Character Select Option

[[Aiax] Minorock]

In my opinion the games is very good, it has the the complete player base (from utterly crap to absolutely awesome), it has a good range of weapons and aliens. As well as some intense maps (check out - Pulse45). But the one thing that I feel it lacks is the general ability to customize and make yourself stick out from the crowd. Now in me eyes the easy solution would be to have( for humans at least) a Character selection Options much the same as if you were choosing a name, you could choose a costume, a face, a color.

The sims Creature (For Example)

However I dont have the knowledge to fully code something like this, and I dont know yet what would be the aliens version.

Opinions?

[DeathWish[BE]]

Way to complex, non Quake related, data-spoiling and non vital.

[KorJax]

It doesnt have to be exactly like that or complicated....

I feel this is somthing that I would like to see in the future, but balances and more maps come first ATM

[[HUN]N.M.I.]

It's not a bad idea after all.
There could be an option to use your own logo (just like in Counter-Strike) let's say on the chest of the human armor or on the back of the aliens (black widow Dretch - as someone pointed out earlier).
It would be cool, simple and useful.
- No need for new models, it would just replace a part of the existing model.
- Helps identify players from afar (big help for the opposing team).
- Wouldn't confuse opposing team members (like the new models would, for example green, blue or brown human models or pink Tyrants etc. ).

[Paradox]

N.M.I."]It's not a bad idea after all.
There could be an option to use your own logo (just like in Counter-Strike) let's say on the chest of the human armor or on the back of the aliens (black widow Dretch - as someone pointed out earlier).
It would be cool, simple and useful.

Yea, till someone puts porn on their logo.
I wouldn't mind, but others might.

[[Aiax] Minorock]

N.M.I."]It's not a bad idea after all.
There could be an option to use your own logo (just like in Counter-Strike) let's say on the chest of the human armor or on the back of the aliens (black widow Dretch - as someone pointed out earlier).
It would be cool, simple and useful.
- No need for new models, it would just replace a part of the existing model.
- Helps identify players from afar (big help for the opposing team).
- Wouldn't confuse opposing team members (like the new models would, for example green, blue or brown human models or pink Tyrants etc. ).

Yes, this is sort of what i mean, just changing the uniform colours, hair colours, skin colour or adding a logo (without changing the model) would just give people a sense of ownership over their character.

[OverFlow]

I definitely agree on adding some more variety to the players, and that it a very secondary goal.  

I think the best solution is to have many different 'head' skins and maybe models to choose from, and maybe a couple secondary color options, and a choose-able logo of some sort.  I'm strongly against allowing players to have their own content in-game... I think it nearly all the custom content would completely destroy the 'style' of the game.

However, that's a lot of work for me... which isn't fun. <_<

As far as custom aliens... eh, I dont think as neccesary, since the variety of alien classes tends to make the team look varied enough.

[Henners]

Well I can tell you now that all of my skins would be grey. Think it through, and then you'll realise why customisable skins are a bad idea.

[D.C.]

What about rehuing certain model textures (i.e. armor, alien skin) with a color selected from an array?

I mean, it shouldn't be too complex to code. Turn the texture black and white (like a brightness map), then apply the % of the RGB values to its pixels.

Or, what about modifying the hue to reflect the player kills? Rookies get the default armor/skin, then you get the Skilled, Master and Elite skins: more fame and more risk.  

[[HUN]N.M.I.]

Or, what about modifying the hue to reflect the player kills? Rookies get the default armor/skin, then you get the Skilled, Master and Elite skins: more fame and more risk.  

Not a bad idea   .
Also, if u don't want to implement custom contetns, you can always make badges... Small pictures or pre-defined logos which can be attached to the current skin. So it would be fully costumizable.

[hodge]

"]Way to complex, non Quake related, data-spoiling and non vital.

