Co-op maps

[Friblurks]

Hey guys

General co-op maps thread. Post them here, comment on them, give suggestions etc.

Current list of existing maps:
Blaze by Frib
Test by Frib
Pacific by Frib and graphics by Boko
Volcano by Frib
Spiderbite by Evan20000
Boromir by Frib
Elephant by Frib graphics by Boko
Obstacles by York
Bunker by Frib
Death star by Sarah Palin
Toilet by Frib

Campaign: Hell by York
Pitfall
Lair
TBA: Satan
TBA: Heaven

Campaign: Lord of the Rings by Frib
Shire - Bree
TBA: 7 others planned


These maps will have their score tracked on the [test] servers:
Elephant
Boromir
Under
Blaze
Volcano
Pacific
Test

If you, as a map maker, would like to have your map added as "official", then say so. Keep in mind that "official" maps may not be updated for gameplay tweaks. If they are, then all the scores will have to be wiped, so only make it "official" if you're pretty confident it won't get another gameplay change. Fixing bot pens and adding graphics is alright, though. Just keep everything gameplay related in place and don't change the layout
Also, the team the players will be on has to be BLUE. No exceptions.



If you want to make your own coop maps, here's some tips.
First you have to choose the game mode. The 'best' mode is 1de, but you can also use tbd. You can edit the time limit on a map per map basis in the gametype config window. This make 1de the best mode for most maps. When making the map, it's best to make the blue team the attackers. It also saves time because when placing all those turrets, they'll be red automatically. You MUST have the attackers be blue. And you also must place the red spawns to the right of blue spawns. It doesn't matter how far away, just make sure the red spawns are on the right.

You'll also need to dump the red team somewhere enclosed. This is because with 1de, the game stops if one team is empty. So you need to make a bot pen where they can't kill themselves. A simple cube should be enough but sometimes they're stubborn and die anyway. Make the walls deal no damage at all. Make sure no players actually get near them because sometimes they could blow themselves up.

And that's it for setting things up. The rest is up to you and your imagination

PLEASE set the default attacking team to blue, and add a red base to destroy. This is because of a handy server tool that likes blue.


For hosting, make sure to disable team balance, and add 1 bot that tries to balance teams automatically. Devedse is hosting these maps in a coop server, when he's around. So feel free to try them out online with a few people or alone.

[Friblurks]

And here are my thoughts etc

So far I made 3 extremely bland looking but fully functional co-op maps: Test, blitz and pacific.
Test was the first, and is the smallest of the 3. I'd recommend up to 5 players on this one, and it can be done solo. It features 2 middle paths and a painful end base.
Blaze was the second and I wanted to see how hard I could make things. I even had to tone it down a bit but eventually we made it with like 15 players (while I still thought it was impossible). This map is sadistic and it will punch you in the face whenever it can. Bring your friends and get ready to sacrifice yourself in order to save the others.
Pacific was the third. Basically a very long, flat map. First you have to fight some boats and copters, then you move on to the mainland featuring a few buildings and a mountain. Then some hills with snipe towers, and finally the big bad evil boat of doom. Flying straight from one end to the other takes a minute with a whale. I'd recommend 4-10 players for this but since it's not 1 life you can solo it.

I think this gamemode has potential. It's a lot of fun, but it does get stale after you find all the good spots in a map and storm through without much trouble. Our record on test is 17 seconds, for example.
What I'd like to see, though, is some sort of leaderboards. Best time on a map with x players, least deaths, stuff like that. I'd also like to see the 2 minute timer go away. And obviously, more turret choices would be nice.

I also noticed that some perks are way overpowered or underpowered. Repair drone is practically a must have, but I guess if I add more medkits to a map, it might be worth taking flex or HA. Also, reverse thrust is very good because it allows you to hover on a safe spot to heal yourself with repair. As expected, EMP is good. Too good, perhaps. Luckily its range is limited but still it's practically a one shot bypass, and when making maps you have to keep this in mind.

I'll be making some more prototype maps, to see what works and what doesn't work. I think short 1de maps are better than long tbd maps, but they should still be quite challenging and have multiple paths. Even so, I think of the 3 maps I made so far, Pacific is the nicest. If only it could be 1de without time limit...

[Boko]

Blaze is the best IMO, going with a group through those small passage ways and seeing all the people go O **** A TURRET and crash is hilarious.

[York]

I cant seem to download them. Can you take a screen shot or tell me where to play or even how to play the mode?

[Boko]

You can play them on the [test] servers if they're running, and you always have to join the blue team.

[Robke]

Yeah I think blaze is the best so far. It features a good mix of 'omg rush' and 'careful clear it first'.

The small passageways are fun to navigate under fire, and the little tricks like that turret you can kill for later really add some extra flavour to it.

