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| CTF-{SoP}-Bedrooms2K4 | | | Map Info |
| | | | File Name | ctf-_sop_-bedrooms2k4.zip | | Author | Dragonslaya | | Gametype | UT2k4 Capture The Flag | | Date Added | 02-04-2005 | | File Version | 1.00 | | File Size | 1.15 mb | | Player Count | 8 - 24 | | Map Description | None | | Review Rating | 3 | | User Rating | 1.5 | | Overall Rating | 2.0 |
| No level screenshot available. |  | | | | Review |
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CTF-{SoP}-Bedrooms2K4 (UT2004)
Perhaps one of the most infamous custom maps for CTF, it's the mini-me map that most people will actually play. Here we have a reskinned version, re-created from scratch, it would seem, with a few gameplay tweaks.
Because this is a remake of a map, the scoring will be a little different. Since the author's using an existing layout, I can't really score the CAST section the same as with an original map because the author did not create the layout himself. However, the author did tweak it a little so I'll be sure to address that. Also, being a remake, the AWE score will be scored a little differently as well. The parts of the AWE are texturing, lighting, and architecture which, because it's a remake, makes scoring difficult. Texturing will be scored as the author's work, which will become very apparent, lighting is half pre-existing, and half new in that the original map had light placements but it's up to the new author do do them justice. However, the architecture is almost totally pre-existing and the author cannot take credit for it. However, again, the author made a few changes so I'll address those as well. Taking this into account, I am going to grade architecture in AWE and layout in CAST simply against the changes the author made. The lighting will be a half and half and the texturing will be wholy the new author.
Also, IMO, this is a map that does not need a review. However,the author himself requested it so I shall take it seriously and oblige him.
AWE: .5
The most dramatic and significant change to this version is not the gameplay, nor the layout, it's simply the look of it. The textureing is wildly different from the original and also wildly different from what one would generally want to look at. One bedroom is textured as an oxidized metal room from Doom with a badly repeating floor texture that is possibly meant to represent grass. The bed has been retuextured so that the covers/sheets are a purple electric field and the top is not aligned to its sides. The pillow retains its 'kid's-room' texture theme. The bedside table and bureau both use an almost black fluid texture that ripples and flows like liquid. The bulletin board contains a portion that is animated with the UT2004 GUI images. The central hallway uses a grass texture as the floor, and a brass/golden fluid animated texture for the door, walls, and ceiling. The ceiling textures are not aligned over the BSP cuts. The 'Girl's room' is textured with a badly repeating tile? floor with the walls presumably using stainless steel sheetmetal for the walls and ceiling with a shiny shader.
I'm going to stop there because you can already probably tell that the re-texturing job is probably something you don't really want to see. I will say the outside remained fairly untouched in terms of ugly unecessary texturing but, on the downside, it's too dark out there to really see any of the textures other than what's near the doorway inside.
I can't figure out what the author was trying to accomplish with the re-texturing job especially because all the other changes to the map are fairly insignificant in comparision. The texturing is by far the largest change from the original and it seems like the author was just surfing through the texture packages and when he found one he liked, he applied it. With no rhyme, reason, or any logical placement the texturing is the worst I've ever seen in terms of texture choice. Application isn't bad aside from some surfaces not being set to planer alignment.
In terms of lighting - like the original it's mostly ambiant lit with some 'hotspots' but they're few and far between. Still, the middle of the rooms are bright and under the bed and behind the bureau is dark so it fits the criteria - although barely. The outside obviously takes place at night but it's too dang dark out there to make good use of the playset.
The architecture is pretty much the same as the previous bedroom maps. Large rectangles for rooms, smaller rectangles for doorways, differently shaped rectabgles for the furniture, and amorphous lumps for pillows and what I can only assume is a smallish bean-bag chairs.
Outside is a large rectangle and a round kiddie pool. I have no idea what the playset looks like as it was too dark.
Overall, the texturing is some of the worst I've ever seen. The lighting is desultory and has nothing to reccomend it to anything above average, and the architecture is almost purely rectangles. This is one bu-fu-gly map.
