KickStarter BattleTech Pre-Release Thread

[Zorba the Hutt]

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

 

[aratuk]

With the Battletech release imminent, has HBS given any inkling as to what they're doing next? IIRC, they have generally been in the habit of publicizing what's in the pipe — not least because it's been necessary when they've used crowdfunding, I know.

Halfway expecting a proclamation of announcement time.

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

I'm going to hazard a guess and say they're doing the same with BattleTech as they did with Shadowrun and publish more versions of the game with new campaigns. I'd also figure that this one will already tease the Clan Invasion and Operation Scorpion in its story.

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

Enemy forces should hopefully vary somewhat in each playthrough of the campaign:

https://community.battletechgame.com/forums/threads/6300

Slide
"From what I have read in the kickstarter updates and here on the forums the AI is obviously capable of dealing with different mechs in different situations. This is the fundamental basis about which the mission generator will create missions in the extended game (and skirmish against the AI) until the player has conquered the known universe. As an example a random mission will assign 200 tons to the opfor which is divided into a lance. The AI chooses 4 mechs (at random) and of you go to fight it out.

My question then is does this relate in some way to the campaign missions?

Obviously there will be some kind of scripted event in most missions as you are trying to tell a story, but for non-story related deployments (ie for non character piloted mechs) does or a can the enemy be some what random. I believe having a random Opfor even in campaign missions would add greatly to the ability to restart the game and not do the same things over and over.

An Enamy lance comprising an Atlas, Quickdraw, Cicada and a Locust would play very differently to an Awesome, Shadowhawk, Jenner and Spider.

Any insight would be appreciated."


HBS_HighCommand
"Enemies in our story missions are a combination of some chosen by the designers and some procedurally chosen from a set of criteria."

HBS_thratchen
"To expand slightly on what Mitch said: we actually have a *lot* of control over what is spawned. We can filter by expected battlefield roles, weight, specific characteristics, and specific 'Mechs and 'Mech variants. We're using that control to try to make the encounters as fun as possible. And it's quite likely that, even in the story missions, replays won't necessarily have the same enemies every time."

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

I'd say it would be smarter to make limits to 'mechs that can be brought to a mission not by tonnage, but by class. In vidya based on BTech, you have always had this problem where you eventually end up just bringing heavies and assaults because of the way the basic mechanics have translated to real time (of course, in TT there's a whole bunch of other ways to break the whole thing). Though in MechCommander you usually did bring a Raven along because of its unique sensor capabilities.

Both in TT and vidya games it's never been smart to use the actual standard Lance weight class spread, either because in vidya attrition based combat favours heavier 'mechs or in TT where there's an increasing number of cheese options with each tech advance beyond basic 3025 Tech Readout. Then again TT is broken if custom 'mechs are allowed at all anyway (though much less so in 3025 because you can't do cheese 101 like Targeting Computers with Pulse Lasers). Then again, BT never translated well into a random match game because of the complexity of the rules involved so it was better to play it in gentleman's agreement scenarios rather than breaking your skull on a brickwall trying to make Battle Values make any goddamn sense.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

 

[anus_pounder]

Do we have a release date?

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

Do we have a release date?

Nope. Was going to be "late fall" but the beta was delayed so perhaps we'll get an updated release date when they release the beta.

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

Could see a fair bit of use for this if it works reasonably well:

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

http://community.battletechgame.com/forums/threads/6487

Hey Everyone

Music and sound make such a difference in the gaming experience and sos We're asked our Sound Designer, Rob Pearsall, and our Composer, Jon Everist, to come in to the studio for our May Dev Q&A.

Since we'll have two people to interview with connecting but different jobs, we'll dedicate most of the Q&A to them before Mitch takes some live questions to close out the hour.

Let us know what questions you have for Rob and Jon!

 

[GarfunkeL]

Could see a fair bit of use for this if it works reasonably well:

Hot damn, that's great and opens new possibilities.

 

[ArchAngel]

So that beta is coming this year? :D :D

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

Release date still this year (probably):

>if it takes them this long to get Beta out, are we now looking at 2018 for the full release?

We are still on track for a 2017 release and the work we're doing on beta benefits the full release.

Regarding hope: I learned long ago that a game is only late until it ships. A quality game is a quality game forever.

