[Selectah]

Hiya,

I don't know who's like 'in charge' of the port, and stuff, but I just got an idea. The 'cutscenes' in the port, refering of course to the still image of a planet w/ the 'ancients' text, y'know the briefing thing. I clearly remember I wrote a lengthy diatribe about sound files and such, to be ripped from the MVE files and all that. However, when I came to my senses I got a better idea. Before you start having thoughts about banning that Selectah Dude, hear me out.

What if the cutscenes would be rendered as ANI files? Accompanied by the appropriate sound file from the cutscene? I reckon this would be as close to the original cutscene thingy as one can get w/out forking with the FS2.EXE code. Y'know, a command briefing with an ANC1.ANI animation file plus an ANC1.WAV file? To save you guys all the trouble of making such an animation and sound file, I decided to make these myself. If anyone of the main guys behind the port would be interested in trying it out, the RAR file is here (14 MB, RAR). Contains an ANI file converted from the original MVE, plus a WAV file w/ the sound bite. I checked the MVE sound format, btw. Even though the MVE format allows 15 MHz stereo files, there's no sound info above 11.025 MHz present in the cutscenes, plus the cutscenes are mono, so I made a 11.025MHz mono file outta the audio. It could be worth a shot, what do I know? There's still some palette inconsistencies present in the ANI file, but that can be quickly sorted.

Whatever.

[CaptJosh]

Firstly, it's unnecessary. They've already beenconverted to Xvid and DivX encoded AVI files, which the game supports if you have the correct codecs installed in Windows. Also, In the linux builds, there's an .mve codec that will let you use the original .mve files if you're running linux and using the linux build to play this game.

Secondly...

Nothing personal here. I just have to ask; are you NUTS?! *chuckle*
Do you have any idea how big just the anis of those movies would be? Just to give you an idea, when first converted from mve to uncompressed avi, the FS2 opening movie is 4GB. Now this is the most extreme example, and admittedly, avi is not the same as ani, but even fs1 cutscenes would still be quite large. Not to mention the fact that it would take a seperate sound file set to play there as well, and the sound probably would not sync up correctly in scenes like the command briefing cutscene, where you have a squadron leader briefing a group of Terran and Vasudan pilots.

[Selectah]

Hiya CaptJosh,

Firstly, no, I am not nuts, but thanks for asking. Secondly, I have to ask you; are YOU nuts?

the game supports if you have the correct codecs installed in Windows

Vanilla FS2 doesn't support s**t as far as codecs go. SCP does, but just because YOU have the SCP build installed, doesn't mean that the rest of the known universe has it, ok? I, for one, will not touch the SCP FS2 with a ten foot pole. Neither will I install any version of Linux, ever. But then again, that's just me.

Do you have any idea how big just the anis of those movies would be?

No, I haven't got the faintest, considering I just posted a link to an ANI file that I just made a couple of hours ago. Of course the ANI and WAV files aren't in synch, but I don't think they need to be, either. The ANI files that I was refering to were the 'Ancients' briefings present in between the FSPort missions. The rest are just filler, as it were.

Thanks anyways for the heartfelt and deeply pondered reply.

[Singh]

This is coolness. I can't run the SCP on my old PCs, so yes, this would be a good alternative to the movies.

The fact that you managed to get it down to 14 megs is impressive though. I dont have ANI View on this PC, or freespace 2, so don't mind if i ask what are the resolutions for the ani? .Wavs are pretty big, but suitable if you aren't using SCP. However, I'd recommend putting them in a seperate download, as some people may want the anis, but not the wavs or vice versa. Either way, missions would have to be edited to include the new anis and .wav files into the briefings....

If you do intend to use SCP in the future, consider changing it into .ogg files as well, since they save up on space as compared to .wav.

[CaptJosh]

I was unaware that we were talking about vanilla FS2. I guess I keep forgetting that there are still people who don't or can't use the SCP. My apologies. I thought about my response, but apparently I didn't think long enough.

[Goober5000]

Originally posted by CaptJosh
I was unaware that we were talking about vanilla FS2. I guess I keep forgetting that there are still people who don't or can't use the SCP. My apologies. I thought about my response, but apparently I didn't think long enough.

You tend to do that a lot.  Just be more careful next time.

Thanks much, Selectah.  I'll have to talk it over with Galemp, but this could really come in handy.

[CaptJosh]

Well, at least I'm being a good sport about when I'm wrong... *looks sheepish*

[Galemp]

Interesting. The biggest issue here of course would be the filesize. There are 5 Ancients cutscenes and the ending movie, which would probably end up being around 70 mb for the ANIs and WAVs. I think we'd be better off making the original .MVE files available, if we can.

