Map 1 Round 3
Monday, July 9, through <STRIKE>Monday, August 6</STRIKE> <STRIKE><[DEADLINE UNDECIDED]</STRIKE> <[CLOSED] <STRIKE>at midnight in your time zone.
</STRIKE>
There is no base VMF needed for round 3 because of the ambiguous ending for round 2, but if you would like to see how the last two rounds ended, you can get them here. (Note: this file contains the BSP because you don't need the VMFs)

Round 2 went through just great thanks to everyone that submitted and voted. Finger's map won for the second time in a row and not by a fluke, it's just because they're so darn good! His entry displayed a good balance of story building scripted sequences, fast frenetic gameplay, and outstanding visuals. Hopefully we can find someone to match those level design skills for this round just like the last.

General Info

[*] The goal of this competition is to end up with a complete, playable single-player map with contributions from several mappers. We plan to have 4 rounds total; this is round 3.
[*] This round lasts <STRIKE>[UPDATE]</STRIKE> <STRIKE>four weeks <[TIMELIMIT UNDECIDED]</STRIKE>, <[CLOSED] and the entries from this round are put to a forum vote to choose the winner and the base for the next round.
[*] After the map is done or close to it, the winners are welcome to polish it to a finished state (or close to it :wink: ).
[*] Judging will be based on Aesthetics, Craftsmanship, Creativity, and Game Flow, keep those in mind when working on your entry.
Guidelines

[*] You're free to change any part of the map, but try to assess the amount of work it took to create something. People don't like to have their time and effort wasted. If you nuke something that someone spent hours toiling over, have a damn good reason.
[*] Don't add miles/km of new blocky dev textured map area, think about where the player just was, where they are now, and focus on where they're going in the immediate future. Target five to ten minutes of gameplay.
[*] Put everything you add into visgroup(s) with either your forum name or a shorthand of it. See existing visgroups for examples.
Custom Content

[*] You're welcome to add whatever you want; Textures, models, sounds, faceposer scenes, etc. But put them in hl2\<asset folder>\snarkpit_mfb\<your name folder>\ so people don't have stuff in 48 different folders all for the same map.
Submissions & Filenames

[*] Replace "base" in the file name with your forum name or an abbreviation/ shorthand of it. For example, I would use 'snark_mfb01_round3_riven'
[*] Send a zip archive containing your entry, a text file explaining your additions and changes, and any other needed files (in proper forder structure if custom content) as an attachment to <STRIKE>lancon (at) suddenlink.net</STRIKE> <[N/A]
[*] You are free to ask editing questions during the four weeks, but please refrain from posting WIP screenshots as not to affect anyone else from getting ideas from YOUR entry!
<STRIKE>So what are you waiting for? Get mapping! :biggrin: </STRIKE> <[NOT HAPPENING!]

</LI>

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

Glad you're taking this up, Riven!

I guess at some point someone will need both maps to do the proper connection, but it's probably a good idea to only release one BSP this time, so people can jump right into the action.

---

Why snark works.

Yup, thanks for taking the reins on this Riven. Get cracking folks :smile:

---

[img]http://card.mygamercard.net/sig/Default/reno84.png[/img]
Designer @ Haiku Interactive | ReNo-vation.net

OooOOOooooohhh
(ooh)

I wonder whether the endless possibilities will inspire or limit contestants, in general?

---

Also change the texture of the dock. Docks are rarely tile. -Facepunch
As I Lay Dying

So, how many contestants are we looking at for this round?

-I'm in. (for sure)

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

As am I.

---

Also change the texture of the dock. Docks are rarely tile. -Facepunch
As I Lay Dying

I'll be in if i can get this dam thing to work.

I have great... plans...

---

Why snark works.

I hope so. Very little time these days -I can't give it my full attention, but maybe I can get something done.

Nice to see You picked this up Riven.

My sins have caught up to me (hehe) and I'm powerless for a few months, glad to see this is going on, even though Baron had to take a personal break (poor guy)

Keep up the good work! (I had an entry I was working on for phase 2, but my power dissapeared in the middle of it :/)

---

Signature? What signature!?

i've started on something that could be included as an entry, but my complete lack of I/O knowlege doesn't bode well.

---

i eat paint

Here's the tut I used when I first learned Hammer I/O

---

Also change the texture of the dock. Docks are rarely tile. -Facepunch
As I Lay Dying

Don't think I'll be making it for this round. I'll probably be spending my weekends finishing up this instead:

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/84848.html?playlist=featured

Does anyone that is participating think they need another extra week to finish their entry (August 6th)? Or will the original deadline be long enough (July 30th)?

