Team Fortress 2 level: CP_Yuma
polycounter lvl 16
Over the past couple of months, I've been brainstorming a control point map for Team Fortress 2. After a few (as in, a few dozen) false starts and failed attempts, I've finally settled on a concept.
Cp_redstone has really pushed the bar for what custom maps can look and feel like, and I've decided: What the hell, I'm going to aim for the skyI want to make a map that plays as well (or hopefully even better) and looks as good as Redstone.
However, there are a few things about Redstone that have been bothering me, mostly to do with nearly unbreakable turtling on the second-to-last points, so I want to get around that by using artificial chokepoints that can be overcome by destroying walls and opening new paths. It's been done on Warpath, I know, but I'd like to take it a step farther by putting it at multiple points for more dynamic gameplay.
I've already laid out most of the level in Hammer, but it's not sealed up and ready to show yet, so I'll post pictures as soon as I get a version done I can get good screenshots of. Here are a couple of the first concepts to look over:
This is the view from the middle control point looking at the blue side of the map. I want to make the blue side mostly open and roofless, whereas the red side will be almost exclusively in caves and tunnels.
This is the first fairly concrete layout I've come up with. I hope it gives you a good idea of what I'm trying to achieve.
Please note that nothing you see here is anywhere close to being a finalized design. I've already deviated a little from the layout above for practicality's sake, and I'm still unsure exactly where I want to put the spawn rooms. I may also be adding another couple of breakable walls below the middle control point. We'll see.
Cp_redstone has really pushed the bar for what custom maps can look and feel like, and I've decided: What the hell, I'm going to aim for the skyI want to make a map that plays as well (or hopefully even better) and looks as good as Redstone.
However, there are a few things about Redstone that have been bothering me, mostly to do with nearly unbreakable turtling on the second-to-last points, so I want to get around that by using artificial chokepoints that can be overcome by destroying walls and opening new paths. It's been done on Warpath, I know, but I'd like to take it a step farther by putting it at multiple points for more dynamic gameplay.
I've already laid out most of the level in Hammer, but it's not sealed up and ready to show yet, so I'll post pictures as soon as I get a version done I can get good screenshots of. Here are a couple of the first concepts to look over:
This is the view from the middle control point looking at the blue side of the map. I want to make the blue side mostly open and roofless, whereas the red side will be almost exclusively in caves and tunnels.
This is the first fairly concrete layout I've come up with. I hope it gives you a good idea of what I'm trying to achieve.
Please note that nothing you see here is anywhere close to being a finalized design. I've already deviated a little from the layout above for practicality's sake, and I'm still unsure exactly where I want to put the spawn rooms. I may also be adding another couple of breakable walls below the middle control point. We'll see.
Replies
Are you using much custom content? models, textures etc?
The only bottle neck I see that will make it hard for one team to bounce back after the center point is capped is the lack of a secondary exit for the second spawn room.
I guess that the winning team takes over the spawn point near the center when it caps center?
The flow of winning players from that spawn room will make it really hard for the losing team to get out of that second spawn room without back tracking through the 1st spawn room. They need another way out to so they can flank the campers.
Maybe something like this would help them get out?
You also might want to think about shrinking some of the hallways and long open areas, they can be hard to fill up with details, and players hate running long distances. Long maps almost forces everyone to go scout, or sniper =/ Be sure to test your map at all player speeds before committing too much. If scout is the only speed it feels normal, then its too big. I've played a bunch of custom maps that are too big, and its obvious that they only tested with the scout.
I don't have any plans for custom models right now, but I'm probably going to do a texture or two that will show where breakable walls are.
Vig:
I'm still trying to figure out where the best places for the spawn rooms might be, but those corridors are some good suggestions. Something I've been thinking about doing is splitting up the spawns so there are two small ones for each stage. Eh, we'll see.
