UPDATED: Thief II: The Metal Age 20th Anniversary Contest - Mar 23-27, 2019 - by Yandros
Yandros on 18/3/2019 at 17:49
The 20th anniversary of Thief II: The Metal Age (well, the North American release anyway) is exactly a year from today, and we are announcing the official start of the contest NOW! You the Thief community have voted on the format between stock and stock-derived content vs. custom content, and stock and stock-derived has won! The poll is (
https://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=149530) here.
Starting today, you have exactly one year to build a mission for Thief 2 using stock and stock-derived resources. Please read the detailed rules below, for a select few custom resources are allowed for convenience’s sake. This year-long building period also includes beta-testing, so manage it carefully!
Rules:
* The mission(s) must be for Thief 2.
* Collaborations are allowed.
* Contestants are limited to stock and stock-derived resources (see below) but can use a custom gamesys (for custom schemas, scripts, unused objects etc…) as long as the mission doesn’t use any resources other than the stock and stock-derived ones.
* Contestants can create texture families using the textures found in OBJ.CRF (useful for fake doors!)
* Contestants can combine existing stock textures to create new ones (terrain/objects/meshes). Basic modifications such as hue, saturation and lightness changes are allowed, as long as the original texture it's based on is still recognizable, i.e. new textures need to be clearly identifiable as stock derivatives. A description of which textures you used to create new ones is welcome.
* Contestants can use NewSky to have better starfields, as well as cloud decks, celestial objects and distant art. Alternatively, a skybox may also be used, but it must be a stock or stock-derived skybox.
* Contestants can use custom scripts (NVScript, tnhScript, squirrel, etc).
* Contestants can submit more than one mission.
* Contestants can enter anonymously.
* Contestants can use custom in-game maps for their mission(s).
* Contestants can use custom video briefings, but not in-game cutscene movies.
* Contestants can create new sound arrangements using stock sound files only. A new sound name needs to contain the name of the original file in it, e.g. m01drone_basscut.wav.
* Contestants can use custom voice lines (new Garrett or guard lines for example).
* Contestants can use Room-based weather effects and fogging.
* Contestants can use up to two custom book arts per mission.
* The mission(s) can be of any size.
* The mission(s) can take advantage of NewDark. This includes: more polys and objects in view, zone-based ambient lighting and fog, sunlight, colored lighting, etc.
* Contestants can manually port T1G resources to T2 and include them in their mission archive. These resources cannot be modded in any way outside of the rules listed here.
* Contestants can include modified .bin files for both objects and AI meshes if they are stock .bin files where only the assigned texture has been changed (and remember, the new texture must also be stock or stock-derived).
* Contestants may create stock-derived carry pictures for AI as needed. For example, if you modify the bluecoat watchmen to have red coats, you can modify the original carry picture to match.
Dromed StartpackBrethren has kindly created a (
https://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=149664) Dromed Startpack which is a mission with some basic stuff already set up for you to save time, especially for newer authors. Using this is allowed, as is the importing of small multibrushes (think small templates as opposed to large areas from an unreleased map). However, starting from an abandoned map or importing large areas from other maps is not allowed. Naturally this is on the honor system as we have no way of validating.
Mission themes and contents:There is no requirement from a theme or story viewpoint, however contestants might consider that many players may expect or prefer missions to be celebratory of Thief 2 in this respect: banks, churches, mansions, warehouses, and the like, with a decreased emphasis on magic and the undead, and predominantly human enemies. This is entirely up to the authors, though, to follow or not - it is just mentioned here as an FYI and, while individual voters may of course choose to vote higher or lower based on this on their own, it will not be a criteria used explicitly in voting or scoring.
Deadline: Mar 27th, 2020 at 23:59 Pacific Time.Here is a countdown timer in case you aren't sure: (
https://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/generic?p0=136&iso=20200328T0759)
Submission:Please submit your missions to Yandros or skacky through private messaging or by sending an email to wearytaffer[at]gmail[dot]com or skacky2002[at]yahoo[dot]fr and put a subject for your email so we don't miss it/discard it (e.g. "Thief 2 Anniversary submission").
The archive must be named TMA20AC_yourmissionname.zip. Make sure your missions are tested before submitting them!
Voting period:The voting period will start on March 28th, 2020 and end on June 28th, 2020. Results will then be announced along with the unveiling of the identities of potential anonymous entrants, as well as the publishing of voters’ comments.
General tips:- There are quite a few unused assets in the game’s CRFs. I recommend you check them out, you may find some cool stuff!
- The contest is organized with good old 2000 vanilla visuals in mind. It’d be best if your mission was designed without HD mods, texture replacements or enhancement packs.
- Since this contest is restricted to stock resources you don’t really need to go too crazy on the level of detail.
Posting ScreenshotsThere is a dedicated thread for sharing screenshots and updates here: (
https://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=149681)
Happy DromEding!
- Yandros & skacky
IMPORTANT UPDATE!After discussion, in light of the current global pandemic and its effects on everyone, skacky and I have decided to extend the deadline slightly following these rules:
* The absolute deadline is pushed out 4 days, and is now 11:59PM PDT (UTC-7) on Mar 27. This is Saturday morning in Europe.
* Any author who has already submitted their mission may inform us that they wish to use the extra time for final testing or polish, and then resubmit by the new deadline.
* Any author who is done may go ahead and submit, or inform us that they do not wish to use the extra time if they have already submitted. Once an author commits to submitting, if it is after the original 3/23 deadline, they may not retract that and make additional changes, so be certain when you send us the release version.
