ad_azad
skill 3
37:11 ; 2/10 secrets ; 161/192 monsters ;; 3 deaths
so much for no dying
good architecture 2/10 secrets... those secrets are well hidden. i died the three times because of monster ambushes
i liked that section with those wood.. mmm.. scaffoldings... or whatever...
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B72Jjyg-RfNFZGZUNkhoUWl2Njg 

I thought I should mention one of the main motivations for having some way of separating out the content that comes with a map from the content that comes with a mod. There is a benefit to neatness, and with that you get the ability to "uninstall" a map and its content cleanly. But the main benefit to my mind is to avoid conflicts.

Suppose that two maps released for AD both come with their own unique skybox, but by coincidence both name the skybox "dusk". If you just extract both maps directly into the AD folder, one skybox will overwrite the other. The direction of the lighting at dusk needs to match with the position of the sun in the skybox, so it's likely that one map now looks broken.

The same risk applies to external models, sounds, and other resources, and the important change that AD and Quoth make is that these custom resources can be loaded by a map without needing to create a new mod. As more people take advantage of the features, there is a greater need to bundle together the map and its own resources into a single package.

A pak file makes for a nice, easy to handle bundle, because it's all a single file (and pk3 has the bonus of compression). However, I think the gamedir has won the day because it has lower cost of creation, has the necessary engine support, and degrades gracefully - people who can't or don't want to use the feature can continue to extract the zip file into the base directory. Cheers Spike for making that happen, it's always fun when you ask for a feature and get equally forceful replies of "stop asking for that, it's impossible" and "stop asking for that, we did it ages ago"! 

If you just extract both maps directly into the AD folder, one skybox will overwrite the other. The direction of the lighting at dusk needs to match with the position of the sun in the skybox, so it's likely that one map now looks broken.

A bit of offtopic, but I'm glad people care about these things now. Some years ago developers small and big were seemingly unaware of the relationship between the shadows on the ground and that weird bright spot in the sky.

Attaching a lens flare effect to the latter - sure, looks purdy. Shadows are pointing towards the sun - uhhh, so what? 

Back in 2005 I do remember trying to get quake engine authors to agree on a standard orientation for the skybox. I wouldn't be surprised if there's still inconsistency in sky orientation even today*

(* no evidence to back that up, just saying I wouldn't be surprised) 

When I first discovered the credits map, I was absolutely charmed. My first and last thought was something along the lines of "This is the best version of Oneiros I've ever seen, minus the color palette". But not because I didn't like the palette, it was just different.

Now it looks much closer to Oneiros, but I'm not sure it actually benefits the map. The old version was like something out of a fairy tale. The 1.5 version is white on magenta - rather cold and lifeless, but not in a cool way.

Maybe a warmer shade for the main color would improve it, but right now it kinda lacks contrast.

Or maybe it's the baby duck syndrome again. 

First off, the connection you made with Oneiros never ocurred to me while making the credits map.
But i see your point now.
Concerning the light in the map, the bounce and phong shading has a general "brighten up everything" tone to it, it lacks contrast in the end. Besides other points.

I admit wholeheartly, those features where just "tacked on" to the original map files when recompiling, so the results are what they are.

Glad for your feedback tho, thx a ton, you actually spoke out one of my main concerns about it...and any future maps will be lit accordingly... Yep. 

Thanks for your demos so far! Glad you liked it. 

Is this a Quake map? I've searched Quaddicted with this keyword but it returned no result.

I never played the 1.42 version of the end map but I saw a screenshot with a decidedly different dark blue sky. Any specific reason for the tone change? This can't be just because of the lighting, can it? Now I have to reinstall 1.42 to see the difference!

Anyway, I enjoyed the 1.5 version quite a lot. I love the islands-in-the-sky theme. BTW, what's with the monster count? I got only 2 frags in the end while having actually killed much more - and no fish. 

Great game. 

i was refering to this

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oneiroi

Clive Barkers Undying had no influence on the design tbh, as i don't know this game :) 

and the monstercount you can't rely on.
All of the monsters spawned via the hidden button do not add up to the final count, because of the "nomonstercount" flag. 

not a flag, its just a key set on those monsters. 

First off, thanks for the french wiki link, that's a nice attention, though I wouldn't have minded an english link.

Hmmm, "demons with black wings"... So I guess the Night Gaunts are these Oneroi.

As a Clive Barker fan, I did play Undying back in the day. I thought it was a pretty good game but I don't remember much of it, and Oneiros doesn't ring a bell. I might reinstall it someday.

BTW, you haven't answered my question about the color tone change. 

 

I asked out of curiosity but yeah, gameplay is what really matters. I loved how it's mostly exploration for the first part and then, right when you grab the secret, all hell breaks loose! Minor quibble: the last "boss" fight is a bit anticlimactic, especially compared to the secret fight: all you have to do is safely snipe from the other side of the bridge. 

but there has to be some things to moan about in the end, nothing will ever be perfect. words words words.... 

Rest assured that of your maps I've played so far, I very rarely have anything to moan about. BTW, how's work progressing on your spaceship map that you teased us with a few screenshots some time ago? I expected it to be in 1.5 and was a bit disappointed to see it wasn't there... 

Oh well, that map needs some rest again, the tech/engines aren't ready yet. Or sth. 

And we don't have many space maps in Quake. What's so special about it that modern engines can't handle? 

Too many faces being drawn at once, because of excessive facecount/geometry being too detailed. Huge vistas play a role too. I hardly expect this to not improve over the time, tbh.
We'll see, but atm the map is unoptimized. And not much fun to play. 

This can't be just because of the lighting, can it?

Well, it seems to me that the only major change is the fog color. Even the skybox is the same, but the way the fog affects it (I think it's the fog) makes a lot of difference.

Also, it seems to me that the shadows remain cold, which doesn't work as well with magenta as the primary color of the sky. 

if you don't mind, give some examples (like screenshots), so i can follow your reasoning more closely. I try to improve the light with every new map (and with older ones revisited), so im glad with any feedback you leave here.
Thx in advance. 

MFX, GO MAP. 

They do?! Define seasoned? After 20 years I must not be seasoned. I examine the files before I put them where needed under my quake directory, read the readme for mention of need to know impulses & other info and not blindly delete anything. You described the opposite of seasoned. 

Is there a document detailing the wave/trigger setups for the bosses (ice goldem, eidolon)?