- Joined
- Sep 17, 2019
- Messages
- 583
- Thread Author
- #1
With S&Box well on its way, there is an obvious future for source modding and it would appear that Gmod will likely not be a part of that future. Simply put, I don't believe Gmod will survive for long after S&Box's release. It will still exist, but with a far diminished player count who stick it out for the niche of Source 1.
This is because S&Box is meant to be a direct upgrade/evolution of Gmod. It's Gmod but for Source 2, a better engine that can handle far more. In almost every case where we see a high player-interactive engine being outshined by an upgraded version, the old version gets left behind almost every time. We've seen this with Goldsource, and how Half Life 1 mods are now only enjoyed by a niche community of people who enjoy that.
With a likely imminent collapse in player numbers, we will undoubtedly see some sort of drop in player numbers for HL2RP simply because less people are finding HL2RP. What we will also see are new HL2RP servers appearing on Source 2, which I'm sure will have development put into it that utilizes the new engine.
1) What do you all think is the best move Willard should take, in the hypothetical that developer resources are permitting?
And
2) What do you think a S&Box HL2RP server would be able to take advantage of compared to Gmod HL2RP?
I personally believe that we should move to S&Box if we care about the continued growth of the server. If we don't move to it, we are essentially throwing in the towel and choosing the inevitable end due to an agreement on stagnation. Gmod's time is limited. The player count will not be growing in the long term and, like Goldsource before and many other engines which have become outdated, it will sink into obscurity as a relic of the era. It's an "adapt or die" moment for HL2RP servers because, as is the nature with all events like this, competition will rise on an engine that simply has better, more modern features. It will only be a matter of time before Source 2 is fully utilized AND chooses the right formula for running things, kinda like Willard has.
As for what a server for S&Box would look like, I am not entirely sure. I can only guess, as I also don't know the full extent of Source 2's capabilities. It can handle a higher player count much more effectively, supposedly thousands of players, and I know for certain that it can handle far, far larger maps. In theory, should an HL2RP server grow large enough, you could see a city with a few hundred people in it, if not thousands (though I imagine this would not be the case unless HL2RP saw a miracle revival by, say, a new mainline Half Life game.
On the other side of that coin, the logistics would be an absolute nightmare. It's already hard enough staffing a server of 50+ people, to include admins, faction leads, etc. We would need an elaborate and corporate-scale management system to handle more than a hundred people, to include a full hierarchy. To put that in perspective, people get degrees and get paid tens of thousands, if not over a hundred thousand a year to be at the top of that hierarchy. People of that caliber are not easy to find which is why they are sought after.
We'd also see general graphics improvements, the capability to handle far more props and entities, and less jank shit.
This is because S&Box is meant to be a direct upgrade/evolution of Gmod. It's Gmod but for Source 2, a better engine that can handle far more. In almost every case where we see a high player-interactive engine being outshined by an upgraded version, the old version gets left behind almost every time. We've seen this with Goldsource, and how Half Life 1 mods are now only enjoyed by a niche community of people who enjoy that.
With a likely imminent collapse in player numbers, we will undoubtedly see some sort of drop in player numbers for HL2RP simply because less people are finding HL2RP. What we will also see are new HL2RP servers appearing on Source 2, which I'm sure will have development put into it that utilizes the new engine.
1) What do you all think is the best move Willard should take, in the hypothetical that developer resources are permitting?
And
2) What do you think a S&Box HL2RP server would be able to take advantage of compared to Gmod HL2RP?
I personally believe that we should move to S&Box if we care about the continued growth of the server. If we don't move to it, we are essentially throwing in the towel and choosing the inevitable end due to an agreement on stagnation. Gmod's time is limited. The player count will not be growing in the long term and, like Goldsource before and many other engines which have become outdated, it will sink into obscurity as a relic of the era. It's an "adapt or die" moment for HL2RP servers because, as is the nature with all events like this, competition will rise on an engine that simply has better, more modern features. It will only be a matter of time before Source 2 is fully utilized AND chooses the right formula for running things, kinda like Willard has.
As for what a server for S&Box would look like, I am not entirely sure. I can only guess, as I also don't know the full extent of Source 2's capabilities. It can handle a higher player count much more effectively, supposedly thousands of players, and I know for certain that it can handle far, far larger maps. In theory, should an HL2RP server grow large enough, you could see a city with a few hundred people in it, if not thousands (though I imagine this would not be the case unless HL2RP saw a miracle revival by, say, a new mainline Half Life game.
On the other side of that coin, the logistics would be an absolute nightmare. It's already hard enough staffing a server of 50+ people, to include admins, faction leads, etc. We would need an elaborate and corporate-scale management system to handle more than a hundred people, to include a full hierarchy. To put that in perspective, people get degrees and get paid tens of thousands, if not over a hundred thousand a year to be at the top of that hierarchy. People of that caliber are not easy to find which is why they are sought after.
We'd also see general graphics improvements, the capability to handle far more props and entities, and less jank shit.
