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Version 5.03 [1/24/13]

For public discussion of all things EXU2.

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User avatar Sat42
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 28 Oct 2014, 18:31

Bitter Bridge is a short but sweet map. This is essentially Velora Pass, but the ice theme is pushed to its logical conclusion and you're now in the middle of a blizzard - the wind pushing the player and the slippery ground are a nice touch! More like a transition than anything else, it's both the shortest (about 15 minutes of game time for me) and easiest map of the campaign: there's one big fight (and a pretty spectacular one at that - you're ambushed by what is literally a swarm of flying enemies) but I did my best and as it turns out, I was in trouble at one point but made it without having to reload once (hence, on Medium difficulty, I consider the challenge to be exactly that: medium). Good training ground for the Hell Gun (which you get in the previous map)! The way the fight is triggered is cool, with that demonic voice :) and the music which accompanies the battle is awesome!
Funny thing is, upon reaching the level's exit teleporter (which I had visited before the fight, but then there was a protective barrier), I was anxious about that giant Demon Brute, and so I hid, saved my game, and shot a fuckin' Nuclear Flare at it! When I realised it was just a statue (at least, it didn't move whatsoever! weird 'cause I'm pretty sure it was alive when the protective barrier was in place), I did reload just that one time in order to save that battle flare for later :P
A great little map.
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.

User avatar Sat42
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 28 Oct 2014, 21:41

Doomhouse Power Station is typically what you would expect from hell. Remember the beautiful (and also daunting) level Chizra - Nali Water God? Imagine it with the EXU2 gametype. Yeah, something like hell! It's very long and very hard. The atmosphere harkens back to the traditional hellish theme, with all the water pools replaced by blood pools. The complex layout coupled with the generally cramped environment and, of course, the presence of innumerable quantities of adversaries makes for some particularly gruelling gameplay.
Dark atmosphere but it's not scary, probably because you're a bit blazé at this point!
I found quite a few battles to be particularly tricky due to the geometry of the place - and at one point I was forced to explore different tactics because I kept getting my ass kicked. The Shit Gun and the timely use of battle flares are absolutely necessary. Seriously, it sometimes felt like there were 10 bastards per square meter!
It's tough and not necessarily fun, but you never want to stop trying. The music helps: it really pumps you up (although it does get tiring after a couple of hours)!
The one thing that wasn't clear to me was how to carry out my objective: Seraphim does tell you about how there are 8 artifacts full of energy here, and suggests destroying or disabling them; evidently, he was referring to those Doom Haloes (which are superbly made by the way, and I like the spooky sounds that can be heard next to them); the thing is, I was expecting some kind of button to push or shutdown sequence - the player is able to walk through a Doom Halo, so I didn't figure I could just shoot it! Thus, when eventually I more or less cleared everything (it being clearly understood that demons kept on spawning, and besides that I actually missed a couple of side areas), I read that message from the Arcane Transmission System and finally understood that I was meant to shoot the power storage orbs. BUT in most cases the orbs had already been shot at, due to the general commotion. However, the exit was still inaccessible; because I was worried there was a bug, I saved my game, then ghosted back through all the rooms where there is a power storage orb, and tried shooting each of them; I was reassured to see that indeed, the first two orbs had not been shot at and that was the reason why I could not proceed; so, I reloaded my game, and this time went all the way back without cheating in order to finish the job. And that wasn't easy, either, and I was getting pretty agitated: "oh come ON I already KILLED YOU what the hell!", "argh shit! How do I get back now? wait wait THINK goddammit... yes go there - fuck YOU - OK OK now down there... then back up - Gosh I'm glad I have this Translocator!" etc!
I made it eventually, although I was all over the place! I didn't remember Chizra off by heart so that didn't help either!
A great but exhausting map: after 4 HOURS, I was through!!!
Last edited by Sat42 on 28 Oct 2014, 21:56, edited 1 time in total.
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.

