Jan 18th '16, 14:18
Thanks guys.
Windbreaker, I only ever played multiplayer online once or twice, but it definitely seems like I should try it again. I've downloaded a lot of the big netmap packs (netpacks?), and they're very impressive. Infra Apogee looks phenomenal. And I agree, while it was nice in Forge to effortlessly switch between draw and visual modes, Weland and Vasara (and I assume VML) are individually better tools. And it's so nice to have those Infinity restrictions lifted!
Crater Creator, thanks for the feedback. For Core Done Blew, you're right, the transparent glass panes are confusing. At least the level is consistent, in that I don't think there are any windows in the entire map that aren't solid. I really wanted the player to be able to see the power distributor room for a while before they got in there, but I didn't want them to be able to engage with any enemies in there. I could have found a better solution. I certainly wasn't shy about having Pfhor teleport in elsewhere in the level, so I probably could have only populated that room when you entered it.
As for the mountain dream level, it could have used a lot more optimization. While I knew that in Chapter 5 there would be monsters in the level, I never really took that into account when I made it. All the jumping was tested out primarily in visual mode in Forge, with tons of lines set to be opaque so as to not crash Forge. While I was making it, the idea was that there would be no negative space at all – nothing blocking your view, and the top of the mountain was supposed to be the tallest thing in the map. But in the end, I don't think it really paid off. Yes, from the bottom, the thing looks tall, but you can't see the top. And from the top, you can't really see down that far. Instead of placing the beginning and ending in opposite corners of the map, they should have been in adjacent corners, and it should have been possible to see the top from the very beginning. That also probably would have given me more leeway to employ negative space to break up some of the views without really hurting the visuals. And I probably used too many polygons, just in general. Larger polygons would have sufficed in many places. In my defense, I believe I was 15 when I made it, and I just thought it was so damn cool at the time.
Crater Creator, I see you were involved in EMR, which was always a big inspiration to me. What things did you work on?