11. WizardExt - wizq2dm6 - Rebirth (343 Points)

[Null]

Rebirth

Name	Textures	Originality	GamePlay	Items	Extras	Lighting	Sounds	Flow	Technical	Subjective	Total	Map
WizardExt	38	35	34	33	32	34	30	34	39	34	343	wizq2dm6 - Rebirth

www.mediafire.com/download/e83rlgel7y5ygkr/wizq2dm6.zip

[Null]

Please post your feedback below. Thank You!

[spirit]

Very open, and I guess the Quake 3 community would call it a 'boxed' map, but it still looks very cool and has a strong theme. Lots of powerful jump pads and launch pads, which is rather uncommon in Quake 2. Lots of different spots, and a rail gun tower which is designed in a way which does NOT make it too overpowered (cover on the map, hard to watch your back on it).

Texturing and lighting are very good. After running around a bit, I guess that gameplay is better than you would expect from the screenshots, and could be quite fun with lots of players (DM), but for my taste it is still too open.

[giftmacher]

I agree with spirit here, the map is very open but for DM this can actually work, I'm thinking of q2dm1 as an example of big open space combat mixed with some minor areas running around the center. The theme is coherent with some rough architecture but it gets the job done. Wouldn't a Rogue version of this map be pretty cool with the nuke? I feel it fits perfectly here, the blast can be seen from most of the map.

Good job!

[WizardExt]

Thanks guys for the feedback. It's very welcome and appreciated. So keep it coming!

My main focus was to create a map with good flow, giving the player good momentum and possibility to make choices/moving around without loosing that momentum. The theme is Brutalism architecture, that's why it has such massive shapes and blocky feel. I got inspired by this photo: Coal Bunker

The open design is on purpose. Not sure in what way it would be a bad thing gameplay-wise. So please elaborate.

I have yet to make a "good" Quake 2 map. This time I put a lot of effort into it, especially the design. Having the map play and feel good. I was going to write an article about it, but with my overall poor scoring and placement, I put that idea on ice. Not sure how I feel about it.. or if there is value in it. If there is anyone interested in reading about the lessons learned and process of creating Rebirth/wizq2dm6, let me know.

Anyway feel free to break down the map completely, pointing at the flaws and how it could improve.

[spirit]

I think we should play some of the maps together to get a feel for them. I connected to tastyspleen a few times during the last days and played some maps. My ping there is horrible (I'm in Germany), but we could still try.

Anybody interested? Are you guys in some IRC channel where we can meet and start games spontaneously? This forum may be a bit too asynchronous I guess.

Maybe #quake2 on quakenet? Or something else instead of IRC?

[WizardExt]

IRC, great idea! I used to hang out on quakenet before. Are there any Quake 2 mapping channels? I will add #quake2 to my list.

I am away on vacation for a couple of days, but I be back on Tuesday next week. Then I will log onto IRC, quakenet. Definitely in for playtesting maps!

[Null]

You can try
#q2cafe on irc.enterthegame.com
It's a new channel, so not many know about it yet. I'll be adding ops there soon once we get more users.

I also recommending idling on #tastyspleen, and #tastyspleen-live which relays msgs live from Quake 2 servers.
This way you can know exactly what's going on all the servers on the TS network including our test server Whale.
You can watch players connecting live from IRC, and whenever you feel like jump straight into the game.

[cocerello]

For more general details, info on the story behind this and how this information works and how its made, go to: 


leray.proboards.com/post/27943/thread



Items found:

1 weapon each except BFG, plus 1 extra RL and MG
Id like quantity of ammo, large health packs, and armor shards
MH and Quad


Review:

Solid outdoor open industrial map. Id like or higher in brushwork type and quality, good use and choice of textures and well aligned, open mainly 2D layout but with tonnes of going up through windpads and ramps and going down by well placed crates, and some unexpected ways to the top of some buildings, with mainly 3 floors. The lighting is very good and fits the theme, providing its own ambient, but even with that a bit brighter light on the texture lights would have been better. Lots of possibilities for combat situations are provided. Ammo placement is good and well spread, but in some places would have been good to place some items, its quantity makes the map feel a bit lonely, but thats good if this map is played with 4-8 players because of the ambient and theme of the map, but it looks to be geared more to 6-12 or more. Sounds have been used well in this maps, except some on the SSG side that i got thinking, why this light emits this noise and not the other group nearby?



Pretty good map, felt more like an UT map than Quake 2 in several parts. To note the Quad placement, the windpads, the possibilities to climb to the buildings, the tower with the RG and its several ways to get there, the extra items on top of crates. What is lacking, some gameplay on the sides without buildings on more than the ground floor, the lack of block to the skybox, the ground floor is too flat, even considering the theme, the visibility is too big, and the MH as it is there doesn't give any feeling, is that just if someone dropped it there in the middle of nowhere at random. 


Suggestions:

- Add some more lighting through those light textures (increasing overall brightness through other methods (Ex: argrad compile options) would look blander).
- Block the players' way with brushwork so they can't touch the skybox, or at least not so easily as now. Hitting an invisible wall is always lame.
- Ground floor would look better with some detail in its floor. As it is now fits the theme quite well, but some areas feel lonely. With just some broken or out of place tiles could be done, if you want to go to the ruins' route.
- The visibility is so big that when looking at one side from the other it dissapears, even more if you look from one corner to the opposite one. The map should be reduced. As it is, doesn't look like this reduction would affect the map much that missing room, the middle of the map can be more or less easily being reduced.
- Maybe move the SG as it is in a place where won't get much use, but haven't found a better place for it, mabe instead of the MG near the Quad, but that wa the two MG would be in front of each other.
- Finally, three routes to get to the RG are too much, given that seems to be designed for the guy in there to snipe the people. The position shouldn't be solid so the guy with the RG would trench himself there, but three is impossible to defend against, except if this were team DM. Probably better to delete the one in the front, just below it.
- Have you tried other textures that would look more of a windpad than the one you used? That texture is for lights by tradition since Quake, and can cause that the pads are treated as lights for a while.
- Add another target_speaker with the same wind at the top tower, to cover it in its entirety, as right now looks like the wind its originated and dies in the same place.

Apr 9, 2015 4:29:42 GMT -5 WizardExt said:

I was going to write an article about it, but with my overall poor scoring and placement, I put that idea on ice. Not sure how I feel about it.. or if there is value in it. If there is anyone interested in reading about the lessons learned and process of creating Rebirth/wizq2dm6, let me know.

I would, those kind of things are interesting to read. Go on, the placement shouldn't be an issue.

Apr 9, 2015 20:40:11 GMT -5 Null said:

You can try

#q2cafe on irc.enterthegame.com

It's a new channel, so not many know about it yet. I'll be adding ops there soon once we get more users.



I also recommending idling on #tastyspleen, and #tastyspleen-live which relays msgs live from Quake 2 servers.

This way you can know exactly what's going on all the servers on the TS network including our test server Whale.

You can watch players connecting live from IRC, and whenever you feel like jump straight into the game.

Thanks. I would love to, but as i am using a semi-public connection, that will be impossible.

[Null]

Apr 12, 2015 12:41:14 GMT -5 cocerello said:

I would love to, but as i am using a semi-public connection, that will be impossible.

If you can't use MIRC just use a web based IRC client. I just tried this one and it works fine, example:

kiwiirc.com/

Channel: #q2cafe
Server: irc.enterthegame.org