One thing I had problems with were the icons in the 360A° radar. It's hard to identify what's in front of the craft and what's behind. Have you tried implementing a gradient or some similar helper (e.g., what's behind the fighter is less saturated/opaque)?
Thanks, guys - the interface (and making sure the controls and interactions are clear) is very important - and something we'll be tuning throughout the entire development.
lennier1: Yes! it should be in there now - the fighters behind should be almost ghostly in opacity.
Okay, here's an update!
here's what you'll be able to see (this will move around a bit, and parallax)
Here's the whole thing:
And here's an empty bay:
the different ships will swap through as you select them.
Thoughts?
How do you mean by "swap through"? If it's a simple swipe-left-or-right job, then I'd think it might be overall better to select from a more abstract menu than a realistic one (still have a ship preparation sequence using the above, as in X-Wing). If there's a bit of an animation to have them lifted in and out of place, then I'd be up for seeing that because it'd be pretty cool, but time consuming.
Looks very cool, but what's with all the cabling spilling out on the deck. Seems like that would make ground handling far trickier than it needs to be.
I figured that would be a massively complex animation to work out. But, would the fade-in/out look a bit strange with the realistic backdrop as opposed to on a selection screen?
Then again, I'm not sure why I'm questioning your artistic decisions. They inevitably look amazing!
Okay here it is in game! (ish) http://www.hedfiles.net/WOSN_Alpha/STNBay.html
The normal alpha build has also been updated. Ships now fire at you, and the default controls are gamepad/joystick. hit f10 to change the settings and f10 to reload with the new settings.
Is it possible to try this out with the Unity standalone as well as the web compiler? It looks great, but is getting really jittery again, and I'm wondering if it's the web player that's doing it.
(also, anyone else finding themselves shouting "Oh, you did not just shoot that pink **** at me!!")
Really cool project, it's really taking shape. Just out of curiosity, what are you plans? are you planning to release it for free or are you going to try a kickstarter project ot to greenlight it on steam once you reach alpha stage? (sorry if you already answered that question, I did not read the 50 pages, lazy me)
spacefighter: While the multiplayer portion of the game (at least) will be free, I really don't see why we should make the source freely downloadable... That will just lead to plagiarism, stealing, and general sadness for all involved.
Armondikov: Yes, we can definitely try that! I think I know what the slowdown is, though (and it's not the web player, its my dumbass attempt at realtime reflections on the cockpit glass). It should be fixed in the next build!
Talon_UK: Yup! Your cries have been heard! :P
Dr. Jones: Glad you like it! So the plan is that the multiplayer game will be free. Eventually we might use that game to kickstart the single player game (which is much more complex), or that may end up being free as well. the plan is very much flexible.
Also, I've taken a page out of Klavs book and put some 3d prints up for sale!
They're right about the same cost as Klavs Fighters, and a good size (about 4.5inches long). I'll post pictures once I get my first run of prints!
Enjoy!
They're right about the same cost as Klavs Fighters, and a good size (about 4.5inches long). I'll post pictures once I get my first run of prints!
Enjoy!
Dr Jones: Hey, if you want the model I used, drop me a line, I'll let you have it!
spacefighter: Its colored sandstone! It's actually quite a bit cheaper than the normal plastic. not as durable, but really nice all the same! They've got tutorials on the site.
colbmista: Yeah, exactly. I'd rather drop 30 bucks on a print and be fairly confident in the quality, then drop the 20-30K on the printer, with all the associated set up and maintenance.
It's true, but every time I tried to get one of my characters printed from shapeways, the quote ended being over $400 because I wanted something taller than 8 inches, so I gave up and built my own.
Edit: I just double checked, to print my ironman at 11 inches tall with the standard material on shapeways, it cost 553 euros (yes, euros, not dollars). Might as well invest a bit more and get your own printer. Sorry for getting off topping
Hey howard. I use an Ultimaker, it costs about 1300 euros if you build it yourself, which I did. so that must around $1700.
