Stellaris Dev Diary #28 - The Project Lead speaks

[fabius]

A basic explanation might be that game directors have the vision and high level design task, other designers fill out the details and numbers, and the project lead breaks down this design into concrete tasks other programmers, artists, and content designers can work on. The project lead also follows up on these tasks making sure everyone has the resources and help they need to do their job, does various admin tasks, and sometimes tells the designers their ideas are not practical in the allowed time/budget/sanity levels available.

(As I like to do in threads were Doomdark is being talked about: I am NOT Doomdark)

This DD was very interesting to get some insight to the team.

Also, thanks Dark' for clarifications.

My overall impression:

P'dox is in a great place right now. They seem to have teams that are passionate about strategy games; listen to fans/ customers while still keeping their head and visions (trust me you wouldn't like everything in a game that you think you would). And they have the teams/ structure that can pull off great games with new focus on quality and longer term development. Oh, and they make hard decisions when needed, eg delaying Hoi4.

Bravo Devs, Stellaris really does look set to be a huge success. There is lots of buzz on other games forums. Long may your successes continue.

 

[j02sh123]

@Zoft Could you explain a little bit how big the team is u have to handle? (e. g. 5 programmers, 2 graphic designers, ... - perhaps also compared with the number of people working on games that are allready released like EU4 or CK2)

 

[Thrake]

not really, the gravity and thus the space distortion is the same as the star it replaced just a bit more noticeable due no emitted light.

Why isn't it bigger given that the black hole is so much more dense? The screen in first post is how I have seen black holes represented in space time pretty much any time, while stars are just big oranges over a clothing (if the clothing is space time)...

 

[Paweud]

Is Wiz going to be permanently working on Stellaris or is he going to be resettled (back) to EUIV?

He is going to work on [REDACTED](tm) not on EU4. Idk if he is still on Stellaris now.

 

[Zoft]

Zoft, I have a question for you. What kind of "race" will you choose in your first stable (and serious) playthrough?!

This is my current saved favorite species, they focus heavily on research and just want to be left alone and grow. Never works like I want it when I play the office multiplayer, people keep trying to interact with me... usually in a hostile manner...

 

[Nikolai]

Rikard, how long have you been project lead? You took over from Henrik at some point, right? Are you handing over the reins when the game is released, as per Paradox tradition?

 

[Zyrious]

Why isn't it bigger given that the black hole is so much more dense? The screen in first post is how I have seen black holes represented in space time pretty much any time, while stars are just big oranges over a clothing (if the clothing is space time)...

Gravitational lensing is due soley to gravity. Density has no effect. While a black hole has less surface area, its event horizon extends quite far, IIRC near the size of the former star, you will only see lensing of light grazing the event horizon. Certainly not to such a degree as to hide the event horizon from in system viewers.

 

[13Foxtrot]

Well, honestly, while I'm happy to read your thoughts, there isn't much to discuss about the game itself oustide of the screenshots

We have to invent our own crap to argue about.....

 

[13Foxtrot]

View attachment 167936
This is my current saved favorite species, they focus heavily on research and just want to be left alone and grow. Never works like I want it when I play the office multiplayer, people keep trying to interact with me... usually in a hostile manner...

so space brazil.....

 

[dilvish8]

I'm gonna find myself a wormhole, build a station nearby and name it Deep Space 9 3/4

 

[cletusallretus]

First let me thank you and your team for this project. I've been following Paradox and buying games from them since 2000. I truly enjoy what has been produced. I found EU to be both simple but had an incredible depth to it the more I played. I remember playing a game called Crown of the North that came with a EU game and that made me even more of a fan. I have always wondered what this game engine could do if taken out of a historical setting. I've been waiting for this game for about 13 years. Now I get to see .

 

[HeartsofMetal]

View attachment 167936
This is my current saved favorite species, they focus heavily on research and just want to be left alone and grow. Never works like I want it when I play the office multiplayer, people keep trying to interact with me... usually in a hostile manner...

Disgusting. Why aren't you playing with GLORIOUS Humanity?

 

[TheBeautifulVoid2]

Why isn't it bigger given that the black hole is so much more dense? The screen in first post is how I have seen black holes represented in space time pretty much any time, while stars are just big oranges over a clothing (if the clothing is space time)...

Briefly:

Density doesn't matter when it comes to gravity. All that matters is total mass. This is because, most of the time, gravity acts as if all the mass is concentrated at a single point called the "centre of gravity" (uncreatively.) This is especially true the mass in question is spherical, which a lot of things are.

