Sword of Moonlight Forum
Sword Of Moonlight Games => Complete Games => Moratheia => Topic started by: Verdite on January 19, 2014, 10:05:29 pm
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Welcome to the final development post thread!!!!!
I have spent alot of time recently getting down to the nitty gritty with my project, and now its time to confirm your hopes! The next news to await will be... Rathmors final summer release
There hasnt been any Rathmor news for a while, but trust me this post will more than make it up to the die hard KF and SOM fans. There is even a video of my latest achievements with SOM.
So without further ado...
1.0 Attack functionality
Attack versatility video (http://youtu.be/qZJf9VZ5dDo)
SOM had a restrictive attack functionality before, so after alot of thought and planning, I devised a simple yet effective way of allowing players to change attacks whenever they like. If you are like me when you play KF or SOM you tend to like a certain weapon's design, or its ability. Well now you dont need to go spending a ton of game currency on a stabbing weapon when you have a sword - just change its attack type to stabbing.
This also means that you can cater to your own play style and customise it. If you prefer to go for high adrenaline, quick attacks with a medium sword or dagger, you can fight this way - having their stabbing ability as a last resort. Or maximise your damage output with a slow, hard attacking great sword, or if thats not enough, a heavy great axe. Maybe you prefer to attack from a distance with a spear? Or do you prefer to have a spear that cuts and jabs? Rathmor caters for all situations.
Not having a long ranged weapon attack can leave you in difficult situations, for example being assaulted by a spear. Thats where you can choose versatility in combat.
Each type of attack has its own damage output, so if your dagger cant slash that tough monster hide, change to stab for better effect.
Ive also improved the sound effects :wink:
2.0 Magic
I can confirm magic will be in Rathmor.
3.0 Levelling focus
Something bold and new for this genre of gaming - the level focus. I have juggled with alot of levelling up ideas, and this one seemed the best. I wanted to create as much character customisation as I could, so this is ideal. There are three basic levelling choices - Fighter, Balanced, and Defender. Each yields different bonuses to stats upon levelling up, with hidden classes granting even greater abilities.
The best thing is that you can change class at any time in the training area. Want to develop alot of points into strength, to use that greatsword? Go fighter. Prefer to have a few extra hitpoints for when you get surrounded? Choose defender. If you prefer to keep things even, incase something unknown comes your way, then balanced is essential.
4.0 Improved A.I
One of my biggest discoveries in SOM recently is being able to control how a monster reacts to the player, along with changing their behaviour when idle. Sick of seeing enemies walking into walls? I was, so I came up with some breakthrough ideas that stops this from happening. Enemies now have alot more character too - cowardly enemies will often get scared and leave their guard open. But aggressive enemies will end up charging towards you more, meaning you will need to change that attack type on your weapon to counter them.
5.0 Environments
Map sets
This is something I have really REALLY worked hard at and put tons of time and effort into. There were times I was going for up to 10-12 hours a day to finish some sets off. Since my last post, I have created 200 individual and unique map parts. This includes flawless collision data.
All sets have the capability to merge into one another, meaning when I release sets to the public you can mix and match.
I have also created three new tree parts, and new grass. All are memory friendly - meaning your game wont grind to a slow pace when exploring.
Revised HUD
You'l see the new HUD in the screenshots.
Please ignore the doors, as they will be changed. They are just dummies.
These screenshots have no graphical tweaks whatsoever, and no graphic extensions are in use.
Tavern
(http://oi42.tinypic.com/ejewzp.jpg)
Tavern interior
(http://oi42.tinypic.com/2czwv0l.jpg)
Your first bed...
(http://oi43.tinypic.com/3462as0.jpg)
Taverns "arse end"
(http://oi43.tinypic.com/2pyuz4h.jpg)
Tavern roof and distant house
(http://oi39.tinypic.com/21nffro.jpg)
Scalmane
(http://oi44.tinypic.com/15xvmn7.jpg)
More of Scalmane
(http://oi43.tinypic.com/r7iwll.jpg)
Home...
