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Any progress, Delphi? I miss the regular updates!
The rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated.
I just wanted to assure you folks that the project is not dead. I'm just writing mission scripts right now, and it's got to be the most tedious, seemingly endless task I could've picked for the time being, with so little to show for it. Just walls and walls of text. Some of it is interesting, but I'm primarily working on creating the functioning universe first - planet descriptions, ship descriptions, generic mission text, hailing messages - before I write the plot in around it.
I suppose I do have something to show from a little while back, here. A concept ship that I'm not certain on, but that I hope will be able to make it into the game. I'm tentatively calling it the Vulture for now, though I think I'd like it to be a science vessel, so I may give it a more "sciencey" name.
The biggest reason I'm not certain on its implementation is that the ship is heavily animated. During flight, it appears as you see it now, but while jumping, it folds flat and reconfigures its engines. I'm sure that with enough work I can make it happen, but there are a lot of moving parts to align and texture, and I'm not confident in my skill. It may have to be an "if I get around to it" kind of vehicle.
Other than that, though, life continues as usual. I heard about the financial difficulties Ambrosia is undergoing, so I can only hope they don't close their doors before I finish this game!
This post has been edited by Delphi : 30 April 2013 - 12:48 PM
@undead_shadow, on 07 December 2012 - 07:48 PM, said in EVN - Delphi:
Wow, just been skimming through some of the pages... and speechless at some of the designs and ideas you have come up with. I'd buy this game as a seperate game entirely with some of the concepts you've introduced. (EV4 ANYONE? ;)/>/> )
Once I finish creating this, and establish a strong storyline, I'm hoping to get into developing games for iOS and possibly for Mac, using the Unity engine. I'll readily admit that I think it would be amazing to make a full-3D Delphi universe game of some kind. Still though, that's just a pipe dream for the time being. Have to learn a whole lot more about code, first. Could save myself development time though, by using models, artwork, and audio already produced for this TC.
Quote
Just to get this straight in my head:
Capital ships etc aren't as "UBERLEET1337" as they are in stock EVN. You're trying achieving diversity and that is fantastic (part of me dislikes how elite and powerful the polaris is in EVN, buy polaris tech. Enter god mode. job done).
With the ships that you mentioned like the science/primarily tech advanced ones, is there any chance you could introduce a kind of EMP/Gun type disabler weapon/immunity outfit (like the Ionize panels you get in the EVN Pirate line)?
Is that even possible to have multiple types with the Nova engine?
Example: tech savy ship has amazing scanners/jammers etc but no real offensive fire power (following your certain ships can only use certain outfits/weps)
VS (or is attacked by)
Destroyer class Pirate ship... (has an array of offensive weapons but no scanners as such)
You expect the destroyer to win the fight easily (or why would he have attacked in the first place). But because Tech savy ship is advanced in jammers none of the weapons the destroyer has can target the ship (or only some of them?).
Therefore tech savvy ship escapes less/unharmed or maybe even wins the fight.
Is there a way of having certain weapons not working/firing/being able to target X if a ship has a certain outfit equipped?
Limit how OP this is by having the tech ships not being able to equip guns for example (but then you could get round this by having escorts... hrmmm) or limit them to being able to disable ownly one type of weapon per ship (so having 2 or 3 escorts grants you immunity to multiple types of guns/missiles etc but thats all the escorts do...).
Is this in any way practical/doable then?
Different types of vehicle roles drastically alter the strategy of gameplay in the Delphi universe. Certain ships are practically immune against others, while sometimes the most unassuming type of vessel is particularly good at annihilating ships far its superior in size and power. "Bombers" are large fighters that carry shield-breaking torpedoes, and which move fast enough that bigger capital ships have difficulty tracking them. On the other hand, capital ships have immensely powerful artillery cannons that can wipe out cruisers, but cruisers are extremely effective against fighters and carriers. Science ships are great for players using a fleet of escorts, as their own ship gets advantages against guided weapons and mostly just has to stay outside the bigger crafts' artillery arcs, while their escorts each perform their appropriate tasks and mop up targets. Science vessels also give you advantages to sensor range, the ability to see systems in advance on your map, and greater multi-jump capability. On that note, all ships have multi-jump unless otherwise indicated, but the larger the ship, the lesser the range. The Delphi galaxy map is gigantic, and it would take you far too long to cross it using single-jumps. Players would be pulling out their hair. With that in mind, you still have to explore one jump at a time, so it doesn't mean you can just go blasting off into the unknown without a bit of work involved. Each populated region typically has a map available for their particular star cluster, so there is always the ability to buy a few charts and shorten your journey, or you can look for Impeller Anchors: giant space stations that provide jumping "hot spots" between star clusters at a nominal fee (hypergates).
