- May 7, 2008
- 315
- 140
And you, as a level designer, must accept change or deal with shooting in the dark.
Let me explain myself here. I think that every mapper/level designer has some kind of idea to what they want to achieve with their level before they even fire up the editor. During the making of the first few blocks of geometry one can truly feel a hint of the divine power of creation. After all, our levels are made of what? Pure thought shaping up something: an Experience.
It is very common for the mapper to be proud of his creation. And this feeling is so strong and the attachment to the masterpiece so deep that it is hard to accept the one constant in the universe: Change.
My message here is to my fellow mappers, be you just a newcomer that hasn't even registered on the forums or an old fart with tons of maps under your belt. Accept change early on and let your map grow as a living being. If caged into your initial idea, or to the initial shape you gave it, it will most likely become extinct as the dinosaurs, or you will count on pure chance and luck as you shoot in the dark.
Take the feedback from playtesters and fellow mappers seriously, and don't think that your layout is made of pure perfection, for nothing truly is.
My own experience with ctf_aerospace has taught me a lot. I had been warned countless times by fellow mappers and playtesters that the map was too big. I judged their worries fraught and unfounded. "They just need time to learn the map" or "They need to play on a more populated server" would come to my mind as excuses to avoid facing the truth: The map was too big, some areas where confusing, and the map sucked.
After I accepted this I could finally make it trough and create something great. The new version of aerospace has been able to amuse new players and, most importantly, break the scepticism of the very people who warned me before and where ignored. That's great, but it could have been entirely avoided if I had been more open to suggestions and accepted that the result from my hint of divine power as a pure pile of suck (gameplay-wise, visually it was, and still is kick-ass).
"Never believe you are right. Know you are. A belief that turns right in the end is still sheer luck, not experience. Take the data you have, the playtests, the stats, and see the truth within. Being experimented means making the right choices so the playtests and stats never prove you wrong." - Furyo
Bulleted list if you just skipped trough my humble apology/insight/lesson:
Let me explain myself here. I think that every mapper/level designer has some kind of idea to what they want to achieve with their level before they even fire up the editor. During the making of the first few blocks of geometry one can truly feel a hint of the divine power of creation. After all, our levels are made of what? Pure thought shaping up something: an Experience.
It is very common for the mapper to be proud of his creation. And this feeling is so strong and the attachment to the masterpiece so deep that it is hard to accept the one constant in the universe: Change.
My message here is to my fellow mappers, be you just a newcomer that hasn't even registered on the forums or an old fart with tons of maps under your belt. Accept change early on and let your map grow as a living being. If caged into your initial idea, or to the initial shape you gave it, it will most likely become extinct as the dinosaurs, or you will count on pure chance and luck as you shoot in the dark.
Take the feedback from playtesters and fellow mappers seriously, and don't think that your layout is made of pure perfection, for nothing truly is.
My own experience with ctf_aerospace has taught me a lot. I had been warned countless times by fellow mappers and playtesters that the map was too big. I judged their worries fraught and unfounded. "They just need time to learn the map" or "They need to play on a more populated server" would come to my mind as excuses to avoid facing the truth: The map was too big, some areas where confusing, and the map sucked.
After I accepted this I could finally make it trough and create something great. The new version of aerospace has been able to amuse new players and, most importantly, break the scepticism of the very people who warned me before and where ignored. That's great, but it could have been entirely avoided if I had been more open to suggestions and accepted that the result from my hint of divine power as a pure pile of suck (gameplay-wise, visually it was, and still is kick-ass).
"Never believe you are right. Know you are. A belief that turns right in the end is still sheer luck, not experience. Take the data you have, the playtests, the stats, and see the truth within. Being experimented means making the right choices so the playtests and stats never prove you wrong." - Furyo
Bulleted list if you just skipped trough my humble apology/insight/lesson:
- Accept that your map is never perfect
- Be open to changing everything
- Listen to your fellow mappers and playtesters closely
- If you truly believe you are right, then stick to it
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