- Mod Idea. -

[Spoonius]

Hi guys. I'd appreciate any advice you guys could give me in regards to a mod concept I came up with.

Spoiler: Here are the details:

What I have in mind is basically a Military Sci-Fi RTS based around fairly small-scale firefights involving human (and possibly light vehicle) troops, hopefully with a fairly realistically-grounded engine, (ie, good physics, non-cartoony animations, etc). I'm not looking for incredible graphics, mainly functionality.

NOTE: It's probably apparent at this point that I don't know too much about the technical side of gaming...

Customisation will be the mod's main feature, allowing a player to form and personalise their own persistent "army" which can then be developed further by means of a currency system and subsequent "unlockables".

As for customising units in an army, I'm talking about the real deal: flags, banners, culture/ethnicity, unit roles and styles, squad composition (ie, callsigns, squadmembers, possibly vocals), etc.
For individual troops in a unit/squad: interchangeable weapons, fatigues and armour (with separate torso, leg and head meshes that can be swapped around), and various modular "attachments" (backpacks, weapon sights, miscellaneous equipment, etc), all of which would impact on the soldier's stats and abilities.


Should I ever manage to get this thing off the ground (a very unlikely event) the biggest problem would no doubt be the sheer amount of modelling and scripting work required.

Now, I've never really become seriously involved with an official mod before (had a few minor, relatively insignificant roles in Third Age and Modern Combat though), and I'm not sure how to go about kicking this thing off. The process, as far I can tell, should go something like this:

1) Find the right game. Preferably one with gameplay already fairly similar to the concept I'm going for, with an active (and supportive) modding community, and versatile mod tools that are easy to pick up, learn and use.

2) Come up with a design document that details the game mechanics and overall plan.

3) Get a team together.

I'd really appreciate any guidance you people could give me. Most importantly, I need to determine which game I'll be modding. My original choice was Company of Heroes, but there are probably other, better-suited games out there that I don't know about yet.

Please note that this concept is in no way fully developed. You guys probably already think I'm a fuckwit by this point, and if you have a problem with anything I've written here, then PLEASE let me know. Thanks in advance.

 

[Skobvs]

I would play that mod. However, taking on a mod like this without any major experience doesn't sound like a good idea.

As far as an engine, look towards DoW 1's relic engine. It may be dated, but it's easily modded, has full set of mod tools and you can use most of the models as a placeholder to test concepts. (the only problem with that is that the 40k license that relic has for DoW only allows official 40k races added into the game unless you ONLY have your races. Or something like that)

Edit: missed your part on the CoH engine (which is V2 of the one I said) so yeah, go for that one.

 

[IBlackKiteI]

Company of Heroes is apparently a ***** to mod, though Dawn of War is pretty easy to mess around with and there is loads of stuff to do.

Operation Flashpoint Cold War Crisis has some awesome mods like the one you have described, though I'm not sure if the game actually has any offical mod tools, but many guys seem to get around that and make awesomeness.

 

[Spoonius]

I would play that mod. However, taking on a mod like this without any major experience doesn't sound like a good idea.

Everyone has to start somewhere right?

I know what you mean though. At the moment I'm just seeking advice... if I don't think I can potentially pull it off, then I won't try.

Ok dude... I'm sorry but I'm going to give you my absolutely honest opinion on your mod...

Spoiler

It sounds fucking amazing, if you do this email me immediately so I can play it

Gah! ...XD

Company of Heroes is apparently a ***** to mod, though Dawn of War is pretty easy to mess around with and there is loads of stuff to do.

Operation Flashpoint Cold War Crisis has some awesome mods like the one you have described, though I'm not sure if the game actually has any offical mod tools, but many guys seem to get around that and make awesomeness.

Most of the OF mods seem five or six years old, and there doesn't seem to be much of a community. Still, any game with Starship Trooper mods must be pretty versatile. Thanks, I'll check it out further...

I also thought about modding Men at War. I've never played it, but I hear it has incredibly-realistic mechanics. Gonna give the demo a shot in a minute.