Wow, Just wow. Delphi, Sol. I stumbled back upon this thread again. Your continued dedication to this masterpiece of a game is outstanding. It has been so many years since this began, and it is incredible to see it still going. I am so impressed with what you have done with this project, but also am very happy that you seem to be having a pleasant and successful life! It has been forever since I checked this, and there have been so much progress! I'm still anticipating the day when I'll have to find a way to fire up Nova again just to dive into your universe. I wish you continuous good fortune with this project, with your marriage, and with anything else you put your mind towards.
@delphi, on 30 April 2013 - 12:48 PM, said in EVN - Delphi:
<snip> or you can look for Impeller Anchors: giant space stations that provide jumping "hot spots" between star clusters at a nominal fee (hypergates).
I can see this making sense from a gameplay perspective as it encourages players to move about under their own power. However, what purpose, from a story perspective, does the fee serve? Maintenance? Wouldn't taxes cover that? This is mainly just curiosity rearing its head here.
Also, the Vulture actually looks fairly beautiful considering its name. But I can also see it appearing similar to a vulture and therefore being nicknamed 'vulture' in-game whatever its actual designation is. What sort of work does it normally do for science? Explore stellar phenomena? Scan possibly habitable planets for new colonies? I'm thinking you could find its true designation from the work it does.
It sounds very much like the combat system from EVE Online, or at least balance wise.
Looked up my loging information again to say that you might want to check out Kinetic Void. It looks like it's based of the same thing you did - taking generic parts and snapping them together to make a ship. Then the ships get some generic animations and some values calculated from the parts you used; pretty slick really. Still in beta, hopefully they can fulfill all their goals without having huge machine requirements.
I suggest you develop it as an open source project - I'm sure most of the people who are following this thread (myself included) will be more than willing to help out.
This post has been edited by Evil : 17 June 2013 - 09:50 PM
Hey, Delphi, just a question: are you aware that the Echavius bears a striking resemblance to the Allegro-class fighter that Derakon uploaded 6 years ago for a sci-fi ships contest on the Just Graphics subforum?
I was browsing through some of the stuff in JG when I stumbled across that. Was the Echavius influenced by the Allegro or were you completely unaware of the Allegro's existence prior to this post?
@delphi, on 23 January 2012 - 08:30 PM, said in EVN - Delphi:
Anyway, I'm also re-detailing the Cephecon model to make it a bit more complicated-looking. I'm not entirely pleased with the "wings" at the back, but I'm even less happy with them removed. I'll do a few test renders to see how it actually looks when all is said and done.
After looking at this one again, I retract my previous statement of the wings looking underdeveloped. I think it actually looks fine as-is.
Gravedigging a bit here, I know... but I desperately want to know.
How goes it, Delphi?
@sklent, on 27 October 2013 - 12:04 PM, said in EVN - Delphi:
Well, I'm still here. The project, though, is fast losing momentum. I've acquired a full time job as well as had a child, so my time to work on Delphi is limited, at best. However, I've already assembled a plan of action to try and wrap things up properly. It won't result in as grand an accomplishment as I set out to achieve, but at least it'll be something that I can give to the community.
First off, I'm trying to finish all of the graphics. I have landing graphics for pretty much every single world, but I still need to make a status bar for the Enclave (not as hard as it sounds, though). The sounds will have to be completed, so I'm working on those as we speak. Matter of fact, I returned to the thread specifically to find an old post of mine in which I had an epiphany about getting higher-quality sounds into Nova, and I wanted to refer back to it with a new batch of effects I just produced.
The game's story is still nothing more than ideas at this point, but I have a logical series of paths I would like the player to be able to follow, and I'm hoping that once the rest of the universe is produced and stable to a point of being balanced and fully-playable, that I'll be able to just write the missions into it and change small details as the story progresses. Either way, I really want to create a functioning universe.
Originally, I'd planned for a massive-scale production, featuring fully-voiced video cutscenes and rendered CGI, and while what I already had created is damn fine, I just don't have the time to produce as much as I had hoped. At this point, I'm probably looking at rendering an opening cutscene to set the stage, but after that, it'll be typical Nova fare: lots of reading. Then again, my writing has always been my strongest point, and as Delphi originated as a literary concept, I see nothing intrinsically wrong with a return to its roots. It'll also help keep the file size small; using videos would've either required it be sent out via a massive torrent, or by compressing the videos to a point where the magic is completely lost.
