I got offered to be Concept artist for half life 2 mod

I am trying to think of some developments that you wouldn't have happened if WWII had never ended and I am having trouble coming up with stuff.

Stuff like bullpup automatic rifles with optics intended to replace existing rifles and SMGs existed. As did assault rifles. I am sure there was an Italian light mortar that basically did what the M203 does now. AMR rifles.

Even Night Vision was being developed during WWII.
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=...km=b40rru$23ha$1@nntp6.u.washington.edu#link1
Read through to the end of the thread...

I'd look at the StG44 and FG42 as your basis for German designs.

For Western designs maybe you could work on the assumption that we never got around to nicking the assault rifle concept and go with full-power rounds. You'd probably end up with something like an m14, but what the heck.

The BAR was an interesting weapon that doesn't seem to have a direct modern equivalent.

Ditto the Bren.
Maybe for us Brits you could have a top or side-loading automatic rifle "worked down" from it.

Clunky cheap-ass SMGs are probably a must. The Sten MkIIS supressed submachinegun had a supressor that apparently burned out fairly quickly (very quickly on auto), so maybe you could make that a feature of your sound supressors.

Some sort of grenade launcher would be good, but I'd make it much bigger and clunkier than modern 40mm stuff.

If you wanted a Robar equivalent (god knows why), there were obsolete anti-tank rifles around during WWII.

Grats. Working on mods are always fun, and being a concept artist is a blast. It can be a tough ride though, as you have to hope and pray that the mod doesn't die out. A large percentage of mods do early after a game's release just because the people realize they don't have the dedication or the skills necessary to do the job.

Nooooo. You can't add bits from the MP5 to the Thompson.

Go to HKPro and look at the early prototype pictures.

It looks really WWII German.

Besides the Thompson was made with wood and stuff. You'd probably be looking more at the Sten/M3A1 for your allied SMG. All metal and dirt cheap.

That's interesting. I did see an M2 carbine at the Imperial War Museum with a wire folding para stock and a low powered "snooper" scope stuck on top.

I was just thinking, maybe you could go for metal/wood as a way to differentiate between the Allied stuff and the German stuff (noone who is drinking hot acorns is going to waste wood when metal would do).

Be sure and post plenty of pictures as you go.

If WWII never ended wouldnt they have better weapons then now days? During war time a lot more money is spent into military development for new weapons. The atomic bomb, jet fighter, rocket bombs, submachine guns, etc were all developed or invented in WWII to my knowledge. So wouldnt the weapons if WWII had continued be vastly superior to modern day armourments?

spm1138 said:

That's interesting. I did see an M2 carbine at the Imperial War Museum with a wire folding para stock and a low powered "snooper" scope stuck on top.

Click to expand...

Hm, never seen an M2 with a wire folding stock. The "snooper" scope, is that the M3 nightvision scope you mean? AFAIK, then M3 was based upon the German Vampir NV scope for the StG.44:



The MG42 should also be a pretty good weapon to use as a reference, since it is still in service. Same with the M2HB. Also, you might want to take a look at the various CETME rifles produced just after the war, since they were mostly designed by German engineers that fled from the Allies : http://world.guns.ru/assault/as60-e.htm

I have to agree that weapons made during an neverending WW 2 would be superior in many respects and yet inferior in other ways.

What I mean there would have been an much development for better weapons. The thing though is that although the military wanted better weapons they were also restricted due to resource limitation and man power. Also they were "shy" of every "crack pot idea that every 2 bit designer" came up with. Case in point would be Wallis the designer of the bombs in the "Dam Busters". No one would listen to his ideas at first and it took him awhile to convence people that he wasn't nuts. (BTW on a side note read the entire story of Dam Buster squadron, they did so much more after that famous raid. They created precise bombing.)

New problems requiring creative ideas restrained by reality, stuborness, resources. Yes its true until the last 20 years that most development takes place during war time that advancment has been always tempered.

If it was me I would start off with a techincal time line. Say starting when Hitler came into power and start to development the army. Take each year and advance the armaments mixing reality and your own creativity. When you get into 1946 you would get a good feel how things would go and just continue on. Germany develops this weapon because of this. Allies develop this to counter this or a situation arises due to this. Development of this weapon is slowed due to a shortage of this resource.

Not knowing anything about the actual mod or how developed the story is or what ever its hard to say. Something as simple as the Allies booming the hell out of ball bearing factories or a similar important factory can have direct ramifications in air craft or tank production.

Sorry for no specifics and the length of this point. Hope it has some bearing or something usefull. Good luck.

spm1138 said:

Nooooo. You can't add bits from the MP5 to the Thompson.

Go to HKPro and look at the early prototype pictures.

It looks really WWII German.

Click to expand...

That's because it IS WWII German. The guys who founded HK via the CETME project in Spain took the StG44 as their prototype for the G3, then took what was the firing mechanism for the MG42 (roller locking), developed it further for a rifle, and made the CETME Rifle, which was further refined under HK to become the G3. Ergo, the G3 is a direct result of nazi weapons research.

I honestly think if WWII was still going today, the timeline of weapons wouldn't be that different, just accelerated. Polymer would've come around as a cheap and easy alternative to stamped metal, first replacing wooden parts, then eventually replacing entire frames, leaving the working parts and parts under stress the only metal left. The only difference is that this would've come about earlier. Some time around the mid 50s, say.

The weapons we have these days are the result of a war, in the end (The Cold War), so it really wouldn't be much different. When you design, just keep in mind the trends of various countries. The Nazis and the Americans both love the concept of a technological advantage, and they usually pioneer things (Eg. Garand, G43, StG44). The Soviets were the masters of mass producing robust and functional weapons that keep working way longer than they should while costing way less than they should (SVT40, PPS, PPSh-41, T-34), and the British made quality weapons, sometimes a little obsolete, but usually quite functional. The Sten and Bren, for instance, are pure quality, but the Bren was outclassed by the German machine guns, and the MP40/Sten debate could go on for eons.

Keep in mind those trends, and the common idea of (usually) building upon weapons that already exist, and doing things dirt cheap, and you should be fine. My PM box and small library of firearms books are always open, too

Nice.

But being a bit picky: A soldier would never use a knife like that. It would be much better to have a knife that can double as a bayonet.

Good stuff man, you've certainly got what it takes for doing concept art.

(side ntoe) If you ever want to get a job in the game industry, you will need to be multi-talented. I don't know many places that hire just concept artists, so keep that in mind if you ever consider a job in the industry. I'd recommend either getting into 3d modelling or texture work to compliment the concept artist work.

map-o-matic, have you seeen jin-roh?? the funky metal 'capital guard' men are worth checking out... they would make very good bases for the german forces... and youve got to include an MG42! thats my fav and it looks way cool with the jin-roh capital guards! but anyway i wish you good luck with your new job ! but just a bit of opinion.... try not to just copy shapes of weapons and redesign the look... but i shouldnt be talking im not really imaginative either

anyway here are some pics:






ooh check out that MG42 baby

i don't know, i have the feeling that weapons would be incredibly sophisticate after a 50 years war. it depends on what kind of war you want btw. if the ww2 had lasted a few more years i guess both germany and the usa would have had the nuclear bomb and we would all be dead by now
otherwise, it you take the nuclear bombs outside the equation, just imagine the weapons we would have today with all the money that was put in the research for bigger and better bombs in the cold war by the usa and the russians. maybe we would have lasers or stuff like that

oh and don't forget the robe like uniforms some germans had