Burner Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 (edited) I know WildLands is on the way but.... Since the release of the Unreal Engine 4 SDK being free unless the endgame is sold for profit (at which point UE will accept 5% profit) it could be viable to recreate Ghost Recon classic with a modern game engine and free assets. I know there are a lot of modders here that have great talent. The community has been modding GR to the extreme for the last 15 years, but the engine is not up to modern standards. Would all this time and effort be better invested in all full remake? I do not personally know about AI coding, 3d model art, weapons modeling etc, but I can provide a project vision. I do know what a good milsim is and GR is the ultimate embodiment of that. I realize that ARMA 3 is the modern milsim but it is still affected by poor AI, uncomfortable controls, and horrendous performance at times. Maybe I am completely naive to the amount of work this would take (I'm thinking 3 years for a completed GR plus expansions) but it would be an interesting project. I also realize that this could be reinventing the wheel as GroundBranch and WildLands are being developed although neither one is a Classic remake. Would anyone be interested in working on the GR project with an initial goal of maybe the first mission Iron Dragon with potential expansion if the project grows from there? This is purely a free community project with no intent for sales (like every project states until it reaches epic proportions aka SQUAD lol) Thanks for reading this community. Edited September 26, 2015 by Burner 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I could do some models here and there in fact if you want to use my strela 10 for this I can hand it over 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted September 23, 2015 Author Share Posted September 23, 2015 (edited) Some initial goals for a proof of concept using 4.8.3 Create a True First Person View (Full Body Awareness) using default UR model Insert UR character into free UR asset "Open World Demo Collection" for a Military Woodland type of open world map https://www.unrealengine.com/content/1c3ff01e749c4e48a7e8c24a7128ce24 Import basic Ghost Recon character or modern model as a proof of concept if able Import Ghost Recon weapon or modern model if able as POC Discover how to Aim Down Sights Edited September 29, 2015 by Burner 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wombat50 Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 A spectacular looking world. I haven't looked into it at all but hopefully the folks at Unreal have made it easier to configure a game with this engine. I'm totally unqualified in being any help on such a huge project but it is a great idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 I know you can implement bodily awareness in unreal 3, as Frontlines Fuel of war had it to an extent, I would think the same principles apply in unreal 4, if its anything like arma, its as simple as having the first person LOD contain all but the head, and applying collision and anims to suit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thales100 Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 I know WildLands is on the way but.... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted September 24, 2015 Author Share Posted September 24, 2015 (edited) I know you can implement bodily awareness in unreal 3, .... applying collision and anims to suit. 1.Already done Zee, I just need some of your awesome models in FBX. Actually as a first goal, can anyone help me convert and import the GR original models, textures, and animations into UR4 as a proof of concept? Maybe 3d studio or Bender to convert into FBX packages. 2. I also would like to import the original Caves terrain height map A spectacular looking world. I haven't looked into it at all but hopefully the folks at Unreal have made it easier to configure a game with this engine. I'm totally unqualified in being any help on such a huge project but it is a great idea. The Unreal Engine 4 is the most intuitive UR yet. It is an immensely powerful commercial development software and its available for free. I think Wombat, you and many like you with a extreme passion for Ghost Recon are uniquely qualified and I simply cant do this without the communities help. Don't get me wrong, This is a huge undertaking which may take a couple of years or more and will be serious work, but UR4 makes it possible. Unreal is very intuitive to use, I encourage anyone who is interested to download and install UR 4.8.3 which is what Ill be basing this on. https://www.unrealengine.com/what-is-unreal-engine-4 Edited September 25, 2015 by Burner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twcrash Posted September 25, 2015 Share Posted September 25, 2015 (edited) NM I was gonna say something but it will be taken wrong. Love the idea Burner I hope you can do it. Don't expect much help tho because this has already been thought of a few years back and people bawked at it then: http://www.ghostrecon.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=59070&hl= Edited September 25, 2015 by twcrash 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted September 25, 2015 Share Posted September 25, 2015 I think, to be honest, it will be better and less buggy to make the characters and map from scratch, the poly structure of both map and characters will not look good AT ALL in UE4 it will take me a wee while but i'll mock upna character model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted September 26, 2015 Author Share Posted September 26, 2015 I think, to be honest, it will be better and less buggy to make the characters and map from scratch, the poly structure of both map and characters will not look good AT ALL in UE4 it will take me a wee while but i'll mock upna character model. I agree, Ideally, the characters and map should be made from scratch with inspiration from Ghost Recon, ARMA 3, whatever... I really think that the 3d models and texturing, the advanced AI and the netcode are the biggest hurdles to this project. UR4 makes landscapes very intuitive and its a matter of learning the interface. People with