Tunneling Chamber 01 [v02]

Created by: Joel 'taco' Bells ([email protected])
[v01] Released: January 10th, 2008
[v02] Released: February 19th, 2008

[v01]:
• Initial Release

[v02]:
• Re-packed the .rar for easier installation.
• Compiled with the parameter '-StaticPropPolys' to improve shadows, esp. around the elevators.
• Added GLaDOS speech: entry, nags, success and detaching cameras.
• Drastically improved the visual design of and lighting in both stairwells.
• Added additional geometric detail to the metal walls throughout the chamber.
• In the second puzzle room, the trigger that lowers the lift was adjusted to prevent players from triggering it by jumping from the room's floor.
• Minor optimization to geometry throughout the chamber.

About?
Tunneling is the act of firing a portal towards a surface while the player is part way through an existing pair of portals (e.g. standing in a pair of wall portals, jumping into a floor portal) and then moving into position (e.g. backing out of the initial pair of portals) before the fired portal hits its target.

While this map is not a tutorial on tunneling, it is a safe environment (player cannot die) that requires the player to use two tunneling techniques in order to progress through two simple rooms before being met with a unique tunneling-assisted fling puzzle.

Screens:
One
Two
Three

Download:
http://forums.thinking.withportals.com/dload.php?action=file&file_id=146

I thought the first and third rooms were great, the third one took some thinking before I realized the solution. The second room feels like I'm redoing the first room, it looks and feels too similar. Nice lighting in the entire map. The map feels a bit short and is missing music and GlaDOS. Great map so far! Also, for the heck of saying this, the observation room in the third test has the door's texture redone as cement.

E1025:

I'm glad you liked the map (and the lighting).

As for second room, the design decision behind keep the room almost the same the first is to show the player the difference in technique that is required with a simple change (in this case no floor below your portals).

I did leave out music as a design decision as well (only using soundscapes) but will add it in if people miss it enough. As well, I left out GLaDOS because I didn't want to rehash vocals from the game; though I'm not against adding some custom voice work.

And last of all, I have no idea what you mean about the observation room door texture being cement. The door looks fine on my machine - can you post a screen?

Thanks again for your feedback.

the cement door was just a wall. Oops, nevermind.

E1025 wrote:
the cement door was just a wall. Oops, nevermind.

Good to know. Thanks for double checking.

So...I cannot figure out the second room. As soon as I start tunneling the lift drops and then I can't shoot a new portal without falling to the ground. What am I missing?

I couldnt get past the third room :/

Adair wrote:
So...I cannot figure out the second room. As soon as I start tunneling the lift drops and then I can't shoot a new portal without falling to the ground. What am I missing?

Yeah I couldn't get past the second room either

Adair wrote:
So...I cannot figure out the second room. As soon as I start tunneling the lift drops and then I can't shoot a new portal without falling to the ground. What am I missing?

You're not missing anything, you just need to practice more so that you can tunnel without falling when the new portal is created. It's difficult and takes a while to be able to do it consistently.

First off: your .rar file is compilled so it's a pain in the ass to install. - Suggest not including the "tunneling chamber 01[v01]" folder in the .rar file, so as somebody can extract the files directly to the /portal/portal/ folder.

Other than that, I must say, well done taco.

While I had to retry room 2 about two or three times to actually figure out how to do the technique correctly, I enjoyed it very much. Room 3 took me by surprise, but when I actually thought about it, I got it on my first attempt.

Adair wrote:
So...I cannot figure out the second room. As soon as I start tunneling the lift drops and then I can't shoot a new portal without falling to the ground. What am I missing?

The solution I use for room 2:
1. Walk onto the lift and place portal 1 on the wall so that you can walk into it.
2. Place portal 2 on the far wall (like in room 1).
3. Walk into portal 1 and lean out of portal 2 (the lift will go down).
4. Fire the color of portal you used for portal 1 towards the next wall position.
5. Right as the portal is connecting with the wall, tap back on your movement keys to pull back into the wall. If you move to early or too far, you will probably fall down.
6. Next, you do the same thing, but fire the other color (you want to fire the opposite of the portal color that you are leaning out of - this prevents the portal from pushing you out from the wall)

Alternate solution:
1. Walk onto the lift and place portal 1 on the wall so that you can walk into it.
2. Place portal 2 on the far wall (like in room 1).
3. Walk into portal 1 and lean out of portal 2 (the lift will go down).
4. Fire a portal towards the next wall position.
5. Right as the portal is connecting with the wall, jump-up-out-of the portal, crouch (optional) and press back on your movement keys to pull back into the wall. If you jump out to early or too far, or pull back for too long, you will probably fall down.

Lorithad wrote:
First off: your .rar file is compilled so it's a pain in the ass to install. - Suggest not including the "tunneling chamber 01[v01]" folder in the .rar file, so as somebody can extract the files directly to the /portal/portal/ folder.

Yeah, my bad on that. I'll make sure to correct it when I move the map over to release.

Lorithad wrote:
Other than that, I must say, well done taco.

While I had to retry room 2 about two or three times to actually figure out how to do the technique correctly, I enjoyed it very much. Room 3 took me by surprise, but when I actually thought about it, I got it on my first attempt.

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it. Room 3 is actually the first puzzle that I designed (on paper) for the map but felt that the other 2 rooms were required to bring players up to speed.

If and when I make the 2nd tunneling chamber, things will most likely move in puzzle 3's direction from the get go (unless I add floor tunneling first).

I'd reccomend teaching floor tunneling asap, as not a lot of people appear to know how to do it all that well. Hell, I could probably use a few pointers at times.

Lorithad wrote:
I'd reccomend teaching floor tunneling asap, as not a lot of people appear to know how to do it all that well. Hell, I could probably use a few pointers at times.

I have begun roughing out Tunneling Chamber 02 which will focus on floor tunneling. It builds on wall tunneling and follows a similar progression to that of Tunneling Chamber 01: technique rooms followed by a puzzle room.

If players continue to show interest after that map is released, I will follow it up with at least 1 more that focuses entirely on advanced puzzle solving using tunneling.

Note: There is also ceiling tunneling, but I find it uninteresting (ducking under a very low piece of ceiling and jumping up through it) or very hard (placing portals while being flung upward) - not sure if I really want to go there.

Also of note: I have completed an updated version of Tunneling Chamber 01 (very minor changes). It will be released when the January Mapping Contest is over.

Tunneling Chamber 01 [v02] has been uploaded to the download database.

Download: http://forums.thinking.withportals.com/dload.php?action=file&file_id=146

For the full list of changes, see the first post.