What I've produced looks good, and so I want to take this project to its logical conclusion. I don't want it to just be added to a heap of abandonware comprised of false promises and excellent concepts with failed execution. If I'll give the universe one things, it's this universe, even if it's not as expansive as I'd originally hoped. I know that I had a ton of fun playing Uncle Twitchy's Starfleet Adventures, even though his, too, was an unfinished universe. Even without a story, it can be a lot of fun just to play in a universe sandbox.
If it helps, here's a screenshot:
@king_of_manticores, on 23 June 2013 - 12:59 AM, said in EVN - Delphi:
I know this is really dredging up an old post, but I just read it today.
I was not aware of the similarity. Truth be told, I just thought "giant space crab" when I made it, and the claw-like design followed. Granted, I think it's safe to say that the claw/pontoon design is not unprecedented in science fiction. It all stems from the same common "skeleton": crew cabin in the center with the engines behind it, and equipment attached to either side to stay clear of the center of mass, the pilot's view, and the engines' exhaust. Albeit, with the Echavius, like all ships in the Delphi universe, there is no logical "cockpit" requiring a clear line of sight; the bridge is nested deep inside the vessel's hull to protect it from weapons fire, and the pilot's "view" is comprised of readings from the ship's various external sensors.
Glad to hear you're still alive and well, Delphi! Your previews are amazing, and I am really looking forward to even a sandbox version.
Oh, and congrats on the kid!
This post has been edited by krugeruwsp : 01 December 2013 - 09:45 PM
Congratulations on the child, Delphi. I've got a two-year-old and trying to write descs in my spare time is... a challenge.
The writing has always been my favorite part of the EV series, so amen there.
The first few months of raising a child are difficult, to say the least. Lots of late nights and yet almost no time to get any real work done. Fortunately, I've found a good, productive distraction to keep me busy in between feedings: outfit pictures and descriptions. Ultimately, ship customization is one of the paramount features in Escape Velocity, and the Delphi universe is no different. I've elected to go with a simplified, non-rendered image design for the game's outfits, so that the player is focused more on the function than the eye candy, especially since of course, no outfits manifest as an actual visual change to the ship (aside from hull refits).
For instance, here is the Nichron Cannon, Mark IV:
Outfits will be color-coded by government, and organized in order of type. So, while you may get a mix of government-specific outfits on certain planets that share tech, things like guns will be grouped together, missiles with their kind, and so on and so forth. This way, if you want to play the hardcore role-playing game, and create a completely NDC-based battlecruiser, you can safely pick from only the blue outfits, while an Enclave ship will pick from the purple ones. White/gray outfits will symbolize neutral technologies found across the majority of civilized space. With this in mind, it is important to remember that the NDC, being the massive empire they are, will often be the designers behind many staple technologies. Don't expect to have an easy time building a ship without incorporating at least a little bit of NDC tech. For instance, the ubiquitous Electromag Laser is NDC in origin, and will appear blue as a result, while there are other government variants on the same tech that will be found less commonly, such as the Pariah version of the gun.
Awesome! I jumped a little when I saw you'd posted.
looks pretty sweet.
After churning out a few more outfit pictures, I became confident and decided to tackle giving the Enclave a proper unique government interface (the sidebar thingy with your vitals on it). The product is looking good so far, but there's some obvious tweaking to be done: the navigation window is too short, and so is the target display, but these aren't too difficult to work with, fortunately. Also, I'll be selecting a different font; I always use Courier when testing because it's monospaced and therefore predictable in width. The whole thing took about two hours of assembly in Photoshop.
The three angular bars at the top represent your shields, armor, and energy, respectively, each denoted with a small icon for identification. I tried to make the icons depict something being deflected (shields), plates in front of each other (armor), and of course, a little lightning bolt for energy. The icons at the bottom depict a sword (secondary weapon) and a familiar icon representing the hyperdrive.
I wanted to make the display look just barely alien, while still retaining human qualities. Though the Enclave are entirely human, they definitely follow a distinctly different art and architectural style, and I want that to come through in the ship interface, as well. I'll be adding more panels and decoration beneath the cargo display once I get the other pieces sized properly to fit, so that big ugly repeating background won't be so obvious.
Tell me what you think!
P.S. Also, does anybody know if there's a way to trick the shield/armor/energy bars to start from the right instead of the left? I'd really like them to retract into their respective icons, instead of draining leftward like usual.
This post has been edited by Delphi : 27 December 2013 - 05:18 AM
I like it!
I agree that the shield/armor/energy bars should retreat in the other direction. Unfortunately I don't have a clue how to actually do it.