UI Designer/Scripter on a mod for Command and Conquer: Generals and Zero Hour – Mod DB profile

Red Alert – ReGeneration is a modification that brings back the classic C&C: Red Alert with updated mechanics into the 3d SAGE engine which powers EA’s C&C: Generals and Zero Hour expansion pack.

Designed and implemented user interface and menus. I was in charge of creating the game user interface which included command bars, button placement and their look in-game. My goal was to create an interface that fit with the theme of the game, staying true to the original Red Alert interface, but at the same time allowed the players to accomplish the actions they wanted to accomplish as easily as possible.

The UI editing was done by me using a mix of a special tool that would edit button positions and manually editing the values by hand. I created 2 prototypes – a sidebar style UI that presented the information to the player on the right side of the screen, and a more traditional bottom command bar seen in most RTS games.

The sidebar was the ideal choice due to it mimicking the classic Red Alert, but there were some technical limitations that did not allow it to fully function in the way I wanted, and I went with the bottom command bar. Also, the original sidebar interface obstructed too much of the battlefield, which is pretty detrimental in an RTS game.

Besides the game UI, I also worked on the menus. My tasks included adding layouts, buttons and existing menu systems like drop-down menus. Additionally, I repositioned existing buttons and images, and replaced most of them with our own 2d assets and images. It was important for me to make the menus feel very similar to the original Red Alert menus, as it would carry that feeling of nostalgia for older players.

Scripted unit behavior. Editing unit stats and testing them in game was also my responsibility. I tried to keep all the units very similar to their Red Alert counterpart, because that was the point of the mod. Scripting was done by me on a multitude of files that encompassed unit behavior, combat stats, and particle effects.

Helped post community updates, news, and announcements. Acting as a partial community manager, I kept our Mod DB game profile updated and interacted with our fans on our message board. Additionally, I posted news and updates, and contacted community webmasters informing them about our mod updates.