2020 was a very busy year for Reentry. The main focus was to go back and iterate on Mercury and Gemini, and update the entire project to the new Reentry Engine. Still work left here when it comes but Apollo but a lot of work has been put into it for the upcoming 0.75 update, and things are starting to look good!
Let`s take a brief look at the year so far. We started the year with version 0.5, adding the entire Apollo Lunar Ascent logic, as well as the Apollo Atmospheric entry overhaul. A new file based checklist system was also added, with an in-game editor where you could create your own checklists and share them.



We saw the big Mercury overhaul when 0.6 was released in Q1/Q2, the first to be updated to the latest engine. In addition, the Mercury campaign was added with random failures, model overhauls and a lot of new Mercury systems and checklists. We also saw the addition of the "cold & dark" sequence aka. pre-launch, and the first preliminary VR support!




Gemini had a similar update when we reached version 0.7. We saw a full cockpit overhaul, as well as an exterior overhaul in Gemini. The same VR support, in-game mission editor and campaign was added, and Gemini abort modes with some fun stuff such as testing the ejection seats. The Gemini EVA systems was re-made, as well as adding "the alligator".






We also saw the addition of the TC-50 where you can play the Reentry OST in a realistic cassette player, or even create your own mix-tapes and bring them with you on your journeys (just add .ogg music files to a folder, and they will be available in-game).



And lastly, we saw the first multiplayer mode of Reentry roll out to public testing. The Mercury Control Center (MCC) is a historic and functional recreation of the real control center used in Mercury, where players can monitor and communicate with another who plays the astronaut. The feedback has been great and I have been spectating many sessions, some so well exectued it almost felt real.





While 2020 was all about looking back and re-iterating, 2021 will be different. The first priority is the return to Apollo. The Reentry Engine has become much stronger over the year and it starts to feel really good being back in the CSM and the LM. I have done a lot of work to bring it up-to-date on the new Reentry Engine, and add some of the major systems still missing such as optics, pre-launch procedures, mission editor, a campaign. I do not have an ETA yet for the update.



Then I plan to get to the next stage of Reentry. With everything running on the latest engine, I can finally start to properly work on systems, content, polish, languages, etc. for the 1.0 release, and start looking ahead towards 2.0 with more systems and improvements to existing crafts, and the addition of a few new spacecrafts I have had in my mind and studies over the past few years.

I would like to thank all of you for being part of this journey, providing feedback, contributing and supporting the project in one way or another. You make it a lot of fun for me to work on this. I try to listen to every one of you, and together we shape the future of Reentry.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to all of you!

Reentry has been updated to version 0.729, and simply contains an extension of the first Mercury Control Center Live alpha test. The first alpha test round will now last for the rest of 2020.

Thank you all for testing the module! :)

This patch fixes some issues with the FPS camera controller in MCCL, menu scaling, as well as some minor texture glitches and typos.

You will now be able to normally walk up stairs, and the direction is not dependent on camera pitch. It's projected on the XZ plane. This is still a very simple FPS camera, and is intended as a check if it's needed or not.

This update also makes changes to the Gemini Pulse mode, making each pulse last 20 ms, and a more realistic pulse force.

0.72 has been released!

This update adds the preliminary VR capabilities seen in Mercury to Gemini, and starts the public alpha testing of the Mercury Control Center Live module.

While this is in testing and feedback is gathered, the work related to TSS for Apollo will start, scheduled for update 0.75. TSS for Apollo is the highest priority task on my list now, as the entire Apollo program tech stack lags behind Mercury and Gemini.



These are the main features of the update:

GEMINI VIRTUAL REALITY
The preliminary support of VR for Gemini has been added. As in Mercury, this creates the base platform for VR development in Gemini. It's not yet complete, but the basics of operating Gemini and flying missions should be supported. Advanced procedures such as EVA and Docking still needs some of the basics in place.

EVA in VR changes how EVAs are performed. As in real life, the Handheld Maneuvering Unity is controlled and operated by the hand controller, and you point in it the direction you want to change. The forces are applied relative to the body center of mass. It takes some time to practice and get used to.


