SB pro PE - Estimate or Guesstimate Please

[Ratcatcher]

Hi Ssnake and all others involved in this,

I know you hate trying to pin this down, but after the severe disappointment of not being able to release pro pe this month, would you be willing to give us an idea when you think that these current issues may be resolved ?

Obviously taking into consideration that other problems might arise and cause further delays.

I'd just like to add that although I've only just registered again I've followed the development of SB1 through till the present and have yet again gone back to my orginal copy and am again getting great enjoyment from it. Having been a regular ( though sometimes occasional ) visiter here, I must say that your commitment to this forum is quite outstanding, the amount of time you take to read the various posts and reply with such depth and patience is quite astonishing ( except that 1 time of course... :wink: ).

Keep at it !!!

[Wolfman]

I know you hate trying to pin this down, but after the severe disappointment of not being able to release pro pe this month

Well is it really that bad? At first I thought you had a divorce or something. :D

[Ratcatcher]

Well what can I say, yes in the scheme of things it ain't sooo bad, but as a football ( soccer ) coach once said...

'Some people believe football is a matter of life and death.
I'm very disappointed with that attitude.
I can assure you it is much, much more important than that.'

and as for getting divorced...my wife has nothing to fear... unless of course you know something I dont ??? :shock:

[Hell_Hound]

I'll bet that "Once bitten, twice shy" will apply here, and they will no longer entertain any discussion of a release date until they've got the CDs and manuals in the boxes, sitting in a pile in the shipping office.

Ssnake's next post will state that he neither confirms nor denies that their company produces software. ;)

[tarball]

This is a real LOMAC situation with this software. We'll see it one day and it'll have to be patched several times anyhow.

So it goes when your genre is niche.

[Ratcatcher]

Hellhound, Yes I wouldnt be surprised if Ssnake takes that approach either, but you can't knock me for trying. :wink:

I also was'nt after an exact date either ( well I'd love one but... ) no, what I'd like is an indication something along the lines of
" With the amount of work we still have to do I'd imagine, if all goes as planned..."

"Just before Xmas"
"Just after Xmas"
"Early New Year"
"First quarter"

HH, just to go off topic slightly, I've been reading your update thread on Sim hq, it's been great to get a bit of an insight into the game, please keep em comming.

[Poker]

This is a real LOMAC situation with this software. We'll see it one day and it'll have to be patched several times anyhow.

So it goes when your genre is niche.

Actually, I think it is precisely to avoid that scenario that it is delayed...and you'll get regular updates on it anyway ... not patches, but updates.

[PS-SCUD]

My guesstimate is sometime this decade...


In the mean time, why don't you go the FFZ and entertain yourself by reading 100 pages worth of "911 timeline", as prescribed to me by Dr. Sherman. :wink:

[BipBip]

Ssnake said that he was sorry to have ruined our Xmas holidays, so I don't expect anything until february, at best. That's the lower limit of my guess... it's your turn to guess the upper limit. ;)

[Bluewings]

- T72, ralliement !
- Vu !
- Mesure !
- Correct !
- Feu !
- Coup parti, BUT !
- Double le tir.

In English :

- T72 , ack !
- Identified !
- Lase !
- Done !
- Fire !
- One the way ...Hit !
- Double it .

Cheers . :3starSK:

[TankHunter]

My guesstimate is sometime this decade...


In the mean time, why don't you go the FFZ and entertain yourself by reading 100 pages worth of "911 timeline", as prescribed to me by Dr. Sherman. :wink:

LOL, Scud, you are a ball buster. :lol:

[Ratcatcher]

Well PS after many hours of research ( ok about 5 mins ) I have finally discovered what the FFZ is, however it appears a dark and scary place and one I fear might consume me if I get any closer.

Speaking of dark and scary places:


LOL, Scud, you are a ball buster. :lol:

... He's not going to be busting my balls, at least not while I have my breath inside me. :lol:

[Ssnake]

Like they said - I'm rather biting lips & tongue at this point.

