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Inter-episode discussion  "past, present and future"

#31

Okay after gathering my thoughts a bit, I think I'm ready to post a new part of my complete feedback attempt RIGHT NAO.

I'll just add a litlle thing about City Under Siege and then I'll talk about one main map and 2 side maps because they're the last maps I have the most in mind right now and therefore I can provide real feedback on them.

Here goes.


Maps part 2 :
----------------------


_Addition to City Under Siege : I forgot to mention the litlle section where we are shrunk, realy unique. Reminded me a bit of that classic usermap of Ep1 where we are shrunk in a bathroom. And I realy like the idea of having everyday objects becoming "mountains". I also liked the fact our character has a higher pitched tone in the voice it was funny, I can't wait to hear the other OCs' voice. the architecture of that portion is once again original and very well exploited, and the section in the toy house ,although bypassable, was slightly difficult but very manageable and the fact enemies also have higher pitched tones make up for the funny part of the section ^^

_Jungle Base (outside) : I don't know what people have against that map :/ Personally I liked it, also at first I realy feared it to be very big and very hard to navigate and ear raping with noises like it was the case in Oblivion but in the end I didn't have a hard time finding the blue keycard (fortunately we are told about its necessity) and the base although harder to reach isn't as hard as I thought it would have been. I guess I enjoyed that map because I have a good experience of Zaxtor's levels in general thanks to extensively playing Oblivion and I guess most people didn't. What makes the jungle part of the map more enjoyable is the fact that we are more restricted and not entirely free unlike in Oblivion and also the fact the vegetation is not overly omnipresent makes it easy to navigate allowing us to focus on path finding and not get irritated by getting blocked all the time by a bush. The only thing I didn't realy like but it did not bother me that much in the end is the fact those "Telepor-stump" as I call them are unclear in terms of destination, I mean there are either mushrooms or colored flies on them but if I wanted to base my navigation on that I found myself running arround in circles and in my second playthrough I found the blue key card by luck and the path to the base was found almost illegitimately by making a big curved take damage jump from a useless path that happens to pass near it. Whereas in my first playthrough I found the base by luck and the keycard by elimination. So in fact that map is enjoyable in its own right but I guess the only bad thing is that it's a map of its own Made-in-Zaxtor genre which makes it so that it will divide people arround it more than any other map. Like I said you can realy enjoy this map either by having played Oblivion before and therefore notice how easier, "fairer" and clearer it is in comparison or by simply likeing forest maps which is an unsafe bet since those are extremely rare in the comunity as far as I know it. In terms of difficulty it's also well balanced and unlike in Oblivion you can realy see where the enemy is and retaliate, I mean they are less likely to attack you by surprise and kill you out progressively which was the main downfall of Oblivion's forest maps mostly for first time players. I'd say people were a bit unfair with that map, mostly if they didn't play Oblivion in the first place; it's not one of my favorite main levels in overall but as far as the second half of the main maps are concerned it IS my favorite followed by James' Switzerland map but that's for another time.

_Jungle Base (inside) : Obviously Made-in-Zaxtor map = complex base with backtracking. Yet again since I've extensively played Oblivion that map didn't pose me a problem and I was pleased to find "the claw of the artist" as we say in French, as in you realy know it when you're playing a Zaxtor map and I should say this one is at the height of his reputation. Although complex it's not as hard as I anticipated and the objectives are clearer than they used to in Oblivion. I never got lost in it, had to use TabMap only to confirm where I thought I was going to at a certain point and also first time I played in order to remember the path to the exit. And the difficulty about the same as his Oblivion maps, it's slightly high mostly because of Battlelords indoors close and personal but that's not much of a big deal in the end and we are given enough supplies for it, also in my first playthrough I had found Magnum Shells which were very enjoyable to use against them. And the puzzle with the timed switch is extremly original and unique ! Although I'd say it can become a bit irritating after failing for the 4th time, it's a good thing we have the sequence in the PDA otherwise it would have made it unbearable. The sequence in the dark with the flashlight might be a bit too long though, I mean the flashlight got out of power something like 3 times on my first play and 2 times on my second, along with the timed switch puzzle this creates 2 situations that make the progression and rythm sudenly stoped which might feel weird for such a game but the fact you go back in your usual pace with no problem afterwards kind of makes this forgivable in the end. The only thing I realy didn't like about this map if the fact the switch for the reactor door is actualy hidden behind the reactor itself, first this is unclear (surely a camera shows it but you can hardly guess it on your first playthrough) and the platforming to reach it and go back from it is short but damn hard with realy tiny platforms on the edge of it with a small ceiling that prevents you from jumping high and have more room for jump adjustment, that's frustrating and makes you save n' load quite a lot. And finaly I'd say the timer in the ending section when it's gonna blow up is kind of short, even using the Speed Boots on your first playthrough can make it tight, I did succeed on my first play but I got killed during the cinematic because of my remaining 6 seconds and the cinematic lasting more than 6s. What made me enjoy this map is the fact that it's faithfull to Zaxtor's touch without being as unclear/hard/sometimes unfair as it used to be in Oblivion and I'm pretty sure those who discover Zaxtor's mapping through this map will have a happier time than they would have in Oblivion and it also gives them a good practice if they consider trying Oblivion out.


Now on to my first two Extra Missions (like I said I tell about them because I have them well in mind and can decently feedback them (and feed back on them (it's a pun))).


_Oil Rig : Even though I still haven't found Repent Base this map is my favorite map out of all the Extra Missions along with the Xuglop Train and the Hidden Dojo but I'll tell about them next time. This map is YET AGAIN original, personally I have never played an oilrig themed map EVER (Splinter Cell 1 doesn't count) and it's nicely done. The heavy rain is also unique and although it may look ugly at first glance, mostly in the cinematic, it gives a good mechanic, seeing enemies as shadows or frames like in Silent Hill 2 and 3 was an interesting experience. Actualy that's what makes this map good and unique. Having an original setting and architecture is not enough and there you made a map that has those plus a good atmosphere (thanks to its weather) and the whole map happens to be a good/interesting and original experience in overall, at least that's how I fellt on my two playthroughs of it. And that section under the platform was an incredible addition to it, simple but spectacular in its own right and slightly stressfull mostly when you hear the wave closing in without seeing it and knowing you're not in a safe spot, also the death cinematic is interesting as well. And I was positively surprised by how you actualy end the level. Although I don't understand the point of destroying the 2 powersuits outside, I mean it's not mandatory in order to finish the level and it actualy shows up on the level's screen in the Mission Control so I'm realy wondering what's the point apart from sheer completition and providing the feeling of "Job Well Done". In the end if we consider the whole of Ep2 that map is clearly one of my outmost favorite along with "The Wharf" and the "Tower of Life" (not counting EDF missions) because of the fact it's a short but very interessting and original experience.

_Zeta Base : Warning big change in tone there. Most people loved this map, personaly I did and do not. Its design is realy good and coherent.We cross a good variety of places and the fact it uses a great variety of enemies is also good. It also makes use of varied temporary weapons and alternate ammo. 2 temp weapons actualy not showing up in the main maps (the Riot Grenade Launcher as I call it and what appears to be a Harpoon Gun that is the only gun to use the torpedo alt ammo). What makes me not like this map is the fact it's way too big, way too long it feels like it'll never end. Also it's complexity is scattered on 2 maps that actualy intercomunicate, that's a very good gameplay mechanic the author made up there but it's way too long. In fact the map becomes harder and harder not because of the enemies (well a bit but not realy) but because of all the endurance required from the player. Maybe the map is meant to played in different settings I don't know but personally I played the map first time in one big setting and trust me I was beat at the end, I finnished the map on Normal with 38 health with Zaxtor which left me with a bad and painfull souvenir. I've played it a second time on Expert with Geoffrey and although I'm still not done yet (very close to the end) and although it went better this time thanks to experience it still felt like an eternity. Fortunately we get a Katana early in the level because all the zombies would have eaten up all our ammo and made the map trully unbearable in overall if we were to lack ammo because of them. All the alt ammo and temp weapons is a good idea since it makes us adaptable to the different situations we get involved in but personally I just take the Katana and stick with it and reserve regular weapons only for long distance fights (easier with Geoffrey than with Zaxtor). In the end it still is an exellent map in design and difficulty ballance, but I didn't like it because of its abusive length that makes it tirering when playing it in one setting. It even managed to beat my sense of orientation, After I finnished the second map and went back in the first one I relied almost exclusively on the TabMap in order to find what has opened and where the Keycard doors were. So yeah my least favorite map of all but for trully subjective reasons because objectively it has good design, good architecture, exellent atmosphere thanks to the soundtracks, good variety of enemies, and adaptable weaponry thanks to all the temp weapons and alt ammo scattered arround the place and very very very well hidden secrets (found only 3 in overall on my end) only its extreme length is a negative aspect in the objective part of my opinion, the author has been too ambitious with the length but at least that didn't make him make a map that becomes worse as we progress through it which is the biggest danger with very long maps and he didn't fall into that trap one bit.


