							HealPod3_Final - Read Me


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Legal Stuff

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Unreal Tournament 3 is copyright of Epic Games.

Epic Games, Cliff Bleszinski and Alan Willard are recognised as the author of the original maps, DM-HealPod & DM-HealPod][.

G. N. "Snorkelbottom" Singleton and Epic Games are recognised as the authors of this map, HealPod3, and the contents herein, respectively. 

This Map and its contents are copyright 2010, G. N. "Snorkelbottom" Singleton and Epic Games.

Authors MAY NOT use this map or the contents contained herein as a base to build additional levels without explicit permission from the original author(s).

ANY bug fixes, fixes, changes, and tweaks may only be implemented by the author(s). No other person or party is allowed to release a modified version of the maps contained herein without the author's permission.

You MAY NOT charge any money for this map or the content contained herein or any of its embedded content.

You MAY distribute this map and the contents contained herein through any electronic media (internet (web/ftp), FIDO, local BBS, Magazine coverdisk etc.), provided you include this file.

All other trademarks and trade names are properties of their respective owners.


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Installation

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You MUST own a legal copy of Unreal Tournament 3 for the PC, updated to Patch 2.0, to play this map.

Unzip the zip archive "DM-HealPod3_Final.zip" to your desktop.

The contents of "DM-HealPod3_Final.zip" are:
	DM-HealPod3_Final.exe............................Installation Program
	DM-HealPod3_Final_Readme.txt.....................This File
	RipperLiteV2u.zip................................(See The Ripper Section Below)

Important Note: For ease of use I have included this map within an installer, created using Install Creator, courtesy of Clickteam (www.clickteam.com).

Run the installation program "DM-HealPod3_Final.exe".

When the program asks you where you wish to install the map files to, the dialog box should automatically find the necessary folders, therefore you should not need to change anything in this dialogue box. In case the installer has any problems then you can safely enter the full address of the "Unreal Tournament 3" folder into the dialogue box, or install them to your desktop and place them manually into the necessary folders if you so wish.

Once the installation has finished the map should be installed and ready to use within UT3.

To play this map simply run Unreal Tournament 3 and select "HealPod3" in a multiplayer and/or instant action Duel, Deathmatch or Team Deathmatch game.


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Hello There

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Let me introduce myself and my brief history so far in making maps for UT3. I am Snorkelbottom, the fragging elf (real, boring name - G. N. Singleton). I have been a fan of the Unreal series since it first appeared back in 1998, but it wasn't until the release of Unreal Tournament 3: Collectors Edition, that I was actually able to use the editor. After perusing the awesome 3D Buzz video tutorials and researching the do's and don'ts of map design on the net I was finally ready to make my first map for Unreal Tournament 3.


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Preparation

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I decided to remake a classic, but overlooked map from UT99 - DM-HealPod. This classic Deathmatch map first appeared in the "Botmatch" mode of Unreal and then returned in the add-on pack turned full release; Unreal Tournament. Since then the map has never been remade by Epic Games for any UT game (although it was remade for UT2003/4 by legacy-Teddie). Because this map is often revered with classic status (along with other maps such as Morbias, Facing Worlds, Pressure and Morpheus) and because it seems that no one wants to remake it I have decided to remake it for Unreal Tournament 3.

With Unreal Tournament 3 Epic Games wanted the franchise to return to its roots, with heavier gravity, beefier weapons and grittier graphics. Epics Games also wanted Unreal Tournament 3 to have a much more cohesive art style, with much more continuity between levels, so that the levels appeared to exist within the same universe. Therefore I took a professional approach and painstakingly studied Unreal Tournament 3 stock maps such as Deck, Biohazard and Defiance to ensure that my map, DM-HealPod3, fitted in with Epic Games' vision for Unreal Tournament 3 and so that it would sit seamlessly alongside the maps included within UT3. I felt that if I was going to make a UT3 map, I might as well do it properly. 


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Design Approach

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For HealPod3 I decided that I wanted the map to look abandoned, and in a state of disrepair and decadence. Not the best idea for ones first map, but after much work I finally acheived what I had originally envisioned. 


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DM-HealPod3.ut3 - My First Map, Ever.

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"After the first Liandri tournament became a commercial success for the Liandri Corporation the HealPod facility was closed down and abandoned, as construction work began on the more complex and asthetically attractive Strident facility."


Gametypes - Duel, Deathmatch & Team Deathmatch
Recommended Player Count - 2 to 8
Map Size - Small
Main Visual Themes - HU & LT
Music Track - Mechanism 8 


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Initial Changes

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Aside from some geometeric changes, most of which should not be immediately noticable, I have made some minor changes to the map after comparing the two original incarnations of the map, HealPod and HealPod][.

