[RELEASE] Showdown In Suzhou - Shadow Warrior map

Started by methy, 26 April 2016, 13:37:05

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methy

Brand new Shadow Warrior usermap for everyone's enjoyment !

Screenshots :










Video Trailer :

Readme file
Everything you need to know about the map

[spoiler]Shadow Warrior .MAP Authoring Template
================================================================
Title                   : Showdown in Suzhou
Date Finished           : 25th of April 2016
Filename                : suzhou.MAP
Author                  : MetHy aka MetHunter aka NESfag
Email Address           : cocometh.dal@gmail.com
Misc. Author Info       : Made a bunch of Duke Nukem 3D maps in the past.

Description             : A small town built on an artificial lake and around old ruins.


Story                   : With his fame renewed thanks to his latest video game reboot,
Lo Wang was shooting a Tomb Raider/Shadow Warrior movie crossover in Suzhou (Chinese Venice).
Also starring Angelina Jolie, the woman got herself kidnapped by an occult branch of the Triad which may have had links with Zilla.
Brad Pitt pressed Lo Wang to go and rescue her, offering him a couple of his hard-earned *cough* Oscars in exchange.
As a debutant actor, Lo Wang jumped at the chance, grabbed his sword and rode on his tuned-up boat.


Additional Credits to   : Daedolon, Robman and Steambull, for testing and/or feedback
           Robman, for his help on SW mapping
           icecoldduke and Hendricks266 for their help on some glitches and crash issues
           Anyone keeping Shadow Warrior in any way: the people listed above, General Arcade and
           Devolver Digital, the authors of mapping FAQs and tutorials,
                          the people working on bringing us Deadly Kiss, etc

================================================================

* Play Information *

Single Player           : Yes
Cooperative 2-8 Player   : Yes. Implemented but not tested.
DukeMatch 2-8 Player    : No.
Difficulty Settings     : Yes: Normal and Hard. Skills 0, 1 and 2 are the same, so "Tiny grasshopper", "I have no fear"
           and "Who Wants some Wang" will give you Normal difficulty. Skill#3 "No Pain No Gain" for Hard.
           Launching the map without manually choosing a skill setting will automatically give you Normal.
Demo Cameras            : Yes, Implemented.
New Sounds              : No
New Music               : No
New Graphics            : No
New/changed CONs        : No

* Construction *

Base                    : New level from scratch
Build Time              : Started start of July 2014, finished end of April 2016.
Editor(s) used          : SWPBuild and Mapster32
Known Bugs              : Using Redux you might have the screen flickering black a little when inside rooms with Sector Over Sector.
           Using SWP some ambient sounds might be glitchy and heard where they shouldn't.
May Not Run With...     : The minimum specs requirement of Shadow Warrior.

* Copyright / Permissions *

Authors may not use this level as a base to build additional
levels. 

You MAY distribute this MAP, provided you include this file, with
no modifications.  You may distribute this file in any electronic
format (BBS, Diskette, CD, etc) as long as you include this file
intact.

* Where to get this map *

Shadow Warrior central : http://swcentral.weebly.com/
Hopefully on Redux Steam workshop (you may have to run the beta version to find it) if it gets back up online....

================================================================

* How to play *

- Using DOS/DOSbox (most recommended) : copy the map into your root SW folder. Run Setup.exe, select suzhou.map in "User Level Selection",
               then "Save and launch Shadow Warrior".
               Or if you're using the GoG version click on "Launch Settings", then go to "User Level Selection", select "suzhou.map", "save and launch SW".

- Using Redux : copy the map into Steam\SteamApps\common\Shadow Warrior Classic\gameroot\maps , then run the game and select the map in the "User Maps" sub-menu.

- Using SWP: copy the map into your SWP folder, launch SWP and in the startup window, click on "gaming" and select the map in the User Maps list.
        If the startup window is turned off, you can turn it on in the game's options.


================================================================

Mapping for SW, a rant by MetHy :


Making this map was at the same time a fantastic and frustrating experience.

