Will Terrain Artists be Able to use Tanoa Assets?

[opteryx 1562]

I made a thread about this yesterday, but it mysteriously dissapeared. :huh:

 

Anyway, what I asked was how will map makers be able to use Tanoa assets when the files are .ebo (encrypted) instead .pbo. Someone in the thread said you will be able to use them, but only if you own Apex. That's fine, I bought Apex soley for the Tanoa assets, but how will this work in practice? Will Terrain Builder get some kind of new function to read .ebo files?

[Richie 330]

Give it a month or so and they'll be released unencrypted as normal .pbo, for now though we can't use them, normal practise with BI though.

Obviously all players who join terrains using Tanoa objects will need the DLC to join, again as expected.

[ua_forrest_gump 2]

Its November today and still no PBO?... are they serious?

[Midnighters 152]

I'm pretty sure it's very possible. 

Take a look at unsung's charlie release.

A bunch of apex terrain assets. 

[Richie 330]

You can do it by using dummy models but it's too much of a chew on for me, hopefully it won't be too much longer, myself and other builders are waiting ... christmas present for us might be nice :D

[haleks 8212]

Its November today and still no PBO?... are they serious?

 

Yes, they are, and that's a good thing. If you look at the roadmap for 2017, you'll see that Apex assets will receive major updates, especially structures.

BIS waiting for those assets to be 100% finished and satisfying before "decrypting" them will spare a lot of time (and headaches) to mission and map makers in the end.

[opteryx 1562]

They don't need to be finished for mappers to use them though? As far as I know it's not a limitation.

[.kju 3245]

Its really sad and short sighted policy by BI: More community terrains with APEX assets => more interest => more sales.

EBO=>PBO is not even necessary. Just release a sample data pack with the p3ds in a simplified version (higher RES LODs removed).

This would be enough for TB and binarize.

Even worse this tasks needs only like an hour or two to prepare. On-top even the community has offered to do it, but cant without BI's permission..

[road runner 4344]

Its really sad and short sighted policy by BI: More community terrains with APEX assets => more interest => more sales.

EBO=>PBO is not even necessary. Just release a sample data pack with the p3ds in a simplified version (higher RES LODs removed).

This would be enough for TB and binarize.

Even worse this tasks needs only like an hour or two to prepare. On-top even the community has offered to do it, but cant without BI's permission..

 

It's very very necessary, it's called protecting their assets, they already released a sample pack did they not for A3? I highly doubt that within 6 months of release for APEX, with a still working road map they'd even consider release anything that isn't in EBO format, BI have already issued DMCA's against people who debinarised A3 content and published them to various forums.

It took several years for them to release the source files for A2/OA I wouldn't be expecting a 6 month , paid addon source files to be released before the main game would you?

 

[drebin052 324]

they already released a sample pack did they not for A3?

 

Only for Helicopters and Marksmen.

 

IIRC both had their samples released 1 month after release while the main pbos were still locked behind ebo (Marksmen was released in April and sample textures for the weapons were released in May), so it's sort of an anomaly that they haven't published the Apex samples yet.

 

Either way we won't be getting Apex stuff in pbo until the samples get released first.

[road runner 4344]

Only for Helicopters and Marksmen.

 

IIRC both had their samples released 1 month after release while the main pbos were still locked behind ebo (Marksmen was released in April and sample textures for the weapons were released in May), so it's sort of an anomaly that they haven't published the Apex samples yet.

 

Either way we won't be getting Apex stuff in pbo until the samples get released first.

That's only texture files, and not the P3d's is it not ? I think it's the P3D's that .kju is referring to, there's been no game ready samples been released for A3 that I'm aware of, and that's now 3 years old, all the sample models are very low poly, low LOD.'s and nobody would be placing these on a map and try to pass them off as a quality model.

[Richie 330]

Can they not make it so Terrain Builder would accept the .ebo files somehow, no decrypting needed then.

[silentghoust 132]

It will come out, probably when the next batch of samples they mentioned in the roadmap do. I'm sure BI would love for it's community to make the rest of the Horizon Islands :P

[1SG.Smithen.C 3]

I thought people already used tanoa assets for vietnam maps?

[ua_forrest_gump 2]

BTW do anyone have Tanoa clutter cfg names?

[cring0 138]

Since no one has mentioned it here, Mikero's pro/subscriber tools now include Apex dummy files as well as a list to use with Xcam. His tools also include Lappihaun's buldozer script for roads etc.

[J0K3R 5 93]