Speedmap 127 - 1024x1024x1024

[scar3crow]

This sessions theme was maps constructed in a gameplay space of 1024x1024x1024 - detail and architecture could go beyond this I believe, but the player only had that much space to explore and fight in.

You can download the speedmap pack .

efdat
efdat's map starts out immediately with action, but nothing too tough, however it prevents you from resting on your laurels (why you would bring laurels with you into Quake, I dont know). The broken floor and abyss before you is a great start to the map and ammo is quite tight early on but youre always resupplied just before you run out. This seems to be consistent throughout the entire level as I was generally keeping a tight eye on my munitions yet never resorting to my axe.

The map ramps up in difficulty nicely by adding a dimension of combat per room, by the number of foes, location, and types. By the end youre facing some of the harsher Quake monsters. The end would have been a good bit tougher, had I not used some monster in fighting to dispose of 2 scrags and occupy a fiend. The ending was quite nice and cinematic, a pleasant surprise if you could use such a term.

If I were to cite flaws for the map, it would be a lack of secrets (or the fact that I didnt have to work for that megahealth at all, not even a tricky jump), the texture is a bit dry - yet appropriate which could be fixed by my other qualm, the flat lighting. This map could look quite awesome with stricter sourced lighting, torches rather than just what was nearly flat shading. A solid map and a good example of what you can do in such constrained dimensions.

Hrimfaxi
Map One
What a pipe dream! Or a pipe nightmare if you wish. This map is certainly unique in its setting for Quake, resembling the 3d pipes Window's screensaver, only with more killing. It is interesting to look at, but the choice of monsters made it positively annoying in gameplay for its duration. There is a strong grunt presence, and a few of them manage to find themselves in a silhouetted stance - before a black void. Which translates to some needlessly lost health early on, as there are so many. The level continues in this vein of lots of grunts and enforcers.

Basically you are presented with unique visuals, but hitscan horde combat with nowhere to hide. It looks nice but I really didnt enjoy playing this one.

Map Two
A more conventionally styled level is found for Hrimfaxi's second entry, resembling a mining complex without the mining operation itself, we are presented with another strong presence of grunts and enforcers, though there are some places to take cover which makes it a little less barbaric. The lighting is drab, but the action is constant. Sadly the monsters are bunched up like you would find in Doom, but with no real room clearing weapons like the shotguns in the previously mentioned game.

There are enough crates to dodge behind (including one mysterious floating crate) aside from one scenario - though admittedly in that situation I should have fallen back on the nailgun instead of insisting on shelling it out. Monster variety increases near the end, yet the architecture remains box like. This map was on the whole unrewarding, though significantly less brutal than the previous offering.

neg|ke
What a shitty map. Now that I've got that pun out of my system, this map isnt all that bad, with a slightly tight beginning due to confines. I spent more time battling the brush work however than the monsters it seems. Combat was simple and fair up until the very end, with a megahealth and a quad damage given to me I expected something exceedingly more difficult and was a bit unsatisfied with that as a close. Nonetheless the map had interesting texture work, a funny theme, and its use of sound with moving brushes let me know I had just triggered the final even in the map. Not bad at all.

Spirit
If I ever found myself inside a giant stone mould of a mitochondria decorated in an Egyptian motif, I would blame Spirit for my predicament. And what a predicament this map offers. Tall and curved, you are immediately aware of the extremely vertical environment, and in fact up is the only true way.

This was also in some ways the hardest map, as it was the only one I died in while playing. Monster in fighting is your friend at the beginning or else things can get a bit crowded. The circular platforms looked nice and seeing them lower for me was very cool, but the maps flow itself was awkward; encountering the silver key "door" literally right as I could see the silver key? Or the fact that I found the gold key before I realized I needed it in this level.

You only receive the supernailgun on this map, and if you dont get it early on things will be needlessly tough later. However picking it up is an annoyance unto itself due to the cramped location - monster hulls prevent even trying to escape so if you do it while other monsters are active you will get barricaded in. Another annoyance is simply the lack of ammo - I am fairly scrupulous with my rounds, yet I finished the map with just an axe, charging through 2 shamblers because I had no way of harming them beyond the feeble melee weapon. My final nitpick would be through the fact that despite the lack of health, your progress is punished by height itself - upon reaching an apex, you must descend, and I never found a way that didnt cost me 10 health. This map's saving grace for me was the very simple inclusion of a secret area, using visual and audible cues as to where to go for it.


Interesting efforts from all involved and I am glad to see such, but I particularly enjoyed the map made by the one stranger to me, efdat. I hope to see him involved in more speedmap sessions to come.

[Entar]

I noticed that every map ended with a shambler (or in Spirit's case, 2).

The first thing I noticed in efdat's map was the architecture - very nice. As scar3crow said, the broken floor at the beginning was very well done. I'm don't have that great an eye for gameplay, but overall all of the maps were good ('cept that pipe one was a little slow cos of all the, well, pipes).

Hrimfaxi map one: Very creative. Good architecture, slightly difficult (and by "difficult" I mean sorta strange, hard to get around a bit) gameplay.

Hrimfaxi map two: Good layout, simple. The architecture looked like it might have been out of a Nehahra-like game.

neg!ke's map was rather strange. Definitely small, but well layed out. The sewers underneath were nicely done. I ended up killing the shambler at the end with a quad axe - YAR.

Spirit's map was hugely creative. I loved the floating platforms, and the lava circles on the ceiling were nice. Very nice gameplay, my only gripe being the silver key bit that scar3crow mentioned. The architecture was very nice, hardly a straight edge in the place.

Good work from all.

[Dr. Shadowborg]

My thoughts:

Efdat map: Teh Bomb. efdat = win!

Spirit: Adequate, though lacking for mostly the reasons scar3crow mentioned. Also, I found the missing startsound bit with the platforms that lower somewhat strange.

Hrimfaxi One: Teh suck.

Hrimfaxi Two: Good, if somewhat uncomplicated.

neg|ke: ...a bit too tight for my tastes spacewise. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't outstanding either.

[Spirit]

Thanks for the good critic from both of you!

[Entar]

But there were three of us...

[Spirit]

[neg!ke]

[scar3crow]

[neg!ke]

[Dr. Shadowborg]

[neg!ke]

[Entar]

[Tei]

[scar3crow]