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Work in Progress / Hover racer screenies ...

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Fallout
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 01:51
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I'm about 1/4 of the way through making the first track for the game. All the engine is in place. Rolling demo should be out by next week.

Features are:
-Realistic physics model
-Huge tracks
-Stunt racing (banked corners, loops, corkscrews, jumps)
-Super highspeed
-Space based racing (different planets, different gravity and weather effects)
-Low system requirements (getting about 180FPS on my 2GHz 5600FX (runs limited to 60FPS)

Here's a couple of screenies (more to come later):


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walaber
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 02:40
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wow! looking very impressive! are there other hovercrafts to race against?

Go Go Gadget DBPRO!

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M00NSHiNE
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 02:47
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Yay, heres another game to get excited about!!!! I like the look of this - cant wait to be playing it!!!

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The Lynx
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 03:33
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@Fallout-
Looking very impressive. This really reminds of (one of) my favorite games, Star Wars: Episode 1 Racer, for the N64. Ever play it?

Oh no! Chrissy had used her powers to turn herself into a hideous man-eating giant!
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M00NSHiNE
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 04:06
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I did - it was qualitae cha'mone. Owww!

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devon
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 05:51
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OMG! That is so tight!Could be a seller if you plan on selling this game!Just looking at the graphics really cool!

A future, upcoming game creator
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Fallout
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 06:19 Edited at: 21st Jun 2004 06:22
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hehe. Cheers for the comments.

Actually, the only hover cames I have played are wipeout and some old SNES game - F-Zero, or something. I can't remember. The reason why I chose hovering ships is the physics is easier to simulate, as you don't have to worry about surface friction. Just wind resistance.

Anyways, I'll keep you guys updated. Cheers for showing interest. I finished another section of the test track tonight, now off to bed. Here's a screeny - just a high speed banked curve after dropping down a hill. Handles nicely.

Edit: @walaber Nope, but I haven't even got a finished track yet. These screens are the first track in development. Competitive racing AI will be a challenge to make, but I'm up for it!!!



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Arkheii
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 16:26
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Looking sexy, but would love to see some l00p da l00p screenies like you mentioned before Snazzy!

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Fallout
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Posted: 21st Jun 2004 18:46 Edited at: 21st Jun 2004 19:01
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There's no loop the loop in the test track, but once I've finished it, you'll be able to swing up the walls in the tunnel sections and loop around the ceiling. It's pretty ace. Hang on, I'll grab a screenie ...



Just as a side note, for some reason these screens look very different to the actual game. Very blurry, and bland, and the perspective is also off. Don't know why, but there you go. Bear in mind the game looks much better, and looks even better when moving.

Edit: Figured out what was wrong with my screen capturing, so recaptured all the screenies from all the posts. Looks just like it looks in-game now.

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Fallout
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 05:16
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More screenies - this time I've finished the tunnel section and the see-through part where you come out one end in a transparent tube section, suspended over the cliff before zipping back inside the mountain. It's a touch hard to see from a screenshot, as the alpha blended tube texture is only really visible while moving, but you'll get the idea.

Also implementing my visibility culling and selective collision system now, and getting a nice FPS increase, so should be able to keep the finished game at around 150 FPS on my system, so slower systems should be able to reach the 60FPS frame limiter.



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Balid
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 06:51
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Dude ,

Love the screenies

Balid
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Don Malone
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 06:52
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That is very nice.

I played Episode One racer on the PC. Still have it here as a matter of fact.

Wasting CPU Cycles since the 286 was a hot machine.
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MikeS
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 08:03
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Very nice Fallout. That tunnel sure looks like fun.

This games looking very polished at its early state already. Keep it up.



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Fallout
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 15:22
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Yep, I'll be sticking with this one - purely because it plays so damn well already. I'm quite happy to keep loading it up, and zipping down the section I've finished, slamming the breaks on, turning round and zipping back.

Just added a few more features:
-Sound is something I love doing, so I've been making a very detailed sound model. You have engine sounds and a wind rush sound (so the faster you go, the louder and faster wind sounds like it rushing past you. Also, areas are defined as enclosed or open, and depending on the degree to which they're enclosed, you get varying sounds, so when you enter the tunnel you can hear your engine noise echoing.
-Also added flip jets (z-axis control). I noticed you'd be zipping through tunnels going up the side walls, plus jumping down hills etc. and you'd get out of shape while in mid air and have to watch in horror as you slowly turned upsidedown before crashing into the ground. The flip jets give you z-axis control, so you can correct this before you hit the ground. It also allows you to apply more force around banked corners etc (like leaning into the curve), but if you're holding down the key to flip left and you hit a bump, you can flip yourself upsidedown yourself, so it should be a cool addition.