It is amazing how much you can do with SW, coming from DN3D, I quickly realized how much MORE you can achieve with SW's effects.
The game has a lot of awesome effects, most of which were barely used in the original game, and most of the time used in their basic form.

However, the more complex the game is, the harder it is to get into and build for. It also didn't help that I got a lot of annoying glitches and crashing issues.
This complexity is probably one of the reasons why SW's mapping never picked up and why there aren't many (good) user-maps to play for it.

But I can tell you one thing: the surface of what is possible to achieve in SW hasn't even been scratched yet.

I hope that someday, a few more people will get into SW mapping and show us how far you can go with it...
Maybe the day it gets a quality sourceport with an advanced map editor like DN3D has ... ? Coming from Mapster32, using SWPBuild felt like a leap backwards.

About the map, at first I wanted it to be a middle sized classic style map, but I quickly got carried away by all the possibilities and the map ended up having around 935 sectors (which is more than 90% of the possible limit).
This being said, while I did try to come up with interesting effects and a fun map layout including RoR and SoS, what I did with the game's effects remained rather simple.

I think this is a cool map, at least I hope, but it's nothing compared to the possibilities the game offer.

Thanks again to anyone who's helped me in any way for this map.
Now I might just go through the same hell with Blood mapping...

Enjoy the map![/spoiler]


Download link

Enjoy !
http://thisshitaintscary.blogspot.com/ - The only Blog solely dedicated to Horror video games

Fernando

Me and my friend Ranzou had the opportunity to play Cooperative on "Showdown In Suzhou". It is always a pleasure and a delight to have a brand new Shadow Warrior map. I just can't get why SW is often an overlooked gem from the BUILD games.

But still, onto your brand new map.
Well, where do I begin? We tested in the original DOS Shadow Warrior, and we played with practically no lag and spot-on stability. The game did not crash a single time online, which is fantastic, considering a few bugs in the DOS game code which often blows the game into pieces at random times.

The level itself was pretty much confusing, we explored for a long time without knowing where to go and with a huge army of enemies at our toes with very low ammunition. It was quite hard to find at first a few weapons to fend ourselves. It was only after we grabbed the silver key that progression was simplified, but often than not we died several times throughout the level due to lack of weapons.

I have to admit, it's great to have a new map with several puzzles which do not stray from the classic SW style, but a puzzle we didn't like at all was the waterfall one. We fell a lot of times through the water only to retrace steps and waste a significant amount of time retrying. If only there was a possibility to return faster to that area. It was quite a pain in the ass to retry that many times because we fell and wasted time in hopping back to the area.

One rather peculiar, but strange, oddity was that stepping on a platform while moving it killed the player rather viciously. I don't know if it's anengine quirk or a tag you missed, but still it was quite fun accidentally killing my friend while he was stepping on one platform.

When we faced the serpent god, for some reason or another, the exit revealed itself during the battle. Perhaps it was meant to be opened after the boss was supposed to be defeated, but every fan of SW knows how difficult is to map for this game.

But despite all the good and bad I ranted up to this point, the biggest complaint we have is its poor performance on DOS. We are pretty much sure you did not map for the original DOS version of the game, but rather for SWP or Redux. Having many sectors at view is something no mapper should do in BUILD, since the engine is incapable of handling a large amount of sectors at a time, so pretty much open areas are a bad idea.

Overall, it was quite fun to play this map, even with all its problems and its piss poor performance on (in our opinion) the only stable version of the game (DOS).

You should really keep mapping for Shadow Warrior, and really try mapping for Blood. And don't get distracted if Blood is slightly harder to map due to the different approach in effects and tags.

methy

Thanks for the feedback!

Quote from: Fernando on  02 May 2016, 02:03:47
The level itself was pretty much confusing, we explored for a long time without knowing where to go and with a huge army of enemies at our toes with very low ammunition. It was quite hard to find at first a few weapons to fend ourselves. It was only after we grabbed the silver key that progression was simplified, but often than not we died several times throughout the level due to lack of weapons.

