bleh, i lost my post.... :sad:

i'm off to bed now, so i'll try agin tomorrow.

n'night.

I really have no clue how picky you want me to be. After my last f**kup, I ain't gonna do much before I find out. I noticed a lot, but each were just opinions. I will refrain from mentioning my views on European architecture. However, I noticed these 3 things, small as they are I think them worth mentioning.

Check this location (the crosshairs) to see if there is an overlapped solid. I got some pretty weird visuals on that trim.

I truly had a belly buster laugh when I read this. I loved it.

Even over across the pond it gets cold. Wheres the doors?

My only complaint was the sterility. Although there is lots of debris, the map is still clean, as if vacuumed by a maid. I think that if this one issue were addressed, the map would be complete.

I will also remind you that I am ignorant to the playstyles of DOD. I saw no rhyme or reason for the layout of this map. It was a maze to my pea brain.

oh mai, I didn't realise that the last post I made was for b1.

b2 came swiftly on it's heels due to some clip brushes that didn't get moved when some walls did. (i think i updated the map profile for that) i found it playing on a few servers, and it became clear that the axis were spawning far too far away from the action, and had major difficulty in defending/taking their own 1st flag.

version b3 attended to that, and everyone that i asked said it was much better balanced. some people thought that it still favoured the allies a little, as their 1st flag was easy enough to defend, but hard to attack. hopefully, the changes i've made for b4 will address this. i know they helped a little with the fps.

i'm not sure of all the exact changes that have been made recently, so some of this batch of pics might go over the same ground as older ones.

first up is a couple of overvies of the spawn ares. axis at the railway, allies in the barricaded street/houses.





the next one shows the main external changes for this release. the bombed out building on the corner was an fps killer because of the lines of sight over it from some viewpoints. the full roof to the skybox is much better. there's also some new stairs to the left, that allow unhindered access to that building now. in the other versions, an allied mg could stop anyone getting in the main door, which is out of site atm.

my attempt at balancing the 'attackability' of the allies 1st was by creating a simple route through the new building. the next 3 pics show it in more detail.



http://www.quantum-physics.co.uk/images/mortimer/b4/1.jpg



the next one shows the new view from the barricades of the allies spawn. the arch behind the tree is the exit from the new route.



the broken wall, and square doorway to the left of the above pic lead to another variation on previous versions. inside the house there's very little detail, other than a toilet that's had the wall blown out, but has taken no toilet pan damage.



the staircase. axis can come up and through the hole into the house, but they can't climb up into the higher level, as that leads down from a new door on the sniper deck of the allies spawn area, shown below. the door on the bottom deck is the same one at the bottom of the stairs in the previous picture.



lastly, i added a generator at the axis 1st, just so that i could have something to use for an objective icon. (don't you just love the allies 2nd :smile: )



link to dod_mortimer_b4.zip (all pakratted, and standing at 15.6mb)

I downloaded this a few days ago Fishy and after a quick look through I was thoroughly impressed. The attention to detail is excellent and the layout, which is rather open, gives the feeling you are moving around an actual town rather than a pre-defined path.

There are some issues that I've noticed, mostly minor, so I'll put up a detailed breakdown/critique when I get a chance.

i've uploaded some more pics here. there's a few changes since the last version, but all of them are cosmetic. i had a look at creating a larger middle area, but tbh, it would be easier starting a new map.

I need to track down a couple of blend textures that throw up a warning on mapload, and I think a couple of invalid spawns too. Other than that, I intend to leave everything else alone for a final release HDR compile. (Unless I get important feedback before I have a spare day to actually run the compile)

dod_mortimer_b1 here.

france led the world in indoor sanitation, and was even using ultraviolet filters to purify drinking water as early as 1900, but the whole plumbing aspect is really a moot point, at least as far as my concern for historical accuracy goes.

i know some people consider it an important factor in creating their maps, and i wouldn't disagree, but the lack of consistent resources puts limits how well this can be done. litter overlays containing plastic bags is the thing that twists my nipples most, so i need to compromise historical accuracy, or have no litter. easy choice, really.

as long as i don't stray too far beyond them, then i don't really have a problem with the inaccuracies that are already inherent in the game.

No disrespect Orpheus, but your ideals of Europe beings some kind of
backward nation (i'd wager this is set in France) is historically way
off the mark. I think a lot of the criticisms of "cultural" setting are
ill founded.

Screw it then.

Orpheus said:
I thought about this map the whole time I was out on this run. I have some suggestions but....

... If you aren't going to use them, I'll abstain.

if it's a condition that your ideas must be used before you give them, then please abstain. it's not like i'm not interested in any suggestions; i've already got a some of my own, and i've already made changes to;
the axis spawn, securing most of the train station behind sandbags and train cars.
the tunnel thing that ran from the sunken cafe area through to the allied main street. it's now a wine cellar sort of place.
the flag at the cafe area has been moved up onto the street above, and is now a pallete of spam, 2 man objective.
various lighting, especially turning of the flickering lights in the axis spawn that were killing framerates.

that's some of the things i've already done, and there's still some i want to do. the allied spawn needs be extended to the building on the opposite side of the street, as they all spawn too close to the action atm. also, a defensive wall of sandbags/rubble needs built across the street, giving cover to the spawn exits, and providing a vantage point to take out any enemy spawn campers.

rugs, telephone poles and sandbags are also on my list, though sandbag placement is subject to change, depending on any feedback the map gets regarding balance.

that's for a beta release to test the actual gameplay. there's other changes that i'd like to make, like making a decent skybox, or fish models to swim in the pond, or even doors on the axis spawn builings. right now there's no way in or out of those buildings, other than the windows, or a door on the roof. but things like that don't really affect gameplay, so they can wait for a final release.

the only reason that i'd be closed to any suggestions would be based on how good or bad i thought they were, divided by the amount of effort they may take.

Gwil, the release of argentan compelled me to make a lot of changes to my map. argentan had the same open gameplay that i'd been aiming for, and reminded me of my own map in a lot of ways. but playing it made me realise that i didn't like the gameplay that came with it.

maybe i overreacted a bit when i tightened everything up, but i've aimed for a stlye of play that i prefer, while still attempting to give some scope to other players. the maze of corridors effect that you feel shouldn't last too long. as far as i know, there are no identical places. possibly because i built it, but put me anywhere in the map, and i'll get to almost anywhere else within a couple of sprints.

opening the map up again would be quite a difficult task, though there's one possibility that i can see (i've got the mini-map as my desktop) that would make the centre objective a larger arena, a la avalanche. a lot of the brushwork is important to areaportals, hints, clips etc, so i'll have a mess around in hammer to see how much work i'd be looking at.

meh, i'll be old and gray before i get this finished... :rolleyes: