SCOURGE © TDGMods 2012

Clearing up some confusion!

2012-01-18T13:59:00.000-08:00

I've had a number of people ask me what's happened to the site and to "Hypertension" since the last few blog posts, so I'll explain it as clearly as I possibly can.

Hypertension, which was the game up and running on this blog for the last few years, has been suspended and the original development team disbanded in September of last year. We made this decision due to the desire to work on an original IP, and over license disputes we couldn't resolve internally.

SCOURGE is the new game that eventually started as a project to replace those resources, but it was decided to completely start over. In doing so, the entire thing has been scrapped & redesigned fresh, meaning it no longer reflects relationship in any form to Hypertension.

A few months ago, I had started a side project to convert some of the maps and models from Hypertension over to Transfusion, which is a free and legal solution. Any progress for that will appear at the Transfusion forum thread that I started.

SCOURGE, meanwhile, is the new title that has been in active development since September of 2011. I understand that we are not making many public updates to that, but we are working hard on it, and expect to show off some progress very soon. This new game will also be Dreamcast compatible. I can't say too much, but it's going great and we're meeting many milestones. I simply can't wait to share media as soon as we feel we're ready to. It worked with the question-mark fountain in 2008, but...not so much these days! (unfortunately - those are fun to look at!)

Just keep your eyes peeled every now and then, but when we resurface with Scourge, it should do whatever Hypertension did a thousand times over.

Should. Stay tuned!

id Tech 2

2011-12-02T17:18:00.001-08:00

We are looking for anyone experienced in editing/modding/programming id Tech 2 for an upcoming project. If you are interested please drop us a line.

New Name, Better Game

2011-09-10T16:32:00.000-07:00

As some of you might have noticed, the logo up there has changed, along with the name of our beloved game.

The new name comes from our decision to scrap any copyrighted assets that the game had at one point to excercise our creativity with a new direction.

Fear not, as the gameplay you were looking forward to in Hypertension will still be retained, with all the violence and fast-paced action only a game like SCOURGE can deliver.

Get ready for a ton of new announcements and footage in the near future as we gear up to show off SCOURGE's new look for the first time!

HELP WANTED: 3D Modelers

2011-08-07T00:53:00.000-07:00

An important announcement: we decided to go ahead and replace ALL of the copyrighted materials with our own material. This includes the current game textures, character/enemy names(etc), game actor sprites, game flats, sound effects, and a couple of the weapon sprites.

Benefits of doing this are too much to list here, but the important thing is that 1) We don't have to cancel the game like we originally planned for another original IP, and 2) We can be 100% legal and release a legit version of the game.

More benefits include higher-resolution textures (graphic artist will redo all the textures original in 512x512 rather than 128x128), an almost completely 3d world (to save time, we are remodeling the characters in 3d rather than redrawing them in 2d), and a wider range of creativity all around. Would also be able to keep the game code and game levels.

To make clear, we are not exactly doing derivative work, we will completely redo the characters and enemies. For instance, we have an Axe Zombie - it might get turned into a running zombie that uses limbs and sharpened bones to knock the player around, or Cultists who will become Fanatical Followers with a wide wardrobe to choose from, with different weapons. So on and so forth.

As of now, we already began reworking the 200+ textures into original material. We will be keeping similar patterns to avoid having to redesign large chunks of the levels, or reprogramming chunks of code. The sound effects can be recorded by us anyway, and we can buy royalty-free SFX all over the net to replace the copyrighted ones.

So, while the spirit of Blood will be there, the assets will not. This allows us to be 100% legal, release the title(s), and have a generally fresher experience while keeping the crazy gameplay intact. I have spoken to a publisher and it might be a possibility provided we replace all the copyrighted material...that's exiting! A one-hundred percent legit Dreamcast game that isn't a shoot em' up or HL-clone!

The only thing we would need at this point are 3d modelers, so I was going to ask a favor:

I reprogrammed the engine to accept MD3 (Quake 3) rather than MD2 (Quake 2) models, which gives us the advantage of higher tris count without the jagged animations. It increased the overhead from ~4k tris to almost 8k tris, and verts from 2k to 4k, while doubling the amount of frames per model without having to dynamically switch them out. So, we're still going for the low-poly route, no more than ~1.5k tris per object, and no more than ~6k tris per scene.

Which is where you come in: We need the word spread around that we're looking for~low-poly~ modelers who can model from a bunch of reference graphics (the references containing 50+ frames of drawn figures, from Blood) and turn it into something original while keeping the spirit of the original drawings. Since I am WAY tied up right now with the engine code, I have no time to actively hunt, so those of you who can genuinely spread the word would be a HUGE help. For the smaller objects, we can do it in-house, so it'd be a matter at this point in modeling the characters. Animations and all would be provided beforehand so it would be less work. And, if anyone refers a member who joins up to finish the game, I will hand out a complety free copy of Hypertension with a BUNCH of extra stuff (scrapped missions, old betas, etc: the ultimate edition), for the Dreamcast, before anyone else gets it. I think it's a great idea to get someone who can help involved. Of course, you can actively continue to beta test (if you haven't had the chance, we can get you the material), which includes the PC, DC, and 32X versions.

It would be amazing to get support and find people who can help us get legal and get the project out the door for the fans. I didn't like the idea of scrapping all the years of work on the title. We stopped production for awhile, but this sounds like a better idea. Please help us spread the word and get this wonderful title completed and legal!

Feel free to send us inquiries, tips, or help ads to TDG$MODS$@$3DFX$DEV$.$NET$ (edit the money symbol out of the address, did that to block nasty spammers).

Thanks guys! Keep it fresh!
-Corbin
TDGMods

PS: The Forums are down, switching servers with the sub domain, among other things, give us a few days to work it out.

2011-07-15T15:07:00.000-07:00

Phase X has started.

2011-07-11T04:32:00.000-07:00

Greetings everyone! Hope you all had a great 4th!

I come bearing some news. We have made the final move to scrap and reboot development of my game, Hypertension, for the last time.

This is due to our unanimous decision to redesign the entire first episode to make the plot, story, and characters stronger and more developed. Rather than dive head first into the game with a handful of concepts and Blood for the base, as I did in 2008, we will take this title on with a completed roadmap. So far, we just finished up the important chunk of design, and we're already hard at work on reprogramming the AI and making basic renders (with layouts and pre-rendered direction). With a now focused determination, we hope to deliver on something more amazing that what I ever hoped to accomplish with this game so far.

My grasping of the source code will produce results I could not have imagined almost 3 years ago when I started this game, and we now stand with the knowledge and determination to get the game on the right track, as it should be.

We will not be basing this title as heavily on Blood as it has seemed thus far. We will keep the overall engine and a few of the enemy ideas, as well as a few characters from said game, but the rest will be completely built from scratch to compliment the new design. Some of the original content from Episode 1 will stay, however.

We will keep the maps and scripts that have been done up to this point as a bonus episode to compliment the main story. Most of the things that were created prior by Fiend, like the achievement and money system, will remain in the new design.

However, we hope to take all of the excitement and awe you fans have experienced and amp it up to reach new levels of adventure like you have never felt before.

While the blog site will remain static, we will be abound with conversation and speculation at our forums. If you were wondering, it's the big FORUMS button on our sidebar. In there, you have the chance to follow along with our conversations and learn tidbits about what we're up to with the new development. We will keep you fans well fed, no worries there.

Alas, I'm off to join my crew in design land, let's hope whoever eventually returns to the blog will come bearing many gifts.

"Looks like my train's come in."

It's here...

2011-07-01T19:42:00.000-07:00

Many of you are getting sweaty palms from the title.. Well to push you all back in the waiting line once more, Hypertension is not here. Just little ol' me! I'd like to give a big hearty hello to the current team, and am happy to be part of the team! Anywho, it's time for me to get back to my thing.

~ Designer Tyler Jessilynn

TDGMods Presents...

2011-06-30T02:18:00.000-07:00

My apologies to everyone who was checking here frequently to come up empty handed. I had one hell of a day and I'm just now getting around to posting this. Some of you have seen this new trailer. Most have not.

I present you, on behalf of the TDGMods team, our newest gameplay trailer of Hypertension - Episode 1.

In Cooperative Splitscreen mode.

Also, I finally activated the new sharing options that go below these posts! So do your thing people and share this up! Share it more than a hooker shares her STD's! ;)

Massively Awesome Trailer...coming

2011-06-29T04:06:00.000-07:00

If anyone is awake at this time (well, 4:02AMPST), and you're reading this - be prepared for a huge surprise.

Now, usually when I say surprise, it's a few images or clips strung together to show something off - however, when I say huge surprise, think "Game Changer". This one blows off the lid in possibilities.

I have to wait a handful of hours before I can upload this badboy, and I want it thrown far and wide - nudge your friends, pet your dog...hell, poke your grandma!

I need sleep. Tomorrow (technically today) is going to be one BUSY day, this piece of upcoming news notwithstanding. I encourage you all to keep checking back throughout the day, whomever you may be!

EX2 Stuff

2011-06-18T15:57:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, just wanted to throw you all a bonus video.
This is footage from the planned Episode 2 game arc that we had going on for awhile. This was to introduce a new character in the near future (in a new game). As you can see, quite a bit of work went into it. We later deemed that it wasn't quite like how we wanted it, so we decided to start over. We will be keeping some of the materials developed for this however.

You can see the major differences this has with the other game, like lighting, textures, pacing, and sounds (footsteps!).

Well, enjoy the video! Just FYI, episode 2 will also come to Sega's Dreamcast...when it's done, of course ;)

If you can afford it, try and watch this on Youtube's site. It will play at a nice, HD 1080i quality.

