[WIP][MOD][OXCE] From the Apocalypse 0.13.0

[robin]

*DOWNLOAD ATTACHED AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST!*

READ OR DIE:
*This mod REQUIRES OXCE to work, get the latest **official** version.
* Fixes and updates will come very slowly;
* Do not select "Ironman" when starting a new game, mod is WIP so you
  need to b able to save and load freely to dodge the bugs.
* Also it isn't really ready for a full campaign playthrough, do it at your own risk.
* No savegames compatibility until version 1.0;
* Set OXC language to "English (US)" or "English (UK)";
* Do not start translating things, all text is WIP;
* Expect severe incompatibility issues with any other mod;

ART USE PERMISSION:
Read "LICENSE.txt" provided with the mod.
tl;dr: read the file, it is very short.

COMMENT/FEATURES:
X-Com Apocalypse is my most special game. This mod is my personal
re-imagination of that game and at the same time a tribute to it.
Some designs have been ripped straight from Apocalypse, some are stolen
elsewhere, but some others --such as: plasma weapons, laser
weapons, and Auto-Cannon-- are made entirely by me.

SPECIAL CREDITS:
* OXC dev team;
  - specially Warboy and SupSuper for always being available;
* People responsible of the *vital* modding tools: Falko (OCX tools);
  dashivas-pmprog-TheBigSot (MapView); volutar (MCDEdit);
* Other modders for pioneering the ruleset and overall being amazing;
  - especially Dioxine (X-Piratez), Hobbes (Terrain Pack/UFO Redux/Area 51/Terminator), Solarius Scorch (FMP/Xcom Files);
* Gifty for the sound effects! That alien wouldn't exist without him!
* Yankes + Meridian for OXCE/OXCE+;
 
KNOWN BUGS:
* Mod is not harmful but: I DO NOT TAKE ANY RESPONSIBILITIES IF YOUR COMPUTER EXPLODES;
* Researching alien medics, engineers of vanilla races (floater,
  ethereal) will likely crash the game;
* Ufopaedia art incomplete
* Civilian (police) robosphere can be zombified (maybe not?);
* Human missions spawn retaliation with UFO, which is obviously wrong;
  need to switch to OXC-Extended to fix this. (should be fixed);
* ALIEN GATE battlescape is bugged and crashes with TRANSPORTER CRAFT;... still true?
* ALIEN GATE battlescape, some corridors for the underground part are not generated;
* cultist don't get zombiefied, very strange
* unsure if psi weapons work correctly

