Hi,



Welcome to the April: Have your say. This list contains last months issues at present as we've not had a Beta for awhile. The good news is that Lee is back at the helm after GDC and the development team is working virtually non-stop to bring you the next beta.



As a reminder, the aim every month, is to create a top 10 list of bugs and a top 10 list of concerns so we can address them. I'll get the bugs from the bug forum or from reports sent to me, so please keep posting those on the bugs forum. In addition please keep this thread free from feature requests, there's a forum for that too. However what I would like to hear about in this thread are concerns and issues you have with current features.



As we see it, these are the current concerns.



Concerns



1) Performance is too slow on majority of machines - vastly improved for next beta

2) Memory cap is too easily hit - fixed for next Beta

3) AI just isn't that smart.

4) It's very hard to pick up small objects in the editor, especially those that overlap larger objects.

5) Characters can shoot through hills - Fixed for next Beta

6) Characters should be able to use any of the available weapons.

7) New maps aren't reset correct and contain lights, grass and the last used skybox - fixed for next beta

8) Player drops into world - Fixed for next Beta

9) Textures not being moved over fully into built game (possibly a bug, but as it's a hot topic I've included it here so you're aware, we're aware



We need your feedback to help develop the product you all want to see and use.



SC

-

I don't know if I should post this here or not but for issue #4 it might be good to either enable the user to name objects (so you can select by object name) and\or have layers (so you can hide\show layers - one layer could be used for vegetation, another for buildings, another could be for game items such as ammo, etc.)

For me, the over-riding issue is that the customability just isnt as intuitive as i would have liked. I want easier customisation for weapons and enemy sprites. Something akin to the construction editor but for weapons, NPC's vehicles etc.



A few other niggling issues include-



* The static water plane (there ought to be a way to disable it entirely for 'dry' maps)

* No way to introduce a timeline or custom splash screens, which is necessary to make a game of commercial value. It would be nice to be able to start selling my FPSCR games sooner rather than later.

* The option for a third person perspective would be nice as some people have mentioned, for 'GTA style' games.

* Still no sign of the golden pledge perks in spite of the March release promises. Are we likely to recieve these this month?

As far as the game scriping goes there is a lot more involved considering

that the main goal of the original premis of FPSC was to let an everyday

joe build a game without having to know much about the whole coding side.



The downside of Reloaded is it requires lots of scriping to get stuff to

work or in my case days of waisted time to try solve a simple thing like

pick up an item Thanks to Scene Comander it was sorted.





There is a lot of stuff you can do with Reloaded than you could not do with old FSPC, but there is a lot of simple stuff that you can not do like transpoter pads or just adding a new weapon you need to know scriping to

do these functions.



Guess what I am trying to say is, it would have been a beter idea to make

Reloaded with the new terain functions and simply incorporate old FPSC

and

the simplicity of that version.



As for making games to sell if Reloaded stays as is in Beta too long without

the ability to export full games people will loose interest fast.



What I would like to see Sooner Than Later





* 1 more regular beta updates

* Without question the Tools to Build and Create Building & more

* Improvement in the speed and less lag I'm on a Quadcore and it slow 26fps

most of the time.

* Scripting Tuts (VIDEOS) for idiot cos lets face it, we are not all coders.

* Placement levels like in Old FPSC as having to use page-up to move items

to a new level is very frustrating.



* There is more but for now thats my 2p worth.

can you guys tell me how to make a multiplayer game?

can you tell me how to make multiplayer games?

even with the programming removed, the creative freedom is limited by sparse stock options and as a result of that the barrier of entry is impeded cause of the need for the user to spend copious amounts of time on modelling, texturing, animating and rigging to have assets that are appropriate to the designer's vision. My main discipline is as a designer, not an artist. I could do without having to spend hours making new characters and weapons from scratch. I just want to jump in and design games.



I get that its a tough call to make complete customability without placing some of the onus on the user to put the artwork in, but theres things that could be done to make the job for the user way easier. For me, the construction editor sets that sort of precedence. I hope we'll see equivalent features across the board implemented.





I guess what i'm talking about mainly, is something similar to the makehuman interface but as a tool within the FPSCR UI.

well there is plans for character creater plugins or what have you so that\'s not a real issue long term anyways. then there is the importer thingy aswell, though im not 100% sure what that is exactly...lol.

also its 4 or 5 months into the core engine so no stock entities are really needed short term, and the store with help from the community artists will solve some of the assets issues mentioned I would think. given time and with patience from the community im sure many of the things people are worried about or complaining about a lack of will be addressed, of course that should not deter you from friendly reminders to tgc lol



(sorry for double post below please remove or something )

well there is plans for character creater plugins or what have you so that's not a real issue long term anyways. then there is the importer thingy aswell, though im not 100% sure what that is exactly...lol.

also its 4 or 5 months into the core engine so no stock entities are really needed short term, and the store with help from the community artists will solve some of the assets issues mentioned I would think. given time and with patience from the community im sure many of the things people are worried about or complaining about a lack of will be addressed, of course that should not deter you from friendly reminders to tgc lol

Hi all,





Please remember that Reloaded is still in Beta and that recently all development focus has been on performance, stability and memory usage. It may seem a long time coming, but we're reaching the end of these issues and the next beta will be a huge leap forward in these areas.



We are working on developing additional tools to create characters etc, these take time and we and the community felt that the above issues should be addressed before moving onto other areas.



@jack_the_man



Our main focus is single player at the moment. We will be looking into multiplayer options once we have a stable single player engine.



Regarding media, aside from the stock media, we will be providing model packs to all Gold and Silver pledgers. We know you're all waiting! For various reasons it was decided that following testing, the model packs will be made available via the TGC store (or in the case of the legacy pack, via account download). The store should be up and running in time for the next beta, so you can all look forward to that as well. In addition to the pledgers media, you'll also be able to buy single items and now packs via the store, so there will always be a ready supply of models for your creations.



As for scripting, we understand that not everyone is a coding master, and we will be working hard to offer as many drop and drag options as possible, however all good game making engines require some coding to make a truly unique game, and we will also be developing the scripting language to allow the more advanced user the tools to create something extra special.



SC

I agree with "Scene Commander's" last post.

Even for those who do not want to or cannot script they will still benefit from the scripting. As the scripting becomes more complete I have plans for some external tools that will help generate scripts for you. One of my first serious ones will probably be for AI. Since I have a need for unique and complex AI I can see a need for this early on.



Edit to add: Actually, if\when the HUD display can be manipulated and customized through scripting I may make a user friendly HUD designer first since having a custom HUD is essential.

Regarding scripting. I have released 2 video tuts on this and have seen a few others from fellow Reloaded users. So, there are videos available. There aren't that many things you can really do yet, so I think most things that can be done have been covered already. I have noticed as far as tutorials go, views are never high, at least not compared to a vid of me running around a level for instance. So I assume most people don't want to go into the nitty gritty, or never check any of the other boards. I released a UV map/baking tutorial for Blender yesterday. I'm not certain how many views I have but I can guess it will still be fairly low. Yet it should be a useful start for anyone hoping to make some media of their own.



Things will get easier as more standard scripts are included, it's just early days as yet. Scripting really will be mainly used to add specific things to your particular game. The basics mentioned will very likely be included as standard when the engine issues are resolved, or at least minimised.



Media is always an issue when making games. I've had a few projects halt because the artist has lost interest. It's always difficult. We need more stock stuff included. Mostly characters. My main issue with most the stock media is it's setting. At the moment all you can do is make a game set in the Middle East with several different but samey buildings and 2 very similar enemies. Still, to make a game you are going to sell, you will more than likely have to make your own stuff, or get someone else to. You may be able to buy some items off the store, but in the main you will want unique stuff. Not an easy task, especially for one person, even more so if you don't have some idea around a 3D package of some sort. Making a massive game with all media created by yourself is a bit of a task, and really would probably take years. Hopefully the constructor will help with the buildings a little, but furniture, props etc will still take a long time to make.



At the minute things sound as if they are going well with the engine, so we may see other areas speeded up very soon hopefully!

DVader, I checked out one video of yours last night. I'll check out the others when I get a chance. Unfortunately, I have been working long hours at work so I have had limited time for Reloaded (I am doing the work of 3 programmers since we had several leave the past several months and they haven't filled the positions yet and the deadlines have not change at all.) Once I get caught up I'll be able to invest more time into it and hit the ground running (prob. 2-3 weeks away.)

Actually Lee answered a question on the hud and Main Menu a while back...

He stated this time it will be easy to edit compared to Classic and X10..

You will even be able to alter in on the fly this time round apparently !!



His exact answer was ..







This will be great for making the game your own

@synchromesh, thanks for letting me know! That sounds awesome.

@StevenP



That's not to say we wont want other tools



If your really into scripting that heavily I can see you being a real asset to the community as Reloaded Develops...We love extra toys

This is true...

Hopefully as reloaded progresses those additions will be added...So far all the guns etc are Military.. I hope they do some Sci Fi stuff like the

Chugshot gun in x10.... I loved that one

I don't know if this is the kind of feedback you're looking for, but I'm still hoping that we will be able to move, rotate and scale entities using widgets that can be toggled between world and local orientations. I find using keystrokes - especially with multiple keys - to be cumbersome.

Here's my list:



* The ability to disable water

* The ability to disable terrain (once the construction kit is added)

* The ability to Undo in Editor (crl+z)

* Spacebar makes player jump continuously as long as its held. (hate this)







Water needs to have an option to be disable - as it loads a heavy reflection shader and to be honest... I just don't see myself using water in every stage/level/map. So it should be optional in the setup INI to remove it.



Imagine how fast Reloaded would run without rendering 20,000 polys of terrain you may not even see if you construct an entirely interior stage with the construction kit.

The Reset button has not been mentioned in Scene Commanders list but im sure he said it had been implemented....Is this still the case ?



An undo button would be handy as well

I see some or a lot of players worrying about animation and models and my god, making a game out of something that's still in beta stages. Your game would crash instantly when u 1st run it, could you have everything you wanted imported into it with only 1/2 the game engine put together. I believe as tester the Devs know what there doing it's just too bad they don't have more coders behind them working on this that would probably speed things up. So unless you want to help them behind scenes and build this game engine from the ground up I wouldn't worry about it. They seem to know what there doing. I've beta tested other "games/mmorpgs" and the process lol didn't happened over night.



My concerns have changed according to evidence that they fixed the grass shader issue.



I think its a physics issue not sure. When aiming and shooting at enemies and them not showing signs of getting hit until u walk up and shoot them point black in the head. lol it can be silly sometimes. When i die and respawn then it works but not all the time with sniper w/o scope or pistol, again short or long range distance its weird.



I suppose these isn't new but when jumping up a hill, sometimes it glitches and i can see right though the hill like a window to the other side I don't think that's suppose to happen? I have attached a pic if interested.





what does bloom do past 1-2 on the graphics scale because the scale goes from 1-100? or just make it a switch tab on/off option instead?

The fall and hurt sequence must be improved. If I come down a montain I won't fall, I'll come down step by step, but I'll hurt as if I fall.



And If an object is high, and I look up, I can see it's shadow. but if I look down, I can't. I've edited the images to make them smaller, but I can assure, the tent is there in the second image.

Falling is being worked on, in fact, a lot of the various physic elements will be looked at once the next beta is out, but as I'm sure everyone is aware, it's all about peformance, stability and memory usage at the moment.



As for the shadow bug, thanks for the report, could you please post that in the bugs section so it doesn't get missed.



Thanks,



SC