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Deadwing

Ozonia Boom Megawad - on /idgames!

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On 12/4/2018 at 7:02 PM, Deadwing said:

It uses sky transfer linedef and some scrolling floors, so I think this is at least cl -11.

 

You only need cl9 for those things. Cl9 is usually preferable to cl11 if you can get away with it, because cl11 has annoying and unfun infighting behavior, which I guess I'll explain to the best of my knowledge below.

 

Normally in doom, monsters have a period after switching targets during which they will not switch targets again -- IE, if you shoot an imp and it starts attacking you, it will ignore attacks from other monsters hitting it, for a short period. This cooldown period only counts down while the monster is walking (not attacking), and iirc it's 100 tics? Don't quote me on that bit :D

 

In cl9 and cl2 this delay only happens when a monster switches targets due to it being attacked by something. Cl11 changes infighting behaviour so that this delay also happens when you wake a monster. This means when you enter a new area, monsters will only fire at you for a few seconds, regardless of what friendly fire they're suffering. This means lots fun meta around infighting (ie, wake cyberdemon, immediately run behind it so it starts infighting) is just gone in cl11.

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I see, thanks a lot for explaining @Grain of Salt! I'll change the mapset to -cl9 comp. I'll do a playtesting and hopefully check if everything works fine (I think it will do, and any problem I find will be something unrelated hehe)

 

@Killer5, holy shit! You've got some skills! D: Thanks a lot for reporting the bugs! I've only got to watch the playthrough of the first two maps, but it has been amazing so far!

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Version 1.3 is ready to play!

Download here: https://www.mediafire.com/file/t57dqb3sotm8gpv/ozonia-1.3.zip/file

 

This will be the last release before I start working in the next episodes (III and IV). There's a ton of changes, especially regarding ammo, monster and pacing changes, although I don't think it's worth playing if you've already played it. I've tested it in -cl 9 and everything worked fine! Also, in the last level, I've added a new dehacked monster (he appears only in the very last setpiece replacing the repetitive 4 arch-viles setpiece), which uses the Hellion sprites. I'll definitely use him more in the next episodes. I might add another dehacked monster, but it'll probably be used only in the latest episodes, I guess.

 

Anyway, for now, I'll probably take a short break and think about some cool concepts for episodes III and IV. I'll also compose some new tracks for some of the earlier and later maps, although I think there's space to use some Exomoon and Moonblood tracks here. I'm also thinking about inviting some guest mappers, so the whole experience doesn't get too repetitive and also to reduce a bit the workload in my side haha, IDK. I guess I'll add 1 guest map for epi III, 1 for epi IV and a slaughter-lite one for slot 32, at least for the next batch of maps.

 

Regardless, thanks a lot for playing it and giving feedback, guys! :)

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Enjoyed Exomoon immensely and played Moonblood only after that. I was surprised that even though Exomoon was superior than Moonblood in different ways, Moonblood turned out to be as enjoyable (minus the part of the beggining of the wad, where it wasn't representative of what the gameplay is going to get like in 5 maps further). So Ozonia seemed to have clearer textures than Exomoon (to benefit in some places, but to make visuals a bit less interesting in others), lower monster counts like in Moonblood, but more space and high tier monster skirmishes. So the gameplay was as fun as always in your maps, but those clearer visuals did really highlight the main issue in your maps, or rather not the issue, but reason why they get overlooked for how awesome to play they are (in my opinion): lack of texture variation, lack of structural detailing (like occasional support beams, or something to break the monotony of a long line of walls; maybe some tiny bit more shading in places), the maps are fun to navigate without having to look up the automap, everything in layout is quite differentiated, but afterwards after you beat the map it's hard to remember the map's identity from anything other than it's encounters, fluent layout, with the exception of maps that have a very strong theme: exomoon's void maps, map16, moonblood's map29 and more or less others.  That may sound harsh, but those are the only critizisms i could think about and i honestly enjoyed those megawads as some of my favourites.
Regardless of that visual appeal factor, knowing how your maps play, i'm very much looking forward to the next episode. Teaser at the end is very intriguing and i found the new enemy quite simmilar in function to a stealth trooper from ancient aliens, is a very fine addition.

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Thanks for the awesome feedback, @JDR! I'm really glad you've enjoyed Moonblood, Exomoon and Ozonia so far!

