[HPL3 WIKI] What kind of tutorials/pages would you like to see?

[Romulator]

I suppose you are great level builder - how about teaching us how to level build section of
Soma infrastructure - for example airlock room before dunbat leading to main chamber and then to control
terminal and to dunbat?

The other question was really good too - how do we import Soma official levels and study them?

Hehe, unfortunately, I'm a pretty average mapper Sorry about that. I'll learn some tips and tricks, but for now, I'll have to pass that suggestion~

But you can open up the maps at any time for study by running the LevelEditor.exe located in the same folder as SOMA.exe, and by opening any map through this directory: maps/chapter_xx/<level>/<level>.hpm

[PythonBlue]

Well, despite Frictional still not having mods or the modding tools officially available for Mac, yet, I did finally manage to get those features anyway thanks to a BootCamp partition running Windows 8.

That being said, in my roughly-24-hour-long experiment with the level editing in particular, I'm a bit disappointed how little documentation is currently provided regarding all the scripting functions. For instance, in the beginning of my test map, the player wakes up. There is a player wake-up module, but, like for the other user modules listed in the wiki, very little information is provided on how to use; even the arguments of the functions are omitted in the wiki. Needless to say, while I did figure out the functions I absolutely needed, it was a combination of copying from the unmodded SOMA and some trial and error.

The gist of this message is that I'm hoping more scripting info will be provided later.

[Mudbill]

Seeing as I shall finish the game before I start modding, it's very possible others will create what I have in mind before then. One such thing is a similar page to the Engine Scripts page. Although functions are defined in hpl.api (wasn't it?) and provided through CodeLite, an overview for those not using it would be helpful to CTRL-F around in.

[Neelke]

A question. In terms of scripting, how simular is HPL2 and 3 to one another? I haven't bought the game yet but I've looked into the intro map of SOMA. There seems to be more connection to C++ in HPL3 compared to HPL2.

I have a worry that it's going to take a long time for people to release custom stories and mods for SOMA. The programming skill required in HPL3 is rather advanced from what it used to be.

[A.M Team]

A question. In terms of scripting, how simular is HPL2 and 3 to one another? I haven't bought the game yet but I've looked into the intro map of SOMA. There seems to be more connection to C++ in HPL3 compared to HPL2.

I have a worry that it's going to take a long time for people to release custom stories and mods for SOMA. The programming skill required in HPL3 is rather advanced from what it used to be.

The latter will be true; it will take a longer time to script with HPL3.

On the bright side:
It will weed out crap Youtuber Attention Whores (Y.A.Ws) trying to make the next Tiny Box Tim/Stephano CS. And also it will help people like us get a better taste of mainstream code like C ++.

[Neelke]

The latter will be true; it will take a longer time to script with HPL3.

On the bright side:
It will weed out crap Youtuber Attention Whores (Y.A.Ws) trying to make the next Tiny Box Tim/Stephano CS. And also it will help people like us get a better taste of mainstream code like C ++.

Well I didn't think of that, that's a positive note.

[MsHannerBananer]

Between you and Mudbill (When he's finished his playthrough), you will be the go to guys for this, you realize. xD Be careful about what kind of holes you dig for yourself.

Personally, I'm interested in what about the HPL3 has in common with HPL2, and how much of my knowledge I can transfer over when it comes to scripting and map making. I'm already having trouble with mapping, so I can only imagine the pain I'll have when it comes to scripting.

My response is long, so I'm adding some spoiler tags.

Spoiler below!

I'm specifically interested in seeing things on:

1. GUI Terminals: I'm glad Frictional brought these back after their appearance in Penumbra. And even if they're difficult as hell to script, I'd love to learn how to integrate them into a future CS idea I'm brewing. Also, the terminal when using the hook to load the ARK into the bullet?! HOW MAN?! HOW?!

2. Terrain mapping: In the after credits map inside the ARK, there is some seriously BEAUTIFUL mapping going on with that forest. When editing the map however, the terrain is one solid object that doesn't seem to be selectable or editable, and call me a newb, but I have no idea why this is. I assume that this kind of terrain is also present in the undersea areas of the game and would love to learn how to create things like that, or at least utilize them.

3. Basics: Bottom line, I want to know if what I like to call 'basic creation' is still how to go about starting a CS. That means .bat files, and .lang files. Do we need those, or is there a different system in place? And what do we need to START the CS, enter the first map, yadda yadda.