CHANGELOG
0.13.0
* fixed classic UFOs bug;
* added SLUM terrain;
0.12.0
* added WASTELAND terrain;
0.11.1
* fixed mess in human units
* fixed some maps
* fixed battle sprite robotank corpse
0.11.0
* added Alien Dissemination missions
0.10.4
* added missing ALIEN_DISSEMINATOR ufopaedia img
0.10.3
* fixed couple of crashes due to missing item/unit
* ALIEN_EGGS MCD library changed
* added STR_ALIEN_DISSEMINATOR (WIP)
0.10.2
* anoter little fix to FARMN terrain
0.10.1
* additions and fixes to FARMN terrain
0.10.0
* added FARMN terrain
0.9.3
* ufopaedia art for barinsucker
* ufopedia bg x facility
* fixed brainsucker hybernated related crash
0.9.2
* advanced laboratory
* dimensional probe research
0.9.1
* XROBOMEDIKIT, fixed activation text and added Ufopaedia entry
* smoke grenade extinguishes fire
0.9.0
* added XROBOMEDIKIT unit
0.8.7
* SKELETOID, CRAB, SWARMIDS v2 ufopaedia art
0.8.6
* changed LISKOID ufopaedia art to red
* ufopaedia art for OCULANT and GIGANTOPOD
0.8.5
* ufopaedia art for LISKOID, PSYMORPH
0.8.4
* redesigned ANTHROPOD
0.8.3
* LISKOID SQUAD LEADER now uses flying variant armor
0.8.2
* made MEGAWORM smaller, 80pcent of original size
0.8.1
* added TOXIGUN
* some little fixes
0.7.0
* splitted ruleset into multiple files
* added PROBE alien (no ufopaedia art)
* tweaked items, researches, ufopaedia
* new death sound for CRABBY
* added STUN DISCHARGE bigob
* MESMERIZER turned into DISRUPTOR PISTOL
* ENCASER melee weapon
* Hybernated BRAINSUCKER
0.6.1
* fixed EGGS maps
0.6.0
* added CRABBY alien
* added (shitty) BIGOBS for major alien living weapons
* added all portraits for men and women, still no fixed the skin/hair color of the units
* made compatible with latest OXCE
0.5.2
* moar fixes to research and ufopaedia
0.5.1
* fixes to reseach
0.5.0
* added turrets to TRANSPORTER craft
* ALIEN_GATE mission: no more 2-stages
* new icons for facilities
* non-weapon equipment for crafts
* office luxury terrain
* added SUBVERTED_HQ mission
0.4c
* redone illumination on luxury apartment and streamlined terrain; fixed ware_01 maps; uses OXCE 5.2
0.4b
* moar fixes to apartments and police terrain
0.4a
* fixed apartments terrain
0.4
* added Office terrain
0.3.9a
* fixed research tree mess (some of it at least), now compatible with OXCE 5.1
0.3.9
* added Liskoid soldier alien (ufopaedia art not done)
* added security station facility (advanced station still placeholder)
* fixed some stuff
0.3.8
* added mesmerizer gun
* brainsucker launcher fully functional
* changed stun net
* changed acid bolt
* better? smoke
* fixes i don't remember anymore
0.3.7
* fixed roboturret-minigun missing aimed shot
* fixed revealed floors for alien base entry map block
* more fixes I don't remember (strings, MCDs and so on)
* added Luxury Apartments terrain
* added brainsucker alien (actually called differently cause it's different).
* added human crafts... I think...
* some temporary changes
0.3.6
* added Skeletoid alien (ufopaedia not done)
* Mutons removed
* added Swarmids small
* fixed missing Exoskeleton ufopaedia article
* fixed flying Exoskeleton* fixed some missing strings
0.3.5c
* fixed missing STR_CULT_PRIEST_CORPSE item
0.3.5b
* fixed invs
0.3.5
* added X-Com EXOSKELETON, heaviest armor;
* tweaked some weapons;
* extraSprites/extraSounds in own file;
0.3.4b
* added missing bigobs for Psimorph
* tweaked some weapons
0.3.4
* added the Psimorph (ufopaedia img not done);
0.3.3
* added Apartment terrain & maps (tnx Hobbes);
* tweaked drill, vibro axe;
* alien egg changed;
0.3.2
* added new civilian CIV_SLUM_F2;
* added 2 new cult units CULT_POPE, CULT_MYSTIC;
0.3.1
* switched to OXCE+;
* added ROBOFLYER HWP;
* added Gigantopod alien;
0.3
* added alien base and alien dimension terrain+maps;
0.2
* UFOs added;
0.1
* initial testing release;

[jackstraw2323]

Great work. Really looking forward to your mod!

[ThatDude]

Looks great! What is it really about, though?

[MontyDrake]

This looks amazing... I'm without words.

[volutar]

I think, robin, you should make some sort of master-class manual of making such an aesthetically and palette wise pictures for xcom. I can't name any style difference. It's the vanilla itself. Cheers.
(zombie picture can be used for the paperdoll, I guess).

[jackstraw2323]

I am interested in how you're getting your noise patterns to match up so well with original artwork, I'm assuming photoshop has something that does those, but haven't dug in yet as I've not touched ufopedia artwork yet.

