Delta Time VS FrameRate(tweening)

Blitz3D Forums/Blitz3D Programming/Delta Time VS FrameRate(tweening)

Neochrome

(Posted 2004) [#1]

I am at a dilema, is using Delta time better than having a routine do catch up?

Repeat
		elapsed=MilliSecs()-time
	Until elapsed
	ticks=elapsed/period
	tween#=Float(elapsed Mod period)/Float(period)
	
	If tick>7 Then tick=7	; At least let the computer catch up!
	For k=1 To ticks
		;If k=ticks Then CaptureWorld()
		time=time+period
		UpdateWorld()
		
		GameTimer = (GameTimer + 1) Mod (UPS / 2)
		; do my game stuff
	Next

of delta time

moveentity box, x * deltatime, y * deltatime, 0

it seems to me that doing delta time your making the processor do more calculations per frames?

Ross C

(Posted 2004) [#2]

I'd go for deltatime method. I think it's alot easier. Might just be me, but i can never get the animation right with render tweening :o)

Ice9	(Posted 2004) [#3]

DeltaTime. I've had issues with render tweening. It's been
so long ago that I decided but I know I did a number of
tests to decide.

sswift

(Posted 2004) [#4]

Deltatime results in a much simpler program.

The only drawbacks are that it makes it extremely difficult to playback demos of gameplay... One cannot simply record keyboard input and assume the rest of the simulation will run the same every time... and it makes some kinds of multiplayer setups more difficult to code.

Neochrome

(Posted 2004) [#5]

ah. it is a multiplay game..
in stead of ease, Would the tweening method be more effective on the processor? i want to keep the processor time down

Gabriel

(Posted 2004) [#6]

I've really had no issues with either, but I think Render Tweening has proven slightly smoother for me. It's less typing too ( I'm lazy, sue me. )

Neochrome

(Posted 2004) [#7]

Sybixsus, Lazy ?? yeah but i bet you didn't get a trophy in being lazy.. I did! LOL

I have found tween to be a realy nice effect.

thanks for the point of views guys.

sswift

(Posted 2004) [#8]

Neo:
I said only in certain kinds of multiplayer. You do not have to code your multiplayer in such a way that it requires the simulation to run identically on every PC. I coded a perfectly good tank game with multiplayer which used deltatime.

I did have an issue with bullets that could bounce off walls... On one PC a bullet might hit a corner and bounce, while on another it would miss the corner and continue moving in a straight line...

But if you don't have bullets bouncing off walls, you won't have that issue. :-)

The problem was the bullet locations were not updated by the server, so if they went wrong at some point, they stayed wrong. One solution that would require little extra bandwidth would be to simply have the server determine if a bullet bounces off a wall and then send out an update to its location and trajectory when that happens.

jfk EO-11110

(Posted 2004) [#9]

Deltatime and the use of true VSYNC will calcualte as much as required IMHO.

Jeremy Alessi

(Posted 2004) [#10]

coded a perfectly good tank game with multiplayer which used deltatime

Yes but it required the framerate to stay above a certain level if I remember correctly. This is fine for some games.

Personally, I think tweening is the way to go ... keep the actual logic frame independent.

sswift

(Posted 2004) [#11]

"Yes but it required the framerate to stay above a certain level if I remember correctly."

That is not true. And if it were true, there is nothing to prevent one from calculating extra physics frames in between actual rendereed frames. You can divide the time by 10 and calcualte the physics 10 times between frames if you want to to make the physics smoother.

Space_guy

(Posted 2004) [#12]

Personaly i always used and still use frame tweening.
The only issues with it is when you create new objects as they dont arrive to the position they should be until the next frame. but that can be worked arround anyhow.

I really do like having a steady gamelogic rate

Neochrome

(Posted 2004) [#13]

i must admit, FrameTween does work for me too. I just wanted to know which one was more efficient on the processor

i assume Frametween bcos CaptureWorld() function, tho i dont know much about how it captures. haha.

slenkar

(Posted 2004) [#14]

does animation get affected by rendertweening much?

Rob	(Posted 2004) [#15]

tweening makes everything smoother and was designed for slower pcs.

Basically, you'd update the logic and collisions 30 frames a second, but the the game would draw independantly. See castle demo.

It's pretty cool I went with tweening because deltatime was just too much bloody bother.