RunThinkShootLiveVille 2 – Map Labs #3

for Half-Life 2: Episode Two

14th April 2019

The Map Labs team keeps cranking out quality mapping challenges. This time they approached me to ask about a crossover challenge and I suggested a sequel to the namesake contest RunThinkShootLiveVille. That was a fun challenge to run and play, and some memorable maps were entered.

So for this first crossover with Map Labs, the theme was to make a map featuring the sections Run, Think, Shoot, Live – in any order.

The challenge recieved 12 entries and 2 bonus maps, here they are! We got some really unique and creative entries, enjoy!

Basic Details
  • Title: RunThinkShootLiveVille 2
  • Filename: sdk-2013-sp-mlc-rtslville2v1.1.7z
  • Size : 414 MB
  • Author: Matt71490 AKA Event Horizon, Salamancer, ThatsRidonkulous, 1UpD, Jean Knapp aka XBLAH, Steven Cabbage, Aleksandr Lavrinovitš aka alex_mmc, Jmp, Niker107, Skorly, GreenSpleen, jankkhvej, StookyPotato, The_GuardianTM, Kail Doucet, WALLe PL, HighFire
  • Date Released: 14 April 2019

Download Options

Download to your HD [414 MB]

Sorry, this version cannot be used with Gauge.

Manual Installation Instructions
  • Make sure you have the Upcoming branch of the Source SDK Base 2013 Singleplayer installed in Steam and run at least once. (Properties – Betas – select upcoming from the dropdown list).
  • Copy the “RunThinkShootLiveVille2” folder into your SourceMods folder.
  • Restart or start Steam.
  • RunThinkShootLiveVille2 should now be listed in your Library tab.

Reviewing

If you decide to use the Per-Map Opinion Images, please either watch the video below or use the file below:

RTSLV2-Review-Template.txt

Thank you.

Entries

Listed as they are displayed in the mod itself:

Schwarzchild Radius by Matt71490 AKA Event Horizon and Salamancer
Backcut by ThatsRidonkulous and 1UpD
[map title here] by Jean “XBLAH” Knapp
Ultracold by Steven Cabbage and Aleksandr “alex_mmc” Lavrinovitš
Prospektor by Jmp
Continuum Shift by Niker107
Mine Mansion by Skorly
Bruh Momentum by GreenSpleen
Guard Down by jankkhvej
Search and Rescue by StookyPotato
Railway Industry by The_GuardianTM
Rats Den by Kail Doucet
Backalley Brawl by WALLe PL (bonus map)
City Escape by HighFire (bonus map)

Community Poll

Time for you to share your thoughts! Vote for your top 3 RunThinkShootLiveVille 2 maps. Poll closes 1st May 2019.

Pick your top 3 RunThinkShootLiveVille 2 maps:

  • Rats Den by Kail Doucet (3%, 6 Votes)
  • Railway Industry by The_GuardianTM (2%, 4 Votes)
  • Search and Rescue by StookyPotato (3%, 6 Votes)
  • Guard Down by jankkhvej (1%, 2 Votes)
  • Bruh Momentum by GreenSpleen (3%, 5 Votes)
  • Mine Mansion by Skorly (4%, 8 Votes)
  • Continuum Shift by Niker107 (27%, 49 Votes)
  • Prospektor by Jmp (3%, 5 Votes)
  • Ultracold by Steven Cabbage and Aleksandr "alex_mmc" Lavrinovitš (13%, 23 Votes)
  • [map title here] by Jean "XBLAH" Knapp (4%, 8 Votes)
  • Backcut by ThatsRidonkulous and 1UpD (19%, 34 Votes)
  • Schwarzchild Radius by Matt71490 AKA Event Horizon and Salamancer (17%, 31 Votes)

Total Voters: 75

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Screenshots

WARNING: The screenshots contain spoilers.
Each map has 5 screenshots.

1600 x 900

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Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3
Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3
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Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3
Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3
Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3
Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3 Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3
Reader Recommendations
Avoid It!
Think Twice
Maybe
Play It Later
Play It Now!

10 recommendations, average score: 5 (out of 5), standard deviation: 0 (what's that?)
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Meta Review Data
Statistics based on 9 comment(s) with meta review data.

Installed:
Using Gauge: Users
Manually: 9 Users

Time Taken:
Average: 3 Hours, 16 Mins
Shortest: 0 Hours, 52 Mins by ZippyS2
Longest: 6 Hours by Hec
Total Time Played: 29 Hours, 22 Mins
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42 Comments

  1. I’m getting quite a few errors here and there, is this going to be fixed soon?

    1. Unq

      The 1.1 version should fix things, what exactly were the problems you saw? Please download the latest version and see if that helps.

      1. Combine soldiers were carrying glitched weapons that just showed up as errors on Backcut. And I encountered some on Schwarzchild Radius, at the part where you get the weapons. The weapon-rack was just a big error for me.

        1. Those glitched weapons are actually stunsticks, seems like the worldmodel got screwed up somehow.

  2. Backcut…it’s a good map, but I’m blowed if I can find any more gas cans for the buggy, I found 2, but not enough to make the thing work…so after that I set off on foot…probably a mistake as after that it all got a bit odd…weapons with no troops attached to them (easy to kill though) and a handfull of other glitches, I don’t know if I reached the end, I had to resort to noclip to get to places I couldn’t work out how to get to otherwise..it did look good generally though. Several of the other maps I just couldn’t work out at all and only gave them a cursory glance through. Not enough of a playthough really to give any of the others a review. If I don’t get on with it in the first couple of minutes I just skip it.

    1. Wesp5

      There are three cans of gasoline needed and if you enter each opening you will get one…

  3. how do i solve the puzzle on map title here?

    1. Unq

      It’s the classic 3-jug riddle. Search for a solution on google.

  4. Play It Now!

    Wowie, got a really big cast of mappers for this. Ridonkulous, 1UpD, XBLAH, Niker107, WALLe PL, practically an all-star cast from Ville’s past! This has me quite excited, let’s see how this turned out. I’ll review the Bonuses too.
    ———————————————————–

    Schwartzchild Radius
    It is great!

    Unique setting, combining HL2 with Aliens flavour along with some excellent atmosphere? Sign me up. While I think it’s a bit lacking in terms of real gameplay, with filler in-between, I think it’s a great map, as well as a good re-use of assets for different things. Utilizing the Citadel Core as a black hole was a good substitute. Overall, not too much to say, it’s just generally good all around. Voice acting wasn’t half-bad either, if a little bit quiet for some parts. Lastly, I do like the teasing for the end in the audio logs.

    Backcut
    It is WOW!

    Speaking of unique settings, this one’s quite interesting. A sort of almost Jigsaw-like hideout for a group of Mad Max-ish Combine Soldiers. I like the heavy utilization of sawblades throughout the map. It’s a neat gimmick, but it doesn’t rely on it too heavily to muddle the experience. Good use of signposting without being too blatant, good at teaching new mechanics, just good all around. Definitely one of my favorites.

    [map title here]
    It is good

    Wow, a joke map that’s actually not terrible. That’s a new one. Actually made me chuckle in a few places, even. Run’s alright. Feel a little bad for the poor robot fellow. The Think section was probably my favorite, good jokes there, and the puzzle actually took me a bit to figure out.

    Shoot’s really finicky, though. Hitting the top skele-man is exceptionally difficult since you can’t jump and a lot of the props can’t go that high. Live is short, but a clever use of Gunships i’ve only seen in one other map. All and all, not bad. I wouldn’t call it a favorite, but it could’ve been way, way worse considering other joke maps in the past.

    Ultracold
    It is WOW!

    Then we come to my personal favorite, Ultracold. Probably the most difficult Run section out of the bunch. May as well talk about the visuals here, because they’re downright excellent. It nails the feeling of cold, something clearly inspired by Entropy: Zero, reaffirmed by the appearance of Pillar 10 in the background of the finale and a mention in the credits.

    Regardless, the sections are clearly designated without need of words on screen, and the mapping was really good. Nice to see use of Barnacles as actual obstacles to get past. Shoot was by far my favorite, constantly moving and with an excellent set of musical tracks to go along with it, as well as a Helicopter battle which actually felt climactic rather than boring. Probably my favorite map overall.

    Also, PS, if the creators see this: You have links to some of those tracks? I recognized the remix of Guard Down and the first part of Run, but I do not know of the rest.

    Prospektor
    It is good

    Good, but… it doesn’t really fit the theme whatsoever. It’s basically: “Think, shoot, shoot, shoot”. Aside from the clever little layout puzzle at the start, it’s just shooting the entire time, including a minature version of one of HL2’s defense segments. I like the map, especially the rewards for exploring off the beaten path, but generally, it just doesn’t fit the theme well.

    Continuum Shift
    It is WOW!

    While on the outside, the graphics of this mod don’t impress too much, it’s all in the gameplay, and what a gameplay it brings. The timeshifting mechanic is something i’ve only seen once before, in “Ghosts of White Forest.” However, that level was criminally short. It’s excellent to see a far more refined version of it be used in a lot of ways.

    Each section utilized the mechanic in different ways, teaching you about how it works, from ignoring forcefields, side-stepping turrets, using it to get supplies, etc. I love this map very much, and although it could do better graphically (and maybe with less of the three hand thing), it is an excellent concept done very well. And as a bonus, I really liked the Rebel banter at the end. Good use of reusing lines, it felt quite natural.

    Mine Mansion
    It is great!

    A good, solid map. Even with the rushed ending, the sections are clearly defined and even utilize enemy manipulation at one point, which is a rarity. There’s a good sense of escalation, too, leading to the large final battle against the Guards which had been teased. I had a lot of fun with this map, and I honestly don’t have too much to criticize. Well done.

    Bruh Momentum
    It is okay

    This map has some problems right off the bat. Firstly, “Run” is closer to “Briskly walk while everything is exploding”. Then, it uses the same trick twice with the fallen floor. Think was literally just moving a wire five feet then hitting a button, and Shoot was quite short and unvaried. Lastly, the ending was quite abrupt, as that teleporter looks more like an elevator than anything else. Too short, not enough things of interest going on. Definitely a weak entry.

    Guard Down
    It is bad

    Playing this, it just generally feels messy. Environments are generally bland, some areas have general enemy spam, moving fast enough causes music overlap, and it focuses too heavily on the “shoot” section. Think is just throwing a grenade, Run happens for 20 feet, essentially, then the rest is Shoot until it abruptly ends. Very weak entry overall.

    Search and Rescue
    It is okay

    This map has the same issues as Momentum. The sections are far too short. Run’s fine, but Think is just one tiny puzzle, Shoot is two quite short bits of combat, and that’s it. You can beat it in under 2 minutes. Trust me, I tried. Also, note, sawblades on the sloped platform seem to have the same slippery properties of the slope, making it quite hard to get up onto the platform above.

    Railway Industry
    It is good

    Starts right off the bat with the Run, barely giving time to think. I was quite confused at the start since the crowbar is incredibly hard to see in the junk pile. Think is alright. Should’ve actually hidden the wires rather than leaving them out in the open. Shoot I think has some issues. Namely, the lack of health and armor around. Weaponry can only be refilled via enemies, there’s not too much in the way of cover, and no real escalation. It’s just killing a trickle of regular soldiers while waiting for a very slow elevator. Not much of interest here.

    Honestly, the map’s fine. Not a favorite, but certainly a step up from the last few.

    Rat’s Den
    It is bad

    Combat against Hunters with no suit. Need I say more? Alright, I will. You start the Run section with no suit, having to avoid a bunch of Metrocops by utilizing crates and barnacles to slow them down. Bog standard, nothing new or challenging here.
    Think is okay. Crate stacking into precision movement to avoid a practical minefield and turrets. It’s passable.

    Then comes Shoot. Now, I was getting a little antsy after not picking up a suit during the Think section. Then, this comes along and throws TONS of troops at you, including Shotgunners, AR2s, and a Hunter pair, all while I have no suit, so I can’t see health, sprint, switch weapons, I can’t do anything I really need to do to combat things effectively. Now, maybe I was blind and missed the suit somewhere, but if that’s the case and you put it somewhere non-blatant, may I ask why, exactly? The suit is quite important. Non-suit fighting is clunky and boring. It was bad in “The Escape” from CoastVille, and doubly so here.

    Backalley Brawl
    It is great!

    I don’t know what it is about this map, but I really like it for some reason. I can’t exactly place why, I just do. It’s a fairly unique setting, a training course turned into a battleground by the end. It feels like a mini-map or tutorial, if you will. It showcases the basics of each of the four categories very simply and basically feels like the perfect map to explain the challenge with. It’s short, sweet, and effective. Very good.

    City Escape
    It is okay

    This map is… okay? At best, it’s okay, really. Just kinda… boring? It starts off with running from incredibly slow moving Combine APCs, moving through a bunch of empty rooms until you get to “Think”, or in this case, use explosives of both varieties to clear forcefields. Then, Shoot is a bunch of tight corridors each with only one to two enemies, who can be mowed down before they can react due to the range involved. Then, there’s an airboat section, which i’m guessing is the actual “Run”. It features a helicopter that seemingly doesn’t understand how to drop mines, only vaguely following you through a bunch of straight canals and rivers. No real action, or substance, just moving from point A to B while a helicopter tries to hit you with it’s wildly inaccurate gun.

    Finally, there’s the helicopter battle itself. If Ultracold is an example on how to do a Helicopter RPG battle right, then City Escape is the opposite. The helicopter just sits there, barely moving or adjusting. The rebels don’t do anything either. The RPG crate is in a room to the side you can just sit in and fire at the heli over and over until it dies. Too much cover, not enough movement, just essentially a shooting range. Very disappointing, and probably the weakest entry overall. Even Rat’s Den at least had a unique arena at the end, but this is just… boring. Sad note to end the Ville on.
    —————————————————
    All and all, this was an excellent Ville, definitely up there with FusionVille, CoastVille, and the original RTSLVille as one of my favorite mapping competitions. Iit gives me a ton of hope for Map Labs as a whole, and I hope we see more crossovers in the future for them.

      1. Ah, thank you! Took me a little to find the rest, but I found them in time.

    1. I believe you missed the suit in Rat’s Den. It’s in the room where you open the gate with a console.

      1. I think my point still stands. It didn’t really stand out to me, nor was really brought to any attention. I think the map would’ve just been way better off starting with the HEV Suit rather than leaving it randomly lying about.

    2. Most of the soundtracks were made by Spencer Baggett and Morch Kovalski. But some soundtracks were made by me.

  5. Odd, I posted a review, and the meta-review data registered it, yet it’s not here? Odd.

    1. Unq

      For some reason it went straight to the Trash and got buried, not even the Pending or Spam folders. I fished it out, thanks for letting me know.

      1. Is happening to me as well right now.

  6. Personal Favourite

    Well, this competition will remain in history, won’t it? I love all the maps, without exception. Each map has it’s own amazing atmosphere.

    Schwarzchild Radius
    It is WOW!

    Wow there is a spaceship, wow there are aliens, wow there is a plot. It was my first impression about this map. This map takes place in a spaceship where you must solve puzzles and fight with enemies. Visual is good, but too dark. The “think” section was pretty simple, it didn’t take me so much time to complete it. The “Run” section was short, but very intense and cool. As I see, the “shoot” section was merged with the “live” section and it’s not so bad but as for me it was a bad idea. I didn’t understood the ending, however I love this map and its idea.

    Backcut
    It is great!

    Very nice atmosphere of a wasteland. I have a good feeling about this map, but I don’t like some moments. The “Live” section looks incomplete and empty, and as for me, the “shoot” section was weird and uninteresting. I don’t like sawblade puzzles, but on this map they were realized pretty interesting. The “Run” section was amazing and I love it so much. The “think” section was short but very interesting too. So, I like this map. I swear, it worth playing.

    [Map title here]
    It is good

    Very unusual map. I like it. All sections were simple and interesting, EXCEPT THE “THINK” SECTION. I couldn’t complete it and it annoyed me when I tried to solve it. But I like the idea of this map.

