So how HARD is the SDK to use?

[Garric]

How hard is it to use, really? I wanted to make some more lvls for HL2, like just no new content, just say a room with 30 combine soldiers. I tried to go into hammer but everything confused the shit out of me. How hard is this to learn? Or must I be a coder that knows what he's doing already?

 

[Hazar]

making maps is fairly easy, IMO. Making good levels is something else....

However, to answer your question, it depends on what part of the sdk you're using. Modelling and coding take a lot of practice to get anything decent.

 

[operative x]

Hammer is sooo difficult to use:/

 

[ChronosWing]

You could always just spawn 30 combine soldiers...

 

[Jesus Lincoln]

Because i never mess with mapmakes since starcraft and WC2 it BLEW ME AWAY, just like most map makers like that...sigh, im a noobie

 

[Analogy]

Sorry folks, but working in 3D on a computer is never going to be like opening a sketchbook. That said, Hammer is the best tool it can be for the purpose it's intended for, I think. It's not that Hammer is confusing, it's that mapmaking and 3D modelling in general is tough to get used to at first. Just keep at it, read a few tutorials, practice.

Now if you want to see something really confusing, you should try making a reasonably complicated TFC map. TFC entities are pretty weird, though there's a kind of insane logic to them that I'm starting to wrap my head around.

On that note, if there's any TFC players in the hizzouse (yeah right, but might as well ask), I'm making a rather interesting new type of map and I was wondering if some people could help me playtest it, see if there's any bugs, and possibly do some preliminary gameplay balancing. No actual map yet, just a room full of flags and capture pads to test the entities.