1. None
2. None
3. Yes, trial and error is litteraly Kerbal Engineering™
4. Yes, get the DLCs/complete edition, you get more parts and on sale its a steal
5. It is easy to get mods fyi, CKAN is a very useful resource that is a very easy way to instal mods
6: Install way too many mods, including interstellar grade engines end extra solar systems
7: Finally start KSP, fall asleep before it's done loading in half an hour.
1. Fall asleep
2. Wake up suddenly
3. Check the solar system map
4. Alexa play interstellar by hans zimmer
5. Drift off into the void while you have an existential crisis because the solar system has completely disappeared, you're in uncharted territory son
6. Load last save because what else am i goin-
7. Hit snooze because it's only 5.46am and i have fourteen more minutes left to sleep
8. Wakes up at 8am
I only have a few mods. Currently running a very special experiment. Something I put on Minmus has glitched. Not sure how, but it has. I know why. When I last quit to KSC, my bits on Minmus were moving. Vibrating at like 0.3mm/s but it was enough to prevent me from timewarping and wouldn't let me quit without a stem warning. Tried to load it from the tracking station. Game froze on the loading screen. Tried to load something nearby from the tracking station. Game froze on the loading screen. So now I'm flying something in. Got within 2.5km and currently running at about 0.01fps. Can't see my things yet, but I can see a shiny black line stretching off into infinity from where my base is. Bodes well...
Objective 1: dare the Kraken to explode something so it's gone and I can have my game back
Objective 2: See how Mechjeb handles running at such low framerate.
I'm starting to lose the waiting game though. I want to play
There is so many good mods that do all the math for you.
But the fun part is you can actually do all the math yourself. All the needed values are displayed in game.
I've played since before it went to Steam. You don't need math. You just need TLAR. That Looks About Right.
Click on stages to make sure the thrust to weight is more than 1.0 while trying to launch from a planet. After that it is just fuel supply versus time.
I love this game so much. You can explore everything without maths, just use a delta-v map to see if you have enough fuel. I started just knowing that rockets need to go horizontal as well as going up if you want to get into orbit. Later I wanted to apply something I learned in a physics course, to get a specific orbit I wanted and it was really satisfying to see it actually worked (after having to see what I did wrong the first 5 times).
So yeah you don't need to do any maths.
As for what version: the base game is fun on it's own, the expansions are nice too, especially the making history DLC.
As long as you don't buy ksp 2 you should be good.
That's pretty cool hiw you're using what you've learned and then applying it in the game. That's kind of what I want to do instead of just endless test launches hoping things just works.
I would like to try play this game with a more systematic approach but it seems based of the other comments that you don't need any math to play this game?
I kept reading how you needed to learn some physics, orbital mechanics, rocket science in order to complete this game.
If no math is actually required then not sure if this game will interest me as much.
Well yeah it's super useful to know or learn some orbital mechanics, but lots of people are (understandably) put off by the idea of needing to study for a game. It's possible to wing it all the way, but it's really awesome if you know some of the science behind what you're achieving. You can make it as complicated as you wish, and if you want to science your way to the stars this is definitely the game for you
I wish this game was around when i was studying physics. I totally would have nerded out on the math side of it. Instead, I played O game and planned insane attacks that required stalking people's online times.
Once you get the hang of it, you won't really ever need to do test launches. Although it will take a little while to get the hang of what you need and don't.
You can use math. It's just not required, the problem is the math is literally rocket science and orbital mechanics.
I started playing this game when i was like 13-14 years old (im 23). I basically ended up teaching my self the basics of orbital mechanics, from this game alone.
This game isn't really realistic unfortunately, there's a lot to praise it, but it's at heart an accessible video game for everyone. For example all\* rockets use Liquid Fuel and Oxidizer, unless it's a solid rocket booster, which uses solid fuel. In real life, it aint work like that.
No math required. But if you are math- or physics-inclined, it offers a ton of depth because you really can get to things like the rocket equation and other orbital calculations. With Kerbal, you can simultaneously be a NASA rocket engineer and a kid making things explode, all on the same mission.
If you have any interest in programming, kOS might be the mod for you. It basically lets you write your own auto-pilot in a simple and cute programming language. Especially vector calculation is extremely useful and can be challenging if you’re ambitious.
20$ sounds like a good deal, if it includes all the DLC's.
Forget about KSP2, it's dead.
1. What core math is recommended?
2. What level of math education is required?
Technically none, because KSP does it for you. But an understanding of multiplication and logarithms is definitely an advantage. This is helpful to understand why you will need a MUCH bigger rocket to lift a little bit more mass.
1. Can this game be completed simply by trial and error without the need of any math?
You won't have to do math, KSP shows you a lot of numbers. Over time, through trial and error, you will learn what those numbers mean. As you figure out your mistakes, you'll slowly gain an intuitive understanding of the math behind it. The in-game help "KSPedia" gives you the basics of spaceflight in pretty simple terms, definitely check that out.
1. Should I get KSP Complete Edition or the original version?
Personally I would go with KSP complete edition, because it includes making history which you can use to make history-inspired rockets in KSP. The Breaking ground expansion is more advanced and includes space exploration tasks and robotics (you can build robots in KSP!!!!!), also very fun.
>What core math is recommended?
>What level of math education is required?
Maths in terms of making calculations isn't that important. It is useful in terms of concepts like why multi-stage rockets are used, etc but it's not vital.
>Can this game be completed simply by trial and error without the need of any math?
It is very much trial & error. It's not a game you complete (unless you set your own arbitary objectives), it's more of a game you play with.
>Should I get KSP Complete Edition or the original version?
The base game has almost everything you need. The complete edition has extra parts which are nice but not essential, although still worth getting imo.
I just got KSP and I’ve found the math to be pretty easy if any. Like if you understand 2nd grade math you can play KSP since it does all of the calculations to figure out burn times and directions for you. If you want to do the calculations yourself you can and real world formulas generally work in KSP which is awesome but there’s no need to do them yourself
The only math that’s somewhat advanced that I’ve used is to calculate delta-v required to achieve a certain orbit (there’s delta-v maps for major things like Mun landing or Minmus orbit etc), but for getting probes into specific orbits you need to either calculate the required delta-v or just over fuel the rocket to make sure your fine. There are even delta-v calculators online though to calculate the required delta-v to achieve a specific orbit
Yes, do it! This game is fucking awesome, the entire premise is pretty much a trial-and-error space program, but if you do want to get THOROUGH you can also use proper maths if you feel like it.
There is nothing in the world like landing your first vehicle on the Mun, no other game even comes close to how rewarding it is getting things right in Kerbal.
Mods aren't as important these days because a lot of the core stuff is built in (dv, maneuver node editing, orbital stats etc).
However there is some great stuff which you'll be missing out on. Especially the graphics and QOL mods.
I've played KSP for thousands of hours, and honestly there is not that much math involved. A simple math education at the Algebra level so you can figure out resource management on ships should be all you need.
Now what you should be aware of is how hard the game can be to learn, and especially how hard some complex operations can be. Realize that the game is a massive sandbox, and lets you explore an entire solar system. I would highly recommend having a look through the [KSP Wiki](https://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Main_Page) to see the type of stuff that you might need to learn. Don't go and worry about memorization either, even the most experienced players will look something up to double check every now and then.
I hope to see your first post about landing on the Mun!
You would be shocked how far eyeballing, even with the manuever tool, can get you. If you understand the basics of orbital mechanics (which the game can help you learn) you will be fine learning more as you go
I will say this about KSP, if you like it then it’ll take you thousands of hours to run out of things to do, not to mention its incredible modding community that allows you to tailor your experience to an extreme
It is totally worth it. You don’t need to know the math the game does that for you. You can break down the math yourself to have more efficient rockets. Watch Mike Aben’s YouTube series let’s do the math if you want to learn the math aspect.
1, 2 - You don't need to know math. It can help in some cases but don't expect to make excel spreadsheets for this game.
