Hard Light Productions Forums
Hosted Projects - Standalone => Diaspora => Topic started by: Lt.Cannonfodder on March 23, 2009, 09:41:24 am
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After a short chat in our lair in Mordo... erm, on the irc channel, we decided to open up the developement of the game a bit more for everyone to see. There are a couple of benefits from this:
1) Since the show is now over, there's less for you guys to talk about here on the public forum and thus less interest to come over on regular basis. We want to keep the place alive and posting WIP stuff more often serves to further that goal.
2) More direct feedback from you. While not all ideas can be implemented, we do appreciate the comments and take them into account.
3) Stroking our frail artistic egos :P
Anyway, the interface. It's one of the biggest remaining obstacles on the way to a truly standalone game from Freespace 2 (we've been running with the standard fs2 interface art so far) and thus of high priority if we want to make a release anytime soon. It's also a huge amount of work, and not very satisfying thanks to being limited to the basic layout of the original fs2 interface. But it has to be done.
Some of you may remember the BtRL interface; that was mostly my work, but I was never quite satisfied with how it ended up looking. So this time around I've decided to try and make the best possible looking interface from the start so I dont have to come back later and redo the work because the thing keeps bugging me. I hope I'll archieve this goal, but knowing me, I might redo it all anyway within a year or two :P
Most of you've already seen the mainhall I did months ago, but here's a reminder:
(http://i38.tinypic.com/350ktb6.png)
And here's the very first test image of the very first new menu, the pilot selection. Early WIP of course, I'm currently playing around with texturing and lightning setup.
(http://i42.tinypic.com/1pfcc4.png)
I snatched the basic idea for the design from some BSG card game image I found online. Yea, how evil and unimaginative of me.
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Solid beginning, looking forward to the flight deck. :)
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Not gonna happen I'm afraid. Way too much work to model entire interiors. Besides, it would look out of place if we decided to make a campaign on any other ship than a Columbia-class battlestar.
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Ah, oh, aww.
No harm done though, the reasoning makes sense and it allows time to be invested in other areas, folks won't be playing these games to look at the menu interfaces.
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I really like how you stuck to the BSG theme in that interface, with the colouring and the ribbings. I thought of the exact same thing before seeing this pic. Subtle details like these make it so awesome :)
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Wouldn't be better if the background was the same in all the menus (or at least the same colour)? It would give it more coherence between the different interface screens.
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deeeiiiiii
kooooboooooolll
(Actually, I reckon you're getting new music to go with your gorgeous new menu.)
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I am lobbying hard for "Battlestar Muzaktica" to be the multiplayer lobby/loading music.
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Looking nice, thou one thing I would like most to see as background, is the red elevator doors from galactica hangardeck. but I see this wont be happening, due those campaings away from galactica.
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Feedback?.. sure thing:
Your "mainhall" design is great. So I'd suggest to move forward with it. The textures combo you used on it looks very cool so you may properly use it as basis for the whole UI. Maybe the normal state buttons could go with yellow or blue colors due that the diaspora logo captures the end-user's attention a little too much. Other than that, the mix of dark and yellow textures on the blueish background looks somehow Colonial and Cylon at the same time. I do like it !
The new textures you've put on the new Pilot Selection Box look cool as well. The blue content on the buttons a bit too bright, imo.. but as you said is WIP.. so I've said nothing on them.. :P
As you said, the making of the whole UI means A LOT of work so maybe, maybe, R1 could be ready to go with part of the final UI into it.
Hope this helps somehow. Keep up with the good work!! :)
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As you said, the making of the whole UI means A LOT of work so maybe, maybe, R1 could be ready to go with part of the final UI into it.
Unfortunately that's really not an option. First of all we are doing a total conversion, meaning we need to replace as many of the FS2 assets as possible, preferrably all of them. Secondly, wouldn't it be a real mood killer to have this new and shiny interface on some menus and the old FS2 one on others?
This is what we meant by saying the R1 requires the most work. It's the building of the foundations such as the interface that takes time.
Anyway, the newest render I whipped up this morning. Lots of things to do still, but getting there:
(http://i42.tinypic.com/315n37r.png)
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Hey, that's a pretty awesome improvement. It seems clear that you've got the right idea of what to aim for!
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Hey, that's a pretty awesome improvement. It seems clear that you've got the right idea of what to aim for!
Yeahh, looks AWESOME
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Very impressive and evocative of the show
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Looking good. If I can can make one suggestion, it might look better with a blue band round it instead of red to make it look more colonial. That might just be personal preference on my part tho.
Nice work nonetheless. :yes:
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Looking good. If I can can make one suggestion, it might look better with a blue band round it instead of red to make it look more colonial. That might just be personal preference on my part tho.
Nice work nonetheless. :yes:
Well the red band reminds me of the paint scheme on a Viper, so I don't have any issues with it.
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Looking good. If I can can make one suggestion, it might look better with a blue band round it instead of red to make it look more colonial. That might just be personal preference on my part tho.
Nice work nonetheless. :yes:
Well the red band reminds me of the paint scheme on a Viper, so I don't have any issues with it.
I agree, and I always associated Galactica with red, if not for the titles at the beginning of every episode, then all the markings on Galactica herself!
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Yep, /me likes the red touches too. Maybe the blueish background could be a bit more bright though. Other than that this WIP looks cool, indeed ;)
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Looks great so far.
And may I say that the team's approach to "opening up the process more now that the show's over" is just brilliantly fantastic? Thanks for extending a bit of a hand to us. Let's hope it doesn't get bitten! ;)
I always thought that it would really hit home if one of the interface screens was a Devotion Wall, such as the one featured throughout Galactica's run. I'm not sure what they called it during the series, but it was the portion of corridor where photographs of the dearly departed and some of their possessions were posted in remembrance. Not only would it feel authentic, but it would be a pretty gritty, grim and disturbing reminder of the stakes involved.
What would make it especially chilling is if photographs were added to it as the game progressed. Oh yes, I love that idea, don't you? Hell yeah, you do, how could you not? ;)
It'd probably be a real mother frakker to figure out, but all things worth doing are that way, are they not?
Let me know what you think of the idea, and whether or not it's doable!
And don't worry, all I'll charge for my contribution is 15% of the gross profits. Oh yeah, baby, I'll be rollin' in the dough any day now! "Worldwide economic crisis?" What "worldwide economic crisis?" Me has my thick wallet of Diaspora bucks right here Daddy-O!
;)
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I always thought that it would really hit home if one of the interface screens was a Devotion Wall, such as the one featured throughout Galactica's run. I'm not sure what they called it during the series, but it was the portion of corridor where photographs of the dearly departed and some of their possessions were posted in remembrance. Not only would it feel authentic, but it would be a pretty gritty, grim and disturbing reminder of the stakes involved.
What would make it especially chilling is if photographs were added to it as the game progressed. Oh yes, I love that idea, don't you? Hell yeah, you do, how could you not? ;)
The devotion wall has the same problem that any other location specific to Galactica has: It's specific to Galactica. The interface needs to be generic enough so we and fans alike can make campaigns that dont necessarily take place on Galactica.
Anyway, almost there.
(http://i39.tinypic.com/33uelvd.png)
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Woah, that looks awesome! :)
Would it make it more realistic if Pilot Selection were changed to Pilot Roster? Like they would probably have on a Battlestar or any ship carrying spacecraft really.
Just a suggestion though, and I could think of plenty of reasons why it wouldn't fit, but it just occurred to me as a "Spur-of-the-moment" thing.
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You're right, Pilot Roster sounds better. I'll change it when I get the chance.
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You're right, Pilot Roster sounds better. I'll change it when I get the chance.
:)
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I was never the biggest fan of the interface art in the "other" mod, but so far this looks great, well polished!
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Here's the release candidate for the thing... last call for any major suggestions and such, since the rest of the the interface is more or less going to look pretty much the same and I wont be changing anything big later on.
(http://i43.tinypic.com/2im2qnd.png)
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Melikes ;7 :yes:
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Not liking the brown tiling in the background... Good otherwise though.
