The New Altair Is Visually Stunning
moultano
Creator of ns_shiva. Join Date: 2002-12-14 Member: 10806Members, NS1 Playtester, Contributor, Constellation, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue, Reinforced - Shadow, WC 2013 - Gold, NS2 Community Developer, Pistachionauts
Creator of ns_shiva. Join Date: 2002-12-14 Member: 10806Members, NS1 Playtester, Contributor, Constellation, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue, Reinforced - Shadow, WC 2013 - Gold, NS2 Community Developer, Pistachionauts
<div class="IPBDescription">Man oh man.</div> Seriously, it's really hot.
I don't know if a screenshot could really do it justice, because it's really the overall effect that makes it work. I hadn't been much of a fan of the map in the past, mostly because I didn't think it was up to the visual quality of the rest of the maps in the game. My hat is off to KFDM, cause he certainly got that fixed right up. It really feels like an underwater facility now. I can't speak to how it plays, time will tell on that, but visually, the new version might as well be a new map. It's awesome.
Imagine Veil with dark walls and underwater. That's the best way I can think of to describe the feel of it.
I don't know if a screenshot could really do it justice, because it's really the overall effect that makes it work. I hadn't been much of a fan of the map in the past, mostly because I didn't think it was up to the visual quality of the rest of the maps in the game. My hat is off to KFDM, cause he certainly got that fixed right up. It really feels like an underwater facility now. I can't speak to how it plays, time will tell on that, but visually, the new version might as well be a new map. It's awesome.
Imagine Veil with dark walls and underwater. That's the best way I can think of to describe the feel of it.
Comments
There should be some pix still available at the caleague.com NS forums.
I liked playing altair because it was new, and I could sort of tell it was supposed to be some sort of underwater something-or-other. I guess as long as the map layout isn't as FOR THE 10^6th TIME boring as Veil, it'll be okay if it's as bright as Veil. Except sort of in dark-mode.
Are all the cool vents mapped out on the minimap finally? Can marines go infiltrate the sewer systems and use the ladders to climb out different places? I mean is there any place on your map where that's an intentional strategic direction, what with the marine sewer-crawl? I remember the corridors being kind of twisty and confusing, like in order to get from one big square room to the next, you had to go through a double-L hallway with two 90 degree bends. Are those still in the map? What about the little submarine with the water pool? Wasn't there a hive with a lot of steam and crap and a HUUUUUGE bottomless pit of a moat around the whole thing? Kind of like a cross between Eternal Requiem and Veil-Subjunction hive? It was a nice big cavern of a room with a little floor space, but mostly just a big empty drop. I mean the Kharaa hivemind has picked bad spots for hives before, Powersilo, Refinery, etc, but I mean a room with a big bottomless pit... or am I thinking of some other map... Anyway, yay Altair.
Here's the super key question though, will skulks ever be able to swim around somehow and show up in front of an observation porthole and peek in? And if so, what about the potential for friendly sea-gorges? Can they be trained to jump out of the water and through hoops for medpacks?
I'm almost bent on to saying that this is the best playing map in NS now, to me at least. Absolutely awesome, the differences are large, and it feels better than any of the other maps to travel through.
Though, just to say: Hera is the map that is now the most visually stunning. But gameplay goes to Altair now- thank you so very much KFDM.
I'm almost bent on to saying that this is the best playing map in NS now, to me at least. Absolutely awesome, the differences are large, and it feels better than any of the other maps to travel through.
Though, just to say: Hera is the map that is now the most visually stunning. But gameplay goes to Altair now- thank you so very much KFDM. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Hera has always been IMO. So far the games I've had on Altair haven't been great, but I don't have any reason yet to suspect that this had anything to do with the map.
To me at least, the balance seems to be perfect, at least in pub games. Though being it was tweaked by competitive folks, maybe it works there too.
The hives seem far enough away from eachother to make it a little bit of a trek to each, but its not gonna take more than 40 to 50 seconds from one to the next, on foot. There are vents everywhere(many I haven't even begun to use yet), and there are nice lighting visual effects seemingly everywhere to help obscure aliens. Marine start is a good fortress point, but isn't invincible, and there are several relocate spots all over the map(Muck Room! Heheh, grep). As I said: AWESOME gameplay.
I'll keep my pance on, I swear!