March 2000
SoF Chatroom! Posted by utopia on Friday, March 31, 2000
You betcha! You wanted it, now you have it! Your very own, Soldier-of-Fortune.com Chatroom. Come talk for a while.
Part I Of The SoF Walkthrough Posted by utopia on Friday, March 31, 2000
That's right! Neb has finished the first part to the Soldier of Fortune walkthrough. It covers the first mission: The New York Subway Station. So check it out.
About SoF Cheats Posted by utopia on Friday, March 31, 2000
I have received numerous (and I do mean numerous) emails about cheats not working in the full version of Soldier of Fortune. I'll go over it on here so everyone can see it.
So you want cheats in SoF? Great, first thing's first; create a shortcut to "sof.exe". Once you get your shortcut, right-click on it and go to properties. You'll see a field called "Shortcut" which should read:
Shortcut: "C:\Program Files\Raven\sof.exe" (or something similar)
To be able to type in cheats, you need to enable the console. To do this, you need to add "+set console 1" to your shortcut line. Add that after the quotes. This is what your shortcut field should look like under the "sof.exe" properties.
Shortcut: "C:\Program Files\Raven\sof.exe" +set console 1
Alright, you have a console now, so apply the changes and close out of properties. Run the game. Now just to make sure you can have cheats, when you go to start a single player game hit the "Custom Difficulty" setting, to set up your custom difficulty settings, and make sure cheats are enabled.
Hope that helps everyone out! Now stop emailing me! ;-)
SoF Interview Posted by SoulTaker on Friday, March 31, 2000
NGNetwork has put up an interview with Dan Kramer and Keith Fuller where they discuss Soldier of Fortune. They also answer some multiple choice questions, go take a look!
SoF: Part Deux Announced! Posted by SoulTaker on Friday, March 31, 2000
We have recieved word from an inside source, who wishes to remain anonymous, that Raven Software has been bought out with a large sum by, and I quote, "A major games publisher in France which will be revealed at a later time." Raven has stated that they are moving from their office in Madison, Wisconsin to Quebec, Canada in order to "absorb and embue an authentic French speaking culture for SoF 2." Current rumors are that Soldier of Fortune 2 will be entitled "Soldier of Fortune: Part Deux" and they will not be using the Quake engine for the game, but a new engine made from scratch called "Le Ghoule." I don't know what all this means, but hopefully it's for the best for us and for Raven!
Raven Praise Posted by SoulTaker on Friday, March 31, 2000
I forgot to mention this, but on Daily Radar another letter states the following:I just want everyone to know how cool the guys at Raven Software here in Madison, WI are. I'm an employee at gaming store in the mall, and these guys came in and just wanted to check out they're ass kicking game Soldier of Fortune on its release day this week, and I asked them if they would be kind enough to autograph some copies... well they said sure, but I didn't have any "silver" pens, so THEY went back to their offices grabbed some pens and brought the staff back and signed our remaining copies... if you're reading this thanks guys... especially you McNutt, you guys made my day, now if only Ion Storm could... ahh nevermind, screw 'em.
John Mullins Chatlog Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
GameStop and Daily Radar had a IRC chat with John F. Mullins and SoF Center has the chatlog of it for you to read.
SoF #1 @ GameStop Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
Just wanted to tell you guys that GameStop has Soldier of Fortune as their #1 top seller in their PC category!
SoF = Kingpin? Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
Daily Radar has today's letters up and one of them is entitled "Soldier of Fortune = Kingpin?". Check out the letter by clicking here.
Write Your Own SoF Review! Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
PC Game Review has put up a Soldier of Fortune section so fans of the game can go there and write their own review of Soldier of Fortune!
Kenn on SoF Tech Support Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
In Kenn Hoekstra's latest .plan update, he states that tech support for Soldier of Fortune will not be handled by RavenSoft but rather by Activision. The Activision tech support can be reached here.
SoF Radiant Problem Fixed! Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
SoF Center scored the missing .qe4 file which is needed to run SoFRadiant. You can download it here!
SoF TimeDemo Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
The Daily Chronic has put up a Soldier of Fortune timedemo which finds out how many FPS your getting in the game.
Fargo in Fatigue! Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
Fargo from Planet Fargo has pics of him going beserk in the offices dressed in fatigues to mimic Soldier of Fortune. This is hilarious stuff, check it out!
SoF a Top Seller! Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
Amazon is reporting that Soldier of Fortune is current #4 top seller in Amazon.com's Action Games category! In addition, the page includes several customer reviews of the game.
