pass_geyser

pass_geyser a4

Spipper

Former cheese man Gorgonzola
aa
Feb 18, 2012
246
407
Updated to a2
  • Major changes to the layout:
    • Added bonus goal between the two primary goals - the bonus goal grants 3 points to the scoring team.
    • Simoustanly opened up the middle area to improve visibility and removed some excess space between the bridge and the spawns to shorten walktimes.
  • Added setup time and proper setup gates to allow engineers to set up defences and allow other classes than scout to engage in the midfight at the start of the round.
  • Made shortcut more visible - nobody seemed to recognize it as a shortcut and thus nobody used it during the previous test.
  • When the jack is powered up, the shortcut opens up for both teams, allowing the attacking team easier access to the bonus goal.

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Spipper

Former cheese man Gorgonzola
aa
Feb 18, 2012
246
407
Since my semester is done, I finally have some free time to discuss the ideas behind the map, the goals and the decisions behind the design.

First up: Why pass time?
From the very start, I have been very interested in the pass time gamemode - it seemed to be a more dynamic take on invade ctf, where the passing mechanic opened up for some opportunity for interesting interaction between teammates (instead of invade ctf where the carrier often would be a scout headlessly beelining straight to the walk-in goal).

I also feel the gamemode lies in an interesting space between payload and AD cp:
  • In payload, the action revolves around a single object of interest slowly moving through the map on a predefined path, and captures the cp's when reaching them. Defending players can intercept this path to halt progress.
  • In AD cp, the object of interest is a stationary cp and the players have complete freedom over which path to use when approaching the objective. Usually, intercepting the different paths to the objective is not always a good idea, since it leaves the objective completely vulnerable.
  • With invade ctf/pass time the object of interest is, like payload, a dynamic object moving through the map (the courier) but unlike the payload, the courier can freely choose the path to the objective. The defending players have to predict the path the courier chooses and then intercept before the courier reaches the goal.

However, with the different class speeds and the damage falloff of weapons, intercepting a fast scout as a slow heavy is often not feasible - especially when the current pass time maps a long, wide and lacks any kind of choke/predictable routes (except for district, which is ironically labeled as being way too chokey).
Timbertown_overview.png


So that's my goal with pass_geyser - make pass time map with clearly defined routes, chokes and possibilities for a defending player to intercept and halt the progress of the flag courier.

So how am I trying to achieve this?

By building the map around two branching routes overlooked by clear holding positions:
pass_geyser_a20010.jpg

The blue paths mark the routes Blu uses to reach the goal, while the blue circles mark Blu's defensive holds used to stop the red courier and vice versa with the red paths and red circles. The Blu-only and Red-only shortcuts are also marked.

The defensive holds should be easy to retreat to for the defending team: If a team loses the jack at the midfight it can retreat to space in front of the first forward spawn and can watch the A and B choke:
pass_geyser_a20011.jpg


If the defending team fails to stop the courier, the defending team can easily use the launchpad in the shortcut to reach the A, B and C goals before the courier (even if the courier is a scout and the defender is a heavy!). However, since the goals are too far spread apart to defend them all at once, the defending team has to predict which of the two goals the courier is going for. This prediction, however, is made easier by the fact that because of the long rotation time between the two routes, the attacking team has to commit to one of the goals.

Overall, forward defenses should be encouraged since the shortcut offers an excellent possibility for the defending team to retreat to a position further back.

Finally, if the defending team manages to lock down the two chokes, the attacking team can power up the jack (by passing it to each other) to open a third route through the otherwise defending team-only shortcut. However, doing so grants the defending team extra time to set up defenses and removes the possibility of scoring a swift goal.


The goals themselves are also designed to be a little more interesting than those found in the official maps.
pass_geyser_a20007.jpg

The two initial goals (A and B) a far enough apart, that a single sentry or two can't effectively cover both. I also know from testing of ctf_redplanet, that a single goal quickly gets repetitive since you end up traversing the same route three or more times. Thus the map has two goals open at the start of the round. The bonus goal also offers a break in pace: It allows for quick rounds where a team scores two bonus goals or slower rounds where teams are focusing on the regular goals. the A1 version lacked a bonus-goal and suffered from repetitive pacing as a result I felt.

