So, I'm finishing up the last part of the monster arena tutorial/essay/article, monster arenas (Like the red key area in Doom 1 E1M6, the exit area in Doom 1 E1M6, Doom 2 Map07, the ending area of Double-Impact M7). It's something I've wanted to write about 'cause I wanted to do research and learn the theorycraft behind them. Unfortunately, I'm still having some issues with actually figuring out what they're for.
So, what do you try to accomplish with one of these arena fights, that you can't with a more normal fight or ambush? When would you lock the player in, and when would you provide a potential way out? I'm mostly just looking for discussion on this, right now, so I can theory through it.
Monster arenas
Re: Monster arenas
Personally, I like Boss Arenas, E2M8 and E3M8 are some of the iconic levels for the 2 bosses, I think the "epic" nature of them gives a good break away from the maze like and close quarter levels (Doom 1 especially, had some very claustrophobic level design), Doom 2 introduced us to the "miniboss" arena of map07, I tell you, that kicked my ass first time I played it and the arachnotron surprise was a nice touch.
One thing that can go really well or horribly wrong is trap arenas...especially when its for say, a soul sphere and suddenly 10 cyberdemons come teleporting in, its pointless you even getting it. But used in the right context they can provide some decent entertainment as long as the monsters involved are balanced at that stage of the game.
One thing that can go really well or horribly wrong is trap arenas...especially when its for say, a soul sphere and suddenly 10 cyberdemons come teleporting in, its pointless you even getting it. But used in the right context they can provide some decent entertainment as long as the monsters involved are balanced at that stage of the game.
Re: Monster arenas
So, what would you say those boss and miniboss arenas really accomplished? Why were they so epic?Virtue wrote:Personally, I like Boss Arenas, E2M8 and E3M8 are some of the iconic levels for the 2 bosses, I think the "epic" nature of them gives a good break away from the maze like and close quarter levels (Doom 1 especially, had some very claustrophobic level design), Doom 2 introduced us to the "miniboss" arena of map07, I tell you, that kicked my ass first time I played it and the arachnotron surprise was a nice touch.
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zrrion the insect
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Re: Monster arenas
They also serve as a good indicator of progress.
In the beginning of the game the payer's getting their butt handed to them by the smaller monsters, and as they work their way through the game they get a mixture of low tier monsters that increases in number but is primary of the same small guys. They're still thinking of the little guys as major threats, and the arena puts them up against a foe they can deal with, but is different from what came before. The shift from lots of small monsters to a few big monsters is jarring enough to be memorable, especially when mixed with the large environments that come with the arena.
In the beginning of the game the payer's getting their butt handed to them by the smaller monsters, and as they work their way through the game they get a mixture of low tier monsters that increases in number but is primary of the same small guys. They're still thinking of the little guys as major threats, and the arena puts them up against a foe they can deal with, but is different from what came before. The shift from lots of small monsters to a few big monsters is jarring enough to be memorable, especially when mixed with the large environments that come with the arena.
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Angelofthefallen
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Re: Monster arenas
Boss arenas provide a sense of scale to the player. When you've gone through a torrential downpour of bullet & shell fodder it's nice to have that challenge. Tells the player there is a new difficulty to face & a coupe de grace before them. If you can successfully surprise the player with a unique enemy that is far more powerful than the last group they demolished then you're providing a memorable experience for the player.
I recommend Extra Credits on youtube if you would like some new theories into design & gameplay aesthetics. Definitely an informative and fun group. I've learned a lot from them, slowly working on an online brawler using their tips
.
I recommend Extra Credits on youtube if you would like some new theories into design & gameplay aesthetics. Definitely an informative and fun group. I've learned a lot from them, slowly working on an online brawler using their tips
.Re: Monster arenas
what they said.
Re: Monster arenas
They are certainly a different style of fight to what normally confronts players.
I think of my own playstyle, I generally tend to play cautiously where I clear out areas as I go along and always have an avenue for escape ready to try and stop myself getting surrounded or cornered and I really make an effort to avoid taking damage. While this means I take longer to finish maps and have more health and armor, I will never break a speed record with it and it's certainly not as adrenaline pumping (one might even call it wimpy
).
