The Source Engine is a 3D game engine developed by Valve Corporation. Its unique features include a large degree of modularity and flexibility, an artist-driven, shader-based renderer, accurate lip sync and facial expression technology, and a powerful, efficient and completely network-enabled physics system.
The Source engine was first shown to the world by being the power-horse behind the hugely anticipated Half-Life 2 which was released in late 2004. Since then the Source Engine has been upgraded with the release of such titles as Half-Life 2: Lost Coast, Team Fortress 2 and the Left 4 Dead series to name a few.
Whilst it has been years since the release of the Source Engine they haven't yet unveiled a 'next-generation engine' as the Source engine is always updating and is just as relevant in the gaming world today if not more than when it debuted in 2004. It has been aided by the release of the free Source Development Kit (SDK) which include such features as HDR for developers to use in their projects. Hence the reasons stated we have yet to see 'Source Engine 2'.
On July 10th 2012, Valve released the 'Source Filmmaker' - a freeware client to allowed anyone to make movies inside the Source Engine. More information on the Source Filmmaker can be found here.
Below you can find a list of amazing features that the Source Engine boasts:
Renderer
- Version 2.0 (and below) shaders, bump mapping, LOD on models and world
- Author shaders with HLSL
- Cube and environment mapping
- Dynamic lights, vertex lighting and light maps, many light types including flickering, pulsing etc.
- High-Dynamic Range lighting
- Water with refraction and fresnel effects
- Advanced particle system that can emit sprites or models
- Projected shadows allow for a large number of characters per scene
- Occluder entities for visibility blocking
- Indoor/Outdoor environments
- Deformable terrain
- 3D skyboxes extend the horizon and add parallax on distant objects
- Dynamically rendered organics (grass, trees etc)
- Subdivision surfaces, diffuse & specular bump maps
- Real-time radiosity lighting
- Effects include but are not limited to: particles, beams, volumetric smoke, sparks, blood, environmental effects like fog and rain
- Scalability
- Dx6-Dx9 hardware supported
Materials System
- Instead of traditional textures, Source defines sets of materials that specify what the object is made from and the texture used for that object. A material specifies how an object will fracture when broken, what it will sound like when broken or dragged across another surface, and what that object’s mass and buoyancy are. This system is much more flexible than other texture only based systems.
- Materials can interact with objects or NPCs such as mud or ice for vehicles to slide/lose traction on.
Multiplayer Network Code
- Time and gamer tested by millions of gamers around the world
- Support for both LAN based multiplayer and Internet based multiplayer games
- Prediction analysis for interpolating collision/hit detection
- Optimizations for high-latency, high-packet loss 56k connections
Advanced Characters
- Detailed and believable characters
- Realistic eyes
- Focus on player/object, not simply parallel views
- Proper eye “bulge” for realistic eye reflections
- Simulated musculature provides outstanding emotions, speech and body language
- Language independent speech, characters can naturally speak in many languages
- Skeletal/bone system for animation
- Layered animation system can synthesize complex animations out of several pieces
Related Articles
It has been awhile since we posted something here, which was back in... oh boy, 2015. Let's get up to speed on what we have been up to, shall we?
Back in November 2019, I (Johan "JonnyBoy0719" Ehrendahl) was hired as the new lead programmer for Contagion. In short, I was hired to fix the game because it was in a terrible state. Game was crashing left and right, Escape gamemode softlocked if the survivors failed the round, Extraction had problems with the AI survivors and Flatline was... Well, let's just say it was not in great shape. After rewriting Flatline gamemode from the ground up (everything was thrown out), it was finally out from Beta after 7 years.
After a single month, the major update was finally released in late December of 2019. Several more major updates was released from 2020 to 2021, bringing more content such as new zombies types, weapons and maps. The major updates slowed down in 2022, not because of lacking in productivity, but because we are working on something big. The recent update that was released back in 8th of April 2022, we released the first campaign ever created for Contagion called "Last Stop", which is the first chapter that comes with 3 new maps and a new character!
Contagion :: Preview of The Changes
Mike R. Gonzales "The Engineer", is a new character for Contagion. Voiced by our very own community manager, LordCommanderGuts. He is a new character that works at a fictional company in Last Stop that you will pass trough on the 3rd map on Chapter 1.
