Flicker

Jan 20, 2010
1,317
902
Why does it matter, tpg? :|

LightFlicker.JPG


Thar you go. It's one of those. Works for spotlight and regular light.
 

Jakkarra

L4: Comfortable Member
Aug 26, 2009
167
36
you can also use Custom appearance to make it flicker in exactly the fashion you desire.

Each letter corresponds to a brightness, this lets you tailor the brightness and timing almost perfectly.
 
Apr 19, 2009
4,460
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Should I explain to you why this statement contradicts itself?
No, let me just rephrase; Flickering lights don't work because they turn an already dark room darker making visibility and navigation more difficult then it needs to be. So I really can't see any good place to put them in a map other then a detail area and even then it looks ugly as hell.


On a side note flickering lights work in games like L4D1/2 and HL2 because you have a flash light that can negate the effect of the low lighting for the most part and give you a good heads up.
 

Jakkarra

L4: Comfortable Member
Aug 26, 2009
167
36
You can have them if the map is light enough anyway, and the flickering light just adds ambience.

That, or it's one of many lights, being the only flickering one.
 

Freyja

aa
Jul 31, 2009
2,994
5,813
Flickering lights also increse your filesize, drasticly the more brightness levels it has or the more you have.

Since Vrad needs to calculate every combination, having more than one is way too much.
 

Passerby

L2: Junior Member
Mar 27, 2010
99
15
ya i dont really see a flickering light looking that great with a tf2 theme.

but if you want the same kinda feel of a run down area you could have the light hand down crooked like have a fluorescent one hang down by olny 1 cable instead of 2 and add a spark sprite.

edit:

doing something like this should give the affect you want

cp_blackmesa_final0006-1.jpg
 
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TheTurnip

L2: Junior Member
Mar 2, 2010
62
20
It still COULD look good. Go for it, Grim Tuesday! Just take what everyone else has said into consideration. I.e., it may be a challenge to get it looking good. Still, go for it!
 
Jan 20, 2010
1,317
902
I had used flickering lights on one of my maps where a bridge had collapsed and the lights on it flickered. It didn't look terrible, although it did make the filesize quite a bit bigger. Since the lights were pretty high up and out of the way, it didn't really effect the light quality much. Really, they're possible in TF2, you just have to use them in the right way and in the right context.
 

YM

LVL100 YM
aa
Dec 5, 2007
7,135
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Just be careful how many you have, each brush face can only have 6 lightmaps, a single light that flickers from full on, to full off will use two lightmaps, adding a second near it will increase that to four lightmaps, adding a third will increase it to eight (see the pattern?)
 

ardysqrrl

L4: Comfortable Member
Oct 26, 2009
173
159
I was just thinking of having blinky lights on a computer panel :p
haha this thread is hilarious now.

blinky computer lights are generally an env_sprite. Just set up a logic_timer to output to the env_sprite's ToggleSprite input. you can have the blinking be regular or irregular, depending on how the logic_timer is configured. You can exert even more control by using the sprite's Color input (blinking between colors for example)
 

Micnax

Back from the dead (again)
aa
Apr 25, 2009
2,109
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blinky computer lights are generally an env_sprite. Just set up a logic_timer to output to the env_sprite's ToggleSprite input. you can have the blinking be regular or irregular, depending on how the logic_timer is configured. You can exert even more control by using the sprite's Color input (blinking between colors for example)

Which are (that you didn't say) are a lot less expensive and don't increase the size as much as dynamic lights :O