Blood Omnicide blog

News pack

01-06-2010

It's been more than a two months since the latest news and we've got something to show. Work was concentrated at expanding the features that was done in the past and on development tools, whose main goal was improving toolset for generating and texturing terrain.

We didn't make futher progress in it (still using the legacy method - creating a brushset for an elevation map, then painting it by hand with special textures), but got closer. This is how the terrain looks like in the level editor:

  • 1
  • 2

Realtime lights editor was reworked, it has now an embedded model viewer, this should simplify the 3d-designers work so they can view the models right in game (WYSIWYG), using the lighting technology and other engine's features, like animation, attaching secondary models to bones/tags, special effects etc. Also light sources that shine only at night and fade once dawn comes have been added.

Substantial progress is achieved at the Blood Pill utility. Thanks to Andrei [Rackot] Grachev and Ben Lincoln, now it can depack tiles and maps format which will help to recreate BO maps with even great detalization and ease. Also several data unpacking routines has been improved and bugfixed. The util can be found and downloaded from the relative Wiki page.

New features of gamecode:

  • "Control mind"/"Spirit Wrack" spells with ability to travel all levels. It's interesting that while we implemented it, we got the game prologue scene (when Kain is assasinated) for free, as alive Kain is nothing but a unit under "control mind" spell and the spell caster (Kain vampire) is located in the crypt. Of course that's all in terms of game code, not gameplay.
  • added subtitles for all videos
  • footstep sounds (optional)
  • "Stun", "Incapacitate", "Blood Gout", "Repel" and "Blood Shower" spells
  • Postprocess shaders receive facelift via "Sharpen" and "Night desaturation" effects
  • Rogue enemies

Locations:

Most progress is achieved on locations. Ziegsturhl is 60% finished and we got it functional, the rest 40% of work is about making prop models for interior and exterior (BO has a lot of them). Ziegsturhl will have 5 houses to visit and some more citizens to feed from. Also it will have new secrets. Heres the some WIP shots:

  • 1
  • 2

Epilogue:

  • 1

There will be gameplay teaser in future, after we manage to finish most important prop models and location will play fine. We appreciate any help at this. The last screenshot that is see on the left is about funny thing, a "complete legacy mode" we are adding to the game options.