Milestone 9

<tabber>
Milestone Schedule=
==Milestone 9 - Monday, 22ⁿᵈ January 2007==
Running on PC, X360 and PS3:
*All non-BF3 Placeholder assets removed. This is not level specific.
*Jedi Force Power (Jump and Sprint)
*HUD map (Space, 1st pass) (functional with non-final graphics)
*Vehicle and spacecraft handling models on Tatooine for evaluation of handling physics
*AI navigation and combat for all parts of Vertical Battlefront
*Galactic Conquest Design - draft
Final Draft Voice script (main Story and as much in-game as feasible) delivered.
Art:
*Hoth - Phase 0
*Cato Neimoidia - Phase 0
*Mustafar - Phase 0
*Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) - Phase 0
*Death Star (Tributary Beam part) - Phase 0
Setup (Multiplayer):
*Tatooine - Phase 0
Setup (Story):
*Cato Neimoidia - Phase 0
*Mustafar - Phase 0
*Yavin 4 - Phase 0
*Hoth - Phase 0
*Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) - Phase 0
*Desolation Station / Death Star Construction - Phase 0
|-|Roadmap=
==Milestone 9 - Monday, 22ⁿᵈ January 2007==
Summary:
*Further Jedi Abilities and AI features towards First Playable
Content Detail:
*All placeholder assets removed
*Iteration of Jedi abilities
*HUD Map for Space functional
*AI navigation and combat over VBF
*Further Design - Galactic Conquest
Game Design (Multiplayer):
*First Playable Preview
**All content required for First Playable is in:
***Conquest across VBF (Tatooine with CIS Cruiser)
***Republic (in control of Tatooine) vs CIS (in control of CIS Cruiser)
***Singleplayer with bots
***Running on PC
***Quality will not reach First Playable standards in many areas
*Tatooine - Phase 1
*Galactic Conquest Design - draft
Game Design (Story):
*Cato Neimoidia Phase 0
*Mustafar Phase 0
*Yavin 4 Phase 0
*Hoth Phase 0
*Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) Phase 0
*Desolation Station / Death Star Construction Phase 0
Gameplay Features (AI):
*AI navigation and combat for all parts of Vertical Battlefield
Gameplay Features (Miscellaneous):
*Jedi Force Power (Jump and Sprint)
**Tied in with Stamina Bar
*HUD map (Space, 1st pass)
**Functional with non-final graphics.
*Vehicle and spacecraft handling models for evaluation of handling physics
**Handling and speeds over VBF layers:
***Speederbikes
***AAT
***Droid Fighter
***Republic Starfighter
***LAAT
***V-Wing
Art (Characters):
*Clone Skytrooper
Art (Planet Levels):
*Hoth - Phase 0
*Cato Neimoidia - Phase 0
*Mustafar - Phase 0
*Death Star (Tributary Beam part) - Phase 0
Art (Capital Ships):
*Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) - Phase 0
Art (Weapons):
*Westar-34 Blaster
*CIS -> Special Units -> Electrostaff
*CIS -> Support Class -> CIS Arc Cutter
*CIS -> Sniper Class -> Disruptor Pistol
*CIS -> Engineer Class -> Blaster Pistol
Production:
*Deliver Windows Build
*Deliver Xbox 360 Build
*Deliver PS3 Build
*All placeholder assets removed
==Milestone 10 - Monday, 19ᵗʰ February 2007==
Summary:
*All units in game with attributes and weapons
*New Jedi Force Powers
*AI using Jedi Melee abilities
Content Detail:
*All playable units for Republic and CIS Factions for First Playable integrated into game
*Jedi Force Power (Lightsaber Throw and Repulse)
*Vehicle boarding transitions in-game on speeders
*AI using Jedi Melee abilities
Game Design:
*All playable units for Republic and CIS Factions for First Playable integrated into game
**Including one hero per Hero Tier per Faction
**Primary weapons
**No buffs or session unlocks
Game Design (Multiplayer):
*Iterative improvements on First Playable Preview
**All content required for First Playable is in:
***Conquest across VBF (Tatooine with CIS Cruiser)
***Republic (in control of Tatooine) vs CIS (in control of CIS Cruiser)
***Singleplayer with bots
***Running on PC
***Quality will not reach First Playable standards in many areas
Game Design (Story):
*Dantooine Phase 0
*Dathomir Phase 0
*CIS Cruiser Phase 1
*Republic Cruiser (Venator-Class) Phase 0
Gameplay Features (AI):
*AI Melee class
*AI using Force Powers
*AI using Jedi Melee abilities
**Melee/hero class vs Jedi and Infantry on Tatooine for First Playable
*AI spawning in space and staying in space
*AI exiting hangars correctly
*AI over Network
*AI Hero Unlocking
Gameplay Features (Miscellaneous):
*Jedi Force Power (Repulse)
*Escape Pods (1st pass)
*Vehicle boarding transitions in-game on speeders
**Animations for getting on/off Speeder on Tatooine for First Playable
*Secondary Heroes
*Hero time-out
*Super Battle Droid in-game
Art (Characters):
*Clone Trooper EPIII Helmet revisions
*Humanoid Creatures - Ewok Warrior
*Villains - Darth Sidious / Emperor
*Villains - Darth Tyrannus / Count Dooku
Art (Planet Levels):
*Dantoine - Phase 0
*Hoth - Phase 1
*Coruscant - Phase 1
*Bespin - Phase 1
*Yavin 4 - Phase 0
*Droid Control Ship - Phase 1
Art (Capital Ships):
*Republic Cruiser (Venator-Class) - Phase 0
*Star Destroyer - Phase 1
Art (Weapons):
*EE-3 Blaster Rifle
*CIS -> Soldier Class -> Sonic Charge Launcher
*Zam Wessell - Rifle
Art (Vehicles):
*Y-Wing
*Clone Hover Tank
Audio:
*Voice Recording
**by LEC
Production:
*Deliver Windows Build