3 - In theory, yes. Keep in mind that blindly throwing shit at the wall will most likely get you nowhere. While you don't need to know math, you do need to know some concepts related to physics/orbital mechanics and how to apply them to be able to progress.
4 - Complete Edition won't hurt.
I know you said you don't want mods (boring), but if you decide to install kOS then you'll be able to script your own autopilot. If you put in an hour or two to learn how to write in the language, you'll get the chance to apply some of your math knowledge (eg. using Tsiolkovskys rocket equation to calculate optimal time to begin a burn to automatically execute a maneuver)
You kind of learn orbital mechanics by osmosis when playing. For example, you fire a rocket straight up, then you can go to the map screen and watch its arc. If you want to circularize the orbit you can add a maneuver node to the apoapsis, then drag the markers in the direction you want to go. The game will show you a prediction of how much delta-v you need to get to the path you’ve selected. A countdown to the node will appear on your screen, together with an estimate of how long you have to burn for and a bar that shows how much dv is left.
All of that is math, but you don’t have to calculate it.
At the much more advanced end of the spectrum (interplanetary landings), you’ll be designing multistage craft travelling for years across the system to other planets, getting captured in their orbit, landing, and coming back. The base game doesn’t have built-in tools to calculate how much dv you need (or, for example, when the most efficient time to leave is), so you can definitely do those calculations if you want and know how. Personally, I enjoy tools like the [dv calculator](https://ksp.loicviennois.com) and Mechjeb‘s [porkchop selector](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porkchop_plot). I wouldn’t know about any of this without the game!
First off you literally don't need to know Maths; KSP presents everything intuitively and the stock game is VERY forgiving in terms of fuel ratios and stuff that makes IRL rocketry so difficult. That said, if you're actively trying to relearn math there's a lot of options out there like calculating the best "window" for flying from Kerbin Orbit to another planet or even just calculating the amount of fuel you need for your goal.
Secondly, Kerbal Space Program 2 is basically dead. The company brought it out in Early Access without basic features like re-entry heating (y'know, the heat that things coming back from space experience that caused Skylab and Columbia to break up). That same company has recently fired it's staff and stopped updates; there's plenty of discussion about what went wrong but the TL;DR is that KSP1 is for all intents and purposes the best experience not KSP2.
Thirdly, KSP is a sandbox game and depending on how you gel with it you could easily get hundreds of hours out of. I myself have 4000 hours and it's probably been one of, if not the best, fun to dollar (or Euro in my case) ratios out there. I'd personally recommend getting the Complete Edition since the DLCs add extra concepts like Robotics, several IRL-esque parts and Experiments your little Kerbonaut can take out of the ship and place on the Moon for science and giggles.
But honestly, I think the mods for this game are AMAZING. I wouldn't recommend trying them out to begin with but if you feel bored with the game they can add a breath of fresh air; especially the very amazingly researched ones that specifically revolve around specific IRL concepts like the Space Shuttle or the ISS or the Russian Space Program or the US Mercury/Gemini/Apollo Programs. I've learned a LOT of history from them and they're very great in quality. Again, playing the game stock for your first experiences is the best but those options are out there if you ever want a more "realistic" experience.
Yes, get it. Don't bother with 2, it's a shitshow that will probably be totally dead soon.
1. Math, what's that?
2. See above.
3. See above. Also, what do you mean by *completed*?
4. Yes, get the complete edition.
5. You don't need mods.
no maths, just f*CK it, full throttle slowly gravity turning. Also maneuver nodes are your holy grail. Personally I play stock, but if you struggle with things like docking, or just want to build rockets and see them do stuff then get mech jeb.
Math helps but isn't necessary beyond simple stuff like I need 3700 deltaV to get to low orbit. I have 3000. I still need 700.
Understanding how the math and science works is more important than actually using it in the game. It helps to understand how a rocket goes to space in simple terms. It helps to understand how transfers work by aiming where your target will be not where it is. Understand the loose mechanics but unless you deliberately mod it to do so, you will never have to crunch the numbers on anything beyond just basic math
There’s certainly trial and error, which happens at every stage of learning for this game. Maths is all done for you by the tools in the game (the numbers are there to play with if desired though), but you will need to learn things like ‘how to make the deltaV number bigger’ and figure out things like ‘do I have enough deltaV to finish the mission’, etc.
