[WormSlayer]

I've been working on this set of replacement HUD graphics for the Vasudan ships.

Beta version available here for anyone who wants to try it out.

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[The E]

Welcome to HLP! Hope you enjoy your stay here.

Now, there is no generalized "work assignment" going on, but sooner or later someone from one of the mod teams will try to recruit you.

More modellers are very welcome indeed. However, the biggest hurdle in getting models into the game has traditionally been the conversion process from whatever the modeller uses to the pof format the engine understands.

If you want to do your own mods, the wikis' modding portal would be a good start.
The installation instructions for real men thread offers some valuable lessons in keeping your FS2 install clean and organized.


If you have a full install with all the mediavps goodness, there are a few models that have not yet been brought up to modern standards, those could always use some work.

[WormSlayer]

Hey thanks man

The busy mod scene was one of the things that attracted me, and I have no problem with devoting some time to one or more mods, but I really wanted to update something like the HUD that would benefit the most people.

I found a thread where someone else had already had the same idea, and they do still seem to be active, so maybe I'll just help with that rather than starting my own mod. (Especially since I have yet to even delve into the various formats, etc.)

[The E]

You gotta define what you mean by HUD there.

Unfortunately, the user interface (from the menu screens to the in-mission HUD) is one of the areas where the engine really shows its age, lots of stuff being hardcoded to a really annoying degree.
A rewrite of these parts is planned and in progress, but it will take time.

As for the menu screens, we are limited to 1024*768 screens with button art with fixed sizes and positions.

And noone is going to stop you from making your work publically accessible, it is, in fact, preferred.

[Galemp]

Welcome!

Of course, the FreeSpace Upgrade Project is the number one place for your work to be seen and appreciated, as everyone uses the Media VPs. As has been stated there's a good number of ships that haven't been upgraded yet; check the sticky thread for details. Among the ones that have been, there are some older ones (the Orion immediately springs to mind) that are due for a makeover using baked UV maps and cleaner textures. And if you're any good at texture painting, I have a Colossus for you...

As far as the interface goes, we've really done all we can with it. Like The E said, there's no room for improvement. If you'd like to work on a HUD, though, I would be really happy if you designed a Vasudan HUD that could be used when piloting Vasudan ships. It would really increase the immersion factor. Fancy giving it a shot?

[Bobboau]

just a thought, but a completely new set of HUD and interface elements would be a huge boost to anyone wanting to make a 'stand alone' mod, if that's something you would be interested in then I'm sure it would be appreciated.

[WormSlayer]

By "HUD", I meant things like the central crosshair, the throttle/speed indicator, fonts, etc.

If the resolution cant be increased until such time as the UI part of the engine gets a rewrite then an alternate alien HUD could be cool. My brief skim of the Vasudan entry in the wiki would indicate an almost Goa'uld-like fondness for Egyptian styling?

If there are ships that need up-rezzing so to speak then I'm happy to have a go.

One thing that would really help is if someone familiar with the engine and data structure could help identify exactly which files need to be modified!

I'm going to go read up on some stuff!

[Black Wolf]

You might consider the IRC channel if you need hel with the file structure - it's pretty well known, and there're always people idling ion there who can explain the basics In essence though, models are pof files, which can be generated using a proggy called PCS2 from standard geometry formats like .cob and .obj. Textures are preferrably in .dds, but tga will work too (as will, technically, jpeg and 256 colour PCXs, but those are a bit outdated). Ship attributes are defined in .tbl or .tbm files, which you can read/edit in notepad (they're essentially the same files - tbms are modular while tbls are larger is all). The oriinal game files are packaged in VPs, for which you'll need something like Maja or VPView32.

Hmm... writing it all out quickly like that, it seems complex, but it's really fairly intuitive - the tbl files are standard ASCII, the pof files are barely modified geometry (it just adds the stuff the game needs, like firepoints and engineglows)- the extensions are unique but the content really isn't. There's really good documentation for all this on the wiki too.

[Galemp]

Indeed! Some things to familiarize yourself with are the .VP and .ANI file formats.

VPs are packages that hold all the other files the game engine uses. You can use VPView to extract them. ANIs are collections of 256 color PCX files with a common palette used for virtually all the interface elements, including command briefing animations, briefing icons, the entire ship and weapon loadout interface, and all the clickable buttons on the interface. There's work being done right now to extend .EFF (32 bit color with 8-bit alpha channels) animation support to the interface but it's not done yet. More information is (or should be) available on the Wiki.

You should start by taking a crash course in Vasudan aesthetics. Look over the Vasudan spacecraft in FS1, and the more streamlined style of FS2, including the Psamtik's main hall. Compare that to the ship styles and HUDs of the GTA and the GTVA, and get some ideas of what the Vasudan analogues of that era might be.

Then just take a screenshot of the HUD and draw over it. Show us what you're thinking of and we'll provide feedback. Then, when you have something you're satisfied with, pick through all the dozens of HUD elements in the VPs and we'll help you carve up your drawing and convert it into something useful.

[Bobboau]

.eff don't work for the interface? he doesn't need to worry about vps (other than how to extract from them) or pofs if he's going to be an interface artist, and all he needs to know about ani is how to take one appart (and I guess put it back together)

[Zacam]

EFF has been working in the Interface for a while, except in the case of HUD elements.

Unless I managed to drastically miss something, that's my current understanding. What is being worked on now that can be used interface wise in/as an EFF is the PNG file format.

[WormSlayer]

So this is what I've come up with so far, I'm not really sure how much room there is to play with around the edges of the various dialog boxes though...

Suggestions welcome!

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[FreeSpaceFreak]

Wow, nice. I'm only not quite sure about the round thingies; they're the warning lights, right? They could look more like the threat they're indicating; the top icon ,eams you're being (primary-)fired at, the bottom one means someone is locking missiles onto you.

You are bringing the HUD to a whole new level though

[WormSlayer]

Thanks, glad you like

I was trying to avoid a flashing missile icon and make it all like... alien an stuff

It's supposed to represent a sort of sensor display that jiggles in different wavelengths when it detects a missile lock or whatever?

[Dilmah G]

Wow, that's ****ing awesome mate!

[Colonol Dekker]

Join TAP!
 
Click the icon under my name. Or have a look at least. Any Homeworld interest? What engines have you worked with before?

[Black Wolf]

Love the HUD so far - keep it up

And don't let Dekker distract you - Vasudans > Higarans

[Colonol Dekker]

We lost our Homeworld too.
But Yes we got it back

[Galemp]

That's a major departure from what we're used to. I love it! Spare a thought for battle field clarity, though, and make sure everything's legible when you're dogfighting in a nebula.

[Rodo]

That looks really good