[Ratcatcher]

Ok Ssnake I quite understand... but if your biting your tongue... does that mean it's closer than we think???

OK OK OK that was a cheap shot and please dont dignify it with an answer, I know what your getting at, mum's the word, loose lips sink ships, once biten and twice shy and of course not forgotting the developers oldest commandment "WHEN IT'S DONE ITS DONE". :D
( Everyone feel free to add to this non exhaustive list :wink: )

Whenever is fine, keep up the good work. :ysir2:

[Thiefcatcher]

Hey RC,

lets build a "..catcher" league :) (okok, its threat highjacking, plse forgive me :) )

Greetz

TC

[Ratcatcher]

Hey RC,

lets build a "..catcher" league :) (okok, its threat highjacking, plse forgive me :) )



Sounds like a plan TC, first lets take over this forum... then THE WORLD... MUU WHAAA HA HAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaa.

OK we could also have... Flycatcher, Ballcatcher (could be a bit of a perv :wink: ), Suncatcher, Dreamcatcher... oooh theres just loads!!!

*coughs* er well back to reality :D

[Rogue6g]

Are the SB team being Grinches and withholding the release?
I vote....release and Patch to 1.322356423

If all else fails, give them a Pepsi and a bucket of chicken and send them back into their sweatshop to toil in the depths code.

[Hell_Hound]

Patches are for the weak. Real Men release perfect code the first time, and add only new features thereafter. :)

[Sean]

Ever heard of monopatchism?

[Rogue6g]

sure have..let's see...

1.14,1.15,1.17(?),1.194,1.195,1.226

they've(patches) worked thus far and since there are endless permutations/combinations of hardware available, there will always be problems..most of which are almost always blamed on "The Code".

The release of ProPe, even with a few glitches might even help in the development of SB2, since any major unforeseen problems not reflected by the Beta-testers would inevitably surface when released to the public.....thus "hopefully" making SB2 a near-perfect product when the FPS geeks are converted to Sim combat.

[Hell_Hound]

Those weren't patches. They were upgrades. :)

[Rogue6g]

"I say Tomaytoe, you say Tomawtoe" :lol:

[Ratcatcher]

Hey HH, as your update thread over at Simhq is rapidly spinning off into the twilight zone of topic threads... How's the "stress Test" comming along ?

Cheers

[Hell_Hound]

Working fine in single-player. By the time I got online last night there was nobody around, so I worked on my Fulda Gap plan.

I'll continue to post stuff in the update thread; I think I can outlast the digressors. :)

[Ratcatcher]

Thanks for that, and good to hear.

Does this indicate that one of "those" problems Ssnake mentioned when announcing the delay, has now been resloved, or is it still to early to say ?

And I will look forward with interest the next update "you" make in "your" thread !!! :D

[Brun]

13 more days till Chistmass eve and no sb pro pe yet! C'mon open up the loading docks and fill up the trucks.

[Ssnake]

We'll be working on bugfixes most of the time until we - that is, eSim and the beta test team - come to the conclusion that the code is ready for a release because the remaining bugs are not seriously detrimental to the experience. At that point we'll look at how close we are to complete certain additional features that just may be ready at that point. Depending on whether they will be crucial to an even better experience or more like "nice to have", we'll be releasing the software immediately, or announce it's new release date since at this point we will know for sure that there won't be unpleasant surprises.

[Ratcatcher]

Ssnake, thanks for the update :D

Interesting to hear that your still working on implementing additional features for the initial release.

At this stage how do you prioritise all of the features you want to introduce, (as I'd imagine the main ones have been done at this stage) or do you just basically work through a list of things on a first come first served basis ?

Cheers

[Rogue6g]

Hey SB TEAM!!

Please disregard my recent maniacal postings :oops: I was bitten by a particular vile rodent which passed on a brain-sucking parasite causing moments of explosive forum diarrehea(or maybe it was the cheap booze). When I awoke from my delirium I was informed that I had appeared in a German Sheisse Video. As a result I have some explaining to do to the parentals and girl-friend and coworkers and........