BUILD: 1.5
The BSP work is decent overall however the 'roof' above the outside area is inexplicably complex. The jumppads work fine as do the teleporters but I didn't hear any sounds attached to them. The different areas are zoned appropriately. There are wel-implemented ladder volumes up the sides of the bureau where the drawer pulls are and the bots use them fine. I didn't check in the editor but there don't seem to be any assault paths as the bots tended to run down the middle and only used the outside area to chase me, or if they spawned there. If there are assault paths, the priority percentages really should have been tweaked more to allow the bots to use the outside area more/better. Finally, there aren't any ambient sounds that I could hear. Ambient sounds always increase/enhancce the mood no matter where the map is placed.
Overall the build is adequate. Nothing's 'broken' but a few aspects demand more attention/consideration than they were given.
CAST: 1.0
Layout from the original changed a little bit. The author moved the bureau from behind the bed, to the wall opposite the window. To get to the flag, you can either climb the drawer pulls because the author used a ladder volume, or you can hop from the bed, onto a bedside table, onto the marker holder for the bulletin board, and then onto the bureau. Also, this author neglected to add the mouseholes and replaced them with a teleporter which leads to a tiny ventilation duct which is not made in the same scale as the rest of the map. It barely fits one player in terms of height and width and if the ventilation shaft matched the scale of the rest of the map, it would be much larger. This shaft leads over the central area in the ceiling and at its midpoint has a teleporter that gives you the option of getting in and out on the floor of the central area. However, unlike the mouseholes that open into the hallway between the main hallway and the outside door, this teleporter is located halfway between the sandbags in the main hallway. Poor exit/enter choice as it dumps you in the path of the dozens of rocket launcher shots that are constantly flying by due to the bots being pathed to use this central rout far more often than any others. Other than these changes the layout is pretty much the same. The new flag location has little impact on gameplay except that it's slightly more difficult to reach and the mousehole replacmenet is terrible.
The bots, as indicated, vastly prefer the central route and rockets are constantly flying through the midsection. They will travel the rest of the map when forced to. The weapon layout is pretty standard except for the horrible addition of an ONS spidermine layer in the ventilation shaft immediately after the central access point. It's an interesting concept to use a mine layer in the ventilation shaft but it should not be located inside it and the size of the shaft with it's limited movement just adds insult to injury. It's more of a punishment than addition to gameplay.
The outside area is too dark to play really well in and the pool outside is perhaps made of oil? or something because looking down into it reveals a black surface you cannot see through. Inside is a minigun which is a poor reward for going for a swim.
Overall the gameplay here isn't really changed much from the original. There's still the long open areas to survive and the changes the author made to the layout don't really add anything to your bedrooms experience. The bots charge down the center, the movement of the flag location has little impact on gameplay, and the removal of the mouseholes and addition of the ventilation shaft is punishing.
What we have is a very ugly remake of a custom classic that really has nothing to reccomend to download unless you want to collect every bedrooms remake there is. It's texturing is out of control, and the lighting and architecture are nothing special. The gameplay is hindered by a layout change connecting the rooms, the flag location change doesn't really matter, and darkness outside inhibits using the area effectively.
It was nice to visit these two bedrooms again but I think the next time I'll wait for the drugs to wear off. I appreciate the effort the author took into remaking the map and trying to do a few things differently. But they really need to consider taking the texturing a lot more seriously in future endeavors. |
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| | | | Map Comments |
| sandorski
02-06-2005 06:58 PM MST | Rating: 3 | | Why? The original was kinda rough and could have benefitted with some polishing, but this ain't polish. Looks like an experiment in various Textures/Materials useable in UEd. That's not to say it all is bad, the bedframe is improved and the outdoor area is better, but why not go all the way an d improve the lot?
If you want an example as to why Drugs are bad, Download now.
| Daedalus
04-22-2005 12:40 PM MDT | | wow, what a disgrace to KidYing (original author of Bedrooms][, the map this map is based on)
| |_ruce
04-22-2005 01:47 PM MDT | Rating: 0.5 | | 0.5 for opening the editor and having a fiddle.
Lruce
| BodenMaddox
10-26-2005 03:04 PM MDT | Rating: 0.5 | | The texturing is horrible, but what really pisses me off... This author took my Bedrooms2K4 remake and just changed the textures and monkeyed with it. Pretty lame, dude.
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