This update includes a series of improvements, fixes, polish, and quality-of-life enhancements across Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo. I want to get rid of the main things causing friction during a playthrough.

I have continued to balance the Gemini RCS/OAMS fuel consumption based on feedback, made a major overhaul of the Apollo Command Module academy (3 out of 4 Academy overhauls is now complete), and made a lot of fixes to both new and old reported issues.

As you have seen in the latest few patches, and with 1.0 release getting closer and closer, I have a solid focus on polish, QOL and fixes to the current features and issues. As a solo developer working on this passion project, the game will always have a few rough edges, but I’m committed to giving it my all and making it the best experience I can for you.

Note: If you experience new issues related to this update, please report them. You can revert back the a previous build using the Steam betas tab for the game. Most recent rollback option: Reentry Version 0.99.82.

Gemini Fuel Balancing

I’ve continued refining the Gemini fuel balancing and increased the available fuel. A minor calculation issue from my part made the amount of fuel in Gemini a bit lower than what it was in real life. This should fix the reported issues related to this (at least from my own testing), however, finding the optimal balance will take some time, as the available fuel on Gemini is quite limited.

Improved Apollo Command Module Academy

This update will improve the experience you have in the Apollo Command Module Academy lessons. There will be less stacking of awaiting messages (the message queue squares in the communication box), and each lesson has become better at showing you where things are and highlighting switches.

I have also rewritten and added a lot to each lesson to better describe systems and events. I hope all of this makes it slightly easier to learn Apollo. I will do a similar job with the Lunar Module Academy in a later patch (the Mercury and Gemini Academy received an overhauls a while back).

Interaction Highlighter vs. Attention Highlighter:

This patch continues to improve the Interaction Highlighter and the Attention Highlighter.

I mentioned this briefly in the previous patch notes, but the Attention Highlighter is used to show where something is, without the need of interacting with it. Previously they had the same color, making it hard to distinguish between the two. This could result in accidental interactions with switches that was simply just highlighted to show you where something is, without having to move it. The Attention Highlighter is now of a lavender color compared to the ice blue color of the Interaction Highlighter.

Mission Pad Transcript fixes

The radio transcript stored in the Mission Pad -> Transcript page has been improved and fixed across all programs. This fixes a previous issue that caused the entire page to go blank if the transcript became too long (such as in the longer Historic missions). It also changes the timestamp of each message to use GET/MET after liftoff, and UTC before liftoff.

Mercury Periscope Altitude estimators

I have implemented the altitude estimators on the Mercury Periscope. This is a fully mechanical device that can be used with the view of Earth through the periscope to estimate what altitude you are at. You can center the Earth in the periscope and use the altitude knob to move 4 lines. When all 4 lines intersect with the Earth Atmosphere, the device will estimate your current altitude. This is a backup system and used during emergencies only.

Sound Effect stuttering fixes

I have fixed the sound effect that goes through a continuous PLAY/STOP loop that causes the sound effect to re-start each frame for some users. This applies to the Mercury Landing Bag and the Gemini thrusters during Rate Command.

Improved button press logic between DSKYs on MDC-2 and LEB

I have improved the Interaction Highlighter logic when it comes to the DSKYs on Panel 2 (MDC-2) and the Lower Equipment Bay (LEB). If you are experienced with the Command Module, you might have noticed that you have two available DSKYs to interact with the CMC. The checklists RUN feature will now accept input from both DSKYs, and no longer require you to move up to the one on MDC-2.

The highlighter has also been improved to render a highlighter on the buttons closest to you. This means that if you are in the LEB and working on the OPTICS, and you RUN a checklist or receive an input command from the Mission script, you will see the highlighter on the DSKY closest to you. If you move during this, it will refresh this and switch to the other DSKY if needed.

For example, during the P52 REFSMMAT AID checklist, I hit RUN and start to follow the checklist on the DSKY on MDC-2. The RUN system waits for me to press \[2] on DSKY on MDC-2:

However, instead of pressing, I move down to the LEB. The RUN system figures out that it instead should highlight the button the the LEB DSKY, as it is closer.

Apollo ACCEL-G gauge fix

An issue that caused the Apollo ACCEL-G gauge to stop working in some cases has been resolved. You should now have a fully functional ACCEL-G gauge during your entire Apollo mission.

Gemini Highlighter fixes for Push Buttons

The Push Buttons had an issue where the highlighter would be rendered below the panel. This would make them harder to find for new players. I have refined this logic and fixed the issue.

Ocean above the window after Apollo Entry Transition

I have fixed a visual issue where the ocean surface would be rendered just outside the ocean when transitioning from atmospheric entry to ocean landing.

