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Doctor Plaga

Proyect for megawad and request for advice/feedback

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Hello, fellow users.

 

I'm somehow unacquainted with this site, so please, tell me if I'm doing something wrong.

Now, aside from that small note, I been working on a megawad for a while at this point and I'm planning to release it soon. So, I have some questions I'd like to ask so I can plan my next step carefully.

First a little context: This megawad is going to work with Doom II and have its own story, a few new monsters and things, nothing too complex.

The plot (in a nutshell) is that you are basically a professor seeking for his friend while a demonic invasion breaks into your city, but it turns out he knows something about it, and now you have to stop the invasion with his aid.

One thing which I would like to implement is a "hidden" folder within the game containing "clues" or side elements to build a background plot/world behind the main story. My idea is to hide some passwords throughout the levels so they can be used to access this folder. Would that be a good idea?

 

Secondly... I already have a demo. Where may I upload it? Would you play the demo?

That would be all for now, thanks for reading.

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1 hour ago, Doctor Plaga said:

One thing which I would like to implement is a "hidden" folder within the game containing "clues" or side elements to build a background plot/world behind the main story. My idea is to hide some passwords throughout the levels so they can be used to access this folder. Would that be a good idea?

You could simply draw the words as floor sectors and then hide them in secret areas, looking at the automap would allow the player to read the words easily. Doom-1 did this in it's first level but with an author's name. As for the folder, it would be easiest to make zip files that are blocked by passwords.

 

1 hour ago, Doctor Plaga said:

Secondly... I already have a demo. Where may I upload it? Would you play the demo?

Simple, just upload it here and ask the community to play test.

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Yeah, you can use something like dropbox or google drive to upload zip file with your demo set. Before posting thread be sure that you mentioned map compatibility, include few nice screens and any other important information. You can look for example at this thread:

 

 

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Only question I have is, how many years worth of prior mapping experience do you have?

 

If this megawad you've been working on is your first project ever, be prepared to hear a lot of criticisms. I've seen a lot of threads of absolute beginners announcing their new projects, only for them to be megawads that they expect to be the Next Big Thing™, on this forum over the years. It seems a concerningly common tendency for beginners to be blinded by ambition and bite off more than they can chew, eventually leading to many getting overwhelmed and projects seemingly getting abandoned. I know what I'm talking about because I too fell guilty of it back in the day.

 

Obviously it's too late now, but I would've advised you to start smaller. That's why I asked the question that I did above. First impressions matter, even in this community, and ideally, you'd want to make yours with one good map instead of 20+ sub-par ones. I can not overstate the importance of starting small - that ambitious megawad idea of yours is best left for an undetermined future date when you actually understand how much work goes into making one. Especially one that isn't an obvious "overambitious first effort".

 

Not speaking to just you here, but beginner mappers in general. Like I said, a lot of "first projects" I've seen over the years here have turned out to be megawads, but the majority of those projects were seemingly never completed either. Hell, my first project was a megawad and it's utter fucking garbage, which is another reason why I preach so actively against biting off such a huge chunk of the cake at such an early stage. It's important to set reasonable goals for oneself, and a megawad as a first project is the total opposite of that.

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21 hours ago, MFG38 said:

Only question I have is, how many years worth of prior mapping experience do you have?

 

 

Well... By this point I've already spent 3 years mapping and about 2 1/2 working on the megawad.

 

21 hours ago, MFG38 said:

I've seen a lot of threads of absolute beginners announcing their new projects, only for them to be megawads that they expect to be the Next Big Thing™, on this forum over the years. It seems a concerningly common tendency for beginners to be blinded by ambition and bite off more than they can chew, eventually leading to many getting overwhelmed and projects seemingly getting abandoned.

 

I never intended to become the next new thing. Honestly my first idea was to make 7 maps with a simple plot. But with time I became more and more fascinated with the project and that is what lead me to make it a full megawad. And I would like to avoid becoming too ambitious. Being honest my first intention was to make a project and play an experience of my own creation for the game and share it with the community

 

21 hours ago, MFG38 said:

 that ambitious megawad idea of yours is best left for an undetermined future date when you actually understand how much work goes into making one. Especially one that isn't an obvious "overambitious first effort".

 

 

I mentioned I'm planning to release it soon because I already have all maps. It's practically done, except for a few final details. But I get the point of "leave it for future". Currently I'm working on other maps which, in my opinion, show my current level of ability on mapping. Would it be better to release a few of those first?

Anyway, thanks much for the reply.

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3 hours ago, Doctor Plaga said:

Currently I'm working on other maps which, in my opinion, show my current level of ability on mapping. Would it be better to release a few of those first?

 

If those levels are part of the megawad, I'd say it's a great idea to release them as a teaser of sorts. Though you ideally don't want to spoil the best maps of the bunch either - if it were me, I'd pick 3-4 maps from the "happy medium". By "happy medium", I mean maps that are pretty straightforward but still showcase the full megawad's visual style and gameplay pretty well. But that's just me. The final choice is ultimately yours.

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On 10/19/2020 at 5:39 AM, MFG38 said:

 

If those levels are part of the megawad, I'd say it's a great idea to release them as a teaser of sorts. Though you ideally don't want to spoil the best maps of the bunch either - if it were me, I'd pick 3-4 maps from the "happy medium". By "happy medium", I mean maps that are pretty straightforward but still showcase the full megawad's visual style and gameplay pretty well. But that's just me. The final choice is ultimately yours.

 

Thanks much. I'll release it soon.

Besides, I listened to your advice and remaked 3 of the first maps so they look better and show improved map-making skills. Possibly I'll upload screenshots comparing the first and final versions. 

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