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Didn't they use a white board for the pilot list?
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Wouldn't work very well with the computerised font the pilot list uses though. If we had about a dozen more coders to play around with the interface then having it as the whiteboard might be nice.
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Just examinen the angles
xD
Question: Will we see interior battles like we did in 'the other mod', I really enjoyed blowing up toasters inside an asteroid.
The Silent Threat Reborn team also did an interior battle, involving flying inside a space station and destroying a bomber trying to destroy the core of said station.
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:) Looks Good
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The texturing and lighting looks great :D But are the button icons standard FS2?
The icons representing single- and multi-player, and the copy/delete icons, and even the up/down icons all look quite stock (and unrelated to BSG). I guess you can't use Viper silhouettes, but hmm...
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Looks fantastic! Very true to the show and also very usable.
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What sort of highlight mouse over effects will be displayed under this interface?
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What sort of highlight mouse over effects will be displayed under this interface?
The buttons lighting up I suppose
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For some reason the background makes me think I'm looking down at a bathroom scale from the future.
Better than anything I could do though.
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Not like the brown tiling in the background... Good otherwise though.
It's supposed to be a slightly rusty/copperish plating. As I dislike using pure grey in anything, it stays :P
Question: Will we see interior battles like we did in 'the other mod', I really enjoyed blowing up toasters inside an asteroid.
Not in R1. We liked being able to fly inside the asteroid too thought, so maybe in the future.
The texturing and lighting looks great :D But are the button icons standard FS2?
The icons representing single- and multi-player, and the copy/delete icons, and even the up/down icons all look quite stock (and unrelated to BSG). I guess you can't use Viper silhouettes, but hmm...
I'm keeping some of the stock FS2 icons that are generic enough (how do you make an arrow look BSGish anyway?) and replacing others with new ones. The create/clone/delete buttons are actually BSG rank pip silhouettes.
What sort of highlight mouse over effects will be displayed under this interface?
Button lights up on highlight, and is pressed down when you click it.
For some reason the background makes me think I'm looking down at a bathroom scale from the future.
All the textures are from cgtextures.com and are actually real photos. I just tweak them a lot and create separate color-, diffuse-, shine-, reflection- and normalmaps for rendering purposes.
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All the textures are from cgtextures.com and are actually real photos. I just tweak them a lot and create separate color-, diffuse-, shine-, reflection- and normalmaps for rendering purposes.
I didn't really say it looked fake or anything. It just... looks like floor tile. *shrugs*
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I'm keeping some of the stock FS2 icons that are generic enough (how do you make an arrow look BSGish anyway?) and replacing others with new ones. The create/clone/delete buttons are actually BSG rank pip silhouettes.
Cut off all the corners. :drevil:
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The texturing and lighting looks great :D But are the button icons standard FS2?
The icons representing single- and multi-player, and the copy/delete icons, and even the up/down icons all look quite stock (and unrelated to BSG). I guess you can't use Viper silhouettes, but hmm...
I'm keeping some of the stock FS2 icons that are generic enough (how do you make an arrow look BSGish anyway?) and replacing others with new ones. The create/clone/delete buttons are actually BSG rank pip silhouettes.
Ah, nice touch. I just had a thought that you could use Dradis-like icons for the single/multi buttons? The shape is identical regardless of the type of fightercraft, but it distinguishes between a single ship and a wing.
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I didn't really say it looked fake or anything. It just... looks like floor tile. *shrugs*
Yea, I just wanted to point out that the background is actually some copper plated wall instead of floor tiles, even if it looks like that :D
Ah, nice touch. I just had a thought that you could use Dradis-like icons for the single/multi buttons? The shape is identical regardless of the type of fightercraft, but it distinguishes between a single ship and a wing.
The Viper dradis icon is a rather complex shape to be used on the buttons. The details get so small it might be a bit hard to actually see what the icon is supposed to represent.
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It wouldn't hurt to see what it looks like, and it might actually work rather well.
Also, as to the comment about cutting the corners on the FS2 arrows, that might actually work ;)
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Fine, I'll do it, but it takes a day or two since I'm busy at work and rendering this thing take a while :P
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I didn't say you had to use pure gray, it's just that it seems too.. perfect. There are are plenty of free texture sites out there, you might try looking around a bit.
Edit: Hey, how about this: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015.jpg
With some tweaks I think it could be just what you're looking for. Gives off a nice BSG Vibe too.
Edit 2: My take on it: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015-1.png
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I didn't say you had to use pure gray, it's just that it seems too.. perfect. There are are plenty of free texture sites out there, you might try looking around a bit.
Edit: Hey, how about this: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015.jpg
With some tweaks I think it could be just what you're looking for. Gives off a nice BSG Vibe too.
Edit 2: My take on it: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015-1.png
Hmm, I like C-Fodders better but thats my opinion
just has a "Battlestar" look to it, by that I mean the interior, like I'm on the flight deck, looking at some screen scouring it for my name
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I agree, Cannonfodder's looks much better IMHO. Looks like a wall on a Battlestar, rather than a section of pottery.
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I didn't say you had to use pure gray, it's just that it seems too.. perfect. There are are plenty of free texture sites out there, you might try looking around a bit.
Edit: Hey, how about this: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015.jpg
With some tweaks I think it could be just what you're looking for. Gives off a nice BSG Vibe too.
Edit 2: My take on it: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015-1.png
That texture has swastikas in it, lol.
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I didn't say you had to use pure gray, it's just that it seems too.. perfect. There are are plenty of free texture sites out there, you might try looking around a bit.
Edit: Hey, how about this: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015.jpg
With some tweaks I think it could be just what you're looking for. Gives off a nice BSG Vibe too.
Edit 2: My take on it: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015-1.png
That texture has swastikas in it, lol.
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I didn't say you had to use pure gray, it's just that it seems too.. perfect. There are are plenty of free texture sites out there, you might try looking around a bit.
Edit: Hey, how about this: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015.jpg
With some tweaks I think it could be just what you're looking for. Gives off a nice BSG Vibe too.
Edit 2: My take on it: http://s209.photobucket.com/albums/bb317/Tyrkeyz/?action=view¤t=metal_design_8240015-1.png
That texture has swastikas in it, lol.
Hitler stole the Swastika. :rolleyes:
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Still, it puts across a bad idea
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Now that we have merrily driven down th' express lane to Godwin's Law, you may return to th' task at hand which be th' Interface Art. It not be discussin' Nazis.
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Everyone falling to the common brainwash will be considered to have zero significant mental activity, and all opinions and rants will be automatically redirected to /dev/null. Those who are incapable of thinking on their own, please spare us of their parrot activity.
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Ugh, I've lost all perspective on if the changes I make to the image are an improvement or not. I'm gonna call it 98% done, and wont be making any major adjustements to this menu any longer. I've spent enough of time with it as is.
(http://i42.tinypic.com/68d7c0.png)
Comments are still welcome, but I think it's time to move on.
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(http://i42.tinypic.com/ogwimo.gif)
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Hey, very cool!.. and I do like the lighning a lot.
Also, you guys might consider as background that familiar and well known Galactica's mechanical litany.
Once more; keep up the good work! ;)
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"dirt" on the buttons could use a slight blur IMO, but its pretty anyways :yes:
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Very nice :yes:
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The dirt does not need a blur. However, all of the dirt layers in the GUI should be reduced by at least 30% or so in transparency.
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No. Trust me, I spent a lot of time trying to do just that and it just ended up looking more like concrete than metal. The dirt and grime are what makes the whole thing interesting to look at.
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great job man!... :yes:
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Nice.
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K, I was more specifically asking what the mouse over effects would look like, not what kind there would be.
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Just one more thingie on that button to the left: You might improve it a little by reducing the dirty texx a bit or by putting some more of grey into it. Not enough visible IMO.
Other than that, and for the lack of a better word.. perfect ! :)
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Working ingame. I had to add another text field thingy thanks to original FS2 interface being weird, but that's no biggie.