And it seems we're at 'that' stage of a dev cycle:

http://community.battletechgame.com/forums/threads/6534

I find the apparent prospect of having kickstarter stretch goals cut from the final game, concerning.

Specifically, I am referring to the 3D MechWarrior Portrait System.

Described on the Kickstarter page as:

"$1,550,000 - 3D MechWarrior Portrait Customization: We'll build a complete 3D portrait customization system for you to customize the look of both your MechWarriors and your own Mercenary commander."

Yet in the May 10 Q&A, it seems like this feature is now potentially on the chopping block. (Timestamped link.)

Has there been a misunderstanding here(Mine, Mitch's, whoever.), and are the comments in the video regarding this more meant with respect to the beta rather than the final game? (In which case, whatever, that's perfectly justified to my mind, not to be present in beta. My question here is 100% concerned with the final game.)

If a high profile feature is being cut from the final game, I'd like a bit more of an explanation beyond what's been provided in the Q&A video.

What's gone wrong specifically, and what would make it right again, specifically?

*edit*

Apologies, I just noticed this has been asked and answered already, albeit more generally. I would still like more specific information.

 

[Infinitron]

May as well post the answer: http://community.battletechgame.com/forums/threads/6531

I wasn't talking about that feature specifically but yes, there is the potential for it or things like it to be re-evaluated based on feedback from our Backer Beta or other production realities. If we discover the need for more work than we planned, some things may need to wait for a post-release update. Of course everyone (especially us) has features we're loath to give up or wait for and that's one of the things that makes this gig tough.

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

Personally I didn't like the 3D portrait goal anyway. HBS has some wonderful artists at work there, just have them draw some nice portraits.

 

[thesheeep]

Yeah, no shit. What's up with that goal? You just have to look back at NWN 2 (or WL2 more recently) to see why 3D portraits are pretty bad.

I mean, yes they are great in EVE, but why waste effort on that?

 

[xxxCatholicKillahxxx]

Mitch said: A quality game is a quality game forever

Desire to be edgy rising.

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

Discovered there's a sperg over on the HBS forums who does a great job of transcribing the Q&As

