Mod-Idea for ingame loading screens

[mic1184]

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/5153/previewfl2.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-06
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http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/6243/sample2kl2.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-14
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hey all,

as becoming a somewhat advanced gwx player i realized there is still a lot to learn about the kaleun's job when you think you knew everything now.

second thing i realized is that the more (fantastic) mods you use, the ingame loading times increase dramatically (yes gwx is worth an hour of waiting, but still).

now i really cant wait for the game to become ready so im sitting in front of the loading screens for minutes. i thought it might be a good idea to create many different loading screens with gameplay hints and tipps, and use SH3 Commander to randomize them. i remember a "random gwx start screen mod" or something for SH3 Cmdr, so i think it wouldnt be such a big problem.

We would just need someone with some photoshop or whatever skills and a lot of cool tipps and stuff. i can think of hundreds if i had to, you could also make different player skill loading screens, like a "rookie tips loading screens mod" with stuff like 'it's generally not a good idea to try and attack enemy destroyers, as they can change their course very quickly and you're unlikely to hit them with a single torpedo. etc", an "advanced player's loading screens" with stuff like "to passage hot zones like the channel or around skapa flow, it might just be the better idea to wait for a black and stormish night and go surfaced with high speed along the coast quickly. Being submerged, the destroyers are much more likely to spot you, as they listen better than they see" or something like this. the "pro player tips" i cant think of an example as im not a pro player ;-) anyways.

i think this idea could make the game even a little more precious to many players (esp. those who play the "hard" gwx, in which good knowledge is the #1 surviving factor)

greez mic

[lutzow]

Very good idea, mate. Tips must be made by someone very experienced in SH3. Maybe any Grey Wolf from GWX team could help. They are now overworked but maybe after...? About making screens...hm - i have in my roster only one maestro : JCWolf. He's busy now in making new big mod [he's always busy with making mods;)].Venatore is also posts fine pictures with releasing his mods. I don't know who else.
Anyway - good idea.

[mic1184]

okay this thing doesn't go out of my mind. another idea are some prominent quotes, stories, facts or technical specifications of the subs, of torpedoes etc. There really is unlimited interesting material to fill up these loading sessions.

im going to organize this. of course it will take a while to collect some stuff, but shouldnt be too hard with this great community.

if anyone wants to participate and see your name on one of the loading screens, send me your "tips", "facts", "short stories" etc via PM please.

also, it would be great if you made available your great personal loading screen pictures (game start splash and mission loading screens). the more you people participate, the faster we get a REAL lot of screens.

[TheDarkWraith]

use SH3 commander's random feature to provide random loading screens.

[Hitman]

SH3 Commander will also provide you period-news in the mission briefing, which you can read while loading. Anyway, if GWX has a drawback, I agree that is the huge loading times :down: Nothing the GWX team can do about it, sadly, it's a SH3 limitation when adding lots of stuff to the campaigns :nope:

[mic1184]

Yes SH3 Cmdr is a must for this mod, but i believe it is a must anyways ;-) after an hour of research i found that there is really TOO much... the only hard thing is to distinguish good gameplay help from bad help, as i am not really the pro player. but this should be going well.

i added a poll for you so i can find out what to emphasize more. Also i will be needing a lot of *good* loading screen motives. i hope im gonna find time for all of this...

[JCWolf]

Hi everyone,

I have made on several ocasions Mods That use SH3Comm. Randomisation,
You can do it easelly, in fact You can change with that feature as many
Loading screens as you want!

As for the Loading screen Idea I think it's a very cool and Usefull idea,
I personaly think that Historical Facts unified with Tech facts can be
the perfect lauching bases on such a Mod!

thought I can help on anything, I can only be involved on this later after the
release of my current WIP, the U-Boat 1.2..


Damn cool idea I must say !:up: :yep:

[TheDarkWraith]

i hope im gonna find time for all of this...

