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DarkXL Update 9 - DarkXL Alpha Released!
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Tsophika
Gamorrean

Joined: 14 Jan 2008

PostPosted: Aug 29, 2008 17:20    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

Oooh! Fest! This build is great Lucius. Once again, thanks for your work.

Taton
Trandoshan

Joined: 25 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Aug 29, 2008 18:10    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Some things I noticed in the newest version:

The red door in Secbase is triggering to close when you enter the door sector.

In Talay, I kept getting stuck in the moving sectors on the power generator and the bridge. I would fall through the floor and get stuck inside. I also noticed that stormtroopers try to go down a 2 unit step would get stuck and vibrate madly.

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lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 29, 2008 18:19    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Thanks Taton for trying the build out. Don't forget to also report the bugs in the Issue Tracker so they get added to the list of bugs to fix.

As a reminder, you can read about the Issue Tracker and instructions here: http://df-21.net/phpbb/viewtopic.php_t=1330

Thanks for testing everyone. Has anyone found the suprise yet? Wink

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

Marley
Gamorrean

Joined: 30 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Aug 29, 2008 22:26    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Is it teri hatcher in a bra?

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*ZaP*

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 29, 2008 23:20    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Marley wrote:
Is it teri hatcher in a bra?


? Rolling Eyes ...
I'm afraid not.

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

Burning Gundam
Kell Dragon

Joined: 28 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 00:23    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

lucius wrote:
Marley wrote:
Is it teri hatcher in a bra?


? Rolling Eyes ...
I'm afraid not.


Damn Twisted Evil

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I don't think outside the box... I customize it.

sheepandshepherd
Trandoshan

Joined: 01 Apr 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 03:34    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

Ahhhhh, now I see what you mean, Tsophika! The whole time I was thinking, party, hard, what the heck do you mean?! Laughing

I like this surprise, thanks lucius Smile

EDIT: I added quite a few things to the list . . . I'll go through the new stuff tomorrow and look for more issues there (I'm sure there will be some INF bugs . . . )

By the way, is it just me, or are the sewer bugs a lot twitchier than they were in DF? They seem to be popping up everywhere all the time . . . not a problem or anything, it just seems kinda illogical, since Dianogas are usually submerged . . .

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 04:36    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Well I'll go ahead and spill the beans so I can explain some things.

The suprise is that TestBase is now playable, if you beat the sewers level again. However, it is not complete in the sense of the other levels. I haven't really done any work on it yet, just enabled it so that I can work on it. I forgot to disable it before putting out the build and just decided to leave it alone, as a sneak preview for the next big build (Build 9).

So it is not beatable and there are several issues. There are no need to report the various bugs with the level yet, its just an incomplete preview. Bugs/issues include:
*The initial VUE will play not just the takeoff but the return as well.
*There is no death or damage from falls.
*Turrent AI is not in yet.
*The new weapon isn't usable (or collectible) yet.
*Some other logics, such as the officer with the code key or the metal, are not in yet.
*Various graphical issues.
*There is an area where you should be able to crouch and move through but can't. For now you can just hold 'G' to move through the adjoins.
*Probably other things that I forgot.

Finally I have a question for you guys: do you guys like having previews of levels with incomplete features or would you rather they be completely beatable and have the proper logics and all that first?

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 04:52    Post subject: Build 8d. View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

There is a new build, Build 8d. If you are having crashes on startup, please try this build and let me know what happens.

You can download the build from the first post of this topic. It should be Build 8d.

Thanks for testing everyone.Smile

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

Burning Gundam
Kell Dragon

Joined: 28 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 05:12    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

IT WORKS!!!!! Very Happy

I'll be more thorough with my checks after I do a runthrough.

_________________
I don't think outside the box... I customize it.

Tsophika
Gamorrean

Joined: 14 Jan 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 05:20    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

The preview was cool.Wink

Why would things like damage from falling or crounching down tunnels not work in specific levels? Are things like that not universal throughout the whole game?

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 05:29    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Tsophika wrote:
The preview was cool.Wink

Why would things like damage from falling or crounching down tunnels not work in specific levels? Are things like that not universal throughout the whole game?


The falling damage has simply never been implemented yet. As for the crouching, apparently the collision height is wrong and needs to be fixed. I think it is doing a less then comparision rather then a lessequal, but I haven't done any real work on the level yet so I'm not sure. This is why I'm going through and getting each level to work, so I can identify the problems/missing features and have a good way of testing. In addition it gives a way for you guys to do focused testing while continuously getting "new" content.

Does that answer your question?

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 05:31    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Burning Gundam wrote:
IT WORKS!!!!! Very Happy

I'll be more thorough with my checks after I do a runthrough.


