Forsaken Media Release

[Sui]

The Forsaken team have got a hard job ahead of them; while so far the mod is shaping up nicely, there’s still a long way to go, and they’ve got some pretty ambitious ideas- which include stretching wars over multiple maps. Even the larger multiplayer games, like the Battlefield 2 or Unreal, don’t attempt that. However, if the quality of these newly released media shots are anything to go by, Forsaken should fulfil all it’s promised. [br]

[br]

[br]

[br]

[br]​

[br]Even though these maps, like everything else in Forsaken, are still very much work in progress; they already seem to capture the post-apocalyptic atmosphere almost perfectly. The interior of Grime with its crumbling walls, smashed windows and broken tiles strewn clumsily across the floor creates a truly depressing atmosphere- encapsulating the feel of a world left to die. I did use the term "almost perfectly" earlier though, because Orange Park, the second map shown in this update, doesn’t quite capture this haphazard feel - in fact is seems rather bare. Some would say that adds to the eerie feel, though. Make your own mind up by visiting the Forsaken website.

 

[Puzzlemaker]

Yar.

Forsaken is awsome.

And now the forum is going to be flooded.

Oh noes.

And keep in mind all those maps are a WIP.

P.S. Its website, not websire.

 

[Sui]

P.S. Its website, not websire.

I make most of my corrections after I post news It's stupid, I know...

 

[Puzzlemaker]

I make most of my corrections after I post news It's stupid, I know...

I do too. Hehe. In fact, I added that P.S. after I had already posted.

 

[Cruor]

They kind of overdid the normal mapping in the face imo, looks like *shudders* Doom 3-ish.

 

[taroq]

I don't know; while it's certainly more noticeable than in HL2, I don't think it's that anatomically incorrect. I think the reason it looks so exaggerated is that there's a distinct light-source, whereas much of HL2 had out-door lighting, which illuminates pretty much from all sides.

 

[n30g3n3s1s]

taroq: You nailed it. The shots were taken with extream lighting so you could see the normal map very obviously.

 

[Ennui]

By the way, n30g3n3s1s and Obike and Rovient and Shrill and Pax and X-Convict and the rest of the jolly folks that are bringing us Forsaken are absolute gods and bowing is mandatory.

Great ****ing media update, I'm ravenous for more (and the damned beta!) <3

 

[ZoFreX]

/me bows

Looking good, the normal mapping on that blokes face makes him look FIERCE ANGRY.

 

[French Ninja]

Finally!

 

[Beerdude26]

Looks lovely :O

/me gets whipped by Ennui
/me bows

 

[Sui]

Finally!

well it has been nearly seven months since their last update

Oh and by the way; Ninjas come from the east, France is in Europe, but your avatar shows the American flag? Now I'm really confused.

 

[BinaryBanzai]

[rant]Not enough custom content (as in I can hardly see any custom level textures). I am tired of seeing modifications pumping out more content, rather than quality content. It honestly makes no sense to make ~20 levels with hardly any custom content, mediocre gameplay elements, etc, when you can make ~5 levels with great gameplay mechanics, and all other content completely custom. Don't get me wrong, the setup of the shown levels are great, but the bad overcomes the good (unfortunately). Quality over quantity, as they say.[/rant]

Otherwise, the rest of the media on their website looks terrific! By the way, my rant wasn't directly pointed towards Forsaken... simply mod teams as a whole.

 

[Puzzlemaker]

They are working on custom textures.

And their gameplay is not mediocre.

Grrr.

 

[Shrill]

Thanks for the kind words guys... glad you liked the update.

With regards to the maps... of course they are all WIP, we will be adding new props, textures and architecture as we progress. Some of them are currently running at over 100fps on an "average" system, so there is loads of room for extra details and effects.

Regarding the New game play mode we have... if anyone is interested we have a detailed design doc here:

http://www.forsaken-game.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1548

You need to be logged into the forums to download it. It basically goes into a lot more detail on how the "Territory War" will work. It's a good read, and we'd certainly appreciate feedback and suggestions

 

[BinaryBanzai]

They are working on custom textures.

And their gameplay is not mediocre.

Grrr.

Did specifically state that their gameplay was mediocre? People never read things, let alone comprehend them...

 

[Hugh_Jazz]

U r gawd, lol.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Oh wow. This looks rather cool.

 

[sp0tz]

these screens look very nice...

looking foward to this mod...

 

[st0lve]

Best evr.

 

[Crispy]

Screenshots are nice but I'd rather not see Starbucks and McDonalds surviving the Apocalypse. Yes, it is technically realistic to have a Maccy D and that coffee house on virtually every corner in London, but I'd rather see them in ruins or not included in the game at all. The problem is, if you do depict them in ruins, or if the player can destroy parts of the companys' property or deface their logos then you might find yourself in trouble.