In other words, if a giant star collapses to form a black hole, that black hole will have the same mass as the giant star and the same centre of gravity. This means that it will continue to have the same gravity field as it had before, and anything that was orbiting it (and wasn't destroyed or block away by the star's death) could continue orbiting it just like before.

The only time this stops being true is if you get within a certain distance of the centre of gravity, called the "Schwarzchild radius." The Schwarzchild radius is larger for heavier things, but because heavier things are usually larger then most of their matter will still be outside its own Schwarzchild radius. When the entirety of an object's mass fits inside its own Schwarzchild radius, then it becomes a black hole and the Schwarzchild radius is referred to as an "event horizon." *

EDIT: Schwarzchild radius are small. The Schwarzchild radius of Earth is around 9 millimetres.

Regarding the "big orange over a clothing" diagram, yes, this is a common way of depicting black holes. It's generally referred to as a "rubber sheet" diagram. However, it's not actually what spacetime looks like, it's just a convenient diagrammatical way of representing it. This is fine if the other things in the picture are also represented by symbols, but mixing symbols and naturalistic images together looks a bit weird. It's as if you went to a military parade and instead of soldiers, you saw NATO symbols moving down the street. On the one hand yes, a square with a diagonal cross through it is sort of what infantry "look like", but on the other hand it isn't actually what they look like at all.

A black hole looks like an absence of stars behind it, and will often have an accretion disk of hot gas around it or a noticeable "lensing" effect on light passing by, like the beautiful image I posted earlier. I assume that the devs tried this approach, found that it didn't look good, and went with the rubber sheet version instead.

-----

* Unless the black hole rotates, in which case I hate it.

 

[JakeCourtney]

Look forward to supporting this game for a long time. Hype.

 

[BobbyDylan]

So excited for this game!

 

[hewhoispale]

Briefly:

Density doesn't matter when it comes to gravity. All that matters is total mass. This is because, most of the time, gravity acts as if all the mass is concentrated at a single point called the "centre of gravity" (uncreatively.) This is especially true the mass in question is spherical, which a lot of things are.

In other words, if a giant star collapses to form a black hole, that black hole will have the same mass as the giant star and the same centre of gravity. This means that it will continue to have the same gravity field as it had before, and anything that was orbiting it (and wasn't destroyed or block away by the star's death) could continue orbiting it just like before.

The only time this stops being true is if you get within a certain distance of the centre of gravity, called the "Schwarzchild radius." The Schwarzchild radius is larger for heavier things, but because heavier things are usually larger then most of their matter will still be outside its own Schwarzchild radius. When the entirety of an object's mass fits inside its own Schwarzchild radius, then it becomes a black hole and the Schwarzchild radius is referred to as an "event horizon." *

Regarding the "big orange over a clothing" diagram, yes, this is a common way of depicting black holes. It's generally referred to as a "rubber sheet" diagram. However, it's not actually what spacetime looks like, it's just a convenient diagrammatical way of representing it. This is fine if the other things in the picture are also represented by symbols, but mixing symbols and naturalistic images together looks a bit weird. It's as if you went to a military parade and instead of soldiers, you saw NATO symbols moving down the street. On the one hand yes, a square with a diagonal cross through it is sort of what infantry "look like", but on the other hand it isn't actually what they look like at all.

A black hole looks like an absence of stars behind it, and will often have an accretion disk of hot gas around it or a noticeable "lensing" effect on light passing by, like the beautiful image I posted earlier. I assume that the devs tried this approach, found that it didn't look good, and went with the rubber sheet version instead.

-----

* Unless the black hole rotates, in which case I hate it.

Neat. Today I learned.

 

[Zavaleta]

I personally prefer the Interstellar black hole concept to the usual drain hole model art. Remember, there is no down in space for gravity to sink into.

 

[Grunthex]

Neat. Today I learned.

I just follow TheBeautifulVoid around from post to post to read all his stuff, because it's like the science channel.

 

[Maginor]

I personally prefer the Interstellar black hole concept to the usual sink hole model art. Remember, there is no down in space for gravity to sink into.

Tell that to the sinking space ships.

 

[TheBeautifulVoid2]

I personally prefer the Interstellar black hole concept to the usual drain hole model art. Remember, there is no down in space for gravity to sink into.

There is indeed a down in space. It's every direction. If you're an astronaut and you lose hold of your ship, you will fall until you starve.

Have fun thinking of that image while trying to sleep.

I just follow TheBeautifulVoid around from post to post to read all his stuff, because it's like the science channel.

Awwww. That's the nicest thing anyone's said to me all day. Thanks!

Tell that to the sinking space ships.

*twitch* *twitch* *twitch*