Hey everyone,
I just had an outstanding idea (or at least, something that sounds like a good idea to me), and would like some input from the community because I just can't think by myself
You know that I am currently working on converting some Uru locations to the Unity game engine (and optionally in VR) because... huuh, that's fun ? Anyway, the resulting image quality is just awesome, and VR make it even better. Great.
But. There are two problems with that:
- It's Cyan's assets, so I can't release it. Hence you guys can't profit from it, aside from the few screenshots I post once in a while.
- It's Cyan's quality, which means it's daaaamn loooong to make visuals on par with the original, fix bugs, rebuild all possible interactions, etc.
As long as it's raw models with a single texture on them, I can convert it to the new engine relatively fast. But advanced texture blending, decals, and all that jazz ? It's a headache to convert. Not impossible, but it takes a long time, because I'm looking for maximum fidelity to the original, while using new lightmapping and texturing techniques.
So, Cyan's Ages won't be of much interest for now. But what else do we have ? Fan ages !
Instead of working on Cyan's Ages and not be able to do much with it, I was thinking of taking on one (more probably two) Fan-Age, convert them to Unity, then release them for you to try out. The result would be a smallish game, a bit like what Cyan did for Crowthistle, that would contain both Ages with upgraded visuals (probably working puzzles too, otherwise where is the fun ?). They would be playable either with standard mouse and keyboard, or in roomscale with a VR headset if you have one !
(Oh, and Unity runs just as well on Windoz, Mac and Linux. No discrimination on the OS side. Heck, if Google Cardboard is powerful enough, we could even build for that)
Now, the big advantage about this, is that fan-Ages generally use simple meshes, simple texturing and little to no lighting. Which means not only that it's easier to convert them to a new engine, but also that they can easily be upgraded with better lighting and shadowing, a new weather system, etc. Also, because they are already low poly from the start, even the improved version should be playable on a not-so-recent PC (assuming you can run most existing Ages fine).
This will require getting the authorization from the author of the Age, of course. While I won't add new content or areas, I'm definitely going to mess with the lighting and maybe weather of his/her Age. The author will have to be aware of that if he accepts and if that doesn't fit him/her, I won't insist - it's their work after all, I definitely understand if they don't want me messing with it
So... Now comes the hard question: which Ages should I work on ? I have a few Ages I would love to see with new graphics or in VR (or both), but have a hard time deciding for one or the other. So I might as well let you guys help me choose.
What about a vote ? Feel free to suggest any Age you might want (or even several), although preferably from people that are easy to contact to get their approval. If you're an Age author, you can suggest your own Age if that suits you.
(Once again, it's just a poll to know what people are thinking - there is absolutely no obligation whatsoever for authors if they feel their Age is good as it is on Plasma - and we will respect their decision)
Anyway. I think it would be best to start with only two Ages:
- one small but detailed (this kind of small and closed environment usually look good in VR)
- one bigger, preferably an outside scene with a bit of scenery (this would better showcase what modern engines are capable of)
Personally, I had these Ages in mind:
- Elodea (because it's a huge outside world and yet has nice caves, etc - although I would probably work only on the overworld for now)
- Rell-too (not sure if the author (Jojon ?) is still around, but the Age is more or less open source already)
- Relativity (imagine walking on the walls in VR, hehehe. And it's a community project as well)
- The Cathedral (might be cool in VR with a better lighting engine)
Other Ages I think would look cool (but their authors are harder to find)
- Zephyr Cove (I always loved Andy's work)
- Tehr dovah (great ambiance)
- Jonae or Jonae's hood (has an interesting design)
- Maw (small, but classy)
- Ahra Pahts (not the whole city. Just a neighborhood, probably)
(oh, and don't sue me if I did or didn't name an Age in one of these lists - I made them off the top of my head, based on what would be easy to convert, already looks good, and what I think I could make look even better on a new engine.)
So... Ideas ? Opinions ? Questions ?