May 10

• People present: Mitch Gitelman (Studio Head), Jon Everiste (Composer) and Rob Pearsall (Sound Designer)
• Jon and Rob worked on Nekropolis, Jon on Shadowrun Hongkong and Shadowrun Hongkong.
• Beta is getting along and progress is good after the horrible slowdown caused by the previously mentioned problems. However, a new date cannot be given at this time, although they are narrowing in on one.
• That said, HBS will record and release gameplay footage of a multiplayer match. This match will be played between Mitch Gitelman and Mike McCain (Game Director).
• Rob is a huge fan of Nine Inch Nails. Jon's favourite is Radiohead.
• Jon's inspiration when creating music for BattleTech starts with the art. He likes to get his hand on as much art as possible and when the game gets further along in development, the story that supports the art forms the final piece of the puzzle. The art gives the feel of the music and the script / storyline makes sure that Jon stays on track. However, a major switch-up of the story (like happend with Shadowrun Dragonfall a month before release) isn't a huge impact. The story is cohesive, the foundation remains the same. The feel of the music remains the same, while the details might keep evolving. Jon had small bits and "themes" for certain characters, allowing him to join those together and form the score. Jon has seperate recordings of performances by soloists. That way, he can combine them, in ways that one wouldn't always consider.
• Rob has no prior experience with BattleTech. The universe has a lot of sound effects from previous games as its legacy. At the same time, the game is set in 3025, where everything is very rundown. So, Rob dove in and started to catch up by sitting down with some veteran BattleTech fans and just taking notes. Rob has a background in music and recording, but he grew up in an engineer family. He loved physics as a kid. This resulted in him always asking "how does it work". How does a Mech bend, what forces takes place ... He then applies all that (and the clips Mitch sent him) together. When confronted with the question (one he himself asked the veteran BattleTech fans): "do I follow the legacy or do I make it cool?", he decided (and heard from others) to make it cool. So, Rob and others "modernized" BattleTech. He has the advantage of going "blind" into this, he doesn't try to copy anything. A PPC will sound like a PPC, but his interpretation will sound "fresh".
• Rob got involved with HBS by way of a producer at HBS(Rob played the drummer in his band). They interviewed him for Nekropolis, but turned him down initially. After 6 months, they hired him.
• Jon was doing a stint at Digipen Institute in Redmond and was working alongside Jenn Ravenna, concept artist at HBS. She brought his name up during a meeting (this was at the time Shadowrun was finished and the trailer was released). THe rest was history.
• Mitch explains that audio design and creation is actually regularly done at the end of a game's development cycle. It isn't necessarily the best way to do it and the way HBS does it now (bringing them in earlier) seems to work better. When you play a game, multiple senses are engaged. These "feelings" is what Jon and Rob love. But audio design is regularly forced to be reactive to game development and changes. With BattleTech, Ron and Jon got involved right from the beginning.
• Jon started his BattleTech gaming "career" by playing MechWarrior 2 and getting in the simulator pods. Rob started with MechWarrior Online.
• Jon loved the audio in Uncharted 4. It was ... off the charts! The design, the score, very incredible. The Banner Saga was also interesting, as was The Witcher 3.
• Rob worked on Destiny (doing voice-over work mainly) and he found the weapon sounds to be amazing. The layering, the feeling of the guns, the kick ...
• Something that Rob found interesting while working for BattleTech, is that he always wondered: "wait, how far away from the sound is the listener right now?". When you are looking down from a birds-eye perspective, you are not going to hear all the sounds from the battlefield that you want to hear. So, they are "cheating" the sound by being able to hear sound from far away, while letting it appear to be coming from maximum a hundred yards away. Of course, a weapon will sound louder the closer you get. But if you are listening from the "edge", sounds will be a bit more muffled and ambience will be stronger. Water splashes are only heard when in close, but not from above.
• Human voice will have its place in the score of BattleTech. Jon has recordings from a 24-strong Latvian choir. Right now, they are also doing recordings with a local soloist. That will be peppered throughout the score.
• Rob is a sound designer. A sound designer doesn't go to a sound library, picks a sound and then throws it into a game. A designer has to come up with something unique. Even when taking something from a library, you will change it by layering it with something or changing it. Rob also uses "middleware", software that allows him to randomize and mix things and layer things. Middleware provides a user interface for things, allowing non-programmers to do their magic. Now, a sound designer is involved with everything audio-wise that isn't music. Voice Overs is also split, but in BattleTech's case, Rob is also doing that.