    Ultracold

    It was an interesting experience for me to work in a team. I have never made maps with someone before. This map is a homage to Entropy Zero. I love Entropy Zero and I wanted to recreate its style and atmosphere. So, play it, I swear it’s worth it.

    Prospector
    It is okay

    This entry is okay. It’s pretty standard and simple. It very looks like dm_lockdown map from Half-Life 2: Deathmatch. Combat section was annoying and cheap. Puzzles are a quite primitive. Also those freakin physics doors are bad and I got stuck in some moments cos of them. So I think this map is not so bad, but not good either.

    Continuum Shift
    It is WOW!

    It’s an amazing map and I have not seen something like this before. The idea of time warping is awesome. In my opinion this map has the best gameplay in this competition. And it’s realized pretty well. But brushwork looks cheap and squared, but it is not eye scartching to look at. I also love new viewmodel animations. So, this map is my fave. I really recommend this one.

    Mine Mansion
    It is good

    This entry is good and looks like a regular HL2 map. But its visuals are a little cheap. I like the “run” section cos I like antlion guards. The “think” and the “shoot” section were simple and didn’t impress me. However this map is a quite nice. It’s actually worth playing.

    Bruh Momentum
    It is okay

    Bruh, it’s a standard and very short HL2 map. But it left me only good feelings. There are all sections in this map. So, this is a pretty nice map, that fits the competition’s theme.

    Guard down
    It is okay

    This is a very short and standard map. All sections are in place. It did not impress me, so it is not bad, but it’s okay. So it worth playing.

    Search and Rescue
    It is good

    This map is good and no more. This whole map is about running, and as I noted, there is no “live” section in it, and “think” section is very primitive. So, this map is more like RunShoot. Well, this is a pretty good map.

    Railway Industry
    It is great!

    I love this map and its style. It very fits the theme. I like all sections and how they made. Episode One setting is a pretty nice fits to this map. The author did a pretty good job detailing this map. I really recommend to play this map.

    Rats Den
    It is okay

    It feels like this map was made in a few hours. It’s okay, but I don’t like some moments. For example, there is no “think” part, though probably I just didn’t notice it. However, the “live” section is very nice, so this map is worth playing.

    Backalley Brawl
    It is great!

    I’ve noticed that the author forgot to build cubemaps. However I love this map. The “run” section is amazing and I like it so much. The “think” section is pretty nice, but as I see, the author didn’t pay so much attention on it. The “shoot” and the “live” sections are pretty nice and interesting. The environment is nicely detailed. So I like this map and recommend you to play it.

    City Escape
    It is okay

    This map is looked kind of odd for me. Its environment is cheap and primitive. But the gameplay was fun. All sections are in place. The last battle with the helicopter was a little boring. But the airboat ride was pretty good. So, this map is okey, no more.

    1. Actually, the ending of Shwartz is explained through the audio logs. The alien came into the ship via the teleporter, since they accidentally keyed it to it’s home instead of Earth. Evidently, they still didn’t change it, so you get left in the alien’s home turf.

  7. Play It Now!
    Schwarzchild Radius
    It is great!

    Well done on all the custom stuff! There’s more of it than actual HL2 stuff.
    The map itself was very well done and looked really good. It also had a great Alien/Aliens atmosphere, with even a Xenomorph type creature appearing. The map could have used a lot more optimization though, I had an instable framerate throughout the map.
    It was clear to see what section was done at the moment, but the sections did not feel disjointed. I liked how chaotic the “Run” part was, with a lot of energy balls to dodge and fire to avoid.
    I didn’t really like the “Shoot” part as much. The area was a bit too open for my liking, and the ship shaking like a drunk father who has just lost his son to his ex didn’t help either. This was the only part I actually disliked though.
    There was a part where you had to put energy balls in things-so-advanced-I-don’t-know-their-name. You had to get the balls from a beam of light, and I don’t know if there were any energy balls “displayed” in the beam, or if the beam was so bright I didn’t see them, but I was stuck here for very long.
    The Xenomorph was a nice addition and added a horror feel to the map, but it was ultimately wasted with it only appearing twice in scripted events, and never again.
    In conclusion, a really good entry with a lot of effort put into it.

    Backcut
    It is great!

    Another well done entry. It had a nice desert atmosphere. There were some areas that were a bit or very empty, but overall the visuals were decent enough.
    The sections are announced with big graffiti words. This is a style I was very much expecting to see in this competition, multiple ways to go, each being its on own section of RTSL.
    The “Shoot” section didn’t really contain any shooting but it did have combat in the form of throwing grenades and props at Soldiers. I’m not sure if with “Shoot” they meant guns or just combat. It was quite enjoyable nontheless, although the Soldiers were often more focused on the Zombies, rather than the one spamming them with grenades.
    The “Run” section was a bit on the easy part, I didn’t even take any damage during it. It was accompanied by a pretty scary sound which made sure I would run, if the giant sawblades didn’t already.
    The “Think” part didn’t contain much thinking, you have to make your own platforms to jump on with sawblades, but seeing you will do that earlier in the map it didn’t make me think much.
    The “Live” part was fairly easy as well, and more of a payoff to completing the map than a section were your mean objective is to survive.
    Overall a decent map, but I do think some parts could’ve been done better.

    [map title here]
    It is good

    It contains more jokes than actual gameplay, but it’s a lot of fun. Most of the jokes break the fourth wall and that’s a type of humor I personally really like.
    I can’t really say much about this entry without spoiling much. I can perhaps talk about the final part/battle, containing a Gunship. I liked this part a lot because it is very simple but really good. It is basically a mix of running, living and thinking, as you have to think a bit to find a way to defeat the boss.
    This is how you do a “joke map” correctly.

    Ultracold
    It is good

    I am a sucker for snow maps with blue colors, so I was immediately dragged in by the visuals, altough they weren’t always great. I noticed some things like textures not being alligned correctly or cubemaps not being assigned to faces properly (meaning the reflection cuts off between two brushes).
    The map starts with you running from a whole army of Soldiers, which was quite intense. The map then almost immediately switches gears becomes way more calm. You will fight Headcrabs and avoid Barnacles as you solve puzzles, in a pretty lengthy sewer/underground section. Speaking of length, this entry was pretty long, which kind of explains the issues with the visuals I mentioned earlier, as the entrants had a time limit.
    After the sewers you get to the surface again and you start fighting against Metrocops. The Soldiers are strangely absent, even though they definitely weren’t in the beginning, which I found a bit odd. The combat wasn’t that great, since the Metrocops will mostly just stand in one place and shoot.
    The map ends with a battle against a Hunter Chopper, which takes SO many hits to take down! Maybe it’s just me, but I just get bored when I need to repeat shooting a rocket, getting behind cover to avoid fire and getting rockets from a crate 50 times.
    Overall an enjoyable map, but it has some clear weak points.

    Prospektor
    It is okay

    I have mixed feelings on this one. Firstly, I had no idea what parts of the map were what sections. I didn’t find anything resembling “Think”, or “Run”. It was all just “Shoot” and a bit of “Live”. It’s basically just a really action packed map, and that’s fine, but not in this competition.
    I noticed that some areas or parts of the map were just copy-pasted from HL2’s Prospekt. I noticed an entire section from the original game but with a few slight tweaks.
    Overall, this is an enjoyable entry, but it doesn’t fit in this competition.

    Continuum Shift
    It is WOW!

    This entry deserves to be in the top 3. It has a mechanic where you switch through the past and now to reach a goal, which was also a mechanic in a part in Titanfall 2 if I remember correctly. So the concept isn’t entirely new, but how it’s being used is more important. And let me say, this entry does a hell of a job with that!
    The mechanic obviously gives a lot of possibilities for puzzles, but it’s also being used for combat in a creative way. You can, for example, go to the past, get behind the enemies, get back to the present and get them from behind.
    The creator of this map is to be applauded for his creativity and level design.

    Mine Mansion
    It is great!

