Alright guys....anyone who cares to, please do some research on how much we can actually mod using the Unreal Engine 3.0.
Overstatement for one has questions if we can technically produce this when using only a mod of the UT2007 without having complete access to the game engine.
So people, please scour the web for any info....cuz atm I think using UT will be worth the wait if we can integrate everything we need to. Of course, if certain things are not possible because of collision detection or being able to edit shaders...etc etc....then we have to think some more about where this is going.
I am going to start with some emails from another developer i have spoken with in Australia:
I basically asked him if he thought we would be able to clone Chaos Theory as a complete mod using the 3.0 engine. He feels that we can do it....And yes, he is currently using the engine on a AAA title.
(the first email was posted in reply to student wanting to create a UI using the engine for school)
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FYI Epic are being very reticent about releasing code for their new Engine.
As far as I know at the moment Epic don't plan to share enough code in the
UT2007 release to make a total conversion with a custom UI and menu system
however your needs seem quite reasonable. You just want to make an in-game
HUD correct? As a licensee I can tell you straight up that the Unreal 3
Engine is one of those tools that digest well and quickly. Minimal
experimentation earns you enough insight to go and problem solve and I say
that with confidence. It truly is one of the most established tools I've
ever had the privilege to learn.
Anyhow with the level of control you get out of the software you'll be quite
able to take your interface the whole nine yards.
UE3's simplicity and 'What you see is what you get' architecture sees
butterflies in my stomach.
'There you go Epic I've given you a good wrap now fix that goddamn rotation
bug already!!!'
BTW, out of curiosity, is there anybody other than me and my local
co-workers using Unreal 3 in Sydney. I know of no other.
Cheers,
xx.
Prophecy Games.
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(2nd email ) (i asked him if we could do a total conversion mod of CT)
You'd have a pretty strong chance of churning out something solid in a
reasonable time-frame. What can I say, the tools literally allow you to fly
in terms of development time and effort. If I were a betting man, which I
am, I'd say with a small team of 4-5 individuals you'd have something
downloadable in three to four months, depending on the feature set you
desire and your art pipeline. You won't have too much trouble remaking the
Chaos maps in UnrealEd 3.0 either and implementing code in for your
gameplay. The only real boundary is how much code Epic gives you that allows
you to modify gameplay and base functionality. A lot of the code that will
be released with UT2007 is hard written. You can change a bit here and a bit
there, almost like making icing for the already cooked cake if that makes
any sense. That said, I'm confident you'll have no trouble pulling off what
you have set out to do. There's plenty of help and source documentation
floating around the net already. The UDN is a HUGE help to developers and
modders alike.
Cheers!
xx,
Prophecy Games.
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(3rd email) (i asked him if we would be able to do sophisticated stuff like vision modes and gadgets etc)
Well the best sources of information have already been spoken for.
The UDN is the considered the central Hub of collaborative development
shared between developers/licensees. Problem is that the Unreal 3x section
requires login pass. Understandable considering UnrealEd 3.0 is currently
still in development. I understand your inclination to get a head start on
UE3 and many modders will share the same desire. May I suggest you hold on
to that groovy idea until UT2007 for PC has been officially released. Then
access to the Unreal 3x section of the Epic UDN will be open to the public.
There are still quite a few video tutorials to be uploaded and some of them
are obsolete already. Development is flying even post Gears and I will tell
you now that the wait for Unreal 3 is thinning to an end.
Nearly there.
To answer your earlier question, yes, mirroring the Chaos [Chaos Theory Versus] interaction seems
quite reasonable.
Cheers.
xx,
Prophecy Games.
---------------------------------
I think the only information you'll find on a game that isn't released are those vague technical descriptions of the engine for marketing purposes. So, if you've looked and can't find anything, free feel to research other commerical engines (look at their SDKs).
And correct me if I'm wrong but don't licensees have full access to the engine's source code? Modders sure don't. I remember Unreal3.0 has a shader editor, someone tell me how that works (details!).
from what i have seen of the shader editor ...it was designed with artists in mind. It looks a lot like the Maya Shader Editor (node based with drag-drop connections)which i am quite comofortable with.
here are some links i have collected
Wikipedia Info...lists info on all engine versions and games that use 3.0
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unreal_engine
Wiki on modding and tutorials for the engine:
http://wiki.beyondunreal.com/wiki/
Official Website of Epic with info using 2.o -contains exporters and tutorials that we might be able to use for 3.0
http://udn.epicgames.com/Two/WebHome
Tutorials on Material Editor and other stuff
http://book.hourences.com/tutorialsindex.htm
Yes, licensees get access to the source code but we're nowhere near the requirements to become a licensee.
http://www.unrealtechnology.com/html/licensing/faq.shtml
^^that is a given....which is why we need programmers to start mining for information on wether using 3.0 is going to be possible.
Because of the limited information, we should be able to use the UT2003 version as a referance point.
My logic is that if we can make a mod based on the 2.0 engine....then we should be able to use 3.0 as well. This is an upgrade of an existing engine so in theory, whatever code/features in 2.0 will translate to 3.0 (modified of course).
So we need some guys to look into the 2.0 engine to see if they can replicate chaos theory or not.
Is the 3.0 based on 2.0 or written completely from scatch? They usually disclose this if it is a complete remake, not so much when it is an upgrade.
And that shader editor is looking cool!
having followed 3d software like Maya for the last few version upgrades...things are rewritten for optimization but backwards compatability is usually reliable. I cannot say it will work like that with a game engine though.
Again....thats why I am stressing programmers to do research. Like judging how much the engine has changed between upgrades and wether we can take stuff from the 2.0 engine and port directly into 3.0
i know several unreal engine 3.0 developers personally . i can see what i can do if you post questions here and i will relay them to the developers . fyi , one is a programmer and one is a level designer , so that will cover a good amount of what we need to know .
also i have already heard that the material editor is very intiuitive , so skinning a camera with vision modes will be pretty easy . also gadgets should not be difficult since theyre just projectiles with functionality after launch . i think that all of the things in chaos theory's versus will be achievable near the beginning with the exception of some more difficult things , like custom actor scripting such as geometric events for ledge grabbing , beam emitting lights , etc .
Ask him the all important question: "What problems do you expect from making a CT clone in UR3.0?"
Also, ask him the minor question: "What's the minumim shader version support?"
i will address the shader support , but all inclusive questions , as all important as they are , cannot be asked because these are developers , not splinter cell addicts lol .
i will ask any questions in specific , please do not be broad in the wquestions you want asked because the developers are busy with their projects , and will not take time to understand what you mean .
wait, you said projectiles on launch, that doesnt include things such as PD style devices, that is to say devices that are "passive".
how much plasticity is allowed in the maps? which is to say how much can be dynamic? ex can we run scripts when a person presses a button, can we have non static lazer defences.
I want decals on dynamic vertices! Can it do bulletholes/custom emblems on (ragdolled) models?
Can you have a customizable lighting model with custom shaders (raw or made in their editor)?
Is it one of those "most of the game code is written as scripts" kind of deal?
Quote from: Tinweasele on December 06, 2006, 12:09:33 AM
can we run scripts when a person presses a button
It wouldn't be much of a scripting language if it couldn't even do that (I assume you mean a button on the map, not a button on the keyboard).
i will address those questions when i see the persons working with the engine .
about the pd style gadgets , non-passive lasers , and dynamic maps ... the unreal 2.xx engine will support as much as the developer is willing or knows how to implement , so there is no question that unreal engine 3 will incorporate all of thse , possibly even further .
the gadgets and passive lasers will be custom scripts , actors basically , and since they are being made custom , there will be plenty of options about whether the gadgets like the PD style one are always on , or if they are selectable as some have wished for . the dynamic maps will always be possible . also , along with custom placeable actors comes more interactivity with maps . so yes the push-button style functions are easy , while more complex functionality will of course be more complicated .
My question: Will we be able to get the ledge system to work? Like in Splintercell you can hang from ledges, shimming across them, pull yourself up and the like. Can we do this?
For psyichics question... im sure the answer is yes, as long as the animations and scripts for it are well made by the team :).