Commented 4 weeks ago2024-03-29 00:43:48 UTC
in journal: Objective designComment #106097
IO Interactive (Hitman reboot) calls these spaces "Private Professional" (very cool GDC talk on that), that video was really helpful when I was thinking over this problem.
Commented 4 weeks ago2024-03-29 00:33:48 UTC
in journal: Objective designComment #106096
Yeah, my current idea, subject to change, is some sort of abandoned factory taken over and fortified by the combine. Industrial buildings are already semi-restricted by nature; they're not super fortified like an army base, but they're built by nature as spaces that are only open for a limited set of people (employees, contractors, etc), so that'd lend itself well to repurposing. Two main entrances and exits (main/employee entrance, loading bay), and enough stuff that could be snuck into (the usual ventilation system, drainage, etc.). I gotta think some more about what it could actually contain though.
Commented 1 month ago2024-03-05 19:38:09 UTC
in vault item: 2024 Exercise #6: CombatComment #106034
Thanks! Yeah, I couldn't come up with any reasonable objects to put in the centre of the plaza and by that I was too far along to change the theme (that's why you dev texture first, past me!) so the cover is a little lacking, I admit.
Architecture? Awesome. It looks great, sounds great, it's got the whole war-torn city feel. The catch? It's incredibly confusing. Half the time I didn't know where to go, with no hints, no obvious path, lambda caches that were hard to recognise as such. I had to noclip once to get somewhere I was obviously supposed to go but had no idea of how to get there.
Gameplay? Not so cool. It changed between too little or even no health kits (I lost count of how many times I had to turn on god mode) and an overly large supply of health chargers. The combat was set up poorly, being shot at from all directions, constantly, with little cover or, in one case, a finite supply of rockets. It was not indicated when or why people joined my squad or left it.
Overall, I got the feeling that someone proficient in staging combat would have been a good co-author to complement the exquisite visual treat that this map serves.
I was prettycurious about this "non-linear" design and let me preface this review by saying, that part was awesome. At first, I was extremely confused and disoriented - being presented with several paths to go instead of one, I got huge FOMO upon picking one. But I soon caught up on the way the map works and it was pretty fun. During my (brief) playthrough, I had several "OHHHH so I'm back here!" moments and I found the map to be a textbook example of how to pack loads of mapping and gameplay into a seemingly small space.
But. Big big but (pun intended).
The combat is extremely poorly managed. More often than not, I'd find enemies swarming out of every direction, with no indication as to a wave was over or where the next attack would be from, trying to take cover or retreat for a few minutes only to find there were enemies behind me as well. In addition, I fought through the majority of the map with a pistol only, as munition for the other weapons was extremely rare. I had to quicksave every few moments (and use godmode once, after saving only to get shot in the face right after). In the end, I ragequitted after dying for the tenth-or-so time in the same spot (trying to kill half a dozen combine plus two shotgunners when you're on 10 health and only got a pistol is kinda hard).
There's huge potential in this concept, but I think going over the combat and re-doing that would really benefit the map. Maybe a more traditional approach to staging assaults would be good, with more obvious indication where to expect enemies from, and places to retreat to for some licking-my-wounds. That being said, this is still a pretty cool map, and the layout and visuals are certainly en par with any campaign map.
Commented 5 years ago2019-04-10 16:01:55 UTC
in journal: optional objectivesComment #101947
I'm not really a fan of Goldsrc, I'd have to re-learn half of what I know about mapping for that. BMS' rad visuals make it hard to make a map that can match the stock maps, but it's pretty much the same as mapping for HL2, so it's a working environment I'm familiar with.
Commented 5 years ago2019-04-05 22:00:20 UTC
in journal: optional objectivesComment #101943
Just had a thought I might try and build into something.... again drawing inspiration from Metal Gear Solid V (almost 200 hours on record, I seriously need a new addiction to get away from this game)...
basically taking MGSV's prison facility, Camp Omega, and its POWs you can liberate throughout the missions, and putting that into Black Mesa.... what I'm thinking here is, primary objective: go there, do this. Secondary objectives: liberate security staff held captive by HECU, rescue scientist xyz who's hiding out in the labs, destroy HECU comms centre... each side op shipped off into a separate map would allow for easier creating the maps, but they should all interact with the main mission.... for instance, the security staff would form a squad and support the player, the scientist would unlock a retina-scanner guarded door to let the player grab a fancy weapon (RPG? Tau cannon?) and taking out the comms would disable reinforcements during a final battle...
I gotta draw shit up and chances are, I'll never have the time to do this (plus, BMS is tricky to map for because it sets the bar for visuals much much higher), but I'd love to flesh out the details for this one...
Texturing — 10
Ambience — 10
Lighting — 10
Gameplay — 3
Architecture? Awesome. It looks great, sounds great, it's got the whole war-torn city feel. The catch? It's incredibly confusing. Half the time I didn't know where to go, with no hints, no obvious path, lambda caches that were hard to recognise as such. I had to noclip once to get somewhere I was obviously supposed to go but had no idea of how to get there.
Gameplay? Not so cool. It changed between too little or even no health kits (I lost count of how many times I had to turn on god mode) and an overly large supply of health chargers. The combat was set up poorly, being shot at from all directions, constantly, with little cover or, in one case, a finite supply of rockets. It was not indicated when or why people joined my squad or left it.
Overall, I got the feeling that someone proficient in staging combat would have been a good co-author to complement the exquisite visual treat that this map serves.
Texturing — 10
Ambience — 10
Lighting — 7
Gameplay — 3
But. Big big but (pun intended).
The combat is extremely poorly managed. More often than not, I'd find enemies swarming out of every direction, with no indication as to a wave was over or where the next attack would be from, trying to take cover or retreat for a few minutes only to find there were enemies behind me as well. In addition, I fought through the majority of the map with a pistol only, as munition for the other weapons was extremely rare. I had to quicksave every few moments (and use godmode once, after saving only to get shot in the face right after). In the end, I ragequitted after dying for the tenth-or-so time in the same spot (trying to kill half a dozen combine plus two shotgunners when you're on 10 health and only got a pistol is kinda hard).
There's huge potential in this concept, but I think going over the combat and re-doing that would really benefit the map. Maybe a more traditional approach to staging assaults would be good, with more obvious indication where to expect enemies from, and places to retreat to for some licking-my-wounds. That being said, this is still a pretty cool map, and the layout and visuals are certainly en par with any campaign map.
basically taking MGSV's prison facility, Camp Omega, and its POWs you can liberate throughout the missions, and putting that into Black Mesa.... what I'm thinking here is, primary objective: go there, do this. Secondary objectives: liberate security staff held captive by HECU, rescue scientist xyz who's hiding out in the labs, destroy HECU comms centre... each side op shipped off into a separate map would allow for easier creating the maps, but they should all interact with the main mission.... for instance, the security staff would form a squad and support the player, the scientist would unlock a retina-scanner guarded door to let the player grab a fancy weapon (RPG? Tau cannon?) and taking out the comms would disable reinforcements during a final battle...
I gotta draw shit up and chances are, I'll never have the time to do this (plus, BMS is tricky to map for because it sets the bar for visuals much much higher), but I'd love to flesh out the details for this one...