I implemented co-op spawn points but I did not test it in co-op, glad to see at least 2 people played it that way.

At the beginning of the map, you're supposed to drive the boat around the map and shoot enemies using the boat turrets. It is possible to kill everyone without ever using the boat (or turret later on) but it is significantly harder. Now, obviously for co-op it is a bit stupid because there is only one boat.
As for weapons and supplies, accessible from the start in the main outdoor/underwater area are 3 shotguns and 2 uzis scattered all around, as well as 2 sets of sticky bombs, a semi hidden medipack, a hidden rocket launcher, and a whole bunch of ammo and health. Now though you have to explore a lot to find them, the entire underwater area is non mandatory but provides a lot of supplies. I understand however that in co-op it can easily be a problem, because you're more likely to want to quickly keep going than to explore in co-op, and I imagine it's going to be an ever bigger problem if you don't use the boat.

Besides I don't know how items work in co-op, do they respawn?

Basically what I'm saying is I made co-op possible but I never tested it and not much thought was put into it. I imagine it's even possible to sequence break parts of the map by jumping on the other player.

Quote
I have to admit, it's great to have a new map with several puzzles which do not stray from the classic SW style, but a puzzle we didn't like at all was the waterfall one. We fell a lot of times through the water only to retrace steps and waste a significant amount of time retrying. If only there was a possibility to return faster to that area. It was quite a pain in the ass to retry that many times because we fell and wasted time in hopping back to the area.

I did provide a side corridor near the corridor with traps, so that if you fall at the waterfall puzzle, you don't have to through the traps again.
There are also 2 other shortcuts in the game that appear once you get to a certain point, one just after the waterfall puzzle, when you activate the moving sectors used to jump to the next cliff; and one after the turret section.
But for the waterfall puzzle, the idea was that there was supposed to be some kind of punishment for failing.

Quote
One rather peculiar, but strange, oddity was that stepping on a platform while moving it killed the player rather viciously. I don't know if it's anengine quirk or a tag you missed, but still it was quite fun accidentally killing my friend while he was stepping on one platform.

Didn't know that, again because I didn't test it in co-op. I'm thinking it could be an engine thing though since I don't think the effect was used like that in the original game.

Quote
When we faced the serpent god, for some reason or another, the exit revealed itself during the battle. Perhaps it was meant to be opened after the boss was supposed to be defeated, but every fan of SW knows how difficult is to map for this game.

Killing the boss in a usermap doesn't trigger the ending, nor can you trigger anything upon an enemy death. So I had to provide an exit switch somehow, so a slow time based door seemed like the best solution. You're forced to fight the snake at least for some time even if you want to press the switch without killing it.

Quote
But despite all the good and bad I ranted up to this point, the biggest complaint we have is its poor performance on DOS. We are pretty much sure you did not map for the original DOS version of the game, but rather for SWP or Redux. Having many sectors at view is something no mapper should do in BUILD, since the engine is incapable of handling a large amount of sectors at a time, so pretty much open areas are a bad idea.

Yes framerate drops in DOSbox in the main outdoor area. Now though, I don't know if it would drop like that when playing in the actual DOS with a decent computer of the time.
I did make the map with DOS(box) primarly in mind, since I am satisfied neither with SWP nor with Redux, and I thought framerate was tolerable even if not perfect. But then again, it might be dropping more or less depending on your specs and on your DOSbox config.

Quote
You should really keep mapping for Shadow Warrior, and really try mapping for Blood. And don't get distracted if Blood is slightly harder to map due to the different approach in effects and tags.

I don't think I'll ever make another SW map, but I still want to make a map for Blood one of these days. ATM I'm working on another Build mapping project that's neither DN3D, SW, or Blood; and it will blow your mind but shhhh it's a secret.
http://thisshitaintscary.blogspot.com/ - The only Blog solely dedicated to Horror video games

Fernando

Quote from: methy on  19 May 2016, 11:57:26
Thanks for the feedback!