The map features no walk-in goals since I feel it's way too easy for a scout to just run past everyone and straight into the goal. In contrast, scoring in a hoop goal requires skillful aiming and positioning. Also, pass time is unique to invade ctf because of the throwing mechanic and I feel the hoop goals utilize this mechanic better.
Finally, you can also design hoop goals around the classes differing throw lengths - the slower classes, like the heavy, have a long throw and only need to peek around the choke for a moment to throw the jack into the goal, while the faster classes, such as scout, have a pitiful throw, meaning they have to use their movement to close the distance.
As an example, at goal A, the heavy can easily peek around the rock and score a goal or, alternatively, score the goal from the low ground while the scout has to maneuver to the end of the bridge to reach the goal.


I believe you can fix a lot of the issues people have with pass time through mapping but there's still a lot of flaws inherent in the game mode that I can't possibly solve - it's no secret the UI is cluttered and the "moving as a pack" bonus is fairly odd and difficult to understand for someone who is not familiar with the game mode.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this and found some of my thoughts useful!
 

Spipper

Former cheese man Gorgonzola
aa
Feb 18, 2012
246
407
Updated to version a2a:
  • Fixed Red team spawning in Blu spawn.
  • Fixed "Blu Forward state" being activated instead of "Red forward state" when Red team were in Blu territory. This meant Blu team always spawned in the forward spawns, and Red team had no spawnpoints and instead spawned in Blu spawn.
  • Spawnpoints no longer slightly overlaps - this means will spawn on the ground instead of in the air.
  • Added signs.
  • Reduced fog.
  • Cut a hole in a skybox wall so each teams base is visible from the middle.
  • Added bell alarm sound.
  • Didn't fix janky shortcut door but made it less janky.

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Spipper

Former cheese man Gorgonzola
aa
Feb 18, 2012
246
407
Updated to version a2b
  • Deleted Blu spawnpoint in Red spawn.
  • Fixed the shortcut door.
  • Raised Goal A by 64 units and goal B by 32 units, to make it harder for scouts to score from the low ground.
  • Increased ball spawn time from 25 seconds to 33 seconds in order to slow the pace after a goal and allow the teams to regain control of their side of the map.
  • Fixed bad outputs from red goals.

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Spipper

Former cheese man Gorgonzola
aa
Feb 18, 2012
246
407
Version a3 is finally released - practically rebuilt the map three times(!) before I was happy with it, so a lot has changed since a2b. I will probably do a long post or maybe even a video on the changes soon.

Also, watched the inauguration earlier today and wanted to congratulate the Americans out there on their new president :engieyay:

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Spipper

Former cheese man Gorgonzola
aa
Feb 18, 2012
246
407
a4 is released! Here's a list of changes:
  • Removed jumppads at the side of the map: Players reported these were fun to use, but I much rather simplify the sides and remove the pads. Also, players carrying the ball were using them to quickly rotate and avoid the enemy team, instead of grabbing the ball at the start. I rather force the player to pass the ball perpendicularly across the map instead.
  • Toned down the fog (for now)
  • Better connected the circular wood walkway to nearby side routes
  • Marked the team-only shortcuts with respawn visualizers.
  • Added some cover at the catwalk to the upper goal at the attackers side, to make it a little safer for slower classes to peek around the cover and take a shot at the goal.
  • Changed the respawn time of the ball from 15 seconds to 25 seconds. I feel that at the moment, the game plays a little too fast and I want status quo to settle better after a goal. As it is right now, the team that just lost a goal spend a lot of time pushing the attacking team out of their base and always arrives late to the middle when the ball respawns. Optimally, the two teams should fight for control of the middle area, before the ball spawns.
  • Other small changes and fixes (door fixes, goalie zones, voicelines etc)
  • I'm still planning to do a big overview video of the changes between a2b and a3.

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