Hard Light Productions Forums

Hosted Projects - FS2 Required => Inferno => Topic started by: ZmaN on October 01, 2005, 12:24:20 pm

Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 01, 2005, 12:24:20 pm
how is it going?  how far have you progressed?  what percentage is done?
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: SadisticSid on October 01, 2005, 01:02:00 pm
We have progressed far, and it is going well. A percentage of the mod has been completed. :p
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 01, 2005, 01:35:50 pm
Bah I don't bother with % as the last time the modpack was at about 80%, then I redid the entire capship fleet :D

We now have all maps in dds format, except for glowmaps which'll stay pcx.
We now have a shinemap set since spec lighting no longer works without them
We have working OGG music of the FS2 tracks and our own custom tracks. We still need to update the Syphon table to work with the upgraded version of the track though.
Models are in final debugging stages. I don't plan on any major changes to the existing models. I've fixed some really nasty bugs since the last modpack compile.
Effects DaBrain is still working on. I'm not sure what remains to be done here.
More maps probably need upgrading, like the remaining EA ones to match the newer improved ones.
Tables need some work and final tweaking. Some of the staff don't like flying the Mihos right now :D

Missions not much progress since about July. Only major thing was a test version of mission 5 I'm working on.

There's 2 major AI issues we need fixing before we can consider a build for release, since it breaks several missions. Though I'm currently happy with the most recent FRED build since .tbm support is fixed.
You should be able to use either D3D or OGL with no issues hopefully.

Final modpack size has been downgraded from 210mb to 180mb due to the OGG music files. However an IBX cache hasn't been generated for that version of the modpack yet. That's 5750 files @ 478mb once extracted at the moment.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: mr.WHO on October 02, 2005, 03:54:04 am
Do you have a briefing icons ready ??
Can we see them ??
Does all (war)ships have own briefing icon ??
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 02, 2005, 04:17:43 am
We can't give all ships there own icons, we have 3-4 destroyers per race and only 1 destroyer icon per race.

Briefing icons should be ok, but there's a few that need updating (such as one for the new Arcas)
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Darius on October 02, 2005, 05:59:33 am
Quote
Originally posted by Woomeister
We still need to update the Syphon table to work with the upgraded version of the track though.


Which version of Syphon are you using? My 'remastered' one, or extracts from the 44kHz original?

I've been playing around with the music tables to get my version into the game, and have already got a set of numbers which seem to work fine (on another comp though, I can post them up sometime tomorrow for someone to test). Will that help things along?
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 02, 2005, 06:11:24 am
Extracts from the original files you sent me. They don't work with the older versions tables.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: DaBrain on October 02, 2005, 10:06:48 am
Quote
Originally posted by Woomeister
Effects DaBrain is still working on. I'm not sure what remains to be done here.
More maps probably need upgrading, like the remaining EA ones to match the newer improved ones.


All effects are done. I'm just replacing some out-dated looking effects and maps. ;)

I got no time to work on something the last few days, but my next optical update pack won't need much more time. ;)
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 02, 2005, 11:45:50 am
would u like another FREDer?  im almost done with my tutorial course, so I may be able to help you guys FRED some missions (Im really bad at it right now, but im getting better...)
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: mr.WHO on October 04, 2005, 12:34:24 pm
Damn, I had a nightmare that you finished R2... and all terran capships from cruiser to SJ was a diffrend size Collosus'es.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 04, 2005, 05:11:13 pm
Oh did the dream give you a release date? :D
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 04, 2005, 10:31:20 pm
Quote
Originally posted by High Max
in one of my dreams, I heard that Goober5000 died. This dream was before I joined the forum though. That is kind of a sad dream. Good that the dream was not true though. I believe that some dreams can represent the future though.



HEY!!!! i dont want goober to die!!!  and yes, dreams can and do represent the future...
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 05, 2005, 03:51:48 am
Quote
Originally posted by High Max
I had a dream that metioned Woomeister and I think I saw him and he had brown curly short hair and was about 5 1/2 ft with light skin.

Wasn't me :nervous:
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Charismatic on October 07, 2005, 10:19:06 pm
 Lookin great guys, Keep up the good work!
EDIT: color fixed:P
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Goober5000 on October 08, 2005, 12:25:56 am
Quote
Originally posted by High Max
Also, in one of my dreams, I heard that Goober5000 died. This dream was before I joined the forum though.
So how did you manage dreaming that before meeting me? :wtf:

Everybody dies eventually, though.  So your dream will no doubt come true at some point. :)
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: mr.WHO on October 08, 2005, 07:45:28 am
Maybe he meas before he registered? I was an unregistered user of this forum for one year before I decided to register (it was mainly because of Inferno :D  )
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Col. Fishguts on October 08, 2005, 08:04:28 am
This thread took a sudden turn to the creepy side...
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 08, 2005, 05:03:55 pm
so wait, what is left to do for the campaign????
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 08, 2005, 05:09:44 pm
A few map/effect upgrades
Some new briefing Icons, like for the new Arcas
Shivan lightning beam tables
Syphon table update
Ship tech descriptions
Some ship balancing
Documentation
Any bug fixes

And of course missions
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Mongoose on October 09, 2005, 02:18:57 am
Winamp (http://www.winamp.com) handles OGGs just fine :)

(And yes, that is pretty off-topic :p)
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: SadisticSid on October 09, 2005, 07:56:36 am
Quote
Originally posted by ZmaN
so wait, what is left to do for the campaign????


