totm september 2019 I get to interview Star Theory tomorrow. Give me your questions!

[DStaal]

Lots of better questions, but this one is bugging me...   What is this engine?

 

[Xurkitree]

If science is to be implemented, will there be more real life experiments? I would like to Magnetometers and other stuff to be included.

[MechBFP]

Will there be a careeer mode, and will it be better than KSP 1?

[Angelo Kerman]

MM related: will,the game support config file alterations to parts during loading?

Wild Blue Tools related: will the game support config alterations of part instances after editor placement and when the craft is in flight? (E.G. my config template system)

[DrRansom]

What are the plans for airplanes? 

[KnutG]

My 2 questions are:

• Will the "anomalies" from KSP1 still exist? Will there be new alienartifacts on new planets?
• Is there life more than trees and cactus and Kerbals in KSP2? Can the Kerbals find something out there?

Edited August 29, 2019 by KnutG

[Snark]

11 minutes ago, pschlik said:

Will we have any form of automation? For example, if I were to launch my Daedalus and then swap over to some other craft, would the Daedalus continue accelerating? Or would I have to be in control of the Daedalus throughout the entire thrusting cycle?

That's a good one, will try to ask.

FWIW, they did specifically say that they're looking to solve the "Very Long Burn Problem" (e.g. you've got an ion drive and have to sit there twiddling your thumbs for half an hour while staring at the screen).  Not a lot of specifics, but the idea's definitely there about being able to plot and execute maneuvers that have very long burn times and accelerate under warp, something like that.

10 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

IS LANDING GEAR FIXED???

We'll see when they come out, but I'd assume yes.  This is a totally new game, built from scratch from the ground up, on a newer version of Unity and using different physics stuff under the hood in order to boost performance.  It's unlikely they'd match this bug-for-bug, especially since they know about the issue in KSP 1.

11 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Any more info about multiplayer?

Nope.  Anything at all about multiplayer is pretty solidly in the "no comment yet" category.

12 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Binary planets, what is their solution to make it work with patched conics?

They wouldn't go into any detail, but said they'd likely do some sort of special-case thing to allow binaries.

12 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Underwater Exploration , what can you find?

Wasn't asked.  On another topic, though, when we were asking a question on a tangentially related topic, they made it clear:  "this game is a rocket game, about designing and flying rockets, and everything else is secondary to that."  So I assume the answer's gonna be that they're not putting much time into underwater stuff because they're super busy and other stuff is taking higher priority than that.

Doesn't hurt to ask, though-- I'll try to ask. 
 

14 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Can you collide with rocks in rings?

The rings definitely have rocks in them (when you get in amongst them, you see them all, it looks friggin' gorgeous, like a scene from The Expanse).  But when asked "can we collide with those" it was "no comment".  So no idea if they're collidable, or if they're just eye candy.

 

15 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Any info about life support?

I asked.  Answer was a hemming-and-hawing sort of "no comment", which I read as meaning there may be something but there's little word on exactly what or how.  If I had to guess, it would be something related to colony mechanics, of which they haven't released a lot of info yet.

17 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Any info on jet engines and airplanes?

That's kind of a broad question.  Got anything more specific?

The same stock parts will still be there, pretty much (just made color-customizable and a lot more gorgeous).  No word on what and whether they'll add more stuff to that, though they did emphasize that their primary focus is on rockets right now.

18 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Action replay?

We raised the issue, they didn't give a solid answer but my take is "probably not".

18 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Any info about robotics?

I asked this.  Answer wasn't definite.  My impression is that they might have something movable, but likely won't have a full suite of robotics like Breaking Ground.

19 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

What happened to dres? They mentioned they made it interesting

Like all the bodies in the system, it got a total makeover and is gorgeous now.  As for specifics, nothing on how they made it interesting.  But they did make it clear that they're aware that Dres has a reputation of being a boring place that nobody ever visits, so they're going to give people a reason to go there.

20 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

What can we expect from part damage?

They showed us this stuff.  They won't have part deformation, but 'splosions in general are way better.  Yes, the flame and smoke f/x are a lot prettier, but not just that-- I mean, they've made the 'splosions of individual parts make a lot more sense, there's more animation when they come apart, and there's better "boom fidelity" (e.g. things that you'd expect to go KABOOM-- like a big fuel tank full of fuel-- will indeed explode much more impressively than smaller and more innocuous bits.  Crashes are pretty.

As for "damage" in the sense of broken parts that an engineer can fix, etc., we didn't happen to ask about that.  Good one, I'll try to ask.

23 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Will there be any structures / cities on Kerbin?