The cost of a print is not easy to calculate, it depends on the mass of plastic filament you use. One spool of 750g cost between 25 and 30 euros depending on the quality. That's about $40. With one spool, you can print A LOT. well it depends on the infill rate you choose. You can print completely solid or completely hollow parts or choose an infill percentage, in which case it fills the model with a honey comb kind of structure, which density depends on the rate. Of course, the more solid you go, the stronger the object is, and the more material you use. I generally use a 20% rate but I realized lately that going fully hollow works just fine for decorative model (aka, the kind of **** we do) that don't need to withstand some sort of stress. Not only it uses fewer material but it prints much much faster. In the end, the cost of printing is really not an issue, I think it actually cost more in electricity than material for big model (it use a 400w power supply, which is like running a decent computer)
spacefighter: It was in VRML97 format, with a PNG attached.
I got my models today! I have one more, the Alien medium fighter on the way.
There's also a brand new build out on http://www.wingsofstnazaire.com! There are a bunch of improvements, waves of enemies, enemies fire at you, there's a new external camera (hold Tab or joystick button 4). As always hit F10 to open up the options dialog!
Armondikov...Good news! There's a downloadable version for PC/Mac/and Linux! Just go to http://www.wingsofstnazaire.com.
So over the weekend we greatly improved the performance of the build, and added a lot of polish to the ship movements. We also added an orbit camera - it looks like this:
I also got the 3d printed model of the alien fighter!
Standalone version works really well! Maybe there are just graphics acceleration issues between my hardware and the web player, I don't know.
Anyway:
The entire thing looks and sounds spectacular. When all that fire goes off just after the enemy ships spawn, it feels like being right in the ****. Plays really smoothly and what controls are currently available are still intuitive and responsive. Turning seems a bit "floatier" now and a bit more difficult to control, often overshooting targets as I turn around, but I'll attribute that to me not quite being with it today as it got easier with practice. Downside to the game mechanics is that the recharge rate is really slow compared to the fire rate and could do with a re-jig. Destroying the bigger ones turns into more of an arduous slog because of this. Though, this sort of thing might balance itself out as you introduce more ships with different abilities - could be that you just don't want the Copperhead to perform well against the big beasties, which is totally great if that's the intention. The AI is improving well. They're an absolutely terrible shot and tend to shoot and destroy each other first, but nothing is perfect in an Alpha . My outright favourite bit so far is how the little nippers occasionally go into afterburner mode to get away from you. That really gives you a sense of being in a dogfight, and gives you the need for proper throttle control that I just don't think you ever got in X-Wing or Wing Commander.
Standalone version works really well! Maybe there are just graphics acceleration issues between my hardware and the web player, I don't know.
Maybe not! We did do an absolutely huge amount of performance tweaking. There's a lot of stuff that was being done needlesly behind the scenes, every frame, and it didn't really need to be.
Anyway:
The entire thing looks and sounds spectacular. When all that fire goes off just after the enemy ships spawn, it feels like being right in the ****. Plays really smoothly and what controls are currently available are still intuitive and responsive. Turning seems a bit "floatier" now and a bit more difficult to control, often overshooting targets as I turn around, but I'll attribute that to me not quite being with it today as it got easier with practice.
Yes, that's actually something I want to talk to Jan about - right now, the game tracks your entire screen as the surface your mouse controls. this means the game is much more responsive when played at 640x400 than fullscreen. This is obviously a bug and something we'll be fixing.
Downside to the game mechanics is that the recharge rate is really slow compared to the fire rate and could do with a re-jig. Destroying the bigger ones turns into more of an arduous slog because of this. Though, this sort of thing might balance itself out as you introduce more ships with different abilities - could be that you just don't want the Copperhead to perform well against the big beasties, which is totally great if that's the intention.
Oh, that's definitely intentional. We want you to almost *have* to use a missile to seriously damage the bigger ships. The heavy alien fighter (Juhrta) is just at the upper edge of what will be feasible to destroy on your lonesome sans missiles. Remember, the Copperhead is a medium, middle of the road fighter. The Boomslang is much more lightly armed, and the Diamondback, while possessing similar movement and armament stats is far less well armored. It will have to rely on its cloak to really have an effect in battle. If we were to compare the ships to TF2 classes (which I do!) then the Boomslang is the scout (Quick, packs a punch in close), the Copperhead is the soldier (Good distance and close up abilities, pretty plain vanilla), the Diamondback is the pyro (Sneaky and incredibly dangerous if you don't stay aware), the Cobra is the heavy (Do not stand in front of him, you have to get inside their turning circle, or behind), and the Hognose is the Demoman (Gigantic explosions, next to no close range ability).
