FreeOrion seeks smart C++ programmers willing to learn

[tzlaine]

FreeOrion is a project inspired by the awfulness of Master of Orion 3 to create a new high-quality sci-fi 4X game. The project is well under way, having started about 4 years ago. We're looking for a couple more C++ developers to increase development speed (we have lots of artists and designers). We target Linux and Windows, and occassionally someone stops by and makes us a Mac build too. All our libraries and our own code are cross-platform.

I (tzlaine) am the lead developer, and I'm a professional C++ programmer. Our other main developer is Geoff, a grad student. We try to keep the quality of the code to a very high level. This is necessary for a project as big, complex, and ambitious as ours. We also use most of the "modern features" of C++, though certainly not everywhere. By "modern features" I mean things like templates, STL, and Boost. So, if you are already this kind of programmer and are looking for a quality project, or if you are smart but not that experienced, and don't mind learning a lot, this is your project.

To get a flavor for the project, here are the libraries we use: Boost (most of its libraries), OpenGL, OpenAL, GraphViz, Ogre, Ogg, Vorbis, OpenSteer, and GG. GG is a GUI library I wrote for OpenGL. You can find it on SourceForge. It has drivers for use with SDL and Ogre.

We are a GPL project, and we use the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license for artwork and sound.

We have a website and wiki at http://freeorion.org , and a very active forum at http://freeorion.org/forum . Our code can be found on SourceForge too. Download the latest installer and have a look.

Here are some screenshots for our game to date:









We are currently working on our 3D combat system on a branch. Here are some screenshots of that. We have no ships yet -- like I said, this is what we're working on right now. However, you can see that we're serious about quality output, as well as quality code:








Those are placeholder planet textures. Higher-res ones are being made now. We have some very talented artists working on the project.

[Jabberwocky]

Nice screenshots - looks like a great project.
Good luck tracking down some help.

[Singaja]

This is really awesome. The look & feel goes really nice with the original series. Your team must have some really talented members. Keep up the good work!

[Roy Berube]

It's good to see a promising space strategy turn based game in development.
I'll be bookmarking the site to keep an eye on its progress.

[MikkoM]

An update from FreeOrion. While FreeOrion development is ongoing, the OGRE-based multiplayer combat system hasn't progressed much recently due to its main developer's lack of time to work on it. We are hoping to find another developer who is willing and able to continue that work.

There is a 3D combat interface tech demo, which is demonstrated in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF3_RFsXeU8&t=7m24s

... and can also be run by using the command "freeorion --tech-demo". A lot of planning on how the 3D combat should function has also been done and the most significant parts of these plans can be found here:

http://www.freeorion.org/index.php/0.4_Design_Pad

...and here

http://www.freeorion.org/forum/viewtopi ... 706#p38706


So if you think that you can help us to create a beautiful large scale Ogre based space combat system, and are able to work in a team, help would be greatly appreciated.

And finally here are some space combat mockups, ship rendering test images and in-engine screenshots: