31 replies to this topic

[Comr4de]

RISE OF THE REDS UPDATE #40
Long time no see!

Welcome to our first 2010 update, we hope everyone has had a great holiday season and hope you have a great year! Now I know what you must all be thinking because it's common to hear this once you haven't updated in a mere 2 months. "Your dead!" "It's over!" "WEN?" well, I assure you we're out of our comfy little vacation and we're hauling ass like before. To confirm this we're here to show you a big update which contains some new units from the ECA, one of our major goals to finish in the following months. Plus we have a few surprises for you below so let's have a look shall we?

Renders
First up our renders:

ECA A400m Transport


A rare sight in the European War it is unknown how many of these aircraft still remain or where they are deployed from. They are the primary targets of hotshot Russian Berkut aces that hound for these aircraft restlessly hoping to not only score a kill from one of the supposedly few remaining A400ms but also hoping to doing extended damage to European forces by destroying whatever it is transporting along with it.

Lynx Combat Personnel Carrier


The European Lynx APC is the workhorse of ECA`s infantry division. Despite its outlandish design, it’s very reliable and offers the best possible protection for the troops inside something essential in Europe`s terrain where ECA supply lines and reinforcements are prone to be ambushed by Russian gunships. The Lynx brigades had suffered heavy losses in the battlefield against the heavy shelling and armour piercing weaponry deployed by the Russian Army. As a cheap modification, armour skirts were installed on the sides to allow for greater protection against incoming projectiles. Although the plating isn't the best the ECA has to offer, it is the cheapest and ensures the Lynx APC can continue to serve as an inexpensive infantry carrier of the ECA.

Vulcan Strategic Long Range Bomber


Following the amalgation of the European Military strike forces within the ECA, endeavours were made to make the army less dependent off the USA in all aspects of modern warfare. Primarily, the lackluster airforce division had some gaping holes within it's tactical and strategic arsenal. The Russian Tupolev and american B2 and B1B strategic bombers were unsurpassed and there was nothing from within the European mainland worth a comparison. Matching these titans proved to be a daunting yet not unrewarding task.
An evolution of an early British Cold War pearl was uncovered and found to be more than suitable. This Delta Wing aircraft was mounted with modern aviation and military technology. The aerodynamic design barely needed any modification to fit the standards of modern precision bombing. The pioneering AVRO Vulcan bomber appeared to be a timeless design suitable for modern tactical and strategic needs, and Russian commanders have felt their grasp on the European skies challenged by the speed, maneuvarebility and tactical success of this new enemy asset. When battling with ECA Generals, the Vulcan bomber will be the harbringer of your destructive General's powers.

T80R Experimental Battle Tank


The Russian T80R Kodiak carries an experimental rail gun and it is the pride of General Aleksandr because it has made the Russian Federation the first nation to properly field rail guns in large scale warfare. Rail guns use magnetic rails to fire solid chunks of matter at hypersonic speed. Although rail guns are very powerful they have been known for suffering of a sharp loss of accuracy at extreme ranges. Aleksandr is currently experiment with different kinds of ammo but it is currently using an uranium charge that consists of two components: a shell of titanium and a core of uranium atoms suspended in plasma state. The T80R fires this powerful slug rapidly and efficiently being capable of piercing any armor.

Werewolf Assault Helicopter


The Werewolf lives up to its name. It is a deadly, agile and a savage predator. It fires its missiles at the juiciest prey and then lays down a rain of high caliber lead across the field massacring enemy infantry and just as it gracefully advances, it backs away when satisfied, disappearing into the night.

Blackhawk Transport Helicopter


The American Blackhawk has operated in many scenarios all over the globe and has proven time and time again it is an excellent transport helicopter. Not only can it sweep the landing zone clean it can also lay down a barrage of covering fire for its passengers. The Blackhawk tactical transport helicopter is the army's unrequited quintessence of infantry insertion deep into enemy territory. During the war on the GLA, the multifunctional Chinook helicopters had been used to this same end. However this unarmed and expensive helicopter sustained heavy losses to enemy RPGs and Stingers. With the Osprey being impractical due to the fact that it, too, is unarmed, the Blackhawk was uncovered and reassigned to the army of General Thorn to guarantee enemy inquietude. It mounts an anti infantry minigun and arrives with eight rangers ready for aerial insertion.

