EDIT: The mods system is ready for testing! https://www.lfs.net/forum/498
Dear Community Members,
We have been working on a new system to support mods. We need a little more time to get to public testing, but there's quite a bit to show you and talk about already.
NOTE: There may be changes to any part of this plan, between now and the point of public testing.
About the new system and how it came to be:
We have always wanted to support mods because of the huge variety that becomes possible. We thought it could be done after the new version release, with the new physics. That would have been ideal but there is a lot of demand for mods and we started to look into it this year.
At first we started thinking about simply allowing VOB mods, with some restrictions. But it would of course be better if we had an official way to edit and export mods. So I experimented with some changes in the current public version of LFS, to the point where it could load VOB models saved from our development version. It was immediately obvious that it would be too restrictive if we only allowed VOB mods on existing cars. So I made more changes to save fully edited vehicles that could be loaded in the public version.
As a standalone model and vehicle editor was proven to be possible in principle, we got more serious about the whole thing. We started working on a mod submission system, with mods stored on our website and automatically downloaded in LFS. With the new system, you can visit any server and see new mods there for the first time as they are automatically downloaded like skins.
To make a mod you can build a model (3D mesh) directly in the LFS modeller or start by importing one from another program, e.g. Blender, then make adjustments and apply texture maps within the LFS modeller. To create a driveable vehicle with your model, you could either start from scratch with a new vehicle or choose an existing car as a starting point. Adjust wheel positions, mass, suspension, engine and so on. Test the mod in your public version of LFS then export and upload it to our website. Reviewers will check it follows the rules and approve / reject / request changes. When approved, the mod can be downloaded in LFS and used online.
There are some restrictions.
- The mods system is only for S3 licensed users.
- We will not allow real car names or logos, unless permission is proved during the submission process.
- We will not allow meshes converted from other games, unless permission is proved during the submission process.
- There will be limits (e.g. triangle count and texture size) so the mods are quick to download.
Changes to hosting:
There will be some changes to the way game servers work. We believe the only way to prevent piracy is to no longer release any server code at all (or even support LAN games). For the new version, we will provide the servers, using our existing server rental system. Game server owners can use InSim connections to their servers. We are setting up internet servers in Europe, America and Asia so you should get a good ping wherever you are.
You can start a free server in game, using the "Start new host" button. But now, that starts a host running on one of our servers, instead of locally on your computer. When you leave a free server, it closes down after a few minutes.
If you want to run a full-fledged server, or multiple servers, that stay online all the time and store replays and layouts, you will be able to use our existing game server hosting system, but now you will be able to choose Europe, America or Asia for the location of your game server. We are still finalising the prices but we are thinking around a quarter of the current prices.
More information about the new system
Downloads: [NOT YET AVAILABLE]
1) LFS Editor - Modeller and Vehicle editor to be installed separately
2) LFS Test Patch with mods support
Mods page:
https://lfs.net/files/vehmods
Tutorial videos: (there are more to do)
1) LFS Mods Introduction (11:49) https://youtu.be/9EPWaGraQfs
2) LFS Modeller Overview (3:30) https://youtu.be/05y8apUWyVs
3) View Controls Overview (3:40) https://youtu.be/As_aPoU2Qr4
4) Updating a mod with a new version (4:06) https://youtu.be/vDSn_XkyGGM
5) Building the Brickmobile: Part 1 - Model (11:58) https://youtu.be/eegTP5mo8Zk
6) Exporting from Blender to LFS Editor (3:01) https://youtu.be/Rf6HK_niFjo
7) Building the Brickmobile: Part 2 - Texturing (9:24) https://youtu.be/_HIrlxJMWnI
8) Building the Brickmobile: Part 3 - First Drive (5:07) https://youtu.be/c9Pi0aYbA0c
9) LFS Steering Animation Editor (12:09) https://youtu.be/JPbMCfZ8VmU
10) Building the Brickmobile: Part 4 - Level of detail (LOD) meshes (5:43) https://youtu.be/DAyiQbhvbYM
11) Building the Brickmobile: Part 5 - Masses and object positions (5:22) https://youtu.be/l0iiQOk_1Os
Documents: (just a start - incomplete)
Modeller
Vehicle Editor
We look forward to hearing your feedback!