Unlike the other videos though, you are free to spread the word. ;)

Buy somethin', will ya?

2011-06-17T01:51:00.000-07:00

Almost wanted to name that the "City Wok Armory" :-)

Taking time away from engine

2011-06-10T03:59:00.000-07:00

Now that I'm finishing up some important stuff (like ROQ support and minor DDF additions) in 3DGE, it's time I get back to Hyper for a few. I went ahead and changed the overall palette/colormap (for the few things that actually use it) to one that Sigvatr created over at DW. The overall result is different from the FreeDoom one we've been using, and makes some stuff a little darker and lacking in color, but I think the new changes make the game look gloomier. Take a look at the new gargoyle - I never put him through a PNG processor and his previous frames were being handled by the FreeDoom palette. With this new one it gives him a whole new range of color. I think I actually prefer this over the old one, and if the few who are with us agree, we'll switch to this. Check it out.

Take a look at an image:

Also, "I don't feel like talking to the hand!"

(this image was created before the palette change)

glFog party!

2011-06-06T12:48:00.000-07:00

One of the things I've been working with on and off the past few weeks was the implementation of GLFog in 3DGE.

In looking at other DOOM engines, I can see that most of the fog is generated in 3d slab space or by linedef triggers. That wasn't going to work, so I decided instead to create a sector special that fills with full real fog. The only downside is that as of now, dynamic light doesn't emit in a sector full of fog, so this will have to be worked on a bit. Fog is something that I always felt would enhanced Hyper's atmosphere and it definitely worked. While the fog in the screenshot is sort of a poison color, it can be modified in the script files according to what sector special you pick. Pretty awesome stuff. It feels more "real" and volumetric than other engines.

Just felt like sharing that with you all. Next, more Hyper-specific stuff.

It's a trap 2! Trapper's boogaloo

2011-05-23T07:56:00.000-07:00

Micro Update by Gen. Laughing Stock

Once again, we're on the lookout for an experienced Doom mapper. My efforts with DeepSea have been frustrating due to low system specs. I've made the decision to return to Doombuilder 1 which for all its limitations, I was still having a degree of progress with. I will say messing with RTS has been more entertaining by far. I can't promise Corbin will like any of my changes, for now let's just say the combat has become a great deal faster since I went a'hacking through several values in Fiend's / Corbin's code. That's all folks. Stay dry.

Putting the plus plus in C!

2011-05-15T14:56:00.000-07:00

Readers, if you have any experience working C++ (even if it is miniscule), or if you have DOOM engine experience, please let me know! Just send a short comment and it'll get picked up in my inbox. As I have said, I picked up development of the EDGE engine, and to make work around 50% faster, another coder would definitely come in handy.

Cite these sources

2011-05-14T01:01:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, long time no talk. Long time no anything, really.

Project has a beating heart again, slowly - the level designers are finally in a position to reliably make quality maps, and we have a more experienced one joining on soon. I've been working myself on game engine stuff (multiplayer, split-screen, rendering flash, framerate increase, model stuff, ROQ cinema) in between the work on Hyper. Zardoz, who has a much more important role now, has even been learning Deepsea and doing some minor code tweaking.

I have to admit that I had a lot of darkness wrapped around the thought of this game for awhile and wanted nothing to do with it. I finally exorcised the shadows that once engulfed my goals, and now have removed the block that trapped creative flow.

Some new things we've been considering - updating the model skins with high-res versions, replacing lots of textures with our own in-house high res stuff, and even re-recording the grand lot of SFX that were stuck in the mid 90's (doing a lot of NPC recording prompted this decision). With new model support, I've been overseeing a possible transition of the 2d enemies with 3d models - something that I hope goes through. Also, I scrapped the story again and a final revision is in the works. I've taken a lot of my time away from this game to write stories and dialogue in a class (aside from the C++) and, looking back on the recent draft, decided it...needed to go.

With us hitting the middle of 2011, and the lethargic heat in California boiling up, crunch mode has activated again to deliver with the goods - coming soon.

Also, a side-note - we've made a second release of our game engine (3DGE), which you can find and toy with at SF.

Hyper3dge now a stand alone port.

2011-04-12T18:34:00.000-07:00

Through the passage of time it has come to the realization of my battered and weathered soul that you have not received an update to this most unassuming of blogs. The winter was long, leaving my mind in a dry and dessicated state- otherwise I would not have left you is such a peculiar predicament. Not wishing the matter become yet more irksome, let us rectify the situation thusly.

First off, Edge’s lead programmer, Andrew Apted, has retired as a developer and is moving on to other, grander vistas of coding. We wish him the best for without him EDGE would not have become the powerhouse it is. We can only hope Andrew keeps in touch with fans and friends of this, the greatest successor of DoSDoom.

Now for those of you who’ve been wondering what’s been afoot of late, an update. Developers Chris, Corbin and others have decided that Edge has a great deal of unrealized potential, so we’re moving with a greater emphasis on engine developement for the time being. Hypertension has been using its own Hyper3dge for some time, only now however has it become different enough to stand on its own as an independent release. The possibilities for our new work include Halflife MDL model format, MD3 model (quake 3) support, a new console, even a new node builder isn’t out of the question. So look within the forums for an update from Corbin and crew.

I hope this makes amends for the situation between us. I did not wish to see you without a thoroughly updated blog.

Truly yours

Gen. Laughing Stock

Get Psyched

2011-03-11T12:53:00.000-08:00

After a period of a week or so, we're back on our feet. I had been experimenting with our parent engine's source code and left things broken for a bit - now the testers should be back up and running again. I learned a good deal of C++ along the way, but still quite not at the level I should be for doing this kind of work, so I'll be studying it in between coding the game.

Here's a few "new" shots showing off the Revolver Fiend modeled, along with a few previously unseen areas. Work on new maps have been progressing slowly due to the learning curve for the new level designers, but we should have some new shots published soon.

As always, I encourage you to sign up to our forums. We are in the process of making them private soon, which should push new user registration and keep out the bad spam.

See you all there soon!

Development Timeline

2011-02-14T01:34:00.001-08:00

(2008 logo - nostalgic much?)

I was looking through some of our old media, and I actually found one of the very first copies of Hypertension built all the way back to 2008. It was pretty interesting to play, but man things were different then - I was just learning how to seriously code and the engine wasn't as optimized as it is now. Also seems like it was a different stage of my life as well, as I've had far too much to deal with these days than I did at the time. Most importantly - it was the beginning of a very long journey in game development, as it started from scratch all the way to present time. I present to you a brief history into the development of Hyper!

...

So loading it up, it really got me thinking that the concept of the game (to redesign Blood) changed so dramatically over the course of 3 years (as it continues to, wish it'd stop). The basic story has been scrapped and rewritten a dozen times, and we had more than two dozen team members coming and going, each lending their artistic and creative influence, which is seen in all versions of this game. The screenshot media definitely goes back farther than the video I'm about to post - to see what I'm talking about, visit the blog archive near the bottom of this page and read through - you can see the first baby steps, back when this thing was dependent solely on DOOM.

Okay, you might have seen some of these videos before, but I'll go ahead and show them off now in chronological order. Almost all of these videos have been featured on YT, except the most recent one.

-2008-
In late 2008, after a few months of development, I took a snapshot of the game to reveal to a community site. I didn't get to uploading this until 2009, but this version of the game is dependent on Doom's game logic and game data. It used a earlier version of EDGE and wasn't quite fine-tuned for the intensive operations it needed at the time. A combination of poor computer, rendering system, and video recording software left this video butchered, but around May of 2009, we saw various sites pick it up, which gave us our first glimpse of the homebrew scene. Mostly in the DC communities, but it's this video that established our roots. For more fun information about this version, visit TDGMods Forums - the post entitled "A Blast From the Past" lists the various oddities and errors in this version. The first wave of the story and my first ragtag team created this, along with me. You can tell the massive amounts of work I endured trying to get this thing looking good (but the tech quite wasn't up to it at the time), and I personally shy away from this video, but at the time people really enjoyed it, and we did too. An impressive feat at the time for less than 6 months of dev time with just myself (near the last month leading up to the creation of this trailer, Tyler had helped me code the mini-HUD).

-2009-

Okay, so these were the next wave of videos. After posting a lot of screenshots detailing the new developments (as things changed again, most notably the introduction of the new Co-Designer [Fiend] signing on) the game was taking shape. It was an ever changing face, but it was really the 2009 trailer that lit the flame that still burns in us today.

In this trailer, we give the first real glimpse into our hard work - scripting engine, a more "matured" 3d rendering system, more enemies on screen without slowdown (except for a bad computer recording the action), and a specific emphasis on the Dreamcast development. Editing this thing took forever, as I worked on two or three different versions under the gun. Diehard Gamefan is really the one to credit for this, because in a few short months it broke up to 80K+ views worldwide and rose us to international acclaim. Seeing our game on foreign language sites and whatnot was really exciting and new to us - when Game Informer covered it on their online site was the tip of the iceberg. It was a true show stopper, not just for the thousands who saw and loved it, but also for us because it was our first reveal since the broken changes seen only a year before, when the project started. It came together incredibly fast and evolved a lot.

Most notable about this was our external video shooting prepared for the project. It's no secret we're using graphic novels to storytell, but we wanted to enumerate this into our trailer to show everyone that we're not just a "90's game" rehash - that we were willing to take our talents into new directions. Painstaking amounts of time and money were used to shoot over 45 minutes of footage, which only about 30 seconds actually made it into the trailer. We released a live action version soon after (but was sadly deleted, maybe one day I'll find it again) which included more of what we shot - but overall the message was quite clear: we were dedicated and having fun.

