Atmosphere, Appearance and Ambiance

I seem to be committed to using this old lithtech engine. Or perhaps, I should be committed for using this old lithtech engine...

But if I can't have any decent tools to work with, or fancy shiny eye candy, then I'll just have to put more energy into the appearance, atmosphere and ambiance of this old game. The gameplay is constantly being worked on, and the coding still takes up far too much of my time. But every now and then I take the time to re-examine some of the older levels that I've worked on.



As I previously mentioned, I'd like to try to combine the style of the original Blood with a somewhat more modern appearance. My hope is that this will ultimately give a unique and fresh look to the game. It's difficult to describe what I'm talking about, so I'll attempt to give an example with a video. My apologies for the low quality of the video. It was fine before youtube got a hold of it...




The level itself is currently incomplete and not yet optimized, so it does run a little choppy in spots. It also doesn't have much in the way of action but I thought that would better demonstrate the appearance and atmosphere of the level. The slow pace is also enhanced by the fact that I was eating a sandwich while recording, lol.

The level is complimented by the fine ambient contributions of Marek "Nivo" Boguta, who seems determined to create enough ambiance to fill up 10 games. I really do appreciate all of the vast efforts that Nivo continuously puts into this project though, and I'll always look forward to anything that he may wish to contribute. While most volunteers have disappeared, Nivo remains committed to helping this project grow, and that kind of support certainly means a lot.

I've also recently heard from Håvard "Hoby" Felberg, who has also previously donated some well done ambiance for the game. He plans on contributing further work to this project in the future, and I'll look forward to his eventual return. Still missing in action is Nicola "Neurological" Capecci, who supplied some excellent tracks for the game earlier this year. I did warn him about those black holes but he apparently chose to ignore my advice.



So, volunteers may come and go, but the ambiance, atmosphere, and appearance of the game is continuously being worked on. Things should keep on improving with time and I certainly appreciate all of the support that's been offered.

There's still much to be done, but first I think I need another sandwich ...