[blizzart]

Jblade, on 23 March 2019 - 10:01 PM, said:

Spoiler tags guys

Spoiler

You can also jetpack out of any of the holes the Paradigm have made into the base as well

I tried that, but it didn´t work.

[TheDragonLiner]

John Brown, on 23 March 2019 - 10:22 PM, said:

Also, to follow up on earlier, I am having no more abnormal fatigue issues. If I really take my time secret-hunting, then yeah, the character will go into yellow fatigue, but I learned to expect that now (seriously I was looking all over for that bottlecap with Micky; still no idea why Snowfall was so fatigued as I didn't think I took very long in the first level but oh well). Side note, I did finally get not-zero secrets in Neutrino (2/5, which is good enough for me since I found the new weapon). Still stuck with 1/2 secrets in Rainforest but I'll live. I don't need to 100% everything.

Also also, I am having an issue that I saw earlier in this topic, of the weapons merchant in the Garmid hub not actually selling me any weapons. I say "I'll take it" and he tells me to check with the weapons dealer back at base, but I've talked to both him and the Russian arms dealer you rescue in Ep 1 (forgot his name, sorry), and I still don't see the new weapons for sale. I do have all three bottlecaps now, does getting them on two different playthroughs affect this? (when I replayed Neutrino just now, I went to the area where one bottlecap was and it was no longer there, which I expected with this mod's persistent nature).

Finally, I'm still getting the camera crash but only once, in Neutrino. I had no crashes in any of the other levels with cameras on this playthrough (particularly Rainforest since you cycle through a few of them), and after that one crash I just stopped checking cameras for the rest of the level and problem solved/avoided. I have had no other serious errors or crashes since last time, so that's good.

For the Rainforest you most probably missed the secret in the long Red Corridor but it doesn't boast much really.
For Neutrino here's what I remember.

Spoiler

1_ Climb up the crates near the first big lift.2_ In the Zero Atmosphere bit, you must reach an appartment, the window of which is broken.3_ When you exit the elevator, at the same floor as the Neutrino device. Look up, you'll see a grate that doesn't cover the entire ceiling, you can jump on it.4_ It's the one with the weapon which you found.5_ During the escaping sequence, in the large room with big round tanks on the right side. You can climb onto them and one of them is the secret.

BTW I have started writing my feedback for Ep3, I'm in Egypt right now. I have also written a lot about the characters, weapons and other stuff. I think I will soon start to upload my feedback for the 1st episode. I'll have to explain something though because I changed my method.

[John Brown]

Dang, I suspected there was something in that tunnel, I just didn't see the clue before (I know what it is now). I was going up and down the tunnel with the scanner, scanning everything, finding nothing. I didn't resort to wallhumping last time otherwise I'd have found it probably, ah well. Thanks for the pointers. The scanner is not all powerful I guess (though it sure is in Tower of Life).

Also, the new weapons were fun to use, I've unlocked all but three of them (from the... many, many posts on this subject already, I figured that they're just not in the mod yet), and I've used all except the Ranger launcher as I haven't played as James the character in a level with RPG spawns yet (but I will soon). For me the highlight is Sang's AK-47 with all its accessories, reminds me of the versatility of Rusty's tricked-out AK-74 (and his new auto shotgun isn't bad). I just painted Florida red in a few EDF missions, so much fun (side note: holy heck how do people pay sixty US dollars for brand new half-finished games when you could get this much playtime out of a TC).

[TheDragonLiner]

John Brown, on 24 March 2019 - 03:47 PM, said:

Dang, I suspected there was something in that tunnel, I just didn't see the clue before (I know what it is now). I was going up and down the tunnel with the scanner, scanning everything, finding nothing. I didn't resort to wallhumping last time otherwise I'd have found it probably, ah well. Thanks for the pointers. The scanner is not all powerful I guess (though it sure is in Tower of Life).

Also, the new weapons were fun to use, I've unlocked all but three of them (from the... many, many posts on this subject already, I figured that they're just not in the mod yet), and I've used all except the Ranger launcher as I haven't played as James the character in a level with RPG spawns yet (but I will soon). For me the highlight is Sang's AK-47 with all its accessories, reminds me of the versatility of Rusty's tricked-out AK-74 (and his new auto shotgun isn't bad). I just painted Florida red in a few EDF missions, so much fun (side note: holy heck how do people pay sixty US dollars for brand new half-finished games when you could get this much playtime out of a TC).

_No problemo. For the Rocket Launcher I personally used The Beach to test it out, giving James the DUP Missiles and you can find the rest of the panel on the spot.
_So I think I can slowly start uploading the feedback. I must explain to you that it has all been writen on the fly, as I was playing the levels. It's the same method as I did with Zaxtor's Trequonia. Advantages > It allows to focus more on imediate sensations + It allows me to talk about stuff I would have forgotten otherwise + Long levels benefit from a better cover than with mere reminiscence.Inconvienience > It makes me tend to repeat myself + I sometimes have nothing to say on things I notice + Text very easily become huge !.

