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Topics - Olafson

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76
News & Announcements / Developer Blog 12 - Text Compression & Music
« on: March 03, 2013, 08:16:04 pm »
Developer Blog 12 - Text Compression & Music

In the previous developer blog we talked about the Battle of Bull Run but today we have gone for something a little bit different! Development has been great and progressing swiftly, as such we would like to show you what we have worked on these past few weeks.




As it is always hard to show people how games work behind the scenes through code, we haven’t shown much in this area yet. Though from now on this will be different! We found a simple way to show you our progress in this area with the help of mini-programs.

In this developer blog we decided to show you something that may seem simple but is a must in any game, communication! What would a game be without the ability to chat with your friends and foes alike? Behind the scenes this means that text needs to be sent to all clients in certain teams or even globally. With that in mind we created a system that compresses text very well, supports any language and on top of that it will come with a bad word filter, which can be turned on and off client side according to the player’s preference.

Herby some screenshots of the code in action:




During these past few weeks we have also asked Sven Gerlach, the creator of the Napoleonic Wars soundtrack to make some music for us and it turned out to be great. So turn on your speakers and listen to this epic piece of music!

To listen to the soundtrack please take a look at the developer blog on our Website, here.

Thanks for reading the twelfth developer blog.
Flying Squirrel Entertainment

77
News & Announcements / Developer Blog 11 - 1st Battle of Bull Run
« on: February 17, 2013, 08:47:16 pm »
Developer Blog 11 - 1st Battle of Bull Run

Hello and welcome back to the eleventh Developer Blog! This week we have mainly been working on scenes and we will present you some first screenshots of our first map today.




While the First Battle of Bull Run, also known as the First Battle of Manassas, was not the largest or the most important Battle of the American Civil War, it still was the first major Battle of the American Civil War and up to that point, the largest battle in American History.

It is one of the most known battles in American history which is one of the reasons we chose to make a map for it. The map is going to be 3.5 kilometers in diameter and it will feature several well known landmarks of the battlefield such as the Old Stone House, still visible today. Speaking of which, here is a screenshot of the Old Stone House which was used as hospital during, and after the battle.


The second screenshot shows the Robinson House, a small house that was owned by the Robinson Family. It took no major part during the actual battle, but it was very close to the battlefield and a small wooden bridge. Whoever gains control of the Robinson House, will also gain control of the bridge.


Thank you for reading the eleventh dev blog and see you next week!
Flying Squirrel Entertainment

78
News & Announcements / Developer Blog 10 - Enfield Pattern 1853
« on: February 10, 2013, 05:28:57 pm »
Developer Blog 10 - Enfield Pattern 1853

Welcome back to the tenth developer blog for Battle Cry of Freedom. This week unfortunately due to the nature of our current work we don’t have very much to show. Early development of any game tends to be based more on complicated pages of code than of anything tangible, however we cracked the whips and our modeling team produced this little beauty for you to enjoy.




Introducing the London Armoury Enfield Pattern 1853 3 Band Rifled Musket. This was a rare weapon imported from England in 1862, and is arguably the best Enfield used during the civil war. It uses standard .577 Caliber with 3 groove rifling, 39" barrel, with brass furniture, and sling swivels. It is pretty.


We hope you enjoy the picture, and are as excited as we are at the thought of using it ingame!

Thanks once again for your support, this game could not be made without you.
Flying Squirrel Entertainment


79
Developer Blog 9 - Introducing Julian & Development Progress!

Hello and welcome back to another dev blog, this week we will talk about a new addition to the team and showcase some of the 3d assets we have created to swell our library of scene props.




First of all, let me all introduce you to a new member of our team, Julian “Rycon” Farrugia has joined the team part-time to help with the development of our 3d assets. He will strengthen our team in the art department by working on scene props which transform our game world from a blank empty terrain into a believable battlefield, drawing you in with an immersion only seen in our work. We take pride in the effort we put into this, as it means paying attention to the details which range from the scratches you find on your rifle, to the pots and pans in your camp, and even the pipe your officer is so fond of smoking!