(http://i40.tinypic.com/wrddp2.png)
So... what should I do next? :)
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While I was at it... splash screen.
(http://i40.tinypic.com/2vxltur.png)
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Options screen :nod:. You're going to have to do it eventually, and all those little buttons and lights might be reuseable later.
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I think I'm gonna leave options last, it was a total nightmare the last time :P
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Do you have a render of the pilot select screen background alone? I might take a shot at making a splash screen, though yours works.
As for a suggestion for the next screen:
Barracks/Pilot options?
Also, since these are all being modeled, maybe Slayer should do some concepts for medals?
My suggestion would be using them like achievements: Having two medals per release. One being a "I beat this campaign with this pilot" the other being when you complete all bonus objectives.
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Did anyone else find PLEASE WAIT being written on the "Pilot Roster" the slightest bit weird/contradictory?
Would "UPLOADING ROSTER" or some variation make a bit more sense?
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The text is easy enough so change, so maybe yea.
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first off, that looks absolutely amazing. Great work, and I love it. The lighting, textures, etc are excellent.
Now, my views of it as a graphic artist. :D
My one and only concern with it is the screen for the "Single" and "multi" buttons. They compleatly blend in with their surroundings.
Now, this may be a moot point with it in action, the text under it, mouseovers, etc. I can't really tell all those from a static image. But without the text, it needs contrast. Not much, maybe just 5 to 10% darker than the surroundings.
Again, great work man!
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first off, that looks absolutely amazing. Great work, and I love it. The lighting, textures, etc are excellent.
Now, my views of it as a graphic artist. :D
My one and only concern with it is the screen for the "Single" and "multi" buttons. They compleatly blend in with their surroundings.
Now, this may be a moot point with it in action, the text under it, mouseovers, etc. I can't really tell all those from a static image. But without the text, it needs contrast. Not much, maybe just 5 to 10% darker than the surroundings.
Again, great work man!
The single/multi buttons look fine to me. I think maybe you mean the "New Player" and "Clone Player" buttons, the ones on the bottom left? That's my opinion, anyways.
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I was worried about button visibility too, but to be honest the problem is pretty much nonexistant ingame. The text labels near the buttons identify them nicely and the highlight effect finishes the job.
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I'd have thought the cloning option would only be available on the basestar pilot roster ;)
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And this my friends is why I hate the rigid FS2 interface. It wastes space on ridiculous things (that massive upper screen is reserved for the list of campaigns you can play), forces me to use it's button positioning down to pixel and thus utterly destroys any attempt I make at creating a visually coherrent and appealing interface.
(http://i42.tinypic.com/1675jt0.png)
Yea yea, there are a few things still amiss with this one, like the metal poking through the campaign description field and too bright reflections on the screens. I'll get those fixed when I can bother.
Can you tell I'm a bit pissed?
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Yea yea, there are a few things still amiss with this one, like the metal poking through the campaign description field and too bright reflections on the screens. I'll get those fixed when I can bother.
Can you tell I'm a bit pissed?
me thinks you need to go out for a few beers! :yes:
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Likewise.
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Likewise.
two hours............party, party, party..................hangover
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And this my friends is why I hate the rigid FS2 interface. It wastes space on ridiculous things (that massive upper screen is reserved for the list of campaigns you can play), forces me to use it's button positioning down to pixel and thus utterly destroys any attempt I make at creating a visually coherrent and appealing interface.
(http://i42.tinypic.com/1675jt0.png)
Yea yea, there are a few things still amiss with this one, like the metal poking through the campaign description field and too bright reflections on the screens. I'll get those fixed when I can bother.
Can you tell I'm a bit pissed?
I like the overall layout, but I think that the grill texture should be used sparingly. Have some more regular metal over the grill sections so the grills pop in to add some more detail in areas but aren't overwhelming?
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Yea, I was thinking of breaking it up with some misc detailing. I'll have to think about it.
And Ace man, drop by irc more often. Easier to discuss these things there :)
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what if you could make the campains bigger in their text?
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It looks fine IMO
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Yea, I was thinking of breaking it up with some misc detailing. I'll have to think about it.
