I've been working on a new cockpit and I wanted to get a bit of feedback on it from other ER players. Still have quite a bit of work to do on it, but here it is so far..
I'm hoping to find a way to get the switches to light up or animate when the player presses the corresponding key.
If anyone would like to give it a test drive, message me your email address and I'll mail the HUD folder to you. Feedback appreciated.
StarWolves Clan Wing Commander [SW] BraveHart Hellfire Squadron
Motto:\"When All Hell Breaks Loose!! Unleash the Wolves of War and We will Rain Hell Fire on All of Our Enemies\"
Looks fantastic! Nice fit with the game's overall design and lots of details to give a solid sense of immersion. The shadowing/shading and contours look great! Excellent visibility also.
It still has a long ways to go before I can call it a finished project. Need to cut down on the poly count and finish the textures.
Vice, is there support in the game engine for textures other than bit maps? Tried to use jpg, tga, png, etc. but couldn't get them to work. Don't know if it's a limitation of my exporter or the game engine.
Also, are there any plans to expand on the customization options? Specifically, the mfd individual readouts and the warning lights.
Vice, is there support in the game engine for textures other than bit maps? Tried to use jpg, tga, png, etc. but couldn't get them to work. Don't know if it's a limitation of my exporter or the game engine.
I think bitmaps are required as part of the DirectX file format, but I could be wrong. It's either a limitation of the DX format or the importer code within the development language I use. But if size is an issue, a bitmap will compress well when zipped or included with an installer.
Also, are there any plans to expand on the customization options? Specifically, the mfd individual readouts and the warning lights.
You can change the readout graphics/labels, just edit the image files and place them in the HUD folder. Warning lights are edited by changing the needed image files (hud-alertX.bmp). Details are included with the customizing kit.
Originally posted by Vice
You can change the readout graphics/labels, just edit the image files and place them in the HUD folder. Warning lights are edited by changing the needed image files (hud-alertX.bmp). Details are included with the customizing kit.
I was thinking more along the lines of re-arranging the read outs and warning lights. Maybe something along the line of having an option to "stick" a readout to part of the mesh, like a named plane in the mesh. The reason I ask is because I would like to make data points like the IDS/INERTIAL and the cannon/beam display light up and be highly visible to the player as a reminder of which mode they are in.
What would really really have me jumping for joy, though, is to be able to have a 2 frame animation for a small texture, triggered by the players key press Could make all kinds of bells and whistles for a cockpit then.
Ah ok, I understand, that kind of mesh manipulation is at a level beyond the current scope of the design. There are a lot of dependencies on the structural parameters of the cockpit, with readouts actually being comprised of numerous carefully organized and numbered 3D objects/limbs rather than a collection of pasted 2D sprites/images (which would make such changes much more feasible). The readouts inside each display are pretty much locked. Instead, the 3 main displays can be repositioned, rotated, and retextured for a different general apearance to accomodate custom cockpit structures.
I want to see it again after it's been shaded and textured. I think it's among the best I've seen, but right now the colors are bit too, "cartoonish", if you know what I mean.
P.S.
Could you add foot pedals to the cockpit?:)
\"To kill hubris with humility is a goal rarely achieved by men\"
Originally posted by Vice
Ah ok, I understand, that kind of mesh manipulation is at a level beyond the current scope of the design. There are a lot of dependencies on the structural parameters of the cockpit, with readouts actually being comprised of numerous carefully organized and numbered 3D objects/limbs rather than a collection of pasted 2D sprites/images (which would make such changes much more feasible). The readouts inside each display are pretty much locked. Instead, the 3 main displays can be repositioned, rotated, and retextured for a different general apearance to accomodate custom cockpit structures.
I was afraid of that, but had to ask. Thanks much for the reply. It gives me a good idea of what I can and can't do with the cockpits now.
Originally posted by Duckmurderer
I don't like the Dev-white color
That is a bright brushed metal texture that is just background for the yet to be completed textures. Also, the game lighting does terrible things to all but the very darkest of textures.
Originally posted by Straker Nova
.. will we still be able to remove the cockpit struts?
No, but I will make a version without the struts. Pretty simple to remove them from the mesh.
Could make all kinds of bells and whistles for a cockpit then.