We'll start by Episode 1, I will only talk about differences I noticed since we all treated them in the past. To keep this post short I'll just post the pre-level stuff.

_Introduction : I like how the new cinematic is more dynamic than before although it could be slightly less speedy, just a snitch. I also like the new higher resolution backgrounds for the various countries. However I don't really like the new music, I prefer the previous one. Also I hardly recognized Duke's statue the first time.

_AMC Base : So in overall the Base remains the same although there are some differences. The 2 bigs ones are the big holographic globe behind the receptionist and the people. There are some new people scattered around and they all have stuff to say. It's also nice to see that they change speech after the second briefing. As for the new AMC Base music (second music), I'd say it's more passe-partout than the old one and easier on the ears so even though I liked the old one, I will say I prefer the newer one. Also Liz and the Dojo girl aren't here when using Episode 1 which is a nice detail for plot continuity.

[Jblade]

Old music is from an Unreal beta, and more to the point the intro is exactly the same as Return to Na Pali's music (even though it differs later) so it had to go, it's just part of trying to give the mod more of its own identity.

on the fly feedback is fine, just break up the paragraphs so they're not huge chunks of text

EDIT:
https://www.dropbox....0Patch.zip?dl=0

Quote

PATCH 2
Fixed Russian soldiers not following player
Fixed Guardians not attack properly
Fixed Dark Gate ending
Fixed budget exploit with episode 1 intro
Fixed ep3 extended ending
Fixed revolution bridge (finally)
Fixed skippable scene in For Providence
Fixed MIA'd enemies not being targeted
Fixed being able to break bridge in Shadow Realm
Fixed Faithful weapon license issues
Fixed Mech enemy footsteps + spawning blood
Fixed more sequence breaking in The Island Facility
Fixed Exhausted text string number
Fixed Merlijn fatigued character select status
Fixed training AMC soldier yelling about reloading
Fixed wall kick exploit

Added amctc.grpinfo (should hopefully fix Megaton problems - thanks Doom64Hunter!)
Moved C4 on top of crate in Revolution
Allies are better at keeping up with the player
Replaced Door transitions with normal doors in Abyss
Changed Revolution - first section is more non-linear and Vladmir is not needed to proceed
Player and Friendly troops can snap velcro ropes now
Rusty Nails voice over recast, played by Major Tom

As usual this will go on moddb and replace the existing patch when it's clear nothing has been broken

[Doom64hunter]

You misspelled my username

Note with the grpinfo: you need to now select the "AMC TC" option in the launcher to make sure that eduke32 uses the dummy grp as intended.

(Also thanks to Hendricks for pointing out a potential issue with the CRC of the dummy file)

[TheDragonLiner]

Quotation > "This is where the ball gets rolling"
BTW forgot to say that I will write a "Conclusion" only if I got much to talk about. And I will try to give the text more breath as James suggested but it looks like the texting tool has become less permissive to use >_>

_Mega Base : I like the little new touches to the briefing. I also like the brand new look of the AMC Transport, and the fact it's a voxel renders very well in cutscenes. Special mentions to the fact we get our character's reaction before BOOM. Globally few things changed in the level. The very starting area surprised me right off the bat with the enemies. The new bathroom is okay. Another surprise came from the Battlelord which now appears on Expert instead of Pro along with the new Rocket Turret which got me wondering where it came from.

I can't say much since the level remains the same, however. You have removed some small cutscenes in the early portion, I would say it feels like you removed something superfluous. Surely it startles me not to see them out of habit but I can't say it bothers me not to see them. As for the new ambient music for the first half ... it's about the same style as the older one but with a more serious tone to it. I liked the old one but the new one blends in so well that I really can't decide which one I like the most.

Also making a brief remark about the new look of the Envirosuit's FPS view, it's okay, nothing much, nothing less. It still looks more unique and "not-ripped" than the old one so I like it better the way it is. Also the effects on the face are more realistic than in the old version IMO. However it feels like using its laser tool on enemies is harder than it used to be since it pushes them back, it makes fighting the Protectors way more of a hassle than it used to be.

_Dis Base : Globally there's nothing much that changed. Actually the only thing I saw that was different is that the "stairs" in the lava secret are more progressive and thus easier to navigate. Also the new music for the escape sequence, it's really good ! More fitting and audible than its Ep2 counterpart, I approve ! Also When activating the portal, it's nice seeing those particles going inside, and that brand new teleportation effect ! Nothing much has changed, but just the ending in the portal was well enough.