Once you get into modding your social life will take a hit ;)

[mic1184]

i hope im gonna find time for all of this...
Once you get into modding your social life will take a hit ;)

uh oh, well who needs a social life if you're on SUBSIM! ;-)

im collecting historical facts like crazy here, its actually quite easy with wikipedia and uboat.net. i think the gameplay tips are the most difficult part, but they were the original idea, so i will stick to them as well. as said, please PM me with them ^^

[GlobalExplorer]

The idea is not bad at all .. which is the german way of saying that it is a good one!

Reading maps / technical information while you are wating for the game to load .. not bad at all.

mic1184, if you should make some progress with your mod, you may contact me later if you want to include maps like this one (http://www.global-explorer.de/screens/medi.jpg) - it might be something that I could contribute.

[Cezbor]

Great idea, I've been thinking about that recently:yep: It would add a lot to the game :up:

[mic1184]

okay work is going fine. as a thread sucks if there arent any pictures, i made a teaser file at post #1.

just again: everyone is welcome to send me stuff to use! thx night

[TheDarkWraith]

okay work is going fine. as a thread sucks if there arent any pictures, i made a teaser file at post #1.

Very cool. Let me know when it's done. :up:

[Kaleu. Jochen Mohr]

i would like to have all of them. since it is randomized it should be possible :D

[mic1184]

okay wow this is actually a lot of fun. i have been focusing on the historical facts so far as they are the most interesting for myself to create ;-) i knew that time would come where reading all those books and stuff pays out...

a free sample
http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/9563/samplesk7.jpg

EDIT: oh yeah, of course the whole mod is gonna be free, before someone asks.

and second, please don't mind the "GWX 1.04" in the upper left. this is just because im playing GWX (and looking forward to 1.04). i will release two versions, one with the GWX version info and one without, for those who play vanilla or other supermods.

[JCWolf]

Sugestion -

If you keep the info in the letter type of paper like in your first
screen it would look much better !

Thought I love the work mate the first screen with the paper letter
is absolute and beautifull!:hmm:

[mic1184]

Sugestion -

If you keep the info in the letter type of paper like in your first
screen it would look much better !


i've experimented a lot and can use the "attached Reich document" style only with quite short texts. the layout you see in the sample will be applied for the more substantial texts. there will be a mix of about 3 -4 different styles, maybe only the two you see as im not satisfied with the others yet.

as to the background pictures, im not sure whether to use different ones. so far i havent planned to use another than the shown.

thanks for your positive feedback. im working hard and have about 40 intro screens with historical facts so far. if that keeps going so well, you'll find hundreds in the first release ;-)

[melnibonian]

It's a very good and really clever idea. I would suggest to have all four options in the intro screens (Data, Facts, Hints etc). As it is suggested before if you use SH3Cmdr you can set up the files in the random folder so that you have no repetitions (well not loads of them at least).

[Dau-U-42]

Hi! I'm new to SHIII and just joined here to get to know this game it's mods etc. :ping:

And this is a brilliant idea! There are a few things I'd like to point out: First of all you should consider the length of the text displayed. It should be long enough so that reading it would last approximately the whole loading time. Another thing is the background. Are you going to leave it like that (in-game screenshots)? It would be extremely cool to use real photographs of the era, perhaps so there would be different sets of photos for every loading screen, matching it's text.

[mic1184]

Hi! I'm new to SHIII and just joined here to get to know this game it's mods etc. :ping:

And this is a brilliant idea! There are a few things I'd like to point out: First of all you should consider the length of the text displayed. It should be long enough so that reading it would last approximately the whole loading time. Another thing is the background. Are you going to leave it like that (in-game screenshots)? It would be extremely cool to use real photographs of the era, perhaps so there would be different sets of photos for every loading screen, matching it's text.
hi and welcome to the forum and thanks for your interest. of course you're right with all of your arguments, but im sorry to have to compromise:

1. of course it would be nice to adapt the text length perfectly to the loading time, but unfortunately this is impossible, as loading time varies a really GREAT range depending on which mods you installed and on your hardware configuration. also the texts should be comfortably readible, so text length will be very compact. I'm trying to pack as much information into as short text as possible.

