DM-Fractionary-X
Map Info
	File Name dm-fractionary-x2.zip Author Soma The Real Gametype UT2k4 Deathmatch Date Added 05-02-2005 File Version 2.00 File Size 13.53 mb Player Count 0 - 8 Map Description "There's a piece of us all in this sacred complex..." Changes from -X : Some minor bugs fixed. added some more blocking volumes. 100a platform has a different design. Link passage by 100a is bigger. Path up to top shaft from outside mad easier. Sloped walls are easier to dodge up. Some ZonePortals fixed. Playerstarts tweaked. I forgot to include the music file in the zip of this new X2 version. If you're a music... But you can download it here: ### OGG MUSIC FILE DOWNLOAD ### http://urlich.swissworld.com/fractionary/fractionary_ogg.zip Infos: This map was a little project I had with a clan named ::lob:: formerly known as "Lordz of Brooklyn". They wanted me to build a new fun TDM map for them. - It all started with a few basic layouts and all the feedback i got from the many players, over the months turned into something we see here now. We got lots of fun and I soon got too much of the flipflapmappingmaniamonster spirit, so many incarnations of a "alpha" map the world has never seen before ended somewhere in the middle of nowhere. :P The map litteraly morphed, growed and got cut into something I was not really happy with, but I missed to solve the main problems somewhere in the early stages. Having lots of people that played it everyday and adapted to the map, kinda forced me being "afraid" of changing the layout radically. So I tried to do the best out of what was there and bring it all to a end. However, somehow it's more like the "process" is what counted and not the final result. A good way to say if your work turned out bad *cough* *cough* Very special thanks goes to: All members of the ::LOB:: Clan who helped test and gave me feedback and inspiration. chu, meatbag, hamsgod, nytejade, peter, sarge, severe, tasties, hectic, screem, onslaught, amokk, deicide, vieks, g money, rudo, oppressor, ethel, massive, battledragon and all the players who helped playing this map during creation. The people at the Myunreal Forum of ::LOB::. We had a great time! ;) Also like to specially thank {S!N}Stik, which I almost forgot, but now had a second chance to do that. Also forgot to mention him in the readme of Goose2k4. Sorry dude! Review Rating 8 User Rating 9 Overall Rating 9.0
Review
Reviewer ArcadiaVincennes Awe Score:  2.5/3 Date 11-02-2005 Build Score:  3.0/3 Review Schema Cast Score:  2.5/3 User Point:  +1 Overall Score:  9.0/10 DM-Fractionary-X (UT2004) Well, this probably needs no introduction to most of you but for those that don’t follow the Unreal community very closely, this is a Soma map. Which means you may as well stop reading now and go download it because it’s going to be good. So go. Now. Clicky clicky. Awe: 2.5 Before you say, ‘OMG, Noes! Not another industrial map’, stop, sit back, and rethink your position. Industrial maps have gotten to the point where people have stopped throwing concrete and girders around with the same texture/mesh package and have really begun to dig in to the possible nuances available. Soma’s Frantionary is an excellent example of this transition. First, the textureing is varied wildly throughout the map using Hourences’ lovely custom texture package. Yes, the greys and browns of industrial concrete and rusty girders and sheet metal is there, but it’s mixed and matched in more imaginative ways than other authors have done in the past. In some respect, this is really quite nice as you’re not resigned to seeing the same configuration of textures around every corner. On the other hand, it tends to bleed together a little too thoroughly and therefore reduces ‘landmarking’ quality based simply on textures. However, when the textureing is examined in terms of the lighting and the various blends produced, the landmarking becomes a little clearer, but still remains a bit muddled. The lighting has been executed very well. Nothing is overbright, and nothing (except perhaps the reds, but that may be personal preference) is oversaturated. The interior lighting is often composed of a brighter, small radius color representing the color of light cast from the fixture, and then accompanied by a secondary, lower brightness, larger radius light whose color more closely represents the color that would be produced by the fixture color blended with the texture color that the light is casting onto. This produces an effect that’s more ‘realistic’ in terms of lighting color and leads to quite an attractive light schema throughout the interior areas of the map. The exterior light is fairly basic in comparison, but seeing as how the setting is daytime, the brightness and clarity of the exterior light is a nice contrast to the interior lights. The architecture further reflects the blend between the lighting and texturing and feeds off both to provide dramatic form pieces, nice shadows, and assists in defining the areas a little more clearly. The architecture is the most significant landmarking tool in the map, but even it fails slightly in that rusted beams, girders, pipes and trim are omnipresent and carry a similar color scheme. You’ll want to look at the larger forms and not the smaller ones in order to keep your bearings. However, the larger forms are dramatic and really help bring the industrial theme home in combination with the other visual elements. The map overall is beautiful. But apart from the Exterior area, the RL corridors, and the Supershield