i like your reviews, but one thing bugs me:

You seem to be using the term "quality level design" as an equivalent to "polished visual geometry", which is really, really wrong, imho.

If somebody else reads this and starts using the term that way... Evil EA bosses will never even have the chance to understand what level design is and will start using it as a marketing term instead. Please, at least refer to the visual qualities of level design, if not switching terminology completely.

Thanks for the nice reviews! 

Glad you enjoy the reviews! Eventually I'll have reviewed just about every decent FPS from around 2003 and up. I actually put them all on my website... direct link here http://www.electricescape.com/etherealhell/reviews/othergames.php

And yep when I refer to 'level design' i'm talking about the visual geometry, which I suppose to those mainstream critics their 'level design' means something different. My reviews certainly aren't supposed to be compared to 'pro' reviews - I actually do them for myself, so that when I decide to play an old-skool game in 20 years time, I can read my reviews and know exactly what was wrong with each one. 

 

...If you liked Overdose, I suggest you play Supernatural. It is a standalone conversion custom made up of a mix of Overdose and Resurrection levels and weapons. It's so much better than the originals. I played it to death last winter and imo it takes Overdose levels where they really belong.

Lots of secrets (one of the really fun things of Painkiller) are added, Tarot cards conditions are a bit more balanced and hard (not too much) and the majority of levels are VERY atmospheric, if a little bit straightforward(but hey, open level design seems to be dead in 2011, right?).

I'd love to have some opinions from people hanging around here on this mod... 

don't know about mainstream critics, but the term refers to the more technical aspects of making levels-- monster placement, layout and flow and sometimes small amounts of scripting. it has little to do with visuals at all. 

I miss you!!! *sob* 

real life shit got really real the other day - co-worker's dad died in a car crash, so had to pull a double shift. Then some other shit... soon Negke - we'll make this happen, and it will be glorious. 

So are the levels exactly the same as in Overdose/Resurrection just played differently, ie different monster placement and order? Or have they actually changed the design of them? 

So who creates the geometry, structures, architecture in a video game level if it's not the level designer? I understand that artists do the texturing and will draw up certain set pieces, but it's still the level designer that ultimately builds the structures in the level, isn't it? 

not really. at least, not in the games you're playing, so AAA or at least near that level. it's very compartmentalized.
from what i understand, the old school doom/quake mapper who does everything except making textures (and as far back as doom/quake days, they did their own textures too) doesn't exist anymore.
when you've got a team of a hundred+, you'd rather higher a guy who's downright awesome at textures than someone who's average at everything i guess.
min-maxing in a corporate setting. :P 

In most companies, you have level designers who take care mostly of the gameplay aspects of the levels, layout, item placement, scripting sometimes, etc. Then you have level artists, who actually build the visuals and structures, most of the time using pre-made assets made by environment/prop artists.
These three jobs kind of overlap weirdly and/or blend together depending on the company, but yeah nowadays it's rare for level designers to actually do much visual creation. 

Yes, same architecture, new gameplay.

That means new Tarot conditions, monster placement, loads of secrets and some minor route change. With the weapons being a mix of PK, OD and Hellgun Mod. 

http://pkzone.org/2010/11/painkiller-supernatural/ 

I saw your comments on there too silent hehe. Sounds cool, although i should probably get Resurrection and play through that first, then play Supernatural :) 

I loved it.
Well, not all of the time, but imo it's well worth playing.
And I even started writing a walkthrough with some annotations about some serious design flaws you encounter ingame, when/if you get to playing it and want to share some thoughts, drop me a mail. I'd be interested in knowing what you think, given your mapping experience.

Me, I just installed resurrection+redemption. Don't have high hopes, but I'm diving in tonight. 

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/06/17/quake-v-like-quake-1/

Hope! 

 

I can't believe they said that. 

I am coordinating with Frik to apply pressure to people at id to make that happen. 

That could be pretty sweet, although I'm not holding my breath just yet. Here's hoping that if they do go forward with this though, that they also bring back a touch of old-school gameplay. 

If it ever happens, it'll be like Quake 4 is to Quake 2. And it'll be linear and scripted and with a story and dumb NPCs. And fiends will have ears and shamblers mullets and there won't be tarbabies and no secret areas and no wizmet1_2. 

That's all fine, as long as there are tools released with it.

Why, you ask? Well, that's a stupid question. 

If you preorder you get Dungeon Siege 1 and 2 as well - is this a good deal? Would anyone else spend $50 for all 3 Dungeon Sieges, or is my obsessive-compulsive gaming traits taking over? 

Carmack seems up for it
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/06/17/quake-v-like-quake-1/ 

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