2. real photographs are usually black&white and (mostly) of poor quality. good ones are quite hard to find. you're (of course) free to pm me with your wonderful photographs if you have them ;-)

3. even if i had such many different high quality background pictures as to completely customize them to the text displayed, it would be a whole lot of work, as good page layout is more time-consuming than you'd think.
where do i put text, boxes, additional pictures, symbols, logos etc in the picture. what can be covered, where should transparency be applied. does it look overloaded if i put xy to z... its more complex than just putting anything together by the first impression.
that is why i choose to employ only one single background picture so far. if i get others which i instantly fall i love with i will of course rethink it... again you're all free to pm me with your stuff ;-)

one other factor is quantity. i need really LOTS of different texts for this mod to become interesting for longer than 2 weeks. right now i got about 40 together, each of them carefully chosen, researched, composed, edited and layouted. these 40 screens were a good 2 days work (with 4 hours per day maybe), 1/2 of it simply doing the layout.

i think i need at least 80 - 100 each for game loading screen and career mission loading screen and maybe 30 - 50 for the single mission loading and 20 - 40 of the museum loading screen. so about 250 different screens. with only one layout that'd be a remaining 21 hours of pure work, with an average of 3 hrs per day thats 7 days to go to the first release... doesnt sound much, but i have a girlfriend, got university, a job, family, friends and an unfinished gwx career. so its going to be rather 2 - 3 weeks.

if i then added too much layouting time, it would become 4 - 6 weeks for one (good) layout per 40 screens. and 4 - 6 weeks of regularly work might become the death of a good modding idea.

as i wish not to compromise quality OR quantity of the texts, i will not put much more efforts in a variety of layouts.

duh, i guess this is a 'welcome to the modder's life' :yep:

[Dau-U-42]

You've got some really reasonable points there and I agree with you about everyone of them. I unfortunately can't supply you with any photos or knowledge of U-boats. I am however willing to assist you by giving tips and my thoughts on your work as much as everyone else is. By no means do not take any extra pressure for your already busy life.

I'd like to know what are your topics for the screens going to be like. You've already shown an example of a U-boat commander. Do you need suggestions for new topics? 250 screens are a lot. You could consider writing about the phases of the U-boat warfare ('Happy Time', Operation Drumbeat...), technologies that changed the naval warfare (sonar, hydrophone, hedgehogs...), famous U-boat battles (Scapa Flow...). The possibilities are endless. What topics have you already used?

[JCWolf]

I have to make you realise something!


This is no doubt a good idea and I'm sure it will
be a great screen Mod, but remember something...

As much files you had into SHIII commander as long
it will take to load, so if the iseu was from the begining
the time for loading the Mod, here you will have the SHIII
commander loading what 100 or more Graphic files that
no doubt can be small in Kbs or Mbs but toghether it will become
a huge amount of data that the SH3Commander will have to load,

I have some Mods that use the Randomisation feature of the SH3 Com.
and I know what I'm saying....

So if the isue was loading times , I guess it would be better to decrease
the number of screens or other wise you'll be 15 or 20 minutes in low end PC's
wayting for the SH3 Com. to load...:hmm:


Just a sugestion and warning from a Fellow SSimer:up:

[mic1184]

You've got some really reasonable points there and I agree with you about everyone of them. I unfortunately can't supply you with any photos or knowledge of U-boats. I am however willing to assist you by giving tips and my thoughts on your work as much as everyone else is. By no means do not take any extra pressure for your already busy life.