4. Level transitions!: Before, you had to physically click or walk your way to another map. In SOMA, Frictional has a system where there are still different map files, but the transition from one to another is as smooth as a little brain being scanned showing up in the corner of the screen. No load screens at all. While playing SOMA, I didn't feel like it was a FrictionalGames game at all, it felt like it had been developed by a completely different company, because I was so used to the Amnesia and Penumbra mechanics. It seriously blew my mind, and I actually nearly got myself killed in the game thinking about it! I literally couldn't believe that what I was playing was FrictionalGames! Anyway, long story short, how do we do smooth level transitions?

5. Animations/Real-Time Sequences: Amnesia sort of touched on this with the 'look at' function, making it seem as if there was an actual sequence going on between enemies and characters and whatnot. SOMA has instances where arms appear and move based on what's being said. I want to know if everything in this category is customizable. Obviously, there are specific things, like arm animations, that are built in and hardwired to certain code, so unless you're an animator or want to try animating, you're stuck with what you got. But can we make our own sequences, or is everything that is sequenced hardwired and uneditable? (I feel like I already have an answer for this, based on my own knowledge of how most of the HPL engines word and how Frictional uses them, but I just want confirmation.)

6. Script details: Obviously, this one is going to take forever. I suspect that the amount of scripts for SOMA has likely doubled since the amount of scripts in Amnesia, so getting down and nitty gritty with each script and what it does will take some time. I know there are resources within the game files I could go scrounging through myself, but honestly I'm not that good with understanding a lot of the scripts, and would probably benefit from someone who knows it better laying down a path for a dumb blond like me. xD

7. More mapping/scripting mumbo jumbo: I'm sure that Mudbill will take the bullet for this one, since he's all about tutorials on youtube, but things like showing how to use trigger area's, connecting switches to doors so they can be opened, and all that fun stuff. Since there are a lot less inventory and combining physics, there won't be a lot of those types of tutorials, but just something to get a few of the dedicated, but newbie type people started would be a freaking godsend.

I also agree in regards to what TheDoctorPoo said (fantastic username by the way xD). Things are a lot more complicated this time around with HPL3, and scripting/mapping difficulties or restrictions may prove aggravating for the average Joe who wants to create the next Pewdiepie's House. But to be fair, Pewds got Amnesia a LOT of publicity, and in the eyes of most developers, there is no such thing as bad publicity. The community knew a Pewdiepie/Stefano story when they saw it, and went to great lengths to stomp them down and support the better CS's and TCM's like White Night and 2nd Dimension.

So despite any crappy custom stories that came out of it, Pewds did throw Amnesia up in the air, and it sparked a lot of interest in modding, and helped the community grow (even if the growing involved a lot of girly screaming, weird accents, talking to non-animate objects like chairs, and the distrust of statues). That's not saying that Amnesia wouldn't have done well without Pewds. But he opened it up to a market of people who may not have heard of it, by continuing to play custom stories, good and bad.

However, I also agree that I hope that no dedicated Pewds fan will take the time to make a CS full of Pewdiepie references with SOMA assets. I think we just need to move past that all together, and the difficulty that will likely arise from using the scripts and the engine itself might make some of those kinds of people shy away from attempting a crappy CS, haha.

[Romulator]

In regard to any PDP/Stefano/Tiny Box Tim CS/Troll CS' etc, the good news is, at the moment, I personally have no idea how to import the assets x) I'll definitely be looking into that though.

OP Updated. Working on How to set up a CS now.

[MsHannerBananer]

In regard to any PDP/Stefano/Tiny Box Tim CS/Troll CS' etc, the good news is, at the moment, I personally have no idea how to import the assets x) I'll definitely be looking into that though.

OP Updated. Working on How to set up a CS now.

To quote the ever fantastic Ian Malcolm... "Life uh... uh... uh... finds a way." xD

I think it's more about how PDP fans went off the rocker with creating poorly made (in all aspects of the idea, poor grammar, poor mapping, poor voice acting, poor story/plot) custom stories in the hopes that PDP would play them. Now that things feel a little more difficult to work with, it should ebb the swell of Bro's who are looking to make something simple and easy that he might play. And they don't exactly need Amnesia assets to do it, heh.

And honestly, I didn't notice a lot of TBT (Tiny Box Tim) custom stories. The troll type CS's were more for Pewds than for Mark. Or maybe I just put my involvement in the modding community on hold at the right time and never saw any TBT custom stories... oh well.

I wish you the best in your ever growing endeavors!

[A.M Team]

Spoiler below!

Between you and Mudbill (When he's finished his playthrough), you will be the go to guys for this, you realize. xD Be careful about what kind of holes you dig for yourself.