TLI and the Command Module Computer

I have made multiple fixes related to the TLI burn and the CMC. When you run P15, you will now see the TB6 time on N33 instead of the ignition time. I have also improved the internal TB6 logic and fixed some minor issues to the lights indicating the various stages of S-IVB engine re-ignition.

EMS ΔV/EMS INCR/DECR fixes

I found the issue of why the INCR/DECR buttons of the EMS was a bit unpredictable and hard to work with. The rocker is split into into 4 parts to give you fine control of what value to set, and be able to increase/decrease quickly to large numbers. This logic is now stable and you can single click rapidly, or press-and-hold for continuous motion.

I have also animated the rocker to give you visual indications of interaction.

CMC/LGC Octal rendering

I have started to implement support for not requiring the SIGN (+ or -) on OCTALs in the AGC (CMC and the LGC). This means that when you interact with OCTALS, such as during DAP setup (NOUN 46), you will not see the SIGN, or require to input the sign when using V21 - V25. You will always need to input the sign on decimals.

I have updated most missions, lessons and checklists to reflect this change but I will continue to iterate as I find more places to update.

Minor improvements to some Apollo Command Module panels

I have added some additional model details to various switches and controls in the Command Module, and made it a bit easier to find the two covered panels that has a door. These now have a highlighter, and the ECS lessons will teach you where they are.

Panel 352 (Water Control Panel) & Panel 351 (Oxygen Control Panel)

Panel 382 (Coolant Control panel)

Coolant Control Panel (382) door highlighter

Patch Notes:

• Major overhaul of the Apollo Command Module Academy

• Fixed the Mission Pad Transcript page so it won't turn blank when transcript is too long

• Mercury Periscope Altitude estimator fixes

• Fixed the Mercury Landing Bag SFX stuttering

• Continued with finer Gemini OAMS fuel balancing

• Fixes to the Gemini-Titan 3 historical mission

• Fixes to the Apollo ACCEL-G gauge

• Filled some holes in the Gemini Cockpit

• Fixes to the Gemini Push Button Highlighter and Colliders to avoid highlighter to show inside/below the panel

• Fixed Apollo Entry ocean rendering upon transition

• Fixed the Gemini Rate Command SFX stuttering

• Corrected so P15 shows TB6 on N33

• Fixed internal TB6 event logic

• Apollo CM Academy fixes and improvements

• Fixed so the highlighter logic supports the dual CMC/AGC buttons, and highlights the closest one to the camera. It also makes to the checklist guidance system (RUN) proceeds if pressing either the buttons on MDC-2 or the LEB.

• Fixed the EMS ΔV/EMS INCR/DECR button so it behaves correctly again

• Added a basic animation to the EMS ΔV/EMS INCR/DECR

• CMC/LGC octal for DAP setup

• Minor fixes to some Apollo Command Module panels

• Added highlighter to the two "hidden" panels in the CM, and updated Academy lessons to show where they are

• A lot of fixes to Typos, Checklist and Missions

This is mostly a hot fix patch for the Retroburn Planners to properly set the Time to Retrofire timers when clicking the Orange SET button, and a blocking bug in the last mission of the Apollo 13 Historical Mission - a bug that came when I improved the CMC NO ATT logic.

In addition it contains an overhaul of the Command Module ECS lessons, and some minor updates to the Mercury and Gemini Save States.

The patch also implements a color differentiation between the Interaction Highlighter and the Attention Highlighter.

Interaction Highlighter vs. Attention Highlighter:
The Attention Highlighter is used to show where something is, without the need of interacting with it. Previously they had the same color, making it hard to distinguish between the two. This could result in accidental interactions with switches that was simply just highlighted to show you where something is, without having to move it. The Attention Highlighter is now of a lavender color compared to the ice blue color of the Interaction Highlighter.

All of the four CM ECS lessons has been updated to use this Attention Highlighter to better show you where switches, instruments and gauges are.

Patch notes:

• Hot fix: Mercury and Gemini Retroburn Planner: Fix for the orange SET button to automatically update Time To Retro timers.

• Hot fix: Apollo 13 (Historical): Fixes to the last Reentry mission to use V40 N20 to remove the NO ATT flag

• Added Pe and EI nodes on the TEI tools entry trajectory predictor

• Switch/component attention system: Highlight switch color if lesson only wants to show where something is now has a different color than the one that wants you to move a switch to a different position (interact vs. attention)

• Added the Attention Highlighter system to Apollo (previously it was only in Mercury and Gemini)

• Refined the Apollo Command Module ECS: O2 academy lesson

• Refined the Apollo Command Module ECS: PSC academy lesson

• Refined the Apollo Command Module ECS: H2O academy lesson

• Refined the Apollo Command Module ECS: COOLANT academy lesson

• Refined the Apollo Lunar Module Powered Descent academy lesson

• Improved Mercury Save State with some additional internal system values

• Improved Gemini Save State with some additional internal system values

This is a massive update with fixes and improvements learned from my own playthroughs, and corrects bugs reported by players. The list is long, so be sure to check the full patch notes in the bottom.

