I'm working on a Firefly mod for EVN.....

POSTED BY: Lindley
UPDATED: Wednesday, June 25, 2003 01:57
VIEWED: 6671
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LINDLEY

Sunday, June 8, 2003 3:36 AM

I'm pretty new to these parts, though I'm among the biggest FF supporters over on TrekBBS. In any case, I've started work on a Firefly total-conversion mod for the game EV: Nova.

Yes, for the moment Nova is Mac-only, so most of you haven't played it. I realize this. Since the Windows port is in the final stages of beta testing this will soon change.

So, as to what I wanted to say.

I need help. My biggest concern is graphics. If anyone has a good graphic of a Firefly-class----or even better, a 3D model----let me know. A shuttle will also be needed, now that I think of it. Fear not; the graphic format of EVN is fairly straightforward, and I can provide pointers on how to go about creating the appropriate resources. But I do need help, so aspiring graphics artists please step forward!

Heck, even if all you can do is give me an image of a planet, I'll take it. I need those too.

Even if you're not into graphics, I could use some assistence conceptualizing the FF universe. We only heard about 25 or so planets and moons; yet supposedly there are hundreds of them. I'm content to make the FF universe no bigger than what we heard talked about plus a couple extra planets, but I would welcome ideas and descriptions for planets and moons we didn't see.

I'm not worrying about storyline just yet, but chances are I'll make the player take on the roll of Mal, either just after the civil war or maybe even prior to it.

I'll accept any level of help you want to offer, be it a single line of dialog, or full team-member status. I want to make this work!

To prove there's something to this, and I'm not just talking out of thin air, here's my first attempt at a title page:
EDIT: I want to make this a link rather than image. Is that possible with this board software?

For more information on EV: Nova, visit www.ambrosiasw.com/games/evn . To check up on the progress of the Windows port, see www.ambrosiasw.com/news/upcoming .

EDIT: I take it this board doesn't use UBB, huh?

TALONPEST

Sunday, June 8, 2003 4:58 AM

I'm happy to say that I HAVE played EV Nova, and for that matter the original and EV Override. Great games, and a fitting game engine for Firefly.

The only problem I can see you having is that there just haven't been enough ships on Firefly to do a total conversion. I mean, we've got the Firefly class and her shuttles, the Alliance cruiser, the "older model trans-U" the Reavers were using, the colonist ship from "Bushwhacked," Jubal Early's ship, and the ship that came to the "rescue" in "Out of Gas." Other than that... there really aren't many ships. And then there's the matter of ship-mounted weapons- Fireflies are unarmed, and we've only seen one instance of a ship firing- when the Alliance cruiser destroyed the colony ship at the end of "Bushwhacked." There's just not enough material to go on.

Oh, and then there's the little hitch that in Firefly there is no sound in space... would kind of make for a boring game.

Having said all that, and no doubt discouraged you all to hell, I wish you luck

LINDLEY

Sunday, June 8, 2003 5:30 AM

Actually, all those things had occured to me. I figure that since we haven't seen many ships, I can just grap appropriate-looking ships off the online shipyards without worrying about contradicting anything.

As for weapons, I've considered that. I've tentatively decided that the Firefly-class will simply come with no *standard* weapons, and very little weapon space. Using things like mass expansions, someone could still outfit a gun or two if they wanted, so I thought of something else.

Really powerful weapons will just be too massive to fit on anything that's not a warship. I might provide a few low-power weapons for things like asteroid mining and the like, though.

Anyway, its a thought.

EDIT: Sound in space. Yeah, that's a toughy....well, I could just make weapons silent. There'd still be ambient sounds and hyperdrive powerup and the like.

JRC

Monday, June 9, 2003 6:22 AM

Yea!! Another Mac user in the Firefly world! I'm not a computer graphics artist, but I've also been playing Nova and the other EV games for the last several years. I can wish you the best of luck, and I look forward to seeing your plug-in sometime in the future!

Talk peace, but, carry a BIG stick.

KOFFEE

Tuesday, June 10, 2003 7:12 AM

Shiny collage!!!

----------------------------------------------
“It's a real burn, being right so often.”

LINDLEY

Sunday, June 15, 2003 12:27 AM

^Thanks.

Is anyone intersted in helping? Even if you can't do a thing with graphics, even something as simple as coming up with a one-paragraph description of a planet, either from the show or made up, would be helpful.

LINDLEY

Friday, June 20, 2003 12:15 AM

Hmmm, after seeing "The Message", there's both a new fighter/transport and a new weapon I'll need to include.

Is the lack of responses just because so few folks have played the game in question, or is there actually a lack of interest? This mod isn't just going to materialize (much as I wish it would), I need some motivation!

CHRISTHECYNIC

Friday, June 20, 2003 12:22 AM

I have to say that I think people would be more interested in a map for some FPS or the like which was simply Serenity. I'm not sure people really want to play a game where they're blowing stuff up flying one of the ships, when we haven’t seen a single ship combat. The show really suggests a more person to person combat style. Plus a level of Serenity would give us a 3-d map of her, which we would all want.

Of course I could be completely wrong.

LINDLEY

Friday, June 20, 2003 5:00 PM

Ship-to-ship combat is only one part of the game. A larger part is trading and missions, and I think that is where this engine becomes perfect for FF.

But you're right, a FPS would be good too. Perhaps someone will make one. I recall something about a Quake 3 map on the official site awhile back.

BELLGAMGEE

Friday, June 20, 2003 5:22 PM

Hiya, great idea about the game!

I was just thinking, about the planets...aren't most of them pretty much the same as Earth? Becasue they were terraformed and all...I'm not sure cos I haven't been watching it long but aren;t they like Earth except they're different sizes, like sometimes moons have been terraformed and they're smallish.

"We will blow a new crater in this little moon!"

xxxxxx

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