TresCom Forums

TheIdiot wrote:So a little while back, I decided to start anew on Beach HD using entirely plants from MegaJungle, as well as some entirely new assets...



Unfortunately, I had to take these screenshots in TresEd as the level itself simply will not load due to the amount of overlapping transparent objects, and I haven't been able to fix the error in the time I've had for modding, which has prevented me from moving further into the level. I know what the error is because deleting the grass meshes allows the level to load, but sadly I'm not really willing to remove them as they are a crucial detail to prevent things from looking flat. Although I do have one idea as to how I might be able to fix this bug (namely, placing and then combining all of the grass meshes in an area), I haven't had the time for it recently, so for now the best I can do for screenshots are these rather ugly TresEd ones. However, I just wanted to show the beginnings of what Beach HD Mk. II might become, as well as some of the new assets, like the cliffs and Cuban Palms, as well as the new way I've been layering TrnObjs, which is based on the way the PCGamer IJ level did it - a layer of dirt overlapped by increasing levels of "cover" objects.

machf wrote:Just wondering if something like "bool NoCacheAlone = true" or "bool NoCache = true" would have any effect on the grass clumps... it's worth a try. Adding one or two flat LoD meshes to the clumps would probably help, too.

Draconisaurus wrote:Damn grass-crash. Guess that's the latest bug nemesis...

Draconisaurus wrote:Thanks for the heads up on Shadefyre's vids, I'll watch those when I can..
..so uh TI, any chance you're going to make/release grass models with LODs? Sorry my brain isn't quite catching the verdict of what you're saying should be done about the grass crashes..

tatu wrote:I still don't understand the "overlapping transparent objects". Does it mean that there are too many objects using transparent textures in the same area (like a lot of grass instances) that causes a crash?

tatu wrote:I still don't understand the "overlapping transparent objects". Does it mean that there are too many objects using transparent textures in the same area (like a lot of grass instances) that causes a crash?

TheIdiot wrote:

Draconisaurus wrote:Thanks for the heads up on Shadefyre's vids, I'll watch those when I can..
..so uh TI, any chance you're going to make/release grass models with LODs? Sorry my brain isn't quite catching the verdict of what you're saying should be done about the grass crashes..

No, I'm not going to make LOD grass meshes. The grass is already super low-poly, there isn't a whole lot I could do other than delete some of the clumps for the LODs, which I don't think would do a whole lot.

darren_r_w wrote:This is the sort of stuff the original developers would have done had they had a Cray XMP that was being used to set the office alarm and then they got to work on the real computer they were using.

The landing gear on the beach; the plane wreckage just off the shore cliffs... I really wasn't expecting any of that.

It shows what this HD version of the Beach is proving as it was in the past. Push the limits.
Unfortunately, nobody in the business likes falling down cliffs with no soft landing at the bottom.


* post update

When you run this in 800x600 (1920x1080 native) and it's still pretty much the same performance as it was before.
It needs heavy optimization.

TheIdiot wrote:Thanks for the kind words, I really appreciate it!

Not much I can do about the optimization, though, without destroying the graphical fidelity of the level. I think this level pushed the limits to their maximum, actually, with the CE engine. Tres was never meant to handle this level of detail, so it's going to run like garbage unless I remove a lot of detail or reduce the draw distance to the point that plants suddenly pop up 5 meters from your face. I'm amazed the level runs at all, to be honest - in my earliest posts I seem to recall doubting this would work.

TheIdiot wrote: Tres was never meant to handle this level of detail...

Draconisaurus wrote:Was running through my various mod folders, and bumped into the Trespasser HD one... So today, I played it. I noted to myself as I began that I was playing in software mode, and thus likely to get low FPS or a crash. However as I played, neither was the case!... In fact the moving palm fronds were more visible in the pixelated environment. What's more, I came to the wood bridge and all the physics were intact... I walked all the way to the end, and found physics there too. It's a very pretty level! Sad that JR has no equivalent.....