Mana Games

[manutoo]

Hello,

with the Build 29, I added the possibility to record warm-up & matches.

To turn on recording, open the "Tennis.ini" (or the .ini of ur custom profile) and change this line, under [Record], from :
AutoRecord = 0
to :
AutoRecord = 1

This will put the records in the subdirectory "Profile\Demos".

Then, to watch a recorded match, open the "Tennis.ini" and change this line, under [Record], from :
//Play = 2009-03-17.12-00 - P.1 vs P.2.dmo
to :
Play = [Name of the Demo File You want to watch]

Note: don't forget to remove the "//" at beginning of the line..!

Then launch the game, and enter either Warmup or Match (the game engine will set it accordingly to the recorded type anyway), and the replaying should be in action..! All menus should still be working, so u can watch stats or leave the game anytime u want...

When you watch a match, you can press :
- F10 : to skip to next point
- left Control + F10 : to skip to next game
- left Shift + F10 : to skip to next set
(sorry it's not possible to rewind now, but maybe I'll add this possibility in the future... You should still be able to watch the point replay, though)

This should also work with online matches.
And it may be able to work with future builds, as long as there are no big changes (but it might have some desync).
It should also support change in players' settings (fortunately & hopefully ), court, ball physics, cheatcode, etc... coz it restores all the correct settings on play start.

Note: It cannot record a resumed World Tour match, the match has to start from the beginning..!

You are very welcome to post your recorded matches in this topic, especially the online ones (in .zip or .rar to make them as small as possible), and I am personally very eager to see the best players in action..! (yes, I mean S.Williamz & Togtdyalttai )
When you post an online match, try to indicate what was the lag set by the host.

Also, if u meet a bug or a glitch in the game (ie: crash, wrong AI behavior, etc...), replaying the demo should likely reproduce it, and thus, you could send it to me and I'd have a chance to fix it..!

It's likely there are some issues with the recording/replaying, so if u notice anything, thanks to let me know...

How to post your recorded match in this topic ?
0- zip your recorded file (optional)
1- when replying to this topic, look at bottom of the page for "Upload attachment", and click on it (u have to be a registered member to see this option)
2- locate the file in your HD (usually in "C:\Program Files\Tennis Elbow 2009\Profiles\Demos" )
3- click on "Add the file", u're done...

[CC]

Thanks!!!!!!!!!


Yeah! Let's see those two animals -- those dominators. I want to see someone else get clobbered!

[Togtdyalttai]

Ok, two problems:

First, I don't know where I replay the match once I change the tennis.ini file's play section under record to the name of my match. Maybe I'm just dumb...

Second, I don't think online matches work when someone is recording. I played a match where both players were recording, and everything worked fine, but the points didn't register, i.e. the score remained 0-0.

[CC]

Togtdyalttai:

To replay the match, you just must take out the two "//" characters preceding "Play," copy the file name from the demo folder (i.e., 2009-03-18.00-58 - CC vs P.2 1-0.dmo -- notice no quotes or anything) and paste this over the file name already there, and then start the game. When you select either Warm-Up or Match, the recorded game should display. It worked for me like that. I hope you get it going.

CC

[CC]

F9 to skip to the next point during a replay is not working for me. Press F10, however, did seem to work for this.

[Togtdyalttai]

Thanks CC, I forgot to take out the two slashes. I got the recording I did of a warm-up match to work fine, but the online match was a bit different. It didn't show what actually happened in points, as in I hit a winner instead of an error. It showed that the points were being recorded even though they weren't, as explained in my previous post. It was also in split screen, though I bet there's an easy way to change that if I look around.

[btaylor]

Way to go, Manu the Magnificent!!

Haven't even tried the recording thing yet, but AWESOME KICK SERVE!!! That's what I'm talkin' 'bout!!
Man, that things kicks up high, just like the pros!

Haven't played enough yet to notice any loss of precision with the 1H backhand...

Maybe it's just my imagination, but it looks like maybe you tweaked the slice backhand just a lil teeny weeny bit?
You didn't mention it, but the CPU doesn't seem to attack the slice so much like it did before when I hit it...
It really enables you to play a neutral shot if needed as well as hit better approach shots to the net...it seems like I have more time to get in. Very realistic!

p.s. Would you prefer that we post in this topic about this build(29) and leave the Tennis Elbow 2009 1.0a topic just for your future builds? Or does it matter?

[manutoo]

Version updated :
- the Network recording/replaying wasn't working well at all : I had forgotten there are some special rules for network games (plus, there was a pure genuine bug with the scoring... )
- split screen on network replay is only activated when Splitscreen is on "yes", and not anymore when it's on "auto"
- previously saved demos won't work coz I had to change a bit the format coz of the network status

Hopefully, it'll work better now.
This time I really tested the network recording & replaying, so there are some chances it'll actually work...