Sadly, behind the scenes, we were still dealing with much edrama that we tried avoiding like the plague. Dealing with threats and a small but earshot community wasn't pleasing, but we're not in the ass-kissing business, and that broke down really quick.

After the fame shock, we stayed low (at least I did, it got me anxious) and tried to keep focused on development rather than anything else. Which was VERY hard, mind you :)

2010
Nobody saw new media of the game until 5 or so months later, when I felt we had enough to warrant another wave of views. These ones were released somewhat in secret as to not upset our current stream of exclusivity with Diehard. These ones are especially significant because we can see further changes - again, an updated 3d rendering system, more expanded color palette, and more overall ambience. These videos were for our forum audience only, but I'm posting them here for historical significance.

What was awesome about this year is that Fiend and myself really focused on fixing the things that were wrong with the 2009 builds, and making the experience genuinely fun. Private testing on my part with my friends revealed that they became addicted to it (creating a hundred saves, each little save getting corrupted almost hourly as I changed data - saves did not rollover, much to their disappointment). It also was our first time experimenting with DosDoom's Deathbots, which Fiend fixed up and popped them in the game. This is partially significant because it introduced multiplayer elements that we otherwise do not have, as EDGE does not have a networking component. It was a fun way to play Quake3-styled botmatches and really hearkened back to the late 90's era of multiplayer.

We were putting the blocks in place, but the later half of 2010 brought on a lot of stress that eased up on our fixated time, and we lost a few members near the end of that year. So, we can say the first half was fun and productive, while the second half saw a sulking slump of energies.

The third quarter of the year opened up a lot of renewed interest as, for the first time, hosted private beta servers for the first time - a lot of the followers got a chance to test and play it, to overly enthusiastic reviews. We created a bugtracker and really got me focused on wanting to crush these hugely over-sighted engine errors, which often led to crashes. The parent engine went through a slump which saw releases fixing things, but breaking a lot more in Hyper than we would have liked (for instance, saved games still do not work :/).

In the end, 2010 was a productive year to fix bugs, add major features (like expanding the color palette, etc) and get the game in a more playable and presentable state, having pushed the release date back again (a few people is a huge contrast to twenty or thirty actives).

(check out the awesome scripting of this video! I was really enthused about this, but was afraid to release at the time due to DGN's involvement in distribution).

(this is the botmatch portion of the game) <-- both of these videos were released in early 2010)

(this is from the later part of 2010)

-late 2010-
Appended, because I totally forgot - this video introduced, for the first time, our in progress Sega Genesis 32X port of Hypertension, some more behind the scenes footage of the game in action, and a significant reveal of the game in full HD, for the first time. This video was a great way to show people how far the game has traveled since 2008.

-2011-

As the new year begins, so did my dedication to the game - my desire has returned, and we promise that we'll get a release out this year, no matter what we have to do. We want to thank our fans and followers again, because as I have stated numerous times before, if it wasn't for you NONE of this would be worth it. Take it from us, take it from the beta testers - believe the hype - it's really that fun, and it's coming!

Keep the blood flowing everyone! I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did writing it!

Yours forever,
TDGMods (Corbyn)

Keeping em coming

2011-02-10T18:27:00.000-08:00

Things are looking up for our group - getting a lot of work done, and it seems like a big breath of fresh air to see so many supporters linking us all around. At times it seems daunting - under the gun to release something by the end of the year is always stressful.

We want to thank our supporters once again for linking us and posting our videos around - from the Doom scene to the GoG scene - it's people like you that keep us from throwing the towel in.

If you're still interested in the beta campaign (which has been active since last year), meet up with us at the forums and sign up! Promise it'll be a blast. =)

Duct tape is like the force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the world together. Know this - we have a lot of duct tape.

To the forums! :)

[BUMP 2]

2011-02-06T17:25:00.000-08:00

So, out of fun and boredom, I decided to recreate Blood's trailer in Hypertension. Below we have two videos: the one on the top is from Blood's trailer. The one on the bottom is the recreated one.

Little bits of things you guys haven't seen before, but it's short. Do us a favor and spread the video around! Youtube didn't like my video, so I used my facebook account! And, for the bluff, this is for fun - again, for fun. This means that take it at face value and enjoy it. Don't enjoy it too much or you'll grow a funny mustache.

[BUMP]

2011-02-06T14:54:00.001-08:00

Where has everyone been? Dead as those guys ^ there? ...Me? Hard disk failure...but I'm back and busy as ever.

In fact, so busy that there's a special treat for our followers following the break. Check back in later and see what we have in store! Hint: It's a video.

Anyways, gotta run. To the forums!!

:)

Keeping up

2011-01-05T15:34:00.000-08:00

Hey guys, just a progress shot. Keep up with us at our forums!

Temporary Forum/Domain Downtime

2011-01-01T05:36:00.000-08:00

We are in the process of transferring to a new server so the downtime will last a few. This affects our tdgmods.net domain (including forums), our 3dfxdev.net domain (including bugtracker/beta) and a few other things. Right now, it's nothing to be alarmed at - we just got tired of the last host.

Stay tuned as everything should be switched over in the coming days.

Sharing the Blood, one pint at a time.

2010-12-18T00:11:00.000-08:00

Searchers after horror haunt strange, far places.

As you all know, we've gained another team member who will be invaluable to finishing up Hyper. We were going to wait for Diehard Gamefan to make the announcement, but the interview won't be until early next year, so I decided to say it now for you all that keep up.

When the project launched into full swing last year, working on two parts to a game started off well. Most of the ideas I had for the second, more original "episode" started to take form. It was going to have slower paced, supernatural, and more "haunted" gameplay than the first half - which was to mostly emulate Blood. It was going to be different experience in a new setting, with new weapons and characters.

As the new year started, we began working on that half of the game. As we did though, we noticed that the game itself was growing larger and more time was needed to program it. Working on it as a collective was straining the engine, and the code started to jumble around. While we were enjoying it, the increasing amount of bugs and data saturation started to take hold. We realized that it would take more work getting the game to play nice with itself, especially scripts.

While we pondered it, we came up with a solution - split the game into two halves as two releases.

So, I'm pleased to announce on behalf of the team, that we're splitting Hypertension into two "episodes" - One and Two. The names are, of course, might change in the future.

Since the title started with the development of Hyper One, we will release this part first. Removing the second part will ensure that the bugs go down, the crashes become less frequent, and that we release it in a timely manner which holds up to our idea of quality.

Rest assured that this will also give us much needed time to develop the second half in full, as it will require significantly more work since we have to create much of the material from scratch. As I would have loved to release it all in one (maybe sometime after they are both finished), it just wasn't possible, and would have required pushing the game back as a whole for another year or two.

As news develops, we'll share it, but for now - support us by visiting our forums, getting into our community, and staying up to date with our development. This is what drives us to keep going, and someday, it will pay off for everyone.

Keep up with us and we'll be glad to return the favor.

May it be a Bloody one.

-TDGMods

New Team Member

2010-12-15T12:55:00.000-08:00

Hey, everyone I'm a new level designer for Hypertension. I'm glad to be able to help out on this project and partake in such a great community!

I'm currently one of the engine coders for Solitude, that was my only big project I've worked on. I've mainly been involved in the Quake modding scene.

Thank you.

-TeamXlink

Nobody can do everything, but everyone can do something.

2010-12-10T12:45:00.000-08:00

Like every big project that has taken a few years to make, every once in awhile the few who are active on it start to burn out. Not enough to leave or give up the work, but just enough to make even grandfather time a little anxious.

This is now the case with Hypertension. While we have enjoyed working for the fans, it's now becoming strained. Our development team has shrunk the past year, and it puts us back down to two active people, and a handful of semi-active individuals.

Normally this wouldn't bother us, but the protracted development time is definitely wearing us out, and missing deadlines isn't fun.

What we need is some fresh air, some fresh talent - we need you!

What we are asking for is simple - level designers.

We need someone who has a passion for the arts of game design, someone who's creative and not afraid to get down and dirty. Somebody who can take the time and produce something from the heart. We need designers like this to help with the final stretch, to get this half of the game completed and out the door. Without somebody like You, we won't be able to finish or dedicate the time we want to polish and deliver a fun and memorable game.

So, if you know you can compliment our vision and take criticism at a mature level, we ask for your talents. Here's the requirements:

1) Must have level-design experience, either with Doom, Build, or Quake. If you have no experience, be prepared to take some learning time. Preferably, you must have a map to show us. Since this is a learning step, we will teach you how to script and build truly amazing levels - but you must have the desire to do so.

2) Must be able to take criticism at a mature level. You will be working closely with us to help with this mammoth megawad. You must also be able to take criticism from the fans of this project.

3) Open minded and dedicated is what we're looking for here. More than just contributing levels, we need someone to compliment the worlds we create. It takes hard work and determination.

If you feel you have what it takes, don't be afraid to let us know. We are in the final stretch, but we can't continue this without some help. Spread the word long and far.

stay tuned.

2010-12-10T00:40:00.001-08:00

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Off-Topic Land

2010-12-03T09:23:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I just saw this, and thought it would be fun to share with you all.

Most of you know that Hypertension, at its heart, is running on the DOOM engine. We do a lot of things that would make people think otherwise, and it's all about squeezing what you can out of old technology. It's really using the good ol' imagination, like the one we all grew up with.

