Justice

This map was modeled after the real-life courthouse in Santa Barbara,
California. I still got a way to go before completing the map,
but I would appreciate some comments on the screenshots.

Please post your comments here instead of the actual map section.
I would like to reserve that section for reviews once the map is
complete. Thank you.

I like the building but the outdoors looks boring and dull.

Some landscape, bigger front yard, maybe a fountain, main gate and some tweaked lighting would perhaps help? =)

Good luck!

I already have a fountain, a main gate, and some landscaping. They are just not visible from the vantage point of the first screenshot.

The frame rates are already hovering around 40 to 50's in some areas, so I can't add a whole lot more to the outside area (where I can't block VIS easily) without suffering more performance hits.

But thanks for the comment.

P.S. For anyone else, please post your comments in the forum thread. The forum area can hold a lot more messages without cluttering the main map page. Thank you.

Reduce the texture scale on most faces, looks like you are using 1x scale while you should be using 0.25 for most cases.

how the heck did you make that statue? is that a model you made or is it MASSIVE displacement work?

:smile: It's a model. I am flattered that you think I could be that talented with displacement surface.

Reduce the texture scale on most faces, looks like you are
using 1x scale while you should be using 0.25 for most cases.

Wow, you've got a sharp eye, ReNo! I did use 0.25 scaling for
most of my textures, with the exception of the outside stone
floor. I was trying to boost performance by using 1x scaling on
this huge brush surface, but I'll experiment with 0.25 scaling (and 0.5
scaling) for the outside floor to see how much of a performance
degradation I get.

but where did you get the model?

PS. I have already made realistic looking trees and some statue-work with displacemnts.

props_c17 ;o

It looked nice from what I could tell when I previewed it, I see you've made some changes since then...I'd suggest adding a pathway to the front entry and displacement-mapping the stone floor on the outside ever-so-slightly, unless it's like that in real-life.

The architecture needs trim and contrast, right now it's a bunch of shapes.

Try using some of CS:s' arch models to make your arches much better. Also use some column models. Needs more detail!

It looks like you're scaling the textures too large. It's giving them the look of HL1 textures. In CS:S, your texture scale should be 0.25.
Try that, it will look much better.

Thanks for all the suggestions. They are very helpful. I've spent some time today adding some trim and highlights to the facade. I couldn't get the 3D skybox to work properly. I'll try again tomorrow, after looking at some example maps by Valve.

I am also very sick from a cough and rhinorrhea (probably caught it from the multitudes of sick kids I see everyday), so I am taking a break from mapping for now. I am not staying up all night mapping this week (like I've done last week).

Instead, I'm staying up late to shoot antlions and Combines! :wink:

I am also very sick from a cough and rhinorrhea (probably caught it
from the multitudes of sick kids I see everyday), so I am taking a
break from mapping for now. I am not staying up all night mapping this
week (like I've done last week).

Help me, I have Rhinorrhea! :sad:

I've successfully added a decent 3D skybox. The outside area looks less empty now.

I have to work this afternoon again, so I'll have to save the rest of editing until tomorrow.

I've never played HL deathmatch or HL2 deathmatch until last night, so I am still getting the feel of multiplayer gameplay. I need a lot of advice when I release the beta of Justice for download on the gameplay. I want to ensure that the play is balanced for each spawn point and no one has any unfair advantage.

I anticipate the release of the beta next week.

The interior will probably look overly vacant in the final map, but I cannot afford to add more details. The frame rate is already abysmal as is (around 10 to 20 FPS). There are still quite a few furnitures to throw around though, so it will not be too empty.

I plan to add a buggy in the map so someone can drive it around while shooting with the mounted gun. However, the driver automatically becomes the prime sniping target from others in the building.

I need someone with web storage to post the final version of the map for me. I used to have an account with my college, but they've deleted my account recently (I graduated more than ten years ago, so I don't blame them).

Would there be a kind and generous person who lets me upload it to his/her site when the map is complete? Thanks in advance.

Why dont you host it on twhl, thats free or i would if i knew my username and password to my ntl webspace which i am trying to work out now, 55mb free.

It looks decent enough so you can e-mail it to me if you want :smile:

Thanks, Lep. It's quite a big file (2.85 MB zipped), so it might take a while to download.

I have the beta ready for some play-testing. I am sending it to you right now.

I am ahead of schedule. I have the beta ready tonight. I've
sent it to Lep because I don't have any web storage space, and he's
generous enough to upload it for me.

Take the beta for a spin, and let me know at this thread how I can improve it. Thanks a bunch.

I finally found a host for the map, so now it's really available for downloading this time.

Please post any comments on gameplay in this thread.
Particularly, I want to know whether it's a good idea to add glass to
some of the windows. I didn't do it yet because I am concerned
that they might interfere with multiplayer gameplay.

Nice map, better than most first maps. It's to dark inside. It would look alot nicer if you lit up some of those areas more. The prison section needed some lights in the cells. you don't need to make it all bright but just some dim lighting so theres no real blacked out areas, you have toilets and stuff in the cells but how can you use them as weapon if you cant see them.

The outside areas is to square, well rectangular, break up those outside walls with some variation, the grass is kind of basic too, you could ude the displacment better, try using 3 or 4 setting, the few raised areas you have are to sharp looking.

also add some throwable stuff outside, it's pretty bare. The buggy is pretty useless, can't keep it going around the perimeter without bangin into the outside walls, but i bet its fun to run someone over :smile:


nittpicking here, but the window throws wood gibs instead of glass


These are nice but too tall, I can't see the courtyard below, so they're useless. make them lower. Theres quite a few windows that are to tall or not wide enough to jump through. that would help gameplay alot if fixed.


you have a ledge along that white line, I drew it because it's to dark to see it. add some lights on top of it, might throw some cool shadows. Its to dark through there, as is alot of places.


You have quite a few of these walls sticking out around the map. to easy to get stuck on, clip them or angle them so it fades into the wall behind it. stairwells are to tight, but I dont think you can fix that without major changes.


Pretty boring basement, dress up the columns atleast. and change that ambient sound your using in there, it's almost deafening it's so loud.

good potential, not a bad first map. keep it up.

Thanks. I'll take all that into consideration.

I am actually making a single-player version of the same map right now. I'll definitely light things up more.

The latest release is the final version. I've started working on the single-player version of the map. I'll release a beta of that map soon.

Looks pretty good but it looks a bit empty here and there. Try making use of more overlays/ props to give it a realistic atmosphere

Has anyone actually played this map on a server, either on the internet or for a LAN party?

I would like to hear some feedback on the gameplay if possible. Thanks.