Having spoken to Lee, he has kindly provided answers to the most common questions asked about FPSC X10. Thanks Lee.
Q: When will FPSCX10 be out?
A: Around mid November 2007.
Q: Will owners of the XP version of FPSC get a discount?
A: Yes, they will, here are the discount prices: $48.99 €35.74 £26.80
Q: How much will FPSC X10 cost?
A: £44.99, €59.99, $69.99
Q: Can FPSC X10 run on XP?
A: No, it can only run on Vista and an X10 graphics card.
Q: What graphics cards can it run on?
A: Any DX10 card will run FSCP X10, the better the card, the better FPSC X10 will run! See the NVIDA 8 Series range of cards or the AMD/ATI R600.
Q: Will different body parts have different hit points?
A: No, the engine will not be able to identify which part of the character has been shot.We’d hope to address this in the future some time.
Q: Will we be able to have allies?
A: Yes, allies will run alongside you and fight by your side, and you have control over how they respond when entering trigger zones and when hurt.
Q: Will existing model packs work with FPSC X10?
A: We have not determined whether model packs will be 100% compatible with X10, though we are hoping to create as much backwards compatibility as possible, at this stage we cannot see a reason why not.
Q: What will be the maximum number of levels you can create?
A: You will be able to create 50 levels with X10 per game executable.
Q: Can we port our old games into FPSC X10?
A: The unchanged stock levels from the original FPSC will load and run in X10, although custom levels from users may vary according to complexity and media used.
Q: What system requirements are needed for the editor?
A: The editor itself requires much the same system as V1, except under Vista. The editor is also scheduled to increase the texture quality, so more GPU memory would be an advantage. Specific settings have not yet been determined.
Q: What system requirements are needed to play an actual game?
A: Again no specifics here, but you will need at the very least a DX10 graphics card and the drivers to support it on Vista. More system memory will be required too. Until we do some proper testing on lower spec DX10 cards we’re not sure how it will perform. We first need to get the optimisation process done, then we can look at scalability.
Q: Will 'spot' lights be achievable?
A: We have not planned for them, but they are a good idea
Q: Will ragdoll physics be available?
A: Yes, we have spent some time on adding ragdoll to the engine and it’s very effective and fun. You can see it in use in the latest video. We have a few tweaks to do to the bone structures to make it look more life like.
Q: Will multiplayer be enhanced?
A: No plans to change the basic multiplayer features of X10. We don't understand that users want to see it do more. This will come in time but not for V1 of FPSC X10.
Q: Will we be able to attach light markers to objects? Like a flashlight for example?
A: No, the lights will remain as either static or positional dynamic lights within the editor only.
Q: Will X10 have driveable vehicles?
A: No, not in the first version and then not for some time.
Q: What is the lowest end gfx card that X10 will run on comfortably and what difference would there be between the lowest and the highest?
A: We do not know this as yet, but we aim to have X10 run at bare minimum specs on any DX10 card.
Q: Can water in the game be repeatedly risen throughout the game, like a flood or something?
A: Yes we plan to add FPI action commands to allow manual control of water levels.
Q: Will you be able to have ragdoll on entities that aren't enemies? E.G. A rope bridge that you could walk across and would move. And would use the ragdoll physics if you shoot it down.
A: No, there are no plans for physics-constructions at this time, but we are excited about the prospect of this technology as X10 moves along.
Q: Will we be able to create real-time weather effects like rain, or moving fog?
A: No, there will be no weather system in the first version. You could create the sound effects for rain and thunder, and give the sky and textures a gloomy look, but actual rain visuals would require more coding. Fog is possible as basic linear fog in the distance, but not moving fog flumes.
Q: Can we change the speed of the game 'in game'? Like Max Payne slow MO for Example?
A: No, there is no slow motion mode in the engine. It’s a nice idea, but it would require the engine to be substantially changed to achieve it. You could make a video that has been re-rendered at half speed, then play that in the game as a cut sequence.
Q: Can we add lives in game, as well as health?
A: Yes, you get LIVES, HEALTH, AIR and we are thinking of adding SCORE too.
Q: Will there be in-game video capture?
A: Yes, you can capture the game as it happens either with or without the HUD graphics. You can then use the videos in your game as cut sequences, or post them to a broadcast service such as you tube or soapbox.
Q: Can you display each enemies health in some way?
A: The enemy displays their health as a bar over their heads, and will empty as they are hurt.
Q: What models / entity packs will come with x10?