    Love the variety in the map here. From being chased by an Antlion Guard to shooting Combine’s skulls in. It flows well and each section is easily recognizable.
    The combat areas were well designed, and the combat itself was enjoyable. I thought the amount of healthkits given was a bit too high, but it didn’t bother me that much.
    I was stuck at the beginning because I didn’t know that the pillar blocking the grating was a physics object, which is kind of my mistake because there was such a pillar earlier, but I jumped over it.
    The final battle against the Guards was a bit too easy due to the explosive barrels lying around and them not being able to properly walk off the stairs.
    Overall this was quite an enjoyable map, I don’t have many negatives with it.

    Bruh Momentum
    It is okay

    I am a bit confused about this map. I noticed a “Run” and “Shoot” section but the other two were either missing or I couldn’t recognize that they were.
    The “Run” section was a bit underwhelming, with you not being able to sprint. I also didn’t really feel like I was running from something. It felt more like I was walking through a theme park attraction. The slow pace did give me the ability to look at the architecture a bit, and I noticed a lot of detailing and good brushwork. People will most likely not even notice these efforts, so I really appreciate the effort here.
    The “Shoot” section was a bit short and a bit on the easy side. Since you have most likely used the suit chargers on the walls, and not been hit that much, you will be going in battle with a lot of health and 200 suit power. Even though all the Combine have AR2’s here, the battle again feels like a theme park ride, with you just walking through it.
    The map ended very abruptly and I was left confused as to where the “Think” and “Live” sections were.

    Guard Down
    It is bad

    The first bad entry of this competition. You start imprisoned, and have to use a grenade to make an explosive barrel explode. Thing is, you only get one grenade. Although it is not very likely players will screw it up, there still is a possibility that it will happen, and it will confuse and frustrate players.
    When I noticed NPC’s standing still without doing anything, I feared the worst. I checked the VMF and sadly I was correct; there were no info_nodes anywhere in the map. A map without those is basically already a IT’S BAD or lower in my book.
    The beginning consists of the “Run” section and also a bit of a “Live” section. These annoyed me as you just got gangbanged by SO many bullets it’s just rediculous. The “Shoot” part was okay, and that was the best part of the map sadly. The map ends with a boss fight against a Strider with something unique to kill it, throwing explosive barrels against it. But, this battle suffers from the same issue the beginning of the map had; if you run out of barrels, you have no option to continue.
    Areas have really lazy lighting, with just light entities spread around a room, with no lamps or sources where these light would be able to come from.
    If you only plan on playing the good maps of this competition, skip this one.

    Search and Rescue
    It is okay

    This entry went downhill pretty fast. It starts with a “Run” section, which was quite enjoyable, and after that there is a “Think” section. You are supposed to have the Gravity Gun here, and I had no idea where it was. The music was still playing, so I guessed the enemies were still at the places I just ran, so I didn’t go back. When I finally decided to do that, I found it lying on a grass field, and I had no idea how it got there.
    Anyways, you use the GG for a sawblade puzzle, which didn’t work at all because for some reason the sawblade acted really weird with its physics. After this you start fighting Combine. The combat is okay for the most part. The map ends after this.
    On a mapping perspective, this map had its ups and downs. Some areas looked decent, and other were just really empty. Some areas had lazy lighting, with light that comes from nowhere.
    Overall, this one is a bit better than Guard Down, but still worth skipping.

    Railway Industry
    It is good

    “Okay, let’s start this entry. Let me take a sip of my lemonade… oh wait what? The walls are closing in OH SHIT!” Sums up my experience with the “Run” section. I liked how this wasn’t really running, but still had focus on speed.
    I was stuck at the “Think” section for a while. After putting the buggiest power outlets ever in the wall outlets, I was very confused as to what the hell I was supposed to do. I knew I needed gas to power a machine, but I had no clue where it was. After walking about for a while, I noticed that there was a small opening above a door to throw a grenade in, making you able to enter the room. This frustrated me a bit, as the slit was not easy to notice.
    The “Shoot” section didn’t contain much shooting for me, as I could avoid all the Zombies without any problems. I believe the “Shoot” and “Live” sections’ names could have been switched and it would fit better. The “Live” section has you fighting against waves of Combine Soldiers, which I thought got a bit boring after a while, there weren’t even Shotgun Soldiers, just “regular” ones.
    Overall, an enjoyable map that could’ve been a bit better had it been playtested more.

    Rat’s Den
    It is bad

    Well, the entry throws you right into the action and I like that. But is the action good? Well not really. You run through bland areas with little to no detail and then you fall into a big area. This is the map’s “Think” section, I believe, but I had no idea what to do. There is a ladder to get on one side, but how to get to the other? I asked other people on the MabLabs Discord server how they completed this and I got very… special answers back, like prop flying and stacking props. I went with the prop stacking solution, which didn’t really make me think at all.
    You go through an area with a lot of Mines on the floor, which you have to avoid. This is one of the sections I liked.
    You get the suit, open a gate, and then you get to one of the worst parts of the map; an area that is a few thousand units in length and width, of which only a few hundred are used. It’s basically a giant area with a small area in it. This means you can easily shoot enemies from a range they can’t shoot from, easily cheating the encounter. More enemies join in after a while, and it was a better encounter than before.
    The map had props that were not alligned, errors and a whole bunch more.
    A skippable entry, if that’s even a word.

    Backalley Brawl
    It is good

    I liked this one until the “Live” section. “Run” was pretty cool, with you racing against the clock to reach a gate before it closes, in a parkour type way. “Think” wasn’t really special, a battery puzzle. These don’t really make you think, but they make you walk around searching for batteries without any real thought. “Shoot” was nice, I liked the “dummies” at the beginning of it.
    I didn’t like the “Live” section. The difficulty goes up by a million. First thing you will most likely notice when this area starts is a Shotgun Soldier that comes around the corner and will probably take away a chunk of your health/suitpower. What follows is a battle against dozens of Combine, a big part of which just stands on the roofs with their AR2’s easily taking away your health. What I like to do in a battle is get behind cover and pop out, or move from cover to cover while shooting. I want angles where I can’t get shot from, so I can take a breather, reload a gun, whatever. This battle area has no such angles. You can get shot from basically everywhere, and it’s just a search for the angle you will be shredded from the least.
    I had to switch to easy after being in a quicksave-quickload cycle and start the battle again. I luckily got out this time.
    Overall, this was really enjoyable up until the final section for me, so I enjoyed the majority of it.

    City Escape
    It is okay

    I “broke” this entry in the first minute of playing it. You are on a road, and APC’s move towards you. I saw a path on the left, so I ran there. I saw a dumpster and a fence. I used the dumpster to jump over the fence. That’s when I kind of started thinking that something was not right. And I was correct, because you were actually supposed to go with the rebels to a door behind the spawn.
    When I entered the door, I saw a fence and some props. And yes, I could stack them and climb over and get to areas I was’t supposed to. You make your way into the “Think” section; you need to use a grenade to disable a fence. Really short, but it does the job. After that there is the “Shoot” section, at least after you went through 50 rooms that had nothing of gameplay value in them. This section was very bland, as the enemies mostly stood still and only started shooting when I did.
    The second map is the worst part about this entry; you get into an airboat, and get chased by a Hunter Chopper like in the Water Hazard chapter in HL2. This part was super easy, I didn’t get hit once.
    You get to a rebel base, and then a battle against the Chopper starts as you get a crate with RPG ammo. This was definitely one of the worst Chopper battles I have played. Firstly, the crate is in one room on the side of the area. This means that even though there is a larger area, you will just have to peek in and out a single room. And that’s not all; the Chopper didn’t shoot at me once. He was too busy shooting at the Rebels, which were not even aware of the Chopper’s presence, as they casually walked over the area like a normal work day.
    Overall, a map that is pretty decent but has little to no difficulty.

  8. Glad everyone seems to be enjoying Salamancer and I’s map, I uploaded a development commentary yesterday if anyone is interested in that: https://youtu.be/XX1sAzrQKD4

  9. I think out of all the maps, Schwartzchild Radius was one that left me the most impressions. I am still curious though, was that alien model ported from a game i am not familiar with? Or was that an actual user-made model?

