[DannyFromNewOrleans]

A new wintery map: Black Fairy on its black red wings! Contains lots of enemies, explosions and boom-booms, pretty intense. There's also one snowman. In addition, the file contains a calmer variation of the map called "White Noiz" (it's meant to be played after Black Fairy).

Get latest version of this map and my other maps here: https://www.mediafir...nsrx491l6f/Zips

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[William Gee]

Passed the map, took over an hour to finish, well much more than that due to deaths and restarts. Ingame 74 minutes.

Thanks for the map, was worth playing and I do recommend other people play the level. Gameplay is good, unique and fun, level design is also good and interesting.
The best part is the gameplay, it was well thought out, I am surprised I passed the level, there were a couple times I thought I was stuck, but then found the thing I needed to progress.
Really enjoyed the start, was having heaps of fun until I got stuck, then found the switch I should of seen ages ago.

The design and structure are also very good, well planned and executed.

Anyways thanks again!

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[Nacho]

This looks like just what the doctor ordered given the winter season, I'll probably play this on the weekend.

[Aleks]

It seems that right next to fat red Santa Coca-Cola commercials, Home Alone played on TV and that particular Wham! song, a new winter map from Danny is a sure sign Christmas is coming! Gonna play it soon!

[Paul B]

Also added here: https://www.dukemaps.net/black-fairy/

[Jan Satcitananda]

Cool map! A bit challenging in the beginning, but fair overall and quite original, with various quirks like flat "enemies" and fake items. I spotted some interesting texture choices and experiments with style. I like the pale look of the frosted area that contrasts with the rest of the factory which is mostly dark and gloomy. The map is a bit heavy on combat for my taste, as it gets you surrounded by enemies basically in every location, and the final mass battle was nuts , although pretty straightforward and even provided with the instructions. I also tried WhiteNoiz.map, but it was unplayable due to the shortage of ammo and lots of enemies.

Spoiler

For a reason I couldn't find the switch to activate the submarine during my first run. I was looking for it inside the submarine and got confused, since the purpose of that submarine was unclear and I wasn't able to reach the second switch in the control room (that opens the underwater passage). Later I checked the map in the editor and realized that the required switch is located outside the sub.

I didn't quite figure out who are all those same-looking babes placed throughout the factory. Are they supposed to be factory employees who were captured by aliens? Or are they just lifeless mannequins?

What also puzzled me is that you have apparently took the MIDI soundtrack but converted it to OGG. What's the point of that? I never was a fan of that synth, being used to the OPL2/3 sound (I also prefer smaller filesizes).

[Aleks]

Played the map (actually both maps), it's probably my favourite of yours so far. The style is quite unique (and I mean the style of all your maps since Promise or even Overdose Delusion?) and I don't mean the snowy theme only, but also some abstract designs and colorful/rounded shapes (balls or teddy bears) that nicely contrast it. The map was pretty straightforward and the progression was clear, it still took me, weirdly enough, 74 minutes like with Will, although I did take a while looking for secrets. The gameplay was intensive, I managed to complete it without dying, but a few ambushes got me close (well, both rooftop battles actually - the final one was fun and challenging, but the layout of the arena and atomic healths made it easier). I liked the weapon choices, i.e. starting with expander which helped a lot in clearing hordes of troopers. It also took me a bit to notice the switch on the submarine. White Noiz was a nice addition I wished more people did, now as some of you may know, I am number 1 hater of the two 'stolen' maps from Nuclear Winter, but in this case the changes both to design, gameplay and progression made this interesting enough. Ammo was scarce indeed, but not to the point of being unplayable, only the beginning really felt stingy. In this case, I struggled to get to the yellow key until I've noticed you changed the 'parkour' around that ledge a bit (I've noticed the change in getting on the other roof quite immediately). A lot of neatly atmospheric and moody places in both maps. Great job!

[DannyFromNewOrleans]

Jan Satcitananda, on 11 December 2024 - 09:04 PM, said:

Cool map! A bit challenging in the beginning, but fair overall and quite original, with various quirks like flat "enemies" and fake items. I spotted some interesting texture choices and experiments with style. I like the pale look of the frosted area that contrasts with the rest of the factory which is mostly dark and gloomy. The map is a bit heavy on combat for my taste, as it gets you surrounded by enemies basically in every location, and the final mass battle was nuts , although pretty straightforward and even provided with the instructions. I also tried WhiteNoiz.map, but it was unplayable due to the shortage of ammo and lots of enemies.

Spoiler

For a reason I couldn't find the switch to activate the submarine during my first run. I was looking for it inside the submarine and got confused, since the purpose of that submarine was unclear and I wasn't able to reach the second switch in the control room (that opens the underwater passage). Later I checked the map in the editor and realized that the required switch is located outside the sub.

I didn't quite figure out who are all those same-looking babes placed throughout the factory. Are they supposed to be factory employees who were captured by aliens? Or are they just lifeless mannequins?

What also puzzled me is that you have apparently took the MIDI soundtrack but converted it to OGG. What's the point of that? I never was a fan of that synth, being used to the OPL2/3 sound (I also prefer smaller filesizes).

Thanks, the bulkier architecture and intense gameplay were intentional choices after my previous map which was a bit more cramped and tidier in style. White Noiz might still contain too many enemies; I tried to make it both relatively calm and still challenging. The babes are indeed mannequins, inspired by Silent Hill 3 and with the spooky twist that they used to be living people.

[ck3D]

https://msdn.duke4.n...tblackfairy.php Mikko's review is up.

[Merlijn]

I just played the map, I also think this may be your best one yet! It does a nice job combining action with an eerie, tense atmosphere.
The environmental story telling with those mannequins is on point, and you really have knack for creating creepy, surreal areas in DN3D. (I assume these are also inspired by Silent hill?).

Great usage of strong lightning/shadows as well.

Gameplay also shines here, it makes the best use of the expander I've seen in a while. It seems some combat scenario's here were specifically created to make the Expander as effective as possible.
Some fights get really spicy, the trap inside the frozen basement in particular is pretty nasty. I died twice but nothing striked me as unfair or frustrating. So good job on that as well.
I even got to use the tripmines to great effect:

Spoiler

In the final fight, when the viewscreen warns about a "black swarm", I made sure to wire the area with tripmines before hitting the switch. That certainly gave me an early advantage haha

My only (minor) complaint was the button hunt inside the factory, I feel like the signposting could have been better here. Luckily I didn't get lost for too long.
I still need to check out the other version. Overall, great job!