Voice acting?

[Zwiebelchen]

I just implemented an easy method to access external sound files placed directly in your Warcraft III\GaiasRetaliation folder.

This does not require changing the game MPQs or replaces any other game files, so it does not affect your game outside of Gaias at all.

Also, it's completely optional. Players that have the external sound files installed will hear them, everyone else will just hear nothing at all (or some default native WC3 sound files).
It has perfect Bnet compatibility aswell as, again, it does not modify any game files.


This method will be used to allow for custom music tracks in the next release. I already told Jumbo about it and he is currently reworking the music mod to use this method instead of the cumbersome replacement MPQ, which not only makes it faster to download, but also safer to implement. Also, it will no longer change the music tracks in other maps or the game menu anymore.


Now, this same method can also be used to implement custom voice acting for quests, bosses or events.
Which raises the question if something like this would be nice to have? Do we have some skilled members in the community that want to volunteer on creating these voice acted files?


I could imagine having all the main quests fully voice-acted. Or to have custom sounds for the raid warnings on bosses in the game.

I can also use this method to add custom unit responses to the selectable heroes in the game.

 

[Heinvers]

Click. Just one among some.

 

[Jumbo]

I wonder, does this also mean that you can add graphical improvements without raising map size? As in adding a high poly footman to the Gaias specific folder while everyone without that installed will just see a normal footman? As long as that model uses ingame textures of course. Otherwise I suppose adding custom skins wouldnt be a problem?
Sorry I know this is offtopic, but it has to do with your new custom files system.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Click. Just one among some.

Holy shit, this guy is great! Request sent.

Could imagine using his voice for Brightblade (soldier acting) and some other NPCs, like the oracle. Or spirits with some heavy effects applied on top of it.

Or just as a custom soundset for the Squire archetypes.

I wonder, does this also mean that you can add graphical improvements without raising map size? As in adding a high poly footman to the Gaias specific folder while everyone without that installed will just see a normal footman?

No, this is not possible. The reason why it works for sounds and music is that I can select the filepaths for sound and music at runtime. But I can not change the models of units with a Jass function.

I can only use this method with objects that can be created by filepath at runtime:
- Sounds
- Special Effects
- Images


With image, I basicly mean those that I can draw on the landscape or use as fadefilters via script. I can not use it to replace icons or textures (without some serious hacking, ... maybe there is a workaround I haven't thought of yet).


I could use this method to create kind of an intro cinematic for Gaias that uses custom fade filters to display drawn images to explain the story.

 

[Jumbo]

Wow this would be awesome. After 1.2B is released that is ;-)

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Wow this would be awesome. After 1.2B is released that is ;-)

Voice acting doesn't require any real effort by me, as obviously, I won't be the one making the recordings. My voice is horrible and I couldn't stand hearing my own voice in this game.

All I have to do inside the gamecode is to assign a filepath variable to every dialogue text in the game that automaticly plays the specified file. That's literally a 3 minute job to implement.


Finding good voice actors is the harder part. Maybe I can ask a friend for some of the female voices. She's the only person I know with education in acting.

 

[Tzalksar]

Though I wouldn't be good at graphics, I'd be up for some VA.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Though I wouldn't be good at graphics, I'd be up for some VA.

Do you have any references we could listen to? Just out of curiousity.

 

[LordDz]

Just a question, but if it only looks for the GaiasRetaliation folder and not the full path, wouldn't this allow you to create a "Models" folder, and add models there for the map?

So instead of downloading X amount of models for every map, we could have one folder for the models, so we don't download the same models for every map.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Just a question, but if it only looks for the GaiasRetaliation folder and not the full path, wouldn't this allow you to create a "Models" folder, and add models there for the map?

So instead of downloading X amount of models for every map, we could have one folder for the models, so we don't download the same models for every map.

I just explained that. I can't have any object editor stuff reference external filepaths. I can only use custom files for sounds, images and special effects.

 

[LordDz]

I just explained that. I can't have any object editor stuff reference external filepaths. I can only use custom files for sounds, images and special effects.

Sorry 'bout that, just skimmed through the thread fast

But still neat for sounds.

 

[cheno3556]

This would be really awesome to have in gaias, I support it!