Now we know you all appreciate the eye candy, so here are some samples of his work for you to feast your eyes on:






We have also been working hard on creating the very interesting and not at all ordinary scenery commonly associated with American battlefields; roads, fences and cornfields. Not all of our work is to do with explosions and muskets! But as we know how enthusiastic you all our about fences, wooden ones, er, slightly darker wooden ones, and yeah *cough* we thought we would share some pictures with you.
Please note: Talking about fences probably won’t do you any favours in any romantic setting.




Furthermore we hired Andrea Giachini, a young Italian composer who made some truly epic music for us, as such we are proud to present you with the soundtrack for Battle Cry of Freedom!

To listen to the music, take a look at the Developer Blog on our Website, here.

Thank you all for tuning in this week, and have a good one.
Flying Squirrel Entertainment

80
News & Announcements / Developer Blog 8 - Drum Tunes
« on: January 20, 2013, 09:58:48 pm »
Developer Blog 8 - Drum Tunes

Welcome back to the weekly delve into Battle Cry of Freedom’s development! This week we would like to talk to you a little about some more of our atmospheric and aesthetic assets.




As you know, one of our main concerns for Napoleonic Wars, and one that has carried on into our new Project Battle Cry of Freedom, is that of historical accuracy. We don’t just claim that and put in some random props, we mean it. So this means you will not only be seeing correct uniforms, weapons and battlefields, you will also be hearing proper voice acting and authentic music from the period.
To produce the music assets we have hired Mark Beecher, who is a very talented musician who has created some wonderful sounds for us.
Feel free to check out the two drum beats below to judge for yourself!

To listen to the sounds, take a look at the Developer Blog on our Website, here.

Mark also took the time to write a short description of each:

“Here are a couple of Drum Tracks, from the book The Drummers' and Fifers' Guide by George B. Bruce and Daniel D. Emmett (New York 1862), which was widely used throughout the Civil War. The 2 selections are The General ("Is to be beat only when the whole army is to march, and is the signal to strike the tents and prepare for departure")and Quickstep - Biddy Oats.”

Thanks again for your patience and support, progress is being made and we are really starting to see it all fitting together. We are also looking forward to the release of the last patch for Napoleonic Wars, so keep your eyes open and be prepared for swashbuckling naval combat!

81
News & Announcements / Developer Blog 6 - Christmas and New Year
« on: December 24, 2012, 10:12:25 am »
Developer Blog 6 - Christmas and New Year

Welcome back to our weekly developer blog, and this week, fitting with the festive mood we bring gifts!
We thought it was about time we showed you a little of the work that has been going on in our development cave.


As you know, we here at Flying Squirrel Entertainment are all about realism, this stretches from the weaponry all the way to the massive landscapes themselves. Attention to detail is the most important part of immersion and realism, and so we have a picture for you showing off some scenery.
Please note that all developer blog material is by no means representational of our final product, and we are still in the prototype stage of development, however we feel that these pictures will give you an insight into the amount of care and effort we put into every aspect of our game, our glorious project!




We would also like to say that as we are (almost) normal people too, we do like to spread lights around our cave, buy a plastic tree and pretend we are expecting presents from the world above, so we will be taking a two week break from the developer blogs. This does not mean all work is stopping however, and we look forward to coming back with more developer blogs in the New Year to show you what we have accomplished!

With that all sorted there is only one thing left to do.

We here at Flying Squirrel Entertainment wish you all the very best Christmas, and a fantastic New Year!

82
Developer Blog 5 - Napoleonic Wars Upcoming Patch & IndieDB

Welcome back to our fifth weekly Developer Blog. This week we decided to release it a bit earlier and instead of showing you a Battle Cry of Freedom update, we will show you a small sneak peak of our upcoming Napoleonic Wars patch. The reason for this is that Napoleonic Wars reached the IOTY 2012 Top 100!




Indie Of The Year 2012 Top 100
We are very happy to announce that Napoleonic Wars has reached the IOTY 2012 Top 100! For that we would like to thank you. But the real trial has not even started yet, its just around the corner, and we need your help to get Napoleonic Wars into the top 10 games of 2012! So please head over to IndieDB and vote on our page, get your friends to do it too! We know that we have a great community behind us, and we think that together, we can get into the top10! You can vote as a guest, but we suggest that you register or log in, to achieve a greater result. Registered member votes count more than guest votes.
Please note that generating publicity for NW can only help our new project Battle Cry of Freedom along in development, so by voting you are helping its production!


