Plasma Never Dies

You know it's too bad nobody plays Halo anymore because I've started working on the Plasma Pack again (finally.) Here's the Needler. No gameplay changes yet (may turn it into Halo 3-style uberweapon, may keep it as is) but all the visual aspects except the skin (shit's hard) are in place.

Everything is WIP, of course. Sorry for the dark video.



Also high-res screens:

Firing effect

http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/6476/screen1np.jpg

Needles & Contrails

http://img687.imageshack.us/img687/1355/screen2gx.jpg

Single needle detonation sequence

http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/1848/screen3fu.jpg

Super detonation (three images)

http://img714.imageshack.us/img714/6340/screen4s.jpg
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/2166/screen5nt.jpg
http://img52.imageshack.us/img52/6935/screen6t.jpg

"But what about the other two weapons?"

I've got two concepts working mechanically. Damage ratios are untouched and I have no idea what style I'm going to make the effects, other than knowing that one is going to be dark blue and another bright green. But here's what they do:

Eviscerator: Launches slow-moving, homing projectile which disintegrates with minimal damage on impact. If undisturbed for ~1.3 seconds, seperates into ~16 fast-moving needles, traveling in a straight line. 7 of these will supercombine.

Impaler: Launches hitscan-speed needles at ~1.8 rounds per second. Detonates with average AOE damage ~.4 seconds after impact. Neglible extra damage for hitting a target. 3x zoom. (Might make it so that it overpenetrates bipeds.)

Questions/comments/etc. welcome.

Impressive as always :).

Ohh good work!

Wow. I don't like the single needle explosions, they look a little pixelated to me. Everything else is fuckwin looking.

Ifafudafi, your sexy :P

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Originally Posted by Good_Apollo

Wow. I don't like the single needle explosions, they look a little pixelated to me. Everything else is fuckwin looking.

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Agreed. They could use some more "depth" to them; they just look like pretty colors on a flat plane. I'm no master with particles so I don't know how you'd go about actually doing that, but it's something that I think you should look at.

I really like the super-detonation.

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Originally Posted by teh lag

Agreed. They could use some more "depth" to them; they just look like pretty colors on a flat plane. I'm no master with particles so I don't know how you'd go about actually doing that, but it's something that I think you should look at.

I really like the super-detonation.

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iawtp

Make the single detonation last longer. It's just a little flash. Also add more smoke and shit coming off of them.

That explosion is beautiful, and I love the contrails too. It's how it should have been.

I guess I'm the only one who prefers the original explosion over this new one...

Man those are good, how would you like to be effect creator for Overdose?

^^

Overdose has terrible muzzle flashes. A nice replacement would be awesome.

:iamafag:

Looks good man

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Originally Posted by L0d3x

I guess I'm the only one who prefers the original explosion over this new one...

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I really dont perfer the new one, but thats not to say I dont like this one too.

I like the way the supercombine explosion looks, but it goes too quick for me.

Wow damn its like a supernova. Its beautiful but it doesn't really feel like something you'd expect from a needler. Needler explosions seem more like what happens when you burn dust-off, a complex series of jutting green (or in this case pink) flames.

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't too proud of the single needle detonation either, but once I finished the superexplosion, I decided to go ahead and release something seeing that it's been so long. And again, all of this is still heavily WIP, so expect many changes and refinements.

Also, the supercombine explosion uses a shitty 10-frame animated sprite I put together in 15 minutes. I'm definitely going to do some more work on that, but I wanted to make sure the concept in and of itself resonated well with you guys before I sank some real time into it.

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Originally Posted by ICEE

It's beautiful but it doesn't really feel like something you'd expect from a needler. Needler explosions seem more like what happens when you burn dust-off, a complex series of jutting green (or in this case pink) flames.

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Correction: Bungie's needler tends to do that. I'm taking a different interpretation towards the effect style of the needler; the point here isn't making it close to Halo 1/2/3's style, but making it look great on its own merits.

Make the projectiles to fit your style too.

My two cents, the single needle explosion just needs some more jaggedness to the pop, the bitmap seems a tad too circular. As for the super explosion, it seems to happen a tad fast, and then there's just nothing afterwards. I'd say add some smoke particles to it that linger for a bit longer, I think it'd look much better.

So far though, the effects are really good. I have no idea how you manage such good effects on Halo's tagging system.

E: Mind if I use the effects for a Shock Rifle? It would just be in a test map.

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Originally Posted by t3h m00kz

As for the super explosion, it seems to happen a tad fast, and then there's just nothing afterwards. I'd say add some smoke particles to it that linger for a bit longer, I think it'd look much better.

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There are smoke particles. I'm guessing you can't see them due to shit video quality, but I highlighted it specificallly in third screenshot of the explosion.

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Originally Posted by t3h m00kz

So far though, the effects are really good. I have no idea how you manage such good effects on Halo's tagging system.

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A lot of this stuff is actually considerably simpler than it seems; take a look at any of my old plasma tags and you'll see what I mean. Animated sprites in particular allow for tons of freedom, as you're not restricted to the game's physics; it just takes an assload of work.

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Originally Posted by t3h m00kz

E: Mind if I use the effects for a Shock Rifle? It would just be in a test map.

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As usual, the tags will be available as soon as I'm finished with this and the other two variants.