1. The Sheild Belt pick up has been returned to its original position as it was in HealPod (from the Unreal incarnation of the map), because this higly rewarding item was too easily obtained in the UT99 version of the map.

2. Because the Sheild Belt has been moved I have reinstated the inclusion of the Armour Vest pick up in its place (there was an Armour Vest pick up nearby this position in the first incarnation of Healpod). The Thigh Pads pick up remains in the same location as it was in HealPod][.

3. To complete the suit of armour the Helmet pick up has been placed on the bottom floor of the map, in front of the lift that only rises to the middle floor. Now there is an item of armour on each of the three main floors of the map. 

4. I have placed the Jump Boots opposite the Flak Cannon (the Jump Boots were in a nearby position in the first incarnation of HealPod). Having Jump Boots will allow players extra access to the higher floors of the map.

5. The Ripper in the map is the RipperliteV2. Despite the fact that it is essentially an modded translocator, I am happy with the look of the weapon. However, there are a few problems with this modified weapon (see the Ripper section below). Of course the Ripper is in the same location as it was in HealPod][.

6. The Invisibility power-up has been replaced with the Berserk power-up. The fast, brutal pace of the map does not require an Invisibility power-up, but does encourage the use of the Berserk power-up.

7. The secret room is now hidden behind a jet of green toxic goo steam. I have done this because I felt that having part of a pipe drop into the floor didn't look right. Of course, this toxic steam will kill players instantly upon contact. Access to the secret room is no longer achieved via a switch on the opposite wall, to gain access to the secret room players have to......... I don't think so lol!?!

8. There are now more ammunition pick ups within the map than in previous incarnations. This will make sense to players of HealPod and HealPod][ - as there where 4 rocket launcher, flak cannon and sniper rifle ammunition pick ups, but the rest of the weapons only had 2 ammunition pick ups each. These extra ammunition pick ups have been added to help balance the map.


I have also made some more drastic changes, which were required to help the flow and balance of the map. Experienced and professional level designers should agree with the changes I have made.

1. The most drastic change that I have made is that the healing platform is now situated on the middle floor. I have done this because in the original two incarnations of the map most of the action was focused around the healing platform which was situated on the bottom floor of the map. Therefore, the upper floors of the map were barely used. By moving the healing platform up one floor the whole map should now be used by players, helping the flow of the map. 

2. I have reduced the amount of health granted to players on the platform from 15 units a second down to 10 units a second. I have done this to reduce the risk/reward element of the piston/healing platform which in turn should reduce players overuse of the feature, and also to reflect the idea that the map has been neglected for many years, and thus the performance of the platform has wained.

3. The colour of the energy emitted from the healing platform has been changed from its original green to more closely match the aqua green used as the healing energy within the Health Vial, Health Pack and Keg O' Health in UT3.

4. The mechanism by which the piston is dropped onto the healing platform has been changed slightly to stop players becoming over-reliant upon the use of the "trap". In the original maps the piston was dropped by standing on any of the four buttons on the ground floor of the map. In this remake these buttons have been replaced with six illuminated floor panels, with two placed on each of the three main floors of the map. Furthermore only one of these illuminated floor panels can be used to release the piston. The allocated illuminated floor panel is selected at random, but not until the piston has been fully retracted.

5. The ventilation tunnel at the very top of the map has been greatly shortened and now only contains one Sniper Rifle pick up. I have done this simply because there was no need for two sniper rifles in the map (as in HealPod][). The new area that houses the Sniper Rifle also has an opening in the floor that allows players to drop down onto the Flak Cannon, maintaining the flow of the map.


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Final Version Changes

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This is a comprehensive list of the changes that I have implemented to the map for the final release to address a few issues found in my original, unfinished release. I also wanted to add to the polish and flow of the map, and improve upon the decadent atmosphere of the map, bringing the map up the standards of the stock maps made by Epic Games:

1. Sound - I have reduced the volume of most of the ambient sounds music within the map by approximately 50% because in the inital release most of the sounds were initially too loud. Of course sounds have been added / removed where needed. I have also replaced the music track within the map with one of the tracks shipped with UT3 (see Music Track section below). 

2. Layout - I have added a new room on the higher level, containing a Spider Mine Trap Deployable pick up. I have done this to help players differentiate between the two lifts when on the top level of the map. I have also altered the materials on some walls and floors throughout the map, especially on the middle floor of the map to add more variety to the look of the map, which has been further added upon with the use of dirt decal actors. 

