BeamNG Drive Pre-Race Update coming

  

BeamNG Drive Pre-Race Update coming

BeamNG just updated to the latest version of Torque3D. This means that they can now use some nice new features, like a new specular settings which is able to generate convincing wet materials. The included screenshots are not related to the Drive development because a rain feature is not yet implemented.

They are also working on a new update of their BeamNG Drive project. They stated this next update will be a large pre-race update, containing all the physics updates, vehicle updates (including the Pigeon), terrain updates, and the new user interface (UI) basics. The racing system, East Coast map, and Gavril T75 will not yet be included in this update, but will be released in smaller updates later on. The update is expected to be rolled out in a few weeks time.

BeamNG announced that from now on they will start releasing small updates at a fast pace, instead of big updates over a longer period of time. They will also make the Updated more functional, and address the download speeds. The new updater should also be more transparent to anti-viruses, firewalls, and file permissions.

 

  

BeamNG Drive Pre-race update list (already done):

Vehicle updates:

• Added vehicle: Ibishu Pigeon
• Global improvements to handling and top speed (tire tuning)
• Roll cage optional part added to Covet for Race and Rally models
• New Covet Sport as a factory model (+10 hp, sportier suspension and wheels)
• Added fender flare parts, engine variants, and 2 new sets of wheels/tires for Bolide to create 2 new factory variants (320 and 390 GTR)
• Adjusted shift points for all automatic transmissions
• Added 5-speed manual transmission to D-Series and Grand Marshal
• Enabled steel wheels for D-Series
• Recalibrated speedometers
• Revised torque curves for Gavril I6 and V8 engines (230 hp for the standard V8)
• Engine tuning stage parts added to Gavril V8 engines (stage 1 = 270 hp, stage 2 = 420 hp)
• Factory sport models added for the Grand Marshal and D15 using stage 1 engine tuning
• Added optional welded differential to D-Series, H-Series, and Grand Marshal
• Drift Missile variants added to D-Series, H-Series, and Grand Marshal
• Repaintable decals for the H-Series (put your own fancy logo on it!)
• Fix for brake lights only coming on at >50% pressure
• All gauges now glow when the engine is running
• Various tweaks, fixes, and improvements to all vehicles
• Revised some vehicle part weights
• New default colors

Terrain updates:

• Improved road materials
• Improved textures
• Improved roads
• Improved terrain
• Improved lighting
• Improved sun-flare effect
• Improved skybox texture for reflections
• Improved objects
• New objects and vegetation
• New reference images for all maps

Physics updates:

• Around 25% performance improvement
• More stable and accurate collisions (fixed a lot of bugs – less shaking and getting stuck)
• Heightmap bugfixes and optimizations
• Static collision optimizations: terrain objects are faster and reload quicker
• Improved flexbody performance
• Friction and ground model improvements
• Brake and parking brake greatly improved and extremely effective
• Fixed water density
• Engine reaction torque added
• Automatic transmission launch behavior greatly improved
• Realistic automatic transmission mode implemented (manual PRND21)
• Removed ability to manually shift an automatic transmission as if it were a manual
• Differentiation between automatic and manual transmissions added
• Removed auto-clutch while changing gears
• Added auto-clutch on stalling
• Increased wheel and beam limits
• Fixed physics-crashing problem with beams with 0 spring deforming
• Added warning for zero-sized beams
• More fault tolerant drivetrain initialization

User interface (UI) updates:

• Completely rewritten UI using HTML5 developed in an open source manner: https://github.com/BeamNG/ui (see also: more-work-on-everything)
• Modular and flexible customizable system with widgets
• Rewritten debug functionality

General updates:

• Windows XP not working anymore due to the libraries we use deprecating XP support
• Per-vehicle Lua system added
• New Lua mod extension system: hooks that vehicle’s Lua can use
• Added RPC-alike call for vehicle Lua
• Added Lua functions getDirectionVectorUp, getBeamLengthRestRatio, inWater, setBeamLengthRatio, setBeamLengthRefRatio, getBeamLengthRefRatio
• Implemented vehicle-specific input maps
• New prop placement system
• Prop breaking via deformGroup added
• Added flares to spotlights (WIP)
• Added more electrics sources for animated props
• Fixed some Torque3D terrain and vertex buffer locking crashes
• Improved performance of scene rendering (faster sorting of rendering objects)
• Added render distances for BeamNG vehicles
• Fixed crash on truck deletion
• Fixed crash on spotlight deletion
• Fixed crash report date/time
• Fixed up slow motion
• Improved triggers: rendering depending on distance, new trigger improvements (see Race-triggers-accuracy)
• Fixed Lua error levels being set at lots of places, now only once at system start
• Fix for particles disappearing randomly (see Little-Update-Particles-disappearing-randomly-Fixed)
• Improved particles and added normal force
• Added dynamic loadable prefabs: ability to change the level on the fly
• Re-added camera collision
• Fixed camera control inversion for interior vs. exterior
• Limited up/down camera movement – no more flipping over
• Camera focus fixes: use the right mouse button to rotate the camera
• Fix for most collision sounds being missed (was mistakenly using beam ID as node ID to emit sound)
• Tire rolling sound now only plays when a tire is contacting asphalt
• Fixed and improved tire slipping sound logic – now only plays on asphalt
• Xbox 360 controller input map reworked (D-pad is now used to operate signals, headlights, and hazards)
• Fanatec 911 Turbo S wheel input map improved/reworked
• Steering wheel now remains 1:1 on cars where it turns less than 900 degrees (for 900 degree wheel users)
• Removed Oculus Rift support
• Removed Skia (previous debug drawing method)
• Menu changed to winter + two folders to swap it out for summer/winter
• Added benchmarking tool – test performance with multiple vehicles and output data

Valve Steam status: [Steam page]

• We applied via Steam Greenlight and were accepted due to our awesome community. Thanks so much! <3
• We want to publish a reasonably polished game, with as few bugs as possible, with some kind of basic gameplay
• We have no official Steam release date to announce at this time
• Everyone who bought alpha access will receive a free Steam key when it is released there
• Linux / MacOS / OpenGL Port: We are currently porting our game engine Torque3D to OpenGL, then to Linux and then to MacOS. The OpenGL port is nearly done.

Currently known problems (should be solved before the update):

• Vehicle selection GUI not working properly
• Vehicle configuration persistence not working
• GPU will still sometimes crash on some maps
• Flexbody frame lag, exacerbated by multiple vehicles
• Flat tires are not really flat anymore due to the tire tuning we did
• Lots of other stuff on our bug tracker right now (244 bug and 93 feature tickets atm)

Official Webpage – http://www.beamng.com