Anyway, I'm working on retooling the explosion sprite and changing the small denotation effect. If I don't have the latter done in a few minutes, I'll post the results tomorrow.

Okay. Thanks.

But seriously. That shit, tinted bluish, would be absolutely PERFECT as a Shock Combo.

Your shit is unique on the scale of awesome.

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Originally Posted by Ifafudafi

Correction: Bungie's needler tends to do that. I'm taking a different interpretation towards the effect style of the needler; the point here isn't making it close to Halo 1/2/3's style, but making it look great on its own merits.

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Well more power to you. You're doing a fine job. I was just saying that my interpretation of it would be to take bungie's look a step farther. Nothing wrong with the way you're doing it

Could you make it increase firerate as you hold down the trigger, like MA5K did? That would definitely boost the effectiveness of the needler.

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Originally Posted by Lateksi

Could you make it increase firerate as you hold down the trigger, like MA5K did? That would definitely boost the effectiveness of the needler.

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The Needler already does this? Pretty sure that's where they got the mechanic.

Mess with the color a bit ifaf to match your other plasma styles. I'd absolutely LOVE to see them in your dark black/superdark blue style, especially the needles themselves.

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Originally Posted by Good_Apollo

The Needler already does this? Pretty sure that's where they got the mechanic.

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Dang I must be stupid then... Anyway, make it increase faster if possible?

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Originally Posted by ICEE

Well more power to you. You're doing a fine job. I was just saying that my interpretation of it would be to take bungie's look a step farther. Nothing wrong with the way you're doing it

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My first attempt was actually to try and replicate Halo 3's style, but got dang, fire is really hard to make. While I was experimenting around with GIMP, I ended up creating that swanky new muzzle flash; I liked it enough that I ended up basing the gun's style off of it. Perhaps I'll take a more firey/smokey approach with of the variants, though.

Sorry if I came off as a bit harsh.

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Originally Posted by Dwood

Mess with the color a bit ifaf to match your other plasma styles. I'd absolutely LOVE to see them in your dark black/superdark blue style, especially the needles themselves.

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The other variants will be doing this. I generally default to the current Halo canon as far as color scheme for the base weapons go, but for everything else, anything goes. I'm already planning to make one of the variants dark blue, and I'm debating going either deep red or bright green for the second.

And who knows, maybe I'll make a Dark Energy Needler when this is done.

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Originally Posted by Lateksi

Anyway, make it increase faster if possible?

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The firing rate for the needler already accelerates by a considerable amount; ~3.3 times over .5 seconds, specifically. I'm experimenting between this, Halo 3's more subtle ROF increase, and Halo 2's locked firing rate at the moment.

Would be really awesome if you did an E-sword or gravity hammer pack

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Originally Posted by Ifafudafi

And who knows, maybe I'll make a Dark Energy Needler when this is done.

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this. DO this.

And icee, energy swords and hammers dont work well in CE, so it would be pointless.

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Originally Posted by Heathen

this. DO this.

And icee, energy swords and hammers dont work well in CE, so it would be pointless.

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uh, the lunge factor will never work, but you can certainly make a one hit kill melee weapon out of the sword, and possibly make him wield it with a plasma rifle for primary fire or something (I'd animate this for anyone who'd be interested in setting it up). As for the hammer, you can make a limited gravity effect to push shit around.

Eh...halo ce should really stick to point and click weapons. Anything else kind of tanks because of shitty engine. Like...yeah, it CAN work, but a shoebox CAN be a boat, just not work really well.

Standard weapon melees work, Thats all the energy sword needs to be cool.

That, and lunge, lol.

I don't know, I get your point, and I agree its fine without lunge, but its like if the needler just didn't have homing or if the camo made you scream like a downsy petting a cat. It seems the same for a little while, till you actually need to use it.

Then give it some other power than lunge. Like... Make it give the person 5 second invisibility while holding it or something.

New effects look cool, will you be making new animations for it?

Not this time; for more than one reason, I lack the means to do anything but edit tags in Guerilla and create bitmaps. Of course that won't stop anyone from doing so once I release the effects... :allears:

Anyway, I've changed the single needle effect so that it's specific to every surface (and has a better mini-detonation), and I'm polishing up the superexplosion. I'll have more screens (and maybe a new video) soon.

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Originally Posted by L0d3x

I guess I'm the only one who prefers the original explosion over this new one...

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I have to agree. I liked the original but that may be cause it's what I'm used to seeing. It does look really nice though!

You should edit human particles too.

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Originally Posted by Corvette19

You should edit human particles too.

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I tend to shy away from human stuff; it's too restricting. Fire is fire is fire, so I have no creative leeway to screw around with colors, bitmaps, etc., and bullets all do the same thing (i.e. boring.)

Anyways, I've got all the effects for the needler working properly; I'm beginning to work on one of the variants and will post a video detaling those two things as soon as I've got it working.

Human stuff could be interesting.

Think, GTA2 electro gun.

Add some heavy electricity to either plasma pistol or plasma rifle effects but not both. That would make one feel unique.

you could work with the effects of the flash bang, and maybe figure a way to add it to the list of possible grenades, 3 instead of just 2.

Mini-update; see my swanky new VBshit4 blog for a screen of the muzzle flash and an insight into the particle creation process.