[Rhaisher]

Hey, it's been a reaaaally long time.

Glad to see EP3 released! Downloading right now.

Even if I took part of mapping a bit of a map, will post my feedback as well.

Rock on!

[Rhaisher]

Apparently, I can't edit my previous post, so I'll add this one here...

I've had a couple of crashes when using the screens of surveillance cameras. Not on the same level, and this doesn't happen every time. Seems random.

Also, have you made any change to the teleportation mechanics? I've been stuck teleporting forth and back a couple of times in the AMC base - you know, when you access the underground section of it. Quite strange.

And, after exploring every bit of the map for more than 30 minutes, I have to post it. If anyone is playing the EDF missions, have you been able to complete Pyramid: The Alien Beneath? Because I'm stuck in a 'certain' area full of lava and I don't know what else to do after grabbing the red keycard. Not able to find any place to use it.

[John Brown]

I'll try the patch later, when I do my planned Professional run through Ep 3. As of now, almost done with my Expert run, only the... final missions to go (can't spoil these, now can I?).

I have to say, just like Jungle Base, Jungle Pyramid is a billion percent less crappy and annoying on a replay, but still I see it more as a hurdle than something to enjoy. Also, I managed to find all the secrets in Forgotten Tomb/Spookycut without a guide, so that gives me warm fuzzies. The Serious Sam fan in me is happy for finding every Egyptian map's secrets (yes I know it's more Powerslave/Exhumed than Serious Sam), just like the Shadow Warrior fan in me was happy for doing the same with the Asian maps in ep 2.

A question about one of the researches though, is there a point to the new dropship? (the one you get from a research) I mean it does look cool and it looks more like a dropship and less like a fighter, I just missed what it does differently.

EDIT: I do want to point out some stuff I actually like about Jungle Pyramid so this doesn't sound too negative. I did like the combat in it, aside from the red lava hallway with all those blood-spitting faceless demons (I do not know their names). Sometimes I would fail traps on purpose just to spawn more enemies, I liked how ridiculous the fights could get, like running in circles in an open room overflowing with Protectors vs other fights in the mod where you're taking sensible cover and such, I liked that contrast. Also visually it looked as good as I would expect for the inside of a pyramid. Music wasn't bad, either.

[TheDragonLiner]

>Raisher. You have to find a Jetpack in the room, it's on a floating platform. Then you use it to go back up to the surface. You will use the card in the great pyramid (use TabMap to find the entrance).
>John Brown. So far the only difference I saw with the new ship is that you get to start Micky's mission from a different, and more advantageous, location.

FEEDBACK NOW !!

_Doom Disco : If it doesn't glitch that is ... Adding shades in the fight renders it way harder than usual O_o The new look of the first room is nice, more detailed than before. The outside looks the same as before to me. Adding shades there doesn't change much since they don't seem interested to come and see me unless I head back into the discotheque ... Now I'm noticing something. The music muffles itself when you go in or out VERY nice touch ! VERY well found ! Also the big Cybedemon's new big explosion makes it more satisfying than before to kill him.


_Abyss Dimension : My least favorite level of Ep1 ... let's see how it fairs now. No cinematic at the begining ? I'll say the exact same thing as for Mega Base. New ground texture ? I kinda prefer the old one personally ... New skybox for the next area ! Really cool looking ! I dislike the new ground texture even more but still very cool with the mountains in the distance. And a brand new slight platforming section in order to get the "normal" weapons. I believe being able to obtain regular weapons is good because it makes playing as different characters more different from one to another and this great lacking was my determinig factor in not liking it in previous versions.Quick mention of the organic explosion of the Cacodemons' deaths, more satisfying than before.

When we reach the flesh tower we get a better view of the skybox and we can even spot bits of other portions of the level. The great monument behind the wall and the final tower in the distance. This CLEARLY gives more coherence to the level, like it's one big piece. And it's still nice being able to see where you've been and how far you walked in a way. It also gives the level a more open feeling instead of basic textures or outright blackness. Under the tower it looks a bit more fleshy than before but not much, still nice addition. Teleporter brings you back to the door that's nice ! It spares us a good deal of backtracking and potential fall damage. Next area, one way up the other down. I was going to say it doesn't make any difference going down but I stand corrected because those shades are much harder to fight when going down than when going up ! However for Cyberdemons it's easier going up than going down because he can't aim at you and you don't take splash damage from underneath. It remains kinda challenging nonetheless. Quick mention of Cyberdemons' explosion sound, just like said earlier.