experience have made incredible small maps within 4 hours or so, it will take me substantially longer due to learning curve. Currently I am working on creating the Iron Dragon map which is a nice first step. Once we have a viable 3d model from Zeealex we can import onto the skeleton I hope and combine it with the free weapon animations that UR4 has released. Still looking for a available weapons models to attach to a character 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C419 Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 I'd defintely be interested in seeing a remake in the unreal engine..could my PC handle it though? Probably not! I hope it could. I would love to see new voices at least six male and 3 female voices, one voice for everyone of them, saying you have 6 males on one platoon and they could all have different voices, and if you bring all three female specialists, 3 unique voices for them. I could defintely do some voice acting, but I need a better quality microphone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted September 29, 2015 Author Share Posted September 29, 2015 (edited) Ghost Recon Community.... Here is a demo after about 30 hours of work. Keep in mind this is from someone who has absolutely NO experience creating a game. (I took a very basic CAD class a decade ago and some one semester of introduction to basic coding which I absolutely sucked at, none of which I really remembered for this project.) Most of this time was spent watching countless hours of YouTube videos learning UNREAL4, basic C++ coding, the use of blue prints, creating lighting, maps, collision structures, integrating player animations, creating projectiles, attaching a weapon to a skeleton, importing models and meshes, etc etc. I can say that the hardest process is the C++/Blueprints coding and building models and animations. The landscape design seems to be the easiest in the process if you have a gift for it. To be completely honest, The learning curve is an Everest mountain and I am not sure I have the time or endurance to climb it. There are people that have College degrees in this, or have an immense passion for coding, and I certainty don't. I can humbly say that I really dont think I could do this without an experienced team. Thats not even including what Id like to do with Advanced A.I and immersive sound. If I had the resources and drive for a startup company, this would certainly be my passion. At least Ive shown that it is possible, but it will require 2 years just to have a level, a few ghosts, and very basic A.I. and this goal would consume my entire life, which I would rather spend enjoying GR classic rather than creating a modern version of it and staying up until 5:00 a.m. Please let me know your comments and Im sure many of you have come to this conclusion in the past. Its interesting that teams like Project Reality went on to create SQUAD in UR4, but they did work off the foundations of BF4 for the first few years. Although I think the potential is there, experience is absolutely needed. So my conclusion is.....unless we have an experienced team of coders, models,artists, landscapers, and sound engineers, .... lets leave it to the professional teams/ studios. P.S. CryTEK has some potential as it includes materials penetration, weapons, and built in A.I. and it looks gorgeous, however, everyone needs to register on their server to run the engine and I assume they can pull the plug at anytime. Plus there are some licensing and distribution issues with CryTEK that dont seem to be an issue with UR4. Thanks for the support, Burner Edited September 29, 2015 by Burner 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted September 29, 2015 Author Share Posted September 29, 2015 (edited) 5:00 a.m. Edited September 29, 2015 by Burner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wombat50 Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 (edited) ...an experienced team of coders, models,artists, landscapers, and sound engineers,... I'm none of those. Animator can be added. I watched a lengthy video of a guy doing some animation. He was very good but very knowledgeable too. The Arma series has a animation program but it makes my head spin. I'm impressed you got a working demo made. :thumbs up: Edited September 30, 2015 by wombat50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 (edited) working demo looks awesome, I'll see about making a character up in the next couple of weeks if you want to test it out, I can make it part of my college project and as promised, my strela 10 is free for use, i can make the material PBR supported. does anyone have an example character model and skeleton for 3ds? we're also looking at animation in college too, so i might be able to provide some refined walk and run cycles. and if i had time, i could possibly drum up some environment assets too. i'll discuss with my colleagues at Red Hammer Studios if they want to jump in, they were thinking about an unreal game at one point. Edited September 29, 2015 by Zeealex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 sorry, i will stop spamming this thread now but just wanted to say: CryTEK has some potential NO, NO IT DOES NOT!!! I'm sorry but i am a passionate disliker of cryengine, it is worse than bad when it comes to importing models. it will complain about degenerate faces that are either deliberate or non existent. I much prefer the unreal import process, it's quick it's simple it makes life a lot easier. please for the love of god, stay away from cryengine! trust me, 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted September 30, 2015 Author Share Posted September 30, 2015 (edited) working demo looks awesome, I'll see about making a character up in the next couple of weeks if you want to test it out, I can make it part of my college project and as promised, my strela 10 is free for use, i can make the material PBR supported. does anyone have an example character model and skeleton for 3ds? I used examples from free software called "Make Human" from http://www.makehuman.org/, I am using the nightly build http://www.makehuman.org/download_nightlybuild.php. Make Human provides the skeleton structure and you can create a