LJ> Maybe because we don't want other teams to pick up on the little things?
 LJ> Those are what usually makes a good game a lot better (see DN3D for
 LJ> examples).  We don't want them picking up on big things either, BTW.
  That doesn't really make a game BETTER, it just prevents rivals from 
getting the jump on you.  But how do you explain id?  They reveal practically 
everyting, to the point where you find out a feature had to be removed 
because Paul spilled his Jolt Cola on the disk the code update was on (that's 
not real, of course, but I'm sure it'll happen one day).
  Besides, what about the little things?  Skeletal animation is no big secret 
nowadays; neither is coloured lighting or 32-player deathmatches.  Now if it 
came to whether vehicles were drivable objects with their own physics and 
general behaviours, then I would keep THAT a secret.
  I think this partly stems from Apogee/3D Realms' origins.  You people were 
basically THE shareware company way back when.  As such, Apogee is generally 
more traditional.  But when you get companies like id who actively enforce 
smallness and a sort of rogue attitude, things start to change.  I'm not 
saying Apogee is worse or anything, it's just that companies like id and 
Shiny have succeeded even though they spill their guts on what a game's 
engine is like.
  Oh, and one last thing ("oh, no," I hear)... what's up with Apogee and 
graphics?  There seems to be an aversion to making more graphically-modern 
games.  Take Stargunner, for example.  Great little shooter, but you need a 
486... and not a DX4, either!  This in the day of "P90 or higher" on every 
box.  It's nice to see gamers for gamers on the cheap, but how many people 
would have bought Duke 3D if it had been stuck in 320x200 and with 4-player 
support, only on LANs and modems (no TEN or Kali)?  I'm sure it would have 
found a market, but probably not as large as it has been.  It would be nice 
if we could see a side-scroller like Stargunner (Stargunner 2?) with 640x480, 
16-bit colour graphics and dynamic lighting effects.
--- Maximus 3.01
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