Developer Journal: Dospac
Posted 2 decades ago Gameplay Design
In lieu of a media update(coming soon though!), I hope this helps our fans understand what has been going on lately.
Productivity is accelerating and there is a general directive to work on getting more in game, doing fewer 3dsm renders and static map shots, etc. That's not to say we won't ever release those again, but we want to show you guys our progress towards release as much as you want to see it. That means live game shots and stuff.
I'll give a few examples that hopefully explain the lack of fancy pictures from our crew lately.
Our art crew have been creating many props and textures and these are being added into our maps. In this case we don't want to re-release shots of the same maps you've already seen with just texture changes and brushwork converted to props, or other small details added. Much effort has also been put into creating our own versions of placeholder content you've already seen in shots of Push and other maps. So while considerable work is being done here, little of it is appreciable until the game is released.
Similarly, showing static props by themselves and out of context of the maps they are in isn't very interesting. If you want to see the gutter/downspout system we created for Hunted's buildings or Avanti's telephone poles and chimneys before playing, well that's just a bit odd. =)
As another example, we have been creating and animating w_models for all the weapons in the game. These are the models you see other players holding in the game world. Showing updates in this area, for us, would require finalized character animations and character skins working ingame, as showing w_models out of the context of the game is silly. This isn't flashy work but it nonetheless must be done and moves us one step closer to our first public release.
Work on the player models and texturing has also been progressing, though there was a short lull due to our character skinner Spewok's accident. He is back and working now, thankfully. There are two primary reasons we haven't shown much of our progress in this area thus far:
First we're working to get all the models in game and with a preliminary skin before going back and putting in the time for finishing touches as you saw with the Sniper. As you can guess this "80/20" process isn't always conducive to a media release(80 Percent completion in 20 percent of the time). We have high standards and share what we feel will best represent our game in it's final stage.
Second, in order to show off the player models in-game, we want other elements like animation, w_models, the HUD, etc to be in good enough shape to show all together and at once. We're trying to bring all the elements of the game together to show things in the natural game setting.
These are a few examples of many that there is more going on than just turning out renders to show everyone. This will mean more interesting media for you guys while helping focus our production effort and efficiency. Oh and it also means our first public release is coming into sight.
Stay tuned!
View all developer journals Productivity is accelerating and there is a general directive to work on getting more in game, doing fewer 3dsm renders and static map shots, etc. That's not to say we won't ever release those again, but we want to show you guys our progress towards release as much as you want to see it. That means live game shots and stuff.
I'll give a few examples that hopefully explain the lack of fancy pictures from our crew lately.
Our art crew have been creating many props and textures and these are being added into our maps. In this case we don't want to re-release shots of the same maps you've already seen with just texture changes and brushwork converted to props, or other small details added. Much effort has also been put into creating our own versions of placeholder content you've already seen in shots of Push and other maps. So while considerable work is being done here, little of it is appreciable until the game is released.
Similarly, showing static props by themselves and out of context of the maps they are in isn't very interesting. If you want to see the gutter/downspout system we created for Hunted's buildings or Avanti's telephone poles and chimneys before playing, well that's just a bit odd. =)
As another example, we have been creating and animating w_models for all the weapons in the game. These are the models you see other players holding in the game world. Showing updates in this area, for us, would require finalized character animations and character skins working ingame, as showing w_models out of the context of the game is silly. This isn't flashy work but it nonetheless must be done and moves us one step closer to our first public release.
Work on the player models and texturing has also been progressing, though there was a short lull due to our character skinner Spewok's accident. He is back and working now, thankfully. There are two primary reasons we haven't shown much of our progress in this area thus far:
First we're working to get all the models in game and with a preliminary skin before going back and putting in the time for finishing touches as you saw with the Sniper. As you can guess this "80/20" process isn't always conducive to a media release(80 Percent completion in 20 percent of the time). We have high standards and share what we feel will best represent our game in it's final stage.
Second, in order to show off the player models in-game, we want other elements like animation, w_models, the HUD, etc to be in good enough shape to show all together and at once. We're trying to bring all the elements of the game together to show things in the natural game setting.
These are a few examples of many that there is more going on than just turning out renders to show everyone. This will mean more interesting media for you guys while helping focus our production effort and efficiency. Oh and it also means our first public release is coming into sight.
Stay tuned!