AI-Assisted-Map-Planning
Midjourney and ChatGPT examples of map planning
Blanket is my first map made from start to finish using AI to help plan ideas. I used AI to enhance my workflow, it did not replace any aspect of my workflow. Midjourney taught me that what I desired was Low Key Lighting and incandescent lighting; or that is to say full spectrum lighting in contrast to the limited spectrum of fluorescent bulbs.
I knew going in I wanted an office look and feel, but there was going to be a level design shakeup for my officer paradigm. After a few tries on Midjourney, I found what I was looking for. I think AI is sometimes used improperly, and as you can see I have used it to enhance my workflow and to more efficiently find my direction. The way the AI images look and my map Blanket looks are not at all the same, that is because I am always working from my memory and not trying to copy an image. AI images are also not very spatially intelligent, a careful observation can sometimes reveal there are physical impossibilities or improbabilities.
When it came to texture creation, AI came in handy again. Goldsrc relies heavily on texture expression, and what I do is take an AI image I like and then build the image out into 3D in the scene. This breaks away from it being just a generated image. If you consider where we come from, taking photorealistic pictures and trying to downscale them to Goldsrc, this is the same principle that always existed. You want images without predefined shadows, and that are not overly detailed and present in a large exaggerated frame. For example a window in Goldsrc Counter-Strike realistically is always at least 10 feet in the air at the highest. This is because a player will jump on the windowcill, and standup. You take into account what the player needs and bend the world around it, so you get the aesthetic of everything being enlarged.
This is where Counter-Strike 2 falls on its face, the developers simply do not know how to make Counter-Strike maps any longer, and perceive 'realism' to be some sort of guiding light -- and it's not. I'm teaching you what Counter-Strike mapping really is, and it bends to the players reality and needs, producing in the end an abstraction of reality, not realism.
Here are some Midjourney Prompts I used for environments:
Here are some Midjounrey Prompts I used for textures:
I used Wally software for WAD generation and editing, and Paint.net for photo editing. Both softwares are completely free.
Scaling textures in Goldsrc is extremely challenging at first, because a brick wall does not present the way you would think. The bricks themselves if they were made the correct dimension would produce a visual repeating effect because the base texture resolution is generally below 256x256. To compensate the brick facade dimensions are enlarged and exaggerated, producing a convincing and stylized version of reality that works with the engine limitations.
Even if you were smart enough to bypass engine limitations and use 4K textures, the game would not look better. This is a misunderstanding I am trying to teach, that reality is an abstraction, not realism. You will never develop charm unless you embrace restrictions.
Show pictures of players standing in "anticipatory points". The map is contructed around there being limited exposure points while still seeming real.
Show how verticality was incorporated without introducing overhead danger, effectively condensing the map while not making a sacrifice. There are clear AWP lanes, and clear rifle routes. The map is designed to be understood in layout within just a few rounds played on each side.
When the players spawn, all of their choices become visible to other players immediately, in fact during freezetime you can read the intentions of the players. In Dust1 this was not possible to do, in Dust2 this was possible to do.
Changing height levels never involves a ladder, and is instead an environmental storytelling element. The once in 100 years snowfall had created an enormous snow drift to collect onto the face of the building, effectively blocking off the first story in many parts, enabling people to walk up to the second story. This is a restriction I impose on myself to create interesting level design. There is 1 ladder in the map, and it is a beautiful work of art. The ladder truly does serve the pupose of both looking beautiful, and acting as a ladder.
Building charm into the map so that it felt like an original Counter-Strike map was done specifically in a few areas. When you spawn as a CT, there are several lighting techniques that are convenying information to the player. The player learns the following instantly:
Dark = safe
Light = danger
Glowing Red Tail Lights = area of interest
Inside Building = bad guys
What should we do = Surround the building
The map does not try and trick you in any way.
Show Subtle Half-Life reference which is an important anchor into the Counter-Strike universe.
What movie most infuenced this map? Snow Day [1]
In what other ways did I capture charm of the original Counter-Strike?
I embraced prefabs, especially old Half-Life ones like the coffee maker. Positions of Anticipation
Easter Eggs
References to God
