Metroid: Search for Samus

I'm done the new version now, but I'll post it here tommorow, since I don't have time right now. Is wc3sear (not sure if it's spelled right) the best way to host it?

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Ok, I put a link to the map in the first post.

Congratiolations for winning second prize, FriendlyWarlord.

I may as well congratulate you all as well for winning second place. This project has gone a long way in a short amount of time. Also, I LOVE METROID!!! ^_^

I've finally updated the list of skins and models that I need, with new pictures and descriptions. I should also be getting some of the models from the old metroid mod ^_^. There's a link to the new thread in my signature.

Ok, I have some bad news =O
My computer has been screwing up lately, and seems to have messed up the map file I was working on. There is a backup though, but it might be quite a while before the next version is out. While there's no progress lost on the models and skins, retriggering some of the new stuff I made might require a lot of patience on my part. Plus, I have to wait for my computer to start working first... So, I've decided to redo all the stuff that was lost, and release that version (with the new models in it), but it might not be done for a while. Then, I'll still make that trailer map I was planning, but I'll make it really short. That way, I can start working on the final one ASAP (although that's still not very soon).

And about the models: They're almost done! The metroid prophecies models all work now, and only need a few minor changes. And kelna2 has learned to model and made the rest of them. The models' skins are all done (or almost done), but there's still some other skins that need to get done eventually. So, expect to see most of the models and skins complete in the next version.

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^_^ My computer is finally working now, and the newest backup version I have was an unprotected version of that last map I "released" a while back. I'll still re-add all the other stuff like I said, and I got some more ideas to improve a lot of things, and then I'll release a new test version.

And now I have a descision I'll need help making: Should I make an official demo? Or should I just go straight into the final thing? Making a demo will mean a lot terraining for just a short trailer, and would delay the release of the final. On the other hand, it will give something playable before I go ahead with the final map. So, does anyone want to see a demo before this is done (which will be a while)? Or is just the tiny test map with no storyline or gameplay ok until then?

I realised that probably nobody was going to read that edit up there, so:
bump.

So, should I make a playable trailer demo thing, or not? :god_help_us:

i think you should make a demo. teh demo might create more hype, maybe you could get one of hte mods to post the release of the demo in the news on teh home page. making the demo will make the people who don't know that this map exisits notice. if you just released the final version the people who don't know about the map might not be interested becuase they don't know what it is, but if you can educate them (with a demo) before the final release they will probbly download the final version. this is if you can get it posted on the news.

I suggest going for a demo too. It will get people excited about the map, spread the word about it, etc. So more people will play the map in the end then if you just released it without a demo. And don't worry too much about terrain for a demo, as long as you have your fancy models nobody will look twice at the terrain :)

i totally disagree on that part. you need to match the quality of gameplay and scenery in the demo as in the actual final game. if you make hte demo map look bad, then people will assume that the real map will look the same way.

Yeah, those are pretty much all the reasons I wanted to make the demo in the first place. But the main problem (besides me being lazy) is that a short demo can't possibly accurately represent the finished product. But I guess if I make it good enough and show off just the right amount of cool items to leave you wanting more, that shouldn't matter =]

So, I'll concentrate on the demo now (I'm sure I said that months ago and stilll haven't started....). So basically, anything that won't appear in the demo will be made after the demo is done. By "a lot of terraining" I mean that I don't even have a basic map layout yet. But that's ok since I haven't even decided how big the demo will be yet. So I'm just rambling now, I'll get back to working on the map.

Bump

I'm still working hard on a bunch of things, and I'll be really happy once I get all the bugs fixed. I've also significantly reduced the size of the map (considering that there's more models and skins than before), but of course some quality has to be sacrificed... Haven't started terriaining the demo yet, but I'll get there eventually.

AND I finally got around to taking screenshots. This is still the badly terrained verison of the map, and the samus model's animations and attachment points aren't fixed yet, so I had to be careful to not take any screwed up looking shots. Enjoy!

Some credits:
Samus/power suit model by aznwhore, new skin by me
Ship model by aznwhore
Door and breakable block (the cube model that appears in at least 1 shot) models by Kelna2
Chozo statue model by Kelna2, new chozo skin by me

(Triple post, sorry!)

I can only attach 10 shots per post, here's the rest:

looks great friendly, just a little sugestion here, you should put some doodads between the door doodad i made an the wall, rocks plants whatever you like, but that space just sticks out at me.

the scanning looks awesome!

does the morph ball keep the same tint as you normal upright samus?

can't wait to test this map out!

(don't worry I'll get those animations done sometime soon)

Good idea for the doors, I think I'll try that. And yeah, the morph ball is the same colour as the upright version, but there's fewer colours so it looks a bit different.

So after I fix a few bugs, you'll be able to test the map (and anyone else who wants it). If the samus model isn't done by then, I'll release it without the model, and then again once the model and some more skins are done. And I'm also making a new logo/title thing that's a lot more appropriate to the game, so I'll probably have shiney a new sig later today

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Those credits in the screenshot post are correct, right? Just need to make sure...

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The final banner/logo/loading screen is done!

I'm almost done the new version now, I should be finished it later today ^_^ I probably won't be able to upload it here, since it's too big, and I can't host it at wc3.search because it's protected. I MIGHT have somewhere else to host it though. If not, I can always send the map out individually to whomever wants it.

So, in the new version: The mechanics of the game are basically done (again...). This map shows off the mechanics (and to some extent the combat style) quite nicely, but again the gameplay is very limited. It's not exactly a "game" yet, it's more of a very game-specific engine. But that doesn't mean it's not worth trying, it's a big improvement from last time. Plus, it has most of the models and skins finnished.

The map is around 3.8 megabytes right now, with only 3 more completely new skins to go. There are several old skins that need to be replaced, but that won't change the file size. Also, the samus model should take up a bit less space once it's re-animated.



Some minor bugs that I don't know how, can't, or don't need to fix: The camera is sometimes jerky when you go through a door. (When you enter a room, the minimap centers on that room, and the camera needs to be facing straight for that to work for some reason.) The minimap also has unimportant dark-green squares on it, I don't know how to get rid of them. Also, if you choose the character with the unfinished samus model, a lot of things will look REALLY screwed up. To get the full graphical affect, I suggest NOT using the samus model.

And here's some known bugs that may cause problems in the map, but won't be an issue later: Sometimes the music stops after getting two or more items next to each other - this won't be a problem, since the items will be spread far apart later. There are several bugs that can happen when the doors lock in a room with a save station - the demo and final map will have seperate save rooms so that won't be a problem. If you get stunned while equipping an item, you'll get permanently frozen (until you commit suicide) - in the next versions there won't be any enemies around to stun you when you're equipping an item.

If there are any serious bugs (such as exiting wc3), PLEASE tell me, although I'm pretty sure I've fixed that already. Actually, you can report any minor bugs or typos as well =]



After I release this I can FINALLY start the demo, which, although short, I'll try to make as fun as the final map will be. That will mostly involve making the bosses and the actual terrain, both which I'm looking forward to

(Sorry for the long post!)


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It's taking longer than I thought; I discovered some major bugs. But I'm almost done fixing them, so expect the new version ready today (or maybe tommorow).

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I fixed the newly discovered bugs, and there's only one very minor one left which I'll fix later. So, the map is basically ready. But I'm going to have to test it on bnet first, which won't be until tommorow. I do have a site to host the map on, so anyone can download it. It will DEFINATELY be available tommorow, so be sure to check it out