UT DM-Biosource beta1 (feedback welcome!)

[RennyManJr]

After working on it on and off for about a year i'm almost done with this conversion of my UT3 map for ut. I'm not doing a 1:1 copy, the layout is pretty much the same, apart from some minor size tweaks, but i made some changes to item placement to try to prevent map-locking. It still need some graphical work, skybox isn't finished, a couple of additional textures are needed and i still have to add a sound to the jump pads.

Now i'm a little puzzled about the jump pad inside the building. I don't know if it's best to keep it like this or delete it and replace it with a pulse rifle (which means adding another weapon).

[EDIT] Release time!

Name: DM-Biosource
Players: 2-6, up to 8 in non pickup-dependent modes (like InstaGib)

History:
"After last year's matches Liandri saw that the first Biosource Arena on Na Pali received very good ratings by the audience so this time, instead of using an abandoned factory, the rulesboard decided to use a fully functioning facility. Welcome to the BioGes conversion plant on Espion, the only habitable moon of '08 Saiph bE', one of the largest gas giants ever found in the galaxy."

Shameless Cut'n'Paste from the Readme
This map is a (tweaked) remake of my Unreal Tournament 3 level DM-Biosource. Layout is inspired by the Q3Tourney4 level from Quake 3 Arena, but you'll find that this is not a 1:1 copy of that map. Infact the layout has been jiggled around to be more suited to duel: it is not simmetrical, there is an additional room and pickup positioning is totally different. The purpose of all this is to make the map a bit harder to "lock" by skilled players. Belt and shock, for example, are on the opposite side of the map and shock ammo are very rare. Also health vials and medikits are all on the ground floor, forcing players to move from the safer spots.

So 1on1 is obviously the recommended player load for this level. From my tests (and personal taste) you can go up to 6 players in FFA Deathmatch without too much suffering from weapon and ammo shortage, but if you're playing InstaGib or any other gametype that doesn't need weapon respawn you can even try with 8 players.

I decided to remake this level because i wasn't happy about how the UT3 version came out. I actually rushed that release because i wanted to submit it to the Make Something Unreal contest, so i didn't had time to create custom contents, test it properly and, most of all, tweak that ugly oversaturated lighting. (Doors are perfect tho ) Epic then decided to leave UT3 to a (not so) slow death and that's the main reason i choosed UT to remake it properly, with custom textures and all the care needed.


Final version download link: dm-biosource-ut.zip (2.09 MB)
GameFront: link
Mapraider: link
Map Factory: link
Already uploaded here and there, additional mirrors incoming on the next few days.

And some screens:
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_01.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_02.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_03.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_08.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_05.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_06.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_04.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]
[SCREENSHOT]http://www.runesofwar.net/download/bios-ut/bios_09.jpg[/SCREENSHOT]

 

[evilgrins]

I'm definitely downloading this when I get home!
(currently at work)

 

[dr.flay]

Nice looking textures, but not inspired by the "feel" of it (from the pics).
Not played much of UT3 (no ChaosUT=no love from me), so I am not familiar with the map.
Probably better to judge it on what you have done, rather than comparing to the original.

One thing I would request of anyone making remakes, is to use Xpickups and modern hi-res textures (or at least offer the optional hi-res textures).
http://www.ut99.org/utr/xpickups-gamer-manual.html

Can't imagine for one second that I would ever play it with ancient UT weapons, when I can use Chaos or Nali Weapons etc. so I can't comment on whether you add a pulse rifle or not (unless it is the only one).
I will take it home and have a blast with some hoard zombies in it

 

[RennyManJr]

Can't imagine for one second that I would ever play it with ancient UT weapons, when I can use Chaos or Nali Weapons etc. so I can't comment on whether you add a pulse rifle or not (unless it is the only one).

Well, it's primarily a duel map, so i don't know if i would recommend anyone to play it with Nali Weapons .
As for the X-pickups i don't want to make a 1on1 map mutator dependent, but i'm really thinking about releasing an optional x-version with the new pickup system along with the regular "vanilla-ut friendly" version. Maybe with some twists on the item placement

 

[DarkSonny]

I do ike the lightning part is very industrial
pd: nice to see you mappin again this time for ut goty!

 

[RennyManJr]

*bump*
Finally finished! First post updated with more details, history, new screenshots etc. Only 1 mirror right now but i've already uploaded it on a couple of places, so additional mirrors are coming. Did you guys know if it's possibile to submit maps to UnrealPlayground anymore? Could be me being blind but i can't find a "submit" button anywhere...

Hope you guys like it, I had some serious fun making it

 

[DarkSonny]

wow nice lightning and sky! downloading

 

[Spiney]

Very nice! Layout is pretty simple, but I quite like straightforward layouts.
The sky is great and I like the trim on the walkways.

Some visual remarks:

Coronas are a lens effect, so it doesn't make much sense to have several types of them.
They're also a bit elaborate, what's wrong with a subtle radial gradient?
I love coronas, don't get me wrong, but when you have several on screen like this they're starting to compete for attention.

Some warm yellow/orange lights on the grey walkways might create some more color contrast.
Those feel somewhat too desaturated and dry to me right now. Although I like the green theme.

The white behind the neon green textures on the interfaces and jumppads bothers me a bit.
It emphasizes the square nature of the textures a lot. Have you tried editing those out to see how it looks?
Maybe giving them a colored tint would be all that's required.

 

[RennyManJr]

Thx for the feedback

The white behind the neon green textures on the interfaces and jumppads bothers me a bit.
It emphasizes the square nature of the textures a lot. Have you tried editing those out to see how it looks?

I did, i actually made the background completely transparent when i made the first test panel but the effect wasn't really good, so i imported it plain and simple and made it translucent in the editor instead. I like them like this, it gives you the holographic effect, making the panels still "readable" and it's easy for the engine.

My goal was to make the arrow panels to stand out, and this is the most visible way i thought.

 

[SkaarjMaster]

Looks good and, yes, possibly a little big for 1on1. I haven't got around to trying UT maps yet (just UT2004 and UT3 for now), but I'll get to this soon hopefully.