I don't think the halls and open areas are going to be too much of a problem; I can already tell with the little brushwork I've laid down what areas need to be tightened up. I want it to be a small map anyway, so I'm going to be shortening a lot of the longer stretches and such.
I should have some screenshots of the actual level by sometime later today, so I'll post 'em as I get 'em.
Anyway.
I know it's not too much, but here's an updated layout drawn right over the top of a Hammer viewport screengrab. The gradients are ramps.
Now, despite all appearances, this thing is actually pretty small. It's about 3/4 the length of Badlands, and certainly narrower.
One of the areas blocked off by breakable walls:
The area right below the camera on the close side of the bridge is where the point will be.
http://rapidshare.com/files/113332556/cp_yuma01.zip.html
Keep in mind that it's NOT pretty and the textures are only there to differentiate areas from one another. There are no props, no fancy geometry, just blocks and ramps and stuff.
I'm hopefully going to be testing it on the CGTalk TF2 server this weekend, so stop by if you feel so inclined. Here's a link to the server info:
http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?f=2&t=541435
...With a complete redesign.
I did a bit of testing with some of the good folks over at CGTalk and determined that the previous version sucked, so I'm completely rebuilding it from the ground up and structuring it like Dustbowl. I only have this one section built, but I've a bunch of sketches of the other three areas and they'll be coming soon.
Wee.
Here are some screens. Keep in mind this isn't supposed to be pretty yet; I'm still working on the layout and whatnot. Clicky for the bigness.
The first point as seen from the gates
The first point looking back at the gates
Down and to the right of the first point, exiting the building
Farther up the ramp
The second point. I was bored one day, so that tower's just for looks.
The whole thing
Any comments, critiques, whatever are welcome.
Helpful tip for detailing rock faces and the ground: (You might know this already but if not its very helpful)
In hammer pull up the texture editor Shift+A, select the rock faces, click Displacement, click Create, and click Paint Geometry.
Engineers are going to dislike those long hallways because their turrets won't have much cover. I'm not sure if you can bend the hallway, put in a door/inner change room or give the hallway more covered places for the turrets?
It will help to play the map with a buddy, one being an eng placing turrets in key places, and see how well the defenses hold, how long it takes to go get metal ect...
Sniper spots for snipers. small tunnels for pyro's. medium open area's for heavy's and medics. strategic corners and hidden area's for engineers etc.
You should check out sites like Interlopers.net. It has a good selection of (mostly) well-written tutorials. The great thing is that you can use the same techniques to build levels in any Source engine game, be it Half-Life, Team Fortress 2, Day of Defeat, whatever.
Vig:
I'm definitely looking at changing up some of that indoor area so it's not sniper alley. I think what I'm going to do is put a 90 degree turn about half-way through and that should alleviate some of the issues.
As for testing, I'm going to be playing it with a bunch of people on the CGTalk TF2 server; they're usually pretty good at finding faults and weaknesses in maps and a lot of them have experience building levels and such.
EVIL:
I dunno, I wouldn't necessarily say it's very difficult to map for. I go through tons of sketches of areas or doodles of ideas I want to try out and I try to think of where I'd put a sentry or where I'd snipe from if I was going to play through it right then. Once I get some sketches down, I build a mockup in Hammer and then do a sketch of that with a more refined layout, pu the stuff from that sketch into the mockup... wash, rinse, repeat.
I find it easier to map for TF2 than for something like Half-Life 2, but maybe that's just because I don't like trying to figure out how I'm going to get a guard to do a specific thing or something.
Keep in mind that I'm just blocking things in right now, so none of this is actually supposed to be pretty yet. That's why there are just boxes instead of real buildings. Everything including the lighting and layout is completely WIP.
Also, setting up a CP map for multiple rounds is a royal pain in the arse. I think I'm going to need to make a small test map with nothing but the bare essentials and then I'll just transfer everything over once I get it working. Oh well, at least the layout's pretty much near what the final should look like, even if nothing works.