, is by a complete omission of the original game, so they can program it more efficiently.

Edited April 25, 2021 by Overfloater

[Jack Mcslay]

A mod to add the KSP1 parts missing from KSP2 shouldn't be hard to do, enabling to convert KSP1 crafts to KSP2 as long as the files remain easily editable. You could then put each orbiting craft from the original save in it's respective orbit , but landed craft might not work, I don't think the geography will remain the same so you could put a base in a decently plain location in KSP1 and the same coordinate in KSP2  is an ocean or a cliffside. Transfer orbits may not work if they change orbital parameters either

Edited April 25, 2021 by Jack Mcslay

[Gargamel]

7 hours ago, pandaman said:

however similar the basic geography may appear, so anything on the surface could potentially be a major problem.

Pratchett/Baxter's "The Long Earth" comes to mind.    End up spawning inside a mountain. 

[Bej Kerman]

6 minutes ago, Gargamel said:

7 hours ago, pandaman said:

however similar the basic geography may appear, so anything on the surface could potentially be a major problem.

Pratchett/Baxter's "The Long Earth" comes to mind.    End up spawning inside a mountain. 

ELI5

[HebaruSan]

Since the 80s there have been some game franchises where characters from previous games could be carried forward into later games, with their stats more or less intact (the "gold box" AD&D games did this, for example). In cases where the game mechanics changed, it wouldn't be an exact copy but kind of a reinterpretation of the character in the newer rule set (the Mass Effect series is an example of this).

It might be cute (and less problematic technically) to add an option to load just the Kerbonauts from a KSP1 save into KSP2. I think it's safe to assume that KSP2 will have Kerbals, and that those Kerbals will have names and sexes, so the names and sexes should pull forward pretty easily. If pilot/engineer/scientist roles and stupidity and courage still exist, they could be transferred, otherwise translated into something similar in the new stats. Then if there's any kind of level system or progression, a mapping from Kerbal XP could be created.

This way, you could start your KSP2 progression with a team of familiar faces ready to explore, but the devs would not have to worry about the complexity of vessel compatibility.

Edited April 25, 2021 by HebaruSan

[linuxgurugamer]

9 hours ago, Dr. Kerbal said:

I don’t know if this has been confirmed but, will it be possible to covert KSP1 files to KSP2?I was wondering this because I thought it would be. Imagine playing your old KSP1 saves on KSP2. I not sure if this is possible. But. I’m just asking, will this new feature in KSP2 @Intercept Games and @Nate Simpson?

Not going to happen. Confirmed many times.

19 minutes ago, Jack Mcslay said:

A mod to add the KSP1 parts missing from KSP2 shouldn't be hard to do, enabling to convert KSP1 crafts to KSP2 as long as the files remain easily editable. You could then put each orbiting craft from the original save in it's respective orbit , but landed craft might not work, I don't think the geography will remain the same so you could put a base in a decently plain location in KSP1 and the same coordinate in KSP2  is an ocean or a cliffside. Transfer orbits may not work if they change orbital parameters either

Ummm, you are speaking from some sort of knowledge?  Are you one of the developers?  Are you a game developer?  What are you basing your statement on?

 

[JcoolTheShipbuilder]

no, it would be WAY too complicated too

[Kernel Kraken]

I bet someone could make a craft file converter, but I doubt we'll get it on launch. Sounds like a fun mod to try down the line, though!

[Dr. Kerbal]

2 hours ago, Kernel Kraken said:

I bet someone could make a craft file converter, but I doubt we'll get it on launch. Sounds like a fun mod to try down the line, though!

I have seen the code and it seems like a decoding and coding thing.

[Spaceman.Spiff]

That's improbable. The editor is going to be changed, and some parts may be omitted from KSP2. I would bank on there being NO conversion or intercompatibility between the two.

[Dr. Kerbal]

1 minute ago, Spaceman.Spiff said:

That's improbable. The editor is going to be changed, and some parts may be omitted from KSP2. I would bank on there being NO conversion or intercompatibility between the two.

Thats true.

[RobuxDoge]

While it would be nice, it would most likely be hard or impossible. Something like transferring craft to KSP2 might be more possible.

