Madmatt

I do not yet know, I only have a XP system to test on. Madmatt

I posted this in another thread but there *appears* to be a suitable workaround for the ICON resorting issue. For those of you you with XP that want to try this workaround it is very simple to perform. Right click on the Strategic Command Demo icon on your desktop. Select "Properties", A window will open with three tabs along the top. Select the tab called COMPATABILITY. Put a check mark in the box labled "Run this program in compatability mode for". In the drop down list, select Windows 98/ Windows ME. Leave the three boxes at the bottom unchecked. Click OK to exit and save the chnages. Now run the demo and see what it does when it exits. YMMV but for me it no longer moves the icons around once the game is exited. Madmatt [ July 20, 2002, 02:10 PM: Message edited by: Madmatt ]

Les, Your desktop is probably not set to run at above 1024x768 so it would not move your icons when you exited since it's running at the same resolution. I tested the Compatability Mode suggestion above on my XP Professional system (desktop resolution 1280x960x32 bits) and it DID work, at least for the demo with my Geforce 3 ti500. I do not know what, if any issues, running in Compatability Mode may have on the full game. I have seen issues where with some games running in Compatability Mode caused the CD drives to no longer detect the CD's when inserted. For those of you you with XP that want to try this workaround it is very simple to perform. Right click on the Strategic Command Demo icon on your desktop. Select "Properties", A window will open with three tabs along the top. Select the tab called COMPATABILITY. Put a check mark in the box labled "Run this program in compatability mode for". In the drop down list, select Windows 98/ Windows ME. Leave the three boxes at the bottom unchecked. Click OK to exit and save the chnages. Now run the demo and see what it does when it exits. YMMV Madmatt

Patience....

We actually change the starting order number and customer number from time to time for various internal reasons. Madmatt

As the ranges decrease you will notice that units will fire far more frequently than they did in CMBO. This includes MG's. Basically we now model the "OH CRAP, THERE ALL OVER THE PLACE! FIRE FIRE FIRE!!!" mentality of close range combat much better now. Madmatt

You shouldn't get an error at all. Please check the link again and let me know if its still a bad link. I just updated all the links so they should be okay now. Madmatt [ July 19, 2002, 03:57 PM: Message edited by: Madmatt ]

Be just a few more minutes guys. Waiting for sleepy head to move some files for me still. Madmatt

Just a little misunderstanding in the catacombs of the CMHQ chat system. Skelly is fine and YES he is a local Cincy boy like me, but lets not hold that against him. Madmatt Hey look! It's mom!

Guys please, this is serious. I need to establish contact with the people I mentioned in my initial post. If you are out there, please email me at once! Madmatt

