Exult3D R2

Andrea B Previtera · Post by **Andrea B Previtera** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 8:00 am

I don't know if it might come in hand, but I wrote a little MDL -> MD2 Viewer/converter. Won't you really mind if I feast on your models like a hungry 3d vulture?

I am done with the whole world structure, editor, eggs, sort-of-usecode, npc schedule and sound system - but before moving to the hardest parts (combat/magic system) I really want to release a tech demo - and for that I need some eye candy (i.e. models, textures)

Sail ho!

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 8:08 am

I get no error messages, when I attempt to run exult, it just fails to run. No errors in stderr.txt, so im at a loss. Oddly enough however, I patched it over my RC1 Exult, and it works fine.

- Wizardry Dragon

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 8:20 am

So heres the bugs Ive noticed so far, which may be a result of the changes or simply exult bugs thatve been fixed since RC1:

- Quitting Exult3D didnt stop my audio. Using digital if it makes a difference.
- It seemed to choke on my custom city, rendering. This may be a side affect of it not being part of the U7 map, and instead being patch, or may be due to simply having too many NPCs and items (Exult can handle a lot of items).
- The avatar movement is really difficult.
- Camera pans/rotates way too fast for my taste.
- Sometimes the camera is showing the 2nd floor of buildings when the avatar is on the 1st floor.

Just noting what I notice

And Andrea, if you need a usecoder, I have lots of experience with UCC.

- Wizardry Dragon

DrCode (the imposter) · Fri Jan 14, 2005 1:26 am

Keep up the good work.

Post by **drcode** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 8:25 am

The previous post is a nice sentiment which I'd agree with, but that wasn't me:-)

avatar_58 · Post by **avatar_58** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 2:55 pm

Ok, I got it to enter the game but only by removing the 3dmodels directory. Whats up with that? Now I can't see the avatar...

smatthews · Post by **smatthews** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 6:59 pm

avatar_58: Could you give me some information about your computer and Exult setup? Are you on a big-endian (Apple) machine perchance? Also, could you run it from the command-line and tell me what the last message you get before it crashes? If you're really so inclined, could you run `gdb exult` then do a `bt` when it crashes, and show me what you get?

Thanks,

-Sam

avatar_58 · Post by **avatar_58** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 8:07 pm

?

Naw, I'm running an AMD FX-53 2.4 ghz comp using BFG Geforce 6800 GT for video. I don't get any command-line errors...just a simply Illegal Operation in ntdll when I try to run it with that dir in place.

Btw..those camera movements are messed up....I can't seem to get my cursor to listen once I rotate away.

Post by **Colourless** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 8:39 pm

Are you running under 32 bit or 64 bit Windows?

avatar_58 · Post by **avatar_58** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 11:12 pm

32 bit. heh...I'm not a glutten for beta version windows punishment. Maybe once its done

I'm not sure whats causing this error. It's very strange.

Jammet · Post by **Jammet** » Tue Jan 18, 2005 6:42 am

How about using fractal graphics for the mountains? Maybe with grain or some texture all over it? It would probably be simpler to do that than creating models that all look different, and back in the eighties, those fractals in Rescue on Fractalus looked great =^_^=.

smatthews · Post by **smatthews** » Tue Jan 18, 2005 12:11 pm

Mountains look OK without fractal madness. Faster, too!

[center]

[/center]

-Sam

XxVenomxX(notloggedin) · Tue Jan 18, 2005 12:53 pm

Very impressive! Great work

Jammet · Post by **Jammet** » Tue Jan 18, 2005 1:04 pm

=^_^= 's was just an idea anyway. Some randomness as opposed to tilesets. Yes, they look fantastic, very well done =^_^=.

Caravaggio · Post by **Caravaggio** » Tue Jan 18, 2005 1:26 pm

Nice.

avatar_58 · Post by **avatar_58** » Tue Jan 18, 2005 7:41 pm

I'm going to be installing Linux Slackware 10 on a 2nd HD so I'll let you know if it works from there

Post by **Colourless** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 3:46 am

This shot is better
[center]

[/center]

Andrea B Previtera · Post by **Andrea B Previtera** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 4:42 am

WHere can we download the version with mountain models?