You are very welcome.

QuoteI implemented co-op spawn points but I did not test it in co-op, glad to see at least 2 people played it that way.

At the beginning of the map, you're supposed to drive the boat around the map and shoot enemies using the boat turrets. It is possible to kill everyone without ever using the boat (or turret later on) but it is significantly harder. Now, obviously for co-op it is a bit stupid because there is only one boat.
As for weapons and supplies, accessible from the start in the main outdoor/underwater area are 3 shotguns and 2 uzis scattered all around, as well as 2 sets of sticky bombs, a semi hidden medipack, a hidden rocket launcher, and a whole bunch of ammo and health. Now though you have to explore a lot to find them, the entire underwater area is non mandatory but provides a lot of supplies. I understand however that in co-op it can easily be a problem, because you're more likely to want to quickly keep going than to explore in co-op, and I imagine it's going to be an ever bigger problem if you don't use the boat.

Besides I don't know how items work in co-op, do they respawn?

Basically what I'm saying is I made co-op possible but I never tested it and not much thought was put into it. I imagine it's even possible to sequence break parts of the map by jumping on the other player.

Precisely the quick way is the way we generally play. I only explore the whole map when I play offline, so your explanation is quite logical.
Every inventory item and weapon proper respawn after a few seconds, it is set automatically, so you don't have to fiddle additionally with those sprites. However, you can set multi-exclusive sprites as well with F8 in DOS (don't attempt that in SWPBuild, as it crashes and burns pretty ugly)

Quote
I did provide a side corridor near the corridor with traps, so that if you fall at the waterfall puzzle, you don't have to through the traps again.
There are also 2 other shortcuts in the game that appear once you get to a certain point, one just after the waterfall puzzle, when you activate the moving sectors used to jump to the next cliff; and one after the turret section.
But for the waterfall puzzle, the idea was that there was supposed to be some kind of punishment for failing.

We noticed that as well, but it was the long trip back to the entrance of the cave that took a long time repeating over again. If there were additional shortcuts, we weren't able to find them or deploy them properly.

Quote
Didn't know that, again because I didn't test it in co-op. I'm thinking it could be an engine thing though since I don't think the effect was used like that in the original game.

Most probably, the SW game module is quite quirky.

Quote
Killing the boss in a usermap doesn't trigger the ending, nor can you trigger anything upon an enemy death. So I had to provide an exit switch somehow, so a slow time based door seemed like the best solution. You're forced to fight the snake at least for some time even if you want to press the switch without killing it.

Pity, as the level 5 serpent boss in the registered version precisely does that. Hard coded is the only possible reason as to why that happens. Or... perhaps it can be done... I'll take a look at the editor some day soon.

Quote
Yes framerate drops in DOSbox in the main outdoor area. Now though, I don't know if it would drop like that when playing in the actual DOS with a decent computer of the time.
I did make the map with DOS(box) primarly in mind, since I am satisfied neither with SWP nor with Redux, and I thought framerate was tolerable even if not perfect. But then again, it might be dropping more or less depending on your specs and on your DOSbox config.

I'm pretty much sure a real DOS system has far better performance than emulation. Too bad I don't have a real DOS PC to play the BUILD games. That would be awesome. And I'm glad you are not satisfied with any port whatsoever. I am not satisfied with either as well, because the DOS versions are the only proper way to play vanilla content.

Quote
I don't think I'll ever make another SW map, but I still want to make a map for Blood one of these days. ATM I'm working on another Build mapping project that's neither DN3D, SW, or Blood; and it will blow your mind but shhhh it's a secret.
What? You have to tell me! I demand you tell me for which game, right now!!! XD

It's fantastic you are mapping for other BUILD games, and you really have to map for Blood. Perhaps it's the most difficult to design for, but don't get discouraged.

I'll be looking forward for your future contributions.