I'd like to know what are your topics for the screens going to be like. You've already shown an example of a U-boat commander. Do you need suggestions for new topics? 250 screens are a lot. You could consider writing about the phases of the U-boat warfare ('Happy Time', Operation Drumbeat...), technologies that changed the naval warfare (sonar, hydrophone, hedgehogs...), famous U-boat battles (Scapa Flow...). The possibilities are endless. What topics have you already used?

thanks for your tips. 250 screens really sounds much, but believe me, it isnt hard to fill. i have been systematically creating those screens, beginning with the "aces of the deeps" (10 famous u-boat commanders + dönitz), short descriptions and stories about the flotillas (makes another ~ 10 screens), went over to some of the most interesting convoy battles (like OB-293 where U47 was lost), now i've started with specials like the german Grid system, captured u-boats, wolfpack system, etc.

next things are descriptions about the u-boats (types and revisions, II's, VII's, IX's, mine layers, milkcows, walther-boats, electro-boats), maybe the compartments with pictures (the diesel-room, torpedo rooms, etc), then the torpedoes (including the special torpedoes, the "torpedo crisis" etc), maybe ordnance like mines, magnetic mines, sub nets etc, then - as you suggested - the detection technics like hydrophone and sonar types, ASDIC, radar (and how it changed u-boat warfare), etc. i like the ideas of the periods also. you've made good suggestions thanks. keep them coming. ;-)

i think im gonna abandon the gameplay tips, as they dont seem to be popular from the polls and also they're the hardest part for myself.


I have to make you realise something!


This is no doubt a good idea and I'm sure it will
be a great screen Mod, but remember something...

As much files you had into SHIII commander as long
it will take to load, so if the iseu was from the begining
the time for loading the Mod, here you will have the SHIII
commander loading what 100 or more Graphic files that
no doubt can be small in Kbs or Mbs but toghether it will become
a huge amount of data that the SH3Commander will have to load,

I have some Mods that use the Randomisation feature of the SH3 Com.
and I know what I'm saying....

So if the isue was loading times , I guess it would be better to decrease
the number of screens or other wise you'll be 15 or 20 minutes in low end PC's
wayting for the SH3 Com. to load...:hmm:

hmm, i know a bit what you're saying. since i installed the GWX skin pack, SH3 commander takes about 5 minutes to just copy them at every game start. the 'date' folder in SH3 Cmdr directory is 1.6 GB big.

now unfortunately, each single screen is 3 MB, due to the TGA file format. that will make 600 - 800 additional MBs for SH3 cmdr dir.

i didnt worry so much about it so far, because i thought SH3 Cmdr must only copy 4 TGAs per start (intro, career mission load, singe mission load and museum load). i will have to test how long it really takes, i havent done that so far.
but you've pointed out a serious problem. i hope this isnt going to ruin the idea of this mod, because im not going to accept such long loading times (the loading times of the game itself are long enough), and i think not many will.

*dang* im off to test this...

[mic1184]

i was just integrating the mod at its current state into SH3 cmdr, and realized the following problem:

only 'sets' of files can be randomized, so i must put fixed combinations of intro.tga, map.tga, museum.tga and singlemissions.tga into the randomized ##-folders. this would mean that with one specific Intro-screen there would always be the same mission loading screen. this really isnt a good solution.

is there any possibility of randomizing the files independently from each other? im not sure how to handle this, but im thinking about ways to enable this mod without SH3 commander, maybe with a .bat file, like i've seen sometime here in the forum...

any ideas?

[Dau-U-42]

i was just integrating the mod at its current state into SH3 cmdr, and realized the following problem:

only 'sets' of files can be randomized, so i must put fixed combinations of intro.tga, map.tga, museum.tga and singlemissions.tga into the randomized ##-folders. this would mean that with one specific Intro-screen there would always be the same mission loading screen. this really isnt a good solution.

is there any possibility of randomizing the files independently from each other? im not sure how to handle this, but im thinking about ways to enable this mod without SH3 commander, maybe with a .bat file, like i've seen sometime here in the forum...

any ideas?

