It would be cool to have an over done atmospheric re-entry animation for fast descent from orbit to ground surface. I am picturing orbital units that will want to dive to another planetary surface layer (air, water, ground) before busting out their weapons and dispensing mayhem. I could see both large transport/production units as well as small combatants making use of such a particle effect.
Would not be surprised if this effect is provided to bots as they arrive via unit cannon. In the ks trailer they added a subtle windy grid on the breif moment they arrive. Unlikely it would be done with particles, it would most likely be a dish shaped poly with animated texture on it. That stuff sells pretty well on its own. Would be awesome to see that for shot down orbital units too.
I personally like this idea, as others have said it will add to immersion and the general 'awesomeness' of the game It's really a 'nice to have' rather than essential but cool none the less.
Might be cool. But considering the relative distance between surface and orbit, this special effect would last like... a second.
There could also be a randomizer for other planets. Lava and Moon planets could also have an atmosphere on some instances, and not have an atmosphere in others. ... If that makes any sense.
Perfect sense. Otherwise how can aerial vehicles fly, if they don't have "fuel" and they don't have an atmosphere with which to take advantage of aerodynamics? They could all be orbital fighters/bombers (Edit - no they couldn't - they couldn't "land" on a planet with an atmosphere because they would burn up on re-entry!)