I wanted to talk about James's mission in Switzerland but I feel I must recall it a bit more in order to give a real feedback on it, thinking about it reminded me of it and gave me elements to feedback on but I feel the need of more just to be sure. And as for the maps set on Mars and the Ghost ship I have too litlle memory of them to give any valuable feedback on it. Same for the other Extra Missions (Xuglop Train, Hidden Dojo and that Repent Base I haven't found yet but know how to). And I save the EDF missions for the end because they deserve feedback as well mostly considering that I've completed ALL of them in ARMAGEDON difficulty so I realy have enough experience of them in order to give feedback.
BTW don't hesitate telling me if you agree or disagree, think that what I say is fair, unfair, too kind or too harsh. Since it's "Feedback" and not "Review" I'm mostly subjective but I'm not the kind of person who says "Awesome" all the time because of fanboyism.

BTW it took me 70 minutes to write this one Micky ^_-
(Because I had a call in the midle of it which almost made me lose the thread of my thoughts)
1

User is offline   Lt.Havoc 

#32

Well, I have to say the lack of ammo and health in Zeta base makes it very challenging as well as the size, but you can always get health back by drinking water (you can recover more health then in Duke 3D) but I can see how you can get stuck in it or loose orientation in there.
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User is offline   XThX2 

#33

FYI, Riot Grenade Launcher appears in some other maps, Ghost Ship for one.

About Zeta Base, I'd like if someone wrote a secrets walkthrough or something. My best was 13/16 and I spent around 3 and a half hours of playtime... Yeah. :D (I also still couldn't find the last artifact or the red key at the end, I don't know if they are related. I wonder what they unlock too...)

This post has been edited by XThX2: 13 April 2015 - 11:13 AM

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#34

I don't find that we lack ammo in it but that's because I use the Katana extensively even at places it would have been easier to use a gun but that's my taste there. and it's also my strategy because thanks to that I have a good stock of warfare for the ending section that was my downfall in my first playthrough since zaxtor's maximum limits are kind of low apart from his slot 3 weapon.

As for water and food I actualy never think about those, and whenever I do it's out of pure fun, I mean I do that only when I feel like to, never by necessity, but I will have to strongly consider that when I'll play it on Armagedon. Thanks for bringing me the idea ^^

EDIT: I didn't find the 5th artefact either but personally I don't think they unlock anything. and as for the red keycard I don't remember finding it nor do I remember seeing a red keycard door O_o

This post has been edited by thedrawliner: 13 April 2015 - 11:17 AM

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User is offline   Lt.Havoc 

#35

I am still waiting for someone to make a playthrough/letsplay of it and put it onto YouTube, that would be helpful.
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#36

Personally I would love to if I could T_T
0

User is online   Jblade 

#37

Thanks for more extensive feedback! Also happy to see a discussion about gameplay and tactics without me intervening :D It makes me proud of the TC and I'm glad you guys enjoy it enough to have gameplay nuances and stuff.

About the Heavy powersuits in the Oil rig - if you destroy them than 2 power suit enemies will disappear from the Island Facility, which will make parts of the map much easier (the implication being they were shipped in from the Oil rig but when destroyed are no longer around for the Yakuza to use) I wanted to do a bit more with this but didn't have time to implement it.
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User is offline   Lt.Havoc 

#38

Seriously, AMC needs to get some of those standard powersuits as well, would make some really nice addition to the arsenal. Reminds me, for the Next EP there should be a map on the moon where you are in a power suit and fight enemies on the lunar surface and you actually need to wear a spacesuit if you leave the powerarmor. I just dont know if low gravity can be simulated (I recall back in the day, space maps simply put everything under water so you had to use scuba gear and whatnot. Big Orbit used that technique) and you have to refill your air supply in regular intervals. Just an idea.
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#39

MS Corp's mobile armor is kind of an equivalent, not only is it more powerfull than the powersuit but it would also be less costy for AMC's budget thanks to their partnership.
And I think they should consider your idea as well ^^

Ah I see, but what's weird is that I played that level before the Oilrig and now I played it a second time on Expert I don't realy see any difference, the powersuits I met were the same as in my first playthrough; maybe if I had decided to go back to base, do the Oilrig and then the Island Facility that would have probably worked but as I said in my feedback since I use the Zilla's atomic round to kill the 2 powersuits at the end of the Tank section (I suppose THEY were to be OOO in Oilrig) it kind of goes back to the same. But the idea is there and it's always better to have such things than none ^^
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User is online   Jblade 

#40

There's one Powersuit near the tank bay, and another near the reactor doors that should be gone if you destroy them in Oil rig :D
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#41

That's odd I don't remember seeing them even before doing the Oil Rig O_o
Or maybe it's just my memory playing games with me that wouldn't be new :/
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User is offline   Player Lin 

#42

View PostXThX2, on 13 April 2015 - 11:12 AM, said:

About Zeta Base, I'd like if someone wrote a secrets walkthrough or something. My best was 13/16 and I spent around 3 and a half hours of playtime... Yeah. :D (I also still couldn't find the last artifact or the red key at the end, I don't know if they are related. I wonder what they unlock too...)


That's the reasons I still replaying the first few levels of ep2, just want to gotta finding 'em (secrets) all! :D

--

Did restart a level or new game or abort mission will cause artifact I already found just missing? I'm sure I found some but I don't see any of them in the base when I'm mess around of AMC members' equipments... :\
(I know it may not the right place to ask...)

EDIT : Nevermind, I forgot to check the R&D machine...

This post has been edited by Player Lin: 14 April 2015 - 05:14 AM

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#43

HI THERE !!!

It's you know who ! For you know what ! For who knows why ...


This time I'll tell about the remaining Extra Missions (Xuglop Train, Repent Base, Hidden Dojo).
I'd want to talk about "Far Mountain Reach" but along with "Ghost Ship" I fear it might be too long (besides there's still a secret level to find) :/.

Maps part 3 :
--------------------


Repent Base : Well ... I'm afraid there's nothing much to say about this map, a bit generic looking but its architecture is simple but effective and the soundtrack is not outstanding but it was good and pleasant to hear, besides surprisingly enough it fits the Argentina setting I'm glad you didn't put a Hispanic music there. It's a nice and short map, not too complex, not tedious in any way possible. The darkness may be disliked but since we're given 2 of the Night Vision equivalent it's far from being abusive, besides we're often in corridors so you just step back when you hear an enemy and prepare accordingly. There are bits of originality like that little shark pond that hides a secret and the small submarine dock at the end, also that place with alien computers and a nasty surprise, I suppose the MIA Gun was there for it but personally I didn't use it (on expert) since I had enough with the secret I found earlier. The open section, right after the Yellow Keycard is a bit tough, personally the map didn't get me used to that but fortunately having magnum shells, grenade equivalents, and accessorily enemies shooting on each others made it manageable even with as low armor as I had. Actually that might be the only thing I can criticize the map with, you get ONE armor for the entire map (I got 2 thanks to the loadout editor) and although short I'd say it's a bit not enough, a second one would be nice (or maybe there is only one in the 2 secrets I didn't find and if there really is then it would make a nice little reward and my criticism on that would fall in the water). BUT in the end it's a nice and simple map, not too exiting but not boring (it's too short to be boring), sympathetic music, 2 nasty but manageable surprises to wake you up a bit. If you're tired and don't want to have a long and difficult map but not too easy either then this is the one to pick I'd say.