What time? As soon as the PRE-ORDER NOW button appears. Madmatt

Always. That is rule #1 with voice effects. Madmatt

Since I am the Sound Engineer on CMBB I think I am in a position to answer this. First off, the grenade effect in CMBO is actually the recording of a grenade explosion. Don't base your concepts of sound effects on Hollywood. Now then, are the sounds improved? Well I would like to think so. This time around I had access to live recordings (in some cases I was the one firing them) to many of the weapons and vehicles featured. Not only is the amount of individual weapons increased but I have also added how many samples PER weapon you will hear. For example, in CMBO there were 5 sounds for the MG-42. Now there are 12 individual bursts sounds for the MG-42 and 12 for the MG-34 in CMBB! From several short staggered burst to one long sustained burst I have tried to create a good mix. I have added that type of detail to every weapon sound that I could. Russian PPsh's sound different than German MP-40's or MP-44's and all have samples with various burst amounts and lengths. Russian DP MG's (vehicle mounted MG) sound different than the German MG-34 internally mounted (coax and bow) MG's which in turn sound different than the normal MG-34 carried by infantry and MG teams. Unfortunately I was not able to incorporate all of my ideas due to lack of time. Somethings like ambient sounds (boots on various surfaces, setup sounds) won't be in. But there is a whole new type of sound effects you will be hearing in CMBB that will you wont soon forget. I am keeping those a secret for the time being but rest assured that they increase the immersion level a great deal. I didnt stop with just increasing weapons sounds either. The voice scripts were totally re-written and added to. There are now 49 individual triggering catagories for voices. What does that mean? Okay, in CMBO when your guys came under fire the game randomly picked from about 10 different samples to play a voice sound. It could be something like "Artillery!" or "Get Down" or "Take Cover". Those sounds were all in a catagory for "Unit Under Artillery/Grenade Fire". All movement was ONE single Catagory of sound. In CMBB the voices are catagorized with greater detail and the code knows that when a unit is under attack by a grenade that is should say "Grenade". It knows that when unit is under fire from artillery as opposed to general incoming enemy fire and will play appropriate sounds for each. Movement commands yelled now match the actual orders given. All countries have voices in their native language so you should brush up on you Russian, Finnish, Hungarian, Polish, German, Italian and Romanian. Those new voice catagories are really cool (they should be, I spent a year working on them!) and I think they add a lot of realism to a part of CM that was in need of an audio overhaul. I wasnt able to redo every sound though but I think about 90% of them are new or improved. Wait to you "hear" what I have in store next time... Madmatt [ July 17, 2002, 09:33 PM: Message edited by: Madmatt ]

The range modifier on the death clock is based on the range of the shot, not the range to the nearest spotting unit. It actually has nothing to do with Borg spotting at all. This was done because early on we saw tank penetrations at close range yet the Death Clock was still keeping the TacAI from knowing that the enemy unit was KO'd. In reality it would be easier for them to determine this up close. Now, by and large the death clock delay is shorter the closer the range. Madmatt [ July 17, 2002, 09:05 PM: Message edited by: Madmatt ]

Guys (and Gals) recently I had a horrible hard drive crash. Basically 60 gigs of data (porn ) and email logs gone and mostly unrecoverable (or not worth the high cost), anyway, be that as it may one of the things that I lost was a comprehensive list of all the people that worked with me on a number of issues with CMBB, mostly in the department of sounds and voice recordings. I have rebuilt most of the data from memory and recent emails but there are some gaps that I want to fill ASAP. I have lost the name and addresses of the gentleman that recorded some Italian voice samples for me. Hopefully you are reading this and if you are please email me at once. There was a gentleman that recorded some German speech for me whom I *believe* was named Michael Mulhaus, I need your contact info again please Michael. Tom Reiter helped with me with some Russian samples but I have also lost all his info. Tom, if you are out there please drop me an email so we can touch base. If anyone else interacted with me in the past with something specifc pertaining to CMBB and you haven't heard from me in the last few weeks, go ahead and pop me an email, just to be safe. Thanks everyone and I am sorry this happened. Please email me at matt@battlefront.com Madmatt

