├é┬À├é┬À├é┬ÀNew Map├é┬À├é┬À├é┬À "Altored Arctic"

├é┬À├é┬À├é┬ÀNew Map├é┬À├é┬À├é┬À "Altored Arctic"

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Caydr
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├é┬À├é┬À├é┬ÀNew Map├é┬À├é┬À├é┬À "Altored Arctic"

Post by Caydr »

Map posted: Download: http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/ta-a ... 7?download

-----------

Map is coming along really nice.

It's a remake of one of the best maps I've made, or at least, one of the ones I've enjoyed playing on the most. It's very flat, but that's not necessarily such a bad thing... The map that it's designed after is called Fractured Island. It's designed for 2v2 or 3v3. It is possible to use land, sea, hover, or air (obviously...) to attack your opponent.

Differences from the original Fractured Island:

The new version is 16x16 while the old one was 20x20. That doesn't mean that it's cramped though. Each start location has enough land to build about 200-300 solars probably... It's very wide-open. So what's the map's design like?

Heightmap:
Image

Texture:
Image

Ingame:
Image

Perspective:
Image

If you've never seen a heightmap before, darker means lower, lighter means higher. The shallow regions between islands are passable by both ships and land units. The small mountains that are scattered around in a symmetrical pattern can only be climbed by kbots. The shoreline area around the island edges can be traversed by land units as well. Only the dark region around the outside of the map can have shipyards and most underwater structures built in it.

Start locations: each of the four corners will have two start locations, for team play. Top left will have 1 and 5, bottom right 2 and 6, top right 3 and 7, bottom left 4 and 8, and the middle top and bottom will have 9 and 10 respectively.

Metal placement will be medium-low. Assuming four players, each starting island will have only about 8 metal, while there will be more placed in difficult locations. Four geothermals only, in the middle islands. Smaller ships, like construction, destroyers, cruisers, etc, can navigate all the waterways, but battleships and similar-sized ships will be stuck in the middle or on the outside, depending on where they're built (or airdropped ^^).

This map will be packaged with the forthcoming Absolute Annihilation 2.2.
Last edited by Caydr on 05 Oct 2006, 02:23, edited 1 time in total.
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PicassoCT
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Re: ├é┬À├é┬À├é┬ÀNew Map├é┬À├é┬À├é┬À "Altored Arctic"

Post by PicassoCT »

Caydr wrote:or airdropped ^^).
"I will donate for charity once Pigs(destroyers) start to fly."
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LBPB
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Post by LBPB »

I really like the Design !

Shallow regions add some spice to the map, and possibility to move everywhere with ships will bring some new gaming possibilities.
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Caydr
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Re: ├é┬À├é┬À├é┬ÀNew Map├é┬À├é┬À├é┬À "Altored Arctic"

Post by Caydr »

PicassoCT wrote:
Caydr wrote:or airdropped ^^).
"I will donate for charity once Pigs(destroyers) start to fly."
....what the heck? I just checked it, all the sudden my heavy airlifters can't pick up ships anymore... what happened? It was working before.
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PicassoCT
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Post by PicassoCT »

me Wants to crush Enemys by dropping Colossus on his Base
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Neuralize
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Post by Neuralize »

I don't remember it working in Spring anytime recently.
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Foxomaniac
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Post by Foxomaniac »

Map looks ultra buttsecks, gewd work caydah :D.

I'm still afraid of sea however.
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rattle
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Post by rattle »

Foxomaniac wrote:Map looks ultra buttsecks, gewd work caydah :D.
I read gaydar... man I need glasses. I hope it's not too bright, my last experience on an ice map was playing in metal map mode... looks interesting though.
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Caydr
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Post by Caydr »

The metal patches on this one are highly visible, you won't have any problem seeing them. I've also got the extractor radius set to 125 (30 would've been adequate) so that you don't have to be super-precise in aiming, say if your camera is at high altitude and you're just grabbing metal spots.
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FizWizz
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Post by FizWizz »

Caydr wrote:This map will be packaged with the forthcoming Absolute Annihilation 2.2.
Not quite sure what to make of that...
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jackalope
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Post by jackalope »

FizWizz wrote:
Caydr wrote:This map will be packaged with the forthcoming Absolute Annihilation 2.2.
Not quite sure what to make of that...
Just think of when MS packaged IE with Windows, it's easier to understand if you think of it that way.
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Forboding Angel
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Post by Forboding Angel »

Technical POV:

Your heightmap leaves a lot to be desired. There is no variation on the flatland, and your hills are simply pancaked on the top. You need to put a little bit of effort into those hills, use the smudge tool in photoshop to give them some personal tweaks.

