- Sep 1, 2009
- 96
- 2
I've been mapping quite a while now and I recently just got back into it to try out another idea I had. And there are many things I like about mapping and I really don't want to stop, but I can't help but be bothered that every time I work on a map for a long period of time I find something so basically wrong with the map that I have to either rework the entire map and do major editing, or start over.
I'll give a brief overview of my maps up to know I suppose and try to explain my dissatisfaction with the methods I use and how they really put me at a stand-still.
pl_dive (my first map)
http://forums.tf2maps.net/showthread.php?t=9470
Problems that made it impossible:
-My scale was huge, I would have had to reduce the size of every brush
-Most of my brushes extended through multiple rooms and were largely simplistic making texturing difficult and painstaking
-I tried too many ideas out in one map and I was in way over my head
koth_pier
http://forums.tf2maps.net/showthread.php?t=10656
Problems that made it unfavorable to continue:
-Again, overly simplistic brushes
-Layout was very ... square
-Incorporating water to a major extent, which I hadn't tried yet
koth_waterdome
http://forums.tf2maps.net/showthread.php?t=12349
I'm currently working on this map, but maybe not much longer after tonight...
The same problems:
-The basic layout is wonderful I think, but the rooms themselves are very square
-Large, basic brushes that have made texturing near impossible without major revision
Overall I feel like I've made little progress in terms of using hammer to its full potential, and I'm very frustrated to have very good ideas for maps and not be able to utilize the tools in hammer effectively enough to produce them in ... manageable periods of time.
TL;DR / Concluding Questions
Is there a secret to making maps that will be successful later in the building process that I'm missing?
Should I be building my map in full detail outwards instead of focusing on layout first?
I'm not asking whether there is a "best" way to use hammer, but I keep running into these impassable barriers when I can still fully visualize what I'd like my map to look like.
I'll give a brief overview of my maps up to know I suppose and try to explain my dissatisfaction with the methods I use and how they really put me at a stand-still.
pl_dive (my first map)
http://forums.tf2maps.net/showthread.php?t=9470
Problems that made it impossible:
-My scale was huge, I would have had to reduce the size of every brush
-Most of my brushes extended through multiple rooms and were largely simplistic making texturing difficult and painstaking
-I tried too many ideas out in one map and I was in way over my head
koth_pier
http://forums.tf2maps.net/showthread.php?t=10656
Problems that made it unfavorable to continue:
-Again, overly simplistic brushes
-Layout was very ... square
-Incorporating water to a major extent, which I hadn't tried yet
koth_waterdome
http://forums.tf2maps.net/showthread.php?t=12349
I'm currently working on this map, but maybe not much longer after tonight...
The same problems:
-The basic layout is wonderful I think, but the rooms themselves are very square
-Large, basic brushes that have made texturing near impossible without major revision
Overall I feel like I've made little progress in terms of using hammer to its full potential, and I'm very frustrated to have very good ideas for maps and not be able to utilize the tools in hammer effectively enough to produce them in ... manageable periods of time.
TL;DR / Concluding Questions
Is there a secret to making maps that will be successful later in the building process that I'm missing?
Should I be building my map in full detail outwards instead of focusing on layout first?
I'm not asking whether there is a "best" way to use hammer, but I keep running into these impassable barriers when I can still fully visualize what I'd like my map to look like.