Right, I've been reorganising the code as well, but its coming along nicely. I'll work on more track sections today.

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TEH_CODERER
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 15:39
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Looks great.
Will there be a demo soon?

Current Projects: Dark_Worlds_Map_Editor version0.1 aneale5@orange.esinet.org.uk
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Fallout
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 15:44
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I need to finish the test track first, so once that's done (probably a week from now, assuming I dont have any other responsibilities crop up). It wont have AI opponents at that point, cos thats gonna take some serious work to make them competitive, but it'll be a rolling demo for people to rest out the control engine. Then I'll need as much feedback as possible.

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Megaton Cat
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 18:44
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Well done Fallout!
I've always thought you would never amount to anything, but you proved me wrong! (lol kidding, kidding!)

Sounds like your getting this thing in order. A few questions and suggestions:

How did you make the tracks?
Did you make the hover model? It's cool.
I think you should put a shadow under the racer...
And can I help?

Keep the progress trickling!

Trying to get my sig up!
Damn you Angelfire!
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Fallout
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Posted: 22nd Jun 2004 23:27
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Quote: "How did you make the tracks?"


Milkshape and LithUnwrap. I've been using some primitives but mainly I've been placing each vertex and making each face MANUALLY so theres as few polys as possible, that's why its take ages to make the first level.

Quote: "Did you make the hover model? It's cool."


Yes, indeedy. I can model now. I've put a fair amount of effort into learning to model and as limiting as milkshape is, it has all the key features needed to make nice meshes, and lith unwrap helps with texturing.

Quote: "I think you should put a shadow under the racer... "


A shadow would be nice, but there's the big problem that the floor beneath the racer will rarely be one poly, so the shadow would have to be multiple polys and lots of code so it fits snuggly to the track. I might have a play around and see what I can do though. I agree, a shadow is important.

Quote: "And can I help?"


No!

But that's nothing to do with you, that's because (A) I work better when I only have to rely on myself, (B) I have all areas covered myself (models, textures, code, sound, music, menus etc) and (C) I'm back on dial-up, so file transferring is an absolute bitch. Thanks for the offer though.

Other updates:
-Added collision sound and added crash friction, so when wing tips touch walls now, instead of glancing off them they grip on and put you into a spin (for full contacts). Nice sound effects. Scraping sound effects for running down walls or sliding down hills after turning upsidedown.
-Also added a righting mechanism which is a jet on the nose of the ship which fires upwards. Now when you crash and end up upsidedown, you just fire that jet and it'll flip you back up. In the final game, you'll have received damage for the crash, so it's not a get out of jail free card.

Off to do more to the test track model.

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Vues3d on Kalimee
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Posted: 23rd Jun 2004 16:47
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Seems a really great work!!!!!!!

Little question...
How did you create the reactor "effect"???

Guido
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Phaelax
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Posted: 23rd Jun 2004 18:10
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That's PIMPtastic!
Though you really should add something to the levels to give a bit more detail than just one rock texture.

"eureka" - Archimedes
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Fallout
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Posted: 23rd Jun 2004 20:50
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Quote: "How did you create the reactor "effect"???"


I assume by that you mean the flares at the back of the ship engines. They're just ghosted plains textured with a flare texture, scaled based on the engine speed.

Quote: "Though you really should add something to the levels to give a bit more detail than just one rock texture."


Yep, agreed this level looks a bit boring, but it's supposed to be on a "mars-like" barren mountain landscape. It's just a big red chunk of dust and rock. Depending on the location, other levels will have more detail, but either way, I intend to add a lot of decals to levels to make them more interesting. They'll probably drain quite a lot of speed though, so they'll be switch on/off-able. Decals for this level will include vehicles wreckages, mining structures, and advertising signs etc. (The idea of the racing will be futuristic commerical racing).

More shots: (about half way through making this level now).


I didn't want this to be to easy, so I'm mixing the level up with fast sections (like the tunnel) and dangerous sections with cliff, like this part.

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M00NSHiNE
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Posted: 24th Jun 2004 02:31
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This is looking cooler with each new screen. The thing I cant wait for is the demo - I want to hear the music because I know it'll be class

I think the best thing in that landscape would be as youve said mining structures. Also, I think a train track (a futuristic one) would be good - like the one on Total Recall

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Phaelax
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Quote: "but it's supposed to be on a "mars-like" barren mountain landscape. It's just a big red chunk of dust and rock"


I was making a game that took place on Mars too. I decided to change the setting, just so I could add some prettier graphics.

