I have started a new map! I wanted to start a WIP thread so players could leave feedback in one location. Hope you enjoy! GT - LoTuS MAP - Shambles 4v4 Arena When the new Tidal canvas released I sat down to do a small rebuild of an area out of my previous map Jarvik just to test the canvas, I ended up 8 hours later with a completely new layout that I was beginning to enjoy running through so I decided to spend a bit more time and get it "test-lobby ready". As of right now the weapon set is Rail Gun/Caster with a recon DMR and silenced BR on map, I also have an SMG, Scattershot, and Needler on the map currently. I am trying to achieve that beach/castle assault assym feeling (kind of like Zanzibar, but not as large) and keep the map competitive for a 4v4 Arena play style. I have included some simple but interesting gravity slides for a ladder and zipline! So far this is setup for just Slayer, Strongholds, and Ball. I would love to see some gameplay on it but I can't get the map to load in a custom game . As you can see I have less than 50% lighting budged and just over 550 pieces so the map isn't straining the engine at all. I just hope 343 decides to fix the canvas sooner than later! Walkthrough of an earlier version in forge: http://xboxdvr.com/gamer/LoTuS/video/19398526 Thank you for looking! Please send feedback to LoTuS
New walkthrough: http://xboxdvr.com/gamer/LoTuS/video/19508883 The 'Shambles (lights)' version is strictly for testing since I had to place 224 lights to break the Tidal canvas, please bookmark this file for test lobbies. Max Extra was kind enough to play some good old slayer in his lobby on my earliest version, I found there were not enough movement options for most of the castle paths. I remedied this by putting a ladder/tube that takes the player away from the basement in back castle and straight to mid courtyard. This one allow for a fight or flight option instead of feeling stuck in that long hallway. I also added functioning dynamic doors both at "bottom Plasma Caster" and "top castle stairs", they are connected by a one way teleporter that will bring you to the holding cells where a terrible discovery resulted in complete facility lockdown. Players will find a HCE Magnum by the holding cells for emergencies (they didn't reach it). For Balance, the magnum doesn't respawn and only has 24 shots, make them count! I this map is still in its infancy, but I think it captures that "storm the beach/small Zanzibar" feel. LORE: This small island planet was found by early human settlers before the flood and before the forerunners fired the Halo rings. UNSC researchers believe this was a storage facility for all of the unexplained phenomena found traversing the early universe. Unfortunately something terrible happened in this place, it left only bodies and alien tech remaining. Most of the facility is in 'shambles' (I see what he did there!) but at least the holding cells remain sealed... As always please send an feedback to LoTuS
Why can't I kill the Whale sex sounds on Tidal!!!!!!????? I have removed all the sounds on map and it remains to haunt me. I have tried select all of this type, I've looked underwater. It's not on the map but it keeps moaning EDIT: After some digging I found the different canvas theme/skyboxes have ambient whale sounds for some awful reason, make those part of the decorators 343. That's noob level efficiency. There aren't even any other decorators currently on that canvas. Easy fix, make it part of the hot patch!
Newest walkaround: http://xboxdvr.com/gamer/LoTuS/video/19558198 Creative Force testing lobby last night showed me a few changes that needed to happen immediately: - Randy was able to break my doors and get out of the map! fixed this by making the switch despawn after they are pressed. - I saw multiple players trying to run from back basement to courtyard without using the ladder/tube path. So I built a doorway that has been buried by the sand over time, it has an explosive barrel setup right next to it. The barrel blows up the entire wall making way for a new path. Footage/screens below. - The Stronghold locations didn't inspire players to move up in the castle so I moved the monolith stronghold to the 2nd floor instead of the bottom floor. with the new paths this will be more fun. - Tuned the zip-line to work better from all angles and ladders are a little slower so they don't "lift" you. - Still can't remove canvas whale sounds! Hope 343 changes that... - Only 1 Shotgun clip now. Too much ammo! - Added explosive barrel next to monolith double doors Screens:
Hey, Jack! Looks like you've already made a move from the Twitch footage! That's good! Since the lobby couldn't be heard in the stream, here's the feedback from the other players! Spoiler: CF TNT Feedback 7/12/2016 - Strongholds were a strong source of subject matter. Since you've moved these, I'll hold back on that. I look forward to testing these new locations. / Some were concerned that the teleporter went behind a scripted door. If your scripting is solid, this may not be an issue. / Aesthetically, there were some comments about focusing on consistant texturing between certain pieces. Just make sure to go over it with a fine toothed comb! + Players really liked the look of the teleporter! nice use of effects. + Everyone seemed to like your Latters and Zipline. They found it fun, though not super competetive. Certainly not a bad thing! / Some suggest maybe trying different coloration on the map, and even toying with the different skyboxes to get a more unique look on the map. Keep it up man!
That is excellent feedback! Thank you again. I will keep submitting to your lobby. It has been a good experience so far! Once they fix the canvas I will really nail the atmosphere and lighting. When it bakes the map looks much better, check out the walkthrough in my newest update. With the texturing can I ask you to elaborate? Being color blind I know that I can accidentally make clashing color palettes without even noticing.
Anytime man! Always happy to provide if I can. I look forward to testing your content further! For the texturing comment, it's not about colors but the consistency of the texture's size and repetition. This can actually be hard to fix sometimes... In your most recent post of screenshots, an example of this can be seen in the second and third screenshot. The door is framed in a way where I can tell which individual pieces are at an angle because some pieces have a more scaled down stone texture than pieces adjacent to it... Again, since we have no control over how the texture appears on any object, this can be difficult to fix. If you manage to fix it though, it makes a world of difference for believable architecture.
