Mini-Mod Mondays

Creating new content for Trespasser!

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Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Draconisaurus »

'Ello all - I am officially starting a new weekly ritual/tradition, where each week I release a mod on Monday which took two days or less to make. I figure it's a great way to get Tres content out there that, if done correctly, is still high-quality and gives the community new and interesting things to see on a regular basis. It's also a fun way to manifest various little potentials for Trespasser that modders just haven't gotten around to.

"Uh, Drac, it's not Monday..."

IIIIIII know, lol. Originally the plan for Mini-Mod Mondays was that they should take only one day to complete. That proved too difficult so now it's two days (and I'll be starting a day earlier).

First release for MMM iiiiiis.... Placid Shore!

https://app.box.com/s/ipgzywlkw0yiadbc35xnvb0w9i7hakyv
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by TrespasserGuy »

What an ingenious way to revitalize the modding community at TresCom, Draco. I look forward to playing this level once I get around to it. I myself might want to join in on the fun and create a short little level in just a short amount of time too.
Hey! Maybe we could showcase our levels and have people vote on which one was the more enjoyable. A sort of friendly competition, if you will. :).
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by TheIdiot »

Awesome, I'll definitely check this out. Just be careful this doesn't burn you out of ideas quickly or make you bored of Tres. Review incoming as soon as I beat this. :wink:
Hey! Maybe we could showcase our levels and have people vote on which one was the more enjoyable. A sort of friendly competition, if you will. :).
I'd be in favor of this. Perhaps we can have a weekly theme and everyone has to crank out a level in two days to be a participant in a contest? I wouldn't really participate but I think it could be cool.
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Draconisaurus »

Thx for the comments *still waiting for people to play the actual level* ;)

Contest sounds fun.. if it would actually happen.. TI, why wouldn't you enter?

Also I feel a 7-day allowance is more likely to work for a contest like that, unless we wanted to do it each week... Then again we could still do it each week and have a 7-day allowance..


...I suppose one of the purposes of MMM is to demonstrate what can be accomplished in Trespasser even in a short amount of time. So many cool-looking mods get started and not finished... What if people regularly made small levels like this? A lot more would get finished. :) The idea of it taking only 2 days is so that the rest of the week can be spent on my primary project. Such that, I am accomplishing both weekly releases and long-term development, at a consistent rate, the whole time!
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by TheIdiot »

Thx for the comments *still waiting for people to play the actual level* ;)
Hey! I played it! :P
Contest sounds fun.. if it would actually happen.. TI, why wouldn't you enter?
Got too much other stuff to do (RTJP, plus another two mods for other games as well as work and college preparations). Maybe if the theme were really good I'd be in though. :wink:
Also I feel a 7-day allowance is more likely to work for a contest like that, unless we wanted to do it each week... Then again we could still do it each week and have a 7-day allowance..
Agreed. Would we do something along the lines of that Contest Level from 2008, where everyone is given a base level with all the allowed objects and go from there?
...I suppose one of the purposes of MMM is to demonstrate what can be accomplished in Trespasser even in a short amount of time. So many cool-looking mods get started and not finished... What if people regularly made small levels like this? A lot more would get finished. :) The idea of it taking only 2 days is so that the rest of the week can be spent on my primary project. Such that, I am accomplishing both weekly releases and long-term development, at a consistent rate, the whole time!
That's understandable then. I'd just hate to see you get bored of Trespassing. :)
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Draconisaurus »

TheIdiot wrote:
Thx for the comments *still waiting for people to play the actual level* ;)
Hey! I played it! :P
Aaaaand what did you think?
Contest sounds fun.. if it would actually happen.. TI, why wouldn't you enter?
Got too much other stuff to do (RTJP, plus another two mods for other games as well as work and college preparations). Maybe if the theme were really good I'd be in though. :wink:
This week's theme... Isla Nublar! :P (Then again you prb. don't want to be releasing your cool new assets ahead of schedule...)
Also I feel a 7-day allowance is more likely to work for a contest like that, unless we wanted to do it each week... Then again we could still do it each week and have a 7-day allowance..
Agreed. Would we do something along the lines of that Contest Level from 2008, where everyone is given a base level with all the allowed objects and go from there?
Mmmmmm. Maybe! One thing I learned from the first contest is not to limit people by saying you can't import new things. It might help contests to actually be entered. Have to say, the Winter Contest went very nicely, even if many/most entries came after the contest end date.
...I suppose one of the purposes of MMM is to demonstrate what can be accomplished in Trespasser even in a short amount of time. So many cool-looking mods get started and not finished... What if people regularly made small levels like this? A lot more would get finished. :) The idea of it taking only 2 days is so that the rest of the week can be spent on my primary project. Such that, I am accomplishing both weekly releases and long-term development, at a consistent rate, the whole time!
That's understandable then. I'd just hate to see you get bored of Trespassing. :)
I won't lol! I suppose MMM might end sometime if I begin running out of small-level ideas. Another idea, indeed, is that small things made for the mini-mods can be used in future, larger levels.
So part of the reason for doing this is an outlet of all the passion I have for Trespasser... Being stuck in certain stages of development means there are certain entire areas you're not able to work on.... I happen to like object placement, sound design, terraforming, various things... It's a way to engage more in certain areas of my craft. Trespasser isn't just a hobby for me - it's what I do other than hang out with friends and sleep. :P
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by TheIdiot »