@CC :
yup u're right, it's F10, not F9, I just corrected the explanation...

@btaylor :
Read the topic name : "Recording & replaying whole matches..!"
So this topic is about "Recording & replaying whole matches..!", not about other new things in the Build 29...
U can post about new things of Build 29 in the "Tennis Elbow 2009 1.0a" topic, or even create some new topics if u want to discuss more deeply about some specific aspect...
About the slice, I think i didn't change anything specific about it, but maybe the court bounce physics changes have changed something...

[CC]

The recording option is simple and efficient. I think that it will be a great addition to the game. In theory, this technique could be used to allow others to watch matches, say if the .dmo file were posted with a slight delay to a shared server; maybe others could not watch in real-time, but it could be almost real-time. However, I know that this is not that simple.

There are some glitches. Please watch the linked recording (at bottom of this post) of an online match that I played today. I don't stand as far back as seen in the playback, and there were not many connection problems (we didn't experience all of the replay of points that you will see in the playback). Many times in the playback, the returner is on the wrong side of the service box or running around the court when the serve is hit, and it wasn't like this at all. There are many instances like this, but I think that they will be evident to you without my pointing them out. The lag was set at the default. We had a pretty good connection. Despite what the replay shows, I won the match 1-6.

Couldn't whatever information is sent to me about my opponent when I play someone online just be captured to a file along with the data that is being sent to my opponent? I guess I don't understand why the actual match was fine but the recording was off; the data made it to me fine such that I was able to play the match without any issues, so why wasn't this same data captured to a file? Sorry to ask questions like that. I am just curious. It obviously isn't a simple process. This is a *great* start, though!!

http://www.quickfilepost.com/download.do?get=1ae490a0e74e0a0097e857275f657416

Thanks!

[Togtdyalttai]

CC, I didn't have the problem with recording this time like you did. I recorded a match with Max Botti and it looks great, just like it did when we were actually playing it. Good job, Manu!

[CC]

[CC]

Please someone share your match; I would like to watch it. You may use this free service to post:
http://www.quickfilepost.com/ (or whatever else you can find).

[manutoo]

Version updated :
- the score wasn't correctly added to the file name
- corrected a bug that could have occurred when a desync in network occurred

I added an explanation about how to attach ur recorded file to this topic in the 1st message. (and I also configured the forum to add possibility to do it, coz before, I think the option wasn't available at all, except for me... )

And I'm attaching the 1st recorded match from Togtdyalttai to this message..!
S.Williamz, everybody is waiting for u now...


@CC :
I checked your demo, and something is corrupted in it. I'm not sure if it's related with the bug I fixed. Your match is fine till 2/0 15/0 ; by any chance, do u remember if u had the 1st desync of ur match at end of this point ?

>> Couldn't whatever information is sent [...]
yup, that's the spirit of the replay...
But unfortunately, it needs to have everything perfectly recorded, and everything perfectly replayed in the same way to make it work, and it can be quite tedious...

>> this technique could be used to allow others to watch matches
yup, it's theoretically already possible to do it, but it's not simple...
With a good setup, it should be possible to have an almost live feed (delay less than a couple of seconds).

And a lil side note... Do u know u don't have to run at end of the point to place urself correctly for serving or returning ..?


@Togtdyalttai :
got your demo ; that's a nice match we have here, quite pleasant to watch (TE is nicely realistic in online games... )
Are u still playing with a topspin at 100% ..?

[CC]

Manutoo,

This is great. I've been wanting this feature for so long, and I am so excited about this. It is so much better than having to use some external program for recording a video or something; so simple, and so efficient. Thanks!

In my recorded match, it really wasn't right after the first game, as each of us won the first game, as I remember, so it was never 0-2 (he served first). With the match of Togtdyalttai, this does not play correctly for me. For instance, Togtdyalttai wins the first point, but the score does not advance, and then this point is replayed; he misses the next serve of this first point in the replay, and then this first point is replayed at least three times, and this is where I stopped watching it. Actually it seems different each time that I play it. The third time that I played, he lost the first point, but then it was replayed with his not even being visible and missing the serve completely. Maybe is something wrong on my system? I'll download the latest update and try again to play this.

I don't remember where the first desynchronization was. I do know that I don't have to move the player to the correct spot after a point, but I like to do this as maybe I am hyperactive, and also, it seems more realistic.

[CC]

I played again Togtdyalttai's match after having installed the latest update, and it plays worse now. After the first point, which Togtdyalttai loses, the two players just run around behind the baseline with no one hitting the ball (in fact a ball is not even visible); they then run to the net, and the next point advances. His opponent serves to her own side of the court (with Togtdyalttai standing where he should be), and of course it is an "ace." She then lifts her hand in a gesture. Also, somehow the score becomes 30-30. Anyway, it just isn't right for me.