(http://oi42.tinypic.com/2q21jyh.jpg)
Bridge
(http://oi44.tinypic.com/2vnqio1.jpg)
Scalmane villa
(http://oi44.tinypic.com/2n7ds2.jpg)
Villa again
(http://oi40.tinypic.com/29dhans.jpg)
Villa interior
(http://oi42.tinypic.com/2e54bja.jpg)
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(These below images are more development screenshots and are not a true reflection of Rathmor's final graphics output.)
Jail
(http://oi40.tinypic.com/2jaybk0.jpg)
Outdoor mine entry
(http://oi39.tinypic.com/34ilfno.jpg)
Bura by campfire
(http://oi41.tinypic.com/2ch1hqd.jpg)
Objects
(http://oi41.tinypic.com/2ef2dqq.jpg)
(http://oi39.tinypic.com/2vt8eo4.jpg)
(http://oi42.tinypic.com/154ezi9.jpg)
While objects havent had as much attention there are still loads of newly created objects since the last news thread, including windows and doors, furniture etc.
The arena
You will get the chance to go head to head with some pro and some not so pro fighters in the arena. This will probably be one of the biggest challenges in the game to beat, and your opponents will use skill and cunning to catch you off guard. There is no killing in the arena - if you get beaten, you lose consciousness, same for if you beat your opponent - they will be knocked out.
Your own home
You will be able to buy a house in the main town or simply pay for accomodation at a tavern. The house comes with a letterbox for NPCs to pop important notes in. You will be able to customise some parts of your house such as the decorations.
Free roaming
While I know that having a guided path is important in a game, you will have the chance to revisit most visited areas and explore some new areas at your own pace. There will also be some nice free roaming when you have finished the game...
6.0 Currency
The amount of currency you can find in the 'field' as such is limited, but the amount of items you can amass varies - this includes valuables that sell for a good sum. Enemies will not drop gold like in SOM and KF - some enemies will drop valuables, and rare enemies will drop gold as a lump sum rather than the auto gold feature.
7.0 Sounds
There will be alot of ambient sounds in Rathmor - that includes wind, water drops, metal anvils, swords clashing etc.
Night and day
Yup, there will be night and day in Rathmor! You'l be able to do different things at night / get attacked more at night.
8.0 Revised story
The story is now revised and more engaging, while being more minimal on dialogue. It has taken a while to find the right balance!
What you wont be able to do in Rathmor...
- Have bows or crossbows. SOM limitation.
- Jump. Yup - my environment ideas and map sets wernt built with jumping in mind.
- Have a full, scientific 'human immersion experience' well in my opinion playing games isnt about simulating real life. There are similarities to make it more enjoyable, but it doesnt have to be so serious. I want players to have fun.
- Breaky break your sword on teh wallzors (durability). This is one of the magical benefits of SOM. Nice sharp weapons and polished armours!
- Get married. Do it mentally if you must!!
- Climb trees.
- Remake my game and change it to how you want it to be, then re release it without my consent. Just get rid of that idea right now if you have it. :smile:
Those are the more obvious ones at least.
Thanks alot for reading and supporting me, if you did.
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Amazing! That's an absolutely brilliant idea being able to use the same weapon with different attack styles like that. And that training dummy... I laughed so hard once I saw it begin to attack back.
The HUD and menus look very nice. The text looks slightly off though. It's most noticeable on the equip menu where it says "Equip Weapon".
The improved the A.I. sounds interesting. I can't wait to see that in action.
I also like the currency system you have. That's something I often thought about doing. I always found it silly how wild animals and the like would just drop money. The most common excuse was always "they ate it".
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This looks AMAZING!
I'm really impressed by this, I hope to LP it when it's finally released!
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Thanks for the input guys!
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There will certainly be some WTF moments, blind lets plays are always more interesting. Hehe, that Monty Python image, I don't remember which film that was!
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Holy crap Ben, I thought I was up to speed on everything you had been working on...alot of this stuff just looks totally awesome to see it for the first time.
I noted you said you didnt use any extensions to make the graphics work? How is that possible, my mind is boggled, I thought the high-res textures required the extension (as I will now eternally refer to it) If you accomplished all of this with just hard work and the basic SoM tool, I am in awe...it looks better than ever.