Aaaaand what did you think?
It's in an edit in my first post on this thread. Third from the top. :)
This week's theme... Isla Nublar! :P (Then again you prb. don't want to be releasing your cool new assets ahead of schedule...)
...you cheeky devil. :D Nah, I think I'll keep my Nublar stuff a secret. Wouldn't mind using just the East Dock and JP Oblivion to make a short Nublar level though. I think it should be a rule that nobody may use unreleased or custom assets in levels since some people don't know how to make new models.
Mmmmmm. Maybe! One thing I learned from the first contest is not to limit people by saying you can't import new things. It might help contests to actually be entered. Have to say, the Winter Contest went very nicely, even if many/most entries came after the contest end date.
Perhaps. My above point might do nicely though. I actually wanted to enter that Winter Contest but wasn't signed up to the forum yet...maybe I'll try my hand at an extra-late entry one day.
I won't lol! I suppose MMM might end sometime if I begin running out of small-level ideas. Another idea, indeed, is that small things made for the mini-mods can be used in future, larger levels.
Precisely what I was thinking. :D Take ideas or objects from these mini-levels and expand on them. I already like the shore area of this level a lot...would fit nicely in the sulphur-fields of southern Isla Nublar. :wink:
So part of the reason for doing this is an outlet of all the passion I have for Trespasser... Being stuck in certain stages of development means there are certain entire areas you're not able to work on.... I happen to like object placement, sound design, terraforming, various things... It's a way to engage more in certain areas of my craft. Trespasser isn't just a hobby for me - it's what I do other than hang out with friends and sleep. :P
...do you sleep with a life-sized Anne pillow, too..? :P Kidding.
I guess I'm the same way, except I like modding a bunch of different games at once to keep up variety. I'd really like to do a short, easy-to-make Tres level one day though since RTJP is so titanic and Beach HD is so tedious, but I'm currently working on other mods for Civilization II and Morrowind, plus I'm planning to start work on my first brand-new game soon. :mrgreen:
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Draconisaurus »

TheIdiot wrote:
Aaaaand what did you think?
It's in an edit in my first post on this thread. Third from the top. :)
Hmmmm... This is what the third post from the top looks like as of this moment:
TheIdiot wrote:Awesome, I'll definitely check this out. Just be careful this doesn't burn you out of ideas quickly or make you bored of Tres. Review incoming as soon as I beat this. :wink:
Hey! Maybe we could showcase our levels and have people vote on which one was the more enjoyable. A sort of friendly competition, if you will. :).
I'd be in favor of this. Perhaps we can have a weekly theme and everyone has to crank out a level in two days to be a participant in a contest? I wouldn't really participate but I think it could be cool.
This week's theme... Isla Nublar! :P (Then again you prb. don't want to be releasing your cool new assets ahead of schedule...)
...you cheeky devil. :D Nah, I think I'll keep my Nublar stuff a secret. Wouldn't mind using just the East Dock and JP Oblivion to make a short Nublar level though. I think it should be a rule that nobody may use unreleased or custom assets in levels since some people don't know how to make new models.
Dur. I would never say "no custom assets". That would suck. We need to encourage as much custom-asset-making as possible.
Precisely what I was thinking. :D Take ideas or objects from these mini-levels and expand on them.
Thing is that some "expand on them" projects would be large ones I wouldn't find myself doing, since you can only fit so many of those over time. Hence, MMM.
I guess I'm the same way, except I like modding a bunch of different games at once to keep up variety. I'd really like to do a short, easy-to-make Tres level one day though since RTJP is so titanic and Beach HD is so tedious, but I'm currently working on other mods for Civilization II and Morrowind, plus I'm planning to start work on my first brand-new game soon. :mrgreen:
I guess working on multiple games might eliminate time for smaller mods. *wonders what the brand-new game is*

An idea brought me awake one morning on TresCom... *goes to post*
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by TheIdiot »

Hmmmm... This is what the third post from the top looks like as of this moment:
Huh. You're right, the whole review I did disappeared! Damn, that took like 20 minutes! Ugh...well, I'll give you the short form.

