Interesting idea about valve...

I just had an interesting thought about this, and I thought I'd share it with you all.

Valve mentioned some time ago that you could load maps from ye olde HL1 hammer into the new hammer. Suddenly there were a whole bunch of n00bs spamming forums (mainly the VERC ones) talking about how they were mapping for some new HL2 mod.

I think this is all part of valves big plan. They said that you could import old content, which triggered all these people to get excited about HL mapping once again. So as soon as HL2 comes out, there will be a whole bunch of fans, brimming with ideas and material, wanting to get copies. More than that, they will be churning out mods, which will increase HL2s long-term sales.

I think I've uncovered the secret... :eek:

So as soon as HL2 comes out, there will be a whole bunch of fans, brimming with ideas and material, wanting to get copies. More than that, they will be churning out mods, which will increase HL2s long-term sales.

Except at least 99% of them will die out when people realise that importing mods being developed on HL1 onto HL2 won't be as easy as they think. Not to mention those that either lose interest or simply don't have the time to dedicate themselves to a mod's development. I assure you, almost every single one of these mods being thrown about will most likely die at a young age.

Hell, one of these mods are planning to develop for both Half-Life 2 and Far Cry. It's just hilarious.

I think regardless of whether or not things could be ported there would be a ton of people itching to get HL2 just to make some maps with the fancy new engine.

While what you say is true Kage, it still means HL2 will start off with a large fanbase, even before its released, and even though 99% of these mods will probably fail, the other 1% could contain the next Counter-Strike or Day of Defeat.

Anyway, all those weapon renders done with XSI would indicate there will be a good supply of modelers.

i think valve are getting big bags of cash from ati and nvidia to say that hl2 will be released soon, even though it's only half made. this way, masses of people will go out and buy a new vid card in anticipation of the release. six months later, when the game still isn't released, the g man is back in front of the press again saying it'll be out soon, and how good it looks on the newest generation cards. he gets another big bag of cash from ati/nvidia.

i just wonder how many vid cards i'll go through before i see hl2

Surely the significance and scale of half life in pc gaming history meant this would happened anyway.. ?

not marketing plan, more natural progression i'd reckon.

plus, they have to talk to the mod community and say what they
can - after all, it's that community that got HL its el supremo status
as the definitive online MP experience and "fame" ..

and you should build PCs to cater to your short and long term fiscal needs, as opposed to weighting it around one game IMO.

good, top of the range parts with a long lifespan ahead..

Fishy, what the hell makes you think Half-Life 2 is half finished?

Gwil said:
and you should build PCs to cater to your short and long term fiscal needs, as opposed to weighting it around one game IMO.

good, top of the range parts with a long lifespan ahead..

i know. what i said was mostly tongue in cheek. it's just that every time there's an announcment from valve that hl2 is almost done, up spring the forum posts about what vid card to get for it. i've recommended in the past, that if you're going to upgrade your comp for hl2, then wait till it's actually on the shelves.

Nic - you'll see

Hmmmm....fishy, it IS to be released sept 3rd, I would bet my soul on it [well....maybe my cyber soul] thta it will be realeased in sept. Vinvidi [sp?] are to get in some time this money to start making copys.

Talking about the 'leak' fishy?

Well, it's coming out this autumn. And I'm getting my new card for doom3 anyway :smile:

i don't know anything about any leak, it's just my cinicism showing. :smile: the way the went to the wire before telling us it wasn't making it's date the last time is appalling. they blamed the theft for the holdup at the time, but have since admitted that it wasn't ready anyways.

i'll believe it when i see it, sort of thing.

they blamed the theft for the holdup at the time, but have since admitted that it wasn't ready anyways.

Actually, it was a little of both. 1. It wasn't ready, and 2. the theft forced them to rethink large parts of the network code in the game as well as Steam, so hackers didn't get a headstart by the time the game came out.

As for your comments on it being half finished, fans who have been to visit Valve recently have commented on how the game more or less seems complete, and that Valve have said time and time again that they're finished and are just playtesting and making final tweaks. Valve members have been participating in Half-Life 2 forums more often recently as well. One member has actually finished all of his work on the game and remade the flashlight in the game, which Gabe was kind enoufgh to post on halflife2.net a month or so ago. Last we heard from Valve was that they're hoping to be bug free on the 5th of August, and send a release candidate to Vivendi (which may change, of course). This is why people are expecting a gold date in late August or early September, and a worldwide release most likely in late September.

This is why I've come to the conclusion that it will be released on September 30th 2004. They never said which year. :razz:

I'll agree the whole thing reaks of corporate scandal, but I think we should give valve a little credit. "Finished" is a loose term in the world of game design, I would be surprised if they weren't fine tuning it even now.

I am getting ?1500 from my dad :biggrin: He's giving my brother the same amount so that he can go to peru at the end of college. AMD64, x600xt on pci express here I come!

There's good reason I'm not making any maps for HL2 yet - I seriously doubt the portability of the maps. Certainly you can make all the architecture you like and make it "for HL2" by just putting more detail around, and it'll probably import just fine. However without any textures, any idea what the engine limits are (or even what works for visblocking now, etc) or any idea how the gameplay will work, I can't bring myself to start a new map.

To be honest the new VHE looks awesome, and will probably have lots of tools to let me do the work I used to do in a fraction of the time - making the effort I do now pointless anyway. For example, there's a new terrain tool that will keep me from having to waste hours vertex-manipulating a couple dozen triangles into position. And this new terrain will be free of clipping errors and will look better than anything I would do anyway. In short, why use today's tools to make tomorrow's maps?

A guy named MutatedJellyFish (former mod at the CS forums) decompiled de_dust, then recompiled the .map into HL2. The only work he had to do besides was retexture it and do some entity reworking. For all the noobs who claim, with no basis, that it will be harder - you are ownd.

I'll post the screens as soon as his site comes back up - mutatedjellyfish.net

In addition, with Half-Life 2, Valve has said they will include the original Half-Life (perhaps downloadable on Steam) converted to the Source engine.

Having played Doom 3, I can safely say that HL2 will have a hell of a time being anything but a moddable product.

dust is a fine map don't get me wrong, but it isn't hl2 quality by a long shot. To make a map with the detail of a hl2 map would be much harder than that. Of course you could sit there forever putting 30 faces into each curve, but that's not really worth it. And I think Hornpipe has a very good point about not knowing engine limitations. Dust is based around corridor style gameplay. Hl2 will likely be a bit different in terms of layout and size.

Having played Doom 3, I can safely say that HL2 will have a hell of a time being anything but a moddable product.

Ehh? Me feeble mind no understand statement this. What Doom 3 have do Half-Life 2 modability with?! Explain! :smile:

He's saying that D3's soooo good that HL2 will have to be sooo much better to be anything more than just a toy people will want to mod. Basically I think Cass is setting himself up so that he can be blown away by HL2 :razz:

Well HL2 has one thing going for it that D3 doesn't.

Story.

But beyond that, they're both good titles. I doubt many people will be forced to choose. Choice in this situation is something forced upon sales exects, magazines, and weird people who thing that's the only thing that matters.

Why can't you have both? :smile:

Because, goddamnit!

Whats the story line of quake then?

i've never played it :sad:

Bad guy named Quake starts tearing s**t up and you've got to stop him. I think there's a whole paragraph in the Quake instruction manual dedicated to it. :rolleyes:

It's not like the story mattered, however, given that the game was a mismash of random designs and architecture and had no logical look to it except brown. Basically everyone was happy with a shiny new 3d engine, and nothing has changed :biggrin: