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Secrets. | ||
Posted By: RyokoTK | Date: 9/30/05 8:29 p.m. | |
In Response To: How to use monsters. (RyokoTK) Secrets have their good sides and their bads, but the definition of a secret is varied in single player maps and netmaps. In a solo map, the idea of a secret is to give the player one of the following things:
Good secrets provide something along those lines. They're out of the way, unobtrusive; they reward players that are willing to take the time to explore. However, under no circumstances should a player need to access a secret. Don't put 60% of a level's ammunition in one hidden cabinet, and expect that Total Carnage players will know where it is, because most people won't (the definition of a secret!). Don't put the level's only pattern buffer or recharger in a secret room. Least of all, don't put the EXIT in a secret room. There's nothing really preventing you from adding secrets in a solo map, but if you add too many hidden ammo caches, you might make it too easy for people who find them all, and that's no good. On the other hand, secrets should generally be avoided entirely for netmaps. In a game where you want to encourage balance as much as possible, you don't want to have things where the mapmaker or a very familiar player would have a huge advantage over less knowing players. The result? You don't have to have all of your netmaps devoid of ammunition, but for the love of god, don't put the only TOZT and three napalm packs in a hidden cupboard. So here's a couple guidelines for netmap secrets:
What does this leave you? A few things. The following things are good:
With that covered, what's left is how to make a secret secret, without being ridiculous. A good secret is in the map Waterloo Waterpark. You know that little fork in the hallway where, if you go right, you get the Assault Rifle, but if you go left you just end up in a dead-end with monsters? There's a secret in the far corner. It's not immediately visible, but a reasoning player would think there's SOMETHING because a good mapper would not waste space on meaningless rooms. A bad secret, on the other hand, is the secret in Poor Yorick with the 2x canister, SMG with 7 clips, and a Pattern Buffer. It's a large boost, provides another place to save, and also looks just like the wall. There is absolutely nothing that would give it away, neither to the casual player nor the discerning one. The only thing that COULD give it away is if a bumbling Hunter might casually open it, but that's not common nor particularly noticeable. A good secret in a netmap would be the Invisibility in Morpfhine. It's small, it's only one Invisibility, and it provides a teleport to a handy area as well. Nothing major nor gamebreaking; all of the main carnage areas are brightly lit so Invisibility does not serve a great purpose. Handy without being game-breaking. A poor secret in a netmap would be the SPNKR in Mars Needs Women. It's the only SPNKR on the level, it's very powerful in such a level (so crowded you can't miss), and there's also a ton of light switches in there too to plunge the whole game in darkness! That's not very fun. Now you hae this secret that one player might know about, and abuse everyone else the whole game via this secret. Please, don't do this. |
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