Recently I have received asks about how to best contribute to the mod. I still think this is by helping me compile resources where the mod still lacks them. I have decided to prioritise the project already started once in this thread: add wonders, or at least static images for the new wonders added to the mod with 1.16.
Here is a summary of my guidelines for this kind of content:
I think the problem with those sorts of efforts in the past was that I am still a bottleneck for people's contributions, and this time I would like to organise things in a way where I am a blocker as little as possible. I see the following steps to the whole process:
- finding video/image files
- converting the files into the right video/image file formats
- including the files into the mod as a wonder video via XML
- me approving the file content
Only the latter requires me specifically, all the other steps can be done by other (and potentially different) people. Of course, my approval should come before someone makes the effort of including the content into the mod.
Also, part of the problem was that I did not take enough action when things were actually proposed. Toward that end, I have created a public Google Sheet where you can enter submissions for movies/images, we can track their state, and I can easily check them out and approve them. This way, I know what's out there and people know what the status of their submissions is.
Click here to edit the wonder movie suggestions spreadsheet
We can start by entering content from the previous thread into this spreadsheet.
Here is a summary of my guidelines for this kind of content:
I have been thinking about the ground rules for this:
- full movies are great, but I would rather have a static image for every wonder than movies for a few wonders
- movies need to be in *.bik format
- wonder movies from the base game are around 20 seconds long, please try to keep this limit. Longer than 30 seconds is definitely not acceptable
- if possible, try to use images, footage and sound in the public domain. However, if you find great content that is not in the public domain, it is not inherently inadmissible as we can claim fair use within reason
- if the wonder still exists resembling its original appearance (some wonders were modified or fell into disrepair before modern times), actual film/photography of the building is preferred. In that case, make sure not to include elements that give away the modern timeframe (e.g. cars, modern buildings, people in the shot)
- if the wonder does not exist in its original appearance anymore, both contemporary and anachronistic depictions of the building are applicable. Contemporary depictions may be lacking in quality, while anachronistic depictions may be lacking in accuracy. Make a decision about what is acceptable, or combine both.
- I think the Civ2 wonder movies provide a good example of how to use modern and contemporary/anachronistic historical media to create wonder movies where applicable
I think the problem with those sorts of efforts in the past was that I am still a bottleneck for people's contributions, and this time I would like to organise things in a way where I am a blocker as little as possible. I see the following steps to the whole process:
- finding video/image files
- converting the files into the right video/image file formats
- including the files into the mod as a wonder video via XML
- me approving the file content
Only the latter requires me specifically, all the other steps can be done by other (and potentially different) people. Of course, my approval should come before someone makes the effort of including the content into the mod.
Also, part of the problem was that I did not take enough action when things were actually proposed. Toward that end, I have created a public Google Sheet where you can enter submissions for movies/images, we can track their state, and I can easily check them out and approve them. This way, I know what's out there and people know what the status of their submissions is.
Click here to edit the wonder movie suggestions spreadsheet
We can start by entering content from the previous thread into this spreadsheet.