"eureka" - Archimedes
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Fallout
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A train track, you crazy monkey?!? You're gonna want it to pull up and unload a carrage full of hookers next!

I'll have to finish the level and basically see where I could put things and what they should be. I'm not gonna make it random. Some of the track pieces are a bit contrived, in that, they clearly wouldn't be there in real life, but in general I've tried to make it feel a bit like you're racing through natural cannions and round a mountain with old mining roads. Sort of, half way between the two, so any decals/structures/extras, I'll want them to fit nicely with the levels. If there's a place where a mining train could run, then why the hell not?!

Ok, I reckon there's a small chance, so long as I'm not busy tomorrow, that I'll be able to have the test track finished (without decals). Basically, a connected loops. That means I need to make about another 5 pieces. I made 4 today, and that was a push. I have to make a bridge as well, so realistically, it'll be ready on friday at the earliest. This'll be a demo with no A.I. Just an engine and Red Planet test.

Either way, I need feedback on the engine, and bug testing for the level. I'll need people to play it hard, and see if there are any seems etc. where you can fall through the walls, or any visiblilty problems. In general though, it should play fine.

Here're a few more screenies:


Right, big up yaselves! Bo' to the selecta.

Btw, there's no music yet. I'm back on dial-up, so I won't upload any demos with music until it's either at a more complete stage, or I get some sort of frikkin broadband here!

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Physics coder
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Posted: 24th Jun 2004 08:37
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Nice work! The AI players will need a more complex programming than normal racing AI, as the track is fully 3d. Good luck on that part.

It would be cool if there was a part of the track were the course corkscrewed into a completely vertical mine shaft going underground, for a while.

Very nice racer model, make it yourself?

Anyways, looks great, and I look forward to trying it in the near future.
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M00NSHiNE
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Posted: 24th Jun 2004 12:55
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Sounds great. Im willing to do some testing if I have time

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adr
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Posted: 24th Jun 2004 14:19 Edited at: 24th Jun 2004 14:20
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Looks pretty cool! (short n sweet)

Floats like a butterfly, stings like when I pee
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Nemo
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Posted: 24th Jun 2004 17:29
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Hi there.
I'm not normally very chatty but I had to comment on this, as it looks very mighty.

It's also particularly interesting for me as I too am building a hover racing game.

I must say when I read the title of the post I feared that all your screen shots would be very similar to mine but I couldn't have been more wrong.

I am coming at it from the other end of the scale. I am obsessed with hovercraft (even my vacuum cleaner hovers) and I want to try to achieve a sort of hover car F1 style of sim, only not really dull like F1 obviously. It's coming together as a traditional style of racing sim only with not so traditional cars.

Good luck with this, I know from my own experience that a lot of what you have already achieved did not come easy (At least not for me). I found keeping the polys low for collision was a nightmare so in the end I used a hidden low poly version of the track model to collide with. Probably not the best solution but my inexperience sometimes leads me into taking the easiest option.

It's amazing how different yours is to mine considering that we have both started development with roughly the same basic premise. I would like to post some shots of my game but I am kind of self-conscious about it as it is my first real attempt.
I hope to have the courage to reveal my master plan in the very near future.

Have you tried adding support for any type of analogue controller yet?
I have set it up to work with my Logitech wheel but I found the commands for that a bit weird. I am in work so I cant check but I think I had to set the brake as a point of view hat or something to get dual axis control between it and the accelerator. I imagine this will not work with any other wheel but I haven't messed with the commands that much yet so I assume something more robust can be achieved.

I am really looking forward to a demo of this game. It looks like it could be a lot of fun.

In the future we will not spank the monkey, the monkey will spank us.
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M00NSHiNE
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Posted: 24th Jun 2004 22:35
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Its quite interesting how peoples perceptions of the same subjects and situations differ from person to person. I bet if there was a competition where everybody just had to make a 'hover-racing game' then we'd get loads of different ideas. look at the Alienware and retro compos

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Fallout
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Quote: "I want to try to achieve a sort of hover car F1 style of sim, only not really dull like F1 obviously. It's coming together as a traditional style of racing sim only with not so traditional cars."


Sounds like a cool concept. Is you're sci-fi futuristic as well?