I don't think so-- my impression is that it's basically KSC (and likely a few easter eggs like the island airstrip), then players can make colonies (which is another type of build system, parallel to building ships).

24 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Career/Science mode?

That one's already on my own list of questions to answer.

24 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

The guys mentioned a crawler for rockets , how will that work?

It's not a thing, that's not quite how it works.  When you launch a ship, it just launches to the pad, no crawling involved.

There are crawlers, but they're for the launch towers, not for the rockets you build, and they're part of KSC that you don't control.  Reason they're there:  They wanted to have launch towers for the "look"... but the original KSC had problems with the towers because they'd get in the way of bigger rockets and so forth.  So for this one, they put the launch towers on crawlers that will automatically reposition themselves based on how big the rocket you're launching is.

So they're mainly just eye candy, not really a gameplay element (though they're fully realized models and your kerbals can go clamber all over them, if you like, including taking the stairs all the way to the top of the launch towers, if so inclined).

26 minutes ago, linecrafter said:

Can UI be customized?

Kind of a broad question.  There are certainly going to be user settings for some things, just as KSP 1 allows setting some things.  Did you have something specific in mind?

[Delay]

Wobbly joints are a concern to some. Will we see any of them in KSP 2?

[Opus_723]

Patched Conic SOIs like KSP1, n-body Dynamics, or something else?

Lagrange points?

[KerikBalm]

Will we get something like air augmented rockets for use on worlds without oxygen in the atmosphere (and without using lots of future tech)

Is there any other tech that involves dubious or speculative science such as metallic hydrogen (recently shown not to remain stable when pressure is released)?

[Snark]

47 minutes ago, Norcalplanner said:

Will it be possible to start a new career on a planet other than Kerbin?

Will it be possible to start a new career at a further tier in the tech tree? I.e., starting a career in the tech equivalent of 1970s as opposed to the 1950s?

Good ones, will try to ask.

49 minutes ago, RealKerbal3x said:

Could you possibly ask how the game will perform on lower-end systems, particularly those without dedicated graphics cards? I’m in the borderline potato camp myself and want to know whether I’ll have to throw a grand at a new computer just to play KSP2.

This is pretty much already answered, and hopefully it should work better.

When they showed us all this stupefyingly gorgeous, detailed scenery and parts and stuff, I immediately wondered "is that going to require a high-end gaming rig?  what about someone running on a potato?"

So I asked them. 

Answer:  They're putting a lot of work into trying to optimize performance, allowing working with higher part count, etc.  They want people to be able to run the game, and they know not everyone has a tricked-out gamer rig.  Plus, they plan to release for console, too-- and this time around, console is planned to be much more of a first-class citizen than last time (not necessarily perfect parity, but they're seriously planning for it and it's not an afterthought).  And consoles have much less CPU horsepower than PCs.  As one person put it, "Knowing that it needs to run on a console helps keep us honest."

So I would anticipate a robust set of quality options to address graphics quality, and the CPU-intensive parts ought to be actually better on your potato than KSP 1.

53 minutes ago, DunaManiac said:

How many star systems will there be?

We asked them that.  The response was a single word, "Multiple", delivered humorously deadpan. 

So I read that as meaning that there will be at least two besides the home system... but they're deliberately keeping mum for now on just how many.

I kinda get the impression that we've got a lot of goodies waiting for us, though.

 

[Vexillar]

A few random queries that spring to mind:

Will it be possible to fly multiple ships in atmosphere "at the same time" - for example, to emulate a SpaceX booster recovery? [And if so, how does the gameplay do that?]

In the trailer, it looks like Kerbals might have varying hairstyles and suit colours - are these selectable?  Will there be many options?  And part colour schemes - more options than KSP1 currently has?

And I have to ask  will there be flags and decals in KSP2?

[Snark]

1 hour ago, nsgallup said:

Will there be new planets/moons orbiting kerbol/sun (saturn/uranus/neptune analogues)?

No.  The home solar system will be exactly the same as it is today.  Same planets, same moons; they're all the same size with the same gravity in the same locations.  Kerbin even has the same overall geography and same coastlines.

They're totally made over and look frickin' gorgeous, but they're still basically the same.  The team did that because they wanted existing players who were used to the home system to feel "at home" and not too intimidated by all the new stuff.

So what they're doing for all the "lotsa new worlds" thing is to put those into the other solar systems to explore.

1 hour ago, nsgallup said:

Will there still be a sandbox mode with everything unlocked?

Good one, will ask.

1 hour ago, nsgallup said:

Will colonies always be under player control or will they do things on their own?

It's basically "under player control".  They don't grow and expand on their own, "autonomously".  However, they do get some sort of development added (e.g. more kerbals) when the player achieves/discovers things in the game.