The AI is improving well. They're an absolutely terrible shot and tend to shoot and destroy each other first, but nothing is perfect in an Alpha . My outright favourite bit so far is how the little nippers occasionally go into afterburner mode to get away from you. That really gives you a sense of being in a dogfight, and gives you the need for proper throttle control that I just don't think you ever got in X-Wing or Wing Commander.
We plan on having skill ranks of AI. The current one is literally named "ThrowAwayAI.cs" in code right now.
Thanks for taking a look, and I'm glad it plays well!
That all makes sense to me. Though I've now tried both webplayer and standalone on the same system and it definitely works better standalone. The web version is better than it was, though.
I agree on how you want each of the ships to react to different classes of enemy fighter. Though without multiple ships to try out (yet) it's difficult to really get that feel. Overall, massively impressive stuff.
While I think about it, I noticed some time ago that the gun emplacements on the capital ships definitely aren't "properly attached" if you know what I mean. Does this mean they'll be independently destroyable, akin to the Star Destroyer shield generators in X-Wing?
Posts
lennier1: Yes! it should be in there now - the fighters behind should be almost ghostly in opacity.
Okay, here's an update!
here's what you'll be able to see (this will move around a bit, and parallax)
Here's the whole thing:
And here's an empty bay:
the different ships will swap through as you select them.
Thoughts?
Then again, I'm not sure why I'm questioning your artistic decisions. They inevitably look amazing!
Okay, here's the latest!
I hope its better!
Enjoy!
http://www.hedfiles.net/WOSN_Alpha/STNBay.html
The normal alpha build has also been updated. Ships now fire at you, and the default controls are gamepad/joystick. hit f10 to change the settings and f10 to reload with the new settings.
Enjoy!
(also, anyone else finding themselves shouting "Oh, you did not just shoot that pink **** at me!!")
Inverted Mouse! Yeayyy!!!
:thumb:
Armondikov: Yes, we can definitely try that! I think I know what the slowdown is, though (and it's not the web player, its my dumbass attempt at realtime reflections on the cockpit glass). It should be fixed in the next build!
Talon_UK: Yup! Your cries have been heard! :P
Dr. Jones: Glad you like it! So the plan is that the multiplayer game will be free. Eventually we might use that game to kickstart the single player game (which is much more complex), or that may end up being free as well. the plan is very much flexible.
Also, I've taken a page out of Klavs book and put some 3d prints up for sale!
http://www.shapeways.com/shops/HMEmporium
They're right about the same cost as Klavs Fighters, and a good size (about 4.5inches long). I'll post pictures once I get my first run of prints!
Enjoy!
spacefighter: Its colored sandstone! It's actually quite a bit cheaper than the normal plastic. not as durable, but really nice all the same! They've got tutorials on the site.
colbmista: Yeah, exactly. I'd rather drop 30 bucks on a print and be fairly confident in the quality, then drop the 20-30K on the printer, with all the associated set up and maintenance.
Edit: I just double checked, to print my ironman at 11 inches tall with the standard material on shapeways, it cost 553 euros (yes, euros, not dollars). Might as well invest a bit more and get your own printer. Sorry for getting off topping
The cost of a print is not easy to calculate, it depends on the mass of plastic filament you use. One spool of 750g cost between 25 and 30 euros depending on the quality. That's about $40. With one spool, you can print A LOT. well it depends on the infill rate you choose. You can print completely solid or completely hollow parts or choose an infill percentage, in which case it fills the model with a honey comb kind of structure, which density depends on the rate. Of course, the more solid you go, the stronger the object is, and the more material you use. I generally use a 20% rate but I realized lately that going fully hollow works just fine for decorative model (aka, the kind of **** we do) that don't need to withstand some sort of stress. Not only it uses fewer material but it prints much much faster. In the end, the cost of printing is really not an issue, I think it actually cost more in electricity than material for big model (it use a 400w power supply, which is like running a decent computer)
So Jan got his copies of the printed Diamondback - and besides some minor printing errors, it's unbelievably cool!
agreed, that is seriously cool. never knew you could do it with the colours, exactly what file format was it in when you uploaded to shapeways?