That's good to hear. I can move on now, knowing that you guys can actually play the game. Laughing

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Burning Gundam
Kell Dragon

Joined: 28 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 08:06    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

lucius wrote:
Burning Gundam wrote:
IT WORKS!!!!! Very Happy

I'll be more thorough with my checks after I do a runthrough.


That's good to hear. I can move on now, knowing that you guys can actually play the game. Laughing


You mean I was actually an IMPEDIMENT to this project!? Shocked

No! Say it aint so!

<3

_________________
I don't think outside the box... I customize it.

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 09:03    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Well you weren't the only one to have the problem. Besides, who knows how many people tried a build, had it crash, then gave up on it. So fixing it was definitely a priority. Thanks for helping me do that. Very Happy

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

sheepandshepherd
Trandoshan

Joined: 01 Apr 2008

PostPosted: Aug 30, 2008 23:11    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

I like the idea of the "previews" . . . it kinda gives us a better view of what's going on inside the project. I mean, some people might be repulsed by the buggyness, but I'm hoping that anyone on a DF modding website knows that bugs are a natural part of the development process.

Good job fixing the crash, btw . . . I didn't ever have it, but you're right that it would have caused some people to just give up on DarkXL. Some bugs are actually fun to find and dig up out of the game, but only if everyone can actually get that far Laughing

Burning Gundam
Kell Dragon

Joined: 28 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Aug 31, 2008 02:50    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

That's partly why I like being a part of this project on an individual level is being able to interact with the project's progress instead of just "hearing" about the progress. I imagine it helps finding bugs go much faster and it's fun. Each build gets better and better and that much closer to becoming a final product.

_________________
I don't think outside the box... I customize it.

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Aug 31, 2008 04:17    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Burning Gundam wrote:
That's partly why I like being a part of this project on an individual level is being able to interact with the project's progress instead of just "hearing" about the progress. I imagine it helps finding bugs go much faster and it's fun. Each build gets better and better and that much closer to becoming a final product.


You cannot have a large scale, successful software product - indie or commercial - without testing and feedback. I could work on DarkXL on my own, but without you guys it wouldn't be a polished, finished product when it was done and somethings like the title screen wouldn't look nearly as good.Smile I rely on the community for bug reports and just as important feedback. Somethings are subjective or difficult to get exact and sometimes its nice just to hear people's opinions on how to proceed. Other times the community has a wealth of talent in areas where I'm less skilled (art for example). And finally its much more interesting to work on a project with positive and constructive feedback and an active community.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is that I appreciate the community and everyone's participation - whether it be submitting bug reports, suggesting new features or just giving feedback about the project. Just playing a build and telling me it works (or not) is helpful.

Thanks guys. Very Happy

Back to convincing Windows that I really do want it to play the "note on" messages from the midi stream...

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

The MAZZTer
Death Star
Death Star

Joined: 25 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Aug 31, 2008 14:04    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

You're welcome. NOW GET BACK TO WORK.



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sheepandshepherd
Trandoshan

Joined: 01 Apr 2008

PostPosted: Sep 01, 2008 00:14    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

lucius wrote:
The falling damage has simply never been implemented yet. As for the crouching, apparently the collision height is wrong and needs to be fixed. I think it is doing a less then comparision rather then a lessequal, but I haven't done any real work on the level yet so I'm not sure.


The last part of the vent system in Testbase seems to be way too low even for correct crouch height, but I compared it to DF, it really is high enough Shocked

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Sep 11, 2008 07:39    Post subject: New Build: Midi compatibility test. View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

This build has an incomplete version of iMuse implemented (with some partially implemented features disabled such as transitions between songs).

It is only implemented on the title screen and levels (no cutscenes).

It changes from STALK to FIGHT and back, but there are no transitions. In addition it doesn't necessarily start playing the tracks at the correct spot.

The purpose of this build is to test compatibility (and as a sort of preview). So please answer these questions for me if you try it:

*Do you hear the midi at all?
*How is the default volume, does it mix well with the sound effects?
*Does the music keep up? Does it change speed under load?
*How does it sound? Its not complete so there are issues - but in general.

Please identify your system specs. Also, if you can, tell me the name of your default midi device. To check this under XP, open the Control Panel > Sounds and Audio Devices > Audio > MIDI music playback.

Thanks for testing. The next build should have a much more complete implementation. This build is just to help iron out fundamental problems early.

Also note that I switched to the Major Build . Minor Build format. I've settled on doing small incremental builds with Major builds occuring when planned feature sets are completed. We're now working toward build 9, there will be several more 8.x builds on the way.

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

Tsophika
Gamorrean

Joined: 14 Jan 2008

PostPosted: Sep 11, 2008 15:33    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

I hear the music, it's volume is fine, but it plays very fast. This is during the launcher and gameplay. Also at the start of a level there is about 1 second before the music starts.

