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3 Dimensional Chat / Higgins Level Designing

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SpyDaniel
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Location: United Kingdom
Posted: 5th Jun 2006 13:23 Edited at: 5th Jun 2006 13:26
Right, I want to post screen shots of what I design. Right now I am creating a space station arena map. I am using 3D Studio Max to build my levels in, if any one wants to know what I use.

To start the topic off, here is one of the rooms I have started.



Feed back and comments are welcome.



brummel
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Posted: 5th Jun 2006 13:27
Right now, all i see is two stairs but i guess it will be good when its finished.
Tinkergirl
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Posted: 5th Jun 2006 13:57
An arena map, eh? Well, first off - ditch the symmetry. There's nothing easier to get lost in, or quick to 'grokk' as a symmetrical map. You need to have interesting fight angles from almost any player position - which means corners, pillars, corridors, nooks and crannies.

You have 'vertical interest' though, which is good. (Sorry, level design is a bit of an interest for me.)
dark heart
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 01:32 Edited at: 6th Jun 2006 01:33
i agree with tinkergirl, things like that are expecialy good if it is a ruin scene.

@higgens- what is your avatar doing?
SpyDaniel
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 01:59
Parachuting into an industrial chimney.

I drew an office map on paper before. Its going to be for the FPSC level contest thats going on. If they dont let me enter it, it will go to use for some thing else.

Ill post screens of that when I get started.



Oddmind
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 04:14
Quote: "(Sorry, level design is a bit of an interest for me.)"


haha little bit more than that tink give yourself some credit

some suggestions would be to hollow out the bottom of the stairs for those campers we all know and love , or for a suprise copmuter programed enemy as well. After yovue got the basics down (the rough sketch if you will) try and spice it up with some spacey panels on the wall with levers and things that make things do things >,>

formerly KrazyJimmy

I'm the lizard king, I can do anything.
RUCCUS
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 05:42
Just scribbled around with your level, didnt put much thought into it but it might give you some ideas who knows. That room to the right is a freezer for meat, i was going for a broken down warehouse feel. If you want me to take the pic down because you didnt really give me permission to draw on your pic, just ask.



Still a good start with the stairs (though Id've waited till I had something a little more detailed before posting).

- RUC'

SpyDaniel
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 13:08 Edited at: 6th Jun 2006 13:08
Quote: "hollow out the bottom of the stairs"


They are

Quote: "you want me to take the pic down"


No thats ok ruccus

--

I know its not much to look at, I mainly design WW2 maps. Ive level designed for Enemy Territory for a good year and a half now, so I understand what you are all saying.

I started an office map too. I drew this on paper before I did any thing, so Iam quite happy with it.

Here is the start of it.





RUCCUS
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 14:44
Looking much better.

Tinkergirl
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 15:36
Better, certainly - but if it's for a multiplayer (or bot based) deathmatch style game, then there's still a lot of dead ends in your map - the whole right hand side room layout is a corridor with 3 dead-end rooms off it. I'd recommend opening up a connecting door or two between those rooms so that there's not just one opening for a player to watch. Keep their attention divided Maybe some pillars down that main corridor too, for added cover opportunities.

The left hand side is much better - especially if you make some of those partitions (I assume they're office cube partitions) shorter than others - create 50% cover with some and 100% cover with others.

@Oddmind - Well ok, yes - I do this for a living, so I hope I kind of know what I'm doing. But we all start somewhere, and multiplayer maps aren't my speciality - I usually do single player levels.
SpyDaniel
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 16:41
Tinkergirl, the level is ment for single player, but I will add every thing you have said, plus open up more areas for a multiplayer edtion.

I will post some more later on, I just need to add doors to what I have so far.



SpyDaniel
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 18:12 Edited at: 6th Jun 2006 18:12
Update:





Tinkergirl
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 18:47
Single player, I see. What's your plan for path through the level? Just guessing, I'd imagine you'd put the player start point in the top right hand corner or the bottom right.

The bottom right might be nice, because that top corridor with the pillars would be nice for a last pitched battle.

Conversely, the top right would be nice because you'd have enemies shooting through that window from an 'unknown' area - and you'd get a glimpse of a room you cannot yet access.

Either way - looks good. Watch your gating options (where you slow the player down, or make them take another route). For example - the partition room has nothing to stop the player from running straight across that bottom corner in one door and out the other. However you manage it - it'd be more interesting to block that path off (or better, make it more dangerous) so that the player can't just run past enemies in that cover.

Watch out for those large rooms at the bottom too - unless there's juicy pickups in there (or objective important items) the player doesn't have to go in there unless they want to.

But definitely great improvements already! Feel free to ignore all my witterings, by the way - sometimes I feel I'm being unfair. I'm just trying to help though, and this is stuff I've had to struggle with in the past.
SpyDaniel
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 19:18 Edited at: 6th Jun 2006 19:18
The player will start near the two pillars. The door shape will be the elevator and the normal sized door is the walk way door. There will be objectives in nearly all of the rooms. The bottom right room is the staff room and will have a code for a safe. Room next to that is a filing room and will have info for the player. The two small rooms in the lobby area by the pillars are public toilets. The windowed room is a guard/reception post.

I have multiple ideas for this map, so Iam not low on ideas for it and your comments will just help add more options to the map.



Megaton Cat
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 21:41
Unless it's an office floor, looks too flat for a space-station deathmatch multiplayer map. Add some elevation!

Nice progress so far.


It's like a Megaton Cat radar, 24 hours a day.
Tinkergirl
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 21:50
Megaton - it is in fact an office floor, singleplayer map

But elevation is always good.
Oddmind
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 22:29
yes the level looks much better!

When designing the level make sure you keep in mind all the things that tink said, its important to extract emotion from the player without them realising it. you will want to make it an exciting place to be, even though its an office space,which in reality is one of the elast exciting places to be.

For excitement give some signs of real life being thrown askew, like in half life 2 they had cars and stuff on fire. Im not saying make it a war zone, but interactivity to make the point that it is actually an office building your in will make the level have character.

The player should be able to act like its actually an office building, not just another level with scenery equal to that of an office.

formerly KrazyJimmy

I'm the lizard king, I can do anything.
SpyDaniel
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Posted: 6th Jun 2006 23:03 Edited at: 6th Jun 2006 23:03
The single player layout is complete.



I will texture this one before adding more to the multiplayer level.



Bahamut
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Posted: 7th Jun 2006 01:07
I've been following this since you started, but I'm not as specialised in level design as other here, and I'm not a huge fan of FPS's either, so I don't really have the ability to give particularly usefull suggestions.

However, looking at the latest model, I can't see anything hugely wrong with it. It looks as though it would play fairly smoothly, and the top left hand room looks like it will be really fun.

Looks great, though maybe someone else can help more with the crit.

Megaton Cat
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Posted: 7th Jun 2006 04:29
Quote: " Megaton - it is in fact an office floor, singleplayer map"


Oops sorry, I just read "I am creating a space station arena map" on the first post and didn't read the rest.

Still good progress.


It's like a Megaton Cat radar, 24 hours a day.
Reality Forgotten
FPSC Reloaded TGC Backer
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Posted: 8th Jun 2006 23:01
Great work as usual Higgins

RF

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