Belial · Post by **Belial** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:24 pm

this is the best thing ive seen since they invented sliced bread. which was quite the step forward. i almost had to change my pants when i saw the avatar in 3d. not that i havent seen him in ascension. my point is i have always thought if your going to make a 3d remake or something along those lines it would make sense to take the time and make it exactly like the original. as in the locations and everything else under the sun. so to see the original game be modified as a 3d game is very very GOOD!!!

eaterofspleens · Post by **eaterofspleens** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 9:00 am

Oi! You'd better not have died on us! If so you'll never hear the end of it...

draadje · Post by **draadje** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 5:34 pm

how come there's no option in my exult.cgf?

SB-X · Post by **SB-X** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 7:28 pm

Should be under . Just add it if it's not there.

smatthews · Post by **smatthews** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 9:15 pm

I got a new job with a 200 mile commute. Until I get a new apartment closer to my job, I won't have time for anything. I'm trying to get a closer apartment ASAP.

"I'll be back."

-Sam

P.S. - 500 models made so far.
P.S.S. - Colourless, when's that new graphics subsystem coming?

smatthews · Post by **smatthews** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 9:31 pm

One more thing... with the current binaries, OpenGL mode only renders as fast as the "FPS" set in the game options. Set that higher for improved performance. Try setting it to, say, 30 or 40, by editing your exult.cfg.

'Night,
-Sam

Skutarth · Post by **Skutarth** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 5:16 pm

Looking sweet. I didn't know you were going to add in models this soon! Keep it up, Sam... Can't wait for a public release!

Derek Thomas · Post by **Derek Thomas** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 2:15 pm

Overall i think its got some style, good form later in the message. but arn't you worried that a new 3-d look would make the game lose some its orginality? One of the reasons i like ultima 7 is the old school graphics it brings me back to my childhood days of snes games, and you cant find those graphics anywhere. It leaves stuff to the imagination. everything isnt blasted away by high technology. Like for instance final fantsay 10?
ff 3 was the game that made me fall in love with the series, now with the new ones, i feel like the game i thought i knew was actually envisoned as something else when they made it. kind of a bad feeling.

Here's some advice i may be 17 but i know a good game when i see one.
Been playin since age 5. Kind of ruined my life, but hey. anyway back to what i was saying, i know a good game and ultima 7 parts 1 and 2 are good like they are.

Don't change a thing, or at least keep the older versions up.

Tristan de Inés · Post by **Tristan de Inés** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 3:09 am

Nobody is forcing you to use Exult 3D. If you don't like it, leave it.

Sam made quite an impressive "add-on" there and I'm personally very excited about the idea of experiencing U7 in full 3D. I haven't tried it out jet though... still waiting for a more or less stable, "official" release.

DuckWaffle · Post by **DuckWaffle** » Mon Apr 11, 2005 1:01 am

Hmm... looking through the screenies and seeing the rudimentry models that are in them got me thinking... cant you just steal all the models from Ultima 9? i mean, i know how bad that game was, but i ALSO know that you all bought it, just for the sake of having played the last ultima (no matter how bad it was).

Oh yeah... and this would be all for educational purposes, of couse. now will EA's lawyers please back off?

zosX · Post by **zosX** » Tue Apr 12, 2005 4:27 am

I don't have Ultima IX, and I'm guessing a lot of other people probably don't either. It would be far better to distribute the code with some models as far as I'm concerned. Perhaps Andreas and Sam could work together and share some models, but hey, that's just a suggestion....

Andreas has made some pretty spiffy models!

zos

Andrea B Previtera · Post by **Andrea B Previtera** » Tue Apr 12, 2005 4:50 am

Sam just handed me his models a few hours ago.

Mine spiffy? Mine are actually far worse than Sam's! Also, all the animals I used are taken from NeverWinter nights: a conversion nightmare which took the combined efforts of WalterMB (A friend of mine who also takes part to the Exult board) and a set of tools I had to write from scratch

Spiffy efforts... no spiffy models at all

Caravaggio · Post by **Caravaggio** » Thu Apr 14, 2005 8:10 pm

So it's still going then? Good. I was a little worried with the lack of thread postings there.

Not that it needs to be everyday, but you know how it is. :p

me · Post by me » Fri Apr 22, 2005 1:29 am

Sam,

could you *please* publish the source code?

Post by **Colourless** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:06 am

As stated in the GPL he has to supply the source to anyone who wants it.

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 1:43 pm

Not another spambot. Why the eff do they always seem to dig up this thread?

A small part of me dies everytime I see a reply here thats just a spambot reply, I eagerly hope Sam Matthews will post his source code so that, if nothing else, others can carry on the torch, because it was a promising project.

