This code appears in the following versions (click to see it in the source code):
Code variations between these versions are shown below.
Name: Main flight loop (Part 2 of 16) Type: Subroutine Category: Main loop Summary: Calculate the alpha and beta angles from the current pitch and roll of our ship Deep dive: Program flow of the main game loop Pitching and rolling
The main flight loop covers most of the flight-specific aspects of Elite. This section covers the following: * Calculate the alpha and beta angles from the current pitch and roll
Here we take the current rate of pitch and roll, as set by the joystick or keyboard, and convert them into alpha and beta angles that we can use in the
LDX JSTX \ Set X to the current rate of roll in JSTX JSR cntr \ Apply keyboard damping twice (if enabled) so the roll JSR cntr \ rate in X creeps towards the centre by 2 \ The roll rate in JSTX increases if we press ">" (and \ the RL indicator on the dashboard goes to the right) \ \ This rolls our ship to the right (clockwise), but we \ actually implement this by rolling everything else \ to the left (anti-clockwise), so a positive roll rate \ in JSTX translates to a negative roll angle alpha TXA \ Set A and Y to the roll rate but with the sign bit EOR #%10000000 \ flipped (i.e. set them to the sign we want for alpha) TAYmatrix functions to rotate space around our ship. The alpha angle covers roll, while the beta angle covers pitch (there is no yaw in this version of Elite). The angles are in radians, which allows us to use the small angle approximation when moving objects in the sky (see the MVEIT routine for more on this). Also, the signs of the two angles are stored separately, in both the sign and the flipped sign, as this makes calculations easier.
STX JSTX \ Update JSTX with the damped value that's still in X EOR #%10000000 \ Extract the correct sign of the roll rate and store STA ALP2+1 \ in ALP2+1 (so ALP2+1 contains the flipped sign of the \ roll angle alpha) TYA \ Set A to the roll rate but with the sign bit flipped BPL P%+7 \ If the value of A is positive, skip the following \ three instructions EOR #%11111111 \ A is negative, so change the sign of A using two's CLC \ complement so that A is now positive and contains ADC #1 \ the absolute value of the roll rate, i.e. |JSTX| LSR A \ Divide the (positive) roll rate in A by 4 LSR A
The cassette and Electron versions have an extra CLC that isn't needed and could be culled.
Tap on a block to expand it, and tap it again to revert.
STA ALP1 \ Store A in ALP1, so we now have: \ \ ALP1 = |JSTX| / 8 if |JSTX| < 32 \ \ ALP1 = |JSTX| / 4 if |JSTX| >= 32 \ \ This means that at lower roll rates, the roll angle is \ reduced closer to zero than at higher roll rates, \ which gives us finer control over the ship's roll at \ lower roll rates \ \ Because JSTX is in the range -127 to +127, ALP1 is \ in the range 0 to 31 ORA ALP2 \ Store A in ALPHA, but with the sign set to ALP2 (so STA ALPHA \ ALPHA has a different sign to the actual roll rate) LDX JSTY \ Set X to the current rate of pitch in JSTY JSR cntr \ Apply keyboard damping so the pitch rate in X creeps \ towards the centre by 1 TXA \ Set A and Y to the pitch rate but with the sign bit EOR #%10000000 \ flipped TAY AND #%10000000 \ Extract the flipped sign of the pitch rate into A STX JSTY \ Update JSTY with the damped value that's still in X STA BET2+1 \ Store the flipped sign of the pitch rate in BET2+1 EOR #%10000000 \ Extract the correct sign of the pitch rate and store STA BET2 \ it in BET2 TYA \ Set A to the pitch rate but with the sign bit flipped BPL P%+4 \ If the value of A is positive, skip the following \ instruction EOR #%11111111 \ A is negative, so flip the bits ADC #4 \ Add 4 to the (positive) pitch rate, so the maximum \ value is now up to 131 (rather than 127) LSR A \ Divide the (positive) pitch rate in A by 16 LSR A LSR A LSR A CMP #3 \ If A >= 3, skip the following instruction BCS P%+3 LSR A \ A < 3, so halve A again STA BET1 \ Store A in BET1, so we now have: \ \ BET1 = |JSTY| / 32 if |JSTY| < 48 \ \ BET1 = |JSTY| / 16 if |JSTY| >= 48 \ \ This means that at lower pitch rates, the pitch angle \ is reduced closer to zero than at higher pitch rates, \ which gives us finer control over the ship's pitch at \ lower pitch rates \ \ Because JSTY is in the range -131 to +131, BET1 is in \ the range 0 to 8 ORA BET2 \ Store A in BETA, but with the sign set to BET2 (so STA BETA \ BETA has the same sign as the actual pitch rate)
To use a Bitsik with the enhanced versions, you need to configure it using the "B" option when paused, otherwise it will act like a normal joystick.
This variation is blank in the Cassette and Electron versions.
LDA BSTK \ If BSTK = 0 then the Bitstik is not configured, so BEQ BS2 \ jump to BS2 to skip the following
This variation is blank in the Cassette and Electron versions.
Tap on a block to expand it, and tap it again to revert.
If you configure the enhanced versions to use a Bitstik, then you can change the ship's speed up and down by twisting the stick.
This variation is blank in the Cassette and Electron versions.
LSR A \ Divide A by 4 LSR A CMP #40 \ If A < 40, skip the following instruction BCC P%+4 LDA #40 \ Set A = 40, which ensures a maximum speed of 40 STA DELTA \ Update our speed in DELTA BNE MA4 \ If the speed we just set is non-zero, then jump to MA4 \ to skip the following, as we don't need to check the \ keyboard for speed keys, otherwise do check the \ keyboard (so Bitstik users can still use the keyboard \ for speed adjustments if they twist the stick to zero)