Well, After watching this Saint's Row video

[blakjedi]

If you calculate the momentum of a bullet, then transfer all of that to the new mass (bullet + body) you'll find that a bullet could not even knock a person over. It's definitely Hollywood and old westerns that have left us with the impression that they can. Even the much lauded Desert Eagle would impart a velocity of about 11 cm/s on a person weighing 180 lbs. And that's only if their body completely stopped the bullet.

I like explosions too, and I justify them in movies by telling myself that everyone drives cars around packed with C4.

The physics used in games, though throw the whole scale of things off. It makes you feel like you're playing in a miniature world. Objects don't seem to have enough mass for their dimensions. If you were to shrink everything down to half its height then that crate would have 1/8 the mass, and would bounce like that when you hit it.

Forget science... depending on where you are hit, the size of the projectile, its spin and composition... yeah you can be knocked over... not to mention directional tissue damage and pain...

 

[scooby_dooby]

It's definitely Hollywood and old westerns that have left us with the impression that they can.

actually if you watch 'old' westerns, people just slumped where they were shot, realistically. It's the newer films that have completely exagerated it.

 

[OtakingGX]

Forget science... depending on where you are hit, the size of the projectile, its spin and composition... yeah you can be knocked over... not to mention directional tissue damage and pain...

Yes, it would depend on the size of the projectile. But you would not be knocked over by any normal sized bullet. Back to the conservation of momentum: if the gun imparted enough momentum on the bullet to knock a person down, then the gun would have enough momentum to knock the shooter down. Unless you're very small, you don't fall over when shooting a gun. Pain, and having watched people being shot on TV, will most likely cause you to fall down, but not over. This is more instinctual (assuming the fetal position) than anything to do with the momentum of the bullet hitting you.

And you're right about the older westerns, Scooby. Guys just fell over. More often than not they would fall forward, over a railing or balcony, than backwards. I was just thinking of the rare cases when guys would go flying backwards through windows, for dramatic effect.

 

[AlNom]

Max Payne 2 is so guilty of it, it's ridiculous.

Anyhoo on topic... the multiplayer sounds like it could be fun, but this is not a must-have type of game for me; I just wouldn't play it often. I think it was the first video, but I was impressed with all the debris from a car that was RPG'd. And judging by some screenshots of cars, it looks like the damage modeling is quite detailed still.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

The physics used in games, though throw the whole scale of things off. It makes you feel like you're playing in a miniature world. Objects don't seem to have enough mass for their dimensions. If you were to shrink everything down to half its height then that crate would have 1/8 the mass, and would bounce like that when you hit it.

That might be a limit of the phyiscs engine they used. Of the engines I've tried, realistically heavy objects have more collision problems that lightweight objects, and realistically strong gravity makes things difficult too. You have to up the sampling consderably to get objects to behave themselves (like not dropping through the floor). As a result I presume, most physics situations I've seen in game have moon-like gravity.

Of course, it's only a game. Most games turn a blind eye to physics and real-world considerations. Most characters can jump super high, none ever get exhausted no matter how much running they do, and they can all take several bullets without being hampered to any degree, to be fixed with a first-aid kit's bandage or even eat a chicken dinner, instantaneously!

 

[Graham]

man... after the rediculous disaster that was good old hot coffee, I'm pretty surprised to see nudity in some of the videos on youtube.
Maybe R18? hmm.

Looks great, just hope it doesn't take itself seriously.

The excellent framerate in this video really surprised me. Looks excellent.

[edit]
never mind it's rated 'M'.

 

[3roxor]

The graphics look notably better than the last GTA which is somewhat a relief.

 

[Powderkeg]

Yes, it would depend on the size of the projectile. But you would not be knocked over by any normal sized bullet. Back to the conservation of momentum: if the gun imparted enough momentum on the bullet to knock a person down, then the gun would have enough momentum to knock the shooter down.

This gun will knock you down.

 

[StefanS]

This gun will knock you down.

That guy probably hadn't shot a gun in his entire life. Just watch his posture and the ridiculous way he behaves afterwards.

 

[Powderkeg]

That guy probably hadn't shot a gun in his entire life. Just watch his posture and the ridiculous way he behaves afterwards.

That was just one clip from a long video. The entire video shows 6 different people shooting that gun, and every single one of them is knocked on their butts.

Here are some more guys with the same gun.

http://www.thousandsgames.com/Video Archives/Hilarious Videos01/Big Gun.html

http://www.thousandsgames.com/Video Archives/Hilarious Videos01/Big Gun 2.html

 

[quest55720]

Not to derail the physics talk but reading impressions of those who got the demo this weekend have sold me on the game. Things like the improved controls to being able to high jack that train have sold me on the game. I also love the little touches like you can fly through the windshield of a car when you crash. Also the online play sounds like a blast damn august is going to be awesome with this and dead rising. I don't know how a game with this much potential could fly under the radar so long. This could very well be a game that is a system seller to the GTA fans who don't want to wait another year for the new GTA. The game sounds like it takes the elements of GTA but improves on them big time.

 

[Acert93]

http://www.xboxyde.com/stream_2799_en.html

Day cycle in Saint's Row. Seems pretty cool in that the trees and whatnot move. Pretty interesting.

 

[AlNom]

Pretty cool. They have a sort of weather system going on at the same time (cloud formation), and they also have the moon moving about with the moonlight affecting shadows too. I wonder if the weather is truly random. It would be pretty neat if there were a radio station that told the weather accordingly too. I guess it'd be more SIM-like then.

Now the only thing they haven't showed are NPC car accidents and the subsequent arrival of an ambulance and a firetruck..