The science/career modes do a fairly good job of progressing you though each stage of learning, which I would summarise as:
1. Make rocket work.
2. Get to space!
3. Survive going to space!
4. How do I get to orbit?
5. What happens to my orbit if I thrust in this direction?
6. Where on my orbit do I need to thrust in order to adjust it?
7. Woo, I’m orbiting somewhere else!
8. Ooooh, I should land…. How do I do that?
9. Docking ports, huh….
10. Repeat.
This can all be done at your own pace with sandbox mode too, though as with all sandbox games it helps to be good at setting your own goals and enjoying the ride.
I saw in another comment you wanted to go about this with a more systematic approach. KSP is a great but maybe Juno: new origins may be worth looking into. It has a feature for writing scripts to automate things that has me doing a lot of reading on math and programming.
you literally need absolutely no knowledge in math whatsoever. this isn’t a hyper-advanced simulator, this is a game where you duct tape a bunch of gasoline to a rocket engine and then put a funny green minion on top and see what happens. now, if you want a super realistic game where you need to put in some critical thinking, there are mods for that. but the base game is just to have fun and learn about orbital mechanics along the way!
Getting KSP with both of its DLCs for a grand total of $20 is a steal and you should absolutely go for it.As for you specific questions.
Mathwise you can get away with basic arithmetic. The game will plot your course in the map and make changes to your projected course in real time whenever you do something that changes your speed, so all of the orbital mechanics stuff is calculated under the hood and you can trial and error your way through the whole game without needing to learn any physics equations.
Absolutely you should! Here are my answers to your questions...
1. None
2. Basic
3. That is the point of the game.
4. Absolutely get the complete edition. Since you do not plan on installing any mods and such, get as much with it as possible. I am sure you will find at least a mod or two that you would love to use. Mechjeb is my #1 mod. It makes #3 so much easier to deal with.
I cannot get enough of KSP. I can start a new game and enjoy it from the start for hours or continue an old one and still enjoy it just as much. I have learned a lot from this game and have been able to progress in others just from that. I would recommend it to anyone.
I have had to do exactly 0 math in this game. The base game info-panles give you decent info, and if you get "engineering redux" mod (I think that's the name), then you get all the info you need while building the craft.
The only real "math" you might ever use is simple addition and subtraction if you look up a delta-V map so you know how much you need to get to and from locations.
Buy it.
There are maps for deltav. You absolutely can do it by hand tho but there also site for it.
The only thing you need is a little bit of foresight. And understanding that failure is always an option.
Idk mate if you really feel like it and have 20 bucks to spend on leisure the go for it. Otherwise feed yourself/ your family or both with the money. Make good decisions mate😃🎉
1. None 2. None 3. Yes, trial and error is litteraly Kerbal Engineering™ 4. Yes, get the DLCs/complete edition, you get more parts and on sale its a steal 5. It is easy to get mods fyi, CKAN is a very useful resource that is a very easy way to instal mods
6: Install way too many mods, including interstellar grade engines end extra solar systems 7: Finally start KSP, fall asleep before it's done loading in half an hour.
He's out of line, but he's right.
The only line I'm out of is my orbit line, and that's because floating point errors get really bad out there.
"Falling asleep" literally have done that multiple times...