Actually, the origins of the Death Clock are much different. In reality, during a company get together (the one and only!) we were batting around ideas on various "cool stuff" we wanted to put into CMBB. At that point the code was still pretty much alpha and time was still our friend (as opposed to the dark depressing engulfing hand of doom it now is!). As the beer and libations and game suggestions flowed freely about the table I mentioned to Charles that I thought it would be cool if there could be some more randomness in the time it took for crews to bail out. In CMBO IIRC its usally about instant. We had earlier discussed that it would be cool if the TacAI could occasionally pump additional rounds into vehicles to simulate the "fire until it burns" mentality of tank gunners. At that time though no suitable solution to this could be thought up. As soon as I mentioned my idea for crews bailing out I literally saw a light turn on in Charles's eyes. Then again he might have just burped. Anyway, he started talking quickly in that geeky programmer way and said that what he could do was code up a "Death Clock" (his exact words as witnessed by the entire Battlefront.com team) which would in effect 'delay' the bailing out of the crew. Until the Death Clock expired (ran out) the code would not tell the TacAi or the player that the unit was dead. In effect it was a timer (clock) to hold back that info. As long as the TacAi thought the unit was still alive it would continue to engage. And thats what now happens. So, how is the length of the Death Clock determined? I do not know all the factors that Charles accounts for but I do know that the: * Range to Target * Amount of the Penetration of Target * Size of shell (big booms are easy to tell) * Damage to the crew inflicted * Type and sevirity of the Damage inflicted to the vehicle are all applied and modified to a base amount of time, which I would imagine is based on some random amount, again modified by still more factors. Of course certain types of attacks (close assualts) and damage (Brewups and some extereme penetrations) are known at once. So how long can a Death Clock last? I have seen it when it was instaneous, meaning I knew at once I killed a enemy target and other times it has lasted thoughout a whole turn and even beyond. It really depends on a host of factors. Can a player tell if a unit is dead when the TacAI doesnt know? Now since we always like to reward observant players, a good player who *really* pays attention to their targets when hit might notice that an enemy unit has stopped all movement and *appears* dead. When the orders phse comes along and the Death Clock has not expired they could of course retarget somewhere else. But beware! We now model tank moral and crew panic so what you THOUGHT was a dead tank could just be a tank that is recovering its senses and still be very much alive. I have even had this occur to me, recently. I think I hit a KV-1 in the turret and achieved a penetration. The hit occured late in the turn and my TacAI controlled unit pumped an additional round into it for good measure as the turn ended. I was pretty confident that the KV was toast. During the orders phase the TacAI still had the KV targeted, but I was pretty sure it was just a "death clock thing" so I retargeted him somewhere else. The next turn started and after about 15 seconds the KV roared to live and backed off out of sight of my stupified unit quickly. Well, I guess it was I that was stupified. Although not mentioned much yet (cuz it envolves all sorts of geeky math stuff) the entire internal damage system has been greatly enhanced. Due to the help of some experts in the feild of High Explosives and Metalurgy (I think thats right) Charles now accounts for not just the size and severity of an armor penetration but also how much internal armor is pushed into the interior of the vehicle, how much spalling there is, the size of the spall fragments, their effect on the crew, the likelyhood of certain armor plates to spall or shatter internally, the size of the AP bursting charge (assuming it has one) and the chance it might not function properly on penetrations which don't make it cleanly through. All that plus much much more! Yeah it sounds very cool and it is, just not when brainy geeks start talking about co-effecients of velocity*mass of spall fragments/density of human flesh etc... Don't ask me for any more details on any of the above cause I don't know and the only guy that does is Charles and he is too busy to post. The whole ballistics system and penetration calculations are far more enhanced due to the help of several experts in these fields. Their research, knowledge and assistance is evident at every level of CMBB. Guys, you are gonna love it!!! Sorry to get off track there, I just get excited talking about all this! Madmatt [ July 17, 2002, 01:54 PM: Message edited by: Madmatt ]

Gone Gold! Battlefront.com and developer Fury Software are announcing that “Strategic Command – European Theater”, a turn-based Grand Strategy wargame featuring the Second World War in Europe, has now officially gone “Gold”. The game is already in production and is expected to ship by the end of the month. Pre-orders will be opened Friday, July 19th. Strategic Command – European Theater will be available only from Battlefront.com’s online store and is not being sold in retail. Strategic Command offers 6 major campaigns- “Fall Weiss”, “Fall Gelb”, “Barbarossa”, “Fall Blau”, “Zitadelle”, “Overlord” which begin anywhere from 1939 to 1944. Campaigns can be played beyond historical end of war date and into 1946! Game play is turn based with each turn lasting from 2 weeks to 1 month depending on the season. Designed for replayability and realism, options include fog of war, Free French forces, Partisans, scorched earth, thoroughly implemented features for sea transport, amphibious assaults, strategic bombing, industrial production, research and development, declarations of war, historical and random nation neutrality and allegiances as well as other political mechanisms. Link to Full Press Release Here Gold Demo will be made available shortly (days not hours)! Madmatt p.s. ...and dont tell me this post is off-topic. Thats for ME to decide!