Eye
Sofa
King
We
Todd
Did

[Ssnake]

Interesting to hear that your still working on implementing additional features for the initial release.
To avoid misunderstandings:
These are features, that have been planned for quite a while, they're not last minute ideas. If we had released SB Pro PE within the previous schedule (say, if we hadn't found any bugs, and if the legal questions related to the shop had been worked out and everything), these would have been made available with the first regular update for SB Pro PE. I'm talking about things like additional 3D interiors of playable tanks. They're being prepared for all playable tanks, but they take a lot of time, so we can add them only one after another.
Some of these models are pretty close to being done, the artist tells me. So, it could very well be that we find out that everything is ready, and he tells us that the model is done as well, so we'd need an additional week to incorporate it and make all the flip switches clickable in the virtual interior. In such a case the delay of one week would easily be justified.

Such a 3D interior is not a "new feature" to the extent that it is something unprecedented. It's "more of the same" since we already have two 3D interiors (the Bradley and the Leo 2A5DK). So, we're working on those kind of things, to present a well-rounded solution.


Then there's convenience things - since the release of SB1 there has been the request to have an option to customize the individual keyboard layout. I'd like to see it added to SB Pro PE before the release. Otherwise we'd probably never do it at all. And we still have the old SB1 menus. They're doomed as well, we need something with a fresh new look.

We don't want to introduce new complexity which often invokes new bugs, but rely on tested functions and make it look a bit better. Once that we're happy with performance, code stability, and that final polish, we'll kick it out of the door. :)

[Ratcatcher]

Ssnake, Many thanks yet again for giving such an in depth answer. Yes that does clear things up and makes perfect sense.

Oh, just one more thing... When you say...

Once that we're happy with performance, code stability, and that final polish, we'll kick it out of the door.
Could the door be cracked and the boot warming up ? :wink:

[smogover]

Ummm.... have been quiet on this thought for awhile.... but.... are we there yet... are we there yet.... are we there yet.... ?

:lol:

[Ssnake]

No.

[Ratcatcher]

Succinct and to the point.

bummer. :(

[Moggy*2005]

Any news on SB2 release?

[Ssnake]

No.

[PS-SCUD]

Do you see a pattern here? :wink:

[Ssnake]

It may seem so, like clouds in the sky appear to take the form of things we know, but the truth is not that the clouds form that way on purpose. ;)

[Bluewings]

Shall we rename Ssnake "Gandalf" ? :lol: :mrgreen:

Cheers . :3starSK:

[Lone*star49]

Shall we rename Ssnake "Gandalf" ? :lol: :mrgreen:

Cheers . :3starSK:
...

:? Personally, I think Ssnake can't let go of ~ The Precious ~


LS :shock: hehehe

[Bluewings]

LOL yeah I can see the picture LS !

Nils hidden under his desk holding the Master Copy of SB Pro PE in his left hand , stroking it with the right hand , eyes like :hallucine: , looking left and right with a murder look on his face :evil: going : They want it ..they want to steal it from US , filthy little thieves ...they want The Precious ... :mad2:

Cheers . :3starSK:

[Moggy*2005]

haven't been around for a while, did I strike a nerve or something?

I read the forum about pro, but was wondering about the commercial
entertainment version?

No need to reply, seems it is not on the horizon.

[TankHunter]

LOL BW!

[Lone*star49]

haven't been around for a while, did I strike a nerve or something?

I read the forum about pro, but was wondering about the commercial
entertainment version?

No need to reply, seems it is not on the horizon.
...

:shock: Moggy?? LOL

Actually, SB Pro PE is gonna be released withing a month or 2 max IMO..

You can catch some nice screen shots if ya clk on the + in front of Game Info, located in upper left column of forum.. it will open up and clk on screen shots/Pics.. and latest is helo shots.. but many more of new tanks, trees, hills, etc.. You'll like it..

