The one and only NoLimits 2 Topic

I may have a question... Is there a big difference between the pro and the basic version ? If you're a basic players, just to enjoy the ride from other, is it very important to have the pro version ? Thank

Originally posted by TRS
Was wanting a official explanation for this. But from the quote from Phyter, its a performance issue. I call that boloney!

Have you seen how Hyper Rails has to remove all crossties when editing the track? NL2 uses B-splines or FVD which take more to calculate. The editing tools may have to re-plot huge lengths of track in realtime at 30-60 FPS, the higher the better, to match the mouse movements. This takes a lot of calculation to do just for the curves, but the crossties will make it more complicated. Then you have to factor in the geometry curvature detail level, which needs to stay high in order to get an accurate depiction of the track shaping. (HR had very low curvature detail especially on distant tracks.) This isn't even counting the additional objects, spline changes, texture mapping, etc.

To an extent, I think you're correct; NL could render editing track in very basic geometry without textures and with crudely detailed crossties and other objects, but at some point it's going to take too long to draw large sections of track being edited.

But it doesn't really matter anyway, at least if the new editor has better object placement and view control tools. (The multiple viewports is a plus, although it's not my style.) The options for hiding objects has expanded from NL1's editor, which should enable a cleaner editing environment in orthographic views.

Originally posted by coasteragent99

Originally posted by TRS
Was wanting a official explanation for this. But from the quote from Phyter, its a performance issue. I call that boloney!

Have you seen how Hyper Rails has to remove all crossties when editing the track? NL2 uses B-splines or FVD which take more to calculate. The editing tools may have to re-plot huge lengths of track in realtime at 30-60 FPS, the higher the better, to match the mouse movements. This takes a lot of calculation to do just for the curves, but the crossties will make it more complicated. Then you have to factor in the geometry curvature detail level, which needs to stay high in order to get an accurate depiction of the track shaping. (HR had very low curvature detail especially on distant tracks.) This isn't even counting the additional objects, spline changes, texture mapping, etc.

To an extent, I think you're correct; NL could render editing track in very basic geometry without textures and with crudely detailed crossties and other objects, but at some point it's going to take too long to draw large sections of track being edited.

But it doesn't really matter anyway, at least if the new editor has better object placement and view control tools. (The multiple viewports is a plus, although it's not my style.) The options for hiding objects has expanded from NL1's editor, which should enable a cleaner editing environment in orthographic views.

Like I said I'm looking for official response to my question, unless your a official representative of nolimits.

I don't know how Hyper Rails got into this question!

official or not, hes right. also this is just bothering me "bologna"*****

Originally posted by CKidd

official or not, hes right. also this is just bothering me "bologna"*****

Two wrongs don't make it right.

If real time rendering of the track during building is such a big deal go buy Theme Park Studios when it opens and leave NL2 for those of us more concerned with the end product than the details of getting there.

[coolbeans326]

^ Word. Who really cares. I'm more concerned about ease of use and ability to perfect the track. I could care less how it looks while I'm rendering. I know it will look great when the ride is completed.

[gouldy]

Originally posted by coolbeans326

I could care less how it looks while I'm rendering.

You could care less? So... you do care how it looks while you're rendering? I'm confused.

hi everyone ! i'm new to this game and was looking for some info. is there a community forum site for this game where I can ask questions ?

[hyyyper]

There is, and you're looking at it. There has been a lot of info published about NL2, so I'm pretty sure the members here can answer any question you have. In addition, the game's developpers drop by every once and a while to answer questions or release new game info.

Just wondering, if one would purchase a standard version of NL2, and later wanted to upgrade to the pro version, would there be a discount? Also, any goodies for people who own Nl already?

[Oscar]

Originally posted by Live on earths ass

Just wondering, if one would purchase a standard version of NL2, and later wanted to upgrade to the pro version, would there be a discount? Also, any goodies for people who own Nl already?

The cost of upgrading from standard to pro version is $59.99

Does anyone know if NL2 will work on Windows 8? I'm considering getting Windows 8 for Christmas but I don't want it if NL 2 will not work. Or even if NL 1 will work. Thanks.

"hi everyone ! i'm new to this game and was looking for some info. is there a community forum site for this game where I can ask questions ?"

"There is, and you're looking at it. There has been a lot of info published about NL2, so I'm pretty sure the members here can answer any question you have. In addition, the game's developpers drop by every once and a while to answer questions or release new game info."

Now ain't that a hell-of-an-answer! No official forum! Sounds cheap to me!

Originally posted by TRS

"hi everyone ! i'm new to this game and was looking for some info. is there a community forum site for this game where I can ask questions ?"

