make-believe

Hello! I actually posted a shot of this level months ago but recently deleted the post as the image was huge and my host has unfortunately stopped hosting now.

As I rarely post anything anyway I thought I’d do a screenshot montage (Rocky style!) to show a map from initial blocking out and lighting tests to the pretty much final level as it is now.

The map in question is DM Lost. A mid sized deathmatch map built in UDK using the stock temple assets that a couple of Epic’s tech demos use. It’s built more as a beauty piece rather than a fully playable level but does include weapons and spawn points. 

I thought the shots would help show my general creation process and provide some insight into the hours put into such a project. Enjoy!

Final video showing a quick fly-through of the level. Map can be downloaded at http://cardo.quaddicted.com/files/DM-Jaya.zip (12.3mb)

Onto the next project now methinks! Keep your eyes peeled for updates.

DAY 11:

Well, didn’t think I’d manage to pull it together in time due to a ton of problems with the lighting yesterday but after 2 pretty heavy nights determined to get the thing finished I finally got it to a stage I was happy to call it done. I’ll post a dl link as soon as I’ve found somewhere to upload to.

Short fly-by vid of the map. Thought it might help to see it in motion. Fraps only gave me 30 seconds, but it still took an age to upload to youtube.

DAY 9:

Well then.. Day 9 already. I was worried I would be nowhere near completion by this point but I’m actually feeling pretty content with how it’s all turned out. I’ve added some final visual touches today including some ground mist and DOF effect to make the atmosphere a little more humid.

Finally added the items/weapons and fiddled with the lighting a bit more. If I really tried I could probably release today but need to sort out the screenshot for the menu and botpath a bit as they currently run into walls and seem a tad stupid.

DAY 7:

Another day, another lot of minor additions. This time I’ve tried to play around with the lighting a little to make it feel more warm and in addition added some extra foliage, falling leaves and finally some layer work to the terrain in place of the stretched stone path I had. Spot the difference!

DAY 6:

Hello! It’s now into day 6 of the project and over halfway! I haven’t done anything on the level since day 3 and had planned to take the past two days off due to prior work engagements and come back today as day 4, but Zwiffle informs me that that’s cheating.. so day 6 it is.

Most of the changes now are more minor and less noticeable than the first few days, but I did manage to get the foliage layers working, which are apparently more useful than deco layers due to them not acting on a grid system and therefore look a load more natural. I also managed to sort my problem with the skybox shadowing everything. Next stop will be the lighting and sky itself which needs a big overhaul. I’ve started to place stone braziers around which will have flame emitting from them once I can figure out the particle system; so that’s next on the agenda!

DAY 3:

Didn’t really do much at all on the level tonight but I’m classing it as a day as I did open the editor and tried a few things out. Mainly visual things, but did start to add some player starts and weapon pads etc. I did however have some lovely enchiladas that my good pal Ross was kind enough to cook up for me. Nice one Ross!

I’ll try and be more productive tomorrow and get my deco layer and sky sorted. Going by my 11 day schedule I think I’m doing ok, even though that was aimed more at a team fortress map.. Maybe I’ll have a re-jig of it tomorrow too.

DAY 2:

Today I’m tired. After a late night working on the map last night it’s knackered me for today, but I have at least had a chance to add a few things tonight. Mainly it’s finally managing to find the right grass material with a big help from Bal and Hourences’ guidance. It still needs a deco layer of actual grass added to stop it looking like a green paste, but that will come later.

Also as the screenies show, I’ve started to add a bit of greenery which seems to make a huge difference, not only to the colour of the map but the shadows and whole vibe overall. It’s starting to feel a little more alive each day!

DAY 1.5:

Ok, so I should’ve stopped working on this for the night after I updated the blog but it was too hard to put down! I had to get those surrounding cliffs in place and the route upto the temple, but now I’m done for the night, honest!

Tomorrow I’ll add some layers to the terrain and start some entity work perhaps.