SpaceOrb Configs For SoF Posted by utopia on Thursday, March 30, 2000
Birdman's Lair has an updated version of the SpaceOrb config for Soldier of Fortune: http://birdman.questgate.com/
Info About Non-US Versions Of SoF Posted by utopia on Thursday, March 30, 2000
Kenn Hoekstra sent along this little bit of information regarding the violence in the non-US version of Soldier of Fortune:If you are running the game in Germany or using German Windows settings, you won't be able to see the violence without changing your regional settings to English (US), even with a non-German edition of the game.
Activision support has a macro program to run to enable the violence lock again. If you forgot your password, e-mail support@activision.com, tell them you lost your password and tech support will send you the macro to enable it.
SoF Review On BoomGames Posted by utopia on Thursday, March 30, 2000
BoomGames has done a great review on Soldier of Fortune. Here's a clip:Ravensoft has produced many games in the past that have simply put a wow on our faces once we try them out for the first time. Being no exception, Soldier of Fortune is their latest work of art that has put a holy cow onour faces this time. Using the engine from ID software's Quake II, Ravensofthas produced a truly unique title in the first person genre. Raven hasout-done themselves this time, and I am sure this will send developers backto the drawing board for a game truly unique like this one.
SoF Fan Reviews! Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
Review Planet has put up a section where fans can review Soldier of Fortune. Fans can write out their own short review of Soldier of Fortune as well as give it a overall score. Go submit your own review of Soldier of Fortune!
FiringSquad SoF Review - Part 2 Posted by SoulTaker on Thursday, March 30, 2000
FiringSquad has put up the second part of their two part Soldier of Fortune review. This second part talks about the multiplayer aspect of the game. Here's a piece:Overall, Soldier of Fortune multiplayer has met our expectations. While it May. not appeal to everyone, most first person gamers will find it a fun and different experience. We fully expect that multiplayer SoF should develop a strong following of its own. The realistic style deathmatch is something I know I'm going to keep coming back to for the weeks and months to come, because it's the perfect compromise between Quake style deathmatch and the realism of a Counterstrike or Rogue Spear.
Interview With Gil Gribb Posted by Phoebus on Thursday, March 30, 2000
NGNetwork also had an informative talk with Raven's GHOUL engine creator, Gil Gribb:Can you speak to the future of GHOUL as a rendering system? How forward-compatible is GHOUL?
We are pondering the future of Ghoul right now. We haven't written a single line of code, but we are just thinking about what we would like to do. The sorts or features we are planning for Ghoul2 are:
*Skeletal system for even more animations.
*LOD for high poly models on machines that can handle it.
*Procedural gore, so there are no gore zones. The location of wounds will be 100% accurate.
*Several enhancements to streamline production.
That is it for the technical changes, but the artists are cooking up some wicked ideas for taking the gore to the next level.
Kenn Hoekstra Interview Posted by Phoebus on Thursday, March 30, 2000
NGNetwork interviews Raven's Project Administrator Kenn Hoekstra. Here's a snippet, but be sure to check out the rest!Please describe your role in the SoF project.
I served as the Project Administrator for Raven Software. My duties included serving as Raven's office manager, tech support guy, webmaster, manual writer, part-time publicist and PR contact, playtester, liaison between Raven and Activision and a bunch of other things too numerous to mention. I did a lot of things that no one else had time to do, which didn't fall into anyone else's job description. =)
SoF Strategy Guide Soon! Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Need hints, tips, and strategies for Soldier of Fortune? Well, BradyGAMES has recently announced the following on their upcoming strategy guide for Soldier of Fortune:BradyGAMES announced that they will publish the exclusive and official strategy guide for Activision's Soldier of Fortune. The guide will provide over 208 pages worth of game secrets, hints and illustrations. Look for the game in stores later this month (ed noteż it's out, go buy it!). Look for the strategy guide to be released at about the same time.
SoFFiles Open For Business Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
SoFFiles has opened up for business. If you are looking for a comprehensive list of all Soldier of Fortune related files, then head on over there.
Discussion On SoF At PC GameWorld Posted by utopia on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
There's a discussion about the different versions (blood free, and regular) of Soldier of Fortune at PC GameWorld. Stop by and voice your opinion!
SoF Support FAQ Updated Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Raven has updated their Soldier of Fortune Support FAQ with information on running a dedicated server, using the Logitech Wheelman Mouse with the game, as well as troubleshooting the game on Windows 2000.