A: X10 will be provided with a range of default media similar to the original, themed in the SCIFI and WW2 categories. There will be no model packs available at launch, though we are working on model pack content for release specifically with X10 content sometime after that. We also intend to ensure the existing model packs remain compatible with the new software.
Q: Will we be able to have moving skyboxes?
A: No, some of the new X10 sky boxes are of higher quality, and will remain static for the time being.
Q: Can games made with x10 run on XP? If not, does that mean you need FPSC V1.xx to run a game on XP then import it into x10 to have the same game run on Vista? Is it not possible to create a game that will run both on XP and Vista?
A: X10 games can only run on Vista. V1 games can run on both XP and Vista. For highest compatibility, choose V1 for your creations.
Q: Will characters be able to carry / drop items?
A: Characters will not be able to collect and drop entities with the default engine and media. The possibility exists to allow this in future versions, if the community expresses a desire for this.
Q: Will there be some sort of inventory included somewhere along the line?
A: The player has a weapons and ammo inventory, and can hold up to 9 weapons and matching ammo. The player can also hold keys to unlock doors and devices. The player cannot collect regular items in the default media at this time, but there are possibilities of creating the concept of collecting things through the FPI script system.
Q: Will variables be in x10?
A: There will be no variables in the FPI Script system of X10. The script system will be largely unchanged, except with the addition of a few extra commands and conditions.
Q: Will file packing/encryption be in FPSCx10 from the start to sell creations on DVD?
A: There will be no protection or encryption system built into X10. The standalone executables are saved out raw, along with the media used in DBO, DDS and BIN file formats. You have the option of course to take these files and perform protection processes on them as you see fit.
Q: Will the mapping area be larger than the XP version?
A: No, the map grid will remain the same size for the first release. There has been no valid demand to increase the area as levels are very large that use up the whole 40x40x20 area.
Q: Can weapons have particle emitters (flamethrower)?
A: No, weapons will be very similar to X9 projecting a ray bullet or emitting a flak object. New types of weapons will be developed after the X10 launch.
Q: Can scenery catch fire?
A: By default no, the entities will explode into debris, and then the debris disappears after a while. You can create spot fires as you design the level however.
Q: Will there be animated textures in X10? Are there any plans in the future to include animated textures to the engine?
A: There are no user customizable animated textures in X10, however the ability to animate using textures has been in FPSC for a while. Check out the decal folder and decal use on the forums.
Q: Will there be a license for X10, or can we redistribute our games for free?
A: We are still finalising our plans, but the early thoughts are for two licenses. An indie license which is pretty much what you have in X9 right now, and a special third party commercial license for those who want to go through a publisher or other third party retailer with their game. The vast majority of X10 users will not be affected by this additional license. The indie license will be included as standard in the X10 product we sell.
Q: Will zones (trigger / story / sound...) be created the same way? Can we create our own shaped zones, like an 'L' shape for example or will it be rectangular only?
A: Rectangular only to keep it simple and ease to use. You can of course use two rectangles to create your L shape, and duplicate the zone settings.
Q: Can we change the movement and other keys in game (A,S,D,W...)?
A: Yes, in the editor you can change the keys used in the game from the File Build Game menu but not when playing the game, no plans to do so. That request opens a large can of worms (options, sound, music, etc).
Q: Will projectiles weapons be more adjustable besides just exploding. That way we can create lazers, flying bullets, rocks, arrows etc.?
A: Not in the first version. We plan to create a stable foundation for X10 before adding substantially new concepts to the engine. In time, we believe there will be a number of great new enhancements in X10 weapon technology, which will probably appear in the form of minor updates and model packs.
Q: Can the player block attacks during melee combat? If so could it be made scriptable?
A: Melee combat is still only a trick of the system and has not been developed into a full combat approach. We have plans to author a true combat system, but it will not be part of the original release and will likely come in the form of a model pack with melee style weapons and an update to support the new code required, including blocking.
Q: Will the game speed be framerate based or timer based?
A: X10 has been redesigned to be entirely timer based, meaning the frame rate no longer affects now quickly the game operates. What takes 5 seconds on your min spec machine will take 5 seconds on the latest gaming PC. This means there will be no FPS cap allowing your games to run as smoothly as your computer can handle.
Q: We've heard rumors that X10 might be free! Is this true?
A: We have not decided on a release strategy at this time, but the good news is that we are currently planning this stage. There are many options available to us, including a free version. Until we have completed the planning stage, we cannot say how X10 will be released. You are of course welcome to speculate
Q. Can the HUD for AIR be disabled in levels that don't have water in it?
A: Yes, simply enter zero into the lung capacity value of the player start marker and no air HUD will be displayed
Q. Do all AI currently "know how to swim" yet?
A: Characters have no concept of ‘underwater’. Their behaviour will not change because they are submerged. They will react appropriately when killed underwater though, and will splash at the appropriate times.