Missions. Missions. Missions.

Some of the mission designers we took on haven't made a single submission. I won't mention names, you know who you are.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: DaBrain on October 09, 2005, 08:11:25 am
Quote
Originally posted by SadisticSid

 I won't mention names, you know who you are.



:shaking:

That's me, right? ... wait... I'm the graphics guy. So I'm the one who doesn't take care of the graphics.

Phew... :nervous:
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: SadisticSid on October 09, 2005, 08:13:24 am
Brain, your EA textures count for a mission set all in themselves. :D
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 09, 2005, 09:43:33 am
Quote
Originally posted by SadisticSid
Some of the mission designers we took on haven't made a single submission. I won't mention names, you know who you are.

Actually all of them have at least done something, though some haven't finnished any missions.

Some of the testers we took on do nothing at all...
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: mr.WHO on October 11, 2005, 01:05:56 pm
Does R2 main menu will get some facelifting ??
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 11, 2005, 01:10:14 pm
It's more of a proper mainhall now.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: EAD_Agamemnon on October 22, 2005, 12:49:45 am
Not sure if this was ever answered, but is ETAC ever mentioned at all? This IS afterall a continuation of the FreeSpace saga.

Anyway, since all seems to be progressing well, how long do you expect before Inferno R2 to be released? Last time I really checked in about this (over 1 year ago), R1 was still fresh and R2 was just started on paper.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 22, 2005, 04:07:00 am
Quote
Originally posted by EAD_Agamemnon
Not sure if this was ever answered, but is ETAC ever mentioned at all? This IS afterall a continuation of the FreeSpace saga.

No plans to

Quote
Originally posted by EAD_Agamemnon
Anyway, since all seems to be progressing well, how long do you expect before Inferno R2 to be released? Last time I really checked in about this (over 1 year ago), R1 was still fresh and R2 was just started on paper.

Depends when the missions are done. The rest I could get ready within a few days.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Hippo on October 22, 2005, 08:58:16 am
Quote
Originally posted by SadisticSid


Missions. Missions. Missions.

Some of the mission designers we took on haven't made a single submission. I won't mention names, you know who you are.



Oi! I'll work on it!
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: EAD_Agamemnon on October 22, 2005, 01:59:18 pm
Too bad.

The ETAC, or at least a mention or use of it given that this takes place decades after Capella, would be a nice twist.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 22, 2005, 03:31:06 pm
It could still be 'classified beyond your level of clearence pilot' :p
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: SadisticSid on October 22, 2005, 07:16:25 pm
If we made ETAK a part of the Inferno storyline I doubt we'd ever hear the end of complaints that we'd done it wrongly. I always thought the idea was a bit dodgy as well - if the Shivans were bothered about communicating with humans, they would have certainly been the first to try; their technology is leagues ahead of the GTVA's in the Capella era.

I mean, sonic oscillations - voices - are conceptually similar to decipher than resonating quantum pulses or whatever technobabble Bosch used for it. :)
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: NGTM-1R on October 22, 2005, 11:52:27 pm
Actually, I think it would be criminal not to include something based on it. Chew on this for a bit.

Since ETAK was designed to translate garden-variety Shivan transmissions, if the Shivans used any encryption whatsoever, ETAK is capable of defeating it. The GTVA thus possesses the means to read, at the least, Shivan tactical transmissions in real-time. (And possibly all Shivan transmissions; we don't know if they even bother to encrypt them at all.) This would obviously confer some advantages, and the GTVA is going to be grabbing for whatever advantages it can get.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: EAD_Agamemnon on October 23, 2005, 01:11:59 am
Bosch built the ETAC to communicate with the Shivans, which you see something of in one of the missions. Maybe dont make the ETAC an out and out story driving device, but maybe have it where it comes up....and the Grand Alliance (GVN, GTN, EA), so they might be able to get SOME answers.  And going on what    ngtm1r   just said...the GTVA did in fact gain ETAC technology when they evacuated the Iceni.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: StratComm on October 23, 2005, 02:38:39 am
There is, of course, the possibility that Bosch took the software (or whatever) with him, since presumably he'd need a way to communicate with his "hosts".  It's also quite possible, give Return to Babel, that it never worked properly.  From what I got of the Bosch monologues though, it's probably very unlikely that the GTVA would do much with the ETAC research even if they did get all of it.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 23, 2005, 04:05:40 am
Quote
Originally posted by ngtm1r
Actually, I think it would be criminal not to include something based on it. Chew on this for a bit.

Since ETAK was designed to translate garden-variety Shivan transmissions, if the Shivans used any encryption whatsoever, ETAK is capable of defeating it. The GTVA thus possesses the means to read, at the least, Shivan tactical transmissions in real-time. (And possibly all Shivan transmissions; we don't know if they even bother to encrypt them at all.) This would obviously confer some advantages, and the GTVA is going to be grabbing for whatever advantages it can get.


