Coolrock

Hi everyone! We're currently actively looking for talented hobby programmers to join our code team! Who are we? W3D Hub is a non-profit team of developers that focus on further development of Command & Conquer Renegade's W3D Game Engine. C&C Renegade's W3D Engine is an enigma of sorts. Around the time when games like Unreal and Quake were popular, Westwood Studios released their own FPS into the market; C&C Renegade. The special thing about this game was the unique multiplayer mode that it released with. Two teams attempt to destroy each others bases with infantry and vehicles that are purchased using credits generated via an RTS-style economy model featuring harvesters and refineries. To this day there has not been a game that has come close to emulating the unique experiences found in C&C Renegade. We still develop on this engine today because it's fun and we have a good amount of flexibility with what we want to accomplish for our projects. The engine is also fairly easy to develop for which allows for rapid iteration and easy onboarding. Formed in 2015, W3D Hub's mission statement has been to preserve and develop the W3D Engine to not only keep Renegade cheats and hacks in check, but to also further develop the engine with new features past what was previously thought possible. Over the years, reverse engineering has allowed us to access parts of the engine that were previously inaccessible, so we now have a number of overhaul projects for various areas of the engine in progress, as well as quality of life updates and other interesting new features. W3D Hub also makes games that take advantage of the development being carried out on the engine. Most of our game concepts involve taking existing C&C titles like Red Alert, Tiberian Sun and Red Alert 2 and attempt to remake them as FPS games, but we also house a number of original projects as well. All of our games are free for C&C fans to enjoy, and as our operation is classed as a "C&C extension project" we are able to distribute them freely without players needing a copy of the original game. What are we looking for? We are currently looking for seasoned hobby programmers who are looking for a new challenge, as well as newcomers that are looking for some experience working on C++ projects. We are strictly a non-profit organisation and are bound by IP limitations (EA, Command & Conquer), so we can't offer any kind of salary. Our community has a long established history of making games to the point where several of our members also work in the wider games industry professionally, so it is a great place to socialise and grow your skills (especially if you're a fan of C&C). Here's what we are looking for skills-wise: Essential Qualities - All of the following are preferred: Intermediate to High level of C++ programming knowledge including modern C++ features. Working knowledge of Visual Studio 2019 for Windows Development. Working knowledge of Git and how to use it and work with repositories. Good communications skills, being as we are a satellite team. A passion for video games and programming. Desirable Qualities - Any of the following are preferred but not mandatory: An interest in Command & Conquer or Frank Herbert's Dune would be nice, but is not necessary. A friendly attitude and the ability to work well with others. Experience reading existing code and understanding what it does, sometimes in the absence of documentation. Knowledge of how to profile code to find out where slowdowns are (and identifying how to make code faster or better on memory use, especially math heavy code). Experience with Direct3D 11 (including HLSL and programmable shaders). Good 3D Math skills including boxes, lines, frustums, vectors, matrices, quaternions, collision detection math, curves and splines. Knowledge of physics types and how to create/edit them (e.g. Fixed Wing Aircraft, Walkers/Mecha etc.). Knowledge of the FMOD sound engine. Knowledge of font rendering including foreign languages and character sets. Knowledge of the WxWidgets UI library. Knowledge of the 3D Studio Max API. Why should you join us? Joining W3D Hub presents a unique opportunity to work on an older game engine with a team of likeminded individuals, but on top of that, here's a few more reasons why you should consider joining us. Working with Renegade's W3D engine and building upon it's code base is a unique opportunity that presents many interesting challenges. We're a reliable team with a history of development spanning over a decade, so your work won't go to waste. Working on the Renegade engine is good experience for your Résumé/CV and also great for honing your C++ skills. The mission statement of translating the RTS C&C games into a First Person perspective is a unique prospect in itself. We're all a friendly bunch of people (from both inside and outside of the games industry) who enjoy developing and playing games together. How to apply! If you wish to join our team, please send an email to jonwil, our lead programmer, at jfwfreo@tpgi.com.au and let him know why you're interested in joining us as well as what skills you can offer! Hopefully, with your help, we can further development of C&C Renegade's W3D Engine! Here are a few quick links: W3D Hub Official Website: http://www.w3dhub.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/w3dhub/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/w3dhub?lang=en YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPVori4l3Rq_AkWHEjTKdEQ Steam: https://steamcommunity.com/groups/w3dhub ModDB: https://www.moddb.com/company/w3d-hub Thanks for reading! [blurb]We're currently actively looking for talented hobby programmers to join our code team![/blurb][thumb]thumb_w3d.0.png[/thumb]