Quote: "I found keeping the polys low for collision was a nightmare so in the end I used a hidden low poly version of the track model to collide with."


What I did was cut my track in to many different pieces (well, I'm actually building it piece by piece), and then work out which track piece the car is on with a precalculated zone structure (really fast), then only calculate collision with that single track piece, or two when it's on a join between two of them. It's really fast. I can get up to 170FPS at the moment, but I expect this to drop to around 80 when all the other cars are on the track colliding.

Quote: "I hope to have the courage to reveal my master plan in the very near future."


Do it now! If you get negative feedback, it's only a good thing. It should help you improve it.

Quote: "Have you tried adding support for any type of analogue controller yet?"


Nope. Still finishing the first track. I've added a few things, tweaked the engine etc. but now I really have to finish a track before I work on anything else. I will add analogue support though (I have a Wingman, with force feedback, so I might add force aswell). I'll post here any difficulties I have with it.

I've almost finished the first track now. It's taking a stupid amount of time, but I do spend half the time zipping round the track each time I add a piece, then going back the other way (it also helps me refine it). Hopefully I'll finish it tonight. If I do, I'll try and get a demo up before I go to bed ... otherwise, tomorrow, for sure.

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walaber
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Posted: 25th Jun 2004 11:10
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sweet, can't wait!

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Lampton Worm
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This looks cool. Any ideas on how you're going to handle the AI? i.e. waypoint system, or pre-recorded data etc.
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Fallout
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@Lampton Yep, pretty much a combination of both of those. Waypoint zones, with some randomness so they don't follow the exact same line, and then pre-recorded data to tell them what speed they should be at where, and when they should switch to the next waypoint (start turning).

I have no idea, cos I've never done car racing A.I. before, but it should be interesting. I think waypoints/data will be fine, and I'll just need lots of tweaking to make them drive it convincingly, and some procedures to handle what to do after crashing etc.

Btw, track is almost done now so hopefully will get a demo online today.

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Vues3d on Kalimee
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Anyway... I'm really interested to try a demo when ready to test...
Looks really great...

enjoy your week-end!
Mine beginns right NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Guido
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Nemo
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Hi there.

My game is slightly futuristic but not as much as yours, and all the tracks are on earth so the conditions won’t change so much from race to race.

I like your collision technique. I will need to make my collisions more efficient before too long but at the minute I am still refining the collision response physics.

I know what you mean about track building. I am also spending much time adding stuff and then flying round crashing into things to test the collision response. Which I must admit I rather enjoy.

I will be working on various things over the weekend so I will try to post some screen shots later tonight or tomorrow.

Never done that before so bare with me if I post some accidental nonsense.

In the future we will not spank the monkey, the monkey will spank us.
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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 25th Jun 2004 17:35
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Wow yes Wipeout! I would try altering the detail on the road. At the moment the pixels are large, and that makes the ship look small. Try using a road with less detail, and a grain made from single pixels. That's just as an experiment, because I think it will look better. Try not to put any pixels next to each other. Or try a metal track with no graininess.

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Fallout
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@Vues3d on Kalimee - The track is done. Now I just need to add some functions to reset the racer when you fall of the cliff etc. and then I'll upload the demo.

@Nemo - that's sounding good. Looking forward to seeing those shots.

@Pincho - yep, gonna try and figure out how to tweak the graphics/textures on this track later on, although I'm more concerned with frame rate than graphical quality. I want lots of people to be able to play this, but I agree, there are methods to improve the textures without degrading speed. I'll be tweaking lots, later on.

Demo up later on this evening, I think.

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Fallout
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Uploading 4.8MB of demo now. I'll make a new post when it's done.

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Jetmech
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Posted: 26th Jun 2004 07:01 Edited at: 26th Jun 2004 07:03
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Ok, I refreshed this thread about 10 times now, waiting to try out this demo lol!


Edit - oops shoulda looked one post up!

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zircher
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Just an idea about way points, if you include a max safe speed value with each way point, that might give the AI drivers enough info for them to make acceleration/deceleration decisions based on the capabilities of their respective vehicles. I also like giving waypoints a 'tag' radius so that they do not have to double back if they miss a way point by a few meters as they go zipping along.
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Fallout
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Posted: 27th Jun 2004 14:55
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Zircher, pretty much exactly what I was thinking. Each waypoint will have a speed range (max and min) they have to try and achieve, and also a radius which will span the whole track width .. so they'll aim for the correct racing line point, but they can happily miss it.

This will need lots of tweaking though, I'm sure.

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