System Shock System Shock 2 Enhanced Edition by Nightdive Studios

[Feyd Rautha]

:confused_travolta:

Love the updated look; it keeps faithful to the original but with a modern look
Kind of makes me hope more DarkEngine games get updated

My only boogle is that it looks confused instead of angry. When I played SS2 last my impression was that they were The Manys footsoldiers on a constant angry lookout. If confusion is their new look we might have a comedy game on our hands.

 

[kangaxx]

IMO this pipe hybrid model is better than the one in the Rebirth mod, but I'm not sure how necessary any of it is. It's basically going to be a paid version of mods you could get for free.

I got "wtf am I reading"-ed above, but I'm still interested to see if they can fix multiplayer. After so many years/playthroughs of doing single player to death, that's how I get the most fun out of the game now.

 

[kangaxx]

My only boogle is that it looks confused instead of angry. When I played SS2 last my impression was that they were fotsoldiers on a constant angry lookout. If confusion is their new look we might have a comedy game on our hands.

If they all look the same then it'll be weird, but some of them have pretty "confused" voice lines. Apologising for attacking or telling you to run etc.

 

[Ghulgothas]

They look perfectly alright, the guy they got from the existing modding community has already done a better job than Rebirth. The dancing shit is doing the actual work that went into a them a disservice.

I‘ll need to see how the Midwifes, Psi Reavers and Cyborg Assassins come out before I’m fully onboard with this one though.

 

[Tacgnol]

:confused_travolta:

Love the updated look; it keeps faithful to the original but with a modern look
Kind of makes me hope more DarkEngine games get updated

My only boogle is that it looks confused instead of angry. When I played SS2 last my impression was that they were fotsoldiers on a constant angry lookout. If confusion is their new look we might have a comedy game on our hands.

It looks better than the rebirth one to be fair. Though that's admittedly a pretty low bar.

There was another System Shock 2 mod that I used to use (way back in the day) that used different hybrid models to Rebirth. It changed the designs quite a bit but the hybrids looked much more horrific than the ones in Rebirth.

One of the interesting changes was it made the shotgun hybrids infected security personnel, so they wore the body armour and uniforms of the tri optimum security forces.

Edit: It was Arcaniac graphics pack. I found it literally moments after I posted this.
https://www.systemshock.org/index.php?topic=251.0

 

[anvi]

Will this ever get released?

 

[Ghulgothas]

Further teaseposting of updated models and textures (this time with less dancing).

 

[gerey]

Besides overhauling the models, and, I assume, environmental assets, what else are they even "enhancing"?

 

[GhostCow]

Further teaseposting of updated models and textures (this time with less dancing).

The updated models look like something from 2005 at best. I'm not impressed.

 

[Maggot]

2005 artists knew how to have lighting in their textures instead of a flat cartoony aesthetic.

 

[LESS T_T]

Well it makes sense if they're going to use "actual" lighting/shading system, instead of heavily relying on light and shadow drawn ("baked") in the textures.

 

[Nano]

Midwife texture is a massive downgrade. Are they trying to make to make the game less scary?

 

[kangaxx]

Besides overhauling the models, and, I assume, environmental assets, what else are they even "enhancing"?

They're making multiplayer more stable apparently, which I would actually appreciate.

But this is classic Nightdive. Tease a load of updated models and precious little else by way of content.

 

[mkultra]

VR is going to be cool.. i always play SS2 with 3D Vision, same with Theif 2, can't go back to 2D after trying, just feels so flat and dead.
It works exceptionally well in stereoscopic 3D i think, the old way of doing levels makes everything have great depth/height, it's never subtle.
Mods are also going to be included (optional) i was contacted by them and asked if mine could be included.

The character models aren't great perhaps, still pretty low poly, but the engine has a limit when it comes to polys per object, maybe they couldn't get around that limit. I personally really like the new models.

In 2019 it was "coming soon", so yeah, hopefully these soon 3 years extra will be noticeable...

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

I don't think the new models look bad, but this is another completely pointless EE as the original runs, looks and plays perfectly fine.

 

[mkultra]

EE's will never be like playing an entirely new game, it's just that - a slightly enhanced version, nothing more. This is not a remake.

You can even play the original without even modding it.. personally, as a immense fan of SS2, i take every little enhancement i can get, i install every graphical mod etc. VR will be cool, fixed MP will be nice, whatever enhancements for the engine it can bring can be nice for future mods and development.

 

[Nano]

I don't think the new models look bad

They are bad. Let's break down the new Midwife model:

Original: Her eyes make her look twisted, and she has a hint of a smile.

Remodel: Typical skeletal-faced enemy, smile is gone, the shape of her eyes and the way her eyes are looking down almost looks comedic.

Original: Looks like she's doesn't have any skin in some areas, especially at the front of the neck.

Remodel: No blood or missing skin, they just put a few stitches on there instead. Pathetic.

Original: Notice her nails and the dark red blood.

Remodel: Nails gone, blood color is milder.

Also for some reason they added a few extra pounds on her. I guess they think body positivity is also important for horrific monsters?

 

[gerey]

But this is classic Nightdive. Tease a load of updated models and precious little else by way of content.

I mean, I do like the look of the updated models so far, especially if there is an option to switch between them and the old ones in-game.

What I'm curious is if this is just going to be a 1:1 with a facelift, or if they're going to include a "rebalanced" mode - because the game certainly needs it when it comes to some character builds, skills, weapons etc.

If it's just a graphical overhaul, then I really fail to see the point, SS2 already runs fine on modern systems.

 

[kangaxx]

What I'm curious is if this is just going to be a 1:1 with a facelift, or if they're going to include a "rebalanced" mode - because the game certainly needs it when it comes to some character builds, skills, weapons etc.

I think it's mostly graphical, but as mentioned above they are also adding VR and stabilising multiplayer. They also need to port the game over to their own engine from my understanding... maybe someone can correct me if that changed?

They need to be careful if they're mucking around with the game's balance, such as it is.

 

[Tweed]

Funny, I tried playing Shock2 with Vorpx once and almost vomited before I ever got out of the recruitment facility.

 

[anvi]

Yea new models look ok to me but I don't really care. I like the original and would only play one of these remakes or whatever if they added more content/gameplay. But even remaking an old game with new engine seems to be beyond most companies.

 

[Sordid MCA/Prosper Hybryd]

I don't think the new models look bad

They are bad. Let's break down the new Midwife model:

Original: Her eyes make her look twisted, and she has a hint of a smile.

Remodel: Typical skeletal-faced enemy, smile is gone, the shape of her eyes and the way her eyes are looking down almost looks comedic.

Original: Looks like she's doesn't have any skin in some areas, especially at the front of the neck.

Remodel: No blood or missing skin, they just put a few stitches on there instead. Pathetic.

Original: Notice her nails and the dark red blood.

Remodel: Nails gone, blood color is milder.

Also for some reason they added a few extra pounds on her. I guess they think body positivity is also important for horrific monsters?

Dude, I really respect your attention to detail!

 

[mkultra]

It's a 10 min retexture job, if any modder wants to put in the "effort".

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

They are bad. Let's break down the new Midwife model:

Yeah, no shit, you ain't getting top shelf nineties quality from modern devs, who knew. The point I'm making is: compared to a typical herpu derpu modder or an EE butchering, these look OK and strike a nice balance between being actually upscaled but not too modern/different. Do I need this? No. Is it a decent effort? Yes.

 

[kangaxx]

The main question for me is why a studio of around 10 employees has so many things on the go at once. Seems odd.