Posible upgrades/fixes.

[Slash]

Since im new and im a beta mapper i dont know if this is really my place to talk but there are a few things that i see that might be able to be improved. first Saint Lucia should be the main focus at this point. geting everything to work properly and look great So we can get this Beta demo to the players and build some more hype for the upcoming release. a few problems i noticed could maybe be in Bug thread but decided this would be a good place for them.

 

first off the map looks Amazing. definitly a work of art here. im sure this Beta demo will impress just about every thief fan out there. great design all around. im sure there are some things the auther wants to do before release but as it stands i think it is in prim condition.

 

1st on my posibile upgrade for release list is the problem with the enemy not holding any weapons and still beating you with an invisible stick. kind of strange to see LOL. I thought of a couple posibilitys for this. thief 1/2 the builders carryed there hammers and never put them on there back. which to me is more realistic. the hammers they carry have no straps. and there is no scabard they fit in to. One of the fetures of thief 3 i lived with was the fact that the builders hammer just magicly stayed on his back lol. maybe we can make it so the builder doesnt put his hammer away, he carrys it just like in the old eidos thief 1/2. as for city watch and guards that carry swords i think that a scabard is more realistic. so to me it depends on the weapon and what seems more realistic. and it could fix the problem with they gaurd of anytype not actualy hold his weapon while attacking you.

 

2nd While useing the sword you can not click and hold for a more powerfull attack, i know thief 3 did not incorperat this feature but they had a dager. not only do i belive it adds a better feel being able to prepare your attack with the sword but being able to do a more powerfull attack definitly makes the player feel like he/she has control over the kind of attack they are laying down.

 

3rd AI.. Ai seems to be functioning as it should at this stage of TDM but one thing i find strange is just how Bad ass they are. there like Rambo AI. watch out Selvester is coming lol. only kidding. but i slashed a gard like 5 - 6 times and he still took me down. the difficulty should be up a little higher and the gaurds should react more and search for you. but there health shouldnt be to much to where if you have to fight one your pritty much screwed unless you can go the rest of the level with out taking any damage. also there attacks should be slowed down a little bit. rate when they see you its like 1 second and they have hit you. they should say something like bye the builder lol. but that would be stealing then they should swing back then forword in the matter of like 1 1/2 - 2 seconds. make it seem like there really going to kick your a$$ with a big hit. and i tryed to out run a builder lol. i made it like 40 feet but he was hiting me the whole time so maybe there run speed needs to be slightly changed. they are holding big iron hammers and gear so they cant be that fast realisicly speaking.

 

4. Posible bug but when trying to knock out a Builder he just starts looking for me. tryed several times but never had any succes.

 

5. this one goes out to thos tallented guys makeing all the amazing models. they builders hammers seem to need a little work. its just a model, it can function the same way if it looks good of bad, but as for swords and bows exc everything looks VERY amazing. but the builders hammers seem slightly dull. im going to try and create a model of a nice looking hammer they can carry. a longer Shaft ( yea i seid shaft ). thin dark iron and they Handle is leather rapped and bumps out in the middle of the handle and a cool looking hammer head. im sure you all remember the old thief days when the hammers would point there hammer at you then swing it over there head real intense like as if they where going to bust your skull ( It was awsome ). let see if we can bring that kind of intesity to fighting the builders cause guards fighting with bow's and swords are all similer. hammers always stood out cause they had uniqe fighting styles cause of there diffrent weapons.

 

these are just some suggestions/observations. at the stage we are at i think TDM is at a amzing point. a head of schedule. these are just some posible alterations and future upgrades. let me know what you think. btw Map screens coming soon.

[Springheel]

Thanks for the input, but you don't seriously think we haven't noticed these issues, right? You may want to spend a little time reading through all the various threads (and be aware there are internal development threads that betamappers don't have access to). There is lots of reading to be done before you're ready to start jumping in and deciding how best to improve things.

[Tels]

Thanks for the input, but you don't seriously think we haven't noticed these issues, right? You may want to spend a little time reading through all the various threads (and be aware there are internal development threads that betamappers don't have access to). There is lots of reading to be done before you're ready to start jumping in and deciding how best to improve things.

 

I don't think you can reasonable expect anyone read everything. I know I spent at least a few weeks reading old forum threads for a few hours a day and still missed *tons* of stuff.