I did some maths to see how many sets you'd have to make depending on how random it should be:

1) If you wanted to make it totally random, you'd have to make many ;) sets of screens. If you had only 125 different screens to choose from and want to have 4 of them (the intro, map, museum and mission) chosen randomly so that all the four are different, there will be 9 691 375 different combinations and therefor as many different sets. Thats only with 125 screens to choose from, the calculation tool I'm using does not allow too big numbers :p. A total randomization would be obviously impossible to make. :know:

2) So, you must alter the nuber of the screens (the 250 you're planning to make) or the set and level of randomizing (all the 4 different screens in a set to be random). If for example only 1, the intro screen, would change while the remaining 3 would be always the same and there would be 125 screens to choose from, there would be obviously a total of 125 different sets.

3) Make the mission screen randomize too (you'll have 2 screens to choose from 125) and it jumps to 7 750 different combinations aka sets.

4) If you wanted all the 4 to be random and had just 10 different screens to choose from, there would be 260 different sets.

Read about 'combination without repetition' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combinatorics#Combination_without_repetition). Also play around with this (http://jumk.de/combinatorics/binomial-coefficient.php). Change the n to be the total number of screens to choose from and the k to be how many to choose.

Tomorrow I might present ideas on the topics and such.

[mic1184]

thanks for your efforts and the maths Dau-U-42, but your hypothetic approach to face the SH3 Cmdr randomization problem is impossible.

i am still experimenting with SH3 cmdr, but right now i think the only clean and proper method for the randomization is to utilize an external code, may it be a simple DOS batch script, or a small c++ prog. this will keep the additional loading time very short (only the time for 4x 3MB copying) and it will ensure compatibility with ANY possible SH3 installation (no matter whether using SH3 Cmdr or whatever)

still open for suggestions though

[JCWolf]

i was just integrating the mod at its current state into SH3 cmdr, and realized the following problem:

only 'sets' of files can be randomized, so i must put fixed combinations of intro.tga, map.tga, museum.tga and singlemissions.tga into the randomized ##-folders. this would mean that with one specific Intro-screen there would always be the same mission loading screen. this really isnt a good solution.

is there any possibility of randomizing the files independently from each other? im not sure how to handle this, but im thinking about ways to enable this mod without SH3 commander, maybe with a .bat file, like i've seen sometime here in the forum...

any ideas?

As far as I know no ther is not!

But JSCones can defenetly give you more imput on that,
the thing is each folder inside the SH3Com Date folder represents a
year and month so what you will had inside that folder will show
up during that month and year, I think you can make more folders
representing more months, but then again that will increase
a lot the loading times, for each file you had each time increasing you
will nitice on the SH3Com loading....

So you can easely make one loading screen for each month in one
year but then you would have a huge amount of graphic data to
load on the SH3Com and attached to that the rest of the years until 45!


We are talking here of what 500 / 600 Mbs of Mod to load!

[mic1184]

okay after some testing i've tried both a batch script (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=104019 thanks to eric weber)
and a self written c++ code, and it both took about a second for the job to perfectly complete. works nice.

using a modified/new .exe file for this mod would be quite an elegant solution, but because of the danger of this file format (someone could easily recode it, add malicious code and distribute it as a mirror to this mod) i think i will release the mod with the batch file.

greetz

[Dau-U-42]

I' glad you solved the problem. If you still need the texts to be done, here's an idea: why not make the writing and brainstorming a community project! You choose a topic and everyone willing to contribute tells you what they know about it and perhaps help you writing it. This could be done through the forums or perhaps a wiki. Using this method should give you more time on the graphics.