Hidden Dojo : I've had weird thoughts at first but now I played it again and more fluently I have things to say I didn't earlier. Firstly I agree with the PDA text, it is indeed beautiful, not extraordinary but it's appealing for the eye with a good selection of colors, props and soundtrack which gives in the end a perfectly realistic (or at least credible if you want to bother with words) map in terms of setting and scenery. Inside the Dojo itself it's ... well like a Dojo ? A lost of space to walk and fight around, enemies that play their role of Ninja pretty well, another Sword Bonus (can't remember the name) that is neatly placed since we get quite a few Ninjas in the first room. the level progression is original with a circular staircase but it's not as predictive as it could have been since you end up having to use a different path, and doors aren't locked only with switches and keys which cuts my amateur critique's spirit a slack ^^. And like in the Oil Rig the level ending is original (no longer this time but still) and the fact it has a consequence is rewarding although it's weird that nothing shows up on the mission's image in the Command Center :/ BUT there are 2 things that I find odd and potentially dislikable there. First after you got the first key to enter the building one can easily get stuck, personally I was, we could think the Gongs don't do anything mostly when we go back to the door AFTER it closed back down without us noticing it, fortunately I heard it on my second play but still. Would have been preferable to have both doors controlled by one Gong each instead and maybe keep them open but that wouldn't be necessary since that gimmick isn't used that much in the TC. And so since I got blocked by that first time I played I did some Wall-Jumping outside and directly managed to reach the second floor but I couldn't go back in the ground floor since it's locked by 2 keys from this side. Then about the secret, personally I have no clue how to reach the house legitimately, I did saw the cable but nothing on it, so I thought you had to walk on it but that was not it either. SO thanks to some wall-jumping and platforming I managed to reach its top, even though I found that myself it was satisfying but then the wondering of it being illegitimate feels like cheating. That's pretty much the only thing I didn't like with that map, the legitimate way in the main Dojo is very slightly not clear enough (although the fact I found it 3rd time I played proves that it's perfectly foundable) but I might be saying this out of "post-discovery frustration" and the way to the secret house from the Dojo is too well hidden or maybe that's me being as dummy as I have been with the toolbox of "The Wharf". Apart from that it remains a good enjoyable map, it's not a walk in the park because of the Ninjas who happen to be quite dangerous when at least 3 of them are present at once, but it's really manageable and still contributes to the originality present in the TC in general (will talk about that as a conclusion when it'll all be over).

Xuglop Train : YAY another train map ! I like those ^^ I had enjoyed the "Mars Train" of Ep1, plus the train sections of the first HK map and the first "Underground Fortress"'s. That train looks more classic though but that's not a bad thing I'd say since most train maps I saw were either on High-Tech trains, or on modern everyday-like trains. This one is more open, the wagons are more varied than what I'm used to, it shows it really has things to transport instead of just enemies (and civilian passengers in theory). The texture set is well chosen, it adds to the classic look of it, also makes it look more like a freighter which it really is. It actually reminded me of the train sections of Sly 2 Band of Thieves but with more variety in terms or wagons and their contents. Straightforwardness is keyword. And the enemies I'd say are also well chosen and their placement is also well done and not in bad quantity (not too "not enough" and not too much). The weaponry we are given might seem kind of light though, although the temporary weapon can make that vary from player to player and also from OC to OC but at least if you make good use of what you're given with no waste then it means it's optimized and if it were for me then I'd say it is for everyone who hasn't lost his/her time on today's FPSs. Only one armour can also sound light as well but since I'm sure most people have one in their loadout I'd say we have the same thing as in Repent Base without a potentially hidden one in a secret since there are none there. Besides we're given a sphere at the end that gives us 200 which definitely compensates for that. The powersuit can seem like a nasty and abusive surprise at first glace but when I realized that the temporary rocket launcher we are provided with actually holds 10 rockets instead of 5 that becomes just a little trial of dodge n' move, besides you've got to have at least one AP weapon in stores just in case as well, or else you'd better rehearse your strategy a bit in terms of equipment but that's none of my business. The way we end the mission with being teleported on a boat was a nice touch, made even nicer with a huge reference to IW. And I felt like seeing the locomotive explode while you're out of trouble on a different vehicle, along with a special angle of view, was worth a movie shot, there's got to be a movie or a series that has a similar scene at least. Although it wasn't as spectacular as it could have been in imagination but that's because of the engine's limitations so that doesn't count. the music is a bit weird, I don't know if I like it or not but at least I'd say it's fitting and it doesn't bother player in his ravaging the wagons so I'd say it's A okay. Yet another perfectly enjoyable train map to add to my list. Thanks to you there is one more train map, and it may actually be my most favorite train map out of all the ones I've played until then, it would be if "Mars Train" from Ep1 weren't already so far back in my memory to make a choice.



There you go, next time I'll tell about "Far Mountain Reach", the episode's secret level (if I find it that is but that shouldn't pose too much of a problem thanks to the help I've been given) and Ghost Ship. Since "Ghost Ship" and "Far Mountain Reach" are 2-in-1 levels that will count as 4 and potentially 5 with the secret level of the episode. This is gonna be tough to keep everything in mind for a feedback like this o_o.
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User is online   Jblade 

#44

Thanks again for some more extensive feedback! In the new patch the final confrontation has a train level that you'll probably enjoy as well! I imagine we'll have more in the future, although I plan to make things more interesting by integrating skyboxes into them so they actually seem to travel a route.
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#45

Oh don't make me dream and drool in my slumber ^^
I'm definitely up for that plan you've talked about right now !

I also heard you would make things interesting in Ep3 with the integration for real of Silencers, besides if you stick to the plot given in Ep1 with the descriptions we should confront LeSang in Egypt, that is also going to be interesting.
BTW when I'll be done with maps I'll also feedback on equipment and then only it'll be as complete I want it to be ^_-
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#46

Wohohoho !!
Back in action with some action in the back :/


Seriously though, so this time I'll tell about the last main levels set on Earth, and next time I'll tell about "Mikkoville" and hopefully all the missions set on Mars but that's going to be very complex for me to sort it out and keep everything in mind and also not mix things up, I'll probably split Mars in 2 parts. Anyway here goes the potentially ante-penultimate part of my feedback on maps (main maps cause I'll leave a word on EDF maps) :

Maps part 4 :
--------------------

Far Mountain Reach (surface) : Nice snow themed map again. Kind of a derivative of Providence but in Daytime. It's kind of linear but we realy can pick whatever way we want in order to reach the castle area, of course we would want to backtrack a few times in order to ensure we got everything in terms of ammo and health items and also in terms of casualties but the fact we realy can chose to do that or not is apreciated. The texture set is good and has harmony with pretty much everything in the overall. Varied in temrs of fight, long and short, indoors and outdoors, distant or close, supernatural or not. I'd say we're given enough for what we're asked to do, at the beginning I always think it would be nice to have a bit more but if you give James the Ak-103 as temp weapon you're pretty much all set since you have 150 and later you find another one and reach more than 200 which REALY helps for long distance fights, besides if cultists drop Tommy guns you will be able to decently replace the Ak-103 for shorter distance fights because I'd say they are quite dangerous to fight with pistols. The enemy placement is also good, they use pretty much every spots they would have used if they had RL inteligence, surely they're often in a position of advantage compared to you but this tests your adaptability skills quite well and it's also a good way to see if your equipment with James is good in general. I liked the part in the castle, the little secret in it is sympathetic, the part under it had nothing special I'd say, apart from a decent amount of ammo and also a nasty surprise in the big room but at least you have a lot of space to use and some pillars to hide behind. The setting in overall is a bit like reminding of IW in episode 4 when we travel from time to time, and I actualy guess that James's saying it's becoming his trademark is also pointing that out. In terms of soundtrack I'd say the ambience is cool, as cool and frosty as the place itself, and it actually fits very well with the fact we're dealing with cultists, I mean they are intimidating in a way and the ambience given by the soundtrack matches them perfectly along with the setting which is top notch in this case. I also like the music starting from when we enter the castle, it's a bit discrete but I listened to it on a media player and although a bit repetitive it's also a good choice, it goes along well with the pace you're having at this point of the level since you feel you're near the end and have to get a move on but not too hastely. As for the secret level I can't believe I didn't spot the first switch on my very first playthrough, it was realy placed in a good spot, I also liked the fact it actualy activates the possibility to find the other 2, I was like "Wait that hole wasn't there last time I played" and in the end the switches aren't that hard to find in the end, it's only the first one that can realy easily be missed despite the fact it's not that much hidden, the other 2 can be guessed realy easily since there's a amulet next to one (and amulets aren't afected by lightning which makes it and the switch easy to find) and the other one can be found easily as well since you can see a big black square far away. Obviously I'm not telling where they are precisely ^_- In the end it's another realy solid level, my favorite along with Zaxtor's as far as the second half of the pain episode is concerned.


