Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

Post by Rex Claussen »

All I can say, is: Ha, ha!

This is a hilarious addition to the game. I especially like the emaciated and sunken-eyed look of the new Otis.

Now, a couple of comments: The Beretta appears to be vastly more powerful than the M-16 Assault Rifle. It takes only 4 or 5 Beretta bullets to take Otis down, but many more M-16 bullets to take Otis down. Is this intended (and, more importantly, altered from the original)? If so, it will affect the balance of the gameplay, which was built on an M-16 that is more powerful than a Beretta.

The Otis Shift concept needs to be developed further. I understand the need for the use of DooM Map31 as a place-holder, but the Otis Shift idea will benefit from custom maps. Let me think about this further.
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Re: Otis Shift

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I'm glad you're liking it! It's a very, very early concept of a silly idea that came to mind for me a while back. In short, I was inspired to make an adventure about playing as Otis (like how Blue Shift is about plying Barney), and using his silly one-liners for enemy kills, a la Duke Nukem. In fact, while brainstorming a better name that uses a physics term (like all Half-Life adventures), I'm thinking of going with 'Density', referencing Otis' girthy frame as well as his somewhat slow wit. =P

For the proof-of-concept, I have it simply use the Wolfenstein levels from Doom II (meaning, as we're going to the IWAD model, Doom II has to be loaded as a PWAD to make it work), and I brought in a separate joke I had also come up with: to use the hideous Military Police -- the alpha version of Barney -- to replace the Nazis. I also have some data in here for some actual Nazis, but I'm not sure I'll keep them.

Also, I think you may be confused about the handgun. Perhaps you haven't played Opposing Force, but it establishes Otis' sidearm of choice is the Desert Eagle .357 -- marginally less powerful than the Python revolver, but much more powerful than the 9mm handgun (Glock/Beretta, depending on if you have the HD pack).

I am happy that you wish to develop this further. I had been hesitant to really bring this up before, because I know how silly it is. If I had the skills and resources, I'd love to see it given its own set of maps, and included as a side-story to Paranoid (again, how Blue Shift was for Half-Life)
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Re: Otis Shift

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"Density". I like it.

You mentioned you had some ideas. Now is the time to share.

As for developing a separate story-line and maps to go along, let's get the ball rolling with a discussion and I can do most of the heavy lifting in that department. Btw, not silly at all. Funny. But not silly.

[I'm off to research the story-line for Blue Shift.
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Re: Otis Shift

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I'm happy to leave the story writing to you folks, but the way I see it, there's basically two options:

1) Taking a cue from Blue Shift, a 'B-story' to Paranoid/Paranoiac that happens nearby at the same time -- basically, what was Otis doing during Bellmer's adventures, and what did he have to face?
2) An unrelated adventure, starring Otis, that might have taken place at a different time and/or location.

Option 1 allows for some freedom with recycling assets, such as enemies and perhaps even entire map layouts. It also presents opportunities to make some subtle references for the player, like 'Hey, remember this event in Paranoid?' (example: seeing Bellmer ride the tram on his first day to work).

Option 2 would present more freedom with the story, since it could be theoretically anything, anywhere, with any assets. It could serve as a platform to insert maps that didn't fit in with the Paranoid storyline, for instance. Heck, it could even BE Otis fighting the Nazis (again, just an example), if we wanted. Or... perhaps if that old idea that was tossed around earlier ever comes to life... the one about updating the maps from the old Paranoia mod... we could put Otis behind the wheel so there wouldn't be any concern with shoe-horning them into Bellmer's story.
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Re: Otis Shift

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Ed the Bat wrote: Sat Feb 03, 2018 0:40 1) Taking a cue from Blue Shift, a 'B-story' to Paranoid/Paranoiac that happens nearby at the same time -- basically, what was Otis doing during Bellmer's adventures, and what did he have to face?

Option 1 allows for some freedom with recycling assets, such as enemies and perhaps even entire map layouts. It also presents opportunities to make some subtle references for the player, like 'Hey, remember this event in Paranoid?' (example: seeing Bellmer ride the tram on his first day to work).
Agreed, that using some of the same resources (including maps) would reduce the effort to create the new mod, and would also create the "aha" moments in players.
2) An unrelated adventure, starring Otis, that might have taken place at a different time and/or location.

