No news is good news, right?
by Daniel Buckmaster · 12/10/2014 (4:01 am) · 20 comments
So what happened to 3.6.3? According to GitHub, it's 15 days overdue. That's... not great. The point of these minor releases was to get them out more often. Unfortunately, we've been a bit slow in the bugfix department recently, so we've held off releasing 3.6.3 because the changes that had gone in just didn't warrant a release yet.
That said, by the time we do get it out, hopefully soon, it'll be a decent little patch release. Here are the currently pending issues. My favourite one is a fix for the current ShapeBaseImage camera shake system, which was completely broken in T3D. Now it's... not. There have also been some AIPlayer issues cropping up that we've squashed, and we finally got in an old fix so that Bullet physics objects could collide with MeshRoads.
In other recent news, we've had some major contributions to the engine for version 3.7, which is due around the end of January. I'll mention two in particular. Luis has been spearheading the effort to get an OpenGL rendering backend into T3D, in preparation for Linux support and other exciting things. You can see the initial issue checklist here, and there've been many more issues raised and fixed since then. Second, Vince Gee and the Winterleaf team have made a shocking number of pull-requests with a lot of the core engine modifications that were made in OMNI. Which is exciting, since Winterleaf have been developing a whole lot of cool stuff and testing Torque to its limits.
There are plenty of other things coming in 3.7 that I'm very excited for - this is looking like less of a stopgap/housekeeping release than 3.6 was and more of a leap forward in terms of new features and fixes.
And on the personnel side of things, we still haven't chosen a replacement Committee member. We're considering a variety of talented individuals and should be ready to announce someone... soon. It'll probably coincide with the 3.6.3 release.
Sorry for the quick blog - hope that puts to rest any worries people have about our release schedule. Watch this space.
That said, by the time we do get it out, hopefully soon, it'll be a decent little patch release. Here are the currently pending issues. My favourite one is a fix for the current ShapeBaseImage camera shake system, which was completely broken in T3D. Now it's... not. There have also been some AIPlayer issues cropping up that we've squashed, and we finally got in an old fix so that Bullet physics objects could collide with MeshRoads.
In other recent news, we've had some major contributions to the engine for version 3.7, which is due around the end of January. I'll mention two in particular. Luis has been spearheading the effort to get an OpenGL rendering backend into T3D, in preparation for Linux support and other exciting things. You can see the initial issue checklist here, and there've been many more issues raised and fixed since then. Second, Vince Gee and the Winterleaf team have made a shocking number of pull-requests with a lot of the core engine modifications that were made in OMNI. Which is exciting, since Winterleaf have been developing a whole lot of cool stuff and testing Torque to its limits.
There are plenty of other things coming in 3.7 that I'm very excited for - this is looking like less of a stopgap/housekeeping release than 3.6 was and more of a leap forward in terms of new features and fixes.
And on the personnel side of things, we still haven't chosen a replacement Committee member. We're considering a variety of talented individuals and should be ready to announce someone... soon. It'll probably coincide with the 3.6.3 release.
Sorry for the quick blog - hope that puts to rest any worries people have about our release schedule. Watch this space.
About the author
Studying mechatronic engineering and computer science at the University of Sydney. Game development is probably my most time-consuming hobby!
#2
12/10/2014 (10:40 am)
The community has not been very active at all lately, so this no-news-news are better than nothing-nothing anyway. 
#3
12/10/2014 (11:11 am)
We need to make some sort of showcase for the engine, like a benchmark or something to attract the attention of other people. 
#4
I could spend a game idea with a ball, where the player can hit a ball with the gun and only then the ball is moving. The ball have to go trought some abstakles/chekpoints, to get the next level.
Most things are done at this, just needs polishing and maybe better models also, and other optimazing, like making atlas textures and such. maybe a better physic for the ball also. At moment it use the boulderball physic.
I just don't have the time to continue at this, but the idea is cool, and maybe new and I would spend it to be open source, so the community can continue at this and makin a cool show case game.
12/10/2014 (2:55 pm)
a little show case game maybe ? Oh, and I don't think it must be a shooter.I could spend a game idea with a ball, where the player can hit a ball with the gun and only then the ball is moving. The ball have to go trought some abstakles/chekpoints, to get the next level.
Most things are done at this, just needs polishing and maybe better models also, and other optimazing, like making atlas textures and such. maybe a better physic for the ball also. At moment it use the boulderball physic.
I just don't have the time to continue at this, but the idea is cool, and maybe new and I would spend it to be open source, so the community can continue at this and makin a cool show case game.
#5
Duion: nice avatar by the way. The GitHub has actually been really busy recently. I get up most mornings to a handful of notifications. It's really cool.
12/10/2014 (4:26 pm)
My gosh, we could actually make use of the Deathball.Duion: nice avatar by the way. The GitHub has actually been really busy recently. I get up most mornings to a handful of notifications. It's really cool.