I got my models today! I have one more, the Alien medium fighter on the way.
There's also a brand new build out on http://www.wingsofstnazaire.com! There are a bunch of improvements, waves of enemies, enemies fire at you, there's a new external camera (hold Tab or joystick button 4). As always hit F10 to open up the options dialog!
Enjoy!
So over the weekend we greatly improved the performance of the build, and added a lot of polish to the ship movements. We also added an orbit camera - it looks like this:
I also got the 3d printed model of the alien fighter!
Anyway:
The entire thing looks and sounds spectacular. When all that fire goes off just after the enemy ships spawn, it feels like being right in the ****. Plays really smoothly and what controls are currently available are still intuitive and responsive. Turning seems a bit "floatier" now and a bit more difficult to control, often overshooting targets as I turn around, but I'll attribute that to me not quite being with it today as it got easier with practice. Downside to the game mechanics is that the recharge rate is really slow compared to the fire rate and could do with a re-jig. Destroying the bigger ones turns into more of an arduous slog because of this. Though, this sort of thing might balance itself out as you introduce more ships with different abilities - could be that you just don't want the Copperhead to perform well against the big beasties, which is totally great if that's the intention. The AI is improving well. They're an absolutely terrible shot and tend to shoot and destroy each other first, but nothing is perfect in an Alpha
Still epic. Keep it up!
Yes, that's actually something I want to talk to Jan about - right now, the game tracks your entire screen as the surface your mouse controls. this means the game is much more responsive when played at 640x400 than fullscreen. This is obviously a bug and something we'll be fixing.
Oh, that's definitely intentional. We want you to almost *have* to use a missile to seriously damage the bigger ships. The heavy alien fighter (Juhrta) is just at the upper edge of what will be feasible to destroy on your lonesome sans missiles. Remember, the Copperhead is a medium, middle of the road fighter. The Boomslang is much more lightly armed, and the Diamondback, while possessing similar movement and armament stats is far less well armored. It will have to rely on its cloak to really have an effect in battle. If we were to compare the ships to TF2 classes (which I do!) then the Boomslang is the scout (Quick, packs a punch in close), the Copperhead is the soldier (Good distance and close up abilities, pretty plain vanilla), the Diamondback is the pyro (Sneaky and incredibly dangerous if you don't stay aware), the Cobra is the heavy (Do not stand in front of him, you have to get inside their turning circle, or behind), and the Hognose is the Demoman (Gigantic explosions, next to no close range ability).
We plan on having skill ranks of AI. The current one is literally named "ThrowAwayAI.cs" in code right now.
Thanks for taking a look, and I'm glad it plays well!
I agree on how you want each of the ships to react to different classes of enemy fighter. Though without multiple ships to try out (yet) it's difficult to really get that feel. Overall, massively impressive stuff.
While I think about it, I noticed some time ago that the gun emplacements on the capital ships definitely aren't "properly attached" if you know what I mean. Does this mean they'll be independently destroyable, akin to the Star Destroyer shield generators in X-Wing?
Different flyable ships are definitely on the upcoming list of things to do. I have the alien Dfhertas cockpit already, as well as the Boomslang cockpit. and Driving tha speed deomon might just be entertaining enough to cancel out the use of hopes and dreams as armor.
Capital ship gun emplacements need to rotate and aim, so they might as well definitely be targetable objects. You will be able to blow human turrets off their ships. Aliens? not so much. theirs have no aiming ability. but they have a buttload more of them.
So! We added missiles to the game, along with momentum-inheriting explosions, death spirals of out of control fighters, and speed streaks to help indicate player motion! We've also added motion blurred background stars!
http://www.hedfiles.net/deathspin.gif
http://www.hedfiles.net/speedstreaks.gif
http://www.hedfiles.net/missiletest.gif
http://www.hedfiles.net/missileloop.gif
http://www.hedfiles.net/bigkill.gif
http://www.hedfiles.net/alphastrike.gif
http://www.hedfiles.net/streakystarsflashes.gif
Enjoy!