In the Works: September 30, 2008

Infiltrate: Almost Done

I know, there has been lots of testing for Infiltrate. I'm getting a feel for the setup and trying to perfect it. I understand some of you are a bit sick of it, but I am almost there, and when done, it'll be played as much as any other custom. My next steps before restesting:

- Lockdown (Rat's Nest): adjust to two alpha zombies.
- Ghost Town (Death Rate) and Massacre (High Ground): add fusion coils to main camp spots.
- Doomsday (Standoff): trashed.
- All: new custom powerup. because the custom powerup is no longer used for the sniper role, it will be used to a new effect. 2 minutes into the game it will spawn. Directly beneath it will spawn a BR (no spare clips) and 2 frags. The custom powerup gives them a 5 second ability to pickup weapons. This will be used as a late boost for the zombies to get the last couple humans.

And after those are completed, Infiltrate likely will be too. I'll have one big fest for it to go out with a bang when testing is complete, and will possibly have a Youtube vid of the games made (I've been saving them).

Later Projects: in more detail

There are a few projects that have not been released to the public, but will be worked on after Infiltrate's completion.

- SF Epilogue: a very quick forge was designed around Epilogue for SnipeFlag. Epitaph was an epic success, so Epilogue should only be better.

- SF Remains: SnipeFlag's more in-depth project: a Foundry map. The main feature will be a couple snaking pathways to drop down from above on the flag base. There will be several collapsible "trees" made of barriers and crates, that with a few bruteshots, tumble down and are capable of splatters. There will be a good deal of geomerging and interlocking, and it will have a ghost town feel. (Not relating to the map) Attackers, among other weapons, have access to two mongeese for moments of either epic failure or epic success.

- Air Attack: Air Attack has not been formally started yet, but I have the blueprint. I will be taking lots of time to ensure the roof is done perfectly. It is a game of One VIP where teams spawn in armories. Select your weapons. After 10 seconds, the defenders' team opens, and they all enter the arena through one teleporter on ground level. Attacking team has one teleporter open after 20 seconds, that can go to any one of 10 different receivers (I will use 2-ways). They go through the tele, and are forced to be dropped into the arena (They can't wait and spawn camp from above). No one has radar, so the defenders must be ready to survive the air raid.

In the Works: September 26, 2008

In this edition of In the Works, many new projects have arisen, and some have dropped.

First off is the ever-changing story of Infiltrate. With the H3Customs match on the horizon, the amount of maps have been cleaned up. The only three maps as of now for Infiltrate are Doomsday (Standoff), Massacre (High Ground), and Death Rate (Ghost Town). All of them, along with the gametype, are available on my fileshare.

I also am requesting help. Due to the fact that the custom powerup can only last 60 seconds max, after that, the Sniper goes back to being really slow. I was wondering if anyone had an alternative idea, but keep in mind, we don't want Alpha Zombies getting out of their Ghosts at normal speed if they aren't the sniper. I'm really hoping I don't have to cut out the sniper role and just have the two Ghosts as alpha zombies, but it might be a possibility.

As for other maps, my priorities are as follows:

• SF Remains


• Air Attack


• Polygon

We all know about Polygon and Air Attack, but what is the new map that has jumped to the top of the list? Those who have played customs with me for a while now know the SF is SnipeFlag. I am designing a Foundry SnipeFlag map. It is coming along smoothly, featuring many levels of elevation, possible teleporters for quick transport (Not many) and smooth geomerging. I will have pictures very shortly.

So, what to expect in the near future: an awesome testing of infiltrate, a new SnpeFlag map (And gametype (V3) to go with it), and also expect me to start taking more screenshots. There is a lot for me to do, but with school started, my pace has slowed. I hope to get all these projects done, and done well.

HALO Online: The Basics

So, the posts about Forge, the Gametypes, and example customs are up. What about the game in general? Are we just confined to custom games (Although very good ones)? What's coming to matchmaking in this idea, or theater? What happens in overall gameplay?

There are so many ideas to put out there for a perfected Halo 3. So many changes to be made. These are simply mine.

We all know about Forge, basic and advanced. We all know about the gametypes. Expect a Theater post very shortly, and a Matchmaking one later in the future after I do some research. Why do I need to do research?

HALO Online, both in basic customs and in matchmaking, will contain Halo 3 maps, newly made HALO Online Maps, and remakes of most of the Halo 1 and 2 maps that haven't already been remade. Not even remakes, all that would change would be that the graphics would update to compare to the other maps. Blood Gulch, Chiron TL-34, Damnation: none of them would have a name change or makeover. Just updated weapon sets (Because there are different weapons) and graphics updated (Same setup, just higher detail.)

That would be the case for every Halo 1 and Halo 2 map, short of Lockout, Zanzibar, Chill Out, and Sidewinder because they already have remakes.

For fairness, some playlists will require that everyone plays as Spartans, and although you can play as an Elite or Brute, many multiplayer playlists will change you to a Spartan automatically. Some people like different character options, and others don't, this would give both what they want.

So, yes, you can also play as a Brute now. When they are available and not blocked off, it becomes a very strategic part of gameplay. The three different player forms have different settings.

