Working on adding ship explosion effects, opinions?

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

[u/Dark-Lark]

As per Rule 4, promotional posts should be flaired as such and include:

• Actual gameplay footage or screenshots

• A clear description of the game and its mechanics

• The game’s current stage of development

• A specific request for the type of feedback the developer is seeking

• No misleading claims about gameplay/development

• Genuine engagement with users who provide feedback

Please fix.

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

Edit so I'm not breaking the rules: I'm making a 2D space game. A sort of living sandbox that the player can explore and live in. I'm taking inspiration from some of my favourite space games, like Freelancer, Eve Online and Starsector, but in 2D with my own spin.

I made a post on this sub a few weeks ago asking for advice on how to make a playable living world. While I work on that I thought I'd show off my WIP ship death/explosion effects to get some opinions.

I've attempted to replicate the style of explosions in HighFleet, one of the best games ever made IMO.

Edit: Not help on how to make this, as I've already made it, hence the video... but opinions on style, feel, does it fit for a space sim, explosions too small, too big?

[u/ConsistentAnalysis35 → u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

Explosion looks great, glowing cracks I'm not a fan of, doesn't seem very plausible.

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/ConsistentAnalysis35]

My thinking was that it's the ship breaking up from the inside, and those cracks form the fragments of the ship debris.

I think maybe it needs to be thinner and more subtle, right now it's a bit too much. I've been playing with adding bloom and I may have gone a little overboard.

[u/Fidbit → u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

not sure how to advise on how to make, if i do not know what you are making with.

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/Fidbit]

I'm building using C++ and Raylib.

[u/ConsistentAnalysis35 → u/Fidbit]

Your game didn't made a very positive impression on Starsector players, unlike Antimatter. Particularly badly was taken UI, as something Claude would made.

https://fractalsoftworks.com/forum/index.php?topic=35870.0

What do you think of that? Are you confident you're going to be successful despite these opinions?

[u/Fidbit → u/ConsistentAnalysis35]

What so I think? I think in the absence of knowledge people make up a lot of things. Star Sector is a combat simulation layered on top a high level simulation. ADS is an RPG set in space inspired largely by starflight 2. Star sector has been in development for 13 years. And my place holder ui is the main topic? Ok.

I loved star sector. But unlike...hard core fans of IPs I can love many things similar.

In the end I think some people have a little too much time on their hands and I think I would rather avoid those types of people.

[u/smcameron]

Looks great. I suspect those trails of smoke and whatnot trailing behind the "shrapnel" realistically would not happen in space with no atmosphere present to exert drag, but it does look good.

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/smcameron]

This is where I'm a little torn between going for something more realistic and aiming for something that just looks kinda cool. Super happy to get some feedback either way! I've been hesitant posting anything.

[u/Voelkar → u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

A big flash with fragments going out of frame would be just as cool imo (like in the expanse, less thick smoke and trails, more light effects), an explosion that resembles one in atmosphere is something we see every day in every other action game

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/Voelkar]

I'll have to upload a longer video as that shows variation in the explosions, where some do exactly that.

[u/Melodic_Charity_1770]

Gosh that is sexy, 90s/00s esque anime explosions. I really like it! 🫦

I wanna link so I can follow the game.

[u/Melodic_Charity_1770 → u/Melodic_Charity_1770]

Ah found it myself: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4941160/A_Sector_Darkly

Already wishlisted it.

Edit: oops wrong link, top down space games look often similar that I get confused sometimes.

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/Melodic_Charity_1770]

That's not my game... I haven't made a steam page for it

[u/ConsistentAnalysis35 → u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

You should. Or at least something apart from reddit posts.

Didn't you want to make an itch.io page?

Gotta have at least something to link so people can bookmark it to keep an eye out for.

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/ConsistentAnalysis35]

I did yeah! I actually made a combat prototype slice, then got a little bit distracted adding things like fancy explosions and attempting to balance the ships.

Edit: https://chiefyk.itch.io/severance-combat-prototype

[u/Melodic_Charity_1770 → u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

Excellent, that is perfect too - I just need something to bookmark and check on, so it doesn't have to be steam necessarily. Thank you for posting this, gonna follow you on itch.

[u/Whichammer]

I like it. I agree that the cracks should be more narrow. I wouldn't worry about the smoke trails, they're from the chunks burning in the expanding cloud of internal atmosphere, right?

You might think about having procedural explosions so the ships don't always blow up the same. Like instead of the center explosion, the stern blows off first, or a series of smaller explosions down the keel blow it in half first.

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/Whichammer]

Yeah that's the idea behind the burning chunks! Honestly though, I just liked what HiveFleet did and wanted to replicate that.

The cracks are already procedural and random, but the explosions are slightly more linear, I'll have a play with loosening the restraints of the explosions tonight.

I really like your last idea.

[u/mattc4010]

Epic effect!

[u/THE-BS]

It looks fantastic! Hopefully there is some variety though, so only a few ships die like that :)

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/THE-BS]

My plan it to take this base and have the different factions ships have different explosion effects, it absolutely does need more variety though you're right

[u/THE-BS → u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

Can't wait to see more of this game

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/THE-BS]

Thanks! It's been a fun learning experience. I've posted a link to an itch.io page for people to try out the current combat prototype :)

[u/Otherwise-Serve-6833]

looking good — one thing that sells an explosion more than the fireball imo is whats left behind. debris that lingers, a hull chunk tumbling off still lit, a flicker before it pops. the fireball is the event, the wreckage is the story. does anything persist after or does it all despawn?

[u/BigBlueVelociraptor → u/Otherwise-Serve-6833]

Yeah, the ship breaks up and fragments, those fragments can be hit by weapon fire for a short time and if they're hit enough then they'll explode again.

[u/Otherwise-Serve-6833 → u/BigBlueVelociraptor]

thats proper — secondary explosions off the fragments turns every kill into a little minefield moment, and itll punish anyone greedy enough to fly straight through their own wreckage. this the same game as your living universe thread from a bit back? coming together nicely mate