There goes the neighborhood. in Off Topic

ID:105176
 
Nov 30 2010, 2:35 pm
I found myself looking out through the black curtains of my bedroom window at the rotting fiends that waited outside... Thankfully, they hadn't mastered the art of climbing (or breaking through) picket fences...



Taking my chances outside, I ran across the street to the red house of my neighbor... I made it past the shuffling dead, but they followed me one by one to the door... I could see them stumbling on the wet concrete, though, which gave me some small comfort...



The door was locked, so I had no choice but to turn and try to run for it back through the rapidly closing in horde... I made it to the driveway (my escape back down the front walk was hopelessly cut off) and out of their clawing hands, but not without being bitten by the closest one...



Feeling faint, I ran down the street, checking houses along the way... At the yellow house (you can tell from the street-side mailbox), I had to hide inside the fence as a horrific scene unfolded in the street before me... The lady from the gray house (next door to my own) was overtaken and savagely eaten... Oh well, at least she's distracting them...



I made it to the brown house, and managed to get inside, but only after climbing over this grisly scene... I wonder if that poor guy from the orange house took the zombie down with him, or if it just fell and hit its head on the walkway light?



After checking the houses (or, technically, the yards behind them) down this side of the street for the parts I need to make my escape from this Nightmare (on Maple Street?), I made my way back across, and headed back down the other side, passing through the main intersection in the middle of the neighborhood... It was a warzone...



Finally, I had found the remaining key to my escape (the, umm, keys) in the backyard of the violet house, and I made my way back through the house to deliverance, only to find that I had been followed in by one of the undead... Luckily, some tools had been left on the counter in their kitchen, allowing me to grab a hammer and "nail" the creature before it could sink its teeth into me... Right behind him, though, came the lady from the orange house... Escape is a one-person deal, so it might have to be me or her...



Does SSGX make it out alive? Can he convince the lady in orange that he hasn't found the escape parts, or will he have to kill her, too? Will SSGX change the weather/atmosphere on this map from the cliche stormy night to a fall evening complete with leaves on the ground and blowing through the air? Will any Murder Mansion fans get to see this new map in person, or will SSGX put off the update for a few years? Tune in next time, when none of these questions will be answered, and more will likely be raised! (well, the part about the weather change is pretty likely)
#1 Nov 30 2010, 2:38 pm
This looks fun, and nice story.

yay+
#2 Nov 30 2010, 2:51 pm
This looks awesome. Nice to see an update is in the works.
#3 Dec 2 2010, 10:27 pm
Yes. Please Now :D
#4 Dec 4 2010, 8:57 am
The update is still probably a long way off*, but I actually do want to explain this map a bit more...

First off, the layout: You're probably able to tell from the images and descriptions I gave, but the map is a generic neighborhood street, lined with cookie-cutter houses along both sides. 6 down each side of the street (one for each of the usual 12 Murder Mansion room colors). They're all structurally identical (think subdevelopments where all of the houses look the same) but each have little differences inside and in their backyards (one might have a swingset, one might have a pool, etc. and they each have different weapons)

In the middle of the street is an intersection, dividing the houses along each side of the main street into groups of 3...

Each house is surrounded by a picket fence, and the only way into each property are the front walk, and the driveway next to it...

To force players out of their little fortresses (the front and back doors to each house can be locked by the player who picked that color, just like matching bedroom doors can be locked on other maps) none of the houses have any food (they do have all of the other necessities, though, including water dispensers in the fridge) The only food on the map will come from a truck (or some such) that has been abandonned in the center of the intersection (this will also serve as the escape vehicle in that mode of play)

The map has been converted into a fall setting with browned grass, brown leaves on the trees, and piles of fallen keaves spread around (like I said I probably would) I might go ahead and turn it into a Halloween scene, with jack-o-lanterns on doorsteps and whatnot, too...

*The reason it's still a long way off is that I'd like to add a subscription option to MM, which would unlock more maps, modes, etc., but before I do that, I want to have enough content to make it worth it... That's not saying that this map will be subscriber only, but I'm trying to do this all in one massive update, so I'm trying to avoid making little updates along the way, not even to release content that is intended for free use...
#5 Dec 21 2010, 9:31 am
How will the subscription system work? If the host has it, can s/he choose a subscriber only map, and then allow the people s/he's hosting for play, even if they don't have the subscription themselves?
#6 Dec 22 2010, 3:50 am
Yeah, pretty much... But actually, since any player can select the map (not just the host) as long as that player has a subscription, they'll be able to open subscription-only maps for everyone else to play on...

Currently, that's how the game handles the BYOND Member perk of setting special options for game modes (for instance, BYOND Members starting a round of Deathmatch can choose to have it timed, or points based, and even set suboptions for either variant), so my plan is to just extend that same functionality to subscribers (whenever that day comes)

Of course, since the player who selected the map is also the only one who can start that round, then the best player to select the map would be a BYOND Member who is also a subscriber (which would open the most options)

I also have tossed around the idea of letting subscribers set the weather for the map they've selected (so a subscriber may choose to run the Mansion map on a nice sunny day, or maybe in a snowstorm, etc.) just to give that little bit extra incentive (albeit a small one)