New SP Map -> The Unlucky Base

[giftmacher]

Hi Q2Café

I just recently got into mapping, I was thinking about Unreal and how I used to make some boxes and corridors for that game back when I was like 12 Anyway I picked up my old Quake 2 game and started messing around with Quark, before long I was completely hooked and spent hours, days even, doing nothing but drink coffe and reading old Q2 map tutorials. After several weeks of trial and error I managed to complete this map (many maps before this one went in the bin ). It is a learning process map, because of this some rooms are a little weird and stressed while others are.. better So it is not the most consistent map but I'm sure what I've learned from doing this one will help me in the next one. I understand that I'm a bit late though as I see the action have dropped quite significantly here in 2014 but this still feels like a friendly place to share some Q2 stuff so why not?

About the map:

I got areaportals to work (woho!) on most doors but there are still some crazy epoly spikes here and there, I saw up to 8000 in the more stacked areas, not sure how to avoid this because the portals keeps the wpoly count down but epoly seems to be rendered differently, at least around corners and walls? Is this where Hint brushes comes into play? I have not attempted to work with those yet but I will try them in the next map. Feel free to give me feedback on what I can improve and spot any beginner misstakes that can be eliminated. I will try and make a more consistent map next time where it feels more like a complete "environment" and not just a bunch of rooms Also this map took ages to build because I was learning at the same time.

Here are some pics:






Here is a link to the file (hopefully google drive works)

drive.google.com/file/d/0B4sO-9thmVw8c0xHVEFFWXNIZjg/view?usp=sharing

Cheers!

Giftmacher

[Wixen1 [Q2C]]

Those screenshots looks really cool, I will test your map later on.
Thx. for sharing with us, and welcome to the Quake 2 Café.

-W1

[jaydolan]

Looks the part! Nice work!

[knightmare]

This is a very good first release, giftmacher.

Some small nitpicks: the first two light guards dropped inappropriate ammo, as they don't use shells or grenades. The secrets were too obvious, especially the first one. They should be out of plain sight, with something such as a tucked-away button that must be shot to open them, placed beyond a small underwater section, teased by a crack in a wall that can be blown open, or in a hard-to-notice spot that takes some thinking on how to get there, not just a tricky long jump to a plainly obvious crate.

BTW, the .prt file is a temp file from map compilation, and can be deleted. The .map is the map source file, and you should include this only if you want people to be able to modify or analyze your map.

[giftmacher]

Thanks for the warm welcome! And thank you knightmare for the feedback, I guess the secrets were a bit too obvious, especially the first one On the second one, if the elevator was in raised position and it's slightly darker to the left it could work better, but I'm moving on to the next now, trying to be more consistent with the environment. I will try some of the things you said there, like blowing up a wall, haven't tried that yet.

[giftmacher]

Hey glad you liked it Xian, I'm already working on another SP map, still learning but I feel things are getting better fast. I am looking a lot at the classic Id SP levels for inspiration, this time trying to catch that "consistent" feel of their levels, like on Pumping Station 1 & 2, it really feels like your in one of those facilities. Really cool what they managed to accomplish back then..

[Deleted]

Hi.....welcome to the Quake 2 Café.

Yeah it`s a good first release!.

Well done!.

[Null]

Hi,
Really cool stuff giftmacher! I like the style ~ and it looks like you're on a roll here... knocking out maps one after another
Would you consider making some death-match maps?

Nothing fancy, basically something in a similar style, with bunch of large connected areas (3-4) to fight in, without too many tight corridors.
I run a popular server that is always looking for new maps and to feature work from talented map creators. The maps get played daily so plenty of people get to check them out. I think what you're doing now coupled with a death-match style could be a great fit. Our server also supports custom models & effects, lazarus code and overrides that lets you push quake 2 death match content like never before, check these out:

leray.proboards.com/thread/3523/remixes-canyon-beach-tropical-valley
leray.proboards.com/thread/3524/remixes-bermuda-triangle-light-tower
leray.proboards.com/thread/3547/quake-2-wilderness-maps
leray.proboards.com/thread/3544/quake-2-maps-tropical-theme

Also it's real neat when you get to see people experiencing things live, providing feedback during matches, which can help content evolve quickly and in interesting ways.
One can preview all the action in camera mode, and spectate what each player is doing individually to get in depth insight about their interaction with your content.

Whale Eye 74.86.171.203:27910

[giftmacher]

Sounds really cool Null, I would love to make a deathmatch map, I also would love to play some Q2, didn't know people still play I will look into it and do some sketches, those pictures looks really cool and nuts You have a valid point with live feedback.

[Null]

Nov 2, 2014 8:59:31 GMT -5 giftmacher said:

Sounds really cool Null, I would love to make a deathmatch map, I also would love to play some Q2, didn't know people still play I will look into it and do some sketches, those pictures looks really cool and nuts You have a valid point with live feedback.

You'd be surprised how many people still play Quake 2 online. The Q2 online community is far from dead, and with recently updated clients like Q2 Pro, I've even seen people returning after many years (disillusioned with newer games), and some who've never played firing up Quake2 as late as 2014! To get started online check out this thread:

leray.proboards.com/thread/3541/play-quake-easy-steps-started

My server's players and I would be more than happy to provide you with all sorts of feedback, in order to make your maps a hit!
Of the bat I can say, that your style will work great in MP. For starters it is very similar to the popular q2dm (1-8) series, so with a little layout adjustment here and there, you can have your maps enjoyed by many in the death match community! I run a couple weapons servers on this list, mainly Whale Eye, El Paso, and I'd be happy to host your maps there:
tastyspleen.net/quake/servers/list.cgi

Cheers

[spirit]

Just dropped by after quite a while. Good to see that people are still making Q2 maps.

giftmacher: Screenies look good and very ol'school q2-ish.

[giftmacher]

Hey thank you spirit, it's not my favorite one but I learned a lot making it. By the way I take it you are the creator of these maps -> dfspspirit.wordpress.com/category/level-design/ <- if so, just amazing stuff I have them all in my DM rotation, sadly I don't get to convince my old friends to play Q2 very often.

[spirit]

Yes, I am. I haven't done any mapping in quite a while though.

Glad you like them and that they still get some playtime.

[vicpas]

Hello mate.
Can you re-upload this map again?

[vicpas]

Hey all!
Anybody here has this map?
Please re-upload it.