WEEK SIX (kind of) - December 12, 2014----------------------------------------------
Gah! It's been a while, but FINALLY I'm back.
For three weeks now I've been having severe problems with both my computer and my internet service. For starters, my computer decided its hard drive wasn't any good and stopped recognizing it. I took it apart, but saw no problem, so I sent it off for repairs only to find it was completely toast. So, naturally, I had to put a new hard drive into my computer, which was costly and time consuming. Fortunately, I have backups of everything important - including RTJP - on two other external hard drives, so that is all safe. I'd actually just backed up RTJP the day before it tanked, so no work was lost at all.
I must once again apologize for lack of an update last week, so it's time for a rather large update to make up. First off, I highly advise you to check the Screenshot Thread - I'm going to be posting a bunch of new WIP pictures for everyone to check out. There's some screens of the newer foliage and I'd like to get people's opinions before making more. Regarding actual foliage density in the mod, I plan on making it much higher and more realistic in the areas Diane is more likely to travel around, such as the roads, trails and main facilities. Taller, bushy trees will make up most of the jungle so that I am able to scatter less smaller, FPS-heavy plants around the area.
Here's a quick shot to demonstrate:
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As you can see, the VC is almost completely obstructed by foliage from the tour road, but the area to the left is much less dense as it will be filled with low-poly high-density trees. I know I'm always going on about making everything feel "enclosed", but I feel that it is just as important as getting the building detail right because to me, in Trespasser, I often find that jungles do not feel enclosed and mysterious enough. For an example of what I mean compare this Tres shot:
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To this one I found of Kauai (I know, it's a golf course, but the treeline and flora is similar:)
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Quite a difference, huh? Hopefully the use of much larger and thicker tree branches will help to avoid the empty feeling and lack of a medium-height canopy. Once I get more tree models done, I'll post some more examples.
So I've discussed the flora, now it's time for a quick glance at some of Isla Nublar's fauna. This one is highly WIP, so don't take it as anywhere near a finished product, hence the reason it is in TresEd. I just wanted to show off the first JP mod (to my knowledge) to include...
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Jurassic World Raptors! Yay! And no, they will not be trained or trainable.
Additionally, Rexy's skin will be getting a remake soon, but I haven't started on her yet. She will be updated to feature similar scar patterns to her image on JurassicWorld.com, as these seem to be the ones inflicted by the Raptors at the end of JP. That's actually one of my favorite details so far about JW - I'm glad she's back to kick some more tail.
So far, the only finished skinned dinosaurs are the Raptors, but all of the others will be getting updates in due time. Some of the older skins (particularly the Brachiosaurus) simply don't feel right or are too low-res, so I'll be amping them up to 512x512 in the process. I hope to also include new models for the remaining unseen dinosaurs, such as baryonyx, metriacanthosaurus, proceratosaurus and segisaurus. Chances are I'll be waiting until we get pictures of the JW Bary and Metri to create the pair, but the other two will certainly be unique designs. If anyone wants to suggest possible designs or color schemes for the new dinosaurs, I'm open to new ideas! Even potential unique behavior (spitting, camouflage, etc.) might be interesting to include.
I've also got an idea for an introduction to the game. I won't reveal much yet, but I will say that it will take place before the tutorial level in Panama and will likely be a short, playable level where you take control of who will eventually show up as the story's main antagonist. It will be there to give some backstory and...say it with me...EXPOSITION!
And no, for those wondering, it will NOT take place on Isla Nublar, nor have anything to do with the events of Jurassic Park. But it will offer some insight into the story and our characters while adding a sort of cinematic feel to the whole thing. Think of it as kind like the opening scenes of JP before they get to the island.
The final detail I want to unveil here is that there will be flashbacks (most likely in cutscene format) to the events of Jurassic Park, most likely using short clips from the movie, or using recreations done in either TresEd or 3DS Max. I doubt they could be playable due to the fact that it would require loading a whole new level and therefore cause you to lose all of your progress, which kind of sucks, but is the only possible way I see something like this working. And, of course, we'll have the good old voiceover flashbacks, though they will not be limited to John Hammond and will include dialogue from the film as well (I've already got a good deal of these ready). It's all part of a fresh, unique experience that we hope to bring everyone.
So that just about wraps up what I can cover so far. Since I haven't had any modding time due to the malfunctions and now another busy work week, there most likely won't be too much more imagery for a while, just my random banter of ideas and such. Let us know your opinions on everything so far; success is based on failure!
Epic Glitch of the Week:Managed to fall through water in-game and die. Somehow. Looking into that problem!
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And the DX infection itself has a few extra setbacks, one being the fact that Diane will now cough every once in a while to keep you in the loop as to whether or not you're still infected and dying.
The biggest challenge present with the terrain is getting it to match up to what is seen in the movie as well as the various road systems, which are now more conformed to the roads than vice versa as it was before. The Visitor Center area will provide the biggest challenge since it's pretty evident by this point that it will need to be changed again. The Emergency Bunker is now very close to the VC - just across the pond - and this means the Raptor Pit and Herrerasaur Pen will be even further west as well. It's though work, but it's looking good even in a basic state. 