Secret Level : Now that's a bizillion times different from Doom Disco !. I liked what James says at the beginning, I'm pretty sure it's another reference to IW's episode 4 since he says something similar in the second level and the setting is reminiscent of the part where we travel from time to time. The setting is original as far as the mod is concerned, we already saw something similar in IW but in a more basic way whereas here it's much more developed and charismatic as well. The brand new enemies are interesting, at first you may think it's gonna be easy peasy since they're melee fighters but you soon realize it's not as easy as it looked like. I don't know if those enemies were already present in Ep 1's invasion maps, I think they were but not the ones that become red at times, and their gimmick is quite good, and surprising for some. If we were to fight them as Merlijn sometime that would be grand, and also reminiscent of Hexen and Witchaven. the level design is quite basic but solid in its own way thanks to the ambiance, enemies and the fact every corridor and room aren't the same. The 2 fights were kind of hard actually, the first one is because of the smallness of the area and the only 4 pillars and the fact we have enemies that come to look for us behind them, and the other one because of the extremely open scenery and big amount of enemies, that ending part is also a nice reminiscence of Doom Disco's ending part in a more challenging way, a bit as if we turned all Serious Sam for a moment. The boss fight was actually easier than last time we saw it since the setting it far more open and we also have real weapons to nail it down with. In the end it's a really good secret level and it's also extremely worth playing through it since you end up back in the normal level with far more ammo than you technically have and also more protection if you had hard times in the first level of the sequence. The soundtrack was good but not memorable, and it might also sound out of place given the setting but it goes along with the action and the pace players should instinctively take on that map so it's not a big deal. Very good map, a lot better than Doom Disco, I know it was just a gimmick map but still, and the reward is at the height of what it makes us go through and allows us to attend the next map in very good conditions. A nice experience in the end, and easily reachable if you find the first switch in the normal level. Nothing to dislike about this map I'd say. Maybe the big fight in the ending section if you don't like Serious Sam I guess but that's a matter of taste, and you simply must not dive entirely blindly into it if you don't want to have a hard time so it's all up to the player to turn the experience the way he/she wants, a nice principle when we think about it.


Far Mountain Reach (research center) : Well another base map. Not as hard and complex as Zaxtor's that's for sure. Yet again maps about bases and research centers are no longer original since they're pretty much the main theme of the community it seems. But, I don't know how you guys do that, you still manage to make things so that they're unique in their own ways and it's mostly thanks to all the possibilities given by the TC and you've made another excellent and close to complete use of it. The texture set is in continuity with the center part of the previous (normal) level, the general architecture and design is coherent and more than credible. Pretty linear but when you play without thinking you actually don't even realize that this map is linear, but I never said that linearity was a bad thing, it depends on how it's done and so far no map from AMC that was linear was in a bad way (my phrase is weird but I'm French you know). Varied rooms, small and big, filled with stuff (like those filled with crates) or not (like the arena after getting the Yellow key) and an interestingly exploited way out to conclude everything. The enemies are the most challenging ones, the demons with their homing attacks and the armed zombies with their hitscan weapons were always placed so that they can shoot at you almost as soon as you open a door which keeps you focused in the play. Fortunately we're given far enough ammo for it, mostly for slot 2, 3 and 4 and you also get extras with the few temporary weapons and the slot 0 one, and slot 8 if you found one of the secrets in the previous level. AND if you happened to play the secret level beforehand then you've got to be able to beat this map in good conditions, you're so full that you really have to be a non-existing shot not to beat this map ! I don't know what some people had with the boss fight (I don't remember if it were glitch related or not). The boss is interesting because he launches varied elemental attacks, so far I noticed fire, ice, electricity, and I don't know what those white/grey energy balls were since I never got hit by those. Obviously I'd say they're relatively easy to dodge, and you'd better because the fire balls on expert managed to blow all my fire armor and almost all my health I can't imagine the result if you don't have the research that makes burning last less long.I'd say we're given more than enough for this boss : Personally I hide, take the GDF Plasma Gun, wait for the sorcerers to teleport to me, shoot and silver knife 'em, empty the GDF on the boss then use the green laser gun, empty my silver UMP ammo, fire a lot of Golden Jericho and maybe finish with the XM8 but last time I played I didn't need to. If you can't beat the boss with all that stuff then you really got a problem !! I was actually afraid I couldn't first time I played but then I realised green lasers work on supernatural beings which I don't think was the case in Ep1 which was a nice surprise, I remember first time I played I was worrying about my chances of succeeding and when I used the XM8 I ended him so easily on Normal that I was wondering if it weren't the XM8 being overly powerful compared to Ep1 but in the end no. The soundtrack for the boss is actualy discrete as well, I listened in Escape Menu just to see and I'd say it's YET AGAIN fitting and well chosen, you could have made other choices that would have been far worse. As for the level's music in general I personally don't like it but out-game only, because in-game it acompanies the action quite well and therefore is a typical example of soundtrack that is very good in-game but not out-game but that's not a bad thing since it's a level music's job and it fulfills that role perfectly. Scenaristically the ending is a bit basic artistically speaking but it succeeds in its role of keeping the universe and plot coherent and in motion, mostly when he says Rusty tangled with the cult in the past, personally that got me interested to see how they look like since they're on Mars. But then it gets me to wonder : Are there 2 cults or 1 ? The cult on Mars looks so different compared to the one we met in Ep1 and in that level ... This is kind of unclear, I don't see any element that clearly hints that there is 1 cult and the first cultists were just a sub-division or that there are 2 cults that simply don't have anything to do with each other (that would be worrying since they could forge an alliance if that were the case). But personally I don't need much from the plot to enjoy the game so this hasn't spoiled the map one bit and the general plot of the game is already very original so the fact it's not all wasted by that little element I'm point out there proves that you have set solid bases for the plot and the room for development should remain safe in the future, I'm sure it'll be handled as good as it has been before and now. That's probably the strongest point of the map, a good boss and new plot information that raise our curiosity as for what's gonna happen next.


Ghost Ship (teleporter) : A nicely introducing short map. The music is not memorable but still fitting and not bad to hear both in and out of the game. Liked that little surprise with the flaming dudes right as the door opens. Design is simple but effective, we can't get lost, backtracking is almost not present and way too short to bother anybody. We are decently equipped I guess (since I give Micky the Flamethrower and use it extensively on that mission I can't really tell but it feels like far from being light). The number of enemies is decent and their placement as well, at least they don't eat up too much of our ammo before the big teleportation room, otherwise it would have been slightly irritating (no chance for me since I use the Flamethrower). The gimmick with the teleporter is interesting, now that I'm thinking of it it feels like it foreshadows the boss fight on the ship, it's kind of the same thing, you activate something, enemies appear, you fight them and potentially wait for a second wave to come stronger than the previous one with a tough demon as the cherry on the cake. Perhaps I'm thinking too much but that's the impression it gives. And the way the level is ended first sounded odd for me but then I was like "Micky must have had fun making this voice acting" ^^. I don't understand how to get up to the secret though :/ I found a hidden switch on the left console close to the blue plug but it appears to do nothing, and with dnclip I see that you get to it via the exterior but I don't see from where you do get out since the aeration is too tall for us to jump out. But fortunately that secret is not too important otherwise I would have been very frustrated. Also it looks like the Mini Shrinker is there as a misleading hint, first reflex is to shrink yourself to pass under the door before it closes on you but you have no time to go to the second one besides there's nothing to reflect your shot on in the second corridor or is there ? But we can do that just by sliding underneath it which is good since it allows me to keep my precious Flamethrower, and avoid getting stomped on. In the end that map is not memorable but it serves as a good premise for the ship itself and the ending section with the teleporter is the absolute best part of the map, and the commanders blasting out of the walls is a nice surprising touch mostly if you didn't have time to clear the first wave of enemies (which is often the case with me because of me Flamethrower (gotta avoid crisping enemies too fast ^^)). At first it sounds like it's not going to be memorable but the teleporter part wipes that impression away for good.