• Jon's favorite piece of music concerns Lady Arano. He can't spoil too much, but there is a lot of solo's involved. Her background being Maori / Hawaiian, Jon started down a certain path when composing pieces related to Arano. The concept art of Arano also had several notes attached to, referring to other pieces of art and pictures.
• Mitch and Andrew (Lead Writer) regularly go back and forth on character backgrounds. You have to weigh: how deep do you go? How much is wasted because it will never show up / be mentioned in the game? When doing this "homework", it becomes a tool for others to use for their own work. The overarching theme of each character is something that Jon picks up on and then works his magic on.
• The hardest piece of audio Rob has worked on so far is the Rotary Autocannon firing sound. [NOTE: Rob called them Rotary Cannons, but those are something else entirely in BattleTech and they don't exist in 3025. Here they mean "autocannons that fire multiple shells"] Now, the gun mounted on the A-10 aircraft is a really scary piece of hardware, with a unique sound. They melded that with a futuristic machine gun sound, creating a scary sound effect. Problem was, they had to make it so that you could hear individual impacts when firing a burst. An individual "shot" sound had to be recorded. An AC20 fires 20 rounds, but the A-10 gun fires thousands of bullets in a matter of seconds. So, to hear the whine for the AC20 to be "short" is jarring. Rob is trying to tweak it and it might get pulled, but that will be a disappointment.
• When firing a weapon, you don't hear 1 sound being played. You have 3: 1 sound for the weapon when firing, 1 sound for the travelling of the weapon and a last one for the hit of that weapon. And then you have the echo of the weapon bouncing of hills and stuff ...
• You have autocannons (like the AC20) that fire one shell and you have autocannons that fire bursts. These exist so that you'll have some choice as to what weapons to mount during the mercenary campaign. Each weapon will have different perks and drawbacks. And right now, the single-shot autocanons sound suitably impressive ("ba-BOOM").
• The AC20 in the Beta will have the A-10 like sound-effect, but it might change for the full game.
• The soundtrack for the game will be available in loss-less formats. (NOTE: You can buy the Shadowrun Soundtracks on Jon's Bandcamp ( https://joneverist.bandcamp.com/ )
• The Skirmish mode has different "moods" (music-wise). Those are sort-of based on planet type, but more on the map and their general tone and mood (such as biomes). For the single-player campaign, the music will be more "curated", more selected, at least for the big missions.
• Mechs that are on the move, will sound about the same. As Mechs take damage, you will hear that the engine starts emitting sounds (gyros spinning out of sync for instance). As you blow armor off, those hits will generate a certain sound. Striking a Mech in the internals will be accompanied by another sound. Critical hits and dismemberment are pretty big on sound (as well as seeing and hearing sparks), as you can imagine. And yes, the ammo explosions too. Now, a damaged Mech might start to move in an awkward way, depending on the damage. But it won't exactly start to make different "bending" sounds.
• Special care was taken to make sure that damage is well simulated. There is a real logic behind the SFX you see when you damage a Mech.
• The game's music will change in pace and intensity as the intensity and pace of the mission changes. Especially in story-driven missions, where there are several changes of "beats" (change of fortune, a new character is introduced, ...). Generated missions, skirmish and multiplayer tend to start off with a flow: first ambience and as you spot a player or battle commences, the music changes to a more tense state. Jon is looking into allowing more different "tense" states during the battles, but it isn't in the game yet. Game music tends to be reactive, since you can't predict what a player will do or not in such or so circumstances. The trick is make players believe that the music isn't reactive.
• HBS is narrowing in on the beta and as such, no new stuff is getting added to the beta. Just bugfixes and some polishing. And at the same time, features to be implemented after will require some testing by HBS in order to see what the effects are of those "new things".
• There are hundreds and hundreds of pilot lines (courtesy of Mitch). When doing voice work, HBS makes voice actors do the death screams last. They also make sure the actors are about 3 big steps away from the microphone. "Imagine that the windshield turns into molten flame and comes at you. Now scream."
• There will be ambient sounds like rivers and trees, but they aren't in yet.
• Beta will be the raw gameplay: activity, balance, ... The beta will not represent the final game (beyond how combat works and feels, that is pretty much tied down). In time, more layers of polish will be added, polish that just isn't relevant at this stage of development. Birds flying out of tree isn't relevant for beta.
• Some fun asides: Rob told how he replaced engine sounds with sounds from mockingbirds because they weren't truly ready yet. This led to a week-long of mechs stomping about like tweeting birds. Mitch and Jordan back in the day (even at Microsoft) would put a blue dot on art. As they asked people to critique the art, they would always look for something to say. The blue dot was spotted, people felt good about themselves and the art was then approved (minus the blue dot). And sometimes, when people say there is something wrong with a certain sound effect, it can sometimes help to just turn up the volume of that effect a bit. Suddenly, great effect!
