Friday 2009-10-23 Screenshots Update discussion thread

[Feuerfalke]

We should open another thread on this

Well, back to topic: I know what you meant about the eye for the right looks now - SoW will look awesome

[Oleg Maddox]

Originally Posted by Feuerfalke

1. We should open another thread on this

2. Well, back to topic: I know what you meant about the eye for the right looks now - SoW will look awesome

1. Only on my own forum. Not here.
2. Yes. Thank you.

[philip.ed]

Oleg, thanks for being so helpful.

Is there a chance of seeing more in-game shots this friday?

Also, you mentioned that colours etc are not permanent in regards to the terrain. Are the textures we are seeing here actually going to be used on the map of britain?

[luthier]

Originally Posted by philip.ed

Also, you mentioned that colours etc are not permanent in regards to the terrain. Are the textures we are seeing here actually going to be used on the map of britain?

I'll answer that while Oleg's out.

The textures are WIP. Some are placeholders, other are not. Once the colors are fixed, the non-placeholder textures will be used in the main gameplay map.

I want to explain the thought process behind the map you're seeing right now a little better. It wasn't a "let's make a little slice of Britain" kind of thing. It wasn't a "let's make the most gorgeous map we can" kind of thing. It was a "let's make a map where we can stretch out various textures, test various options of 3D cliffs, and have a large variety of terrain types dumped together for quicker debugging."

That's how a lot of things are done in development. You need intermediary steps on the long arduous climb to perfection. This map is one of those steps.

[philip.ed]

Originally Posted by luthier

I'll answer that while Oleg's out.

The textures are WIP. Some are placeholders, other are not. Once the colors are fixed, the non-placeholder textures will be used in the main gameplay map.

I want to explain the thought process behind the map you're seeing right now a little better. It wasn't a "let's make a little slice of Britain" kind of thing. It wasn't a "let's make the most gorgeous map we can" kind of thing. It was a "let's make a map where we can stretch out various textures, test various options of 3D cliffs, and have a large variety of terrain types dumped together for quicker debugging."

That's how a lot of things are done in development. You need intermediary steps on the long arduous climb to perfection. This map is one of those steps.

Thanks luthier, that makes perfect sense. Can I ask, when designing your textures for britain/france, are you using historical photos when possible? For example, will you be attempting to perfectly replicate the actual fields and roads that exist? So for example, if I was flying around kent I could use the roads to find my way back to, say, west-malling...?

Thanks for being so helpful though. I know I have a lot of questions

[furbs]

i hope they use the photos i was asked to take back in 2004(or 5 cant remember now)...i took about 60 pics of pre-war houses, pubs, farms and other stuff. cant wait to see if some of them made it into SOW

[drafting]

Beautiful work, Oleg and Luthier! The 110 screenshot is especially amazing... Very true to life. I think I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, too!

Since it's now possible to open canopies, etc (I may be wrong?), I wonder if it'd be possible too to have more complex 'bail out' sequences?

Bailing out is a pretty desperate and sometimes violent ordeal, and it'd be incredible if your view point could kind of 'leap' out of the cockpit and 'spin' away from the plane instead of just popping into a 3rd-person perspective of the pilot in his chute.

Also, up till now, you know that you're getting out if your plane's high enough and you hit the 'bail out' key, but in real life it might be impossible due to high speed, g's, or violent spinning... Maybe add a little fear into hitting 'ctrl-e'?

I remember a patch added to European Air War long ago that added 'realistic' bail outs, and it was a pretty scary ordeal. You definitely weren't assured of making it out alive if you weren't straight and level, and it made you wonder about bailing out long before you were missing a wing, tail, and engine and were fluttering to the ground.

[Oleg Maddox]

Originally Posted by philip.ed

Thanks luthier, that makes perfect sense. Can I ask, when designing your textures for britain/france, are you using historical photos when possible? For example, will you be attempting to perfectly replicate the actual fields and roads that exist? So for example, if I was flying around kent I could use the roads to find my way back to, say, west-malling...?

Thanks for being so helpful though. I know I have a lot of questions

We use historical photos, however we don't plan to make full copy of real things. It is almost impossible. Is possible to put modern sattelite map and forget about everything and don't even make different buildings ans special dedicaded areas... its what make most others now.
That to make so great non-pixelated ground and great detail from the air or on the ground we need to go for compomises - there will be tiled hand made textures, but in such amount that you probably will be unable to see the tile even from high altitude.
Also we have unique textures that by our technology (next generation of similar in Il-2 and that still nobody as I can see don't have) we can put in different places and you will not see any bad edges, trasitions, etc...
Some historical buildings/areas of course are some copy of real, but there are a lot of other buildings that are generic for some area and we use it to build cities/regions. This is common technology in all games, even when you heard that it is a total copy..
Roads: As you may see on screenshots they are not like in IL-2, but also not like in other games. about this you will know more later. I can't tell all secrets at the moment.

[AdMan]

Originally Posted by luthier

I'll answer that while Oleg's out.

The textures are WIP. Some are placeholders, other are not. Once the colors are fixed, the non-placeholder textures will be used in the main gameplay map.

I want to explain the thought process behind the map you're seeing right now a little better. It wasn't a "let's make a little slice of Britain" kind of thing. It wasn't a "let's make the most gorgeous map we can" kind of thing. It was a "let's make a map where we can stretch out various textures, test various options of 3D cliffs, and have a large variety of terrain types dumped together for quicker debugging."

That's how a lot of things are done in development. You need intermediary steps on the long arduous climb to perfection. This map is one of those steps.

Thanks for the insight. As an artist I've learned not to show WIP that doesn't look complete (even if it's not) because the natural response from people is to get worried if they don't understand the process. Knowing the purpose of this particular map I can now better see what is being tested.

[AdMan]

grab0130
these clouds look amazing!