But, when I saw this I couldn't resist. The video below is a "port", if you will, of Mortal Kombat running on the Doom engine. Obviously it's not a straight port because it had to be rebuilt, but this goes to show you that DOOM is still alive and kicking today, and despite its limited ability, people continue to set the bar with what you can do with it.

So, take this at face value and enjoy. I know I did!

You tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is 'never try'. : - )

2010-11-20T14:41:00.000-08:00

Essay time again everyone! XD Let's play whoever can point out the most grammar mistakes becomes a beta tester! Or my worst enemy, depends on my mood at the time haha.

Well, progress has been refreshing! We just uploaded the Linux distro for the beta testers and it's reported as working! So that's two major releases down, one more to go - the Sega version. Rest assured that it's behind the scenes, and it's coming.

It's been an interesting ride. Sometimes I wish I would've coordinated this game better from the beginning - the reason for the delays is because I didn't have a clear direction then on what I was doing.

This is apparent in two videos I posted showing progress from late 2008, early 2009. Albeit the game was premature then, but you can definitely see how things have progressed with another (more...interested? haha) designer and more manpower.

I have to make the choice now to start cutting things out of this that I normally wouldn't want to, because of the elongated development time. Some of them are only minor stuff, and the majority of this we are putting on hold for a second "episode", because as things are it leaves the other story arc totally in the open.

The game has been in bug squashing phases lately, and it's also helped spin a new perspective on things a bit. And it was through the testers I realized that this is a fun and interesting game, not a long, boring chore. Part of being a designer (and any designer can vouch for this) is that you become super critical of your work, regardless of what other people think of it, and 2 years of the same thing gets old after awhile. It's like a 101 right there, but I'm also maturing and noticing that regardless of what I think - other people are enjoying it. I was nervous at first when they started playing it, but it's really helped me face my own fears.

It's helped revitalize my role in the project, as I was letting all these other things cloud my involvement and passion for the material at heart. Rest assured though, we are working and we are working hard. Hype can go kill itself - the game is all we need at this point.

We were supposed to have another special go live in October/November through Diehard Gamefan (as we were a popular ticket last year), but it fell through. I'm really hoping December becomes a buzzmeter month and we can start putting out a ton of updates, opening up the beta to more people, and fixing all of our sites/forums and whatnot.

So, for the people who have been following us since 2008, or 2009...or even 2010, we thank you again, and believe it or not - Hypertension is coming!

So grab your pills, stay away from salt and pet your grandma every once in awhile - once we hit, Change is coming.

Ciao!

I'm gonna paint the town...

2010-11-07T19:51:00.000-08:00

RED..

Still slots left!

2010-10-23T14:13:00.001-07:00

The beta testing period has begun and so far people are really liking what they are playing. Hypertension has managed to creep them out in more ways than one, and that's a good thing. Just in time for Halloween, no?

So far I have the beta filled up to 10 slots, there are still 15 more slots to go, and if you're interested in taking the role of a beta tester/reporter, all you have to do is click on the link below and see if you have what it takes. As mentioned you will get full credit for the QA process.

Beta Testing Thread here!

See you all there!

Closed PC Beta Testing has started!

2010-10-16T23:21:00.000-07:00

Well, what are you waiting for? If you think you have what it takes and will report bugs in the same way you would devour a pizza, I think we're set.

Navigate here. The test is limited to 25 slots, so if you want your copy then hurry on over.

However, if you can provide evidence that I approved your beta credentials back in 2009 or earlier, you will be let in despite the player cap.

See you all there!

Don't go yet..

2010-10-09T13:42:00.000-07:00

Things have been slow - they will pick up here very soon.

Also, some very exciting announcements but it's too early to outright tell you guys - you'll just have to wait and see.

I gotta split, talk at you all later!

Demonstration, Beta Testing, Other Thoughts

2010-09-01T23:30:00.000-07:00

Hey all, quite awhile since the last blog post.

Just hopped on here to show you all, if you've been missing out on the YT channel or our forums, the month old demonstration of one of the levels in Hypertension. Included is behind-the-scenes footage from our last year trailer and some 32X love near the end.

You should click the youtube link, go to the Youtube page and play in 720p HD. It's much cleaner than any other video recorded prior.

With that, beta testing is almost upon us. It is a closed session, which will last a few months and hopefully solve the remaining bugs. We still have a lot of content to go before release, but we're closer to the finish line now than we've ever been.

I'd like to continue thanking the support of our fans and followers, its you guys that push us to work hard and deliver a fun, bloody product.

Hypertension is coming, don't forget your medicine.

Site Overhaul!

2010-08-12T04:36:00.000-07:00

This doesn't look like the Country Kitchen Buffet!

We hope you enjoy the site redesign! The old one was good but it was becoming cluttered and unorganized. This way, the viewing panes are bigger and things look better on the eyes.

We're entering beta testing so hopefully some good results come out of it. We have some major updates and news that we'll be revealing soon, along with a few external site exclusives and other stuff.

Release is getting closer, guys. Here's some shots as your reward for keeping up with us, they are in super HD so be sure to click on them to view them as they are intended!

My personal fave...

Let's get the party started already! Join up in our forums to discuss!

I'll have some finger in my Chili please!

2010-07-20T21:10:00.001-07:00

Bad joke!

Anyways, I reprogrammed the gore, now it matches the original game's near perfectly.

I know the dynalite is a bug, will be fixed.

Still Kicking

2010-07-12T11:02:00.000-07:00

So, yeah, it's been awhile. So long, in fact, that I didn't want to make the same "hey guys, here's 3 screenshots for you."

I wanted to put together a quick gameplay video for everyone since screenshots just don't convey certain things. I recorded some of this video in May, but never got around to putting it together. When I realized how out of date some of the footage was, I re-recorded parts of it and added video from levels that I'd started since.

So here's 7,623 screenshots for you.

Random stuff:

-Yes, the pitchfork has an alt-fire now (well, it has for a while, we just haven't shown it), which performs an overhead, downward stab. It does significantly more damage than primary fire

-Had to turn down the sound from 2:23-2:47 because the ambient noise in the level caused problems when recording. There are other parts that caused clipping as well. I didn't realize quite how loud HT is at times.

-I already know the Bloated Butcher's overkill states are not yet scaled correctly.

-Mind the occasional texture glitches, it's all WIP.

Thanks for the support everyone.

-Fiend (inb4 spam)

FORUMS ARE UP...

2010-06-13T10:39:00.000-07:00

NO SIR, I DIDN'T LIKE IT.

Forums Are Down...

2010-06-09T07:04:00.000-07:00

Forums are currently down. I'm looking for a temporary solution. Something should be in place by the end of the week.

But for now, here are some screenshots:

Deep underground with the WIP Crossbow.

E-Mail... of the future!

More screenshots

2010-05-23T10:52:00.000-07:00

So... it's been a while.

Here are some screenshots from Hypertension's second episode, which is beginning to take shape. We've got big plans for it. Stay tuned for updates.

Wanted: Website Developer

2010-04-20T13:10:00.000-07:00

Back again guys. This time, we're looking for a site designer/programmer/maintainer.

You might remember last year or so, I was in talks with a company developing a content-rich website for us. Well, there was no way we could afford the price they eventually asked, and we had to drop the deal. If it went through, it would've been the ultimate independent developer website/hypertension infocenter.
But it was the money that we didn't have at that point in time.

Now, we're looking for website designers again. You might remember our 3dfxdev.net domain going out for awhile - our main server went out and is still down. Since I registered numerous domains through Godaddy (the 3dfxdev.net one being active since 2005) we are now temporarily going through their own hosting package. We no longer have a lot of luxury control over it as we did our previous server, but we have enough for a web developer to grab hold if they wanted to. We need to move away from this system as it's not strong enough to promote our products or encourage further activity in our community.

What we are asking now is that if there is anyone who is a viable website designer, either a CMS or CSS, no matter what the deal is, we are ready for it. We will have to work on a monthly payment system, as we cannot currently shell out an all-at-once deal, but it will be secure and on time. The donations we recieve to keep the site alive will all go towards the deal.

Another thing I wanted to point out - the donation system is still offline and has been for a long time. We will be working on a substitute that will channel directly into our server/program fund but it still won't be up for awhile.

More bloodshed!

2010-04-16T01:19:00.000-07:00

Here's more shots! Adding some new music to the music player soon, courtesy of Dimaension X, a musical artist.

Keep in touch via forums!

Viva Hypertension!

Getting there!

2010-04-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

Grind is coming in now. We are looking for (ASAP guys!):

1) Sprite Artists
2) Monster/Character Low-Poly modelers
3) A Level Designer
4) Particle Effects Designer (graphics)

If you are interested or you think you know people who would be interested, have them contact us ASAP.

inb4b2r

2010-03-31T22:59:00.000-07:00

Also.

I hate mimes.

2010-03-17T14:59:00.000-07:00

Here's another batch of screenies for you guys! Game is coming along better and better. Make sure to check out the forums for more...interesting...updates, including a video perhaps? XD

Some progress shots!

2010-03-12T03:06:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the silence guys! Here's more shots to prove development
is still going strong! XD

Special thanks to Karnizero for the contributions! HUD is WIP and one of the MANY available to choose from, but so far, so good!

We're back baby!

2010-03-03T04:05:00.001-08:00

Well, not everything (excluding external wikis, will be up soon), but mostly we're up and running!

Forums are back. Make sure to update your bookmarks!

See you all there!

“I have the right to breathe; everything else is a bonus.”

2010-02-24T07:53:00.000-08:00

So here's some sneak preview shots of a new system we've developed for Hypertension.

Basically, they work like bonuses, or "achievements". Doing certain things, like killing a fire-based enemy with your pitchfork, eliminating all ghosts in a level, or similar things earns you money. You can use the money to purchase things in the game world.

The System is fully functional now so it'll be interesting to see what we come up with to use it. It's already fun to play gaining these bonuses!

Lights out!

2010-02-12T15:44:00.000-08:00

Warning: Giant screenshots ahead.

Quick update!

2010-02-12T04:28:00.001-08:00

We are working on a server solution soon so hopefully it'll be at the most another month or so until everything is restored!

Thanks again for your patience, the heart will begin beating again soon enough.

From the Ashes of our server..

2010-02-09T03:17:00.000-08:00

Rises this new pic...=)

Enjoy!

Dead Server

2010-02-04T01:13:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Just letting you know that we've ran into hosting problems, so for the meantime, the TDGMods forums/domain will be unreachable.

Click Here to be redirected to our temporary forum boards (until we get a new server put together).

Sorry for the inconvenience.
-CA

If we could have Dual Guns,

2010-01-20T09:44:00.000-08:00

Then we can have Dual Screens!

In The End

2010-01-07T13:10:00.001-08:00

Starting the party so soon aren't we?

Pay Attenton to those Context Sensitive Areas!

Tommy Gun PWN (new muzzle flash!)

New Lighting Effects

Yep...from the beginning to the eventual end, we just make games.

More updates are available at the forum boards, and new Sega 32X shots coming soon! Thanks to all of our fans, supporters, and haters (without you guys, we wouldn't be where we're at today)!

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.
-Thomas Jefferson

THE SCREENSHOTS NEVER END PART 2

2010-01-01T20:51:00.001-08:00

That's right! Hypertension has made it's way to Sega Genesis 32X! Check the screens and the wiki for more information!

2009 Wrap Up - Viva la Hypertension!

2009-12-30T15:21:00.000-08:00

Hey there everyone! 2009 is almost to a close! It's almost hard to believe everything that has happened this year, what a solid year of work to a game that had little to no legs in late 2008 now has a very powerful presence...it's really inspiring. Jumping from a few guys scrambling to diffuse drama at every corner to a competent team that works together - coherent thoughts and design, that's where it's all at. The magic starts there. I'd gladly take that and friendship over community whining/bickering any day of the week - and I can't say that we didn't try regardless.

We've had a lot of hardships this year, public, private, and absurd. We've lost team members who've been invaluable to development, lost allies, gained enemies, but at the end of the day, everyday, you take it as a stepping stone. You can't please everyone, and you can't change their mind. People are, as individuals, all different and believe something that just isn't true, or right, but it's their God given right, and it shall remain that way. Accepting that is part of being professional.

Going from underground to mainstream was very much a treat, but also an eye-opener. It's a very different world, but one that we have to acknowledge sometime. All in all, we learned a lot of lessons the past year. We're scrapping together a really nice and supportive community, whether on an Atari fansite or Game Informer itself, people are coming together to support this wonderful effort. A game of our own self-worth. Sure, we have a big Donate button that might seem odd given that we're remaking material that people worked on over 10 years ago - but that doesn't mean you guys have to push it, and I don't believe that makes us wrong either - after all, we've spent more money on the game itself so far than most independent teams will ever dream about - and if that's not passion, especially if the game is freeware and bred from 90% of our own imagination and creative direction, then I don't know what is.

That game is Hypertension. And TDGMods owes it to all of the people who believe and stand for what we are doing, for what we want - we want a game for US, Hypertension is US. It's TDGMods. TDGMods is all of your most awesome dreams and desires - a bunch of people sacrificing for a dream. We know that the game won't hit home for everyone - but that's not stopping us. Just because a community doesn't like it doesn't mean we're going to bow down either - and it's a risk we knew we were taking since day one. We are always going to be proud of the people we are, of the game we make, and of the struggles and skeletons we've all had to face head on. Man in the Mirror, as MJ once sang out about.

Our beliefs are a little extreme, our attitudes at times might seem out there, or we might be wasting a lot of money, but it's all part of having fun, of friendship and love, to passion with a game and technology seemingly "stuck in the past" - but if the Retro Revolution doesn't start here, and your early years stay trapped in your heart despite it all, then we're surely crazy. At least on some Alien planet out there.

Maybe Canada. ;)

EDIT: It's 2010! Happy New Year everyone!
-TDGMods

The screenshots never end

2009-12-28T13:46:00.000-08:00

Haha, play on words there. Okay, so here's more progress shots. As you can tell, the game is coming together nicely. We're still adding new features every day - for instance, check out the Guns Akimbo! Also some of the exterior, outdoor shots look so amazing - and play better!

Remember to join our Forums for exclusive updates (that means news, screen
shots, and more goodies) that we won't post on the blog here!

Keep it fresh!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T09:55:00.000-08:00

Now go play some ROTT already! ;)

Wishing all of you happy holidays, be safe and have an amazing new year. I'm sure I'll post again before then, but in case I forget, take this as it is. =)

-TDGMods

Authenticity!

2009-12-21T02:16:00.001-08:00

You know, despite our die-hard attachment to Blood, I have not played the game in a very long time.

That's right. I could not play Blood because of hardware issues. I relied on both my team members and memory to guide the way.

Tonight, I was lucky enough to receive a very old laptop, Pentium 2MMX era, and what I witnessed when I loaded up Blood just dropped my jaw.

Literally, I was floored.

Blood is an amazing game. Everything about it was just spot on. The atmosphere, the action, the mood. I was worried, for a very long time, that Hypertension was unable to capture the atmosphere. Literally, I would get worried sick for hours on end about it. My team members assured me that [Hypertension] was spot on. They tried telling me that Hypertension captured, and more, Blood in almost every single way.

LEFT: BLOOD RIGHT: HYPERTENSION
(Click for larger version!)

Well, I took a trip down memory lane. I played Blood for hours after work. Afterwards, very anxious, I loaded up Hypertension on my main machine.

Simply amazing.

Not only does Hypertension capture this spirit from Blood, everything from the atmosphere, the action, the mood, and the intensity is all there!! I was running Blood in SuperVGA mode and it looked great, but drab (like it should). I was complaining to my team that Hypertension looked drab as well, like nothing fit in the engine we were using.

Something clicked about half an hour ago. Going from Blood to Hypertension is like going from RC Cola to Pepsi. I mean no disrespect towards Blood's followers or the community when I say this, but it was a major, major upgrade. The OpenGL renderer I was so worried about fit the game incredibly well, taking Blood's grain and turning it into silk. The colors are more vivid in Hypertension because of this. The lighting adds a lot to the game, but I thought Blood was a darker game than what I remembered it to be. So it's not that much of a problem.

Yeah, there are a lot of things in Hypertension that need tweaking, but for the most part, it's a really spot on rendition of the original. I just wanted to share that with you all. For those of you who are worried that we won't capture the atmosphere, hopefully we'll be able to prove you wrong (for the most part). =)

The only thing that I can say Hypertension doesn't quite get right is Blood's software diminished lighting, but it's a trade off for Hypertension's dynamic lighting, and it works well in comparison.

Had to rant! Talk to you guys later, enjoy the updates, and check the forums!

Just another night...

2009-12-15T10:06:00.001-08:00

Business as usual. Here's a new screen showing off a level that I'm working on (!). I know, I know, I'm not a mapper, I got bored ok?

;)

Team Restructure

2009-12-14T00:46:00.000-08:00

Well, it has to happen sometime. I mentioned in the last post that we're having a sort of team downsize, as the workgrind settles in. Our team shrank in size considerably, but this overall means better communication.

The things we lost though - our main texture artist, most of our OST team, and others with smaller roles.

While not hampering development in a negative way, I think some of this stems from the new ideas we are generating forward as this game evolves. Some of the stuff we were previously working on had no room with these changes and as such, roles were dissolved or given up. It happened sort of all at once, but it's to be expected.

So, the core team members are still at work here, and others like Lysander have proven invaluable to development. While we might downsize and now appear "slower" to provide updates, rest assured they'll continue to come in, as much as we can allow.

Season's Greetings fans, and careful what that new Tommygun, you'll shoot someone's eye out!

Oh Wait...;)

It's been over a month!

2009-12-09T09:40:00.000-08:00

For our beloved trailer, we averaged out (on Youtube, not counting Diehard or other viral self-hosting web sites):

68,353 views (this climbs hourly!)
Comments: 55 Favourites: 29 Ratings: 55 Average Rating: 4.51

All in all, the trailer was a huge international success, making it everywhere from Game Informer Magazine to our beloved Doomworld. It's still hard to believe all of the success we've gotten from the press, and it's definitely pushed us way harder than we would've ever dreamed. DieHard GameFan Magazine did an incredibly amazing job handling the press, and as usual Sega Nerds/DCEmulation (special thanks: Juan)/DCJY/JSII covered it, which gathered a bunch of views too. Thanks guys!

As usual, every time I edit a trailer together, it's only a few weeks before we make something better than that. Haha, well yeah. Something better is happening, so we're going to release an exclusive gameplay video of one of the full levels of Hypertension in time for the New Year. It will give you an in-depth look at the game that will revolutionize retro titles forever.

It's quite amazing how we're featured on GameSpy/IGN/etc etc as real developers, that makes us all feel very good. While we've had a lot of trouble maintaining a solid team/publisher, things are looking good as we downsized a little bit, but still trudging along as always. I guess we're officially branded an " Independent Software Design Association". That title makes us all very proud of the work we've put into this.

In a whole, the drama is wrapping up - I've made things right everywhere and now that it's out of the picture, we can focus on finishing this title.

I want to thank the amazing people for helping us out with donations - they are going a long way.

As always, we invite you to become a part of History by partaking in our forum boards. Also - get the word spread out there! Anything helps and the farther we go, the farther we'll take you in our gameplay adventures!

Thanks for your wonderful support to TDGMods - nothing in the world means more to us.

-Corbin
TDGMods

Some new stuff

2009-12-08T22:11:00.000-08:00

Bug fixing phase is over, time to continue development as planned! =)

Here's a new screen. Enjoy!

Hint: There's several more screens in the development thread at our forums!

Bugfixing

2009-12-07T13:43:00.001-08:00

Still no new material, I've been working on mainly bugfixes the last 10 or so revisions to the SVN to try and get the game in a stable state. We're working on some new stuff soon that should wow.

Gotta go grab the pesticide, those bugs are a-callin'!

Welcoming Lysander

2009-12-04T07:37:00.000-08:00

Just a quick announcement!

Lysander, an EDGE engine enthusiast, has joined the team recently. He's sort of a "jack of all trades" kinda guy. We'll see where he can fit into the development team as 2009 rapidly comes to a close.

Also, a quick heads up that Doomer1, another EDGE user, has contributed a lot of material for Hypertension recently, some of it having already seen previously. He's also the one designing Zombie Invasion, a spin-off gameplay type of Hypertension that we have yet to reveal details of.

So do me a favor and welcome these two to TDGMods. Hopefully their contributions and help will be ever lasting in our ultimate goal - to release Hypertension.

Kicking ass and taking names, one Cultist at a time. ;)

Infrequent Updates?

2009-12-01T02:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry about that, guys! We've been busy-busy working on the game, and some of our personal lives have risen above it, but we're still hard at work!

Here's a new screen to enjoy for now.

Remember, to keep freshly up-to-date with Hypertension, our forums are just one (c)lick away. ;)

Reception Party

2009-11-19T03:30:00.000-08:00

You know, after so many years of failing to break through with any concrete idea at designing games, it's so heartwarming to finally see our project on top gaming sites, next to recent PS3 and Xbox360 titles.

So far the trailer has continued to climb up there and with every hit, we form closer and closer together, our community reaching thousands of gamers, new and old alike, from several different cultural backrounds and beliefs...it's truly incredible.

It's taken all of this positive attention to realize that this project will make or break us in the gaming industry. Sure, we're not pro, as we firmly remain planted in our indie roots, but if this game does well, then you can expect us to make even more amazing titles as the future comes forward. Yes, we are doing this for us, but the beauty of it is that we have fans like you guys who embrace our ideals.

It's always a treat to take a gaming technology, inferior and outdated, and turn it into something truly remarkable. I was at Gamestop the other day and they really liked it. Game Informer, while slow to realize Hypertension's potential, has slowly unlocked the fun of retro gaming.

It's no doubt that Hypertension has rattled even the professional gaming industry - and we hope you take time to appreciate the games that led to the amazing, beautiful work that has been produced today.

There are a lot of break-in development/modding teams using the latest technology - but it's so amazing to see a game that's taken these ideals from over 15 years ago, fusing them with modern technology, and making headlines. Our dreams are slowly coming true, and we have all of our amazing and beautiful supporters out there to thank. It's because of you guys, the ones who truly believe and stand up for us, that is making this happen. Over 10 years for a lot of us, and every idea has failed, every efforts stomped in the ground due to bad decision making. As difficult and heartbreaking this project has been for us, personally and professionally, at times...it's worth the ride.

We will not forget your support, and we promise this game will for sure shake things up a notch. We heavily encourage you all to visit and register at our Forum Boards, where you can partake in an awesome community of yesterday, and the future. Registration only takes a minute - the memories will last a lifetime. We hope to see you all there.

With much love,
TDGMods and the OST Strike Team

Thank You!

2009-11-11T11:13:00.001-08:00

The response so far to Hypertension has been mostly positive and enormous - with twice as many hits on the video and interview than our teaser earlier in the year ever managed to muster.

I'm glad you guys are enjoying it, and I'm also surprised that it appealed to a lot of overseas gamers in Japan and South Korea - 貴方達は揺れる!

Sit tight for more interesting updates as we push forward!

From a Retro gamer to...a Next-Gen gamer?

2009-11-07T03:20:00.001-08:00

"theres new gen consoles, why would they make a game that looks so outdated? looks as bad as the dreamcast itself"

"how about....idk making some more decent games for ps2, gamecube, ans xbox original? you know, the last generation? not two generations ago retards. Ill probably just download it on pc"

I've been getting these statements a lot - it's time to explain our ultimate reason behind developing for an engine of the "yesteryear", and why we chose a game that's lived a longer life than new age gamers do (just opinion, of course):

I grew up in the late 80's/90's, when sprite-based gaming ruled the battlefield, when games were original, fun, and invigorating. I also got to see the transition from primitive 2d into fully 3d games, and it was around that time period that I noticed the quality of games decline - not the graphics, but the concepts, originality, all that stuff.

It was like - I remember the day the original Alone in the Dark came out. Brand new genre at the time, amazing graphics (they are STILL amazing for its time), originality, a huge scare factor. You just don't get games like that nowadays, and I'm afraid it's what the current generation of gamers just don't experience because graphics are not going to get much better than what the next-gen stuff in development is right now. It's just a fact. As soon as graphics hit real life games will fade away. After all, it's the reasons kids and adults play games - to escape reality.

Doom was prime for it's time - new technology, new gameplay, cutting edge graphics, multiplayer. Now - Doom is still one of the most popular games/engines today. Doomworld, the site where I learned the tools of the trade, is one of the most expansive communities around on the web - Doom is even more alive than it was when id released it in 1993.

The reason we chose the Doom engine is simple - open source, huge community, and there has been things added to enhance the original engine. Watch the trailer for Hypertension and watch some stock Doom footage from 1993 (any original youtube entry will do) - there's big difference there.

Also, the Build engine (Duke3d, Blood, etc) was made not too differently from Doom's engine - not only allowing us to capture much of the classic Blood feel, but also to enhance the game with 3d models, killer scripting, true 3d floors, high-res modern textures..the list goes on. Build was technically superior to id Tech 1. Who knows - it still might be.

We didn't sit to develop Hypertension to awe gamers with amazing graphics. Hell, even Blood, in 1997, was ancient (as Quake and everything true, full 3d based came out in 1996), but 3d Realms took the risk, and it became a favorite. It's not graphics that make a game.

This is just like saying - why do retro game compilations sell well? PS3, 360 - even the Virtual Console? Retro is back in. Why did the new Wolfenstein 3d/Doom iphone/cell/virtual, etc. releases sell extremely well? Why does id's back catalog from 1991 - 1996 make more money today than all of Uwe Boll's movies combined? Granted, Hypertension is freeware but that's not the point.

(...I really do like Uwe Boll, he's a funny guy, and Postal was actually funny. There. I said it. Most of his movies were bad though, I'll admit that.)

The new gamers of today's generation will not understand Hypertension's underlying meaning. It's not to play Blood again. It's to show that these were the games that all of the current game designers created and they were fun. They had to start somewhere. Believe it or not. To us older gamers - drinking alcohol in a game, or smoking in a game, or hearing curse words or seeing strippers was a new and exciting thing for us. Now, it's the norm. That's why those gamers will not see anything in Hypertension.

I remember when Doom came out. Next it was Duke Nukem, then Quake, Quake 2, etc etc. Each few years technology got branched farther out, but the fun was stripped away. Of course, not completely, and this does not apply to every game out there, as I believe that there are a huge chunk of fun and exciting games - it just takes awhile for one of them to hit home nowadays. Wolfenstein 2009 was the last game that I think I enjoyed that was modern. And even then - Wolf's graphics weren't revolutionary.

People are realizing that the best games were made in the time period before graphics got so crazy it became boring. The last game I think I envied in terms of graphics was Doom 3. The rest after that wasn't interesting.

This game will not appeal to new gamer's - period, unless they are into the retro gaming era. It's strictly for the ones who grew up, like myself, on sprite based graphics and ludicrous storylines/gameplay, etc. Kudos to any 14 year old kid who plays the game and enjoys it, but we already knew we were targeting a specific demographic when we released that first teaser in the beginning of this year.

I have stated in our Gamefan Magazine interview - we are making this game for ourselves, not for others.

And it's totally true. Every game developer takes a risk. You either like the product, or you don't like the product. We're hoping for the first one, btw. =)

Here's to GREAT SUCCESS!

Are you a retro gamer? Maybe you're a modern gamer? You're free to share your thoughts and opinions on this article in our forums.

Also, just a quick update - Ben Wachal, part of the OST Strike Team, has uploaded an original in-game track from Hypertension entitled, well, "Untitled". Don't forget to check it out! =)

More Coverage, More Good News!

2009-11-04T22:30:00.000-08:00

Well, the time has come! Our trailer goes live to the masses on Friday, and Diehard Gamefan has released a special, behind the scenes, never before heard details of the development of Hypertension. Our struggles, our pain, our hardships, and the fun we've endured over development so far. This is something no Blood or Hypertension fan will want to miss.

What are you waiting for? CHECK IT OUT HERE!

We've also made the frontpage of Doomworld news (well, at least they accepted the content that was submitted) so major props to them, and it just proves to everyone that, despite how horrible your past was, you can always make things right.

Going Public

2009-11-04T00:05:00.000-08:00

If you all haven't noticed, our trailer is public now! Thanks to our media publishers:

Stay tuned as more news/coverage pours out!

I want to take time really quick to thank my wonderful girlfriend Lai, without her this project probably would've fallen apart under my stress from some insane developers and trailer deadlines. As well as the entire development/OST team, Lai is probably the biggest reason I kept moving forward.

Thanks babe!

Prologue - Trailer, Hardships, Release Dates, etc

2009-10-30T23:52:00.000-07:00

Well, we finished the trailer. Submitted to DieHard GameFAN and ready for the masses.

But, as Farnsworth has taught us, good news doesn't always mean that - because of media/production complications, the trailer will be delayed until November 2nd, 2009. The reason is because they need time to promote and distribute the trailer through their site - and we submitted the thing a little late due to last minute software trouble, which hindered the original release date.

We had a lot of complications going into the trailer. The filming ran everyone's budget into the ground for weeks, making us unable to physically see each other for days. I did a massive 3-day 80+ gameplay/visual bug crunching that left me totally exhausted, and the last night of production I had to compile the thing, the trailer software crashed 4 or 5 times, the game suddenly switched out a vital programming language at the last minute (requiring heavy last minute rewrites), and a few team members quit a week after we finished filming, and less than a week after the video was due [already constrained for time]. It was quite hectic with everyone's crazy schedule and last minute dropouts, and rest assured we are very tired - but we got the initial trailer completed, and are quite happy with the results. A lot of things were done specifically for the trailer, and we tried our best to iron out the rendering/gameplay bugs and make the trailer video run at a smoother framerate. While we had to lower the resolution this time around the video plays really smooth, and you are still able to see all of the neat graphical effects that the regular game has to offer. In my opinion it's framerate>quality. Still, we didn't suffer massive loss as previously thought.

What you will see come the 2nd is the very best of what we have to offer - a year and then some of grueling, suffering, love and tears. It's the ultimate package - all the shit we had to endure over the year+ this project has received, from our ModDB page getting shut down due to fake legal reasons, and to the abuse we've had to take from a deranged software developer - and all of the community drama inbetween. It's been quite a frustrating schedule - but the frustration pushed us harder to make this trailer even better than what we originally thought. And it was fun. =)

What you will experience isn't just Hypertension - it's an extension of who we are as developers and people, all the hard work to make this trailer truly unique and memorable. We feel, as developers, it's not just software - it's life, and it should affect you in the most positive way it can.

We got a lot of feedback from the initial live-action teasers that we released - some of it bad, most of it good. They were there to simply show that this is more than just Blood on steroids - it's a totally new remake inspired by the classic game. We poured more than our wallets into this - we poured an entire generation of 80's and 90's influenced material - when things were original and fun. We know you will love both the original and extended cuts of the trailer*.

We know you will all enjoy it very much come the 2nd. We hope it inspires and pumps you all up for a feat of a lifetime. We loved making it - we know you'll love watching it.

I want to thank Diehard GameFAN for taking on the role of PR and media distribution - hopefully this trailer reaches a wider audience than our underground teaser did and lets them know that "retro is the new black". I want to thank the entire cast and crew for the live-action shots, and of course my TDGMods developers and OST Strike Team crew for being so dedicated and loving. I could not have made this dream a reality without them. Kudos to my brother Kyle, who helped me direct the live-action shots.

We're still a long way off of a release - a year and so to be exact, but these trailers should keep you all entertained for months to come.

Keep your eyes peeled.

We Live Again.

*ATBT Productions will produce/release the extended cut of the trailer, without TDGMods'/DieHard's involvement. It will include all of the live action footage shot [as opposed to what's in the main release] and some gameplay footage not seen in the initial trailer [with some earlier revisions shot inbetween May and October of the game's development], which won't coincide with the main release. They will also be cutting together a "Behind the Making Of" featurette that will include outtakes and alternate footage.*

4 Days!

2009-10-27T13:55:00.000-07:00

As promised, here's more media!

You'll find our remodel of the Boomstick to the right - this is to replace the Transfusion boomstick. If you look closely this isn't even the boomstick from the retail Blood but actually another version...

To the right now is the puke particles that the Butcher's emit. These particles were donated from Patrick Pineda (thanks dude!). I love the light that they cast. You can also see vague hints of our new PUFF code in the very, very background.

Few more days left - keep a lookout!!!

Team Member wanted: COAL Programmer!

2009-10-26T15:00:00.000-07:00

Due to a departure from a team member (on personal grounds), we're looking for another Heads Up Display/Logic programmer. The language is no longer LUA - let me explain why.

As indicated in the contest post, we were formerly looking for a LUA programmer, but last minute changes in the code resulted in LUA being pulled and us left with no HUD, and only a few days from trailer release. It was replaced by COAL, which you can find limited documentation here. COAL shares similar syntax with LUA but it is completely different.

There is also documentation here.

Since this is a new language we were unable to learn it quickly enough, and our HUD programmer left right before we could implement a simple HUD for the trailer, so as a result, there will be no heads-up display in the game media for a long time. Parts of the trailer will show a HUD - other parts will not.

We are in dire need of a HUD programmer, so if you can fill the slot, please don't hesitate to let us know!

5 day countdown!

2009-10-26T13:53:00.001-07:00

The goal here is to post something new every day until the 31st, when our trailer is released. Last night I ended up coding 150 Blood SFX into the engine in under an hour - we mean business. =)

Here's a few shots of the grand map Fiend is working on.

The good thing about the game is that everyone is working hard on what they need to. It's really coming together, as old and new faces join efforts to get this awesome remake out of the door.

Here's hoping for the best. Keep checking back, and visit the forums because we post a lot of updates there that we don't post here!

Official Hypertension theme song!

2009-10-23T00:55:00.000-07:00

As the trailer release date approaches, more material will start pouring out. This is one of many new things about the game to be revealed.

Mindburner [Alan Watkins], the most recent artist to join Hypertension's OST Strike Team, has contributed his song, "Your Slave", as the theme song to Hypertension. He will also be writing much new material for the game. Avenpitch is still set to write the other theme song.

The reason we chose this is simple - the lyrics completely connect Hypertension's main points together. Caleb's personality and the overall atmosphere is perfectly captured in the song. As one of the lyrics say, "Slave to Love in a Pitch Black Grave to Love", is Caleb's life story. The beat, tempo, vocals are absolutely spot-on.

I have uploaded the theme song to the music player, so go check it out now!

A little background about Mindburner,

Mindburner, AKA Alan Watkins, has been producing electronic music for the past 15 years. He owns several vintage synthesizers and enjoys playing them very much. He involves various styles in his music, and incorporates influences from early 1980s electronic pioneers such as John Foxx, Gary Numan, and others. His music generally ends up being about the darker side of life: the half shadow, the unanswered question, or the hidden fear. These emotions drive him to write and produce.
"Your Slave" is Mindburner's latest album, and this free download contains seven new tracks. Despite his music being about "the darker side of life," "Your Slave" is not a dreary, plodding exercise in introspection. Instead, it's a catchy electronic album with just a hint of the darkness. You can feel a bit of it in the music, but unless you listen closely to the lyrics, you won't notice just how dark the themes of the album are.

Without delay - march your ass to the music player (middle of the page)!

Discuss this story on the forums!

The Ice Brutalizes the Scotch...

2009-10-22T12:03:00.000-07:00

Nothing like a little alcohol to lift your spirits! (or maybe your Spirit Armor?) ;)

Just grinding, working as fast as we can to make sure the game is going to run just right for the footage capture.

Full speed ahead!

2009-10-21T01:28:00.000-07:00

We're still moving forward! Remember to keep in touch at our forums!

Here's a shot to soothe the nerves. Nothing like a Gargoyle blowing in through the glass of that shot! As you can see...he was promptly taken care of ;)

So we're really grinding down here, as DieHard GameFAN is going to release our still unfinished Hypertension Trailer worldwide. There is even more stuff to check out and we know the gameplay will leave you all wanting more. It's truly different, yet the same, from Blood. But I'll let the video talk.

Budgeting for the live action shots went waaayyy over budget and, as a result, the video quality will suffer as we have less time in post-production.

Here's hoping for the best. Look for the worldwide debut of the Hypertension 2009 Trailer, coming to a gaming platform near you!!

Discuss this story at our forums!

Game moving forward

2009-10-18T15:07:00.000-07:00

As usual, just letting you all know that the game is moving forward, as planned. October 31st is still the Trailer Release Date, so hopefully we'll get on that soon.

Remember, stay in touch and visit the forums!
-CA

Hypertension Teaser Trailers released! Two of them!!

2009-10-16T01:27:00.000-07:00

In honor of the blog's 200th post, and all the crap that finally turned into gold the last few weeks, I present you with none other than...

Enjoy!!

You can Discuss this story here!!

Production shots

2009-10-15T14:17:00.001-07:00

I'm releasing two production shots for Hypertension. I hope you enjoy!

Main server went down

2009-10-09T02:57:00.000-07:00

For some reason our main server went down. We're working to restore it. So I guess it's back to posting developmental tidbits here until the forums come back online.

Here's a shot that I think really lets you know what we're aiming for in Hypertension. Dark, ambient, moody. What is really out there to get you? Do you want to know?

This is the Boggy Creek level that we redid in the game, btw.

Heads Up Display Contest! Free stuff for 1st Prize!

2009-10-02T01:37:00.000-07:00

Well, we're in that phase people!

Since Hypertension allows for an almost infinite amount of HUD selections (with only 3 selectable in-game: classic Blood, Hypertension, and another), we're opening a contest to the public. That's right - your design can show up in this awesome game, and we'll even put the HUD as the default in the game's logic upon startup!