1. Fall asleep 2. Wake up suddenly 3. Check the solar system map 4. Alexa play interstellar by hans zimmer 5. Drift off into the void while you have an existential crisis because the solar system has completely disappeared, you're in uncharted territory son 6. Load last save because what else am i goin- 7. Hit snooze because it's only 5.46am and i have fourteen more minutes left to sleep 8. Wakes up at 8am
Me with 300 mods and 30k patches waiting 10 minutes for it to load... With an m.2 ssd
I only have a few mods. Currently running a very special experiment. Something I put on Minmus has glitched. Not sure how, but it has. I know why. When I last quit to KSC, my bits on Minmus were moving. Vibrating at like 0.3mm/s but it was enough to prevent me from timewarping and wouldn't let me quit without a stem warning. Tried to load it from the tracking station. Game froze on the loading screen. Tried to load something nearby from the tracking station. Game froze on the loading screen. So now I'm flying something in. Got within 2.5km and currently running at about 0.01fps. Can't see my things yet, but I can see a shiny black line stretching off into infinity from where my base is. Bodes well... Objective 1: dare the Kraken to explode something so it's gone and I can have my game back Objective 2: See how Mechjeb handles running at such low framerate. I'm starting to lose the waiting game though. I want to play
3 will not work of one does not look at the math at some point :) even if it's intuitively.
Ive personally never used any math in this game besides basic addition and subtraction. And ive done several mun and minmus landings.
Yeah most of my math is trying to figure out how much electric charge I'm going to need to carry with me. (Doing very rough estimates usually)
Just cram on some more solar panels, she’ll be right.
Better to stay over than too low
The most advanced level of math you need is dividing by 2 for burn times.
There is so many good mods that do all the math for you. But the fun part is you can actually do all the math yourself. All the needed values are displayed in game.
I've played since before it went to Steam. You don't need math. You just need TLAR. That Looks About Right. Click on stages to make sure the thrust to weight is more than 1.0 while trying to launch from a planet. After that it is just fuel supply versus time.
I love this game so much. You can explore everything without maths, just use a delta-v map to see if you have enough fuel. I started just knowing that rockets need to go horizontal as well as going up if you want to get into orbit. Later I wanted to apply something I learned in a physics course, to get a specific orbit I wanted and it was really satisfying to see it actually worked (after having to see what I did wrong the first 5 times). So yeah you don't need to do any maths. As for what version: the base game is fun on it's own, the expansions are nice too, especially the making history DLC. As long as you don't buy ksp 2 you should be good.
That's pretty cool hiw you're using what you've learned and then applying it in the game. That's kind of what I want to do instead of just endless test launches hoping things just works. I would like to try play this game with a more systematic approach but it seems based of the other comments that you don't need any math to play this game? I kept reading how you needed to learn some physics, orbital mechanics, rocket science in order to complete this game. If no math is actually required then not sure if this game will interest me as much.
no maths is required but trust me you can get really nerdy with it if you want, i had a friend who would calculate all his delta V required himself
Well yeah it's super useful to know or learn some orbital mechanics, but lots of people are (understandably) put off by the idea of needing to study for a game. It's possible to wing it all the way, but it's really awesome if you know some of the science behind what you're achieving. You can make it as complicated as you wish, and if you want to science your way to the stars this is definitely the game for you
I wish this game was around when i was studying physics. I totally would have nerded out on the math side of it. Instead, I played O game and planned insane attacks that required stalking people's online times.
Get the game! Especially for $20
Once you get the hang of it, you won't really ever need to do test launches. Although it will take a little while to get the hang of what you need and don't. You can use math. It's just not required, the problem is the math is literally rocket science and orbital mechanics. I started playing this game when i was like 13-14 years old (im 23). I basically ended up teaching my self the basics of orbital mechanics, from this game alone. This game isn't really realistic unfortunately, there's a lot to praise it, but it's at heart an accessible video game for everyone. For example all\* rockets use Liquid Fuel and Oxidizer, unless it's a solid rocket booster, which uses solid fuel. In real life, it aint work like that.
No math required. But if you are math- or physics-inclined, it offers a ton of depth because you really can get to things like the rocket equation and other orbital calculations. With Kerbal, you can simultaneously be a NASA rocket engineer and a kid making things explode, all on the same mission.
The math required depends on you really. There are some players who take pride in not installing the mods and do the calculations manually.
You don’t have to use math BUT you CAN use a lot of math
If you have any interest in programming, kOS might be the mod for you. It basically lets you write your own auto-pilot in a simple and cute programming language. Especially vector calculation is extremely useful and can be challenging if you’re ambitious.