--------
Peter M Dodge aka Wizardry Dragon
Lead Designer
Ultima VII: The Feudal Lands

EviLore · Post by **EviLore** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 11:56 am

I've tried several times to get into U7; it's one of my favorite kinds of games, but the perspective in the original engine just doesn't work for me, and I unfortunately find it unplayable because of that (no disrespect). I had such hopes for the 3d engine project, and I wish someone would continue it...

Sam · Post by **Sam** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 8:04 pm

Ya know... I've released the source a few times. wjp even glared at me

- http://www.google.com/search?q=exult3d+patch pulls up a relevant patch on its first hit, and a little more Googling can show that versions of the 3D source have been floating around for quite a while...

Here is a slightly more official patch:

http://www.sammatthews.com/files/Exult14CVS_3D.zip
http://www.sammatthews.com/files/Exult1 ... models.rar

Use the diff contained in Exult14CVS_3D.zip against Exult 1.4 CVS, and add the two source files to the source root. I made the patch itself with WinDiff. Good luck!

Exult14CVS_3D-3dmodels.rar, while optional, contains a lot of compiled replacement models and textures for a lot of shapes, including most mountainsides, the Avatar, and Iolo. Put the 3dmodels directory into the same directory as your executable.

If you need the 3D Model source models (in 3D Studio Max 3 format), or the 3DSMAX3 export plugin, let me know (the source files are relatievly huge).

The only thing left before Exult3D is done is to fix up the awful camera control.

Good luck compiling! Heh heh heh. No, really!

-Sam

************ · Post by ************ » Thu Apr 20, 2006 2:50 am

This is very good news Sam!
I'm waiting very patiently!

Regards,

Matt

Paladin · Post by **Paladin** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 8:02 pm

Fantastic, this is even better than the graphics in Ultima IX!

Gruck · Post by **Gruck** » Sun Apr 23, 2006 12:32 am

Hey can someone post some new screenshots to this thread? I`m currently personal computer deficient and would love to see some new screenshots.

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Sun Apr 23, 2006 1:14 pm

Ditto, I'd like to see some screenies and don't feel like trashing my Exult install

--------
Peter M Dodge aka Wizardry Dragon
Lead Designer,
Ultima VII: The Feudal Lands

pho · Post by **pho** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 1:16 pm

so who wants to post a binary?

Snori · Post by **Snori** » Thu May 18, 2006 7:28 am

So, is there any hope for the win binary? Or at least some kind of manual?
btw, I think a fellow *nix user could make an .exe in a few minutes.

Andrea B Previtera · Post by **Andrea B Previtera** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 2:44 am

Not directly related to Exult3D ... I can't find my old topic about, anyway we're progressing with our U7-and-Exult-inspired 3d game and at long last we've got a movie to show (along with some new screenshots)

Just check the homepage at
http://ashes.lalista.org

ps.

For the Nth time I have to thanks the Exult team for the algorithmic helping hand they lent me in the last year: if stuff is walking and moving in the movie, it's mostly thank to Dr.Code's efforts to make me understand the basics of A*

SB-X · Post by **SB-X** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 3:12 am

That's marvelous! Your character models/textures have really improved since last year. The black outlines could use anti-aliasing. Have you tried thickening the outlines? The only wierd things I noticed are details I'm sure you already know about. (movement jumpiness at the start, and the lack of shadows cast on objects)
Great music BTW.

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 4:14 am

Let me direct further discussion of ashes over to it's own forum http://www.xenus-hq.net/ashes_forum/index.php
News on this project IS appreciated and welcome here (I like the looks of it a lot), but not in other threads

Andrea B Previtera · Post by **Andrea B Previtera** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 4:19 am

SoWWy Dominus

I forget we have our own forum now and then (really!)

Post by **Dominus** » Mon Jun 05, 2006 4:38 am

Gruck · Post by **Gruck** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 3:58 am

I love your engine. The game looks like a cartoon jumping out and attacking me in the middle of the night. LOVE!

Wizardry Dragon · Post by **Wizardry Dragon** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 7:27 am

*chants*

Screenshots!
Screenshots!
Screenshots!

--------
Peter M Dodge aka Wizardry Dragon
Lead Designer,
Ultima VII: The Feudal Lands

Petrell · Post by **Petrell** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 7:19 pm

Exult3D or Ashes?

Ashes : Two Worlds Collide

Exult3D