Commented 13 years ago2011-06-25 00:12:35 UTC
in vault item: IrradiateComment #19290
Layout seems really nice and lots of vertical gameplay, which is nice, not that i am any expert on dm layouts, but it seems like it would be fun.
Weapon placement seems decent and there are lots of interesting corridors to explore, and brushwork looks pretty solid to me throughout.
The most important thing i can see that could use real improvement is the texturing. A retexture would bump this map up a star easily. Note: almost 100% of the time if you use original textures you are going to get a negative rating on texturing unless you use them very creatively and definitely don't overuse them. E.g., the water cooling section would look pimp if not for those horrible stock HL textures.. everything else like the lighting and brushwork seems spot on.
Also a small disappointment is the train i was hoping to activate it.. can you start it up somehow?
Lastly, the server room is neat but it seems like it needs more work or detail or something.. it just seems artificial to me atm, but seems like it could pwn with a little work.
Nice map but it could be SO much better! Please pm me if you update and i'll up the rating! ***
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-19 21:28:42 UTC
in vault item: de_twhl2011Comment #19285
Awesome map, great fun playing. Ignore the nitpicks i made in the thread, you notice them not during the blur of gameplay!
The only thing i noticed that bugged me is you can hear footprints throughout the entire map(even when it was just me and potato, i could hear his footsteps the entire round).
Does that mean the map should be a little bigger? Thicker walls(LOL) =)
The only other small glitch was the cubevan by the gate had an odd rotation some rounds. I'm sure this is a known issue but just in case..
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-19 03:44:04 UTC
in vault item: Deathrun_Icarus2Comment #19279
Joe you just edit-blocked me BITCH! =) (no TRUE HOMIE does that)
Skals: maybe offer different versions of the map for beginners and intermedate players, by adding invisible clipbrush helpers and maybe slow down some of the more intricate rotating thinges, etc?
(You could make a nice menu system to do this in game, but it might cause problems with MP games?)
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-19 03:01:32 UTC
in vault item: aim_nuketownComment #19277
Ha thanks for playin Daub! =)
delay before activation(killstreaks) Hell ya! for the full version of the map i plan on adding a visual progress bar, and it will take say 6-10 seconds to "unlock" the carepackage. (maybe i should make the more powerful ones longer to open?)
I'm also adding the chinook coming in to "drop" them in and render them randomly. I would love them to be "rewarded" by actual kills, but i don't know how to do that in source. (yet) = )
interior detail Totally agree. At the beginning, i was plagued with performance issues so stopped detailing the interiors very early because i was scart the final version would be unplayable in terms of fps.
And ya, there are TONS of replay vids on youtube that i am only now starting to take advantage of. (much more detailed/dynamic than google images!)
The interiors will most assuredly be upgraded for the full version, and most of those hl2 and garrys mod props will be replaced by my own, which should hopefully fit better.
lighting and textures and ambience I totally agree. I wanted to improve these before the demo's release, but i wanted to release the demo in my lifetime as well! I would love to add the atmosphere of the original(the sounds/smoke/explosions), that you experience in a real game.
i got to actually play the game during the free steam weekend, and i played nothing but nuketown for obvious reasons. =)
HDR Could you pm me exactly what you mean. I would love to replicate that "haze" from the real game as much as possible1
Thanks for the playtest and the very-helpful comments! APPRECIATE. =)
Edit: you edited whilst i was also editing, LOL. = )
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-19 01:16:54 UTC
in vault item: Deathrun_Icarus2Comment #19275
Dimbark: do you even play this gametype to be able to compare it in quality to other maps of the genre? Or, do you just like arbitrarily trolling 3-star ratings to every map you play?
Skals: you pop these out pretty quickly! why not sprinkle in a "normal" map once in a while? =)
Like you say at the description at GB, these maps are NOT recommended for deathrun beginners. Could you recommend a couple good easier/beginner maps to try?
I haven't played the map but i'm sure the quality is really good, just like the rest of your maps(certainly better than 3 stars worth.. I'm rating 5 just to cancel out dimbark's tard rating.
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-13 15:56:25 UTC
in vault item: aim_nuketownComment #19259
Thanks for playing it!
ammocrates Very good point! i waas so concernted with making the carepackages themeselves, i never gave much thought to how BADLY they are being presented.
These are meant to be carepacages from COD BLOPS. Granted there is no sound saying "carepackage incoming", nor the chinook heli that comes to drop the crate. the crates aren't meant to be shown all at once, but rewarded, but since i have no idea how to reward an item based on killstreaks in css, they're just all left out for now. eventually, i think i'll just randomly have the chinook drop them off and whomever gets there first, gets them.
VVIS Vvis took 29 minutes on normal. Maybe you could pm me in more detail exactly what you mean by "cut up brushwork"(i didn't think func_details cut visleafs, if that's what you mean), cuz obviously i want it as optimized as possible. read the readme to see what i've done so far to optimize.
I will certainly try running with "mat_wireframe 1" to see of which you are speaking, TY.
"hostages" They are not really hosties but meant to represent the mannequens in from the original game. also left them as cyclers so i could tell if my damage triggers were working properly.
