Where am i going wrong

[Haggis]

I have made 2 maps so far,both maps were set inside.They were quite big maps and when i compiled them on normal it would take no more than 10 mins.I am working on my first outdoor map,i have only made the first area,not that big but it takes over an hour to compile on normal.I have turned everything i can into func_detail,put areaportals where i can,i even blocked off the doors to the spawnroom to see if that would make a difference but it didnt.Can someone please take the time to look at this area i have made and tell me what i have done wrong,here is the link to the .vmf http://gamingbountyhunters.co.uk/Map.vmf/

 

[UKCS-Alias]

I havent opened it but let me guess, the inside maps didnt/ barely used the tools/toolsskybox texture even though you have a light environment entity. This would explain the longer compiles. The light environment entity makes sure that all the toolsskybox texture emit light (well, it immitates that). Because that light is harder to calculate it would explain a longer compile time.

You are able to see where the couse is. There are 3 steps in a compile. vbsp (this one is short and when it fails your map wont work), vvis (for visibility - thats where func_detailing and areaportals can become effective) and vrad (lights). In a compile you are able to see which one is the longest and improve that one.

As you tried optimizing with func_details i suspect its light instead.

 

[Sgt Frag]

I can't dl or view it right now but I can still guess. ( ^ ninja guessed )

First, check for leaks. You probably have some really large areas that leave tons of open space in an outdoor map. If there are unused areas inside the gameplay world you need to fix them. Fill them with solid, put them in the skybox or do a better job sealing areas off.

Even outdoor areas follow the same principles as indoor areas. You need to limit sight lines and playable areas. Sightlines is the most important.

My guess is there is a leak into a 'basement' of your map. By basement I mean a hollow unused space under you map. Say you put one huge sky 'box' around your level. That's bad.
It doesn't leak to void so it's not an error, but all that extra space still needs to compile for no reason.

Think of the outside as hallways and rooms that have a roof , just that the roof is painted sky. Bring that sky in as close to the play area as possible.
Like a canyon is just a large hallway, but halway up the walls and the ceiling have sky tex. That'll keep it optimized while giving the illusion its wide open, it will also let people jump high without hitting their heads.
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Something to try.

when compiling set options to

bsp - normal
vis -fast
vrad (lighting)- none.
run game - unchecked

Any map with those settings that is sealed correctly should compile in a matter of minutes. 10 tops probably.
If it's going after 15 minutes it's time to seal it in better as I explained.

As UKCS said, lighting times are long, so doing a quick compile like I said will drastically reduce wasted time trying to find the problem. When all problems are solved do a non-hdr lighting and go ingame.

don't even waste time with hdr until you are getting close to finished.

 

[Inqwel]

Fix your Area portals.

BEFORE

AFTER

You have a few walls that do this.

 

[Pianodan]

I played around with it for a bit... the big problem seems to be that you're still not very well optimized. Have you loaded your portal file and looked around? If not, go to map->Load Portalfile, and click "OK". More blue lines=bad.

The good news is, after you make changes, you only have to rerun bsp to update the portal file. I got some improvement fairly quickly by func_detailing the edges of your platforms, some of which you missed, the curved sides of the center of the exit to the blue spawn, and various other places.

Once you've got the portal file on screen, it's fairly easy to see what you have to tweak to reduce the number of visleafs.

I can upload my results if you like.

 

[Haggis]

Damn,just before i uploaded the .vmf i changed this area.I had 2 glass doors but i deleted these doors and tied the area portal back to a world brush but for some reason they still show up as area portals.I now have deleated these brushes and made new ones,still the sane outcome.

 

[Pianodan]

I just noticed... the staircase directly above the capture point... OUCH. Look at that with the portals loaded.

 

[Haggis]

Thats something new i have learned,load portal file,cheers guys will have another look and try and get all those blue lines down to a minimum,will keep you posted.

 

[Haggis]

WOW,unbelievable.I changed a bit at the spawnroom,turned a few more brushes to func_detail and i have now went from well over an hour to compile to 1 min 37 secs to compile.Thanks to all of you who downloaded my .vmf and took the time to have a look,i have now learned a lot on how to optimise your map,cheers guys.