area, you might find yourself taking some time to get used to the layout. Despite the creativity and excellent implementation of the texturing, lighting, and architecture, it can sometime blend together too much simply because everything is too consistently varied. I know that’s a contradiction in terms but it’s the only way I can think of to describe it at this point. Build 3.0 We all know Soma can build maps and build them well. Zones? Check. Good BSP work? Check. Good mesh placement? Check. General, locational, and triggered ambient sounds? Check. Lifts and jumppads have appropriate sound? Check. Blocking volumes to smooth gameplay and keep you out of ‘exploit’ areas? Mostly, yes. It’s smooth – no doubt - but exploiters may find a few holes. I could go on, but I really can’t find anything that’s done ‘wrong’ per se, and I can’t find anything to suggest he do better, or add to the build. Cast 2.5 With maps behind him like Waisten, Achilles, and Goose, you can expect to be rewarded for your downloading time in terms of gameplay. And your expectations will be met. 75% of the map flows like the mighty Mississippi and you will be swept along in the foamy fragging froth. The other 25% is a bit on the disappointing side. The large, exterior central area – when playing against experienced players, especially if they’re good with hitscan – is a death trap. With multiple entrances on all levels, it’s wisest just to avoid this area. Which is more difficult than one would think because the map’s flow naturally directs you to this map ‘hub’ area. Another problem with it is that because the map’s flow directs one there, this is where you’ll find a large percentage of the bots at any given time. There is a whole lot of fragging constantly happening in the center when played with bots at the default player count. I’m aware that the map was designed for people-play but this area could have been designed a little better in terms of botplay. The other problem area is the tight narrow corridors at the top of the map that largely surround the exterior area and also connect to a few other portions of the map. The routes to access the area are not integrated well into the flow of the rest of the map and the only reasons to venture up there are for the RL, to snipe down from, or to have a bit of a break from the action. It’s also quite ‘tight’ in comparison to the rest of the map’s corridors and hallways which also lends itself to flow restriction. Other than this flow concern, the only other reservation I have about the gameplay is that the Supershield is both too easy and too hard to get. Playing with low skilled players, a simple jumppad (or a drop down from a narrow ‘corridor’) will get you the Supershield easily. Playing with highly-skilled players, you’ll meet an untimely death by hitscan in midair off the jumppad, or you’ll receive a fistful of flak/rockets when coming out of the ‘corridor’. There isn’t much of a middle ground. Honestly, the flow issue and the danger in the central areas are the greatest flaws in the map, with the supershield area being a small problem in comparison. The rest of the map is high quality stuff and although the competitive crowd won’t pick up on it, the gameplay will surely satisfy most others. I’d give it a 2.25 if I could, but since I can’t I’ll round up. To put Fractionary-X back together, the visuals are excellently executed, but some better landmarking definition would have been appreciated. The build is high quality and doesn’t need elaboration. Finally, the gameplay that the author has built his reputation on is, as always, present in spades in this map. The downside being that there are areas of the map that will go unused due to flow or danger issues. But the areas you do decide to play within will satisfy you. This is a must download and you’ll probably find it staying on your hard drive too.
Map Comments
JuggaloKyle 04-19-2005 10:27 AM MDT Rating: 8.5   amazing map. great layout and DM flow. nice visuals. it kinda reminds me of Redkin.... but none the less, its an amazing map, well worth the download. :) cUnNiNg_StUnTs 04-19-2005 01:32 PM MDT Rating: 9.5   Now maybe Sparky can update his pwnage site...LOL awesome map soma, you've come a long way since Betalus and that says alot because Betalus was a good, good map. Keep it up you are part of the reason I love this game! G.Lecter 11-05-2005 08:54 AM MST Rating: 9.5   Yeh, Soma is definitely my favourite gameplay-maker... Great, this map rocks. I've played it a lot of times without getting bored, and once you know the layout every match is better... The visuals look awesome, but not too charged. :) I liked the layout and the pickup layout is pretty nice, too. IMO the playercount is too high for DM -I had better matches with 3 less bots. In TDM it may be better, it offers many interesting tactics, especially the center room, where I had good fun controling the different high spots. Awesome music too... --- Months after the release it's still one of my common choices when I go DM... I don't feel it so hitscan-dominant, IMO the weapon setup is partially fixing the middle being too hitscanny (Hitscan is deep inside the facility, and the LG in a low spot, not too good to pwn everyone...), but that may be just me, I never have been too good with instant-hit things... :p Congrats for the 'feature' and thanks for the music link... redfist 11-03-2005 01:12 AM MST Rating: 9   WoW, I am glad you didn't use all that shiny stuff that seems to be all over the place these days this DM level has that perfect