SoF 2? Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Captured fired off a quick question to Kenn Hoekstra about the possibility of a Soldier of Fortune sequel, and here's what Kenn had to say about it:We've been open about the possibilities of doing a sequel. If the original has a strong sales push at the beginning, odds are we'll start work on a sequel directly. Remember, if too many people warez Soldier of Fortune, there won't be no Soldier of Fortune 2, so again please check out Planet SoF's anti-warez page which was made to shut down all the warez sites that are carrying an illegal copy of Soldier of Fortune.
Got News? Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Got news? Have any news on the latest developments on Soldier of Fortune mods, levels, etc.? Have any news on the latest Soldier of Fortune reviews? Then drop us a line about it at news@soldier-of-fortune.com!
Wanted: Hosted Sites! Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Soldier of Fortune, as you know, has just been released and we here at Soldier-of-Fortune.com are eager to see what you guys are cooking for mods, levels, etc. for the game. If you are building a mod, levels, etc. and are interested in being hosted by us, check out our hosting page for details, then contact us at hosting@soldier-of-fortune.com!!
New SoF Wallpapers Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
DeCyber SoF has put up a couple of brand new Soldier of Fortune wallpaper for you all to download and enjoy!
Win2K Video Card Help Posted by Phoebus on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Raven's Project Administrator Kenn Hoekstra posted this helpful advice on the forums for Windows 2000 users who are having video card trouble with SoF:You need to have a 3d accelerator card that is fully openGL compatible to run the game. There is a list of supported cards at http://sof.ravensoft.com/compatibility.htm
If you do have a supported card/chipset, you probably have outdated drivers installed that won't run the game properly. Update your drivers to the reference drivers here: http://www.voodooextreme.com/hw/Binaries/drivers.html
Joystick Support Posted by Phoebus on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Joystick users, there is hope for you yet, thanks to our good friend from Activision, Corn Popper!OK, experimenting with a Logitech Extreme Digital 3D joystick I came up with a workable config.
Make sure your joystick is properly configured in Windows. (ie latest drivers, set to ID 1, and joystick is calibrated).
Go into the game and go into the Options menu. Scroll all the way to the bottom and select Configure Joystick. On the next screen make sure Joystick is selected to On. I will list a config that works first then try to explain what each does. The rest is just too long to post the whole thing here, so just go to the forums and here specifically for the full skinny :-)
SoF Full Ver. Cheats Posted by SoulTaker on Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Thanks goes out to SoF Center for the following list of cheat codes for the full version of Soldier of Fortune:Heretic - Godmode
Elbow - Weapons #1-5
Bigelbow - Weapons #6-10
Matrix # - Timescale (replace "#" with 1-10)
Phantom - Noclip
Ninja - Notarget
Gimme - Spawn objects (use this instead of the word spawn to spawn objects) We will soon update the cheats page to mirror these changes.
Kids, Warezing Is Bad, So Don't Be Bad! Posted by Phoebus on Tuesday, March 28, 2000
PlanetSoldier sends word that they've put together a page with information on how everyone can do their part to help stamp out potential 'warezing' (i.e., illegally downloading) of SoF:With Soldier of Fortune on shelves now, we know that people are going to start warezing it. But we plan to put a stop to that, and that is why this page is up. Scott McNutt, one of the fine workers at Ravensoft, is just one of the many hoping to stop it. To do so, he is hoping you will email him with the URL of the site that has it. In short, here is what you do:
If you know of a site where Soldier of Fortune is at, and would like to better the gaming community, send the URL to Scott McNutt. So, all of you who have done the right thing, spread the word!
SoF Signed Copies! Posted by SoulTaker on Tuesday, March 28, 2000
Kenn Hoekstra has updated his .plan with the following news that him and fellow Ravenites signed 25 copies of Soldier of Fortune!The boyz and I just got back from Software Etc. where we signed 25 copies of Soldier of Fortune. That's right! It's on the shelves! If you're living in the Madison area and you want to grab a signed copy, head over to West Towne Mall and talk to the Software Etc. guys. They'll be happy to see you... We offered to sign other random games like Quake III: Arena and Force Commander, but at that point they
kicked us out... =) If you need technical help with the game after you buy it, contact Activision customer support.
100 Posts In 48 Hours Posted by utopia on Tuesday, March 28, 2000
Thanks to everyone for posting over on the messageboard. We broke 100 posts in just under 48 hours! Way to go!
SoF Video Card Fixes Posted by utopia on Tuesday, March 28, 2000
Just to reiterate what Kenn Hoekstra posted on the messageboard, if you're having some video card troubles please visit http://sof.ravensoft.com/soffaq.htm, and get the latest reference drivers for your video card.
