[Xsera] Other Xsera

@prophile, on Nov 29 2008, 03:14 PM, said in [Xsera] Other Xsera:

Well observed: that makes life easier. However, the NC clause applies to both licenses, so we'd still have to release as freeware even if we didn't want to!

... although we (the developers) will still have rights (to reuse, take from, etc) to the code we make, correct? Because that's really what concerns me...

The original source code is under the GNU GPL. Part of that license dictates that new modifications to the code, i.e. the code you guys write, also be compatible with the GPL. So yes, everyone will have the right to reuse the code you make, at least in other GPL projects. The only thing you're really giving up is the exclusive right to the code, since anyone can use it if they follow the rules.

Not correct. Since we're not using any of the original code, we do not have to comply with the GPL. All the Xsera source is licensed under the 3-clause BSD license, which is much more permissive, but the copyright belongs to the people who wrote the source - currently, Adam, LANS and myself.

Ah. Then it seems you're being more ambitious than I thought. Luckily it doesn't seem to be slowing you down at this point.

I'd concluded some time ago that writing an engine from scratch was a contributing factor in DoI not getting the momentum it needed on the coding side. You do have the advantage here that people can be excited about Xsera because they know what it will be like. DoI is going to be EV-like, but will not be using any content from the EV games.

DoI?

Edit: Whoops, just read your signature.

This post has been edited by Two Jacks : 30 November 2008 - 03:42 PM

@captain-bob, on Nov 30 2008, 05:55 PM, said in [Xsera] Other Xsera:

Ah. Then it seems you're being more ambitious than I thought. Luckily it doesn't seem to be slowing you down at this point.

I'd concluded some time ago that writing an engine from scratch was a contributing factor in DoI not getting the momentum it needed on the coding side. You do have the advantage here that people can be excited about Xsera because they know what it will be like. DoI is going to be EV-like, but will not be using any content from the EV games.

Right. Because the team already has the content available, they can focus exclusively on the code in the initial phases. Once the new engine's up and running, updated content can be considered. There are significant advantages to this approach, not the least being the fact that it'll be faster to get something playable out the door, and having something playable out the door is hugely beneficial to attracting additional development talent.

I was most interested in the recent progress report regarding a JIT Lua implementation. When you said you were coding the game logic in Lua, my immediate question was "what about performance?", but it seems that question may have been answered before I could even ask it.

Lua performs very well on its own, and key files are already compiled at runtime into a cached Lua bytecode form, but LLVM will allow for runtime code generation tuned to the architecture of the target machine.

@prophile, on Dec 1 2008, 09:14 AM, said in [Xsera] Other Xsera:

... LLVM will allow for runtime code generation tuned to the architecture of the target machine.

Does this mean self-optimization of the software regardless of OS and hardware?

As long as it's supported by the LLVM backend, yes. (This includes pretty much all modern hardware)

I have a question , will Xsera (the engine itself , not the Ares scenario that it will be running) support the use of 3D models :huh: If not the initial release , then maybe in a later version?
I ask this because i think it would be cool for people with more powerful computers.

This post has been edited by Grenth : 02 December 2008 - 04:57 PM

There are no current plans to have 3D support of any kind within Xsera.

I just added a lot of questions from this topic into the FAQ. Enjoy!

@prophile, on Dec 2 2008, 02:23 PM, said in [Xsera] Other Xsera:

There are no current plans to have 3D support of any kind within Xsera.

Just thought I'd ask to see if there are/were any plans down the road for in game 3D modeling , or would that rendering :unsure: .

One more question i have is this , will there be an increased object maximum in game? Because the current limit is a bit low for some of the missions with asteroids in them , say chapter 17 for example , after a while there are to many asteroids to build any more ships or shoot anything for that matter , or in some 3rd party scenarios where a huge fleet of ships jumps in.

We are recoding xsera from scratch, not using the old ares code at all. The entity limits will be set later on in development once we have an idea of what various hardware will support.

On anything more than a Pentium 3, there do not need to be limits (but, to be fair, there has to be a limit at SOME point - 5,000 would seem reasonable) unless the game goes 3d. Honestly, how would the average dual-core be bogged down by something so undemanding?

@dark-revenant, on Dec 13 2008, 05:41 PM, said in [Xsera] Other Xsera:

On anything more than a Pentium 3, there do not need to be limits (but, to be fair, there has to be a limit at SOME point - 5,000 would seem reasonable) unless the game goes 3d. Honestly, how would the average dual-core be bogged down by something so undemanding?

Actually, you'd be surprised. I don't have the actual numbers, but prophile has run tests and the limits would surprise you (assuming that you want 30+ FPS).

We'll see how things go, but with the upgrades we're giving this thing, I wouldn't be surprised if it has system requirements.

@dark-revenant, on Dec 13 2008, 09:41 PM, said in [Xsera] Other Xsera:

Honestly, how would the average dual-core be bogged down by something so undemanding?

I'm also guessing that there won't be any SMP (multi-processor) support, right guys?

The entity limits for a scenario appeared to me not to have anything to do with the capabilities of the computer, but to be more a product of the game engine itself.
This goes along nicely with a few other interesting little quirks that old Ares has.

All I'm saying is that I really hope Xsera runs better than what my computer can pull off when it emulates Ares.

Also, on a completely unrelated note, I can do various effects, such as explosions, shields, and weapons/projectiles for this project if you need them. Several years ago (obviously, I have a lot more experience now), I made the "Shields" and "Explosion Revamp" EV Nova plugins, if you guys are looking for something of a portfolio.

This post has been edited by Dark.Revenant : 14 December 2008 - 02:35 PM

@lord-commander-anic, on Dec 14 2008, 10:59 AM, said in [Xsera] Other Xsera:

The entity limits for a scenario appeared to me not to have anything to do with the capabilities of the computer, but to be more a product of the game engine itself.

We're planning to "unlimit" this game, meaning that the only hindrances to having 80 people on one multiplayer game will be your hardware. Hopefully. Of course, that's easier said than done.