Hey guys, so Halo 5 finally has the forge tools to make all the maps I've ever wanted and, well... now I have no idea what to make. Every idea I have is just a gimmick, and every piece of gameplay is designed around that gimmick. For example, I created a slipspace portal on Tidal that forms and dissipates at the flip of a switch. So I thought "oh how about an ocean based research facility" except I have NO idea how to make one of those, either playable or aesthetic. Not to mention the servers just crashed on me whilst mid forge and I was not in the habit of saving - am now though. Still I lost everything including my beautiful script so I was hoping to get some help from the ground up on forging maps. Note: i have a beautifully scripted black hole that could eventually be tied to a teleporter. That's literally it. And I need to make the scripts beautiful again. I'll take any advice, thoughts, or ideas on how to start heading in the right direction.
Best thing to do is just practice using the tools and look for inspiration. Screw around in the menus or something and you might find a piece that sets off a lightbulb in your head
The biggest mistake semi-new Forgers make (I was guilty of this as well) is wanting to build the best BTB map when really you should just start small -- make 2v2 maps to get the controls and scaling down and then work your way up.
Study successful maps, and learn what makes them successful. Understand why every ramp, wall, floor, platform, lift, etc is where it is, and how it affect the way the maps play. Find inspiration. A layout concept, a room, a feature, etc. Find something that stands out to you, and figure out a way to implement it into your map. "A good artist copies, a great artist steals."
Interesting. What are some examples of successful, small, aesthetic and playable non-disc, non-remake maps in H5 that I could take a look at? Especially ones that I could maybe understand while surveying them on my own? I would probably best understand maps that support FFA and 4v4/5v5 because I never play doubles. Then again I play a lot of SWAT and Snipers so maybe something more wide open would be more suited to me. Ideally I'd probably want to have a sniper on most of my maps, maybe not this one though. But I've also wanted to build an Assassin's Creed inspired map, any ideas there? I honestly don't know where to start with any of this. I think the SINGULARITY map (that I'll have to start from scratch) is going to be less of a testing facility and more of a man-made island powered by the singularity. I still want to use it as a teleporter but a city means that I'll need to use more space I think and frankly I just have no idea what to do. Sort of thinking out loud above but I think it's pretty clear that I feel like I'm in over my head lol. I'm gonna sketch some stuff out but in the meantime I'd still love thoughts/advice/examples!
Successful, meaning generally accepted to be a solid design. It doesn't have to be a forge map, or a Halo map, or a shooter map, or even be on a game. You can find inspiration from anything. But, if you want to look at forge maps, fortunately you are only a site that has thousands of forge maps to look at.
Haha okay fair enough, I did think you were specifically talking about Halo maps. Still, I don't really know which of those maps satisfy my desires for a map to take inspiration from. Any suggestions? For gameplay design reasons.
Watch gameplay videos or actually put your disc in and start exploring. Take notes of what you like and don't like about the sandbox areas and then go from there. When you start forging, just get a proof of concept going (use simple blocks) and don't worry about the details until later.
Nope. Inspiration is something you need to feel, not have someone suggest to you. For some reason, this map has been in my mind for almost every map I've made. But, you could probably only tell for one of my maps.
I like the simple blocks approach because it makes me feel less bad about having an ugly map lmao. Well okay xzamplez but what I mean when I say gameplay design is what parts of a Halo map are important to gameplay? Multiple levels, sight lines, enclosed spaces? Separation of the 3 into areas or intermingling? Are there any aesthetically pleasing original forge maps that work well with gameplay that I should take a look at? Or rules to follow?
There are principles to designing maps, but they can all be broken if you take the right precaution. Those elements you refer to can work with an infinite number of approaches. It just comes down to you making those design choices work. Basically, you have to figure those things out for yourself. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What I find aesthetically pleasing, you may not.
Well all right then, hopefully I accidentally take the right precautions as I shatter every principle unintentionally lmao. Thanks xzamplez. And as far as aesthetic, I mostly just meant anything that wasn't accepted as a Reach matchmaking map (the horrors of the gray everything)
Check out Featured Maps, Top Maps, or just start downloading and walking through anything in the Maps Database that looks interesting to you. Don't expect to build a perfect map right away. In fact, don't expect to build a perfect map ever. Just start building, testing, and repeating endlessly. You'll learn as you go. If you're looking for some opinions/approaches to level design, there's a ton of reading to be done here.
That guide looks AMAZING for my research, thanks a Chunk! I've been sketching out some blueprints and I think I'm getting to a point where I can get started with it. It's a bit.. umm, "right-angle"-y, but I think it's a good starting place for a first full map. There's a map that I find inspiring but actually haven't really played on or anything, it's just beautiful and captures a sort of fantasy aesthetic extremely well. I'm not going down that route with this map but I feel like it helped me a bit. There are some really impressive waterfalls in it that I may try to imitate. Honestly I think scripting is such a huge ability in maps. My entire basis is forged around a single script sequence that inspired me to want to build a map. Random stuff that may be added (or not) just keeps coming to me... I hope I can get this thing off the ground another idea I've just had is a massive space battle. I wanted to put it down here so I could remember for later; essentially, build a space vessel that has exploding points and whatnot with scripted wasps, banshees, moving pelicans (maybe some that you could even jump to and use as paths outside the vessel?) that are "shooting", "being shot" and exploding... if the earthquake thing can be scripted, make that happen when the main vessel gets "shot"... two teams could be the raiders and the squadron protectors. That seems like a super fun project