Dune Dynasty

[Wesker]

I don't have any of these missing graphics issues. Mentat, Options, Credits, Confirm, Repeat, Yes, No, etc. are all there in Spanish.

Somehow yours is not displaying any of the .SHP files. (Mentat, Options, and Credits should be blue.)

Do your mentats animate?

This kind of reminds me of Nyerguds' problem on win7, though not quite as bad. I completely forgot about that issue. Nyer, was that ever resolved?

I'm not really sure at this stage. Maybe try upgrading video drivers, and using Direct 3D instead of OpenGL.

Problem solved. I just had to change the "driver=opengl" string to "driver=direct3d" string in dunedynasty.cfg, and that solved the missing .SHP files completely. Maybe the direct3d string should be default in .cfg file rather than opengl because that's probably giving less problems to everyone.

I'd like to know if the long line problems occur in the original too, and if

they don't, what they look like. Either it's a bug in the OpenDUNE code,

or the Spanish DUNE and INTRO files need to be fixed.

The "!" is actually a newline character (\n or 0x0D) instead of a space (0x20),

which is likely to be a bug in the data file.

The Spanish credits file is encrypted (other languages aren't), is in

English, and has everyone's name removed. You might as well just

replace your CREDITS.GER with the English one here.

(The Italian version is also just the same as the English version.)

I can't remember them scenes being that way, but it's been a long time since I watched those scenes in the original game. I suppose I would have to play the game to check them out. Maybe there's an easier way to access them in the original game without having to complete the levels. Even if it's just a savegame.

Funny thing about the encrypted credits. Makes you think what the heck did they do with the Spanish version with so much wrong things like the deleted worm string and this credits weirdness.

Future work.

Good to know.

Thanks. (Not limited to the Spanish version.)

No problem.

 

Oops, made a bug that only shows up in Windows (in all languages). Try again.

Thanks. I'll check it now.

[Wesker]

Oops, made a bug that only shows up in Windows (in all languages). Try again.

Thanks. I'll check it now.

Works like a charm now. Thank you.

I'll look for further improvements. Keep up the good work with both programs. :)

[Nyerguds]

Problem solved. I just had to change the "driver=opengl" string to "driver=direct3d" string in dunedynasty.cfg, and that solved the missing .SHP files completely. Maybe the direct3d string should be default in .cfg file rather than opengl because that's probably giving less problems to everyone.

That was indeed what solved that problem for me on Win7 too, IIRC.

[Nyerguds]

I've been going over the change logs of the latest versions...

-you fixed the carryalls delivery bug? Woah, epic :D

-"Starport restocks items that are not delivered." - what exactly does that mean? How so, "not delivered"?

-when you fixed the sonic range bug, what did you set the final range to? Because I think most people are used to having that range provided by the maximum game speed...

[Nyerguds]

Right... testing the latest version:

-the music list function is awesome. You put some work into that! :O Where do these track titles come from, though? As far as I know the only version with official track titles is the SMD one.

-the picture viewer is rather unintuitive. It seems clicking on the left or right side does Next/Previous

-[skirmish] I tried Skirmish, and it seems I fail my mission before I have gotten the chance to deploy my construction yard... can you make a check on there being an MCV that prevents this from happening, just in case you can't find a place to deploy right away?

-[skirmish] could you add a feature to actually choose a seed rather than generate one?

-[skirmish] Adding players adds spice?

-Somehow after first playing, and failing, that skirmish, I got 300 money in the "Options and Extras" view. Like, just randomly counted up to 300.

-Originally, the game had left mouse button as "center screen here" option. Can you bring that back on middle mouse button?

-Could there be an option to add C&C-like exploring, where the terrain is revealed whenever a unit enters a new cell, rather than whenever it stops on one?

Do you actually generate bases in Skirmish? Because that's pretty damn amazing :O

It does seem I need to restart Skirmish games a few times just to make sure I know where to go, and more importantly, NOT to go, with my MCV... stumbled on the enemy base once, and got pulverized by 5 Devastators :|

Overall, Skirmish is tons of fun though, despite a few oddities :D

[MrFlibble]

-the music list function is awesome. You put some work into that! :O Where do these track titles come from, though? As far as I know the only version with official track titles is the SMD one.

The Dune II music sample downloads at Westwood's FTP suggest that tracks had titles, but they were probably never made public anyway.

[dynasty]

-"Starport restocks items that are not delivered." - what exactly does that mean? How so, "not delivered"?

It's a Dune Dynasty thing. It currently lets you pay for as many units as you can afford, provided there is stock. When the frigate comes to deliver your order, if you reach the maximum unit limit, it will give you a refund instead. This change makes it also restock the starport, which I had forgotten to do.

Anyway, the starport ordering system will be changed in the future so that you will only be allowed to buy a unit if it can actually be spawned on the map.

 

-when you fixed the sonic range bug, what did you set the final range to? Because I think most people are used to having that range provided by the maximum game speed...