Q: Will there will be a terrain editor in fpsc x10?
A: Not for the first version. Exterior progressive terrain is a challenging subject, and will require significant additional development to implement.
Q: Will x10 ever be able to export games to another console?
A: Unlikely in the short term, as FPSC is very much engineered for the PC and DirectX. The closest console that ‘might’ be supported could be the XBOX 360, however this is pure speculation.
Q: Do entities have to be a character to follow waypoints? Can we finally have moving cars and trains and airplanes without going through the trouble of making them a character?
A: Waypoints are only intended for characters at this stage. Expanding the functionality of waypoints will be a matter for the community to decide, amongst other features we might implement.
Q: Will the source code be available at launch time?
A: No, the code relies on a purely internal version of DBPro, which will take substantially longer to complete. In addition, the source code for X10 will only be made available to those who have purchased the product directly from TGC. This ensures the work we do to maintain and release updates to the source code is funded proportionally by the number of users supporting us by buying direct. This may change, as our plans evolve and of course from community feedback.
Q: Will the player be able to have some sort of visual health, like a health bar as well as just having numbers?
A: The health bar is a product of an FPI script which allows an icon toggle as well as numerical values. The default health is a value in X10..
Q: What Features From X10 are going to be backported into X9?
A: Everything that is not directly tied to a DX10 technique. The plan is to take the X10 source code and ‘make it compile’ for the X9 version. This means removing stuff like GPU instancing, texture arrays and the heavy workload that the engine now asks of the GPU. Ultimately we want a single source code base for both X10 and X9, partly to reduce debugging time and also to provide each new feature to both camps as we introduce them. This work will begin when X10 has been bedded down and stable, and in the interim X9 will be updated and patched in the usual way.
Q: Of course, when you step under a light, your gun will get brighter. For example, when you walk under a red light, the red light will go on the gun you are holding. Will the same apply to walking under static and dynamic shadows? For example, walking under a big static shadow will cause your gun to appear a little darker.
A: No gun change results from contact with any shadows, whether lightmap shadows or dynamic volumes. As the shadows are based on light proximity, the gun does no lighter and darker as they move around the lighted scene though, and does get dark when the player goes into an area with poorly lit area.
Q: Are you thinking of making some sort of feature to allow seperate pools of water, instead of just one water plain?
A: It is marked as a feature enhancement, but for the first release a single water plane will be used.
Q: Can seperate lights have the bloom effect enabled, instead of just all lights placed into the scene?
A: Bloom is not a light property, it is a post process main screen property. As such it is all or nothing, and the feature can be controlled from the x10 effects menu.
Q: Can the Depth of Field feature mentioned be adjusted to how blurry all non-focused objects appear?
A: Depth of Field was removed as a feature from the first release to make room for other features, and to improve performance of all rendered objects. The effect was also found to be too subtle as an in-game feature, suitable mainly for spot effects such as zoom mode and local area distortion. These ideas will be explored again after the release.
Q: Say you were to add a light somewhere, then add a static box near the box. The light will make the box cast beautiful static shadow, right? Well, I've notice that in X9, going in the casted shadows don't cast off on your gun. Will this be fixed in X10? Will this work for dynamic lights as well?
A: I am not sure about the beautiful shadow part, but a static light will cast a shadow on static geometry yes, in the form of a baked lightmap texture. In X10, both static and dynamic lights average together to form a point of light from which dynamic geometry can also cast volume shadows which are real-time. Shadows cannot be cast from, or picked up by the gun.
Q: Is it possible you are going to add a little ripple effect when you are under water? Sure, there's a beautiful ripple effect on the surface, but I noticed when you go under water, there's no ripple effect.
A: There are no plans to add a ripple on the HUD at present. The surface tension at the water line does ripple the environment beyond however. Most underwater scenes are made convincing not my HUD ripples but by the aquatic artwork used.
Q: I noticed that in some of your videos, some of the characters still had circular shadows. Will this be removed in the final product?
A: The circle shadows are there in case you switch off shadows, or reduce the number of active volume shadows. Volume shadows are expensive, and you may want to rely on simpler shadows for under powered computers.
Nickydude: Thanks for all your help and providing an excellent product (even if we do whine a lot)
LEE: What you call whining I call raw critique
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If other questions come up, I'll try to add them here.
"he is coming!..." - WIP in 'Showcase'