*Deliver Xbox 360 Build
*Deliver PS3 Build
|-|Milestone Feedback=
Project Title: Battlefront III
Developer: Free Radical Design
Milestone: Milestone 9
Production: Jamil Dawsari
Gabe Gils Carbo
James Morris
Orion Kellogg
Milestone Review 
January 22ⁿᵈ, 2007
Milestone 9 - Monday 22ⁿᵈ January 2007
Running on PC, X360 and PS3:
*All non-BF3 Placeholder assets removed. This is not level specific.[LEC] APPROVED
*Jedi Force Power (Jump and Sprint)[LEC] APPROVED
*HUD map (Space, 1st pass) (functional with non-final graphics)[LEC] APPROVED
*Vehicle and spacecraft handling models on Tatooine for evaluation of handling physics[LEC] APPROVED
*AI navigation and combat for all parts of Vertical Battlefront[LEC] APPROVED
*Galactic Conquest Design - draft[LEC] APPROVED
Art:
*Hoth - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Cato Neimoidia - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Mustafar - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) - Phase 0
[LEC] APPROVED
*Death Star (Tributary Beam part) - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
Setup (Multiplayer):
*Tatooine - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
Setup (Story):
*Cato Neimoidia - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Mustafar - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Yavin 4 - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Hoth - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
*Desolation Station / Death Star Construction - Phase 0[LEC] APPROVED
Review Issues	
Classification-A	
Classification-B	
Classification-C
Performance	
0	
0	
2
Placeholder assets	
0	
0	
0
Force Jump/Sprint	
0	
0	
3
HUD map (space)	
0	
1	
6
Vehicle handling	
0	
9	
12
AI navigation/combat	
0	
7	
3
Galactic Conquest Draft	
0	
0	
0
Art – Hoth Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Art – Cato N. Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Art – Mustafar Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Art – Trib Beam Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Setup (MP) – Tat. Phase 1	
0	
6	
5
Setup (Sty) – C. N. Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Setup (Sty) – Must. Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Setup (Sty) – Yavin Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Setup (Sty) –Hoth Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Setup (Sty) –RebCru Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
Setup (Sty)–DesStat Phase 0	
0	
0	
0
			
Number of Issues:	
0	
22	
31
For your benefit we have chosen to classify the importance of areas for this milestone review under a classification of A, B and C, where C is of less consequence. To obtain a pass, you are required to implement the review areas under Classification-A as high priority. You may also need to resolve Classification-Class Bs to improve the quality of the game as part of this milestone or as a part of future milestone submissions. Addressing issues that LucasArts may raise against a Classification-C, will further improve the overall product quality under our criteria, but these issues are not significant towards a pass if you are at not at or beyond the Alpha stage of development.
==Build Performance==
Overall
General performance improvements observed 
Good
Extremely smooth performance with 70 AI in-game on the PC. WELL DONE!
Areas to Improve
Class C: On some PC machines, with 70 AI it runs at 11-13 fps and others of similar configuration it runs at 5 fps. DXDIAG information attached in email.[FRD: Thanks for supplying the logs. We will investigate]
Class C: X360 not at same level of performance as the PC or PS3 build[FRD: Noted]
STATUS: 
APPROVED
==All non-BF3 Placeholder assets removed. This is not level specific.==
Overall
It appears that all placeholder assets have been removed
Good
N/A
Areas to Improve
N/A
STATUS: 
APPROVED
==Jedi Force Power (Jump and Sprint)==
Overall
New force powers implemented
Areas to Improve
Class C: Sprint doesn’t have a sense of speed. Consider using the same ‘boost effect’ as in vehicles when the hero sprints forward (per MS8 feedback regarding that effect).[FRD: We’ll apply a similar boost effect]
[LEC] Noted
Class C: Double jump drains stamina too quickly. NOTE: is the intent to make this drain stamina or Force bar?[FRD: This will drain the stamina bar. The rate of drain will be tuned and balanced]
[LEC] Okay, sounds like a plan
NOTE: Where are we with implementing a ‘charge’ jump? As you hold jump down, the Force meter/stamina would go down, indicating how much power and giving a sense of how far the player can jump. When released, the jump would execute...so you could still be running forward and then release jump
Class C: When jumping, the camera should shift slightly above and look slightly down so that the player can see where they are landing. It does this in a slightly extreme fashion when player is target locked onto an opponent.[FRD: Noted. We will investigate]
[LEC] Noted
STATUS: 
APPROVED
==HUD map (Space, 1ˢᵗ pass) (functional with non-final graphics)==
Overall
Many changes added to minimap
Good
Transition from ground to space minimap is quick.