Ghost Ship (itself) : I don't think I ever played a map like this before, a ship based map. That ship is gigantic ! It feels like it's like an aircraft carrier times 40 or something. It's quite complex actually, a bit close to Zaxtor's Oblivion maps but not too close fortunately.The rooms are varied, both in terms of look, size and nature and in terms of enemies. Most of it is like a big floating base, sometimes I felt like I wasn't actually on a ship. And the part near the captain's residence that is all "old-castle" or "Providence" themed added to that but that's not a bad thing thanks to the variety it brings in. Also some interesting and original gimmicks there, like teleporting the main cannon with a nice voxel effect there, and paths that block themselves but not in an abusive way (Gas, devilish grate, disappearing stairs (can be bypassed by a wall-jump but since the door is locked ...)). The big conference room was a nice touch as well, even though we have a tough fight it's still an expected surprise (mostly with an M-16 and grenades waiting for you (if they weren't there it would have been less expectable but it's better to have something to fight with in case we're low on ammo (which is hard to achieve I'd say unless we're a poor shot)). The secrets are reasonably hidden, I didn't find the 3rd one but I have good hopes of finding it (who knows there could be a new gun for another OC (I'm actually getting desperate on that (will be even more if what I'm doing doesn't unlock the Golden slot 3 guns))). Micky's commentaries were fun to hear, mostly the one with exams, I don't know how they are in Australia but I'm happy I'm not Australian ^^ The ship can appear a bit mazy at times, first time I played I got a hard time finding back the place where you use the Blue Keycard. You're sense of orientation sure is needed there and although not too hard to navigate those who would want to rely on the TabMap will definitely have a hard time since all the floors are displayed on one-another it's not clear at all, but despite it's big ass size when all the enemies are dead it no longer feels as big as it fellt at first glance but this can apply to any map of any nature. Enemies tend to be a bit sneaky mostly the spirits and the new demons that throw explosive balls of fire. The former turns invisible even for Night Vision and the latter deals a load of damage and it even managed to hit me from behind a metal crate (AKA splash damage through the crate). The ending boss fight was utmost ... things. Reminiscent of a Resident Evil 5 boss (never played that game but obviously saw LPs) in its size and principle (kill it before it destroys your ride) and the fact you beat it indirectly by using the ships' cannons is an interesting mechanic. Although first time I played I didn't find that the main gun was teleportable and therefore was stuck on that fight, BUT fortunately the cockpit has a screen that hints at that fact in a way so it's not too bad in the end but you just have to think about it. I mean the fight is so freaking hard without it that you've got to wonder if you have forgotten something. For the fight we are given quite a big load of ammo, mostly for slot 1, 3, 4, 5 and 7 which is really a good thing because it's really hard, the first time I'm having a hard time. I played it 3 times and never managed to handle it without dieing at least 2 times. I try to select my targets by first killing either the most powerful enemies or those that have potentially homing shots but the main problem here is that although some places are safer than others you're practically NEVER safe, apart from in the cockpit but when you get back out to fire the canon you get light up by everyone which forces you to fight (actually that is good because I'd say it would be frustrating being able to kill nobody mostly considering the enormous legion they constitute). Every time you fire the canon you have a nastier surprise coming up from front, left, right and behind it really feels like absolutely everything is against you and every enemy is fighting in order to be the first one to kill you in the fastest and most ludicrous way which is kind of funny in theory just thinking about it. It might seem like a bad thing as I'm telling but in the end I'd say it's about time we have a REAL boss fight with a REALLY big arena and a REAL challenge (I can't imagine the difficulty in Armageddon this is going to be a pain in the fuselage that's for sure). BESIDES when you manage to kill every single one of them AND the boss it's very satisfying, you feel all mighty and like a PGM champion (I exaggerate a bit but you get the idea). I'm pretty sure the Build engine is pushed to the limits, besides the boss actually reacts to what we deal to him, when he's in for the final blow he has some sort of tired look on his face as in "Go ahead just finish me off already (espèce d'enflure haute comme trois pommes)" which is a neat detail. YET AGAIN a very very very solid map with only the complexity that can be non-enjoyable but that's because of today's players who have lost any sort of skill in navigating in FPSs. Design is top notch, ambiance is varied and fitting the 2 settings we go through (normal and hell), the enemies are varied and themed accordingly, the boss is impressive and well designed in its look and gimmick, the music is not bad and very fitting as it makes it clear that you're on a high tech thing and that you're on for something important and dangerous (If I had listened to that music not knowing what it's corresponding level was I would have imagined such a scenery (not on a ship but the theory is there)). Micky is definitely having a hard time for his first missions in the team !


Finally !
I hope you guys are interested in my doing this, it's way more of a hard work than I thought it would have been, but if I were paid for that I surely would have asked for more :D

This post has been edited by thedrawliner: 18 April 2015 - 03:41 AM

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User is online   Jblade 

#47

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I hope you guys are interested in my doing this, it's way more of a hard work than I thought it would have been, but if I were paid for that I surely would have asked for more :D

Definitely, it's a very in-depth review of each level which is fantastic as it helps us figure out what is good and what is next :D I hope more people leave feedback as detailed as yours in the coming months since it's very useful to us. Bravo and keep at it!

I'm sure Micky and Loke will appreciate the detailed review of their maps as well.

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YET AGAIN a very very very solid map with only the complexity that can be non-enjoyable but that's because of today's players who have lost any sort of skill in navigating in FPSs.

I've noticed this myself actually as quite a few people are getting stuck in areas which weren't intended to be that difficult. I don't plan to encourage dumbing down level design for future episodes though, we argued about this a bit in the dev forums but I maintained that fans of the TC were skilled enough at the TC to figure things out. Happy to see I was right in this instance :D

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Scenaristically the ending is a bit basic artistically speaking but it succeeds in its role of keeping the universe and plot coherent and in motion, mostly when he says Rusty tangled with the cult in the past, personally that got me interested to see how they look like since they're on Mars.

Just to elaborate on this a bit, the cult you just fought in that map aren't related to the Paradigm - James is musing how Rusty briefly fought with the Paradigm when they were starting out on Arsia Mons. I do admit that bit of info is a bit confusing.

This post has been edited by Jblade: 18 April 2015 - 04:33 AM

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#48

I hope people will too but I'm afraid it's not probable, I feel a bit alone apart from Lt Havoc who had done a similar work, it was interesting reading his thoughts.

Well I get stuck a few times as well but never for long, hopefully you made it so that complexity is not pushed downward other wise the game would have looked like an improbable mix of old school FPS gameplay with close to Call Of level design which would have made everything soooooo boring with almost no replay value ... keep up the fight man !! You're on for a most noble cause ^_- !

Ah so one of my thoughts was right in the end ^^
Then as I said it's a bit worrying since both could have the idea of teaming up which would definitely be bad news for us ...
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#49

Hey it's that French dude again !

So as expected I won't be able to feedback on the whole of Mars in one setting so I'll split it in 2, besides it'll make my ultimate post as long as this one I suppose. Gotta give the MS Notepad a wink on this one as it saved me some time and spare fingers and brains ^^.

There we go on the penultimate part of maps (main maps).