"There is, and you're looking at it. There has been a lot of info published about NL2, so I'm pretty sure the members here can answer any question you have. In addition, the game's developpers drop by every once and a while to answer questions or release new game info."

Now ain't that a hell-of-an-answer! No official forum! Sounds cheap to me!

You sound like an angsty teenager to me. You're also not making many friends on this site.

[TheArchitect]

Originally posted by coasterfun4

Does anyone know if NL2 will work on Windows 8? I'm considering getting Windows 8 for Christmas but I don't want it if NL 2 will not work. Or even if NL 1 will work. Thanks.

Yes it will.

@coasterfun There are no issues with NoLimits 2 related to Windows 8 that we're aware of. You will be fine.

TRS, you can call it baloney if you want, but performance continues to be the key reason for sticking with wireframe rendering for track editing.

NoLimits 2 adds a lot of calculation to the spline in edit mode. Not just shape but force as well. When we looked at this problem (years ago) it became clear that evaluating these large overlapping data structures in real time can tax even very fast hardware and so any additional overhead wasn't going to be welcome. So we decided against solid rendering for dynamic elements like the track and supports while moving ahead with solid rendering for everything else.

Other similar games/sims can get away with solid frame editing by sticking with very linear track styles and computationally cheap parametric support structures. But "cheap and fast" is not what we think NoLimits 2 should be about. We think we're positioned better as the premier roller coaster simulation when we cater to professionals as well as to enthusiasts.

And let me just remind everyone with a "Why doesn't NoLimits 2 have this or that feature?" on their minds, just because a feature isn't in the launch product doesn't mean we can't add it later. We have a lot of fun things planned for the first few updates and it's going to be hard for you to be disappointed... well maybe not for TRS, but the rest of you are going to have a hard time complaining. *zing*

TRS, please don't feel discouraged from posting suggestions. Keep them coming. But please do post them as actual suggestions and not "I feel lied to, you're cheap and stupid" style complaints. We still won't promise to respond (because frankly we're not obligated to) but you will be more likely to get a response. Thanks!

[Metazoanhaddock]

Originally posted by Phyter


We have a lot of fun things planned for the first few updates and it's going to be hard for you to be disappointed... well maybe not for TRS, but the rest of you are going to have a hard time complaining. *zing*

Originally posted by Kyle Sloane

How easy will it be to modify the lighting or environment compared to nl1? Will we have some way of adjusting the ambient and specularity levels and such? I would like it to be a bit brighter and less saturated with darker shadows for a more hdr effect so it looks more realistic. I edited the photo to look much more realistic with just a few tweaks.



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Phyter, how difficult will it be to adjust the graphics to look photorealistic?

It's hard to say really. My answer here shouldn't be considered definite by any means. In NoLimits 2 you have a lot more control over the environment than you did in NoLimits 1. But you can't adjust overall brightness and contrast of the scene, HDR/Bloom is missing, and there is no dynamic ambient occlusion (yet). I agree the simple edits you made there look pretty amazing so we're probably a lot closer than we think. With a little more control over the dynamic environment and the addition of HDR and ML/FXAA we could start to approach what you've got there. May not be possible with the launch version though.

[coolbeans326]

Originally posted by gouldy

Originally posted by coolbeans326

I could care less how it looks while I'm rendering.

You could care less? So... you do care how it looks while you're rendering? I'm confused.

Ehh, brain fart. Happens from time to time. Meant to say, "while I'm building", but I was thinking about rendering.

[TTD03]

Phyter, will there be a setting in manual block mode where you can make many sections of track have the train run in reverse instead of just the switch track block?
Use Top Thrill Dragster as an example, TTD can move the trains forward and backwards in pretty much every block on the circuit except after launch and before brakes obviously. Would it be possible to recreate TTD and have it set so that you could move all the trains forwards and backwards through the various blocks and not just the transfer track?

Thanks [:D]

Not in manual block mode, no. But in full manual mode you can move the train in either direction at any point on the track.

[TTD03]

^ Bad wording on my part, my mistake.
So would a Full Throttle at SFMM recreation be possible with the reverse launch and then forwards again?
And sorry if this is dumb, what's the difference between manual block mode and full manual mode?
I never quite understood it. [confused]

That's perfectly okay. Reversing launch behaviors such as on Full Throttle, The Mummy, etc. are all possible with scripting. We'll be including a sample park with a scripted coaster in it so that you can see how it's done and so those who don't program can work off of it as a template for their own custom layouts.

The difference between manual block and full manual modes has mainly to do with device handling. In full manual mode you have control over all devices on the track (tires, brakes, switches, etc.). In manual block mode your only concern is where each train is with respect to the next block. All devices are handled automatically once you grant permission for the train to traverse the block. Think of manual block mode as a "semi automatic" mode.