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Hi there,
We’re working on an app to allow beginner game design students to practice their 3DS Max skills.
It’s a car game, where they can export the level, and everything should automatically be translated into a game object,
You can play an online tech level here ( made by me, not the artist ;) )…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car
If you know 3DS Max, download…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/EditCarLevel.zipand read the .DOC file for instructions.
If you’re in a hurry, try this.
– Load the .Max file
– Add in / merge some of your models ( you may have to scale them )
– Export as Shockwave 3D over the top of the GameLevel.W3D file
– Run the .EXE, and check out your changesChange vanlogo.jpg to something with your face on it, create a music.mp3 file in the folder etc, and run the .EXE again
By uploading all of the files ( except for the .EXE ) to your website, you can allow people to play the levels etc.
If you use another 3D modelling package, contact me off-list on
mal@candointeractive.comHave fun!
Mal -
wow, very cool, might i a wee look at this later
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If people create a couple of levels, I’ll set up a URL that you can include in your levels ( as the ‘hit object, take you to a website ), so people can play through one level, hit the object, go to the list of other levels, and select a new one to try out.
Could be quite cool, to see how different people create different styles of levels etc.
Mal
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I’ve just uploaded an updated version, with info on…
– adding skyboxes / cylinders etc
– scrolling textures
– texture bakingas well as some physics optimisations etc ( so that you should be able to add loads of boxes and crates around the place ).
Same URL…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/EditCarLevel.zip
Download it, and over-write the previous files.
Our next stage is to create a few different levels, one basic one, and a few more complicated ones showing the more advanced features you can achieve directly from your modelling package etc.
Who’s going to be the first to post a GameDevelopers.ie branded level? ;)
Mal
BTW are there any Maya / Lightwave / Cinema 4D artists out there?
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OK, just a quick update…
If you are using Alpha channels, this latest version of the app will automatically enable them ( thanks to Max Marshall on the forum for pointing this one out ).
Download it here…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/EditCarLevel.zip
Regards…
MalI’ve had a few enquiries to see the level with the Der.. Lond.. erm… the North West murals that we showed at Awakenings. Collect the two boxes behind you at the start to open the door.
Here it is ( we’ll probably remove this in a few days ;) )
It shows replacing the van with another 3D model, as well as replacing the wheels ( it took me ages making that model up… 1 sphere, 4 boxes and a cylinder ;) )
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is that a exact replica or Derry? :D
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what version of 3d max do u need?
i have version 4. (something,2 maybe), and i get a load of errors trying to open basicscene, and then it says can not open file :( -
Hey Patrick,
I’ve uploaded a new verison, with instructions for Max 4 or 5.
There’s a separate Max file for you to load, and info on page 3 of the .DOC file with a link to download the free Shockwave exporter plugin ( it’s automatically installed on Max 6 and 7 ).
Same URL…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/EditCarLevel.zip
Regards…
Mal -
ta very much, i will have a we go tomorrow night ;)
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i installed the Shockwave plugin, and it exported ok, but when i start up the game i get an error, i think it was something like carstart not set, please edit level again….. something like that.
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Hi DarkSaviour,
You need to have a carstart object in the scene.
This is for 2 reasons.
1) it lets the game know what start position to place the vehicle
2) if you use the original carstart 3D model ( in the .MAX file in the .ZIP ), the rest of the world should be scaled relative to that model ( to allow you to create the level for realism, or to scale the rest of the world more to allow for a toy car style level etc ).
Load up the shipped Max file, and export it over the top of the GameLevel.W3D file.
Then, start changing the level ( don’t delete the carstart model, everything else can be deleted and replaced ).
If you have a new level, just merge in the carstart model from the basicScene.MAX or emptyScene.MAX file.
Mal
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sorry i didn’t make may self clear. i did not change the level in anyway (basicScene_3DSMax4or5.max), i loaded it andjust exported it, to see if it worked… but it didn’t …. btw i’m useing max 4.2…
also just want to say that it looks pretty cool…. is there any way to add new gameplay rules ie, try and knock the box into something (net/hole) with in a time limit ti win?
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Hi Darksaviour69,
I’ve found the problem.
I’ve just tested out exporting from Max 4 / 5 with the newly downloaded Shockwave 3D exporter and a few export options are de-checked that need to be checked.
