emp_shadows

Discussion in 'Mapping' started by Cyber-Kun, Mar 22, 2008.

  1. Cyber-Kun

    Cyber-Kun Member

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    Sounds like a good idea. I'll do that.

    The roads are meant to be blocked off to stop massive tank attacks from that road. I assume you are talking about northwest road? Yup yup, I want infantry to be able to run around easy in there.

    I do plan to fix the north flag. NF needs a bit easier of a way to get up there. I also want to place something to slow down BE tanking on the west road.

    NO TURRETS. None at all. No cameras also. I want it that way.
     
  2. GoodGame

    GoodGame Member

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    Yeah. I was actually thinking there could be some more of those.

    Just played a second game, and it seems the mid point (inside the base with the open roof) is kind of annoying chokepoint. Not a lot of maneuver room, and becomes a clusterflock if the team floods vehicles there. It was actually easier to allow the other team to get around the bend at the room and defend with a medium tank outside of the room.

    I think that midpoint would be more interesting if there was a little more infantry cover along the walls, and even if vehicles could skirt the outside of the building by a wide open area, say a parking lot or a field. Just something to allow more vehicle maneuver. It's a really tense, annoying chokepoint otherwise (and full of spam).

    And maybe one more NF flag in their grass field, before the final flag. That field is wide open, and it's pretty easy to blitzkrieg the whole NF base once a BE vehicle rush reaches the field.
     
  3. Cyber-Kun

    Cyber-Kun Member

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    The first problem is the main design point of the north flag.
    I had to make something that block visibility between the two cities, or the map lags everyone to hell.
    I don't like what I did but I had to make the game play.
    I will fix NF being able to get into there though.

    I plan to make the final flag on NF a bit more dense and more outdoors like. No second flag in the park.
    Just a bit easier to defend.

    In related news, I plan to fix all of this problems nice and fast. No five month wait for a new RC.
     
  4. DonMegel

    DonMegel Member

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    so no pictures then...good...
     
  5. -Mayama-

    -Mayama- MANLY MAN BITCH

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    It looks alot better now :)

    [​IMG]
    Those 2 concrete textures on that building dont fit somehow

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    can you make those 2 entrances easier to spot? More light?
     
  6. Metal Smith

    Metal Smith Member

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    My hotel! ^_^
     
  7. Dubee

    Dubee Grapehead

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    Cyber ignores the dev's question and compliment and then responds twice to the criticism from a guy who suggested mortar turrets.
     
  8. -Mayama-

    -Mayama- MANLY MAN BITCH

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    The centre of the map, I mean the area north is very nice and plays well.
    It really has the atmosphere of a city fight.

    But the the area outside the city... close to NF
    starting base is a bit odd and not so detailed :/
    I always thought the church looks out of place.
    Some barricades and defenses to protect the city
    from enemys maybee one or two detroyd bunkers
    would imho fit better.
     
  9. Metal Smith

    Metal Smith Member

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    quoted for lols.

    Cyberkun fails.
     
  10. Cyber-Kun

    Cyber-Kun Member

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    I missed his post.
    Was too small compared to the others for me to seee!!!

    I will change this area to show some screenshots in a minute.

    I like the Church. I do need to make it fit more though since the Church is on the Empires style city though.
    I also do plan to fix up that flag to make it play better.

    I also saw your images of the texture error. Damn weird tools.
     
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2009
  11. Satanchild666

    Satanchild666 Banned

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    Fix the baricades at the flag at the middle.

    NF Tanks(Medium & Heavies) can simply drive over them because of their tracks...
    While BE Tanks get stuck at them... >_>
     
  12. Grizzly

    Grizzly BEAR SIZED DOORS

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    Swosh!

    Let's give the posted screenshots some comments!

    1:
    http://img104.imageshack.us/img104/5530/empshadowsrc10a0001xz0.jpg

    Those displacements are absolutly horrible.
    Thing that makes them horrible are
    A: The texture beeing used (use the alpha thingys, they are great!)
    B: the way they are shaped, sort of horribly stretched in the hight elevations insted of beeing composed of another vertical displacement

    The buildings sort of look like bunkers i supose, but they have no intresting fetures, and with the general dark blueness of the map just become large solid objects of unintresst with a door
    Spice em up a bit! Use diffrent textures, add a few windows (perhaps empty rooms with lights comming out from behind to make it look like a structure) or some intresting lightposts casing nice cones of light on that area
    Also, the windows to the right of the door would be way cooler if you had 45-degree-edges on them to make them look less like a box and more like a proper windowthingy that you could theoreticly see on a house
    Also, i'd probobly experiment with the texture a bit

    2:
    http://img235.imageshack.us/img235/1522/empshadowsrc10a0000ym0.jpg

    There is not a single empires material in that screenshot, apart from what i think are flags, wich is sort of depressing since it makes the map look like city17 insted of a city from empiresmod
    Together with that, the textures are sorta out of place, especialy the white bricks in contrast to the dark rock that you use on the right building

    Not only that, but the buildings are completly flat boxes, with some balconeys wich look sorta wierd due to the textures beeing used around them
    They look like they where glued on, insted of beeing a part of the structure itself

    Another idea might be to make the house not be stuck together competly, but rather make small gaps to give the impression of actuall buildings.