• Creating the musical score for BattleTech tends to follow the process as during the creation of the Shadowrun score. You start off with the art and the story and so forth. The biggest difference is that Shadowrun had only digital musical instruments. For BattleTech, you need more mock-ups, sketches for the score. You are having to start be a producer more. Also, more
• flying to Eastern Europe (Budapest) to get 65 Europeans to play the music you wrote. In total, 150 people are working on getting the written music by Jon into a recording. And then editing ensues. He didn't conduct the music though, he stayed in the recording booth to listen to the music. Fun fact: most of the live recording was finished by the end of last year. Which was nice, since it gave breathing room, something he has never had before.
• Rob created the PPC sound effect, but is already planning an improvement when he read the forum questions for this Q&A. In the past, PPC's were either electrical or "whompy" effects. Rob basically combined both and made an "electrical whomp". It sounds satisfying. Rob figured out how the impact sound would be like. Weapons in BattleTech travel in 3D space. Weapons also tend to sound like our contemporary weapons. PPC's tend to be instantaneous hitting weapons and because of that, Rob couldn't hear the impact sounds, since it played at the same time as the weapon firing sound (which turned out to be a bug). It took 0.50 miliseconds of delay to make it sound right. Now, Rob wants to add the crack of a thunderclap to the PPC effect, giving it a nice final layer. This might get into the beta.
• Jon will post another "behind the scene" video of his composing, but he is currently swamped with working on the beta. Expect the video in the next few weeks.
• Some joking was done about adding an Easter Egg that replaces all weapon sounds with sounds made by Tyler Carpenter like the infamous PPC "ZORTCHJ" sound.
• If you are a deaf or hearing-impaired player, you will not be at a disadvantage when playing skirmish / multiplayer. There are no "solely auditory cues". The user interface will provide all the information you need. The voice overs and sound effects just reinforce things that are on screen. A pilot might for instance say "Ugh, I'm hit in the meat!", but you'll get a pop-up on screen saying "Pilot injured".
• Regarding subtitles, those will be in. If there is a story voice-over, you'll get subtitles. Same for story messages in game, there will be text. Pilot chatter like "I'm hit!" will not be subtitled because there is just way too much of those and it would clutter the screen. However, pilot voices will be translated in your localized version of the game.
• LIGHTNING ROUND
• Jon does use analogue synth in the score. He has several. He uses the Profit 12 a lot. He also has a Noisemaker Module Synth, a Euro Rack.
• The new gameplay video will be announced on the forums, on the kickstarter page and a new kickstarter update will be released containing it. As to Mitch his chances of winning the match: McCain is close to the top of the in-house leaderboard while Mitch is last.
• HBS doesn't have a number stating how much percent audio and music takes up from the budget. Rob estimated (based on the kickstarter funds) maybe 0.2 percent.
• HBS is not doing a lot of effort to hide stuff from the players (that is, the players who go digging in the game files). PVP matches will require authenticating of course.
• The pilots you have in the game will have a portrait, name and a voice assigned to them. You can switch these to your heart's desires. So far, you have a Korean voice, as well as a Russian and British. More are coming. You can already make an international lance in the beta.
• There is some guitar bits in the score, but don't expect it to sound heavy metal like.
• Jon plays a little bit of piano and guitar himself. He grew playing the drums too. He's not, like, good at it. But he can manage it. Jon loves the cello.
• Neither Rob or Jon have met someone famous that played their stuff. Peter Dinklage is a huge Destiny fan though. Steven Spielberg and the late Robin Williams were big BattleTech fans.
• Game audio will support audio 5:1. Primary will be stereo.
• Roughly half the mechpilots will be women.
• Will there be fully 3D editable pilot portraits? Depends. Until the beta is out, HBS does not know much work is left on the game.
• Jon had 3 recording days (each 8 to 9 hours long), which resulted in 45 to 60 minutes of recordings.
• Rob can do the entire voice-over for one pilot in 2 hours. As for sound effects, Rob can take up to an hour to create and layer the effect for one weapon.
• How players will give feedback during beta will be explained in a kickstarter update, but for now, know that there will be in-game questionnaires. This allows for feedback and in a format that makes it easier for HBS to collect and analyze it.
• There are different sounds for weapon impact in environmental areas and objects. There is a list of 25, 30 surface types. Rob will mix and match those and apply them to the feet of a Mech, to every weapon. Dirt will sound different from water. Everything that interfaces with the world of the game will change according to the texture.

