The Making of CTF-Dreary3

[Bazzwano]

Hi everyone, Welcome to my making of dreay3 thread.

Dreary was first created for UT1 back in the days of 1999. Since then there was a remake of dreary made for UT2004.

I made CTF-Safeguard and released it early this year after working on it in my free time after work starting end of November 07. Since finishing it I found myself very bored, I did make a mention of wanting to do a remake back on the WIP thread, where I thought dreary would be a good one to do.. but i guess i thought I wouldn't have time (I really don't but meh, I love mapping)

So I was searching the forums for hoping to find some good maps, When I found this:
http://forums.epicgames.com/showthread.php?t=610283

It is a beta version of dreary by Syphix, I downloaded it and initially I liked allot, and it inspired me to do my own version also.

I liked the Lightning Idea that Syphix did in his map, and he has allowed me to use this Idea in my map modifying his kismet for my own use. THANKS.

FLAG ROOM REMOVED AS RE-DOING THIS

So here is a screen of the shock rifle room, its much bigger then it was in the original, hmmm it looks ok.
http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/9500/screenshot00010ip8.png

Here is a few shot on the room under the shock room being meshed and a final picture of that.
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/3670/lower1tg5.png
http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/3962/screenshot00013nm3.png

Here Is part of the sniper room by the lifts as a subtract, no meshes. Then a shot meshed.
http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/1572/lifttop1gp9.png
http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/4284/lifttop2jx6.png

Here's some pics showing the sniper room being meshed. Allot of planning went into this room, a very long time. It was very depressing when the concept art I did just did not work out, It was originally going to look quite different as i imagined it. But Its turned out ok once I started meshing, and I added a pot as seen in deck that goes around the room, with a nifty light function to do the shadow which is pretty kool.
http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/5038/sniperroom1rk9.png
http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/9017/sniperroom2gf8.png
I subtracted the cellnig allot to fill with details and ad somting a bit diferent.
http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/817/screenshot00006ot1.png
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/22/screenshot00021qz4.png

Here's a shot where the rocket launcher is located, I'm not vary satisfied with the way iv meshed this area, its a but restricting with room on top as I cannot subtract into the celling any more. Unfortunately i didn't take a screen of me making it, I haven't been vary on to it with my screens this time around. I might subtract into the floor to add more details there.
http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/7960/screenshot00011ta8.png

Here is a curved room that links with the rocket room and the main room(not done). again, sorry no shots other then final.
http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/2650/screenshot00012nk9.png
I gota say I love that curved mesh, I added it to safeguard in the latest version, thanks to Syphix for informing me of this mesh

So i have now subtracted the main room with the fans and armour and am going to start some concept art for that, before i begin meshing. this room to me is the icon of this map so im guna do something crazy here, when i know what that is.

Syphix has allowed he to use the kismet that he used to create lightning in the level, I have used this as a reference to my modified version, which sounds more intense and real.. its so kool, But lightning in the level still his idea, and a great one at that.

I'd like to show the concept art iv done but ill have to do this later I don't have access to a camera.

I must admit, tech theme is what I love most and I was quite worried about how i would handle a industrial themed map, but iv been playing allot af hydro and deck to see how epic have been using this mesh set, but now that iv scan the HU package for everything its pretty easy puting it all together.
I estimate im still a month or two. we will see. allot of hydro and deck to get an idea of how epic has used the mesh set. once you know what meshes your guna use its a piece of cake, this in my eyes tops safe guard so far.

Expect this out in a month or two. but for now I hope Iv given you something to look forward to.

 

[Hunter]

that looks really, really good can't wait to have a play.

What is this curved mesh you're on about?

 

[Latent Image]

that looks really, really good can't wait to have a play.

What is this curved mesh you're on about?

Yeah!?

 

[Bazzwano]

The mesh i used in the last pic on the floor, no big deal i guess, but i never knew bout it when makn safeguard when its a great choice for round areas

 

[Bazzwano]

The main rooms are proving to be a hell of a job to mesh, the amount of time I have spent doing concepts and thinking and them looking where to start meshing was doing my head in, I, knew that I wanted to add in some more windows to let the lightning through and I knew how I wanted to do the platforms as it is exactly like the concept I drew. I have no Idea how I'm going to mesh the walls yet but I'm sure ill come up with something when I put pencil to paper..
So here is a image I took of the BSP, I play tested this allot to ensure I got the overall size just right, unfortunately after meshing I feel that I could have used a greater curve on the platforms, O well they are fine how they are.
[screenshot]http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/6528/main1ql5.jpg[/screenshot]
I looked at the original and liked the team stripe along the platform so I designed the platform around that and tried to make it like the ramps in deck.
[screenshot]http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/1092/main2oa8.jpg[/screenshot]
And here is A final (so far) rendered shot of the platforms
[screenshot]http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/7071/main3aq9.jpg[/screenshot]
To help me figure out how Im going to mesh it I started making BSP objects of the original, such as the support under the platform, this also shows some mesh supports I did up to the roof... and I made a basic pipe structure for the upper bridge, this is very basic just to help me imagine where i am going.
[screenshot]http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/6674/main4es8.jpg[/screenshot]
Here I have done a basic start to the lower roof with the addition of the windows i wanted.
[screenshot]http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/2428/main5cv8.jpg[/screenshot]
A shot furter back to show what I have done so far, (in a very basic state)
[screenshot]http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/8213/main6oq9.jpg[/screenshot]

Update. I have been meshing this map all day, every second since I woke up, still allot to do, but I did some on the pipe beams this and added allot more detail to them, they look pretty kool
[screenshot]http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/6707/main8iu4.jpg[/screenshot]

 

[vybz]

nice keep up the hard work I appreciate it and i'm sure the rest of the community does too!

