Blue's News: Comments - id Software Interview

id Software Interview

[Aug 06, 2008, 03:45 am ET] - Share - Viewing Comments

John Carmack Interview: The Godfather of Frag's Plan to Save PC Gaming on Maximum PC is their chat with the id Software Technical Director as well as Creative Director Tim Willits. The part about saving PC gaming seems a reference to Quake Live, and a number of other questions cut to core issues of PC gaming today, including the impact of piracy, cross-platform development, DirectX and OpenGL, Rage at 60Hz, the next DOOM at 30Hz, and more.

View

19 Replies. 1 pages. Viewing page 1.
< Prev [ 1 ] Next >

19.	Re: ...	Aug 7, 2008, 21:36	CreamyBlood
	This while small companies like GSC Game World can put out games like STALKER: Clear Sky with full DX10 effects. No-one had 3D cards before id pushed for them, yet now they can't even be bothered supporting DX10 when other lesser developers already are? As I understand it, it's not that important. Direct X is an API, a wrapper that makes it easier to use features of compliant graphics cards. DX9 is the most stable and full featured version. DX10 has a few bells and whistles that are more like 'fluff'. Also, you need Vista and a DX10 class card to use it, which however out of date Steams survey is, is going to limit your audience no matter how you look at it. On top of that he says that you can access those features from hardware anyways if you feel you really need them without using the DX10 API. I'm sure he'll code for DX version Whatever, whenever he feels the minor improvements are worth severely restricing his potential user base. That's how I read it anyways.

18.	Re: Modding.	Aug 6, 2008, 23:12	HammerHead
	"Huh? The CryEngine 2 Editor is probably the easiest editor I've used since Silverman's BUILD engine. Also, looking at some of the custom Crysis levels out there, people are making some amazing stuff." Well, in the sense that Carmack is addressing, "custom level" is NOT the same as a "mod." What he is addressing is what most people mean by "mod," which is, not something just where the levels are different, but where the game code and art assets have been modified as well. Indeed, Carmack even said this about Quake Live: "...early on the plans are that we’re going to be advocating development of fresh new levels."

17.	Re: No subject	Aug 6, 2008, 17:24	Enahs
	Master authentication server. Valve has sucesfully pulled it off with Steam and Half-Life 2, I see no reason why id software just wouldnt copy them. Those do nothing to prevent single player games form being pirated. You can illegal play any single player Valve game that is on steam, right now. Alternating Logo (GreaseMonkey script): http://www.ualr.edu/szsullivan/scripts_/BluesNewslogo.user.js




	I am free of all prejudice. I hate everyone equally. - W. C. Fields

16.	Re: OK read..	Aug 6, 2008, 17:09	Wowbagger_TIP
	part of that being fps games (and all genres in general) has significantly improved since then with online play...matchmaking...voip...etc...while pcs have done this for years before it's never been integrated so well like in xbl and to a lesser extent psn Thumb knobbies are probably the most ridiculous control mechanism possible for a FPS game. They take the fun out of it since you have to fight the knobbies instead of just aiming where you want, as with a mouse. Until consoles come up with a much better control scheme, console FPS games are always going to suck. It's such a huge step down from a PC that I can't bring myself to play them on my 360.

15.	Modding.	Aug 6, 2008, 16:55	[THA] Hamst3r
	JC – I’d say that the golden age of the mods passed on the PC because it used to be anybody could make something that at least resembled the commercial product, and a talented person could make something that could even stand in for a commercial product. And that’s just not the case anymore. Huh? The CryEngine 2 Editor is probably the easiest editor I've used since Silverman's BUILD engine. Also, looking at some of the custom Crysis levels out there, people are making some amazing stuff. I can think of several other games that are still getting awesome mods and custom assets too. Oh, also, I've heard that Portal: Still Alive = Portal TFV Map Pack, which is a collection of user-created levels now being sold as a commercial product. This message was edited at Aug 6, 16:55.




	------------------------------ - The Hamster Alliance http://www.hamsteralliance.com/ (music) \| http://www.hamst3r.com/ (blog) ezmuze+ Hamst3r edition, loop-based music creation for the XBOX 360, available now! http://tinyurl.com/colhvm