MERCURY CONTROL CENTER LIVE, Public Alpha Test Round 1
The first round of MCCL testing is now active. The purpose of this is to start getting feedback on the network logic, infrastructure, and traffic rate (a metric on the server). The first round is scheduled to last until November 30, but might be shorter if critical issues requires it. Keep in mind that this module is not as high priority as the TSS for Apollo update and the core features of Reentry, and fixes will be prioritized accordingly.

The Mercury Control Center Operators manual can be found here:
http://reentrygame.com/gamemanuals/MercuryControlCenterManual.pdf

The quick start manual of the Mercury Control Center Live module can be found here:
https://github.com/sundhaug92/mcc-manual




MERCURY INTERACTIVE CURSOR
The new interactive cursor is in testing in Mercury only. This changes the mouse cursor to behave more to what we see in other simulators such as DCS. Currently the cursor will be a cross, and its color changes if you hover interactive elements. The plans for this is to support custom cursors, configurations and tooltips on the controllers you are interacting with.

IMPROVEMENTS & BUGFIXES
A lot of minor fixes has been made based on feedback. Many typos has been fixed, as well as critical things such as the Gemini "sinking" bug after splashdown. In addition, you will see some new background elements being rendered, menu improvements and so on.


FUTURE
We are getting closer and closer to the point where everything in Reentry is running on the latest game and interaction engine (aka. TSS). The focus is to get these technicalities out of the way first, then start working on some of the remaining critical systems needed for Apollo (such as Optics), and the Apollo campaign.

Once we have this in place, a lot of dev cycles will go into stability, polish, performance, language support, etc. as we get closer to version 1.0.

So what is version 1.0? Version 1.0 is just a milestone, not a final product. Once reached, the long journey towards 2.0 will start. Reentry is a project that will live as long as you are interested in the project. Once we reach the 1.0 milestone, the goal is to still improve and add systems to the existing crafts we see in Reentry today (Mercury, Gemini, Apollo Command Module and the Lunar Module), realism, stability, and more historical missions. In addition, we might also see new spacecrafts being added to the Reentry family of spacecrafts.

The next update of Reentry (version 0.72) has rolled out to the Test Pilots. It will contain the first iteration of VR support for Project Gemini. The implementation is similar to what you already have for Project Mercury. In addition, multiple bug fixes has been made (for example, the floating issues of the Gemini capsule after splash down).

In addition to this, I have a wish to start public alpha testing of the Mercury Control Center Live multiplayer module. This is potentially the start of other multiplayer modules as well. The main goal behind it is to start testing the basic building blocks I have made for multiplayer modes.

Once this is out, I will enter the long and painful path of porting the entire Apollo implementation to the new TSS enabled game engine, and start working on some of its missing systems. The Apollo TSS implementation will be part of the 0.75 update, and Apollo systems are planned for 0.8 and beyond.

Happy Halloween, I will be spending the night in Orbit.

// Petri

This is the first iteration of the 0.7 updates. 0.7 has been split into multiple parts to avoid having too big updates with too many features.
The next few iterations will hopefully cover VR for Gemini, TSS for Apollo, and the Mercury Control Center.


GEMINI SYSTEMS
Many of the Gemini Systems and physics has received an overhaul, such as pressure and a full electricity system overhaul. A Gemini Mission will now feel much more immersive and realistic (especially if you perform the full procedure from T-90 minutes - see the new campaign!). There are still things in the works, and things waiting for feedback, but this will evolve. Abort modes are also introduced (both ejection seat (just for fun) and spacecraft aborts), but not yet complete.


GEMINI CAMPAIGN
The new Gemini Campaign will take you through many of the new features. Some slight changes have been made to the Mercury campaign as well. The Campaign will be open sourced at github.com/reentrygame, so you can see how it was made.


GRAPHICS UPDATES
There are multiple graphics improvements in Project Gemini. The cockpit has received some new things and changes, as well as the Gemini external model.

PANEL STATE
Gemini can now load custom panel states such as Cold and Dark. This can be done in the Mission Editor, or by using the Console.

FAILURES
Preliminary failures are added to Gemini, but this will have a bigger focus in the next few updates. It works as in version 0.6 for Mercury.