V-22 Osprey Transport Helicopter


The United States Airforce had long been looking for a replacement for the aged but functional Chinook Helicopters. It's long service record indicates how difficult it had been to find the right helicopter to replace the ninety year old workhorse of the Airforce. The Osprey program had been running for a considerable time now and the fruits it yielded were ready to be harvested. With mobility growing increasingly important in warfare against distanced foes across the globe, the CH-47's limits were becoming apparent. As a hybrid plane combining the virtues of both the C-130 transport aircrafts and VTOL heavy lift helicopters, the V-22 Osprey finally met its true potential and was found ready for widespread active service. It will be replacing the honoured chinook helicopters in supply and troop transport duties.

Posters
Now onto some gift's if you will. Below we have printable 18x24 inch Tech tree posters for the 3 factions in 1.5. If you wish to download them, clink on the link below


You can download all three posters here! (41.1MB)

Fan Art
Just recently I bumped into a fellow deviant art member and stumbled upon his marvelous work only to be greeted by the following fantastic fan art by ImperialGerar.
Check out his fan art of the Russian Shock Trooper below!


Check out his other works as well, there's something in there for everyone!

ModDB 2009
It's that time of the year again and we'd like your support! Please vote for us for the 2009 Mod of the Year Awards below, best of luck to all participants and remember, it's not just one mod you can vote for so vote for all your favorites!


And thats all we have folks, we hope you have enjoyed this update and we'll see you next time for our upcoming updates concerning the ECA and GLA.

~ Until next time!

Comr4de for
SWR Productions 2010

Edited by Comr4de, 02 January 2010 - 00:55.

[Nem]

The level of professionalism is impressive indeed. Loving the posters!

[Destiny]

Amazing, simply...amazing. I somewhat expected the Vulcan to make it, looks like I was right. It must've been a hard year.

[Camille]

haven't most of these renders been shown already???

nice to hear you're getting your arses back in gear though

[Dauth]

I have to agree with Camille, a lot of it does look very familiar, could be because I'm an admin though.

Pretty posters, still no hint on a release date huh?

[Destiny]

You know quite a lot of mods follow the 'when it's done' release date, Dauth!

[Comr4de]

Dauth, on 1 Jan 2010, 18:07, said:

I have to agree with Camille, a lot of it does look very familiar, could be because I'm an admin though.

Pretty posters, still no hint on a release date huh?

Not yet, we never do so haha. Though we hope to finish 2.0 sometime this year.

Also yes, there may be some confusion with the Lynx, it is different from the normal Lynx as that variation is the default variant. This IFV variant, which has fireports btw, is exclusively for General Wolfgang

The Blackhawk/Osprey renders are simply there since they were meant to be posted earlier and we are just now posting them now for promotional and illustration reasons for those who haven't seen them yet

Edited by Comr4de, 02 January 2010 - 00:13.

[Shirou]

_{None of them have been shown.} However the Werewolf has a new skin _{and Lynx an updated model, as you can read. The blackhawk and Osprey hadn't been released in a media update but they are present in the current release.}

Edit: Ninja'd D:

The fan art, new to me until this update was posted, is pretty, like EA concept quality :O

Edited by Shock, 02 January 2010 - 00:19.

[Jok3r]

Aside from the slight breach in professionalism in quoting Murphies laws of combat (which exists primarily as a joke), very, very nice looking stuff. Keep up the good work!

[Mbob61]

I'm not sure if this has been asked before but have you got the trailer working properly on that lynx? Otherwise i can imagine it looking pretty strange.
Vulcan looks epic though

Mike

[BeefJeRKy]

Although the update feels familiar, it's nice to hear that the progress on ROTR will be picking up steam again. Good luck in your endeavor!

Oh and the concept art looks quite sweet.

[Shirou]

The Joker, on 2 Jan 2010, 1:50, said:

Aside from the slight breach in professionalism in quoting Murphies laws of combat (which exists primarily as a joke)

I'm not sure what you are referencing to here.

[Jok3r]

The US Tech tree poster has "If at first you don't succeed, call in an airstrike" written on it, which is taken from Murphy's laws of combat (a joke list). It'd be fine, and is pretty minor, but it's a bit of breaking the fourth wall because the other two quotes are from Stalin and Sun Tzu, and are both serious, while the US one isn't. I was just saying, it feels a little less professional, nothing major.

[Ion Cannon!]

The concept art and the posters look great, the ECA skins are pretty decent as well. The problem with the ECA skins being good, is that it contrasts with the Russian / Blackhawk skins, which are well.. not so good.

Edited by Ion Cannon!, 02 January 2010 - 01:02.

[Pav:3d]

Looking gd guys :o

[Rai]

Finally after weeks and weeks of waiting for this update my questions have been finally answered. And as always your updates are just priceless. Thank you for the update and keep up the good work SWR team.

Edited by Rai, 02 January 2010 - 03:27.

[Shirou]

The Joker, on 2 Jan 2010, 2:00, said:

The US Tech tree poster has "If at first you don't succeed, call in an airstrike" written on it, which is taken from Murphy's laws of combat (a joke list). It'd be fine, and is pretty minor, but it's a bit of breaking the fourth wall because the other two quotes are from Stalin and Sun Tzu, and are both serious, while the US one isn't. I was just saying, it feels a little less professional, nothing major.

I can see where you're coming from. Alas, in popular culture the american military has been repeatedly characterized by such jolly statements. We could've picked Patton as well though, might have fit better.

[Dutchygamer]

Maybe it's chosen as it refers to the US' main power: Air superiority?

[Libains]

Tbh, not the best update we've seen from you guys, there's a LOT of recycled content in there to make the update seem longer than it is Also, it's been pushing four months since you guys last updated, not two

The A400's body shape is the same as the Candid's that's currently in the mod - it looks more like a reskin than a new unit.
The Lynx looks nicer than the previous, but again it is nothing new or special, and on the right-hand render you've managed to make the armour skirt non-see through, or cause a shadow.
The Vulcan is very nice, but so nice that it puts the skins and models of some of your other work to shame, sadly.
The T80R is once again a re-hash, it's a Kodiak with a slightly different barrel rather than a whole new unit, again. The barrel is also very shiny - so much so that it looks odd against the rest of the tank.
The Werewolf is once again a reskin rather than a new unit, and I would comment on the lore for this unit in that compared to the rest, it is lacking in sustenance and seems to have been written by someone with a fetish for wolves in about thirty seconds
The last two I could have understood being included had they been re-skinned, or worked on in some other way. However, no matter how you put it, rendering content that has already been used in-game and has undergone no changes, just seems to be increasing the length of the update, and doing very little else.

The tech tree posters are nice, but I remember this having been discussed many many months back on SWR, and honestly wonder why it's taken this long to release them when they were obviously created last year (says 2009 on them). I'd also agree with Jok3r in that the American one doesn't seem to have as much professionalism applied to it.

The concept art is also very nice, but again I can't help but get the impression that you're throwing more content at the update to make it look longer.

All in all, the update has it's highs and it's lows. Had you done something like reveal three ECA units and the tech trees, the update would have looked more concise and fine tuned - it seems a little like you have gone for quantity over quality.

Oh, and another aside, wen, if ever, ShW 0.96?

[Shirou]

Naturally adding the Blackhawk and the Osprey doesn't add much, but we just want to have renders of every unit in game, and then there is no reason to not release them, now is there.