Gone Gold! Battlefront.com and developer Fury Software are announcing that “Strategic Command – European Theater”, a turn-based Grand Strategy wargame featuring the Second World War in Europe, has now officially gone “Gold”. The game is already in production and is expected to ship by the end of the month. Pre-orders will be opened Friday, July 19th. Strategic Command – European Theater will be available only from Battlefront.com’s online store and is not being sold in retail. Strategic Command offers 6 major campaigns- “Fall Weiss”, “Fall Gelb”, “Barbarossa”, “Fall Blau”, “Zitadelle”, “Overlord” which begin anywhere from 1939 to 1944. Campaigns can be played beyond historical end of war date and into 1946! Game play is turn based with each turn lasting from 2 weeks to 1 month depending on the season. Designed for replayability and realism, options include fog of war, Free French forces, Partisans, scorched earth, thoroughly implemented features for sea transport, amphibious assaults, strategic bombing, industrial production, research and development, declarations of war, historical and random nation neutrality and allegiances as well as other political mechanisms. Link to Full Press Release Here Gold Demo will be made available shortly (days not hours)! Madmatt

I don't take requests. The final "dead" look of tanks is much the same as CMBO. No "persistent" debris is shown after a vehicle dies but the explosions leading to a vehicles death are ummm...improved, to put it mildly... You'll just have to wait and see. Madmatt

Actually the round fan assembly and vents were always above the level of the rear deck somewhat. On the G model the left hand side is much more pronounced (higher up) than the right side. Madmatt [ July 16, 2002, 02:46 PM: Message edited by: Madmatt ]

Click any of the thumbnail images below to see the full sized version. Much has been made of the higher resolution graphics that are featured in CMBB but pretty textures can only do so much. What really helps to bring objects to lifelike realism is the underlying models. So thats what todays little bone throw is going to look at. Ahh, the venerable Panther Ausf. A from CMBO. Starting to show its age. As you can see, its basically one box (turret shape) on top of another box (hull shape) with some minimal detail for the exhaust system. Inputing the data for models in CM (both BO and BB) is still very time consuming but as Battlefront.com has grown there are now more people available to handle specific tasks. Having a full time 3D modeler and artist extrodinare on the team (Kwazydog) has allowed the models in CMBB to achieve a new level of detail far beyond what we see in CMBO. The Panther A (early) Model as it now exists in CMBB. Not only are the textures much more crisp and detailed but look at the detail on the front hull. The hull MG protrusion, the little periscopes, the main gun mantlet, all have exponetially greater shape and detail now. Here we have a nice shot of all the detail on the hull front and sides as well as a tantalizing glimpse of the raised exhaust fan housings on the rear deck. Notice as some of the equipment on the side has form and is not just a flat texture like before. Check out the detail on the Commanders Cupola and hatch with the AA ring mount. Here again you can see as the tool box on the side is a an actual 3D shape. You can also see some of the enhanced detail added to the exhaust system to the rear. And of course, what bone throw would be complete without the Money Shot. Next time, we will have a look at some of the new minor nation vehicles and models. Madmatt [ July 16, 2002, 12:18 PM: Message edited by: Madmatt ]

Go ahead and 5th and 6th if you want but I am too damn busy to host anything and I hate company visiting. Madmatt

Just to authenticate some things. Yes, that IS a genuine Madmatt signature. It was signed with a mouse though and not with a pen. The color is the color shown becuase it should be the default masking color used on textures which is what I was working on when Y2K asked me for my autograph. All proceeds of the sale will help go to getting me either drunk or "serviced" somewhere. Madmatt

No significance at all. Its just the date that everything should be ready to go by. Madmatt