I lose motivation when mapping - Developers

I tend to find that early on or at some point during the mapping stage, I just drop the map with intention to start again, but never do. Once, I went back on it forcefully even though I didn't want to, and I just sat there and stared, without any idea of what to do. I've been told to just mix and mash, but countless times have I made random crap that hasn't actually gotten anywhere. And to be quite frank, it is rather annoying. What do you guys do to keep going? I just can't keep up.

Inspiration is something that needs to be topped up. Find an evening where you won't be disturbed. Stock up on drinks and snacks, put on your fav music, have a stash of sites where you can pull of references. Find an idea that works for you, and go with it for as long as you can hold it.

If I make complete the entire map in brushes and displacements, I get a feeling of progression and completion. This motivates me to continue working on the map. All I have to do afterwords is lightening, details en props. Be sure to prepare the layout before you start mapping in the first place. Draw the layout, don't keep it in your thoughts alone. Think of a theme you like and enjoy working on. Also, collect a lot of concept pictures (or draw them yourself) to get a better image when designing the map. This lessens stress and reduces issues.

I lose motivation all the time... I go play another game then work on one building, Play another game, Work on one building and do that intill its complete. Or this might be my short attention span.

[QUOTE=Best4bond;33430227]I lose motivation all the time... I go [b]drink some firstborn blood[/b] then work on one building, [b]drink some more firstborn blood[/b], Work on one building and do that intill its complete. Or this might be my short attention span.[/QUOTE] Fixed for you bud.

The most important thing, Like absolutely most important thing (at least for me) Is to leave hammer the fuck open, Once I close that or the SDK; its all over and I probably won't work on the map again until I take a shower and get super inspired. I know it takes like less than a minute to launch the SDK and get back up and running but damn, it seems to be the hardest thing, especially when you have to go through your steam library and all of those games before you get to the SDK :3 A good community helps too, one that expects a map and won't be assholes about it if you don't move that quickly. Also do a nightly compile, regardless of your progress of the map the only way to see how well your doing is to do a compile overnight, test the map in garrysmod or whatever, take screenshot notes and then continue the work. The another thing you can possibly do is to pass the baton back and fourth to someone you trust; Unfortunately I don't have many friends that I can do this with because they lack the knowledge in the SDK :sigh: Good luck with your map! :D

maybe you should stop posting here about how you can't bring yourself to map and, you know, start mapping?

I tend to have an idea, open up hammer, and close it immediately.

Also, ill post my aresnal of site here: [url]http://www.silentuk.com/[/url] [url]http://www.bunkertours.co.uk/[/url] [url]http://www.subbrit.org.uk/rsg/sites/g/greenham_common/index.html[/url] (only about greenham common, which was a us missile facility in england, closed now, but the russians still visit every so often to make sure that the facility hasn't got any mirv's hidden behind the door). [url]http://www.artificialowl.net/[/url]

I often find myself opening these old maps, staring for about half an hour or just leaving it, add or remove a few brushes, then close Hammer. Sometimes I try some random new brush detail, like the look of it, and it inspires me enough to continue, at least for a few hours. I specialize in futuristic architecture, so I usually start by making a large brush and trying to make random shapes via the clip tool. If it looks good, then I start to add smaller additional details to these shapes, and they get included into the overall design of the area. I find it easier to map when its quiet. Talking to Steam friends is good as well, you can get their opinions and suggestions. Such criticism helps to motivate me.

A bit off topic, but I remember this one site with a lot of reference pictures of buildings in cities all around Europe or something like that. Do any of you remember what it was called or know a website that's like that? I'm gonna need to motivate myself more by using more references.

[QUOTE=sphinxa279;33430332]Fixed for you bud.[/QUOTE] Sorry, I dont just drink the blood, I eat the whole fucking body, Get it right ffs.

Its not just a mappers problem. A while back I made this: [release][url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEdjwM9AtR4[/url][/release] It was a huge project, as every building has some detail on it. Never got around to use this in a map cuz my inspiration sank to the bottom with atlantis itself.

You just gotta work on it little by little, wait til you're in the mood to map, you don't have to keep mapping if you're bored of it, actually its a bad idea to try and force yourself to keep going, then you produce less than acceptable results

[QUOTE=IronPhoenix;33429115]Stock up on drinks and snacks, put on your fav music, have a stash of sites where you can pull of references.[/QUOTE] I do this so many times it's madness [editline]26th November 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=zach1193;33439353]You just gotta work on it little by little, wait til you're in the mood to map, you don't have to keep mapping if you're bored of it, actually its a bad idea to try and force yourself to keep going, then you produce less than acceptable results[/QUOTE] The forcefulness was really just to experiment if I needed to do that to keep myself going. Turns out if I don't keep my motivated feeling, I just drop it. I don't "feel" for the map I start to create. I guess it's also a sub-concious thing knowing it would be a shit map. All I know are brushes, and basic prop placement.