 

[BoxOfFaith]

Oh wow, this would be extremely cool. Looks like theres a really big chance that I'll have to start playing with Wc3 sounds on here really soon .

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Oh wow, this would be extremely cool. Looks like theres a really big chance that I'll have to start playing with Wc3 sounds on here really soon .

You should; if not for the custom music alone.

 

[Tzalksar]

Do you have any references we could listen to? Just out of curiousity.

I'll get some made up. unfortuneately, with a crappy headphone mic, it's quality might not be every good. Give me some lines to do I'll make em.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

I'll get some made up. unfortuneately, with a crappy headphone mic, it's quality might not be every good. Give me some lines to do I'll make em.

How bad exactly is the quality? Asking that because I found a cool website that offers free voiceacting services. Maybe it isn't even needed.

 

[Tzalksar]

It picks up on ambience. So I'd have to turn EVERYTHING, but the comp off so I could record it. So, tomorrow (Monday) I should be able to make a sample or two, reading some of the default War3 Lines. Otherwise, you could check out My Youtube Channel. Just watch the Pokémon vid I have up, It's me doing narration.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

It picks up on ambience. So I'd have to turn EVERYTHING, but the comp off so I could record it. So, tomorrow (Monday) I should be able to make a sample or two, reading some of the default War3 Lines. Otherwise, you could check out My Youtube Channel. Just watch the Pokémon vid I have up, It's me doing narration.

Could you try to do a troll or dwarf personification?

 

[Tzalksar]

Ja mon! Comin right up laddie!

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Seems like this project is taking shape.

I just got someone to voiceover the intro narration of the game and it's friggin' awesome. I plan to create a Game-of-Thrones style intro were the narrator explains the backstory of the game while the camera is flying over a pre-rendered map of the world and zooming in on the parts that are currently explained.

Currently working on a lightweight landscape/map model for that...

Maybe I can also derive a custom mini map picture from this when it's done. Something I was always reluctant on doing (because of filesize), but I recently deleted a useless 150KB model from the game files, so I have some new space to work with.

 

[Ihazdialup]

Will that play everytime the game is loaded, because I was thinking if possible only have it done as like an intro quest like listen to this woman's story for 25 xp or something

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Will that play everytime the game is loaded, because I was thinking if possible only have it done as like an intro quest like listen to this woman's story for 25 xp or something

Nah, it's completely optional.

It basicly asks the player when the game starts via a dialog choice if they want to watch the intro or not.

I'm also still not sure what approach I will take with the intro.
I could make it available only to those people that have the external resource pack that will ship with the next release. In that case, I can make the intro as detailed as I want without having to worry about filesize (I could even implement artworks as a picture slideshow to explain the story) and can render the landscape in ridicolously high detail...

Or I could make it so that everyone can watch the intro, but then I obviously have some limitations that I have to work with, in the way that all imports for the intro need to have a low filesize and no custom textures.

... actually, the intro could be a great way to advertise the extension pack. I really want players to use that friggin' extension pack, because it was a lot of work and adds so much to the game:
- voice acting
- awesome custom music
- super-crisp textures... holy crap, the sewers look AMAZING now!


Also, I plan on re-purposing the landscape render later by adding it to the skybox of Arsaios... which will create a neat parallax effect when in dungeon 4.

Here's a paint-draft extension based on the current minimap to show what will be part of the render map.
Good thing that blender has such nice features as displacement maps...

 

[Jumbo]

@Tzalksar Please dont make trolls with rastawannabe voices. It was a horrible idea by Blizzard in the first place.

EDIT: Instead use WC2 troll voices as reference or something entirely different.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Map is slowly taking shape... still need the terrain outside the playable area and some more colors (especially for the sea and lakes), also some text overlays.

 

[Jumbo]

Wow I like the Gothic style! I literally cannot wait for 1.2B these days.. :-/

 

[Zwiebelchen]

I gotta say I really hated it yesterday evening; but that was probably because I stared at the map for hours; now after catching some sleep, I like it much more and I think will continue using this style.

But I'll definitely remove some of the trees; they look spammed, especially on the Fjord area.

 

[Jumbo]

Maybe make the tree model slightly larger so that fewer trees will still look dense. I dont know though, havent viewed the map properly, only on smartphone.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Now we're talking...

