Hl2 Version Of Hammer (worldcraft) Shots!
DOOManiac
Worst. Critic. Ever. Join Date: 2002-04-17 Member: 462Members, NS1 Playtester
Worst. Critic. Ever. Join Date: 2002-04-17 Member: 462Members, NS1 Playtester
<div class="IPBDescription">Reveals a lot about how HL2 works.</div>First, here's the two shots:
<img src='http://www.planethalflife.com/half-life2/screenshots/11.jpg' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://www.planethalflife.com/half-life2/screenshots/12.jpg' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
If you're a half-life mapper, you're bound to be very excited about things in these shots.
First, you'll notice how this editor looks almost exactly like the current version. That's good. It means we can jump into HL2 editing w/o many new things to learn (much like how people were able to quickly move from Quake 1 to Quake 2 mapping).
Looking closely at the shots, things I notice:
- There's a new tool below the Decal creation button. Judging from the icon, I'd guess that this is for terrian editing (looks like grass/dirt)
- Waypoint button for bots is still there. Lets hope its just a leftover, as one of the things the HL2 previews have been bragging about is bots not needing them anymore...
- There is much, much more detail to the entity properties, making things much easier to work with.
- Looking at the Current Texture listbox, I see that textures are filtered into subdirectories (i.e. <i>brick\brickfloor001a</i>). This should make things easier to find what you're looking for.
- Looks like you'll be able to see models fully animated in the 3d preview, or something to do w/ the animation bar on the right anyway...
[edit]
- Something else I just noticed, either there are no {BLUE style transparancies (they should be using Alpha channels anyway damn it) or the editor automagically previews them as transparent. Look at the chainlink fence in the back of the first shot to see what I mean.
[/edit]
- No lighting preview in the 3d window still :(
Also you can see that valve is still pretty sloppy with the brushwork, like they always have been. Tsk tsk tsk. Overlapping brushes? nubs..
^_^
Maybe some mappers more talented than I (which should be 80% of the people viewing this thread) can pick out some more things I missed or got wrong. :)
<img src='http://www.planethalflife.com/half-life2/screenshots/11.jpg' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
<img src='http://www.planethalflife.com/half-life2/screenshots/12.jpg' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
If you're a half-life mapper, you're bound to be very excited about things in these shots.
First, you'll notice how this editor looks almost exactly like the current version. That's good. It means we can jump into HL2 editing w/o many new things to learn (much like how people were able to quickly move from Quake 1 to Quake 2 mapping).
Looking closely at the shots, things I notice:
- There's a new tool below the Decal creation button. Judging from the icon, I'd guess that this is for terrian editing (looks like grass/dirt)
- Waypoint button for bots is still there. Lets hope its just a leftover, as one of the things the HL2 previews have been bragging about is bots not needing them anymore...
- There is much, much more detail to the entity properties, making things much easier to work with.
- Looking at the Current Texture listbox, I see that textures are filtered into subdirectories (i.e. <i>brick\brickfloor001a</i>). This should make things easier to find what you're looking for.
- Looks like you'll be able to see models fully animated in the 3d preview, or something to do w/ the animation bar on the right anyway...
[edit]
- Something else I just noticed, either there are no {BLUE style transparancies (they should be using Alpha channels anyway damn it) or the editor automagically previews them as transparent. Look at the chainlink fence in the back of the first shot to see what I mean.
[/edit]
- No lighting preview in the 3d window still :(
Also you can see that valve is still pretty sloppy with the brushwork, like they always have been. Tsk tsk tsk. Overlapping brushes? nubs..
^_^
Maybe some mappers more talented than I (which should be 80% of the people viewing this thread) can pick out some more things I missed or got wrong. :)
Comments
Mmm, not you DOOM <!--emo&:0--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wow.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wow.gif'><!--endemo-->
I think he's talking about me.
Another thing to note, in the 1st view, it looks pretty complex with that popup. What it looks like at 1st glance, is some sort of advanced multi_manager thing which has been revised. Nothing too big. But look at the tabs, there is an Inputs tab. Hmm...what could that be for?
In the 2nd screenshot, it looks like an advanced texture manipulator. Meaning if you had a sphere, and a texture, you could precisly align it around the sphere.
I really like it. So many times you see a nice looking game with some massive complex editor. I don't care if HL2 dosent look as good as Doom 3, if Valve boosts the graphics quality, keeps the great gameplay, and gives us even better mapping tools and a more versatile entity system (which is also less complex) then kickass!
The internet NDAs expire today, maby there will be some basic modling programe as well!
<!--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-->For Half-Life 2, Valve plans to release tools right alongside the game. The new Hammer map editor (an evolution of Half-Life's previous Worldcraft tool) will have built-in lighting previews, one of the things most requested by Half-Life mod authors. "We wanted to make the transition easy," says Lombardi. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd--> mmm built-in lighting previews....
Anyway, I see a blue D up at the top. It's between the Texture Alignment button and the Run Map button.
Also, the sphere-like button to the right of the Run Map button.
I also see a whole bunch of yellow nodes on the ground. The texture on the top of them says HINT Ground Node.
So...I guess you still have to place nodes for the AI?
*edit*
Actually, some of them say different things. I see some that say HINT Ground Node. Then I see some that just say Ground Node. Then I see some that say Something HINT SOMETHING. So I don't know.
Also, the "Displacement Paint Geometry" dialog box looks pretty cool. Well, not jus the dialog box...the whole tool.
*edit 2*
Oh yeah, I also see <-> in status bar on the bottom right. I have no idea what that is.
- every entinity is labeled in the frontview-Window now, I guess it's toggelable for every viewport besides 3d
- the radius of certain entinities can be displayed now, on a first look I thought there is a new sphere-creating-tool, but now I've realised that the yellow sphere in the first screen is the radius of the point_bugbait entinity
- as far as I can see from the screens, many things are worldmodels instead of actual geometry, for example the huge gray machines in the first screen (washing machines) are in the 2d view just plain boxes like a model-entinity in the current Hammer...
Notice the names and numbers identifiers. <!--emo&:0--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wow.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wow.gif'><!--endemo-->. It seems that this preview can't be shown on the camera viewport but in fullscreen. Amazing anyway...
<img src='http://www.gamemarshal.com/games/Half-Life%202/screenshots/Halflife03.jpg' border='0' alt='user posted image'>
Look how far into the distance you can see on the shot Boneless posted.
Looking forward to this now, just need to buy a new PC first..
\o/
Maybe those "HINT" nodes on the ground are just that, nodes that the AI characters can go to if they get stuck on something.
Just a thought...
I also think it's good that Source isn't like the Unreal Warfare engine in that most of the detail in the maps isn't from models, most of it appears to be brushwork with the occasional model here and there. I'm much more comfortable with that scheme. Though it was possible to create some pretty damn fine looking models using UnrealED2 <b>VERY</b> easily.
--Scythe--