Fan Mission: The Glenham Tower by Sotha (2010/07/17)

[Baddcog]

I felt the

zombies were a bit over the top, that last room was packed with them.

Overall pretty well done and looked great inside though.

 

However with a month left in the contest more effort should've been put into the outside. The start gave me that 'playing in a box' feeling right away.

[Sotha]

@Baddcog:

The outside is one giant room. I left the outside deliberately bare. I could easily have added zillions of detail elements there, but I wanted the mission to run smoothly instead. If it is a balance of detail and playability, I choose playability.

 

@Grayman:

You're the only one who gave only tolerable on gameplay, a field which is probably the most important for me personally. High playability is something I'm always aiming at, so naturally I'm curious why I missed the mark.

 

I hit a brick wall with this on Expert on my slow computer, so I switched to the slightly faster laptop, on Easy.

 

I thought the story and visuals were excellent. Having to get past zombies and haunts and deal with collapsing platforms was a bit too much for me, though. Not my cup of tea. Ran out of weapons, and never did have time to figure out how to exit, with a zombie right on my tail who wouldn't leave me time to puzzle it out.

 

Your post breaks down to main issues of

• computer slowness
• avoiding the undead (getting past them, fighting them)
• collapsing platforms.

Your computer slowness is not a map problem. Avoiding <insert-guard-type-here> is basically what the TDM game genre is about. What bugged you in the few collapsing platforms?

 

Could you please elaborate your grounds for tolerable grade, as I want to learn from my mistakes.

 

Thanks!

[fraten]

Now, after having played all contest Missions I did alter my vote slightly.

[aidakeeley]

Outrage.

[Maethius]

I thought it was a very good mission. It felt a little short, but it also didn't suffer from the, "this mission feels like it's taking too long just because the mapper wanted it too" syndrome, (also known in medical circles as TMFLITTLJBTMWIT Syndrome). The architecture felt realistic and well done, mostly inside but outside as well. Atmosphere was great, as were some environmental dynamics;

crumbling walls, collapsing stairs and floors, the broken stairwell from the Lich's lair).

The story wasn't too deep or involving for me, but it was also a straight forward and logical job... and there was a nice feel of menace by the end. I give you props for details, but had to ding because the contest also had a focus on vertical use, and though an excellent map, it never really gave me the feeling of, "wow, that's a looooong way down!"

 

Still, excellent stuff (especially as it is being rated by a guy who has never attempted to build so much as an empty room!

[Summer]

Just finished this yesterday (RL gets in the way, grr...).

I voted excellent on all scores. Gameplay was fluent, appearance stunning and story ominous.

 

I have to say that while I don't typically enjoy undead missions this was an expection! I liked the verticality of the map, the fog, the nasty surprises of all sorts, the challenge, the story, the ambience, etc. etc. What's not to like?

 

A little experiential note: I was on the top floor attic, came down and went for the desk. BANG! Explosion! The whole attic came down on me. I screamed (I'm not ashamed to admit that, since I was wearing headphones and for me that intensifies the exprience). And my mother, who's staying with me due to an illness, sat on the couch and also screamed. So we were both screaming. After that I got an earfull for nearly scaring her to death, great...

 

Soooo... Hey, thanks a bunch, Sotha! Now my mom's gonna be angry with me for weeks!

[Sotha]

Just finished this yesterday (RL gets in the way, grr...).

I voted excellent on all scores. Gameplay was fluent, appearance stunning and story ominous.

 

I have to say that while I don't typically enjoy undead missions this was an expection! I liked the verticality of the map, the fog, the nasty surprises of all sorts, the challenge, the story, the ambience, etc. etc. What's not to like?

 

A little experiential note: I was on the top floor attic, came down and went for the desk. BANG! Explosion! The whole attic came down on me. I screamed (I'm not ashamed to admit that, since I was wearing headphones and for me that intensifies the exprience). And my mother, who's staying with me due to an illness, sat on the couch and also screamed. So we were both screaming. After that I got an earfull for nearly scaring her to death, great...

 

Soooo... Hey, thanks a bunch, Sotha! Now my mom's gonna be angry with me for weeks!

 

Heh. Thanks!

 

Good thing she didn't have a heart attack or anything. A bit of adrenaline here and there does only good for the circulation I suppose.

 

I'll add to my personal record of achievements an entry of "caused double shrieking of daughter and mother."

[SeriousToni]

This is one of the best missions I played yet!

It has much atmosphere (I like it creepy) and a very good use of triggers and events.

 

 

I mostly liked the scene when I destroyed the artifact and then, after feeling so safe, the lich queen awaited me and I was like "Whoa End-Boss-Monster!!"

Great Job too on designing the lichs lair and using the special events and paths

 

 

It's in my eyes a very special thing that everyone should have played! A big thank you!

Edited October 9, 2010 by SeriousToni

[Rek]

Great mission! Voted excellent all just like Summer.

I really liked the atmosphere. Groaning of the zombies and stories in journals (liked a lot) perfectly created the atmosphere. Also the scripts are really well made. Falling of the attic almost caused me hearth attack . I was calmly robing the desk in the corner and suddenly rocket as hell and the ceilling behind me collapsed. I got frightened a lot. Fortunately i didn't scare my mother by screaming like Summer did

Edited November 11, 2010 by Rek

[pmw57]

The loot list is now ready for this mission, and is also linked to from our wiki

[Springheel]

Are there supposed to be a pair of lockpicks floating in the air a few steps away from the player start? I can't think of a 1.03 bug that would cause them, but I hadn't noticed them before.

[Sotha]

Are there supposed to be a pair of lockpicks floating in the air a few steps away from the player start? I can't think of a 1.03 bug that would cause them, but I hadn't noticed them before.

 

Ah, that is just the classic floating lockpick easter egg...