1 hour ago, EchoLima said:

Will career mode still be kerbal focused (ie will the tech tree start with manned parts)?

When will Star Theory devs make an appearance on the forum?

Good ones, will ask.

 

1 hour ago, Angel-125 said:

Will planets and the distances between them scale with difficulty? E.G. a harder difficulty mode scales stock system to 2.5x

We didn't specifically discuss this, but given the context from other discussions and what they've showed us, I think the answer is no.  It's like KSP:  the planets are the planets, in their positions and sizes, and that's not something that game settings will change.

1 hour ago, HebaruSan said:

Will any features from KSP1 be dropped, and if so, which?

Lots of folks seem to be assuming that it will support everything we have today, but if this is a total rewrite from scratch, that is a bit hard to believe. ISRU, CommNet, asteroids, heating, robotics, etc.; there's a lot to re-implement.

Good one, will ask.

[Delay]

On average, how many planets will the new systems contain? I personally see little value in one or two planets per system.

[DStaal]

1 hour ago, nsgallup said:

2. Will there still be a sandbox mode with everything unlocked?

As a follow-up to this: How about science mode?  (I could see it being career and sandbox only, even though I typically play science mode.)

[PDCWolf]

These are all elevated from my own concerns with KSP1 + What's been raised from KSP2 confirmed stuff and media. It's a mishmash of questions in no particular order

1. Will KSP2 start with everything KSP1 already has mechanic wise? (including DLCs like breaking ground's robotics?)
2. During the launch & ascent gameplay scene from the trailer, stars were still easily visible even when the sun, and later what's probably the mun's surface were visible, will that be fixed?
3. What about part size variety? can we expect the same tiers? More? Less?
4. With the codebase rewritten, was there any change to how RAM is managed? (like, right now almost everything is loaded at all times, will that change?)
5. Ansel support?
6. Multiple launch sites?
7. What about scenario creation? that one really forgotten feature that has been probably only used once with public, downloadable results.
8. What -else- can they say about the really low framerates on the pre-alpha gameplay? (other than "it's an alpha" of course)

[Marachdrifter]

-Will there be multi monitor support ?

-will tue UI will be customizable (more when in flight. change navball position, put stages where i want on the screen, etc.) ?

-why Duna terminator is the wrong way in the trailer ?

-are they planning to allow certains modders to get the game in advance, so that there will be mods available on day 1

-will there be weather implemented (from only clouds to winds or rain) ?

-will it be possible to build a colony on Kerbin (since colony can have their own launching pad, we could place additional launching pas on kerbin where we want)

[SpaceFace545]

Will there be an early adopters program in KSP2?

Mods for the console editions like a modhub?

[adsii1970]

Will we see more varieties of biomes and geology within the planets? Things like:

• Volcanic planets or moons
• Extremely dense/high pressure atmospheric planets
• Completely liquid planets

And those are just a fewI could think of...

[Psycho_zs]

Two questions with related subquestions about craft construction:

1. In short: will noodly rockets make into the final product. Long: How similar the physical behavior of rockets will be to KSP 1? Is it conceptually the same, or is there some plan to make them stiffer but more brittle? Judging by pre-alpha footage they are still pretty wobbly and can be bent pretty far before breaking. Breakage, dynamic pressure limits? Too much sidewind destroys tanks (feature from FAR)?

2. Is craft structure still strictly a tree? How about multipath/loops? Are stack decouplers still a thing (I mean they are backwards, thrust plates/interstages are conceptually much closer to reality)?

And yet another one: what about less crazy near future tech? Fission-powered electric propulsion: Reactors + Hall thrusters, MPDs, PITs? (BTW, if I was in charge of making a new KSP, one of the first things I would do is to try and get @Nertea on the team  )

Edited August 29, 2019 by Psycho_zs

[OdysseusTech]

Will hybrid rocket engines be added?

Will solid rocket fuel segments be added (just like fuel tanks for solid and hybrid rocket motors)?

[Snark]

1 hour ago, Teek said:

We've seen pre-alpha footage of some very wobbly vehicles in atmosphere, as well as some very large and seemingly rigid interstellar vessels in orbit.  Has Star Theory been working on anything to keep  large builds stable, or implemented measures for players to add rigidity to their builds?

We didn't ask about this, but they've shown some stunningly large vehicles (interstellar craft are big), plus they've also said that they're working on the physics performance because they want to enable much higher part counts in rockets.

Plus, the new VAB is big, like more than twice as big as the current one.  Clearly intended for much bigger ships.  And when one of us ask "but what if I want to build even bigger than that", their answer was "well, that's what orbital colonies are for"-- the construction dock there is essentially just open space, therefore no size limit.