14.	...	Aug 6, 2008, 15:40	theyarecomingforyou
	WTF? Ever heard of re-binding keys??? LoL. Of course, though with Unreal Tournament you CAN'T rebind the Tab key... I'm so used to it from TF2 / CS that I keep pressing it, which messes up my game. It's also about being different unnecessarily - it's ridiculous using Ctrl to fire a weapon when you can't use a keyboard exclusively anyway due to strafing replacing turning. he said it himself...if you look at steam hardware numbers dx10 adoption is not very good... The Steam numbers are firstly out of date (survey started in 2007) and secondly that never stopped id supporting 3D hardware acceleration way before it took off (they made it take off). The reality is that id are playing catchup after the relative failure of Doom 3 (certainly from a licensing perspective), so they've changed from leading the industry to catching up to UE3 / STALKER (though Rage is impressive from what we've seen so far and could reclaim their position). if the speed and movement is the same as doom 3 then I bet it won't be that big of a deal...however for quake wars 30hz really was a distraction...looked too choppy... I'm not familiar with the whole 30hz / 60hz thing but I noticed that Quake Wars didn't feel right (aiming didn't seem sensitive enough, though not due to mouse sensitivity itself) and it wasn't due to the performance of the graphics. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Founder of the "I Hate Smiley Fitz" society Remember: Riley has autism. He has trouble communicating, and in an overstimulating environment, he can get frightened and run away, leaving his parents frantic. - Auburn




	Founder of the "I Hate Smiley Fitz, n00bdog and Twonky" society CPU upgrade? Check. Graphics upgrade? Not sure. I can wait for DX11 or grab a second 4870 now... or do both. Hmmm.

13.	Re: OK read..	Aug 6, 2008, 14:12	PointlesS
	I really don't see how anyone who played the Quake games could "move on" to a console. I haven't exactly moved on (pc is still my favorite) but when I played quake 3 I owned zero consoles...now I own all 3...part of that being fps games (and all genres in general) has significantly improved since then with online play...matchmaking...voip...etc...while pcs have done this for years before it's never been integrated so well like in xbl and to a lesser extent psn Five million? For a slightly modified version of Q3? Yeah, I don't think that's going to happen. I don't see why that number is out of the realm of possibility...considering flash games can get millions of hits it's not too far fetched to have 5 million registered players for free quake 3 with matchmaking Um, significantly? 60 fps is much, much better than 30 fps. Hell, for an online shooter, 60 fps is the minimum framerate you should have. while I agree 60hz is optimal...it depends on the game...some games won't make that big of a difference...with that said we don't know how doom 4 plays...if the speed and movement is the same as doom 3 then I bet it won't be that big of a deal...however for quake wars 30hz really was a distraction...looked too choppy... This message was edited at Aug 6, 14:53.

12.	Re: OK read..	Aug 6, 2008, 13:17	Jerykk
	A lot of it though is just market migration where a lot of the people who would’ve bought our previous games, you know Quake 2, Doom 3, whatever sort of high end PC-based titles on there – a lot of them just prefer to play games on the consoles now. They moved on to those platforms. I really don't see how anyone who played the Quake games could "move on" to a console. We think that, even though it’s not a modern graphics game, it still looks and plays great and it’s the opportunity to show, if we wind up with five million plus users, then there will be all the incentive to look at a [similar] PC-based title. Five million? For a slightly modified version of Q3? Yeah, I don't think that's going to happen. Most of the games are 30Hz although it’s great to see Call of Duty 4 being a 60hz game. It’s an interesting question. We can’t do scientific studies on this but how much does that superior feel contribute to people enjoying the game more? Um, significantly? 60 fps is much, much better than 30 fps. Hell, for an online shooter, 60 fps is the minimum framerate you should have.

11.	Re: OK read..	Aug 6, 2008, 12:25	MMORPGHoD
	In the 90s you had pirate BBSs. The piracy wasn't on the same scale, but neither was the volume of copies sold as today. The PC market of today is much larger, with the WoW install base alone being many times larger than the 90s market. AAA titles cost alot more to develop today and the game companies are much larger, so it's not easy to do a direct comparison.

10.	Re: OK read..	Aug 6, 2008, 10:47	Beamer
	But wasn't piracy always there anyway? I mean, what changed to make it such a bigger issue now? There are so many more novice users nowadays when in the 90s. I'd say 90s PC gamers were, on average, a bit more knowledgeable. True though that the Internet (and Torrent specifically) has greatly simplified the pirate distribution channels. Exactly. In the 90s you needed to know someone with the game in order to get it. Now one guy buys it and 150,000 have his exact copy 24 hours later. Is this really making a difference? Well, I'm certain more people are getting games. More people are into games, so it makes sense. I'm not certain more people would be buying those games. Most people have a gaming budget that they stick to. If they could not pirate they'd play fewer games, not buy significantly more.




	------------- Music for the discerning: http://www.deathwishinc.com http://www.hydrahead.com http://www.painkillerrecords.com

9.	Re: ...	Aug 6, 2008, 10:38	PointlesS
	and yet rage is probably the best looking game I've ever seen in my life...I don't think they're fighting advances...it's just there's no huge reason to develop for dx10...he said it himself...if you look at steam hardware numbers dx10 adoption is not very good... stalker looks great because it's subtle things they've added...god rays...volumetric particles and so on...while on the other side rage looks like a classic id game...it beats you over the head with how awesome it looks

8.	Re: ...	Aug 6, 2008, 10:13	InBlack
	I'm fed up of companies trying to fight against the industry instead of incorporating advances. It's often about the little things. I mean seriously, why use 'c' for crouch when 'Ctrl' is so much more convenient? But of course id used 'Ctrl' for weapon fire. Great. It's like Unreal Tournament 3 using the 'Tab' button console instead of the scoreboard - how the fuck am I meant to reach up to 'F1' in the middle of a game? WTF? Ever heard of re-binding keys??? LoL. I dont care if it looks like the console version. Keyboard + Mouse = Improved gameplay, the extra FPS help too.