Challenge yourself to create more complex environs. Find a theme that interests you and grab an image and just try and recreate it. Even join in with our mapping competitions. Even if you don't create a winning piece, you have got some experiance of mapping a theme with a time limit...and its a laugh as well.

[QUOTE=Best4bond;33430227]I lose motivation all the time... I go play another game then work on one building, Play another game, Work on one building and do that intill its complete. Or this might be my short attention span.[/QUOTE] Get back to work on our map :D [editline]26th November 2011[/editline] Also lack of refernce and need to destroy the feeling to map, my main problem is, i NEVER use any picture refernces of any type, which is silly but maybe i should start

One thing that really helps me map is having a constant supply of music playing as I map. I like the easy listening section of the Newgrounds Audio Portal. On that same note, having a cheap second monitor helped me, as switching between windows constantly to change music can really irritate you. [editline]26th November 2011[/editline] Keep in mind, music can actually have an effect on your map. Sometimes music likes to weave into your ideas and set the mood you want for your map.

I seem to map more when I'm tipsy. I lose track of time so I don't feel like I'm wasting time, and I don't feel so restricted in what I can/can't do. Of course I often end up trying something completely off the wall and deciding it really doesn't work, but occasionally I create something and it really works and it pushes my map in a new direction. I also like listening to music or podcasts (Rooster Teeth podcast specifically) while mapping. Gives you some good laughs while mapping.

[QUOTE=IronPhoenix;33444560]Challenge yourself to create more complex environs. Find a theme that interests you and grab an image and just try and recreate it. Even join in with our mapping competitions. Even if you don't create a winning piece, you have got some experiance of mapping a theme with a time limit...and its a laugh as well.[/QUOTE]These are some great ideas. It's always fun to work a little bit outside of your comfort zone. And I'm thinking about participating in one of the mapping competitions to test myself. This may sound cheesy, but be confident in yourself.

[QUOTE=IronPhoenix;33444560]Challenge yourself to create more complex environs. Find a theme that interests you and grab an image and just try and recreate it. Even join in with our mapping competitions. Even if you don't create a winning piece, you have got some experiance of mapping a theme with a time limit...and its a laugh as well.[/QUOTE] Actually I believe I did enter a competition to do with Trains. I had restarted my attempt so many times that in the 2 hours I had left until the competition was closed, I made a mad with a few thousand brushes and it was very simple. [editline]27th November 2011[/editline] And I guess having a lack in knowledge of how to do certain things (say, track switches, big doors, small doors, elevators, all that jazz) and how my compiling is horribly slow just makes me realise there will be no point because I could probably never get the map in game.

Listen to this, you'll get it back instantly. [url]http://www.dear-esther.com/DEostExcerpt.mp3[/url]

Having a solid, well planned out idea and an actual purpose for the map makes me [I]very[/I] motivated to finish it. I was steadfastly working on [url=http://i.imgur.com/hk5JC.png]this[/url] (other side is mostly the same but mirrored mind you) for about three days until I realized that I didn't have any use for it. Good brushwork practice though nonetheless.

I just masturbate and smoke weed while I have skate 3 to use as reference for its awesome free camera tools. So my way is have a game that your map is usually based on or alike where you can have a full brief of its brush work and able to recreate in hammer and masturbate while you feel greedy cause your not using an imagination and just using another game as a reference.

Well when I map I map with a reason, in other words I don't just sit down and start making brushes and entity's without reason. Now I will admit I dropped maps before but that's because they was bugged up and sucked pretty dang badly but the current one i'm on I will finish to the end. (And perhaps this time go all the way through to the end and FINISH FINISH it, although I have a problem to were I have to keep adding on till I hit the limits on everything I make.) Good luck.

To be honest I never have a reason to map. I do it just for the sake of hopefully using it as a skill that would be useful in the future. You never know. I could become one of the best mappers Valve has seen, or maybe I'll be good enough to be paid to make maps in specified amounts of time. Or, I can just be your average decent mapper who spits out a map every now and then. Gotta be hopeful, it's another way to make money and have fun at the same time in these hard times.

Don't do it for the sake of doing it. Do it because you want those visions in your mind to become a semi reality. If you don't want those places to expand into the community, or you don't See what most mappers see, then don't map. Find that other thing that drives you, be it modelling, coding etc. Find what works for you.

Well I worded it a bit wrong, but it is a fun hobby.

[url]http://www.opacity.us[/url] You'll thank me later.

I'll be kicking up something nuclear soon.