Maps part 5 :
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Mikkoville : Brand new planet FTW (I'd like to see a mission on Ractonia someday as well I have good memories of IW). The setting is kinda original again, an all green mineral planet that serves as a big stronghold for any powerful industry. Mikko and his minions have more personality now thanks to those cinematic. SUDDENLY !!. The start is kind of rough, fortunately those shotgun enemies tend to be poor shot at times but with a struggle of bad luck things can get hectic for us players. Fortunately we have an armor right from the start thanks to loadout editor (I told you how worth it is spending time in it) and there's a second one right in the room behind us. The start is kind of light on ammo mostly for slot 3 weapon but since most of the fight will be long and very long distance I suppose it's kind of normal. The new cultist robots were kind of creepy, first I thought they were possessed regular cultists but when you hear metallic sounds and pieces flying around you can tell something's not right with them. Nice addition to the bestiary there. The navigation is kind of hard in the first half, I mean the way in those underwater tower with the purple Keycard isn't intuitive in the first place and later in the sewer like area when we use the suit it's also not intuitive but with a bit of searching we end up finding but still. The second half doesn't pose any problem. The part with the MS Armored Suit was slightly harder than in Ep1 because of the 2 powersuits at the same time but the suit has way enough HP to handle that unless you're a non-existing shot. I liked the fact the bridge collapses if we try walking on it with the suit, even though it would have been useless trying to go further with it because of tight space and water, it's still a nice touch and a proof of non-laziness along with the fact it's perfectly realistic when see the look of the bridge and its small size. Too bad it makes us loose time when we don't know about it but that's normal besides we don't die from it so estimate yourselves happy about that. That canon that can destroy planets is kind of unbelievable at first but when you see how it is inside the "dish structure" you can tell they're not kidding there. That sequence although very short was good and as memorable as the other similar ones. And easy peasy, personally I succeeded on first blind try, surely I didn't find the way right away but when I did it all went smoothly and the tension of the timer looking really short at first glance fades away peacefully. And I liked the touch of humor with the question of insurance. Also nice touch to see that the planet is gone on the Mission Control screen, a bit sad but a nice touch nevertheless. The music is also good and fitting, agreeable both in and out-game. Although that map has no really memorable moment and is kind of short, it's a good continuation of Mikko's sub-plot and a good sequel to the Snow-Base level of Ep1, it plays kinda the same but in a more varied and original way. And the fact it adds more to Mikko and his firm's background is always a nice thing to get. It also adds some background to the cult around Mikko and liked that "James Standfield always consult Lord Sandt to take decisions" it's so propaganda looking but in a soft way and I'm sure that in the team it felt like it was "De bonne guerre (of good war)" as we say in french. In the end it's a short but solid map, more memorable than its Ep1 counterpart, nothing much to complain about apart from the navigation in the first half not being intuitive but not abusively. At the height of the whole episode as usual.


Arsia Month (Sang's part) : Firstly I sometimes can't believe we're on mars, the city we get to explore is so credible and "normal" that sometimes I really forgot we were on Mars but a few elements, like the nature of the rocks and that reddish look in the bar that holds the Green Keycard door, remind us of it. It's very peaceful and animated, looks like the town is calm but lively = good ambiance and immersion as well. And it's so calm and you can so much guess what's going to happen that it's almost worrying in a way; if I were at Sang's place I would be stressed a bunch by the pressure and not knowing when it'll all happen. Seeing those aliens behind counters reminded me of IW once again (the part on Xuglop this time). The darkness of the place is likely to make us wonder : Is the town under a big ass tunnel ? Or is the mission set at dawn ? And since Mars has a red atmosphere look how would we be so sure ? It's funny for people like me who like seeing realistic elements both visually AND indivisibly ^^. All the dialogues are always a nice touch, I mean you could have made just 1 or 2 mandatory dialogue(s) and there you go but NO, even though not all of them are of any use it still adds to the immersion and since you're not supposed to know anything and therefore be investigating it appears as a purely logical addition the absence of which would have been lame. When SUDDENLY the attack starts, I thought it was going to be very hard but in the end it's all okay in terms of fighting in the city although I'd say Sang's weaponry isn't adapted to that but at least you can decently deal with what you have. The city under attack has a relatively clear layout, which you're supposed to have recon when it was all calm, and when you get lost just licking the edge of the map can help you find your way so that's how good it is getting back on track. That exploding building with the red filter was top notch, probably the most spectacular explosion of the entire game as far as I can remember so far. I'd say the progression is kind of unclear though, I mean I managed to get to that building's rumble thanks to wall-jumping, I didn't find where to use the rope, and the way to the Green Keycard door is also unclear since the bridge is now destroyed, yet again wall-jumping comes to save the day although this one posed me some problem second time I played but I'm proud of how good I've become at wall-jumping ^^. The fact we have someone speaking in loud speakers is also a realistic point I suppose, I think in real life some important towns are equipped with such things in case of catastrophe and it adds to the feeling of crisis as well. I appreciated the fact we find a Mirror Orb somewhere, it realy helps fighting the enemies without having to sacrifice armor and HP when closing in on them. Then nothing special to add, also appreciated the Sphere in the section with the suit, it comes in handy for the third part. Then comes the second part (with the blue soldiers). Well nothing much to say, it's easy, the soldiers are useful, it's relieving and straightforward, same with the part on the bridges. Fortunately on my current Expert run I took the soldiers up there with me because they actually managed to scare me off by suddenly shooting at me but aiming at that flying laser firing craft in one of the road tunnels far away and out of my sight, they nailed it in no time after teleporting to it, which shows that when the AI decides to be ever so slightly smart it doesn't do it half they really go in and blast through enemies when given the occasion while you just "take a moment and watch the straight action" (guess who I'm quoting ^_-). Then comes the 3rd part with the 3, 3 floored, towers or 3 different colors (too much 3s) ... Actually this is my least favorite part of the map. Surely it has good design and it felt a bit like City Under Siege but in a way more modern setting. After our moments in the ground floor of the green and blue towers I got stuck, not only because of all those aircraft that are very powerful and very resistant and we got little ammo for them fortunately I could bring them to kill each other but wow that's harsh. And the lifts are kind of discrete, but since it's written on the texture I suppose it was just me playing the blind guy there. I didn't enjoy all that place on my first play because of that and the fact I couldn't kill every single aircraft I saw therefore I had to keep an eye out and dodge every time I went out, they even managed to follow me into buildings which was frustrating; BUT now on my current 2nd run on Expert, instead of Normal, I have enjoyed it more since I did manage to destroy them thanks to the temporary Nailgun I had assigned instead of the loadout I had last time I played (I told you it was important to spend time in the Loadout editor and optimize your equipment !). The only thing I still didn't realy like is that all the cultist shoot from soooooo far away that there's no way you can retaliate, besides at that point I could no longer afford using the Mirror Orb I wanted to save it for some specific enemies (the ones that teleport and fire a particle cannon they one shot themselves thanks to that item) AND SO I had to keep sacrificing armor BUT I never had to sacrifice HPs mostly thanks to the Sphere we obtain previously and the armor we are given at the top of the red tower, and the few percents of Mirror Orb I kept saved me from a few deaths from those cultists in white with IW particle canons they're so deadly I still haven't found a decent way to confront them without using explosives or getting half your armor busted out of existence. At least they don't fire from as far as the regular ones that's kind of a relief but short lived.In terms of ammo I'd say we're kind of lightly furnished there but at least just like in Far Mountain Reach and Xuglop Train, we are given enough for what we're asked to do, apart from slot 4 weapon, the armor we're given is optimized if you're not a poor shot and also if you take the time to close in and aim and also use the Mirror Orb if you have found it (which I strongly recommend besides it's not hard to find). Things get more enjoyable when you get the Flying Pitchfork and even more if you found where to get slot 5, 8 and 0 weapons. Launching fireballs on enemies on the ground while being out of reach (and yet vulnerable) in the air made me feel like an aircraft and since they are my #1 center of interest you can guess I had fun doing that, besides I knew it was almost over so I really could afford that pleasure, until I realized I had 16% remaining ... It's a very good thing you have thought of including a second flying item just in case because I really needed it there, whereas on my first playthrough I had just fled because of all the aircraft I didn't kill, therefore I didn't need the second one but this time I really did need it. The ending cinematic now that I think of it creates kind of a weird effect : since it's in the end of that part you expect it to be like a debriefing but in the end it's an even bigger briefing than what you could have expected ! And it also serves as a good preparation for the unfolding of the episode's plot for the future parts of that mission. And obviously the appearance of an old enemy has its litlle effect although I personally wasn't surprised since I saw the extended ending of Ep1 way more than once there were few chances that I would have been mistaken in guessing who the big bad guy was. In overall that map is clearly not close to my favorite but for purely subjective reasons. Objectively it's a map at the height of its siblings, reasonably big size (although more vertically there which is a breath of fresh air if you ask me), very good ambiance, good sense of scenery, credibility in architecture, good balance between linearity and non-linearity and a good preparation for the progressive unfolding of the plot that we're about to tackle. In the end the only thing I didn't like is the fact enemies shoot from too far away and Sang's weapons aren't adapted to that but at least just like in Far Mountain Reach (and even more than in that level) it's a big test of your ability to adapt to the situation with what you've got.BTW the voice acting of the man (forgot his name) is kind of weird, it doesn't sound US or UK and if it weren't for the subtitles I would have partly not understood what he's talking about mostly because of his articulation and his "volume" at times but since it's all "amateur" (quotation marks because the word "amateur" is kind of derogatory in my opinion) work it would be stupidly harsh to criticize it that much besides most of the voice acting in the game is very good for a community project, surely some voices sound almost artificial (like Rusty's voice for example) but you also have to learn not to be too demanding (sometimes when I look at feedback on official and officious games I see people being outrageously unfair and demanding as in they can't understand the amount of work it requires mostly for officious games like AMC (and the fact it's partly community based doesn't make it any practical)).


