The Q and A Thread

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

How demoralizing would it be for me to say that I didn't realize another one had started?

 

[TheOysterHippopotami]

I guess I could always submit Underkeep to make it look like someone actually did something... It's almost time to start worrying about that map, anyway.

 

[Regorty]

Yea my fmines map took waaaaay too long to get done, hell I'm not even done with it yet, so this idea of another contest hurts my skull of happiness and hugs. So maybe later? I could always submit my very first test map, it predates my first actual map. Well Have fun you guys! I'm gonna enjoy the rest of my night, but please bug me more about getting things done, I'm on another Minecraft addict run and need to get away from it.

 

[crazyghost]

Regorty, get off minecraft and work or i'll strip the skin off your flesh. no hard feelings.

 

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

Blah blah blah blah blah blah and hugs. So maybe later? Blah blah blah blah blah Well Have fun you guys! Blah blah blah blah blah, I'm an addict.

 

[crazyghost]

Dat conteXT dough

 

[Regorty]

Regorty, get off minecraft and work or i'll strip the skin off your flesh. no hard feelings.

Time for hugs! *hugs Crazyghost*

 

[TheOysterHippopotami]

I've actually found Minecraft to be a rather solid impetus for getting a mappers' creative juices flowing.

 

[Regorty]

I've actually found Minecraft to be a rather solid impetus for getting a mappers' creative juices flowing.

Until people get you doing a lot of mapping for them and it takes all your time to where 2 months go by and you haven't even opened hammer since. Oh well, once those people upset you enough then you leave and never look back.

 

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

If you're mapping for people no wonder you find it so hard. Don't do anything for someone else, that's how you upset yourself.

 

[crazyghost]

Come to the Source-side luke.

 

[Regorty]

Come to the Source-side like.

Are there hugs on the Source-side? Can I hug you all the time? and do I get snackys?

If you're mapping for people no wonder you find it so hard. Don't do anything for someone else, that's how you upset yourself.

No wonder I'm having a hell of a time mapping Fmines, I'm doing it for Oyster and his project.

 

[crazyghost]

We got pie.

 

[Thothie]

Don't do anything for someone else, that's how you upset yourself.

Consider this fair warning from the other side, but either you've watched too much anime, or you've found the philosophy that'll take you far in life... Assuming you live in Hell. (Or Los Angeles, same diff.)

 

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

I fail to see the how that logic is bad. Even if you're working -for- someone you're doing it so -you- get money. If you're not doing it for your own reasons, but because someone else wants you to work you're gonna have a bad time.

Even Regorty is doing it for himself so he gets his ego stroked and his chin scratched like the good boy he is!

 

[Red Cell]

No need for anyone to feel bad. I should have done a little more advertising, but for future reference (unless stated otherwise), there will be a media contest every year. And if no one really does it this year, only more games for next year!

 

[Regorty]

Even Regorty is doing it for himself so he gets his ego stroked and his chin scratched like the good boy he is!

Yes, please stroke my ego and tell me I'm a good boy, Calcifer. Make me feel like I'm worth something.

 

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

 

[Dridmar]

No need for anyone to feel bad. I should have done a little more advertising, but for future reference (unless stated otherwise), there will be a media contest every year. And if no one really does it this year, only more games for next year!

And this is why this contest is going to fail every year. For a contest that's supposed to be aimed at bringing/assimilating new talent/DNA/species to the mod/gene pool/collective, very little is done to accomplish that.

MSC=Mundane, Stagnant Contest

I still stand by my belief that this contest needs an overhaul on how it's supposed to function.

This is not a rage post directed at you, Red Cell. Even if you've done/will do everything right, we have to accept the fact that we may be too old and uninteresting to most Half-Life players these days, hopefully we try the greenlight thing soon?

 

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

Dridje is 100% right in that the contest has no entrants because it's going at it entirely wrong for several reasons. It is also kind of a moot thing at this point, too.

 

[Red Cell]

By all means, I'm open to suggestions.

Side note: this contest is, and has been, open to MS:S entries too.

 

[crazyghost]

uhh... what are the rules? where can i find it?

dwarven underground one?

 

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

By all means, I'm open to suggestions.

Side note: this contest is, and has been, open to MS:S entries too.

The 3 music entries is already asking a lot. It's one thing to ask for 3 skins (which could take someone 5 minutes to do, easily) but 3 music entries is like asking for 3 maps. It's a long, drawn out, sometimes tedious task.

The rewards are all garbage, quite honestly. I believe a "Cash Prize" was once brought up, or something along the lines of 12 month Xbox Live or 12 Month WoW subscriptions seem more than fair. Of course you could reserve GRAND prizes like that for X amount of entries so it's fair and no one gets it by default, as opposed to things in the 99cent sale on steam. It just doesn't at all seem worth it, for anyone.

 

[Red Cell]

uhh... what are the rules? where can i find it?

dwarven underground one?

Here ya go:
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=9677

The 3 music entries is already asking a lot. It's one thing to ask for 3 skins (which could take someone 5 minutes to do, easily) but 3 music entries is like asking for 3 maps. It's a long, drawn out, sometimes tedious task.

The rewards are all garbage, quite honestly. I believe a "Cash Prize" was once brought up, or something along the lines of 12 month Xbox Live or 12 Month WoW subscriptions seem more than fair. Of course you could reserve GRAND prizes like that for X amount of entries so it's fair and no one gets it by default, as opposed to things in the 99cent sale on steam. It just doesn't at all seem worth it, for anyone.

Thank you for the heads up on the tedious task of making music. Can anyone else confirm the 1:1 ratio of music to map making? If it is, I can change it for next time.

I understand the rewards aren't the best, but I'm literally living on student loans and trying to make this happen, so you get what I can afford. But let's keep it real too, some of those games (NSII: $24.99, Dead Island: $19.99, GTA4: $19.99, Mass Effect 2: $19.99, Payday: $14.99) are not from the 99cent sale on steam.

Secondly, with the cash prizes, what's the point of putting on the contest then if I can literally just pay someone to make a piece of content? It would certainly be easier to do. I'm not opposed to anyone getting a cash prize, but I don't see anyone else jumping up to contribute money to these contests.

And I feel like I gotta reiterate this time and time again, this is a free mod, what do you really expect? People already make content for these mods for free, I just wanted to give them a little incentive and a little reward for their hard work.

 

[Monika's_BFFEx0256]

I think you missed the point of the post. You're right, though. We should just stop having the contest and pay people properly to make content if we want it that bad. :roll:

Seriously, though, I more meant that you need to offer something people -want-. A lot of those games were from humble-bundles in which you can pay whatever price you want. Not to take it to the literal side again, the subtle announcements and insinuation that people should just know there's a contest going on is a bit silly. I'm not at all saying any of this is your job. It would just help to make it more of a public thing. Maybe spread it to other Half-Life Mod forums, or whatever. Have people say what games they want for a prize, as opposed to having a chest of cruddy crap that a vast majority of people already own.

tl;dr-
We need more publicity with this, and we need a better motivator to capture peoples' interests. As for what we could do about those things, that is something that we should figure out as a community.