Areas to Improve
Class B: Minimap – the flight minimap is too small for the amount of information being displayed, it’s difficult to parse all the data at a glance. In the wiki, there is mention of adjusting the enemies seen based on the distance from the player...the current system doesn’t seem to have that turned on, i.e. it shows everyone, is that the case?[FRD: Yes, showing everyone is intended for now]
[LEC] Noted
Will that distance be tweaked based on situation, i.e. you see more area in a space vehicle and a tighter view when infantry?[FRD: Yes, we will investigate how this can be improved]
[LEC] Noted
NOTE: Minimap – the units shown on the edge of the minimap, are those only the units on that specific layer, e.g. when in space, only the units in space are shown, not those in the capital ship or on the ground?[FRD: Right now, everything is shown. In the future this will be limited to showing only entities in the current layer]
[LEC] Noted
Class C: Minimap - the arrows showing height of units in relation to player is a good idea, but on the minimap they just server to clutter the display even more. Consider using the HUD indicator to show relative location rather than showing the minimap. And to minimize info overload, consider only showing the relative location of those that the player has targeted or who have targeted the player (with a color differentiation between the two so I know).[FRD: In the future this will show only the height of the player’s target and the CPs]
[LEC] Will the player’s target be highlighted in the minimap?
[FRD: Yes]
[LEC] Is the goal to show ALL CPs regardless of layer? Or only the CPs on the player’s layer?
[FRD: All CP’s]
Class C: HUD - when do you anticipate removing all the target indicator arrows from the ship HUD? The plethora of arrows is very confusing as I would expect to only see the ship I’m locked on to as well as those ships locked on to me.[FRD: We intend to keep all the target arrows. However, all the arrows will be smaller and more transparent. A locked-target will be represented by a larger, less transparent arrow]
[LEC] Okay, the concern is with the information overload on the screen – but this seems an easy thing to validate once it’s in place and working as designed. Are the target arrows ONLY for when the player is in a flying vehicle? And they only show other flying vehicles, e.g. starfighters, transports, etc?
[FRD: Yes to both]
Class C: Space minimap - it’s understood that the art is not final, but as a comment, when in a spacecraft, I don’t necessarily need to see the interior layout of the capital ship in the minimap, just the locations of the CPs and who owns them.[FRD: We agree]
Class C: HUD – the colored brackets are not as helpful as anticipated in seeing team/enemy starfighters as the fly about. Making those brackets bigger would only server to clutter the HUD. What other solutions have you considered to make the starfighters more visible?[FRD: Ship trails should aid visibility and may allow us to remove or minimize the clutter from brackets]
[LEC] Is there any concern that with 20+ ships in space, the trails might add too much to the clutter? Sliced another way: are the ship trails intended to aid in identifying targets in space or for help showing off special moves, etc? Mark S has provided additional info in his art feedback regarding brighter engines, etc which might also help make the ships more easily spotted.
[FRD: Noted]
Class C: Map background: the transition from ground to space and vice versus can be an excellent opportunity to showcase the VBF. Rather than having one map fade out and the other fade in, consider the following:
As a player flies upward from ground, the minimap background would resolve from a top-down view into a view of the planet’s horizon (as if you were in low orbit).
As a player flies further into space, the planet view would drop lower until the player is fully in space, at which point he space background takes over.
If the player remains in the transition layer, the minimap background would remain in the low orbit transition state.
Example: see minimap transition example.avi on the ftp site. You’ll need to install fraps: http://www.fraps.com/[FRD: Thanks for this, we’ll investigate]
Class C: When can we expect the functionality for the button which will enlarge the minimap and show more level of detail?[FRD: This should be in place sometime shortly after First Playable]
STATUS: 
APPROVED
==Vehicle and spacecraft handling models on Tatooine for evaluation of handling physics==
Overall
Iterative improvement in vehicle handling
Good
Starfighters are much smoother in their handling
Areas to Improve
CIS AAT
Class B: Turning left/right with right stick is too sensitive. Casual players will not realize that the analog stick should be treated gently in order to achieve subtle movement from it. NOTE: is the analog sensitivity set to a linear expression?[FRD: This will be addressed through balancing]
[LEC] Can we have some initial tuning done prior to FPM? As it is, if we take the FPM to focus groups, I am concerned that their experience will be negatively impacted by the current setup.