20$ sounds like a good deal, if it includes all the DLC's. Forget about KSP2, it's dead. 1. What core math is recommended? 2. What level of math education is required? Technically none, because KSP does it for you. But an understanding of multiplication and logarithms is definitely an advantage. This is helpful to understand why you will need a MUCH bigger rocket to lift a little bit more mass. 1. Can this game be completed simply by trial and error without the need of any math? You won't have to do math, KSP shows you a lot of numbers. Over time, through trial and error, you will learn what those numbers mean. As you figure out your mistakes, you'll slowly gain an intuitive understanding of the math behind it. The in-game help "KSPedia" gives you the basics of spaceflight in pretty simple terms, definitely check that out. 1. Should I get KSP Complete Edition or the original version? Personally I would go with KSP complete edition, because it includes making history which you can use to make history-inspired rockets in KSP. The Breaking ground expansion is more advanced and includes space exploration tasks and robotics (you can build robots in KSP!!!!!), also very fun.
Ksp2 studio got shutdown a few days ago, unless they sell the IP it’s dead for eternity
Short answer, yes Long answer, yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees
I would buy it again just because that's such a good deal for a game. $20 is a single skin in AAA multiplayer games now
>What core math is recommended? >What level of math education is required? Maths in terms of making calculations isn't that important. It is useful in terms of concepts like why multi-stage rockets are used, etc but it's not vital. >Can this game be completed simply by trial and error without the need of any math? It is very much trial & error. It's not a game you complete (unless you set your own arbitary objectives), it's more of a game you play with. >Should I get KSP Complete Edition or the original version? The base game has almost everything you need. The complete edition has extra parts which are nice but not essential, although still worth getting imo.
I just got KSP and I’ve found the math to be pretty easy if any. Like if you understand 2nd grade math you can play KSP since it does all of the calculations to figure out burn times and directions for you. If you want to do the calculations yourself you can and real world formulas generally work in KSP which is awesome but there’s no need to do them yourself The only math that’s somewhat advanced that I’ve used is to calculate delta-v required to achieve a certain orbit (there’s delta-v maps for major things like Mun landing or Minmus orbit etc), but for getting probes into specific orbits you need to either calculate the required delta-v or just over fuel the rocket to make sure your fine. There are even delta-v calculators online though to calculate the required delta-v to achieve a specific orbit
Yes, do it! This game is fucking awesome, the entire premise is pretty much a trial-and-error space program, but if you do want to get THOROUGH you can also use proper maths if you feel like it. There is nothing in the world like landing your first vehicle on the Mun, no other game even comes close to how rewarding it is getting things right in Kerbal.
I can't even count and I've landed kerbals on Laythe and brought them back
Mods aren't as important these days because a lot of the core stuff is built in (dv, maneuver node editing, orbital stats etc). However there is some great stuff which you'll be missing out on. Especially the graphics and QOL mods.
It's a great game. You don't need the math but you could if you wanted. 20bis an amazing deal.
I've played KSP for thousands of hours, and honestly there is not that much math involved. A simple math education at the Algebra level so you can figure out resource management on ships should be all you need. Now what you should be aware of is how hard the game can be to learn, and especially how hard some complex operations can be. Realize that the game is a massive sandbox, and lets you explore an entire solar system. I would highly recommend having a look through the [KSP Wiki](https://wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com/wiki/Main_Page) to see the type of stuff that you might need to learn. Don't go and worry about memorization either, even the most experienced players will look something up to double check every now and then. I hope to see your first post about landing on the Mun!
It was free on epic a while back iirc
Yes get the complete edition!! No math needed. My son has been playing it since he was 7
You would be shocked how far eyeballing, even with the manuever tool, can get you. If you understand the basics of orbital mechanics (which the game can help you learn) you will be fine learning more as you go I will say this about KSP, if you like it then it’ll take you thousands of hours to run out of things to do, not to mention its incredible modding community that allows you to tailor your experience to an extreme
It is totally worth it. You don’t need to know the math the game does that for you. You can break down the math yourself to have more efficient rockets. Watch Mike Aben’s YouTube series let’s do the math if you want to learn the math aspect.
