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Alt.Games.Unreal.Ed FAQ
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Author: Blacksway (sam@blacksway.net)
Version: Beta 0.1
Dated: 9th March 2001
Thanks To: Fordy, RedEye and
lots of other people
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1 - Introduction
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Welcome to the FAQ for the newsgroup alt.games.unreal.ed.
--------------------Disclaimer--------------------
a) I have made every effort to make sure this information is correct and public domain. If either is not the case then let me know
b) I have not included any email addresses, if you want your email address included then let me know
c) the Unreal Engine, the Unreal and Unreal Tournament games are the property of Epic Games and all trademarks and whatnots are theirs. All other games are the respective companies properties and their rights are reserved as well. As you can tell, I'm no lawyer, so if I've done somthing wrong then let me know and I'll change it, it wasn't intentional!
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1.1 - What is a FAQ
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A FAQ is a list of Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.) which the newsgroup supplies in the hope that people who are new to the newsgroup can check it first and find out the answers to simple questions etc.
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1.2 - What is AGUE
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AGUE is an abbreviation for Alt.Games.Unreal.Ed, the newsgroup devoted to the editing (mainly of maps, but we'll get to that later) using the Unreal engine (and its many derivatives, but again, we'll get to that later).
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1.3 - What games does AGUE cover
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Most people who use AGUE are using either the original Unreal game or the successful follow-up Unreal Tournament. However there are now a number of different games which use the Unreal engine and hence the same editing tools are used or the same problems arise.
The following is an attempt at a full list of current games that use the Unreal Engine
Unreal 1 (developed by Epic Games)
Unreal Tournament (Developed by Epic Games)
Wheel of Time (Developed by Legend Entertainment)
Klingon Honor Guard
Clive Barker's Undying
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - The Fallen (Developed by The Collective)
Adventure Pinball: Forgotten Island (Developed by Digital Extreme)
Deus-Ex (Developed by Ion Storm (Austin))
Rune (Developed by Human Head)
Hired Guns
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1.4 - Which games are coming in the future
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Here is a list of just some of the games which people are looking forward too (using the Unreal Engine)
Duke Nukem Forever (Being developed by 3D Realms)
Dark Sector (Being developed by Digital Extremes)
X-Com Something or other...
Unreal II (Being developed by Legend Entertainment)
Unreal Warfare (Being developed by Epic Games)
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1.5 - What can I edit
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The beauty of the Unreal Engine is that you can basically edit anything you want. This includes maps, player models, weapons, new 'skins', game modifications, anything else you can think of.
While those at AGUE will attempt to help anyone with all of these it focuses mainly on map making, as will this FAQ. We suggest following some of the links at the bottom for other areas.
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2 - Map Editing Basics
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2.1 - Where do I get the tools
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The first thing you should be aware of is that there are 2 widely different editors currently in use. The first UnrealEd 1 came with the original Unreal game as well as the original version of Unreal Tournament. Most other games at the moment use slightly modified version of this editor. UnrealEd 2 has been developed by Epic Games (in conjunction with Legent Entertainment I believe) and was first supplied with the 420 patch for Unreal Tournament. The soon to be released Unreal Tournament 2003 will also feature this editor. Strangely enough, Clive Baker's Undying actually comes with BOTH editors, UndEd and UndEd2, based on UnrealEd 1 and UnrealEd 2 respectively. (Thanks Damian for the heads up on this one)
Secondly you should be aware that all versions of the editor are technically released as unsupported beta's. This does not however mean that Epic or any other companies have not supplied support, just that they aren't under any obligation too.
If you are using Unreal 1 then you need to download the latest patch from the Unreal Technology website http://unreal.epicgames.com which is described there as UnrealEd Patch #4. This patch can be applied even if the version of Unreal you have doesn't come with the editor (I believe some budget packages may not have, as well as the demo)
If you are using Unreal Tournament then the version of UnrealEd will depend on which patch of UT you are using. If you are still using (and wish to carry on using) a version prior to 420 then you can apply the above patched version of UnrealEd 1. However if you install a later patch of UT (I recommend the latest, version 436) then UnrealEd 2 will be installed along with the patch.
Deus-Ex doesn't come with the editor as standard but you can download the Deus-Ex SDK off the web www.deusex.com/sdk.htm . It is currently up to version 2. The included editor is called unrealed.exe but do not be confused, it is a MODIFIED version of unrealed 1.
For games other than Unreal and Unreal Tournament then check the relevant CD or web-site for further details. In most cases they use a modified version of UnrealEd 1 and the above patch CANNOT (or should not) be applied to it.
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2.2 - Can you explain the basics as I have never made a map before
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Before you start using any map making tools you should understand the basic concepts begind unreal based map making.
Imagine if you will that the whole world is a large lump of clay. To make the world in which the game happens you can remove bits of clay from the middle to make a hole (called Subtracting) or within one of these holes you can add some more clay back in (called Adding). So to make a simple room all you need to do is take the red 'builder brush' and subtract it from the world. It is possible for the builder brush to be any shape (it doesn't have to be a cube) and there are buttons in UnrealEd for making cuboids, cylinders, cones, stairs and flat sheets. The 2D editor can be used to make more complicated shapes or you can import pre-made shapes from other packages (usually in DXF format)
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2.3 - Making your first map
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After you have understood (or at least think you understand the basic concepts then its time to take your first steps into making a level of your own.
