Well guys, this is the first of the monthly blogs, so welcome to Hostile Takeover 2050.
Before I start on this month's blog, it is probably best to discuss what we plan to show, the timing of each blog, and to answer a few of the questions you guys might have.
What we plan to show: We plan to show you guys "warts and all" development. So you will see a little polished content and, at this stage, a fair bit of unpolished content. Most mods out there hide this process from you, they spend three hours getting the right image to show the mod in the best possible light. Sometimes they end up polishing everything so it looks as good as the images they show; other times you get the mod and say, "this is not the same game." Therefore, honesty is a big key for us and this blog.
Timing of the blog: We plan to bring you a blog by the second weekend of the month. Now I did mention "planned" so occasionally it might come a little before or a little after that day, but we will do our utmost to make sure it happens.
Community Questions: You can definitely ask questions and have your questions included in the blog. If the questions are good enough, we will explore and explain in depth what we are attempting to do and why we think this is the best way.
Now lets get into it..
Team Changes:
First up, a few announcements. We have recently welcomed aboard three new guys. 'Cab00se' and John 'Nomadicus' Eerenberg both are modelers/mappers. 'the edge' is coming on as our sound engineer. These guys are a welcomed sight.
Cab00se has started working on our weapon models, so hopefully next month we will get to see some first images around these. Nomadicus has started working on various modeling elements. Both come with a variety of experience and skill. The Edge has already started work on our theme song for Hostile Takeover 2050 as well as various in game sounds. For more information about these guys visit here: Hostiletakeover2050.com.
Coding:
The programming team has been hard at work getting our game off the ground. The game is being written from the UT3 engine up slowly replacing every bit of UT3 specific code. So far, the following features are up and running in our own code:
-HT Gametype (including player spawns, teams, rounds, etc. objectives are still to come)
-Custom Player Spawns for teams
-Teams
-Rounds
-Team selection before rounds
-Cannot change team during rounds
-Correct respawn on players on different teams (i. e., Infiltrators don't respawn when killed, CorpSec respawn as level 2 CorpSec)
-Objectives are coming in the next few weeks
-Player controller and custom keybinds
Allowing the player to move around in the world and perform some HT functions without touching the console.
-Weapons
This includes recoil, reloading, a magazine system, burst fire mode, full auto fire mode, and a tranquilizing dart.
-Stealth
The stealth code itself is mostly done, baring a few issues with replication. However, the stealth effect is quite primitive at the moment consisting of nothing more but a refraction shader that varies in intensity based on movement. The effect will become a lot more complex in time.
These initial stages are the hardest and longest parts of the programming cycle primarily due to learning the engine. So much work is involved in getting seemingly basic features running which, in turn, provide the basis for further work. In the coming weeks, the programming team is looking forward to shorter turn around times on new features and seeing the game progress and change into it's original vision.
Map:
Arcon Research, this is our first map of hopefully three before beta release.
Arcon is a medical research facility, located a few hours outside Seattle. The company produces and installs cyber-mods such as cyberarms, cyberlegs, cranial enhancements. The building is two stories, has four wings to it, and is set in a cube/donut formation. Recently, Arcon made a number of breakthroughs in medical research and the big corporations want a piece. Knowing this, Arcon's CEO has heavily invested in security guards, cameras, and various lockdown doors.
The four wings are Administration Wing (main entry and reception area), Software Wing (Cubicle City), Medical Wing (a mini hospital), and Research Wing (research labs and various equipment). We focused the Hostile Takeover 2050 team to make this map believable as a facility. A lot of the facility was taken from various sources of medical facilities currently in existence, modified, and mashed together.
The first video of the software wing is now available: Moddb.com
This compares 2 recent versions of a part of the software wing.
Game Note:
Due to the game's Hostile Takeover nature, the game has various objectives per map. For comparison, most games classify these as game types and dedicate one map per objective type: DM-Stringray is a deathmatch only level. In HT2050 (Hostile Takeover 2050) the infiltrating team will not know the objective until just before the game round starts. The opposing team called Corpsec (Corporate Security) will not know if the objective is to be taken, destroyed, captured, or shot.
The team has been working hard on models, textures, and placement. The software wing has been the the main focus for the team apart from a lot of polish that needs to be accomplished before the release of BETA. But we have included this month a quick video of a small section. This can give you an initial feel of what we are attempting in this wing. Hopefully you like the direction from the team.
Enjoy!