(I know I could always use extra time, but I think I'll get what I want in for this dead-line.)

Would we attract any new participants if we were to push it back to August 6th?

-Just a thought...

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

I would prefer an extra week.

---

Also change the texture of the dock. Docks are rarely tile. -Facepunch
As I Lay Dying

I spent the entire last week explaining to stupid marketing people why making things look s**tty doesn't make them "stand out" more.

Not that one week more would guarantee I'd make it, but it sure would help.

---

Why snark works.

Well, that's two for it, do we have any opposition?

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

No!

---

Why snark works.

O.K. well, I'll set it back then. (I was gone for the past three days, so I've missed some mapping opportunities)

I hope we gain some more entries though!

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

Well, it's been over 24 hours since the due date (enough time for everyone to send in their entry at midnight their time zone) and I have not received one entry; not one. Did everyone mutually agree not to participate and give up? Or is this just a really bad time to be hosting a level design competition?

I know we've had over a month to work on this round but do people really need another week? Or should we postpone this competition for a later date?

It's up to the participants...if there are any...

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

It's about 35?C everyday now. I'm already afraid my sweat would short-circuit the keyboard. A summer pause wouldn't sound unreasonable to me.

---

Why snark works.

I've been prepping for college and trying to squeeze more quality time outside from my last days at home.

A two week or more hiatus sounds good to me.

---

Also change the texture of the dock. Docks are rarely tile. -Facepunch
As I Lay Dying

I was looking foward to seeing the maps guys, c'mon you can do it!

---

Aaron's Stuff

Well, Honestly, I've been too busy myself to have taken advantage of that extra week, so I didn't get much done anyway either. But what we can do is go ahead and put off this competition until perhaps later in the coming month(s).

Next time you guys feel ready to finish up your entries, give me a holla. Or post something in this thread. We may gain more people to join in during a later time anyway! But this competition is far from dead, you just now have a really long time to work on it! So hopefully when we are ready to show 'em, we should have some nice quality maps eh?

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

I leave for Chicago on the 17th, and classes start on the 23rd. Once I get in the swing of things, I'll be ready.

---

Also change the texture of the dock. Docks are rarely tile. -Facepunch
As I Lay Dying

Who are the judges?

Could I be one?

---

~Leeroy Jenkins

The community votes! No judges required. Anyone can vote (once the maps are released) but we ask that you play them yourself first.

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

Question:

When did a limit of 4 rounds get added? I'm rather certain that wasn't talked about at all, I rather thought that it was "Until the map(s) came to a natural conclusion, then we can start again with a new map or not, as we wish"?

---

Signature? What signature!?

could someone script a final scene that sees gordon finally getting to alex's bedroom to hand her a box of milk tray? :smile:

---

i eat paint

Sorry about the late reply Fjorn, but we did briefly talk about the four round limit. Here are some quotes and a link:

reaper47 said:
"But it would probably make sense to think about when we'd like this to end. Maybe say that there should be (about) 4 rounds in general, so that for the next round the events should go towards a finale rather than introducing any new questions."

Finger said:
"I like the idea of 4 rounds. I also like the idea of detailing and polishing once the contest is over."

RedWood said:
"I was under the impression it was going to be much longer (like 45 min of play) but, if it's only going to be 4 rounds long i don't see a problem with waiting to detail."

Link: here. Just scroll down near the bottom or the last page, that's where it was discussed.

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

Thats fine, I'm replying late too :razz:

And I guess I missed that part of the discussion :/

---

Signature? What signature!?

Well, it's been a little while, and I just wanted to see where everyone was at. Don't worry, I'm not talking about deadlines here, but I wanted to know if there were people still interested; and how many? Has anyone gotten a chance to work on their entry at all?

I, myself have gotten several opportunities lately to work on mine. And now with all the time and no worry of a deadline, I'm fleshing out previously discarded ideas that I believe will make it noteworthy! So with that said, I was wondering if others were doing the same?

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

My schedule consists of studying, working, sleeping, eating and drinking. I get some free time, but I spend it posting on the internet. I know how to prioritize.

---

Also change the texture of the dock. Docks are rarely tile. -Facepunch
As I Lay Dying

Priori..wha?

---

o

Well, should we wait untill Christmas? lolz -that was a joke!

Hopefully sooner.

any suggestions?

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

how about declare it closed?

It HAS been going on fore like 2 months now

---

Signature? What signature!?

