Okay, to recap, here is a bullet-point feature list of what Axis & Allies: Spring will encompass. Some are definates, others are things we will try to go for.
Better models and textures More detailed scripting Better unit role definition; this will include cutting some units as well as modifying attributes of units (cost, buildtimes, weapons, health, etc) so that each has a more defined and unique role Infantry and light vehicles will become the main focus, with tanks and other heavy/tracked armour serving more of a Krogothian, "Epic" role in very large battles Dedicated Maps Work on all 4 sides (US, UK, Germany, Russia) simeltaneously
That is essentially it. It will be a complete rebuild, from scratch, and as in the last point, we will work on all 4 sides at once, not focus on two and spend all our time on them. So our first release will showcase the ability to play all sides (mmm, T-34 vs. Sherman).
Also, sorry for my week-long absence. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion came out on Monday and I've been playing that pretty much every waking moment. Even skipped 4 days of work... barely ate, slept at most 4-5 hours a night, just played played played! Infact, talking about it makes me want to play more... no! Must fight addiction to sweet, sweet Daedric Armour!
It shouldn't be too hard. Like before, a lot of things will generally be very easy to duplicate. Tank scripts, for instance, won't change much as most tanks have similar armament makeups (though different weapons, but still similar makeups). Infantry scripts will also be universal. Yes, the only problem will be modelling all the damned things (though that's not really THAT hard) and more importantly, skinning the mofos.
afaik those stationary guns can only be built in a gun pit, so why dont you just raise their hp quite a bit (compared to the mobile guns) to simulate the effect of being digged in?
Yes, I know this is a stupid question, but I'm at work so I can't read the entire thread right now... can I just download the mod and take a look at the models? I might want to ... skin something. Not making any big promises, though, NanoBlobs is taking most of my time. Was just thinking I might do a half-track or two- I really like WWII halftracks.
But, if I can import them into UpSpring, I can then export them, clean up their geometry, and add greebles. It's really not much work, unless their geometry is really terrible- I guess I just won't know unless I look at the models.
If nothing else, I can offer my expert opinion on whether it'd be faster to rebuild from scratch or just refurbish them and uvmap them. I'm certainly not going to skin them all for you- you don't have anybody who's competant at uvmapping or skinning, so we're talking about a huge amount of work here, at least a month or three, at my (admittedly slow) speed... and I have other things to work on. But I might save you a lot've time by pointing you in the right direction... and doing a couple of models to a high standard might provide a good quality benchmark... <shrugs> just a thought. AATA has a lot've potential, but only if the content reaches pro quality. Assuming that piece names stay the same, your main problem is getting content made, you can keep the animations the same. There are a lot've places you can recruit modelers / skinners, but you really need something that's going to convince them that you've got a hot project, y'know?
An alternate route might be to ... erm... "borrow" from another game engine. Forgotten Hope (a Battlefield 1942 mod, in case you didn't know about it) has a really wonderful collection of models, which might be translated with (relative) ease, and they're already skinned. However, they probably make use of multi-texturing, which is not, unfortunately, available in Spring yet.
Argh wrote:But, if I can import them into UpSpring, I can then export them, clean up their geometry, and add greebles. It's really not much work, unless their geometry is really terrible- I guess I just won't know unless I look at the models.
If nothing else, I can offer my expert opinion on whether it'd be faster to rebuild from scratch or just refurbish them and uvmap them. I'm certainly not going to skin them all for you- you don't have anybody who's competant at uvmapping or skinning, so we're talking about a huge amount of work here, at least a month or three, at my (admittedly slow) speed... and I have other things to work on. But I might save you a lot've time by pointing you in the right direction... and doing a couple of models to a high standard might provide a good quality benchmark... <shrugs> just a thought. AATA has a lot've potential, but only if the content reaches pro quality. Assuming that piece names stay the same, your main problem is getting content made, you can keep the animations the same. There are a lot've places you can recruit modelers / skinners, but you really need something that's going to convince them that you've got a hot project, y'know?
An alternate route might be to ... erm... "borrow" from another game engine. Forgotten Hope (a Battlefield 1942 mod, in case you didn't know about it) has a really wonderful collection of models, which might be translated with (relative) ease, and they're already skinned. However, they probably make use of multi-texturing, which is not, unfortunately, available in Spring yet.
