Bf2 Hidden Treasures

DaGrooved1 · Post by **DaGrooved1** » Wed Aug 03, 2005 10:34 pm

From Bf2 Scene

Written by Dangerouslycheesy
Thursday, 30 June 2005
Well, as I dove into the many, many archives of game data within the installation of Battlefield 2, I found deep within an archive in plain site a directory or what appears to be pre-alpha dummy menus which were probably used as a first finalized menu design. The menu is all there except the obvious script and code behind it to interact with anything but appears to have every single menu function operating... Read on. Well, as I dove into the many, many archives of game data within the installation of Battlefield 2, I found deep within an archive in plain site a directory or what appears to be pre-alpha dummy menus which were probably used as a first finalized menu design. The menu is all there except the obvious script and code behind it to interact with anything but appears to have every single menu function operating.

This isn't completly strange, game makers do this all of the time. They leave secret pre-alpha game data such as renders and even entirely different models deep within their plethora of install files but the thing that stuck out to me within this menu is the inclusion of what appears to be a feature packed and highly interactive "Clan HQ!" This Clan HQ is a leading menu item within this undated and left behind menu and appears to allow the player to search, join, create and even schedule matches with clans. With such support there would of been no need for any league ladders such as TWL or CAL but mysteriously they all of a sudden stopped working on it? The menu also actually had a status indicator next to player's names/servers within the server browsing list that told whether or not the server and or player was affiliated with a clan! Why oh why would such a feature be dropped!? Well in the end it appears that they just simply replaced the Clan HQ with the Community HQ menu field so...I don't know, for as much as I use the community HQ (very little) I would of been happier with the clan HQ.

Now besides this old and fogotten dummy menu I also found what appears to be another menu, this time an early server browser only labeled with a "0.1" version marking. Of course the look is completly and utterly different from what it is now and today but it is amazing to see where the beginnings of this game started and how eerily similair it looked to a modified BF1942 menu.

Supply line was 2 weeks away from being finished...
Yes indeed it seemed so. I guess the mad dash to put the game out was simply far too great and thus Dice and EA left out what seems to be (from looking at the code so far) an amazing game mode. I have discovered that every single map has the "Supply line" game mode coded in but lacks the impementation on the client's side. This game made literally is just sitting...waiting to be implemented for each map. Of course this is just one more smidget of proof that can be waved in the faces of the frenzied BF2 fanboy that this game was indeed unfinished and rushed out the door way too prematurely. I think it was the great Miyamoto that made the link of games being like babies, of course they are fun to make and even more fun to watch mature but give birth and release either prematurely and the conciquences can be dire...or something to that effect.

Aside from supply line being half-assed done and left taking space in the game's install, there is also in-game support for 128 players and 128 player maps, yet another feature left in the dust to conform and offer decency to the sub-broadband users (AKA ISDN users) and server rental shacks already crying over the massive hardware requirements. Sure it's hard running a 64 man server now but imagine 128! God damn that would be mayhem! You thought your game lagged now?

Anyways, I'm completly intrigued by the discovery of forgotten features and dead ideas within this game so if you can spot anything more that is equally intriguing (models, textures, hell even comments within a hidden ai.py file) then please post the absolute DIR of the discovery and a description!

::UPDATE!:: Found an old and forgotten loading screen-added to archive.
Oh yeah, almost forgot, here are the dead and forgotten menus I was talking about. If they don't initially run, don't worry, just right click on them while they are open within your browser and choose "play."

So, it can have up to 128 players, you can also find a link a torrent for the Leaked bf2 editor on their site...

Smacklug · Post by **Smacklug** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 2:10 am

Oh, snap.
Well, the battles would actually fit the 64 player maps. And strike at karkand would turn into noob cannons' alley.

Post by **Thur** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 10:48 am

Maybe not Karkand but Zatar Wetlands and Daqing oilfields would be the right size. I am sure if 128 were supported when the customs come out there would be a lot of BIG maps for 128 players to play on.

tripleX · Post by **tripleX** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:55 am

YEp let's go to 128. I'm sure no one would lag.

The rest of it is interesting tho. Common tho that features are dropped in games.

deathbot9000 · Post by **deathbot9000** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:58 am

Supply line sounds promising...I wonder if will be like the server side mod Domination.

DaGrooved1 · Post by **DaGrooved1** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:58 am

Yes, and after trying the leaked bf2 editor, I suggest, as ea does, to wait for the final version, the current leaked version is only good for editing infantry, vehicles, weapons and other small things, as large things like terrain and level editing seem to cause it to stop responding.

ColonelHogan · Post by **ColonelHogan** » Thu Aug 04, 2005 1:10 pm

Ummm 128, we can barely get 64 people into a server.

I wish I hadn't of read this though. It make me hate EA so much more than I already do. I almost don't want to go out and buy any more EA games, but Madden is just so fun.

Winter_Lion · Post by **Winter_Lion** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 5:29 am

DaGrooved1 wrote:Yes, and after trying the leaked bf2 editor, I suggest, as ea does, to wait for the final version, the current leaked version is only good for editing infantry, vehicles, weapons and other small things, as large things like terrain and level editing seem to cause it to stop responding.

I had no problems at all with editor stalls, DG. I whipped out a map in about an hour and compared to some older editors it seemed rather good and easy to use.

Try installing it again, my friend. YOu might have some fragmented files gigs apart on your hd.

Winter

EliteSoldier0 · Post by **EliteSoldier0** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:54 am

howly ........ they have to finish all that stuff quick... verrrry quick!!!

DaGrooved1 · Post by **DaGrooved1** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 1:06 pm

Yes yes, the current version is just fine, I was using the old old old OLD version, and I didn't like it much, but I still managed to use it, the current one is much better however, and I too have finished a map, sadly, I didn't know my chosen scale was bugged, and I wish those tutorials had been around when I started

I had to learn from my mistakes, weeks upon weeks of mistakes!