Arsia Month (James and John's part) : Team work FTW ! The gimmick of that map is kind of good. We already teamed up with John in Providence and it's nice to team up again against a greater threat with equally greater equipment. The map itself is kind of original as in we have some sort of indoors freeway that begins with some sort of connection with a railway, kind of a weird combo but it remains interesting from beginning to end. Also varied in terms of fight although we have very few close combat but it's understandable because those new cultists are more threatening than the regular ones and the white ones with particle canons are close to impossible to fight in close quarters (besides they're armored). Personally I like long range fights like that mostly when helped by an AI that is kind of a poor shot at times but I suppose that's on purpose otherwise we would just have to sit and watch and the whole experience would have been all spoiled and wasted. Besides the fact John kills almost as many enemies as I do really feels like team work and actually that kind of team work we have here is the kind of team work I like, a bit like in in SOCOM 3 (weird comparison I know) but with a more efficient AI on long distance than in SOCOM and extremely resistant too. The only time I got John killed was by having shot one of those special turrets and having hidden in a safe place like a dick. In terms of ordnance I'd say we're equipped quite decently, having slot 8 weapon right from the start with good ammo and alternate grenades plus slot 3 weapon with 2 alternate shells and finally slot 5 weapon before the fight starts is really pleasant and appreciated since slot 2 weapon is kind of useless unless you have the FN-57 I guess but I stick to the Golden Jerichos for easily guessable reasons. Those aircrafts are easier to fight with those weapons than with Sang besides with James I got quite the choice between my usual AK-103, the Jericho, the slot 3 weapon with the flechette shells, slot 8 weapon with scope or sight dependingly, and later slot 0 (and even later XM8 with green and red ammo for a gorgeous touch). That's just excellent weapon placement and balance in terms of ammo along with perfectly adapted fighting setting. Armor wasn't a problem, having one from the loadout, plus one right at the beginning just in case (thank goodness) and halfway through the first part. I'd say it's enough for what we are to go through but gotta watch out for those pesky white cultist they're so deadly, only 2 shots and you're already defenseless, (how come John can survive that !? Is he a secret Duke Nukem successor or something ? (just kidding obviously)). The dialogue was nice, a bit reminiscent of what we could witness in the old TV series of the 80s/early 90s with a central duo of characters, and the joke about 9mm although of a taste of my dislikes managed to get a smile out of me which means it's an excellent joke (considering that kind of joke isn't my kind at all). The part in the Time Portal felt kind of useless though, at least it serves as a good pause in the action without affecting the rhythm. Although the rain effect we witness there is excellent, very realistic for what the Build Engine can handle there's no way you can do better than that and there's no need to, seriously perfect heavy rain effect and the sounds were good and fitting choices as well. The section in the big circular room is a bit weird, very good in its principle but I don't know it feels like you can fire bullets through the sprite walls but enemies can't and nobody can fire projectiles through 'em. It's a bit too advantageous for the player who gets to notice and understand how advantageous it is but since we get to encounter white cultists and aircraft I'd say I'd rather keep those protective well sprites because they're of a big help against those enemies. Nothing much else to say about the part when we're in team, the little word when James uses the elevator is a bit formal but too much in a good place to be commented on either positively or negatively even though the music tends to cover their voices up a bit but that's because I like having music volume up to at least 70% (consequently some musics are slightly too loud and some others are too discrete). John's part is actually at the height of the part with James, given enough ammo as usual, although maybe not enough for his pistol but I use it only at the very beginning until empty then switch for the AA-12 and the M-16, not really interested in the GDF Plasma Gun. Fortunately the armors we may have left when playing as James are still present and usable which greatly helped me because of those damn white cultists (I feel like it's going to traumatize me if I don't find a way to kill 'em easily without explosives) >_<. Nothing much to say, the fact it's all backtracking may appear lazy but there are a few brand new areas that are interesting to take a look at and the level design is still very simple. Overall nothing much about this map in general it's just very adapted to team work and both OCs' weaponry although we still don't see John's slot 3 weapon even though I know it's just the generic police shotgun (I suggest he should have his own, like a Beneli M3 for example besides its color would match his other guns') so I'm not bothering with that. In the end I'd say it's a bit reminiscent of Doom Disco and the Ep2 secret level in a way but with very few enemies in comparison and less of a crazy fight, more tactical based which is light-years away from being a bad point. Not memorable but very solid either way.



Arsia Month Broadcasting Inc (Mikko) : Pretty original map once again, I don't remember playing such a map before. It reminded me a bit of "Rabid Transit" in DN3D but much more developed and with a bit more verticality but reasonably. Once again no foot-soldiers to keep Mikko company, I find it weird that all the MS soldiers we see in the game stick where they are and can't be asked for assistance (maybe you did that to avoid them following us in the AMC Base). Nice texture set, white, blue and red with many different shades. Coherent architecture as usual, like a high up train station (I like train maps but I also like train station maps). On my second play I didn't notice that crack in the wall with a barell not far from it, I did found the passage behind the coke machine which kinda felt too well hidden for a mandatory path but it looks more like an easy way out than like a way in (the barrel and the crack being that). The part on the docks and above were good, the teleporters are a nice addition since the floor is quite damaging and very long distance fight there with a lot of things to take cover with and Mikko's armement is well adapted to long distance fight (mostly slot 2, default slot 4 and the new slot 7 from Mikkoville). Those pesky aircraft again, they're harder to deal with since we are indoors but Mikko's weapons are adapted as well although in terms of accuracy James's are better when firing continuously, BUT since I had the Riot Minigun (and tesla ammo just in case) they went down relatively easily despite relative inaccuracy. The thing with the pleasure bot was kind of weird but better have it than not. A bit of backtracking back and forth but at least the size and "complexity" of the main place make that very easy (in the way that you can't get lost unless you're memory is holds less than 2 bytes). The fact we have to call up a train to go further was a nice addition, I never did this in any map ever. Then comes the part in the TV building itself.I'd say it's at the height of the previous part, I like the way Mikko speaks at the beginning. First time I played I had a hard time finding that button to shoot (fortunately the PDA is there to tell you that) but it was me being the blind man (rarely happens but when it does ...) The architecture of the building is original in away : A big corridor with stairs crossing each other on different floors and swimable ponds of water. One of which is full of corpses and it's disgusting knowing that you can dive right through that, I know they're just a texture image but the idea is disgusting (not a bad thing just saying). The hacking section is kind of a change, for once you really have to think. First time I played I didn't understand that you could refill your action points, along with the look of the place and the blocks it all reminded me of Cubosphere but a billion times easier (god that game damaged my brain over time). I was also a bit blocked after I used the Blue Keycard and later when we are to find the C4 I was also a bit blocked because they ended up hidden among the remains of that room with blue gas cans. But a very small glance at TabMap and a bit of wall licking gets us out of trouble in no time. I liked the part in the "workers entrance" where you're given a sniper in case of "hostage emergency" (how convenient just like in movies and series where the hero always finds what he needs as if randomness had an idea of the concept convenience) and nailing enemies from a high place with it (and the slot 7 weapon if you chose the sniper) felt good besides they can hardly hit you, feels like a revenge for all the times they were above you, it really fellt like we were a sniper (although the display in scope view tends to be glitchy if we zoom-in too much). And thank goodness only 4 white cultists. BTW those drones made out of voxels are neat (I know it's not the first time we see them but I only think about it now) somebody had suggested turning them into sprites instead but it's so unique having enemies made out of voxels that I personally hope you'll keep those the way they are. The boss fight was kind of easy, I can't tell if it's disappointingly easy or not since we have not a lot of room for error because when the boss manages to hit you you really feel the blow inflicting damage. Good thing we get that beam katana there (how convenient ...) because the fact he can reflect and resist a shot of the slot 8 weapon is quite impressive, and it looks like he can also reflect bullets back in your naive face (I don't really remember but I felt like it was the case first time). I can't really understand when I hit him and when I don't but in the end that boss fight is not much of a brain mash, I mean that it's intuitive/instinctive and therefore nothing to complain about. The setting for it is reminiscent of some movies as well. The 2 nemesis going up to the top of a building for a showdown. The way the boss "runs away" is kind of weird but I already saw somebody's thoughts about it (I think it was Lt Havoc). In overall that map is probably my favorite map set on Mars, the only one to be close to being part of my utmost faves but as usual this is a very very very VERY solid map with good and coherent architecture, eye appealing texture set, reasonably simple complexity, backtracking too simple and short to be any boring, original sequences at times, good amount of enemies and ammo, varied fights in terms of distance, enemy nature and setting. Really hardly anything to complain about (personally). And the musics are good, the first one is better and nice to hear both in and out-game, the one in the TV building is kind of discrete and not memorable but it fits pretty well the situation and the pace players will take (that is if they don't get lost but that's way more unlikely to happen than in other maps).