Well, I can give you the link to the current full version, if you are only doing it to look at models. Any and all high quality work is very much appreciated.
You don't even have to send me the full version. All I really need is the 3DOs. Preferably with scripts, so that I can see things in context.
Saw the German soldier model, and based on my experience with NanoBlobs, it could go double its tricount without causing problems, especially as it would use minimal reflectivity (the gun's hardware needs a wee bit, and maybe a 1% on the helmet to give it shine), and no glowmaps, except perhaps with a custom gunflare. Needs six-sided, welded arms and legs for at least minimal roundness, and the arms seem rather broken up- you can do good-looking arms with two 36-tri spheroids that will look just fine if they are positioned correctly during animation, or add another hex-ring for a little extra detail, for a total of 144 tris for the arms/legs, and then just build a very simplistic hand and foot. The head definately needs work, and it'd be nice if it (or some other detail area) was made in a way that allowed it to be randomly switched out with others, so that you could have some variety. Could do that with pouches or other gear, too- a little scripting during Create() here and there, and you could have very individual-looking troops without serious problems. Just my initial thoughts here. As I've said, I really just need the geometry- the BOS's would help, though, because I would need to know if there are any wasted pieces or un-necessary junk that could be cut, etc.
If you can find a competant texture artist, I might be willing to lay out the UVs for a bunch of them- that's probably the "hardest" part of all of this (it's really not hard, but everybody seems to think it's scary). But I'd really suggest just getting a few really nice models out, making some screenshots, and then going hunting on places like the TurboSquid Forums, GamaSutra, etc., where you can probably find some people with the skillsets you need. I'd love to do them all, but I simply cannot do that and make my own games, seeing how nobody has responded to my advert for an animator...
<laughs> maybe I should "charge" you guys with scripting costs- you script one for me, I'll fix, detail and paint one for you... then we'd both get nice mods done
Ach, enough boasting. I will post up something when it's done. But don't expect it today, because I've decided to document the working TDF tags in the source tonight...
If AATA suddenly becomes unrunnable on my computer, I'm blaming Argh.
Currently, AATA does not lag my computer any more than, say, AA or XTA does. It lags my computer significantly less than NanoBlobs does.
edit. Some FPS's for you:
-Game start (only commander), zoomed 100% in on an empty segment of map -> 55 or so FPS.
-Regular zoom on empty map -> 48 FPS.
-During the typical course of an AA game -> 20-30 FPS.
-Commander explosion in AA -> 4-8 FPS.
-Typical NanoBlobs game -> 4-8 FPS.
As the designer of a truely minimalist game design... I am the last person on Earth who will argue that graphical glitz is a substitute for good game design. In fact, although I will not argue it here, I am much more in harmony with Das Bruce's concept of a smaller, more streamlined WWII experience than I am with AATA's over-arching concept.
However.
These guys need artists. The best way to get artists is to have some hot screens to convince them that your project is serious, and that they can help make a beautiful game.
Showing them Lego-like square-faced soldiers and units that do not make use of modern features such as reflections and glowmaps is not going to impress anybody. I'm helping because I like the idea that this might be a winner. Unlike SWTA or XTA, this has never been a giant project with a big team. Some of that is because of kludgey gameplay that never quite found a big audience in OTA, which Spring already supports many workarounds for, such as weapon arcs. I know Spiked has been working on this from before I came (briefly) to mod in the OTA community, did a bunch of stuff for Freelancer, and boomeranged around as Spring became attractive, and that says a lot to me- he's very dedicated to the mod, and will finish it. Being a "finish what you start" kind've guy myself, I want to help, in a limited fashion. Nobody says that they have to use anything I do in the final game, though- they may get some hot talent that totally blows my stuff away, and performs better, too!
If I can help them attract some talent with a few hours of my time, then it's time well-spent... because in 6 months, I can be playing a really nice WWII RTS, that doesn't look like crap. We have enough mods that look like crap in Spring already. If you want to play mods that look like crap, but run well on your machine, fine. But don't blame me because I want to use a modern game engine to make games that look good and play well on modern hardware that will become affordable hardware by the time this mod is converted over to S3O, in all likelihood...
Better models and textures
