Is this any good to you guys?

Not sure yet. It's supposed to have scripting capabilities of modifying the mp.exe to make a sp type experience. However, we're unsure at the moment so time, trial & error will tell for sure.

At least the shader editor is fine,
was the first thing I tried out :p

Hopefully the game can be completed now.

Also the Icarus scripts provided in the SDK will come in very useful too Fracman.:)

unless by some miracle raven is able to release the SP code in the future, the MP SDK is all we've got to work with.

i'm just glad we're back to a "standard" codebase instead of trying to use WLS' broken set of code.

whew!

:holosid:

Yeah, even though a SP SDK release would be perfect, I wouldn't bet on it.

...the only glimmer of hope is that Raven ultimately released the SP SDK for Elite Force after releasing the Expansion Pack and the MP code, but as you said, I wouldn't bet on it either.

:holosid:

It certainley would make life easier if a SP SDK was released. If a SP SDK was released for Elite Force, then yes there is hope! After all there was no JKA Radiant in the SDK, maybe that's being saved for the SP SDK. Then again, I'm being wishful.

...on the bright side, at least the MP capabilities in JA far exceed JK2, or so I'm told. Just the scripting capabilities alone should be worthwhile.

Let's hope that's the case...

Yep. And I've gotta learn all that;) . Raven always intended on using the mp.exe engine as the engine for MODs to be based on. I guess we'll have to use it.

Raven has said there are no plans to release the SP SDK for either JK2 or JA.

However, looking at some of the features of the JA MP SDK I think you can actually make the game more "true to the original" this way.

Example: using Multiplayer, make a (coop capable) scripted experience that duplicates the DF level of choice.

Using Siege type variables you can make completion of objectives (with no time limit) end up for completion of the level.

It would be like creating a "one team" Siege map.

And what's even cooler is that you can give the player limited lives!

The only thing is I don't think you'll be able to save his gear at each "point" but then you could just provide him with all the gear he'd be expected to have at the start of each map.

You can put in NPC's, and you have "Radar" which could be modified to more closely resemble the old overlay map (something JK2 totally lacked).

I know it's possible to add more data to the radar than just allies, but also enemies (though in DF you didn't have force seeing so that wouldn't be realistic anyway).

And putting in NPC's (including spawning ones) into MP is no problem, if any of the mods recently released and examples from Siege are a judge.

And if it's intended for 1 person (or maybe 2, say Kyle and Jan) you don't have to worry about lag really.

The only thing lacking is a mid-level save feature, but then again the original DF didn't have that!

And you've got a lot of things already done for you, that you can just reskin/tweak, etc like the MP fists (melee), Concussion Rifle, jetpack using enemies (Boba Fett & Jetpack Troopers).

And there's plenty of inventory items you can use just like JK2 (the base JA maps may not reflect this, but I've seen the JK2 conversion maps and all the inventory items are still there, and accessible with cheats, even an MP version of the Zoom goggles).

Heck, you could even make a flyable Moldy Crow for fun!

Good luck to you guys!

damn the "no mid level save feature" bit sucks
hope there's a way to fix it

Dark Forces wouldn't work with a mid level save feature, it would be too easy. The whole point is that you are dropped from you ship and then on your own.

...looks like my work is simplified.

(ok, not really.) ;)

:holosid:

Originally posted by spsblue
Dark Forces wouldn't work with a mid level save feature, it would be too easy. The whole point is that you are dropped from you ship and then on your own.

???????????????????????:confused:

Ah, eh, nope. games should always allow the player to save where and when he/she wants to and if someone want's to play without saving well then the solution is quite simple don't save it's not like you are forced to save the game.

That way everyone is happy

Well the original Dark Forces had a life based system where if you died you could start over on a particular place on a level until you ran out of extra lives (SOTE did the same thing). Using a quicksave feature might make the mod alittle, too easy.

Yeah, Dark Forces cannot be easy! We don't this to be a MOD where people finish it overnight. Therefore there should be no mid level saving features.

I think we should put this to a website poll...

Ok guys, no one is FORCING you to quicksave.
The game won't "punish" you for not quicksaving.If you want to play it tough without saving then simply DON'T save and leave the quicksave option alone for those who want to.

Furthermore

The website poll idea is excellent

The mod won't be one that people will finish overnight, it will be much shorter, anyone who had played the original game more than once won't take more than 3 to 4 hours to finish it with or without the quicksave.

And about the life based system the original had. That was another case of "Length Illusion" which translates: we make a very short game and we have the audacity to charge it full price and in order to trick consumers that it is not short we screw a or some gameplay element(s) in order to make it feel longer without actually being. Heart of darkness, indy jones and emperors tomb, sote, dark forces, red faction 2, all residnet evil games just a few examples.

Hey, there is absolutely no need to rush through the levels since there is no time limit and DF is not a jump & run game :p
We are not redoing DF totally, so we may also keep save option and other advantages the JKA engine can give.
Not everyone wants or is able to finish the whole game at once.
And saving is not such a cheat as LAPOSTAL or LASKIP :D

Originally posted by Fracman
...cheat as LAPOSTAL or LASKIP :D

Hahahaha :D, the good old days of LASKIP and LAMAXOUT :D .

Originally posted by Algardex
simply DON'T save and leave the quicksave option alone for those who want to.

In the MP game, we cannot "leave the quicksave option alone" since there is no quicksave option to begin with.

Obviously we're going to have to create a save feature of some type, and perhaps if we create a new console command for saving, that command could conceivably be bound to a key for quicksaving.

But I think we may be putting the cart before the horse at this point...

:holosid:

Good point recombinant, we still need to see how the game will function using the multiplayer engine before we talk about things like this.

Originally posted by Jedi Luke
Good point recombinant, we still need to see how the game will function using the multiplayer engine before we talk about things like this.
Yep good point

Well I've noticed that the carcass and the assimilate.exe included in the official JKA SDK work differently that the JK2 ones ...

I was not able to compile my model with the JKA ones ...