Personally, I'm interested in what about the HPL3 has in common with HPL2, and how much of my knowledge I can transfer over when it comes to scripting and map making. I'm already having trouble with mapping, so I can only imagine the pain I'll have when it comes to scripting.

My response is long, so I'm adding some spoiler tags.

I'm specifically interested in seeing things on:

1. GUI Terminals: I'm glad Frictional brought these back after their appearance in Penumbra. And even if they're difficult as hell to script, I'd love to learn how to integrate them into a future CS idea I'm brewing. Also, the terminal when using the hook to load the ARK into the bullet?! HOW MAN?! HOW?!

2. Terrain mapping: In the after credits map inside the ARK, there is some seriously BEAUTIFUL mapping going on with that forest. When editing the map however, the terrain is one solid object that doesn't seem to be selectable or editable, and call me a newb, but I have no idea why this is. I assume that this kind of terrain is also present in the undersea areas of the game and would love to learn how to create things like that, or at least utilize them.

3. Basics: Bottom line, I want to know if what I like to call 'basic creation' is still how to go about starting a CS. That means .bat files, and .lang files. Do we need those, or is there a different system in place? And what do we need to START the CS, enter the first map, yadda yadda.

4. Level transitions!: Before, you had to physically click or walk your way to another map. In SOMA, Frictional has a system where there are still different map files, but the transition from one to another is as smooth as a little brain being scanned showing up in the corner of the screen. No load screens at all. While playing SOMA, I didn't feel like it was a FrictionalGames game at all, it felt like it had been developed by a completely different company, because I was so used to the Amnesia and Penumbra mechanics. It seriously blew my mind, and I actually nearly got myself killed in the game thinking about it! I literally couldn't believe that what I was playing was FrictionalGames! Anyway, long story short, how do we do smooth level transitions?

5. Animations/Real-Time Sequences: Amnesia sort of touched on this with the 'look at' function, making it seem as if there was an actual sequence going on between enemies and characters and whatnot. SOMA has instances where arms appear and move based on what's being said. I want to know if everything in this category is customizable. Obviously, there are specific things, like arm animations, that are built in and hardwired to certain code, so unless you're an animator or want to try animating, you're stuck with what you got. But can we make our own sequences, or is everything that is sequenced hardwired and uneditable? (I feel like I already have an answer for this, based on my own knowledge of how most of the HPL engines word and how Frictional uses them, but I just want confirmation.)

6. Script details: Obviously, this one is going to take forever. I suspect that the amount of scripts for SOMA has likely doubled since the amount of scripts in Amnesia, so getting down and nitty gritty with each script and what it does will take some time. I know there are resources within the game files I could go scrounging through myself, but honestly I'm not that good with understanding a lot of the scripts, and would probably benefit from someone who knows it better laying down a path for a dumb blond like me. xD

7. More mapping/scripting mumbo jumbo: I'm sure that Mudbill will take the bullet for this one, since he's all about tutorials on youtube, but things like showing how to use trigger area's, connecting switches to doors so they can be opened, and all that fun stuff. Since there are a lot less inventory and combining physics, there won't be a lot of those types of tutorials, but just something to get a few of the dedicated, but newbie type people started would be a freaking godsend.

I also agree in regards to what TheDoctorPoo said (fantastic username by the way xD). Things are a lot more complicated this time around with HPL3, and scripting/mapping difficulties or restrictions may prove aggravating for the average Joe who wants to create the next Pewdiepie's House. But to be fair, Pewds got Amnesia a LOT of publicity, and in the eyes of most developers, there is no such thing as bad publicity. The community knew a Pewdiepie/Stefano story when they saw it, and went to great lengths to stomp them down and support the better CS's and TCM's like White Night and 2nd Dimension.

So despite any crappy custom stories that came out of it, Pewds did throw Amnesia up in the air, and it sparked a lot of interest in modding, and helped the community grow (even if the growing involved a lot of girly screaming, weird accents, talking to non-animate objects like chairs, and the distrust of statues). That's not saying that Amnesia wouldn't have done well without Pewds. But he opened it up to a market of people who may not have heard of it, by continuing to play custom stories, good and bad.

However, I also agree that I hope that no dedicated Pewds fan will take the time to make a CS full of Pewdiepie references with SOMA assets. I think we just need to move past that all together, and the difficulty that will likely arise from using the scripts and the engine itself might make some of those kinds of people shy away from attempting a crappy CS, haha.

First off, thanks for the compliment! I can see why Pewds has helped Amnesia get popularity and is one of the main reasons that A: AMFP sold 120,00 copies while SOMA sold 92,000 in it's first week. It has the Amnesia brand! Thanks for sheding light in such detail, WOW!