So I had to make this group NWN2 mod for a class...

[eric__s]

And it was an unbelievably bad experience. I had to make a video for the class so watch that instead of playing this fucking turd.



Here's the mod -

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2957395/CastleBadajoz2.mod

aaERGTAHERTIOHAERT FUCK. This was like the worst group experience I've ever had. I guess I'll start from the beginning. I'm a computer science major and I'm taking a course on game level design because I thought it would be fun and because I had a lot of spare time this semester. We were assigned groups on the first day of class and were given about 2 months to make a very small NWN2 mod.

So my group consists of Adam, Alina and Tyrone. Adam immediately insists that we set this game in medieval Spain and make it about the Inquisition. Whatever, I don't care. It seems really important to him so we just decide to let him do what he wants with the story. I spend the next two months working on my map. It's small and kind of generic but I think fairly interesting - it's the upper floor of the castle this mod takes place in. There's a magic door that you need to open to get into the library and there are three ways to do it. It's not very complicated, but it's about choice. It's not fantastic but it was my first time working with the NWN2 map editor, so I think it's alright.

So it's three days before this thing is due and nobody has done anything. I'm on Spring Break because I'm pretty much done with my part of the mod, but I'm getting emails about how everyone is still working on it and needs help and I realize this isn't going to get finished unless I come home two days early. Everyone's map is a horrible, buggy, incomplete mess.

Tyrone's map is outstandingly bad. You can see it at about 1:00 in the video. Just look at it. Pause it and look at the fucking map for a while. It's an empty cave with broken, invisible walls everywhere. Anyway, he's having scripting problems (his error was unbelievably stupid) so I had to completely redo his scripting for him.

Adam's map is also a big, empty space with nothing in it. I had to fix most of his scripting as well because none of it worked. Adam went into my map and started changing the dialogue and the values of variables for no reason at all. I can't imagine why he did this. He literally just went into my map and changed numbers without changing any of the actual scripting - just numbers. I spent the last 2 hours fixing the variables and the scripting in everyone else's maps, because his messing around fucked everyone up.

Alina didn't even send her map until 20 minutes ago, so fuck her. It's not going in the mod.

We have to present this piece of shit in 3 hours. Hopefully everything is working right, but I have no idea if I was able to correct all of Adam's variable changes. I also just found out we're supposed to be doing this in vanilla NWN2 and not platinum, so I had to redo all the tiles because the tileset I was using can't be displayed in vanilla.

FUCK

AERTHIAEORTHAOERIT
FUCK

So that's that. Don't ever make Neverwinter Nights 2 mods with anyone else and definitely never take game design courses.

 

[Excidium]

The joys of group work!

 

[Infinitron]

Nothing worse than teammates you can't trust. I was lucky in this respect when I did my degree. Found some bros to work with.

 

[Menckenstein]

wow...

Everyone else's floor had two dialogue options. 1 to continue 2 to quit.

Tyrone's was amazing... did he spend more than 10 minutes on it?

Being stuck with slackers is a fucking nightmare on group work. Group projects should be abolished from coursework until higher level classes.

 

[eric__s]

One of the craziest things about this was that nobody in the class really understood that Neverwinter Nights isn't an action game. When we were testing other peoples' mods, you'd start out next to 2 dragons or a billion giant spiders and your character is a default level 1 cleric. When people were explaining their prototypes they'd talk about how they'd make it so you needed to dodge fireballs or jump on a dragon's back or whatever. People just didn't seem to understand that this is a western Dungeons and Dragons roleplaying game. Are RPGs really this unfamiliar to most people?

 

[udm]

One of the craziest things about this was that nobody in the class really understood that Neverwinter Nights isn't an action game. When we were testing other peoples' mods, you'd start out next to 2 dragons or a billion giant spiders and your character is a default level 1 cleric. When people were explaining their prototypes they'd talk about how they'd make it so you needed to dodge fireballs or jump on a dragon's back or whatever. People just didn't seem to understand that this is a western Dungeons and Dragons roleplaying game. Are RPGs really this unfamiliar to most people?

I foresee these people having a great future at Bethesduh and Biowear.