Next area. The new skybox makes it more impressing than before so more wins for the skybox. Making enemies spawn right away, WAY more difficult than before ! Because I find Cyberdemons kinda easier to deal with up close than at a distance like that. New music. I prefere the old one's more epic tone personally but I'm guessing it remains fitting. Also I'm starting to notice the fatigue effect here because I can no longer sprint for as long as before, making jumping gaps while sprinting with heavy weapons a feat. Going up to the final tower gives more credit to the skybox and what I said about it. Also the textures on the sides of our walk way is a nice addition, it proves it's a river of blood and not just "water". A voice clip ? Doesn't bring much but as always, better to have it than not to. Another one ? At least it gives a nice touch to the beast's relation to the scenario.

Conclusion : In overall the accessibility of regular weapons didn't bring much because of my habit of before but still I would say the level is more appealing to the eyes than before. Unfortunately it will still remain my least favorite Ep1 level but more at a default than previously. As for the cutscenes. More dynamic but not too speedy compared to the introduction. The fact Mikko, Zaxt and Highwire reply to James in the second briefing wasn't necessary IMO. And the music for the second briefing I would say doesn't fit, the old Mega Base music would have been better here IMO.

[John Brown]

Some more feedback if I may:

I have finished my second run through Ep 3, on Expert. Still super fun. I found more secrets this time (100%'d the final three-parter level too, I'm pleased with myself for that), and knowing where to go did cut down on a ton of aimless wandering (aside from secret hunting). I don't know if it was the recent patch (before the latest one) or me downsizing the resolution to 720p but a lot of areas ran noticeably better (for reference, I have an AMD FX-8350 CPU at stock clock, 16GB of RAM, not sure what other hardware would make a difference). One area that stood out to me for poor framerate before was Micky Begins, in the "main area assault" with all the computer monitors everywhere and really that whole mission in general, but now it ran better. Chuggier than the rest of the mod, but definitely better than before. I would say now it feels like playing an average mid-90's 3D game, while before, it felt like playing Perfect Dark on the N64 in high-res mode. For comparison, the suburb/village area in Egypt still runs like Wing Commander 1 on a 286 with more than one enemy on screen.

I have almost all the researches too, but I'm sure I can clean them up by going back to earlier levels and just MIA-ing enemies (including whatever a Mamano is, I have no idea what a lot of these enemies' names are to be honest). In the research menu, I was able to accidentally peek at a lot of the researches by navigating that menu with WASD. Example, I'm missing Personnel 4, so using the left and right arrow buttons on the screen takes me from 3 to 5, but if I am on Equipment 4, and push S, it'll show me Personnel 4 (but I cannot purchase it). I'm going to assume people using the older-school controls can replace WASD with whatever they bound for movement.

Again, excellent episode to everyone involved with making it, and I definitely will not spoil anything story related but I really want to see this through to the end.

[TheDragonLiner]

John Brown, on 27 March 2019 - 06:51 PM, said:

I have almost all the researches too, but I'm sure I can clean them up by going back to earlier levels and just MIA-ing enemies (including whatever a Mamano is, I have no idea what a lot of these enemies' names are to be honest).

The Mamanos are those big Kimono-wearing ape-like creatures you see in the Asian levels, though I don't think the research is implemented yet because using the MIA Gun on them doesn't do anything ... This will require The Divine's intervention for confirmation >_> I wish I could tell you how to get Personel 4 but I totally forgot ... (Maybe using the MIA Gun on that new super deadly enemy in Jungle Base or Perejil ...)

MY TURN !!

_Welcome to Millhaven : So globally for the early portion there's nothing much new. Only a new spirit that gives you a hint about dealing with supernatural enemies, of which you're not necessarily aware when you play for the first time which is nice, and I spotted some new sprites for the vegetation which is still good. New music when there are cultists outside. It sounds good, and it still kinda fits the setting though keeping the old one still had its charm especially towards the end of the loop, but it still brings variety, and I like the music either way.

Quick mention of the new look for the C4 charges, it looks good, especially as a voxel instead of a flat sprite. I notice the shooting range now has bottles instead of big targets, more "challenging". Very later, new voxel for the couch in the house, I actually didn't notice it in the AMC base because of ridiculous lag so I only see it now, NICE (the voxel I mean). Library, fancy reflection on the ground but can we see ourself ? (tests) I'M A VAMPIRE !! Nothing else spotted from there on so I'll end it here. It feels like this is the level that got the least workaround.


_Snow Base : Skybox !! It actually looks similar to the Abyss' one but no matter I still like it, doesn't feel like we're on a mountain with nothing around it. I find that Zaxtor speaks too fast in the cutscene it's almost laughable. And Mikko still speaks loudly compared to Highwire and Zaxtor. Nice touch seeing the cutscene ends where the actual level starts and this is where we can clearly see that using this new voxel for the ship renders WAY better than the old sprite from before !. Directly I can see the door in the distance no longer closes in on the ship which is nice because I kept seeing that. A new useless door, no big deal. Up until we fall in the pit behind the wall there's not much difference.