I am testing on Vista 64, Intel QX6700, GeForce 8800 GTX, 4GB RAM, SoundBlaster X-Fi. The default mixer is SB X-Fi Synth A.

I know Soundblaster has a lot of issues with Vista's new audio path. Creative has just released a new Vista driver that I have yet to install.

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Sep 11, 2008 17:36    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Thanks for trying it out, let me know if the new driver makes any difference.

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DarkXL....http://darkxl.wordpress.com

Gez
Gamorrean

Joined: 05 May 2008

PostPosted: Sep 11, 2008 20:36    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

Far too fast on the title screen, a little too fast during play. Also, I get hung notes in SECBASE after the third time the music switched back to the noncombat one. This didn't happen before, but then consistently stayed; sometimes the note would finally go away but another would soon get hung in its place, or it'd be hung again the next time the tune looped back to the same moment.

lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Sep 11, 2008 21:30    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Gez wrote:
Far too fast on the title screen, a little too fast during play. Also, I get hung notes in SECBASE after the third time the music switched back to the noncombat one. This didn't happen before, but then consistently stayed; sometimes the note would finally go away but another would soon get hung in its place, or it'd be hung again the next time the tune looped back to the same moment.


The music tracks can change at too many locations right now, which might cause sustained notes to not be turned off properly.
The next build will have transitions which should fix this problem.

Are you running Vista?

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Gez
Gamorrean

Joined: 05 May 2008

PostPosted: Sep 11, 2008 23:19    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

Yes, with RealTek.

Burning Gundam
Kell Dragon

Joined: 28 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Sep 12, 2008 03:30    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

I'll have to give that a go when I finish playing some games with a friend of mine.

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GreggD
Gamorrean

Joined: 05 May 2008

PostPosted: Sep 13, 2008 02:42    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

Hey, Lucius. Long time no posting, on my end. The newest build is great, everything seems good. I'm especially happy that extra mouse buttons are supported for control mapping, considering that any game featuring a dash control I use one of my buttons on the left side, as well as for slowing down(in which case, I use the one next to it). One complaint I have is that the soundtrack changes every so often, but I'm not sure if this was part of the game already. Either way, it tells me when it changes, in the upper-left corner of the screen, where all the other game messages display. Also, and this can definitely be attributed to my PC being older, there is some substantial slow-down. Oh, one more thing, and this is a biggy, when I jumped onto those moving turbine platforms in the second mission(the ones surrounding the control panel that gets them moving, I think), and Kyle fell through and got stuck for a moment, until I jerked my way out of it. Could be problematic. Otherwise, great work, Lucius.

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lucius
DarkXL Developer
DarkXL Developer

Joined: 17 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Sep 13, 2008 06:41    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

GreggD wrote:
Hey, Lucius. Long time no posting, on my end. The newest build is great, everything seems good. I'm especially happy that extra mouse buttons are supported for control mapping, considering that any game featuring a dash control I use one of my buttons on the left side, as well as for slowing down(in which case, I use the one next to it). One complaint I have is that the soundtrack changes every so often, but I'm not sure if this was part of the game already. Either way, it tells me when it changes, in the upper-left corner of the screen, where all the other game messages display. Also, and this can definitely be attributed to my PC being older, there is some substantial slow-down. Oh, one more thing, and this is a biggy, when I jumped onto those moving turbine platforms in the second mission(the ones surrounding the control panel that gets them moving, I think), and Kyle fell through and got stuck for a moment, until I jerked my way out of it. Could be problematic. Otherwise, great work, Lucius.


Thanks for trying the build. Some responses to your comments:
*The latest build is a compatibility test for the midi, it is not complete yet. The music in DF does change tracks while playing, but there are transitions whereas its an abrupt change in DarkXL right now. Also the text is just a debugging tool, it will not display anything when its finished (hopefully the next build). So how did it sound to you? Was it too fast? Did it play at a consistent speed?

*The renderer will be optimized much more for build 9, right now all the level geometry is treated as dynamic and the buffer management isn't as good as it should be. In addition there isn't much batching going on right now. I expect a large increase in speed for most people as of build 9 and even expect the lower-end GeForceFX cards to run decently.

*The bug with falling in the rotating turbine sectors has been reported. If you get stuck, hold 'G' and you should pass right through the edges. 'G' is a built in cheat that cause you to move through adjoins regardless of height differences.

Thanks again for the comments.Smile

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vertex
Dianoga

Joined: 12 Sep 2008

PostPosted: Sep 13, 2008 13:29    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

well dark forces just got interesting again for me after many years. lucius your a genius. i love the
resolution we can play in and the texture resizing magic looks wonderfull

specs:
E6700 Core2Duo
3gb ram
soundcard = Auzentech X-Meridian
default midi device = microsoft GS wavetable sw synth
XP sp2

the midi plays at a good companion volume with effects. noticed the hung note bug reported above also.

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