The island land seriously needs some work. It is flat as a board. The hills could add personality to it, but as it is, no dice.

You also need to fix the edges of your islands. They are inimaginitive and repetitious. Smudge tool, would help out a lot there.

Texture needs work. The ice on the sides looks pretty bland and bandy.

Playablility POV:

It probably plays very nicely. Would be nice if you put metal in the water. Also, you are going to have trouble with the gradient going down to the ocean. Amphibs in AA may not be able to traverse the slope at the end.


For example, conqurors isle is very flat, and it's a load of fun, so there is a good possibility that assuming you do the metal right it will be a good map.


The texture needs reworking.
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LOrDo
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Post by LOrDo »

Not bad, that texture looks like it'l be to bright though, most Arctic maps are.
Warlord Zsinj
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Post by Warlord Zsinj »

Looks like a nice map. It's a little flat for my tastes, but it seems like it would play quite well. It reminds me a lot of "Ring Atoll".

But yeah, the whole 'packaging with AA' thing sounds a bit suss to me.
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Caydr
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Post by Caydr »

I figured I'd include it with AA but also put it up as a seperate download, and AA as a seperate download after a day or two. No good? I just think this map's going to be really good. I've got lots of fond memories of this one's OTA counterpart.

The texture, while bright, allows you to still easily see the selection squares/rectangles around units.

The heightmap is very simple because it's modelled after a very simple map. Fractured Island had no hills whatsoever, it was completely flat, but very fun.

Flat isn't bad, especially when trying to emulate a flat map.

The edges were cleaned up as much as I think is necessary, but still show the OTA roots. The tiles are fairly obvious, I'll give you that one. I don't think it'll really matter though.

I'm not 100% sure what you mean by bandy, but to see it ingame, it looks pretty much like real ice on the sides.

The reason the hills have to be so abrupt has already been discussed extensively, and you know where I stand on the subject. Unfortunately, I don't think this map will play properly on EE, as high a slope as they have.

There is already metal in the water, in fact it's roughly 50/50 between land and water.

There are no gradient problems at the edges, partly because there isn't much height variation, partly because I lowpassed it. In the height view (F1), it looks like a perfectly smooth transition ingame.
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Forboding Angel
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Post by Forboding Angel »

This map is obviously made for AA so duscussion about EE has no place here.

You misunderstood me. The hills just look kinda crappy. I realize this is a remake of an ota map so that is technically forgiveable.

If You used lowpass then the slopes for amphibs should be fine in all reality.

I still the the texture needs some more work. It's really bland atm.

When I say too flat, don't take it quite as literally as I said it. Slight dips and bumps can help out a good bit.

For all intents and purposes it's really pretty except for the texture on the tops of the hills and the texture on the sides of the hills. Those are kinda ugly.

The symmetry is fine. There is nothing wrong with symmetric maps.
Warlord Zsinj
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Post by Warlord Zsinj »

I wasn't too concerned about filesize, I just think it might be a little unfair to other map makers, most of whom are effectively mapping for AA. Your map may well be good, and play well, but if it is, then I think it should fend fine for itself in the mapping arena, rather then 'jump the que' of other mappers seeking to make their creations played and popular.

Don't get me wrong, you have every right to package your own map with your own mod; I just think that it could be a bad precedent, in that it may effectively muscle out other new maps/mappers in a similar way to the way AA is muscling out mods/modders.
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Quanto042
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Post by Quanto042 »

Warlord Zsinj wrote:I wasn't too concerned about filesize, I just think it might be a little unfair to other map makers, most of whom are effectively mapping for AA. Your map may well be good, and play well, but if it is, then I think it should fend fine for itself in the mapping arena, rather then 'jump the que' of other mappers seeking to make their creations played and popular.

Don't get me wrong, you have every right to package your own map with your own mod; I just think that it could be a pad precedent, in that it may effectively muscle out other new maps/mappers in a similar way to the way AA is muscling out mods/modders.
lol

Fear Caydr's content creation monopoly!!!

But i do agree with Warlord, seeing as how i have just as much at stake.
>_>
<_<

Go bota!
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Caydr
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Post by Caydr »

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Neddie
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Post by Neddie »

Good work, seems simple and effective. Should see some nice team games on it soon.
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