After a lengthy public beta phase, we are proud to announce the release of The Dark Mod 2.06!

The Dark Mod has undergone a lot of reorganization under the hood. A substantial amount of work was done to improve rendering performance and overall framework tech. Legacy OpenGL methods have been replaced with their equivalents in modern OpenGL. This is also the first TDM release to offer a native 64-bit build.

A full changelog can be viewed here, but some highlights include:

Better Visuals: Duzenko and Stgatilov have implemented a Soft Shadows option that finally removes the sharp edges of TDM shadows. This has a huge impact on the visuals of TDM missions. This option is currently labelled “Experimental” in the menu as we have had reports of issues on certain hardware. See here if you are experiencing flickering or other problems.

Better Sound: EFX audio now allows users without Creative hardware to enable EAX in the menu—a feature that processes reverb data and changes sounds based on the surrounding environment. Currently, only a few maps, like Volta 2: Cauldron of the Gods, by Kingsal, are set up to use EAX effects, but since all users can now benefit from it, mappers are encouraged to use this feature going forward. Interested mappers should see here.

Better Menus: The TDM menus have also been given a visual update, boosting the resolution and adjusting the graphics for widescreen monitors. Durandall has added scrollbar functionality to the mission menus, and Obsttorte has implemented a new menu option that allows users to customize the size and opacity of HUD elements, complete with a visual preview.

New Assets: A new set of Springheel’s architectural modules is included in this release–a set of 50 models for creating church interiors. A number of new models have been added to other sets. Also included is a huge number of new prefabs, allowing mappers to quickly and easily create detailed map sections, as demonstrated in Springheel’s Speedbuild series.

Better Mission Intros: This is the first TDM release to offer video codec support other than ROQ. TDM 2.06 allows for FFMPEG video support, which means that mappers will now have an easier time adding video briefings to their missions.

Better Gameplay: An error that kept food from restoring health has been fixed, and all food will now restore a certain amount of health when eaten. Guards can now sleep and wake up while seated.

Better Performance: Finally, experimental multi-core support is included for the first time, via patches from Cabalistic’s VR branch. While this can cause performance enhancements, it is currently in “Experimental” form as some users may experience random crashes with this option enabled. Uncapped FPS is also now an option for users after this update.

To update, simply run the tdm_update.exe file in your darkmod folder. Please be aware that old saved games will not be compatible with 2.06, so finish any missions you might be in the middle of first!

We are pleased to announce the release of The Dark Mod 2.05!

(New Official Trailer by Goldwell)

This update includes literally hundreds of new high-quality models and other assets that will change the way TDM missions look going forward.

Springheel has created over two hundred modular models that can be combined to create multiple types of environments–tavern interiors, city streets, industrial warehouses, and more.  By placing modules together, high fidelity scenes can be created quicker and more easily than ever before.  http://forums.thedar…ing-assets-205/

Many of these new assets are showcased in a new introductory mission for TDM that is included in the update.  This mission is the first of a three mission story which serves as our official introduction to TDM’s gameplay and setting.

You should notice an increase in performance speed in TDM 2.05, thanks to rendering improvements made by duzenko and nbohr1more.

Grayman has added a working fire elemental to our list of available AI opponents that will no doubt appear in future missions.

Other changes include a fix to stop sleepers from falling through the floor, new beggar entities, new combination safe entities, and fixes to stop the player or AI from getting trapped by moving elevators.  A more detailed list of changes can be seen here:

http://wiki.thedarkmod.com/index.php?title=What%27s_new_in_TDM_2.05

You can update your copy of TDM by running tdm_update.exe.

As always, older saved games will be incompatible with TDM 2.05, so be sure to complete any missions you’re in the middle of before updating!

We have also created a GreenLight presence on Steam. Please feel free to stop by and vote if you want The Dark Mod to be a permanent resident on the Steam platform.

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=858048394

For the past few releases, freyk has been creating a GUI installer tool to assist users who are not good with portable file setup in Windows or address dependency issues in Linux. We are now adding this tool to the official installation page as an alternate option.

Windows Installer

And for more info and technical help see the forums thread –

– http://forums.thedarkmod.com/topic/18207-beta-test-tdm-installer-windows/

The original plan for The Dark Mod 2.04 was very ambitious.

No fewer than 4 large skunkworks projects were put into motion to bring about massive changes in the game\engine and produce oft-requested features and content. In addition, our community donated massive amounts of textures, models, prefabs, sounds, etc. during the development cycle. All of this increased workload arrived around the time that the core developers were less able to dedicate their free time to the project.

As the 1 year mark from the 2.03 launch approached it was decided that too many critical code fixes and refinements were being kept from players while these gargantuan projects lumbered slowly towards completion. Parallel to this sequence of events, Grayman broke his own vow to take a hiatus from coding (to work in the William Steele missions) and decided to address some issues found with coordinated AI searching in 2.03. Because untangling the assets added for some of the unfinished projects would be a project in itself, it was decided that 2.04 would primarily be a code fix release with only a few assets to go along with renderer fixes.

If you’ve been following along in the forums, you’ll no doubt be aware of a few patch executables that were floating around. These were in one way or another previews of 2.04 with the most commonly downloaded one called the “De-Clunking patch” or “De-Clunking mod”. A full changelog can be found Here and the forum announcement with more details can be found Here.

Recent Accolades

The Dark Mod ranked number 2 in PC Gamer’s best free games list!

Melan and Bikerdude have teamed-up to release the 3rd installment of the Penny Dreadful series just in time for the 2.04 release!