	I have a nifty blue line!

7.	...	Aug 6, 2008, 09:22	theyarecomingforyou
	"On the PC, things stay at higher resolutions faster as you move around. You’ll be able to install everything onto the hard drive on the PC so it’ll page in better as well. We’ll probably have a couple of optional shader things to just turn on. Say, if you got the graphics power to burn, we can do better sampling on some of the textures but none of them are world beater changes. None of them are things that really make you say “wow I’m glad I paid $500 for my video card.” So basically they're creating a console game and there's no point spending time on high-end PC features. It hardly bodes well when the PC will "probably" have a few optional shaders. This while small companies like GSC Game World can put out games like STALKER: Clear Sky with full DX10 effects. No-one had 3D cards before id pushed for them, yet now they can't even be bothered supporting DX10 when other lesser developers already are? The original Unreal Tournament supported texture compression when most people couldn't run it, with UT3 supporting PhysX maps. I'm fed up of companies trying to fight against the industry instead of incorporating advances. It's often about the little things. I mean seriously, why use 'c' for crouch when 'Ctrl' is so much more convenient? But of course id used 'Ctrl' for weapon fire. Great. It's like Unreal Tournament 3 using the 'Tab' button console instead of the scoreboard - how the fuck am I meant to reach up to 'F1' in the middle of a game? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Founder of the "I Hate Smiley Fitz" society Remember: Riley has autism. He has trouble communicating, and in an overstimulating environment, he can get frightened and run away, leaving his parents frantic. - Auburn




	Founder of the "I Hate Smiley Fitz, n00bdog and Twonky" society CPU upgrade? Check. Graphics upgrade? Not sure. I can wait for DX11 or grab a second 4870 now... or do both. Hmmm.

6.	Re: No subject	Aug 6, 2008, 09:22	InBlack
	Acleacius, that way lies madness son.....




	I have a nifty blue line!

5.	No subject	Aug 6, 2008, 08:54	Acleacius
	Of course piracy has always been here it used to be called shareware. :p, The reason you hear about piracy is someone profits about talking about it and creating fear about it. copy protection, (i.e. scam corporations) profit by creating fear, you know corporatism/fascism whatever you want to call it. It's a basic principal to use symbolism to create enemies from fear to archive wealth and power. http://www.anotheramerica.org/fascism.htm




	Trust me, most of the names I have been called you can't translate in any language...they're not even real words as much as a succession of violent images.

4.	No subject	Aug 6, 2008, 08:34	dryden555
	Carmack is making himself available for interviews everywhere after E3. He's looking for investors.

3.	Re: No subject	Aug 6, 2008, 08:24	InBlack
	The answer is really simple for most FPS shooters, and has been since the 90's. Master authentication server. Valve has sucesfully pulled it off with Steam and Half-Life 2, I see no reason why id software just wouldnt copy them. On a side note, I seem to have been infected with a trojan a couple of days ago, it sucessfully stole my Steam account. Major BUMMER! This message was edited at Aug 6, 08:26.




	I have a nifty blue line!

2.	No subject	Aug 6, 2008, 07:34	Zzet
	Advances in technology have definitely made it easier to pirate games, but similarly awareness of those games has also increased. Buying a game without being totally sure it was what you wanted was an accepted risk, as demos were often only obtained via lengthy downloads or cover CDs. Now of course it's mass-marketing central with as much bullshit as you get in the major industries (film, food, services), so people want to be informed. Games are pirated more, but less people are buying because they know what the game is like.

1.	OK read..	Aug 6, 2008, 04:37	LittleMe
	Was a nice read. When the game development studios make such a stir about priacy as they have, they inadvertently hurt the image of the marketplace. So if I am an investor, why would I invest when the very publishers who want my investment money, publicly admit that many people steal the product and greatly diminish my rate of return? I wouldn't. Sometimes public image of the marketplace matters. In the case of piracy, I say caution is advised when speaking about it publicly, on the part of all involved. But wasn't piracy always there anyway? I mean, what changed to make it such a bigger issue now? There are so many more novice users nowadays when in the 90s. I'd say 90s PC gamers were, on average, a bit more knowledgeable. True though that the Internet (and Torrent specifically) has greatly simplified the pirate distribution channels. This message was edited at Aug 6, 04:40.

19 Replies. 1 pages. Viewing page 1.
< Prev [ 1 ] Next >