Hi,
I was just wondering what the future of Panda3D and the physics engines it uses are. Will there be continued support for both ODE and Bullet for the foreseeable future, or is one recommended over the other in terms of longevity? It seems most favour Bullet, but ODE has some samples and tutorials that are easy to follow, tinker with and replicate. So what do the Panda3D devs advise?
I can’t tell the future. I can tell the present, which is that currently Bullet is much more popular than ODE, but there are no plans at present to remove ODE. You’ll have to make your decision based on that.
The ODE API appears to be very stable, and it is not a maintenance burden at all, so it is not being considered for removal. However, given that it’s not used very much these days, it is not a development focus. If it were to change substantially for some reason, and we had to make the decision to spend significant effort on it or remove it, it would probably get the axe.
Ok understood, so for projects that are planned with longevity in mind, bullet is the best bet.