 

[hal]

It's really difficult to tell from the screenshots, but your challenge is going to be taking Dreary - which is a very fine, but cramped UT map - and introducing the gargantuan sized support meshes from UT3 without making the level restrictive.

I'm looking forward to seeing more because I do really like the level.

 

[Bazzwano]

hehe don't worry hall, the original was tiny yes, I have made this one a tad bigger, I don't think it will be constrictive, yet still smaller then the standard or UT2004/Ut3 and closer to ut1 but not really small
So day two of my weekend, (Sunday for me as I work Mondays) so once again iv been meshing this room all day, its crazy, its just so big!!! haha, Im actually starting to be concerned that the amount of meshes that i will end up in this room will be allot, the sniper rifle room has about 700-800 from memory, but im going to be well over 1200 for this room, I am yet to do the walls and have a mesh count of 998, but it still runs quite well so it should be good its just mind blowing though.

Someone on the epic forums stated that he thought my progression was helpful. so i thought Id do it again.

in the following shots I have meshed the "structure" underneath the pipe beam. This took me some time, as a lot of time was wasted, changing ideas, until i had something i liked (those shots are not included).

Here I begin, with a basic frame, for the dimensions that I was looking for and aimed to not exceed.
http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/325/screenshot00010ha0.png
Starting from top to bottom, I added a few things around the door frame, I used those large barrel shaped objects to better capture the blue light coming in though the windows.
http://img392.imageshack.us/img392/1300/screenshot00015eh0.png
this is a bit forward in time now, here I have finished meshing one side and flipped it over to the other side. i have strategically placed the lights by some of the pipes to bring out the details of the more details areas of the structure.
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/1430/screenshot00018qf4.png
And finally the finished product, with the classic team logo decal from the original. This structure in its finished state used 82 meshes total.
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/9275/screenshot00020ve7.png
Anyway, still lots to do, best get back to it.

 

[Bazzwano]

Yay Finished (the main room) thought Id show a few final pics.
This room was quite a job on its own due to its size and the amount of detail visible at one time.
Technical info:
A whopping, 1350 meshes in this room alone
208 Lights
comes to 850,000 tris
Despite of these it still runs quite well very well in fact on my test machine.
I was concerned about the room once I hit 1000 meshes because I know it is a bottle neck if 900 are visible at one time. So when meshing the walls above the platform I did a trim with one mesh and then one of the guider supports, so nothing special but it still looks good.
So after a test I found only 650 meshes visible at any one point so all is fine

Here's a larger picture to see.
http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/7153/map1bu6.jpg
And another
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/6034/map3al1.jpg
And the same view, showing the lighting.
http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/2825/map2dx2.jpg

 

[Mr. UglyPants]

Amazing.

 

[evilmrfrank]

I think it would be pretty cool to see some lightning come through the windows every so often If not lightning it would still cool to have a bit of blue light coming through the windows casting shadows from the windows on the ground.

 

[Bazzwano]

I think it would be pretty cool to see some lightning come through the windows every so often If not lightning it would still cool to have a bit of blue light coming through the windows casting shadows from the windows on the ground.

Its quite dark outside, there is a blue light in the window area, casing some light in, but thats it, im going to add a very faint light cone, but nothing stong, so unless there is a daytime version, no window shadows, but yes, there are lightning bolts outside, and these will cast bright detailed shadows on to the sufraces but the ambiant blueish light outside is too dim.

are you saying a bolt atully coming into the level? hmmm , that would be kool, not sure how I would do that to, you would also have to consider what would happen to the player if he happned to be there at that moment :-S

 

[evilmrfrank]

I was talking just about flashes of lightning casting shadows on the level

 

[Bazzwano]

oh yes, it does that already, that's why I added huge windows to this room, trying to get some huge light flashes in this room, because I make my rooms in separate files i don't have any working lightning in this file to see what it would look like, but when I copy it into my primary file and get it working I might post a pic for ya to see the flash.

 

[Mr. UglyPants]

Oh, i cannot wait to see how that works out.

 

[Uncouth]

Wow, nice work so far dude, can't wait to play the final version.

 

[Mr. UglyPants]

Good to hear that meshes won't be too hard on the lower end folks.

I cannot wait to see how it plays.

 

[Bazzwano]

na meshes wont be a problem, and im yet to add my cull distance volume, This does unlike safeguard have dynamic element such as the lightning, which i use a toggleable static light to do this. So performance is not as good as safeguard, but im sure it will be better if not the same as epics maps.. so dont worry about performance, i wont let anything get in the way of that. I spent all night last night just optimizing the lightning lights to reduce the light complexity of the stirike. I will upload a few images of what this looks like so far.
Unfortulitly in effort to keep performance high I was restricted wight lightning in the main room becuase of its size, I was better to use 4 lights, one per window with a small radius it still looks good but sadly not wat I realy wanted but iv done it this way to reduce the ammount of complex lighting involved.
Trust me it still looks good.

 

[Bazzwano]

so here is a few pics as promised to show the lightning effects, you can see the bolts on the image with the flag room but the bolts are not in the file that I made the main room, that's why you do not see them there. ( I actually copied the flag room into the Sniper room file which I have made my lightning in but couldn't be bothered copying the main room at this stage due to the number of assets involved)
http://img207.imageshack.us/img207/5065/lightninghu3.jpg

 

[hal]

Looks pretty wicked.