Brand new area after we fell. Not much but still a nice addition. Seeing that the environement behind the scientist is less baren than before is good. Mikko's speech after the hacking is kinda quiet compared to the usual thing ... New secret area (thank you Micky for having spoiled it and put my memory to the test), doesn't bring much but still better than nothing. Now about the MSC Power Suit. The explosion sound for the first fire, which is also the same for explosive shotgun shells ... it REALLY lacks in punch compared to the old one. Surely the old one tended to be a bit loud and sometimes ridiculous but it was punchy as hell and we lost that. Now catching a sight of the brand new enemy Power Suit. It's a breath of fresh air compared to the old one but can't say like either of them better than the other ... The new firing sound for their MGs is more bearable for the ears than before. And it looks like they're weaker than before, with the missiles I destroy them definitely faster than before, I don't mind I'm just surprised.

Seeing the AMC Transport arrive in the final area as a voxel is WAY more classy than with the old sprite, I can't say enough how much better the new look is compared to the old sprite ! Ending cinematic, Mikko's voice is quiet but at least it's more on par with the other character's so I don't mind.

[Apiai]

Hello all, just started to play today, intro is just awesome. On X64 planet, it took me some minutes to realize that I could drive spaceship.
Who had the brillant idea about

Spoiler

the metal explosives poop

This is hilarious
Bravo for the release and congratulation to the team !

[John Brown]

TheDragonLiner, on 27 March 2019 - 11:22 PM, said:

The Mamanos are those big Kimono-wearing ape-like creatures you see in the Asian levels, though I don't think the research is implemented yet because using the MIA Gun on them doesn't do anything ... This will require The Divine's intervention for confirmation >_> I wish I could tell you how to get Personel 4 but I totally forgot ... (Maybe using the MIA Gun on that new super deadly enemy in Jungle Base or Perejil ...)

Ah, thanks. I saw one in Spookycut last week and MIA'd it, got nothing, I assumed that past-me already tried that a couple years ago in Tower of Life.

For Personnel 4 I got it from a pig cop in Repent (finally found all the secrets in that one, woo; I just have to "vent" my annoyance on that subject). I forget if it was a normal blue one, or one of the green ones, but it was a pig cop for sure.

I am not asking where they are (as I like the joy of finding them myself) but the ones I am now missing are weapons 7 and 8 (Devastator framework which has already been posted about a few times); equipment 21 and 22 (the cryo + electric grenades for commie guns; I know I can find plenty of them in Egypt, I just haven't unlocked them for researching yet somehow); personnel 14, 19, and 27 (14 I assume has to be from MIA-ing an armored enemy, 19 I assume is an ice-themed enemy, 27 I have no idea); base 6; and the aforementioned mamano heart.

PS: I did find the Zaxtor videos you were talking about before, I've been watching those off and on. Also did you get that last secret in the last Ep 3 level? I'm assuming that if I found them all in that level, you surely found it before I did.

[TheDragonLiner]

John Brown, on 28 March 2019 - 06:28 PM, said:

Ah, thanks. I saw one in Spookycut last week and MIA'd it, got nothing, I assumed that past-me already tried that a couple years ago in Tower of Life.

For Personnel 4 I got it from a pig cop in Repent (finally found all the secrets in that one, woo; I just have to "vent" my annoyance on that subject). I forget if it was a normal blue one, or one of the green ones, but it was a pig cop for sure.

I am not asking where they are (as I like the joy of finding them myself) but the ones I am now missing are weapons 7 and 8 (Devastator framework which has already been posted about a few times); equipment 21 and 22 (the cryo + electric grenades for commie guns; I know I can find plenty of them in Egypt, I just haven't unlocked them for researching yet somehow); personnel 14, 19, and 27 (14 I assume has to be from MIA-ing an armored enemy, 19 I assume is an ice-themed enemy, 27 I have no idea); base 6; and the aforementioned mamano heart.

PS: I did find the Zaxtor videos you were talking about before, I've been watching those off and on. Also did you get that last secret in the last Ep 3 level? I'm assuming that if I found them all in that level, you surely found it before I did.

For the Cryo and Electric grenades. I personally got the Electric one by using the MIA Gun on an enemy but I got absolutely no idea for the Cryo one, I asked about it earlier but wasn't really answered >_> For the other Personel research there is one that isn't implemented yet (it's the one just before Heat Seeking Upgrade) and it is indeed related to armor. The other ones you mentioned should be implemented.So far the only research I saw that weren't implemented are the Mamano Heart, Devastator Framework, Riot Minigum Mk2, Personal 4 (I think) and an alternate ammo. The gap in numbers for Base researches doesn't mean there's any research.