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

So that's why there was potato in the BTech budget plan.

 

[J_C]

In the latest update, they have just announced a partnership with Paradox for distribution, testing and marketing. Paradox is really scooping up these indie titles.

 

[Jimmious]

Beta 1st of June
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/webeharebrained/battletech/posts/1883078

 

[Transfiguring Roar]

 

[Infinitron]

Friendship ended with Obsidian, now Harebrained Schemes is my best friend: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/webeharebrained/battletech/posts/1883078

Beta Date! Gameplay Video! New Partnership! Exclamation Points!!!


Hey everyone, Mitch here.
I’m happy to tell you that our Kickstarter Backer Beta is on track for release on June 1st. The game’s looking good, playing well, and the team is firing on all cylinders but we need to take some more time to further test and bugfix our multiplayer code before confidently releasing the beta into your hands - that way, we can minimize networking issues and everyone can have a good time on day one.


Now we know folks are itching to see the game in action, so our Game Director Mike McCain and I recorded a friendly multiplayer match to give you a peek at what to expect in the Beta. Full disclosure here - Mike is one of the better players in the studio and I… am not. Nevertheless, I think I put up a pretty good fight as you’ll see in the video. Hope you like it!


For those of you interested in even more detail than Mike and I provided onscreen, Designer Ryan (RedMenace on the forums) wrote a post annotating our gameplay. Check it out here.

New Partnership
Right now, somewhere in Sweden, BattleTech & MechWarrior creator Jordan Weisman is announcing a partnership between Harebrained Schemes and Paradox Interactive to publish BATTLETECH on PC. As our Backers, we feel it’s important that you get this information straight from us before it hits the press, so here’s the deal in a nutshell: Paradox will provide marketing support, localization services, and funds for additional testing in exchange for a cut of the game’s sales. This allows us to focus all our efforts on making a great game while maintaining complete creative control.

I’m really excited that HBS will have the chance to work with Paradox as they are the clear category leader for PC strategy games. We respect the quality and depth of their games and they have lots of players and fans in our studio. Equally important to us is the way that Paradox respects and engages with their community, values we share.

(Plus, they’re huge fans of our work on the Shadowrun Returns series and are really excited about our game - good qualities in a publisher, right?)

So why is this a good thing?

• Because with Paradox’s additional test funding, we’ll have more professional testers banging on the game earlier so we ship the highest quality game we can.
• Because with their help, we can also deliver higher quality localized versions of the game to our overseas players and spend far less time managing the process.
• Because we won’t need to divide our attention away from making the game in order to sell the game. We’re not marketers - we’re game developers, and we want our focus to be firmly on delivering the best BATTLETECH experience we can.
• Because we all love BattleTech and the more attention that Paradox can bring to the game, the better its chances for success in an incredibly crowded and competitive marketplace. As I’m often quoted, “In success, all things are possible.” Paradox’s marketing support will hopefully result in increased sales of the game and allow for years of BATTLETECH expansions and sequels for all of us to enjoy.

We’re happy to be working with a publisher who knows how to make great strategy games, loves BattleTech, and respects BattleTech fans. Nothing has changed, except that our chances for success are now even higher.

How ‘bout a little video to get the hype train rolling???

We figured you might have questions so we wrote a little FAQ about our partnership. Please take a look and let us know if you have any other questions on the BattleTech Forums.


FAQ
Is this the real reason the Backer Beta was delayed?Absolutely not. Our new relationship with Paradox had nothing to do with the delay of our Backer Beta. See the explanation in Kickstarter Update #36 for details.

Does Paradox have control over the design of the game?Nope. HBS has complete creative control of the game. Paradox has lots of BattleTech fans who have opinions (just like our Backers) but HBS is not obligated to take their feedback. That said, the company has lots of experience with strategy games and we’d be dumb not to listen.

Who is responsible for testing the game now?
Harebrained Schemes controls the testing of the game. Paradox is funding it.


Who will handle customer support for BATTLETECH?
For our Backer Beta and service to our Backers, it’s Harebrained Schemes all the way.

Once the game launches, Paradox will handle customer support. They have a full team of experienced support staff and a history of quality customer support. They will (of course) team up with our development team for investigation and vetting of technical issues.


What happens to our personal information from the Kickstarter? Does Paradox get it now?
Definitely not. We take your privacy very seriously and will not be sharing any information gathered via Kickstarter with Paradox or anyone else.


Will the game still release on Steam, GOG, and Humble?
You bet. BATTLETECH will release on Steam, GoG, and Humble on Windows, Mac, and Linux. Nothing has changed there and, as we mentioned in an earlier update, we're looking at a late Summer/Fall release.


Will I still be able to download a DRM-Free version of the game?
Yes. A DRM-Free version will be available on GOG.


You mentioned expansions. What's the plan for post-launch content and DLC?
In success we hope to release full-fledged expansions to the game and intend to focus on that over small pieces of DLC.


What about sequels? Does Paradox have a say in those?
We have no agreement with Paradox to release sequels to the game at this time. If our relationship goes well, we’ll consider it in the future.

BTW it's PDXCon so we might see more of BattleTech in the next few days.