[FRD: We will aim for March ‘07]
Bug: At high speeds, the AAT will deflect off of terrain and pogo-stick across the map.[FRD: Noted]
Class B: The camera is set too far from the tank. The tank actually appears smaller than the speeder bike due to the camera position, there is no sense of the size of the tank in relation to other vehicles. Consider bringing the camera closer and slightly lower to help emphasize the size of the tank.[FRD: Noted]
NOTE: What is the intent for the driver’s primary weapon? Is it intended as a direct-line firing weapon, that only shoots what’s under the target reticule?[FRD: Yes, this is our intent for the primary weapon]
[LEC] Noted
Class C: The tank driver laser cannon needs to be able to aim up/down slightly.[FRD: Agreed. We’re considering an auto-aim system for this axis]
[LEC] Will the auto-aim take into consideration moving targets at distance? In many cases, I’ll want to lead a target to hit him – will I be able to do that with auto-aiming assists?
[FRD: No. It is an auto aim on up/down only axis, useful when moving etc]
NOTE: Unable to access the secondary position. Is this still on track for MS11?[FRD: Secondary seating positions for troop transports are due in MS11. Other types of secondary seating such as gunners are not part of that deliverable.]
[LEC] MS12? AI using secondary weapon positions is important for the FPM. Stretch goal?
[FRD: O.K. for Stretch Goal, but unlikely]
Class C: Please add a throttle indicator to the tank (as in the star fighters) to give a visual indication of the speed of the tank.[FRD: Will do]
[LEC] Cheers
Bug:  The tank can climb any hill or elevation.[FRD: Noted]
Class C: The visual effect suggesting interaction with the ground is very faint.[FRD: These effects will be reworked]
[LEC] More specific feedback re the graphical look of the effect will be sent in Mark’s feedback.
[FRD: Noted]
No sense of weight to the tank.[FRD: This will be more pronounced through the implementation of visual and audio effects]
[LEC] Will a tank going past me (as infantry) cause camera shake, .i.e. the tremors from it’s passing, etc?
[FRD: Good idea. We will look into this, but probably not for FPM]
General Starfighter Feedback
Class B: unable to fire while boosting (all starfighters) – as most combat occurs as a player boosts and slows down, not being able to fire while boosting does not feel consistent or enjoyable.[FRD: This will be fixed so that firing during boost is possible]
[LEC] HUZZAH!
NOTE: Consider as one of the preset controls: pitch/roll on right analog and speed/turn on left analog. It’s a more hard-core implementation of the system, as it allows a player to roll and pitch on the same stick for finer control.[FRD: We will investigate this after First Playable]
[LEC] We’re also exploring a single-analog control for flying vehicles (hacking the playercontrol file. I would like to schedule a usability focus group and get some feedback regarding control schemes for infantry and vehicles – preferably prior to FPM. Thoughts?
[FRD: If it can be done ahead of FPM without a drain on us, then excellent]
NOTE: will all starfighters have rockets as their secondary weapon?[FRD: No, some will have bombs]Will these rockets track a target, e.g. as long as I maintain target lock and up to a specified time/distance at which point they destruct (no countermeasures, but you can use special maneuvers to avoid the missile).[FRD: Missiles will work as ‘fire and forget’ weapons]
[LEC] Okay. Here is a mini-post mortem of missiles in BF2:
The lock-on mechanic was not clear; we needed to add a training video to explain it.
Players were almost always being targeted by missiles, leading to a constant “Incoming” warning.
The range on the “Incoming” warning was difficult to interpret due to font size and placement.
Enemies could lock on to players from a great distance.
It was unclear how to evade missiles, or that evasion was even possible.
Locked missiles were the only way to effectively hit a target in BF2. Blasters were not useful in combat. This led to over-reliance on missiles
[FRD: Thanks for this. We will consider these points]
As an interesting rock/paper/scissor – consider some star fighters with really fast dumb fire rockets (the fast starfighters) and others have slower homing missiles (with the blue trails a la EpIII).[FRD: We intend to use a homing strength / missile speed trade off to give characteristis and benefits/drawbacks to each star fighter]
[LEC] Will the different types of missiles have different visual effects?
[FRD] They will have a different colour/style of trail]
Bug (?): auto-level doesn’t kick in if the player rolls left/right but only if the player yaws or pitches – is that a bug or intentional?[FRD: This is intentional]
[LEC] How do you envision the player using roll? The concern is with consistency and as it stands, sometimes auto-level kicks in and sometimes it doesn’t. 
[FRD: The roll will probably be more of an advanced player move anyway. We do not see this being a problem]
Class C: Laser fire should appear from the starfighter’s weapon muzzle and not appear to start far ahead of the vehicle. NOTE: this is a general issue with all vehicles.[FRD: Agreed. This is a bug and will be fixed]
Class C: The auto-level feels very clunky and lacks precision and smoothness. As it stands, it feels like I’m being forced to level as opposed to just a natural state of my vehicle after a maneuver.[FRD: We will investigate. Ultimately there needs to be balance between ‘time taken’ and ‘angle to correct from’ to make it always smooth]
[LEC] Understood
Class C: It’s very difficult to get into position to land. As it stands now, the player must either orient themselves in a very shallow dive and then pull up...or come in at an extremely sharp dive and pull up abruptly to get into a good position to land. Even with auto landing, getting into a position to land where you want is problematic.[FRD: We agree]Have you considered any possible solutions?
One option is to utilize the analog controller more fully for accelerating/decelerating. When pulled back completely, the starfighter will actually hover and descend slowly (the camera would switch to a position slightly above and looking down of the vehicle – as it does when the Jedi jumps.)[FRD: This sounds promising. We’ll investigate]
Class C: Camera tethers when accelerating/decelerating and turning. 
When accel/decel in starfighter have the camera spring back/forward slightly to help emphasize the change in speed.
When left/right turn have the camera very, very slightly swing out left/right to emphasize the turn.
[FRD: The framework to accommodate this is in place. We’ll investigate further]
Class B: It’s still extremely difficult to line up a shot on another starfighter. The issue is in part one of maneuvering in 3-d space as well as the ease in acquiring a target and successfully hitting it as it flies around. Any thoughts on making this easier and more fun?[FRD: Auto-aiming or assisted aiming will be implemented in the future]
[LEC] Stretch goal for FPM? In general, the main problem is that starfighters move so quickly and maneuver so nimbly that it’s difficult to maintain a bead on them. Match target speed and direction is a step in the right direction, but it doesn’t help maintain player position...and it’s not so fun to have an auto-system always moving your ship. Any thoughts on how to address this?
[FRD: Let’s Stretch Goal this for FPM]
Republic Starfighter
NOTE: Nice handling in terms of speed and turning ability
Droid Starfighter
NOTE: Nice handling. Is this supposed to be equivalent to the Republic Starfighter in terms of control?[FRD: Vehicles of the same class will have the same handling characteristics]
V-Wing
NOTE: Feels more nimble when turning left/right than the Republic Starfighter. Nice differentiation
LAAT gunship
Class B: The LAAT is too nimble as it pitches and rolls and yaws; it feels too much like a starfighter. It should feel a bit more ‘stately’ and heavy.[FRD: Agreed]
Class C: The LAAT shouldn’t be able to roll upside down. Consider only letting it roll to a specified point (90 degrees from horizontal) and no further.[FRD: Agreed]
NOTE: What is the intent for the driver’s primary weapon? Is it intended as a direct-line firing weapon, that only shoots what’s under the target reticule?[FRD: Yes, that is how the primary weapon is intended to operate]
NOTE: What is the intent for the driver’s secondary weapon? Is it supposed to remain a rocket?[FRD: We are considering having the second weapon as a countermeasure style weapon, such as chaffs or flares]
[LEC] The gunship has both lasers and rockets as weapons. If the pilot gets countermeasures (which is a good thing) who do you envision using the other weapon system?
[FRD: We weren’t going to put rockets on the LAAT to make it an adequately different craft]
NOTE: unable to access gunner or passenger positions. Is this still on track for MS11?[FRD: Secondary seating positions for troop transports are due in MS11. Other types of secondary seating such as gunners are not part of that deliverable.]
[LEC] For FPM?
Speeder Bike
Class B: At high speeds, the bike will deflect off of terrain or static objects and spin/roll out of control.[FRD: This is a bug]
Class B: Sensitivity of controls is too extreme for accelerating and turning. A slight nudge forward causes the bike to accelerate to top speed. A nudge to left/right causes the bike to spin excessively in that direction.[FRD: This will be addressed through tuning]
[LEC] Understood...can we get preliminary tuning prior to FPM? As it stands, it’s very difficult to assess the vehicles overall handling.
[FRD: There will be some, yes]
Class C: unable to go in reverse.[FRD: Noted]
NOTE: Do you envision the speeder bike as being able to strafe?[FRD: No]
Bug: Shooting primary or secondary weapon kills driver.[FRD: This is a bug]
Class C: Add a throttle indicator to the bike (as in the star fighters) to give a visual indication of the speed of the bike.[FRD: Will do]
Class C: What is the intent for the secondary weapon on the speeder bike?[FRD: We are not planning of having secondary weapons for the speeder bike]
[LEC] Understood
Class B: Should not be able to climb extreme slopes[FRD: Noted]
Class B: The camera should not rock and bounce as much as the vehicle (perhaps a separate, tweakable camera spring which helps mute the vehicle’s motion?). This action makes it very difficult to evaluate the handling of the bike.[FRD: Noted. This can be addressed through playtesting]
Class C: The bike gets quite a bit of ‘air’ as it goes over moguls in the terrain. Allowing it jumps is great, but the overall sensation when driving over terrain is that the player is not in contact with the ground except on large flat areas.[FRD: We agree. This will be tweaked]
Class C: It is easier to run over targets than hit them with the bike’s blaster. Consider the following solution:
The player on the bike target locks an opponent and the blaster will auto target as long as the opponent is within the targeting arc, e.g. 45 degrees to either side of the bike’s front. This will allow the bike rider greater opportunity to hit a target while moving at a fast pace.[FRD: That sounds promising. We’ll investigate further]
NOTE: Consider giving the speeder bike special maneuvers, triggered in the same fashion as the starfighter special moves.