For the secret, no I don't think I found it but I don't mind it don't worry. I was looking for all the secrets only in hopes of finding the new guns but now that I know they're not implemented yet I stopped my searching, besides I had used clipping for a bunch of them ^^

BTW for that armor research you got, I personally got it from one of those deadly Black PigCops so since you got it elsewhere, it proves it's not exclusive to a variant in particular.

[KillerBudgie]

I got Personnel Research 4 just by shooting a normal Pig Cop with a 40mm MIA Grenade.

[John Brown]

TheDragonLiner, on 28 March 2019 - 10:58 PM, said:

For the secret, no I don't think I found it but I don't mind it don't worry. I was looking for all the secrets only in hopes of finding the new guns but now that I know they're not implemented yet I stopped my searching, besides I had used clipping for a bunch of them ^^

Just in case you do want to find it, three of the four secrets in that level will show up on the scanner (and two are relatively close together; how I missed one of these the first time, I have no idea) but the fourth one requires some platforming. Think high.

EDIT: Woo, just found all the secrets finally in City Under Siege, too. Since I saw Zaxtor's gameplay video, which had the secrets I was missing in Jungle Base (one up top, three in the interior part; I kinda miss the old music too), now the only Ep 2 secret I am missing is the one in the New LA hub and I cannot for the life of me find it.

[TheDragonLiner]

John Brown, on 29 March 2019 - 05:28 AM, said:

Just in case you do want to find it, three of the four secrets in that level will show up on the scanner (and two are relatively close together; how I missed one of these the first time, I have no idea) but the fourth one requires some platforming. Think high.

EDIT: Woo, just found all the secrets finally in City Under Siege, too. Since I saw Zaxtor's gameplay video, which had the secrets I was missing in Jungle Base (one up top, three in the interior part; I kinda miss the old music too), now the only Ep 2 secret I am missing is the one in the New LA hub and I cannot for the life of me find it.

I remember James saying that the secret in New LA was just a left-over. They had projected to make a secret in the underwater area with some treasures to find but they took it out because it was an easy money farming thing. They took out the secret actor but the area is still flagged as a secret despite being empty >_>

[John Brown]

Ah, that explains it. Well I've gotten all I can out of this current playthrough of AMC then. I'll try cleaning up the remaining researches when I do my Pro run (I plan on doing all 3 episodes again once the latest patch is declared stable enough), and also get the secrets I saw in the videos for Zaxtor's levels. I'm happy I found most of them on my own in Jungle Base, and in Jungle Pyramid I was happy to just finish it (most of the quicksand room switch puzzles I solved entirely on accident). I notice in Zaxtor's video, either I missed it or he didn't get the 6th secret; I know where it is (due to, I admit, no-clipping) but I have not found how to get it legit yet, so I don't count it as me finding it. I did get a "Door unlocked" message when messing around in one of the hallways with floor traps for crushers (I found that doing the running slide kick will keep the player safe from crushers as long as he/she isn't under one when the stamina bar runs out, *very* useful for the blue teeth-trap hallway and its giant crusher), but that's as far as I got. I wonder if the Protector Drone on the wall of another secret is a clue...

After I do a Pro run, then I'll do the new EDF missions, way later on. I don't have as much of a drive to do those as the AMC "proper" levels, but I will get to them one day (and one of my favorite Duke levels ever, is an EDF map, the Beach CBP, literally just typing it made the music start playing in my head). If I care about getting all the secrets in any EDF map, it's that one, and last time I played it I was only missing one. One day I will find it.

[TheDragonLiner]

John Brown, on 29 March 2019 - 05:17 PM, said:

After I do a Pro run, then I'll do the new EDF missions, way later on. I don't have as much of a drive to do those as the AMC "proper" levels, but I will get to them one day (and one of my favorite Duke levels ever, is an EDF map, the Beach CBP, literally just typing it made the music start playing in my head). If I care about getting all the secrets in any EDF map, it's that one, and last time I played it I was only missing one. One day I will find it.

I higly doubt that the Protector in the secret is a clue IMO. For the EDF Missions know that you can find unique objects which will serve as decorations for characters's rooms in both bases so you might as well try to look out for them ^_- Very few are in secrets. I remember there is an object for Micky in The Beach in a secret. Just look for sprites or textures which you never saw in the regular levels or which look either out of place or "noticeable".

