Forum posts

Aww, starting to look real nice man. It's too bright like this indeed, but some HDR really does the map well I think, with it's warm sunny feeling.

I've got one grip with the map so far and that's that it's mostly 90 degrees. There's some roundings but the overall directions are very straight. How about rotating some of those houses in the back and alternating that plaza edge some more?
Other than that, looking real fine. I'd like to run through this for some testing...

I don't like them at all.

/2 cents

As far as I know, there's code like this already - houndeye's don't take houndeye damage, for example. You could look into that, maybe it's generic enough to be useable to check for other types.

That's simple: you can upload files to this site - in the mapvault, there's a button that allows you to upload (zipped!) maps up to 2 MB in size. Zip your map and place it in the Problems Vault, then link us to the maps profile so we can take a look at it.

I only used "light" not "light_spot" if thats what you asked.

You should use those once in a while then. They are sometimes more usefull than just light entities. For example, in that last screenshot, the ceiling is pretty light for such a room. Dark area's often can make an area look more interesting, too, plus it focusses the player on the more important parts of an area, the lit parts.

Take out all the furniture and lighting fixtures and other things in your bedroom, what are you left with? A block with some doorways.

That counts for a lot of real-life rooms, yes. But we're mappers, and though for most maps we make it works well to give it a realistic feeling, that doesn't mean it has to limit you to cubic rooms only, or to setups that actually stress the cubic feeling of the room.
Like in Saco's last shot, everything is 90 degrees. The pipe and vent go in the same direction and are both straight lines. They strengthen the feeling that the room is very straight and simple. The boxes and such placed in the room do hide the cubic (and simple) feeling somewhat, but they don't hide their square feeling enough. A simple intend with some pipes (preferrably a few that bend and twist a bit, 45 or 30 degree parts or such) in it to give it a purpose can work out nicely. A trim might be good too, and a drainage pit somewhere in the room to break up that single flat surface...
The lighting doesn't a good job there, either - it's all equally lit, which only stresses the simpleness of it, it's not really interesting to look at.

So while I agree most real-life places are boxy and that in-game some area's should or can be boxy just as well, that doesn't mean they have to be, or have to look as simple as they are.

Ok, that was a lot of (negative?) comments, but I hope you'll be able to use it some way or another. Good luck.

EDIT: As for bedrooms: clickeh

He means the compile process.

That can vary a lot. Small and simple maps take a few minutes, larger and complex ones can take hours, sometimes even days (though that often indicates some unoptimal mapping, or an extremely large/complex map).

Hehehe, we mappers only think in technical terms ah...

Voices are no voices but ambient_generics, and if they are that then they can't be scientists speaking since that is done with scripted_sentences, and so on...

Sometimes I wish I still was just a gamer...

Hmm, that's a bad thing there... that tutorial really should mention that pressing Enter after drawing the brushes outline actually creates the brush...

If you don't have Half-Life (and no Half-Life based games like CS and DoD either) then setting up Hammer 3.x is pretty useless... but I reckon it works for CS:CS just fine, so it's just using different base pathnames than the tutorial describes.

Steam is just a distribution platform.

Oh, it wasn't meant like that. I just called the critter by it's name...

Simple, 'we mappers' = we, who map. Or in general, anyone who creates levels.

See, mappers often have cheats and such enabled to make testing maps easier.

Keep in mind that these effects may not show up for normal players - we mappers tend to have 'developer' set to 1 or 2 and often have cheats and certain other vars enabled. Be sure to test with default settings.

Mapping experience is of little use for these things. I would advise you to start programming with C++ to get familiar with it first before jumping into this bulk of code. I've got no particular links for starters though (I thought myself C++ using some books and asking friends a lot of stuff, programming forums are helpfull too). I'm sure there are helpfull articles on the net for starters, though.

What you'll need is at least a C++ compiler, at best a full IDE (Integrated Development Environment) like Microsoft Visual Studio.

In essence, start simple and make sure you understand the basics like using variabeles, declaring and calling functions, then up to the level of using classes and getting an idea of what Object-Oriented programming means. By that time a little knowledge of pointers and references comes in handy, too.
Only then I think it's usefull to look into the HL code, as it's pretty heavy OO for a newcomer.

If they want to pay you $250, go for it. Personally I think it's a bit high price for an 8-hour job, but in the end it's just what you and they will agree on.

Wow, looks like some sort of post-screen filter applied only to models. Cool.

And yeah, probably a cubemaps problem, perhaps in combination with HDR or such. Happens only in your own maps or also in official maps?

@Xyos: Lightmaps are essentially (generated) textures, so seen from that point of view your kinda right. Sortof. Yeah. Whatever.

Most of these questions come down to coding. I could give some general advice, but most comes down to two things: programming experience and being (or getting) familiar with the HL gamecode in specific.
So, how experienced are you with programming, specifically with the C++ language?

See, without some experience, I can give all the advice I want but you're still going to have a very tough time pulling this off.