I made it so that "game speed" adjusts the game logic rate (e.g. it runs at 60 cycles per second on normal, but at 120 cycles per second on fastest).

So the range will be the same as normal game speed.

 

-the music list function is awesome. You put some work into that! :O Where do these track titles come from, though? As far as I know the only version with official track titles is the SMD one.

I took the titles from http://www.vgmpf.com/Wiki/index.php?title=Dune,

which, uh, says: "The titles come from a popular unofficial soundtrack of unknown origin."

 

-[skirmish] I tried Skirmish, and it seems I fail my mission before I have gotten the chance to deploy my construction yard... can you make a check on there being an MCV that prevents this from happening, just in case you can't find a place to deploy right away?

Oh, right. It currently works because of the 3 minutes before checking of lose conditions thing.

 

-[skirmish] Adding players adds spice?

No, but spice blooms are being placed after bases (some pre-exploded). Depending on how many random numbers are consumed, the spice fields can sometimes change.

It was done mostly to avoid units spawning on spice blooms. It's a bit odd and really should be changed.

Also on the wish list: add a way to increase the amount of spice on the level.

 

-Could there be an option to add C&C-like exploring, where the terrain is revealed whenever a unit enters a new cell, rather than whenever it stops on one?

It looks really weird to me, to be honest. It's already done for fog of war, so no reason why not.

 

It does seem I need to restart Skirmish games a few times just to make sure I know where to go, and more importantly, NOT to go, with my MCV... stumbled on the enemy base once, and got pulverized by 5 Devastators :|

Overall, Skirmish is tons of fun though, despite a few oddities :D

I think it's a little too difficult at the moment. I'll probably reduce the number of turrets and initial high-level tanks, and make the AI build a few key structures (e.g. palace).

As always, thanks for the feedback!

[Nyerguds]

It's a Dune Dynasty thing. It currently lets you pay for as many units as you can afford, provided there is stock. When the frigate comes to deliver your order, if you reach the maximum unit limit, it will give you a refund instead. This change makes it also restock the starport, which I had forgotten to do.

Anyway, the starport ordering system will be changed in the future so that you will only be allowed to buy a unit if it can actually be spawned on the map.

Given the time between ordering and delivering, the system you have now will need to stay in place anyway, though.

 

Oh, right. It currently works because of the 3 minutes before checking of lose conditions thing.

Well, ideally, the rules should be that you don't lose if you have either one or more buildings, OR have an MCV and enough credits to build both a power plant and a refinery.

 

How on earth do you generate these bases, though? :O

It looks really weird to me, to be honest. It's already done for fog of war, so no reason why not.

I dunno, I usually end up exploring by moving one cell at the time, especially with low-sight units, so the end result is the same, only a lot less tedious.

Anyway.. stay awesome. This game is fantastic :)

[MrFlibble]

I dunno, I usually end up exploring by moving one cell at the time, especially with low-sight units, so the end result is the same, only a lot less tedious.

I'd say the default way of shroud removal is part of the original game mechanics, whether this was done intentionally by the developers or not. Careful exploration cell by cell with units that have a long sight range (launchers or sonic tanks) becomes quite important in later missions. But then you can also zap through unrevealed terrain with a trike or a raider to get a quick but incomplete picture of a larger area.

I'd also say it makes more sense for a unit to fully reveal the surrounding area when it has stopped from a realistic standpoint. A mobile scout will stop to study the terrain, and heavier vehicles like tanks also need to stop to properly observe the surrounding area.

[Reverie_Aveline]

Hey guys, I need help on compiling the source code on Windows 7.

Where should I get the FluidSynth and MadPlay? and How should I install it for cmake to compile the source correctly

[Nyerguds]

I'd say the default way of shroud removal is part of the original game mechanics, whether this was done intentionally by the developers or not. Careful exploration cell by cell with units that have a long sight range (launchers or sonic tanks) becomes quite important in later missions. But then you can also zap through unrevealed terrain with a trike or a raider to get a quick but incomplete picture of a larger area.

I'd also say it makes more sense for a unit to fully reveal the surrounding area when it has stopped from a realistic standpoint. A mobile scout will stop to study the terrain, and heavier vehicles like tanks also need to stop to properly observe the surrounding area.

Yeah, yeah, I did consider all that. But it'd still be nice to have as option :P

[Iran]

Do you have any interest in adding online multiplayer support? We could add support for this game to CnCnet v5, which has tunnel servers (to bypass the need for ports to be open/forwarded) and a complete lobby system with support for map transfers and tons of features. All you need to add is a system to load a multiplayer (or skirmish) map externally by reading the match info from an external INI file. And of course the online multiplayer support.

 

Taking a look at the OpenDune code there would need to be many changes to support online synchronization (a network events system). I don't have any experience doing multiplayer networking but some of the OpenDune developers have experience with doing OpenTTD networking if I remember correctly. I'm interested in helping with this (even though I have zero experience adding network support to a game), just to see Dune 2 playable on CnCNet v5.