    1. I made the alien model of S-Radius, mostly as an excuse to practice Substance Painter skills.
      You can find a t-pose of it here: https://skfb.ly/6IDU7
      And the original high-poly here: https://skfb.ly/6IuqI

      Glad you liked it!

  10. Play It Now!

    A really nice set of entries. Most of them were very polished, and I only had a problems in a few areas. I thought Continuum Shift was extremely clever and innovative, and so for me it’s the best entry. Schwarzchild Radius had a fantastic setting and custom enemies and so for me it came in 2nd. Backcut had really good puzzles including the climbing parts and so I gave it third place.

    A lot of the other entries were pretty good but either not as innovative or a little on the short side. I noted the following issues:

    – In Schwarzchild Radius at the part where you have to start running there is a wire wall that you can run through
    – In Search and Rescue I missed the gravity gun the first time I played it and so I died when I got to the combat section
    – Railway Industry had an issue for me where when I plugged one end of the power cord into the generator the other end disappeared into the wall. I only saw this when I hadn’t yet loaded the fuel
    – In City Escape I was able to jump over the fence at the beginning part and then was stuck as I couldn’t jump back

    Overall a really nice set of entries and I’m looking forward to playing most of them again. Thanks to the authors for their hard work to produce them!

    1. So, what do you think about Ultracold?

      1. I thought Ultracold was a pretty good entry, but not quite up to the standard of the best 3. The running section part was really well done and challenging, but after that I thought things got a bit repetitive. The headcrab emerging from a little patch of dirt was used multiple times in the first puzzle area, and the exact same type of trucks seemed to always have crates in the back. I thought more variety was needed. Also the puzzles were pretty simple and it would have been nice to be challenged more for those.

  11. Play It Now!

    This competition was just insane. 12 entries and 2 bonus maps! And most of them are really, really good! Some entries are some of the best maps I’ve ever seen. I’m so happy for the fact that people still care about this game and that they’re happy to provide something for its community. This is definitely one of the best Villes I’ve ever played through and I can’t wait to see more!

    Schwarzchild Radius
    It is WOW!

    This is truly a WOW entry. There is so much work put to this it’s unbelievable, from the detailed lighting and mapping that truly made you feel like you’re in an abandoned spaceship, to the story elements (the logs and scripted sequences) that not many mods/maps have, to the insane atmosphere, which is the probably my favorite part of this entry. The only real complaints I have is that sometimes the lighting was a bit too strange (as in too colorful), and also the Xenomorph-like creature could have been implemented as a boss or as an enemy, but oh well. This is undoubtedly one of my favorite entries from this Ville. Let’s hope it gets better from here!

    Backcut
    It is great!

    This is another fantastic entry. The mapping and the lighting were all great, and the layout, although unusual, actually works out due to the fact that you can actually choose in which order you can go through the Run, Shoot and Think sections. This is really clever and it’s implemented really well. I didn’t like the Think section that much, because you don’t really do a lot of it. The Shoot section was great and the Run section was even better. The one complaint I have is that the whole buzz saw-climbing thing got a bit too repeteitive for my taste. Despite this, I think this entry is great and I especially liked its desert setting and its originality.

    [Map Title Here]
    It is good

    This one had some nice ideas, but the execution wasn’t really fun. I really liked its humor and the weird atmosphere gave me some Half-Quake vibes, but other than that, there’s not a lot to say about it. But maybe that’s the point! Maybe it’s supposed to be overly simple and “grey”, but I just don’t get it. The final boss was really cool though, albeit the whole thing lasted too quickly. This entry was good, but not one of my favorites.

    Ultracold
    It is WOW!

    Yes, another WOW entry from me. This entry feels like a mod of itself; the mapping quality, the lighting, the soundtrack (not something you see in a Ville entry often) and not to mention the interesting visuals. The snow element is also something you rarely see in a mod/map, and I was glad it was there, since it’s one of the many things that make this Ville original. Not to mention, this entry is LONG and you’re gonna fight a lot of enemies. One problem I had was that sometimes the baddies were too close to each other, making some combat sections not so fun. Despite this, Ultracold is a must play entry and DEFINITELY one of my favorites from here.

    Prospektor
    It is good

    This map is fun to play, but it suffers from some really odd design choices. The most obvious being, where are the sections? Was there a Run or a Think section? You sure do some shooting in this entry though, in fact too much shooting. The mapping and the lighting were mostly good, and they definitely remind me of the Nova Prospekt chapters from the original game, but the layout was just weird and confusing at times. One section was completely copy-pasted from the original game too with some minor changes, and I found that to be really odd. On the other side, I really liked the addition of the Pheropod, you don’t see it often in mods/maps. Overall, this is an enjoyable entry, but it’s just not enough for this Ville.

    Continuum Shift
    It is WOW!

    WOW. I have no words for this. This entry is too good to be true. Not only because of its concept (borrowed from Titanfall 2), but also because of its great execution. And that’s because everything revolves around it; the mapping, the combat, the ingenious layout and even the RTSL sections. That’s what makes this entry so smart. Everything was phenomenal and this map is just so much fun to play. Sure, it can get very disorienting at times, but for me, that’s just part of the charm. Definitely check this map out, one of the best I’ve ever seen.

    Mine Mansion
    It is WOW!

    I thought this entry was THIS good. Not only because it’s technically great (mapping, lighting, the sections etc.), but also because its design is just plain fun.</em. Obviously, other maps were really fun to play as well, but for me, there's just something about this entry that really made me like it and I had a TON of fun playing it. The Run section was almost terrifying, but maybe that's how it should be sometimes! I also really liked the final boss(es) and the mansion layout, though I would have loved to see more of it. Looks like the great maps in this Ville just keep on coming!

    Bruh Momentum
    It is okay

    Huh? That’s it? This map starts off with a nice Run section (though it would be nice if I could sprint), then there’s a “”Think”” section, then your character happens to escape the baddies 2 times with the EXACT same way (that’s some luck you have…), then you shoot some people and that’s it. It’s just too short and too simple, not just compared to what other people have done here but also as a map in itself. It’s kinda fun I guess? Not one of my favorites from this Ville, sadly.

    Guard Down
    It is bad

    Yeah, I’m sorry, but this entry wasn’t really that good. The mapping is incredibly basic and it suffers from some really bad design choices. For example, in the Strider fight in the end, like reviewers said above, if somehow you run out of barrels (and it’s not very unlikely), then that’s it, you don’t get another try. Also, the enemy placement was probably the worst part of this map, not just with the Combines but also with the zombies. Do NOT put enemies so close to each other and do NOT have an enemy attack you the moment you open a door (this is in the Run section by the way). I didn’t have a lot of fun in this map, but I have to say that at least some of its visuals weren’t so terrible.

    Search And Rescue
    It is okay

    This one was just OK. It starts off with a nice Run section, then what appears to be a “Think” section, then you do some shooting and that’s it. The mapping and the lighting were good, but nothing special. I really liked this map’s layout though, the canal area looked great and it was fun to play through. One problem I encountered was that it wasn’t clear enough how to get the gravity gun, since you get it in the middle of the Run section and if you missed it, you wouldn’t think of going back. Overall, this was a good entry, but I didn’t like it that much.

    Railway Industry
    It is good

    Another good entry here. I especially liked the mapping and the layout here, with some tweaks it could have been something Valve could have made. The beginning is pretty much an ode to Half-Life 1 which became even clearer with that message in the end. The combat was OK, however I believe that near the end, a gravity gun could have helped things a lot (maybe I missed it?). The RTSL sections were good too, though again, you didn’t do a lot of thinking in the eponymous section. This is another great and entertaining entry, but not one of my favorites from here.

    Rats Den
    It is bad

    Unfortunately we have another map I didn’t really like here. Admittedly when the map started I thought the mapping was terrible, and in the Run section it really is, but later it gets much better, with the final area actually being decent-looking and having a great layout. The rest I didn’t really like; the Think section was OK, but the actual intented way of progressing feels like you’re sequence-breaking the game. The Shoot section was the greatest for me, since the enemies weren’t that close to each other. One note to all mappers out there: it’s rarely a good idea to pick up weapons and fight enemies before getting the suit. All in all, it’s not a terrible map, but it’s not OK level either.

    Backalley Brawl
    It is good

    The first bonus entry in this competition and easily a really well made one. The mapping and the lighting were all great, however the layout is really unusual. I still liked it for some reason. The sections were all well made, and I liked the Run section the most. The Shoot section was OK and the Think section was just another battery puzzle. The combat was good, but I believe that near the end, the area could have just a tad more cover so you won’t get hit as much. Besides that, this entry is a really fun one, but apart from the Run section, it didn’t stand out to me as much as others.

    City Escape
    It is okay

    This entry was just OK. It was fun to play, but it’s just too simple for this competition. The sections were great, the mapping and the lighting were good but the layout was just confusing. Why have the player go through an entire building that’s filled with empty rooms and no enemies? The combat was decent at least and the boat section was really fun, if not a bit shallow. Overall, this entry was fun to play, but it didn’t have anything going for it sadly.

  12. Personal Favourite

    In my opinion this is the best mapping competition since at least Fusionville in december 2017. It contains truckloads of free gameplay and some of the best maps I’ve seen for Half-Life 2. I’ve made videos of my first playthrough for each map, which can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKvPlC1EBVJo2dV7GH3bT1A/videos

    Schwarzchild Radius by Matt71490 AKA Event Horizon and Salamancer
    It is WOW!

    Playtime: 35 minutes
    This map was simply excellent; it has the awesome mix of sci-fi/horror atmosphere which I’m a fan of, and it reminded me of the movies Event Horizon and Aliens. This entry has some fascinating custom content, like a fire-spitting drone (I suspect based on a flying camera?). Performance wasn’t always great and the final battle had a bit too little available cover, but other than that this was a brilliant entry.

    Backcut by ThatsRidonkulous and 1UpD
    It is WOW!

    Playtime: 30 minutes
    Another fantastic entry! Like in Schwarzchild Radius, the setting in this one was off the beaten track and therefore interesting on its own, but it also features very good gameplay. And therefore, like Schwarzchild Radius, this is one of the best HL2-maps I’ve played so far.

    [map title here] by Jean “XBLAH” Knapp

    [no rating]
    Playtime: 25 minutes
    I can’t rate this entry because I was unable to complete it. It felt … restrictive. Restrictive in the sense that I couldn’t sprint, jump or crouch, but I assume that was part of the gameplay. I LOL’ed during the run-part when the unfortunate robot got burned, but I couldn’t progress part the puzzle. I understand it was a form of water jug puzzle, but after 15-20 minutes of fruitlessly trying to figure things out, I decided to throw in the towel for my first playthrough. The playtime of 25 minutes represents my first playthrough; I did try a 2nd and 3rd time to solve the puzzle, but still no dice yet …

    Ultracold by Steven Cabbage and Aleksandr “alex_mmc” Lavrinovitš
    It is great!

    Playtime: 45 minutes
    This is one of the longest entries for a mapping competition I’ve seen yet. I really liked the cold and grim environment of this entry, and the music also deserves a positive mention! The gameplay was mostly good throughout but Ultracold had two noticable cons; you can drop into the lower part of the puzzle-environment, and there’s a ladder that allows you to get back up. That ladder however is barely noticable due to it being roughly the same color as the wall behind it, and I spend quite some time spotting it. The other con was that shooting a helicopter with a RPG literally takes dozens of hits to take it down, making the fight a little tedious. But all in all, this also was a very good entry.

    Prospektor by Jmp
    It is good

    Playtime: 35 minutes
    Another fairly long entry, clearly based on Nova Prospekt. I remember the first and final fight being a bit on the rough side due to small spaces, and quite some enemies coming in from multiple sides at once. This made the gameplay a bit chaotic at times. However, the positives (visuals and mostly good gameplay) outweighed the negatives so all in all this was a decent map!

    Continuum Shift by Niker107
    It is great!

    Playtime: 35 minutes
    While the visuals in this one were kinda rough, the gameplay is absolutely brilliant! The time shifting mechanic is great in the sense that it provides new ways to deal with enemies. You can find yourself in a seemingly hopeless situation with low health and advancing Elites, zap to the past to quickly grab some health and get behind the bad guys, and get the drop on them in the present. Excellent map!

    Mine Mansion by Skorly
    It is great!

    Playtime: 25 minutes
    Geez, there’s a downpour of great entries in this mapping competition, isn’t it? I’m starting to repeat myself, but here we’ve got another map filled with good gameplay and visuals. The Antlion Guards are neatly foreshadowed and there’s a broad variety of enemies to fight. I also liked the dark (not too dark) and moody atmosphere in this one.

    Bruh Momentum by GreenSpleen
    It is okay

    Playtime: 5 minutes
    A bit short and basic but as a mapper myself I can see there’s a lot of neat scripting in especially the first half of this map. Didn’t get stuck or confused so these are also pluses.

    Guard Down by jankkhvej
    It is okay

    Playtime: 8 minutes
    This is a risky entry. With that I mean there’s literally only one chance to progress from your cell at the start. Fail that, and you gotta restart. The battle against the Strider also has a risk of running out of means to destroy it. But aside from these cons, I quite enjoyed this entry.

    Search and Rescue by StookyPotato
    It is okay

    Playtime: 5 minutes
    Short and simple, but fun nonetheless. There’s a chance the player misses the dropped Gravity Gun, which could result in some confusion. The guy at the toilet at the start made me LOL!

    Railway Industry by The_GuardianTM
    It is good

    Playtime: 12 minutes
    It’s a bit weird that I cannot pick up props like barrels. Aside from that, this was a fun entry with decent gameplay and nice Episode 1 esque visuals. I also liked the ambient music throughout the map, giving the map some extra tension in some way.

    Rats Den by Kail Doucet
    It is okay

    Playtime: 20 minutes
    I didn’t liked the first half of this map due to the lack of a suit, making gameplay slow and awkward. Once I got the suit, things improved and I actually enjoyed the final battle. Design of the arena in which that battle took place was a bit rough though, with pitch black tunnels that looked like you could enter them but actually couldn’t.

    Backalley Brawl by WALLe PL (bonus map)
    It is good

    Playtime: 15 minutes
    A compact but good entry with clearly defined sections. Main gripe for me in this one was the battle being too chaotic due to little cover and enemies coming in from all directions at the same time.

    City Escape by HighFire (bonus map)
    It is okay

    Playtime: 18 minutes
    The lack of autosaves in the beginning was a bit annoying to deal with. Gameplay was mostly decent although combat was sometimes a bit too close and as in Ultracold, the chopper had to be destroyed with dozens of RPG rockets. Second map was humongous though, I wonder how long that took to compile!

  13. Play It Now!

    After FusionVille 2017. This is the best ville of 2019 i playthough. 12 entries and 2 bonus maps all of them are good, i can say i fell so much “satisfied” this Villes. I hope next Villes will be awesome like this.

    Schwarzchild Radius
    It is great!

    Wow an excellent entry with mixing sci-fi/horror and like “Alien Isolation” it’s originality. The atmosphere, detailed, lighting, mapping and gameplay truly awesome. You flying into a abandoned spaceship to see what’s happen here. Definitely love the “Run” part section, the Xenomorph type creature appear to your and the chaos happen to the spaceship. the part dodge the combine ball part was a bit tough. Yep i like Xenomorph type creature takedown the combine.
    The last part Shoot section didn’t like it much the arena is like a drunken shaking the amount combine and the skull like manhack was not hard to take them out. If would be best to see in this map is battle that drunk Xenomorph XD
    Overall a best entry to playing, love the story, environment, gameplay, and combat too.

    Backcut
    It is WOW!

    Another fantasic entry made it, i love the setting at desert, the atmosphere, environment was good. The “Run” “Think” “Shoot” “Live” was nice.
    The Run section was fairly easy and i hear some pretty scary sound, the buzzsaw climb was weird to me, and i love how these combine holding a stunstick.
    The Think section i didn’t like this section, because you don’t have thinking too much, all you need is make your own platforms with saw blade to jump.
    The Shoot section is doesn’t look like you need to shooting? Just throw some grenades or something. But i like it
    The Live is not hard, when you objective is survive.

