Hey guys.
I really don't have time to be programming these days. This first semester at my new school has been, well, hell. I could very easily modify this to make a simple game, something similar to that Hovertank 3D thing on gamingdl.com, but I just don't have the time, and quite honestly my life priorities have changed a lot in the past few years.
What i've uploaded is just a basic playable test map. You spawn at a spawn point determined in the editor. You drive a hovercraft around using these controls:
-a/d strafe
-Up arrow = forward
-Up + right arrow = forward while turning
-right arrow= turn in place
etc
The hovercraft is quite difficult to control as I have not added skirt friction which would slow it down. If you start to topple over/spin wildly out of control, hit the 'T' key as this will kill all of your momentum. Hit the 'R' key to kill the momentum of the dummy hovercraft.
The craft has 4 thrusters: 2 port 2 starboard, one set is for strafing the other is for forward/backward and rotation.
When you start, you will have to rotate in place to your left to see the dummy hovercraft, rotate to your right to see the pits/ramps/wall. You CAN fall off of the cliff into the abyss, so be careful.
The sim. runs at 100 physics frames per second (graphics frames can be less than or equal to that).
The model files, .ntmdl, are my own internal format, converted from a .ms3d file. Trying to open it with anything simply will not work, afaik, unless it happens to be identical to some other format (which is actually somewhat possible).
The test map has a pit with ramps and a jump over a crevasse. It also has a wall you can bounce into. I've included just enough resources (models, textures, and map files) to run this map with this binary. Trying it with aniything else will likely fail. I cannot guarantee that this program won't format your hard drive or install porn on your system.
The physics is very complicated, it's the fluid mechanics for a hovercraft embedded in an RK4 solver, with body-body impulses and friction, and body to world impulses with friction (linear and angular friction by the way).
I'm extending the software to less-graphical and more scientific/mathematical fluid mechanics, instead of turning it into a computer game. Right now, the physics is very accurate, but not something that could really be used for testing real vehicles...I'd like to have it be used for testing and designing real vehicles (or at least have the knowledge to be able to do so).
ihatenature.thejefffiles.com/hover.zip