WIP - I Am Legend

My first map ever for any game I've played. I'm about three months into it. I've learned Hammer using sources on the web and I've read three of Alex's ebooks. My progress so far has went from blocking in, texturing, troubleshooting, and next I'm going back over everything to make it look rougher, and put more stuff in the streets. I have ambitious plans to add custom sounds, events, and models. I've learned a little about each. It's a huge map and I've had to really learn a lot to keep it clean and keep the stats acceptable. It's playable at this point but it's so big that the infected are sparse. The script I'm following is:

1 - Video Store - Start off in Times Square end in the video store
2 - Warehouse - video store to capturing an infected at the warehouse
3 - Fred - warehouse to seeing Fred on the streets
4 - Docks - Fred to docks, Aircraft carrier
5 - Docks to home, defend house, retreat to the lab for final standoff

Alex's book recommends posting progress. While my natural instincts tell me I'm nowhere near ready to defend my work so far, I trust his wisdom, as I believe he is truly a great teacher and mapper. It's direct lighting only, so far. Here goes.

[AlexG]

Wow. This looks really solid.

I know this is still early in the development, but you are on the right track.

The scale seems on point.

Even with an env_light you have, it already communicates a feeling and atmosphere of your map. Resembles the movie setting/lighting.

Nice play of shadows and light.

I love NYC and looking forward to exploring the map.

[CrowbarSka]

Very nice, and it's a perfect setting for a L4D campaign. I think it might be cool if the streets were set in the day time like they were in the movie. You could mask visibility using fog with dust and haze. Take a look at Kosire's Death Pull, which is Death Toll in daylight.

Also I would say the labs might be too cramped for a suitable finale. How about the whole house, with infected pouring in through those big reinforced windows and smashing in the ceiling?

Very nice, and it's a perfect setting for a L4D campaign. I think it might be cool if the streets were set in the day time like they were in the movie. You could mask visibility using fog with dust and haze. Take a look at Kosire's Death Pull, which is Death Toll in daylight.

Also I would say the labs might be too cramped for a suitable finale. How about the whole house, with infected pouring in through those big reinforced windows and smashing in the ceiling?

I do plan on making the sun much brighter. As I've learned things I've done well to keep track of some tips, and not so well for others. The env_sun settings I've misplaced. I am going back to make it brighter.

Wow, I didn't even recognize that campaign! It takes on a whole new look in the daytime! Thanks for that.

And, yes the whole house is what I meant, with the exit being the lab. I'm looking forward to that scene where he flipped the switch and blew up the park as the infected were running towards the house.

thanks, tron00

I knew from the start the measly amount of cars in L4D would not do in IAL. So, I've been experimented a lot with adding custom props. It's been a lot of fun, but also a lot of work. My end goal will be to go back over the textures of each of them and make them dirty. Optimizing this wide-open map has been extremely challenging, as well. I'm getting there. Feel free to share any advice on that. Getting the daylight right was not fun. I'm still not 100% happy with it, but maybe after a 3D skybox it'll be better. It's dim in some areas and really daylight in others due to the tall buildings blocking the sun. tron00

[CrowbarSka]

Looking good! You might want to play around with color_correction as well to tint the whole screen. If you're finding the areas of shade are too dark just raise the Ambient brightness value for your light_environment.

As for optimisation, it will be very tricky. Big areaportals set to always be Open might be the way to go between main areas, and good use of hint brushes will help too. A key factor will be setting fade distances on all your props and overlays.

Looking good! You might want to play around with color_correction as well to tint the whole screen. If you're finding the areas of shade are too dark just raise the Ambient brightness value for your light_environment.

As for optimisation, it will be very tricky. Big areaportals set to always be Open might be the way to go between main areas, and good use of hint brushes will help too. A key factor will be setting fade distances on all your props and overlays.

I copied and pasted some color correction controls into it and didn't really notice a difference. But then again, I don't fully understand it, yet. Can you adjust shade per area, or is an all or nothing setting? From what I've read about Areaportals don't they have to be fully sealed? I can have them between two buildings but street to sky I can't do in some areas because of irregular shaped buildings. I've noticed fade distances seems to be a science. It's weird to be walking down a street and a mailbox fades in. : ) Thanks for the advice.
tron00

[CrowbarSka]

Colour correction is based on your distance from the entity itself. It has a parameter that defines its size, and the closer you get to its centre the stronger the effect is. If you want it to affect your whole map just give it a huge value like 9999999.

You should seal areaportals in the same way you would seal a leak. Areaportals must split areas completely. For example, if you have a house with an areaportal in its door way, you must also have them in its window holes otherwise the interior would "leak" to the exterior. Irregular shapes are slightly more tricky, but you essentially do the same thing but make it out of several different areaportals. Just make sure they are all flush against each other. This is useful: http://rvanhoorn.ruhosting.nl/optimizat ... reaportals

Fade distances can look very bad if done wrong. I find the best way is to position your 3D camera in Hammer at the distance you want it to fade, then you can just click the button that looks like a camera (next to where you enter the fade distance value) and it will give you the correct distance. Load it up in the game and just move back and forth to see how obvious the fade is.

Don't worry too much about it though. The majority of the time most people won't notice the smaller details and props fading in and out as they're too busy looking at the zombies in their face, or quickly scanning the main geometry of your level.

[Billiz]

Looks really nice, empire state building looks a bit thin at the top.

Found this nice picture for reference.


Keep up the good work!

Billiz, thanks for that. You're right. I'll fix it. An inside secret for those on this website alone, the elevator works! That was one of the first things I did. It's so cool to go up there and look at the rest of the city. Has nothing to do with the goals, though. : )

CrowbarSka, thanks for all of that information. I had no idea about that camera button. That's so cool!

Here's a couple more shots from some work I did today. Thanks.

[AlexG]

This is EPIC.

[Billiz]

Nice I like Chipotle!

[keithgarry]

My friend was telling about a zombie dream he had. He was in a big city and zombies were swarming him from all sides and spilling from the windows of the buildings.

Props on this map.

My friend was telling about a zombie dream he had. He was in a big city and zombies were swarming him from all sides and spilling from the windows of the buildings.

Props on this map.
My friend was telling about a zombie dream he had. He was in a big city and zombies were swarming him from all sides and spilling from the windows of the buildings.

Props on this map.

Thanks! I'm finding the deeper I get into this I go to playtest an area and end up finishing the level because it's so freakin' fun. It's pretty sweet when even though I didn't even plan it when a horde comes sometimes they break out of my breakable store-fronts. I'll have to use that, though.