Operation Dualzone

[JohnTC02]

Operation Dualzone v1 is now ready for testing.

This mission is built on the clean version of the mission 08 landscape.

Includes the usual single/multiplayer switch:

Along with the normal adaptive mission and the multiplayer switch you can now play my latest missions as a team using the single player version, you will see another switch at the initial spawn point which is marked "Single Player Override Switch Teams Only".

If you have more than one player on the map then use this switch to activate single player mode, you MUST activate the switch within 15 seconds of spawning or the first wave of AI will be in multiplayer mode but all other triggers will be in single player mode. I couldn't delay spawning the extra AI any more than 15 seconds or you will see them spawn.

Only turn one switch on at a time or they will cancel each other out so you will be back to where you started.

New features:

Night Switch, there is now another switch at the initial spawn point, this will change the mission to the night version, you have 60 seconds to activate the switch but it can only be used once, you can't use it again to change back to the day version.

Now there are some drawbacks to this night switch, first is I had to turn on all the lights as I couldn't find a way to do this from the mission script, so they are all on during the day version. Second, I wanted to have the transition from day to night happen slowly but for some reason doing this the sun stayed out so there was no moon, the only alternative I could find was to have the change from day to night done instantly then the moon came out as it should.

Choose your map/mission size:

The hidden objectives are now back, for this mission they are used in a different way.

The hidden objectives are just two barrels with a computer on top of them, each building that hides the hidden objective is marked with a "Training Area" sign, I thought this might help you to find them.

What I have done is given you the choice of either playing a smallish map with five objectives or you can play a big map with two extra objectives, these extra objectives are optional.

You need to find 5 of the 10 hidden objectives to call in an air strike, this will destroy some of the fencing (three places in total) along one side of the map, after this happens two new objectives will appear for you to complete, please note that these extra objectives are optional, even after you have activated them there is no need to complete them to finish the mission.

Map name for dedicated servers:

coop_tc02_operation_dualzone_v1

I hope you enjoy the mission.

John

Download:

Download.

[kaapo]

Wow, this sounds very interesting to us! I bet you had much work with this mission/map.

I almost can't wait to the weekend so we can enjoy playing it.........

Thank you John

[JackDoe]

Wow John, you're really taking the game to the next level. You're outdoing even you!

[Rocky]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7xFTpuPoQ4.swf

How the night switch works, too cool!

[JohnTC02]

Thanks for the replies folks, it took me a while to develop the code for this mission (almost 3000 lines) but I think it was worth the effort as we now have a one mission suits all, this will save me having to do a separate night version and will help to reduce the amount of missions in the custom levels folder.

Like the video Rocky, nice job.

[oz-ares]

Hi John,

we played the map last night with 6 players.

As we started there were three buttons. So we hit the "Single Player Override Switch (Teams Only)", but there were still less enemies. Round about 230 Kills. Some of us have the opinion that there are not enough AIs on the map. We didnt see much enemies. Maybe the patrols were removed to early? Or did we just used the wrong switch? We activated it within the first 5-10 seconds!

The mission runs great. We just had 2 different "problems".

1: Two of us had a crash. It happend on trigger 9. Two Helis shot on me and a friend. When we should respawn, the game crashed with the following message:

Crash in application version: 30899.3048

data\lib\units\extensions\inventory.dsf(-1): cant find member: stance_block in type <UE_ScriptExtension>

Renderer: threaded

Physics : threaded

2: The way down the "RailwayStation" is to sharp. When we left the building we get a suicide, as we run down. A member pleased me to post this. I would say just dont run down there.

Personal

Switches: Just to be sure... our english is too bad. None of us understand your sentence:

Along with the normal adaptive mission and the multiplayer switch you can now play my latest missions as a team using the single player version...

1: Dont press any button = ?

2: Press the Multiplayer switch = ?

3: Press the "Single Player Override Switch (Teams Only)" = Playing with more friends (Thats what we understood)

We would be happy if you help us with this.

Regards

Ares

[Rocky]

It's not your English ares, I don't understand it either lol.

When I played it I did not press any buttons and I had 50 kills before I was even out of the insert alley.

I think to make it clear maybe the switches should just say Easy or Hard....?

Oh, and what us the best way to take out the helicopters because I suck at it.

[JohnTC02]

Hi Ares,

Thanks for testing the mission.

I think there is some confusion about how these switches work.

Night Switch:

This is an easy one, simply activate it to change the mission to night time, it can only be used once though so you cant change the mission back to daytime after it's set to night, you will have to reload the mission.

My latest missions are adaptive, if you start the mission as a team then you will have the full amount of AI available on the map (around 460) but if you are playing alone (lone wolf mode) then you will have around half the amount of AI for that map (230 ish).

There are to other switches there to change the amount of AI that you will see in the mission.

