Unreal 3: DM-LightHouse_final [PC-PS3]

seems to be a good map but it is way to empty....

Indeed I was about to comment on the emptiness as well. There is just nothing there what so ever in terms of life and it distracts from anything else.

Yeah, looks empty, but I dunno maybe the emptyness its part of the game play. take CTF map Face, for example. Can't get any more empty, and It's hell lot of fun!

Loose the damn DOF filter XD

Yeah, you risk making your screenshots, miniatures!

[Blocked Image: http://www.worldofleveldesign.com/categories/level_design_challenges/images/11_day_unreal_challenge/dm_lighthouse_beta_008_640.jpg]

This screenshot is really cool - if you can get a little more detail and composition at most locations you've done a sweet job.

Quote from AlexG

The emptyness of the map is something I don't like either about the map.

Then, like, put shit in it

The resources are there within UT3 for you to do a lot more, I think with a little time and effort you could really improve on what you have here. It's not bad, but it doesn't stand out as much different than what you could have done with some higher-res textures and models in HL1.

There's a ton of great tree meshes, some clusters of those will help fill the space. A slightly brighter directional light might help get some light and dark contrast. You may have done this already, but experiment with multiple dim directional lights to mimic the skybox color and add some extra tone (UT3 does this in many levels).

Try re-working your light fixtures by lowering the radius (and maybe increasing the brightness), and maybe combining them with some spotlights for brighter accents and/or some dim fill lights - without radiosity, you're on your own to get that soft look. Try shrinking some of the textures on the house for a little more detail, maybe even create a duplicate set of terrain layers saved within your map package to get a bit of a higher-resolution terrain texture. Focus on painting more clear walking paths, maybe even using some meshes to line them.

Getting some deco layers on the terrain will make a huge difference in adding more life to the area and also breaking up some of the harsh edges of the terrain itself. Instead of relying solely on rock painted into the terrain mesh, find some matching rocks and add some 3d definition - they've got some really flexible stuff, some maps they use a single rock mesh at different rotations and scales throughout the whole level and you can't even tell. Single-placed shrubs and bushes on top of a deco layer and clusters of trees like I mentioned before will also help.

You're on the right track and definitely know the tech... it looks pretty good, I think the challenge for you now is just taking it a step further.