"JKHub API"

[eezstreet]

I've been mulling over a good idea for a while. You know how Steam has an API for achievements, leaderboards and such? We could do that with JKHub as well too. That would attract a hell of a lot more traffic to the site (people ingame see "JKHub API..wuts this? account be cool" etc), and it would also change the community greatly, by inspiring people to go outside their comfort zone and play mods that they've never tried, and expand the replay value of games greatly.

 

Some key features which would be great, and how:

- Achievements. They would be inspirational for people to play other mods. Plus, mods have already been trying to implement achievements already (see: MB2, GSA) and they just aren't coherent a lot of the time. It would also expand replay value.

- Install Help for big mods. Think the JKG launcher, but on a larger sense. With more server power.

- Leaderboards. This would help determine stuff that's really important to people

- Clan support. Tie in your clans with the JKHub bar with ease

- Inter-mod-chat via IRC. Ingame IRC client, complete with a stellar interface, which ties into your JKHub account for the nick.

 

Basically, this would be a static .lib that coders would import into their mods and use as needed. Could even be implemented into some SP mods manually.

Course, you'd have to approve the mods, Cael. Don't want messes everywhere.

[Fighter]

I'd love to use something like this. It'd help every mod that implements it.

 

I could see the inter-mod chat coming in use. Perhaps it could be used in a way for inter-server chat too, for people who run multiple servers.

 

A JKH based achievement system would be nice, too. It'd make JKH and the mods more social.

[eezstreet]

No word on this? :L

[MUG]

The short version of my opinions on this concept:

- Achievements. They would be inspirational for people to play other mods. Plus, mods have already been trying to implement achievements already (see: MB2, GSA) and they just aren't coherent a lot of the time. It would also expand replay value.

- Install Help for big mods. Think the JKG launcher, but on a larger sense. With more server power.

- Leaderboards. This would help determine stuff that's really important to people

Sound lame. Keep your JKG style launcher far far far FAR away from me.

 

 

- Clan support. Tie in your clans with the JKHub bar with ease

- Inter-mod-chat via IRC. Ingame IRC client, complete with a stellar interface, which ties into your JKHub account for the nick.

Sound awesome.

[Astral Serpent]

If you keep coming up with such cool ideas we'll become disappointed with JKHub and abandon it.

[Fighter]

Maybe there could also be some kind of auto-update feature for mods hosted on JKH.

[eezstreet]

Sound lame. Keep your JKG style launcher far far far FAR away from me.

What's wrong with it?

[MUG]

What's wrong with it?

It's a launcher.

[eezstreet]

It's a launcher.

And? Launchers help make mods easier to install, since that is beyond some people's comprehension. It's not specific to JKG either. Proof: MB2, JKG and GSA all had or are getting launchers.

[MUG]

And? Launchers help make mods easier to install, since that is beyond some people's comprehension. It's not specific to JKG either. Proof: MB2, JKG and GSA all had or are getting launchers.

I personally just have a loathing for them as they are an extra unnecessary step you need to go through to start the game. Its bad enough that you have to sit through a ton of lengthy company logo sequences on most games every single time you play them. (what's with that anyway? I know who made/paid for the game after I opened it the first time<.<) .

[eezstreet]

I personally just have a loathing for them as they are an extra unnecessary step you need to go through to start the game. Its bad enough that you have to sit through a ton of lengthy company logo sequences on most games every single time you play them. (what's with that anyway? I know who made/paid for the game after I opened it the first time<.<) .

When people are completely incapable of using a .bat, it's a good alternative. Side note, if one hacks Windows to some extent, one can get the launcher to play the game for Steam AND CD version, something which is impossible under a .bat file.

 

And what @@Caelum said.

[Mog]

I don't mind that idea at all....though I sense some conflict involving those acheivements if it were to happen.

[MUG]

I think my real objection, is that if you include a load of features that some people consider junk and will never look at, you will discourage a decent number of people from using it.

 

For example, The chat thing and clan support, I think everyone has a use for. Achievements and the like; not so much. You don't want people thinking of an actually very useful mod as "that achievements mod" and never looking at it due to not being interested in achievements.

 

To return to the topic of the launcher, am I right in saying that the main point of the launcher is to make installing mods easier for people who don't really know how that works? If so I think that really is a waste of time. This game is so far down the road now that nearly everyone who plays it (and certainly anyone who will be interested in installing a JKHub API) already know how installing mods works now, and on the whole, would prefer to have complete and direct control over that rather than using a program to do it for them.

[Fighter]

While one of the main objectives of a launcher is to make mods easy to install, another is update checking and installing updates.

 

People won't check a mod's website or file page regularly, which puts them at risk as they might not know about an important Clientside security fix.

 

While there's always the option of having automatic updating in the mod(and which I suggested as a feature if the API too), I also feel like launcher updates are more reliable than in-mod updates. One of the other disadvantages of in-mod updates is that you have to start the game, go through splash screens, and then wait in-game while the updates install. One last issue is that I'm not sure how easy it is to use an in-mod updater to update the updater itself.

 

Of course launcher have various disadvantages too. It would be nice if either: all noteworthy mods switched to in-mod updating using the API or if there was a JKH launcher that updated and launched all noteworthy mods.

[MUG]

While one of the main objectives of a launcher is to make mods easy to install, another is update checking and installing updates.

 

People won't check a mod's website or file page regularly, which puts them at risk as they might not know about an important Clientside security fix.

 

While there's always the option of having automatic updating in the mod(and which I suggested as a feature if the API too), I also feel like launcher updates are more reliable than in-mod updates. One of the other disadvantages of in-mod updates is that you have to start the game, go through splash screens, and then wait in-game while the updates install. One last issue is that I'm not sure how easy it is to use an in-mod updater to update the updater itself.

 

Of course launcher have various disadvantages too. It would be nice if either: all noteworthy mods switched to in-mod updating using the API or if there was a JKH launcher that updated and launched all noteworthy mods.

 

I think most of your in-mod-updater woes are imagined/exaggerated sir. In what sense is it less reliable? It hardly takes long to start the game, so i don't think waiting out splash screens is a real issue in this situation, and you would have to wait for the launcher to load anyway if it was done that way. As for worries about updating the updater, that really makes no sense, as the updater would be part of the mod, and it is the mod that we are automatically updating.

 

Personally, I would far rather have to load the game an extra time to get an update than have to use/keep up to date an extra launcher-program just to use/keep up to date the actual program.

[Fighter]

My concerns are probably exaggerated like you said. I haven't dealt with in-mod updating code-wise yet, so I can't give an accurate explanation and pros/cons.

[Drako]

I like this idea.

 

EK's been mulling over doing an Achievement system for a while now, we had the notion that adding achievements for doing something fun or awesome will help increase the playability of the game.

 

Anyone that's played JK games for 10+ years like me know how boring JKA can get at times, so doing something like this will help keep it interesting.

 

Even if some people think its bollocks, they'l still use it. People don't stop using Steam simply because there's achievements do they? if you don't want the achievements, just don't go for them and ignore there existence its not exactly that much of a bother as long as it doesn't interfere with the game.

[eezstreet]

The JKHub API won't be too intrusive when it comes to achievements. Probably will be like Steam, but in the middle lower quadrant of the screen, since few mods use that bit of screen retail space.

[Astral Serpent]

I also think it would be possible to implement achievements into already existing mods through a proxy mod.

 

 

...I just want an excuse to use my proxy mod D:

[eezstreet]

Or just have the modmakers do it, because I cbf to deal with that (SP mods are excluded from my "cbf to deal with" list)