 

You are indeed right about the lack of detailing, I'm terrible at doing it and I'm a lot lazy >.< I also struggle a lot with use of textures, level tone (predominant colors in the map) and I usually get unsatisfatory results lol. Maybe I should play some of the most robust maps from famous mappers and try to learn some stuff from there. In Exomoon and Ozonia I tried to create more distinct levels and layouts, but it seems that visually the concepts aren't strong enough. It'll be a slow process, though, and not an easy one hahaha

 

Still, I'm not sure about if this is the only reason that people doesn't care much about them, tbh. The gameplay style is a lot peculiar and non-linearity + pacing issues has been scaring a lot of "potential players".

 

I believe that most of the streamers I've saw playing Moonblood didn't like it at all and gave up in the 4th episode. Some did find all the maps really uninteresting, others got lost really easy and would spend more time wandering through short maps than making progress, others hated the early or/and later levels difficulty. And for Exomoon it wasn't too different too, even with a lot less players being interested in playing or streaming it. Even thought I tried to make the levels easier to navigate, I've found many players struggling to find their way. Also, the higher difficulty straight out of the gate made many people give up somewhere on the first 6 maps >.<

Today I was watching DyingCamel play it (maps 8~14), and some levels did have some pacing issues, where the pressure was always constant with crossfires and complicated setups and there wasn't much time to breath. So I need to learn how to pace the action better (playing Witness of Time from Monti's has been helping me) and make things difficuty when it really needs to be, and giving some time for the player to breath a little more.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do, TBH. I got an idea to create a set of easier maps (but using mid-tiers early), and I want to see if I get to learn to pace better and working with more unique vistas. Lately I didn't have much time to think about it (or the second episode of Ozonia), but I hope I get to do it haha The new enemy from Ozonia I got the inspiration from the Cacodemon of Evilternity, where he sprints after shooting, so I wanted to make something similar but using different attributes, with small sprints after each of the 3 plasma shots. (sprits are from the realm667 though :P)

Edited by Deadwing

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Didn't find any pacing problems, as far as i can remember, really: combat happens along the way as you explore, with occasional arena traps; the "breather" moments are the exact periods of time where you supposed to set track for the progression and gather up health items. There were certainly moments where crossfire demanded alot of focus and sometimes luck, for the most part with those flying masterminds in Exomoon or certain cyberdemon fights, but there were nothing terribly daunting. With the exception of flying masterminds sneaking up on you, the majority of the maps reached almost the kind of simmilar level of difficulty fine-tuning as Valiant (which was the one and only megawad that i've found to be 100% fun and fair to play COMPLETELY without midlevel saves), which is the big part of what i've enjoyed about these megawads, so i dunno.

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higher difficulty straight out of the gate made many people give up somewhere on the first 6 maps >.<

As if in the world where Plutonia didn't exist and neither the wads that took heavy inspiration from it. Maybe that's because streaming takes a toll on ability to focus.

Edited by JDR

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I've updated the OP with some new info, pics, and the new release which also can be downloaded here :D
 

https://www.mediafire.com/file/0x0l1o7lqnap1we/ozonia-0.2.zip/file

 

It's the same old 11 levels, now with updated visuals and balancing (although monster placement isn't really that different). If you play this, I'd love to see some demos + bugs reports or balance issues. With this, I'll now focus on E2 which will probably take some good months to get finished.

 

Here's a few of the new pics (which I also posted on the Screenshots thread):

 

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Screenshot-Doom-20200414-075756.png

 

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Work on episode 3-4 has finally started! Everything is still very early, but the idea to create a feel that is similar to Plutonia E3 Tech-bases + The cloud level on Ancient Aliens (map 24?), that has that Spyro fog where you can't see the ground.

 

Here are some very, very WIP pics. I'll have to find a way to create the gradient effect on the textures, and also find a good sky because the placeholder I've worked on Photoshop didn't work well lol >.<

 

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I want this to be some sort of introduction to the episode, with very fews enemies and more cinematic feeling.' I'm thinking of creating some small cinematic maps like that to help pace things better and work as a breather between the bulkier levels, and probably level order will change in E1, with some maps getting postponed to E2 or E3.

 

Let's see how things will shape up with some decorations and stuff.

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That's a pretty interesting theme, i've noticed some unusual SCIBRIK variants in the wad, any chance to see those? I wondered if the bone valley at the end of currently released beta would be a map, but it's something quite opposite of grim dark in those recent screenshots.
 

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Getting strong Plutonia vibes here. Looking forward to the release very much!

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THanks a lot @JDR and @Firedust!