#6
Every time there is a SC blog, it's the same discussion: "T3D is dead! Make a showcase game. We need more community members. Blah blah." And it always turns out the same. T3D lives on, with rockets instead of an arse, and there is no showcase game ever made at all, because no one wants to... And frankly: Here is your showcase games.
In other news: Thanks for the non-update Daniel, I appreciate the good news! @BeamNG and Luis I appreciate the OpenGL/Linux efforts! The lack of Linux is what typically makes T3D a hard sell at my University (the majority of CS guys here use Linux).
12/10/2014 (9:53 pm)
The rumors of T3D's demise have been greatly exaggerated.Every time there is a SC blog, it's the same discussion: "T3D is dead! Make a showcase game. We need more community members. Blah blah." And it always turns out the same. T3D lives on, with rockets instead of an arse, and there is no showcase game ever made at all, because no one wants to... And frankly: Here is your showcase games.
In other news: Thanks for the non-update Daniel, I appreciate the good news! @BeamNG and Luis I appreciate the OpenGL/Linux efforts! The lack of Linux is what typically makes T3D a hard sell at my University (the majority of CS guys here use Linux).
#7
And a graphics/benchmark demo would require too much effort, if it would not serve another purpose, than just for showing once.
12/11/2014 (12:36 am)
Yes, this showcase thing is overrated. It is more a problem of people using the engine, they could exchange the art with one click if they wanted, before they show off something, but most are too lazy and use the default assets and so people think Torque is ugly by default.And a graphics/benchmark demo would require too much effort, if it would not serve another purpose, than just for showing once.
#8
But I do think a lot ppl just will make tablet/cellphone games, about the larger market there. This affect new ppl to join torque and learning a engine like t3d is. I think the hobby game developper going more the way of making cellphone games.
But maybe I wrong whit that.
12/11/2014 (3:32 am)
May we need more art in the stock shape folder. So not everyone use just the soldier :) and the stock weapons.But I do think a lot ppl just will make tablet/cellphone games, about the larger market there. This affect new ppl to join torque and learning a engine like t3d is. I think the hobby game developper going more the way of making cellphone games.
But maybe I wrong whit that.
#9
This is my new favourite phrase which I intend to drop into casual conversation as often as possible. :)
12/11/2014 (9:04 am)
Lukas,Quote:
with rockets instead of an arse
This is my new favourite phrase which I intend to drop into casual conversation as often as possible. :)
#10
12/11/2014 (9:10 am)
There is enough art you can use, just grab something from blendswap, or from Ron's packs or from my stuff, no need to spam that into the repo.
#11
12/11/2014 (9:26 am)
Or we may need some tutorial on how to create nice environments in T3d.
#12
12/11/2014 (10:36 am)
Environments is one of the easiest part, it gets a lot harder when importing players and other items with functions and even more hard when writing your own scripts. I would not start on environments, everyone without experience can achieve at least something concerning environment.
#13
12/11/2014 (11:19 am)
I am trying to make decent grass for some time and i'm not able to do it. It looks like a game from 2000.
#14
12/11/2014 (1:52 pm)
There is a lot of good free stuff you can use, you can just use that as reference. 
#15
Also I know I suggested it for a few years now and other(s) have mentioned it but also genre templates would help a whole lot..That way the base engine would just be the necessary modules to run the engine and a person could choose which genre template they would want to start their project. That's my 2 cent!!
Congrats on the news, keep up the hard work!!!
12/11/2014 (2:17 pm)
Honestly there could be better tutorial(s) how to achieve scripts, environments, and etc..That's where if some of the people with more experience can step up and do so..What may be easy to somebody may not be so easy to another..Everyone has their strength and weaknesses!Also I know I suggested it for a few years now and other(s) have mentioned it but also genre templates would help a whole lot..That way the base engine would just be the necessary modules to run the engine and a person could choose which genre template they would want to start their project. That's my 2 cent!!
Congrats on the news, keep up the hard work!!!
#16
12/11/2014 (2:42 pm)
@environmental tutorials, whats wrong with these? Video tutorials for artists.
#17
12/11/2014 (3:33 pm)
Yes, there is a lot of tutorials and documentations, you just need to find them, sounds like a job for you then.
#18
12/11/2014 (10:59 pm)
Some thing like this would be nice to know how to make for T3d : http://imgur.com/vsazQUO 
#19
12/12/2014 (8:40 pm)
Desire to know more Intensifies
#20
You can build some thing like this on the picture, with groundcover in t3d.
Make a grass model (maybe with forester) or use a foliage or both together at a nice grass terrain texture.
set the view distance to 80 metre in the groundcover editor for the grass.
use about 40 000 - 80 000 foliages/grass model and it will look near like the picture.
12/15/2014 (7:52 am)
@ ChelaruYou can build some thing like this on the picture, with groundcover in t3d.
Make a grass model (maybe with forester) or use a foliage or both together at a nice grass terrain texture.
set the view distance to 80 metre in the groundcover editor for the grass.
use about 40 000 - 80 000 foliages/grass model and it will look near like the picture.
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