DM-IntheShadows
Map Info
	File Name dm-intheshadows.zip Author Player17 Gametype UT Deathmatch Date Added 03-17-2004 File Version 1.00 File Size 761 kb Player Count 6-12 Map Description None Review Rating 1 User Rating 3 Overall Rating 2.0
Review
Reviewer Ironblayde Awe Score:  0.5/3 Date 05-13-2004 Build Score:  0.5/3 Review Schema Cast Score:  0.0/3 User Point:  +1 Overall Score:  2.0/10 AWE: 0.5 Here we have a deathmatch up in the trees... only the trees aren't really trees, they're pairs of cylinders, one covered with leaves, the other with wood. Their branches are just extruded polygons from the 2D shape editor; they look like cardboard cutouts. Throw in a bunch of wooden ramps, a few very minimalist wooden buildings, and a starry skybox that clearly looks like a cube instead of a sky, and you've got the whole map. It comes with a custom texture pack, but it only has one texture in it, and it's awful. Fortunately the author didn't light the skybox properly, so the texture is invisible in the game anyway. No textures are aligned anywhere. The lighting is truly a wonder. As you can see in the screenshots, there's a horrible white tint applied to everything, so it constantly looks like you've got your brightness up way too high. And that's not even the best part. You might be wondering, looking at the screenshots, why the myriad lamps don't seem to give off any light, and the upper surface of the skybox is conspicuously missing. It's because the author didn't rebuild the lighting prior to release. That's like releasing a novel and forgetting to write the last six chapters. So pretty much all we've got in terms of lighting is ambient light, that awful white tint, a few bits of brightness scattered here and there, mysterious colored lights floating in the middle of nowhere, and a moon that appears green for some reason. Classy. Still, I've seen worse. BUILD: 0.5 The author's brushwork is terrible. Virtually everything is off the grid, so there are all kinds of little overlaps where there shouldn't be. Not one of the brushes created in the 2D shape editor has its polygons merged, so there are about five hundred extraneous faces. There are duplicate copies of brushes sitting around – three of the tree branches are made like that. The ambient sounds are very annoying. There's really nothing positive to be said here, except that the map runs successfully and I didn't fall through the floor anywhere. I suppose that's worth half a point. CAST: 0.0 A very large map that's almost totally wide open and has very few ways to traverse it, DM-InTheShadows is basically a giant arena map that doesn't have any of the qualities that would normally make an arena map worth taking a look at. You can see your enemies everywhere they go, but it takes an age to get close enough to be effective against them with any weapon but the Sniper Rifle. The gameplay gets old before it even begins. Finally, due to the total openness of the map, ridiculous overuse of LightBox deco meshes, and total lack of optimization, its performance is lousy. It's certainly playable, but you will see frame rate drops. A level this devoid of visual quality has no reason to have a poly count that sometimes gets as high as 1,200. FINAL SCORE: 1.0 This map should not have been released. I don't hold it against the author for making something like this, but this is the kind of map you put together to learn your way around the editor, not the kind of map you release publicly. Don't bother rushing yourself to get something released just for the sake of doing so; take your time and learn to map properly first. The players will still be here when you're ready, and your work will find a warmer reception.
Map Comments
Sicko Teddy 03-21-2004 08:40 PM MST Rating: 4   constructive comment- USE FREAGIN MESHMAKER TO MAKE HIGHPOLY VISUALS WITH NORMAL FRAMERATE!!!! no seriously, Right now I am working on Conversion of UT 2003DM-Gael into UT DM-Gael. I try not to loose visuals and import the static meshes as Deco actors. TRY IT! 2) Make some objects in 3DMax or other 3D software, and import it as a prefab! warning --- keep polys as low as it possible. Just skin the mesh correctly! mangan }swe{ 03-18-2004 04:23 AM MST Rating: 4   bah this map was really uggly it had the same look everywhere and and it was so big that twenty pple had been allright on it and the graphics were really low! M@estro 03-19-2004 06:26 AM MST Rating: 4   terrible! XepptizZ 03-19-2004 08:50 AM MST Rating: 3   Atleast, you tried... [Dark-JaXx] 03-19-2004 11:51 AM MST Rating: 4   Ive been watching... Ive been Waiting.... In The Shadows....Don't know what catching you... This map!Urrgh.. Crrrrrap.. Player17 03-21-2004 06:55 PM MST   Yes, the level needs some work. The ratings seem logical (perhaps a bit low in my biased opinion), but the comments that go along with them are suggesting that the map is beyond horrible. Obviously if the map is receiving a 4, it must have some redeeming qualities. Anyways, if possible, i'd like to hear some more constructive critiscm and perhaps some opinions on what was good about the map. It took a lot of work. Nafla Radue 03-27-2004 12:56 PM MST Rating: 5   Its hard to say what I think of this map. Its actually done pretty well. I think its main fault is that its too big. If you want any action, you gotta have 12+ bots in there. If you wanted to keep it big, make more items or shorter paths to get around. But pretty good, otherwise. Shadowlurker 05-13-2004 02:37 AM MDT Rating: 1   This map is not a good map. If you want constructive critisism, I point to the review. It details all the wrongs of te map... just go over these and try to fix them. I can give a few pointers - the trees are awful. No, seriously. Two cylinders with 2d branches? Think about that. The amount of totally strange lightboxes. There are too many and are unjustified in their placing. Think along those kinda points and think of ways to timprove. Or take this into the forums and ask people to give you help. No offence, but this is not worth more than a three IMO. The Brazilian Novice 05-13-2004 12:12 PM MDT Rating: 1   http://nalicity.beyondunreal.com/map_hub.php?mid=5492 Here. This is where the author´s inspiration came from. To player17: If you own UT2003, play that map (link above). thermma 05-13-2004 05:23 PM MDT   excuse me for asking LOL but after you download these files how do u actualy play them in the game??? pleaes tell me i really want to play them badly LMAO Deathbliss 01-17-2005 11:06 PM MST   I'm not even gonna try this. But it looks like it's another failed attempt at building a level in the trees as a theme for an Unreal Tournament map. Mine's still the first, and best :D http://www.fileplanet.com/dl.aspx?/planetunreal/nucleus/Kelethin.zip Keep on trying dude! Move on to UT 2004 ASAP! - Deathbliss Pomperi 01-18-2005 04:27 AM MST   OMG!! Check out the l33tboxes!! They are everywhere!! Sergeant Todd 01-18-2005 09:09 AM MST Rating: 3   Player17, Constructively speaking, check out DM-{{POT-EWOKVILLAGE}}.unr for an example in this genre. My wife contends that sniper heaven can be acheived in this lifetime.