                                         REVENANT 1.11e beta Patch
                                  Copyright (C) 1999 EIDOS Interactive
                                              All Rights Reserved

This BETA patch is intended to test the system support of the new Revenant 1.11 patch.  Since there are so many systems out there, and so many of them seem to have unusual configurations, EIDOS and Cinematix considered it a good idea to release  the 1.11 patch as a beta before going officially 'gold' on the patch, in order to get feedback on system configurations, drivers, or whatnot that could cause problems.   

If this patch fails to work correctly on your system.  Reinstall the original Revenant game, then send a message to EIDOS's technical support e-mail address with the following information:
 
Subject: Revenant 1.11e beta patch problems

EIDOS's technical support addresses can be found on the EIDOS web site at www.eidos.com.

Enclose whatever you can about your system configuration, especially what sound card and video card you have presently installed, your processor, amount of memory, and anything else you feel might be helpful.

This patch is to upgrade the current game as it stands right now.  There are no major enhancements in 1.11.  These will be in 1.2, and this is planned as a continuous rolling release starting in late December or early January.  The 1.2 betas are not garanteed to be always stable, and not garanteed to not cause problems with the single player game (thus 1.11).  

However, the 1.2 betas will include all the extra stuff we have been enhancing the game with, including dedicated mode, module imagery, custom module load screens, enhanced editor support, etc.   As we add and test these features we will roll them into new 1.2 beta's that will be updated on a more or less weekly basis.   (And we mean more or less... please don't email us asking why we haven't posted anything for a given week.)

Changes For Version 1.11
-----------------------------------------

o Fully reprogrammed and tested multiplayer functionality for deathmatch.   This was needed in 1.11 to support the current functionality of the game, and also to make coop and MUD mode for 1.2 work correctly.  This makes up the massive bulk of the time and changes that went into 1.11.   

       - The in game multiplayer interface for deathmatch supports 
         buying and selling of items.
 
       - Characters names float above the characters as they play...
         allowing you to distinguish who's who.

       - Object manipulation, including dropping and picking up items 
         work correctly.

       - Characters can join parties, and share objects through their
         green 'swag bag'.

       - Kill stats are maintained in deathmatch games, and are 
         displayed in the main game interface under the player's icon, 
         and on the player list in the multiplayer in game manager 
         screen.

       - Host Edit mode (or Host God mode) is displayed in bright red
         letters for clients when they select to play a game in the 
         connect screen.   This makes it clear to clients that the 
         host has the ability to view and edit characters in that 
         game.  We considered removing this feature in the deathmatch 
         game, as it was inteded for MUD persistent games, but decided 
         to retain it after testers requested it be kept in.

       - Character LAG is dramatically reduced.   The game never 
         actually lags, as the amount of information that is passed 
         over the network for Revenant is miniscule.  What is seen as 
         lag is the 'popping' which happens when a characters position
         in the game must be synchronized with the host.   This is 
         caused by the game running at different speeds on different 
         computers, and actions being performed at slightly different 
         times on different machines.   Game synchronization is now
         vastly improved, and popping of characters is reduced to an 
         absolute minimum, although it will still occur when the games 
         become slightly out of sync.   

!!!!!!!  IMPORTANT!!! - TO REDUCE POPPING, IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT YOU 
         ENABLE THE LIMIT GAME SPEED OPTION IN MULTIPLAYER GAMES.   
         WHEN YOU TURN OFF SPEED LIMITING, YOUR GAME RUNS AT A 
         DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT RATE THAN THE OTHER MACHINES, CAUSING 
         THEM TO HAVE TO -POP- YOU TO THE POSITION YOU ARE AT ON YOUR 
         MACHINE.    Again.. this option was left intact for those that 
         still wish to use it in multiplayer games.. but it does 
         increase character popping when speed limiting is disabled.

        - Experience and levelling up works correctly in deathmatch 
          games.   Many of the pre-defined mp characters, however, do 
          not have valid experience values at this time (known issue 
          for 1.11e).

        - Differences between the advantages/disavantages of different 
          mp characters are more dramatic, and more balanced.

o Enhanced performance for the game's 3D system, scrolling system, and imagery caching system.   A great deal of time and energy has been spent in optimizing the game.
 
         - Complete multithreaded screen scrolling system.  Screen 
           updating is decoupled from ordinary gameplay, preventing the 
           game from pausing or jerking while waiting for the edge of 
           the screen to be redrawn.  NOTE: when this is enabled,
           you will occationally see 'undrawn' portions of the screen 
           on the edges when dramatic map movements occur.

         - 3D characters and effects are properly cached during sector 
           preloading "Loading Map Please Wait", preventing the game 
           from pausing to load characters.

         NOTE: 1.2 will multithread sound file caching, and the 
         "Loading Map.. Please Wait" load, eliminating the final 
         interruptions in gameplay.

         - 3D system now uses 4x3 matrices.. why were we using 4x4.. 
           don't know.

         - Rendering pipeline is streamlined to alleviate stalls caused 
           by mouse cursor hit detection.

         - Dynamic lighting system now only recalulates moving lights 
           each frame.

o Improved combat gameplay.

         - Combat stats for different swings are now more correct.   
           Quick swings do less damage.   More time consuming swings 
           and combos do dramatically better damage.

         - Very heavy penalty for mashing.   Includes almost no damage 
           for mashed attacks, and relatively frequent counter moves by 
           mashed monsters.  No more swing swing swing swing.. with the 
           same move.. etc.

o Floating combat results.

         - Combat results appear above the players as combat 
           progresses.   Damage above 50% of the total health of a 
           character is white, 50% to 25% is yellow, and below 25% is 
           red.

         - Combat results on the message bar can be turned off in the 
           game options screen.

o Improved support for 3Dfx drivers and other problem system configurations. 

         - Character now displays correctly on side bar in VooDoo III.

          NOTE: The newest 3Dfx VooDoo III drivers are said to be a bit 
          buggy running Revenant.   We are working with 3Dfx to resolve 
          any outstanding issues with the latest drivers.

o Interface improvements.

         - Quicksave key defaults to CTRL-BS, and saves the current 
           game at the current point.
   
         - The options screen can be popped up by pressing O.

         - The side panel screens are assigned to the numbers 1-6.

         - The side panel screens are linked together to always show 
           the appropriate bottom panel for the given top panel. 

         - Note that the F5-F8 keys always have allowed you to use the 
           contents of your belt slots in the interface.   This is 
           intensely useful for commonly used potions.

         - The CTRL-[ and CTRL-] keys will display the load and save
           screens respectively.

         - On most game screens, the ENTER key selects the OK, or
           default button, and the ESC key cancels, or exits the 
           screen.   On screens with list selections, the
           joystick or arrow keys can be used to select from the list.

o Various and sundry system enhancements, bug fixes, and improvements.

Ben Cooley / Pepper Miller / Keelan Stuart
CINEMATIX Revenant Programming Team

Visit the Revenant Quest Shop at www.revenantqs.com for the
lastest and greatest info about Revenant.

Thanks to: Xode, PJ, Fomar, and all the rest.

Also, special thanks to the Cinematix Animation department for spending all that time testing..

