Yep were still alive and kicking folks. BWO has made some great progress over the last year as we've now fully tested each and every mission that will be included in the campaign including an extensive reworking of some missions and some fantastic fine tuning and balancing to the others. Missions are our strong point and we want to make sure its worth downloading the campaign when its finished.

We have no fixed release date as all of our staff are volunteers, however, we are closing in on being finished. What we really need is help with texturing and UV mapping. If you can help, let us know on our forums.

Work is being done to bring the BWO website back upto speed. Written in basic HTML code about five years ago the site has been updated continually, however, its code is now beginning to show its age and does not always render properly on newer and more standards compliant browsers. Efforts will be undertaken over the next few weeks to bring the site upto speed. Some content areas are temporarily disabled as this process goes forth.

The Downloads and Status pages have been updated with revised content. Downloads is now fully functional with new download links from HardLight Productions new server.

It's been two years since the BWO page was last given a proper update. In that time the campaign has progressed slowly but with purpose. Lead by a determined team consisting of Ace, BlackDove, and IceFire the campaign continues. New staff have signed on to help and old friends have rejoined the effort. BlackWater Operations will be completed although we are loathe to give a release date.

Spearheaded by Ace and BlackDove serious progress on a lengthy and necessary beta test period the campaign is nearing its final stages of completion. Although missions for the campaign have been complete for nearly a year many of the older missions were buggy and required redesigns, re-writes, or starting from scratch. What has never been lost is the spirit of the campaign and the overall story plan which remains strong and true to the original concept envisioned by IceFire and Kellan in the very beginning.

Efforts have also been undertaken by our modeler team who have produced high poly, high detail, and HT&L compatible models for FreeSpace Open. Additional eye candy in the form of all new high resolution backgrounds and other effects taking advantages of the new components of the FreeSpace Open Source Code modifications mean that BWO will be more than it was ever meant to be when we started.

Although our efforts have slowed and we are all different people than we were so many years ago when we started this project it, we are dedicated to completing it and making it available to the community. Our efforts continue and we hope to deliver a fantastic FreeSpace experience in the future.

Back in August we had a small Beta Tester recruitment drive on the BWO forums. Since then, the Beta Testing team has shown exemplary conduct and has been testing BWO from the beginning to the end. We're working our way through missions, solving problems, and making sure that things work. Its going to be a tough process but it means that the campaign is inching closer to being completed.

With that in mind, progress will slow once again with the school year apon us and many other things to work on. Nonetheless, BWO is progressing well. Check our forum for the latest screen shots and keep checking back for some serious updates near release.

So its 2004 and its been maybe three or four years since we started this bloody thing and the end is in sight. Alot has changed recently so lets recap

Firstly, and most obviously, the website has had a massive makeover of its visual. I completed the last version using Paint Shop Pro 4 and I've since moved onto Photoshop 6.0 (I know, not even CS). The result is a much more refined website. I tried several different designs and looks but the original design was very nice to work with and its very easy to put together so I've made it look nicer but everything else is where you should expect it.

We've also moved to HLP. A big move in and of itself. This is now the center of our small but active community. The move was made for obvious reasons and you can read all about it when it comes to be.

The campaign is within a hairs breadth of being completed. We've still got some work ahead of us to tidy it up and bring things upto release quality. First, we'll need voice actors soon as the script gets locked down and second we need MOD people. At least one person to do some texture work and another to help us get the tables all together (likely using Lightspeeds updates for weapon effects).

So thats about all I can fill you in on. We've got a few hours left on missions and a few more left on MOD's. Then we're essentially done. We need support to get there. If you have the talent please contact us.