Lakeland - Extraction
Clock Tower - Flatline
Last Stop - Chapter 1
Last Stop - Chapter 1
2021 Contagion Weapons Update Trailer - Mod DB
The Changelog
This combines changes from 29th of December 2019 to 8th of April 2022. But it does not contain everything, only some important bits. Basically a quick TLDR.
If you want to read all changes, you can find them here: Contagion Steam News Hub
- Added support for Angelscript
- Added a Lobby System
- Added the following maps:
Escape
- ce_campwhitner_halloween
- ce_harvest_halloween
- ce_laststop
- ce_laststop_02
- ce_laststop_03
- ce_montclair_partb
- ce_roanokepd_halloween
Flatline
- cf_clocktower
- cf_clocktower_halloween
- cf_harvest
- cf_johantower
- cf_losmuertos
- cf_sewage
- cf_stonecreek
- cf_underground
- cf_unionstation
Hunted
- ch_biotec
- ch_cypruspark_night
- ch_deathtrain
- ch_harvest
- ch_lakeland_christmas
- ch_roanokepd
- ch_stonecreek
Extraction
- cx_auroraestates_christmas
- cx_biotec
- cx_lakeland
- cx_montclair - Added damage masks for Riot Zombie (head only)
- Added Riot Zombie helmet gibs
- Added new cvar (wsnd_mute_losefocus) to utilize "audio focus" mode
- Added new startup parameter (--noworkshop) to disable workshop
- Added a new trigger called info_safezone
- Added "DEV CONSOLE" button on the mainmenu, if Developer Console is enabled
- Added the option to refuse "weapon switch" on weapon pickup with cl_equipweapononpickup set to 0
- Added new entity shop_item to allow weapons to be bought from the store in Flatline Gamemode
- Added new entity info_zombie_spawn to spawn specific AI zombie types at the location of choice.
- Added a notification that shows up if you earn, lose, or buy something in Flatline Gamemode
- Added new achievements
- Added the missing empty reload animations for MP5K, AR-15, AK74U, SCAR, SIG, 1911 and KG9
- Added new weapons:
- Benelli M4
- Deagle
- MAC-10
- M79
- Flamethrower
- Scythe
- Glowstick
- Inoculator
- Double Barrel Shotgun
- Crowbar
-
- Updated WWise 2014.1.4 >> 2015.1.9
- Updated WWise soundbank file structure and reduced all the audio banks file sizes
- Updated Main Menu VGUI to UI2
- Updated "Downloading workshop add-ons..." text to also include "mounting", to tell the clients that there are workshop content currently being mounted
- Updated Flatline gamemode, it’s no longer in BETA!
- Updated Flatline gamemode last wave, to notify the mapper if the logic_relay "flatline_escape" is missing, and if the info_gps for the extraction zone is missing
- Updated the engine to support "audio focus" mode
- Updated Hammer Editor
- Updated Valve Model Viewer
- Updated VPK System
- Updated the lightmapped shaders to support Parallax Corrected Cubemaps
- Updated the FGDs
- Updated hammer_run_launcher.exe, now you no longer need the full path for the game.
