Current Project Status

posted on May 22nd, 2015, 9:53 am

Our current project status? Actually we are in the middle of coding right now...

posted on May 22nd, 2015, 10:18 am

DOCa Cola wrote:Our current project status? Actually we are in the middle of coding right now...

Cool!...

posted on May 22nd, 2015, 6:44 pm

Our current project status? Actually we are in the middle of coding right now...

Out of curiosity, what language is most of this coding done in? Is it in a standard (C++, Java) or is it a unique language framework built specifically for the game engine?

posted on May 22nd, 2015, 7:29 pm

C++

posted on May 24th, 2015, 11:27 pm

C++

A language I love, much better than coding in Java...

posted on July 2nd, 2015, 4:39 pm

Will the NX version ODF's have block headers like INI files or something similar?

Example:

Code: Select all

[base]
Range = Medium

[shields]
ShortRangeDamageMultiplier = 1.25
LongRangeDamageMultiplier = 0.75

[weapon1]
FireRate = 2.00
Type = Cannon

[weapon1Ordinance]
BaseDamage = 25
LongRangeMultiplier = 0.5
ShortRangeMultiplier = 1.5

[avatar1]
WeaponXDamageBonus = 0.125

[avatar2]
ShieldStrengthBonus = 15
ShieldRegenBonus = 0.625

posted on July 2nd, 2015, 7:38 pm

Will the NX version ODF's have block headers like INI files or something similar?

FO-NX uses XML for definition files

posted on July 3rd, 2015, 1:29 am

That would make them even more versatile than an INI-like file structure. Is there a chance that we could get a preview of what to expect?

posted on July 18th, 2015, 10:23 am

How's the coding coming along? Any chance this thing will allow the STA2 Classic mod to run as if it was 100% stock STA2?

posted on July 18th, 2015, 10:54 am

We intent to provide mod developers with an interface that allows the recreation of all Armada 1/2 gameplay features. However that is a goal we want to achieve incrementally together with mod developers after release of the first public version of NX. While many features should be implementable by developers with the initial version, some special cases might not be.
Our priorities however are to implement gameplay features required for "Fleet Operations" gameplay - which is a much evolved concept from the one we planned for the unreleased A2 based version 4.0 of FO.
That is all i want to share for now.

posted on July 18th, 2015, 8:44 pm

Okay then.

---

-------------------- POST MERGE! --------------------

---

What do you intend on doing with the old FO 4.0 loader and code once NX is released?

posted on July 21st, 2015, 10:48 am

There are no plans releasing the legacy A2-FO Loader source code*. You'd require a lot of background knowledge (also x86 assembly) and understanding of the inner workings of Armada 2 to get a grasp of the code. I doubt that such a release would be useful to anyone. NX will be more fun to play and mod.

posted on July 21st, 2015, 2:38 pm

Point made, but there are tools available to translate assembly into C code (which is similar enough to C++ that it can be converted if you have the patience) if you have the money to spend. Besides, I successfully got around API limitations of one application that was designed for plugins so that it printed the structure of a specific data set that was stored in memory to a file. I just hate to see all that work on the 4.0 loader go to waste.

posted on July 21st, 2015, 3:01 pm

Point made, but there are tools available to translate assembly into C code (which is similar enough to C++ that it can be converted if you have the patience) if you have the money to spend.

No tool in the world can produce remotely useable code out of a complex application like Armada 2. The best available tool for that is Hex-Rays decompiler. And believe me. Even with it's hefty price tag, it is no use on Armada 2. It doesn't even offer features to output generated code to files directly. For a good reason. Tools like that are neat little helpers. However they can't do the work for you.

I just hate to see all that work on the 4.0 loader go to waste.

Nah. That was no waste. It was all experience that now went into NX. If 4.0 wouldn't have failed, we still might try to fix Armada. In all these years beginning with later 3.0 betas, we've invested more time in finding workarounds and fixing issues than working on actual gameplay or features.

posted on July 21st, 2015, 5:39 pm

It took that long just to work around an issue before you could even think about implementing a gameplay feature? Well, I'm glad the experience is paying off. Can't wait to see in-game screenshots of the new system in action.