Multiplayer Switch: (Hard)

Use this switch if you are playing alone, once it's activated you will then get the full amount of AI, just like you would if you were playing as a team (this switch does nothing if there is more than one player).

Single Player Override switch: (Easy)

If you start the mission with a team (more than one player) and you would like to play the mission quickly or your team finds the mission to hard with the full amount of AI then use this switch to put the mission in "lone wolf mode" you will then have half the amount of AI making the mission easier (this switch does nothing if you are playing alone).

The reason you didn't see many AI when you and your team played is because you activated the "Single Player Override Switch", if you want the full amount of AI then just enter the mission and don't use any of the switches you will then have around 460 AI.

This is difficult to explain but once you get used to it it's easy, I think Rocky will be doing a feature on these latest missions when this one is released, maybe he can explain it better than me.

Hope this helps, if not then please post anything you don't understand.

Cheers,

John

To summarise:

For team play use the "Single Player Override Switch", Makes the mission easier.

When playing alone use the "Multiplayer Switch", Makes the mission harder.

Edited January 15, 2011 by JohnTC02

[Rocky]

Multiplayer Switch: (Hard)

Use this switch if you are playing alone, once it's activated you will then get the full amount of AI, just like you would if you were playing as a team (this switch does nothing if there is more than one player).

Single Player Override switch: (Easy)

If you start the mission with a team (more than one player)

That is where the confusion comes in, if you consider that when people launch into this mission, they most likely will either 1) not read the readme or 2) not understood it properly, when they insert as a team and they see a multiplayer switch, they would instictively hit it, just as the beta testers did, and if you enter as a single player, you would instinctively hit the single player switch. However, doing this does nothing at all.

I think the switches need renamed either removing the "single player/multuiplayer" bit and just making it easy/hard, or even 500/300 shwoing the number of enemies hitting the switch would give you, that's probably the best idea.

Switch A marked as 500 Enemy, Swicth B marked as 300 Enemy, or whatever the numbers are. To me that's the clearer option.

[JohnTC02]

Tbh, this is the first time I have had any comments about this, these switches have been in my last three maps.

Anyway, if it will make things clearer I will change the text for the switches.

I'll do another beta version soon and include the updated text.

[oz-ares]

As always you are my man Rocky

You found the words i was desperate searching for.

So i totally Agree to something like:

1: "Easy (xxx AI)"

2: "Hard (xxx AI)"

3: "Night Version"

Guess any person who survived a half year in school will understand that.

Not everywhere English is a well known language. Moreover, as older the ppl are, so worst is their english, because they never learned it. I mean i.e. italians dont even speak Italian

Spawn and see a switch with a text like "300 AI" will be easier to figure out than the current text and discription.

Regards

Ares

[oz-ares]

Thanks a lot John!

[JohnTC02]

Version 1.1 is now ready for testing.

Rocky mentioned that maybe it would help if I included the amount of AI next to the switches but due to the limitations of the game/editor it will not display numbers but text only, I think that having the amount of AI written in text would also be a bit confusing plus there wouldn't be enough room.

What I have done is changed the text so it says "Hard" and "Easy" above the switches, there is also additional on screen messages when you enter the map or activate one of the switches.

If you are playing alone you will see the message "EASY MODE 260 AI " just use the "Hard" switch to change the mission to 532 AI.

If you are playing with a team (more than one player) then you will see the message "HARD MODE 532 AI" just use the "Easy" switch to change the mission to 260 AI.

Please note that the "Easy" switch does nothing if you are playing alone and the "Hard" switch does nothing if there are more than two players.

I hope this all works as it should as I haven't tried the multiplayer version so if you see any messages that don't look right then please let me know.

Just to help you a bit more I have delayed the spawning of the first wave of AI to give you time to select the switch you want to use.

I hope this is a better way of doing things.

John

Download:

Operation Dualzone v1.1.

[JackDoe]

Oh, and what is the best way to take out the helicopters because I suck at it.

There's a thread on this somewhere in the forums. I always use the M99(?) sniper rifle (It's Sniper 5, I believe). You need to shoot the pilot (guy in the back seat). You can kill the chopper by hitting the pilot from the side, shooting through the glass and hitting the pilot from the front, or sometimes I shoot a little too high from the front and hit the base of the rotors which also kills the chopper.

And John, since the buttons don't do anything if you hit the one that the map defaulted to, then Easy vs Hard is a good idea. And thanks for delaying the first spawn. By the time I read which one was for night time, then pushed the button, I already had two guys coming around the fence. That was a close call.

[TAW_Zero]

omg everyone makin this out ot be to hard lol

DONT PRESS ANY BUTTONS ALONE - u get the easy mode

PRESS MULTIPLAYER BUTTON ALONE - u get hard mode

MORE THAN ONE IN GAME - u get hard mode

MORE THAN ONE IN GAME AND U PRESS SINGLEPLAYER MODE - u get easy mode

and as to shootin the heli down m99 middle of back window 1 shot

all other weapons a whole bunch of bullets

vid shootin the heli (sorry its an old one)

http://www.xfire.com/video/5816/

Zero

[Brettp]

TAW_Zero said it like it is.

These buttons have been around a while now. Why only now that we add a third button are we confused?

Simple, when in doubt, don't press anything, it is automatic.

[kaapo]

Hi John,

this is a fantastic mission.

It's a while ago when we need >4hrs for a mission. This time it was almost 5hrs.

The beginning was awesome and everything else....jesus, we tried to complete Intel B and Erika walked into the area of Unit B (by mistake) right after the air strike so we was in between and fightet back on back......wow......amazing. So a great begin, middle and extract. Great placement of the buildings, great placement of the AIs, patrols,snipers and vehicles! This is a master piece. At the beginning we turned into the night version with great atmosphere and next weekend we will go with the day version.

My client had a crash when we attacked the Battery objective and after destroyed that Heli:

Crash in application version: 30899.3048

data\lib\units\extensions\inventory.dsf(-1): cant find member: stance_block in type <UE_ScriptExtension>

Renderer: threaded

Physics : threaded

That's it, no lags, no frame drops and no graphic problem but we had no time looking for the graphic details because too much to do )

Ohhh, just one graphic thing I have seen.......a while after the transmitter was blowed there was still a couple wooden beams in the air which never came down.

Thank you for all the sweat and fun! It's a wesome map/mission!

Erika&Klaus

...and we used no button to have less AIs, sorry about that

[oz-ares]

Hi folks.

Stop joking around mates. Of course this switches are there for 2 missions, but our members and me didnt realize less AI. We just thought

"John is a nice guy. This mission inst impossible"...

But on this map we started to ask questions.

To be honest: None of our clan has good english skills. Moreover the discription was a bit confusing.

Version 1_1

This time i played alone on a own "online server", running Brettzies 3.02.

I didnt had any crashes. All works fine.

Moreover i started the mission again, pressing the HARD -switch just to be sure. And of course i didnt survive the first 5 minutes. ALT+F4

Still getting "Suicide" on the way down of the "Transmitter" (Trainyardbuilding). When i want to escape from the roof i sometimes gain a little "lagg". Then the character slaps to the wall like a fly. DEAD / SUICIDE

Maybe some of the white ladders will do a better job?

Big thanks for this awesome mission. It provides some hours of hard gameplay!

We will play dualzone_v1.1 again on our dedicated server, without mod, friday night.

Regards

Ares

[JohnTC02]

Thanks for testing the mission Ares, Erika&Klaus.

These Havoc's seem to cause the game to crash from time to time, when the Havoc was destroyed did you see it hit the ground or did it fall through the map, I ask because I have seen this happen where it will fall through the map causing the game to crash, I think this is more of a bug in the game rather than a problem with this mission.

Pleased you have got the switches sorted out Ares, they are now labelled more clearly so there shouldn't be any more problems.

I'll take a look at the ramp in the trainyard building, I have used this before on other maps and there have been no problems, maybe I didn't position it in the same place or it's a bit steeper than it should be, I'll also have a look to see if the ladders will work better.

Thanks all,

John

[JackDoe]

I've gone down that ramp a couple of times and no suicides. The first time I was crouched down, the second time I tried standing up and running down it to see if it killed me like others are having problems with. No suicides in either case for me. That's definitely weird. Maybe one has to run down it in a certain place?

[kaapo]

"hit the ground or did it fall through the map" sorry, but I havent't seen that. Also Erika did't see it because she was attacking the Battery and Heli's are my job

Will keep attention at it next time.

Had no probs on the way down of the "Transmitter" and also not at Intel B because isn't that Intel B at the picture of ares?

May I'm confused about the names of the objectives.

Regards,

Klaus

[daro48]

Hello,

Dualzone fresh look:

I tried to play in this map last night with Brett, ICE, Marlize and Triplex. I didn't noticed anything wrong.

I died a lot and respawned always in good place, i could get in to all buildings where i need to be. I had one crash but it was "Z" bug, no problem with c4 the tank and down the choppers.

The map is really big and good made.

Cherrs,

Daro.

[Brettp]

As Daro says, we played this through last night , no prob. There is no problem with that ramp, i run down it fine, so I think the others have a lag problem or some such.

Thanks to =GSA=Daro48, =GSA=Triplex, [GSA]Marlize and TAW_Ice for testing.

Thanks John for an awesome map with no problems.

[JohnTC02]

Hmm, if the problem with the ramp is down to lag maybe not having it so steep will help.

I'm also wondering if you are falling off the side of the ramp when the game lags, adding some side rails may help here as well.

[daro48]

But if will you add it, could we still be able to shoot through it? Sometimes this things can create really nervous situations...