The main intent of the update is to improve trajectory control in Mercury, Gemini and Apollo. This includes new tools for retrograde burn planning in Mercury and Gemini, and small improvements to the Apollo Maneuver Planner, Trans-Lunar Injection and Trans-Earth Injection tools.

The update also aims to improve the general flow of the game like improved fuel balancing, removal of various dev-flags, game mechanic fixes, and visual/rendering improvements.

Note: If you experience new issues related to this update, please report them. You can revert back the a previous build using the Steam betas tab for the game. Most recent rollback option: Reentry Version 0.99.81

Lunar Landing Report and Crash logic

This update rolls out a feature that will measure the impact force on the legs during landing, and is mainly the removal of the "indestructible LM" dev-flag. Previously you would get the landing achievement and mission completion even if face-planted the landing, or landing upside down.

From now, when landing, the game will spend a few seconds evaluating your landing attempt. You will receive a short status report containing some key parameters of the landing/impact and a minor landing evaluation.

If you land too hard the craft will crash and become inaccessible. You can continue the mission in the CSM. When landing, try to stay withing the limits of 8 ft/s vertical and 4 ft/s horizontal, and land on a flat area.

Retrofire Planners for Mercury and Gemini

One of the larger missing pieces for 1.0 and feedback areas was to let players plan their entry trajectory more visually across all programs. I have finally created a new tool for both Mercury and Gemini entry planning (and improved the Apollo TEI tool, see below). You can input the desired GET/MET of when you wish to perform the retrograde burn, and the Tool will visualize the predicated landing area (taking earths rotation into account).

The tool can be set to the current craft configuration (takes the current Time of Retrofire programmed in the Mercury Programmer/Sequencer, or the Gemini OBC into the Tool) so you can visualize where the landing location of the current programmed ignition time will be, or you can use the tool to test out where various retro fire ignition times would splash down on Earth, and once satisfied, you can insert the parameters directly into the Programmer/Computer automatically (simple), or manually(realistic).

You can now easily plan your entry-to-splashdown in a desired area.

Trans-Earth Injection Burn Planner improvements

I have improved the Trans-Earth Injection burn planner (aka. the TEI tool) to better predict the time of EI, visualize the estimated/planned trans-earth trajectory (just like the TLI tool), and also visualize the predicted landing zone (like the Retrofire planners). You can now, while using the Tool, switch to Orbit View, focus on the Earth to see where the tool thinks you will land. You can use this to plan a burn that will make the Command Module re-enter and splash down in a desired area.

In addition, the tool supports burn window offsets that can be used to nudge the burn to the next burn window for better entry control.

Earth Night Light visibility updates

I have updated the logic and shaders used to render the Earths night lights. These lights will now become dimmer or completely invisible as you venture further away from Earth.

Apollo Guidance Computer fixes

I have fixed some stability issues in the core AGC logic, and program flows related to P11 and P15 to allow them to exit as stated in the in-game checklists. They will now behave like the other programs and exit to P00 when complete. Realistically you would see V37 flashing and have to input the program to transition to, this is something I might implement as the game progress towards 2.0.

TLI Tool fixes

I have iterated on the burn that will take you on a trajectory towards the Moon and corrected some issues that I have experienced with the planner in my own playthroughs. I have also fixed the time it displays for ignition, what parameters it inputs to the LVDC, and LOI-1 burn estimations. This will make it slightly easier to use as you better see when ignition happens, and when the LOI burn happens. Keep in mind that these are estimates and will slightly deviate from your actual burn. You can correct this with a mid-course correction burn once you have reached Lunar SOI.

Star Depth Testing

I have fixed an issue with the star rendering system/shaders to make it easier to control their lighting, brightness and depth testing. The main issue corrected here is that you would be able to see stars rendering above the geometry of the Earth and the Moon in some cases.

Screen Resolution reverting to 1x1 for some players

After the Engine Update patch rolled out earlier in the summer, some players has experienced a full screen solid colored square being rendered as the game window when starting the game. This is because an issue in the games initialization logic would, for some players only, set the screen resolution to 1x1. This could be fixed by changing the screen resolution settings in both the INI file and in the games regedit area before launching the game. I have not been able to reproduce this issue myself but have found the most probable cause for this to happen. Let me know if this patch fixes it for you, or not.