3. Decoration - As best as possible, taking into account the claustropobic nature of the map, I have reduced the amount of "Flat Walls" within the level, especially on the lower floor of the map. I have also added and altered some static mesh layouts throughout the map. I have done this to help bring the map closer to the standards seen within the UT3 stock maps. Some of the more noticable static mesh amendments are as follows:
	Added a few windows to show the newly added industrial landscape outside the map, with heavy rain and puddles.
	Altered meshes underneath the healpod platform.
	Added two slime pools on the lower level of the map, and a volatile splat of goo under the generator.
	Added biogoo slime meshes and details on the generator to hint that the healing energy is derived from the goo.
	Improved the ceiling in the Rocket Launcher steam room.

4. Lighting  - I have added a few flickering lights, to help show the decadence within the map. I have also removed the lights and lift panels on all lifts so as not to patronise players.

5. Finalising - I have added camera shake when the piston hits the healpod platform. I have also toned down the bloom inside the HealPod itself. Finally, I have done a full blocking volume pass on the map to to eliminate players sticking to / inbetween any static meshes.


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Ripper Problems

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The Ripper used in this map has been supplied courtesy of Parser, because it was the best Ripper weapon I could find on the UT forums. This weapon is essentially a modified Translocator, but it does have the Rippers primary and secondary firing modes intact. However, there is a small list of problems with this weapon:

1. The weapon has a nice silver material with blue emmissive effects, but when viewed from a third person perspective (self, opponents and spectating) the weapon still looks like a Translocator, with its faded red material.

2. When the weapon is used and/or selected when using/grabbing the UDamage and Berserk power-ups the weapon correctly displays the power-ups material overlay. However, the Invisilibility material overlay does not seem to appear at all on the weapon.

3. The ammunition pick ups for the weapon are vertically scaled down Stinger ammunition pick ups. However, in this map, I have used a relatively simple Kismet sequence to use silver Translocator discs as the ammuntion.

All of the above problems are with the RipperLiteV2, not this map; HealPod3. Furthermore, the RipperLiteV2u.zip archive has been included with this map because it MAY be needed if you wish to play this map on a server, for more information see the readme file inside the RipperLiteV2u.zip archive. 


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Music Track

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I originally intended to have a remix of the maps original track "SuperFist" with samples from NIN's (Nine Inch Nails) album "The Slip", to give the track a much dirtier, grittier, broken sound with the emphasis more towards Rock than Dance. My good friend from the UT forums, sneh, took on this task but due to technical problems was unable to finish the track in time. Thus, in the initial release of the map I included a direct port of the maps track using the open source application ModPlug Tracker. I originally included this music track because it seemed alot of people on the maps original forum pages (utforums.epicgames.com) were obsessed about the having the original music track present.

The music track present within the map for this final ever release is now one of the stock music tracks that comes with UT3 - Mechanism8, which has been in the games since UT99. I know that there will be some people that desperately want a remixed version of the original track within the map but lets be honest, as long as the track compliments the atmosphere, pace and flow of the map does it really matter whether the original track is used or not... no, it doesn't.


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Final Word & Acknowledgements

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This map initially took only 4 months to make, from beginning to end, with the decoration phase of the map taking up the most amount of time. I started work on the map in January 2009, with the map completed in April 2009.

However, I did not work religiously on the map; if I had then the map would probably have been finished in 8 to 10 weeks. After finished the initial build of the map I took some time out before returning to the map, finishing it over the Christmas and New Year period of 2009/2010, bringing the map to its current and final build.

This map has been thoroughly playtested and, as such, has no bugs or glitches. There is one problem with this map however... it is bloody good fun!?!

If you haven't done so already, try out my map and have fun. I hope you enjoy playing this map as much as I enjoyed making it (well, I did... most of the time). If you do enjoy this map let me know on the HealPod3 Final or Snorkelbottoms First Map Pack threads on the UT forums at UTForums.EpicGames.com. If there is plenty of positive feedback and enough demand, I will continue to release other maps in the near future.


Last, but not least, special Thanks go out to...


The Guys at Epic Games (especially Cliff Bleszinski and Alan Willard) for making Unreal Tournament 3 and their work on the original maps - HealPod and HealPod][.

Parser for the RipperLiteV2.

The guys at Clickteam for their awesome install creator.

Everyone on the Epic Games forums, especially Bl!tz~, bn_avit, Shade Mistress and sneh, as well as those that gave feedback on my original release of thes map. Thanks to all for their help and support.

3DBuzz for their invaluable guidance and video tutorials.

UDN (especially Dave Ewing and Richard Nalezynski) for their guidance and advice.

Sjoerd "Hourences" De Jong for his guidance.

The guys at icecreamyou.com for their guidance.

The guys at fraghouse.beyondunreal.com. for their guidance.

James Perry for his playtesting and invaluable feedback.


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...Until next time...