I love the two handed and new swing animations, they are just perfect for the game...and I really love how everything looks like its your own, nothing out of the box...but yet still in a very proper style, its perfect!
I for one cannot wait to play your masterpiece, I do hope if you consider making collector copies you will keep me on the list to purchase one:)
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So I have some very good news and some potentially bad news.
Bad news first, well I will be changing the name of my game close to its release. I know some people have got used to calling and associating my project as Rathmor, but it has too many strings attached to it that need released. For now, it is fine to address it as Rathmor.
Good news is that after 7 _hard_ months of level design, building model map sets, texturing and testing, I have completed all of the environments in my game. I am very happy with all 24 of the maps. I had originally set my scope on more levels, but instead I decided to make less, but more quality maps.
I've been burning it at both ends to get this done...
Heres a short video of a few of the levels, as a small thanks to everyone who has given me encouragement over the past year.
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Huh... After all this time it's going to feel quite odd calling your game by a different name. That'll likely take some time to get used to.
In most cases quality is better then quantity. After watching your preview video I can certainly agree with that. I'd much rather play a game that has few, but detailed maps then something with tons of maps that all feel soulless. 24 maps seems like quite a good amount as well.
Also, I had jumped at 1:57 in the video due to the sudden change and tune of the music :drool:.
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You sure? I thought Rathmor was a great name. It's all looking good either way, I can't wait to play it!
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That seems a bit extreme don't you think? I'm sure you'll reach the deadline you set but if you don't...
It would be a real shame if all the time and work you put into this just disappeared like that.
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It's mind blowing that one person made everything in that video from scratch. It's really quite an impressive achievement.
I'm rooting for you 100% and I'm sure you'll pull it together just fine! :coffee:
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Sorry about that guys. Its not like me to say something like that, I have just been under alot of pressure recently and problems keep popping up when I least expect them... Anyway sensibly speaking I know I can finish my game by the end of July. If I dont, I will work more to complete it. Its not too late to revoke that promise, is it?
June - October is a busy time for me, so I suppose I let the pressure get to me.
Anyway, to make up for it I am attaching some images, ones a concept art I drew when I first started Rathmor, it was going to be a relative of the saerir (jumping guys) which remains an undecided piece. I attached the saerir's concept sketch for those who forgot what they look like :wink:
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I'm looking forward to playing this! I'm setting up a WinXP PC connected to the TV, which will be perfect for playing this when it's done! :D
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Good to hear from you again Guyra! I will be sure to send you a hard copy to Norseland :groundal: when I get round to it.
I've been discussing lighting transitions through level warps in another thread, and I think I have found the best way to go from a very light scene to a dark one. So I made a video to show, sadly the sound wasnt synced properly. Anyway, its a low quality vid but it shows off the workaround and my new lighting setup. The player character carries around a stone that reacts to dim light, almost like an automatic lantern. The lamp gives off a goldenrod colour to illuminate the immediate vicinity (10m)
This might not seem like a big deal on the surface, but consider how many times the player has to view lighting sources, and the way lighting affects detail and immersion.
http://youtu.be/DnDdSrUSq-g
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That warp idea is really great! The transition is barely noticeable now. The KF games had transition areas very similar to what is in your videos. They give the console time to stream in the next maps resources. I've seen the development maps for KF(US) and it was laid out in square tile maps just like SoM. They just hid the transitions with a series of doored chambers or an S shaped hallway.
The texture on the Saerir is really excellent. How long does it take you to make a texture like that?
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That texture is actually one of my older pieces. I dont recall how long it took, but some creature textures take me 1-2 hours to make, or there are some which can take up to 4-5 hours if created from scratch. Alot of game devs nowadays use occlusion maps taken from a high poly, multi-res sculpt, then export the second tier resolution model (say if there are 7 or 8 divisions)
The occlusion mapping saves alot of time, but I found certain ways around that with manual UV mapping, making the process faster. Basically, I think that occlusion textures taken from renders can be too unrealistic if there are too many polys, it makes the 'defining shadows' less realistic. Skin textures need to have a stretched look, and occlusion taken from a sagging high poly model often doesnt hit that mark.
