koth_backtown

[Wiebbe]

Yo everyone,

first time i am posting some of my own work here. The map i am gonna post is an King of the Hill kind of map.

Now i know there is a different map out there featuring something called King of the Hill, and has 24 players camping 1 CP at a hill for 20 minutes. While this basicly is king of the hill its not very fun gameplay.

So what i tried to do was create a king of the hill based map with a twist.

The general idea is this:

The teams fight for 1 CP based in the middle of the map. The moment one of the teams captures the CP (capture time is around 15s for 1 player-non-scout.) a 5 minute timer for that team starts counting down. When this timer hits 00:00 the game is over, and the team that owns the timer wins the game.

When the other team recaptures the CP they will start their own timer, which was still at 05:00 and that one will start counting down. Capturing the CP from a different team also increases that teams timer by 20s.

To make sure you dont have 2 teams camping 1 CP the entire game, i added an CTF element to it. When the CP is first captured a logic_case randomly picks the blue or red base. After 35 seconds a flag spawns in that base, which is takeable by both teams.

That flag has to be brought to the other side of the map, to the other base, into the capture zone. The flag itself is placed in Invasion, which means any team can pickup the flag, and when its dropped it takes around 15seconds for it to become neutral.

Capturing the flag will give the capturing team a bonus, something like a time bonus, closer spawn or decreased spawn time.

When the flag is captured a new timer starts counting to 35 to spawn the flag to the other side of the map.

this makes sures you will get a very dynamic flag thats a bit different everytime you play it. I use game_text_tf to make sure players know where the flag is located at.

some pictures:

leaving red's spawn

the CP point located in the middle of the map.

overview from Blu

 

[Wiebbe]

Flag capture/spawn points

I am still detailing the map, but the general layout and gameplay should be ready for some testing

I still need to work out lighting, 3d-skybox, some buildings and textures.

 

[Snipergen]

Hehe, nice man, but I personally think forcing red and blue in the map (you draw the line in the middle, red, white line, blue) is not a good plan. It doesn't feel right.

On the other hand, map is coming along nicely I think.

 

[Scoobingsthe2nd]

buildcubemaps >.<

 

[Wiebbe]

Why the hell would i build cubemaps when the map is not even playtested yet? For some screenshots?

Those screenshots are for information and help not luring you in to play my map

I kinda liked the middle, it is a bit artificial true, but its TF2 anyway, it doesnt need to be very correct. Ill see how i can fix it up a bit

 

[YM]

Yes it looks good

All the buildings except for that red wooden(first screenie) one look very bland at the moment, you need lots more detailing to spice them up a bit.
The cliff looks very straight, make it a bit more rounded and real looking (look at dustbowl and gravel pit as a reference) Also, make the texture larger scale of 0.15 should do it, because at the moment it looks very repeated.
The line down the middle looks way too artificial and a bit rubbish IMHO It looks plenty clear which side you are on without that line down it, I''d just take it out and have a smooth transition from the dirt to the concrete. Also the stairs that have no team colours on look plain odd.
It looks like snipers will have fun here and pyros wont, several of the screens have large open areas without much cover to hide behind (unless you want to crouch behind those concrete blocks)
How about a top down screenshot to show us the layout.

I'm ripping into it not because I don't like it, but because I do I wan't to play this map it looks really fun.

 

[Wiebbe]

Well, a small update regarding backtown

I finally had a gameplay beta version up, i also included some more detailed and stuff.

I incorporated the hints from Youme, made a much better looking cliff (if i say so myself ) although the map still needs lots of detail and a 3d skybox. But im not gonna make a 3d skybox if im not sure the gameplay is fun

I even had to create my own Invade CTF flag sounds because they arent in TF2 itself. I used the existing CTF sound files, and removed the Enemy words from the sound files and changed some other stuff, sounds very good if i say so myself!

I looked into changing the text messages, but TF2 doesnt want to load a tf_english.txt from the bsp it seems

waiting for comments!

Current shot:

Download version:

http://wiebbe.lambonet.com/afvalbak/koth_backtown_b2.zip

 

[Snipergen]

I am wondering, how does koth maptype work? The cap time is extremely long or how does it go?