* All missions submitted by the original deadline will be released on the original schedule, sometime on 3/24. Missions released between then and the new 3/27 deadline will be released as soon as possible after they are submitted.
* Voting will now not begin until Mar 28th and will go through June 28th.
This means you will still probably get some missions on the original release schedule, and will get a few more in the days that follow. Any authors who have any questions at all, please PM or email me, or post here if it is something which could pertain to everyone.
sexypat on 23/3/2019 at 03:47
Yess !!!
mtk on 23/3/2019 at 07:28
There we go bois. Good luck everyone!
DirkBogan on 23/3/2019 at 07:46
In anticipation for this contest, I've tried to outline what I think are the key differences between Thief 1 and 2. This shouldn't be taken a list of instructions to participants, far from it. But it has helped me understand what is distinctive about each game versus what they have in common, and I think these differences guarantee that this contest will not just be a repeat of the first one. Hopefully this helps inspire others in some way!
Thematically, where TDP combines fantasy medieval/Tudor and steampunk, TMA combines Victorian and Art Deco. The grime, misery and nastiness in Thief 1 is thicker and more apparent on the surface, whereas the evil that permeates Thief 2 is repressed, hidden behind the opulence and formality of aristocrats, law enforcement and religious figures who depict themselves as holier-than-thou while scheming to further themselves.
Visually, when I think of Thief 1, I think of saturated red roofs and yellow windows, blue-grey brick and cobblestone, stark white light between thick black shadows. In contrast, my vision of Thief 2 is predominately ornate woods in orange and brown, black and white marble, all basked in warm orange light. Lots of polished and sterile metal, and very little green.
Gameplay-wise, Thief 1 is a pastiche of all kinds of styles. Sneaking, stealing and blackjacking guards is mixed with natural and supernatural fauna, as well as otherwordly creatures and spirits. Urban and wealthy country environments are threaded between missions with tombs, caverns, underworlds and ruins. Thief 2 jettisons most of the landscapes that had a lesser emphasis stealth gameplay in favour of a tighter focus on human environments that weren't properly available in a pre-modern setting -- banks, police stations, rooftops, warehouses and industrial sectors. In this way, the macro-level gameplay variety is supplemented for a more nuanced exploration of the possibilities offered by a single aspect of Thief 1 gameplay, namely that of sneaking/thieving. Importantly, every enemy AI can be dealt with in a stealthy way. Also, on average, the interior design and architecture is much less symmetrical than Thief 1 (see First City Bank & Trust and Blackmail vs Ramirez's Mansion in Assassins as examples).
If anybody is looking for inspiration from FMs, I think older FMs like Hidden Agenda and Heist Society are a good place to start: they capture the spirit of Thief 2, while managing to expand (and improve) on many of the aforementioned elements.
I am sure that Thief 2 means totally different things to many people (I would love to know what others associate with it!), and I am excited to see what we all make in celebrating the 20th Anniversary of a game that was surprisingly dissimilar to its predecessor, to the delight of some and disappointment of others.
Keeper Flix on 23/3/2019 at 08:44
First of all, I wish all participants good luck (and hope the contest wont end in a failure of epic proportions for you :cheeky: )
That aside, I am working on my first ever FM that I plan to submit for this contest.
Lay stone upon stone, ‘til thy Builder's work is done!
Soul Tear on 23/3/2019 at 13:06
Quote:
Contestants are limited to stock and stock-derived resources (see below) but can use a custom gamesys (for custom schemas, scripts, unused objects etc…) as long as the mission doesn’t use any resources other than the stock and stock-derived ones.What are these stupid restrictions for? Many T2 authors have never made T2 OM-style maps.
Artists should not be limited in their choice of means. Moreover, there was already a similar competition dedicated to the first part of the game. Let T2 be different in concept. Most of the masterpieces recognized by the community are built on custom resources.
Who needs these endless clones of the original game? Hey dudes! Hello?
Keep in mind that with such a rash approach the contest will lose a bunch of cool projects. Because some authors will not even participate.
In this regard mappers will not get a lot of cool resources in their hands.
Soul Tear on 23/3/2019 at 13:26
So bad.
DarkMax on 23/3/2019 at 13:29
Quote Posted by Soul Tear
Who needs these endless clones of the original game? Hey dudes! Hello?
People who value gameplay, story and overall enjoyment over souless packages of 500 mb of aesthetics! :) And by the looks of it, it's the majority so I'm glad.
Yandros on 23/3/2019 at 13:31
@SoulTear: You're a bit late to that discussion, which we already had months ago and we also had a poll to vote on the rules which ran for several months, and the community has spoken. You're not obliged to make an OM-style map if you participate, you are only obliged to use stock assets. If you were to go play the T1 Contest mission "The Scarlet Cascabel", it was made almost entirely from modified (but stock-derived) assets and looks about as different from a T1 OM as you can get, and it won the contest. So it is not only possible to make a mostly "custom" (stock-derived) mission for this contest, but it might even win it as happened last time.
I found that the limitation inspired me to get creative and do things in new ways I would never have thought of without it. But I get it, though, that some authors just can't make missions without true custom resources, and I guess those folks will not participate. There were a few such authors in the T1 contest timeframe who said they would not participate due to the stock limitation, but in the end we had 23 entries and it was among the most successful contests in the history of the community. Ultimately, we asked everyone to vote and stock/stock-derived won the voting with about 72% in favor.