 

[sgc_meltdown]

at 1:30 I was taken aback by the FAAAABULOUS oversaturated color combinations on the bard but very soon the video inclined immensely from the point of no return

The first castle bit was babby's first epic hallways land, the second was embarrassing and oh jesus christ it looks like you made a game out of this piece of shit

I have enough faith in human nature to know that your team members are definitely not thinking that you're showing off with that much content and making them look bad.

ps bros these are the people that made games like dragon age 2 and skyrim successful and defend them on forums against your nostalgic rose colored glasses logic, bless them

 

[Semper]

When we were testing other peoples' mods, you'd start out next to 2 dragons or a billion giant spiders and your character is a default level 1 cleric. When people were explaining their prototypes they'd talk about how they'd make it so you needed to dodge fireballs or jump on a dragon's back or whatever. People just didn't seem to understand that this is a western Dungeons and Dragons roleplaying game.

tomorrow's lead designers. btw all dungeon levels looked like shit for the production time of 2 months... you better should use the demo module of the toolset and present it as your own. those retards will never notice.

 

[Онега]

tyrones map rocks FUCKIGn batcave bro you SUCK! fag poetry lolol

 

[Grimlorn]

Man I'd be pissed if this happened to me. You get your work done so you can go on vacation. No one does their work so you have to come home early and do it yourself. I hate group work. And you'll be all graded the same.

 

[pipka]

Dear cboyardee,

This was one of the worst half-assed presentation ever.
I still commend your effort and sympathize with your distress.
Teamwork is a bitch. Sometimes.

Concerned poster.

 

[Aeschylus]

This post is a nice microcosm of why design by committee does not work.

Also, game design courses are bullshit. If you want to get into game design, the general consensus is that you should learn to program. I can't imagine a company hiring a designer with no experience other than a college curriculum.

 

[Renegen]

Man I'd be pissed if this happened to me. You get your work done so you can go on vacation. No one does their work so you have to come home early and do it yourself. I hate group work. And you'll be all graded the same.

Hopefully they won't. Usually everyone has to indicate what they contributed on the team and the professor can give grades that differ by up to 10%. Just say Alina did shit and the rest didn't debug, say all you did and voila.

 

[Zed]

I read the post before watching the video. When you got to this part I rofld.
"He has dropped his weapon- this is tyrone's map - has dropped his weapon and..."

 

[eric__s]

So I just got back from the presentation and I feel super relieved - my teacher is letting me switch groups for our next project (which is with UDK). She also suggested I could make a Skyrim mod for extra credit. I'm not a big Skyrim fan but I think I could probably make something pretty cool with the toolset so I might give it a shot. As far as presentations go, our mod as a whole was the worst (by a lot) but my map was the best. There was one that seemed pretty good. I talked to the guy who made it after class and I'm going to ask him for it next time I see him because I want to give it a shot.

Dear cboyardee,

This was one of the worst half-assed presentation ever.
I still commend your effort and sympathize with your distress.
Teamwork is a bitch. Sometimes.

Concerned poster.

Hahaha, yeah, it's not so great. I made it shortly before it was due and I was kind of panicking, but it was supposed to be a walkthrough (because I'm not sure the teacher actually plays our mods (and I wouldn't blame her)) and not a presentation. That said, the only real difference between my video and the Todd Howard Quakecon video is that nobody's shouting "rape her!!! kill him!!" in mine.

And you're always welcome to watch Tyrone's video...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOoLCksCofM

Also don't get the wrong idea about Tyrone! He's a cool and super nice guy, I just don't know if he's got a future in game design...

Also, game design courses are bullshit. If you want to get into game design, the general consensus is that you should learn to program. I can't imagine a company hiring a designer with no experience other than a college curriculum.

Yeah, I've come to learn this and I'm never taking another game design course again. Fortunately my game making experience extends far beyond this class ; )

 

[RK47]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAH OMFG
You poor bastard you. AHHAHAHAHAAHAHA.
here's a hug, bro.

 

[Semper]

Also don't get the wrong idea about Tyrone! He's a cool and super nice guy, I just don't know if he's got a future in game design...

in this case he can always fall back being eddie murphy's doppelganger if he ever needs one.

 

[Krraloth]

The living hell bro.
Your map was cool tho.

 

[funkadelik]

I don't know why I watched Tyrone's video. He runs around in a giant empty castle for 5 minutes. My biggest complaint is a room which looked like it was supposed to be a chapel but all of the benches were facing away from the podium. And then he fucking dies at the end.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

^It's probably symbolic. I see a promising future in 2deep4u indie games for Tyrone.

 

[Johannes]

Now just wait till Andhaira contacts your classmates, Eric.

 

[Commissar Draco]

So you took asigment with Guy Called Tyrone, Some Schmuck with name ending on itz and Anglo Womyn.... What could go wrong?

 

[eric__s]

So you took asigment with Guy Called Tyrone, Some Schmuck with name ending on itz and Anglo Womyn.... What could go wrong?

Save this shit for GD. Thanks.