[mic1184]

well the idea of community work was the core of the idea, but i dont wish to make this stuff public, because no one would want the mod if he knew all the texts to come. thats why i would prefer to receive the stuff via PM.


little update on the work:

1. work going fine with the historical facts for the intro
2. made up a concept mission loading screen (see the updated post #1 for sample) to come along with quotes
3. looking for someone to assist me with selecting good texts. photoshop or equivalent (+minor skills with it^^) required. if you're interested, please pm me.
4. looking desperately for good and famous quotes from u-boat men or relating u-boats
5. to any GWX crew member. if there is something like an official GWX logo or something, and if you guys allowed me to make a GWX version of this mod (i.e. placing the GWX logo somewhere where it looks fancy on the screens), would be nice if you let me have it.

greetz mic

[mic1184]

1. work going fine with the historical facts for the intro
2. made up a concept mission loading screen (see the updated post #1 for sample) to come along with quotes
3. looking for someone to assist me with selecting good texts. photoshop or equivalent (+minor skills with it^^) required. if you're interested, please pm me.
4. looking desperately for good and famous quotes from u-boat men or relating u-boats
5. to any GWX crew member. if there is something like an official GWX logo or something, and if you guys allowed me to make a GWX version of this mod (i.e. placing the GWX logo somewhere where it looks fancy on the screens), would be nice if you let me have it.

to 2. smaller update to the loading screen with a concept GWX logo ^^ really cant wait, i know
to 3. found someone
to 4. PLEASE help me with these, i was looking for about 3 hours and found 11 quotes... really hard that is
to 5. okay i made one myself, i hope thats okay

updated intro:
http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/1010/sample3xz6.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-14

[Kaleu. Jochen Mohr]

:hmm: why is there a SH4 screeny ?

[mic1184]

:hmm: why is there a SH4 screeny ?

damn i am caught... ;-) okay do you really know its SHIV from the sub or do you just know the pic?

actually ive been looking for hours (internet, screenshot thread, etc) for a really good suitable background pic and this was by far the best i could get regarding style and most of all colors. so much that i didnt even mind it was SH4.

does anyone?

[Kaleu. Jochen Mohr]

:hmm: why is there a SH4 screeny ?
damn i am caught... ;-) okay do you really know its SHIV from the sub or do you just know the pic?

actually ive been looking for hours (internet, screenshot thread, etc) for a really good suitable background pic and this was by far the best i could get regarding style and most of all colors. so much that i didnt even mind it was SH4.

does anyone?

i do. couse its SH3 where the loading screens are for. :yep:

[mic1184]

i do. couse its SH3 where the loading screens are for. :yep:
so what are we gonna do? i was really looking hard yesterday but there is no SH3 pic which has alike that perfect mix of u-boat romanticism and imminence...

EDIT: whereby i have to confess that i already made the sky a bit darker to look more threatening... still

[mic1184]

this was my second choice by the way, which is really (heavily edited) SH3, i didnt like the calm sea though

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/1118/sample4nv4.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-15

it has that legolas "RED SKY! blood was spilled tonight" effect though

[Kaleu. Jochen Mohr]

what if you cut both subs our of the picture, and put the U-boat in the SH4 envirment ? :hmm:

[mic1184]

yeah, i was thinking that, too, but first i will just try to make the perfect screenshot myself, with reece's SH4 environment mod and onelifecrisis' wave textures, a well scripted mission at sunset with wind 10 that should be possible...

btw, you're right, there should be a german sub in a german sub game

[Kaleu. Jochen Mohr]

yup ;)
best to stay with the country the game is made of (SHIII germany, SHIV america)

[mic1184]

okay took me quite a while but i've made up some nice SH3 screenshots:

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/7628/picsample4ce5.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-15

http://img524.imageshack.us/img524/5098/picsample1pp7.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-15

http://img524.imageshack.us/img524/6757/picsample2nq5.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-15

http://img524.imageshack.us/img524/549/picsample3ss4.jpg
By mic1184 (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/mic1184) at 2007-09-15


so i these are going to be final, not yet sure whether to make more like these and use multiple backgrounds (as they're all the same style it would be okay) or whether to choose one and always use exclusively that.

what do you people think?

