To get real-world height maps see this thread:
4k1R4's Heightmap Video Tutorial. Making 1:1 scale maps...

and coupling that with zapwizard's real world texture tutorial, the results are awesome

Woohoo! Another Zapwizard project in the making, bring it on!

Made by you will shurely be great

You're a Monster Zap! You're doing soooo great Work and let us all wait another painfull Days

Here is another teaser shot:



It's the start to the interior of a C17 carrying some cargo that will have a part in the game.

supersweet... but what is a C17?

The cargo plane.

nice, it looks cool

Looks good. I'm looking forward to this map. Can you tell us a little bit about where the player will start the mission? On the boat, the C17, or on an island? Awesome, either way.

I knew it would be an embarassing answer My thoughts went to all the boats in the game and I never considered outside that frame :baby:

It keeps shifting around. Here is the long answer:
I have already written out five version of the story, it changes almost daily, and sometimes due to me testing and idea in the editor to determine how much effort is required. The other reason the story changes is to try to strike a balance between action, gameplay, and driving the story.

I love any game that keeps the action in first-person view the entire game. For example HalfLife, COD, Crysis. They don't break the reality to do cutscenes out of the player's point of view. I strive to keep this in my games also. The only exception being the first and last cutscenes.

So far I have considered the following game starts. (Don't worry no spoilers)
1: Aboard a fast boat (Speed, patrol, pontoon, whatever) Just arriving for your first mission.
2: Aboard a VTOL (but there are no damn WINDOWS!)
3: Waking up in your quarters on-board a ship.
4: Aboard a helicopter, riding in the side-seats along with some other squad mates.

The fourth one there I actually already made the cutscene for, pretty much complete (minus dialog) And that scene may end up in the game still, but as a later transition between places.

The short answer:
Currently the player will start out aboard the C17 cargo plane. Sure it's been done plenty of times, but it really just works very well to get the story points communicated before the action starts happening.

My only other teaser...as of my current story, the player is NOT U.S. Special forces.

Maybe in the gunner seat of the VTOL? It doesn't necessarily mean it has to be something to shoot.

Ah, well the time spent aboard the aircraft give me some time to have dialog between the various characters in the story. Aboard a VTOL it would all feel disconnected as it would have to be over radio.
It is surprising if you look at most game stories, how little has to be communicated to a player in order to drive the story forward.
Take a look at HalfLife, the series has been going on for over a decade now and there is still tons of story points that are floating out there.
Doom is similar, heck "There's hostile aliens on mars..shoot them" is about all the story there is. Crysis is "Some scientist got lost, we are here to retrieve him...oh and there's aliens, kill them." Crysis at least though in another enemy with the KPA.

In contrast however, I still write much of the back-story (History, why, how) to my games, Castaway has a a lot of back-story, but that never gets communicated to the player directly. But if the back-story isn't there people will notice as missions will suddenly make no sense, or why are you hear doing this doesn't fit. If you know what I mean.

What could this be all about?