 

My goal is to use every texture that I've included in the wad >.<  Some of the variations of SCIBRIK I should use in the second episode, which fits with the ice + tech theme, IMO. About the bone valley, I think I'll use a similar concept later on, although for now it's a more cinematic ending for the first episode :D

 

I finish the basic layout for the second EPII level. Still very WIP, but with this level I'm looking to create some platforming sections. Hopefully they will work fine >.<

 

IUf87vE.jpg

 

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vi97Czw.png

 

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Dxa5lVf.png

 

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6 hours ago, Deadwing said:

My goal is to use every texture that I've included in the wad >.<  Some of the variations of SCIBRIK I should use in the second episode, which fits with the ice + tech theme, IMO. About the bone valley, I think I'll use a similar concept later on, although for now it's a more cinematic ending for the first episode :D

 

I finish the basic layout for the second EPII level. Still very WIP, but with this level I'm looking to create some platforming sections. Hopefully they will work fine >.<

Looks great so far!

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Thanks a lot, Andromeda!

 

Got a layout done for the hellish intro-cinematic map! (which should be on slot 21).
It's a very short intro map with a psychodelic circular first area that leads to a small fortress which will probably be full of revenants in the central hall :D

Some very WIP screens:

 

9DTKHs0.png

pSed4YL.png

2QCKBqT.png

4sDWxr5.png

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I've got so far 14 new exitable maps, completing 25 total maps so far.

Still, the new maps are still very WIP regarding detail and without monster placement, which I believe will take some good months to get things right >.<

 

Anyway, some pics from a WIP E1 Map:

 

NA4Cqz0.png

 

ANQflZh.png

 

ubBPmtL.png

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Some screens for a WIP E2 Cinematic map.

The idea was to have a central tower covered by fog both below and in the top >.<

 

8LvdK58.png

 

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rccnYWh.png

 

 

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On 5/24/2020 at 7:57 AM, Deadwing said:

THanks a lot @JDR and @Firedust!

 

My goal is to use every texture that I've included in the wad >.<  Some of the variations of SCIBRIK I should use in the second episode, which fits with the ice + tech theme, IMO. About the bone valley, I think I'll use a similar concept later on, although for now it's a more cinematic ending for the first episode :D

 

I finish the basic layout for the second EPII level. Still very WIP, but with this level I'm looking to create some platforming sections. Hopefully they will work fine >.<

 

IUf87vE.jpg

 

xT90ydl.png

 

vi97Czw.png

 

UujxUIF.png

 

Dxa5lVf.png

 

 

Finally got that map with some detailing

 

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HFlutpD.png

 

 

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I updated the OP with some new info.

The wad is currently 50% done and I'm afraid if I'll be able to do everything to meet the deadline >.<

 

I finished detailing map 14 from E2 and I'm working on map 15. It's a very cave-based map which is mainly inspired by Spyro's 1 Ice Cavern + the many suggestions everyone gave me about cool cave maps. Hopefully the map doesn't look boring >.< Some pics:

 

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4 hours ago, Deadwing said:

The wad is currently 50% done and I'm afraid if I'll be able to do everything to meet the deadline >.<

 

Don't worry, mate. Remember, you're making a megaWAD by yourself. Nobody expects you to finish it at a lightning-fast paced. We can't all be as utterly mad as @Jimmy. ;^) :^P

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Finished up map 15!

Continuing with the E2 theme, this level has a "Downtown" feel but with the sky thing. It's called # due to the main building in the city having that shape.

 

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49 minutes ago, Firedust said:

Sweet screenies as usual! Will the maps be roughly as long as in the original Plutonia?

 

Thanks a lot, Firedust!
I think they are a bit larger, like 1.5x larger, which is definitely smaller than the usual, taking 10 to 20 minutes to finish.

Some levels are going to be smaller (with a somewhat cinematic feel) and there will be 3 or 4 larger maps.

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2 hours ago, Deadwing said:

 

Thanks a lot, Firedust!
I think they are a bit larger, like 1.5x larger, which is definitely smaller than the usual, taking 10 to 20 minutes to finish.

Some levels are going to be smaller (with a somewhat cinematic feel) and there will be 3 or 4 larger maps.

Sounds awesome! Surprised you pushed the release date back after seeing that you nearly done, according to the gdoc. Looking forward to playing it very much!

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5 hours ago, Firedust said:

Sounds awesome! Surprised you pushed the release date back after seeing that you nearly done, according to the gdoc. Looking forward to playing it very much!


Even if I finish the current 26 maps to the end of this year (which is probably too tight), the remaining 5 levels will take at least 4 months to get done, plus the soundtrack which should take another 2 months and then testing the whole thing (mainly for balancing). It might be still to tight to have a release candidate for the end of the next year >.<

 

I hope I will get it done and don't get burnt out in the process lol but can't wait to get it done and release asap!

Edited by Deadwing

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