lighting and looks to create a place in 3d worlds specialy for fighting DM,another cool map Soma.the FPS were just kick_ng A__ I didn't feel any noticable slowdowns at all. I would say the most staunchest old UT players would want ut2004 with running this map.Good gaming.and all players for that matter. My only comment,I wish it were a tiny bit shorter distance from the quad to shield direction, but you can get around fast here so it plays not too big,and I wish at least one of those barrels were exploding, only 1, the one on it's side up there,boom !!.. EDIT .. good review man. D-7 04-19-2005 02:44 PM MDT Rating: 9   Could replace Rankin... Manticore 04-19-2005 05:09 PM MDT Rating: 9.5   It's been said. Thanks for the map....or ten. souldividersjosz 04-19-2005 05:20 PM MDT Rating: 9   Go with the flow Luv_Studd 04-19-2005 08:01 PM MDT Rating: 8.5   Very nice gameplay - going to learn this puppy since I know it will be on servers. One very minor gripe are the hallways - appear a little too samey shape-wise (ie: boxy, not much curvin' going on). I believe I got snagged running along one of the walls (can't recall which one now). And alas, the larger file size might scare away some - I know the feeling though. Great job! :) MichaelM 04-19-2005 11:29 PM MDT Rating: 9   One of the best levels in a while... I like it very much, you can expect a review once I update my site for this weekend. Music could have been altered slightly, but the gameplay and visuals make up for that. I must say that the bot pathing is excellent Fuzzy Logic 04-20-2005 11:50 AM MDT Rating: 9   Some people go for looks, some for gameplay. This map excels in both. Frag away! Defeat 04-20-2005 06:40 PM MDT Rating: 8.5   >Didn't like the music but liked the air duct places. The outside area with the grass kinda reminded me of Deck 16][. Muffin 04-20-2005 11:12 PM MDT Rating: 8.5   Good stuff. Kept me playing for a while. Nice movement around the map. OldManPeterson 05-03-2005 08:16 PM MDT Rating: 9.5   Original, rankin killer. Old Man Peterson 05-04-2005 11:19 AM MDT Rating: 9.5   I like it. Monday 05-07-2005 04:59 AM MDT Rating: 7.5   Atmospheric in places,Rankin beater? I don't know, maps are maps... Good job well done Kobra 05-09-2005 06:36 PM MDT Rating: 9.5   Alomst love it... :D goldfenix 11-03-2005 06:41 PM MST Rating: 9   Most kick ass movers I have ever seen, good theme, good layout. Great lighting and atmosphere. The only thing wrong is lack of music, graffiti I found bizzare. Wesley "Boreas" van Dijk 11-04-2005 06:24 AM MST Rating: 9   Very nice map! The only thing I didn't like was the lack of music... and perhaps a few more sounds in it. It's so quiet in there :| Soma The Real 11-04-2005 02:04 PM MST   Thanks for the nice review! Enjoyed reading. Thx for all the nice comments guys. Music would be there if I wouldnt have forgotten to include it in the zip of the new DM-Fractionary-X2. The old version (DM-Fractionary-X) had the ogg file it in. Sorry for this. If you want the music file you can download it from here: ##### MUSIC FILE DL ##### http://urlich.swissworld.com/fractionary/fractionary_ogg.zip BTW There's actually lots of ambient/trigger sounds in the map, dunno what's wrong with that. Turns2Ashes 11-04-2005 12:33 PM MST Rating: 7.5   Looks nice and all, but God damn Soma needs to get over his infatuation with jump pads to powerups. Also, the middle area is completely useless because there's nothing of use out there and lots of directions to get shot from (11 entrances or something). Online you only go out there if you want to have a huge bullseye drawn on your back. scirmast 11-14-2005 07:57 AM MST Rating: 8   A well done map, but not perfect. Everything is done really well, but the layout is not as exiting as - say - in Goose (though Goose isn't perfect either). You're a very talented mapper, but in the future use a bit more imagination and time to create some truly unique (yet gameplay wise flowing) layouts. Scrap the idea of rooms and corridors! It's hard, and it's time consuming, but perfection is what we're after, right? Do that and it's a sure ten (almost). Kantham 12-08-2005 05:44 AM MST Rating: 9.5   I played it again, and i must say that this map truly kick my ass. The lift mover is awesomeness aswell. Very well conected layout. And the best of all, alot of details all around. kingmango 01-04-2006 08:10 AM MST Rating: 9   begin blabbering fanboy mini review- The first time I saw this map it was voted during an online TAM match. I was very happy at first that Grendel or Campgrounds* wasn't voted for the umpteenth time that evening. Not that there's anyting wrong with those maps, but one or the other every third or fourth map gets old after a few months... hehe Anyway back to Fractionary. So after the dl I had a chance to fly around while everyone was duking it out. I was thinking of stealing all kinds of ideas. The lifts... These are the best lifts and shafts of any map I've ever seen. The walls... Best use of space I've seen. Gameplay... Top notch. Right up there with the best. Nothing to draw back from it. Plenty of ways to the top x-over camper's hall unlike some other maps that use this idea. I really can't find the words to describe this map other than I think it's the new standard by which all others will be judged. A level to strive towards. My favorite DM. Evilmrfrank 01-04-2006 04:26 PM MST Rating: 9   This map owns. Its no wonder the map is on the featured map list! kurtloeffler 01-19-2006 05:39 AM MST   too many textures in some areas(3rd review screenshot)