Brutes play a defensive role. They are slightly slower than the other two, can take slightly more damage, and have quick punch reflexes. Elites are attacking forces, as they are slightly quicker and have better jump. They deal slightly more than the other two, but have less health. Spartans are a bit of a balance between the two for support roles.

In games without Elite or Brute interference, Spartan v Spartan would have the same effects (i.e. Four BR headshots for a kill).

HALO Online was envisioned as the perfect Bungie game. Microsoft simply cannot pull off a good Halo storyline, even with Frankie. Only Bungie can. In my version, the only option for Campaign is to play Halo 3's Campaign, no additional storyline. That is up for debate.

HALO Online would be focused on Multiplayer, unique Matchmaking, and diverse Custom Games. It also centers around the sharing of files, which will also be enhanced. Stay tuned for more detailed posts, and if you want to read up on HALO Online, use the tag lists to the right.

Squad Battle: One Powerhouse of a Playlist

Once it arrives, expect me to spend most of my Matchmaking time on Squad Battle. This will be one beast of a playlist once it is implemented. It may be better or worse than expected, based on the maps and gametypes used by Bungie, but even if they did the absolute worst they could on this playlistit would come out decently. There are so many reasons why this will be a big step forwards from Big Team:

• It is focused on Capture the Flag and Team Slayer. Big Team's Assault and VIP gametypes certainly left a bad taste. There still may be a little VIP and Assault, but Bungie makes it sound like there will be much less.


• Finding a match will be easier; requiring only 12 people. Surely people were driven away from Big Team due to the difficulty of finding a match.


• 12 is the magic number. Big Team's full 16 person game required little to no teamwork, and one person's stellar performance really isn't enough. Being dulled to 12, it requires teamwork while still maintaining a chaotic feeling.


• There will be more medium maps available for use, adding variety. Many people knew they were in for another Neutral Assault on Valhalla or Sandtrap, and it drove them away.


• Fewer people = less connections = less lag = happy people. ^_^

I hope you are as pumped as I am for this surely entertaining playlist.

About: "Update" Tags

This site is all about new content, no matter what form it is in. Lots of things are updated for the better. Now that we have a new list of tags on the site, I should probably explain the three types of "Update" tags.

• Update: a plain "Update" tag means I update a file; most likely a map or gametype.


• Site Update: like the one that was posted not long ago, "Site Update" tags means I added a type of content (Non-post) to the site.


• Weekly Update: although Bungie gives weekly updates to all of us lucky fans, the only ones I am concerned with are playlist changes. When a Bungie.net Weekly Update has information about playlist changes, I will be there to dissect their moves.

That's it for "Update" tags. If you have any questions, let me know.

Site Update

The site has been improved once again. All changes are on the top sidebar.

First off, a list of labels is posted, so you can easily find what you're looking for. Because this in-depth list is now here, the Content Type search is removed from the top sidebar.

One other item added was a way to suscript ot my RSS feed. Easily put this blog on your Yahoo homepage, another blog, or pretty much anywhere. Enjoy the updates, guys.

Update! Infiltrate

Infiltrate takes another positive step forwards, and closer towards final completion, which really isn't that final, considering new maps will still come out, possibly even gametypes.

Alright guys, I hope you enjoyed the quick read about Construct. If you know about me, you know I like dreaming; Halo ONLINE is a perfect example. Imagine Construct with 4 floors instead of 3, 3 times the size, and a Hornet? Epicness. Anyways, back on topic, Infiltrate.

Infiltrate is my sole focus right now. Polygon and Air Attack will have to wait. I truly believe this series could be something great.

Today I finished a rough draft of a new Rat's Nest map. It still has some work to do, in terms of structure, but it's getting there. It has a new, surprise, non-ghost vehicle for the two alpha zombies.

Next, the short-range weapon for zombies is now changes from shotgun to sword. With a sword, you'll have a very hard time getting kills as last man, as opposed to shotgun, which probably gets you an overkill as the last man.

Also, the setup for Alpha Zombie starting setups has been changed.
Before:
- Alpha Zombies started with Snipers, and the Sniper role just picked up the powerup to get his speed and camo back.
After (Now):
- Alpha Zombies start with shotguns, and the Sniper role picks up a Sniper Rifle along with the custom powerup.

Why this change?
Pros:
- Now, when Alpha Zombies die, they are exactly the same as regular Zombies. They won't start with Snipers.
- People who should be in Ghosts are still the same in terms of speed, very slow. Now, they won't be tempted to get out to shoot their sniper. A slow guy with a shotgun is pretty worthless.
Cons:
- The Sniper role will be able to pick up other weapons and equipment until he dies. He's a bit of an Intelligence role now.

This change will probably impact the game for the better.

Other Changes
- Two Ghosts, Sniper Rifle, and Custom Powerup fixed so they won't respawn on Doomsday (Standoff).
- Extra fusion coil added to "Mancannon Roof" on Death Rate (Ghost Town), closer to man cannon, to neutralize camping a bit. If this problem persists, I will add a second way in, such as a teleporter.
- Shield door blocking entrance of Death Rate (Ghost Town) has been removed.

As a closing note, thanks to all that have played this with me, the games really help me improve the map and games. I was also impressed with High Ground and Standoff's gameplay. Nothing against Ghost Town, which had higher expectations to start, but it was a bit average, maybe even below that.