EDIT: I think keeping a form open for 10 minutes and then coming back to it to hit the reply button makes some of my replies look double, 'y know...

Yeah, ZL, nothing it truely new, but it definitely was a good example of using physics for gameplay purposes.

@satch: it requires good jumping skills and memorizing (or a slice of paper) - it wasn't random as far as I remember. Not really the most interesting part but a fair breakup after all the combat imho.

What exactly didn't you understand of that page?

Basically, smoothing groups decide how the lighting blends over these faces. Sometimes with a rounded corner, they appear sort of flat shaded, where each face has it's own tint of lighting. By putting these into the same smoothing group you let the compiler know to blend the lighting between those faces, resulting in a much rounder look.

I've played with them a little and they're not very intuitive to work with in the editor - there's no fast way to see what faces are in the same smoothing group. However, the Face Edit Sheet contains a Smoothing Group button which opens a panel. Whenever you select a face now, the pressed buttons in this panel show to what Smoothing Group(s) this face belongs. To throw a face out of a group simply unpress that groups button.

I got a comment from pepper who said that a tutorial-shape would probably be better to introduce people to Milkshape. Would you like to see a step-by-step guide that shows you how to create a model rather than an article like this, or is the article form fine as it is?

I'd like to hear some more opinions on this.

Just a wild guess, but I've had trouble with sprites because I entered a / instead of a in their path (or the other way around - see, I always mix those up). Perhaps that could be it?

I know, but I didn't do that. At some time you decide legal is better anyway (it is some form of support to the developers, and since I'm into programming I know a little about the work that went into this).

Anyway, anyone got further comments about the article?

Overall first impression is good. The site feels clean and easy on the eye, the image on the right is a nice touch too.

A few things though:
1. The title image is cluttered and the corporate name doesn't stand out too much. A clearer font and color contrast would do good.
2. The sites body is small compared to my screen. Do a little something to spice up the sides rather than using a light uniform color. Not that my site does this perfect, but hey.
3. The javascript for popup windows on your Examples page doesn't work here. I'm using IE 6.0 at the moment, being at school.
4. You refer to your portfolio site quite often, like the About page and such. Perhaps it's a good idea to include an About page on your 'corporation' site to make it feel more consistent?
5. The tone of your writing isn't very enthousiastic. I understand it isn't meant to be a corporations site but it does give a certain impression. The name Graveyard Designs doesn't sound very warm, too (and doesn't make me think of Design, really).

But besides those little points, the site looks technically well-done and pleasing to the eye. Nice work.

Good to see the article is helpfull. Did any of you try out Milkshape while reading it? If so, any problems encountered that I should've covered?
And are there any requests for example models you'd like to be able to download? I will provide a few example models but haven't decided the how and what exactly yet.

@Rowleybob: Good idea about the highlighting shortkeys, rowley. I've been highlighting the shortkeys now and added a title tag to them so a simple mouseover will quickly reveal their purpose. Looks better now?

And I think both modeling and modelling can be (are) used, though I prefer the latter.

@Xyos212: Milkshape isn't free. There's a 30 day trial, the full version costs 25 dollar, or 25 euro, whatever fits you best. Personally I found it well worth the money.

Those are nodegraph files. Often only used in SP maps, but for some reason DM maps need one too. Those are mostly empty nodegraphs there though.

Hmm... and other monsters? Do they pass or not? I'm guessing it could be a snark anomality, since they're both enemies and 'ammo', as a matter of speaking...

Like seen many times in HL2 itself? I haven't looked at doors in Source much yet, but I assume this is part of the animation of those door models. Perhaps one of the example maps contains one of such doors, otherwise you could decompile a HL2 map to see how they did it.

...not to mention amazed...

Nope, the .bsp is the file that the game reads in - it contains the faces, lightmaps, entities and other files necessary for the game (it's possible to embed models and materials into a .bsp, too, though not necessary).
The .vmf is the filetype used by Hammer.

As for decompiling, check this page on the Valve wiki. Basically, Vmex is the tool to use.

Recently I've been writing a tutorial about modelling with Milkshape. It's the first in a small serie I've planned.
This part covers the basic functionality of Milkshape - how to create shapes and simple objects, how to manually create faces, grouping and duplicating, some selection tricks.

At the moment, the article is quite long and could use some more images, probably. I'd like to know where I should simplify the article and where more explanation is necessary (the intention is that someone without modelling experience should be able to understand this article).

Please, let me know what should be changed. Thanks beforehand!

Here's the link: Modelling with Milkshape 3D.

Definitely agreed with that, Kasperg. Especially when combined with long corridors such lighting breaks (parts of) a map.

At the other hand, colored lighting can be used nicely to let players know where they are, but I haven't noticed use of that method in the maps so far.

That map surely is a winner. Looks good and looks like a solid layout, too. You don't see that sort of quality (and dedication) often.

// Too bad it's a 70 MB download at the moment, but I found it well worth the wait.

I sent the PM.

