Where did Facility Walls go?

**Malorn** · 2012-03-20, 02:39 AM

From the images we saw at GDC it looked as though the Bio Lab and AMP station had very few walls, at least on the side Higby entered.

Here's a screenshot of his tank approaching (note the tower circled on the left)

Here's an image that TRay tweeted in October, showing the same Amp Station.

The Blue line is the path I believe Higby took in the facility. He approached the main central structure right by the struts and then hung a right and pushed toward the top side of the facility in the picture.

From this picture from few months back it looks like the same Amp station on Indar but it has a huge courtyard and big walls. But in the GDC video there are no walls or shield when Higby approaches. We didn't get to see the other side of the facility.

Some possibilities:

1) they could have removed the walls for the Demo to make it run more smoothly

2) they could be experimenting with facility design still and reworking the Amp station

3) perhaps the walls and gates are upgrades to the facility? Maybe you have to put resources into the facility to upgrade it to get the walls.

4) maybe it's a different amp station

All of these options are plausible, especially the first one. However, I think #3 might be the case also because you can see the tower-like structure in the above two pictures (I have it circled on both), I think that is the same structure, but there's no wall. If the structure is there maybe it's just a placeholder and new walls get constructed by some mechanism?

The pic from TRay showed a lot bigger base than the ones we saw in the GDC video. The Bio Lab in the GDC video also did not appear to have any walls. The Screenshots released around that time also showed no walls around the bio lab.

I wonder what's going on. I love the pic from the Mosquito showing that huge facility, but was a bit disappointed when the facilities seemed much smaller in the gameplay videos.

Coreldan · 2012-03-20, 02:45 AM

The CY battle remained in a small area of the base too, for some reason. Perhaps they were in the middle of reworking amp station?

Kran De Loy · 2012-03-20, 02:47 AM

Due to a miscalculation on the part of one Corporal Higbins while in flight to Auraxius the wall structures were jettisoned with the morning nonrecyclable refuse while prepping for warp travel.

Skitrel · 2012-03-20, 03:01 AM

I'm voting for upgrades, if purely because that's the answer I WANT it to be. And I'm sure it's the answer the majority would love.

**Malorn** · 2012-03-20, 03:04 AM

If you look at the AMP station from the top-down view from the map the picture resembles the one from TRays' screenshot, only a few walls are missing.

It does look like the size is reduced though.

From the picture you can also see no visible walls on the bio lab.

The Amp station seems to be partially walled. Perhaps walls are upgrades?

Edit: Look carefully at the road on the northeast side of the facility in the minimap picture - now go back and look at T-Ray's tweet - the same road is in the bottom-left part of the facility where some tanks are driving along it!

It looks like it is actually the same facility with walls missing. I'm going to go the consipiracy route and say we're looking at an upgradeable facility feature *crosses fingers*

I'm certain that is the same facility as in TRay's tweeted picture. The picture is looking at the facility from the North, so the top part is closest to the Mosquito. Might be hard to see, but I have very good direction sense.

Bags · 2012-03-20, 03:05 AM

Might have been a base built soley for demoing for some reason, or an unfinished base?

**Malorn** · 2012-03-20, 03:09 AM

Originally Posted by Bags

Might have been a base built soley for demoing for some reason, or an unfinished base?

Looking at the territory control map, all Amp stations have this same design (with missing walls).

Bags · 2012-03-20, 03:37 AM

Huh, that's odd.

Shade Millith · 2012-03-20, 05:06 AM

I did notice the lack of walls, and it is a little worrisome.

I'm also worried about the base layout themselves. I liked how bases used to have winding tunnels underground, and I haven't seen anything like that yet.

bigcracker · 2012-03-20, 05:16 AM

I dont think all bases should have walls, but I do like them make you have the feeling of starship troopers or something.

Skitrel · 2012-03-20, 05:19 AM

Originally Posted by Shade Millith

I did notice the lack of walls, and it is a little worrisome.

I'm also worried about the base layout themselves. I liked how bases used to have winding tunnels underground, and I haven't seen anything like that yet.

That's because they don't and likely won't. Herp derp clusterfuck fights are boring and have no interesting gameplay to them other than side with most fire power wins. They're bottlenecks of death.

Instead they've gone the opposite direction, adding vertical height to base which facilitates new gameplay, allows the ability to create paths people have to travel through but without the closed in spaces of firing down corridors in straight lines (think combat in large ramp type places with gunfire from many directions as opposed to one), and much more interesting art because the facilities are tall as opposed to flat with the majority of their infrastructure underground.

There may be additions in the future that pursue your preference, but for now we have what we have. One way I could see your preference of corridor fighting implemented might be for underwater facilities, something that I think would be very interesting and have a beautiful visual aesthetic. It would be corridor fighting, but you'd still be able to have vertical (but downwards) combat, and you'd be able to have a great art style as you'd be able to show the facility through see through walls of the corridors and facility.

Knocky · 2012-03-20, 06:49 AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=rmWyIMXJEiI

At time mark 00:45 they start to approach the base.

What it looks like to me is that they removed the portion of the walls that had the vehicle gates that are glowing blue in the older screenshot.

During the approach, you can still see some of the walls.

Also, you maybe right that they removed the wall for GCD purposes. At 3:15 when Higby spawns at the Galaxy you can clearly see the wall that is supposed to be there on the MINIMAP.

Edit again....most likely a base redesign. That the minimap still shows the wall is probably a bug that has not been fixed yet.

Skitrel · 2012-03-20, 07:07 AM

Originally Posted by Knocky

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=rmWyIMXJEiI

At time mark 00:45 they start to approach the base.

What it looks like to me is that they removed the portion of the walls that had the vehicle gates that are glowing blue in the older screenshot.

During the approach, you can still see some of the walls.

Also, you maybe right that they removed the wall for GCD purposes. At 3:15 when Higby spawns at the Galaxy you can clearly see the wall that is supposed to be there on the MINIMAP.

Interesting thing I just noticed in that video. Watch the tank barrel at 2:10, he is pointing almost 90degrees sideways when he hops out of his tank, the barrel is then facing directly forwards despite having been facing sideways before.

I presume that'll be fixed. Consider this my first bug report SOE.

Knocky · 2012-03-20, 07:10 AM

Originally Posted by Skitrel

Interesting thing I just noticed in that video. Watch the tank barrel at 2:10, he is pointing almost 90degrees sideways when he hops out of his tank, the barrel is then facing directly forwards despite having been facing sideways before.

I presume that'll be fixed. Consider this my first bug report SOE.

Skitrel · 2012-03-20, 07:23 AM

Originally Posted by Knocky

I'm serious. Take a look at where he's aiming immediately before he gets out, then at where the tank barrel is pointing afterwards.

Instead of remembering where the tank barrel was aimed it appears it automatically goes back to the forwards aiming position, apparently instantly.

That or the animations for the tank turret turning around weren't even in the game yet.