Since there has been a lot of discussion about this mod going on in various parts of the forum, and since a lot of work is actually getting done now, I figure it's as good a time as any to give it its own thread (if only to consolidate the discussion).
Thus, I officially announce
Project Red. So, here's the what, who, when, why, and how of it all.
What is Project Red?Project Red is an effort to compile some of the best factions available from the Glest community and enhance them in hopes of becoming the flagship tech of Glest Advanced Engine. Existing units will be modified to take advantage of GAE-specific features (such as emanations), new units will be added where necessary (e.g. boats), and factions will be tested and balanced against each other. Essentially, the idea is to create GAE's equivalent of the Megapack.
What is its purpose?Currently, I believe that one of the reasons why MegaGlest is more popular than GAE is that it's a full game packaged with a full suite of content. That is, it has its own factions that are under constant development, and thus it takes advantage of all its features as they become available. In contrast, GAE is an engine whose potential is largely untapped because of a lack of content. GAE does not have this same side-by-side development process that MG has, so players don't actually get to experience the power and flexibility of the engine (especially if they don't go looking for mods). Project Red intends to remedy that.
Obviously the upcoming merger changes things significantly, but I really am not looking forward to seeing a new Glest with the Megapack as its flagship. While useful, there are many things I don't like about the Megapack. "What, like you could do better?" With the help of others, I plan to.
Who will benefit from this?By growing alongside the engine and incorporating as many of GAE's new features as possible, this should bring a benefit to everyone involved. Players will be able to do more, giving them a more dynamic and enjoyable gaming experience due to the new gameplay features. Modders will be able to become part of an ambitious project and get the opportunity to show off their work without having to generate an entire faction or tileset single-handedly. The GAE programmers will have more people using new features as they are developed, giving them greater playtesting (and debugging) than ever before. The GAE project as a whole gets new content and screenshots to show off for publicity, hopefully attracting more players.
After the merger, these benefits should apply equally to the new Glest. The larger game development community gets new content that they are free to use in their own FOSS projects.
Why is it called Project Red?Many developers try to come up with a name that encompasses the main idea of the project, and it ends up restricting their progress as they try to maintain that original idea, instead of exploring new possibilities. I want this to be more open-ended and flexible, so I picked something arbitrary.
What factions are currently planned?Magic, Tech, Dwarves, Elves, Undead, Woodsmen. I selected these factions because they have high artistic quality, a coherent fantasy theme, and should appeal to players and modders alike. Factions may be added or dropped as time goes by, depending on scope and constraints. gAMeboy has shown interest in revamping his Elves to include units with GAE features, such as boats, and Mr War is already working on a version of Tech that includes boats, so I'll hold off on working on those two factions. Additionally, wciow has stated that he's taking another look at the Dwarves and Undead, so I plan to be in touch with these modders in the next couple days and hopefully we can all paddle in the same direction. My first priority right now is Magic, since I'm fairly sure nobody else has dibs on that.
How much work are we talking about here?That is very subject to change, but I'm currently looking at one to four units per faction, and some existing units could be improved, so a ballpark estimate would be that it's roughly equivalent to making one complete faction. This is a very rough estimate.
Why don't you include my favorite faction?A few people have asked about including Japan or other factions. While I personally feel it would clash with the overall fantasy theme the project has so far, I'm leaving the possibility open, as multiple people have said they want it. What it really comes down to is whether or not someone is willing to put forth the effort to make it a reality. Factions that are clearly not up to the standard of quality or don't fit the prevailing stylistic themes of the project at the time will not be part of the official project, but there's nothing stopping anyone from making them into a compatible add-on. I don't pretend to have a monopoly on anything here, and I expect that others will merge other factions into Project Red to really make it their own, in keeping with the true spirit of Free and Open Source software.
Who will be working on this?While I'll be putting a great deal of effort into this myself, I've been in touch with other members of the Glest community who I would like to work with and who I feel would be beneficial to the project, and I plan to contact more whenever it becomes appropriate to do so.
How can I help?If you're skilled at modeling, texturing, animation, sound recording, voice acting, and/or icon making, then this project will probably have a use for you. If not, there are less-technical areas that could use contributors to take some of the stress off of others -- things like XML and wiki editing. Texture photographers and concept artists may also be useful. Barring any of that, we'll be needing playtesters for balancing and quality assurance. We reserve the right to deny any volunteers who are unpleasant, and art contributions that aren't useful or aren't good enough will not make their way into the project's development. This helps to ensure that this project will be fun and rewarding for the developers.
Under what license will the content be released?Currently, the plan is to release all content generated from Project Red under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0 license (allowing later versions).
When will this all be finished?It will take as long as it takes, but hopefully that won't be egregiously long. I can't predict the future and I don't like deadlines, so I'm under no pretense of making one.
Why aren't there any screens yet?Projects and exams. I'll get around to it shortly.
Where will development be hosted?The
Project Red Github page is always up to date, including source files.
I have another question!Post it below and I'll do my best to indulge your curiosity.
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