When exporting, and the main options screen appears, make sure that all of the export options on the left ( including shaders and scenegraph hierarchy ) are checked.
Now, when you export, the scene information is kept intact, and the carStart object is now found in the game.
You’ll now be able to export the level, and drive around it. Also, you can start changing everything in the level ( except for the carStart object ).
I’ll update the docs with this info ASAP.
Regards…
Mal -
thanks, i have a we go at that tomorrow. ulster uni only has version 4.2 so its good that u figured that problem out, if u looking this to be use educationaly
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yep, it was a weird one! Having scenegraph de-checked makes the export pretty much useless for most people, I’m not sure why that’s the case.
In Max 6 etc, all of the options are checked by default ( and the exporter is installed by default also ), but as you mentioned, UU and a number of other colleges will still be on 4 / 5.
Hopefully you’ll find it easy to create some cool 3D levels!
Mal -
OK, we have an update, with
a) a major bug fixed ( don’t ask! If your scene wasn’t loading in the game correctly, it will now )
b) a better sample MAX level ( showing skybox, some game logic )
If you have downloaded a previous version, definitely get this update.
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/EditCarLevel.zip
Regards…
Mal -
i’ll have a crack at it tonight :D
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Very nice, Mal. I’ll be downloading the update tonight.
Well worth checking out folks.
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hey it pretty cool, i made some half pipes and stuff and was throwing the car all over the place!
if i get 3dd max installed in to my sister labtop i mess with it some more over the weekend.
great job mal
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Sounds good Patrick,
A cool thing to try is loading logo.png up in Photoshop or whatever art package you are using, and changing the graphics to include your own logo etc. The game should then use it as the new overlay the next time you run it ( this works also for the online version ).
( also, changing the music.mp3 to a segment of your favourite heavy metal song can help set the scene, if you’re making a stunt level ).
If you get a chance to create a cool level and upload it ( the instructions are in the .DOC file ), send me the link… i’d really like to see what you did, and get feedback on how it was to use etc.
BTW did you work with the new .MAX file ( with the posters etc )? Did it find all of the textures OK etc?
Mal
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yeah everthing worked fine. i was really supprise how rebust it was.
the only problems i found was some times the car got stuck (this was due to my poor/halfassed level design), when the car resets it kept get fliped (hitting the same edge) so it was continually resetting… if u know what i mean, also i made a gaint tube i and tryed to do loop-de-loops in it, but it kept reseting (the car) during half way though.
but none of the problems are serious, again great work
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Got your mail Mal, will take a look in the next couple of days! Will try and create something fun!
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OK folks, a quick update.
( instructions are in the doc file )
a) You can now create a Flash file ( with animation intro / instruction buttons etc ) to show in the title, gamewin and gamelose screens. You can have your own music / sound effects in here.
b) The 3D window now takes up the whole screen. If you have changed logo.png to show your own graphics etc, load up the new logo.png, place your graphics into it, and tweak it. It keeps all external screen media at 700×500, for consistency.
c) Have a look at the moving / touching code for eg. playing car footie.
d) If you don’t specify Flash, you can now have a voice followed by looping music for the title, gamewin and gamelose screens ( eg in gamelose screen, have a ‘you loser’ voice followed by a looping Darkness riff )
Coming soon…
– XML data input for specifying time limits, location of time display etc
– Special pickups for speedups, adding time to your countdown etc
– Allowing you to specify your own characters for the time digits etc
– Direct Lighwave, Maya, Cinema4D, Cararra supportClick below to download…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/EditCarLevel.zipEnjoy…
Mal -
Page not found :(
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I’m getting the same error as Darksaviour….
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Doh! I’ve fixed it now.
Here it is again…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/EditCarLevel.zip
Mal
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Cheers Mal, downloading now…..
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downloading too….. i will have a we go at it tonight… hopefully the attraction halo 2 in heroic mode is not too strong!! ;)
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Had a really quick look last night and I liked what I saw. I threw in a high poly model and crashed it! Yay! ;)
Will work on it a bit more when I get the Speeder Bike finished…..
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> Had a really quick look last night and I liked what I saw.
Cool!
>I threw in a high poly model and crashed it! Yay!
lol, that is a feature ;)
Did the shockwave 3D exporter crash, or did the game crash when the exporter worked OK?