There is a reason the lore is centered around the Vulcan, as it ostensibly bears the shoulders of this update

[Mbob61]

Having looked at this after a good nights sleep, i can see a few problems.

The first main problem is that the ECA skins look a lot nicer and lot sharper than the russian skins.
I think it shows if we compare the new vulcan - http://media.moddb.c...33/euvulcan.jpg to some russian units
New Werewolf - http://media.moddb.c...RussianKa50.jpg (Problems with the tail as well)
Topol-M - http://www.moddb.com/mods/rise-of-the-reds...1-icbm-launcher (Logo on the missile is much sharper than the rest as well)
BMD - http://media.moddb.com/images/mods/1/5/433...sianbmd3ot8.jpg
BDRM - http://www.moddb.com/mods/rise-of-the-reds.../russian-bdrm-1

I'm not sure if its the render of what but i think its starting to become a problem. ECA look streaks ahead of Russian in my opinion.

My Second issue is aimed at the new Kodiak skin which I'm afraid is lacking in several places imo.

I can normally let 1-2 problems slide but i'm afraid this doesn't look very nice :(

Mike

Edited by Mbob61, 02 January 2010 - 14:12.

[Stalker]

@ TPAM

-) I'm pretty sure most if not all of these problems are not visible ingame at all, which is most important after all
-) I guess the Vulcan's texture's resolution is higher because the unit is very large. Shrink an Overlord to the size of a Battlemaster and put them next to each other. The Overlord's texture will definetly look better.
__________

I agree showing the Blackhawk and Osprey is a bit redundant and you're also showing lots of reskins and remodels lately.
Of course the Update itself is nicely done and all shown units are high quality work.


One suggestion: Instead of reskinning/modeling a unit for the 5th time release something new (Shw 0.96 or RotR 2.0 ).

Just kidding, keep up the good work.

[Ion Cannon!]

I must agree with AJ. It looks to me like your trying to make it look like you've done more work than you actually have. Mbob is also correct about the Russian skins being sub-par in comparison to the ECA skins. The Blackhawk and T80 are just plain ugly.

The Vulcan is good, but why is it so shiny?

[Rich19]

Firstly, I like the ECA units. In particular, I think the vulcan is very nice and an original choice of real-world unit to add in. The skin of the osprey is also rather good IMO.

However, this update does have problems (most of which have probably been mentioned above, but oh well). I'm sure I've seen the cargo plane, lynx, werewolf, and (I'm not as sure on this one) blackhawk before. Second, the railgun tank and osprey have probably been recycled from older SWR units, meaning the only truely new content that I can see is the Vulcan. So it does appear rather like a large update consisting of mainly padding, and little new content for goodness knows how many months' work.

Also, the skins look very mismatched. The ECA ones are essentially all of great quality - sharp, clear, conforming to a common style, and well fitted to the model. Unfortunately, the Russian units are another story. The railgun tank is blurry, squashed in places (e.g. the turret, left of the viewport thing), has a red star apparently slapped willy nilly on top of the front, and is rather cluttered in places (e.g. the turret again). The werewolf seems to have a very sharp skin on the "wings", but there's several huge jagged edges on the tail caused by individual pixels. The two american units seem to be following slightly different graphical styles as well - the skins are both nice, but they don't fit together.

Lastly, if you insist on including that letter thing at the top of future updates, for the love of god don't have people from the unified European state talk about "the fatherland".

[Shirou]

The 'fatherland' phrase is indeed a bit out of place. It should have been 'your fatherland' as it's aimed at the country of the General itself, Britain, instead of appearing nationalistic like it does now. The ECA is mainly military in nature. The individual governments the countries still retain most of their local power and their nationality. This isn't the United States of Europe, and this letter isn't written in name of the whole.

Slightly different graphical styles in skinning isn't always avoidable with a large contingent of different skinners. I can't speak for the skins itself as I am not the artist, but the criticism on them will be noted.

Edited by Shock, 02 January 2010 - 19:08.