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Steam News26 September 20259mo ago

Rockhopper angle mode works in spin-grav!

Rockhopper angle-mode now works in spin-grav! General stability improvements at steeper tilts. Rockhopper angle-mode works best between 45-60 degrees of tilt.

Full notes

Full Ace Racers SP update

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What changed

1 fix3 additions1 change0 removals
  • Performance
  • Gameplay
  • Fixes
changedGeneral stability improvements at steeper tilts.
added(This is the result of the properties generally associated with gimbal lock. If you pitch to 90 degrees and are facing straight down, roll thrust will rotate the craft to a new direction rather than finding an angle between the two tilts. To change direction while at extreme tilt, use roll!)
addedRockhopper angle-mode in spin-gravity has some additional behavior as a result of the vehicle constantly trying to match the "new up" of a constantly rotating spin-gravity drum. In normal gravity if you roll to an extreme tilt, the vehicle will not "yaw" significantly as a result. However in spin-gravity if you roll to an extreme tilt while facing the direction of gravity spin, the ship will continuously attempt to achieve a new pitch that correlates to the ships motion around the spin-gravity drum. Because of the roll tilt, pitch thrust will cause the ship to "yaw" relative to a vertical orientation. To overcome this effect, the player must manually yaw slightly in the opposite direction! I do not plan to change the PID controller to manage yaw for this angle mode, as I intend for yaw to remain player input driven. This "coordinated roll" will be similar (although not exactly the same) to the coordinated roll required to fly quadcopter FPV! (fun!)
addedAlthough I would like for angle mode to work at more extreme tilts for more aggressive flying, I don't see a way to make this possible without making a completely new "similar to angle mode" system of control that incorporates all 3 axis. This would be very complex and parallel auto-pilot development, and with significant diversity in player preference meaning it would also require significant player setup and personalization. I may pursue this in the future however I have plans to develop other "rotation assist" options for other vehicles in the near term. The current angle-mode is a great basic option for beginner players.
fixedAll of my testing is done in default "normal" power and PIDs are currently not player tune-able and have not been tested at other power levels. Player tune-able PDs are possibly my next project pending testing of present PDs at various power levels. The "I" portion of the loop is generally not necessary in games as it is generally used to overcome environmental conditions and material limitations, although while a weight is connected the fixed-joint physics may make a good "I" value beneficial. I do not know the best option for an "I" portion of the loop and may not make the "I" value player tune-able. Extensive playtesting is required and I need to learn more about "I" loops. The "I" value in this loop is 0 atm. While trying to make this angle mode I saw a great example of a "rate" mode which I may add to all vehicles.

Ace Racers SP changes

changedGeneral stability improvements at steeper tilts.
added(This is the result of the properties generally associated with gimbal lock. If you pitch to 90 degrees and are facing straight down, roll thrust will rotate the craft to a new direction rather than finding an angle between the two tilts. To change direction while at extreme tilt, use roll!)
addedRockhopper angle-mode in spin-gravity has some additional behavior as a result of the vehicle constantly trying to match the "new up" of a constantly rotating spin-gravity drum. In normal gravity if you roll to an extreme tilt, the vehicle will not "yaw" significantly as a result. However in spin-gravity if you roll to an extreme tilt while facing the direction of gravity spin, the ship will continuously attempt to achieve a new pitch that correlates to the ships motion around the spin-gravity drum. Because of the roll tilt, pitch thrust will cause the ship to "yaw" relative to a vertical orientation. To overcome this effect, the player must manually yaw slightly in the opposite direction! I do not plan to change the PID controller to manage yaw for this angle mode, as I intend for yaw to remain player input driven. This "coordinated roll" will be similar (although not exactly the same) to the coordinated roll required to fly quadcopter FPV! (fun!)
addedAlthough I would like for angle mode to work at more extreme tilts for more aggressive flying, I don't see a way to make this possible without making a completely new "similar to angle mode" system of control that incorporates all 3 axis. This would be very complex and parallel auto-pilot development, and with significant diversity in player preference meaning it would also require significant player setup and personalization. I may pursue this in the future however I have plans to develop other "rotation assist" options for other vehicles in the near term. The current angle-mode is a great basic option for beginner players.
fixedAll of my testing is done in default "normal" power and PIDs are currently not player tune-able and have not been tested at other power levels. Player tune-able PDs are possibly my next project pending testing of present PDs at various power levels. The "I" portion of the loop is generally not necessary in games as it is generally used to overcome environmental conditions and material limitations, although while a weight is connected the fixed-joint physics may make a good "I" value beneficial. I do not know the best option for an "I" portion of the loop and may not make the "I" value player tune-able. Extensive playtesting is required and I need to learn more about "I" loops. The "I" value in this loop is 0 atm. While trying to make this angle mode I saw a great example of a "rate" mode which I may add to all vehicles.

Rockhopper angle-mode now works in spin-grav!

General stability improvements at steeper tilts.

Rockhopper angle-mode works best between 45-60 degrees of tilt. At more extreme tilts, coordinated behavior of the 2-axis controlled by the PID controller does not result in a useful combined angle.

(This is the result of the properties generally associated with gimbal lock. If you pitch to 90 degrees and are facing straight down, roll thrust will rotate the craft to a new direction rather than finding an angle between the two tilts. To change direction while at extreme tilt, use roll!)

Rockhopper angle-mode in spin-gravity has some additional behavior as a result of the vehicle constantly trying to match the "new up" of a constantly rotating spin-gravity drum. In normal gravity if you roll to an extreme tilt, the vehicle will not "yaw" significantly as a result. However in spin-gravity if you roll to an extreme tilt while facing the direction of gravity spin, the ship will continuously attempt to achieve a new pitch that correlates to the ships motion around the spin-gravity drum. Because of the roll tilt, pitch thrust will cause the ship to "yaw" relative to a vertical orientation. To overcome this effect, the player must manually yaw slightly in the opposite direction! I do not plan to change the PID controller to manage yaw for this angle mode, as I intend for yaw to remain player input driven. This "coordinated roll" will be similar (although not exactly the same) to the coordinated roll required to fly quadcopter FPV! (fun!)

Although I would like for angle mode to work at more extreme tilts for more aggressive flying, I don't see a way to make this possible without making a completely new "similar to angle mode" system of control that incorporates all 3 axis. This would be very complex and parallel auto-pilot development, and with significant diversity in player preference meaning it would also require significant player setup and personalization. I may pursue this in the future however I have plans to develop other "rotation assist" options for other vehicles in the near term. The current angle-mode is a great basic option for beginner players.

All of my testing is done in default "normal" power and PIDs are currently not player tune-able and have not been tested at other power levels. Player tune-able PDs are possibly my next project pending testing of present PDs at various power levels. The "I" portion of the loop is generally not necessary in games as it is generally used to overcome environmental conditions and material limitations, although while a weight is connected the fixed-joint physics may make a good "I" value beneficial. I do not know the best option for an "I" portion of the loop and may not make the "I" value player tune-able. Extensive playtesting is required and I need to learn more about "I" loops. The "I" value in this loop is 0 atm. While trying to make this angle mode I saw a great example of a "rate" mode which I may add to all vehicles.

Source

Steam News / 26 September 2025

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