Jump Jam 2018 is just around the corner!
What is this ?The main idea behind this is to get people who either haven't mapped before, fail to finish maps due to motivation or otherwise love staring at grids to sit down over 72 hours and just make some form of a jump map. Inspired by similar events for surf mapping and the TF2maps jams.
If you want to participate as a mapper:Join the discord group, where you can talk to other participants, ask questions about the event, or get assistance on your mapping projects!
https://discord.gg/AXZKhQKSchedule:We'll be doing things differently this year. In order to allow more participants, we are allowing people to work in any 3-day period during the entire week of August 31st to September 7th (inclusive). That means that if you are busy on this coming weekend, you can start your project on Monday, but you must finish on Wednesday.
Rules and guidelines- Must start a new/blank map (i.e. blank .vmf file). If you choose to work on partially done/abandoned projects, or are using another map as a large basis for your project (jump_beef_h for example), we will consider this map in our new 'Bonus' category.
- No prefab maps. Font pre-fabs and the jump-mapping resource packs are fine.
- No group submissions. Individual effort only.
- Submitted map should be as the .bsp, i.e. properly compiled. If custom textures are used make sure it is packed. Also make sure it runs in-game, don't want to have to deal with "engine hunk overflow" errors etc.
- Lastly, the map should have working health and ammo regen (func_regenerate where applicable, and trigger_hurt/tick regen), working teleports and no significant errors like massive leaks.
Submissions won't be rejected on these grounds but will probably be judged harshly.
Extra Submission RuleIn the Jump Jam 2018 discord, please post in #submissions your .vmf file after your first day's worth of work, and then post your completed .vmf and .bsp files at the end of the third day. The days you post your files will be checked to make sure you respected your deadline.
ResourcesFor newcomers to mapping/hammer, here are a few things that may help:
Forum resources: (allowed) pre-fabs, tutorials, misc links
http://jump.tf/forum/index.php/topic,956.0.htmlTutorials: Afterglows series (great starting point for 0 experience in hammer) + Tophatwaffle (valuable for stuff like packing maps and/or adv stuff):
http://jump.tf/category/mapping-tutorials/Mappers Streaming for the ContestLet me know if you are going to stream the map making or judging and I'll post your stream here!
And/or join the jump community on twitch:
https://www.twitch.tv/communities/jump.tfJudging and ResultsMaps will be judged on 2 main criteria, Level Design and Aesthetics.
Level Design: how well each level plays and how well the levels flow together (connectors, flow, difficulty curve)
Aesthetics: how well the map is detailed, whether brushwork is clean, and if the map stands out from others
Best maps in Level Design, Aesthetics, and Overall will be given special titles in the results video. New mappers will have their own Best Overall title, so don't worry about being put up against mapping veterans in the community.
There will also be a 'Bonus' category, which will include submissions that are unfinished, singular jumps, surf maps, etc, so don't feel discouraged to work on only a single jump and make it p e r f e c t!
Maps will be judged sometime after September 7th, and the results will be posted on TF2RJweekly. Full list of judges can be found in the discord. Every valid submission will be featured in the results video.
So, if you're somewhat interested in mapping for the jump community, or have been lacking the motivation to start Hammer back up, this is the perfect opportunity to do so! Good-luck to all participants, and happy mapping!