Agreed, I don't mind that all humans and aliens look the same. Tremulous is focus is gameplay not about useless graphic features like custom character model appearance. I doubt the developers will add more then one human model, In my Humble Opinion I find that if I feature doesn't make the game but makes the game look better then it's mostly a useless feature.

[SLAVE|Mietz]

N.M.I."]

Or, what about modifying the hue to reflect the player kills? Rookies get the default armor/skin, then you get the Skilled, Master and Elite skins: more fame and more risk.  

Not a bad idea   .
Also, if u don't want to implement custom contetns, you can always make badges... Small pictures or pre-defined logos which can be attached to the current skin. So it would be fully costumizable.

would vote for badges!
Badges FTW!

[[Aiax] Minorock]

I agree that the focus of the game should be gameplay, and that this is a secondary objective as compared to say the new maps, but I feel that adding a custom element to the gun will only enhance gameplay, teamwork and rivalry between the two teams, such as if the guy in the blue armour (for example) keeps killing me, you go and kill him back without having to found his name -> locate that person -> kill that person.

I also think that D.C. sumed up what i was tyring to say:

What about rehuing certain model textures (i.e. armor, alien skin) with a color selected from an array?

I mean, it shouldn't be too complex to code. Turn the texture black and white (like a brightness map), then apply the % of the RGB values to its pixels.

[Teiman]

Yet another way to enhance that can be sounds.

And maybe its easy to edit sounds to make different appeals (change volume, speed, or apply some filters). So we can have lame voices, sarge like voices, etc..  

This will be usefull, because you will know what player say "Come on", a newbie sound voice will sound not like a good player one. Because the newbie will use the default one, and the pro other voice.

We can have, maybe, even a female one, and maybe some day in the future, a nice modeler can make a female model.

[Catalyc]

..and maybe some day someone would record the male (and female!) radio/voice cooms!

[[HUN]N.M.I.]

A female Human? And a female BattleSuit . Female Tyrants, Dretches and a female Reactor ...
I agree with most of you, the gameplay would suffer if the skins would be too colorful (like blue and pink Humans). Besides, nobody would want to use them, only the ones that's good for the current map's 'camouflage'...
But small badges that can be arranged to body parts wouldn't be a big problem, because they would only cover small parts of the model/skin/body...
...is there an english word besides 'would' that means the same thingy? ...

[Henners]

Your usage of would is fine, dont worry. A small badge system would be fine I suppose, but I imagine its fairly low on the list of priorities for the devs. I also imagine it wouldnt be easy to implement (not that I know much about skinning or modelling at all mind you), but I havnt really seen anything like it in a quake mod before.

[hodge]

The game could benefit with another kind of drench and a another kind of human unit. For instance the tremulous developers could design a standard pistol weapon as another side weapon and give it to players that pick the second human skin. Another simple idea (I admit it's nothing special) is that the 2nd human could have different stats (health movement etc...).

[Neo]

N.M.I."]
I agree with most of you, the gameplay would suffer if the skins would be too colorful (like blue and pink Humans). Besides, nobody would want to use them, only the ones that's good for the current map's 'camouflage'...

Please don't, there is nothing more fun than screaming around the levels with a neon green dretch

Dretch Lightning ftw

[benplaut]

The game could benefit with another kind of drench and a another kind of human unit. For instance the tremulous developers could design a standard pistol weapon as another side weapon and give it to players that pick the second human skin. Another simple idea (I admit it's nothing special) is that the 2nd human could have different stats (health movement etc...).

nope... that would change the gameplay, which is a bad thing

[Pilek]

Make badges/other skins/new weps skin...but dont do some shit like other stats......armor/weps/evos give it

[chompers]

If you ever played quake 1 or the CPM mod for Q3A... in those games you could change your skin colours. Quake 1 was done with 8 bit palettes, but the CPM mod used a small code tweak to emulate the q1 setup using Q3A's shader system - you could change the colour of helmet, shirt and pants of any model providing it had a special skin made up for it that masked out the area to be coloured and a shader with hooks into the colours which were predefined in code.