    [map title here]
    It is good

    This map is have some nice ideas gave me some HalfQuake . But i have to ask the problem of this map here is the “Think” section, and you break the fourth wall? Wow really.
    The Shoot section is like you throw a prop to these skeletor.
    The Live section is only section i like, smash a gunship with a car wow nice creative.

    Ultracold
    It is great!

    EZ vibes here? Wow this map simply nice ideas have blue atmosphere. The snow element i rarely seen in some mods, the music also good too.
    The Run is the best part of this map you running from a whole of Soldiers, is very intense,Wow a cat room LOL. Now when you escape those soldiers and jump down sewer then the map immediately switches becomes more relaxed. You know is the Think section fight these headcrab and solve puzzle. But the Think section i thought could it be harder, the part you build the bridge that’s fairy easy. After sewers you get into the surface and you start fighting the Metrocops. Now this is a Shoot section, this section is quite tedious, some Metrocops just stand there to shooting because i really knew it. At the last section is Live. Speaking of length this map is very long, i got a ton rocket to shot the Chopper down i got frustrated for a bit. The map end with credit inspiration from EZ.

    Prospektor
    It is okay

    I can say this one is contain more Shoot and Live than all, and i don’t think there is any section like Run or Think. The map take place like Nova Prospekt because some arena like is from HL2. The Live section is good i think the spaces need a little bit large that would’ve be good. Thing i like is the addition of the Pheropods, that’s cleanly you don’t see like this any maps or mods in past. This entry was not bad but not good, some arena need improve.

    Continuum Shift
    It is WOW!

    Wow what an amazing map. For the start i know this was Titanfall 2 time switching mechanic when you make a the hell job to do it. The one problem this map is brush clip is not good some arena you can be stuck like Run section when you ran always for the Soldiers. You can make a creative attack way for example, go to the past, get behind the enemies, get back to the present and takedown them. Overall this map is best to play and i recommended to play it.

    Mine Mansion
    It is great!

    This map i have a lot interested it. You has been chase a Guards and run for it. The combat was good the arena are well designed. The last fighting you face two Antlion Guards but that’s not hard i easily defeat. Overall another map is very enjoyable and i don’t have criticism on it. Regardless had a rushed ending.

    Bruh Momentum
    It is okay

    This map i didn’t get it. First Run part i can’t jump, sprint or just simply like tour travel walking to see the Combine Factories explosion at your face, you get combine ambushed about twice and two time you know you been lucky. Second the Shoot part was too easy, because you have 200 suit power and you have Ar2. Also i don’t think there’s section called “Live”

    Guard Down
    It is bad

    What i can say. The mapping is too basic and not have fun to play, all section was too easy, period time of this map is about “Shoot”, the thing i get annoy is enemies being too closer, if they far enough that would be good. The part fight Strider is creative but still risky what happen if you run out the barrels? Sorry for say this but you can improve next map, not this terrible one.

    Search and Rescue
    It is okay

    A short entry but quite fun. I can see this map is turn off falling damage because i test character falling at higher place. The layout of the canal was good, but somehow you’ll miss the Gravity Gun when Barney drop it. Run section was fine too. Think section was a cheap one just like Backcut when you must build your own platform with a sawblade! But some reason the physics of the sawblade is acted slippery. Then you go to Shoot section the combat was good for some part. Cleanly you can open the combine lock door without to wait. Over all this entry better than Guard Down but still petty weak.

    Railway Industry
    It is good

    Finally a good entry here. The atmosphere and lighting was very well done but some reason i can’t pick a prop. The Run section is nice like i was focus at my speed. Took minutes to solve the puzzle in Think section. The Shot section i don’t think is shoot section? Because i can easier dodge these zombies. The Live section i think not fit this. I think “Shoot” “Live” sections should be switched it would fits better. Back to the Live part i get boring this, the amount spawn Combine are bit much and not too hard. It would be nice if has a Shotgun Soldiers in there. I love the message in the end that was creative.

    Rats Den
    It is bad

    This entry lack at gameplay. Why no suit at start? Just like Bruh Momentum you just passing the sewer like a walking travel tour and much of MetroCops and Barnacle. After i get out these chaotic! Is the Think section but took a minute to find a clue is stacking props, the mine trap was OK. Then i collect the suit this improve litte a bit. The worst part is Shoot section the arena is giant and you have a time to aligned the aim to takedown the combine. I seen bunch of error and the elevator was not adjusted good is just bad at it. Sorry this entry probably weak than compared to Guard Down one, the author can put more effort to it.

    Backalley Brawl
    It is great!

    A good entry though is bonus really well done at gameplay and visuals the author has put effort on it. The Run section is very OK and i like it. Next Think section not really special you just walk and find battery that’s don’t really is a “Think”. The Shoot sector was interesting. You shot the dummies at you i like this. But the Live section was a frustrated. The enemies coming ambush from all directions, and that make difficulty more than you got, because you’ll be hit from any directions. But overall gameplay, visuals is nicely done for it.

    City Escape
    It is okay

    The odd of this entry was layout and visuals but mapping and gameplay was fine. Start with APC chasing you but citizen has cover you. Next is Think section was a cheap one use explosives shut off forcefields. OK Shoot section is a bunch of tight corridors has empty rooms and no enemies or least enemy in there and i got RPG and then is next map. First you get airboat and immediately get chase by Hunter Chopper this was fun but was a cheap one. When you go to rebel base, then you know what to do is destroys the Chopper with RPG but this was a worst one, while the arena of battle is large and i don’t know why the crate RPG ammo was in the small room and you must peek in and out that room when ammo is out WOW SERIOUSLY? And i thought this entry was a second Ultra Cold XD
    Overall this entry is fun to play but visuals and environment need improve.

  14. am I the only one who experienced a spontaneous crash on continuum shift the moment I tried to look around?

  15. Steve

    Enjoyed every game tbh very appreciative of all efforts and all interpretations. Only thing I couldn’t manage was to escape through that gate in under 25 seconds using a mouse and keyboard…
    Maybe I’m just slowing up lol

    Excellent efforts guys and a variety show at its best 🙂

  16. Perfecto

  17. Unfortunately I see some errors when playing the first map. I don’t know what causes them. Here is a screenshot of the errors I have seen. https://i.snag.gy/FvJMfN.jpg Is there any fix or have I done something wrong? I am a bit new to this site and installing these mods so forgive me if I’m a bit clueless.

    1. Unq

      Hi, the only thing I can think of is to carefully check the Manual Installation Instructions at the top of this page again.

      For example: are you sure you set the Source SDK Base 2013 Singleplayer to “upcoming” – and run it by itself once after it’s installed?

  18. Personal Favourite

    This was so much fun, the modders did an amazing job.
    Even the maps I would consider “bad” had some fun parts in them, now onto my boring, bad review:

    Schwarzchild Radius
    It is WOW!

    This one blew me away the second I was given an opportunity to move, the entire space ship looks so aesthetically nice; it gave off a very unsettling vibe in the darker, lonelier areas
    The run segment was really cool, It scared the shit out of me when the airlock opened and it pulled me straight through he fire, I loved it!
    The think segment had me confused for a bit, and it was slightly underwhelming, I got through it fairly easily.
    The shoot segment was awesome! Fighting off those combines at the end while a giant portal formed in front of the ship was so cool.
    Only real problems I had were lag because my PC is a potato and the lighting was odd in some spots.
    Lastly the storytelling was great, and the use of audio logs was really nice.

    Backcut
    It is WOW!

    Couldn’t tell what the theme was supposed to be (I think it was a combine facility?) but this was so damn fun, I really liked that you got the opportunity to choose which segment you wanted to do.
    The think segment was pretty creative, saw-blade platforming is pretty fun.
    The run segment was hands down the best out of the three, When the combine chuckled and sent me into the pit only to be chased by those rotating blades, I knew I was in for a treat.
    The shoot segment was alright, it was a lot less shooting and more chucking grenades and using the gravity gun, but still fun!
    Car escape segment was cool I guess, I suck at driving the buggy so it wasn’t too much fun on my end

    [map title here]
    It is great!