User avatar salsaSkaarj
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 28 Oct 2014, 21:53

Sat42 wrote:... "argh shit! How do I get back now? wait wait THINK goddammit... yes go there - fuck YOU - OK OK now down there... than back up - Gosh I'm glad I have this Translocator!" etc!
I made it eventually, although I was all over the place! I didn't remember Chizra off by heart so that didn't help either!
A great but exhausting map: after 4 HOURS, I was through!!!


With all the shooting, doesn't the translocator get hit sooner or later so that it could be pushed to a deadly spot, or even destroyed thus killing you? Or is the translocator immovable and indestructible (perhaps I'm confusing this with another modification)?

User avatar Sat42
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 28 Oct 2014, 22:14

salsaSkaarj wrote:With all the shooting, doesn't the translocator get hit sooner or later so that it could be pushed to a deadly spot, or even destroyed thus killing you? Or is the translocator immovable and indestructible (perhaps I'm confusing this with another modification)?


Hmm, you know what? Even after finishing Batshit Insane I couldn't properly answer that question. I never had any problems with the translocator except once, in the last level (Telefire Research Laboratory): then, I remember having trouble in a particular room so after a couple of reloads I decided to position the translocator disc up on a ledge before triggering the battle; the thing is, I changed my mind right afterwards and ran away, deciding that I had other options to continue the level... and indeed, I was able to get quite a bit further, however I got to a point where I simply had to use the translocator - but then, whenever I tried to use it (whether clicking the left or right mouse button), the result was my instant death! And naturally I felt so screwed, because I no longer had my save from just before I positioned the translocator disc on that ledge, and consequently, I had no choice but to restart the level from the beginning... That translates into one hour of lost game time! But I honestly thought that was just a bug (which could arise from the fact that the XLoc beacon had been positioned and forgotten for over half an hour of game time). But yeah, now that you mention it, it could have been destroyed :P (but I didn't trigger the big battle in that room and the random spawning shouldn't have interfered, even though I did show my face again at one point and got shot at - but again, the device was up there on that ledge...)
Last edited by Sat42 on 29 Oct 2014, 14:51, edited 1 time in total.
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.

UB_
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 28 Oct 2014, 22:18

Yes the XLoc discs can be shot and destroyed. This happens very frequently. Also certain enemies can block telefrag (disc either bounce back or is just destroyed at the impact).

Don't. Ever. Use. The translocator with the Firestorm Generator on.
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User avatar Sat42
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 28 Oct 2014, 22:21

UBerserker wrote:Yes the XLoc discs can be shot and destroyed. This happens very frequently. Also certain enemies can block telefrag (disc either bounce back or is just destroyed at the impact).

Don't. Ever. Use. The translocator with the Firestorm Generator on.


Heh, thanks for the advice!!

salsaSkaarj, you have your answer! (and it also makes clear what happened to me!)
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: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 29 Oct 2014, 00:12

In v6, damaged Translocator discs catch on fire and and are a lot more noticeable. You can always shoot a damaged xloc beacon off a ledge though with normal weapons; you can't make it any MORE broken than it already is. And if it falls into lava or something, it automatically gets recalled.

Another huge boost is that the Translocator itself now alerts you when selected if the disc is damaged, AND you hear that same sound and see the same message immediately when the disc gets blown up. Saves my ass so many times in coop games, so definitely useful in SP.
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User avatar Sat42
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 29 Oct 2014, 19:35

^Cool stuff!
To tell you the truth I must be someone who plays uncharacteristically cautiously (or something), because throughout the whole of BI I only ever had one instance where the XLoc disc was destroyed.

And now our journey continues...