[robin]

It all really trivial and cheat-y:
- I paint conventionally with the brush (not pencil) tool, in an RGB image, picking colors from the ufopaedia.act palette so I know that, once I switch to indexed color, they won't stray much;
- I start with medium-dark colors (but not the darkest I plan to use), hard brush,  to draw the overall shapes (so IE in the Chrysalis image: a darkish purple, darkish red and darkish organe, for the three main shapes respectively: coocoon, coocon interior, humanoid);
- Then I start to use lighter shades of those colors with soft brushes, to give the shapes their volumes;
- Finally I draw highlights using the lightest shades, and mark darker shadow areas with light touch of the darkest shades of the original colors, using hard or soft brushes as needed;
- I eventually make the whole thing a little lighter or darker, or and apply a light sharpen filter (didn't do this step for those 2 image above);
- Once I'm done, I use the "save for web (and devices)" option, with "png-8" or "gif", with 256 colors, loading the ufopaedia.act palette and disabling "convert to sRGB" checkbox (this doesn't seem to make any difference, but better disabled).
Done.

Attached the Spitter .psd file.

[jackstraw2323]

Based on your description, neither trivial nor cheat-y, just straight up talent and time

[Hobbes]

Looks great

Will this be an add-on like MiB?

[robin]

It's a total conversion, explicitly based on Apocalypse but not bound by faithfulness, so I can redesign and re-imagine things freely (this is a necessity too, because Apocalypse simply can't be replicated in OpenXcom). When everything will be finished it'll be like TFTD compared to UFO, so a standalone new thing based on the same gameplay foundation.
But it'll take a lot of time to get there.

[jackstraw2323]

Looking forward to it. I'm working on a TC as well and it's definitely a large undertaking to generate all the art assets and code. I'm focusing on getting a playable skeleton in place and the fleshing out all the ufopedia artwork once the rest is set.

[Hythlodaeus]

It's a total conversion, explicitly based on Apocalypse but not bound by faithfulness, so I can redesign and re-imagine things freely (this is a necessity too, because Apocalypse simply can't be replicated in OpenXcom). When everything will be finished it'll be like TFTD compared to UFO, so a standalone new thing based on the same gameplay foundation.
But it'll take a lot of time to get there.

I have two questions:

A)Will the game be completely standalone, not requiring any graphical bit whatsoever from the original game?

B)Will you be willing to license all artwork under a creative commons license (with respective attribution clauses)?

[robin]

I have two questions:

A)Will the game be completely standalone, not requiring any graphical bit whatsoever from the original game?

B)Will you be willing to license all artwork under a creative commons license (with respective attribution clauses)?

A) No, "natural" terrain will likely stay (especially desert, since I love night missions in the desert); geoscape too will probably use vanilla textures; also because I can't mod 24/7 :_( .

B) I don't know how it works, and I'm ripping (look-wise) a bunch of items straight from Apocalypse. We'll see.

/

Screens from terror mission in warehouse. Missions here will be a bit longer than my ideal.. well, when you'll have the alien mine and alien rocket launcher you'll just demolish everything.

[Ridаn]

Wow, that looks awesome.
I didnt play Apocalypse a lot, but this warehouse ramp sure brings back some memories.
Definitly a new thingie on my things-to-be-hype-about list.
Keep up the good work!

[Hythlodaeus]

A) No, "natural" terrain will likely stay (especially desert, since I love night missions in the desert); geoscape too will probably use vanilla textures; also because I can't mod 24/7 :_( .

That's alright. I'm mainly asking because someone inquired in another thread whether it would be possible to have a completely free version of OXC and your TC came to mind. I understand replacing most terrain is a bitch.

B) I don't know how it works, and I'm ripping (look-wise) a bunch of items straight from Apocalypse. We'll see.

As long as it is not a straight sprite rip, it counts as original artwork, as it has a distinctive style of its own. Technically you can license it under creative commons. The only issue would be named concepts belonging to Apocalypse ("X-COM", alien names, weapon names, etc)