[Kaleu. Jochen Mohr]

MAGNIFICENT ! :rock::rock::rock::rock::rock::rock::rock:

and make more of them. ppl will decide whenever to use all or just 1

[mic1184]

After having to "restart" because of major changes in the layout and system, im happy to report that 1. DAU-U-42 joined in to help and 2. the first release *COULD* be soon.

current features:

- game loading times increase unnoticable (less than a second)
- 4 different magnificent hand-selected background picture scenes, will be 6 - 10 at the first release
- 99+ different Intro loading screens with carefully chosen, edited and reviewed interesting historical aspects and concise technical data
- between 33 and 99 different mission loading screens with wonderful scenery, containing the most famous, important, distinctive and - of course authentic - quotes from AND about illustrious and notorious personalities of WW2, including Churchill, Dönitz, Raeder, Hitler and many more
- Compatible with any mod and SH3 Commander, the Commander is not required
- download size (hopefully) less than 200 MB
- GWX v1.04 logo version AND no-supermod-logo-version
- individual randomization of the intro and mission loading screens with SUBSIM®-patented NeverSeeItTwice™-technology


features, that will *NOT* be in the first release:
- german version, or any other language than english
- different museum loading screens
- (optional) integration into SH3 commander
- WAC and NYGM logo version


hope you people cant wait for another fine peace of SH3 enhancement!

[KrvKpt. Falke]

Really great idea! Can't wait! My SH3 is heavly modded and my loading times are terrible.
I think that loading screens in Call of Duty or Medal of Honor style could be also interesting - you know: take some real u-boat commander diary (or any kind of memories) and put fragments of it on loading screen.

[U49]

I wonder if it would be possible to connect the real date with historic events. For example like uboat.net -> events on this day?

[Dau-U-42]

I wonder if it would be possible to connect the real date with historic events. For example like uboat.net -> events on this day?

Do you mean the real date as the date in real life or the date of your game career?

It is possible, I think. We consider this an option but at least I don't think it would be very interesting. The reports get very boring when you keep reading them one after another. It just tells you who sank what, when and where. Plus, we are trying to give information with a wider perspective: the causes and effects of the U-boat warfare, it 's technologies, personalities etc. to give the player a deeper understanding of the game and the history it represents.

[U49]

Do you mean the real date as the date in real life or the date of your game career?


I thought about the real life date.
It could be additional to the other information you wrote about?

[Dau-U-42]

Do you mean the real date as the date in real life or the date of your game career?

I thought about the real life date.
It could be additional to the other information you wrote about?

The real time date would be trickier, because SH3 Commander supports only in-game dates. Showing info on real time dates could be achieved by a program that checks your computer clock, though. We will think about your idea.

[mic1184]

hey U49,

the idea is technically a little tricky, we would have to find a script/tool/program that can merge an additional layer on top of a tga. or code something in c ourselves. possible but tricky.

but it would also mean that we had to find 365 additional different (and, as DAU-U-42 already stated, interesting?) occurrences. also, it wouldnt be so easy to find another good position on the screens. i've working a lot on the current layout to make it look good and not overloaded.

at all, i dont find the idea worth enough the additional trouble. i believe its now better to continue concentrating on making the loading screens as beautiful and interesting as possible.

@ KrvKpt. Falke:
i liked the loading screen diary in COD and MOH, too. but in these games, they werent just to fill to the loading screens, they also had the role of intensifying the athmosphere and underline the sense of the upcoming mission.
in SH3, we cannot make "mission-conditional" loading screens, as the missions are always just patrolling XY area. probably it could be done to find respective events and reports regarding to patrol grids, but that would really be hard.
just to take random fragments of a real u-boat commander's diary would also be possible. yet again, the editorial effort to make such screens interesting would be enormous when wanting to stick with historical correctness.

summing it up, i believe the way we're going right now is very much satisfactory: pick a variety of the most exciting, interesting and important facts, stories and quotes together. it already gives us enough for hundreds of screens.