ST

The way i have to explain it is that there isn't a separate flight model. It is completely seamless, at some point when you get into the atmosphere you are at 0.001% of hitting the atmosphere. The first reason of why we don't have a whole new flight model is when do you make that switch? It would feel like something is happening and that's not something we want. What we want to do is make our flight model which is made to fly ships around which aren't aerodynamic is still what is being used in atmosphere just the variables applying things to the ship have changed and pretty dramatically.

Those two things you've mentioned wind and air density are the more important things and everything that would affects those two really are the things that would do anything. Drag is affected by air density, the amount of wind from weather from all different places. What's going to happen when the ship hits the atmosphere they thrusters are going to keep the flight model the same except the external forces are still acting on it like drag and lift are now a lot more obvious but the model itself hasn't changed. We have actually have a guy with a Phd.

EKD

A very smart guy

ST

we stare at his screen of formulas and bar charts. He [John Pritchett] is our flight programmer and he's been on the project from the start.

EKD

The complicated maths behind the newtonian physics and that model. That brings back to the simulation as much as we possibly can. What would actually happen if you take this ship into atmosphere.

ST

So to answer more clearly, the shape of the ship will absolutely effect how it handles in atmosphere, but it's not due to a different flight model. More because those external variables are different, less drag because it's more aerodynamic, more lift because it has wings and more like that.

We constantly clash in terms of its a game thing that happens in game development of what happens in reality and what's just a game part of it. John hates the hand wavey game stuff. He's like "Noooo that's not how it would work" the the G-Force conversations are just none stop. There's a way we do it in games that is fun and feel s cool and then there is the reality of what it would do to you. You definitely have to come to a balance but it is nice to have the accuracy of someone that understands it in the real world.

EKD

It is nice to see that level of passion in each person's individual aspect of what is Star Citizen. Everybody you interact with in their field or thing that is exactly how the conversations go. The passion is deep and rich and it is a discussion you have to have and then ultimately we get to what you get to play but it is across the board with everyone.