Bootleg turn left/right, etc[FRD: Noted]
Class C: Camera tethers when accelerating/decelerating and turning. 
When accel/decel in bike should have the camera spring back/forward slightly and then return to normal position to help emphasize the change in speed.
When left/right turn have the camera very, very slightly swing out left/right to emphasize the turn.[FRD: Noted. We’ll review camera fixes]
STATUS: 
APPROVED
==Galactic Conquest Design – draft==
Overall
Good first pass on GC
Good
Adding a simple narrative to the GC gives it a nice context
Areas to Improve
We’ll need to review the design further and send detailed feedback next week
STATUS: 
APPROVED
==Level Art/Setup==
Hoth - Phase 0
Cato Neimoida - Phase 0
Mustafar - Phase 0
Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) - Phase 0
Death Star (Tributary Beam part) - Phase 0
Setup (Multiplayer)
Tatooine Phase 1
Base level layout
Class C: Is the initial ticket allocation for this level correct? 75 tickets per side? That seems low.[FRD: The ticket allocation value is not final] 
NOTE: Mos Espa is not a large enough part of the Tatooine map. The city is dwarfed by the Republic Base, the Landing Pad, and seems small compared even to the debris in the desert. It’s expected that more static objects will be added in the February and March milestone.[FRD: As discussed, once Mos Espa is properly inhabited it will occupy a greater area and compare favourably to the Republic Base and the Landing Pad]
Class B: The open desert has no points of interest, vehicles, or command points. As this is currently over one half of the ground layer of Tatooine, the level setup is difficult to evaluate in its current state.[FRD: We believe a desert should largely appear empty. However, this will be less of a concern as the playable area fills out. The populating of Mos Espa will take care of this]
[LEC] Mos Eisley in BF1 had wonderful variety in its desert environment. It also included great ‘barn-storming’ objects, e.g. weathered rock formations which allow you to fly under them, etc. 
[FRD: Fair enough. Agreed]
Class C: The space layer feels rather small. Though AI behavior makes this difficult to evaluate, the proximity of the ship to the ground effectively shrinks the active space layer and makes it difficult to engage in satisfying “deep space” combat. Perhaps with the addition of the smaller capital ships, that can help stretch out the area somewhat.[FRD: We’ll re-evaluate these scales to get the best sense of player satisfaction]
Class C: The paper layout on the wiki is no longer accurate. Are there plans for updating this?[FRD: What would be the benefit of updating it retrospectively? Let’s discuss in a scheduled call if need be.]
[LEC] Noted, we were more interested in latest paper layout so we can provide initial feedback. 
Initial CPs
Class B: Desert area outside of Mos Espa lacks CPs. There is no reason to travel into the desert which leaves a huge area of the map unused.[FRD: There will be no CPs in the desert. The desert area will shrink as the Mos Espa area grows]
Class C: “Cave” CP is inaccessible and cannot be captured by either team. Spawning at “Cave” leads to automatic death. Bug?[FRD: This is a bug]
Class B: All CPs currently have only one spawn point. This leads to AI spawning in succession all in one clump. There should be multiple spawn points per CP.[FRD: This is a bug]
Class B: CPs within Mos Espa are very close together. The Homestead and Landing Pad CPs are nearly within eyeshot of each other which constricts the battlefield. CPs should not be in firing distance to each other.[FRD: We want to keep infantry combat focused. VBF means that we must do this]
[LEC] Understood. The CPs should be close in terms of distance, but not in visual range of each other, i.e. blocked by static objects, etc. The goal is to not let players spawn into their CPs and start shooting each other immediately. Thoughts?
[FRD: We agree totally. The Landing Bay CP will be moved so it is not in line-of-sight of other CP’s]
Vehicle Spawns 
Class B: Vehicles currently don’t change teams/sides with ownership of command posts. When can we expect CP ownership to affect vehicle spawns?[FRD: We have yet to consider this change of ownership. The detail is superficial as the characteristics of same class vehicles will be very similar irrespective of faction, so is purely cosmetic, but lets agree and make it happen]
Class C: The Speederbike in the hangar seems out of place in a capital ship interior. Is this a temporary feature?[FRD: Yes, this is temporary]
NOTE: Planetary forces currently gain no vehicular advantage (different ships etc;) when taking over a capital ship. Is the intent to give them some sort of advantage.[FRD: We will consider this]
Class B: On the ground layer, there are no vehicles in the desert or anywhere else outside of the Republic Base. Are there plans for a desert CP/Vehicle spawn to allow invaders to land away from Mos Espa and attack from the outskirts?[FRD: There are no plans for this sort of gameplay][LEC] What is happening with the vehicle transport? Is it supposed to land outside the city?