Happy Sunday everyone! I've got a very exciting update for you this week, so I hope you're ready to lay your eyes on what @ChopBam has been working on! Trees!@ChopBam has been putting a lot of work into updating the trees and foliage you see on maps. He's done an amazing job, and it'll be a very nice visual upgrade to the game. He was kind enough to give us a few screenshots, and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! New Willow & Pine Trees Assortment of Trees (Oak in center) & New Foliage APB Game Night!We're excited to announce another Game Night event! Next weekend, starting January 23rd, join us at 3PM EST for a thrilling night of gaming with the W3D Hub community! We're hoping for an amazing turn out, and hope you'll help us make it a fun night to remember! Prizes!Prizes will be awarded to the top 3 players based on the event scoreboard. Players who have the most points over the course of the event will win the following: 1st Place - $20 Steam Gift Card 2nd Place - $10 Steam Gift Card 3rd Place - $5 Steam Gift Card Players who are voted as the most valuable during a poll we'll hold on our forums after the games will win the following: MVP Award - $10 Steam Gift Card MVP Runner Up Award - $5 Steam Gift Card Spread The Word!We hope everyone can spread the word along with us. You can greatly help us out by posting about the event on social media. Tell your friends who might've played in the past, but took a break from playing. If you enjoy the game, you can help by reaching out with us! Thanks everyone, and have an awesome weekend <3 [blurb]Happy Sunday everyone! I've got a very exciting update for you this week, so I hope you're ready to lay your eyes on what ChopBam has been working on![/blurb][thumb]thumb_apb.7.png[/thumb]

Come back

We appreciate the work you've done!

@LR01 said possibly this year!

Merry Christmas, pal!

Because everything always works for APB

I do like the idea of having these types of powers attached to the tech centers on maps that feature them. This would provide more reason for them to be kept around.

Really well thought out response. Thank you! I do like the idea of once becoming a dog, you can’t use the terminal. It would make you think twice before picking one to kill an Engineer/Tanya, and then switching back to disarm C4.

Another topic we’d like to hear the community on. I’m sure there’s at least a few people who would love to see Attack Dogs get added to the game. The biggest issue I always hear is are Spies powerful enough to warrant adding them into the game? I’d like to see some brainstorming on this topic. What could make the Spy better to allow the team to add the Attack Dog?

I personally really like this idea.

I’d like to use this topic to get some general feedback from the community. If these buildings were to appear in the game at some point, what would you want them to do? What would their purpose serve to gameplay? Let’s get those gears turning!

I like bumping old topics.

I hope to see a great turn out!

Yes.

Last time I did that, I got yelled at

Tell us when!

I enjoy Discord for what it is. Simple and easy to use. It's great for chatting with Developers for your favorite games and all that jazz.

Everything please, thanks!

Trust me, I’ve been around long enough to have heard most engine talks. The biggest issue being that you’d have to “re-invent” elsewhere. You could sit down and learn something new, or you could stay where you feel comfortable. There’s nothing wrong with either of the two. Sure the W3D engine does what we want right now, but look how long it’s taken our small community to achieve. While there’s only a handful of us here, UE4 for example, has tons of people using it and “re-inventing” new things. That’s just the way the industry works. Most games will always retain a group of people that are dedicated to sticking with what they love. At the end of the day, a lot of fans who have followed the games for years would want to see it remade with better graphics, gameplay, etc. It’s why remakes are so sought after these days. You can’t blame people for nagging about wanting the game to go somewhere that’ll draw in more attention. RenX proved that with the initial wave of people swarming to play.

Pretty much this. If you’re going to change the game in that focus, you might as well switch engines!

I actually got a UE4 project started up a few months ago, that's being worked on right now. Permission from EA and all that. Most people on that project are people who wanted to move engines a while back, mixed with people who still work on the projects here as well. The people who are still here working on these project have every right to do so. They've had the options to move for years, but feel comfortable here. I know it's frustrating, but that's just what they want to do. Didn't want to make it public like this, but just know that things are cooking on other engines.

I know the newer one isn't exactly what was wanted, but I don't think the older one compares to it. Most naval ships don't have color to them. It's pretty spot on to what the Type 22 looks like in real life. We went for the closest ship that made sense and was available. Not too modern at the least. Anyone is free to tinker with the texture if they can do better. As I said before, this was a way to get everything updated quickly since we don't have a full time 3D Artist.