Content creation

[Windcatcher]

Okay here is a general-purpose thread where we can discuss different aspects of content creation. If we get a lively discussion going, maybe those of us interested in a specific aspect can start another thread and we can really narrow things down.

Merely as a first whack, I can see some things definitely worth talking about:

- database creation

- zone creation

- texture creation

- character and model creation

I'm sure there are more, but I'm pressed for time at the moment so this is what's on the top of my head

1. Database creation

This spans a lot of things: items, npc types, quests, and loot tables, for instance. Our efforts can be immediately partitioned along these lines, but there are some inherent links, such as loot tables to items, and npc types to what they drop, and quests to items and the npcs that grant them. So it means that there needs to be a standard way that content teams can coordinate their efforts, and I really think it would be a good idea to first hash out a way to try and make content modular to make installation easy and so teams don't end up breaking each other's work.

Another huge issue is wkat KIND of content to create, that is, do we stick with SOE's content, or create original content from scratch? IMHO using the same tired-old stuff from the live servers is boring as heck and is a real no-no from an IP standpoint; expect VI/SOE to freak out. I think the real potential of the emu is to allow people to be creative in what they present, and thus players will have the thrill of discovery all over again. After all isn't that one of the resons why some of us quit EQ?

If some of choose the legacy route and some want to create new content, we should try to work out a way to coordinate them so "content packages" can be installed or uninstalled without breaking everything.

2. Zone creation: now this, IMHO, would be really terrific. It seems to me that the first thing we need is a complete specification for the WLD geometry files. Tonight I'll release my upgraded version of ZoneConverter, which renders what it can understand on the screen and enables the dump-to-text feature that the original ZoneConverter contains but leaves disabled (it also fixes some bugs in the code). A collective effort would be necessary for this, but it definitely is doable. I've delved through the dumps and there isn't all that much left to figure out.

The next step would be to design a tool that can allow you to create a 3D scene (or import one), attach EQ specific attributes, and export to a WLD file. I'm positive that this is possible, given a spec for the WLD files. It's something some people can work on and would really open the floodgates as to what we can do with the emu. As for ground textures, paint tools and free content abound; it should be no effort at all to develop a freely-distributable library of ground textures that people can use, categorized if possible.

3. I don't know too much about other textures in the game (such as character or item textures), but I suspect that building other textures or 3D models could be an offshoot of the zone creation effort. We do know that all textures are BMP files, so creating free texture content would be a snap. If work begins on a zone creation tool, I think it would be a good idea to keep other 3D models in mind and perhaps design the tool to allow manipulation, saving, and usage of other models as well (for example, tree models).

That's all I have for now. I have other half-developed thoughts still churning around in my mind, but nothing really mature yet, so I'd really like to hear what the rest of you who join this thread have to say....

Windcatcher