Ah, YES!! Realm of Corruption! As long as you are not allergic to the EXU2 gametype, then this map has TONS going for it! You'll find crazy hard, insane action, but also an excellent atmosphere, story developments, moments of awe and contemplation, and, yes, there's even time for some funny things!
OK, first things first: Realm of Corruption is a conversion of The Ceremonial Chambers, and as was the case with Frostclaw Outpost, this level is much more than a reskin and new lighting job... you'll find the best entirely original area of BI in this map!
You know how it begins: it still feels like the previous map, with the level of infestation possibly even higher (cursed Demon Sliths everywhere in the tunnels). Of course, the plan hatched by Polaris Command backfires, it didn't take a wizard to figure that out, but since you're a dumb-ass you carried out the plan anyway, and now you have to deal with what could amount to one of the worst things in the Universe: Doom Orbs. Fantastic.
One of the really best things about this level is the atmosphere: I didn't actually get any frights, but I did feel a chill go down my spine a couple of times. The sight of the Demon Skaarj performing a ritual with the levitating Demon Skaarj Master while the blood chant can be heard is particularly ominous. Composition is everything.
Took me a while to figure out there were "red orbs" shooting me!
Of course, there's that awesome episode in the spire room where you get a temporary Invincibility power-up... but it's a pity I did not realise then that I had just wasted my only chance of getting the RFPC! :x
Anyway, another great moment comes from the first time you are confronted with a Doom Orb... and invincible monk statues shooting pentagrams at you! And the Demon Skaarj Master's sacrifice prompts the other Demon Skaarj to be like "Oooh What the hell is 'e doin'??" "What the fuck is this shit?!" with those cartoonish-like voices :lol: (I loaded again a couple of times just for that sequence!)
Then there's Charles, the friendly Demon Brute :)
And before I move on, I also want to mention something I discovered after finishing the map and reading UBerserker's tips for the level: the friendly, sleepy Demon Krall Elite on top of the temple's roof - the things said there are among the funniest of the whole campaign, it's almost a shame the encounter is out of the way!
Then there's what could possibly be the hardest single battle of the whole campaign: the huge clash in the valley. Dude... I mean, it's so intense, so hard, it is what makes this map extremely hard IMO. But the particularly remarkable feat here is that, despite being extremely hard, the engagement does not get annoying. That is because of its good looks, honestly: the battle is epic by design, but even manages to evolve as you go on (and yeah, I had to save and reload at multiple points during this battle), and sudden external factors can come into play - there are meteor showers every now and then, which make the battlezone even more dangerous... and the centrepiece of this show is the Rock Monster. Yeah, you heard that right. The Rock Monster is fuckin' awesome and resistant, floats around while shooting demon orbs and can kill you in one go with a charged up energy beam. In effect, this creature is a completely new pawn! And the rock loses mass as you inflict more damage to it! Congrats on that one!! This truly novel enemy is guaranteed to make players happy :D
And it's also one of the best orchestrated massive battles in BI.
I immediately considered that to be a boss fight, but as it turns out it is more of an intermediary boss fight. Regardless, it was the hardest battle. I made it through by initially running and translocating all the way up to that ledge facing the valley's exit, from which I was able to weather the storm more efficiently, before going back down to finish off all the remaining foes (while dodging most of the statues' attacks!).
After something like that, you need a break, and something that can build up momentum again. And that is exactly what you get!
The story takes on a more dramatic note, and suddenly it is unnaturally calm, with only the eerie sound of the wind to break the silence... And conceptual grandness is back with a vengeance. The new geometry comes into play here. That chasm is the biggest one I've ever seen in Unreal/UT (I wonder if this is an instance where without uncapped draw distance, the bottom of the chasm is not rendered when viewed from above?), and the build up to the real boss fight is brilliant and awe-inspiring: that massive cave with lava spewing out of crevasses is superb. The number of effects here is quite staggering, too. And then you cautiously move down toward the central crater, and check the fallen soldiers and weapons littered across the bottom floor, before inevitably provoking the final battle...
And again, we get what is pretty much a new adversary, both in stats and looks - the Archdemon. OK, the 3D model isn't exactly new per se, but modified from an existing pawn - however, it works brilliantly, all the more due to the creature flying around much like a GasBag, when the base model is clearly not a GasBag :wink:
It's a hard fight the first time round, even though I tried to be cunning and hid my XLoc beacon around the exit area before triggering the fight. The Archdemon is at ease in such a huge area and came after me, attacking me from a fare distance. After a number of tries, I made it, and finally exited the level.
Now, I did come back to this part of the level later because it makes me happy (I kept a save just after the battle in the valley), and I tried other ways of defeating the boss (now that I was more confident). As it turns out, you can win easily: by sticking to the other side of a pillar with respect to the Archdemon, I was able to strike it before it could "see" me properly; and for some reason, it never tried to make any fast movement to one side or the other, so that I was able to finish the job without being hit once aside from the initial fire exchange. By the way, the Screamer anti-fighter missile is super cool!
Use of sound and music is perfect in this level. There's variation and it always suits the context.
It took me about three and a half hours to see it through, but out of that game time, half an hour alone went into simply admiring and savouring the mood in the latter part of the map.
It may be extremely hard overall, but this is, in my humble opinion, Batshit Insane's best map as of now and one of the best maps I've played in the whole of Unreal/UT Oldskool.
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.