A monster arena really confronts this style of play.
For example if I grab an item and a horde of monsters appear my first reaction is to move to a part of the map I have cleared to battle the enemy on my own terms in familiar territory but in the case of a monster arena, the mapper has thought of this and the walls have sealed me in and I am now forced to fight on terms that favor how the mapper wants me to fight. Also because I am now in an arena it is harder to spend the whole time hiding behind cover as I can be attacked from many different angles which will encourage me to move about as much as I can to avoid damage and being blocked in.
From a mappers point of view it is also one way to allow a really large number of monsters to be thrown at a player in a comparatively smaller space instead of being spread out over a whole level; it also allows a mapper to exercise a closer level of control over how much space a player has to work with. Take map 31 of Hell Revealed 2 where you step onto the lowering platform and in such a small space take on a huge stream of enemies with only the central pillar to use as cover, this kind of carnage is quite different from moving around hallway to hallway and clearing a level room by room, it also increases the tension because if you get really low on health you cant run away.
Regarding "Dead Simple", I would say that other than being an arena what made that level as different was it introduced two new monsters. The Arachnotrons were also able to chase you around the whole level so the player could not hide and wonder what was going on with this new threat or observe them under more controlled circumstances, these enemies were immediately upon them and up close and personal (though the Mancubi were easier to hide from).
As a final note on structuring the fights a mapper can even dictate how this fight will end in different ways.
- It might be when the platform reaches the bottom of the pit it is in allowing escape, so this adds a tension of time where the player has to hold out long enough to survive to reach an exit.
- The way out of the arena could even be done by having the player hit a switch (perhaps to lower the barriers) or going back the way they came, the monsters acting as a living obstacle threatening to overwhelm the player if they are not fast enough.
- The end of the arena could come only when the player kills every monster in the way, forcing them into combat they might normally try to avoid if they're going for speed, which of course demands they kill as fast as they can which can make them act recklessly.
Those are my thoughts
I think of my own playstyle, I generally tend to play cautiously where I clear out areas as I go along and always have an avenue for escape ready to try and stop myself getting surrounded or cornered and I really make an effort to avoid taking damage. While this means I take longer to finish maps and have more health and armor, I will never break a speed record with it and it's certainly not as adrenaline pumping (one might even call it wimpy
). A monster arena really confronts this style of play.
For example if I grab an item and a horde of monsters appear my first reaction is to move to a part of the map I have cleared to battle the enemy on my own terms in familiar territory but in the case of a monster arena, the mapper has thought of this and the walls have sealed me in and I am now forced to fight on terms that favor how the mapper wants me to fight. Also because I am now in an arena it is harder to spend the whole time hiding behind cover as I can be attacked from many different angles which will encourage me to move about as much as I can to avoid damage and being blocked in.
From a mappers point of view it is also one way to allow a really large number of monsters to be thrown at a player in a comparatively smaller space instead of being spread out over a whole level; it also allows a mapper to exercise a closer level of control over how much space a player has to work with. Take map 31 of Hell Revealed 2 where you step onto the lowering platform and in such a small space take on a huge stream of enemies with only the central pillar to use as cover, this kind of carnage is quite different from moving around hallway to hallway and clearing a level room by room, it also increases the tension because if you get really low on health you cant run away.
Regarding "Dead Simple", I would say that other than being an arena what made that level as different was it introduced two new monsters. The Arachnotrons were also able to chase you around the whole level so the player could not hide and wonder what was going on with this new threat or observe them under more controlled circumstances, these enemies were immediately upon them and up close and personal (though the Mancubi were easier to hide from).
As a final note on structuring the fights a mapper can even dictate how this fight will end in different ways.
- It might be when the platform reaches the bottom of the pit it is in allowing escape, so this adds a tension of time where the player has to hold out long enough to survive to reach an exit.
- The way out of the arena could even be done by having the player hit a switch (perhaps to lower the barriers) or going back the way they came, the monsters acting as a living obstacle threatening to overwhelm the player if they are not fast enough.
- The end of the arena could come only when the player kills every monster in the way, forcing them into combat they might normally try to avoid if they're going for speed, which of course demands they kill as fast as they can which can make them act recklessly.
Those are my thoughts