FEEDBACK !
(without the new patch)

_Revolution : So the cinematic remains the same though the music feels like it's slightly more quiet than before and it's good because we can hear Highwire more clearly thanks to this. New VA for James, I'll tell about it only on the feedback on his specific character. New sprite for Vilmos's minions. It's okay, the cinematic's black and white doesn't do them justice I'd say but in-fighting it looks okay, I was fearing I wouldn't like it but in the end it's okay. They're also easier to spot than before, they no longer blend into the environement "Grey on Grey" like before which can greatly help for first time players. For the early portion I don't see much difference apart from an additional blocade and a tree. Though the building's texture at the far end of the bridge doesn't look familiar ... It feels new, if it really is then it's nice. Our guys still fall off the bridge but it seems that they fall more at the very end than in the middle and I aprove of that, it makes regrouping WAY less tedious. The white building later gives me the same impression of having a new texture ... I'm actually wondering if the textures aren't changed but just higher resolution ? In any cases it's still good.

Nothing new in James's portion. The only difference I could spot in the Tank section is that flare indicating where the C4 is, it's cool because, indeed, the new look for the C4 makes it harder to spot in that level EPSECIALLY when aboard the tank. Speaking of which, now the LMG has a base accuracy, it no longer depends on your character's selected weapon. It ballances gameplay because there are characters with whom you were able to pin-point shoot and snipe people far away. However I don't like the new cannon firing sound, it's WAY too tame for what it is, I definitely prefer the old one. Also the enemy tanks feel way weaker than before, it's just like with Mikko and the Power Suits, I don't mind it, I'm just surprised. Inside the Palace the only difference I spotted is the world map which no longer looks like a mesh of a dozen of textures on top of each other which is nice, and it saves on framerate on my end.

_Vilmos's Bunker : Directly we have the elevator finishing its course instead of starting right away from the end of its track. It's okay because it gives a better continuity from the end of the previous level but that's just all there is to it. Nothing seems to have changed apart from some new enemy spawns that surprised me. The fact you need to really step into the arena for the boss fight to occur is a good thing because it allows you to go pick up the stuff on the other end of your entrance without triggering the fight, I definitely aprove, it's not much but still. Also the fact you're not stuck in a cinematic for the boss is okay, gives you time to prepare and react. New sprite for the boss ... I don't know what to think of it, I kinda prefer the old one because this one looks too sci-fi for the setting of this level.

[Jblade]

I haven't changed a lot of things you're noticing, tanks are exactly the same as before and I haven't done any texture changes to the level.

Old sprite was ripped from another game, new sprite is by sebabdukeboss20; I wasn't attached to the old sprites and I'd prefer original ones over ripped ones any day of the week.

[dd209]

Hey guys, just finished Episode 3 on Easy (I didn't have any saves from playing Ep 1+2 years ago so I followed your advice) and thought I'd post some quick thoughts. Before I do I should point out I'm a very casual player (I played DN3D/Blood/SW etc. on Normal/Medium-ish difficulties and I've only really played the most popular mods, TCs and level packs for them) and I only played through the main missions of Episode 3 UNPATCHED.

Spoiler

I thought the opening planet assault mission was pretty good, and you did a good job with the vehicles being a nice way to break up gameplay without being frustrating or gimmicky. Not as fun as the Episode 2 Earth Defence but I understand not wanting to repeat the same thing.

Egypt hub was pretty good, a nice change of pace, although the (pre-patch) bugs that blocked progression were a bit frustrating and the new enemies eventually got pretty dull to fight. Nice ending fight, although seeing the giant arena kinda reminded me of the final boss and mega-gauntlets of Serious Sam 1, so I guess it was a tiny bit of letdown to just have a regular-scaled battle at the end. Probably very difficult to pull something like that off in the Build Engine tho.

AMC base defence was ok, nothing special. Maybe a bit too linear and I didn't really care about any of the base personnel or anything. Maybe it would've been more enjoyable if I'd come into Ep 3 straight after Eps 1 and 2.

The Australian University missions were alright, although having another huge map so soon after Egypt...almost drained me a bit. Still, no major complaints apart from being a bit confused as to what to do in the very last area. Lots of running back and forth between the immobile vehicle and boss area until I just jumped over the wall manually.

The Catacombs with the Necromancer guy were...alright. It felt more irritating than tense when fighting those ghostly enemies in the darkness, and the delayed-attack weapons got a bit annoying sometimes. Also disliked those platforming bits. Nice final fight though.

Jungle Temple was very frustrating. I don't feel that sufficient warning is given for some of the traps (too trial and error) and the insta-death platforming sections were awful. My least favourite main map by far, sorry.

Gorilla/Amazon level was good enough. I really liked the surprise on the Steamboat (kinda wished the whole level was themed around it) and there was nothing especially irritating or confusing in the map.

Infiltration/Xuglop level was pretty average. Boss's charge was quite annoying and I never figured out how to reliably dodge it, just let him get stuck on a barrel.

Snowfall's level with the Neutrino and the robots was ok, nothing special. I just found the robots a bit dull to fight, honestly. Maybe the result of playing on Easy.

Snowfall's final mission was much better than the Neutrino base - at first it seemed a bit dark and boring, but once the base started opening up and the soldiers appeared I enjoyed it a lot more. The part where the Beyonders turned up was a bit frustrating and I had to reload checkpoints a couple of times.

I was a bit surprised at how abruptly the Episode ended after that. I felt like Episodes 1 and 2 had really, REALLY strong finales which pulled out all the stops, then Episode 3 just has Snowfall's exposition/flashback level and then you get the credits? It felt more like the mid-point of a story.

Anyway, purely my personal feelings as a casual player. In short I think Episode 3 has been the weakest of the AMC TC (no offense). Whilst 1 and 2 certainly had a bit of an uneven pace depending on what sort of gameplay/themes you enjoy, they also had a whole bunch of absolutely mind-blowing missions that I remember years later - the EDF city missions, the Doom-themed starship and research base missions, the Blood tribute missions, and the Ep 1/2 finales in the castle/tomb and Mars/TV station/Starship. I just felt like there was really very little new or exciting in Ep3 after the novelty of the Egypt hub has worn off. Again, thanks very much for creating this megamod FOR FREE for all of us to enjoy, and I don't want to sound like an asshole - I just thought the first two episodes were better. But again, thanks for all your hard work, guys.

[Jblade]

Thanks for the feedback - episode 2 was a hard act to live up to, but I think episode 3 has its place as setting up the future episodes; there was grander plans for the episode but ultimately we already had a ton of content and front loading in this episode would just leave very little left for the future.

[Micky C]

Episode 3 literally is the middle of the story, so I'm not surprised you feel that way about the ending. Think Lord of the Rings: if the other movies hadn't come after The Fellowship of the Ring, the ending to that movie wouldn't have felt very satisfying. As James said, it sets up the future episodes quite nicely, and at this point episode 4 at least has a very high chance of coming out, so hopefully there'll be more satisfaction to come.

I would have recommended you avoid the easiest difficulty in general, even as a casual player. It's meant for ultra casual players; you even get double the ammo of the other difficulties. In other words, there would have been little to no challenge, which makes the game less interesting. Normal is relatively easy, even without upgrades.

[TheDragonLiner]

Jblade, on 30 March 2019 - 12:26 AM, said:

I haven't changed a lot of things you're noticing, tanks are exactly the same as before and I haven't done any texture changes to the level.

Old sprite was ripped from another game, new sprite is by sebabdukeboss20; I wasn't attached to the old sprites and I'd prefer original ones over ripped ones any day of the week.

Well about the tanks it's kinda weird, I know what I see O_o The LMG has base accuracy and new canon firing sound o_O If it's not the case on your end then something really weird is going on >_>
For the sprites I don't mind it THAT much, I just thought the Russian setting with a very Cold War looking bunker kinda made the Sci Fi boss kinda weird to see ^^

[Jblade]

I meant the enemy tank's health, they've still got the same health as always.

[TheDragonLiner]

Jblade, on 30 March 2019 - 05:31 AM, said:

I meant the enemy tank's health, they've still got the same health as always.

Oh sorry ^^
Well still I have played Ep2 SOOOOO much that it really feels like they're a tiny bit more fragile. I remember I used to destroy them with 3 or 4 shots while here it's only 2 ... My memory again I guess >_>
BTW About the new boss sprite, I said I prefered the old one HERE but later in the feedback of Ep2 I will say I liked it THERE and also in Micky's Ep3 mission =)

[Rhaisher]

So, as I did with EP2, I'm playing the EDF missions first in order to increase the budget, grab collectibles and whatnot.

I reported a few post ago that I was having troubles with the game crashing whenever I checked a screen of surveillance cameras. Since I was playing EP3 with the laptop I bought after beating EP2 and its OS is WIN10, I decided to give it a go on my old computer (WIN7). The result is the same. Any idea what could be causing this? Could it be eDuke32's version? It is uninconvenient to quick save the game every time I press use on one of those.

Last night I sweated blood in order to complete Perejil mission. Some of the new pigcops get bugged and there is NO way of killing them - they drop the shotgun, but still roam freely, shoting me nonstop. - Quick saved and loaded a LOT. And I was on normal, talk about losing faculties, lol. No, seriously, this level is a pain.

Also, if by Perejil the map's author meant to place the action in the little Spanish island - A piece of rock, literally - it is in between the southern limits of Spain and the northern limits of Morocco. - In case you'd like to change its location on the map.

That's everything for now, have a good weekend!

[Jblade]

Yeah the camera crashing is a known bug unfortunately - it is a goal to move onto the latest snapshots but still some crashing to sort out.

I didn't know that about Perejil, I'll look about moving it thanks