 

The more "new people" we get, the more of the same questions we will have to answer. Probably time for a FAQ.

 

slash: Thanx for your feedback Don't be put off by the tone here

[Slash]

don't think you can reasonable expect anyone read everything. I know I spent at least a few weeks reading old forum threads for a few hours a day and still missed *tons* of stuff.

 

The more "new people" we get, the more of the same questions we will have to answer. Probably time for a FAQ.

 

slash: Thanx for your feedback Don't be put off by the tone here

 

Im definitly not put off. didnt view it in a bad way. im just a beta mapper and i realize that i hold a small role in all of this but still a role. just try to give some positive input on things. the point of my thread was really to center around Saint Lucia cause ive been reading alot about it. and so far so good. just bring up somelittle things to make sure they dont get left out. the better it is the more people will download it. if someone says yea i played saint lucia demo. it was ok. then that really isnt the affect we are trying to make. people got to love it and cant wait for more. thats the affect that needs to be made. visualy and game play wise. but ither way im sure you guys are on top of it. how soon can we see some good updates come to the SVN?

[Komag]

I think that even though most or all of these issues are known it's helpful to have a fresh perspective on what stands out immediately to someone who is new to it all. There are tons of other problem issues as well, but these are the few that seem to be most apparant to a new player.

[New Horizon]

slash: Thanx for your feedback Don't be put off by the tone here

 

You're insinuating tone where there was none Tels, you make it sound as if Spring told him to shut his trap and keep quiet. He was simply directing him to read through some documentation before jumping to conclusions. Reading through documentation is expected of any newcomer...we don't expect people to read absolutely everything, but it was a reasonable request, as he has only been signed up for a day or two now.

 

I don't know if you took time to notice, but spring ended his post with a and not a . There is a difference you know.

 

Im definitly not put off. didnt view it in a bad way. im just a beta mapper and i realize that i hold a small role in all of this but still a role. just try to give some positive input on things. the point of my thread was really to center around Saint Lucia cause ive been reading alot about it. and so far so good. just bring up somelittle things to make sure they dont get left out. the better it is the more people will download it. if someone says yea i played saint lucia demo. it was ok. then that really isnt the affect we are trying to make. people got to love it and cant wait for more. thats the affect that needs to be made. visualy and game play wise. but ither way im sure you guys are on top of it. how soon can we see some good updates come to the SVN?

 

I'm glad you were able to see the comment for what it was, a helpful suggestion.

 

As for being 'just a beta mapper', don't underestimate the role of beta mappers. You are amongst the pioneers of TDM mapping, and can greatly influence the development of both the main mod and Dark Radiant! Don't diminish yourself, beta mappers are some of the most important members we have right now.

[Crispy]

I think that even though most or all of these issues are known it's helpful to have a fresh perspective on what stands out immediately to someone who is new to it all. There are tons of other problem issues as well, but these are the few that seem to be most apparant to a new player.

Seconded. Thanks for posting this Slash, a fresh perspective is always good to have.

 

Interestingly, 4 of those 5 are related to Ishtvan's planned melee work. #1 is because the new weapons attachment system isn't up and running yet. #2 is basically the fact that the player needs to be able to have different types of melee attack at their disposal, which the melee combat was ultimately supposed to provide. #3 is tweaking work relevant to melee combat (not exactly Ishtvan's area, but something that would have to happen after melee combat was implemented, not before, since the new system would upset the balance). #4 is, I suspect, because Slash hasn't figured out the unintuitive fact that the space the blackjack moves through is completely irrelevant. You have to position the AI's head in the middle of the screen to blackjack him, since that's where the trace is done, even though that's not what you'd expect from looking at the blackjack's attack animation.

 

#5 is an artistic issue which I'm not really qualified to comment on.

[Slash]

hey, nice update. sounds like almost everything i mentioned is actualy on the road map. i like it. other then what i mentioned its going to take alot of playing to find more things that might bug players cause everything seems to be working very good.

 

also of course his post wasnt negative, even if it was i would never handle a situation in a negative way. chances are while i was reading it it would apear as a calm informing voice in my head. i understand what its like to see the same post about the same things over and over on the forums, or posubley a thread about some things already being discoused or have been. thanks for pointing me in the right direction for some info tels. lots of good stuff.