We have lost a member of the TDM development team

[noni]

[esme]

I didn't really know Grayman apart from his missions, which were excellent. RIP sir

[HMart]

12 hours ago, stgatilov said:

Grayman repeatedly said that if he does not have time to release these two FMs, then the story of William Steele ends on the fifth mission.

I specifically asked him about it in March, and here is his answer:

So unless anyone wants to ignore his will, WS6 and WS7 are dead too.

Sorry if I'm being paranoid and I really hope I am but what he said is that he wants WS 6 and 7 to be removed/forgotten or for the entire series to be removed from the game?! That is what sounds like to me from this!!  "No archiving it ‘as is’."    "WS6 and WS7 are dead too"

Edited May 21, 2021 by HMart

[stgatilov]

5 minutes ago, HMart said:

what he said is that he wants WS 6 and 7 to be removed/forgotten or for the entire series to be removed from the game?!

Of course, it is only about the two missions which were not released.
Nobody ever talked about removing already released FMs.

I have added the question to my previous post.

 

[OrbWeaver]

I interpret "no archiving 'as is'" to mean that Grayman was not going to provide unfinished beta versions to be released after his death — not that he wanted to retroactively remove the already-released missions.

[grayson]

Hi this is Graymans son

My father was a poet, a painter, a writer, and a giant nerd. He studied nuclear physics, aerospace engineering, and AI. But all he really wanted to do was play video games. He recently lost a very long war with Cancer. 

My dad has a little plaque you all sent him hanging on the wall next to handprints from his grandchildren. Whenever my children would call him he'd talk to them about "his boring video game stuff" according to my 8 year old... who never really understood why Grayman didn't like Pokemon as much as he did.

I found a file on his computer stating that the last few levels he was working on 95%, 95%, and 50% finished. He also said working with another dev would take up too much time that he wanted to spend with his family instead. To be fair I worked with my father my entire life on random things (including Doom mods back in the day) and he never thought anything was finished. So I'd personally consider the two 95% missions to basically be done. If whoever he sent them to to Beta test wanted to share them with the development team I don't think he'd really mind and you shouldn't feel guilty if you do. I'll leave that up to you guys, but I will not be uploading them and they should not be posted publicly. The final mission will remain unfinished though. I will mention that it was going to be pretty damn good from what I read in his notes.

He did ask that two levels that weren't related to the Steele missions do get uploaded to the abandoned level archive. I am in the process of doing that now. 

Thanks

 

[HMart]

Hello grayson welcome to this community and I'm pretty sure that i'm not alone in saying that all here respected and admired your father and his work, my condolences and all the best for you and your family. 

 stgatilov and OrbWeaver thanks for the clarification and sorry for being paranoid was just lost in translation my bad. 

Edited May 21, 2021 by HMart

[nbohr1more]

10 minutes ago, grayson said:

Hi this is Graymans son

My father was a poet, a painter, a writer, and a giant nerd. He studied nuclear physics, aerospace engineering, and AI. But all he really wanted to do was play video games. He recently lost a very long war with Cancer. 

My dad has a little plaque you all sent him hanging on the wall next to handprints from his grandchildren. Whenever my children would call him he'd talk to them about "his boring video game stuff" according to my 8 year old... who never really understood why Grayman didn't like Pokemon as much as he did.

I found a file on his computer stating that the last few levels he was working on 95%, 95%, and 50% finished. He also said working with another dev would take up too much time that he wanted to spend with his family instead. To be fair I worked with my father my entire life on random things (including Doom mods back in the day) and he never thought anything was finished. So I'd personally consider the two 95% missions to basically be done. If whoever he sent them to to Beta test wanted to share them with the development team I don't think he'd really mind and you shouldn't feel guilty if you do. I'll leave that up to you guys, but I will not be uploading them and they should not be posted publicly. The final mission will remain unfinished though. I will mention that it was going to be pretty damn good from what I read in his notes.

He did ask that two levels that weren't related to the Steele missions do get uploaded to the abandoned level archive. I am in the process of doing that now. 

Thanks

 

My condolences to you and your family.

Your father was a great coder, mission author, and a great overall human being. (He seemed to act like our grampa here too, and always called TDM AI his children.)

He had labelled "William Steele 6" as "Release Candidate 2" so that one is probably unquestionably eligible for release given grayman's extremely high standards.

I will open a discussion on this internally and I have copies of the last missions added to the beta forum.

[duzenko]

It could have been his bet with God that if he is given that much time then he would pay back the episodes 6 and 7.

God has decided against that.

Respect the deal. Store the missions in a private storage and give copies privately by request.

[New Horizon]

3 hours ago, grayson said:

Hi this is Graymans son

My father was a poet, a painter, a writer, and a giant nerd. He studied nuclear physics, aerospace engineering, and AI. But all he really wanted to do was play video games. He recently lost a very long war with Cancer. 

My dad has a little plaque you all sent him hanging on the wall next to handprints from his grandchildren. Whenever my children would call him he'd talk to them about "his boring video game stuff" according to my 8 year old... who never really understood why Grayman didn't like Pokemon as much as he did.

I found a file on his computer stating that the last few levels he was working on 95%, 95%, and 50% finished. He also said working with another dev would take up too much time that he wanted to spend with his family instead. To be fair I worked with my father my entire life on random things (including Doom mods back in the day) and he never thought anything was finished. So I'd personally consider the two 95% missions to basically be done. If whoever he sent them to to Beta test wanted to share them with the development team I don't think he'd really mind and you shouldn't feel guilty if you do. I'll leave that up to you guys, but I will not be uploading them and they should not be posted publicly. The final mission will remain unfinished though. I will mention that it was going to be pretty damn good from what I read in his notes.

He did ask that two levels that weren't related to the Steele missions do get uploaded to the abandoned level archive. I am in the process of doing that now. 

Thanks

 

You're father will be dearly missed and I am so very sorry for your loss.  I lost my own father back in 2006.  It leaves quite a void.

Thank you for taking the time to come to the forums.

[Zerg Rush]

5 hours ago, grayson said:

Hi this is Graymans son

My father was a poet, a painter, a writer, and a giant nerd. He studied nuclear physics, aerospace engineering, and AI. But all he really wanted to do was play video games. He recently lost a very long war with Cancer. 

My dad has a little plaque you all sent him hanging on the wall next to handprints from his grandchildren. Whenever my children would call him he'd talk to them about "his boring video game stuff" according to my 8 year old... who never really understood why Grayman didn't like Pokemon as much as he did.

I found a file on his computer stating that the last few levels he was working on 95%, 95%, and 50% finished. He also said working with another dev would take up too much time that he wanted to spend with his family instead. To be fair I worked with my father my entire life on random things (including Doom mods back in the day) and he never thought anything was finished. So I'd personally consider the two 95% missions to basically be done. If whoever he sent them to to Beta test wanted to share them with the development team I don't think he'd really mind and you shouldn't feel guilty if you do. I'll leave that up to you guys, but I will not be uploading them and they should not be posted publicly. The final mission will remain unfinished though. I will mention that it was going to be pretty damn good from what I read in his notes.

He did ask that two levels that weren't related to the Steele missions do get uploaded to the abandoned level archive. I am in the process of doing that now. 

Thanks

 

I am not so long a member of this forum, to have known your father well. I have, however, really enjoyed the WS series, which are among my favorites. I also think that the last two missions, although incomplete, should be prominently displayed as a reminder of a great human being.

I am old and my father died when I was still a teenager, but I remember and understand this trance very well.
My condolences and a hug to you and your family.

[Bluehawk]

I wish the last time I interacted with him wasn't just to complain about some irrelevant point on emergent gameplay, that was maybe an annoyance he could have done without. My condolences to his family, and my respects to all the great things he created.

[zergrush]

18 hours ago, grayson said:

Hi this is Graymans son

My father was a poet, a painter, a writer, and a giant nerd. He studied nuclear physics, aerospace engineering, and AI. But all he really wanted to do was play video games. He recently lost a very long war with Cancer. 

My dad has a little plaque you all sent him hanging on the wall next to handprints from his grandchildren. Whenever my children would call him he'd talk to them about "his boring video game stuff" according to my 8 year old... who never really understood why Grayman didn't like Pokemon as much as he did.

I found a file on his computer stating that the last few levels he was working on 95%, 95%, and 50% finished. He also said working with another dev would take up too much time that he wanted to spend with his family instead. To be fair I worked with my father my entire life on random things (including Doom mods back in the day) and he never thought anything was finished. So I'd personally consider the two 95% missions to basically be done. If whoever he sent them to to Beta test wanted to share them with the development team I don't think he'd really mind and you shouldn't feel guilty if you do. I'll leave that up to you guys, but I will not be uploading them and they should not be posted publicly. The final mission will remain unfinished though. I will mention that it was going to be pretty damn good from what I read in his notes.

He did ask that two levels that weren't related to the Steele missions do get uploaded to the abandoned level archive. I am in the process of doing that now. 

Thanks

 

Hello, and thank you for coming over.

First I want to express my sincere condolences for your loss to you and your family. Your father was a respected and beloved member of this community who always addressed any  issues in a patient and rational manner. He was also a highly creative person who created content that brought others immense joy. These might sound like vague words coming from a stranger, sitting behind a screen in some obscure part of the world, that cannot in any way or shape represent what your father meant to you or your family. I only knew your father through his works and there is little else I can say. However, I can hardly think of any nobler goal in life than wanting to share such beauty with others for the sake of art itself and doing so consistently, with little interest in any form of compensation. This is a standard I want to guide my own life by, for it is one that makes the world a happier place to live in. And whether I make it or not, I would like you to know that your father was a source of inspiration not just to me but to everyone else around here. There is no greater power in life than being able to move others, and I hope it brings you joy knowing that your father achieved this.

 

*EDIT*

 

I've written a small article on Grayman for Gaming on Linux. You may find it here: https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2021/05/notable-developer-from-the-dark-mod-team-passes-away

Edited May 22, 2021 by zergrush

[stgatilov]

It is often missed that Grayman was also Lead Programmer of TDM team for six years.

[IZaRTaX]

I didn't know him personally but as I see he contributed to the development of TDM, big respect to him.

Rest in peace Grayman.

Edited May 22, 2021 by IZaRTaX

[Reman]

I keep a .txt file of all Thief and Dark Mod fan missions that I've played. There's five TDM missions so far that have received my top ranking, and two of them belong to the William Steele series. 

Thank you, Grayman. 

[boylag]

We have lost so many important people in the thief community over the years. Whether to age or not I think it shows how long running our community is.

I have yet to play through the William Steele series but was very much looking forward to it.

I remember a lot of the missions he helped with. Seeing as the original author would sometimes put his name along with theirs.

Reading what Grayson put made me think of my own father.

He and I made many doom levels together back in the day (not that any of them were good).

His online name was Major Lag.

Now you can see why I have always been known by Boy Lag.

Our fathers shape the world and then they shape us.

Rest In Peace.

[kano]

Damn, sad to hear this. Thank you for the William Steel series of missions and your code improvements to the mod, Grayman.

[V-Man339]

I'll be covering William Steele in his memory as the unfinished masterpiece that I noticed it as when I first routed it.

May he rest in peace and be remembered only well.

[MirceaKitsune]

This is something I did not expect. I didn't know him personally but saw him often here on the forum. He made some wonderful things that will live on. RIP.

[Melan]

I am very sad to hear of grayman's passing. I knew his battle with cancer had been long, and he was fortright about the possibility, but you always hope... This feels like losing an old friend, as he has been a member here for a very long time. It is not just his missions - which were justly cited as among the best - and not just his work on the core mod - which was essential. He was also a kind and friendly presence here, and that, especially, will be missed.

RIP, grayman! And condolences to @grayson and the entire family.

[wesp5]

Really sad news! I too never met him, but I played and loved his series. I hope, as his son suggested, at least the two almost finished missions can be completed in his memory, as otherwise all his work on them will be lost in time forever...

[kin]

Bad news. His work was professional at least. I wish his family the best.

[MirceaKitsune]

Regarding the FM series he was working on, this is my take on it: I definitely feel the nicest route would be continuing them rather than leaving them abandoned. Ideally by those creators who knew him and the stories well enough, thus know what he'd most likely make of them and the direction he'd want them to continue in. At least the existing / unfinished FM's for sure, but why not new episodes too if someone familiar could assume the series and become their new owner to develop them?

Here's an extra idea if I may: In the next original episode, if anyone decides to produce one, add a memory of him in the world as a main plot point... like making him a character in the FM or something nice like that. There are many creators with inspiration here so I'm sure something remarkable could come out of such an initiative! This can be made into a moment of creating something nice that wouldn't have happened otherwise rather than letting it be just a moment of sadness, if that makes sense. Hope this thought helps.

[lowenz]

Let the son decide.

Of course about the 95% completed ones.