There you have it, next time I'll talk about Micky's part and the rest, then the unknown space station, comment on the ending and finally make some sort of conclusion for the Main Maps because I still plan on talking about the EDF maps but not in a way as detailed as there since they're usermaps it would be kind of redundant or overdoing. And then later I'll talk about the new equipment in general, AND there my feedback will be as complete as I want it to be.

This post has been edited by thedrawliner: 19 April 2015 - 03:04 AM

2

User is offline   Micky C 

  • Honored Donor

#50

Yeah the last bit of the first mars map with the big buildings was meant to be somewhat dynamic where those flying robots chase you around until you can find enough firepower to blow them away. The AI isn't designed for that so there are variable results. Still it's exciting when they do show up in places you don't expect them.

Quote

take a moment and watch the straight action


I always thought the phrase was "let's take a moment to watch this great action"?

Then again I can barely understand my own lines Posted Image

My favourite lines are "time to engineer a world of hurt" and "I've got a phd in kicking ass" Posted Image
1

User is online   Jblade 

#51

Yeah Geoffrey says great action in that quote :D

Quote

The boss fight was kind of easy, I can't tell if it's disappointingly easy or not since we have not a lot of room for error because when the boss manages to hit you you really feel the blow inflicting damage.

I didn't want to block off being able to shoot him, and on the other hand I didn't want to make fighting him take too long as I felt it served as a greater introduction to fighting him equally. If you were to fight him again in the future, it would be forced mano-a-mano with the beamsabre but then players would be prepared for it a bit better.

Davids was voiced by Foxley (I haven't seen him here in a while, hopefully he'll come back at some point) I asked if he could do a South African accent - it is a bit hard to understand but I like it at least since it feels good to have a huge variety of accents in the mod rather than just American/English.

This post has been edited by Jblade: 19 April 2015 - 05:52 AM

0

#52

Well since Geoffrey sometimes has a weird accent it's no surprise I got it wrong :/ Like when he says "My strength and power are most incredible" I think he says "My strench and powers are mosht incredible".
Yeah the "PHD in kicking ass" is my favorite of your OC's as well ^^


I see, well I don't complain about the boss, it feels like shooting him will never work actualy, even splash damage doesn't seem to do him any harm and presence of the beam saber just compels you to fight him with it, it's just sooo insticntive. But as you said if there's another fight with him in Ep3 this will definitely have served as a good training session although most people will probably have forgotten it by the time Ep3 gets released...

BTW are you guies planing 4 or 5 episodes ?
I had heard rumors that you first intended 5 but were unsure about it as time went by ...
0

User is online   Jblade 

#53

There are plans up to 5 but of course that depends all on the future, it may end up being 4 - we can't say for sure but I hope to take it to 5 at least :D
0

#54

Well if you can't go up to 5 you might as well also try to make a new game mode just like you did with Defense Mode in IW.

But when you'll work on Ep4 if you want to make a fifth one you'll have to be careful not to make a sequel killer or something that may create contradictions or incoherences for Ep5 ^_-
1

#55

May I ask 3 questions ?

First, Am I on the right track for the golden slot 3 weapons by playing on Expert ?

Then, In what level can we find James's AutoCrossbow speciality weapon ?

Finaly, After I beat Mikko's boss, first time I played, I received an achievement for having beaten him with the beam saber, then Why is it not showing up on the achievement list ? Is it because I brought back my data from Ep1 ? Besides I can't find the achievement's image in the game's files (at least not in the folder where I had seen the other ones).


I hope I don't ask too much, considering question 1 can be a bit of a spoiler in a way, ^^
1

User is online   Jblade 

#56

Quote

First, Am I on the right track for the golden slot 3 weapons by playing on Expert ?

Yep :D

Quote

Then, In what level can we find James's AutoCrossbow speciality weapon ?

In the Wharf, look around the later section near the scuba diving place (in the water, look for a tunnel - Night vision will help a lot here)

Quote

Finaly, After I beat Mikko's boss, first time I played, I received an achievement for having beaten him with the beam saber, then Why is it not showing up on the achievement list ? Is it because I brought back my data from Ep1 ? Besides I can't find the achievement's image in the game's files (at least not in the folder where I had seen the other ones).

I forgot to add it in :D The computer needs a remake at some point so adding new stuff for the time being isn't worth it. The real reward for that achievement should be in the research lab under weapons.
0

#57

A tunnel ? I would have never suspected that, it sure is realy dark underwater but since it's night time it makes absolute sense ^^

Yes the reward for the beam saber I have found, too bad my satisfaction was ruined by the glitch with the Plasma Grenades not being researchable ...

Actualy allows me to pose another question about researching this time : Is it normal that when looking at the No of each projects you sometimes happen to jump a few digits ?
For instance in the equipment research IIRC I jump from No16 to No18. (Not sure but I jump one digit)
Or for another example in personel we jump quite a lot of digits.

Cause if I really miss researches then let's say I'll have to make tons of researching in order to find them XD


BTW thanks for the answers, thou are the best :D
0

User is online   Jblade 

#58

Yeah that's normal, some projects are coded in but not accessible yet so don't worry too much about missing something out :D
0

User is offline   Radar 

  • King of SOVL

#59

I finished episode 2 yesterday. :D It was awesome and I thank everyone who was involved. Now I'm going to install the patch and play through episode 1 and 2 again on easy so I can just cruise through (I've previously only played this TC on expert. I wonder what the non-extended endings look like).

This post has been edited by Princess Twilight Sparkle: 23 April 2015 - 10:08 AM

1

User is offline   Micky C 

  • Honored Donor

#60

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since it's in the end of that part you expect it to be like a debriefing but in the end it's an even bigger briefing than what you could have expected !


I take it you didn't expect the final mission to be so long then? Would you say the mars bit was "good long" or "bad long"? You do pretty much fight the same 3 (4 if you count the drone) enemies for the entire 2 hours so I wouldn't be surprised if it dragged out a bit, also we put a lot work into building the environments around the gameplay to try to keep the encounters fresh and varied.

We've got a vague idea what we want to do for the end of episode 3, and hopefully it'll be at least as long as Providence, but probably shorter than Arsia Mons.
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