Lunar Module Battery fixes and monitoring

An issue with the Lunar Module battery would show an inaccurate voltage when the battery is disconnected and during light loads. This has now been fixed and the battery readings should now be in the correct range.

Configurable UDP Package Rate

For those building panels, hardware, peripherals etc, or those using these: you can now configure the UDP package rate from the games setting. This will make the game send out more frequent update packages to external devices. An additional suggestion was to make this part of the API, so I can eventually look into that.

LM pressurization fixes

I have improved some of the logic related to the pressurization of the Lunar Module, and improve the instrumentation of this. This will at the same time correct an issue where the pressure gauge would stabilize at a pressure difference on 1.0 instead of 0.0.

Fixes to the Mercury Excess H2O warning cycle and lights

A balancing issue with the logic related to the excess H2O causing icing would trigger the Excess H2O warning lights during entry preparations. This was especially visible during cold soaking before entry as you would set the cooling to maximum settings, while some loads are reduced (like turning off the lights). The cooling combined with reduced loads would cause the icing that triggers these lights. This system has now been refined and balanced to avoid these cases during normal procedures.

Removed Sun Reflection blob on Earth ocean

I removed the excessive sun reflection blob visible on the oceans of the Earth while in orbit or from far away. This was a very large specular reflection artifact of the lighting model used in the Earth Rendering shader. I have completely removed this feature and will continue to iterate on the general brightness of Earth (being too bright in many cases).

Apollo Maneuver Planner Ap/Pe Nodes

I updated the Apollo Maneuver Planner trajectory renderer to also include the Ap and Pe nodes, and lines to easier see exactly where they are during maneuver planning. This is especially useful when you try to plan the DOI (Descent Orbit Injection) - the burn that defines where you land.

Lunar Module DPS fixes

I have made some fixes to the Lunar Modules Descent Propulsion System to better balance its thrust and better match the landing point predictor before PDI ignition. When you request the PDI, the landing point predictor will follow a brute force algorithm and show you where it predicts the craft to land. Keep in mind that the landing predictor only have a minor influence of the descent guidance. The descent is mostly set by the orbits Pe point, where it is, and what altitude it is. The DOI burn controls this (the new Ap/Pe nodes on the Burn Planner can help you design better DOI burns).

Note: Remember to always Reset the tool between each use to avoid inaccurate calculations and predictions.

Transition to Lunar Landing fixes

I have improved some bugs related to the lunar landing transition, and started to slowly improve the logic related to this. Some dev-flags are used to reset various parameters during this transition while I have been writing the core transition logic. This patch will remove one of these dev-flags to transform the vertical velocity you have before the transition. This will not affect your descent much but you will see that upon transition, the Lunar Module will have some vertical velocity. At this point the craft is, in Reentry, switched to Attitude Hold mode and the LGC will stabilize the rate of descent so you can control it with the ROD-switch.

I will keep iterating on this both towards 1.0 and towards 2.0, where the attitude upon transition, orbital velocity, sun position etc. is transformed as well.

Lunar Ascent fixes

I have received reports of the Lunar Ascent being unstable, especially during transition from Lunar Surface Rendering mode to Orbital Mode. I have not been able to reproduce these issues but I have improved some of the transition logic and guidance logic related to the transition to potentially fix this. Let me know if this works for you, or not.

Fuel Balancing

I have decided that the game is getting ready and more stable to support more realistic fuel consumption. As a first iteration of this I have improved the fuel usage/consumption balancing in the Gemini OAMS, Gemini RCS, CM/SM RCS, CM RCS, LM RCS, CSM SPS and LM DPS. I have also completely removed all dev-flags that would result in infinite fuel (if the fuel was depleted, the logic would still let you fire the thrusters - mostly used during Gemini and Apollo rendezvous work) in any system.

TEI planner inserts garbage into the CMC desired attitude noun

After using the Trans-Earth Injection tools to calculate the burn that will take the Apollo CSM back to Earth, you would typically see that as you would maneuver towards the burn attitude using for example V49E, the tool would have added garbage attitude into the computer memory. Most players have not cared about this as V25E would be used to set these to all zeros. However, if you would just accept the random values existing in the routine, you would ignite the engines in the wrong attitude, potentially making you crash into the Lunar Surface. I have fixes the issue that caused this. The burn would typically be done using all zeros on the attitude if you use P52 opt 1, or if not, use the attitude suggested in the burn PAD.