But don't despair. We'll be glad to use single-frame captures of the movies for the specific briefings, and the voice readings. It's a shame we can't isolate the dialog from the background music for them though.

As for the Command Brief cutscene, can you chop that audio and video up into 'stages' so we can have it as an actual Command Briefing?

Oh, and thanks for all this. It's great!

[Goober5000]

I have an idea.  What we could do is make a "cutscenes" VP available.  Let me explain:

1) The current campaign, as it stands, is compatible with SCP and plays the cutscenes in exactly their proper places.

2) The proposed system would display the cutscenes as cbanis and text.  It would be extremely helpful for people running retail but would be redundant for people who can play the cutscenes.

3) The WAV and ANI files would add a substantial extra chunk of filesize to be downloaded.

4) Solution: Make it optional.  The version distributed with v3.0 will have the movies in their proper places in the campaign.  But there will be an additional VP available for download from the site.  This additional VP will contain modified missions with the additional command briefing stages added, plus the cbani and voice files required to display them. Putting this VP alongside the Port VP will give the modified "pseudo-cutscene" missions priority over the unmodified ones.

[CaptJosh]

Originally posted by Galemp
(snip)
As for the Command Brief cutscene, can you chop that audio and video up into 'stages' so we can have it as an actual Command Briefing?(snip)

I do believe you're on to something there. Hrm...

Maybe do some graphics showing things like the shield tech and the various systems he talks about?

[Goober5000]

Originally posted by Galemp
As for the Command Brief cutscene, can you chop that audio and video up into 'stages' so we can have it as an actual Command Briefing?

That isn't really viable.  That cutscene takes place immediately before a real command briefing that describes the results of the attack.

[CaptJosh]

So much for that idea.

[Selectah]

As for the Command Brief cutscene, can you chop that audio and video up into 'stages' so we can have it as an actual Command Briefing?

That cutscene takes place immediately before a real command briefing that describes the results of the attack.

Yeah, plus the fact that FreeSpace loops any ANI files endlessly until it's time to change scene. The weirdo results of having the MVE chopped up in 'stages' is that after a while the officer walks about in front of the Sony Plasma Screen, waving his badly animated arms without VO.

I was going to suggest exactly what Goober5000 did. Have an optional VP containing the pseudo cutscenes. Just make sure the VP filename gives it priority over the main FSPort VP. Mind you, the 'Ancients' and the EndGame are the only ones that are required, or perhaps even doable. However over-dramatic and cringe-inducing those Ancients monologues are, they could add quite substantially to the game atmosphere. I just wonder who wrote those monologues, anyways. Some office temp at V, perhaps. It's quite hard to come by anything that incipid anywhere else.

The add-on VP won't be that big, anyways. Since some of you are keen on the OGG format, I did OGG files outta the audio, as well. In WAV format the Ancients Monologues when combined squeezed into a 700 KB RAR file. The OGG version was 2.2 MB. For guys/gals with broadband it won't make any difference whatsoever, either. The MVE scenes can't really be made available for Vanilla FS2, anyways. Maybe it's just me, but I reckon the honorable thing to do would be to make anything concerning the FSPort available to Vanilla players. That way it will work with any FS2 version. But, naturally, you're free to do just whatever you fancy.

[Gunteen6]

...and neither will i be installing any version of linux, ever.

  really now, do you have an issue with linux?? cause if so, PLEASE P.M ME AND WE CAN DISCUSS IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Gunteen6]

  i really have no problem with windows itself. but its the company ran by an evil madman and people like yourself that really piss me off !!! 

DO NOT DISS LINUX OR "DIG UP DIRT" ON IT IN PUBLIC, MAN!!!!!!

[Nuclear1]

Chill. He's not attacking Linux from what I read, but just saying he's not going to install Linux. Hey, I won't install Linux, but that's because I'm comfortable with Windows. But, that's another discussion for another time.

[CaptJosh]

Well, once my roommate gets Qwest Business Services to pull its collective head out of it's ass and the routable IPs start working again, I'm going to reconvert the FS1 MVE cutscenes to Xvid AVIs and drop them on a server hes given me to play with. Then they'll be available to download, and not only that, they'll look really good and be much smaller in file size than the originals.

[Cobra]

i really have no problem with windows itself. but its the company ran by an evil madman and people like yourself that really piss me off !!!

Ok, one: Bill Gates can probably sue you for that.

Two: Chill out. Linux isn't a religion. It's not God.

Three: I believe it was Windows that was first able to utilize the World Wide Web. Microsoft is a breakthrough company, man!

[CaptJosh]

Um, Unix was online before windows 1.0 was coded. How do you think they made the ARPAnet?

[Gunteen6]

ever heard of linux on a toaster?