SoF Files Posted by utopia on Tuesday, March 28, 2000
Be sure to stop by our files page for all the latest Soldier of Fortune files.
New SoF Review Posted by SoulTaker on Tuesday, March 28, 2000
Daily Radar has put up a review of the just released Soldier of Fortune. Here's a piece from the review:This is the Quake II engine? One almost can't tell. It May. not have Q3A's curvy surfaces, but the textures, art and animations have been so improved that we almost forgot that the game is essentially running on three-year-old technology. Raven has once again taken id's core code, improved upon it and added more fun than Carmack and crew have put into their last two games combined. Plus, there are explosions, big guns and lots and lots of bloody, gibbed bodies. What more could you ask for in a FPS? Expect in the next few weeks about 80,000 reviews of Soldier of Fortune =)
SoF Officially Released Today! Posted by SoulTaker on Tuesday, March 28, 2000
After months of eager anticipation, Soldier of Fortune has finally been released! Today, Soldier of Fortune has hit store shelves everywhere! So what are you waiting for? Go out now and go buy your copy!!!
IRC Chat With John Mullins Posted by utopia on Monday, March 27, 2000
I saw over on PCGamer.com, that DailyRadar and GameStop are orchestrating an online chat on Friday, March 31 at 8:30pm CST. Head to the GameStop site for more information.
Power Grip For SoF Posted by utopia on Monday, March 27, 2000
In case no one has noticed, there's a mod in the making for Soldier of Fortune and it sounds like it will be quite a mod. It is called Power Grip. They are in need of some help to get them started. Here's a little clip from their webpage saying what they need: I need to form a team, if you are a firmly talented Programer, Mapper, Character Modler please contact me asap with some links to your stuff! I will possibly also need sound engineer. I will be doing the weapon models, textures and misc. graphics, after that May.be some levels and characters. If you are interested mail me at whir@concentric.net with URL's of example work, credentials etc. No file please! If you have the skills for the job, be sure to head over and get in touch with the team.
SoF Spotted in Stores! Posted by SoulTaker on Monday, March 27, 2000
I saw over at sCary's Shugashack that Soldier of Fortune has been spotted at several stores:Just a quick note for you guys, Soldier of Fortune has been showing up on a few retail shelves. You might want to stop by your local store or give them a call and see if it's available in you area. You can check out the playable demo or a bunch of screenshots of the game if you're forgotten what it looks like. Go to your local computer store today and see if they have Soldier of Fortune!
SoF SDK Released! Posted by SoulTaker on Monday, March 27, 2000
Rick Johnson has updated his .plan with news that the SDK for Soldier of Fortune has been released!You can download the inital version of the SoF SDK at SoF News. This SDK contains a version of Radiant for SoF, the BSP utilities, scripting compiler, ghoul exporter, documentation, and the original map and script files for the first level of the game (the New York Subway). You can download it right here!
Error In GameSpot's SoF Review Posted by utopia on Monday, March 27, 2000
An error in the GameSpot review of Soldier of Fortune, as pointed out on the messageboard by Beast1284, says that SoF is "the first game to appear using a licensed Quake III engine". Do not believe that.
In fact, Soldier of Fortune is using a heavily modified version of the Quake II engine in conjunction with GHOUL and CHIMERA. If you ever have any questions about anything Soldier of Fortune related, be sure to ask on the messageboard.
Thanks for pointing that out Beast1284.
New Maps For SoF Posted by utopia on Monday, March 27, 2000
There will soon be new maps for Soldier of Fortune thanks to Michael Lohmann. He is the chief of deCyber mapping team, and they have just launched their new site for Soldier of Fortune. deCyber started a couple of years ago bringing some of the greatest maps around, so be assured their work will be top-notch.
Another SoF Review Posted by SoulTaker on Monday, March 27, 2000
GameSpot UK has put up a review of Soldier of Fortune. Here's a little bite of the review:Soldier of Fortune is the first game to appear using a licensed Quake III engine and far from being a workmanlike but bloodsoaked homage to Rambo-esque lunacy it actually turns out to be an inventive and remarkably intelligent test of your first-person combat skills. You play the role of John Mullins, a mercenary "consultant" working for a shadowy organisation called The Shop, taking on jobs that the US government can't be seen dirtying its hands with. Mullins, by the way, is a real-life consultant for the game - a novelist, ammunitions factory owner and former Special Forces officer with three tours of 'Nam and countless years as a mercenary to his name.
Go check out the review!
New Soldier of Fortune Wallpaper! Posted by SoulTaker on Monday, March 27, 2000
SoF@WON.Net has put up three brand new original Soldier of Fortune wallpapers for all of you to enjoy. Go check them out!