Difficulty is good for these maps and thats something blaze has.

pacific is ok, but imo it feels very linear. The helicopters in that map are easy to crash into if you are not careful, but that is just because they have no textures (yet?).

[Friblurks]

Blaze is a bit impossible with fewer players because it needs sacrifices
But yeah, it's good fun. I plan to use some of blaze's stuff in other maps.

Pacific is linear, yes. But even so it's not that bad imo. I do think it's the one that gets stale the fastest, though, because it's pretty straightforward and easy to learn where (not) to go.

Anyway, added a new map called volcano. In this map you first have to make your way up a tall mountain, then go inside all the way down and plant the charge. Quite difficult so far but we haven't found the optimal route yet (which is a good thing ) so that might change. Also learned about the round time limit thanks to Eggy so I'll update some maps tomorrow (pacific 3 minutes, test 1.5 minutes, blaze 2.5 minutes)

I plan to make some more maps as well, obviously, but don't look at me for graphics

[Sarah Palin]

I really wanna try these maps out! Can't find the server tho...

[Sarah Palin]

We are on RIGHT NOW and it is awesome.

Boko do you mind if I make a map? I have a kewl idea.

[Boko]

It is hilarious, and frib made this. But of course you can make a map too! Who are we to say you can't?

BTW Pacific download with lame graphics. Get it while it's hot!

HERE outdated!

[Evan20000]

Great stuff. I think Blaze will only work with 8-10 people who know what they're doing though. The problem we were having is that some people would go take key powerups (Shield/Wall), waste them, then die before they even hit the grinder. We were consistantly only having 3-4 people even make it to the drop part, let alone survive it. After that, the triangle was a nice regroup point. Then the Canyon is death for anyone with the Big Bomb. I think the only way that part would work is if a Shield Loops (Found at the triangle) and a Charge Randa make their way up the canyon (Hiding behind the shield), take "my route" over the top and through the small opening. The loopy then EMPs that top turret while the Miranda plants.

[Sarah Palin]

I haven't had this much fun since Stack invented volleyball. And just like Stack's maps I think Frib's creations are precursors to even more creative explorations of this mode.

Here are some ideas I had. I'm sharing them so some talented map makers can make the magic happen

Red triangles stand for turrets.

The Tunnel Of Doom

You have to race the turrets as a group. Stragglers will get killed easily. There's a version of this concept in Blaze.



The Boromir

Someone has to charge and sacrifice themselves, distracting the turrets so everyone else can pass through.
There's a version of this in Blaze.




The Machine Gun

A bunch of tightly spaced or even overlaid turrets, that will rapidly decimate your team, but that can be EMP'd easily.
You'll need EMP loopies to survive to confront the machine-gun, to win the map.

[Sarah Palin]

The Ender's Game

A room where you can only advance by moving from one piece of cover to another, dodging oncoming fire.
Similar concept in Pacific where you're darting from heli to heli.




The Canyon Of Doom

The team must split up; one squad collects the demo bomb (blue ball) and has to pass it across the canyon of doom to the other team.
You'll need a whale to beat this map!


The Indiana Jones Dart Trap

Planes must take a quickly-respawning Wall powerup (red dot) and race through a tunnel with backwards-facing turrets that are recessed in the passage walls, using their Wall powerup to help them escape.

[Friblurks]

Just finished Blaze with a 5-5 score, resulting in side switching, making us win because poor mr easy bot couldn't get to the end while we were stuck in the rape hole. Good stuff.

We managed to get to the end with 10 people at times. For the wall of death, you need 2 shields. The two that have shields fly to the wall at the same time, activating shields one after another. They attract all the bullets while the rest skip past. And the shielders survive too if they go high enough.

For the drop, all you need is a few loopys that emp the cubes of doom. With luck, you take out most of them. With some dodging skillz and a shield it's also possible to reach the triangle, but barely.

In any case, I have some tweaks planned for it. Nuke haven is going to be replaced by charge haven, for instance. And some other things too but I won't spoil it yet.

Edit: Sarah Palin, good stuff! Lemme comment on them.
The tunnel of doom is indeed in Blaze. It's quite harsh . I think your version is more lethal because they all fire at exactly the same spot (making it easier to dodge too probably). In any case, it's a great trap to thin out our numbers.
Boromir lol, great stuff.
Machine gun isn't possible, unfortunately. They collide with each other so they'll shoot themselves, unless you put them next to each other closely but that sometimes causes them to shoot each other too. The 'best' machinegun is in Test, where some are two turrets stacked on each other, aiming in different directions.
Ender's game is nice but needs some work to fit for Altitude, I think. If they're too close, then everyone can dodge them and it's easy. If they're too far, then everyone dies. Different plane speeds makes it harder too, but we'll see. Sometimes an impossible challenge is a good thing
Canyon of doom is a nice concept, but what happens after the pass? I think a 'split the group' concept can be achieved in a different way in which both groups remain useful after doing something. Right now, the tosser is stuck there and has to go back while his teammates will continue. Sort of like the trap bomber in Blaze, who has to rush/crash to the loopys who are about to finish the drop .
Indiana Jones is a nice idea too, but it's hard to make it work. In this case, the first, second, and possibly third plane will die because they can only carry 1 wall. I still have to come up with a turret setup that makes walls more useful, so I'll keep this in mind when experimenting.

[Sarah Palin]

Frib I know you mentioned traps and I'm looking forward to seeing how that's implemented ;D

Originally Posted by Friblurks

Machine gun isn't possible, unfortunately. They collide with each other so they'll shoot themselves, unless you put them next to each other closely but that sometimes causes them to shoot each other too.

Well the EMP range is pretty wide. So they don't need to be on top of each other - perhaps a half-circle, so that they can't shoot each other, but their arcs of fire all intersect in a "kill zone."

Canyon of doom is a nice concept, but what happens after the pass?

That player has to sacrifice, but that's ok, and there are lots of other sacrificial-teamwork elements already in the maps.

[Evan20000]

I made something that focuses on split routes.(Graphics blatantly stolen for the time being. If it's popular enough, I may give it an overhaul)

The idea is to have two groups circle around the spider, destroying the inner turrets from the outside. Once enough of them are destroyed, you can attack the core. You'll probably need 3 minutes for this, but it may be possible with 2. I haven't had a chance to balance this ingame yet, so let me know if there are any glaring issues. Sorry about the utter ear rape that the red team must endure. I'm debating leaving it in only to punish people that don't follow directions and get on blue. :P

And of course, the download itself.
http://www.quickfilepost.com/downloa...84c82d68fc765d

[Boko]

Karlam we need more tools (different turrets, robots walking on a platform ETC ETC) to make these maps more uber!

[Evan20000]

I have a few fixes in mind, but I'd like some more feedback before I open the editor again.

[Friblurks]

I updated all my maps. Some tweaks here and there, and color coded turrets based on their stats. Got a new map ready too but that's a surprise for tomorrow.

Evan, your map is a bit too cramped, and those health kits at the bot need to go
It has potential but right now, I dunno. I think most of its problems are because of the scale. And perhaps switch the spawns to the top instead of the bottom. Basically flipping the whole map might work. And it needs some health kits here and there imo.

[D4rt]

Make the base to stick from the roof, upside down. <--- Way to success.

[Lord General]

I've not played any of these maps yet but reading through the posts here has me looking forward to it. Sounds like some of them might be beyond my skill level at the moment. Would hate to mess up the teams chance at finishing a map by flying into a wall! I'll give it a go though. Would be awesome if this mode or something like it became officially supported, with different turrets and obstacles as someone else mentioned. Everyone loves coop!

[mlopes]

Originally Posted by Sarah Palin

I really wanna try these maps out! Can't find the server tho...

Same here

[Friblurks]

Right now I've got a temporary server up called [test] Awesome co-op test server. It's filled with 10 people or so, so it does show up in the server browser I think.

Managed to beat Blaze with 6 guys. Good times, and updated it on the server too to prevent something .

[Lord General]

The server looks great, works super! I was on there today. It does show up in the server browser, I've now got it on my favourites. It's not easy by a long shot! Some of the experienced guys made it look relatively simple, but as a new guy I found the tight tunnels a real challenge. It's good though! Will help with my piloting skills.

[Boko]

Where's the props for my program in OP ?

We just implemented Round times, and we'll be tracking them soon so we can get fastest round times and the teams that did it.

Edit: missed this

Originally Posted by Friblurks

Please set the default attacking team to blue, and add a red base to destroy. This is because of a handy server tool that forces everyone on the blue team.

Bot boxes don't need to have the bombs anymore, since you getting swapped automatically.

[mlopes]

I finally tried it and it was fun

[mlopes]

Originally Posted by Boko

Where's the props for my program in OP ?

We just implemented Round times, and we'll be tracking them soon so we can get fastest round times and the teams that did it.

Edit: missed this



Bot boxes don't need to have the bombs anymore, since you getting swapped automatically.

Props for boko!

[[Y]]

Originally Posted by Boko

Where's the props for my program in OP ?

I don't see any programs by Boko in the OP. The only thing people noticed yesterday was that every time you entered the server, "boko has arrived" would be spammed in serverMessage over and over, and in all honesty, no one really cares if you're in the server or not.

[Evan20000]

Spiderbite 1.1

http://www.quickfilepost.com/downloa...bc46c3c271a1eb

Less cramped, and the outer halls are more focused on dodging then turret killing. Also, players have an infinite number of missiles to speed up the turret process. The walls have been moved to later on to compensate for the decreased number of turrets. The finale may need tweaking, so I'm open to changes.