[Nyerguds]

Iran, do remember this is based on the original Dune II code, which was never meant to be multiplayer-capable; heck, opening any of the production screens actually paused the game.

I think making this multiplayer-capable would be a gargantuan task...

[dynasty]

Multiplayer has been in development for a little while now.

Might look into CnCNet in the future.

[Iran]

What kind of things have you done so far?

 

CnCNet v5 support requires adding a -SPAWN command line argument which reads an INI file with match settings and the IP and port of other players. It's an external launcher and it manages things like tunnel servers, filling in this INI which needs to be read by the game, and making sure everyone launches the game at the same time.

 

Things Red Alert 95 does:

- Connect to players

- Wait for players at start of match

- Send/receive packets

- Frame synchronization and checking with CRC

- Adjust networking timing

- Kill connection of non-responsive players (and makes their house AI controlled)

- Execute network event do-list

 

The following network events (where 'mega missions' are things like setting a unit into guard mode or telling a vehicle to repair on the service depot):

 

dd offset Event_Execute_ALLY

dd offset Event_Execute_MEGAMISSION

dd offset Event_Execute_MEGAMISSION_F

dd offset Event_Execute_IDLE

dd offset Event_Execute_SCATTER

dd offset Event_Execute_DESTRUCT

dd offset Event_Execute_NULL

dd offset Event_Execute_PLACE

dd offset Event_Execute_OPTIONS

dd offset Event_Execute_GAMESPEED

dd offset Event_Execute_PRODUCE

dd offset Event_Execute_SUSPEND

dd offset Event_Execute_ABANDON

dd offset Event_Execute_PRIMARY

dd offset Event_Execute_SPECIAL_PLACE

dd offset Event_Execute_EXIT

dd offset Event_Execute_ANIMATION

dd offset Event_Execute_REPAIR

dd offset Event_Execute_SELL

dd offset Event_Execute_SELLCELL

dd offset Event_Execute_SPECIAL

dd offset Event_Execute_NULL

dd offset Event_Execute_NULL

dd offset Event_Execute_RESPONSE_TIME

dd offset Event_Execute_NULL

dd offset Event_Execute_SAVEGAME

dd offset Event_Execute_ARCHIVE

dd offset Event_Execute_ADDPLAYER

dd offset Event_Execute_TIMING

dd offset Event_Execute_PROCESS_TIME

dd offset Event_Execute_PROPOSE_DRAW

dd offset Event_Execute_RETRACT_DRAW

 

The engine (and the critical RNG) is deterministic so RNG isn't synchronized, all that's done is seeding it with a value at start that's same for every client. 

 

You'll have to take a look into adding support for sending messages to players ingame too and showing a player list with the right colors. 

[dynasty]

At the moment, clients can send the server some basic instructions like "move here", "attack that", or "build something".
The server processes the game logic and sends the updated game state out to the clients.

[Iran]

You're using a server model?

[Nyerguds]

That means you can't do simple LAN without server...

The C&C model is based on making the games run so parallel that by sending just the actions, the games stay perfectly synchronized. As Iran said, this process is possible through synchronizing the seed value used for all random values generated by the game.

[dynasty]

One of the players will be both client and server.  That machine will

handle basically all of the game logic.  The other clients are pretty

dumb, mostly just handling UI stuff.  It's more robust this way, and

easier too.

[swt83]

I'm very excited at the prospect of Dune2 multiplayer.  I can imagine it being quite popular!  Will there be a text chat ability in the game?  Also, if you need someone to test with, I'd be happy to assist.

[Iran]

 

One of the players will be both client and server.  That machine will

handle basically all of the game logic.  The other clients are pretty

dumb, mostly just handling UI stuff.  It's more robust this way, and

easier too.

 

Oh that makes sense yeah. Not sure if that causes issues and I think it might allow the server to cheat.

[dynasty]

Yes, the server can cheat, but I don't think it's really a big deal.  

I'd be happy to just have something really solid.

 

For someone really worried about such things, you could set up a

dedicated server using a trusted binary and all the players would be

dedicated clients.

[R1per2]

On Harkonnen level5, troopers (group) available on Vanilla Dune2. Why is that change in Dynasty?

[R1per2]

I tried Dune Dynasty yesterday. It's awesome! Much better than any other remakes. Bug fixes, menus, everything just perfect! Thank you for your work on it!

 

Some notice and questions:

- Sadly noticed freeze midgame, but rarely!

- Harkonnen can produce troopers (group) on level 4 already, not just on level 5. Why do you change it?

- Insane AI is cool, like the way it moves units, but produce very fast (1400credit/harvester as I can see), too strong for campaing.

- Fog of war ftw!

- Turrets don't attack fremens many times. Depends on what?

- Why Ornis available in Starport? It's not in 1.07.

[drnovice]

I don't know about changes, but in original v1.07 WOR has tech level 5, but Harkonnen has exception to level 2 for Trooper, and Troopers for level 3.

Again Ornithopters are available into Starport from Mission 8.