And Ace man, drop by irc more often. Easier to discuss these things there :)
270 pages of editing over the last couple of days, not fun :/
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what if you could make the campains bigger in their text?
The ingame text? Can't edit that in any way.
Incidentally, when I complained about the interface karajorma decided to take a look at the code. He soon backed away making warding signs :P
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Yes he was making devotions to the Lord Rahl for mercy and protection.
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Let alone the horrible sacrifices made to Yogg-Saron.
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Incidentally, when I complained about the interface karajorma decided to take a look at the code. He soon backed away making warding signs :P
That's cause the parsing code for that particular table is awful. I'll have to take a look at ways to stick it into a different table.
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looks awesome!
Well for the nitpicks, if you want:
- The lighting might be a little severe or maybe its the positioning, but the way it makes the scroll buttons contrast each other is a bit off-putting and maybe draws unwanted attention
- The glossy shinespots on the metal corners around the "campaign" text at the bottom makes it look plastic
- you missed a couple pixels on the right of the description box :D
again, just my nitpicks, totally looks pro
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I suggest making a cursor, the FS2 one is... FS2's.
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What do you know, it only took a few tracks of M.I.A and a hurting back that kept me home to get things rolling again.
(http://i39.tinypic.com/29ppu00.png)
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Looks ideal!
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The lighting on the side buttons could use a little tweaking to be more consistent, and the select button could be made a little taller (with the icon portion of it centered) so that the blank space between the text and button matches closer with the space between the 'restart campaign' text and button.
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The lighting on the side buttons could use a little tweaking to be more consistent, and the select button could be made a little taller (with the icon portion of it centered) so that the blank space between the text and button matches closer with the space between the 'restart campaign' text and button.
The lightning differences come from HDR reflections and while I agree that they dont quite match, rotating the background that gives the reflections would only create similar problems elsewhere. I just dont want to spend ages tweaking things to perfection, as much as that goes against my base instincts.
As for the select button, here we come to the fun joys of being restricted by the original FS2 interface. I can only move the highlighting part of the button a few pixels to any given direction, so that has to stay in place. Stretching the entire button vertically while leaving the highlighting area intact on the other hand would mean pushing the button frame thingy out of the image. That looks really dumb on the scroll buttons on the side as it is, and I'd like to avoid it if possible.
For the record, I think that whoever was responsible for the interface text placement was really sloppy. The texts are inconsistently placed and never where you'd expected them to be.
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Damn, that's some awesome shimbizzle right there :D
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I like it :D
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excelllent, except 'campaigns' ought to be caps locked
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excelllent, except 'campaigns' ought to be caps locked
Y'know, I concur. Awfully difficult, or easy change?
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Changing the text is actually easy, but I prefer it without caps.
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So do I, it looks more "friendly" IMO.
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There was a time where you can make an in-game menu with LUA. Is it still the case ? I think, with LUA, it will allow you more freedom.
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We have propably some of the best lua scripters of the community on our team and even with their help the advantages are limited to say the least.
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Cursors ...
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The damn mouse cursor is not that easy to make you know :P
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Curses!
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:bump:
Cursors?
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Who cares... put into it some Flintstone based cursor if you want :D The interface rocks and keep more screen shots coming, please !!.
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As long as you don't design vipers so that you have to move your legs to get them to move :)
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"Cylons! Meet the Cylons! They're the modern cyborg family!"
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"Cylons! Meet the Cylons! They're the modern cyborg family!"
To the tune of the Flintstones themesong, of course.
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"Cylons! Meet the Cylons! They're the modern cyborg family!"
To the tune of the Flintstones themesong, of course.
...utilizing your voice to sing it, of course.
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It's like stabbing a joke in the gut and sitting there watching it bleed out, isn't it? :p
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DIE DIE DIE!!!!!
Take that, potentially humorous joke!
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8)
Soooo... Lt.Cannonfodder; any new picture of it there at your end ? :)
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I wish. Pretty much all of my time goes to earning a living these days.
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Hey, no problem. These are tight times, indeed.. hope all gets better within the next months.