Raven Interview, Part Deux! Posted by Phoebus on Monday, March 27, 2000
As promised, here's Part Two of our Raven Interview, commemorating the occasion of Soldier of Fortune having gone gold (and already showing up on the shelves here in the US!), this time with Project Administrator Kenn Hoekstra. Check it out! :-)
SoF First Impressions Posted by utopia on Sunday, March 26, 2000
I picked up my reserved copy of Soldier of Fortune a couple of hours ago from EB. Luckily I had reserved a copy, because out of the 25 they got in, they were all sold in under an hour. I brought it home and popped it in. I must say you will all be impressed. It's great from the first mission I've played.
It runs really smooth on my p333 celeron with 128mb RAM. No slowdowns yet. That's about all I will say. You can all get excited and play it through when you pick it up. I'm not playing anymore tonight because I May. not be able to sit through classes tommorow :-). Prepare to be impressed!
SoF Box Clarification Posted by utopia on Sunday, March 26, 2000
Just to reiterate, the green box is the full version with high violence enabled. The red box is the "Tactical Version" which is low violence. Be sure to pay attention to these while buying Soldier of Fortune.
SoF Release + SDK Posted by SoulTaker on Sunday, March 26, 2000
Rick Johnson updated his .plan with the following information on the emminant Soldier of Fortune release as well as information on the SDK for Soldier of Fortune. Here's what he had to say:Looks like SoF will start to appear in stores either Tuesday or Wednesday of this week. This should be a world-wide release. Be extremely careful when purchasing your version of SoF, as one is full violence, and the other is low violence (the Tactical version) so that you don't pick the wrong version.
Most likely, within the next few days, I will be releasing part of the SoF SDK. The initial version of the SDK will include a version of Radiant that we modified for SoF, the bsp utilities, script compiler,
and possibly one of the production maps in its original form (we have yet to decide this).
Go post on the messageboard!
Another SoF Review! Posted by SoulTaker on Sunday, March 26, 2000
Thresh's Firing Squad has put up a review of Soldier of Fortune giving it an overall score of 87%. This review also includes three pages of screenshots. Here's a bit from the review:You might have noticed that other FPS games eventually become nothing more than a shooting gallery after a short amount of time. You hit someone and they fall down or they gib. May.be you'll see a few bloody holes or something, but your enemies die the same way every time, more or less. It's not that simple in SoF. For better or for worse, Soldier of Fortune brings us 2 or 3 steps closer to the graphic reality of battle.
Go read it!
Soldier of Fortune Review At GameFan! Posted by utopia on Sunday, March 26, 2000
There is a great review of Soldier of Fortune at GameFan. They seemed to have liked mostly everything about it and gave it a 91%. Here's a clip from the full review: The controls in Soldier of Fortune are outstanding, and anyone that's ever played a first-person shooter can jump in with no problems whatsoever. Every key is mappable, and every control can be changed to a player's personal preferences. One interesting gameplay feature I particularly like is the ability to look around corners and use them as cover. As we touched on before, the combat's about as perfect as can be without actually being there (let's not open that can of worms); the action's the foundation of what makes this game great.
Be sure to head over and give it a read.
Soldier-of-Fortune.com v2.0 Released! Posted by Phoebus on Sunday, March 26, 2000
Finally! I'm very glad to present the all new, much improved Soldier-of-Fortune.com!
Allow me to take a quick moment and thank Mike (Hunter) Morgan and Brenton (Cheech) Klik for their excellent work - and for putting up with my (freely admitted!) perfectionist tendencies. You can check the Contact Info page to see what everyone on our great staff does.
Suffice to say, a great deal of work has gone on behind the scenes over these past several weeks in order to bring this site to you. What you see before you is very much virgin territory for us. Without going into detail, this site - beautiful wrinkles and all, represents our freedom and determination. And we sincerely hope you enjoy the site as much as we enjoy working on it!
In case you didn't already know, Soldier-of-Fortune.com specializes in bringing you all the community news and resources on your favorite game that's just about to be released - Soldier of Fortune!
Head to our all-new forums and tell us what you think, what you'd like to see, and talk about the game!
Check out our premier Article, kicking off Raven Interview - Part One with head-honcho Brian Raffel. Tomorrow we'll present our discussion with Project Administrator Kenn Hoekstra.
Peruse the entire site! We've packed a good bit of content into the redesign, with more being added constantly!
And, as always, keep checking back often for the latest news as it happens . . . !
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