#1333
Posted 10 September 2019 - 11:34 PM
I just realised how similar Allen Blum's Derelict and Levelord's Sewer maps are in terms of layout/atmosphere/visual narrative. While the former level takes place on an abandoned oil tanker in the middle of the ocean, and the latter is a traditional LA city level with a sewer system, they have a similar structure. For both levels, you just start in an open area with nonlinear layout, there are various ways you can move, also there are many windows with enemies waiting to you which can be unsettling and disorienting early on. Your job is to find a key in the top of the area (highest window) and needs jumping/minor platforming in both levels. Then with the key you can go down to the second part of the level, a much different area with sewers, rotating/crushing gears and such. The enemy placement/pacing/atmosphere is also rather different in the segments in both maps. The main similarity, however, is the two segments are related as above and below in both maps, and both mirror each other in a very 3D-esque way. One had the top of the ship and the bottom of the ship, the other had the city above and the sewer below. Even they have the similarity of the above area has a little secret hint to the below area with Derelict have an actual blocked entrance from the ship, while Sewer have a short sewerish area in the city part of the level.
They carefully put various connecting locations in both levels as well, although the main difference is that Sewer had been left a bit unfinished, and you can use these connections (shafts) breaking the flow of the level, while in Derelict, they are mostly multiplayer only available stuff. Also I think in Sewer the blue key is not had been put in its final location, it should have been in the small room that spawned Pigcops. Also there are some unused Pigcop spawns, presumably belong to one of the two touchplates share the same tag (one with the yellow key, the other is the room that supposed to have the blue one).
Overall, I wouldn't be surprised if Levelord took lessons from Allen when he made Sewer. Derelict was a very early map in the game, at first it wasn't even a stormy/dark level, but I assume it was the base of making Sewer, at least layout-wise. There are other levels that used verticality very well (ie. Spaceport, Freeway), but the segments on those maps aren't that different, they are just part 1 and part 2 of the same theme. Also, there are levels in the game which used the "change theme" effectively, like The Abyss, Dark Side, or even later levels like Mirage Barrage, but those maps are horizontal in comparison.
This might not be the first time when Levelord took hint from Allen's design. It's still unknown by the developement hell of Duke3D who created Warp Factor's main layout, but it's definitely took hints from Dark Side, they are also similarly structured maps.
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