The 10 commandments, of mapping...

[Armageddon]

Can we stop with this thy and thou stuff? I mean half of you are atheists the other half, I don't know...

Also, LEARN TO DO EVERYTHING RIGHT OR I WILL KILL YOU.

That's mine, compile it into the 1,000 commandments of mapping please.

[thefight]

Thy and Thou is not religious, its the way they spoke.

[Armageddon]

thefight, where do you get your awesome avatars, I still want to see a bigger fireworks picture of your last avatar.

[thefight]

thefight, where do you get your awesome avatars, I still want to see a bigger fireworks picture of your last avatar.

When I'm bored I go through endless pages of GIF threads on random websites. I've got a folder I save them all to.

heres the original of the spinning fireworks:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/7033653/Fire_Works____by_MattTheSamurai.gif

[pk_hunter]

Yeah, I'm very atheist. Thys and Thous are just fitting with the style of the original post.

[The Giblets of Jesus]

Though shalt honor thy OP.

[joe_rogers_11155]

The 10 Commandments of General Mapping (Philisophical)

1. You are the One True Master of your maps. No one else can build your maps for you.
2. Optimization is more important than gameplay. Engine performance affects player immersion.
3. Even though your game-building programs may give you trouble, remain vigilant. Adapt and overcome.
4. Take strategic breaks to remain creative and avoid "mapper's block". Go outside sometimes.
5. Study the mapping of successful videogames (Half-Life 2, Call of Duty, STALKER). Learn from their success.
6. Lighting makes the level. Be bright, dramatic, and colorful. Use total darkness only if you absolutely have to.
7. Sound is the best tool for player immersion and mood enhancement. Players will respond to what they cannot see.
8. Never steal content from another mapper. Obtain permission before using the assets of others.
9. Seek out the opinions of fellow mappers. Learn from constructive criticism while adhering the the Commandments.
10. Learn to create your own assets, such as textures (easy), models (intermediate), and entities (difficult).

The 10 Commandments of Mapping for the Source Engine (Technical)

1. Valve is the creative force behind the Source engine. Decompile Valve's maps to learn from their methods.
2. Optimization is more important than gameplay. Engine performance affects player immersion.
3. Save your work often. Generate a spare copy of your work in case your map becomes corrupted.
4. Never use the "Carve" function for any reason. "Carve" can corrupt your map and crash your computer.
5. Fix leaks as soon as you detect them. Leaks reduce map quality and ruin engine performance.
6. Use Ctrl+T to turn small brushes into func_detail. This improves engine performance and compile time.
7. Use two light entities per "light": a high brightness light_spot, and a low brightness light of the same color.
8. Game environments need at least twice as many details in order to be accepted as "good" in the game community.
9. Turn off collisions and shadows on some of your prop models to improve player movement and aesthetics.
10. Playtest your level's gameplay as soon as possible. Details should be added after the layout has been finalized.

ENJOY

Suggestions? Comments? Agree/Disagree?

[Noodles]

Thou shalt acknowledge the awesomeness of Dorset as best

But seriously, joe_roger's post pretty much sums it up best. Should also maybe point out the usefulness of the Export to DXF option for modellers like myself when creating props for a specific map area. Always be nice to your modeller!

[Ark11]

Just so they don't get lost or damaged we should put them in some kind of box but we'll need some sort of instructions so we get it right. Anyone know good instruction to make boxes for sacred text. I'm not sure if it will work but maybe, just maybe if we put our minds to it we can use these: Exodus 25:10-22.

[pk_hunter]

I was going to offer this box, but it's occupied.

[Dr. Delta]

I disagree with;
>2. Optimization is more important than gameplay. Engine performance affects player immersion.

[thefight]

I would say optimization is more important than complexity. Don't use 32 faces when 4 faces will do the job.

[The Giblets of Jesus]

^They's lies.

Also Noodles, Dorset, it's so shitey

[joe_rogers_11155]

I disagree with;
>2. Optimization is more important than gameplay. Engine performance affects player immersion.

Perhaps it is more of an opinion than the others. I'm not trying to downgrade the massive importance of gameplay. Perhaps it should instead say,

"Optimization is more important than aesthetics. Engine performance affects player immersion."

There are a few other Commandments that I am trying to work in somehow. I'm wondering which ones I should drop.

"More than anything else, a map should be fun to play. Aesthetic mastery does not trump rewarding gameplay."

Thoughts...?

[Dr. Delta]

I disagree with;
>2. Optimization is more important than gameplay. Engine performance affects player immersion.

Perhaps it is more of an opinion than the others. I'm not trying to downgrade the massive importance of gameplay. Perhaps it should instead say,

"Optimization is more important than aesthetics. Engine performance affects player immersion."

There are a few other Commandments that I am trying to work in somehow. I'm wondering which ones I should drop.

"More than anything else, a map should be fun to play. Aesthetic mastery does not trump rewarding gameplay."

Thoughts...?

Well, if your gameplay is shit but it runs smooth on your pc, the gameplay is still shit. If you have a poor computer and the optimization is shit, the game will play shit. So, if the gameplay is shit, everyone is affected; when then optimization is shit, only people with slow computer are affected. Thoughts?