Contest Discussion Topic (2.0.X)

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I've submitted that rush-job match level, with... yeah, 90+ minutes spent on it.

And I don't know how it plays. But I know that I didn't manage the grass edges.
 
Giana Dream Blast missed this contest. Of course I'm trying to make something better than my usual maps.
 
Since I missed this contest, I'll be submitting my circuit map, Molten Mountain, to this contest; Yea, drool at the name, but I am not using my old match map for this contest, I'll be making a different one.
 
If I use an area from an already released map as decoration, does that disqualify my map? Like if I wanted to have the player teleport to a secret control room and you could see a section of THZ behind some glass.
 
3. The map must be your own work. You may not enter levels that are straight ports or slight modifications of other levels. You may base your level on existing levels from other games, but this is not encouraged.


Well, it isn't a straight port or a slight modification of the level. So, I'm pretty sure it's allowed.
 
That rule has absolutely nothing to do with anything :\

I don't think it'd matter, Kaysakado, so long as the part of the stage you actually play on is entirely original.
 
I just recently submitted a new CTF map called Night Shrine Zone. It is my first CTF map made since 2.0 was released and also my first multiplayer map in a while. Hope it goes well.
 
I've already posted Upload Download Zone (my first CTF level!) in the contest entries forum, but I've updated it a few times, and there's nothing to say it won't be improved still further. Here are some screenshots of the level:

You start out inside a little warehouse, where your team base is.

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Once you leave the warehouse, you come out in a city street. Right across the street from the warehouse is a THZ-style factory.

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The factory has a few rooms and halls, and plenty of items. Here's the central room:

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So, by now, you're probably wondering, "Why the hell is it called Upload Download Zone?" Well, here's where things get interesting. In the last room of the factory, there's a big computer. That arrow above it isn't just eccentric decoration; it's telling you to jump into the computer monitor.

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You've just uploaded yourself into a physical manifestation of cyberspace! WHEEEE!!!

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The grid color corresponds to which base is closest. The central area is green. Anyway, now you've got to get to the other end of the grid room and download yourself into the computer in the opposing team's local factory. From there, everything's a mirror image of what you just went through.

There are also plenty of secrets in the level, which will, if found, get you extra rings, weapons, or even Chaos Emeralds! In UDZ, a good player must strike a balance between searching for secrets to get him an edge, and actually chasing down the opponent's flag.

So, what are your impressions from my description and screenshots?
 
Ah, my eyes! The void textures don't seem to work too well for 3d levels. The grids are too small for that.
Yeah, it does hurt my eyes, just looking at it.
Though, I don't get why we have textures just to be like "Don't use this!", although someone will tell me I'm wrong for thinking that.
 
So your idea is that since people don't know how to use texture X properly, then it should be removed from the wad?
 
Ooh boy...fixing that will be hard, seeing as how that's my entire level concept.

It isn't as bad as it used to be, though. For a while, there were also a swarm of continuously upward-falling platforms all over the level. It look a lot worse! So I deleted those.

EDIT:

I just tried making the level less stressful on the eyes by changing the grids from translucent FOFs into solid FOFs. It made the level look ten times worse! So I changed it back. This is a puzzler...

ANOTHER EDIT:

I just changed the translucency of the grids from #150 to #120. I think it made it slightly better.

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It looks to me like you're trying to do too much with one level. It appears that you basically have a base area that teleports into a middle area that teleports into the other base area. First off, a forced teleport mechanic segregates the gameplay and does so in a way that is very disruptive to a CTF game. Secondly, it sounds like a complicated idea which results in only a very simple effect... generally I find you can get more mileage out of ideas that are simple at their core but you can use them in complex ways.

And most importantly, what is the purpose of this gimmick? Everything in an MP game exists to change the way players will react to the other players... the platforming, hazards, and gimmicks are all secondary.
For example, the purpose of Infernal Cavern's lava is to give the players a smaller margin of error, Tidal Palace's water helps to direct the flow of combat, Terminal Terror's gravity is to give offer an alternate way of crossing the stage without actually going by a different path... et cetera.
So just ask yourself how you are going to use this gimmick to make the match play properly and maybe also be a little more interesting. If its fun but at the cost of something important to the netgame (flow, direction, combat) then you're better off packing up your idea and making a singleplayer level out of it.
 
There's no forced teleportation, JEV3. The computer screens are intangible, and you can walk through them into a small passageway that opens out into the central area. The warp tunnels on either side of the central room use teleportation, but players don't have to use those at all.

Also, I have thought through how this will affect multiplayer gameplay. Basically, I've set it up so that players have to strike a balance. The best items are often hidden out of the way, so you must choose between making a break for the flag and taking a meandering course while arming yourself to the teeth. It's all about alternate paths, and different ways of doing the same thing.

I will admit that UDZ is a bit more gimmicky that conventional CTF levels should be, but I've done my best to make sure that any sort of theme-related disruption is minimal at most. Most notably, I've dashed around it on my own, taking all the routes possible, and reducing the difficulty whenever I think a certain route will more likely than not cause you to fall into a death pit.

I've also tried to make scenery in such a way that most of it either doesn't affect gameplay at all, or else affects it in a positive way. For instance, I created a line of pipes that makes it a bit easier to quickly jump onto the computer keyboards. Other scenery, like the pipes that intermittently pour slime (if you look at the third screenshot of the level from my first post, you'll see one in the background), has been placed so that it can be seen, but has absolutely no influence on what's going on in the battle (unless somebody sits there staring at it, mesmerized, which I think isn't that likely).
 
I have a question: Can I include a small part of one of my previously released submissions (White spring SOC and sprites from MMZ1, in my case, and the privatley released custom hud that I made) in another OLDC submission?
 
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