A bithead named scancode made a quick and handy tool to disable and enable which mods gets loaded at startup of the game.

Eventually we will probably add this functionality to the game itself, but this is great in the mean time. Consider donating to him if you find the tool useful!

I’m at GDC again, despite having been sick with fever etc in the beginning of the week. Getting lots of inspiration for the game and meeting many new and old friends in and out of the indie gamedev scene. It’s a great time, as you can see here.

UPDATE: Home again. Final update to the photos above has been done, so there’s more stuff at the end. Back to work tomorrow!

After most of a month of recurring fevers and aches, it turns out I’ve probably got viral meningitis. It could have been much much worse (bacterial version), but it still hasn’t been good for productivity.

However, we are working on things that should improve Cortex Command in a couple of big ways over the next several builds:

Lua scripting. We are finally starting to integrate proper scripting into the engine. At first, it will only handle game logic for scenes, so scenarios and events during missions can easily be set up in external script files and not be hardcoded. Eventually, we hope to expose AI and other actor behaviors as well, so you can literally make your own AI modes – with control all the way down to how the AI guys look, aim, and shoot.
The current data (.ini) files will still be left intact, and the script files are just to be added and referred to by the object definitions in those existing data files.

Completely new license scheme. No more asking us to reset keys when you forget to unregister before reformatting your computer. You’ll be able to do it yourself. Also, we will be offering new methods of payment, which hopefully will better accommodate folks in countries with weaker currencies and less access to credit cards.
Don’t worry, we will make sure that all current license owners will have an extremely easy time transferring their keys to the new system when we roll it out.

That’s all for now, heading back to bed.

Build 20 is out! Lots of fun explosive stuff in here: proper detonation effects for all the ships, including the rocket!

Other improvements:

• Mods (.rte folders) can now be loaded in the trial version, and little more time allowed for skirmishes too
• Sound looping bugs fixed, diggers and engines won’t sound after they are destroyed or the AI uses them etc
• Various graphical bugs with lines in the background etc on reset fixed
• TDExplosives now work properly, the flak cannon’s projectiles always detonate, for example
• Various bugs with legs not behaving properly, like the crab tucking etc
• New experimental shock absorbing legs on the rocket. Needs some more work 🙂
• Many more small improvements and tweaks

If you have the previous build 19, you CAN install this directly over it, without unregistering.
(Although you do NOT need build 19 to install this!)

We just wanted to wish all our fans and customers a very merry xmas and holiday! Thank you so much for supporting us by buying the unfinished game and enabling us to keep working on it and other projects in the future. As long as sales keep up, we should be able to continue cranking out the Data Realms goodness for you to enjoy!

A special thanks to those who have generously chosen the ‘Support Data Realms Edition’ option! Your extra votes of confidence in the final product helps a LOT, both on the money and morale fronts here. We will not forget this!

We have been working on the next build, but with the holidays going on, it’s been a bit slower than expected. Ideally we wanted to push out number 20 by now, but it’s just not done yet. We know you are eager to get more content, but half-baked cookies just don’t taste as good as something done proper, amirite?! (ok, terrible analogy)

Anyway, rest assured that you haven’t seen much yet in terms of what is in store for next year! In the mean time, enjoy the quiet days between now and new year’s…

So… out of curiosity, I googled “Cortex Command Crack” today, and tried out some of the torrents and downloads that popped up.

Then, I had to spend a good hour disinfecting my test computer with every anti-virus tool I could throw at it. Beware — there is some nasty stuff floating around, disguised as the real thing!

Don’t be this guy.

That being said, if you do find a working crack, or you manage to crack it yourself, we’d love to see it! You will be rewarded with a free license key to the game (seriously)! Remember, any crack will probably only work for one version, while the key will legitimately unlock all versions up to and including when the full campaign is done!

Ok a couple of people managed to actually send real legit cracks they had made themselves (great job!), and they collected their rewards. No more keys will be handed out, so please stop spamming us with links to “maybe this is a crack?!” websites. Thanks! 🙂

After doing a first test of the payment system yesterday, rumors leaked out and I don’t think we can hold back the pre-release of the game any longer. So, here it is, for anyone to try. I want to emphasize that it is a pre-release of what we intended to be the commercial version! Next week we’ll try to have a more polished one up and call it the real deal.

Without further ado, the rightmost button below leads to the purchasing page for buying licenses. Since we ironed out the bugs yesterday, things should work smoothly. If there is any trouble though, don’t hesitate to contact us at support@datarealms.com!

The IGF finalists have been announced. Congrats to all the nominees, especially our friends at 2D boy with their fantastic looking World of Goo entry!

Cortex Command was in the running again this year, but unfortunately didn’t make it. Perhaps next year when there should to be a full campaign and more polish — we’ll certainly try yet again. In the mean time, let’s see if sales of the upcoming commercial versions can keep the full-time development going…

After the last post hyping things up a little, it’s time to dish out a counter to keep expectations in check with reality regarding the next release.

As some may have gleaned by now, the next version of Cortex Command will be the first one you can buy a license for. The plan is to release something that can be downloaded and played for free, but to get access to all the features you’ll need to buy a license key and unlock your installed copy with it.

We will have more details about how to buy and use the keys in a later post. Rest assured that we are trying hard to make it as flexible, affordable, and as little hassle to you as possible — while still ensuring that the seven years of work we’ve put into the project will pay off enough to allow us to keep working on it and future Data Realms games.

As for what will actually be in the version due out soon, please note that it is not going to have a complete campaign right off the bat. Currently there is only one complete mission, and half of it is a tutorial. There may be another mission done by time we put out the release, but it’s iffy.

Since the game won’t nearly be complete by the next release, the licenses are at first going to be heavily discounted from what they will eventually cost when the full campaign is done. If you buy a license at this early point, it will also unlock all future versions and updates up till where the full first campaign is complete and included.

Additional campaigns or expansion packs thereafter may have to be bought separately, but we haven’t planned that far ahead yet.

This is not to say that there isn’t tons of new stuff due for the next release – including editors and everything else hinted at in previous posts. Just don’t expect a full-blown campaign and metagame right away.

We will be rapidly adding missions shortly thereafter though, and working up to the point where there is a full campaign to play through. It will be up to you whether you want to play the missions on their own as they come out, or wait for the metagame mode we have planned (more details later).

Note that you will pay less the earlier you buy the license, since we going to gradually decrease the discount as the campaign nears completion and the game matures into the complete package we envision.

We hope this makes sense and isn’t too confusing. I’ll try to answer any questions you have in the comments below.