[FRD: No, just on the outskirts, by the Cave]
Or, if a player crashes out in the desert, provide a quick transport into the city? Where in this new Tatooine would the vehicle transport vehicle land?[FRD: The player will not be able to crash out in the desert. They will die when they crash]
Setup (Story)
Cato Neimoida Phase 0
Mustafar Phase 0
Yavin IV Phase 0
Hoth Phase 0
Rebel Cruiser (Mon Calamari) Phase 0
Desolation Station / Death Star Construction Phase 0
STATUS: 
APPROVED
==Iterative improvements on First Playable Preview==
Overall
Terrain and # of AI much improved
Good
Escape pods in-game – great stretch goal
Tatooine terrain improvements, especially the surrounding mountainous landscape
Areas to Improve
Comment: CIS cruiser interior: there needs to be a clear visual distinction between doors which can be opened and those which cannot be opened (same with the Republic Base)[FRD: Any doors that will never open during the game will be changed so that they don’t look like doors. Any doors that unlock during the course of the game will bear some visual indicator to show their status]
Comment: The experience as a player enters the ‘leaving battlefront’ boundary needs to be improved.[FRD: Agreed]
The boundaries need to be noted on the minimap
The process of turning around needs to be much quicker, as it stands now, the player is a sitting duck while the game turns them back to the action.
Consider a warning visual on the HUD which shows the player they are getting closer to the boundary…perhaps it changes state depending on how close the player is and whether they are heading towards the boundary or not.
NOTE: The re-entry looks better without the flame effect. What are the next steps in improving this effect further?[FRD: Further particle effects will be added after First Playable]
Comment: Escape pod camera – its current position suggests to the player that they should be able to control the pod (as it’s the same camera position for other vehicles). Consider making this a cinematic event which can also serve to mask the transition period.[FRD: A camera inside the pod is intended instead]
Comment: It is very difficult for infantry to acquire and hit a target. 
Controls do not feel synced to the action. Is this an animation issue? Must be addressed for FPM[FRD: We’ll investigate this and it will be addressed for FPM]
No target lock or cycle, e.g. you can highlight target by pressing target lock, but player doesn’t lock onto the target and move in relation to the target (as in Jedi melee). Must be addressed for FPM[FRD: We’ll investigate this and it will be addressed for FPM]
Comment: Republic Base – the large square architecture on the top level doesn’t feel very ‘Tatooine-like.’ A suggestion is that the Republic Base could be a reused mining facility, and the large edifice could be the remains of a sandcrawler repair facility. That would drive the art direction for this building.[FRD: This has already undergone a major revision. We will consider what can be done (such as giving the appearance of weathering) but we cannot invest much more time on this area at the moment.]
==Comments/Bugs==
Comment: When killed in a space vehicle, currently the dead body floats alongside the wreckage. Is the intent to recreate the scene from EpIII where the dead body spins amongst the debris of the destroyed fighter? If so, it’s expected that there is some animation to the body which causes it to spin or roll along with the debris and not remain in a static pose. 
The body needs to disappear along with the debris.
Consider a different treatment for the player: rather than being killed instantly, they find themselves floating amongst the wreckage of their ship. They can press A to respawn immediately OR if a friendly ship flies nearby, they can press Y to enter that vehicle. If there is an empty seat, they get that, otherwise they bump the AI out of the vehicle (resulting in a ticket loss).
AI might send out a call for help that is only heard by players in assault transports who can then pick them up for extra points (achievement points?).
[FRD: We will give these some consideration]
Bug: The grenade tracer does not consistently appear, e.g. it never appears in the Tatooine conquest mode but it does appear in the CIS Ship conquest mode game.[FRD: This is a bug]
Comment: It’s understood that the capital ship minimap will be updated with new graphics, but the expectation is not to see an uprezzed version of the current minimap which emphasizes how small the capital ship interior really is. 
Consider a more zoomed in minimap which only shows the immediate area and those nearby (but not entire ship). By enlarging the minimap I can see the entire interior.
Consider having a texture in all the main rooms which shows the ship schematic with a YOU ARE HERE graphic, i.e. a console with the ship’s schematic, etc. This is something we need to consider for other maps, i.e. Hoth tunnel complex, etc.
[FRD: The map needs to remain truthful so we are resistant to adding any contradictory detail. Visual signposting of some sort will feature in all our environments] 
[LEC] Not entirely clear on what might be considered contradictory detail. 
[FRD: What we meant was that we do not want to show rooms on the map that are not really there, just to mask the fact that there are only a few rooms. That would lead to it being a map that is wrong]
Comment: What thoughts have you had to minimize the grenade spamming that is likely to happen within capital ships and maps like Hoth (with all those tunnels)?[FRD: We will limit the player’s stock of grenades, and as previously discussed, consider limiting AI usage of grenades in certain areas where this would benefit gameplay]
[LEC] Okay. Perhaps consider allowing players to kick grenades away? For example, if player is near a thrown grenade, pressing the melee attack would kick the grenade away. 
