Hey! a space station map...

Surge · October 2002

<div class="IPBDescription">Uh... look, _another_ space map...</div>NS looks pwn. Especially the levels. Don't get me wrong, the levels are unique and different.

I've been itching to ask this... where's the grass? I mean, I haven't seen a map that doesn't take place in space. I know, the TSA probably only operates in space... but I was hoping to see some slick outdoor areas. I mean, look at Gloom. It has quite a few outdoor maps. In fact, most of them are stations with a few outdoor areas...

I haven't seen any planetside NS maps, either. Is it required that maps all take place in space or something? I know, outdoor areas in HL look somewhat like arse (no curving...), but at least we'd have natural ground (no pun intended) to walk on, some bright areas, a real sky, and other stuff. The map could be at nighttime, too, if you want it to be dark...

I'm sure that making an outdoor open area will get rid of some of the suspense and point of NS.... but it could only have a single open area or something?....

Also, I am hoping to eventually see some map take place in a city. It'd be nice to see how the NS team portrays cities of the future, and provide some cool combat (urban jungle combat kicks the big posterior).

So... are any outdoor/planetside/urban maps planned? Perhaps a city in space?

blueman · October 2002

Hera is based on a "mars" type planet.....just look at the pics and you'll see. Eclipse also had some mars sky in some pics, at least in older builds. mmmm

SentrySteve · October 2002

I will give you the most basic reponse becuase im sure others will go into mass detail.

Outdoor areas would unblanace everything. Guns, Alien abilites, buildings, commander mode... everything.

MooMoo_the_SnowCow · October 2002

If I remember right there are no out door maps because large open space = death to aliens.

JediYoshi · October 2002

Outdoors = big no no. Some aliens wouldn't have much use on an outdoor map. And the learning curve would be slighly larger. For instance, the Skulk's sneakyness wouldn't be much of anything. However, outdoor parts of a map, can be okay.

Moleculor · October 2002

Definitely no outdoor maps. Usually nothing involving grass or trees of any kind, even if they're indoors, unless they're somehow dead, dying, or 'changed' in some sci-fi-ish way.

See, the only way to get a map to be official is for it to fit the look that Flayra is aiming for. Which is that of metalic indoor structures filled with steam, darkness, damp places, and creepy aliens. It's actually described in the Mapping Guidelines.

Bill · October 2002

Besides it wouldn't really fit the theme. That would be like if Counter-Strike was like:

Bland generic setting 1, bland generic setting 2, bland generic setting 3, <b>PLANET XEROXOBIA!!!</b>

Grassy, outdoor areas might be unique with NS, but they really wouldn't fit the theme of the current maps at all. Anyways like basically everyone else has pointed out it just doesn't work with Natural Selection and Flayra says it's a big no-no.

Evil_Sonic_Death_Monkey · October 2002

yo, actually, since outdoor areas might be bad, a map whihc is inside a commercial building would be cool. it'd be just like normal ns levels, but just inside a building, i mean just diff textures. not that much of a diff. the only prob is where to put the resources... bathroom? hehe, just an idea

Khaim · October 2002

Plus outdoor maps would be bad, the Lvl 1's could climb on the skyboxes and that would just be plain odd.

Surge · October 2002

I figured that people wouldn't like big outdoor areas, but I was thinking maybe maps that are on a planet and you at least get to touch ground at some point... I mean, I want to look out a window and see a street or dirt or <i>something</i>.

Okay, what about Urban maps with close quarters? Maybe in a commerical building?

JediYoshi · October 2002

Merk's Map, NS_Hera is made on a planet, I'm pretty sure. There are some shots of it <a href="http://www.readyroom.org/merkaba/" target="_blank">here</a>.

BTW: It's not that the idea isn't bad, it's just about another month of balancing involved and even more bugs to work out. And... well... yeah

Bill · October 2002

Hera is personally the best looking map for the Half-Life engine I've ever seen.

OMG I'M KISSING UP TO THE MAPPERS, call the gestapo, stat!

JediYoshi · October 2002

I'm not sure...

I personally think <a href="http://www.natural-selection.org/cgi-bin/ikonboard/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=4;t=6182" target="_blank">Powerhouse</a> is the best thing to have hit my eyes since the NS Marine.

Merkaba · October 2002

A map can have outsides areas but can't <i>be</i> outside.

I'm sure once people become more comfortable with NS's style and gameplay, more interesting and risky maps will be made.

Legionnaired · October 2002

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td><b>Quote</b> (Surge @ Oct. 10 2002,21:05)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">I figured that people wouldn't like big outdoor areas, but I was thinking maybe maps that are on a planet and you at least get to touch ground at some point... I mean, I want to look out a window and see a street or dirt or <i>something</i>.

Okay, what about Urban maps with close quarters? Maybe in a commerical building?</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
The problems comes when you put commie mode in, and can no longer do level-over-level structures.

So all you're left with is a bunch of flat little buildings, with connecting alleys and such...

