I know this game is kinda old, but it is a unique game; I love it :) So I decided to do some tests, what may be possible in the future to give this game a new chance. (Sadly the game developers aren't working anymore on this game since 2010 or 2011).
A good method imho is to inject a dll (dynamic link library), so we were able to 'hijack' some of the gamecode and replace it with improved and/or bugfixed code then. Or we could add some new features.
A first step I made a few days ago was to hijack the "airAttack.6" function, which is responsible for dogfights (fighter vs. fighter).
I made a short video ... : Aargh, I'm not allowed to post links here I'll post a screenshot instead :/
It may be also a good idea to add an editor directly to the game. The old editor (made by Creeper) is good, but outdated and very slow.
Anything you can do that will breathe some life in to this game, will be most welcome.
I wish you good luck and keep us informed!
Thanks warshipbuilder!
Here is a small update.
The last 2 days I spent my time on adding an editor to the game... Ok, it's not an editor yet, but I made a lot of listviews which shows all aircraft, airGroups, locations, pilots, devices, leader and all raids. I added also a sort function for every listview column.
Next step for me is to figure out how I could edit these values in a user-friendly way and finally write back the changes to the games memory. But this should be not a big deal, I suppose ... ;-)
I've made good progress with my project! Most all of the relevant game data are now available in the editor.
Also I managed to draw directly to the game screen. That open up the way to use our own gfx routines. The possibilities are endless e.g. high resolution aircraft images and so on ...
seeing your screenshots, looks like hacking the game rather than modding some files - brings back some memories... i'd love to mod CoH but that damn code isn't going to let me do ****!
Well, you're right, chem, currently it's a kind of hacking, but once my dll injection is fully functional, we can start modding the game files. You know, better graphics etc.
If this game wouldn't have been abandoned by the developers, then there would be no need for that kind of hacking, imo. But I would like to see an improved version of this game!
added realtime updates in the Message listview. added button for highlighting airfields with airgroups. added button to lock the map to prevent map jumping. (if you want to watch a special location during a bombing run, for example)
added a map to the messages listview (now it looks like the tool "message reader"). So it's possible to lock the map in the main window on a specific location and simultaneously you can follow the regular action in the message listview map. Ok, perhaps not an important feature, but it was fun for me to code this behavior.
Nevertheless, next week I'll work on the editor again.
First attempt to get more infos on the messages listview map. (Only the players own airgroups are shown yet.)
The small black circle above the group name shows the exact position of these raid. What do you think? Should I draw the circles in different colors to identify their current missions? Color white for "Returning to airfield", red for "intercept" or something like that?
So I have to say that I'm very sorry about my current username inconsistency here at the forum. My first matrixforum account "Toffi" was lost after merging my matrix account with my slitherine account (New Unified Login System). My second account "UnkownGuy" I lost after changing my email address in the control panel.
Both times Matrix told me they have sent an email to me to confirm the changes, but I never got emails from Matrix (perhaps I spelled the email address wrong, idk).
So I cant login with my old accounts anymore and because it's easier and faster for me to create a new account instead of discussing my login problems with Matrix, here I am back again as "AlterEgo".
I hope this new account last longer than the old ones. *Sigh* Toffi
-------------------
Back to topic
Thank you guys for the kudos and the feedback you gave to me since the beginning of the project! I am dependent on your advice and suggestions.
I just stumbled over an issue you probably already know if you playing the game in more detail. You can see that the III./SKG 10 at pos 951,1186 are trying to attack a target at pos 629,229 several hundreds miles away, and alongside said: the target is not an enemy... This bug is on my bugfix ToDo-list!
here is the same situation how it looks in the messageview map window. Some colour coding is done. There is currently no FOW activated, so there are all raids visible on the map. Also the "target pos infos" are only for debugging purposes.
here is another odd issue I can address in the future if needed. You can see in the red circles that some groups are running out of fuel during combat. That's because the fuel consumption is not very well calculated in the game,imo. It could be that an attack costs 6-18 fuel (fuel = flight time in minutes) depends on a random value, iirc. Either we change the fuel consumption routine, or planes with no fuel should do a crash landing. What do you think? Or am I too fussy? This could also be the case.
Posts: 814
Joined: 1/31/2002 From: Central Texas Status: offline
OOOra!
I'd have bought this game years ago at full price if it had not been fatally broken and never patched. Shame on Matrix. If you can fix the Oil/Fuel problem, the issue with "pools"/pilots/planes and the invincibly rated Luftwaffe fighters, I will buy a copy.
_____________________________
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.-Edmund Burke Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; if it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it.-Judge Learned Hand
Posts: 814
Joined: 1/31/2002 From: Central Texas Status: offline
If I recall correctly, one of the fuel related issues was that it was not possible to cripple it by bombing oilfields or refineries, i.e. the strategic bombing campaign had some issues. This is in addition to any fuel consumption stuff. There are a couple of old threads still floating out there about this and one or two other serious issues.
_____________________________
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.-Edmund Burke Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; if it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it.-Judge Learned Hand
I just stumbled over an issue you probably already know if you playing the game in more detail. You can see that the III./SKG 10 at pos 951,1186 are trying to attack a target at pos 629,229 several hundreds miles away, and alongside said: the target is not an enemy... This bug is on my bugfix ToDo-list!
Good news, I found and fixed the bug!
< Message edited by AlterEgo -- 7/3/2015 6:17:35 AM >
If I recall correctly, one of the fuel related issues was that it was not possible to cripple it by bombing oilfields or refineries, i.e. the strategic bombing campaign had some issues. This is in addition to any fuel consumption stuff. There are a couple of old threads still floating out there about this and one or two other serious issues.
Thanks for the info, solops! I'll look through the old threads when my editor works as intended.
Just to let you know that there is someone else out there keeping a keen eye on your progress. I bought GGEDTBTR on special a while ago now but have not much touched it yet. I certainly will if you can fix things up a bit.
He give a number of different ways in which you should be able to win as the Allies. Whether they all work I can't say, but it might be worth investigating. Also, apparently you can not win either of the tactical ground scenarios, so you may wish to look at that as well. Sorry if this seems unfair to pile all this on your shoulders, but right now you are the one hope all of us have in making the game work as it should, so I give you a BIG THANKYOU for your efforts.
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