PLR Atoll

[LeSwordfish]

Good work A3, Come back!

A4 Go!

Changes to A4:
Opened a second route out of the out-spawn area to the center of the map. Players can take this to flank the main fight.
Added a whole bunch of extra space to the beach area.
Added ramps in what were the boathouses, and doorways.
Darkened the glass textures, to something really fugly, just so you'd dhut the hell up about not being able to see them what did you think it was, grey mist.
Fixed it so you don't get stuck in spawndoors.
Tweaked lighting.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/13673854/atoll/plr_atoll_a4.bsp.bz2

 

[Wilson]

what did you think it was, grey mist.

Yes.

 

[spekkio]

Good work LeSwordfish! I tested the map out today and really enjoyed the flow of the gameplay. My only complaint at the moment is that the red huts in the first main combat arena are too close to the track. A player cannot fit between the hut and the cart as it passes through, which makes it uncomfortable for the player (as it seems like one should be able to fit through). Either make the distance between the hut and track wider, or make it clear to the player that he shouldn't be able to fit into that space. Right now it's a little bit unclear for the player.

Thanks for all your great work!

 

[LeSwordfish]

Okay, so i'm just finishing up a new version, and i want to kinda respond to some feedback i've got. I'm not doing this in a passive-agressive way. It just seemed like it would be helpful and interesting, for me, and, feasibly, other people, to get my thought process down on paper. Also allows me to explain how i really am listening, since i hate leaving people feel like i'm ignoring them.

Airblast can throw people all the way across the deathpit too easily, make it wider.

This was accidental, but i actually like it. Airblast as "get out my way" should be viable, airblast as "lol instadeath" should be less so.

Put a capture point near the turnstile, as a visual representation of the turnstile on the hud.

Firstly, i don't even know if intermediate capture points work in PLR. I recall that i tried messing with them back in my first released map, and the best i ever achieved was them appearing on the HUD on one track only. Which isn't great, or, like, satisfactory.

Secondly, hopefully people will pick up on the turnstile being just after the rollforward zone.

Thirdly, i really do want a representation of them on the HUD, mostly to show players how far through the turn they are. Sadly, i don't know how to, and suspect there isn't a way.

Put little ramps at the end, like in every other map ever.

Done and done.

I might remake the finale from the ground up. I've added an experiment with it in this release, that if it works might lead on to another experiment.

Put a building in the middle of the first area, to cut spam

Yep, done.

I also added a pair of smaller buildings to house health and cut sightlines, (and they're all out of sightlines). Sightlines are... they may well become a big problem in the current build. The starting area is now 256 units wider than it used to be, and though more stuff is in there, i can only have failed to notice more.

Doorway from outside spawn area should be one-way...

Uh, yeah, sure.

... and should be wider.

Urm... huh. There's only so much width i can buy before sightlines start becoming an issue. But sure, i can try. At least part of the width was simply shitty clipping, so, yeah.

 

[LeSwordfish]

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/13673854/atoll/plr_atoll_a5.bsp.bz2

How it's different:
Halved the time the turntables take.
Tweaks to the ending: a massive cover-like thing and smallish ramps.
Expanded the starting area.
Cut spam and sightlines in the starting area with cover buildings.
Still more detail, prop by stinking prop.

 

[LeSwordfish]

So i have a plan for this map.

Schoolwork is really starting to bite now. I'm planning to squeeze out an update in the next few days, probably making the finale easier to defend. Then, i'm taking three days off work in the easter holidays to detail as much as possible. And then, well, i'm done. Bugfixes, maybe. But otherwise, that'll be it.

Also, i'm changing the name since there won't actually be an atoll in it. I can't think what, though. if i retheme the ending as a nuclear power plant, plr_atom maybe.

 

[LeSwordfish]

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/13673854/atoll/plr_atoll_a6.bsp.bz2

I basically remade the ending a bit.

The nature detailing in the WIP thread is unfinished, and as such not included.