Thank you for the clarification, I was letting myself buy into my "lore" to excuse how it looked. I thought to myself, "an old castle wouldn't have all the same size bricks! They would have patchwork over the old places the walls broke or any addition to the castle maybe be done by different masons" If it looks bad from an outside perspective I will change it to be less obtuse. I don't want to turn people away from with simple aesthetic tweaks. Thanks again! Take care. --- Double Post Merged, Jul 15, 2016 --- I have a very large update for this map incoming... Will edit this post with footage/screens when Xbox DVR cooperates http://xboxdvr.com/gamer/LoTuS/video/19609610
Canvas update means the file is now just 'shambles' I spent the better part of today tuning the lighting and textures for testing tonight. Excited to see reactions. The map now has a storm blowing in with sheets of rain across the water, I have also scripted lightning and thunder FX for a diverse atmosphere. It feels more alive than before. Hope you all agree.
XBOX DVR - http://xboxdvr.com/gamer/LoTuS/video/19675261 LOTS of changes after @Max Extra and @xDemptions lobbies both had enough feedback and footage to show me the changes that needed to happen. Thank you two! - SPAWNS! I hear you testers, thank you for being specific on the bad spawns you found. I am constantly trying to tune them on a assym like this is time consuming and difficult. But, I resolved the disorientating spawns and removed the corner rim/frill spawns. Hope they are better next test. - HCE MAGNUM is now 1 clip of 12 shots to avoid being too OP. It is still is only there at the beginning of the match behind a dynamic door and doesn't despawn until its out of ammo and NEVER respawns. - Removed CAMO because the map felt like "there was an overabundance of power weapons/ups" with only OS, Rail (3shots 120s), Caster (2clips 180s), and Magnun this should be more lean and easier to manage with map knowledge. - I have been adding more dynamic destruction to the map, and trying to make it obvious enough for gameplay use. Let me know what you think. - Against the feedback, I kept the zipline going downward because it plays better for strongholds and assym gametypes. Plus physics... - Connected a TNT handle with a line to the destructible door that works! Press the handle and BOOM! - Monolith (OS) room has been changed with the glowing monolith moved the the center of the room and an explosive barrel being added by the window that destroys the wall and allow for a new path to/from beach side. - Lightened the dark areas by 10-20% - Moved lightning FX away from play area so it doesn't disrupt the contrast so often. Only on hill where is allows for some fun gameplay in the open when it gets darker for a second or two. I am really trying for a better/smaller/faster zanzibar for 4v4 play in arena matches. Please send me any feedback on this thread or to 'LoTuS' on XBL
Alright, here's your feedback from the CF TNT on 7/19! For specific feedback, please watch the CF Stream Recap. We played Slayer and Strongholds Spoiler: CF TNT 7/19/2016 + People liked the dynamic of the map. Several areas were unique from one another, and made of easy callouts. + A few compliments for using silenced weapons - A few players felt that there was a lot of walking on this map. Bringing some areas closer together could alleviate this. / The zipline was still blurring the line between a competetive map and a casual fun map. - While the Zipline can be fun, it doesn't lead to any advantageous area, and can actually leave you vulnerable for very little gain. + The High Perches in the map felt good. / Half of the map has good height variation, while most of the exterior feels too flat. / Creating a perch or tower on the beach end is an idea to improve flow and give incentive to go there. / The new ramp near overshield felt redundant to some, though it did allow for a few flanks and sneak attacks in our matches. + Compliments to the exploding wall / Someone mentioned repositioning weapons such as the BR, DMR and SMG in the doorway so you can see it from inside and outside. - Some thought your scripts felt gimicky in a needles fashion. They were neat, but didn't offer much to gameplay. I like the improvements to the map so far. Keep up the good work, and I look forward to playing on it again!
Hey Randy, I watched the stream and saw the difficulty you had with trying to get a party together. Sorry I couldn't attend, maybe next time. Still appreciate the testing. After watching the rebroadcast I immediately began making changes based on the feedback and footage. Here is a list of what I changed with a couple screens: - NO more switches and scripted doors. The teleporter is always on and the holding cells are always open so the castle has a quick upward path opposite the zipline on the other side of the map that brings you downward quickly. - Removed the HCE magnum and left ammo for the standard magnum and AR instead. - opened the "crystal room" path all the way to the beach to solve the redundant feeling. I felt the same way and saw how to fix it as you guys were playing. - Kept exploding dynamics and finessed them for more opening paths as the game plays out. leaving the map in shambles... - Moved tier 1 and 2 weapons to more obvious locations I took to heart and moved ever single weapon to be more visible from different/opposing areas. - Weapon pads are now a Beam Rifle (180s) by teleporter and Rocket Launcher (120s) by beach ladder/turret. In my playtests these have been a lot more useful for breaking a map setup. The beam rifle specifically makes the exterior play more fun and dangerous. - Adjusted smoothness of terrain in two ways, added a few more elevation variations to break sight lines on hill and beach. I also smoothed the transitions of terrain for less jarring bumps while sprinting. I will keep working on this one through next Tuesday, hope to see you test it then. I truly appreciate the fantastic feedback and the bulletpointed delivery again. Take care!