SPACE HULK: Infestation

[Rachael]

I hope development is going well.

Thank you, it is. ^_^

[Mr.Enchanter]

I'm super hyped!

[Devianteist]

Thanks to HeXenMapper, I have been provided with great music and sprites of actual Genestealers, as well as satisfactory death animations. I look forward to sharing his work, and greatly appreciate all the help he has provided thus far.

[Devianteist]

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Genestealers now have actual sprites.


If you look to the left of the Boltgun, you can see Nash's blood mod at work.


We've made quite the mess. How about a flashlight, so we can see it better?

ETA: Monday, February 27th @ 12:00 PM, US Pacific Time

*Flashlight code is not mine, author(s) credited in credits file.
*HUD derived from WildWeasel's DOOM64 HUD. Not included in Space Hulk.

[Devianteist]

Triple posting like a bastard.

ALPHA 0.3 is out, and ready for critique. Nash's code has been a big help, as he created the sway, tilt and blood I have decided to use, and HexenMapper has provided quality code and music to enhance the experience.

I hope the alpha gives a clearer representation of what this mod will look like once it has been completed.

The next release will be the first BETA. It will feature a new map, and a new way for Genestealers to spawn.

I am not sure when this beta will be released, but I am projecting sometime mid-to-late March.

If you want to toy with the prototype weapons, use GIVE ALL, and take a look.

[Mr.Enchanter]

Are you using models to make the weapon sprites, or are they rips from a game?

[Devianteist]

Are you using models to make the weapon sprites, or are they rips from a game?

The weapon sprites currently being used for the prototypes are rips from Space Hulk: Vengeance of the Blood Angels (1993?). These will be replaced before the first beta version.

The sprites used for the Boltgun and Chainsword are both from the forums here. Boltgun is Captain J's work, which he based on a 3D model he found, and the Chainsword is ripped out of a screenshot from a long-dead Warhammer 40K mod I found here on the forums.

[mickio1]

I have to say i am extremely impressed with this project so far. I have been looking for so long for a doom mod based on WH40K. it seems like a match made in heaven to me. I wish i could contribute in more ways than soundtrack if required. The regular bolter feels so damn good to use! I personally cannot wait for the beta. My only gripe so far is that the animation for swinging the chainsword is a bit funky. You really nailed the feeling of being a massive hulking slab of manmeat while also being extremely vulnerable agaisnt the endless amount of jean-stealers. I would also recomend maybe adding in some kind of helmet GUI as well or atleast rip the one from project brutality in the meantime.

[Devianteist]

I have to say i am extremely impressed with this project so far. I have been looking for so long for a doom mod based on WH40K. it seems like a match made in heaven to me. I wish i could contribute in more ways than soundtrack if required. The regular bolter feels so damn good to use! I personally cannot wait for the beta. My only gripe so far is that the animation for swinging the chainsword is a bit funky. You really nailed the feeling of being a massive hulking slab of manmeat while also being extremely vulnerable agaisnt the endless amount of jean-stealers. I would also recomend maybe adding in some kind of helmet GUI as well or atleast rip the one from project brutality in the meantime.

I feel the same in regards to WH40K Doom modding. The system was in place, and I decided to grab onto it.

You can contribute in any way you can, actually. Throw together a map, and I'll Space Hulk it up, make a feature suggestion, and I'll consider it. Critique is my favorite form of contribution.

Speaking of which, I'm glad it seems to be agreed upon that the Bolter and feeling like a Terminator are well done. I am very proud of how well they turned out, despite being so early into development. The Chainsword will eventually be replaced with a Power Fist, and the Boltgun with a Storm Bolter (just fires faster and has more ammo, maybe some more recoil).

The HUD I've been debating on. I will most likely draw inspiration from Space Hulk Deathwing, as I quite like that games HUD.

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In other news, I have acquired my own copy of the Space Hulk board game, and will be using it to design levels for the first beta. I will likely recreate the first mission from the game to showcase how I plan on implementing Genestealer spawning zones. This will also give me an idea on how to recreate the following;
Destroyable doors.
Tighter, but still navigable corridors.
Proper lighting.
Map detailing.

Unfortunately, because of this approach, many levels will inherit a sort of "copy paste" feel to them, as the board game does not feature many varied locations. However, I may be able to use this to my advantage later on.

So far, so good. The beta is planned to feature a fully functioning Stormbolter and Power Fist combo, as well as slightly tweaked Genestealers and 1 entirely new mission, maybe more.

I am unsure of when to expect a release for the beta, so I will refrain from taking any unrealistic guesses.

[Captain J]

Now i'm finally seeing this. By the Man-Emperor of the Mankind, this is really interesting mod to support with! Also nice use of Duke 3D Protector drone as Genestealers. Haha!

[Vostyok]

I have some sprites from original Amiga1200 Space Hulk. Not sure who ripped them, but I can find out. Lots of imperial eagles, terminator sprites, a thunder hammer hud sprite, etc

[Devianteist]

I have some sprites from original Amiga1200 Space Hulk. Not sure who ripped them, but I can find out. Lots of imperial eagles, terminator sprites, a thunder hammer hud sprite, etc

Throw everything you've got my way! The more the merrier!

Now i'm finally seeing this. By the Man-Emperor of the Mankind, this is really interesting mod to support with! Also nice use of Duke 3D Protector drone as Genestealers. Haha!

The latest version actually has sprites for the Genestealers from Space Hulk: Vengeance of the Blood Angels now. They are quite nice.

[shotfan]

What a splendid development - a WH40K mod for Doom? Sign me up!

My comments and suggestions:
- Which Chapter is the protagonist from?
- It would be justified to go with regenerating health for this mod. Astartes have a powerful healing factor, further supported by their Power Armour. You could balance it out by making maps open-ended, so you could not get a respite to hide from the monsters in a corner to make your injuries heal. However - if not that, then narthecium packs hidden in secret areas could be implemented.
- Terminator Armour needs to be *very* durable. I am thinking on the scale of 2000 AP and 90% DR.
- Continuing from above, it work better to have (offscreen) regenerating (respawning) monsters in tandem with regenerating health (ala KontraKommando's Aliens mod), to amp up the risks and the atmosphere.
- Are any grenades planned?
- Melee weapons need to have some splash damage to make them viable option instead of just shooting everything. The Chainsword in the demo has its area of effect too small to risk using it even against Genestealers. And seeeing that most of Terminator weapons are power ones, this feature would not be too odd to have.

[Devianteist]

What a splendid development - a WH40K mod for Doom? Sign me up!

My comments and suggestions:
- Which Chapter is the protagonist from?
- It would be justified to go with regenerating health for this mod. Astartes have a powerful healing factor, further supported by their Power Armour. You could balance it out by making maps open-ended, so you could not get a respite to hide from the monsters in a corner to make your injuries heal. However - if not that, then narthecium packs hidden in secret areas could be implemented.
- Terminator Armour needs to be *very* durable. I am thinking on the scale of 2000 AP and 90% DR.
- Continuing from above, it work better to have (offscreen) regenerating (respawning) monsters in tandem with regenerating health (ala KontraKommando's Aliens mod), to amp up the risks and the atmosphere.
- Are any grenades planned?
- Melee weapons need to have some splash damage to make them viable option instead of just shooting everything. The Chainsword in the demo has its area of effect too small to risk using it even against Genestealers. And seeeing that most of Terminator weapons are power ones, this feature would not be too odd to have.

---

I have not yet decided which Chapter the player will be from, but it will likely end up being either a Blood Angel, Space Wolf, or Ultramarine. I know that, in the future, you will be able to choose between several classes, as there are in the board game, equipped with different weaponry (Power Sword/Storm Bolter, Power Fist/Storm Bolter, Power Fist/Heavy Flamer, etc.) A Librarian class is planned, but I am unsure as to how to implement it. Either way, that is incredibly far down the road.
Continuing the Chapter bit, I may create different versions featuring the three different Chapters.
Regenerating health is one feature I have been thinking of implementing, but at this point in time I am more focused on getting the weapons functioning how they need to be.
I am currently unsure as to how to ramp up player durability, as I am honestly still a tad inexperienced. I am, however, learning fast, and any help, tips, tricks, or otherwise sound advice would be welcome.
Respawning Genestealers are indeed planned, and will spawn in much the same way as they do in the Space Hulk board game (1, 2 or 3 at a time). I am unsure of the rate at which they will spawn, but it will be frequent enough to provide ample threat. I also plan to, eventually, take the lore for a spin and have versions with Orks and Chaos Daemons running around.
Grenades are not planned, as they are not in the Space Hulk board game (as far as I've seen, as I have not played the Ultramarines variant). I also do not recall seeing anything about Terminators utilization them.
Melee weapons will indeed be given much more love, in keeping with what I said above. However, I do desire to make them more "last resort" weapons, as they are in the board game, because keeping Genestealers away from you is key to survival.

Priority one is making it fun. Priority two is making it as faithful to the board game as possible.

Let it be said that, while this is incredibly ambitious, I do plan to keep a reasonable pace, and stay focused on a few aspects at a time. Currently, I am working on the Stormbolter and Power Fist combo, and am playing around with different ways to make them feel less clunky than the Boltgun and Chainsword combo featured in the alpha. Genestealer spawners are semi-functional, however I need find a way to delay their spawning, so that maps aren't immediately filled with countless numbers of them telefragging each other on spawn. It's quite hysterical, tbh.

I have no expected release for Beta v1, but I hope to get it out sometime within a reasonable timeframe.

EDIT: I need to work on making responses short and sweet, too.

[shotfan]

Regarding Chapters, it would be interesting if the respective Terminator "Chapter-classes" had their unique traits represented. For Blood Angel it would be the risk of being hit by Red Thirst or Black Rage (like a forced rage mode that would make you stronger but also progressively mad, and will eventually "kill" you (representing your fall to insanity) unless you escape it by finishing the level); for Space Wolf it would be the heightened perception capacity; for Ultramarine, nothing.
I also do not have heard of Terminators using grenades, which i find weird. Why not take some grenades to CQC combat environment, like the space hulk?
As for Armour, by AP I meant "Armour Points" (armour equivalent of health) and by DR - "Damage Reduction" (how much recieved damage does the armour absorb). These stats are defined respectively in armour-actor DECORATE definition as "Armor.SaveAmount" and "Armour.SavePercent": https://zdoom.org/wiki/Classes:BlueArmor
Is teleport function of Tactical Dreadnought Armour planned as well? It could work as unlimited teleport beacons to the marked spot (one that could be also changed infinite number of times) on the level.