 

[Harribo]

we played your map last night, I think the cart both meeting in the middle for the end is good though I think the area under the down ramp is going to be easily Engie camped like that part on cp_gorge's last point, I try to lock it down by doing that but the other team's cart breaks and gets stuck at the top of the new down ramp before i'm done making it pointless
Demo: plr_atoll_a6.dem
oh and go check the feedback on the maps plugin page

 

[LeSwordfish]

Jesus christ i thought i'd have this out a week ago.

plr_atoll_a7
-Detailed red area.
-Tweaked path_tracks to prevent cart getting stuck.
-If i ever see a displacement again, i'll shoot both it and myself.
-Also slight adjustments to cover in starting area.

Known issues:
-There's big gaps everywhere where i havent bothered to link detailed and non-detailed sections together. Ignore them, they're clipped
-Van may or may not be pink.
-Still no explosion.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/13673854/atoll/plr_atoll_a7.bsp.bz2

 

[LeSwordfish]

Progress hammer screenshots!

To do: Expand the town a section, detail those random 128x128 bare brick walls, a bit more on the other, not shown, side of the skybox, and the entire rest of the map i guess.

I kinda want to get the first half of the map (spawns, and map up to the crossover) done. That includes a 3d skybox and stuff, plus most of the complex lighting, so if i can get that done by, say the end of this week or next, i'm happy to put that out as an a8, or even a B1. Who says a b1 need to be fully detailed? fuck da police.

 

[LeSwordfish]

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/13673854/atoll/plr_atoll_prebeta1.bsp.bz2

Why do i never update this crap at normal times.

Detailed a bunch of it.
Bug fixes.

 

[Harribo]

the Link to the prebeta1 is 404'd

 

[LeSwordfish]

Oh. Well, I'll fix that.

After soul-searching and clock-watching, I've decided to content-lock atoll here. No additional detail will be added (perhaps the red outbuilding, or the big cliff, or a 3D sky) so i can get enough time to polish, bug fix, and optimise.

Also I need a finale explosion. Look out for the simplest finale explosion ever, to go with the dumbest finale.


EDIT: Link is kind of fixed.

EDIT EDIT: Link is now ACTUALLY fixed.

 

[LeSwordfish]

Author: LeSwordfish
plr_atoll_b1
Screenshot
Download

Cave Johnson, we're done here.

GLHF to all others.

As a note, i most likely won't be able to be communicated through steam for quite some time, possibly up to two months. If you want to contact me in that time, and please do if you have any issues, forum PM is a good way to do it. I'll still be on the forums regularly.

 

[ForbiddenDonut]

I poked through this map a little bit today. I have to note that my favorite aspect of your design is the attempt at an asymmetrical aesthetic in a symmetrical game mode. By that, I specifically mean BLU having the coastal village as their approach and RED having the rocky cliffs as theirs.

It's one thing to have two geometrically-equivalent buildings with different architectural styles, but another to maintain balance while giving the teams a totally different environment to accompany their way to the volcano.

And of course, the outdoor parts are stunningly beautiful.

 

[Trotim]

Backburner Pyro/Spy are amazing at the start of this map. I guess so would be Heavy.

I'll let you figure out why.

 

[3Dnj]

I really like what you did here, can't wait to see the final

 

[LeSwordfish]

Thanks!

While you're here-ish, is there anyone specific I should give credit to for the Maritime assets. Just saying "And thanks to the Bulletcrops people" feels a tad general.

I guess, if anyone can tell me who from the construction pack made the poster overlays I'm using, that'd be good too. Once I've been reunited with my PC, I'll whip open the .bsp and do a proper accreditation search.

And Trotim, humour me. Too easy to get behind people? Relevant spawns too close? The one-way route is also a good hiding place, I guess, and oh god just tell me before I go a bit crazy finding flaws.

 

[Trotim]

When you spawn you go right through the one-way door, jump up the pipes on the enemy team's side and onto the roof. Any resistance to there is usually easily spammed down, not much space to dodge there.

Once you got position on the roof you can easily stop enemies from coming through the one-way door as well as shoot down onto the tracks - Heavy/Pyro/Spy can wait until the Payload comes close, jump onto it and kill everyone.

It's hard to realize you can walk around on and jump down from that roof when playing at first, but once players figure it out you can expect everyone to try to get on there. It's a very strong position.

 

[LeSwordfish]

Damn. I was hoping it wasn't that. For now... Let's hope that the relative awkwardness of getting up there would balance that out. And be glad I whammed a Nobuild up there.