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Things that could be improved


Berny

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Would we need 9 different buttons to sheath / draw 9 different weapons?

 

Of course not! What he wants is that the Sheath key remembers the last used weapon like many games do. Also it's the same issue as with my readables, he wants to use the key he already has his finger on which makes sense!

 

As for some of the other suggestions here: IMHO lockpicking does not need more minigames, the gas arrow is fine and we don't need other weapon variations. And the AI should go the same route so you know where they are...

Edited by wesp5
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And now time for the major question.

Following the tutorials in wiki about the engine I saw the writter making a room with brushes. Is brushes the only way for rooms/enviroment modeling? Or I can make the room/road/house/whatever in maya and import it?

 

RJF already answered this, but just to elaborate, models are great for architecture but like RJF said, you still need brushwork to seal leafs (portaled areas). One good way to combine modeling with brushes is to have a stock of modeled architectural features like wall sections, pillars, borders, etc, that you can stack together on top of brushwork to look good.

 

It's good not only because it combines well with brushes, but pieces like that are versatile. You can combine or use them in different ways and use them in a lot of different situations.

 

IMO I think making architectural func_stats (models) would be an awesome contribution that a lot of mappers could use. And FYI, most professional games are now made with modeled architecture over brushes, and you look at a game like Dishonored & realize how good it can make the game look. So I hope you stick with your plan.

What do you see when you turn out the light? I can't tell you but I know that it's mine.

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I really do like the idea of a toggle key between the current weapon and the previously selected weapon. That way I could switch between the water arrow and blackjack easily without having to remember specific keys (I keep forgetting which key brings up the water arrow, so mash either 4 or 5 until I get it right).

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Mnemonics: I made 4 water 'cause the angles of "4" and "w" kind of go together in my head. Five = fire since it's just one letter different. 6 is coiled like a rope. Seven is moss mostly because it's similar functionality to rope, so they go together. Eight is noisemaker as that's the next row leftmost on my gamepad. I never use them but I'd bet nine is vine 'cause of the rhyme (see what I did there?), and ten is gas, which at least has the same number of letters in each word? Eleven is disarm and I hit it instinctively when panicked, since it's the most used, it became ingrained quickly.

 

(Of course now that I've gotten used to playing, I tend not to use any of those on a mission, unless rope arrows are required for progress, heh.)

"The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out."

- Baron Thomas Babington Macauley

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I really do like the idea of a toggle key between the current weapon and the previously selected weapon. That way I could switch between the water arrow and blackjack easily without having to remember specific keys (I keep forgetting which key brings up the water arrow, so mash either 4 or 5 until I get it right).

A compromise can be to have the number keys (4 or 5) be the toggle and not the sheath key be the toggle. Pressing 4 can switch between arrow and default blackjack because you are deliberately taking a chance to change your light gem response and you are in control. If there is one key someone loves to use than they could use the 4-key forever and not have to learn anything else. Pressing sheath/fists removes all weapons and keeps them off so the light gem is always dark and safe.

Of course not! What he wants is that the Sheath key remembers the last used weapon like many games do. Also it's the same issue as with my readables, he wants to use the key he already has his finger on which makes sense

Would rather have the number keys be the toggle and not the sheath/fist key be the toggle. That sheath / fist key has been an emergency key to keep the light gem dark as fast as possible without ever accidentally bringing out a bright sword or bow. In this game, what is in your hands makes a difference between a guard seeing you or not. Other games might not be so sensitive and let you get away holding any weapon in the environment. If the sheath key ends up a toggle, then I would hate to ask TDM to add yet another option somewhere to make a "toggleable" key "not toggleable" for other players.

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I am looking for opensource engine on which to base VTM:B style RPG and TDM currently seems to be my best option. I am kind of concerned about high system requirements, because I'd gladly exchange all the shiny graphics for advanced AI.

