» Project News & Updates

Project Phantom - 2012

Quite long time since last public progress update of any sorts, this newspost will bring you some media and other small things that'll hopefully show where the project is headed towards. The title does not only reflect the fact that this is first newspost of the year for Project Phantom, it also means I am aiming for first public release during this year.


Website

Project Phantom website has been brought up-to-date, with new unit & structure profiles that come with in-game screenshots. Additionally there is some new extra visual appeal to the layout of the site.


Media

Let's start from one of the more important aspects of this progress/media update. As you can see from the screenshot below, several Dominion structures have had a graphical makeover, replacing the recolored Westwood assets with all new artwork, and rest of them are to follow in future. This change has also altered the way some of the structures work, as well. In-depth detail on individual units & structures can be found on website. Another thing to note is currently work-in-progress Tundra theatre, a collaboration between me & m666 of Final War fame that will eventually replace Arctic theatre.


Click on the image to view it in a full size.

And no, I am not going to limit this graphical overhaul just to Dominion structures, other sides will also get makeover, in due a time. Phantom Power Core shown in image below.


Click on the image to view animation of the structure. It looks bit better in-game than in this, to be fair.

This of course means that mod is going to have some civilian/misc. eye candy as well, here's pictures of some doodads and those country flag things in-game, respectively.



Click on the images to view them in a full size.

And finally, 3 misc. screenshots that were taken during beta testing online games of Project Phantom.




Click on the images to view them in a full size.


What's next?

In near future you could expect more media and showcases, in form of screenshots and possibly video footage as well. Mod content I am currently working on, aside from already mentioned structure graphic overlay & Tundra theatre along with other terrain improvements, involve technology branches, support powers and stolen technology. On top of that, I've been trying to do some map work, replacing some not-so-good or otherwise unfitting maps with more interesting ones. All of this will be showcased eventually too, in one form or another.


Final notes

Project Phantom is also currently looking for people capable of filling following roles in development.

- Infantry Artist.
- Mapper
- Concept/Promotional Art Creator.

More information available here.

Until next time.

SaneDisruption has recently released a set of terrain templates made entirely in 3D. These are free source for anyone to use. Included in the pack are tiles usable for front facing cliffs, cliff ramps and slopes.

Based on some findings through EA's Origin Service, Generals 2 is going to be our next Command & Conquer title.

So I want to finish MV, and I know what I want the game to play like. But, I also know some of it isn't quite possible yet, and there are some details I'm not clear on. When Ares 0.2 comes out I'm sure I'll find some fun things I want to do with MV and in between now and then there's plenty of time for discussion as to what the mod is aiming for. Whether you're staff or just interested, feel free to talk to me about the mod, ideas relating to it and anything else you think seems relevant/interesting.

As many around here know, I've been hosted on a larger and more active site known as Project Perfect Mod. Without having any intentions of ignoring this place, I bring you the same thing they got; a new video showing that the Soviet Empire is finished and most of the bulk code work is done.

Speeder has just posted a new video about Ares on the MO Facebook page. It showcases the highlights that Ares offers for YR modders.

Well, the end of the year is a few days away, and for a rare news post I thought I'd update everyone on the condition of the mod. Much has happened over the last year, from the evolution of YR: Incursion to Soviet Dawn: Incursion to CnC: Final War. Many features have changed, many old units have vanished in favor of new ones. Art styles have changed quite a few times, as well as the level of completion the mod stands.

Right now, I can say that:
- The Allied Coalition lacks a few minor tweaks to individual units, and their support powers. There are a few graphical changes I plan to make, but for the most part their status in the beta is set as complete.
- The Soviet Empire has had the most development this year, going from failed attempts to a 3/4ths completed side (at the time of writing). They still need a China ally coded in, as well as plenty of beta testing and some more support weapons. This is the furthest the Soviet side has ever made it into the development of the mod's life.
- PsiExoda is the only side that lost some development, pending a redesign and retooling of their army. While they're still mind-control, genetic masterminds with no concept of ethics or morality with their weapons, they have no coding done as the old beta version of PsiExoda seen in Soviet Dawn: Incursion is gone.
- The mod has gained a semi-total conversion status, denoting the change in tone, goals, and gameplay.
- The mod will be released in August 2011, at some point. This will be the last month I can really work on the mod, as my free time after that will be consumed by school and work. 2011 is a pretty busy year for me as well, so we'll see how much I can do before an official release.

And lastly, I'd like to celebrate my success on completion of Yugoslavia as a Soviet Empire nation with their defense of several important (and damaged) tech structures.