"Fireglow Studios announced that they are developing a next generation game engine (engine codename: Sudden Strike Next7) and the first game based on this engine (working title: Sudden Strike III) - also they are planning to develop several other games based on this engine in different setups related to war conflicts. "The engine is going to have all features players missed in previous Sudden Strike games - ability to simulate cooperation between all associated arms, large scale and strategic layer control, full 3D, dynamically alterable landscape, improved AI, multiplayer for many players, cryptographic cheat-protection, unit and environment creation tools. The engine is capable to render vast areas filled with forests, sea areas, fields, etc. with a huge amount of units, calculating realistic, dynamic shadows and special effects. The engine targets Real Time Strategy games, so a player mainly uses a bird's-eye view of the battlefield, but the free camera control allows close-up views when necessary". Check full article for details and some beautiful screenshots showcasing this engine."
Screenshots:
gamershell
Full Story:
Fireglow Announces Sudden Strike Next7 Engine.
May 6, 2004 – Fireglow Ltd announces new Sudden Strike line engine and game-Sudden Strike III.
Firelgow team is now developing a next generation game engine (engine codename: Sudden Strike Next7) and the first game based on this engine (working title: Sudden Strike III), and also Fireglow plans to develop several other games based on this engine in different setups related to war conflicts.
The engine is going to have all features players missed in previous Sudden Strike games - ability to simulate cooperation between all associated arms, large scale and strategic layer control, full 3D, dynamically alterable landscape, improved AI, multiplayer for many players, cryptographic cheat-protection, unit and environment creation tools.
The engine is capable to render vast areas filled with forests, sea areas, fields, etc. with a huge amount of units, calculating realistic, dynamic shadows and special effects. The engine targets Real Time Strategy games, so a player mainly uses a bird's-eye view of the battlefield, but the free camera control allows close-up views when necessary.
The engine will support huge worlds with no missions but rather tasks and guidelines, and this global scale imposes a need for considerable interface improvements. The interface will include strategic maps with global management features. Micromanagement interface improvements are also planned to make the controlling the game clear for beginners and to allow hardcore players to perform certain operations faster.
Improved AI will allowing beginners to leave the majority of management problems on it, but nothing will prevent skilled player from controlling the details.
The engine will allow sea battles with large ships and will support naval and joint operations.
Construction of defense systems will be possible. Considering this and the new logistic system, preparations to the battle become very important.
The engine will support multiplayer mode with a high number of players. Cheat-protection is going to be introduced, which is important for fair play enforcement. The engine will support statistic servers, allowing for creating player ranks and for improved matchmaking.
Fireglow will provide tools for creating units, effects, worlds, and tasks to the community.
In the early stage of the engine lifetime it will be necessary for this data to be cryptographically signed by Fireglow before public distribution.
However, the engine is currently evolving and will evolve for a certain time, so some features (for example, advanced network features and tools) may be introduced with later upcoming games.
About Sudden Strike line:
Sudden Strike is a line of Real-Time Strategy games set during World War II. All these games were released internationally and total quantity of copies sold exceeds 1,000,000. This line includes Sudden Strike (Released in 2000), Sudden Strike Forever (2001), Sudden Strike 2 (2002).
About Firelglow Limited:
Fireglow Ltd. was found in 1999. It is a software development company specializing in computer games, primarily in Real-Time Strategies. The company’s games are sold worldwide in various formats.
Copyright ¿ 2004 Fireglow Ltd. All rights reserved. Fireglow and Sudden Strike products are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Fireglow Ltd. All company and/or product names may be brand names, trade names, trademarks, and/or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated. Features, pricing, availability, and specifications are subject to change without notice.