DPS and SPS sound mixing fixes

I have changed the sound logic related to the SPS and DPS engines to implement a better transition experience when going from ignition to full thrust, and from cutoff to no thrust. You will now hear the sound fade and follow thrust commands.

Thanks to GeometryPrime for some great screenshots.

Update: This patch had two additional rollouts due to metadata and function call changes, the list of features are identical. If you suddenly experienced a new patch, this is the reason for that.

Patch notes:

• Added impact force, velocity and landing evaluations to the Lunar Surface landing

• TLI Tool Ignition time display text fix

• Apollo Flight Documents pad: Added reference to Apollo 8, Apollo 11 and Apollo 16 documents (flight plan, etc)

• Fixed a font glyph issue (visible in all Career tree node texts) after the Unity 6 engine migration

• Fixes to the Career tree Gemini Elite Commander note to also require completing the burns lesson

• Increased Apollo FDAI drive speed while Time Scaling

• Fixed CMC P11 and P15s logic that prevented transition to P00.

• Improved the Earth night light rendering to reduce light visibility at distances

• Apollo: Fixes to the star rendering depth testing logic to avoid drawing stars over other geometry

• Save State: Fixed an issue with restoring the Moon position when loading into an Earth Orbit state in Apollo

• QualitySettings/ini SetResolution fixes

• Added better coverage of the flashlight in the academy and the loading tips

• Made fixes to the LM Activation Academy lesson

• Made fixes to the LM EPS Academy Lesson

• LM battery fixes for more accurate EPS monitoring and behaviors.

• Made the UDP package rate frequency configurable

• Mercury reticle camera position fix

• Fix to the LM pressure stopping at 1.0 psi diff.

• Excess H2O warning logic fixes in Mercury

• Fixes to the sun reflection in the 16k and the 64k Earth renderer

• Added the Ap/Pe nodes to the CSM/LM Maneuver Planner trajectory

• Retrofire Planner tool for Mercury and Gemini (no VR version yet)

• Started to improve the Lunar Descent transition logic

• -> Starting with vertical velocity

• Lunar Descent DPS thrust tweaks

• Minor modelling changes to the CM panels

• DPS and SPS sound mixing fixes

• SPS fuel balancing

• DPS fuel balancing

• SM RCS fuel balancing

• CM RCS fuel balancing

• OAMS fuel balancing

• Fixed a bug where the TEI tools inserts wrong attitudes for the V49 maneuver

• TEI tool landing prediction

This update focuses on Project Gemini where I have been trying to solve some rather brutal tasks. First of all, the update rolls out a fix for the breaking issues related to Gemini/Agena undocking. It also improves rendering performance in both Standard and Virtual Reality, and fixes some rendering artifacts.

Note: If you experience new issues related to this update, please report them. You can revert back the a previous build using the Steam betas tab for the game. Most recent rollback option: Reentry Version 0.99.80

Gemini/Agena Undocking

This patch fixes an issue where the Agena would disappear when undocking, only to suddenly snap back and re-dock after 30 seconds. The issue was hard to track down but was caused by the docking/undocking detection logic and the positioning logic happening in different parts of the frame (something that happened during a re-write a few months back). This is not usually noticeable but at orbital velocities, a few milliseconds can become quite a big distance. The issue should now be fixed and you should be able to correctly undock from Agena.

Gemini Performance Optimizations and Rendering improvements

I have spent quite a lot of time trying to figure out some of the Gemini performance bottlenecks in both standard and VR rendering. Using the Unity 6 performance and rendering tools I have spent some time updating some rendering shaders and rendering techniques to improve the general performance in Gemini. In addition, I have applied some of the rendering tricks I have used to make it possible to render the Apollo Command Module and Lunar Module panels in real-time to Gemini.

I have also fixed quite a few rendering artifacts, inverted normals, and reflection probe priority flickering issues that has been visible under various graphics settings in Gemini.

Patch notes:

• Agena undocking teleport fix

• Gemini performance optimizations

• Gemini rendering fixes

• Gemini reflection probe logic updates

This is a major technical update and is all about upgrading the engine version used to render and execute Reentry. It upgrades the engine from Unity 2022.3 to Unity 6.1 (latest Unity version). This means that Reentry now runs on the latest and most modern version of Unity.

The benefits is mainly related to getting access to the latest work the Unity team has been doing with the rendering technologies (Standard Rendering Pipeline) between Unity 2022 and Unity 6, and the upgrades to the development tools. Unity 6 also comes with new features that will allow me to improve the experience, continue to iterate on rendering performance going forward, and start doing research on transitioning from DirectX 11 to DirectX 12 in the future.