User avatar SteadZ
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 29 Oct 2014, 23:38

It's funny because the model of the Arch Demon is just an unmodified Titan model which has the legs masked off in the (Truly Awesome thanks UA :D) skin and disguised with fiery-fog particles. So don't use the wrong renderer or you'll see his legs ;)

Will there be any new additions to the SP Map list in this next update, or is it just killer-coop maps?
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User avatar Buff Skeleton
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 29 Oct 2014, 23:47

No new SP maps this go around, but I am in the process of cleaning up existing ones and some have had some pretty significant changes, so there should still be a lot of goodies to enjoy. Plus, all the gameplay changes really improve the feel of the SP game more than I expected!
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UB_
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 30 Oct 2014, 13:12

Ah HELL it's coming out tomorrow right?
I'm fucked.
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User avatar SteadZ
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 30 Oct 2014, 17:32

Wow... forgot it was Halloween tomorrow :O

I better get my mind in gear to be blown then - looking forward to this definitely :tup:

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UB_
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 31 Oct 2014, 10:46

Can't wait for extracting maps and importing them :B
Wasn't there a tool which would scan the packages used for map X?
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User avatar SteadZ
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 31 Oct 2014, 17:51

You can use the BfNP Depends tool, I think it does what you're wanting.

There are probably other ones, but that's the only one which springs to mind :)

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User avatar Sat42
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Subject: Re: == Version 5.03 [1/24/13] - Bug Reports & Discussion Thread ==

Post Posted: 31 Oct 2014, 18:33

SteadZ wrote:It's funny because the model of the Arch Demon is just an unmodified Titan model which has the legs masked off in the (Truly Awesome thanks UA :D) skin and disguised with fiery-fog particles. So don't use the wrong renderer or you'll see his legs ;)


:o Clever! I wouldn't have guessed, to be honest!

Here goes with the next levels of BI:-

Doom Arena is a great redux of Dark Arena. I love the ice-themed take on the original. The arena engulfed in a blizzard is an impressive sight. The dark mood is preserved, to an extent: for the first time since Soul Storage, I got some frights (too many Turbo Fucker Brutes in spooky corridors!). Also, the track used for this level is great (Cybernetika's Gagarin): it doesn't just enhance the atmosphere, it actually has some cool voiced lines* that, as long as you don't understand Russian too well, could very well fit with the context of an airstrike or something... as happens here (the first time I emerged outside, I heard those lines and then witnessed the airstrike - good timing!).
Of course, there's some humour too (the sequence with the Nali and his car is completely WTF!).
The Saint pawns are kind of weird... At first I thought they might be friendly - hell no! I reloaded and decided to free them without paying them a visit. They could add an extra layer of complexity to the story, one day...
The area surrounding the arena is a grind to get past... I prefer the arena itself in terms of gameplay.
The boss fight within the arena is really cool: of course, I expected to see more than one monster this time round... and I got several successive Lava Titans! plus a number of those Demon Skaarj Lords... it's a hard fight, but nowhere like a grind. I love the Tachyon Driver!
Overall, an excellent and very hard map, which took me about three hours to finish.

*They are from an extremely important recording: an excerpt of Yuri Gagarin's transmission to Earth during the first human spaceflight in history (12 April 1961).
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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