Well, as much as I'd hate to see a good competition close, this did have a good start to it with plenty of ambition, but unfortunately died out because of that. I've realized this happens quite a bit here at the SnarkPit.

<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">I mean, if the members here aren't interested, then why would anyone else outside of the Pit be so as well? I've come to the conclusion that it's just the wrong time of the year to be holding a competition, and that if this one were to get started back up again, we wouldn't see any activity for it until the end of May, or at the earliest: March. The fact is: is that we simply don't have enough experienced active members with the time to complete such a large competition. These are fully developed maps were talking about here, and I realize that some of these entries require more time and experience than a standard multiplayer mapper would want to put effort into. Perhaps we should stick with the smaller more manageable competitions to keep people involved. This one simply was too large and limited to more experienced mappers with time and ambition, something that may be considered rare for those mappers (normally older people with jobs to hold and or college degrees to achieve.) </SPAN>

<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">If we want something to happen we will have to close this competition and open a new smaller one. With that said, I would like to point out that Finger's maps won't go unnoticed. I have been working on what used to be my entry for this round and will continue working on it. That is, if no one else is willing to continue it. I have already put too much time and effort into mine to throw it out, and I will certainly post it here at the pit for play testing and criticism. If no one else continues it, I'll make a map pack for the entire adventure with anyone else's maps and also a mappack for the other entries from all the rounds! </SPAN>

Any rebuttals before I decide to close this competition? if not, any ideas for a new (more time manageable) competition?

A big thank you goes out to those who participated!



-Riven

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

Listen to me riven, no, people outside snarkpit dont give a crap about this competition, but I'm sure that many snarkpit members (myself) DO care about the comp. I think you should ask everybody before you close this.

Now, for future competitions, I would like to see the following:

-Water competition (where the contestants make a map where the main feature is water)

-themed man (make a map with any theme, but it has to be good)

-and many others.

The comps should be open to both source AND goldsource. And mabye like a 1st, 2nd and 3rd for each engine. And maybe we could get somebody who is good at photo shopping to make up a picture of a medal or some sort of thing with the winners name on it and what competition they won. And we can shove the picture in their profile or something.

---

Aaron's Stuff

I am listening.

aaron_da_killa said:
"I think you should ask everybody before you close this."

I did; read: [quote=myself]"Any rebuttals before I decide to close this competition?"[/quote]

Your themed map idea is basically telling people to make a map and vote on it. That's what people do every time they post their maps already; i.e. the rating system... BTW, maps are supposed to be themed already, we don't need a competition just on that rule.

I'm in favor of the Source/Goldsource idea, but each should be it's own category and not judged against one another.

TWHL already had a water competition recently, I'm sure we don't want to copy them.

If we're expecting creative entries, then we should have a creative competition category!

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

Heh, nice idea. Sorry I didn't read your post fully, I was in a rush.

---

Aaron's Stuff

Any ideas? Riven was suggesting he would like to see a technically minded competition on IRC just now (which incidentally has been strangely busy, I blame aaron! :smile: )

Something small would be the ideal setup, ala the "doors" competition we did a few months back.

Gwil said:
on IRC just now (which incidentally has been strangely busy, I blame aaron! :smile: )

:smile:

---

Aaron's Stuff

So, I suspect everyone is ok if I close this competition since I haven't gotten any rebuttals?

Ideas for a new competition? I'm guessing no one here is ready for another competition at this time.

I personally would like to see something get started again soon, even if just a few (3) people join; it assures us that the Pit is still actively creating content!

Anyone even interested in starting a small comp. in the coming month?

---

Blog: www.playingarchitecture.net
LinkedIn: Eric Lancon
Twitter:@Riven202

I'm fine with closing. I definately don't have the time to contribute. The last two maps consumed multiple weekends of pretty much non-stop mapping, and I just don't have the time to spare now days.

I am really glad I made entries for round 1 and round 2 - it was the most in-depth singleplayer mapping I've done in the source engine, and It was definately worth the time.

I might be down with another comp if the idea was a little less ambitious.

Time to close it. I no longer have the time ether.

As for a new short comp. I'd like to see one where someone creates a small simple room (say 512x704) and we see who can light it the best/most interesting. The only thing that we could change is the texturing and lighting. You'd have to leave the props and brush work alone.
but, this is probably not the best place to start suggesting ideas. But i wrote it so i'm posting it.

---

Reality has become a commodity.

This has been suggested already, the problem is nobody ever submits a base map.

---

These words are my diaries screaming out loud

Can someone unsticky this?

---

Signature? What signature!?