[FRD: Noted]
Comment: When can we expect to see padlock view in space combat?[FRD: This will be present sometime after First Playable]
Comment: Republic Base – the stairs to the landing pad on top of the base needs to be much, much closer to the spawn point. Either that, or have two spawn points linked to that command post, one near the CP and one on top near the ships. Must be addressed for FPM.[FRD: OK. We will move the spawn point. This will be addressed for FPM and add extra spawns]
Comment: There need to be multiple spawn points associated with each command post. Currently, everyone spawns from the same point in a veritable deluge of soldiers out a thin air. A minimum of 5-8 spawn points per command post will help minimize spawn raping.[FRD: Noted]
Comment: The sand on the ramp of the Republic Base needs to be improved. It’s a very nice touch.
Comment: The hover bikes and tank are kicking up the wrong material effect. Can the system recognize specific materials and adjust the particle effect accordingly?[FRD: Yes. The framework for this is in place already]
Comment: lasers from the starfighter combat in the space layer are impacting on the ground layer. This looks strange, as I cannot see what is firing at me. Consider a default that starfighter lasers cannot go between layers.[FRD: Noted]
Bug: space combat is audible from ground layer, very distracting. Must be addressed for FPM[FRD: This is a bug and will be addressed for FPM]
Comment: Please make crosshairs ON by default.[FRD: OK]
Bug: When a round first starts, the players/AI who spawn subtract their spawn from the ticket total. As the round is first starting, those initial spawns should not impact the ticket total, not until they have died.[FRD: We agree.]
Bug: Adjusting the amount of AI prior to a conquest mode game does not adjust the space-based AI, i.e. they always spawn in with 10 AI per side[FRD: Noted]
Comment: will Force Choke have a different animation played when it’s used against droids?
[FRD: Yes, we will implement a different animation for droids]
Comment: The CIS Droid Command Ship – is that to be used in multiplayer or only in the story mode? The question arises because of the interior of the ship which feels large and empty.[FRD: This will only feature in story mode]
Comment: Are there plans to use the Admiral Ozzle character model?[FRD: In the story, yes]
==Milestone 10 – Monday, 19 February 2007==
Running on PC, X360 and PS3
All playable units for Republic and CIS Factions for First Playable (including one hero per Hero Tier per Faction) integrated into game intended attributes and primary weapons. No buffs or session unlocks
Jedi Force Power (Repulse) 
Vehicle boarding transitions in-game on speeders on Tatooine for First Playable
AI using Jedi Melee abilities on Tatooine for First Playable
Escape Pods (1st pass) 
AI spawning in space and staying in space 
[LEC] what is this referring to? [FRD: This is part of the iterative improvements and bug fixes of the AI that patrol the space layer]
Art
Dantoine - Phase 0
Hoth - Phase 1
Coruscant - Phase 1
Bespin - Phase 1
Yavin IV - Phase 0
Droid Control Ship - Phase 1
Republic Cruiser (Venator-Class) - Phase 0
Star Destroyer - Phase 1
Setup (Story)
Dantoine Phase 0
Dathomir Phase 0
CIS Cruiser Phase 1
Republic Cruiser (Venator-Class) Phase 0
Core content required for First Playable is in:
Iterations on content delivered in previous First Playable builds
[LEC] can we expect improvements in AI combat between CPs?[FRD: Definately]
Ground Cannon Firing to Space (Predetermined path, no player controlled targeting)
Space to Ground Firing (Predetermined path, no player controlled targeting)
Escape Pods from Capital Ships to Planet Surface (Predetermined path, no player controlled targeting)
Voice recording (LucasArts)
Overall Rating: PASS
|-|Art Feedback=
Star Wars Battlefront 3
MS9 Art Feedback
==MS9 Art Direction Feedback==
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==Stage Feedback==
===Westar-34 Pistol===
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===CIS Arc Cutter===
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===CIS Disruptor Pistol===
ms9_004.png|Note: The Republic disruptor pistol also has its scope on the right side.
===CIS Blaster Pistol===
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===Stage Lighting===
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==Visual Target Template==
This doc outlines some of the most basic elements we’d like FRD to call out (Artistically) for every level in the game.
Providing LEC with this very objective information will give us an excellent "heads-up" for what the artists are committing to deliver in runtime in regards to, contours, structures, objects, lighting, and other element.
 
As Mark and Karl discussed during the visit, this template is intended to provide a format for Hoth and future Visual Target deliveries.
 
This format is intended to be a tool for to help identify objective elements early in production using movie reference as a basis.
H O T H
Environment Structure:
*Look to call out architectural contours that are consistent as well as distinct throughout the level / world
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Environmental Set Dressing:
*After specific contours and/or structural consistencies have been identified look for those peripherals, dressings and/or objects that add to its uniqueness, distinctiveness, purpose and style.
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Lighting and basic placeable objects:
*Lighting, contrast and volume are very important aspects of any environment that must be identified early. However identifying the source of that lighting is also key.
*There are plenty of objects and peripherals throughout the environment. The key is to identify objects that are consistent to the world, what their purpose is (do they make sense in being there) and their distinctiveness to the world / level they belong.
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</tabber>
Category:I&T - Milestones