The idea of multiplayer sounds farfetched, but is very possible. This might sound complex, but when you stand back and look at it, the idea is pretty simple. This is how i think it could work: When you play multiplayer, (hypothetically, of course) your car's jbeam structure is normal, it has the same number of beams and nodes as it always would. But other people on the map don't have a normal jbeam structure, they have a rigid body structure or a super stiff jbeam structure in the most basic shape possible, just the outline of that player's car, only a few beams and nodes. Whereas the other player renders your car's collision mesh (jbeam or rigid body) in the simplest way possible. But the visual mesh (NOT the jbeam structure) of any and all players is rendered normally to every other player. This way you can see the cars cprimply-crumply-crumple without lagg. The position and rotation of cars is updated as often as possible, like 30 times a second, and the weight of the beams and nodes of other players is much higher in order to compensate for their very simple jbeam structure. Just a rough mental sketch, still a few little bugs to work out. It doesn't have to be completely perfect, it just needs to work. I think it's a good idea, how about you? leave some feedback (that means you too, devs).
Have you done any research? The crashing only happens because of complicated jBeams. So, no simplified jBeams. Before you say that you can change the simple jBeams to normal jBeams, this is not possible. Also, I get you are saying the game will only render the damage, not actually do it to the car, that won't happen. There won't be accurate collisions. So no.
Beware this message does come across as a bit condescending. Don't hate me for it Dude can you please stop thinking that you have the solution to every problem. It is getting really annoying, especially when you have only recently joined and don't know what people in the community have done. A couple weeks ago @chris_lucas and another forum member (sorry i don't remember his name) put up a proof of concept video of them playing multiplayer from two different computers. As recently said by @Nadeox1, you cannot have a simplified jbeam, the lua coding and maths would be too intensive for the game to work out on its own. To my knowledge, it is also not possible to becuase that would mean assigning the lua to complete the task of actively calculating the properties of the beams which would be constantly changing with the movement of the other players. Please, please, please do some searches around the web or atleast the forum, you are not the only one to have a concept or idea of how multiplayer could work, and you certainly won't be the last. And i think i just got ninja'd by somebody.
i dont have the answer to every question, nor do i think i have answers, i have ideas, the rest is for you to think about, that's why i post here- IN THE IDEAS AND SUGGESTIONS PAGE. its just an idea, dont kill yourself over it. you didnt get what i was trying to say. each player other than you is static and vice versa. their position is updated rather than simulated TO REDUCE LAG, and OTHER PLAYERS collision mesh is simple, not your own, so there is a lot less lag. and i said rigid body for a reason, so that there is no calculating of the condition of other beams. and the only lua you would have to make is the simple structure to asign to each vehicle (there's not that many) the crashes dont have to be very accurate, just as long as it works. i said that already. it doesnt have to be perfect. --- Post updated --- and im talking about ONLINE multiplayer, not just multiseat.
If the collision mesh if simple, COLLISIONS CANNOT BE PROPERLY SIMULATED. Also, Beamng's motto is "We strive to have realistic, accurate, destructible and malleable physics everywhere. To make anything possible," as it says at the bottom of the website. They cannot compromise on quality, just to have multiplayer.
the replay app sucks, but its still here, transmissions are unrealistic, water and aerodynamics are unrealistic as well. it doesn't have to be good, just as long as people like it. people have been waiting for some form of multiplayer, why are you trying to ruin it?
But people wouldnt like it, nor do we like the water or aerodynamics, and they are working on a new transmission system so they are aware we dont like that either, the replay system is just a replay and doesn't really effect gaming really.
ara ara, raleigh-kun~ I see you put just as much logic and forethought into forum posts as you do IRC discussions you should put in a boilerplate warning about your past escapades on every post
Your ideas come without technical knowledge of the game. They are pretty much useless to those with technical knowledge, because your ideas will not work.
I do quite like the sound of it.. Of course it will be difficult do do something like this.. My idea was always to render Other players Jbeam as simple as possible If they are in close range say 2 Meters.. The game will then load the Normal Jbeam.. Problem is that it will lagg the whole server to death .. Also saving it in the cache would not work because it gets updated way to often
guys, the devs already said that the current replay system works in a similar way multiplayer would be done - if its ever going to happen. so they seem to have found a solution. the idea of using rigid body physics is never going to happen since it goes against the principle of the game itself.
i will link you to this conversation, to show you how little i care. i had always thought that the idea of multiplayer was good. but now i wont get to see pewdiepie let's plays in beamng multiplayer because the good ideas dont work it's a simple idea. at least NistingurA gets it.
How exactly is multiplayer for the most physics intensive and one of most complex driving game on the market that doesn't even run well something that's simple?
because i said so. --- Post updated --- DeezNutz, put everything from this conversation in your signature.
But didn't @Nadeox1 say that a jbeam can not be altered at all like that mid game? What conversation? That link leads to nowhere.
I'm one of the ones that have worked on multiplayer. While not impossible, a different method of doing it needs to be developed before further progress is made.