 

Nope, they shouldn't be there. Probably I forgot them there when I released the map. Strange thing nobody else noticed them before, though. I need to check DR that the lockpicks are simply forgotten there, without inv_map_start -spawnarg..

 

I suppose I need to release an updated version of the map without the floating lockpicks. Has anyone seen anything else silly, so I can fix something else in the same go?

[ungoliant]

haven't seen anything else in glenham. there was a black floating borg cube in NHAT though.

[Springheel]

Strange thing nobody else noticed them before, though. I need to check DR that the lockpicks are simply forgotten there, without inv_map_start -spawnarg..

 

Check it out and get back to me if you can; I'd like to rule out the possibility of that being a bug introduced by some 1.03 change.

[Sotha]

Check it out and get back to me if you can; I'd like to rule out the possibility of that being a bug introduced by some 1.03 change.

 

Checked. This is offtopic in here, so my reply to this is in the v1.03 testing thread. Let us continue there.

[i30817]

I noticed that after you get the gemstone of necromancy you can get out of the tower by the door behind the liche. I was all fired up for being smart enough to avoid the zombies/light by climbing the outside of the tower again (it is possible, as long a you have enough rope arrows) when i get to the top and notice that the top door is unfrobbable. It shouldn't be locked IMO. if you get out at the beginning, there is no problem, and like this allows some non-linearity for the thinking taffer.

[Sotha]

 

I noticed that after you get the gemstone of necromancy you can get out of the tower by the door behind the liche. I was all fired up for being smart enough to avoid the zombies/light by climbing the outside of the tower again (it is possible, as long a you have enough rope arrows) when i get to the top and notice that the top door is unfrobbable. It shouldn't be locked IMO. if you get out at the beginning, there is no problem, and like this allows some non-linearity for the thinking taffer.

 

 

Well,

 

The attic collapsed if you didn't notice that. The door is unfrobbable because of that.

 

[Midnight]

I just played this mission again after 1.03 and...

 

I still jumped when the ceiling caved in at the beginning!

 

 

 

However, despite finishing it (and the tdm mission info file saying so), the tick isn't showing up next to the mission (it does for 2 other missions, Lockdown and Saint Lucia).

 

[Sotha]

I just played this mission again after 1.03 and...

 

I still jumped when the ceiling caved in at the beginning!

 

 

 

However, despite finishing it (and the tdm mission info file saying so), the tick isn't showing up next to the mission (it does for 2 other missions, Lockdown and Saint Lucia).

 

 

Tick? I'm not sure what you mean.

If it is something to do with TDM mission list menus, it cannot be FM map specific. Info about this would be better suited in the v1.03 bugs thread, where The Clever People will more likely spot it.

[i30817]

Well,

 

The attic collapsed if you didn't notice that. The door is unfrobbable because of that.

 

 

 

Why not make the door destructible (fire arrow, mine + rock, sword even) and the crucial obstruction to the lower room movable?

 

[Sotha]

 

Why not make the door destructible (fire arrow, mine + rock, sword even) and the crucial obstruction to the lower room movable?

 

 

Why not make the entire mission design totally different from the one seen in this mission? Because the author thought this is the way to do it. It is as simple as that.

 

 

In my opinion it would have been totally lame and unchallenging if the player would simply climb the tower exterior with the orb.

 

[LEGION]

Ah, that is just the classic floating lockpick easter egg...

 

Nope, they shouldn't be there. Probably I forgot them there when I released the map. Strange thing nobody else noticed them before, though. I need to check DR that the lockpicks are simply forgotten there, without inv_map_start -spawnarg..

 

I suppose I need to release an updated version of the map without the floating lockpicks. Has anyone seen anything else silly, so I can fix something else in the same go?

 

I haven´t looked in Bugs-thread yet(to figure out this bug is 1.03 or you, but I assume it´s 1.03), but I´ll plan to play this soon (Porter series, though I should´ve played Knighton Manor before, but I stick for now to release order...) and I can report if I find anything. I play with a narrow FOV, so I see almost everything!! At least one z-fighting I should find...

[stgatilov]

 

 

 

Hurrah! The first undead I see in TDM! Missed them so much I always liked TDP more than TMA because of more undead, mystery and surrealism. The undead look and feel much better in TDM due to good lightning. Unfortunately it is possible to kill zombie completely with ordinary sword (though it is tough). I think it adds more defenceless feeling when zombies raise from dead after you smash them.

 

The falling things were very surprising. As the introduction said something about climbing, I tried to climb the tower first. Even put several crates to help myself. After 2-3rd broken windowsill I finally recalled that there were rope arrows .

 

I was surprised to meet russian-speaking haunts in the tower! I froze for some seconds after I first heard it. Even quickloaded to hear it again...

 

Also I had to run fast twice in this mission. The first time was after I grabbed the sphere. I had to run from numerous haunts to the ladder and then continue my way up through the whole tower. And the second was after I bumped into the queen with burning face: I had to jump on the table in the dining room. I wonder when she had time to write the last scroll?

 

Zombies in this FM are SO charming! I took a lot of screenshots - the full galery of undead: the intelligent one (crawls away to read a book), the one sleeping while wielding his own writings, the one with an arrow in his heart. But the best zombie is this one:

 

<a href="http://img72.imageshack.us/i/glenhamsleepingzombiete.png/" class="bbc_url" title="External link" rel="nofollow">

 

 

 

[Sotha]

New version available, check first post for the link.

[plotzzz]

The gameplay and visuals are impressive, but this zombie infestation doesn't give any break to the player. So I felt relieved after finishing. Undeads should be used to spice up, and that was too much to my taste.

Sotha I think you should update the FM to give the player a way to fully clean the place

I'm talking about the last opponent of course

after all that's what you are supposed to do!