I do not intend to go through this here as there are many places you can get this information so what I will do is point you in the right direction. Use the above section 2.1 to determine which version of the editor you are using and proceed to the respective web-sites.
UnrealEd 1
http://unreal.gamedesign.net - Wolf's UnrealEd web-site contains a guide to the Unreal 1 Editor
http://www.planetunreal.com/unrealed - Check out the beginner tutorials
UnrealEd 2
http://www.unreality.org/blacksway/ued2 - I have to recommend my own web-site which has the very basics in UnrealEd 2 tutorials within the UnrealEd 2 Guide
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2.4 - Finding more advanced tutorials
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Start off at http://www.planetunreal.com/unrealed - this is your best bet for all your tutorial needs. Look at the list at the bottom for a complete list.
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3 - Editor Problems
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Here we detail some of the common problems with the editor, e.g. crashes
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3.1 - UnrealEd 1 Errors
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Almost all UnreaEd 1 errors occur because you may not have the latest patched version of the editor. If you do have the latest version (see 2.1 above) then these can be some of the reasons.
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3.1.1 - Runtime Errors
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These can be caused by entering values to large into specific parameter boxes (such as numbers greater than 32 into the cylinder sides box (A quick note that a lot of runtime errors occur if you do not have fix #4 mentioned above, so always check!)
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3.2 - UnrealEd 2 Errors
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3.2.1 - I have a white screen and cannot get any views
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Go to View->Viewport->Configure and select one of the options there. That should fix the problem.
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3.2.2 - I cannot use the mouse within UnrealEd
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This has been fixed within the latest version, but if don't have this and can't be bothered to download it (it is recommended to get it though) then uncheck the use of DirectInput with UT itself, exit UT and that should fix the problem.
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3.2.3 - I try to import the current texture into the 2D editor and Unrealed crashes?
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This is an as yet unfixed problem. Send a bug report to unrealed2@epicgames.com
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4 - Mapping Topics
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4.1 - Scale
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Basically 16 'units' equal 1 foot.
See the following webpage for more details.
http://www.pirates.retreat.btinternet.co.uk/UEDLib/scale.htm
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4.2 - BSP and Rebuilding
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http://unreal.gamedesign.net/bspfaq.html
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5 - Appendix I - Glossary
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Builder Brush - This is the red brush
Brush - A brush is the building block of the unreal world. Brushes have 2 major properties,
BSP - Binary Spacial Partition - the effect of splitting the world up into little triangle which can then be displayed by the rendering engine with Unreal.
Game Type - The different styles of play available within Unreal. Unreal Tournament for example comes with Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Domination, Assault, Capture the Flag (CTF for short) and Last Man Standing as standard
Gib - When a player dies they either fall over dead, or there body explodes - the exploded bits are called gibs. Being 'gibbed' is the process. Usually to be gibbed you must be hit for a significant amount of damage over and above that to just kill you (e.g. If you have 5 health left then damage of 5 would kill you, but damage of 50 would gib you)
Mod - A 'Modification' usually consisting of some significant changes to the gameplay style of the game.
Mutator - A small adjustment to the game which can usually be added to any standard game type - e.g. the 'arena' mutators which replace all weapons with one particular weapon or the 'instagib' mutator which makes every hit a kill and the player 'gib'
Node Count -
Occulsion Time - the time it takes the engine to figure out which objects in a scene are in front of the others . . . which objects are in view and have to be displayed, and which are hidden (by geometry, another player, a flak shell with a smiley face, etc). Zoning helps the engine figure this out. (thanks RedEye(Co30))
Skin - The textures applied to a model, most often referring to either the player model or weapon.
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6 - Appendix II - Company Websites
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Epic Games - Company Website
http://www.epicgames.com
Official Unreal Website
http://www.unreal.com
Official Unreal Tournament Website
http://www.unrealtournament.com
Official Unreal Tournament 2003 Website
http://www.unrealtournament2003.com
Unreal Technology Website
http://unreal.epicgames.com
Unreal Devleoper Network
http://udn.epicgames.com
Legend Entertainment
http://www.legendent.com
Legend Entertainment - Official Wheel of Time website
http://www.wheeloftime.com
Digital Extremes
http://www.digitalextremes.com
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7 - Appendix IIII - Map Editing Websites
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Blacksway's Unreal Editing Site
http://www.unreality.org/blacksway
Fordy's Unreal and Unreal II Site
http://www.planetunreal.com/fordy
Real World editing (such as Infiltration)
http://www.planetunreal.com/realworld/index.html
UnrealEd.EXE
http://www.planetunreal.com/unrealed
Unrealized
http://www.unrealized.com/
Wolf's Unreal Editing
http://unreal.gamedesign.net
Lode's Unreal - Some of the most complete tutorials you could ever want on movers and lighting, plus others.
http://www.planetunreal.com/lode
UED Resource Lab
http://www.planetunreal.com/uedlab/
BB Drac's UnrealEd 2 Guide
http://www.birrabrothers.com/drac/dmain.asp
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