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Unreal for the PSX
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Teflon



Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 24

PostPosted: Sun Jan 24, 2010 3:16 pm    Post subject: Unreal for the PSX Reply with quote

A while ago, Leo, a user on the Beyond Unreal forum, posted a website showing pictures and a video of the canceled PSX version of Unreal.

http://www.nathansilvers.com/coppermine/thumbnails.php?album=8

http://www.nathansilvers.com/demo.php

The website is a portfolio for Nathan Silvers, a level designer that worked on Unreal PSX. Leo managed to get in contact with Nate about releasing the levels he made, but Nathan hasn't released the maps that were on his website yet. However, Leo did manage to get in contact with another level designer; Matt Kagle. Matt released a few of the maps he was working on. They can be run in the PC version of Unreal.

http://www.unrealtexture.com/Unreal/Website/Downloads/Maps/PSX/PSXMaps.htm (Ignore the UPSXCoop .zip; its a fan edit of the released maps to make them playable in online coop mode)

Note those maps aren't exactly the same as the ones that were in the PSX version; the level designer altered a few things to make them run on the PC version of Unreal, but otherwise they're the same as the PSX maps he developed.

Here's the reason why the game was canceled, straight from Kagle himself:

Quote:
If I remember correctly, we were cancelled because we couldn't do all the cool lighting effects. Since Epic made a lot of money selling its engine to other parties, they didn't want to undercut their business by making the engine look bad.


However, it seems that the trail for more Unreal PSX beta materials has gone cold. Leo has managed to get in contact with more developers of the PSX version, but they haven't released anything yet, despite them saying otherwise.

As an aside, Unreal PSX was supposed to have a new weapon; the Implant Gun. The only article mentioning it doesn't state what it was supposed to do and Leo hasn't asked any of the devs what it was supposed to do.
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Asaki



Joined: 19 Apr 2009
Posts: 52

PostPosted: Sun Jan 24, 2010 3:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wow, that looks a lot better than I was expecting. I wonder how the framerate is, though. And obviously they hadn't implemented monsters yet.
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Mon Jan 25, 2010 1:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hold it there for a minute. Actually the game was NOT canceled beacuse of the lighting, just because of it. It was mainly decision of Infogrames. The lighting was just one issue Epic had with it.

Matthew Kagle was a contractor, he made several versions of these two levels, only that one was however saved. There were some things like a more complicated laser machine that would need to be assembled, it is still left in the developer box of the map though, but there are missing several other things Matthew described to me.

I had to recompile the NPScript file, it was still made for the special version of Unreal they had. They were developing it on altered version of 221 on PC and then the core team was porting it and testing on PSX hardware.
Monsters were implemented, it worked just fine.
The UPSXCoop is by me, they are slightly altered versions with readded music and also the chunks are working properly, of damaged walls etc, they were all set to default texture because of Kagle's reimport of the maps, I also made standalone MonsterHunt versions of the maps for UT, merged them together and added more monsters etc. Also I provided a singleplayer/coop version too.

As for the rest of stuff, there has been some problems and troubles concerning legal stuff. I contacted all of the level designers I believe (five of them), some don't have the stuff anymore. Even one coder who was resposible for porting it into PSX hardware. I have not managed to get in touch with the project lead, because he believes in the legal problems.

Trust me, I invested almost all of my energy to this, sadly the latest events weren't so happy, so it made me quite depressed. I am trying to recover lost missionpack as well or some other content. I even talked with Cliff Bleszinski from Epic about it.

They had a new boss enemy and "The Implant Gun" actually makes you posses about any monster in the game, as some sort of disguise or something and it seems that unused and not working weaponin final version of Unreal, Quadshot, has been used as well.

Also...if anyone around here knows more about cancelled Unreal stuff, or has any stuff himself, including beta versions of original Unreal, I need to get in contact with these people.
Any help is appreciated, the more, the better.
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fishboil



Joined: 25 Dec 2009
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Tue Jan 26, 2010 10:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It would be very interesting to see this on PSX hardware because with graphics situation is similar like ICO which similarly featured incredible graphics on console.

But what could be legal problems? Is it really impossible to see this unreleased in this original form?

But anyway thanks for releasing these because I like Unreal for PC.
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Tue Jan 26, 2010 5:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If it was released in original form, it would be like giving out a free game for them and they wouldn't allow it. The legal department is very tough. However as a patch for Unreal, it may be an option. But even that is not sure. I can't do anything, if some guys (their project lead) keep ignoring me, even though I have permission of the majority of the designers.

I hope Nathan will reply, given to what I proposed him last time, but it's been about a month since he said he is not confroamble with releasing them anymore. So I can't know for sure if he is not deleting my emails and reading them. I asked for help their lead level designer though, as he was open to it. We'll have to just wait, but it is making me stressed and worried.
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ICEknight



Joined: 15 Dec 2003
Posts: 569

PostPosted: Tue Jan 26, 2010 9:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Excuse me if I'm completely wrong (which I might be), but wouldn't a release of all this have been feasable had it been anonymously leaked without much talk about it?
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Wed Jan 27, 2010 3:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yeah? And who will have the stuff anyway to release it "silently"? I don't have the stuff, I am waiting finally for someone to email me it and I am not releasing it if I don't have all the permissions anyway. But I don't even have the stuff. I am just trying to get my hands on it and to get things done. I look at my email for past days and no incoming emails, nothing's happening, no responses at all, nobody cares. Or they are busy. But I will have to wait until anything is happening.
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Carnivol
gay dickhead


Joined: 21 Jun 2004
Posts: 576
Location: confirmed

PostPosted: Wed Jan 27, 2010 10:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

ICEknight wrote:
Excuse me if I'm completely wrong (which I might be), but wouldn't a release of all this have been feasable had it been anonymously leaked without much talk about it?