    Also, the area around there is competly open! add some walls, trashbin, benches or anything to provide cover for lone dudes on foot

    3
    http://img104.imageshack.us/img104/6936/empshadowsrc10a0002wl4.jpg

    Uagh! more horrid displacements!
    seriusly, take a look at some of the regular hl2 ones with nice blend textures if you can't find one with a blend texture that makes sense out of the empires ones, rather then having vertical grass walls
    Also, don't stretch induvidual parts of the displacement that much, it looks really unatural and strange

    Once again, you sadly get the impression of the buildings beeing concrete slabs with window stickers, add some things sticking out from them! add some trims, some variation in the side of them, make em stick out, go in, add some vents, add some windowframes Etc



    Also, in general, the map does from screenshots look way to dark, and while i understand and really think it's a cool idea to make a nightmap, you need to go about to create a Ilussion of darkness, not actuall darkness
    If you want examples of that, look at natural selection, the good old hl mod
    Allmost all areas of there maps are bright enough to make out them tiny bastard skulks without the flashlights, but they still Feel dark and opressive, since how they are designed and lit work so well together
    So in short, unless you work on adding lightspots and natural lightsources to iluminate large areas of the map, just increse the brightness becouse it will be a absolut pain in the ass to play during the day or summer when there is risk of light shining through peoples windows


    In conclusion, sorry for the somewhat straightforward (And in some areas hypocritical advice looking at what iv'e done in the past) Feedback, but i felt that it was more important to give you some pointers on where to improve rather then massage your ego

    For ego massage, PM L3TUC3 on irc, he's on standby 09:00 -> 23:00 mondays-satturdays and all day on sundays
     
  13. Cyber-Kun

    Cyber-Kun Member

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    What you did was much more useful than massaging my ego.
    It is so hard to get anyone to say anything bad and useful about my map that I don't improve things as much as they are needed.
    At this release though, I just got aggravated at how long it took so I did release before I could pretty up the new areas.

    Most of the stuff you did point out is easy enough to fix and it should be a fast fix.

    1: I know I need to alpha texture that, just again I go to the, I needed to release so I have a reason to work on this.
    2: The white block was a texture error. The general block feeling of the buildings, well that will be fixed too. I also know that that area doesn't give good infantry cover, but that is such a low importance area for infantry, I just left it clean.
    3: Going back to the need to release. Now I have some time to work on pretty.
     
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2009
  14. -Mayama-

    -Mayama- MANLY MAN BITCH

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    Some parts like the NF side of the map need more sideways
    Its sad that the centre of the map is the most empty place of the whole map
     
  15. Cyber-Kun

    Cyber-Kun Member

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    Really? Like where would you suggest?

    I do plan to hook up the NF Garage path to connect to the middle path so NF infantry can sneak by the tank wars. However, besides that, what do you think?
     
  16. -Mayama-

    -Mayama- MANLY MAN BITCH

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    I cant really say where.
    I need to play it more for that.
    The 2 flags left from the centre flag,
    the ones that usually BE gets at map start
    really feel like fighting in a city, i love the balconys. :)

    The NF side of the map has not so much cover and obstackles.
    Its, compared to the BE side to open for Infantry fights against Tanks.

    I suggest to make the NF part of the map more like the BE one.
    With tons of obstacles and sideways, and some more stuff like
    the balcony.

    OH and MAKE THE BALCONY balustrade so you can shot through.
     
  17. Cyber-Kun

    Cyber-Kun Member

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    I shall place some stuff there and make infantry a bit more useful there.

    For the North, my idea to fix it this!

    [​IMG]

    Blue line is new NF infantry path to that tunnel area.
    Red lines is new infantry path.
    Orange lines in the red line is places the infantry can shoot inside the dome thing.
    Yellow line is door to middle flag.

    Should fix the North grind issue.
     
  18. Goose

    Goose Member

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    I thought the old shadows completly blew. This map I like. It plays very well and I actually enjoyed my time on the map.
     
  19. Omneh

    Omneh Member

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    Can we not have such an icky park texture please? :rolleyes:

    Otherwise, its wonderful work Cyber. Should be considered for official. ;)
     
  20. -Mayama-

    -Mayama- MANLY MAN BITCH

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    1a4b8d12ba51fa5472b8ac4ccfcd4262.jpg

    Paint Ftw
     

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