    Joke map, but a really good one in my opinion.
    Despite not taking itself to seriously, I really liked the portal theme, and the AI that followed you into the rooms to give off some funny dialogue.
    The run segment was hilarious, it got a good laugh out of me when the motionless robot spawned in only to burn to death instantly
    The shoot segment threw me off guard (in a good, funny way)
    The think segment was mean and I hate it but the AI constantly nagging you made it pretty memorable, SPOILER: Look up 3 jug riddle solution if you wanna do it, don’t feel bad about it either.
    SPOILER: Ending was pretty much what you would expect out of a joke map, nothing too spectacular, doing a puzzle to blow up the combine gunship was cool though

    Ultracold
    It is WOW!

    This felt like a short valve made campaign, and my favorite out of all the entry’s, well done!
    I loved the custom music placed throughout the sewer area and the run segment, it fits really nicely with the environment.
    I’m not even gonna cover the run, shoot, and think segments because its better off if you experienced them yourself; they hit the nail right on the board.
    The climax where you shoot down the helicopter with the rpg was actually pretty fun; I really loved when the HC crashed down onto the platform you were standing on and you fell down through the building, it was a great way to finish off the mod!
    So definitely play this one, its phenomenal.

    Prospektor
    It is okay

    Ill be honest, it was well designed, and reminded me of the prison level from hl2 but it just didn’t fit the theme at all, it was less RunThinkShoot and more ShootShootShoot, the antlion guard at the end is completely avoidable and i felt that having bug bait made it way too easy.
    It was still a good amount of fun though, just needs more creativity and, well, obviously needs to fit the theme.

    Continuum Shift
    It is WOW!

    Most creative entry hands down, the fact you managed to make a new, really cool game play mechanic AND make it persistently useful throughout the map blew my mind.
    The run segment was just amazing, The way you managed to incorporate the time warp while being hunted down by metro police made it so much more interesting, and hell that building crashing down was awesome
    The shoot segment was just as good as run, you can take advantage of the time warp to find health, ammo, guns, etc. and it can save your arse when you’re low on health
    Think was pretty cool, once again it takes advantage of the time warping mechanic for the player to progress.
    Amazing job on the mod, it was so much fun.

    Mine Mansion
    It is good

    I really liked the theme of this one, the mine was really well designed, and you followed the themes well.
    It mainly lacked length and difficulty.
    The run segment was great, and pretty horrifying I felt nothing but panic when that radiated antlion guard chased me down through the mines and I could hear it right behind me
    Shoot segment I honestly found easy and kinda boring (at least until the end which ill talk about later)
    Think segment was neat, made me use my brain, that’s all I gotta say.
    The ending was really good despite the somewhat boring build up from the shoot section, The double antlion guard boss fight was really fun paired with the unique antlion spawns, I just wish the ending was an actual ending I guess?

    Bruh Momentum
    It is good

    Short answer: finally, bruhtonium
    Long answer: It was a very short map but what it had laid out was well, It didn’t really have a think segment but usually the think segments are not too big of a deal, so eh.
    The map in general had a good environment and some funny interactions.
    Run segment was more cinematic than actual running but it was visually very pleasing and fun Falling through the floor twice to escape the combine was actually pretty funny
    Shoot segment was really good, I don’t see combine gunships being used in mods too often so it was refreshing to see

    Guard Down
    It is bad

    Nah, just nah. It had a very anti climactic ending, rather bland enemy choice, and glitchy map design (I got stuck in the geometry like 4 times).
    Think segment was like 2 seconds long and the answer was kinda right in front of your face.
    Run segment wasn’t really a run segment, its just unfairly placed combine that’s it, you can still kill them if you wanted to.
    Shoot segment was meh, you had good enemy placement with the combines but spamming zombies in a close quarters room does not work.
    Strider boss was so janky, if one of the barrels blows up at the start the gravity gun falls off the roof and you have to restart if you didn’t make a save beforehand, and I did appreciate the creativity but 1) you can easily run out of barrels if you have bad luck or miss a couple and 2) it was way too fast, the only hard part was platforming while being shot at
    It was an attempt, and ill give it that, I had a bit of fun.

    Search and Rescue
    It is good

    Another short but pretty good one, it nailed all the subjects pretty well, think was a little underwhelming but once again, the think sections are not too big of a deal, so eh.
    The run segment was phenomenal, hearing the rebel scream “THE HACKS!” only to be swarmed by a mass of manhacks was very cool!
    The shoot segment was pretty challenging, but I can appreciate that it was never unfair.
    The think segment was like a small sawblade shooting puzzle thats it.
    Ending was not bad either, just very sudden.

    Railway Industry
    It is good

    Once again, short map, but pretty good, and the ending was anti climactic but it was not bad
    Run segment was way too short for me to give it any praise, I ran by a couple combine shooting at me and then I was at think, thats about it
    Shoot segment was good and challenging, fighting around the train was fun
    Think segment actually made me look around and think for a little bit, so good job on that one

    Rats Den
    It is okay

    It was a very slow map, and had a fair amount of jank and really bad physics puzzles but it wasn’t truly bad.
    Run segment was by far he worst, you start out with no HEV suit and you have to run through a sewer filled with combines, which is way harder because you can’t see your health, also making it so you’re just done for if you get caught by a barnacle was a bit cheap.
    Shoot segment was done well, turrets were placed nicely, and the inclusion of hunters was good.
    Think was a mixed bag, the physics puzzles were kinda dumb but sneaking around the mines was pretty exciting

    Backalley Brawl
    It is bad

    This honestly just felt like a short practice course to brush up on hl2 skills, nothing ridiculously admirable honestly.
    Think segment was a battery puzzle (which I have seen way too often)
    Run was a small obstacle course of sorts, the only thing you had to race was the timer which you could go back and use again
    Shoot was a small survival segment, you got swarmed from multiple sides by combine unexpectedly after you do some target practice, but its not too bad.
    Escaping on the car was alright I guess, once again im not a fan of the buggy so i didn’t like it too much, and it didn’t feel like an escape it felt more like a casual stroll
    At leas it remained true to the subject

    City Escape
    It is bad

    I just didn’t like this one, I was bored through almost all of it and the final boss was meh.
    Run segment was a boring boat chase that has no obstacles and a straightforward path, just a slow helicopter chasing you
    Shoot segment was OK, you shot some combines, thats all I gotta say
    Think segment was good, using grenades and rockets to deactivate the barriers was a cool idea

    Conclusion

    I thoroughly recommend you try all of the entry’s out for yourself, even though it got rough on some maps, they’re all very fun.
    This is the first time i’ve properly reviewed a mod so if any of my statements seem ridiculous feel free to call me out

    1. Apologies for the various typos, I meant to give continuum shift a 5
      And i didn’ notice the “HEADER” and “SPOILER” text before some of my sentences.
      Have no idea how to edit comments, if there is a way its not appearing on my screen for some reason.

  19. Personal Favourite

    Mine Mansion and Prospektor are great.
    The others, not so much.

  20. Hec
    Play It Now!

    Overall, this map lab experience was a great one to play indeed!

    It is WOW!

    I definitely think the Continuum Shift entry was definitely the worthy winner and my god that was indeed a WOW! entry! This entry just made me feel the whole HL ep 3 which is based on the Mark Laidlaw’s Epistle 3 was perfectly possible to do in technical terms and it’s quite a shame that valve never took the chance to prove it with the Source engine. Anyway, this is a fantastic concept and also executed perfectly.

    The rest of the entries were a solid Play it Now, and the required momentum of “Run, Think, Shoot, Live” were present there with major or minor complexity but that structure overall made it a solidly enjoyable mod to play.

    It is WOW!

    And yeah before I forgot, Schwarzchild Radius was also a pretty WOW entry that I believe deserves to be a whole stand-alone mod, I hope the author encourages himself to do it someday.

    It is WOW!

    And finally, Ultra cold is a nice WOW entry, although I carried the gnome from the beginning until the end and there was no regard for doing it. Despite that was a nice challenge to escape with the gnome and the whole CMB Division behind me lol.

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