custom 3d character model which can then be modified. Just make sure to save it in FBX format for import into UR4. sorry, i will stop spamming this thread now but just wanted to say: NO, NO IT DOES NOT!!! I'm sorry but i am a passionate disliker of cryengine, it is worse than bad when it comes to importing models. it will complain about degenerate faces that are either deliberate or non existent. I much prefer the unreal import process, it's quick it's simple it makes life a lot easier. please for the love of god, stay away from cryengine! trust me, Ok Zee, Ive heard that CryTek also has licensing issues because everyone has to register with their server, they could pull the plug an the devs nor end user would have access to the engine at any point. CryTEk does have some good foundational AI however. Anyway, UR4 seems very powerful. In the meantime..... Just to make it absolutely crystal clear, I am not going to be working on this with full priority, as I simply dont have the coding skills to make this happen. In other words, I probably will abandon this endeavor not out of desire, but solely due to lack of game creating experience. If anything it may be a long-term experimental project and proof of concept design. Please do not hold your breathe on this project GR community. P.S. We do have GroundBranch and WildLands upcoming.... Edited September 30, 2015 by Burner 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 ah, awesome, makehuman uses the same pose as my trusty base mesh, thanks! yeah, cryengine is also much more resource intensive, AND it's not easy to remove the stock HUD and replace it with your own, best to stay away methinks. unreal doesn't seem too difficult, out there are probably tutorials for creating basic AI for it anyway. and because it's being built from the ground up, you can modify it as heavily as it needs to be. i'm holding my breath whether you like it or not mister! XD anyway, put the base details onto the first ghost model today, i've used a PASGT/LWH for now, however I can change over to a MICH if need be. I had the idea of expanding out the loadout customisation to an arma-like character customisation so the head, helmet, uniform camo and vest, plus your weapons/ ammo. I can easily change this to a classic WYSIWYG system. no UVs as of yet. so no finer details. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 (edited) Great progress Zee. Im looking for the gritty, weathered, tattered, and torn like in WarFighter which is indicative or most groups like Special Forces ODAs (Modern) , and the Teir 1 look for CAG (Delta) and NSW Navy SEALs (DEVGRU) and I also love the classic SEAL look. Of course its up to your artistic creativity and interpretation. ***The first installment I'd like to focus on the Navy SEALs although I know GR focused on an SF ODA. The classic Woodland Camo with the Boonie hats might be the easiest to pull off as a first installment without all the highspeed stuff handing on.*** Edited October 2, 2015 by Burner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twcrash Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I love the energy of it but I suggest use the KISS approach first. Kinda like working on a car. Get the thing running great then worry about the eye candy. Don't make the same mistake other "successors" and build something that looks nothing like GR and runs like a dog turd. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Great progress Zee. Im looking for the gritty, weathered, tattered, and torn like in WarFighter which is indicative or most groups like Special Forces ODAs (Modern) , and the Teir 1 look for CAG (Delta) and NSW Navy SEALs (DEVGRU) and I also love the classic SEAL look. Of course its up to your artistic creativity and interpretation. ***The first installment I'd like to focus on the Navy SEALs although I know GR focused on an SF ODA. The classic Woodland Camo with the Boonie hats might be the easiest to pull off as a first installment without all the highspeed stuff handing on.*** Well, if gear and the like are going to be interchangeable this is not only available, but completely down to the user. I was following, to some degree, the original standard ghosts, I was thinking of leaving the more advanced gear to the unlockable specialists. I agree with twcrash though, the KISS approach is something we need to consider. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 (edited) I agree with twcrash though, the KISS approach is something we need to consider. Absolutely agree, however, we talking about a "modern" reconstruction. Gear has changed substantially from early in the millenium. The Teir one look is an extremely complicated kit, as is the ARMA 3 customization system with adjustable accessories, this would be the ultimate goal in the future, however, not a practical goal immediately. My humble request to start off would be for more of the "Island Thunder" look with Woodland camo and boonie hats because Id like more of a SEAL look. Of course we can do the original 90s SF GR look and create mods later. Thats my personal preference, and as an artist Zee of-course you can do whatever you want and I would be very grateful. Edited October 1, 2015 by Burner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burner Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 (edited) Does anyone know how to import the height-map of GR missions into a UR4 readable format? Edited October 1, 2015 by Burner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeealex Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) Well, for starters that isn't a heightmap that's a black and white satellite image xD I'll figure it out when my computer stops being a crazy loon. I think it needs to be a specific format. Edited October 2, 2015 by Zeealex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeko Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) You'll need a geometry to render height map from it for best result. Or you can try to mess with CrazyBump http://www.crazybump.com/ or nDo http://quixel.se/ndo for picture-to-texture approach. Edited October 2, 2015 by Zeko Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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