Comments on: Game to Player Communication – Half-Life 2: Ep2

By: Garść informacji…

Garść informacji… — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 08:28:49 +0000

[...] Jacob’s Formula Commentary (GtPC) – autorskie podejście do systemy komentarzy zawartego w silniku Source, twórcy Reverie – estetycznie wykonana, choć niewielka lokacja i dobry voice acting, zainteresowanym na pewno się spodoba [...]

By: eeVee

eeVee — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 20:09:02 +0000

I almost want to give this a TT, just to tone down the ratings a bit. There are a very few enemies and a choice of how to deal with each of them.

THIS MAP IS GOOD FOR WHAT IT IS–A PORTFOLIO PIECE. For mappers who want to see things like this, it’s probably a PIN. For players who are curious about this type of thing, it’s a PIL. But this is not really a map for players to play and enjoy (though it is better than some short maps that are meant to be for players to play and enjoy).

By: dougjp

dougjp — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 00:09:28 +0000

I enjoyed my brief time playing/listening to this. Its so brief I hesitated with the rating, then decided, “its so short, play it!”

By: planetphillip

planetphillip — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 05:57:59 +0000

Firstly, PP is not really a blog but a map and mod database, it’s an important difference to me.

Secondly, I didn’t branch out for this mod becasue it fits my strict criteria: “Single player first person shooter maps and mods that are within the HL universe and have at least one weapon and one enemy”. Phew, that’s a mouthful.

The site isn’t about “action games” but the above. I do admit to adding the occaisional “other” map or mod but it’s *always* a first person shooter mod and *always* a sci-fi one.

By: Corigami

Corigami — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 02:02:54 +0000

…if you are interested in game design. A great little peice of mapping with explanations that any mapper or design enthusiast will enjoy, but I could see someone who is not being upset that they took the time to download this.

Also, I can’t see how you justify posting this on your blog focused on action games but not the other mod this guy is working on, Reverie. I know you’ve been asked, but if you branched out for this mod I think you should host Reverie as well.

By: Kodox

Kodox — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 21:31:15 +0000

I am proud of the author for basically giving us a tutorial in a map. What an outstanding idea! If you are looking for a multi-level mod with a storyline, you will be dissapointed. But I enjoyed the commentary nodes because they remeind me of all the things Valve does to entertain the players. All mappers should give this one a try.

By: Phil

Phil — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 10:48:18 +0000

Good for what there is – but it is extremely short.
I’d like something to get my teeth into, and play for a day or two, or an hour or two, but you could play this through in a minute.
But as Phillip said ” It’s a portfolio piece”.

By: planetphillip

planetphillip — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 06:47:05 +0000

It’s not suitable for the main site becasue it isn’t a first person shooter set in the HL universe. I do occasionally post non-HL themed mods (Cyberscape for example) this one is too different to include. In fact there are plenty of mods like this that I don’t list. You should visit ModDB and perform a search for HL2 mods, you might be surprised. There’s one called Blind Monk, where you play a ….a blin monk. There are NO visuals AT ALL. Completely black, it’s all about sound.

We’ve gone off-topic here, so no more discussion about anything except this map.

By: mel

mel — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 03:13:29 +0000

While I understand the reasoning behind the making of this map and admiring the work and mapping skills involved, it nevertheless falls well short of a playable experience being very limited in gameplay and content. If you are looking for a game to play and get immersed in this is not it. I found very little to hold my interest but maybe I am missing the point, either way I don’t think there is much here to recommend a play, maybe a ‘go look’ recommendation.

By: Old Scratch

Old Scratch — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 02:46:38 +0000

Phil!!! You b&stard! Holding out on us like that??

What makes it “not suitable” for the main site??

Brat, yer gonna make me go to the forum and find it…

By: planetphillip

planetphillip — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 21:55:24 +0000

Yes, I did know about Reverie and posted it on my forum, but it’s not suitable for the main site.

By: civanT

civanT — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:52:24 +0000

Phillip, I’m not sure if you saw it but you should share this guy’s other map “Reverie”. My god, it was so perfect. It’s a shame nobody knows about it. I loved that game. And yes, it is a game, not a tutorial. Well, it is a tutorial for me. This guy is soo good. Thanks for sharing this good piece and lettinfg us know about him Phillip. That will be so helpful for my mod.

By: planetphillip

planetphillip — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:34:49 +0000

Jasper, this is not aimed at players. It’s a portfolio piece and as such should be judge that way. Giving it an Avoid It recommendation Image just becuase it contained commentary is unfair.

By: Jasper

Jasper — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:06:18 +0000

Hardly any game play.This is a no no. I can hardly believe I bothered to play it. As for a study on game to player communication just play all the Half-Life games and the better maps and mods and you can see how it is done. These authors do it by visual and action clues only; without a commentary on how to do it. As players, we are supposed to and have fun working out what has to be done and the strategy to achieve success. OK, I got stuck for several minutes in Half-Life 2 before working out how to use the see-saw to make the jump but i got the lovely warm glow of satifaction after I worked it out – so what are all those loose bricks for you ask yourself – penny drops. Where would the fun be if you were told to put the bricks on one end?
The author produced a great map which could have been expanded and should have more game play.
Verbal instructions should discouraged. The author should be encouraged – but without the verbiage

By: civanT

civanT — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:22:15 +0000

Yes, that’s right. It’s a bit annoying, getting kicked out of the game, but it’s still awesome.

By: tundra_cool

tundra_cool — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:26:01 +0000

It’s interesting but you never, ever want to kick the player out of the game or even fade them out to black when there’s more than one route and more areas to explore. He’s made some good points about the swing and shotgun, though!

By: Anon-00020

Anon-00020 — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:55:35 +0000

this is THE BEST map I have played in a long time. the game play was really fun and it was well designed I personally love his work with the crawl space and the graveyard with the zombie but what I really enjoyed was the commentry all maps/mods should have these nodes there one of the things I loved about valve games (l4d,portal, hl2ep2) and they provide advice and insight into what makes a good map, such as how to communicate to the player . awsome.

By: planetphillip

planetphillip — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:21:37 +0000

Perhaps normally, but not in this map. Maybe a console command? I’ll check into it now.

By: sawo

sawo — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 13:31:19 +0000

The commentary can be disabled via the game options If i remember correctly, its in the audio tab.

By: civanT

civanT — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:10:54 +0000

Man that was awsome. Tips were really good and I’m gonna use them for sure. I was looking for some help about level design and this was right on target. Thanks Phillip.

On the other hand, if you think this map as a game, looking for fun, I’m not sure this is what you are looking for. It’s pretty short.

By: planetphillip

planetphillip — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 11:51:02 +0000

Don’t let the Consider It image fool you, it’s not a bad map at all, it’s just the commentary symbols are quite annoying, although they may be able to be removed.

In fairness it is a portfolio piece and therefor should be judged differently to other maps.

The gameplay is fun, although there isn’t much of it, but that’s not to objective of the map!

If you want 5 minutes of good design, limited gameplay and a look inside a level designer’s mind, then this is for you.

5 Words Or Less Review
A look behind the curtain.