This is a significant update and I have spent most of the available development time over the summer to perform this much needed engine upgrade. This has been a very complex task and I hope I have been able to correctly migrate the logic and the assets. However, Reentry is a huge project so please report any issues related to logic that used to work before this engine upgrade (Engine Update issues).

I have made "Reentry Version 0.99.79" available as a rollback option if this new upgrade causes issues for you (you can change this using the Steam Betas tab on the games properties in Steam). I will prioritize working on engine update related issues as they are reported, but please be patient as I work to stabilize this work over the next few patches. The bits has been in testing with the Test Pilots, and on the Alpha Floor branch (Steam Betas tab) so far, before rolling it out as part of this update to all of you.

You can read more about Unity 6 here:
https://unity.com/releases/unity-6
https://unity.com/blog/unity-6-features-announcement

You can read more about Unity 6.1 here:
https://unity.com/blog/unity-6-1-is-now-available

Note: The Unity artwork used in this post is from the Unity 6.1 splash screen, made by Keijiro Takahashi.

FPS display

In addition to this I have also modernized the FPS renderer. It now has multiple FPS modes that you can use while testing performance and the various graphics options to tune rendering related to your hardware. You can use CTRL+F to toggle between the various modes. You can toggle it on and off using the "Show FPS" toggle under graphics settings.

Patch Notes:

• Major engine update: Unity 2022.3 to Unity 6.1 (latest version).

• New FPS renderer: I have changed the FPS renderer to a more sophisticated one. You can use CTRL+F to toggle the modes of it. It will follow the "Show FPS" toggle under graphics settings.

• Fixes to the sun positioning logic when loading from a State

This update continues to iterate on the Gemini cockpit lighting control, introduces a new Bookmark System for the Mission Pad checklists and fixes some issues related to Mercury attitude logic.

Note: If you experience new issues related to this update, please report them. You can revert back the a previous build using the Steam betas tab for the game.

Checklist Bookmark System

The checklist bookmark system allows you to mark a checklist as a favorite. This will place a bookmark tape that can be used as a shortcut to open the checklist. When you mark the checklist as a favorite, the bookmark will be stacked on the side of the checklist. If you press the favorite button again, the bookmark will be removed.

The bookmark data is individual for Mercury, Gemini and Apollo. Each will store their bookmarks into a json file. You can optionally edit the name of the bookmark and the tape-color (background color) by modifying this file. The file is saved in the games AppData folder under the ChecklistBookmarks folder.

With the current setup you can have up to 11 bookmarks for each program.

Mercury Attitude logic fixes

This patch continues to fix some issues related to the Mercury Attitude logic. It will correct an issue with the Retro Attitude light due to the ASCS retro attitude changes in the previous patch, and fix the PROGRAMMER with the new attitude targets. This will correct the issue where, after the last patch, you would need to switch this to BYPASS to let the PROGRAMMER advance to retro fire.

Mercurys LAUNCH CONTROL switch

I fixed a very old bug that would ignite the engines of the Mercury Launch Vehicles but keep it bolted to the PAD if you didn't set the LAUNCH CONTROL switch to READY before the countdown is complete. Now ignition should happen when the countdown completes and the launch control switch is set to ready.

Gemini Cabin Lighting

I continues to iterate on the interior lighting of the Gemini Capsule. I changed the hue/warmth of both the panel lights for the Commander and the Pilot, and the attitude indicator ball (FDI). You can dim the cabin lights, control if the panel lights are red or amber, and toggle the attitude indicator lights.

Patch notes:

- Checklist Bookmark System

- Mercury: Retro Att light and programmer stage logic fix. Retro Att light should now illuminate again.

- Mercury: Fix to prevent engine ignition when rocket is not set to ready

- Gemini CDR/PLT panel light re-coloring to match the same hue/warmth as the cabin light

- Gemin FDI (attitude indicator ball) light fixes

- Realtime Voice/Speech Synth stability fixes

This update mainly cover reported issues such as Mercury attitude control, Apollo entry REFSMMAT and PAD data, and an attempt to make a fix for a "crash to desktop" if for some reason the game storage file is corrupt while booting the game.

Note: If you experience new issues related to this update, please report them. You can revert back the a previous build (0.99.77) using the Steam betas tab for the game.

Games system storage file size check

One issue I have seen at times is related to a CTD (crash to desktop) issue related to the game storage file. If the game has been working for you and you suddenly start to experience an immediate CTD after launching the game, it could be related to this. I now do some additional checks when the game boots and loads the settings to avoid the CTD.

