1.9.2 has just been released, and the main feature it includes is a completley new tank vehicle.

The articulated tank of 1.9.1 was cool - but the articulation system itself proved too challenging for precision handling on narrow volcano ledges and things, and was a major performance drain on lower end hardware.

The latest tank has 6 independent tracks, each connected to it's body by joints that allow for rotation and vertical spring compression. It steers by driving all the tracks on each side at different speeds (or even directions). Each track weighs more than an entire buggy. It can hit 50 MPH, turns on a dime, is capable of climbing near vertical cliff faces, and fires the red sniper lasers like buggys fire green lasers. It's still very much a work in progress - expect it to change significantly (especially in appearance) before 1.10 - but I am sure you will enjoy fooling around with it.

Due to a whole bunch of adjusted parameters in 1.9.1 to allow the physics engine to handle the articulated tank, the physics of all the other vehicles got altered a bit. They have returned back to normal in 1.9.2 - much to the chargrin of many vocal and dedicated fans. Don't worry - I got the point: we want buggys that fly better. Coming right up :)

Although I can't give an ETA, I am also working on a system that will allow server hosts to customize many parameters of their games - including some physics. Set buggys to fly really good, disable tanks and hovercrafts, name your server "so and so's aerial combat game", and you are good to go!

-Aubrey


P.S. At the moment, I am working on a system that will automatically disable much of the physics calculations for networked instances of tanks, which should make them run much smoother in multiplayer games. Look for an updated 1.9.2 today or tomorrow.