Take care Mog..


LS :wink:

[twobravo]

Daddy, I need to go to the baffroom, are we there yet?

Two Bravo, Battle Capt to the stars

[Moggy*2005]

It looks great LS....but a bit steep at $125. Was wondering how long after that is released will SB2 come out? Will SB2 be a cut down version
to appeal to the great unwashed as it were? If that is the case, maybe
I can convince myself to buy pro. has anyone said if there will be a good number of single player scenarios?

My old avatar is still here...this was always a cool forum.

[Trekker]

the US-dollar is still loosing value here, so no rush Ssnake..

[Ssnake]

SB2 ist still at least one year ahead, I think. We need to release SB Pro PE first, to clear the desk, so to speak. SB2 will differ from SB Pro in price, and in content. The primary design goal in SB2 will be to entertain, the secondary to be realistic. In SB Pro, the primary goal is to be realistic in order to be useful as a training and education tool.
From this fundamental difference in design goals stem a number of changes - some of rather cosmetic nature, some additions to make the whole experience more cinematic (e.g. a storyline (I hope we can pull that off)), and in some areas we're going to take away some functions of SB Pro that make it complicated to learn, but that don't contribute much entertainment value.

As far as engine, look & feel, etc are concerned, we try to maintain as much "commonality of parts" as possible. The same damage model. The same vehicle models. The same standard textures. The same 3D rendering. The same micro-behavior of the units. But that doesn't mean that the outcome will be just "more of the same". No, Sir. It will be a close relative, but not a twin.

[Trekker]

Ssnake how many copies of SBPro PE do you think you will sell?
How many will you make?
Will the players who buy ProPE be considered buyers of SB2?

It's great to be able to ask the developer...

[Moggy*2005]

thanks for the reply, I bet you have had these questions over and over!

Wow, SB2 is a long way off....I see now why everyone is hyped about the pro edition. Screen shots look great.

[Ssnake]

I don't think that SB Pro PE sales figures will be a record mark for a fast selling title in huge quantities. We see it as a longseller, and I am unable to predict the figures here for a lack of forerunning comparable products with the same distribution model. It's probably most similar to the first release of SB1 through Shrapnel Games.
The copies will be made in small batches on demand (we're going to team up with an on demand publishing service company that will print the manuals, the CD-ROMs, and provide us with their web shop server so all orders can be directly processed by them). We rather concentrate on the actual development, and leave the actual production and mail handling to specialists.

And yes, I think that there will be a noticeable fraction of SB Pro PE owners who will develop an interest in SB2 as well. Maybe it'll be just a minority, I don't know. It'll largely depend on what's in the package, and it's too early to make committing statements about it - beyond what I already wrote, of course.

[Recce41]

I think the Canadian Army could help, on the Leo1 and Coyote interiors. I have designed a lot of sims for our Leo LCGT and Coyote CGT. It maybe a different sim. But you edit missions the same.
Hope we can help.

[12Alfa]

The Canadain Army is allready helping Recce41.
Well sort of.

[colin]

12Alpha
If we go with the MGS, we would have to change the name of the sim from Steel Beasts Pro to "The tincan that thought it could!"

[Gunfighter]

12Alpha
If we go with the MGS, we would have to change the name of the sim from Steel Beasts Pro to "The tincan that thought it could!"

Or we could always serve as a Bad Example....

[12Alfa]

Yes! I like that, " a bad example"

Last info I have is we still are waiting for the US to start production of a greater rate than what has been listed on their site.

There is hope yet.....

[twobravo]

I miss my Cougar... keep the MGS, its not sleek and sexy like my big green, 6 wheeled machine.... &^%##^*(()(**&^%%^%*()___)((**&)

Twobravo, Battle Captain to the stars.

[12Alfa]

Hey! don't get me going......................again :evil:

[twobravo]

neener neener neener... :D