Gridsize Absolutely agree. i hate having to zoom down to 1 or 2 grid size to adjust something that would be better placed 2 spaces over and be on the 16 or 32 gridpoint.
dogs showing up thank you! i thought you could only see them from the napalm carepackaged so i left them. i'll fix that right up! =)
texturing Absolutely agree. they are mostly stock css. Next version will have textures, PROMISSO. =)
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-12 17:42:41 UTC
in vault item: hl_calibre66 v0.87bComment #19251
Wow surprisingly good! (screenshot does NOT do this map justice.)
++exquisitely-detailed furnitures and items in your room (seriouly, some of the best i've ever seen for any rats map. +/- r_speeds are high, but not half-bad for the amount of detail --a little too small imo. i would definitely expand gameplay inside the air conditioner, the bedspring, and definitley the closets. --some visual errors (though they are easily fixed:
door handle some disappearing faces. make seperate segments or alternating func_illusionaries. PM me if you'd like further explanation or example.
glass block thingie If you use hlfix, those segments will keep their proper angle. Hammer is snapping them to gridpoints and making them look less beautiful than they could be.
air-conditioner/radiator knob make that whole knob a func illusionary and that weird face splitting will disappear. you can set it 1 unit away from the radiator and enclose in a clip brush, which will achieve the same effect.
optimization -null anything unseen faces -make any complex or off-grid brushwork a func_illusionary(saves on unnecessarily cutting visleafs and clipnode budget). if the player needs to walk on it, place a simple retangular clip block where it needs to be solid
If you'd like more tips or comments please PM me!
5-stars for the most detailed structures i've ever seen in a rats map. i don't really give a dam about the rest.
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-10 15:39:50 UTC
in journal: #7273Comment #41781
i was but i was forced into a tough love program by myself. I used to love playing minecraft listening to the donnie darko OST.. A lot of times i thought the sun was going down but it was just the DD music =)
Commented 13 years ago2011-06-01 23:13:05 UTC
in vault item: cs_sarajevo testingComment #19185
the parking stripe infodecals are in the sarajevo-hint-exp map. you can tell what i mean by how they fade strangely if you walk backward away from them. This is not a huge deal in any way, i just feel brushwork stripes work better for long visual stretches.
Commented 13 years ago2011-05-30 22:36:17 UTC
in journal: #7252Comment #38469
i didn't feel like the cartoonish explosions matched well but some of the blood effects were cool and YES very disturbing i would say. Little kids doing headshots, beheadings, and operating meth labs? lol seriouslsy?
This comment was made on an article that has been deleted.
so whilst you're sitting on the trigger the mm is constantly being pummeled, and when you step off the trigger the pummeling ends? (trigger multiple set to a low reset rate?)
dunno why, but i'm having a hard time wrapping my head around this particular area.
BTW: you could probably be of some great help to Instant mix and his portal map:
@skals: i can see how that would trigger it off, but how does your method "sense" when the player is off the pad? would you have the ajacent 8 panels trigger the previous one off, or make it so that any block triggered automatically sets all the other ones to off?
i like potato's version cuz you can sit on the interstction between 4 blocks and trigger them all on. [url=would yours do this too?
potato: you did all the work to build the system, no spend 15 more minutes making it look pretty with togglable texlights.. might be epic. =)
that is really cool! it would take me a while to understand exactly what is going on with those enities tho.. did you basically simulate a "if, then" loop where if the player is on a trigger, the mm is repeatedly triggering the texture to the on postion?
We should bring back the entity challenges, though i think you would smoke everyone. =)
Works absolutely perfect, even stepping on multiple squares it doesn't get get messed up. Very good!
Weapon placement seems decent and there are lots of interesting corridors to explore, and brushwork looks pretty solid to me throughout.
The most important thing i can see that could use real improvement is the texturing. A retexture would bump this map up a star easily. Note: almost 100% of the time if you use original textures you are going to get a negative rating on texturing unless you use them very creatively and definitely don't overuse them. E.g., the water cooling section would look pimp if not for those horrible stock HL textures.. everything else like the lighting and brushwork seems spot on.
Also a small disappointment is the train i was hoping to activate it.. can you start it up somehow?
Lastly, the server room is neat but it seems like it needs more work or detail or something.. it just seems artificial to me atm, but seems like it could pwn with a little work.
Nice map but it could be SO much better! Please pm me if you update and i'll up the rating!
***
The only thing i noticed that bugged me is you can hear footprints throughout the entire map(even when it was just me and potato, i could hear his footsteps the entire round).
Does that mean the map should be a little bigger? Thicker walls(LOL)
=)
The only other small glitch was the cubevan by the gate had an odd rotation some rounds. I'm sure this is a known issue but just in case..
Great work.
*****
"..It's like taking your free time and shoving it up your dog's ass."
(Playing minecraft)
Minecraft is still addictively fun i will grant you..=)
Skals: maybe offer different versions of the map for beginners and intermedate players, by adding invisible clipbrush helpers and maybe slow down some of the more intricate rotating thinges, etc?
