The road ahead... a recap

[salwon]

What about making it possible to import custom-made 3d modells into CM:SF as soon as the WWII game is on the way? If Battlefront already moved on to the next version of the game there is no reason to prevent users from adding own content. Or?

Never going to happen, as Steve has said a million times.

[Bannon DC]

What about the Funnies?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobarts_funnies

[Mord]

Are you guys looking at trigger points for the scenario editor?

Mord.

[tooz]

Okay, I confused--I have been awaiting the title and release date of the promised WW2 module and I see that you are releasing another modern war add on? Hey! Why is this happening? When can we expect an announcement on the WW2 module so I can start playing BFC games again?

Strange, I am ready to pre-order CM2 WWII and Les Grognards and all I do is wait. I tried the CMSF demo and tried to get into it but could not.

Oh well, I guess I'll look forward to buying from other game companies (Empire Total War and East India Company as example).

[Sergei]

Tooz, it goes something like this:

CMx2 is what the engine is called.

Now, for that engine, there will be several titles. CM:SF is the first title. The Normandy game will be the second title.

Marines and British Forces are modules. For each title, there will be several titles.

What is important is that the development of the modules shouldn't delay the development of other titles.

[Field Marshal Blücher]

AFAIK, the Brits module isn't being produced in-house either, which is hopefully freeing the main programmers to work on CMx2: WWII. That said, I'll buy both CM:SF Brits and CMx2: WWII.

[Thomm]

For each title, there will be several titles.

*cough*

Best regards,

Thomm

[Sergei]

I was just testing if anyone would notice. Keep it up.

[ASL Veteran]

I asked this question in the WW2 thread, but maybe I should ask it here as well. It's my understanding from the FAQ on modules and from what Steve has said here that the modules will have primarily TO&E stuff and that the titles (base games call them) will have some core TO&E stuff, entirely different terrain and map elements, and some new game content. Now from what I can tell, all the new game content from both titles and modules will be 'backloaded' to previous games through patches .....? So, assuming that is the case (as far as I can determine) will the modules (that are fully independent, but will require 'a' title to function from what I can determine) work with any 'title'.

Since that may have come across as a bit convoluted here it is again. In other words, when I get the 'module' Combat Mission Shock Force "Marines" will that module work with the 'title' Combat Mission: Normandy placeholder and / or will the Commonwealth module for Normandy work with the following later war west front title Combat Mission: Over the Rhine (or whatever) or will that second WW2 title require a second Commonwealth module that includes much of the same equipment that was in the first Commonwealth module because the first module won't work with the second title? As a sidebar, under the huge assumption that any module will work with any title, will TO&E that came in 'titles' rather than in 'modules' be usable within other 'titles' assuming the player owns both titles.

I have to admit to a little drool right now at the thought that there may be a possibility that all of these titles and modules would interact with each other - it would be like the most massive tactical combat system ever devised!!!!!

[Thomm]

I am afraid I have to shatter your hopes here.

The modules will only work for one title.

The new features from a new title will also not be added to previous titles via patches.

I would be happy to be wrong, but I do not think it is feasible to carry a backpack full of old code with you as you proceed from title to title. Therefore, no later upgrades of earlier titles.

On the other hand, the module system ensures that the development cycle for individual titles is longer, because BFC has an incentive to add new features as well as new content with each module. Patching does not earn them money. Modules do. Thus, the module strategy gives the customer of the main game much better support than any patching would do.

Best regards,

Thomm

[ASL Veteran]

I am afraid I have to shatter your hopes here.

The modules will only work for one title.

The new features from a new title will also not be added to previous titles via patches.

I would be happy to be wrong, but I do not think it is feasible to carry a backpack full of old code with you as you proceed from title to title. Therefore, no later upgrades of earlier titles.

On the other hand, the module system ensures that the development cycle for individual titles is longer, because BFC has an incentive to add new features as well as new content with each module. Patching does not earn them money. Modules do. Thus, the module strategy gives the customer of the main game much better support than any patching would do.

Best regards,

Thomm

Oh well, didn't hurt to ask . So I guess we won't be seeing Patton fighting the Russians in 45 either

[Sergei]

Oh well, didn't hurt to ask . So I guess we won't be seeing Patton fighting the Russians in 45 either

It's too early to say that yet. The thing about modularity is that if there seems to be a market for Albanian partisans, then it can be done. Likewise, if there is demand for 1945 West vs. East module, it can be done. But let's first get to Normandy...

[tooz]

So, when can I expect CMx2 WWII's first module?

[Sergei]

Steve in the initial posts: "Our plan is to make Module releases every 3-4 months, Title releases every 12 or so."

[ASL Veteran]

It's too early to say that yet. The thing about modularity is that if there seems to be a market for Albanian partisans, then it can be done. Likewise, if there is demand for 1945 West vs. East module, it can be done. But let's first get to Normandy...

(excited dreamer mode on)

It would be so much more efficient if it were possible to have the titles interact with each other though (drooling) . Think of the possibilities! Also, if you were able to really just think of the titles in terms of a 'terrain set' ..... then the possibilities are virtually endless and you wouldn't even have to make very many 'titles'. I mean really, take Shock Force for example. You already have a 'modern' desert terrain set with Shock Force. If you wanted to do the Arab / Israeli '73 war you would just have to make an Israeli '73 TO&E module and then an Egyptian '73 TO&E module. You could add some '73 Syrian stuff in both the Israeli module and the Egyptian module. These modules would then just be part of the 'modern desert terrain' set and you could simply add these '73 war modules as options for your Shock Force family.

