Portal Storms, your thoughts? Created 16 years ago2008-03-10 20:56:31 UTC by Tycell

Not sure exactly which forum this should go in but I figure this one because its to do with level design.

Ok so basically I was really dissapointed with the "Portal Storms" VALVe made in Ep2. From my perspective it was simply a pretty looking large explosion with no real perpose other than to knock down stuff (like the bridge).

When I first heard the term "portal Storm" I pictured a really powerful massive storm front with devistating green lightning, thick cloud, rain and things being randomly teleported (essencially chaos).

What do you guys think of the portal storms? Do you like them or like me do you think they could have been better?

I liked them, but now that you mention it, they did kinda suck.

They have little purpose really, and I think you expected too much.

I think you dug too literally into the term "storm". I quite liked the effect myself.

I think it was pretty amazing.
But I imagine the original portal storms and 7 hour war were much more massive (as it never reached that stage in EP2) and therefore, there really wasn't too much to expect...

The scene was pretty awesome, I just think you expected too much. I'm pretty sure they're a natural occurance like rain or heavy wind. I guess they could be dangerous because, you know, its a bunch of portals and you could fall throgh one or something?

I think they're more dangerous because of the force they exert. One shook the ground hard enough to topple a metal bridge, and the other hard enough to split a thick concrete one in three.

I would say it's a natural event (well, natural for an infant super portal I guess) more akin to a natural disaster then simply rain or wind.

Putting all that aside however, it's a game - it's designed to give the player a puzzle and show off the Source engine's pretty new effects.

Like scripted bridges?

Yep, pretty much.

It was designed to show off Valves new destruction engine and frankly I thought the Portal storm looked cool and also in the commentary Valve said they made much more spectacular one originally but the levels it ran on lagged horribly and so they went with the one int the final game.

I wasnt expecting some super graphic amazing looking visual but a storm which enveloped the area and lasted (longer than five seconds) would have been nice. Like fog so you couldnt see very far with lightning flashes and perhaps scripted bits for the portals themselves. Sounds of high winds, electrical equiptment going on the fritz - It wouldnt be that hard to pull off. I made a map pretty much as I just described ages ago as a concept for portal storms in a ruined city with Red lightning and such.

Ah well, perhaps its possible to get different types of portal storms so I'll perhaps be able to use what I want in maps anyway with a little explination.

I think that the way that Xen creatures teleported in in HL1 was more like what I'd expect a portal storm to be than what they had in Ep.2.
Oh, and Trooperdx3117, I would just like to take the time to tell you that punctuation is there to be used.

Ah well, perhaps its possible to get different types of portal storms so I'll perhaps be able to use what I want in maps anyway with a little explination.

That's the way to go. I actually liked Valve's take on the storms, though if you manage to pull off at least half of what you want to see in them - it should absolutely kick ass.

As I said I already did. Ruined city, burning rubble, smashed stuff everywhere. Imagine Silent Hill but with ruined buildings, winds and lightning. Its so easy to do - I was especially proud of the lightning effects I pulled off though. Basically cycled through four different sets of effects, some with just sound, some with big red flashes and I even had some which shook the ground but removed them because it was a little OTT for the setting I wanted (horror).

So yeah, I can and have pulled of ALL of what I wanted to see in a portal storm. Apart from the actual teleporting portal effects, I just used beam effects and some teleport and kill commands to make stuff look like it was being portaled all over the place. It still looked good though, I might host and link the map if your interested in seeing what I did.

Post it!

Wait, there was a portal storm in Ep2?

I don't think so. There was the combine "Mass portal" but I don't think that was a storm. The storms can be seen on a newspaper clipping in Eli's lab at Black Mesa East (HL2) and the entire sky is dark and there's green bolts of lightning and all that shit. Thats what brought all the Xen creatures to Earth.

As far as I know the portal in Ep2 was created after the Citidel's destruction and was a direct link to the combine homeworld. Overall I thought it was a decent effect.

No, not that portal thingy Urb.

I'm talking about this;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDI_DK1qO28

That is what VALVe have coined a "portal Storm". I say its just a pretty effect which lasts only a few seconds and acts as a trigger for more pretty effects (bridge collapsing).

Ah.

/me feels like an idiot.

Its still a nice effect but seeing your take on it would be pretty cool. I think the fact that most of the massive destruction scenes were scripted is pretty lame but at the same time I'm kinda glad. I only have a 3.4 single core processor and dynamic physics on that scale would have made my PC bleed.

It would make any PC bleed. The physics in Half-Life 2 don't like to interact with a large number of other physics objects. I think it's designed more for more accurate physics on a smaller number of objects rather then the simple, cheap 'bouncy' physics you might see in a game like Painkiller.

The scripted cinematic physics are a blessing if you ask me. Being able to see a far larger scale of destruction with great accuracy/realism and no major performance drop = win <3

I want to see an absolutely dramatic low point for the players in EP3... a rebirth of the portal storm that the rocket ship was supposed to have destroyed, player on an arctic cliff or such, big open almost plain environment, and the storm in the sky winding up, suddenly, a huge strike of something like lighting, causing destruction on a massive scale, followed by a few more, then numerous smaller ones at a higher rate, debris flying everywhere, ice lunging at you, and then... all is black... emerging from the rubble, weaponless... combine and such scourging the area...

That's what I want to see from the portal storms, enough to give us something of a magnificent understanding, but without showing us everything and keeping us through a whole few hours of storm sequence...

Just to see all the destruction and chaos that can be unleashed by a portal storm... that would be truly amazing...

So.... the halo 3 teaser movie?

whoa... i didnt even think about that??

Lol. Not to bash your idea or anything, but that's the vibe i got from reading that. And why do you still have your christmas avatar?

Yeah, I know what you mean. I like, didn't even think about that...

And, no clue, but by the time I get unlazy enough to take it off, it'll be Christmas again...

Besides, I have nothing to change it to right now, as my files are STILL on my old computer...

And by the time you get them off, it'll be Christmas...

True that.