So, what are you working on right now?

[joebarnin]

13 hours ago, datiswous said:

For the total loot count it might not work. I don't know if you can remove loot from a mission at start via a script.

There is a script function to set the loot count, by type: changeLootAmount. 

[Geep]

You might want to manipulate inventory items & count, & available weapons, too. Some scripting support, but varies.

[Zerg Rush]

On 4/8/2023 at 9:20 AM, JackFarmer said:

The problem with the FPS counter is that it is quite unreliable when it comes to determining how the game runs on other computer configurations. Therefore, you should always use the previously mentioned commands to check. It might also be a good idea to do some kind of alpha performance testing. @Zerg Rush machine is a kind of benchmark for me; if the game runs badly on his machine, then many others will have problems as well in my experience.

How this is to be evaluated technically, I don't know exactly either, and I've heard several opinions on why certain things are very demanding. My experience is just:

1. Keep light radii in larger scenes as small as possible and preferably not overlapping.
2. Too many entities in large scenes have bad effects - use LOD where possible.
3. Design portals in such a way that they close. In one of your screenshots you can see only closed portals on the right side and a large number of open portals on the left side, which raises the question what these portals are supposed to do and what would also explain the number of draw calls.
4. Duzenko says that Draw Calls should always be around 2,500 - Springheel once said that they should not be above 4,500. However, I have noticed in beta tests that some people had problems with their computers when the draws were over 4,500.
5. Shadow count should be (as Springs once mentioned) below 80,000. I also noticed that this has a big effect. This can be reduced significantly if you proceed as described in "1." above. But your shadow count is zero. Can this be correct or is this defective? @nbohr1more

 

After the last update to 2.11 it seems that the Missions, which before caused a low FPS in my laptop, like Lucy's Quest or Writen in Stone, now are working with an playable 30+

Edited April 11, 2023 by Zerg Rush

[JackFarmer]

Don't look down.

[nbohr1more]

Pretty cool!

As a general rule, Doom 3 \ TDM engines both like long narrow tunnels like this. Dram did a bunch of experiments with different map designs and found that long and thin maps can be enormous and still have great performance. I think this is why "No Honor Among Thieves" has lots of long + thin areas. The designers took Dram's findings into consideration.

[joebarnin]

3 hours ago, JackFarmer said:

Don't look down.

So, is this where you throw the Steampunk emperor at the end of the last mission? 

[jaxa]

7 hours ago, JackFarmer said:

Don't look down.

Vibe:

 

[Goldwell]

A new screenshot from Shadows of Northdale Act 3

[thebigh]

On 5/19/2023 at 7:39 PM, Goldwell said:

A new screenshot from Shadows of Northdale Act 3

 

 

Ooo... nice! Excellent use of the new "god rays" functionality, and I can see your usual attention to detail in there as well. I'm looking forward to playing this.

[kingsal]

Hello thieves,  the other day I realized my last Volta release was in 2017! Time really flies. 

After years of fiddling with this project, I'm ready to announce the remaining missions in the Volta and the Stone Campaign:  

Volta 1 : The Stone*
Volta 2 : Cauldron*
Volta 3 : Gemcutter
Volta 4 : The Lost Forge
Volta 5 : Buried Streets 
Volta 6 : Traitor
* I have redux versions of Volta 1 and 2 in the works. More on those later.

I'm going to start beta testing Gemcutter and The Lost Forge this summer, so those will be ready this year.
Buried Streets and Traitor are coming along, but won't go into beta until sometime in 2024. 

WIP screenshots!
Seeya around- Kingsal

Edited May 29, 2023 by kingsal

[AluminumHaste]

Holy crap you're use of lighting is godly I love it so much!

Can't wait, I love your Volta series.

 

Just a suggestion, for higher quality screenshots, make sure to set r_screenshot_format png to reduce colour banding.

Also, and I'm sure this is already set, but make sure Color Precision is set to 64 in Video->Advanced.

[Wellingtoncrab]

[MirceaKitsune]

Almost can't believe that's TDM, only recognized a few of the assets. So amazing, can't wait for this to be out!

[Cambridge Spy]

I'm looking forward to the redux versions of the first two missions, to be honest.

[Amadeus]

Amazing work man! Pardon me while I drool all over my keyboard

[JackFarmer]

@kingsal

I'm slowly running out of swear words to disparage you with.

Amazing, praiseworthy, enviable work.

[vozka]

This is getting a bit ridiculous. Don't you think you should tone down the quality a bit? It's almost obscene. 

[thebigh]

Yeah, seeing work that quality just makes mine look crummy and inadequate. Well, I mean, it is garbage but you don't need to rub it in.

[geegee]

This is absolutely beautiful.  Totally daunting, but wow does it ever show what can be done with this new darkmod engine.

[Frost_Salamander]

7 hours ago, thebigh said:

Yeah, seeing work that quality just makes mine look crummy and inadequate. Well, I mean, it is garbage but you don't need to rub it in.

Knock it off!  Down and Out on Newford Road was fantastic!

(I know you're just joking around, but still...)

[thebigh]

I'm just aware of my limitations as a mapper, and also aware that the rage these days is for enormous sprawling missions that take hours, where I prefer smaller maps. I might be able to make a few missions that are fun to play, but I haven't got a Volta or an Iris in me.

[AluminumHaste]

8 minutes ago, thebigh said:

I'm just aware of my limitations as a mapper, and also aware that the rage these days is for enormous sprawling missions that take hours, where I prefer smaller maps. I might be able to make a few missions that are fun to play, but I haven't got a Volta or an Iris in me.

And that's fine, we need all the types of missions, not just huge ones.

[datiswous]

On 6/3/2023 at 5:31 AM, thebigh said:

Well, I mean, it is garbage but you don't need to rub it in.

I love to see some of that garbage. You have some screens?

[thebigh]

Well, here's some teasers for a haunted house mission I'm hoping to get done by Halloween. For the second screenshot I increased the gamma just so you can see what's going on- I'm really trying to avoid that milky grey look you get with high gamma and ambient.

This is also a self-imposed challenge: the whole mission fits inside a 1024x1280x1024 box, including the skybox and playertools. Lights and speakers can have radii that protrude outside but all the geometry has to fit inside the box. It's amazing how much you can squeeze into such a tiny area.

Showing any more screenshots would unfortunately spoiler the mission.
 

Spoiler

 

[Amadeus]

2 minutes ago, thebigh said:

Well, here's some teasers for a haunted house mission I'm hoping to get done by Halloween. For the second screenshot I increased the gamma just so you can see what's going on- I'm really trying to avoid that milky grey look you get with high gamma and ambient.

 

absolutely loving the look of it so far! Love what you've done with the crumbleing road (maybe add a few individual cobblestones to give it a more "broken-up" feel.) For the windows, might I suggest trying out the plnt_glass01 texture? It is dirty, grimy, and might be a better fit for the scene