The Upcoming Patch
So, many of you have wondered whether or not we are going to patch Napoleonic Wars one more time and if so what such a patch would bring, well here is your answer. We are indeed going to patch Napoleonic Wars one more time, and its a big one. We decided to shower you with some pretty nice things that many of you have been asking for!

So, first things first, here you can see screenshots of one of the new maps we will include in the next Patch, maybe you still know it from Mount & Musket. The first person that can tell us the name of this map in the discussion thread, will receive a special award!




While giving you all of these nice scenes to brutalise your friends in is pretty fantastic enough, we decided to take a few steps over the awesome line and give you some more. On top of these new scenes, and to go along with our new naval scenery, here is a sneak peak of some of the the units we have added into the game, plus a mighty frigate!




British
All aboard the HMS Neptune!
- Sailor: Keep her afloat, board the enemy, and finish off the Gin!
- Marine: 1st Battalion Royal Marines
- Post-Captain: Command your boat to swift victory on the high seas!




French
Watch out for the Intrepide!
- Sailor, show those scurvy ridden British scum how to handle the seas!
- Marine, 24e Bataillon des Equipages.
- Capitaine de Vaisseau, Intrepide.




Although we have moved onto our new project Battle Cry of Freedom we still want to show support for those that have enjoyed our previous work and supported us in its creation. We announced our new project very early to our community, and we are releasing this patch in the hopes that this shows you that we really do value our community. Your support, your feedback, and your gameplay is what makes this all worthwhile.

To vote for the IOTY 2012 Awards, click here!.

83
Media / INDIEDB Game of the year 2012!
« on: December 02, 2012, 10:06:32 pm »

Please Spread the Word and support the Community and FSE by voting Napoleonic Wars and Mount and Blade as "Game of the year 2012"!

84
News & Announcements / Developer Blog 3 - Status Update
« on: December 02, 2012, 11:38:44 am »
Developer Blog 3 - Status Update

Welcome back to our third weekly Developer Blog. This week we decided to give you some general content updates as to what we have been working on for the past week. Please note that this is by no means everything, as we always have large amounts of work in the background which does not necessarily make for an interesting read!




We are currently working on a uniform. Note that these screenshots are all WIP, so they might look substandard at the moment. However this is exactly how our games are made, we make a basic model, then add more detail to it until we are satisfied. We have finished the basic model and are currently “rigging” our uniform to fit to the so called skeleton. “rigging” means attaching the uniform model’s vertices to the bones of the skeleton. The skeleton for this uniform is made specifically for humans and human animations, but we will also have to create other skeletons for animals such as horses.
After the rigging is done, the Uniform will “stick” to the skeleton we have created. We can then animate the bones of our skeleton, giving our characters life. Due to the rigging, the uniform now moves with the skeleton. This means that no matter what animations we create, the uniform will always work with them, and it is not difficult to assign other models such as pieces of equipment, to the uniform at a later stage.


Here you can see a technique called “baking”. As you can see, we are using low poly Models, but we are creating high poly ones out of them (poly being a shorthand for the number of polygons used). This high poly model then gets “baked” i.e. rendered onto the low poly mesh to make it look high poly. Simplified: We are making our models look really good and detailed, while still keeping the performance high.


We have also been working on our first real battle scene for testing, we chose the smaller and less important battle of Philippi. Creating scenes is a huge pile of work. This is because we want our maps to be as historically accurate as possible.
First of all, we have to download real 3d satellite elevation data from resources located on the internet. luckily, the US government provides highly accurate satellite data, so we didn’t need to send our mapper off with a ruler and some pencils!
Once we have downloaded this data, we have to convert it into a heightmap (a height map is a type of data that we use to base our terrain on for our game engine). For this we use the probably quite well known tool “Terragen”. Terragen can import our satellite data and convert it to a height map which we can then use.


Theoretically we could now import this heightmap into the game engine and have a proper game environment. However, we decided to take it one step further. Before we can import it into the game engine, we first have to put it into the programme “World Machine” (no this isn’t our plan to create our own version of the matrix used to take control of the world). In World Machine we slightly modify the terrain, without changing it too much, to make it look better (basically we add slight changes in height, making the ground look more bumpy and realistic). We also generate a splatmap. A splatmap is an image containing texture data. When importing a splatmap into our game engine, it will tell the engine where to place a particular texture, for instance a grass texture, or where to place a rock texture etc.
World Machine is very useful for this, and does a great job at it. After we are done with that, we export our newly generated height and splatmap from World Machine and import it into our game engine.

This is how it looks like when its been imported:


After all that is done, we have to place our objects in the map. This is the most time consuming part. We usually start with placing rocks and buildings first, then placing trees and after that fences and other small objects like crates, carts etc. Placing all these objects usually takes about a week, depending on the scale of the map. So keep checking for a picture of the finished map!

You might have noticed that the yearly MODDB and INDIEDB Mod/Game of the year awards have started. Check out our Napoleonic Wars INDIEDB page here.

Tune in next week for another update to satisfy your cravings!

85
Привет, я Олафсон, и я не говорю слово Россия. Тем не менее, Google Translate является моим лучшим другом. Пожалуйста, представьтесь.


Привет, я Адмирал , и я говорю слово Россия. И некоторые другие слова тоже. Посему с этого момента заниматься грамматикой буду я 8)

86
Archiv / Moderatorwahl
« on: November 12, 2012, 09:01:03 pm »
Gut, bitte für eure beiden "Traummods" stimmen!

88
General Discussion / MOVED: Forum ranks
« on: November 11, 2012, 11:32:59 pm »

89
News & Announcements / Frequently Asked Questions
« on: November 10, 2012, 07:07:32 pm »
Battle Cry of Freedom FAQ

Where do I go to donate?
We are extremely thankful to all the donators we have had over the years. You have helped us a lot and your support over the years means a lot to us. However we have decided to no longer accept donations.

How much will the game cost?
We promise that the game won't cost more than 25 Euros. There is no definite price set yet though.

What is Flying Squirrel Entertainment?
We are a small four man team, all of which are former modders, skilled in all aspects of game development. We are from all around Europe, and formed FSE when we decided to start making our own games instead of spending our skills tweaking other people’s creations. As we come from a gaming background, we are very passionate about what we create, as we intend to play the games we create!

Didn’t you guys already make a game?
We created an expansion to the well known title "Mount & Blade Warband", which actually started out as a modification we had been working on for just over a year beforehand. The expansion was very successful and has to date sold over 200, 000 units. If you wish to try the game for yourself head over here: http://store.steampowered.com/app/48705/

What is "Battle Cry of Freedom"?
That is a very big question, but put simply "Battle Cry of Freedom" follows our vision of simulating huge historical battles where the player can put himself in any role from your normal infantryman up to the Generals commanding armies, with every place in between including artillerymen, engineers and cavalry. This game is going to be bigger, both in map size and player count, better in visual and gameplay, and contain even more unique and original features that we have been known to produce. We will be keeping our core gameplay completely based on player skill, with no reliance on random systems or leveling. Our combat system will feature a fun, intuitive and brutal reaction based system. Basically it will be Bigger, Better and More.

Define “huge multiplayer battles”?
We have created our own new and original network engine using the latest technology, and we are using it in combination with the latest Unity game engine. This means we have what we think is very probably the most efficient multiplayer support ever seen. This means our game will be able to support over 200 players battling on 2 X 2 KM maps. Two Hundred is our pre-alpha number, and is what we aim our game will support at the very least, really the number is dictated by what a server and client can handle and we will try to push it as high as possible.

Won’t that many players mean the game is unplayable due to fps and server lag?
Our game as a multiplayer title will be 100% optimised for high performance online battles. We have a fantastic engine, utilising culling (not rendering things a player cannot see) LOD and scaling server technology, so a standard server will run a few hundred players, while a powerful box is only limited by its power, we have yet to find the games limit, and is something we will be testing in our alpha and beta.

Why did you pick the American Civil War?
We are very experienced in developing a game within the era of the musket, yet we wanted to try something challenging and new, the American civil war is an incredibly interesting period which is also the last major conflict featuring musketry warfare. This means we can start to incorporate other fun features while still having our base combat mechanic intact.

Why did you choose to make a standalone game?
We chose to make a stand alone as it means we can make the game we want to make, without risking compromise by involving too many powerful interested parties. This also means that the player does not have to buy into another series just to play our creation, and we are not limited by the original game’s engine. For you this means we have a freedom of creation that will allow us to really put our and also your vision into something we hope will become creature of beauty.

Is this an MMO?
Not in the generally accepted definition of an MMO, no. Our game is massive, it is online, but it isn’t a grinding based persistent world with dungeons and levels. Our game is a huge first/3rd person shooter/melee hybrid, based on player skill and reaction, with no progression, unlocks or unfair battles. The game is also based on servers, and we encourage players to host their own servers and games.

Will I need to pay a subscription?
No, with a one time payment you have access to our game for your and its lifetime. The official public servers will be available for free, and we welcome our community hosting their own massive servers.

What is VOIP?
Voice over IP (VOIP), is basically an in game voice communication system. We are integrating a fully functional and complex VOIP system with which you will be able to talk to your teammates, give orders, arrange matches and encourages the deep teamwork that is the best part of our games. We would really recommend purchasing a microphone to get the full enjoyment from "Battle Cry of Freedom".

How big are your maps going to be?
2 X 2 kilometres is the largest map size we support so far. However, we have found that maps over 700 meters already feel HUGE. As such, the majority of maps will be around 450 X 450 meters in size. To put in perspective, a 2 X 2 kiolometers map would take you approximately twenty minutes to walk across.

So you’re basically a mix between Mount & Blade and the Total War series?
That is quite a fitting explanation, we want to combine a realistic and skill based combat system with the huge size and tactics of epic warfare.

What game modes will there be?
At release, Battle Cry of Freedom will feature eight gamemodes: Conquest, Battle, Team Deathmatch, Deathmatch, Duel, Capture the Intel, King of the Hill and Siege. However, we do plan to add more gamemodes after the games initial release.

A lot of games claim historical accuracy, how true to the time are you?
We as a team are very interested in the time periods we utilise. This means we genuinely prefer to be historically accurate, and this coupled with a particularly unforgiving community means our standards are higher than your usual title. With "Battle Cry of Freedom" we even want to take it a step further. We think that we have found the perfect balance between historical accuracy and gameplay. But when it comes to the graphical representation of uniforms, gear and weapons, we believe that it is our duty to get them as historically accurate as possible. This includes perfectly recreating the pattern of cloth, modeling buttons from the backside and getting every single stitch just right.

When will I get to play?
At this point we are unsure of the total development time, we expect it to take a year.

How can I support the game?
The most important help you can give is by following the development. However any help you can give in spreading the word is very appreciated, so linking us on facebook, twitter and generally telling your friends would be fantastic!

Will the game support clans/guilds?
The community makes a game. Our community is very important to us, and we realise how vital clan support is. We already have a clan registry and will provide the ability to find and play with your friends.

Will my computer be able to run the game?
We realise not everyone has a doomsday machine from mars. We aim to make the game accessible to everyone through the use of scalable graphics, low internet usage and an optimised network engine.

What do you mean by a reaction based skillful combat system?
We are taking our inspiration from the Mount & Blade series, utilising a directional attacking and blocking system.

What is your involvement with Holdfast: Nations at War and Anvil Game Studios?
Two of our developers (Olafson and Admiral) have worked together with Anvil Game Studios prior to the games Early Access release. For example, Olafson provided many of the games maps, 3D artwork and sounds. Admiral has created a large number of the games character models. In fact, Refleax and Rycon were part of the FSE Staff from 2012-2013. In addition, Flying Squirrel Entertainment has donated a couple of their game assets to Anvil Game Studios for use in Holdfast: Nations at War.






90
General Discussion / General information and Where to buy
« on: November 09, 2012, 09:58:00 pm »
Get your copy of the DLC here:


Taleworlds (non-steam) Prefered for more money ends up at the devs!
http://www.taleworlds.com/buy.aspx?type=5

Gamers Gate (non-steam)
http://www.gamersgate.com/DD-MBWNW/mount-and-blade-warband-napoleonic-wars

Steam
http://store.steampowered.com/app/48705/

Release trailer:



Screens:
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Game Manual:
www.flyingsquirrelent.eu/PDX_M&B%20Warband%20DLC_Onlinemanual_.pdf

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