So they're clearly putting a lot of effort into enabling much bigger and more complex ships, so I think we don't need to worry about wobbly joints making a ship like that not work.

1 hour ago, Teek said:

Science!  I'm assuming we won't get much in the way of details, but I'm curious whether Star Theory has put any thoughts into the original Science system, whether they think it will need to be reworked (simple changes to # of science rewarded, science required for each research, tier ordering etc) or completely revamped (as in entirely new systems of research and unlocking tech) or if it will largely stay the same.

Good question, will ask.

1 hour ago, Teek said:

Kerbal Activity on EVA:  We've seen a lot of functionality get added on to Kerbals' EVA activities over the years (collecting samples, repairing or resetting equipment, deploying gear, etc.)  Has Star Theory been looking into further expanding what Kerbals can do outside of their ships?

Good question, will ask.

1 hour ago, ModZero said:

will the planets be moddable with just config files or relatively simple scripts? Basically, will Kopernicus still be necessary?

I already asked that specific question.    Basically, "Can you please make it so that Kopernicus isn't necessary?  And, if possible, something like ModuleManager, too?  And make config files for planets accessible?"

There was a fair bit of "no comment" territory in there, but while they couldn't give me something definite, they did indicate that they are very aware of these issues and want to do something about them.

So I'd say that planets are likely to be as moddable as parts are, this time around.  And that Kopernicus has a decent shot at not being necessary anymore.  And that we might even get some ModuleManager-like functionality, out of the box.

1 hour ago, ModZero said:

on the other hand, they've mentioned considering Lua, which is great, but will modders who want to still be able to use C#?

I'm pretty sure that plug-ins will still be just good ol' C#, same as they've always been.

The only reference to Lua that I saw was as an input to a cool scripting tool that they'd built, which not only allowed them to automate the game in interesting ways (e.g. for repro cases and such)... but the mere fact that this tool was running outside the game, and talking to the game through some interface, and that they'd put a lot of refactoring work into the game to make it support that interface, and that anyone else could write a tool to talk to that interface... told me that they really take modding seriously.

TL;DR:  I'm pretty sure that all the ways modders currently mod will continue to mod pretty much the same way.  But there may be some additional new goodies that let us do stuff we couldn't easily do, before.  There may or may not be some Lua involved in that stuff.

1 hour ago, ModZero said:

thrust during time warp, it was implied but if possible I'd like to know for sure :-)

Yes, that's a thing.  No details on exactly how it will work, though.

1 hour ago, ModZero said:

will RTGs decay? Please make RTGs decay

My impression is that the stock parts from KSP 1 will continue to work pretty much the same in KSP 2.  They specifically mentioned wanting not to discombobulate existing KSP 1 players, some of whom may be non-experts, so they'd like the basic ways things work to stay pretty much the same.  KSP 2 has a lot of new stuff in it, and they don't want to intimidate players right off the bat.

1 hour ago, shdwlrd said:

What type of depth will the resource system have? (Like factorio, few basic resources but a lot of processing, or like astroneer, a lot of resources, but little processing.)

We didn't discuss this specifically, but we did touch on the idea sort of tangentially, and it sounds like the answer is "not a lot".  Specifically, they said they want this game mainly to be about building and flying rockets-- the phrase they used was "We're not trying to build Kerbal Cities: Skylines".  They don't want to take emphasis away from that and make the player worry too much about logistics.

1 hour ago, shdwlrd said:

Will the building choices for ground colonies move beyond just cylinders and domes as the colony grows and advances?

I believe the answer is basically "yes".  My understanding is that you build colonies out of colony parts, pretty much like you build rockets out of rocket parts.  And they have an editor for doing that, sort of an analog of the VAB but for colonies.

And they want their colonies to be cool and unique per player, so they're going to have plenty of different parts for building things.  I don't have the details about exactly how that will progress with career, or which parts will become available when or under what conditions, but that's the general idea.  You'll be able to make really cool bases.  And yes, terrain matters-- e.g. if you're building one hanging over a crater lip, you'd better have something to hold up the overhang

[JERONIMO]

Kraken button for thoose due hard people eho liked tge kraken (me)?

[NoMrBond]

Will there be a playable demo of KSP2?

Edited August 29, 2019 by NoMrBond

[Raptor9]

I know I already posted some questions, but there was one I was thinking of the other day.

Will there be a stock set of camera tools?  Where you can more easily manipulate certain views like fly-bys, moving relative cameras and such?

I don't think it's necessary for gameplay, but it would be nice for those that make cinematics and such.  Maybe a stretch goal after all the other good gameplay-related stuff being asked about.