Co_Delarosa_Unnamed
Delarosa
Naturally Custom Join Date: 2002-11-29 Member: 10214Members, NS1 Playtester
Naturally Custom Join Date: 2002-11-29 Member: 10214Members, NS1 Playtester
<div class="IPBDescription">some of you have been asking for pictures...</div>it's a start... it's really wide so far... this is MS standing next to the CC looking at the armories... will update more when i decided that you deserve more...
<img src="http://www.sizz-lorr.com/justin/map_1.jpg" border="0" alt="IPB Image" />
<img src="http://www.sizz-lorr.com/justin/map_1.jpg" border="0" alt="IPB Image" />
Comments
You need to add some more dimensions to it! Lighting would be a good start <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tounge.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":p" border="0" alt="tounge.gif" />
Looking at it in terms of points of interest...the only point of interest visible so far is the inward sloping wall tops. The floor texture looks rather ghastly as it is misaligned with the geometry of the room and so looks visually discordant.
Excuse me whilst I just offload some theory of map design on you...this is actually more about me working out my own thoughts on level-design rather than offering personalised information for you. I'm using this thread as an excuse to exercise my theories since they've never left the confines of my brain yet <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile-fix.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":)" border="0" alt="smile-fix.gif" />
Look at your room and try the following thought process:
<Left brain, logical<
Does it look like it serves a purpose?
If so, how can I accentuate this purpose?
If not, how can I give it purpose?
(Giving purpose to rooms in NS is quite forgiving as noone really knows the technologies or reasons that a room might exist given that it is set in a fictional sci-fi universe.)
And of course logical gameplay considerations come into effect here, eg if it is the marine start then it should ideally not have lots of nooks and crannys for aliens to hide in.
>Right brain, creative>
Is the architecture/lighting/<i>feel</i> of the room aesthetically pleasing to you?
Essentially, map design is like painting and so the same considerations of light, proportion, positioning, <b>balance</b>, etc, should be used - however it also obviously bears the necessity of <i>function</i> - whether understandable or not (see left-brain above).
If there are any points which really look as though they should have something there to break apart the virtual space, then consider what you might put there (dance to the left-brain process) and then make it look as though it fits with the aesthetic aspect.
Lighting is an object and can be used in place of actual architectural detail to achieve this end.
Flow - does the visual aspect of the room flow from object to object? (Your walls end rather abruptly where they touch the floor - there is no texture section hinting that the change from wall -> floor is taking place. A trim around the bottoms of the walls would fix that, or even spaced pieces of geometry somehow connecting the wall to floor would also achieve the same effect. However, this isn't <i>necessary</i> - its just one way of adding depth to the rooms visuals. If you were to concentrate on other aspects of the room instead then this might not matter at all, as it would be weighed out by whatever those other aspects are)
Currently the room serves no conceivable purpose, and aesthetically is barren of depth. Sorry to sound harsh but it's the truth! My brain requires things to make me interested and -keep- me interested...I can lap up the geometry of the room in two seconds. Think of it this way...the human brain can keep in mind at the same time between 4 - 8 different things. In that screen shot I see only 2 aspects that really attract my attention - the sloping ceiling trim and the blue-light walls at the back. Thus, because there are only two aspects I am interested in those two aspects are the only things occupying my mind and I grow bored of them very quickly. Now, once you have worked on the room some more and added more depth and things of interest, I may have 6+ different things to focus on and so it becomes harder to be bored because there is more to take in.
Here's one easy suggestion to add another aspect of interest - adjust the ceiling texture's X/Y coords so that the dark circle of the texture is positioned exactly in place of the circular pillar. Now the piller has a ceiling trim and you have linked the ceiling to the walls (at least in one spot - but its a critical spot as it is in the centre of the player's view!) - its as easy as that. Don't worry that there might be another dark circle just farther down the room which isn't connected to anything - it doesn't matter. The fact that one part of it IS linked to the geometry, and a critical piece at that, should overcome any feeling of repetetiveness.
Whew...I wrote a lot.
there will be more feature rich eye candy additions... i'm just trying to get the layout done before i add everything... barren map for a while.
the command room will be just that, command-oriented aparatus... computers, monitors, displays... losking lane lights... that sort of stuff, as the central room will have items to support the need for the computer and control devices...
and as for the texture, you are right, it makes much more sense to move it that direction... i did that and it opened up the texture position that i was hoping for... i had planned two round-lights there... but added one to the pilar instead, and moved it... and now i have one right over the CC... thanks!
On a side note I feel a bit stupid giving advice when you weren't actually asking for any...sorry about that. But you did say you'd show us some more when you thought we deserved it, so I thought I'd try and be helpful to achieve that end :]
Here is some advice I gave someone for mapping for ND, I've kept the bits that apply to NS:
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec--><b>Map Navigation</b>
Improving map navigation is essential for multiplayer maps because if players find your map too confusing to play it will lead to them dying over and over again, which no player enjoys. There are many strong visual clues that can help you set areas apart, a process that could be described as 'landmarking' your map.
Firstly, you can choose different and distinctive textures and lighting techniques to mark out general areas. Think about how mappers did this before they could add lots of details such as props and architectural features. Look at the maps for <i>Goldeneye</i> on the N64. In 'Stack', the whole basement level was generally darker and had a completely different texture set to up top. This meant any player new to the game could identify very quickly whether they were spawning in the top or bottom half of the map just by looking at the walls around them. In 'Complex' one area which linked 4 parts of the map together could have been a source of confusion for players, but instead was made very straightforward by using effective colours and architecture. Two of the entries were ramps, two were flat. One of the flat entries was flooded with red light, the other was normal. This way players knew which path led where because of how they looked; the stylistic 'signposting' turned a disorientating and confusing location into a very straightforward one.
Next up you have the real landmarks, the props or architecture that catches the eye and will give a name to that area of the map. If you play team multiplayer games, you'll know how people give names to areas that everyone can easily understand. In your map, especially at objectives, you need to have a strong landmark that is easily recognised and memorised. (In NS this is primarily done through interesting architecture as worldmodels are a tall order, although possible if you get the right people interested in contributing to your map).
---
<b>Balance</b>
It's my personal belief when designing multiplayer maps for two teams that start at opposite ends to work from the middle out. The middle is always where these teams will meet at the very start of the game, so you need to measure all distances out from here. This means you have total control over how long it takes each team to reach each location because you will have set the spawns at an equal distance from the centre. (this is still relevant to Natural Selection)
In <strike>ND</strike> NS you have resource points that you cap to win your team the game. Depending on where these are in the map you can make these easier or more difficult to take from one side. For instance, if I were designing a map for <strike>ND</strike> NS I'd make the objective points closest to the team HQs easy to hold for the attackers and hard to take for the attackers. This means for a team to lose the last resource point before their base the attackers pretty much need to hold the rest of the map. On the other hand in the centre of the map I'd make the objectives difficult to hold so the game is always in the balance with control swinging back and forth between the teams, this is what makes for high octane, dynamic matches that are fun to play as the action almost never lets up.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Keeping you Updated, as if you really cared:
- Ready room is done (less floor/ceiling and entities/lights)... pictures when i get some floor texture descisions from my brain. (for those with imagination, think ns_origin, but smaller... and more understandable)
- marine half of the map is struturally completed, just needs details added in to explain why it's called the command room. not that it's name mattered, but it's a finishing touch i'm not willing to ignore.
- Central room level 2 45% complete, this is the "blue" level as discussion revealed that this will be abused by marines using thier pistols.
- Central Room level 1 is 10% complete, this is the "Red" level, as most vent access will be here, also base machinery and sniper hiding spots occour here. this level is for alien domination.
- World models 15% complete, pile of HMG's and Shotguns yet to be created, but backface replacement is planned out.
bottom right is marine start, and the start of the central room...
size of the readyroom not checked, it is likely to change for the smaller...
<img src="http://www.sizz-lorr.com/justin/overview.jpg" border="0" alt="IPB Image" />
Kinda like the loverly orange-walls for HL2.