If so, try putting a _ghost tag in the name of the high poly model, so that it doesn’t become a physical object ( you can place a simpler, invisible object around it to make sure you can’t drive through it ).
If you ever have any scenes that don’t work, send the GameLevel.W3D file to mal@candointeractive.com and I’ll have a look and see if I can get a fix in the engine for it.
Mal
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The exporter worked grand! But when I ran the game it was very slow, probably about 8fps and then I smashed into the boxes and it crashed. I was expecting it to crash, seeing as the model I put into it was 60,000 polys….. :D
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> 60,000 polys
60 polys should be grand… hold on, 60,000!!! GULP! ;)
Send the compiled W3D file over to me anyways, I’ll have a look at it and see if I can maybe speed up part of the engine, or narrow down what the slowdown is exactly ( don’t worry, the W3D file can’t be reverse engineered back to the original model etc due to LOD information packed into the compressed model etc ).
Also, for people who haven’t downloaded the new version, this is what the shipped sample level looks like…
http://www.candointeractive.com/gamedesign/car/3
You’ll see from the naming conventions on the various boxes how the basic logic works, as well as how to replace the external graphics ( ad1.jpg, vanlogo.jpg etc )
Mal
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Looks great Mal! Well done!
Just one comment: The play area is quite small, now while I can see what you’re doing here it would also be great to see a longer linear level as in a three to five minute experience, complete with a start and finish and some obstacles, power-ups and pitfalls etc. on route, even some other cars to race against.
Not sure if this is part of your plans already but I think it would be useful to see a more orthodox game level to really show off the amazing technical work already achieved with the engine.
Cheers,
Ian -
Looks great Mal! Well done!
Just one comment: The play area is quite small, now while I can see what you’re doing here it would also be great to see a longer linear level as in a three to five minute experience, complete with a start and finish and some obstacles, power-ups and pitfalls etc. on route, [/quote:714d012457]
i thought the same thing, i’m trying to make a course of some sort, but i have gotten a bit rusty with 3d max, i’ll post it once i have something worth showing
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I’ll have another go at this tonight and see how many polys the level will allow without slowing down too much.
Keep up the improvements, Mal. It’s looking good. :cool:
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Cheers for the feedback folks.
> Just one comment: The play area is quite small, now while I can see what you’re doing here it would also be great to see a longer linear level as in a three to five minute experience, complete with a start and finish and some obstacles, power-ups and pitfalls etc. on route, even some other cars to race against.
I’ll be putting together a few other sample levels, one based on a large track ( we have one in-house, it just needs to be tweaked so that it’s useful for beginners to use and modify ). The track we have is quite large, and spans the equivalent of about 1/2 mile squared ( relative to the van ), so the game engine does allows for some larger tracks to be built.
Because of the ability to link to other peoples levels, we’re hoping to create a portal that links all of them together, so you could drive around hundreds of levels, made by artists from all around the world.
Mal
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I’ve been spreading the word lately and have been getting one or two people to try it out. Feedback is good. In one opinion
“Very very cool. Its exactly what im looking for right now. much better than being thrown right into a complicated engine like battlefield. this really helps.”
That’s the general opinion I’ve had so far. That people really warm to the fact that it’s easy to get right into and churn something out.
I’ve been testing to see how it handles high poly models. End result: Just stay the bloody hell away from them. You need to learn to use low poly if you want to get into game development anyway. ;)
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Hey Ronny,
> I’ve been spreading the word lately and have been getting one or two people to try it out. Feedback is good. In one opinion
> “Very very cool. Its exactly what im looking for right now. much better than being thrown right into a complicated engine like battlefield. this really helps.”
> That’s the general opinion I’ve had so far. That people really warm to the fact that it’s easy to get right into and churn something out.
Excellent… we’ve also been getting great reviews from other people, who are testing exporting from Lightwave, Max etc. Hopefully this trend will continue :)
> I’ve been testing to see how it handles high poly models. End result: Just stay the bloody hell away from them. You need to learn to use low poly if you want to get into game development anyway.
High poly models are generally very bad when it comes to ray-casting for speed etc.
To maybe fix the speed issue ( I’ll put a note in the documentation ) what you might be able to do is set the model up as a ghost ( tag it with a _ghost in it’s name ), and create a simpler, invisible object around it, so that you can’t drive through it etc. This is known as using proxy geometry, and is another important game level editing technique to learn.
Mal
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