Gameplay: PAK file holding
3 maps, QuakeC, models and sounds
Overview welcome back
I
tested this for Kona sometime in 2002, I believe,
and I was well impressed with this two-map
package. I should point out that all the screenies
in this review were taken in TochrisQuake,
using Speedy's "Elbrus" skybox. This skybox
blends delightfully with the map's colour
scheme, but then I like skyboxes.
ArchitectureBrown claw hammer
Think two-tone brown: particularly,
Than's industrial work and modified Q2 waste.
Harsh yellow lamps and an evil green sky (not
shown here) do most of the illumination of
the winding semi-base, semi-outdoor structures.
The two-tone architecture works extremely
well, giving the maps a very understated,
weighty style.
Both
maps have artful brushwork wrapped around
simple layouts, which when viewed as a whole
resemble a claw hammer.
The
first map is the "handle"; three outdoor rooms
in a line. The course of gameplay winds in
a big lazy S from one side of gameplay to
the other. The structure is, like much of
Kona's work, two-level, with a small amount
of detouring and one secret that's easily
spotted, very nice to have, but won't guarantee
an easy ride. You can also evade the last
battle and run for the exit, but that can
hurt.
The second, the "head" of
the hammer, is a large T-junction: starting
in the middle, you first open one side, then
the other, where a secret can be reached if
you're quick enough. The final area (the "claw")
is basically a large arena, with a nasty little
surprise right at the end.
QuakeCUp with the old
If
the modified ambient sounds sound familiar,
that's because Kona's used them before, and
they work exceedingly well, giving the structures
a sense of having something looming under
the surface.
Monsters spawn in with specialised
code, but this sometimes means that the usual
teleport effect doesn't appear, and there
seems to be a delay between appearing and
reacting to you. This was a hiccup in earlier
mods, but here it could help save your life.
Mainly
because the enemy is mostly modified grunts
and enforcers, toting new weaponry (nailguns,
grenades and rockets, oh my!) and new skins.
Some, again, have appeared in Kona's earlier
works, but they still work quite well, although
clean-cut soldiers alongside barbarians with
red glowing eyes is a tad odd.
The start map features destructible
walls, if you can work out where they are,
and why. However they don't seem to appear
anywhere else, which is a shame. They could
have been useful.
Armours are also reskinned,
but they still seem to act like normal armour
types.
GameplayYeow!
The fight begins right from
the start, and charging in usually leads to
fatal surprises. Then again, waiting can also
lead to a fatal surprise. Either way, you can't
win.
Progress
usually requires shooting all the monsters in
a room to get a door to open, revealing another
monster ambush. Running out of monsters usually
means more will be along in a few seconds; the
question is, where will they appear?
Identifying your grunt types
is required to know how to deal to them. Nothing's
less pleasant than one of the lowliest monsters
in Quake dropping you with a rocket.
Both secrets are easy to find,
but don't unbalance gameplay, which is a bonus.
The general consensus in the
community about this package is that it's too
short; the maps are small, and the monster counts
equally so. But that's no reason to sniff at
this mod; after all, others rave about mods
with only a single map. The QC might be familiar,
but its careful use and excellent brushwork
make for a damn good time.