Well if you want something on it, you can make custom content missions for the archives maybe using some of the SOC style fighters ;7
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: NGTM-1R on October 23, 2005, 01:57:36 pm
:p I'm saving that plot device for myself.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 24, 2005, 01:01:02 pm
Ugh the newer CVS builds are giving geometry errors in 20 of our ships. Good job I know how to fix them all :)

I want as bugless as possible so I don't have to patch it a few hours/days after release :D
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 27, 2005, 02:49:40 pm
Quote
Originally posted by StratComm
There is, of course, the possibility that Bosch took the software (or whatever) with him, since presumably he'd need a way to communicate with his "hosts".  It's also quite possible, give Return to Babel, that it never worked properly.  From what I got of the Bosch monologues though, it's probably very unlikely that the GTVA would do much with the ETAC research even if they did get all of it.


I think bosch may have made a copy of it....  just like we make campaign copies! :p

but seriously, i think the GTVA actually did get MOST of the ETAK research......  bosch probably just needed a translator to talk to the shivans when they picked him up....
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ToecrusherHammerjaw on October 27, 2005, 08:05:43 pm
Speaking of Bosch, it would kind of be cool to see him show up in a mod with a Shivan fleet.  Part of a bad campaign idea I had was an "infested" Bosch, like Kerrigan in Starcraft, a sort of part human, part Shivan, part cyborg thing (really screwed up when I think of it).  Just a thought.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 27, 2005, 08:33:10 pm
how come bosch was able to communicate with the shivans, but the GTA and the GTI in FS1 couldnt?  it doesnt seem fair....
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 27, 2005, 11:43:45 pm
is there a campaign that takes place during the hades rebellion???  that would be awesome....
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Galemp on October 27, 2005, 11:54:12 pm
;7:thepimp:
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: T-Man on October 28, 2005, 09:56:25 am
*Points to FSPort link on Galemp's post*

Yeah, Silent Threat: Reborn is exactly what you want mate.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 28, 2005, 10:06:26 am
Bah he should of put a link in one of those smilies :p

Anyway back on topic :p

I've fixed most of the geometry errors that the newer FRED build complains about. 3 models to go, though it looks like the subspace node model has the same problem.

Then I have to redo several archives models which have the same problem.

Then I have to figure out why one of the EA fighters is giving a debug build error...
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Col. Fishguts on October 28, 2005, 12:26:05 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Woomeister
I've fixed most of the geometry errors that the newer FRED build complains about. 3 models to go, though it looks like the subspace node model has the same problem.


Is it the normal-capping error ? If yes, what's the cause of that and how do I fix it ?
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 28, 2005, 12:46:36 pm
This one:
Quote
Serious problem loading model 'x', 'y' normals capped to zero


I fix it by either 2 methods depending what's wrong with it.

1. I open the model in Truespace, right hand click it to edit the mesh, then retriangulate it. The polycount should go down a bit and that seems to fix it. It's a weird way to fix it but it worked for most of them so far.

2. I have to move some near overlapping verts so that I can weld them together using 3DE. I only had to do this on the Ophion since the slice plane I used during UV Mapping caused some corruption.

For us it seems to happen a lot on models that have been converted to 3ds at some point. Looks like overlapping verts that haven't been welded correctly cause it.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Col. Fishguts on October 28, 2005, 01:00:59 pm
Ok, thanks.

The Nova from TBP yields that error in newer FRED builds, although it works normally in FRED and ingame.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on October 28, 2005, 01:04:13 pm
Yeah same with us. It was going to be annoying to use the new fred build we have, so I thought I better get these fixed. 20 of our main mod ships give this error, only 3 left to fix. From the extra mods, 2 Ancient ships need fixing and 1 SOC fighter. I haven't had time to reload my other wip archives stuff to see if they need upgrading yet.
Title: progress of Release 2
Post by: ZmaN on October 28, 2005, 01:18:35 pm
Quote
Originally posted by T-Man
*Points to FSPort link on Galemp's post*

Yeah, Silent Threat: Reborn is exactly what you want mate.


Figures, i never finished that campaign....
Title: Re: progress of Release 2
Post by: Murderous Species on November 23, 2005, 11:44:20 am
I have a feeling that we will be celebrating God's son's birthday with an Inferno.
(Ironic, don't you think?)
Title: Re: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on November 23, 2005, 11:58:10 am
I doubt we'll make a release before christmas now, only a few members have staff have showed up since the move and only 1 mission designer has downloaded the current version of the mod.

We've had at least 3 weeks of no progress and I don't think we'll get it done in under 4 weeks.
Title: Re: progress of Release 2
Post by: Trivial Psychic on November 23, 2005, 12:53:03 pm
How about Christmas in July? ;)
Title: Re: progress of Release 2
Post by: Woomeister on November 23, 2005, 12:54:54 pm
If it's not ready by July I'll have to start torturing random people :D