[rant]I'd prefer to see a generic fast food restaurant rather than give those companies publicity they don't need. I think I feel so strongly about this that I would refuse to download any Mod that made allegiances to companies with questionable business policies (such as Starbucks unquenchable thirst for terracing its premises along high streets and McDonalds' advertising campaigns, which use colour, music and even pop icons to market substandard products to a very young and suggestible age, virtually weening infants straight off the teat and directly onto potato 'shakes.[/rant]

I love the idea of being able to play a game set in a beautifully crafted vision of my home city, but I feel sick to think that it is recreating the very scum that devoids it of its former character.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Replace them with McKenzie's and Sunbills.

 

[Crispy]

The problem with that, is that if you use a similar logo, you're still giving them free advertising. The name will be similar and the logo, too.

It's not dissimilar to a recent underhand advertising technique where new bars have been approached by a certain tobacco company asking them to theme the decor in red and white, in such a way that the cigarette vending machines will see more of a certain stock being bought than other competitors.

If you keep the same colour scheme and similar-sounding names, you'll still be advertising a product, just on a more subliminal level.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Point. I guess the best solution is to make them totally non-descript like you said...a blue-and-white colour themed fast food restaurant called Hannigan's and a brown coffee franchise (aren't they all, except Starbucks?) called....crappuchino! Maybe.

 

[polyguns]

I don't know; while it's certainly more noticeable than in HL2, I don't think it's that anatomically incorrect. I think the reason it looks so exaggerated is that there's a distinct light-source, whereas much of HL2 had out-door lighting, which illuminates pretty much from all sides.

yea, but something else. if you look at hl2's normal maps, they all have alpha channels. They take away alot of the details in the normal mapping to make it look subdued. its still neat, but if they want to lessen the starkness of it just addan alpha channel

 

[Shrill]

Regarding the advertising and branding of shops in our maps... we intend to keep this as it is, unless we are asked to change anything from a specific company.

It's not intended to be free advertising, just bringing a more "realistic" feel to the streets with familiar shops and names. We are not endorsing these companies, please don't read too much into it.

 

[Apocalypse89]

Looks like a great mod. I like the ideas for the different factions.

 

[Crispy]

Regarding the advertising and branding of shops in our maps... we intend to keep this as it is, unless we are asked to change anything from a specific company.

It's not intended to be free advertising, just bringing a more "realistic" feel to the streets with familiar shops and names. We are not endorsing these companies, please don't read too much into it.

That's just it, though, you have made a conscious decision to include one fast food restaurant and one coffee house and not another (there are plenty of others to choose from). This effectively means that their brands will rise to a more powerful position with the demographic that play your mod. Assuming they enjoy Forsaken (and this is what we're all anticipating), they will have an uplifting experience twinned, to some degree (but certainly a degree greater than the rival brands), with visual recognition of the golden arches and the Starbucks logo.

Whether you like it or not, you have chosen one brand over another, in the same way the original Counter-Strike team chose the USP over other models of pistol as the default starting weapon for the CT team, you have chosen McDonalds over Burger King (or even Pizza Express or "The Red Lion" pub). Jess Cliffe and Minh Le probably chose the USP for its reliability, which would make it seem an authentic choice for a counter terrorist unit's standard issue. They're therefore saying something positive about the pistol, which may encourage firearms enthusiasts worldwide to purchase their own model. On the flip-side, many of Grand Theft Auto III's original adverts satirised familiar brands or even industry leaders. The creators were giving their opinion on the products alluded to in their game.

I think the question I want to ask you is: what makes McDonalds more 'authentic' (oh the irony) than any other fast food shop? (or, indeed any other shop front -real or imaginary- that could be included in the mod)

 

[Shrill]

We actually have a lot more than just 2 "brands" included so far... we have BK, Pizza Hut, Boots, WH Smith, Post Offices and many more typical high street shops, hell we even have a shopping centre with over 40 different shops. We also have film posters, flyers, newspapers, concert posters and various fictional films as well. If we include something it's because we feel it fits. That's pretty much all the judgement we go with, there is no endorsing going on here on any level.

You do make a good point, however as you mentioned in your previous post even if we chose a satirical or parody-like spin on the signs it would still be "advertising" them subliminally.

We believe the authenticity is gained from the fact the shop actually exists in real life and on some level increases your sense of immersion (or so we would hope), rather than a random made-up shop that makes it feel more like a fantasy world.

I don't deny there is anything wrong with your logic, however this is just the path we would like to take, and if we receive any commercial pressure we would be more than happy to make changes/adjustments

 

[Crispy]

Ah, now that I see there's a whole range of typical shops being included I can see it's more representative of your average excursion in London town. As long as the in-game chat doesn't look like this:

FKNPlayer1: Where are you?
FKNPlayer2: By the McDonalds
FKNPlayer1: Which one? (!)

...then I'm happy to play

P.S. I was making more of a fuss over this than I would normally (believe it or not) because I have high hopes for this mod

 

[ZoFreX]

I'd like to think that there being a maccy d's in the mods I play won't make me eat there more often. If I suddenly start using it for anything other than a convenient (and clean!) public toilet I'll let you know.