DM-PerfectDarkTemple by jefe
Reviewed by foultzy.
A conversion of a map from the classic Nintendo 64 game, you guessed it, Perfect Dark!
Gameplay 25/30
I did play both GoldenEye and Perfect Dark, and even though I only ever played single-player, I can still see the Rareware-style design through it all. Not to mention it was about as fun as you'd expect conversions from those classics to be. It feels larger than it is with more open space than many UT2004 maps out there, though it isn't terribly big and confusing and I found my way around easily.
It's definitely a pretty smart design for its time. Yeah, it likes to flaunt its incredibly dated looking design ideas quite a bit (like using ladders to go through holes in the wall to another room), yet it still has that feel of a great map. (Pillar-filled rooms anybody?) And heck, when was the last time you even used a ladder in a UT2004 map? Sometimes it had me thinking about switching some of the pickup locations, though it's not like there's anything really wrong there, and there are even wildcard bases. The Redeemer's isolated location is a very smart move and the wide open environment also allows its poor victims some chance of escape.
If there's a low point here, it'd be the bots. While they seem mostly competent, they'll completely ignore many of the tougher paths, like the route to the Redeemer and using the ladders. Still, it's a classic that holds the games' legacy well.
Performance 28/30 (Hardware)
Rather unsurprisingly, this map performs excellently, with exceedingly high frame rates even at my monitor's max 2048x1536 resolution. If you can the stock maps just fine, I wouldn't expect any issues on your end either.
Eye Candy 22/25
Certainly feel the early N64 era nostalgia flowing through this map. Simple architecture, repetitive yet uncomplicated textures, and simple slopes all make it feel like a modernized FPS level from back in the day. The Egyptian theme is implemented as well as you'd think, and it looks good despite practically being barren. It's got a consistent color scheme, it's not an eye sore, and the sandy terrain is well built with chucks of rock sticking out.
Something so simple is hard to comment on, considering that there's, intentionally, not much to comment on. I did like the effective lighting and shadowing use though, with open areas in the ceiling allowing certain parts to be nicely illuminated. The skybox is positively great too, with a realistic looking blue sky and in the lower section, a clever illusion giving the impression that the game is rendering much more terrain than it actually is.
The Details 15/15
No backstory, though I expect that he's just keeping to the original map. Otherwise it's got it all, including two different music files from both GoldenEye and Perfect Dark!
Final Score 90/100
Can't put it down just because it plays it down. Truth is, this is a genuinely fun map that melds very well with the UT style, and I highly recommend the download.
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Tags: 90+, DM, Egyptian, Jefe, Large, UT2k4
#1 by jefe on November 1st, 2009 - 3:25 am
Thanks for the great review. I was a bit concerned that you might not 'get' the seemingly simple look and layout, but I'm happy that you did.
Regarding the bots, they will go for the Redeemer, but since it is fairly far out of the way, and the path is contains a number of jumps, they tend to ignore it, particularly at lower difficulty levels. This is partly because the AI weighs the benefits of going for a nearby pickup or chasing down an opponent versus going 20-something nodes and several jumps out of the way to reach the redeemer, and partly because I made the redeemer just plain tricky to reach. I would have liked for them to go for it more frequently, but I didn't want to compromise the design by making it easier to reach. By the way, the safest path is to follow the sand dune to the left, dodge jump as far as you can across the gap, then dodge up against a curved part of the broken wall. Shield jumping from the corner is right-hand corner easy (you'll notice a pile of sand here to help out).
I put the ladders to the skylights there for people who enjoy sniping, as relatively safe spots for invasion, and of course just another option for the player to use and explore. I made a conscious decision not to place any pickups in the skylights, so the bots usually ignore these as well. I also didn't want these skylights to be to easy to defend either. However the bots can and will use the skylight ladders in team modes (for example if you order them to cover you or to hold a certain position), and everything is pathed to use translocators as well.
#2 by jefe on November 1st, 2009 - 3:28 am
To correct a typo: "Shield jumping from the right-hand corner is easy..."