Good to see the number of entries. Most were of decent enough quality, with a few that stood out (both positive and negative).
So, since I took notes during judging, I've got a few general comments that count for most, or at least some, maps. If you think they don't apply to your map, don't worry, they're general comments. I intend this as a list of general advices. I don't assume I'm a master of mapping, but I do think 6 years of experience have something to say. So, take it or leave it, all I hope to see is some better maps.
Here goes:

1. Readme's. Most maps didn't come with either a readme, or didn't name it the same as their map. It's easy to forget who made a map after some time.
2. Most maps lacked ambience. Some maps had a little sound, mostly some electrical crackle that gets annoying fast and is overused anyway. It's just a little extra touch that can do much for the immersion.
3. The forgotten gameplay. Most maps had a consistent style and looked decent enough. But other things were partially or even totally forgotten:

• gameflow (some maps were hard to even walk around in, how am I supposed to run in it in a stressfull environment like a death-match?)
• layout (a good DM map isn't just a bunch of corridors, it's a bunch of interesting setup combat area's connected to each other at various levels and places)
• proper item placement (that means, placing them so they're easy to get, personally I think it's a bad thing to place every item so that it requires you to run into a little niche every time)
• focussing combat into main area's and keeping the number and length of corridors down (corridors are boring to fight in, use them to connect combat area's with each other, otherwise place some cover in them but don't keep them too long still)

If anyone wants some specific comments on his map, feel free to PM me.

Warning: More than 8 wadfiles are in use. (9)
This may be harmless, and if no strange side effects are occurring, then
it can safely be ignored. However, if your map starts exhibiting strange
or obscure errors, consider this as suspect.

In addition, many of those wads don't contain any usefull texture, so cut the used wads down to decals, halflife, liquids and xeno.

Looking that last compile log, you've probably set it up wrong. Perhaps you've filled in the wrong paths for the Zoner compile tools?

As for helping with C++ coding, I received your mail and answered it, but they're generally questions that require some more understanding of the HL gamecode than I currently have. While I can get a basic understanding of what's involved by looking through the code, I can't help you with everything you asked. Take your time looking through the code and getting familiar with it (by this time I'm really seeing the importance of documenting code, but oh well). Being able to trace function calls and variabele uses greatly helps pinpointing the parts you need to change, but it requires understanding and time...

<ut>Answering spree</ut>

Now if only those answers are helpfull...

@smf: Well, the leak problem, to start with...

There's nothing wrong with Zoners. If they don't create a .bsp, then that's due to a problem during the compile. Zoners tools seem to be less forgiving when it comes to problems, but it's good practice to solve problems anyway, so...

First, there's a leak.

Second, you'll need a landmark in the first level as well, to match up with the landmark in the second level.

Those effects are probably not done with those particle entities, but since both these entities and those effects use the same particle engine, I assume that with some tweaking (using a different sprite, color, settings) you can get pretty close. Good luck.

Yes, I've been checking them out. You can expect a PM with my comments this evening.

Agreed with Rabid about the replacement models, definitely. Though custom models aren't a big issue if you provide a correct .res file with your map.

Problem with models in HL is the meager support for them, though. They're not the easiest things to work with, but they are quite usefull for some additional detail or effects that would be very hard to do with brushes and entities.

I haven't played with particle scripts either. Try looking at the Valve wiki or do some experimenting yourself (perhaps there are some existing particle scripts that you can use as examples)...

Try playing with some of the particle effect entities, like env_smokestack (though there's a few others as well).

I'm not sure what happened to you (what did that popup say?), but you can start the map manually from the console, by typing 'map mapname'. If the compile went fine, you should be able to play your map.

As for CS Anthology, Steam requires an active internet connection. However, there's an Offline mode (automatically available unless you don't want to store your account information on your computer).
Steams folder tree is also quite deep, yeah... but that's just where the game looks.

ZL: Instead of your 'texture' '0' func_wall, not instead of the whole setup...

ChapterNine: make 'em entities, as ZL and I already said. And yeah, it's probably best to keep the shapes simple, unless your model really needs to be that touchable.

A func_wall covered with the null texture does the job just fine, too, ZL...

Bounds out of range looks like either a too large brush (outside the grid in Hammer), but probably an extremely tiny or messed up brush. Take a look at the brushes whose number is given, I think you're best off removing them and recreating them.

Oh, and bytheway, that log shows all your compile logs. Next time, only post the log of the last compile (may be a little searching to get the right part, but saves some post length here ;)).

I like both.

I don't agree that MP is just throwing something together, not if you want to do a good map that is. Neither is SP, but SP is somewhat easier to predict, as you can guide the player much easier, which isn't the case in MP maps, where it's more a sort of focussing combat into certain area's.

Oh well.

And guess what, one Half-Life community is called Wavelength... no sign of a lambda on that page, though.
But isn't the lambda also in use as a symbol for decay constant?

The arch shape is your friend here, plus you'll want to keep some curves as simple as possible to save you some work.

However, I assume you've got a nice circular tunnel here, but I don't know your actual situation. Got a screenie?