Switching to Western Europe .... just think if you could take the two Western Front terrain sets (Normandy and Over the Rhine - my own names for them ) and use them to interact with an early French forces module. The French forces would simply be added to the 'Over the Rhine' family for that title because they could use that terrain set. There would have to be new coding for the French forces because of the one man turrets and radioless AFVs naturally, but those bits of coding could be included in the module maybe (so you wouldn't get that coding if you didn't need it)?

So really the number of total titles would be limited to the number of different geographic areas and time frames that needed new map and terrain elements and then the modules would be tied to those titles based upon what terrain was appropriate for those modules. You could then have the player / scenario designer just select which title / executable to go into in order to make their scenario map (as the different map elements would be specific to each title, but the TO&Es would not). Any 'force specific' coding for .... like one man turrets or Japanese fanaticism for example, would be specific to the module that had them in it, otherwise if you didn't have that module you wouldn't need that coding. The evil part of it would be that if a player really liked the series of games, they would still have every other title and module at their disposal to get if they choose. Any new player would have an incentive to pick up every title and module out there so every new customer could pick up one title, then if they liked it and you kept all the other titles and modules current, they would want to buy the whole series.

Instead of a new customer buying a 45 dollar game and then discarding it when it's old, you would have that new customer buying the 45 dollar game and that person would then have an incentive to purchase ALL the other titles and modules that you have made up until now - so if you have three titles and six modules made ..... . There is also enough material out there that you could easily keep making new titles and modules without ever really revisiting the material that you have already done before. This might even serve to boost modules and titles that don't sell as well as the others since players with the more popular titles would have a motivation to experiment with other modules if they liked the system. For the Bagration title, for example, the German TO&E would more or less be already done - if you could just port that TO&E over from the previous western front titles ......... !!

(excited dreamer mode off)

Okay, I'll need to wipe all the drool off the floor now . I don't know what's technically possible or not, but it seems to me that if what I outlined is something like what they had in mind .... !!!!!! Hey, a guy can dream can't he

[Piecekeeper]

What locations will we see in the normandy game? and which regiments?

[Omenowl]

Yes, I know it is excessively large to do this for a 2 hour game, but I have 200 gig worth of disk space that is not being used. It would be nice to have the ability to have after action reviews of your tactics and plans based upon what was occurring. It would also be nice to have 2 options: The first is god mode where you can watch everything without fog of war; the second is you can watch as one player or the other. Ideally, you could switch between either player or god mode at anytime during the replay. All this in real time with rewind, fast forward and maybe the ability to skip scenes (ie 15 seconds or 1 minute time frames).

I know this is not an ideal comparison, but warcraft 3 had this ability. I also know Total War had this ability (though their's was not a true replay).

[bodkin]

As I've just posted a similar comment in the tech forum I'd thought I'd get some opinions here as well.

Will CM: Normany make better use of multi-core CPU's?

[SlowMotion]

If the road ahead will bring adjustments to graphics, it would be very nice to get some change to terrain lighting so that details like small hills etc would be easier to see. An example is here, the latest screenshots from TOW2:

http://www.battlefront.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=201&Itemid=262

[daviduk109]

Is there an approximate timescale when CMx2 WW2 Normandy will be available for purchase?

thanks (and sorry for the lazy question).

[Field Marshal Blücher]

Is there an approximate timescale when CMx2 WW2 Normandy will be available for purchase?

thanks (and sorry for the lazy question).

My guess is that they can't really provide an answer. Seeing as we haven't even seen an official announcement yet, let alone screenshots or any sort of content at all, I'd say we're still far too early in development to be giving a time frame.

Also keep in mind that I'm not affiliated with Battlefront and this is not at all an official position.

[MikeyD]

Do you know what might speed the WWII title along? The Marine corps module has been, by all accounts, a smashing success! Plus, with the last few patches they've pretty nearly run themselves out of major game bugs to distract them from the work on the title. That means, one supposes, that they've now got the combination of sufficient revenue and sufficient inspiration to tackle the WWII title aggressively. Visions of incoming game purchases must be dancing in their heads - why would they want to put off grabbing the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?

[daviduk109]

thanks for your responses. I did try to have a quick read through this entire thread last night and the closest I could find to an answer (as to when WW2 Normandy might be released) was from an administrator who said something like an announcement would be made in due course. However that post was dated I think October. I didn't know if there had been an update since that time (evidently not!).

I did greatly enjoy playing CMBO (I'm not much of a graphics person!) having played countless randomly generated games, with the only major complaint being how underpowered machine guns seemed in the game. Anothing minor issue I found was that the AI never seemed to position it's artillery observers (or any other units) on the top floor of buildings, which seemed strange!

[GSX]

Given everything Ive picked up from various places the Normandy title could be out mid to late 2009. There is another SF module after the Brits but as SF Modules arent patches I wouldnt imagine the one man BF army of programmers would be needed to work on this much (if at all) and so could concentrate all of his energies on the new project.

Similarly, everything BF have been saying since they announced the new engine is that it could do everything from ancient battles to sci fi (CMSF for example). So the core engine is already there just awaiting the new values for ww2 equipment to be dialed in and some water to be added.

SO I expect that maybe by this time next year we will have forgotten about SF and will be moaning about how the Panzershrecks penetration values are all wrong and speculating about when the Normandy Brit module will be released and complaining when no Cromwells appear in it!

[bbaker]

Multiplayer PBEM with the CMx1 games were about the most fun I've ever had with a video game. I can't wait for the WW2 iteration of the CMx2 engine. Mid to late 2009 seems so very, very far away.