Originally posted by ihadtnowegtum
Originally posted by MrQuetch
I hope this isn't too out of the blue or anything - but I'm fairly new on rustedlogic. I've been looking at this thread for the past year now and am amazed what you guys have been able to both discover and accomplish. So, why am I here you ask?
Well, lately I've been home brewing for the N64, and I've noticed that you guys have a model viewer that allows you to see the Dinosaur Planet N64 leftovers. I was wondering if someone on here - anyone for that matter, could upload those model files as a modern usable format like 3ds., obj., or some other similar format, and zip up all the possible models in a file and attach it to this thread. I'd also like to see whatever textures still exist for the DP64, unfortunately to me, it seems there are not many - correct me if I'm wrong.
So far in my home brewing experience, I've been able to draw different colored polys with alpha using the NuSystem, have got controller input working, and have as of yesterday finally drawn textures and polygons using those textures. So, although that may not sound like much right now (even though I've been learning how the system and C programming works for the past couple months), I think I know enough that we could fake a DP rom, such to the extent where we can pan the camera viewing the existing scenes from the game. About moving characters and stuff like that, I'm afraid that's going to take a long time to learn, but it'd be worth it.
Thanks. Hope to hear from you guys soon!
I think any effort to re-make/restore the game is quite welcome by the fanbase (:
I've kinda been hoping for the same /:
Sounds fun
and yeah, 3D programming is something else. I'm briefly touched rendering code a few times. (abstracted nicely by libraries/APIs so I don't have to do the really hard stuff (; ) It'd be worth it for you to learn if you're really into it. and good luck!
Honestly, I was starting to worry this thread was dead... I think it's just no one has had anything to say/add... I've also been lurking quite a while. I had nothing to say/show here, so I didn't say it. I still don't, really.
So, as far as characters and objects in general are concerned (from what I've learned so far), I do know that you have to type-define a structure, and within that structure you can set your variables such as position(x, y, z), health, etc., and then name the structure after that.
For example:
---------------
typedef struct
{
x = 0; //declare pos vars (position)
y = 0;
z = 0;
rotX = 0; //declare rot vars (rotation)
rotY = 0;
rotZ = 0;
isGrounded = false; //whether you've jumped or not
health = 100; //declare important vars
lives = 3;
magic = 100;
scarabs = 0; //declare inventory vars
grubTubs = 0;
binoculars = false;
bouncyBall = false;
havePartner = false; //once you've met either Kyte or Tricky
playerMesh = 0; //0 for Krystal - 1 for Sabre
}playerObj; //name the object, in this case - the player
---------------
I doubt that's how some of the game's code could have looked, but this is purely just an example. Of course, this is one of the more simple examples of how the objects work. We could get really complex and start adding type-definitions of arrays which store the position and rotation instead of declaring each one separate.
For another example:
------------------------
static typedef struct Vec3_p[3]; //declare a global var with a container of 3 for p (position)
static typedef struct Vec3_r[3]; //declare a global var with a container of 3 for r (rotation)
//Vec3 = a vector with 3 values
------------------------
So, that's a bit more complex, but once it's been defined - and since it's static, that means that for any object we've created that has this var, we don't have to declare it again for every single object. All objects will share these 'Vec3_p' and 'Vec3_r' arrays. Honestly, I'm not sure how the variables were set up for DP64, but they must have been similar in some way. If you think about it, at one point or another, all programmers wonder how something was done. A lot of it comes from learning at your own pace, and learning from your mistakes - thus making you a better programmer.
Besides those variables for positions and rotations, it might also be a good idea to learn about matrices. I've looked into matrices a bit, but I still have some more to learn about them. Basically, by using multiple matrices, we could be able to have animated characters and objects.
For (yet again) another example:
-------------------------------------
typedef struct
{
Mtx Head; //define 11 'bones' for a character
Mtx Neck;
Mtx Torso;
Mtx LArm;
Mtx RArm;
Mtx LLeg;
Mtx RLeg;
Mtx LHand;
Mtx RHand;
Mtx LFoot;
Mtx RFoot;
} Mtx; //abbreviation for matrix in N64 programming manual
-------------------------------------
I've still got lots to learn, but maybe this has shown some light on some possibilities. I would like those models and textures though if possible - I cannot seem to see find downloads for anything. Perhaps they aren't even here.
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