Thanks,
Scawen
Dear Community Members,
We have been working on a new system to support mods. We need a little more time to get to public testing, but there's quite a bit to show you and talk about already.
NOTE: There may be changes to any part of this plan, between now and the point of public testing.
About the new system and how it came to be:
We have always wanted to support mods because of the huge variety that becomes possible. We thought it could be done after the new version release, with the new physics. That would have been ideal but there is a lot of demand for mods and we started to look into it this year.
At first we started thinking about simply allowing VOB mods, with some restrictions. But it would of course be better if we had an official way to edit and export mods. So I experimented with some changes in the current public version of LFS, to the point where it could load VOB models saved from our development version. It was immediately obvious that it would be too restrictive if we only allowed VOB mods on existing cars. So I made more changes to save fully edited vehicles that could be loaded in the public version.
As a standalone model and vehicle editor was proven to be possible in principle, we got more serious about the whole thing. We started working on a mod submission system, with mods stored on our website and automatically downloaded in LFS. With the new system, you can visit any server and see new mods there for the first time as they are automatically downloaded like skins.
To make a mod you can build a model (3D mesh) directly in the LFS modeller or start by importing one from another program, e.g. Blender, then make adjustments and apply texture maps within the LFS modeller. To create a driveable vehicle with your model, you could either start from scratch with a new vehicle or choose an existing car as a starting point. Adjust wheel positions, mass, suspension, engine and so on. Test the mod in your public version of LFS then export and upload it to our website. Reviewers will check it follows the rules and approve / reject / request changes. When approved, the mod can be downloaded in LFS and used online.
There are some restrictions.
- The mods system is only for S3 licensed users.
- We will not allow real car names or logos, unless permission is proved during the submission process.
- We will not allow meshes converted from other games, unless permission is proved during the submission process.
- There will be limits (e.g. triangle count and texture size) so the mods are quick to download.
Changes to hosting:
There will be some changes to the way game servers work. We believe the only way to prevent piracy is to no longer release any server code at all (or even support LAN games). For the new version, we will provide the servers, using our existing server rental system. Game server owners can use InSim connections to their servers. We are setting up internet servers in Europe, America and Asia so you should get a good ping wherever you are.
You can start a free server in game, using the "Start new host" button. But now, that starts a host running on one of our servers, instead of locally on your computer. When you leave a free server, it closes down after a few minutes.
If you want to run a full-fledged server, or multiple servers, that stay online all the time and store replays and layouts, you will be able to use our existing game server hosting system, but now you will be able to choose Europe, America or Asia for the location of your game server. We are still finalising the prices but we are thinking around a quarter of the current prices.
More information about the new system
Downloads: [NOT YET AVAILABLE]
1) LFS Editor - Modeller and Vehicle editor to be installed separately
2) LFS Test Patch with mods support
Mods page:
https://lfs.net/files/vehmods
Tutorial videos: (there are more to do)
1) LFS Mods Introduction (11:49) https://youtu.be/9EPWaGraQfs
2) LFS Modeller Overview (3:30) https://youtu.be/05y8apUWyVs
3) View Controls Overview (3:40) https://youtu.be/As_aPoU2Qr4
4) Updating a mod with a new version (4:06) https://youtu.be/vDSn_XkyGGM
5) Building the Brickmobile: Part 1 - Model (11:58) https://youtu.be/eegTP5mo8Zk
6) Exporting from Blender to LFS Editor (3:01) https://youtu.be/Rf6HK_niFjo
7) Building the Brickmobile: Part 2 - Texturing (9:24) https://youtu.be/_HIrlxJMWnI
8) Building the Brickmobile: Part 3 - First Drive (5:07) https://youtu.be/c9Pi0aYbA0c
9) LFS Steering Animation Editor (12:09) https://youtu.be/JPbMCfZ8VmU
10) Building the Brickmobile: Part 4 - Level of detail (LOD) meshes (5:43) https://youtu.be/DAyiQbhvbYM
11) Building the Brickmobile: Part 5 - Masses and object positions (5:22) https://youtu.be/l0iiQOk_1Os
Documents: (just a start - incomplete)
Modeller
Vehicle Editor
We look forward to hearing your feedback!
Thanks,
Scawen