This is recoomended for 6+ people.

[Sarah Palin]

Our new record is 0:59 remaining on test... I know it's been beaten in 17 seconds by pros so we gotta step our game

[mlopes]

Originally Posted by Sarah Palin

Our new record is 0:59 remaining on test... I know it's been beaten in 17 seconds by pros so we gotta step our game

You know a new mode is born when people start competing

[Radium]

i like the old version of blaze a lottttt better, plz change it back. theres wayyy to many turrets in the back part now
and 3 minutes is too easy, back to 2 imo

[Massi]

This is my new favorite part of Altitude. Blaze is possible to beat with only one person I found out.

[Sarah Palin]

I am working right now on my new map,

1DE_COOP_DEATHSTAR



Here is the narrative sketch of map:

Our heroes navigate an asteroid field and regroup in the Death Star hangar, using one the station's own turrets to blow a hole into the lower levels. The team navigates the detention quadrant to rescue Princess Leia while a few brave volunteers disarm the tractor beam. At least one will not survive, a victim of the pitiless Darth Vader. Under enemy fire, the reunited Rebels must dive into the garbage chute, engage enemy TIE fighters, race down a trench and destroy the Death Star!

EDIT: All of the basic testing for the map concepts is now done and everything is feasible... one thing that I thought was impossible to make was actually quite easy... did you know EMP works through walls?

Now all that's left is "actually making" this map

[D4rt]

The whole game mode is too much about emping the turrets. I think that DF and tracker should be banned to make this game mode more exciting (this would also mean that the maps need some changes). Now they don't really need any tactics, just a big bunch of loopys who can emp.

[Friblurks]

Originally Posted by Radium

i like the old version of blaze a lottttt better, plz change it back. theres wayyy to many turrets in the back part now
and 3 minutes is too easy, back to 2 imo

Blaze is set to 2,5 minutes. And also, the time limit shouldn't be about being hard, but more about not making it take too long. We're working on something that keeps track of the best round times etc and make some sort of leaderboards, so in the future the map time limit won't be as important.

Originally Posted by D4rt

The whole game mode is too much about emping the turrets. I think that DF and tracker should be banned to make this game mode more exciting (this would also mean that the maps need some changes). Now they don't really need any tactics, just a big bunch of loopys who can emp.

I agree. However, there is another way to deal with this problem, and that is to get rid of the repair drone. emp is sort of essential, but because of repair drone, the loopies stay alive. Remove rep and the loopies won't be able to emp 24/7 because they will often get hit once or twice before the emp hits.

This also promotes the use of whales, which are kinda useless now. Whales can tank up a lot of damage, and perhaps even survive a boromir if they carry a shield and if it's not too vertical.

But yeah, right now it's too easy to emp your way to victory. If I could modify some game mechanics, I'd change the way emp works for coop. Right now it blocks turrets completely, but I think it should double the reload time for the turret instead. This way the turret is crippled but it can still shoot and do some damage. Or I would decrease the fire rate of emp and the explosion range, making it more essential to aim instead of rotating 24/7 and spamming emp in the general direction of the turrets

[Sarah Palin]

Originally Posted by D4rt

The whole game mode is too much about emping the turrets. I think that DF and tracker should be banned to make this game mode more exciting (this would also mean that the maps need some changes). Now they don't really need any tactics, just a big bunch of loopys who can emp.

Well I agree with you partially. Right now the winning team combination is like 18 double fire loopies and 2 time anchor mirandas to plant the charge.

This is not because loopies are overpowered but because the only adversary you're facing in these maps, is turrets. So people pick EMP to disable the turrets and time anchor to dodge.

The answer is to come up with new adversaries. Come up with new challenges that other planes can do BETTER than loopies. One example is passing the demo charge. If you created a map that was just an arbitrary number of passing puzzles, about half the players would use whale.

[Jayfourke]

Oh Sarah, you're my hero. May the force be with you.

And yes, this game mode is awesome.

[devedse]

I've implemented the round time recording into boko's awesome server control thingy.

It's fairly easy to make loopy's with emp enabled be automatically put back into the spectators team to. I could then send them a message like "Please remove ur emp u faggit".

Also about removing repair drone, I'm not really liking that idea since it's almost impossible to clear maps without it. If you remove it the maps need to be made "A LOT" easyer.

[Boko]

Originally Posted by devedse

Also about removing repair drone, I'm not really liking that idea since it's almost impossible to clear maps without it. If you remove it the maps need to be made "A LOT" easyer.

HEALTH PAXXORS

And me and dev will be expanding our program with more features. We'll save the round times, the teams associated and we'll be able to disable perks according to maps etc.