(You could make a nice menu system to do this in game, but it might cause problems with MP games?)
delay before activation(killstreaks)
Hell ya! for the full version of the map i plan on adding a visual progress bar, and it will take say 6-10 seconds to "unlock" the carepackage. (maybe i should make the more powerful ones longer to open?)
I'm also adding the chinook coming in to "drop" them in and render them randomly. I would love them to be "rewarded" by actual kills, but i don't know how to do that in source. (yet)
= )
interior detail
Totally agree. At the beginning, i was plagued with performance issues so stopped detailing the interiors very early because i was scart the final version would be unplayable in terms of fps.
And ya, there are TONS of replay vids on youtube that i am only now starting to take advantage of. (much more detailed/dynamic than google images!)
The interiors will most assuredly be upgraded for the full version, and most of those hl2 and garrys mod props will be replaced by my own, which should hopefully fit better.
lighting and textures and ambience
I totally agree. I wanted to improve these before the demo's release, but i wanted to release the demo in my lifetime as well! I would love to add the atmosphere of the original(the sounds/smoke/explosions), that you experience in a real game.
i got to actually play the game during the free steam weekend, and i played nothing but nuketown for obvious reasons. =)
HDR
Could you pm me exactly what you mean. I would love to replicate that "haze" from the real game as much as possible1
Thanks for the playtest and the very-helpful comments! APPRECIATE.
=)
Edit: you edited whilst i was also editing, LOL.
= )
Skals: you pop these out pretty quickly! why not sprinkle in a "normal" map once in a while? =)
Like you say at the description at GB, these maps are NOT recommended for deathrun beginners. Could you recommend a couple good easier/beginner maps to try?
I haven't played the map but i'm sure the quality is really good, just like the rest of your maps(certainly better than 3 stars worth.. I'm rating 5 just to cancel out dimbark's tard rating.
POTATO: 1
SKALS: 2.5(EXCELLENT COMEBACK!)
ammocrates
Very good point! i waas so concernted with making the carepackages themeselves, i never gave much thought to how BADLY they are being presented.
These are meant to be carepacages from COD BLOPS. Granted there is no sound saying "carepackage incoming", nor the chinook heli that comes to drop the crate. the crates aren't meant to be shown all at once, but rewarded, but since i have no idea how to reward an item based on killstreaks in css, they're just all left out for now. eventually, i think i'll just randomly have the chinook drop them off and whomever gets there first, gets them.
VVIS
Vvis took 29 minutes on normal. Maybe you could pm me in more detail exactly what you mean by "cut up brushwork"(i didn't think func_details cut visleafs, if that's what you mean), cuz obviously i want it as optimized as possible. read the readme to see what i've done so far to optimize.
I will certainly try running with "mat_wireframe 1" to see of which you are speaking, TY.
"hostages"
They are not really hosties but meant to represent the mannequens in from the original game. also left them as cyclers so i could tell if my damage triggers were working properly.
Gridsize
Absolutely agree. i hate having to zoom down to 1 or 2 grid size to adjust something that would be better placed 2 spaces over and be on the 16 or 32 gridpoint.
dogs showing up
thank you! i thought you could only see them from the napalm carepackaged so i left them. i'll fix that right up! =)
texturing
Absolutely agree. they are mostly stock css. Next version will have textures, PROMISSO. =)
Thanks for the good feedback!
= )
++exquisitely-detailed furnitures and items in your room (seriouly, some of the best i've ever seen for any rats map.
+/- r_speeds are high, but not half-bad for the amount of detail
--a little too small imo. i would definitely expand gameplay inside the air conditioner, the bedspring, and definitley the closets.
--some visual errors (though they are easily fixed:
door handle
some disappearing faces. make seperate segments or alternating func_illusionaries. PM me if you'd like further explanation or example.
glass block thingie
If you use hlfix, those segments will keep their proper angle. Hammer is snapping them to gridpoints and making them look less beautiful than they could be.
air-conditioner/radiator knob
make that whole knob a func illusionary and that weird face splitting will disappear. you can set it 1 unit away from the radiator and enclose in a clip brush, which will achieve the same effect.
optimization
-null anything unseen faces
-make any complex or off-grid brushwork a func_illusionary(saves on unnecessarily cutting visleafs and clipnode budget). if the player needs to walk on it, place a simple retangular clip block where it needs to be solid
If you'd like more tips or comments please PM me!
5-stars for the most detailed structures i've ever seen in a rats map. i don't really give a dam about the rest.
Excellent work!
= )
)
giggity gigigity giggity giggity
P
)
Very beast machine PB.. so jealous that your fps is undoubtedly epic... Tested any games on here yet?
dunno why, but i'm having a hard time wrapping my head around this particular area.
BTW: you could probably be of some great help to Instant mix and his portal map:
https://twhl.info/vault.php?map=5633
)
i like potato's version cuz you can sit on the interstction between 4 blocks and trigger them all on. [url=would yours do this too?
potato: you did all the work to build the system, no spend 15 more minutes making it look pretty with togglable texlights.. might be epic. =)
)
We should bring back the entity challenges, though i think you would smoke everyone. =)
Works absolutely perfect, even stepping on multiple squares it doesn't get get messed up. Very good!