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Good to hear from you again Guyra! I will be sure to send you a hard copy to Norseland :groundal: when I get round to it.
It's good to be back! And I'd love that! :D
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The player character carries around a stone that reacts to dim light, almost like an automatic lantern. The lamp gives off a goldenrod colour to illuminate the immediate vicinity (10m)
Wait...what? How is this accomplished with SOM?
I am confused.
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That lighting is created by modifying the lighting (RGB to create a goldenrod colour), then having a low draw distance - 10 meters, and no fog set at zero to simulate a lantern. There is one heavy problem, and that is the lanterns red cast upon a texture doesnt mix with the existing texture's colour, meaning the textures colours are essentially swamped out.
This is fine for outdoor areas that are viewable in both day and night (night being 'lantern lit') because the player can see the difference between the regular textures and the effect of the lantern light.
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Its been quiet around the Rathmor board recently, mostly because I have been doing so much work on Rathmor that I dont have alot of time to do updates. Rathmor is coming close to its release date, so I would like to add a few screenshots and a small update for anyone following this project.
News
- 26 levels in total, 23 fully populated with enemies
- Experience chart finished and well balanced
- Well balanced enemy difficulty - I've been going back to calculate, refining animations and difficulty again and again for hours
- Beta of chapter 1 tested, thankyou to all who helped iron out bugs and emulation errors
- New BGM
- Alot, alot, alot of new NPCs
- Lots of new objects, nearly finished
- Magic table complete
- All dungeon levels in chapter 1 evented
- Right and left hand slots. Choose what gauntlets or accessories you want to use on either hand. You can customise how you want to play based on what you use, for example using a heavy gauntlet on your left hand will lower your casting ability
- Alot of left hand items, magic assists, defence assists...
- Loot table being worked on, about 5 hours of polishing loot and pairing it with enemy difficulty so far
- New sound effects
- New enemies and bosses
- Polished alot of animations
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I had a ton of fun with the beta, can't wait for the full release!
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Right AND left gauntlet slots? Interesting... How'd you pull that off?
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Well, shields dont exist in my game, so I decided to replace them with a left hand item, which goes into the shield category (it'll be renamed to left hand). It didnt make much sense having shields in the game if you cant block! The idea is that Ultorc casts 'magic' with his left hand, items like that blue bracelet, a left hand only item, accentuate his 'magic flow' so to speak.
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Ah, very clever!
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Really great looking! I swear I've seen many professional games whose models don't look as good as yours. I love the dark brooding color schemes.
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Big news! Final beta has been released, in a very stable condition.
I had to deal with 7 major game ending crashes that were not easily fixed.
Numerous (12 physical notebook pages) worth of tweaks and fixes.
Enemy balancing.
Equipment balancing.
Dialogue adjusts, misaligning text etc.
Completed the environment test, and the full playthrough. Game is huge and will probably take most players the best part of 20 hours to finish. Rushing is not advised really, because monsters move quick enough to punish rushers! :groundal:
So... Hopefully I can get a full, public release out before the weekend!!!!!! :rainbow:
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If they were any bugs that others may run into, you should post how you fixed them.
I've really been anticipating your game. Unfortunately, I have two big projects and a trip out of town coming up right near the release - but at least I'll have something to look forward too when the pace dies down. :beerchug:
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The suspense of this is simply killing me :movingeyes:....I have been looking at the forum every morning since you announced that the testing started, hoping that a download link will appear lol.
That's how exited I am about Rathmor.
Everything looks great and I can't wait to sink my teeth into your masterpiece.
Ty Verdite for all the time you put into this and I hope we can play it soon :smile:
:beerchug:
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To GusLeRoi and any others watching this, I need to let you know that 2 testers are testing the final version. I have been testing it too, but recently I have been very busy with other things too, so I cannot test everyday.
I cannot predict when my project will be released, I need to know if the testers have problems with the models (emulation ... :smash2:) or not before I release my game. I will wait until next weekend, and post it regardless - I am way off my set release date because of 8 major crashes in game. I have fought for ages to fix the crashes, and now the game is stable enough for people to play.
Maybe there will be one more project, Gus! Something very different maybe :wink:
John, I will post errors when I get my project released - maybe in a bug report thread for us and others to refer to. :rainbow:
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Next weekend Sounds great Verdite :smile:
I know that fine tuning a game for its final release is quite a task :sweatdrop:
I will be keeping an eye out also for this *different project of yours*
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So I need to raise a point, which I didnt think I would have to, but its about the final release. It will be released this weekend without fail, and unfortunately headway has not been made towards emulation compatability, general difficulty, and recovery item usage for others. I was hoping to get a general figure on item consumption at least, but it seems this will not be the case. So those who play the first release may struggle a bit - my game is hard, but the game is stable enough to play, I have tested it alot alone and ironed out alot of bugs myself.
Another thing to mention, is that you will require a gamepad, unless you are a pro at the clunky keyboard controls. Alot of enemies require timed strafing, back dashing etc.
I have my PS3 dualshock USB'ed up to my PC, it works with just the motioninjoy driver.
Here is a reply from Hwitvlf about using an xbox controller for SoM games, which may help.
I use PPJoy to make a fake controller and set SoM's joystick to use the fake controller. That prevents SoM's auto-joystick detection form interfering when I use Joy2Key with a Xbox360 controller to play SoM via keyboard emulation.
PPJoy
http://www.simtel.net/free/Miscellaneous-Utilities/PPJoy/75176.html
Joy2Key
http://www.electracode.com/4/joy2key/JoyToKey%20English%20Version.htm
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So you're releasing it this weekend then? I don't think I'll be able to finish the beta before then unfortunately. This version seems to be taking me a lot longer, I can tell you've added a lot more stuff! But I can at least say that it has been pretty stable for me after using that save, and I haven't found any notable bugs from what I've played so far.
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It is sunday morning here and no sign of a download link for Rathmor....Guess it wont be out this weekend after all...Really wanted to play this over the long weekend...but ill keep waiting.
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I had two botched uploads, they timed out. My internet connection is not the best, and the zip file is 950mb.
While uploading, I keep getting mixed times to upload completion, varying from 3 hours to 4. With any luck you'll be able to play at around 8 or 9 PM (GMT) tonight.
I could've uploaded the file yesterday, but I spent all day on the manual, and wanted to include the manual in the full version.
Sorry to keep you and anyone else waiting.
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Yayyyyy....Will probably be pulling an all nighter in that case :coffee:
Ty so much for uploading this today :smile:
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No problem, I think being a month overdue is about the maximum limit of delay for any developer :smile:
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Hey CONGRATULATIONS, Verdite!!! :blow:
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Well done Verdite on completing your project, I can't wait to play it. I am super pumped from seeing the intro and I am reading your manual as well (really quality job on that by the way) the lore looks really fleshed out and interesting, oh and dark my favourite kind of fantasy setting. Will probably do what GusLeRoi is doing and pull an all nighter too, luckily I'm not at work tomorrow :biggrin:
Thanks for your hard work Verdite :beerchug:
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Very welcome. I am about to post the link :)
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Sigh, I get back in town after spending 8 days with in laws only to have said in- laws come up and stay at my place for a couple days on their way to Canada...will I ever get time to play this game!?!?
AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!
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You are probably better off waiting until I release the first patch anyway. I sometimes feel annoyed and ashamed of the bugs still in my game, but at the end of the day there was no other way to find them unless I released version 1. It was a gamble, but the game has been mostly stable...
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Even big name titles have tons of bugs at release these days. And those companies have whole teams of people doing quality checks. For a lone person making a game of this magnitude, you're doing quite well. I'm going to continue my playthrough and I'll let you know if I encounter any bugs. So far, the only thing close to a bug was when I was trying to squeeze along a narrow cliff path where I wasn't even supposed to go and popped through the wall. But that was just in one place where I wasn't even meant to to go.
I'm really impressed with so many aspects of this game :beerchug: