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09/06/2014 - "Map 11: Mercenary Base" by Tonnberry

Each week a single map is discussed here in detail.

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User avatar Semfry
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Subject: 09/06/2014 - "Map 11: Mercenary Base" by Tonnberry

Post Posted: 09 Jun 2014, 16:14

Map Title: Map 11: Mercenary Base
Author: Paul 'Tonnberry' Fahss
From: Operation Na Pali
Filename: NP11Tonnberry.unr
Music Files: K_Vision.umx




Video Playthrough:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-RgAvGwc58

Synopsis: The Mercenaries are on your side, but now you need to find the way through to the other side of their base.

Discuss!
Formerly Mman

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Subject: Re: 09/06/2014 - "Map 11: Mercenary Base" by Tonnberry

Post Posted: 09 Jun 2014, 16:36

Not the most stirring map title but I am very fond of the custom set of textures for the mercs. I used it in RD between 2005-2006 for the mercenary levels I made for what was, at the time, my first venture with the creatures. When those levels see the light of day I will likely have to hash something out and replace all the ONP textures, not because I dislike them but because I feel they belong to ONP.

Visually, I find Tonnberry's map appealing because what some could accuse of being generic suits the Mercenaries to pinpoint precision, though I don't know if I agree with them sleeping in beds (I always imagined their downtime would be plugged into a wall somewhere). You can see Terraniux in here without it being Terraniux. It feels right, and at the time it was refreshing. In this player's opinion this and the other Mercenary levels might be the best long term themes to emerge from ONP. This is more or less the end all friendly mercenary/mercenary vs skaarj level Unreal and its community packs teased suggestively at for years before ONP. Does anything more need to be said? The map isn't exactly difficult because you have a whole pantheon of Mercs to use as human shields, but what map in ONP was?

There are a couple of gameplay infringing custscenes in here I don't like that seem rather arbitrary. Like in the beginning, you press a button, a door opens, and two skaarj run in. Did this really need a cutscene? I'm guilty of using the cutscene nuance started in ONP in my own SPs, but things like that just kinda get to me as a gamer. I understand using them before and post a boss fight, but to jerk control from the player to show them the two standard enemies immediately to their right and then release control in the middle of active combat? If you are making a custom level and you have cutscenes I would advise trying to avoid things like this.

Still, I think it's a fun map and I liked all the ONP Merc levels. They scratched an itch for me at a time when I needed more Unreal Mercenary maps in my life. I'd argue that ONP levels like this might have (or should have) done for Mercs what Hourences's Skaarj levels did for the Skaarj, but to this day they seem generally underused. A segment of Zephon springs to mind as a notable exception.

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Subject: Re: 09/06/2014 - "Map 11: Mercenary Base" by Tonnberry

Post Posted: 10 Jun 2014, 00:01

A great map, and it constitutes a rather long play by ONP standards. I'd say the difficulty was medium: the actual fighting is quite easy (thanks to your allies), but you have to stop and think every now and then about how to progress further in the level and at the end of the day, this vaguely puzzle-like progression is what makes this average in difficulty (instead of actually easy). Unlike what I remember some saying elsewhere, this aspect of the map appealed to me, as it was refreshing in the context of this campaign.
Mister_Prophet wrote: You can see Terraniux in here without it being Terraniux.

I totally agree with this one. The bottom right picture illustrates this in particular. On a more personal note, I have to say I have always enjoyed having allies!
Nali: Magic or Telekinesis
Waffnuffly wrote:It's tarydium-doped smoothies. Drunk by the player, I mean. The player is tripping balls. The whole game actually takes place in a large city and the player thinks he's on an alien world.

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Subject: Re: 09/06/2014 - "Map 11: Mercenary Base" by Tonnberry

Post Posted: 11 Jun 2014, 21:06

A fun map but a bit confusing as to where to go next, even om my third playthrough of ONP I kept on taking the wrong route.
Storywise this was quite strong (Merc vs Skaarj theme) and when playing this on Unreal difficulty I was really happy that the Mercs were on my side.

The most memorable part (for me) was finding a way to get in to the complex and while searching being able to see inside (and even interact 8) ) with the Merc (BTW the fact they all had names made it easy to feel for them).
One of the highlights of ONP (personal opinion as usual) (although come to think of it, at first I found it a tedious map but since then I've learned to appreciate the little intricacies in some maps).

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Subject: Re: 09/06/2014 - "Map 11: Mercenary Base" by Tonnberry

Post Posted: 12 Jun 2014, 15:34

One of the most ambitious maps in ONP structurally (in terms of being a whole location rather than mostly being a corridor you follow), however I find it kind of works against it in this case as various rooms and corridors look near-identical, and it leads to only a few areas standing out. A lot of the base is divided by stuff like lifts that take a few seconds to function, which can make the flow get awkward if you take a wrong turn. I guess this stuff sort of fits with the original Terraniux levels, but it was an issue there too. I don't think reversing the K_Vision songsections works either, especially as they're constantly swapping out and don't get much chance to play through. Not bad but I always find it kind of a chore to get through.
Formerly Mman

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Subject: Re: 09/06/2014 - "Map 11: Mercenary Base" by Tonnberry

Post Posted: 13 Jun 2014, 09:49

This map has stuck with me ever since I first played it all those years ago. Proph puts it well as always; it was so cool to be in the middle of an explicit merc versus skaarj siege. Even if the difficulty wasn't hard at all and the base didn't really have that great a design (very maze-like as I recall), it was still cool . Even tho it is a level which really drags on, on my first playthrough I didn't even notice.
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