Still not 100% satisfied with the floating island, but I'm slowly getting there.
Cool thing: the map is actually "playable". It contains the same information as the actual minimap; everything is in the right spot and the landscape layout matches perfectly. Even the floating island is exactly at the same spot as ingame; the clever 3D perspective makes it possible..

I'll probably replace the white fog with actual drawn clouds... I think it clashes too hard with the drawn style of the rest of the map.

 

[Jumbo]

Looks great. And yes the clouds should be remade. By the way is the Orcish East completely neglected on the map? :-D

 

[satoshikid]

Looks amazing~

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Looks great. And yes the clouds should be remade. By the way is the Orcish East completely neglected on the map? :-D

Yes, as it doesn't really matter for the story. Also, it's impossible to have the east part of the playable map, as is already has the maximum horizontal scale, so I didn't want to waste time on designing the map around it.


I still have to extend the current map layout farther south; as it's still not at 480x480 scale (I only mapped the regions in the north out for the current game; which has rectangular horizontal dimensions and will reveal some parts of the northern landscape on the minimap) and I haven't had the chance to put Menethrand on the map either, which will be important for the intro where the map is used as a high resolution image.

Also, names of locations and areas will only be on the high resolution image for the intro, not on the minimap, for visibility reasons.

The current resolution of the file is 4500x4500 pixels; I actually had to scale it down to one-third for Hive to even accept the images. The final image after extending it further south will have up to 4500x7000 pixels. I have to slice it into smaller parts for the game to be able to display it.

 

[Jumbo]

So the minimap will also be replaced by this?

 

[Zwiebelchen]

So the minimap will also be replaced by this?

Possibly, yes, but I have to see how it looks ingame; I expect compression and low resolution to mess it up big time. If critical information gets lost, I'd rather stick to the normal minimap.

 

[Jumbo]

Yeah I understand. But this is really cool news and I hope it fits!

By the way: any updates on the beta?

 

[Zwiebelchen]

It's coming; no worries.
Just getting a little sidetracked with the map-thingy. But I like the results so I'm almost done there.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Finished!

 

[LordDz]

Herp derp.

 

[satoshikid]

Those mountains you're referring to are probably the floating island xD

 

[Jumbo]

Yep, those 'mountains' are meant to be floating . Very cool Zwieb. Now time for some 1.2b beta!

 

[SHBlade]

Yes, give us something to test!

 

[Zwiebelchen]

I prefer the second image. The first one with the clouds, it makes the mountains look like they're flying.

They are supposed to be flying.

Just be a little patient; I'm currently busy coding the intro cinematic... but I think it's gonna be awesome when it's done.

 

[Heinvers]

Finished!

Pretty sweet, although the forest parts do look like mushroom forests.
'love the floating mountains/area btw.

 

[Jumbo]

I don't think they look like mushrooms at all. They look perfectly like trees drawn on a map.

 

[Mullock]

look nice map

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Pretty sweet, although the forest parts do look like mushroom forests.
'love the floating mountains/area btw.

That's because you only see the low resolution image here in hive. The original has thrice the resolution.

I tested it out ingame and started coding the actual cinematic now... I also have drawn images for several things explained in the intro cinematic... friggin' awesome.
I won't post any more previews on this now, because I don't want to spoil the fun of watching it.

 

[Im_Noob]

now what release in the next update, 1.2A(14) or 1.2B?

 

[Zwiebelchen]

now what release in the next update, 1.2A(14) or 1.2B?

There will definitely be a 1.2A(14) release with the mystic classes and external libraries before the actual 1.2B content update, as I'd like you guys to test and check out the new class thoroughly so I can fix the class balancing before shipping new content.

 

[SHBlade]

So when will u release 1.2A(14)? (Maybe next week? )

 

[Jumbo]

When it's done I suppose ;-).
Perhaps we should just enjoy the summer instead of holding our breath for the release. When it's out we will then be taken by surprise which makes it a better experience. Spending too much time checking forums all the time will in the end only lead to disappointment, because one put so much effort in being excited that the release cannot outweigh it. I am saying this as much to myself as to everyone else :-D.

 

[Zwiebelchen]

1.2A(14) will come pretty soon. Finished the intro cinematic today and can now concentrate on the last remaining skills and the Mystic class change quest.