[Newbie Project] The Intelligent Arena series

[Oridez]

Okay. Here we go.

Some people may know me already. Those who have been helping me during my idiocy in the Doom Builder forum section. For those who don't, I'm fairly new to the Doom Building and making Wads and all the technical stuff, but I'm trying to create a series of levels and/or games based around various arenas and survival levels. The first of which can be seen in its infant stage by downloading the demo from the link a couple paragraphs from here.

I've got a couple ideas planned out. This one's still gotta' be scripted and such, probably going to be the F.U.N. map.

I'm still getting used to DooM editing utilities, and it'd be a great help if someone could tell me all the basics that I should have. ^_^ Thanks.

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--==Various links==--
This is the PWAD. Patch it in then type in "+map EXP01" in ZDL as a command line parameter or while in ZDoom type in "map EXP01" in the console to access the level. Keep in mind that this is still in its infant stages, and might not even be the first level, or used at all, but it will give a taste of what's to come.
http://www.mediafire.com/?w1q4ozvjxyy - holydoom.wad

This is the demo. While in ZDL put in -playdemo "FistsofFloors" before launching the game, or while in ZDoom type "playdemo FistsofFloors" into the console.
http://www.mediafire.com/?djymgn2xfjg - FistsofFloors.lmp

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--==LEVEL CONCEPTS==--
Some possible level types include levels where the floor is constantly shifting, impeding or aiding the player in some way. A few ideas are:

[Tidal Floors], causing the floors to shift in rippling motions, disorienting players and enemies alike]

[The Weakest Floor], including some fancy work that will cause 'wrong' floors to shift and trap a player, either making them have to fight enemies or solve something]

[High as a Floor], where floors will rise and lower, either to create a path or destroy a path. These will often cause the player to experience many dead-ends before they finish the level.]

[Floor Wars] This will usually include various types of battles, from randomly-generated monsters to carefully set enemies and monsters willing to join your side if you release them.

[Are you Afraid of the Floor?] These will often be dark levels, utilizing switches and the much-elusive Light-Amplification Goggles to aid you in your quest.

[Goosefloors] Similar to [Tidal Floors], but more bumpy. And random. You know you love the concept. Come on. Come ooooon...

[Floor it!] These will be speedrun maps. If you don't do what you need to do fast enough, you'll be trapped and beaten to a bloody pulp.

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--==PROJECT UPDATES==--
July 8th, 2007 - New demo and .wad for testing purposes by members of the community have been released. Expecting feedback.

[Oridez]

UPDATED! With various ideas for some levels. I'd appreciate some feedback--I know some of them could be iffy. Chances are that there are some iffy ones, and I'd like to have any criticism or ideas for game types that use your mind or reflexes, possibly both in survival and arena-type arena settings. I think that last bit was a bit redundant...

[Creaphis]

The ideas are solid. The tricky part is executing them well.

[Oridez]

Thanks. I figure, after having figured out quite a bit of Doom Builder (and having finally unlocked the Script editor, w00tz), my biggest obstacle will be scripting and editing to make it work properly. Not only do I have limited scripting and coding skills, I'm still a bit new to everything here, so it may take some time. Hell, it may never even be fully finished, but I hope to release at least three or four of the intended levels.

Overall, however, I hope it works out and turns into a good experience for future projects. By my understanding, not many first projects work out as expected, or are even released at all; a miracle may be the only thing that makes a first project work exactly as intended.


...So... Who should I pray to to ensure that this works out? The Cyberdemon, the Arch-Vile, or the Spider Mastermind?

[Creaphis]

Oh! John Romero, of course.

[Kyka]

I downloaded the lmp file that was posted, but zdoom says it needs the actual .wad file to play the demo associated with it....

Am I doing something wrong here??

<--is technically nooberized.

Heh... thanks Oridez for answering my question on how to play demos...
was actually this demo I was trying to play.

[Oridez]

Oh. D'OH! Ohh, I get it, I get it.

Sorry, I merged my level into the normal D2 game. Eh. Heh heh. Heh. Whoops.

I'll find the new D2 Wad.

[Oh, and I had an idea you were talking about the one I was using. Heh heh.

And trust me, I'm probably even more nooberized than you are.]

FDSJGOIS/?!

I'll put the link in tomorrow. Dx

[Oridez]

Creaphis said:

Oh! John Romero, of course.

Silly me. How could I forget good ol' John Romero?

...But didn't I kill him at the Icon of Sin? I 'NOCLIP'd my way in and punched him twice before chainsawing him.

[Creaphis]

He came back to life on Easter and spoke to his disciples one last time, before descending to reside next to his father in hell.

By the way, I know you mean well, but you'd better take that link down before you get in trouble for distributing a modified doom2.wad. When you make a level, you should save it as a new wad file.

[Grazza]

Links nuked. Learn how to make a pwad and only then make it publically available.

Doing what you did results in a ban except where it is clearly an honest mistake, as I think it was here.

[Oridez]

I nuked them, heh sorry. I'm still a tad new, so I didn't know.

I'll be sure to be properly prepared later.

Edit: I think we nuked them at the same time.

[ArchitectofHell]

Ha, I'm sold on the ideas themselves. Pulling them off will be tricky, though, as Creaphis said.

The "Floor It!" areas idea reminds me of an old Atari game called "Berserk," in which you had to make it to the exit within a certain amount of time or be chased by a scary smiley face that would materialize. It couldn't be killed, it just chased you and attacked until you either died or finally made it out of the level.

[Oridez]

...We could put in a cacodemon. :D

[Oridez]

UPDATE! I have the revised .wad and a new demo, which should work once this PWAD has been patched in. Access of the level can be granted with "+map EXP01" as a command parameter in ZDL beforehand or "map EXP01" while in ZDoom.

Links are in the first post.

Also! In later revisions of this level, due to the massive amounts of infighting that will happen among monsters of the opposition, I have decided to dramatically reduce the number of monsters that will spawn on the player's side. This will also balance out the chances that the player will die before meeting the goal that I plan to put into the level.