The aim of this unit was to learn to develop a map for Unreal Tournament, by starting with an initial design, then itaratively develop and evolve the design based on player feedback and play-testing.
In doing this unit, I have learned a lot about map design and just how much work goes into developing a balanced and fun experience.
During the development process I visited Liverpool ONE and took some pictures for reference and inspiration. I took over 50 photos, but I have linked a interest conclusion mood board containing about 10 pictures as an example.
I have learned how much work there is just to get to a 'completed' blockout stage, and that is before any of the art has even been started!
In regards to my own map, I have learned about scale and how much work can be just scrapped in favour of evolving the map design.
I had a lot of trouble getting the map to 'feel' right in the early stages and it was too big in many areas. Players particularly had issues with the length of the side areas and the overall size of the central area.
I feel my final map is at the stage where art could be started, as it has been thoroughly tested by college peers, friends and the public on the Unreal Tournament forums, with extremely positive feedback from all.
Forum post:
https://www.epicgames.com/unrealtournament/forums/showthread.php?23292
Dundoc:
https://www.dundoc.com/project/1041/2djwdoqfwb
Trello:
https://trello.com/b/wFWyxcPd
Pinterest:
https://uk.pinterest.com/aconlan0468/unit-49-liverpool-one/
Sunday, 12 June 2016
Saturday, 11 June 2016
Finishing touches.
In addition to the music, I added a few finishing touches to the visuals of the level before throwing it to the public Unreal Tournament forum.
The bases are colourised as well as the two sides of the central area, so that if you ever get disorientated in a fight you can always see which side is which. Due to the material and lighting I added some simple point lights to help show the colour.
The bases are colourised as well as the two sides of the central area, so that if you ever get disorientated in a fight you can always see which side is which. Due to the material and lighting I added some simple point lights to help show the colour.
Friday, 10 June 2016
A couple of hitches
When testing my music out in game, I encountered a couple of easily fixed hitches.
Firstly when I tested my map the first time, I almost blew my head off with the music! The default Unreal Tournament music and sound effects are much quieter than I expected, so when my music kicked in it was a lot louder than everything else!
I could have simply edited the asset volume in the cue file, but I wanted to make sure it wouldn't happen again, so I used Audacity to reduce the gain by a few decibel then saved and re-imported it to UT (using the re-import option so that nothing got lost or messed up).
The second issue was that the music only played once. This was another setting I had overlooked in my eagerness to get it working, and simply ticking the 'Loop' check box on the Cue file solved this issue.
I think these were relatively simple problems to deal with and I'll definitely make sure to check sound balance and loop settings in future!
Firstly when I tested my map the first time, I almost blew my head off with the music! The default Unreal Tournament music and sound effects are much quieter than I expected, so when my music kicked in it was a lot louder than everything else!
I could have simply edited the asset volume in the cue file, but I wanted to make sure it wouldn't happen again, so I used Audacity to reduce the gain by a few decibel then saved and re-imported it to UT (using the re-import option so that nothing got lost or messed up).
The second issue was that the music only played once. This was another setting I had overlooked in my eagerness to get it working, and simply ticking the 'Loop' check box on the Cue file solved this issue.
I think these were relatively simple problems to deal with and I'll definitely make sure to check sound balance and loop settings in future!
The Audacity!
Having chosen my background track for my level (Bafana - Chasing The Dragon), it required some editing before it was usable in my level.
When it came to editing the music track for my map, I chose the free audio editing software Audacity, available here:
http://www.audacityteam.org/
This task involved learning a new software package and learning how to create a seamless sound sample.
My main aim is to remove the intro and outro sections of the track and create a perfect loop if possible.
First I loaded the audio track into the program.
I read in a tutorial that the best way to create a seamless loop is to split the sample in half and overlap the two ends you want to join. This is actually really similar to how you can create a seamless repeating texture in Photoshop, by offsetting and joining up the outer edges and finding a point where they match closely.
I found a point where the beat and volume were similar enough, then removed the unrequired parts.
This appears relatively simple but it was actually a couple of hours work getting the beat to match and hiding the seam.
The last step was creating a new start/end point in the music (as the intro/outro was removed). I chose a point where the beat lulls and one of the hook melodies plays, and made that the start.
My final result is actually surprisingly good, I feel only the original artist would know where the loop point is!
I've also added a new program I am able to use to my ability set, so that's nice!
When it came to editing the music track for my map, I chose the free audio editing software Audacity, available here:
http://www.audacityteam.org/
This task involved learning a new software package and learning how to create a seamless sound sample.
My main aim is to remove the intro and outro sections of the track and create a perfect loop if possible.
First I loaded the audio track into the program.
I read in a tutorial that the best way to create a seamless loop is to split the sample in half and overlap the two ends you want to join. This is actually really similar to how you can create a seamless repeating texture in Photoshop, by offsetting and joining up the outer edges and finding a point where they match closely.
I found a point where the beat and volume were similar enough, then removed the unrequired parts.
This appears relatively simple but it was actually a couple of hours work getting the beat to match and hiding the seam.
The last step was creating a new start/end point in the music (as the intro/outro was removed). I chose a point where the beat lulls and one of the hook melodies plays, and made that the start.
My final result is actually surprisingly good, I feel only the original artist would know where the loop point is!
I've also added a new program I am able to use to my ability set, so that's nice!
Music
My UT veteran friend told me that the music for a map is actually really important and can make up about half of the experience for the player! He says he still listens to UT99 game music now if he needs to get psyched when gaming!
As I have a bit of time left I have decided to use the time to research some royalty free music to put in the level. As I am doing a classic style map I am looking for late 90's/early 2000s high energy dance/trance music.
After visiting a few sites, I found this track on Newgrounds:
Bafana - Chasing The Dragon
http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/605804
I think this track has a good callback to the old early 2000s dance music style, and the Asian flourishes tie in to the Cyberpunk theme of the map.
The track has an intro and outro, so I will have to dedicate some time to learning audio software to try and edit it so that it loops for background music.
I will update with how I get on.
As I have a bit of time left I have decided to use the time to research some royalty free music to put in the level. As I am doing a classic style map I am looking for late 90's/early 2000s high energy dance/trance music.
After visiting a few sites, I found this track on Newgrounds:
Bafana - Chasing The Dragon
http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/605804
I think this track has a good callback to the old early 2000s dance music style, and the Asian flourishes tie in to the Cyberpunk theme of the map.
The track has an intro and outro, so I will have to dedicate some time to learning audio software to try and edit it so that it loops for background music.
I will update with how I get on.
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