Long Story of how I gain the ability to make a GoldSource map.

Posted 1 year ago2023-04-16 13:16:38 UTC
John Pot John PotIt's Me, From Discord
Back when I'm was a teenager, I watch many people playing a Half-Life Mods. Some are either pure garbage or good, some are well made that It make me inspired to make a mod. During the years of Covid-19, I dedicated my time watching a video about the basics of Valve Hammer Editor. The first one being on setting up a mod into placing a brush to the worldmap. It took me a while to set up Valve Hammer Editor, because it's complicated back then with little to no information about this. (Even though there is a video that mentions TWHL, I was kind of lazy to check it out) Back then, I only have a WON version of Half-Life, that i found on the internet... Since my parents does not allow me to spend some few moneys into buying a games (I weren't lucky enough to get Half-Life for free when Half-Life: Alxy is announce, I kind of ignored it. Don't know why.) It wasn't until that one of my friend who's nicknamed "Groovy" decided to gifted me some Quake Games, and Half-Life. I was thankful for that, It actually does motivated me more to work on Mapping and keep the "My mod" dream alive. After everything is set to work, I decided to start making my own map (With the help of TWHL and the Internet), blindly without any sketch or concept art, Just purely based on my mind when I was thinking of a level. I managed to made many levels, most of them are just a test to my abilities of making a map, some we're an actual map made for my mod, This maps we're eventually never used in the final mod due to how "cubic", unpolished and confusing to traverse trough the level. I decided that I should work on a random mod that I was passionate to work on, while working on my mod at the same time.

The first one being Black Mesa Classic. Before I could join in, I had to remake the Black Mesa Inbound. (I was asked to make a map as a proof that I will work on the mod) Only the first level of that chapter was done. After I joined it, I realize that the team in here we're some-what dead. After what I've seen inside there, I lost the motivation to work on BMC.

The second one being Half-Life Extended, A recently new mod that have been developed for some 2 years or so. I still remember that I asked one of the developers if they have a on working progress of the Hazard Course level. They don't have any. So I decided to silently remaking the Hazard Course for sometimes, until I decided to join in myself on the team. And to this day, I'm still working on the mod, polishing a finished map and making a concept map for the mod.

For my mod? Well, I kept it on hiatus ever since I joined the HLE Team until I had the right time to work on it again. At the moment the mod only have two map that is considered to be "OK" for the mod.

And that is the whole Journal. There is a lot of things that I intentionally put out due to how long the Journal would be, I've been trying to publish The Journal for straight three or four days. Apologize heavily if there is a "broken English". And thanks to my friend for giving me free Half-Life, that helped me a lot during that time, And to all of those who dedicated their time making an About page for an entity and a tutorial so that everyone (Including myself) could understand more about the functions.

And yeah, that's pretty much it.

I'm also looking forward to make another Journal but don't know what to write about it.
And I don't know how to end a Journal. So... Peace out, I guess?

3 Comments

Commented 1 year ago2023-04-17 20:51:24 UTC Comment #105207
Pretty bold to jump right into working on a mod with a team. However, I do believe that is one of the best ways to work on a project. Having people around who can immediately test your map and give feedback is incredibly useful, not to mention inspiring.

I worked solo on maps for years and either cancelled most of the things I started or only released very short maps, beatable within 10-15 minutes. With The Core however, I stuck with it for long enough to get another mapper, Archie to join the project. Same goes for the TWHL Tower mods. Working with a team really is the only way I can maintain focus on a project, as well as releasing something that lasts longer than a lunch break.
Commented 1 year ago2023-04-18 08:55:56 UTC Comment #105211
I indeed find it impressive enough that you almost immediately joined a team with your newly acquired mapping skills. I also remember that I had to stick with the WON version for a long time for a reason similar to yours, until a generous person bought it for me on Steam.
As Urby said, working with other people helps a lot. My biggest released project yet is a collab, and I was about to give up on it if it wasn’t for the other member of the team who kept insisting that I must finish what I started.
Commented 1 year ago2023-04-18 13:26:32 UTC Comment #105212
Back then, I actually don't think of any consequences or issues of joining a team. Half-Life Extended used to be something as a skin for Half-Life, turned into an Overhaul mod (Overhaul as improving or in some cases remaking certain levels from scratch, Adding some varieties to the models of monsters, Adding a new texture, ect...). From the time there was a conflict with a member about how the mod was changing directions, still remember the times where I added a elevator to the Observation Room from the Hazard Course (As a nod to Half-Life Decay), A member of the team doesn't like this due to how (If I could recall correctly, I have an issues on remembering past event) The elevator door does not make an appearance in Half-Life 1, So technically there shouldn't be any elevator door at all. I did try to argue about how that this was fine due to Half-Life: Decay but he still doesn't like it, so I had to force removing it until he left the team. Sometimes it could be hell other times it's funny.

Overtime my mapping skills had gradually improved, from just stretching a level into thinking of "what is good to add into the map". There are in times where I would get stressed over how I cannot think of new idea for the next map that I was about to make, then I need to take a day off from making a map.

Still remember where I met a dude on Discord (We sometimes chatted several times and has the talent to make C++) asked to me, If he could join the team. I asked the lead dev if he could join the team, the lead dev gave a go ahead and he was in the team in just a day.
To this day he's still working on the mod, and he too worked on several mods from time to time.

I also forgot to mention that, back then I really like to offer my help to every people that I came across (because I like being helpful)
One of them being Half-Life: Another Shift. I still remember how I was asked to make a Locker Room, A parking lot, and an intro sequence for Half-Life: Another Shift.
This didn't really get too far tho due to how the team (Which is only three member and including myself) is just in-active
Which is the sign that the mod is no longer in-active development. Hence I left.
I'm actually glad that John Smokes revives the ol' Half-Life: Another Shift with a new title called Half-Life: Protocol Blue
I wished the best of the best for John Smokes, so that he could finished what he had started.

At the moment, the team of HLE is trying their best to improve, polished all of the maps and patching up any possible bugs that could be found in the GoldSrc Engine so that they could at last release the "Day One" build.
(They we're in no rush, since they cannot make a realistic deadline and there is no actual deadline yet.)

And according to this new replies, does that mean my Journey of Mapping is.... Crazy but Inspiring?

You must log in to post a comment. You can login or register a new account.