So When Are We Going To See Non-spacestation Map?
SuperNintendoChalmers
Join Date: 2002-11-02 Member: 4414Members
Join Date: 2002-11-02 Member: 4414Members
It's starting to get really boring to play in these repetitive space-station maps. I appreciate their detail and fantastic lighting, but they're just getting boring. Everything seems so boxed in and repetitive.
I think people should be looking for new location ideas. Places like dark caverns, where the marines start near the surface and have to work their way down through winding passages to the hives. Try thinking of StarCraft locales, and how you could fit the aliens into a situation like the zerg. It's a big universe, and we're only playing in space ships.
<img src='http://www.penny-arcade.com/images/2001/20011128l.gif' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
I think people should be looking for new location ideas. Places like dark caverns, where the marines start near the surface and have to work their way down through winding passages to the hives. Try thinking of StarCraft locales, and how you could fit the aliens into a situation like the zerg. It's a big universe, and we're only playing in space ships.
<img src='http://www.penny-arcade.com/images/2001/20011128l.gif' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
Comments
There need to be settings that haven't been overun with technology, the textures are just getting to repetitive. New locations like temples on deserted planets, or jungles (which can be hard to do with the Half-Life engine i know, but 3D-Mike has done some incredible things for CS with trees. Just check out cs_greenhouse or de_predator).
Try to forget the storyline written by the NS team, and think of a map that would be fun to play. Then build the story around it. Don't dismiss ideas like open maps, because there are ways around problems like that and if your putting yourself in a trap of mirroring the maps allready in existence. Don't be afraid to make stupid little maps, because they get the creative juices flowing and may lead to great ideas.
it like only dust stile maps for cs
(postet this before)
what all ns levels have alike is that they play in a marine struckture
no natural maps
none!
Also lets not forget that the mod just got released. Have you any idea how long it took till there where decent custom CS maps? if my memory serves around beta 4 (i know it was the first release of dust that really got the ball rolling) or so the first started to appear and starting with 5 it became no problem at all to get good custom maps. I dont want to attack you i just want to give you something to think about. Don?t expect what you have in CS now for NS. CS and its mapping community had years to grow. Give it some time and you will have more custom maps for NS then you would ever need.
a) The Kharaa reach Earth.
b) TSA Find Kharaa Origin Planet
May I say I do not advise these, but with my limited mind these are the only things I can think of.
old mine shaft or a volcano......
What'd be cool is if mappers could play with victory conditions... ala team goal style.. allowing for lots of new types of map, such as the aliens have to complete 3 hives, and disable the marine interface (destroy 5 powergrid bypasses) -- and the marines start off in controll of them.
etc ect.. map ideas abound with those..
ns_goal
ns_teamgoal
anyhow, thats off topic.. just remember "portalble nano-relay station" deployable via phase! <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='biggrin.gif'><!--endemo-->
(maybe we should make a set of ns_prefabs for mappers to distribute.. you know .. effects of mass production)
True dat <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo-->
<!--QuoteBegin--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Seems to me it would be very difficult to make a "natural" looking alien and/or cave environment without quickly running into the engine limits. I dunno, just openly speculating here ... <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Not necessarily <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo--> There are ways. I'll show you in a couple weeks or so, still working on getting a final layout that plays right, though I'm starting to add detail in places. And yes, I am one of the 3,000 people or so who is working on a map set in a mining facility.
I think we should get a few mappers from the CS and DoD communities interested in NS. CS may be flooded with small dust-clones and fun maps, but there are some quality mappers out there, and allot of them cut back on details because they're worried about round-based play. In NS the maps have a little bit more flexibility, they can be bigger with more detail and the gameplay doesn't suffer as much. If you know a mapper that doesn't work on NS yet, maybe you could get them to do a little part-time help to see if they like mapping for NS.
You'd never know nancy was a spaceship if it weren't for the cockpit. Tanith is a hovering research station or something, but other than the area near the marine spawn (and that particular area gives the feel quite well if you ask me), you'd never know it though, the occaisonal groans creaks of the ships hull from time to time are good. What maps need are some WINDOWS. Don't be afraid to show off a skybox of stars, or terrain, or what-have-you. In fact, all the hives so far feel more like dungeons. Mind you, that's part of the NS feel, being in cramped location, but my map will have some areas where you can look outside. Although, I only feel Bast and Caged are the only really similar maps. Play Hera or Eclipse for a bit, then play Nothing. Very different feels to those two maps.
So far, I have a design layout on paper, and a readyroom in worldcraft. It will be a research base on the edge of barren planets' ocean. Nice relaxing on the beach, while skulks feed you margaritas and gorge's dance in coconut bikinis! (Umm... no...)
caged has a sewer....I cant say Ive ever been on a space "ship" before but I imagine thiers no sewer <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo-->
its impossible due to jetpack and lerk
Would people drop the storyline for just once. I know it's important to the maps playability to have something that makes sense, but just because they give you spacestations doesn't mean you absolutely HAVE to build them. It's getting to be exactly like what that guy said about dust maps, people are getting stuck in a rut.
As for forests. You could allways have branches up high to scout out on. If you were a lerk, Skulk or a Marine with a jetpack you could hide out. And that kind of thinking is exactly what i'm talking about. "Nobody wants a forest, it's impossible to jetpack...", what do you think you're doing with a freaking jetpack inside a facility. Yeah that makes allot more sense.
Sorry Relic, but Bast has to be the worst offender, with absolutely no indication of where you are. It could be an underground facility, or a spacestation for all I know.
Hera is the best for having a feel to where you are, mainly because of the outdoors view you get in one place and the rock cave type areas. Well done Merk, and I have to say, it seems to be a map that most people consider to be filled with atmosphere.
I don't know how many of you have played USS Darkstar, but to me, that set of maps was very well done, and I felt as if I was on a spaceship all the time.
All I can say is that before you start saying that people should avoid making spacestations/spaceships, I think you should consider that it most of the official maps don't really have an indication of where you are. Therefore maybe if the mapper put a lot of effort into creating an atmosphere, this style of map isn't so bad after all.
This mod lends itself to a story FAR more than CS could ever hope, dream, or imagine.