Apollo Entry attitude

During a Command Module atmospheric entry there was a difference between the attitude you would received in the Entry PAD compared to what the external forces would guide you to once you hit the aerodynamics of the atmosphere. I have made some changes to the PAD data logic and the entry attitude REFSMMAT logic to correct this. Keep in mind that you need to do a P52 Option 2 with the time of EI as the parameters to get the correct entry REFSMMAT. With this change I will soon add a new button to the crew members toolset that will allow you to directly request the entry REFSMMAT, and align to it using P52 opt. 1.

Mercury AUTO attitude control fixes

There has been a difference in what RETRO and RE-ENT attitudes you would achieve in the Mercury capsule. The ASCS controls the attitude, and you can use the attitude switch to select if you want to maintain the retro fire attitude or the reentry attitude. The attitude should now be the same for Atlas and Redstone.

Setting the switch to RE-ENT should now place you at the target reentry attitude (pretty much aligned with the horizon), and retro should be -34 degrees for both Redstone and Atlas missions.

Note: Recall that you are in complete control of the ship and can use the RE-ENT mode during orbital operations if you wish to be more level with the horizon. I generally recommend players to switch into manual modes during orbit to save fuel (ASCS uses a lot to maintain attitude).

Gemini cabin lights

Unlike the Mercury Capsule, the Gemini cabin lights has been bright white. I have change the lighting logic, and tweaked the lighting to a warmer setting. I have also made some minor re-modelling to the light bulbs and assembly. I have also increased the max light strength of the cabin lights to give better cabin illumination control for both practical reasons and mood setting. I have used reference images to set the warmth/color.

Apollo Entry cue card

I updated the entry cue card graphics and removed the existing scribbles on it.

Mercury Lights test

I have continued to iterated on the Mercury Lights test logic and better connected this to the electrical power system after the recent Mercury EPS work you have seen over the recent patches.

Patch notes:

• Games system storage file size check

• Apollo entry attitude tuning

• Mercury: Fixes and tweaks to the Retro and Reentry attitude modes of the ASCS. RE-ENT should now place you at the target reentry attitude (pretty much aligned with the horizon), and retro should be -34 degrees for both Redstone and Atlas missions

• Mercury Lights Test power wiring

• Mercury: Minor fixes to some comm-request checks

• Mercury: General ASCS attitude logic fixes

• Gemini: Warmer Cabin light color/Kelvin and light tweaking

• Pad hotkey fix (TLI and Entry pad swapped)

• Entry cue card sheet graphic updates and removal of existing scribble

This minor patch contains some heavy work related to the TLI (trans-lunar injection) and SOI (sphere of influence) calculation logic. As mentioned in the previous patch notes (0.99.75), I have had some recent reports where the TLI burn that takes the Apollo craft from Earth to the Moon fails to correctly transition from the Earth sphere of influence (SOI) to Lunar sphere of influence.

This patch rolls out a potential fix that has been checked and verified by players on the alpha floor branch. There is an ongoing bug-thread related to this issue on Discord, feel free to join the discussion if you are still having this issue.


Note: If you experience new issues related to this update, please report them. You can revert back the a previous build (0.99.75) using the Steam betas tab for the game.

This patch will mostly contain fixes to reported issues. It will also roll out a new feature related to controlling the relative orientation and position of the VR hand controller models. It also applies various language/text improvements.

Thanks to all the contributors helping with typos and language improvements!

Note: If you experience new issues related to this update, please report them. You can revert back the a previous build (0.99.68) using the Steam betas tab for the game.

Blocking issue: Gemini/Agena undocking fix
This patch will correct the issue where Agena would in some cases disappear/teleport away when you undock from it. The issue was introduced when I tried to rewrite some logic related to the Agena collision testing and improve docking logic.

Let me know if this fix corrects the behavior for you.


Critical issue: Mercury Electrical Power System (EPS)
A fix for an unrelated issue had caused some of the Mercury (and some Gemini systems) Electrical Power System checks to fail and let systems work even if power was not available. This could be seen by taking the batteries off line - some systems would still work and some light bulbs would be illuminated even without power. This issue should now have been solved.



Flashes in atmosphere
I have figures out why some "flashes" in the atmosphere would be visible. These could typically bee seen when in orbit, especially in external view. A shader issue in the atmosphere renderer had a potential to output a really bright pixel.


VR Hand Controller Pitch Offset
I have started to implement a VR hand controller pitch offset property that can be used to control the relative rotation of the VR hand controller.


VR Hand Controller Position Offset
In addition to the pitch offset I have created three other properties that can be used to control the relative position of the hand controller. You can tune this to move the visual hand model in-game relative to where your controller is.

