Sight and Sound

Wild Bill · Post by **Wild Bill** » Mon Jun 19, 2000 7:49 pm

Well, the other day I did my listening. Today I did some looking. I decided to stop for a moment and look...look at the graphics in SPWAW. I mean, really take a look.

For a moment forget the pleas for more zoom levels or anything else. Just look.

Have you, in the mad rush of things, without the haze of smoke, or the heat of battle, stopped just to look? Nick Papp, Mike Amos, White Rook, and I don't know really who else have formed a core group of artists that are without a doubt the best.

Look at the detail on these tanks. Check out the detailed squads, with even prone LM gunners, bayonets, varying sizes and shapes of artillery. Wander over the hills and valleys of the maps, the buildings, the terrain. Just look and enjoy.

Before my cataract surgery in 1997 in both my eyes, I loved miniatures, 1/285 scale. Over a period of 12 years, I had over 2,000 vehicles from WWI through Desert Storm, all hand painted with care by me.

But then with the surgery, I could not really see them anymore. So that ended that part of my gaming adventures.

Now I have SPWAW. My miniatures are back. No, they are not 3 dimensional, but they are beautiful. I feel I can reach through the screen and pick them up.

And if you doubt the changes, go back to SP1 or SP3 and compare. Remind yourself of what you had and what you have now.

I want to congratulate our artists. Nick, Warhorse (Mike A) and Rook, plus anyone else on this team, our thanks.

And then there is our team of audio artists, Jon Johnson and Scott Grasse. Ever heard such sounds in SP or any other tac level game like these? Now you have sounds that make you stop and look (and sometimes flinch

.

And how many hours of work does all this represent? A lot of them, believe me.

The scenarios and campaigns are only as good as the tools with which we have to work.

Our sound and sight teams have given so very much in this game that we have never heard before.

I just wanted you to know about these guys and how hard they have worked.

If you like 'em, why not let these guys know? A little praise is well deserved in these cases.

Wild Bill

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In Arduis Fidelis
Wild Bill Wilder
Coordinator, Scenario Design
Matrix Games

Stug · Post by **Stug** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 6:25 am

The Graphics are great! I love the sounds too. I love the sound of the American M1 Rifle you can hear the clip fly out of the gun when the ammo's spend. Ping! Keep up the good work. And the mines scare me.

troopie · Post by **troopie** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 6:51 am

Genuine! Has anyone noticed that the first time a bolt action rifle is fired in a turn, you don't hear the sound of the bolt loading a round into the chamber on all subsequent shots you do. That's paying attention! I turned up the sound of the Mauser's bolt and compared it to the sound of the bolt on the Gewehr 98 I have, the correlation is exact.

You can design pleasant vistas, deep cool woods, pretty little villages with smiling vineyards, flowering orchards and tile roofs. It seems a shame to fight in them.

Well done to all!

troopie

Fabio Prado · Post by **Fabio Prado** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 7:20 am

To all of you guys that succeeded in making the SPWaW images and sound a thrilling experience my deepest respect for your work.
Really good job, boys!

Fabio Prado.

crazyivan · Post by **crazyivan** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 11:21 am

ever since this truly awesome game has come out i have only missed 3 nites of not at least playing a hour or so of it and the lack of man hours fighting has been more than made up of all day sessions on the pc on the weekends. the sounds are top class and saving privite ryen takes on a new meaning every time i wacth it the sounds take me back to my own battle and the tv goes west and the game goes on.top game top marks to you all.my biggest praise to you all is to keep playing it.........sigh another sleepless night now to upgrade those t 34 to t34/85s look out fascist scum mother russia is back!!!!!!!!!!

Wild Bill · Post by **Wild Bill** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 12:41 pm

Watch out, Crazy Ivan is on a roll!

WB

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In Arduis Fidelis
Wild Bill Wilder
Coordinator, Scenario Design
Matrix Games

Colonel Klink · Post by **Colonel Klink** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 12:53 pm

Three cheers for the spw@w artists:

hip hip hoorah!
hip hip hoorah!
hip hip hoorah!

bill: as a side note, i also have an ocular medical condition (ocular myasthenia gravis) which is controlled with medication.
take care!

Charles22 · Post by **Charles22** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 6:11 pm

I like the view, but I love the sound so much more. I love the little background noise of the "gunfire in the distance", so that it gives you the sense that you're figthing alongside another formation of your army. This effect really comes into play when you go off somewhere perhaps to eat and watch a smidgen of tv, and then realize, blast if I didn't turn off those speakers when I left, but then you realize, hey that's pretty neat, the front is still ongoing when I'm off on leave.

If anything drives the long life for this game, I feel it's the sound. I'm fond of playing Gerry, but just yesterday I got fed up with playing AOE2, which I sort of put SPWAW on hold till the new version comes out so I can campaign properly, and loaded the Correggidor (sp) scenario. I played as US and just hearing the different sound of the different weapons made it all the more fascinating.

BTW, I'm awfully fond of the 88 flak "whoosh", and I toyed slightly with one scenario that had a Tiger, which gun also had a "whoosh". Do all 80-90mm flak/AT guns have this sound, or is it just a Gerry thing?

slammer · Post by **slammer** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 7:22 pm

The graphics and sound were the first thing I noticed. I let an american landing vs japanese held island scenario just play on and sat back and watched. The attention to detail is excellent. Great Job!!

