Red Alert 2: Apocalypse Rising Windows, Mac game

Hello everyone and welcome to this Apocalypse Rising Mega Update! We've been really busy these past few months working on a bunch of stuff, so here's a big summary of all of our major developments since the last update!

Gameplay Videos

For those who are here to see how the game plays, we have two in-game footage videos available for viewing! This first one is from Renegade's 20th Anniversary Event, which ran from 19th February to 27th February! Apocalypse Rising was featured on the 23rd, which for many of our guests was their first ingame experience!

Considering the length of these two videos for ModDB, it is much more practical to link the videos! Click on the links below to view them!

Red Alert 2: Apocalypse Rising Stream - Renegade Anniversary Stream

Huge thanks to CCHyper for our specially-themed Red Alert 2: Apocalypse Rising screen! Expect to see that during our Apocalypse Rising streams that you can catch on our Twitch channel @ twitch.tv/w3dhub

The second video is from C&C community streamer, Lunak; who has recorded himself playing the same event from a different perspective. We would like to thank him for taking the time to stream our content! If you would like to see more of his streams, visit his channel @ twitch.tv/lunak89 and tell him W3D Hub sent you! Lunak89 Apocalypse Rising Stream

Map Updates

Next on, we have a few screenshots of some maps that we have been working on. Our team has made significant progress on these and we can't wait to have you explore everything!

Dune Patrol

First up is are two WIP screenshots of Dune Patrol, created by moonsense715,

Dune Patrol features a village in the east which infantry can engage in close-quarters combat, as well as capturable Oil Derricks to earn bonus income for your team!

The center of the map also features a small staging area, pictured below. Make use of the bunker and supplies found here to dominate the center and allow your teammates to push onward!

WIP: Mayak Beach

Next up is Mayak Beach, made by the combined powers of Romanov and moonsense715.

This level is still under construction and features a new super-weapon. Intel acquired by Agent Tanya and a British Spy shows that the Soviets have built a space-based nuclear weapon.

This never-before-seen weapon will cause catastrophic destruction if left unchecked. This cannot happen! The Allied forces must not allow the Soviets to win this battle!

WIP: Secret Superweapons Map

Last but not least, Romanov has been working on an additional new map. It features a new Allied building (the Gap Generator), along with the familiar Red Alert 2 superweapons, the Weather Control Device and the Nuclear Missile Silo.

The systems controlling the superweapons are about to enter a heavy testing and iteration phase! Superweapons have long been a popular demand and our testing will tell us how best to fit these into gameplay!

User Interface Updates

Moving on, next we have some details about some major upgrades to the user interface. These are mainly quality of life improvements that will enhance the gameplay throughout.

Vehicle Queuing System

moonsense715 has recently coded up the vehicle factory queue system (Red Alert: A Path Beyond is already using this!).

We have listened to player and the tester feedback and we decided that this was a very needed QOL update. This new system allows players to queue up their vehicle purchases instead of playing the who-buys-faster game at the Purchase Terminal. No longer will players stand around, waiting for the War Factory to become available.

Just submit your request and wait for your order to be processed! In the mean time you can defend the base or chat with your teammates. Alternatively, until your order starts being processed, you may cancel your order and get refunded.

Here is a picture of what the factory bar looks like. The player pictured below has ordered a Grizzly Tank that is waiting to be processed:

A supplementary feature to compliment the factory bar is the "Queue Information" panel.

This is what it looks like when the player has ordered a Grizzly Tank and it is currently 2nd in the Allied War Factory queue:

Building Capture Bar

Currently in Apocalypse Rising, you can capture tech buildings simply by standing next to them (the Engineer also has a bonus to capturing speed).

We received some feedback that capturing buildings was lacking some visual feedback, so this is now shown towards the top of the screen in the centre, so you can clearly see the capturing progress:

Dynamic Loading Screens

Recent code changes by moonsense715 allowed us to build a dynamic loading screen.

This automatically picks up images and data related to the level being loaded, for example specific images and the name of the map.

We have also built a tooltip system into the loading screen. This will pick a random tip (out of a pool) and display it here. You might learn something new every time!

3D Model Updates

This section contains a whole bunch of 3d model updates to various units within the game.

Black Eagle

After all that, yes we still have a few asset updates left to show as well. First up is the Black Eagle, which was originally a model of an F-18 made by artist Wolves-Realm. OWA has used this model as a base to come up with a new Black Eagle model, which is a massive improvement over our placeholder model.

Rhino Tank

Our Rhino Tank was beginning to shows its age and low resolution textures, so moonsense715 went ahead and updated it with the leading help of one of our testers, Purple. Big credit for the help!

Pictured below are the older model and the new and improved model!

As you can see from the older model, the Rhino previously have undefined barrels, an unimpressive gun barrel, and basic tank wheels. In collaboration with Purple and building upon the old model, the new Rhino Tank features a much more impressive exterior, complete with more defined armour, a coaxial machine gun, improved treads, a front window, spotlights, and more! See it all in this side-by-side comparison!

Guardian GI

The Guardian GI has received a new model which has now made its way in-game. He looks a bit more sturdier than the regular GI, but retains some consistent visuals between the two; such as the helmet, goggles and kneepads.

This new model gives the Guardian GI the formidable appearance as befits him.

Credit to OWA and Romanov for the model and texture respectively.

Crazy Ivan

Crazy Ivan is the Soviet's resident bomb specialist. Armed with a ton of TNT, he excels at destroying enemy buildings. Previously using an older Renegade model and a change of clothing, the Crazy Ivan is now represented by his new and unique model!

TNT strapped to his body and donning his signature eye-patch and bandana, he is now more dangerous than ever!

Credit to OWA, Romanov, and moonsense715.

Gap Generator

The Allied Gap Generators produces a fog bubble around the Allied base preventing the Soviets to be able to see what is happening inside.

The Gap Generator in AR will be different to APB. We are using a newscript for the concealment logic. What this means is that when a Soviet player is inside the bubble, enemy Allied players will not be stealthed (like in APB), but instead they will be un-targetable and their information on the HUD and various menus will be hidden.

This includes defenses and buildings too, so if a Gap Generator bubble covers either of these, the Soviets cannot track its health.

Credit to Romanov for the model, texture and script!

Spy Bug Device

This is a special device that the Allied Spy uses to hack buildings. To use it, the Spy must place it on an enemy repair node. This will then have a negative effect to the Soviet team until they are able to disarm it. The effect varies on the building that is placed on, which can be discussed in more detail at a later time.

Once discovered, the bug device can be disarmed by shooting it with any regular weapon.

Credit to Squid Empire and Romanov for the model and texture!

That's all from this Apocalypse Rising mega update. Join the discussion on our W3D Hub Discord @ Discord.gg