INTEGRATED GEMINI MISSION EDITOR
The Gemini Mission Editor has been integrated into the game and can be used to create missions!

EXPORT OBC/AGC/LGC DATA
You can now use the Live Feed setting (check SETTINGS) to output the displays of the OBC, AGC, and LGC to files. They are saved as JSON and located in the export folder under AppData for Reentry. This can be used to display its data on external IoT devices etc.

A minor patch has rolled out to fix some issues surrounding a redundant realism setting, and correcting that the Jukebox is visible by default.

The Jukebox should now be invisible when starting a mission, and this should be the correct behavior. If it's still visible for some of you, please let me know.

The "Simplified Rendezvous" realism setting is now redundant, and will be redefined soon. This setting caused an issue with the orbit and rendezvous logic in Gemini (Ap and Pe suddenly jumping back to their initial values on burn completion). This should now be fixed, but I would still untoggle the setting.

Thanks again for reporting!

First of all, thank you all for reporting issues and for contributing to the simulator. This patch had a long delay due to a blocking issue surrounding Rendezvous in Gemini. This bug was triggered by some major logic changes needed to fix a few if the issues reported. However, we should be good to go again!

This patch aims to fix some of the critical issues reported from the 0.65 update, and has the following fixes:
- Infinite Roll Program Rates fixed during the ROLL PROGRAM on Gemini ascent.
- Bad save state in Gemini: Due to a bug, when loading a save state, the free play mission state was loaded instead.
- EVA offset position is fixed and you will spawn next to the spacecraft.
- Radar range and Encoder now works when docked.
- Mercury abort in Atlas had a bug that would bring the capsule into a proper orbit. This is now fixed can the campaign mission should be working agian.
- New feature: Launch Azimuth logic and inclination (see below).
- Exit button should be visible and longer scrollable main menu, for those using wide screen.
- Gemini thruster volume reduced.
- Agena engine is tuned down.
- Gemini FDAI sphere texture.

Still looking into some of the other bugs reported but this is a start.


New features:
Azimuth calculations (basics)
Special thanks to pclaurent for helping me with the new azimuth calculations logic. This is just a start, and will be the basis for improved ascent guidance algorithms.
Using the OBC, can you insert the target inclination into the OBC Core 09, and it will automatically calculate the roll needed in the roll program, and reconfigure the OBC (Core 10 and 11). You will need to run the pre-launch program to align the platform. Keep in mind that the target inclination can not be less than your launch latitude, and should not deviate too much from 28.5 and 32.5.

Ap, Pe and ascending/descending node markers in Gemini orbit view
New markers are placed to easier visualize where the orbits apogee and perigee is located. These points are important as they are used to move the point on to opposite side of the orbit in or out. The ascending and descending nodes are the points where it's best to perform inclination/plane changes. These are still WIP, but I wanted to start testing the logic.

If the IVIs show a dV in the middle field (plane change), you should null this at the ascending or descending node.

I'm happy to announce that Reentry has been update to version 0.65. This version contains all the preliminary Gemini features needed for the upcoming 0.7 update.

Feature list:
- Full rewrite of the integration layer between the rendering engine and the physics engine(s) aka. the True Scale System (TSS). This is the major part of the update.
- Seamless ascent
- Realistic docking and rendezvous
- New mandatory steps for aligning the Gemini inertial platform added to the preparations needed to launch Gemini into orbit.
- Manual ascent controls for Mercury and Gemini
- Gemini EVA placeholder has been replaced
- Gemini cockpit and panel modelling improvements
- Added the TC-50R (Cassette Player) to all spacecrafts. Use this to listen to the game soundtrack or add your own music (wav or ogg) to your journeys in space
- Basic Gemini crew models
- Overhaul of the Mercury and Gemini Rate Command flight modes, and the Mercury manual proportional flight mode
- Gemini Rendezvous Radar improvements
- Rendezvousing is now harder as you need to manually perform the final approach, but still more realistic, smooth and stable. The OBC is being worked on to give you better dV suggestions. In a future update, the rendezvous technique (currently Hohmann) will be replaced with a Trigger Angle Targeting method. This was the method used in Gemini and in the Lunar Module/CSM rendezvous after lunar ascent.
- 2 new Steam achievements added for Gemini
- Input binding available for Gemini and Apollo numeric keypad, as well as Plus, Minus, Enter, Proceed, Read Out, Clear, Reset, KeyRel, Verb and Noun - you can now use the keyboard to interact with the computer.