I really liked the way the shore area looked and the terrain textures were great. The use of dinosaurs that I've never seen in a level before was also refreshing, though the protoceratops looks kind of low-quality unfortunately (not your fault though). I also dislike some of the Greenhouse trees you selected - they look somewhat blocky, especially the ones where the leaves are all on right-angles. The way the forest transitioned into the surrounding mountains looked sort of silly to me, as if the trees just sort of stopped instead of progressively thinning out as they ascend the cliff.
Gameplay-wise, it was a nifty little adventure which I'm actually quite surprised was finished in two days, though I would have liked to at least have an ending trigger (unless I missed it?). The dead end on the western end of the shore with the homalocephale was also a bit of a letdown, but I really liked the lake in the centre with the corythosaurs and the Raptor - little places like this really help to flesh out the world and encourage exploration (I think back to that sinkhole in JPDS~Trails as an excellent example of such). What I liked the most was the little shed in the woods, that was very interesting and would have been a great place to have a radio to end the level; perhaps you could lock it and put the key in that dead end I mentioned to encourage exploration. :)
Would have also liked to see a bit of a story (the little journal with the poem was funny, though), but that's not really important in a mini-level.
Also exploring it in TresEd afterward, I noticed a whole extra valley even further to the west and a path that lead around the back area between two mountain ridges - was this going to be something at one point?

Overall score: 4/10 (though very impressive for a two-day project)
Good, but could use some improvement to take it above just "good". :)
I guess working on multiple games might eliminate time for smaller mods.
It definitely does, I think. One day I'm building Isla Nublar, the next, I'm drawing 2D medieval sprites.
*wonders what the brand-new game is*
That I cannot say. All I'll say is that it will be graphically something never-before-seen. :wink:
An idea brought me awake one morning on TresCom... *goes to post*
Oh, John, not another one of your ideas! What is it this time, host children's birthday party on dinosaur-infested island? :P
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Draconisaurus »

TheIdiot wrote:
Hmmmm... This is what the third post from the top looks like as of this moment:
Huh. You're right, the whole review I did disappeared! Damn, that took like 20 minutes! Ugh...well, I'll give you the short form.
Ah damn..

So yeah, fun things. When working with a mini design like this, there is all kinds of freedom... In something like JPDS or RTJP, the project is huge, important, and takes a long time; asset selection/creation is picky, precise, and takes time. With a mini mod such as this, you can let the level build itself from what is available. You don't have to stress so much and it goes by quite fast!

I thought the proto was fine for a Tres dino... I feel like the quadrapeds suffer from their skeleton/animation.

Those greenhouse trees - my feeling is that much better trees obviously exist/can-be-made, but they are in Tres and they work, so why not use them? Part of modding Tres is not just making the best stuff but making a variety of stuff. For me, personally, part of the job is also maximizing the potential of what's available to us. Someone goes to the trouble of getting new assets for us... I would sure like to see them used!

Tree-mountain transition... I... concur? At least, it does not look so realistic. I'm not sure Placid Shore is about realism. Sorta surrealist. Hmmmm... *thinking* Areas of Tres covered in rock don't have foliage. One idea for this island might be that the trees/grass/dirt are in areas where sand/nutrients from the beach have washed inland and become the basis for vegetation, which cannot be said for the mountains. Then again, I've never seen such a thing IRL. 'Nyways your comment is taken seriously. :)

No end-trigger... There's no objective other than seeing stuff, and no way to tell at what point the player has "seen everything" :P I would say some of my mini-mods will have AT 31 and some won't.
Your suggestion of a radio to end the level - the player is not assumed to be someone lost on an island in need of rescue, in this case. You're exploring stuff!

In theory there is "ambient story", where you can let your imagination run around with what might be going on in the space... And I think story's importance in mini-mods is variable.

Sooo with the raised mountain areas... Originally the level was going to extend a bit more to the West, until I decided to keep things smaller than that and raised a new mountain range next to it. None of the inaccessible areas were meant to be accessible at any point after primary terraforming was completed, and (yes) I left a little area of somewhat hard-to-reach ascendable mountain in case people wanted to go have fun outside the playing area.
Overall score: 4/10 (though very impressive for a two-day project)
Good, but could use some improvement to take it above just "good". :)
Thank ye. :D I hope this serves as a testament to what is possible with Tres. I feel like there is ambient discouragement with Tres mods that they NECESSARILY take ages to complete (and look any good). Behold, two days!
Oh, John, not another one of your ideas! What is it this time, host children's birthday party on dinosaur-infested island? :P
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Bryankd2015 »

This sounds like a great idea.
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Draconisaurus »

My appologies... Once again this week's mini-mod is not on Monday. Started sorta on time. This mod took roughly just over 2 days... 'Tis a fun environment test that's been a long time coming...! Hope ya'll enjoy it. 8)

Lost Desert

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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by TrespasserGuy »

Wow, Draco. You're blowing my mind with this world-building. Just played it and I had a blast exploring the canyon. The first thing of significance I found was the "cattle farm". I thought that was a really cool use of the IT house fence and the JPOG cow model. However, I find it kind of lazy that you placed bakers at the front of the fence, blocking any entrance into the place. It would've been better to just form a giant cliff a few yards behind the fences, just so you could go into the cattle farm itself. But that's just my suggestion. Next, I found the abandoned outlaw tent with gold, some rum, some skeletons, and a Ruger Redhawk. I found that place pretty cool. I kept walking amongst the cliffs and found the broken bridge high above my head. I found that set-piece epic-looking, but was disappointed that you couldn't climb up to the bridge's location. Finally, I found myself at the saloon. That place fit the level very well. D'you know what would've been awesome? An abandoned railway line made entirely out of individual wood planks and metal girders, but I guess I'm asking too much for something made in so little time. Overall, Lost Desert is a neat little level that shows that a desert environment is quite possible in Tres. 8)

I give LD a 7/10. :P
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by Draconisaurus »

Thanks TG!
The "cow fields" (as I call them) are meant to stretch away beyond sight since in reality they are quite large areas (large enough that I wouldn't want to have the whole area ingame). My main regret with this aspect is that you can't have the Alberto chasing after them :lol:
Yeah the bridge was admittedly a sort of "this looks cool and could be cooler but we'll stick with the basic coolness level" thing. :yum: I just thought it would look cool.
Railway line. Was thinking of putting a railroad in at some point but decided it would take too long. Perhaps it wouldn't have but the level did take a little too long as it was. I was also going to put in a gold mine, and a reference to the John Carter "cave of gold"...
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Re: Mini-Mod Mondays

Post by TheIdiot »

Awesome! Finally someone releases a desert-themed level...checking it out now! Be back soon with the review. :D

EDIT: Once again, awesome stuff, this one is even more impressive than the previous in my opinion! Tiny review:
Spoiler: show
Right off the bat, I knew this guy was going to get at least an 8 or 9 on level design. Everything about it is beautiful and original, from the use of objects to the placement to the design. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that everything was 100% flat, but that didn't really bother me that much due to how cool everything looked. Explored and got lost as well, so extra points for getting me horribly lost! :D Eventually I passed under that extremely cool bridge (which I never found a way up to, sadly) and found a little camp, which was a neat little hint at some story that fit perfectly with the theme, plus snagged a pistol and used it to dispose of some nice Tribe A Raptors. Normally I'd hound you for using that awful parasaur from the original game, but here it fit so well that I'll let it pass. :wink:
After exploring (and getting further lost), I stumbled across the cattle farm - more greatly creative stuff - and a saloon, which is perhaps the most coincidentally fitting scenery object in the whole level. Also really liked your use of the TC~Rescue stuff in there, made everything that much more western (though I noticed you left that misplaced voiceover on top of the counter). Wandered around some more, passing a massive cliff and fighting more Raptors (and getting lost once again) before I decided my journey was complete. Once again, I do sort of wish there were an end trigger, but no points taken off for that since I understand your intent. :)
And here we have the overall - in short, I loved everything about this level! The numbers:
Map Design: 8.5/10 - Literally everything here had me wanting to explore further. Occasional little locations to keep me exploring is what I look for the most, and this puppy hit the nail on the head. Just wish I could have gotten up to that bridge!
Gameplay: 6/10 - While there isn't a whole lot of puzzling gameplay to it, the whole challenge of navigating and evading dinosaurs in the narrow canyon made for some exciting encounters. Would have liked to see at least one or two puzzles however.
Story: 7/10 - No overarching story to uncover, but I was able to create my own story in my head as I went due to the excellent use of bits-and-pieces of information! Very well executed here.
Creativity: 10/10 - What can I say, it's a red desert with desert-y items and locations? Flawless work.

OVERALL: 8/10
"Woah." 8)
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