[smurfbizkit]

A few months back, I sent Harvard a few questions in regard to modding for BFME. He asked me to write up some more to include in a "modding faq" they were working on. I wrote up more, and got some more from friends and sent it. Obviously the "modding faq" hasn't been released yet (if it will be at all) so I'm updating my questions to resubmit and remind them. Please feel free to add your own.

-Interestingly enough, they seem to really be expecting many Mods and TC's to be made for the game...maybe they will be more responsive?

1. Is it possible to have the same level of control in the ocl updates as the special power ocl's have?
2. Will it be possible to set beginning and ending bones for an ocl controlled delivery? Eg have planes deliver their payload on the same axis as the runway like Tiberian Dawn.
3. Will vehicles be able to participate in OCL delivered transports?
4. Will there be more locomoter options, such as angle of ascent or forbidden to touch?
5. Will there be more missile control, such as secondary searching missile after first detonation?
6. Will the number of updates be improved?
7. Will there be a ladder kit?
8. Will there be warhead specific death types in stead of the regular ones?
9. Will there be the ability to enforce a conditonstate trough special codes?
eg If Object=attacked with warhead small arms, conditionstate=prone
10. Will there be any code that disables an ability while having a specific conditionstate. Such as when moving, you cannot use the special abilty, and neither will it charge. when stopping with moving, the charging of the special power is reset
11. How is the INI structure? Is it similar to Generals? Did you add/remove features to it?
12. Will you have a built in mod swapping utility (like the ones in almost every single fps game nowadays)?
13. How well would vehicles such as jeeps and tanks work on the modified engine used for BFME?
14. Are you still using .big and .w3d files? (if so, are they the exact same format as now? Or are they tweaked somewhat? How would that affect us?)
15. Typically, the CNC modding community only mods CNC games (with almost no one working on non-cnc based mods, like dune:emperor or dune2000), how would you try to drive people to work on BFME mods?
16. Are there plans to release the mapping program (like the worldbuilder), ini’s, and list of guidelines regarding the 3d models (size of textures, amount of polygons per unit, etc.) before the game is in stores?
17. How many polygons are your units in BFME? How many are there on each class of units (obviously the infantry would have less than say, a dragon)?
18. What type of texture format are you using? (dds and tga still?) How large are the textures? (eg 512x512, 1024x1024,etc.)
19. How easily (or how hard) would it be to bring a mod from CNC Generals over to BFME? Would the ini code have to be completely rewritten? Would we have to re-export our models using different formats? Would our units look too low-poly for the game?
20. How flexible is the money system? Can we bring back CNC-styled resource gathering? What about oil-derrick similar code?
21. The INI code used for the GLABike proved to be very useful to modders, is there similar code in BFME?
22. Can we grant and remove upgrades (both object and player) and sciences at will? (including locomotor upgrades)
23. Are unit object and science prerequisites still able to be used? (what about an upgrade prerequisite?) (In several interviews it has been said that buildings get better access to units as they level up, does this mean that we can now use unit veterancy as a prerequisite?)
24. The base building in BFME is limited to only specific locations, is it possible to create the old CNC styled base building (with dozers, where you can place them anywhere?)
25. Can you garrison civilian buildings?
26. Is “drone” logic still in the game? (ie the buildable spydrone, repair drone upgrades)

(questions 1-10 by Emiel Suilen)
(those above 19 are new)

Oh, and yea this isn't too applicable to this forum...but this is the best fit, since DZ is keeping the BFME section closed off.

[Phoib]

Wow, those emiel suilen character must be a real pro in asking such questions

Another set of questions:
27. Is the living world map model editable?
28. Is it controlled trough wnd files or ini?
29. Can armies move over the water or trough the air? Is it controlled trough ini's how they move?
30. Is it map or ini controlled which armies fight where?
31. Will units be inherited from one map to another?
32. Can special map units, like grond, only be used on specific maps, and again, how is this controlled?
33. Can you designate your own road types like ra2? EG make roads specific for hooves only? Or a roadtype railtrack on which only the trainlocomoter could pass?
34. How will emotions affect the troops?
How are they controlled? Unit controlled? Area controlled?
35. The Balrog in the demo has a lot of weapons. What is the max number of weapons in BFME?
36. Weapons from the surrounding like the Tree and Troll combination, what are the possibities in this? Would it be possible for units to pick up the arms of slain comrades?

[key0p]

can you limit turret angle

[smurfbizkit]

Ah yea, the living world questions!

-Can you have new armies appear on the world map model after specific times? (for example after you win a certain battle a new enemy army will appear at the way south)

[Eradicator]

Hmm, those questions are extremely specific and they may not be able to answer them. Hopefully its an actual dev answering them and not a pr representative. I think some more general question should be asked just incase they don't fully answer the detailed ones.

34. Will wnd, ini, w3d, big, dds, etc. files still be used in the mod making process? Were some file types changed, added or removed?
35. Will the game ship with (or later included in a patch) an official wnd editor?
36. Would you say BFME's mod support is much improved over C&C:Generals?
37. Is post release support planned for BFME and if so in what way and how much?
38. Are modules (used in ini files) being kept over from C&C: Generals so that modder may still implement objects like tanks with traversing turrets or is the ini struture eing kept to the bare bones capable of running BFME?
39. In the release of C&C: Generals the World Builder was said to have been a beta product. Modders noticed many problems with it (many of which were fixed with Zero Hour). Will the World Builder released with BFME be more polished?
40. Are there any tools or content releases planned to be released post BFME release via the internet?

[Phoib]

bleh Eradicator, now I have to re-edit my post :P

[Eradicator]

lol, oops. I figured something like that might happen cause I was taking a while

[Chrizz]

-W3D Formats yup they still use it but we wanna more info about it
-DDS They use incl TGA Every game uses DDS and TGA
-INI's are most same as generals ''They Say''
-WORLDBUILDER They use it incl for the cutscenes with finalcutpro

-Can We Expect Animated Cameo's What formats? *.AVI *.MOV or *.W3D *.BIK
-Tank Treads and Wheels Like BattleField 1942 ''when its moving the treads and wheels are rotating''
-Multyple Turrets for tanks more then 2
-3DS MAX r4,r5,r6 Supported Export And Import Tools

Chrizz

[smurfbizkit]

Don't worry about the numbering names...I'll edit the final post so things are in proper order and such.

-Is it possible for there to be a scripts.dll similar to the one used in renegade? Where we have more flexibility in what we can edit the game?

[Capt_Pickles]

These aren't very important but...

Will there be deformable terrain during battles?
Buildable walls that won't play havoc with unit path finding?