I was briefly involved with CPM, specifically coming up with the idea and first draft of the color changing code, plus the skins / shaders for a few models. The point is, I probably still have the code lying around somewhere and the Tremulous devs are welcome to take a look at it. Or maybe the CPM mod is open source now, I have no idea, it was years ago.

Personally I don't think this is at all important, or even suitable for Tremulous, but you could probably do the changes - art, code, scripts, everything, in a few hours.

[Survivor]

Complete skins, no. Badges and such are a nice addition but I don't think the devs will add them in the next release or even soon so you've got plenty of time to make em.

[|Nex|TrEmMa]

Can I have a pink skin?
I think that'd be a fun challenge.

Different color pulse rifle and lucy shots would be sweet too.
You'd be attacking the human base and you'd a see a rainbow of spam and you'd be in awe of the beauty and forget to get out of the way of the spam.

[Neo]

lol, you can just see two dretches watching.

Dretch1:'Johnny don't go towards the light!'
Dretch2:'But its so beautiful'

[BunnyFooFoo]

I'm not sure why people feel that some kind of individuality is a bad thing and classify it as just 'eye candy'.  As either a human or an alien, coordinating activities is the most difficult aspect of the game.  Think how much easier it would be for two/three player 'strike' teams to reform after getting killed if everyone could have some kind of unique identifier?  Yeah, you can 'look' right at someone and see their name, but that is a lot of wasted motion and time.  I'd like to hit the ground, go to my rally point, see that Bob and Alice (blue armband, yellow armband) are there and we head out to SWAT bugs.

Ever play a sport where you have somewhat randomly formed teams?  Never heard of 'shirts vs skins'?  A quick visual identifier is of great use in a firefight.

There are players who just like to run charges into the enemy and get themselves killed.  I don't want to follow when they start yelling "come on!".  But, if a skilled player wants to lead a charge because the OM is down, I want to follow!

How about identifying 'rank'?  In team play, you often have a structure for who is in charge of what.  Being able to quickly tell that the guy trying to jump the turrets is the boss--so you can let him though--would be priceless!  What about having the builders a bit more visible?  If the base just got rushed and needs repaired, I don't care how badly hurt I am, I need to let the builders through to start repairs.  I can heal after they're through--there might not even *be* an armory nor a medstation without them!

But the bugs, it's less of a use, but I'd still think that it would be good.  I still love my joke (yeah, I know, laughing at your own jokes is a bad sign, but others laugh, too) which I normally say as (playing alien) we get S2--"Time for *Advanced* dretch!".  Think of how nice a 'black widow' patterened Goon would be?  What about how demoralizing it would be to get killed by a bright pink dretch?  (H)BigWank:"Ha ha, look at the silly dretch!  How gay!" Console: BigWank was bitten by BunnyFooFoo (A)BunnyFooFoo:"Hmm, 'bite me' doesn't seem quite right..."

I'd settle for just little glowing red eyes for my dretch.  I think that would creap humans out.  Same damange, manuverability, etc., but just glowing red eyes.....

[[Aiax] Minorock]

To be honest i dont think anyway more needs to be said

[Lava Croft]

Thank you for the Feedback.

[The MC Horton Crankfire]

N.M.I."]And a female BattleSuit :D .

And thus the issue is settled with a clear and resounding "YES PLEASE."

[Eeeew Spiders]

Ever play a sport where you have somewhat randomly formed teams?  Never heard of 'shirts vs skins'?  A quick visual identifier is of great use in a firefight.

Most of the time i can distinguish the aliens from the humans.

At the moment it is not easy to tell what name is attached to which opponent, which could help in deciding what tactic to use. I always thought that this was meant to be and accepted it as part of the gameplay.

I think one thing I like in trem compared to some of the other free mods is the visual and aesthetic consistency.