Whoever can come up with the coolest and most innovative HUD design will receive a free, working Sega Genesis (model 2 only) or a Sega Game Gear*! That's right, one of the most awesome game consoles of all time (with a free game** and controller, with cords!), and an exclusive sneak-peek trailer of Hypertension! A breakthrough gaming console for its generation, for a few hours of awesomeness! Interested yet?

The rules? Here ya go:

1) Your submission must be original. Inspirational designs are fine.
2) You MUST include a mock-up of the HUD submitted. We have a screenshot here that you can use as a template. You can either use modern designs, or blast us into the past with a 90's inspired HUD (think Hexen, Blood, Duke3d, etc). Nothing too simplistic looking, though. Creativity is a huge plus here.
3) You MUST describe your HUD in absolute detail, so we can program it in as closely as possible. Please, no submissions like, "Here's my HUD. Have fun." How are we supposed to work with that? ;)
4) We use LUA to program our HUD. For a simple manual on how LUA ties into the Doom engine's game logic (if you want), visit this link.
5) All submissions will be heavily reviewed. There might be a few cases where we'll get a really awesome HUD, but it's so complex that we can't program it. Aw, shucks!
6) You can also increase your chances of winning by submitting HUD effects, such as rain hitting the player, or the player getting shot or axed in the face. We can also animate static HUD effects.
7) All submissions must be true alpha transparent PNG images only. You can use JPG to submit but the actual graphics will have to already be transparent PNG, tested. We do not limit scale since we can do that in the game engine. Please, nothing muddy looking.

8) This contest will only be available to residents in North America. We cannot prize submitters from overseas, although if you think your HUD can make it in the game, we'll include it in (with appropriate credits)!

The consoles are NTSC, not PAL.

*The Sega Game Gear will not come with a power cord, the battery unit cover, or a game. Just the stock unit.
*The Sega Genesis will come with one game, one controller, and power/TV cords. Sorry, we only have the old-school screw-in RF unit, but I think TV's still come with this.
**Both Sega gaming units are used, and might look worn (nothing too horrible), but otherwise work fine. Come on, early 90's gaming never tried to look pretty like the new stuff. ^^
**The Game selection: Sonic the Hedgehog, Batman Forever, Sonic 3 (!), Alien 3, or Mortal Kombat. Sorry for the lack of selection but one is better than none! Whichever game you choose will come with a small cheat sheet (mAyBe thAt blood Code will come in hAndy, Because Blood rules! ;)

Discuss this story here!

The Forums have Relaunched!

2009-09-26T03:20:00.000-07:00

Rejoice fans!

The TDGMods forums have finally hit a redesign, a good one at that. The thing has been around since before 2005 and it needed an overhaul. So we (almost) started fresh, and it's now open!

The forums will be the new place to discuss Hypertension, and will be aimed towards new Blood fans. I will remove the commenting system from this blog and in it's place will be a mirrored post in the forums where you can all participate. It'll be an easier way to keep all of the subsites organized.

So whether you want to discuss Hypertension, poke at us for a beta release, or talk about how annoying the mimes are in BLOOD, it's all there.

Please enjoy the new, redesigned forums! See you all there!
-Corbin

Comment on this news piece here!

Hey everyone!

2009-09-21T23:34:00.000-07:00

The music player was reorganized just now, so the tracks will make more sense if listened to one after another. I also uploaded a special track...some mad scientist by the name of Herbert West...his theme is as haunting as ever. Credits to Richard Band for the track. Sounds familiar? A modded version of Re-Animator itself. =)

More updates coming soon!

Another welcome

2009-09-21T03:27:00.000-07:00

I would like to take time really quick to welcome Isaac Kesington to TDGMods. He's going to be the musician contributing tracks and the one to develop the underscore for Hypertension. An example of what to expect (a preview track) is in the media player, so scroll down and check it out! It's going to most likely play during the opening credits of the game.

Progress is going great as usual, thanks for the support again guys. We have more content coming as we grind down, also a cool contest to participate in!

Everything that happens, happens for a reason...

2009-09-16T17:25:00.000-07:00

So we've been quiet again, work has been taking priority.

If you're in the listening mood there are 3 new tracks uploaded to our music player, you guys should get a kick out of them. Good material there, some very atmospheric tracks.

Just be prepared, we're getting something special ready for all of you soon!

Back to school...

2009-09-09T15:01:00.000-07:00

It's that time again. Classes, homework, and no time for gaming. Here's a shot of a level in progress located at an infamous medical school.

Splats?

2009-09-08T15:22:00.000-07:00

Quick update - Hypertension now supports a decal system that was written by us. The graphics used are seriously placeholder, but you get the idea. Before, our gore engine (and neither EDGE) did not support decals or anything of the sort. Now, we can do blood, bullet holes, explosion marks, all sorts of stuff not previously possible. And yeah - before you say that the blood sucks - they are placeholder graphics, just to demonstrate what we've been able to pull off.

Hmm, so is that fireball that should be puke...at least the green hue is right ^^

Lack of blog updates

2009-09-03T22:47:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, sorry for the lack of updates to the blog, but we've been rather busy grinding down on the game. It seems we're all trying to get something playable soon, and it's showing. The game is shaping up nicely, but still not where it needs to be after a year of work. Granted, most of that was just me on my own but I hoped it would've been a little farther along, but I'm not complaining.

Next up is hand-picking and coding in Blood's 3K-something sprite stuff, that's going to take awhile. So while there are a lack of updates, don't think the project has died. It's a lot of work going into it and we're hoping it turns out for the best.

In the meantime, why don't you guys join our forums?

Overlays are fun

2009-08-29T14:55:00.000-07:00

Haha, sorry for the lack of updates everyone! Anyway, here's a new screenshot for you all to drool over. Check out the objective system - it's a work in progress, but it's there! Also...doesn't that bloody guy seem kinda familiar? Can anyone guess who it is?

No? Shit, this is not my day... =D

How chilling...

2009-08-14T16:02:00.001-07:00

This shot right here is very nice, at least to me. You'll notice that we now have a Context Sensitive exclamation point for the characters in the environment - this will also work for NPC characters, anything usable. We also have the Blood hand-print as a replacement if you don't like the exclamation point.

Happy Birthday to the Game!

2009-08-14T02:20:00.000-07:00

Well, it's the one year anniversary of Hypertension. I literally forgot, haha, so it was yesterday (damnit, I mean yesterday's yestarday (hint: the 12th). Cake for all!
(Wouldn't that be a badass cake though?)

Anyways, I wanted to extend my deepest thanks to all of the hard-working members of TDGMods for making our realization into life. Nobody has worked harder, or endured so much crap, than you guys. It's been a long, tough, fun, bizarre, and loving ride to get this far, and only until 75% of it did we get truly popular in the gaming community, as we've been seen around the world and more, and we've been able to touch their hearts with some oldschool, retro gaming action!

Most of all, I want to thank the fans who eagerly await Hypertension, all around the world and in the next. To celebrate this remarkable period in our history, I will be handing out free passes to playtest Hypertension. For right now this only goes for the PC version - please visit our forums to learn more about the system requirements. This pass will be saved in a special folder in my email, and the second we open up private beta testing, you all will be notified and sent a link immediately. It's the top notch way to get into the game, and crawl into our lives. Upon signing up, you will also be encouraged to join our forum board, as it's the best way to gain knowledge of the game (and of us, because who doesn't want to know how cool we are? ;). Asking questions is the best way to get our attention. =)

So, for all of you bloodthirsty fans, we give you this message:
Thank you all, and I speak on behalf of my entire team when I say, "We Love you!"

We look forward to pleasing you all here soon. Make sure to check back, bookmark, and keep up with the coolest devs in the underground scene! Special thanks to Dreamcast Emulation and Sega Nerds for making most of this press happen - you guys are a great bunch!

-The TDGMods Team

Aha

2009-08-12T18:23:00.001-07:00

Does this look recognizable? It's not finished, the skin is god awful, but you should recognize the sleeve at the very least. =)

Aurelia's finally getting some love, other than those horrid ghost hands...haha.

On a roll!

2009-08-05T14:38:00.000-07:00

Here's more shots, this time showing the Bloated Butcher. Too bad he wasn't firing, his projectile lets off a mean pretty-looking cast of light and puke particles. =)

This thing is heavy...

2009-08-05T01:48:00.001-07:00

While trying to balance on a string!!

It's in, but it's not working properly at the moment, and neither is the Tesla Cannon. A few more bugs to iron out with them. Enemies and more levels coming soon! Stay tuned for more surprises than you can shake a stick at!

Small update

2009-08-02T00:51:00.000-07:00

Should we have some sort of penalty system in the game for burning up the environment? Maybe we could score appeals to the Environment communities.

Maybe a few in the sarcasm department too. ^^

Time to party like it's 1999!

2009-07-31T01:51:00.000-07:00

Well, I might as well announce it.

We, as a team, are now working to get some sort of 3 level demo out by the end of 2009. This is our sole focus as of now. If everything goes as scheduled, you'll get a taste of the action, with everything so far promised, including a bit of rough-draft graphic novel footage.

I'm saying this with a grain of salt, but due to the enormous demand of release, and to commemorate the Sega Dreamcast's US 10 year anniversary, things should go well, and you will have a playable copy out in no time.

Let's hope life throws us no more speedbumps as we work to achieve this goal.

MD2 Skin Transparency

2009-07-28T12:59:00.000-07:00

This looks really cool now - we actually have transparent model skin support now. This opens up tons upon tons of possibilities now as before we were limited to no transparency.