 

[Wiebbe]

Its alot more sophisticated then that

You could always download the map and see for yourself

currently it goes as followed:

Both teams have a 5 minute round timer. When a team captures the CP, which has a captime of 10seconds the timer will start counting down for the corresponding team.

when the other team recaptures the Control point, the team that loses the CP will gain a 15 second penalty and the other teams timer will start counting down.

But i added a twist to this, in order to make the gameplay a bit more then just SPAM THE CP TO WIN THE GAME. I added a CTF element.

When the CP is first captured a 25s flag time will start counting down, after that a flag will spawn at either the enemy or your own base which is based in the INVADE gameplay. Both teams then have to fight over flag/intelligence control to bring the flag to the other side of the map. ie: Blue will have to retrieve the red flag to their own base, while red has to bring the red flag to the enemy base.

When you capture the flag you get a -15 time bonus, while the other team gets a 15 second penalty added to their timer.

I included a Sign help system which changed on the current game status, for example at the start all game sign will read: CONTROL POINT and point to the middle section.

But when the blue intelligence has spawned, it will turn blue and point to the Blue Intelligence.

But when someone picks up the map, they will turn grey and point to the capture point for the flags. This way its kinda easy to see where we have to go in this map.

The middle CP has 3 ways to get to for each team, while both flags have two ways to get their.

 

[Voztron]

This sounds fantastic, I will give it a go when I get home from work.

 

[flubber]

Hi,
I put the map on our custom server, it's playing pretty well, but i think hat people get confused because of the intel. I think it would be clearer without the intel since i don't give an enormous advntage/dis-advantage to the team.

 

[Wiebbe]

Well, beta 3 is almost done. If have included ALOT clearer ingame instructions, it now ADDS 30 seconds to the defending teams timer if the attackers capture and only removes 15 is the defending team captures. This way it is alot more usefull

I can always create another version with no intelligence, but the problem is that alot would go unused then

I also added one more exit to the spawn, because spawn camping could be a bit lame at some times :/

 

[Voztron]

I don't like the fences to the right and left of this screenshot I think you should add some carts or a wooden fence blocking the area off. At the moment the meshes look out of place and just seems pointless. If you use a wooden fence with gaps between broken pailings it would just look alot better.

 

[sailfin]

Looks bland. Add a 3d skybox, and add some more detail stuff. Like fenced off supplies ect.
3d skybox video tutorial really good
http://www.interlopers.net/downloads/videos/3D-Skybox.7z

 

[Wiebbe]

Seriously, people should read a bit more and not just look at screenshots (@ sailfin)
Ofcourse it looks bland, its faaaaaaaaaaaaar from done detail wise. But i am not gonna detail a complete map, make a 3d skybox before i have even done some gameplay testing. I have a complex gameplay mode here which combines CTF and CP control. As i have found out so far its a bit complicated for most players when they join the game. It takes them around 2/3 rounds before they understand the map.

Ofcourse it doesnt help NO ONE reads the map description at all

Did you try the fences ingame Voztron? You are the first that calls them out of place. With a wooden fence you will block of the view of that area as well. The idea is that its an open place so you can see a intelligence runner coming through.

I dont really think the fences are out of place, why cant a metal fence be connected to a wooden building? It doesnt all have to be wood

 

[Voztron]

Did you try the fences ingame Voztron? You are the first that calls them out of place. With a wooden fence you will block of the view of that area as well. The idea is that its an open place so you can see a intelligence runner coming through.

I dont really think the fences are out of place, why cant a metal fence be connected to a wooden building? It doesnt all have to be wood

Yeah mate I saw them in game. I suppose that once all the detail has been done they might look more at home. There was just something about them that I dont like.

I like the pace of the map its fast and fun. Not sure how it would handle on a 32 player server with everyone stacks on that CP. I must commned you on trying to mix it up with the CFT element, great idea!

 

[Wiebbe]

gaahhh 32 players, TF is ment to be played with 24 players and i made it with that much in mind

Thanks for the comments !

 

[YM]

So many servers have 32 players, you really should think for that. The maps I make, I put little or no thought into how may players there are and they seem to turn out pretty rounded
Even though I think 24 is always better and 32 only produces bloodbaths I always stick 16 info_teamspawns in each spawn, that way it can cope should it find its way onto a 32 server.

 

[Wiebbe]

i did that already, i added 16 player slots for both teams

I just didnt make the map itself for 32 players, imho games just become SPAM SPAM SPAM then.