Take it you mean in a way where the names of everyone likely to do so weren't mentioned in every single line of text ever written about it?


I suppose...
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Thu Jan 28, 2010 7:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

There has been an update on the beyondunreal thread a bit, one of the level designers I talked with joined in. If you want to check it out.
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fishboil



Joined: 25 Dec 2009
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Thu Jan 28, 2010 8:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
it would be like giving out a free game


I may be mistaken but do unreleased betas apply on the same rules as released games? I mean there was not an product code on the game and it never ''went gold''.
But yeah if there are thoughts to release game in PSX form then the best thing to do is to ask permission.
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Thu Jan 28, 2010 10:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

fishboil wrote:
Quote:
it would be like giving out a free game


I may be mistaken but do unreleased betas apply on the same rules as released games? I mean there was not an product code on the game and it never ''went gold''.
But yeah if there are thoughts to release game in PSX form then the best thing to do is to ask permission.

Not really, if they would require original Unreal to run or install or simply were released as standalone maps for Unreal itself.
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fishboil



Joined: 25 Dec 2009
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 1:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well but can there be any problems to release a ''game'' which is vaporware and not without Playstation product code? I mean if you upload a game for example Quake 2 which was released and went gold then it can be counted as piracy but Unreal is a beta without Playstation product code and it was not released and is vaporware.
Of course it is known to everyone that developers can't just simple give unreleased material but ''if'' you have permissions to release an unreleased material on PC so why not PS1? It never hitted the shelves and with permissions given I think that there wouldn't be any problems.
So why PS1 unreleased beta can count as a loss and PC unreleased/released video game betas cannot?
S.T.A.L.K.E.R Shadow of Chernobyl (PC game) also is an released and shipped game but BETA was drastically different than retail version (almost different game) but the beta was released from developers with the permission of company Big Shots themselves.
That was just for comparison.

Problably you wouldn't be interested but could you at least ask someone who can give a CLEAR permission to release it for PS1?
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Asaki



Joined: 19 Apr 2009
Posts: 52

PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 2:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Not sure if you can just email Epic Megagames and ask them if it's okay...but you can try?
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 6:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think you don't understand it clearly...besides none of the guys have the PSX code, it was done by the Pterodactyl studios back in the UK, the porting and testing to PSX and others were not given that stuff. The only person who might have it or know who has it is Nick Pelling.

So there is no way of getting that released for PS1 hardware.
If this gets released, it will be run on the PC version as sort of addon. The level designers had to optimalize the maps based on what the core coding team in Pterodactyl told them.
Besides it is too old to be released for PS1 and it would be like a free game, unlike if it was released for PC. If they didn't charge some pay for it, but they won't get into that business I suppose.
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Evan



Joined: 17 Mar 2004
Posts: 948

PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 10:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't think you understand, people here want to play unreleased games in their original format. They aren't suggesting that it be released commercially. I mean, look at some of the articles on this website, they have released several NES games that were never released commercially.
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 10:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I understand that. But this is not up to me, you know. The original format was on the PC, and nobody I talked to has the PSX code and converted files to run under PSX. And I am just stating that it will not be most surely possible.
If this will not get released at all, you can thank some legal department guys and another big heads over at Epic and somewhere else.

The bullshit about it not running well or the lighting problems was just an official marketting excuse. The real problem was somewhere deeper and was more personal and of course when Infogrames took over it all went to hell. You can thank them for ruining opportunity for origina team, hell they even planned to remake it and release it as a new missionpack or were suggested to...but that was disallowed as well.
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Teflon



Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 24

PostPosted: Mon Feb 01, 2010 10:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you're so worried about "legality" and all that then don't release it at all. If the PSX beta is released somebody is always going to have it, no matter how pissy Epic's legal department gets. That's just the nature of the internet.

If you're concerned with doing things by the book then I don't think beta hunting is for you.
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Leo_TCK



Joined: 25 Jan 2010
Posts: 11

PostPosted: Thu Feb 04, 2010 8:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Even if I didn't do it by book, I wouldn't have it. The only way to get this is the legal way unfortunately. Or at least with permissions of the authors. Which is not that big of a problem.
I don't see why beta hunting can't be legal after all. It can, it is not that utopic idea.
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Teflon



Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 24

PostPosted: Fri Feb 05, 2010 10:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Leo_TCK wrote:
Even if I didn't do it by book, I wouldn't have it. The only way to get this is the legal way unfortunately. Or at least with permissions of the authors. Which is not that big of a problem.
I don't see why beta hunting can't be legal after all. It can, it is not that utopic idea.


Oh. I see your point now.
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Xkeeper



Joined: 04 Nov 2005
Posts: 327
Location: Henderson, NV

PostPosted: Tue Feb 09, 2010 8:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Leo_TCK wrote:
Even if I didn't do it by book, I wouldn't have it. The only way to get this is the legal way unfortunately. Or at least with permissions of the authors. Which is not that big of a problem.
I don't see why beta hunting can't be legal after all. It can, it is not that utopic idea.


I'd like to thank you for trying, personally. It's not often we get a developer around to talk about their games.

So... thanks for your efforts! Even if it doesn't work out in the end, at least you gave it a good shot :)
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