Making a project "standalone"? Configuriung it as well?

[Tormentor667]

For Blade of Agony, we plan a standalone release that doesn't need an IWAD to run with GZDoom as all of the material being used is in the project's PK3. So how can I make it standalone, so that a player has just to extract a ZIP and play the game? (before anyone asks: The reason is that we want to share the project outside of the Doom community as well and not everyone has or is used to Doom)

Next to that, we'd like to pre-configure the project (in terms of various default settings that come with GZDoom). How can we do that? For example predefine hud size, bloom effect, tonemap, sprite filter, etc?

Best regards and thanks already,
Dan

[Zanieon]

Do you really want a C&D strike from id Software or Bethesda?

[wildweasel]

You would be more legally secure if it still required a Doom or Doom 2 IWAD. Though, even then, calling it "Wolfenstein" and borrowing resources from the Wolfenstein games into Doom isn't exactly legally secure, either.

[Zanieon]

By some 'disfunctional logic' on my side, needing Doom or Doom 2 to play this is more legally safe than publishing it as standalone, because people still needs buy Doom or Doom 2 to play it if it remains as a Doom mod and still giving the money to id Software respectively, making it standalone under a name of an id's title will not only stop indirectly give the cash to them as well start compete with them and suddently having the C&D strike, unless... 100% original assets and another name for it.

This is the rule i always tell to myself to not make my mod standalone, exactly because it uses 99% of Quake and other minimal assets as well.

[wildweasel]

Well, also remember that the "Generations" mod for Quake 2 got a cease-and-desist notice because of how much material they'd ripped/converted from Wolf3D, Doom and Quake. So there is precedent, even if it's very old precedent.

[ibm5155]

For Blade of Agony, we plan a standalone release that doesn't need an IWAD to run with GZDoom as all of the material being used is in the project's PK3. So how can I make it standalone, so that a player has just to extract a ZIP and play the game? (before anyone asks: The reason is that we want to share the project outside of the Doom community as well and not everyone has or is used to Doom)

Go inside the gzdoom.pk3 and enter inside the iwadinfo.txt file.
In the "Names" struct, add the name of your iwad (so gzdoom will check for that file when opening) (and it must be a .wad file, not a .zip neither .pk3 file)
Next you need to insert some iwad struct to let gzdoom knows that your file is actually your file.
Here's an example from what I did with spooky house:

Code: Select all

IWad
{
	Name = "Spooky House of Jump Scare"
	Game = "Doom"
	Config = "Doom"
	Mapinfo = "mapinfo/doom2.txt"
	Compatibility = "Shorttex"
	MustContain = "SPOOK"
	Load = "Spooky.pk3"
	BannerColors = "a8 00 00", "a8 a8 a8"
}

I did a wad file called spooky.wad, this wad has only the pallete textures from freedoom (the only file require to boot) and a map called "SPOOK", the extra stuff is loaded from the "Spooky.pk3" file.

Next to that, we'd like to pre-configure the project (in terms of various default settings that come with GZDoom). How can we do that? For example predefine hud size, bloom effect, tonemap, sprite filter, etc?
Dan

You need to modify the inside of gzdoom code so it changes the default values (with that, enabling bloom,tonemap,... by default.

The default Keys, hmm I really can't remember now if it's require to edit the gzdoom source code or just some text file inside of gzdoom.pk3

You would be more legally secure if it still required a Doom or Doom 2 IWAD. Though, even then, calling it "Wolfenstein" and borrowing resources from the Wolfenstein games into Doom isn't exactly legally secure, either.

Isn't ilegal from the G/Zdoom part to have build in Doom/Heretic/Hexen symbols inside of it? (the mouse cursors)

[InsanityBringer]

Isn't ilegal from the G/Zdoom part to have build in Doom/Heretic/Hexen symbols inside of it? (the mouse cursors)

It isn't legal, strictly speaking, but you can easily work around it by changing the graphics in the pk3 file you distribute.

FWIW, linux distros featuring prboom and other similar doom engines in their package repos would alter the additional menu items to use a new font in place of the doom default, to be 100% legal and free

[Zanieon]

Well, also remember that the "Generations" mod for Quake 2 got a cease-and-desist notice because of how much material they'd ripped/converted from Wolf3D, Doom and Quake. So there is precedent, even if it's very old precedent.