- Updated trigger_escape to allow “next level” change after escape (empty by default, restarts the round)
- Updated SCAR, Remington870, and M1 Garand firing sounds
- Updated the maxplayers to be forced at 8 players on all modes except hunted (which supports 16 players)
- Updated Server connection retrieve netpackets, to check for lobby servers
- Updated Server connection, to use Steam's own networking protocols instead of normal IPv4 (will fallback to it if it fails)
- Fixed game crashes regarding shaders (if set to medium or higher)
- Fixed Escape gamemode softlocking due to "zombie lives"
- Fixed a crash related to the phone
- Fixed a crash related to weapon highlight proxy
- Fixed a crash related to flatline when trying to find its way to the shop
- Fixed female zombies (common) having faulty leg damage masks for ZombieTestProxy
- Fixed credits not working, due to it was trying to read the wrong search path
- Fixed fast download not working at all
- Fixed WWise memory leakage regarding to unloading and loading of audiobanks
- Fixed the phone causing a crash after changing levels
- Fixed the navmesh around the statue on ce_montclair
- Fixed Mia and Yumi not using the female zombie voices
- Fixed Curtis, Lawrence, Manuel, Mia and Yumi having a broken damage mask
- Fixed biotec_generator not having a collision mesh
- Fixed fireaxe being weaker than a golfclub
- Fixed melee weapons acting like foam on flesh targets (basically, use a gun instead)
- Fixed Flatline gamemode crashing on the last wave
- Fixed where the displacement would stick through the basement in ce_harvest
- Fixed where DLC weapons did not have any physics sound
- Fixed Contagion Workshop publish / edit tool not working
- Fixed filter_damage_type ignoring “BLAST” damage filter
- Fixed contagionds.exe UI not working at all, and refusing to read the VPKS
- Fixed crossbow ammo not dealing any damage when shooting at the head hitbox
- Fixed crossbow ammo pack not giving 6, but 24
- Fixed where you could drop weapons while climbing ladders (this would make the player turn into a T-Pose)
- Fixed weapon_gasmask not muffling the sound when in use
- Fixed a crash bug related to NextBot AI trying to call a non existent noisemaker object if their enemy target dies from a grenade, or any explosive material
- Fixed faulty animations for Jessica and Nicole
- The Contagion Team
Major update Treason!
TreasonIn Treason, a group of mobsters finds a dead body. There are traitors amongst them...To find out who the traitors are, the innocents have to search for...
Treason Playtest build available on Steam
TreasonRequest acces to the Playtest Build through the Steam page!
Added Treason to Moddb/Indiedb!
TreasonSince 2017 i've had my own idea about a more spiced up and faster Trouble in Terrorist Town experience. Started as a cs Condition Zero server with buggy...
October Update (including walkthrough)
NewsThis update details the progress that has been made with the mod over the last few months. Included is a walkthrough video of the entire first 3 levels.
Games
Black Mesa
First Person ShooterBlack Mesa is a re-envisioning of Valve Software's classic science fiction first person shooter, Half-Life. Powered by Source Engine, You will re-visit...
WAY INTO THE DARK I
First Person ShooterENG Dark world... Of darkness and despair,this world has become so. Because of the Combine, that have enslaved it in their, own interests... Dive into...
Contagion
First Person ShooterContagion isn't your average Zombie Shooter but instead takes a more realistic and different approach to the popular genre with unique characters, environments...
They Hunger: Lost Souls ReBuild
First Person ShooterThis is a rebuild of the old They Hunger Lost Souls in playable form
Military Conflict: Vietnam
First Person ShooterAn infantry multiplayer first-person shooter set in the Vietnam War.
Garry's Mod
First Person ShooterGarry’s Mod is a sandbox mod for the Source Engine. Unlike normal games there aren't any predefined aims or goals. Players are given tools and are left...
SCP Overturn
StealthA SinglePlayer Only SCP GAME MADE ON SOURCE ENGINE 24 BY BarMan228 and Lordyanskiy
Team Fortress 2 Invasion
First Person Shootersource code was released in the 2003 leak, the game was worked on by Team gabeN but their work has yet to be released. but the TFI Team are the newest...
Prospekt
First Person ShooterProspekt begins in the Nova Prospekt prison in the Half-Life universe. Gordon Freeman is slowly being overrun by soldiers in the prison, however unknown...
Treason
First Person ShooterProject made by a group of friendly devs, playtesters and me (Klaus Veen), for a casual but spiced up TTT experience to play with a group of friends...
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Mod SDK & Community
Built a game for Source and want to support mods? Try mod.io, a cross-platform mod SDK created by Indie DB which makes it easy to get a mod community up and running in-game. Currently seeking games to integrate and promote
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How to fix the error: Support for total conversions are not available using the source engine.
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The most best Engine in universe
Hi, how i can found people for work with battle royale on source engine?
To bad this engine was not coded to count beyond the number three.
man, i love source :3
can anyone link me an up to date tutorial on how to make mods for the source engine beyond going into source sdk and clicking create a mod the best link I have found so far is the my first mod article in the valve developer community however for the prepare the solution section I got very confused as the only version of visual studio I have is 2015 but it only goes up to 2012
check crimewarssource youtube vids
Source 2 HYPE
Polygon.com
HYPE is real!