Jackk · Post by **Jackk** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 7:55 pm

Indeed! High praise to the artists.

For the most part, I read about the games before they come out, so I know what to expect in terms of gameplay. Then, when I get it, the first thing I do is fire up a big tank battle so I can look at all the new icons n stuff. Love it. I was floored by the original SP2WW2 and that series only got better. Then this comes out and had the bonus of better sounds. I love the big boom of the heavy guns .... German 88's, Brit 17 pdrs, US 105's.....BOOM....BOOM....BOOM....love it. And the background noise is too cool. I like it in TOAW too and thought it a great addition to the SP series.

Good job guys....

Hail! Hail! Hail!

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Jackk
"Smile today cuz tomorrow may really suck"

Wild Bill · Post by **Wild Bill** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 8:56 pm

Thanks, guys.

The art team does not write much...too busy doing the art thing

But they notified me that they have read these accolades and are very grateful.

I smiled

, then locked them back up in their little art room

Back to work!

Wild Bill

------------------
In Arduis Fidelis
Wild Bill Wilder
Coordinator, Scenario Design
Matrix Games

WW2'er · Post by **WW2'er** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 10:39 pm

I too want to add my praise for the artists and sound teams. The cities and beaches are great! I love the wave lines and all the new terrain.

And the sounds are awesome! I love the opening to Betio with the planes diving in and the explosions and the antiaircraft fire going off! I love to crank the sound up and then I just feel like I "HAVE" to find a foxhole and fast!

Kudos to one and all.

WW2'er

Warhorse · Post by **Warhorse** » Tue Jun 20, 2000 10:59 pm

Hello, well, one art guy has a few seconds!! Thanks all for the nice words, and best of all thanks for enjoying the game, we done it all for you!!

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Mike Amos
Meine Ehre Heisst Treue

Antonius · Post by **Antonius** » Wed Jun 21, 2000 1:45 am

The sounds are so nice that I've entirely totally turned off those combat message so that the battles are totally fluid and I never need to set fast arty on to speed up the game

PS: future PBEM opponents, please note that I'll put back some level of messages for PBEM games

Dice4Eyes · Post by **Dice4Eyes** » Wed Jun 21, 2000 5:49 am

Magnificent work guys.

My favorite graphic is the fallen log on the ground in one of the woods tiles(it adds lots of flavor).

Favorite sound have got to go to the background battle sounds. You feel like your on the battlefield as a small part of bigger battle.

And an offtopic(for this thread) praise, sorry Bill but the nominee for best scenario ever is awarded(i think its)"Grenadier"(can't remember) for the outstanding "The last stand of the 78'th Sturm". Great map and innovativ play.

And since we can't pay god money for this great game, maybe we should send some food and drinks to the sound and graphics crew that Wild Bill has locked in the basement. Might not taste so great after shipment from Sweden but its the thought that counts.

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Ever played chess with death

Mvh Daniel E.

Six-pk · Post by **Six-pk** » Wed Jun 21, 2000 7:07 am

DOODS KEEP IT UP
Love the sounds and sights of WAW!

Six

Greg McCarty · Post by **Greg McCarty** » Fri Jun 23, 2000 4:37 am

You know, the more I study this game, the more it appears to me that a large developer
probably could not or would not have developed a game of this detail or calibre.
The very companies with the capital to devote
to this sort of project simply are too bottom
line oriented to go this distance. Not that they would not deserve a profit, but that their laser focus on economic justification
would, in all probability, make it impossible
for them to go this distance.

I think your sort of company was what Alvin Toffler had in mind when he discussed the "Electronic Cottage" in "The Third Wave."
(1980)

Originally posted by Wild Bill:
Thanks, guys.

The art team does not write much...too busy doing the art thing

But they notified me that they have read these accolades and are very grateful.

I smiled , then locked them back up in their little art room

Back to work!

Wild Bill

Wild Bill · Post by **Wild Bill** » Fri Jun 23, 2000 4:44 am

We don't want to go in that direction, Greg. Our focus is quality. If we can make a little change in doing that, it will be a nice recompense.

So are letters like yours and others here who support us.

We have a bond with gamers. We are of the same cut. We don't ever want to lose that!..Wild Bill

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In Arduis Fidelis
Wild Bill Wilder
Coordinator, Scenario Design
Matrix Games

nikb · Post by **nikb** » Fri Jun 23, 2000 5:45 am

They are bloody fantastic - I think we tend to take them for granted most of the time. Bill is right - we have to stand back now and again to realise how good they are.

The simple thing that got me when I first started playing was the sound of the bolt action - one of many small actions within the game that all add up to one great experience.
Roll on the patch.

Nik

Tankhead · Post by **Tankhead** » Fri Jun 23, 2000 8:13 am

I've never seen such a great package all in one. First time I fired up SPWAW

I could not believe the sounds and graphics.
Just totally awesome thumbs up for all the people involved in this fantastic game. They
are thruly talented, some of the best programmers in the biz.. The details are well

. My SPIII is been sitting on the shelf ever since I downloaded SPWAW. Thanks to all the crew that made SPWAW possible.

Rick