Oh yeah i remember that, but in the time Quake 2 was id's lastest title and they was an independent small studio also on that age this kind of mods based on rips from other games was not common so they cared about, but for today they will not care unless there's cash involved, because on actual days half of the modding scene of every PC game with mod support is based on already existent materials/resource-rips, especially Garry's Mod and Grand Theft Auto (from San Andreas to GTA:V), the only community which i've seen so far they try their own assets is TES:Skyrim's community, Enderal is the best example of it.

[maseter]

He said standalone not commercial... Nothing changes for a mod if you bundle freedoom and gzdoom, as long as the licenses are included and you don't sell it. The bdoom starter pack is also standalone, and wasn't removed from moddb, nor was any other standalone mod bundle.

Dan: Ask SuperDon for help, who is working on the Membrane game:
http://forum.zdoom.org/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=51766

Check the demo, he compiled his own gzdoom, which became membrane.exe and uses just the membrane.pk3, imagine a wolfendoom.exe! He told me that very little was changed in the gzdoom source code, I'm sure he would share the details, if someone asks nicely.

I would also include a "zdoom_portable.ini" so it's truly portable, and pre-configure the controls, set the graphics...
(if you create a zdoom_portable.ini, gzdoom always uses this ini, instead of creating a zdoom-USERNAME.ini)

This way you can put, and run gzdoom from a USB key directly!

[wildweasel]

He said standalone not commercial... Nothing changes for a mod if you bundle freedoom and gzdoom, as long as the licenses are included and you don't sell it. The bdoom starter pack is also standalone, and wasn't removed from moddb, nor was any other standalone mod bundle.

Even if it is not being sold, he may be subject to legal action for even indirectly using the Wolfenstein and Doom trademarks, and resources that are clearly derived from Doom and Wolfenstein's copyrighted artwork. Look what just happened to AM2R.

[Zanieon]

Also IIRC, Blade of Agony uses Medal of Honor OSTs, so making it standalone would also get the attention of Electronic Arts as well.

TBVH simply DO NOT DO THAT, actually publishers and developers may not care about modding activity since the only thing they cares is the income of a game, which mods cannot take charge from, but they still do care of anything outside of it and will do everything they can to not have illegal competitors in their path, see the recent The ORION Project fiasco, this game recently gained a bit of fame due to be very low on price, however AAA publishers always checks these kinds of indies whose have increasing fame like Undertale, FNAF, Hotline: Miami and if they find a single byte of stolen content in your game, they will say the same speech as Liam Neeson in Taken movie.

[printz]

If you're using Wolf3D-derived resources, what about making the mod require ECWolf, and asking a programmer to port everything you need from GZDoom to a modified version of ECWolf? Hahaha.

[Tormentor667]

Thanks for all your replies... that makes me kinda worrying if a standalone release would be a bad idea in general.

You are definitely right: Blade of Agony uses assets from various different sources, not only music from MoH:AA but also models, textures and other stuff from sources like Call of Duty and the Medal of Honor series. The question is just: Will it be any different if it is a mod that requires Doom2 or if is a standalone mod that doesn't require Doom2? After all, there are almost to no assets used from the original doom resources but many more from other games, that's why I ask.

[Zanieon]

To be a mod, it must require a game, making it standalone automatically considers it as a proper game.

Well, the mods don't need necessarily surround the same original theme of their base games, Doom, Unreal Tournament, Quake, Grand Theft Auto and The Elder Scrolls franchises have lots of mods that changes the basics of these games to something completely different, so i don't think just because you made a mod based on Wolfenstein would make it not need Doom, it's the game you are used to mod, like me, i don't have any knowledge in programming or mapping for id Tech 3, but still to prove my love to the game i brought Quake 3 to Doom just to do the campaign i wanted for it, also for mods like mine or yours, no matter the base game we adopt, the mixed resources will always cause this conflict.

[Graf Zahl]

Legally it makes no difference if this is a mod or a standalone game. Of course as a standalone game the exposure will inevitably be higher, and with it the risk of someone taking action against you.

Another legal issue that hasn't been mentioned yet is the special German laws about Nazi symbolism. That may get you into an entirely different kind of legal trouble, if you host this on your own server.