SDK Information Included in Latest Steam Update

Chris D

Chris D

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Last night there was a Steam platform update, partly in preperation for the release of the Software Developer's Kit - the tools that mod makers will use to be able to modify the Source engine. As of yet there is no word from the guys at Valve on when exactly we will see the SDK but they're assuring us that it will be soon. Within last night's update, there was a file in the cache file which details information on what will be included in the kit:
Source Software Developer's Kit[br]The Source SDK is a set of tools and resources used to create custom content, modifications to existing games, or even completely new games using Source engine technology. Anyone can download and try the SDK, but please note that it is designed for advanced users.[br]
Included:[br]
  • Hammer
  • Half-Life Model Viewer
  • Face Poser
  • Scene Manager
  • Various content compiling tools
  • Documentation
  • Source code and examples
For community support and an online knowledgebase, please visit the <a href="http://collective.valve-erc.com">Valve Editing Resource Center (VERC)[/url].[br]
[br]
The SDK will be updated over time with new resources, source code, or examples. As with Steam games, these updates will be delivered by Steam automatically.
Click to expand...
This will be great news to the hundreds of budding mod-makers out there, and another good sign that it will indeed be coming "soon".[br]Stay tuned for more information as we get it, and thank you to the many people that advised us of this information.
 
I fear i will rush the game in order to get mapping asap :p
 
and you know this personally because....
Click to expand...

I'll take a wild guess and say because he downloaded the stolen builld. Just a stab in the dark that though.
 
Yes, the leaked tools are incredibly buggy and don't work with most of the new content anyhoo. So I'm told, anyway...
 
ahh I cant wait to convert my original maps to the HL2 engine!
 
interesting that this info wasn't made available when the update was released.
anyway modders are probably drooling at the thought the tools being their hard drives :cheese:
 
In the past two week's I've spent 200+ dollars on programming books to get up to speed before HL2 ships. I have a modest knowledge of C which has helped me blaze through the first book on C++, next up are two books on coding games using C++ and one on shaders (because they make me drool oh so much). With the tools that Valve are releasing I think they just might make a modder out of me.

Edit: If anyone with programming experience has any good links to sites with well commented game code examples please PM me. I find reading through good code is the quickest way to learn to do it yourself.
 
Sweet cant wait for the new Hammer!
 
God damn Poly, is there any other languages you can learn? C++, Perl, PHP, ASP.NET, VB.NET, Assembly, Hammer Editior, Half-Life SDK, but where is HTML? :p
 
AJM2K3 said:
In the past two week's I've spent 200+ dollars on programming books to get up to speed before HL2 ships. I have a modest knowledge of C which has helped me blaze through the first book on C++, next up are two books on coding games using C++ and one on shaders (because they make me drool oh so much). With the tools that Valve are releasing I think they just might make a modder out of me.

Edit: If anyone with programming experience has any good links to sites with well commented game code examples please PM me. I find reading through good code is the quickest way to learn to do it yourself.
Click to expand...

http://ultimategameprogramming.com/index2.php

Oh and this site takes a lot of work to navigate but in the end it is worth it

http://techbooksforfree.com/
 
So this is what you leet guys use for mapping and such. Can't wait for the community maps, models and mods to be unleased upon us over the coming years.
 
what software versions does it support? like many versions of maya and max, or jsut one or 2?
 
polyguns said:
what software versions does it support? like many versions of maya and max, or jsut one or 2?
Click to expand...
no one really knows for sure just yet, but there will be a version of XSI included for people to model with, also there is support for 3dsmax... beyond that I don't know
 
I suspect they will go back probably to the versions from 3-4 years ago, when they started working on the actual game and not the things like the renderer (they obviously had to make the exporters for the current versions they were using)

The XSI version that is already released is highly limited in terms of modeling capabilities! I suggest it only for lower poly objects within a mod, do NOT use it for characters as it can export only 4,000 poly skinned models to HL2. Alyx is somewhere between 6,000-10,000 if I remember correctly!
 
Iced_Eagle said:
I suspect they will go back probably to the versions from 3-4 years ago, when they started working on the actual game and not the things like the renderer (they obviously had to make the exporters for the current versions they were using)

The XSI version that is already released is highly limited in terms of modeling capabilities! I suggest it only for lower poly objects within a mod, do NOT use it for characters as it can export only 4,000 poly skinned models to HL2. Alyx is somewhere between 6,000-10,000 if I remember correctly!
Click to expand...

http://forum.softimage.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2350

Come on 7,500...
 
Voice Recognition->Phonem->3D Face Model?

I was wondering if anyone knows if it would be feasible to take voice audio feeds (like Roger-Wilco) and convert them to phonems that would affect the mouth/face of the 3D charcters in Half-Life 2. If so, has this been done and how? If not, is anyone planning on making it happen? I watch "Portal" on G4TechTV and it seems like something that is really needed.

Thanks,
Tom Schaefer
 
gaoptimize said:
I was wondering if anyone knows if it would be feasible to take voice audio feeds (like Roger-Wilco) and convert them to phonems that would affect the mouth/face of the 3D charcters in Half-Life 2. If so, has this been done and how? If not, is anyone planning on making it happen? I watch "Portal" on G4TechTV and it seems like something that is really needed.

Thanks,
Tom Schaefer
Click to expand...


I believe they explained this somewhere.

What you do is you take your audio track for the character. Then you input the script of what it actually is saying (a text document) and then FacePoser analyzes and automatically phenomes and everything should be good to go.

Now that is for perfect cinematic sequences, if you are talking about in-game, I think that's possible, maybe not implemented in CS:S, IDK I haven't checked, but it probably just won't be as accurate as if you pre-analyze it with faceposer. BUT obviously would be much better than the Half-Life 1 version of just opening and closing that one piece heh... :imu:
 
That would be really nice to have in an SP game.
Just imagine, you zoom in on 2 guys talking to eachother, read their lips and get to know something special :)
 
Yey! I'll probably start mapping before playing the game \o/
 
The Thing said:
http://forum.softimage.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2350

Come on 7,500...
Click to expand...

the thing is, is alyx seems to be in scripted sequences. if everyone starts making all their models 7500 polies, they will get them animated, ingame, then realize that they will have to go back and reoptimize and rebind EVERYTHING. remember to keep your models about 1500 - 2000, unless you have complete controll over where the models are going to be. mp modders, keep this number tight, don't assume you can have 20 7500 poly models running around in hl2, you can even look at the combine and tell its not 7500. valve put that out, and it misled alot of people.

about faceposer, its really not that big a deal. there are free scripts that do that for maya that can be found at www.highend3d.com. playing an audio trak will not pose your face, you still need to generate all of your moprph targets. syncing up to audio really ain't that touch once you have your setup.
now it would be cool if you could speak live into the mic, and make the players talk.
 
damn, if xsi limis your poly counts to 7500, you'll still need another modelling program to do your normal maps right?

im really scared that the support for hl2 will be sucktardish, since they haven't released any new exporters for 3d aps for hl in quite a while
 
SO HL2 can do 7500 polys in a character, by comparison, whats the maximum of the Half-life engine?
 
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