This page is now online. It doesn’t have much content but that will change over time: Resources and Curiosities.

Please send me anything you think might be suitable.

Thanks.

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As I sat in the park yesterday soaking up the sunshine and wondering why everybody else was in the shade, Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun sprang to mind.

I almost became delirious and my mind began wondering why it was so hard to find certain types of games via the Steam Sale.

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The Core is a single player modification for Half-Life. The player assumes the role of Maurice Andrews, a high level engineer stationed in the deep central complex of Black Mesa.

Set 2 days after the resonance cascade disaster, Maurice finds himself waking up in a make-shift infirmary, somewhere within the high security labs. He is then sent on a mission to find an assist a group of staff who are fighting their way to the surface.

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Welcome to the third mapping competition in the 6×10 series.

Back in May 2007, I wrote an article entitled Chase

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This competition is being kindly sponsored by SteamContests.Com.

The prize, in addition to the points, is $25 US Dollars (paid via PayPal) plus two random Steam games.

For this competition I want you to create puzzles to allow an elevator to work or open.

To enter, you need a minimum of 3 floors. The objective is to create some sort of puzzle to get the elevator up or down to the next floor.

You can have “press the right buttons”, combat, power supply issues, shoot something; anything to get the elevator working.

Each floor can be completely different from the others. They don’t have to have any visual connection with each other. They can be abstract, funky, Combine-esque, Ravenholm, Sixties London (if you wanna make the textures and models); the choice is yours.

The winner will be the map that was most fun to play and looked good.

As usual, if you have any questions, please use the comments system below or email me directly: [email protected].

There are NO additional rules that apply to this competition – but make sure you READ the main rules!

Visit the 6×10 Mapping Competition Series homepage for full details of the event and the rules.

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I have started replaying Half-Life and Half-Life 2 a couple of times since I first completed them.

I got a few chapters in and suddenly something shiny would come along and the next thing I knew it was a few weeks since I last played and then I just couldn’t be bothered to continue from where I finished.

After the relative success of 100 Days of Summer Nostalgia last year, I decided that I wanted to run some sort of event this year.

I didn’t want the commitment of having to post something every day all through the summer and this seemed like the perfect time to replay the games at my own speed, but with the added motivation of being part of an event.

Starting 1st June, I will post details of each distinct chapter of the games in order. Each post will be similar to a map or mod post: a thumbnail, a factual description and some screenshots. In addition, I may include some trivia and other interesting information.

Then I will post my thoughts and feelings as a comment. There is no posting schedule but I estimate I will add a new post every 3 or 4 days.

I am hoping that the event will generate some serious and interesting discussion about how games have changed, how well the games stand up to our memories and how our experiences since finishing those games affect our replay impressions.

Once I have made the post and added my comment, all readers will be able to do the same.

To include screenshots to illustrate your points, please use a hosting service like imgur.com and link to the image in your comment.

I will then download the image, create a thumbnail and approve your comment.

If you have any questions, suggestions or comments, please use the commenting system below or email me directly: [email protected].

Visit The Replay Experience Experiment homepage

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Lots of people think they can beta test, most can’t.

Simply playing a level without forethought is only really useful for making sure it works on your system.

That in itself is important if enough people do it, but there’s so much more to beta testing than that.

Ideally, a beta testers not only highlights issues but, if possible, offer solutions. Of course, this depends on the issues involved and the testers.

Below are the ways I test some levels sent to me. I don’t have time to do all of them for all levels I am asked to test, but I try.

I am posting this article simply to stimulate discussion about testing techniques NOT to offer my services as a tester.

So, here are 7 ways I beta test a map.

Don’t forget to add your own in the comments.

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The Maunsell Forts were built during the Second World War to help protect the UK from air and sea attack.

They were small fortified towers built in the Thames and Mersey estuaries.

As much as they are very interesting, visually, architecturally and historically, I don’ think you should rushing to copy them. For me, the most useful aspect is one of inspiration.

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Update: MapTap has been replaced by Gauge.

MapTap 2.1 Now Available

This release contains a new feature. The file and right-click menu item now has a link to “Open review page”. This will search PP and open the post of the map you have highlighted.

It should work perfectly, but if you have any issues, please let me know via Email.

In addition, this release gives the column widths better spacing.

Current MapTap users should be notified of the update the next time they start the application.

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