 

Most of my levels will be about stealth & puzzle solving, but I need one overlay map for the city, which won't be big - 4 sq. km tops - but there will be a few focal points for orienting and I'm not sure how well Doom engine can handle those. For instance, is it possible to recreate Liberty Island map (say from first Deus Ex) so that one huge structure is seen from the whole map?

 

Proper physics support (read Bullet) would be nice, but I think current object handling should be enough for my needs. Is it though possible to push NPCs, create destroyable doors/windows and dig? If not, I guess it should be possible to implement all this through scripting, right?

 

Btw, I haven't explored TDM docs yet, but are FMs restricted to doom scripting language or can they use c++? And can AI be rewritten in FMs or do I need to modify TDM sources for that and respectively ship the whole TDM stuff as a new install, not just mission files?

 

So, these are my plans, but first I obviously am going to write some small FMs and maybe a campaign for TDM just to get acquainted with it.

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Some FMs, then a small campaign, then your own game? You've set aside a few years for this, I hope.

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Sorry to ask again (and if it was already mentioned before). But, can the player knock out a guard by falling on top of him from a roof top?

 

If he/she has really good aim and timing? (There's nothing prohibiting using the blackjack while falling.) Of course, perhaps also killed by the fall themselves, and/or the alerted guard if unsuccessful in the attempt.

 

Of course a mapper could design a map to cause that scenario for some reason irrespective of aim/timing/tools, or have AI knocked out for whatever reason/act they choose. More realistically, a mapper could make it so a player was knocked out on impact, if they desired.

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"The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out."

- Baron Thomas Babington Macauley

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If he/she has really good aim and timing? (There's nothing prohibiting using the blackjack while falling.) Of course, perhaps also killed by the fall themselves, and/or the alerted guard if unsuccessful in the attempt.

 

Of course a mapper could design a map to cause that scenario for some reason irrespective of aim/timing/tools, or have AI knocked out for whatever reason/act they choose. More realistically, a mapper could make it so a player was knocked out on impact, if they desired.

 

I've gotten some practice using this method, I don't need a "aerial takedown animation" when I can do it myself and be that much more badass.

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I was thinking about body weight rather than aerial take down using the blackjack. After all if you fall from a roof top or a chandelier in a interior map you should be able to take down or even kill (depending on height of the building) a guard if you fall on top of his head. I though I was able to do this or throw an object from a certain height to knock out a guard in "Return to the City" but failed every time. :/

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I was thinking about body weight rather than aerial take down using the blackjack.

 

Yes, as you asked previously. Hence explaining the conditions required to do so if the mapper hasn't implemented another design for it. Similarly, if you fall with enough force to crush/kill someone (especially if they are wearing armor), you'd also experience that fate, kind of rendering the technique moot, as suggested before.

 

(Although I suppose it could lead to story of you being in jail awaiting trial for assault/murder from on high if you come to instead of die?)

"The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out."

- Baron Thomas Babington Macauley

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I'd definitely recommend reading the gameplay guide on the wiki, and playing the training mission. There are lots of things like that to discover.

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Would we need 9 different buttons to sheath / draw 9 different weapons?

 

No. Have you never played a TES game?

 

You select your weapon with the number keys. And your sheath button will sheath and draw it until you select another weapon. Its quite simple and would make all the difference.

Edited by Wallace
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I would like to add one suggestion to improve the game experience. (probably was suggested already). Marking a mission as complete in the list after the player finishes it. It could make the available missions list much less confusing if you have already downloaded most of them.

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There could be something you click that brings up a little gui with some details too, like date completed, and your best stats (stealth score, % loot, time, etc), possibly as part of the readme window. That might be fun to have. I think it would help bring people back to old FMs after a long while, and to improve their stats.

What do you see when you turn out the light? I can't tell you but I know that it's mine.

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Marking a mission as complete in the list after the player finishes it.

 

This is already done, but you might have not noticed it yet, because the training mission is one of the few that does not do this and nobody wants to fix it ;)! Maybe the idea of demagogue above could be expanded by including a checkbox to mark a mission as finished manually.

Edited by wesp5
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