multi-player hooks?

[sophist]

Poking around the text files I found a couple interesting bits:

in the file

....\Program Files\Civilization III\jackal.txt

#NETCONNECT_CREATE
#xs 320
#caption Host Multiplayer Game
#editbox
#itemlist
Enter game name:
Enter your name:
##Optional password:

------------

and other stuff.

------------

then in ...\Program Files\Civilization III\Text\play the world.txt

stuff like:


#PTW
EXIT
MAIN MENU
Get the Game of the Week
Get the Game of the Day
View Scores
Exit
Your Current Score:

#PTWERR_SERVER_NOT_FOUND
Cannot find the Server or communications error.




------------


Looks to me like multi-player is in the works. Or was.

[bigboss]

I have noticed that both the original civ2, civ2mge and even SMAC had unused junk like that scattered throughout the game's installed files. Not multiplayer related stuff in particular but unused text files, un-updated game notes, and obsolete files in general.

Did anyone else wonder what drugs Firaxis was on when reading the readme for Civ3 and saw the notes saying that OpenGL is required to run the game? Uh... the game is 100% DirectX, no OpenGL required whatsoever. The CD even includes a very old MS OpenGL install file.

Also if you look at the Civ3 install guide document, the title of it is "Master Of Orion II".

I just find it funny how the later microprose and all firaxis games have trash leftover from development.

[Adagio]

Check out the demo of SimGolf, there they also have a such file (With the headline Sid Meyers Alpha Centaury)

[Dan Magaha FIRAXIS]

OpenGL *IS* required. It's used to handle all the anti-aliased line draw commands (most notably on the foreign advisor, but in lots of other places as well).

Dan

[ScottVib]

This file just appears to be universal in the engine, many of the lines still contain references to Alpha Centauri.

for example the #CDNOTFOUND line in jackal.txt says that the Alpha Centauri CD wasn't found. I think its an artifact for now and if MP is added they'll probably have to include an updated and corrected version of those files as well as some other stuff.

Perhaps people should compare what files are in AC to what's in Civ and see if there are differences in the jackal.txt or similar files (other than substituting Civ III for AC).

[bigboss]

Wow Dan, thanks for the reply! That is very interesting. Also note that the box also makes no mention of requiring OpenGL. This is probably due to the fact that the game is only using a few functions that require no hardware acceleration. Or that it was added at the last minute.

I am wondering why OpenGL was used in these cases.. doesn't DirectX supply equivalent functions?