Mapcore Challenge - Engine Preference

    Quote from FMPONE

    I think this is a real consideration. Can anyone name any game other than UT4 (not even released) which uses UE4? Whatever you make isn't going to be played in all likelihood, and that's hardly ideal IMO. Levels are meant to be played, not hung up on a wall somewhere.


    Well the cycle is:

    1. A new engine is developed, usually, around a highly acclaimed game. (Top engines are rarely developed around no game at all)

    2. Game has mod support and a community.

    3. Point 1 and 2 germinate interest in the engine.

    4. Everyone develops games for that tech and it becomes popular based on how popular one of the engines leading games has become.


    So, if UT4 becomes super popular, it will garner huge interest from all corners of the world. That's my 2 cents on this. It's also why I view UE4/UT4 as a very important career stepping stone for anyone both employed and unemployed. Its very likely UT4 will have a large following.

    Yeah I would agree with that, but UT4 isn't super popular, it isn't released. If it does become popular then sure, I will be the first to start making maps for it.


    I however don't think it will. Just like UT3 it will get a small dedicated community.

    Quote from Vilham

    I however don't think it will. Just like UT3 it will get a small dedicated community.


    Honestly I agree. But the engine will be popular in other AAA titles... eventually. In time.


    No one can deny its the cutting edge.

    That's kinda of a retorical question, UE4 has been released "ahead" to allow to make new games, not as a complimentary tool. Sign of how the time has passed and how the whole conception of making interactive entertainment has shifted.

    Of course then, a map needs a game underneath… but the challenge could be env art as well(?).

    Quote from Vilham

    To the guys who are saying things like needing to move on from source.


    That would be great, if anyone was actually playing anything other than source games. They aren't though and I make things for people to experience, I would hope that is what all of you should be doing. Until an engine comes along that is as prolific as source, source wins. Every time.


    I call you all newbs with lightheartedness, of course. I've always entered challenges for self improvement, so in that respect, my motives for wanting to use an engine other than source are purely selfish, so to speak.


    I'm also not coming at this challenge from a level designers mindset, I'm interested in making pretty things to look at. If this turns into a map making challenge (this is MAPcore after all), I find the chances of me participating extremely slim to none, which is totally cool with me.


    We have some of the best environment dudes in the industry on this board, seeing what they can do with UE4 as well as learning a few things along the way together would be an awesome experience from my perspective.

    If we're talking about a contest for level design, then it's quite simple ... you need a game first, then the editor - the level "design" part of it cannot be judged or even really attempted without a game as a framework - it is possible but very hard.


    If we're talking about a "Scene" with art and tech, with the mindset of a certain genre of game, then IMO U4 is a solid choice, but then again, so is any other engine because other than running about it looking at the pretty scene there's not going to be much more to it.


    If we're talking about doing both, then that's a crazy long challenge, and most people won't have the time to do it anyway.


    I think, we should open disccusion as to what kind of challenges we even want to do, small puzzles, badass blueprints, art scenes, speed mapping, dm arenas? Once again, I can't think of anything in my list that should be restricted to a single game engine, or even game. What would happen if we want to do an RTS based level challenge?

    Seriously guys, let's not turn this into an engine versus engine discussion and let's certainly not dismiss each other's choices by saying that they're stuck in the past or that they don't have a game to map for. That's not what this is about. This is about feedback and you all gave us plenty of that. I think so far that every single opinion has been valid and well founded. To make things a bit more clear, I'll share the ideas that I had in mind. Please note, that is my vision alone. None of this has been approved (yet).


    UE4:

    • There's currently a 2D concept competition going on over at Polycount. UT is still in early development so the only thing we could do now is make game play shell since there are no visuals yet. I would like to setup some mini challenges to get people familiar with UE4. Something like getting a prop in game, doing custom texture work, a very small scene, etc. In the mean time I would contact Epic and see about trying to work together on a Level design contest further down the road. They way I see it, this entire community could really benefit from getting in early even if the new UT isn't that big of a success. It brings in new blood, it diversifies our focus, it could give us an edge if it does become a success or at the very least allow members to create a better portfolio which will hopefully land them jobs. I absolutely see no downside in going this route.

    Source:

    • We love it, we come from it, it's well known and his has a wide array of games that are still played everyday. It's a safe bet and I would in no way ignore that. We could do all sorts of Source challenges. Ranging from maps for specific games, scenes, something like the door challenge we did in the past, hell, we could even go bananas and do a mini-mod. Source is fine.

    Old School:

    • I would love to go old school for once. Quake 3's 15th year anniversary is coming up. I would like to pay tribute to that. Or we could go further back and do a Doom map or a Quake map. People have been mentioning this for a while. I'd like to push the Quake 3 thing for instance.

    Misc:

    • I come from Quake communities where we did all sorts of crazy stuff. Speed mapping would be one of them. Could apply here as well. I've run several successful Pass the Maps in which each participants does it's own corner of the map. Map Jams, in which you are to stick to a specific theme and texture set. Even brush limitation contests. So only use a specific number of brushes for the entire level or have the map fit in a specific space. The list goes on.


    Also, the above is pretty much all engine related. But, I strongly believe in the freedom of choice so I suggested (in the past) scene challenges for which you can use any engine you like. For instance, we could do a scene challenge this Halloween and make it about that. I would love to see what the Core does with that.


    So, long story short, I want to do a whole lot of things that targets as much as the Core as possible. Certainly not everything will interest everybody but by mixing it up no one should be left out in the cold. Don't forget that this is about coming together as an community, improving and challenging yourself, broaden your skill set, giving you new portfolio stuff (depending on what challenge you do) and bring more life to the Core. So please, don't form groups, because this is for all of us.

    With UE4 out. Who voted for the UDK? lmao


    Quote from Vilham

    Yeah I would agree with that, but UT4 isn't super popular, it isn't released. If it does become popular then sure, I will be the first to start making maps for it.


    I however don't think it will. Just like UT3 it will get a small dedicated community.


    Considering the different development mentalities and pipeline between UT3 and UT4 I would say its not safe to compare them.

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