Re: [TuxKart-devel] Re: [Tuxkart-cvs] tuxkart/src Driver.h,1.14,1.15 joystick.h,1.3,1.4 PlayerDriver.cxx,1.12,1.13 sdldrv.cxx,1.16,1.17 sdldrv.h,1.6,1.7

[Ingo R. <gr...@gm...>]

Steve Baker <sjb...@ai...> writes:

> The whole problem with GOTM (from the maintainers perspective) is
> that you set out to do a relatively modest amount of work just where
> it was most sorely needed - something that could have been managed
> in two months if everyone had stayed focussed on the original
> objectives. This was all agreed before the voting and with my 100%
> backing.

We *ARE* focussed on the original objects, just to cite a bit from:

http://happypenguin.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1407&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

| 1) Better kart dynamics (skidding, etc). I didn't think I needed that
|    at the time - but enough people tell me it sucks without it that I
|    have to agree.

Check, they are done, need for sure still lots more of fine tuning and
stabilization, however basically work.

| 2) Better eye-candy (smoke puffs, skid marks, etc) - these were not
|    feasible on a Voodoo-1 card.

Check, the overall look of the game is improving from day to day.
Skidmarks and smoke is however still missing.

| 3) Improved collision detection (sometimes a kart will fall through a
|    hole in the terrain)

Nobody, has yet started working on this issue.

| 4) More tracks, better 3D models in general...this game was designed
|    for a graphics card that could draw maybe 1000 polygons at
|    reasonable frame rates. Modern cards can to a thousand times more
|    than that.

Check, new tracks are comming, new 3d models are there as well.

| 5) Better enemy AI (OK - *some* enemy AI!) - at present, the enemy
|    karts just steer to try to follow a curve laid down through the
|    approximate center of the track..

Ok, this one got wreaked a bit due to the new physics, but well, you
can't keep everything working all the time.
 
| 6) Split-screen Multiplayer maybe? MarioKart is a lot of fun in
|    multiplayer - so TuxKart would be too.

Also in the works.

| 7) Stuff like high score tables, option pages, action replay....

That is what the new GUI is supposed to provide.

So I really can't see where we are much out of focus. The stuff that
hasn't yet been done, simply hasn't been done due to the lack of
people and/or time. Your help and knowledge is very welcome, since
quite a few of us have little or no knowledge of working with 3d
games.

> You are dinking unnecessarily with things that are really working
> just fine.

I strongly disagree. The old GUI was NOT working just fine, it was
completly useless for anything more than just jumping directly into
the game without any character selection, highscore, game-modes or
other elements that are a MUST HAVE for even the simplest game.

> The GoTM concept is a good one - but failing to stay focussed on
> what was the original scope of the work is what undoubtedly lead to
> your failure to complete Pingus

Pingus simply failed because half the people involved was still busy
with SuperTux work and the other half simply run out of time due to
real life issues. Beside that Pingus just was 'too much done', making
it hard to find an entry point for new people and well, most work
would have been on the content side anyway, which we all know it is
hard to find people for.

> - and with only a few weeks to run, the same will happen with
> TuxKart.

So far the progress is quite fine, we have 9 new karts in the work, 6
new tracks, better physics, better GUI, a fixed ac3d exporter, an
export script for tracks, an fixed export script for cal3d for
animations. Only issues that are still throublesome are AI and
collision code. Your help would be very welcome.

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