Basicly it's butt incarnate.

If it helps, I'm working on an underwater map, which should help with the monotany.

QUAD · October 2002

Actually, I've got a cool scene in my upcoming map where you'll get to see some martianlike terain, whilt appeasing to Flayras love of the danky and dark indoors. How, you might ask? You'll just have to wait and see <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

Mouse · October 2002

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td><b>Quote</b> (QUAD @ Oct. 11 2002,13:13)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Actually, I've got a cool scene in my upcoming map where you'll get to see some martianlike terain, whilt appeasing to Flayras love of the danky and dark indoors. How, you might ask? You'll just have to wait and see <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'></td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
ten bucks on a greenhouse thingie <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':p'>

both of my NS maps have been set planetside, the first NS_Frigid was set in the frozen north of some planet and the one I'm working on now is set in the tunnels beneath a colony.

Pulse · October 2002

Wide open spaces would be level 5 friendly but worthless everywhere else especially because of HL's hatred for fresh air. [Edit] Damn it! How could I mix up bast and hera "I think we may have a gas leak!" I still stand by what I said about RR.org though so I'm leaving that up./[Edit] Am I the only one that noticed the links Monse put up on the front page of RR.org? The mapping gallerey is redone with 10 shots from every map that is featured. He seems to have really bad luck or something, whenever he writes a sentence everybody sees 2 words and ignores the rest. Monse - "One thing is for sure, NS won't be out tomorrow" 1/3 of the NS community - "Did you hear?! NS will be released tomorrow!!!!"

Pulse · October 2002

Anyone who say what I put up first should send me thier home adress so they can be quickly silenced. Or maybe no one saw? It would make it a lot easier whithout the police and all.

Justin_Case · October 2002

Actually if I ever get around to mapping I was thinking of making a jungle/base map with outdoor areas

JediYoshi · October 2002

Hmm, considering NS is in the not so distint futures, any jungles will take a bit of imagination, plant wise. Especailly if it's on a planet, thank goodness for story lines. They're have been alot who have seen the link before you, don't be cocky. And you can edit your posts as well SiLeNcEr-7.

Pulse · October 2002

hmmm, that means you didn't see it and have no idea what your talking about (thats a relief). Maybe a space station with a biodome would fit in, it would be especially cool if the whole ship was covered with tree's plants ect... making ambushes possible in *every* room for both the aliens and the marines.

JediYoshi · October 2002

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td><b>Quote</b> (SiLeNcEr-7 @ Oct. 11 2002,01:20)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">hmmm, that means you didn't see it and have no idea what your talking about (thats a relief)...</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
Do you really think plants will be the same in the future, and on different planets?

Pulse · October 2002

no, no, no, no, no, I thought your insight on the plants was right, I'm talking about what came after that. But I'm not going to discuss that further, lets keep it centered on the maps now ok?

JediYoshi · October 2002

/me shakes SiLeNcEr-7 hand

Sure <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':p'>

Pulse · October 2002

/me bites jediyoshi's hand off and adds it to his collection
If you say so <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':p'>
expanding on that idea, you could have a crashed ship or something like that, it would be interesting to see how mappers would make "sci fi trees" in these kinds of maps

PseudoKnight · October 2002

A mining facility underground with tunnels gets infested, so a squad of marines is sent to the bright and rocky planet and lands just outside the entrance of the mine. They set up base at the entrance where it's bright and easy to defend, but the remaining resource nodes are inside the mine and quite difficult to defend.

A type of map with a part in the outdoors that I think would work. (just off the top of my head)

EDIT: hey, this reminds me of the movie Pitch Black, except you go down into the caverns to fight the aliens. Scary. But I like the 'white-out' feel you get on the surface in the sun.

Venmoch · October 2002

A hive in a bio-dome may give you some outsideness, with the option of grass etc, Just a thought

Derfud · October 2002

I am in the midst of starting to make a map that will be on a planet, it will be called ns_1415, for colony 1415!

Daxx · October 2002

<span style='color:red'>*Points to the following thread, and the amazing work the mapper did:</span>

<a href="http://www.natural-selection.org/cgi-bin/ikonboard/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=4;t=1052;st=0" target="_blank">NS_Jungle</a>

Give it a full read, don't look at the first post by the author, and reply "No outside areas you n00b!" His ideas evolved into something very beautiful. Also I'd suggest you don't resurect it. Again. It's already gone through that, a couple of times. Hell, its 12 pages long as is <img src="http://www.natural-selection.org/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

MCThornGristle · October 2002

Something really cool that could be in a map would be a small arcology dome in a space station or large space ship map - a transparent dome (you look up and have a sort of surreal scene of stars/nebulae overhead) contrasted with grass and trees and etc., and it would be interconnected into the rest of a stark spacey map akin to NS's other stuff. It'd be a great place for an alien hive, or for level 3s to just swoop around and wait for some hapless marine to take a stroll through the park...

Hey! a space station map...

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