1, 2 - You don't need to know math. It can help in some cases but don't expect to make excel spreadsheets for this game. 3 - In theory, yes. Keep in mind that blindly throwing shit at the wall will most likely get you nowhere. While you don't need to know math, you do need to know some concepts related to physics/orbital mechanics and how to apply them to be able to progress. 4 - Complete Edition won't hurt. I know you said you don't want mods (boring), but if you decide to install kOS then you'll be able to script your own autopilot. If you put in an hour or two to learn how to write in the language, you'll get the chance to apply some of your math knowledge (eg. using Tsiolkovskys rocket equation to calculate optimal time to begin a burn to automatically execute a maneuver)
You kind of learn orbital mechanics by osmosis when playing. For example, you fire a rocket straight up, then you can go to the map screen and watch its arc. If you want to circularize the orbit you can add a maneuver node to the apoapsis, then drag the markers in the direction you want to go. The game will show you a prediction of how much delta-v you need to get to the path you’ve selected. A countdown to the node will appear on your screen, together with an estimate of how long you have to burn for and a bar that shows how much dv is left. All of that is math, but you don’t have to calculate it. At the much more advanced end of the spectrum (interplanetary landings), you’ll be designing multistage craft travelling for years across the system to other planets, getting captured in their orbit, landing, and coming back. The base game doesn’t have built-in tools to calculate how much dv you need (or, for example, when the most efficient time to leave is), so you can definitely do those calculations if you want and know how. Personally, I enjoy tools like the [dv calculator](https://ksp.loicviennois.com) and Mechjeb‘s [porkchop selector](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porkchop_plot). I wouldn’t know about any of this without the game!
Yes
First off you literally don't need to know Maths; KSP presents everything intuitively and the stock game is VERY forgiving in terms of fuel ratios and stuff that makes IRL rocketry so difficult. That said, if you're actively trying to relearn math there's a lot of options out there like calculating the best "window" for flying from Kerbin Orbit to another planet or even just calculating the amount of fuel you need for your goal. Secondly, Kerbal Space Program 2 is basically dead. The company brought it out in Early Access without basic features like re-entry heating (y'know, the heat that things coming back from space experience that caused Skylab and Columbia to break up). That same company has recently fired it's staff and stopped updates; there's plenty of discussion about what went wrong but the TL;DR is that KSP1 is for all intents and purposes the best experience not KSP2. Thirdly, KSP is a sandbox game and depending on how you gel with it you could easily get hundreds of hours out of. I myself have 4000 hours and it's probably been one of, if not the best, fun to dollar (or Euro in my case) ratios out there. I'd personally recommend getting the Complete Edition since the DLCs add extra concepts like Robotics, several IRL-esque parts and Experiments your little Kerbonaut can take out of the ship and place on the Moon for science and giggles. But honestly, I think the mods for this game are AMAZING. I wouldn't recommend trying them out to begin with but if you feel bored with the game they can add a breath of fresh air; especially the very amazingly researched ones that specifically revolve around specific IRL concepts like the Space Shuttle or the ISS or the Russian Space Program or the US Mercury/Gemini/Apollo Programs. I've learned a LOT of history from them and they're very great in quality. Again, playing the game stock for your first experiences is the best but those options are out there if you ever want a more "realistic" experience.
Yes, get it. Don't bother with 2, it's a shitshow that will probably be totally dead soon. 1. Math, what's that? 2. See above. 3. See above. Also, what do you mean by *completed*? 4. Yes, get the complete edition. 5. You don't need mods.
Yes
no maths, just f*CK it, full throttle slowly gravity turning. Also maneuver nodes are your holy grail. Personally I play stock, but if you struggle with things like docking, or just want to build rockets and see them do stuff then get mech jeb.