You can read more about the major features of 0.65 here:
https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/882140/view/2727444223258669220

The work towards 0.7 can finally begin. As mentioned in the post above, this includes a new Gemini campaign, the Gemini Mission Editor, prelimineary VR support in Gemini and some Apollo features. In addition, the work to bring Apollo over to the new TSS enabled engine will also begin.

Thanks a lot for your patience, your feedback, you bug reports, and to everyone who are part of the Official Reentry community at Discord (discord.gg/reentrygame).

A special thanks goes out to all the Test Pilots who has been testing these bits.

The main feature of the already released version 0.6 was the full rewrite of the integration layer between the rendering engine and the physics engine(s), something I call the True Scale System (TSS). The old integration logic was the weakest point of the simulator, and the benefits of its rewrite can clearly be seen and felt when playing Mercury. In addition, version 0.6 introduced a lot of new things to Mercury as well, making 0.6 one of the largest updates yet. The work surrounding the rewrite for TSS is immense, but well worth the efforts.

TSS for Gemini required new things to be solved, in addition to what was needed in Mercury: Rendezvous and Docking. Once this works well, the knowledge can be applied to add TSS to Apollo as well.

To avoid one large update for version 0.7, where Gemini is in focus, I will split the update into smaller and more focused releases, the first being version 0.65.

Version 0.65 will add TSS for Gemini. This means a complete overhaul of the physics integration. You will see a seamless ascent, properly scaled spacecraft relative to the Earth, and a complete rewrite of Rendezvous, Docking and EVA. I also added logic for better manual control during ascent for both Mercury and Gemini, and guidance improvements. Still a long way to go here, but it's a good start. In addition, new cores has been added to the OBC so you can configure roll amount during the Titan II roll program, and target inclination at insertion, and some panel modifications has been made.




The development of 0.65 is now complete, and has rolled out to the Test Pilots for testing. Version 0.65 is the basis of the work needed by 0.7X.

0.7 will as mentioned be split into multiple releases. The main features of 0.7 is the in-game Gemini Mission Editor, a new Gemini campaign as we saw in Mercury for 0.6, random and mission scripted failures for Gemini, first iteration of Virtual Reality for Gemini (what you see in Mercury now), Optics for Apollo, Trans-Earth Injection for Apollo, and the addition of the Mercury Control Center (multiplayer mission control).

Version 0.8 is the last major overhaul update targeting Apollo. After this, I can start focusing more on missing systems, game mechanics and languages, content and more historical missions. Historical missions needs the simulator to be as stable as possible (right now, game mechanics, mission definitions etc are changing for each update), and this is why there aren't so many of them in-game, and that those that are (MA-6) is broken.

Here are some screenshots from version 0.65.

Rendezvous and Docking has changed. It is now slightly harder to rendezvous as precision is key, but translating and maneuvering around a target vehicle is more natural, smoother and realistic. The radar is also re-made and more stable/usable. It's now your primary tool when rendezvousing, as well as the line of sight to the target vehicle.




EVA has been re-made and you can maneuver around using the Hand-Held Maneuvering Unit (HHMU). Once you exit the spacecraft, you are a completely independent physical body, and all thrusts you make will impact your orbit.




The initial Gemini crew models has been added. It's static as the other crew models, but once I complete the rigging work required, I can start looking into IK to make it interact with the cockpit and items.



A Cassette Player/Tape Recorder has also been added. It's just a very simple system so you can play the soundtrack of the game (select tracks), as well as your own custom music while making the long journey towards the Moon. This can also be used in Mercury and Gemini (but in reality, they did not have it onboard).




I hope that the 0.65 update will fix some of the major pain-points in Gemini, and make the game play much smoother and realistic.