[Dr. Kerbal]

4 hours ago, RobuxDoge said:

While it would be nice, it would most likely be hard or impossible. Something like transferring craft to KSP2 might be more possible.

I would like this. 

[Single stage to ocean]

Theoretically, doable. Just only allow transferring craft with parts that are in KSP2 and KSP1, hope the part sizes/length/look haven't changed.

[InfernoSD]

I wouldn't even desire this. I like starting fresh.

But it would be neat if you could find your own derelict craft from KSP1 floating in orbits and on surfaces. They wouldn't even have to be functional or interactive in any way. They could just be wreckage, half-buried in the soil, and if any bugs happened in the conversion it would look like intentional damage.

That could be more fun than KSP1's anomalies, I think.

[Guest]

7 hours ago, Spaceman.Spiff said:

That's improbable. The editor is going to be changed, and some parts may be omitted from KSP2. I would bank on there being NO conversion or intercompatibility between the two.

I doubt back-compatible parts would be available out of the box. It might be possible to mod them in. That would mean that a craft conversion mod would be feasible -- it would include the KSP1 parts pack and the converter. If the game is moddable enough, even a "KSP1 in the KSP2 engine" total conversion mod might be feasible, and if you did that then you could start thinking of savegame compatibility. However, if you wanted KSP1 parts to coexist with KSP2 parts, you would likely run into some major trouble.

For example, consider engines and fuel types. IRL, a big part of the differences in thrust and Isp aren't properties of the engine at all, they're properties of the fuel: kerolox for more thrust but lower Isp, hydrolox for less thrust but higher Isp. In KSP, these differences are baked into the engines, all of which burn an abstract liquid fuel. KSP2 clearly wants to change this: there will be a variety of fuel types for different kinds of engines.

So, suppose the KSP2 Poodle burns hydrolox whereas the Reliant burns kerolox, with their other stats unchanged. This means you need to know which type of fuel each tank contains. And boom, your craft aren't back compatible anymore. You could always include the old parts as-is, but that would introduce massive balancing problems: why would anyone use the new engines requiring new fuel types, if you could get the same job done with the old engines all sharing a fuel type? You could make the new engines competitive by making them so much more efficient or powerful that they're worth it, but then they'd be OP for the KSP planetary bodies. 

Once you consider career/science saves, it gets even more constraining. Suddenly, you're stuck with the same tech tree, because unlocking it is part of the career. You're stuck with the same KSC, because upgrading that is also part of it. You're stuck with funds, science, and reputation as resources, and can't add any others without causing a slew of back-compatibility problems you'd need to address. You're stuck with a career based on contracts, because contract state is a part of the career save. And so on and so forth, before we even get to the difficulties you would have if you wanted to change the planetography or orbits or such in any way at all.

So the upshot is that if you want to maintain any kind of savegame compatibility, all you can do is give KSP a nice, fresh coat of paint and add a bunch of toys to play with. I would very much like to see KSP get that nice, fresh, coat of paint (better graphics, better UI, better career, etc), but that should be a part of the continuing evolution of KSP1, as further updates and paid DLCs. I would be extremely disappointed if that's all that KSP2 is – and it certainly looks like they are aiming higher.

1 hour ago, InfernoSD said:

But it would be neat if you could find your own derelict craft from KSP1 floating in orbits and on surfaces. They wouldn't even have to be functional or interactive in any way. They could just be wreckage, half-buried in the soil, and if any bugs happened in the conversion it would look like intentional damage.

I love this idea! It would be a great way to maintain continuity with KSP1. And it sounds totally feasible too. Suppose, say, 80% of the KSP1 parts (not counting surface-attached little bits and pieces) are ported over in sufficient fidelity: similar models and attach points. Now you could just port over any craft that only includes that 80% of parts, and just flag them as "derelict" -- i.e, none of the parts actually /work/ anymore, and they get a crusty spaceworn texture on them.

Then when you import your KSP1 save, you just put them in their orbits or drop on them on the surface where they're supposed to be; if some of them aren't carried over because the parts aren't there, they're presumed lost; if others get destroyed or damaged or fall over because of changes in planetary topography, that's totally fine too and just adds to the atmosphere. It would give the system a wonderfully lived-in feel, and you could use it to create any number of gameplay challenges as well.