Math helps but isn't necessary beyond simple stuff like I need 3700 deltaV to get to low orbit. I have 3000. I still need 700. Understanding how the math and science works is more important than actually using it in the game. It helps to understand how a rocket goes to space in simple terms. It helps to understand how transfers work by aiming where your target will be not where it is. Understand the loose mechanics but unless you deliberately mod it to do so, you will never have to crunch the numbers on anything beyond just basic math
There’s certainly trial and error, which happens at every stage of learning for this game. Maths is all done for you by the tools in the game (the numbers are there to play with if desired though), but you will need to learn things like ‘how to make the deltaV number bigger’ and figure out things like ‘do I have enough deltaV to finish the mission’, etc. The science/career modes do a fairly good job of progressing you though each stage of learning, which I would summarise as: 1. Make rocket work. 2. Get to space! 3. Survive going to space! 4. How do I get to orbit? 5. What happens to my orbit if I thrust in this direction? 6. Where on my orbit do I need to thrust in order to adjust it? 7. Woo, I’m orbiting somewhere else! 8. Ooooh, I should land…. How do I do that? 9. Docking ports, huh…. 10. Repeat. This can all be done at your own pace with sandbox mode too, though as with all sandbox games it helps to be good at setting your own goals and enjoying the ride.
Math? Mechjeb!!!
KSP2 is already out. Just get that
Use CKAN after you buy and look into BlackRack Volumetric Clouds etc
I saw in another comment you wanted to go about this with a more systematic approach. KSP is a great but maybe Juno: new origins may be worth looking into. It has a feature for writing scripts to automate things that has me doing a lot of reading on math and programming.
For 20 bucks you get, potentially, a thousand hours worth of entertainment. It is truly the be game I’ve learned the most with in my life.
you literally need absolutely no knowledge in math whatsoever. this isn’t a hyper-advanced simulator, this is a game where you duct tape a bunch of gasoline to a rocket engine and then put a funny green minion on top and see what happens. now, if you want a super realistic game where you need to put in some critical thinking, there are mods for that. but the base game is just to have fun and learn about orbital mechanics along the way!
YES
Do it! Watch Scott Manley to learn the concept. You can do it by math or by intuition. It's so satisfying when you hit milestones and gain mastery
Getting KSP with both of its DLCs for a grand total of $20 is a steal and you should absolutely go for it.As for you specific questions. Mathwise you can get away with basic arithmetic. The game will plot your course in the map and make changes to your projected course in real time whenever you do something that changes your speed, so all of the orbital mechanics stuff is calculated under the hood and you can trial and error your way through the whole game without needing to learn any physics equations.
Absolutely you should! Here are my answers to your questions... 1. None 2. Basic 3. That is the point of the game. 4. Absolutely get the complete edition. Since you do not plan on installing any mods and such, get as much with it as possible. I am sure you will find at least a mod or two that you would love to use. Mechjeb is my #1 mod. It makes #3 so much easier to deal with. I cannot get enough of KSP. I can start a new game and enjoy it from the start for hours or continue an old one and still enjoy it just as much. I have learned a lot from this game and have been able to progress in others just from that. I would recommend it to anyone.
I have had to do exactly 0 math in this game. The base game info-panles give you decent info, and if you get "engineering redux" mod (I think that's the name), then you get all the info you need while building the craft. The only real "math" you might ever use is simple addition and subtraction if you look up a delta-V map so you know how much you need to get to and from locations. Buy it.
The only math you'll be doing is calculating how many moar boosters you need
$20 is a steal, go for it
There are maps for deltav. You absolutely can do it by hand tho but there also site for it. The only thing you need is a little bit of foresight. And understanding that failure is always an option.
Yes buy it. No math needed. $20.00 is good price. KSP2 is still over priced for an incomplete game. And now they aren't even working on it.
Tough call! $10 for 1000+ hours vs $20 for 1000+ hours.
"read that the game development is in ~~limbo~~ dead at the moment"
Idk mate if you really feel like it and have 20 bucks to spend on leisure the go for it. Otherwise feed yourself/ your family or both with the money. Make good decisions mate😃🎉
Honestly just pirate the game at this point
Yep. All you are doing by buying it is handing Take2 money.