TTW Progress Report

[JaxFirehart]

Closed Beta

I have completed the initial conflict resolution between FO3 and FNV. There are bound to be errors, the way the Fallout engine works is just too complex for one person to reliably resolve all conflicts. By the end of the week, a closed beta will start. Members of the team will be given a list of goals to be accomplished and will scour the wasteland for issues, upon completion of this closed beta, we will release it to the public as a public beta. I would like for the closed beta to last approx. 1 month. Unlike the last release of TTW, all FNV DLC will be supported out of the box because, unlike the last release, we are focusing on not touching ANYTHING on the FNV side of things. There may be unforseen problems, but I did my best to ensure that the initial conflict resolution changed as little as possible. The FO3 DLCs on the other hand, will be tested and released one at a time after the closed beta is over. Currently there is a debate (here) over whether or not TTW should require all DLC from both FO3 and FNV. Currently the majority favors requiring all DLC. Please stop by that thread and tell us what you think.

Goals

Our goals for TTW are two fold:

1. 
   To create a base mod that ONLY recreates Fallout 3 using the FNV engine. This mod will not include any extra content that is not necessary to upgrade Fallout 3.


2. 
   To create a fully integrated merger between FO3 and FNV this will include Chuck's train travel method and other additions that help the two games feel appropriate with one another.

Format

Tale of Two Wastelands has undergone a bit of a change in how it works. We are going to a multi-master format, FalloutNV.esm loads first and is unchaged, Fallout3.esm is patched to have FalloutNV.esm as its master, but is otherwise unchanged, it loads its second. Finally, TaleOfTwoWastelands.esm loads third, it resolves conflicts between FNV and FO3. Our ultimate desire with this format change is to reduce download sizes and increase ease of installation.

[Quetzlsacatanango]

Sorry if this has already been addressed somewhere else, but out of curiosity, why go back to multiple esm?

The merged falloutnv.esm worked so well on TTW's previous incarnation, and rock solid stable. Much better than the multiple master method ever did, especially if fallout3.esm gets no other changes.

Maybe the last sentence answers this. Seems like you would want to go with what is proven to work well.

Not arguing, just curious.

-Q

[JaxFirehart]

Our method is actually a hybrid between the multiple masters and merged masters methods. The tiny patch we make to Fallout3.esm makes it inject all of its records into FalloutNV.esm. This is kind of hard to explain, basically this means that FalloutNV.esm takes ownership of all of Fallout3.esm records. As far as the game is concerned the masters ARE merged, as far as the user is concerned the masters are separate. This SHOULD allow us to get the best of both worlds. I am not stubborn. If the closed beta shows that this approach is not as good as directly merging the files, then we will go back to that method.

[thermador]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this new method should also allow for better use of mods, such as essential bug-fixing mods like the Fallout 3 Unofficial Patch and  Mission Mojave - Ultimate Edition.  I had a lot of problems trying to get either of those working with the current merged master setup.

[JaxFirehart]

That could be an added bonus, yes. I have worries, though, that we will have to find some way to get mods like that to play nicely with TTW. Kuroitsune, the previous lead, was integrating them directly into TTW. I would like to avoid that, but it may become necessary.

[darthbdaman]

I'm very pro merge everything. I like having MMUE and UF3P integrated. It cuts down on load order, removes the need for CP's, and creates much better stability. And cutting down on load order is very important to me.

[Ein]

I'd just like to be able to use both of Dracomines' Redesigned Mods. I suppose I could just set the Fallout 3 Redesigned to use FalloutNV.esm as it's parent instead, but that just seems like a lot of work for something that should be a bit easier to do.

[Darkersun]

Hello, I would like to help with testing the closed Beta.

Is this possible or is it Team internal only ?

[JaxFirehart]

I am willing to open it to modders. Give me a good reason and you're in. That goes for everyone.

[darthbdaman]

Unique Weapons With Unique Textures and/or Unique Items - unique look are mods you should definitely consider merging. One of the odd things in Fallout 3 was that none of the Unique Items where actually unique, while in NV, 95% have unique textures or models. It would add a lot more consistency between the games.