This is needed as some hardware differ in their orientation and positioning logic.

Blocking issue: TLI/SOI calculation
I have recent reports where the TLI burn that takes the Apollo craft from Earth to the Moon fails to correctly transition from the Earth sphere of influence (SOI) to Lunar sphere of influence. This patch rolls out some additional checks and logic to improve logging to help me address this. This is an issue of high priority and I will strive to fix this issue within the next few patches. There is an ongoing bug-thread related to this issue on Discord, feel free to join the discussion if you are having this issue.



Mercury Satellite clock fixes
I have made some minor improvements to the Mercury clock, dials and visor logic.



Patch notes:

• Blocking: Gemini/Agena undocking fix
  
• Critical: Mercury/Gemini EPS fixes and tuning - this was a fix for a major issue that caused some electrical systems to still function even if no power existed.
  
• "Flashes in atmosphere"-bug fix
  
• Mercury Atlas ascent guidance fixes
  
• TLI/SOI calculation
  
• Fixed some LGC programs that blocked V34/V96 etc. during the last page before a burn (before V99)
  
• VR: Added a Hand/Controller Pitch offset setting that can be used to control the offset between your hand/wrist and the VR Motion Controller.
  
• Typos and pulled in language contributions.

This patch mainly fixes known and reported issues. It corrects the orientation of the Lunar Module when inside the SIVB, introduced a slow mode, some additional Cockpit Camera control, and autoplot-support for some of the Preliminary Advisory Data (PAD) forms.

Lunar Module orientation
The patch fixes the orientation of the LM when stored inside the S-IVB during ascent. This mainly affects the roll direction when docking during the Transposition, Docking & Extraction maneuver.


Slow Mode
You can now bind a hot key to toggle an experimental slow mode. This will reduce the timescale to 0.5x to allow more time to perform some procedures when additional time is needed. I will start with 0.5x to see how system simulations behaves.

PAD plotting: autoplot
I have added autoplot-capabilities to the PAD plotting system. An autoplot button on the PAD FORMs toolbar can be pressed to automatically plot the PAD after receiving one. This system will in the future be improved to re-plot old PADs as well. Keep in mind you can always save the PAD as an image.

The PADs that support this are:
- Gemini: Catch Up Maneuver (burns)
- Command Module: TLI, P30 (burns), Entry
- Lunar Module: P30 (burns), PDI, Lunar Ascent

Thanks to Reoze for the idea and concept of using the stamp-system to automatically plot the PADs.


PAD plotting: alphabet stamps
The PAD plotting logic (the system that lets you draw on a paper form) is the backup logic and last resort for those who do not have access to printed versions of the forms or a tablet that can be used to draw on the forms. This system has now received stamps for the entire alphabet. Previously only numeric were available as stamps. You can cycle the stamps and tools using the scroll wheel when hovering the PAD form.

Camera: Look Mode toggle
I have added support for a toggle to look around the cockpit (Camera Look Mode). If enabled, the camera will be in a constant look mode until toggled off again. You can bind the key in the Input Mapper. This is used to avoid having to press and hold the middle mouse button (or any other key bound to looking). This will work together with the normal mode.

Camera: Tilt Head
I am also testing a feature that will let you rotate the camera around its longitudinal axis. You can bind the keys in the Input Mapper. This will let you roll your head left/right to get a better angle at some hard-to-reach instruments. This tilt will, for now at least, reset back to normal if you move the head.




Patch notes:

• Additional Gemini OAMS/RCS fixes, rate cmd fixes and thruster sfx fixes
  
• Gemini G-Force calculation fixes, accelerometer gauge fixes
  
• TLI default burn parameter updates for the TLI Academy lesson
  
• Debrief export graph image filename exception fixes
  
• Enabled roll command for the IU/SIVB guidance
  
• Tweaked Lunar Entry CMC->AUTO guidance
  
• Fixes to the CM and LM rendezvous lights and corrected some visibility issues related to them when doing for example a lunar ascent.
  
• Updated the LM orientation inside the SIVB
  
• Added a hotkey that can be used to enter SLOW MODE (time scale of 0.5x)
  
• Added support for the entire alphabet as PAD stamps
  
• PAD Autoplot
  
• Fix: Interacting with CM bubble functions while in the LM
  
• Fix: UI blocking not enabled during Gemini EVA (interacting with the UI will also make you return into the cockpit when in range with the door, or pick up the backpack)
  
• Added a hotkey to toggle the camera look mode/FPS mode (bind it in the Input Mapper)
  
• Added an input axis: Pan Camera Longitudinal. This will let you tilt your head. It will automatically reset if you pan/move the camera.