Option 2 would present more freedom with the story, since it could be theoretically anything, anywhere, with any assets. It could serve as a platform to insert maps that didn't fit in with the Paranoid storyline, for instance. Heck, it could even BE Otis fighting the Nazis (again, just an example), if we wanted.
I have been mulling an idea to create one or more maps that are set outside the Half-Life/Paranoi* universe, similar to the 2 bonus maps included in Paranoiac, where DooM enemies were used. This could be something that is done as a stand-alone map (or set of maps).
Or... perhaps if that old idea that was tossed around earlier ever comes to life... the one about updating the maps from the old Paranoia mod... we could put Otis behind the wheel so there wouldn't be any concern with shoe-horning them into Bellmer's story.
For the update of the Paranoia mod, the story has already been developed to follow the adventures of Lt. Col. Alvarez, Ph. D. He is a prisoner in the holding cells, and manages to escape when the "resonance cascade" occurs. The mapping completed so far already incorporates this story, and would have to be reworked considerably to accommodate a new, Otis story-line. Therefore, I propose a completely different set of maps, based on a different adventure, for Otis.

I read through the story for Blue Shift, and it's a very interesting departure from Gordon Freeman's story. Let me think about the Otis Shift/Density story possibilities a bit more. Here are what I see as limitations:

1. Creating a story similar to Blue Shift will require a whole lot of interactions between the player and scientists and other NPC (e.g., Barney Calhoun), and this might not be possible with GZDooM's limitations.
2. Having that level of interaction would require a lot of voice acting.
3. It might also require the creation or adoption of significant new resources.
4. I'm unclear about this, but can Otis or Barney use the HEV chargers for "armor"? It would appear not to be so.

Here are what I see as opportunities:

1. Otis can work with Barney, either for a part of the story or for the entire story. [This would likely require voice acting.]
2. Otis can have a completely different motive than other characters. For example, Bellmer's motives in Paranoid were sabotage, and in Paranoiac were escape. Lt. Col. Alvarez's motives are revenge. Perhaps Otis' motives are pizza. Heh.

On a somewhat related note, if we develop this concept further, perhaps we ought to split the Otis Shift/Density project to its own sub-forum.
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Re: Otis Shift

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I know Blue Shift included a lot of interaction between the player and NPC's, and replicating that would be difficult, if not impossible, in GZDoom. But, to be fair, Half-Life had a lot of it too, and Paranoid did just fine without it.

And to answer your query: No, Barney (and by extension here, Otis) cannot use HEV chargers. He, instead, picks up helmets and vests to increase his Armor value, more like in Doom, Quake, or so many other games. Helmets add 40 armor, and vests add 60, up to a maximum of 100.
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Re: Otis Shift

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Ed the Bat wrote: Sun Feb 04, 2018 8:12I know Blue Shift included a lot of interaction between the player and NPC's, and replicating that would be difficult, if not impossible, in GZDoom. But, to be fair, Half-Life had a lot of it too, and Paranoid did just fine without it.
Agreed. I was merely stating an observation, but I think that our mod could benefit from some degree of interaction. We'll have to figure out what is feasible, given our talents and assets.
And to answer your query: No, Barney (and by extension here, Otis) cannot use HEV chargers. He, instead, picks up helmets and vests to increase his Armor value, more like in Doom, Quake, or so many other games. Helmets add 40 armor, and vests add 60, up to a maximum of 100.
Good to know. I'm guessing you can easily acquire the necessary resources for the helmets and vests, correct?

On a related note, I'm also guessing that you can create (at least) simple animations of models, yes? If so, this will allow for more objectives and story-lines. For example, there was a level in Half-Life where Gordon Freeman was required to turn a valve-wheel in order to open an underwater gate somewhere nearby. "Using" the valve-wheel caused it to turn, in-game, and this was likely done by giving it an animation. Knowing that we can do these types of animations will open up the possibilities for various objectives.
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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Yes, the helmets and vests are not an issue.

As for animating models, I can't do much in the way of creation from scratch, but I should probably be able to find and manipulate existing resources to suit our needs...
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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This is an idea I had a couple of years ago, but it had to be sidelined because of my other work on the project. Team members might remember that Dr. Bellmer met with Otis on Map 11 at the monorail gate. Otis makes a Star Wars joke and seems to be hugely pleased with himself. My idea was to have Otis meet Dr. Bellmer at the monorail gate (I'll copy relevant portion of Map 11). After Bellmer leaves, Otis follows the monorail track to some other parts of Black Mesa and begins his own adventure.

This is still just in the conceptual stages, and might not take flight for a while as I take advantage of my momentum on the WIP maps.
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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That sounds like a good place to lead into it! My only minor concern is this...
For the scene on Map 11, you gave Otis his own custom voice. The goofy 'funny fat guy' voice Otis had in the original games wouldn't mesh with it very well, and I had implemented a feature that gave Otis some Duke Nukem-style one-liners for killing enemies.

This means we may have to either remove those zingers (not a deal-breaker, necessarily), or just ignore the stark change in voice. Just a small thing to consider when/if we move forward with this.
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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Send me a sample of the Otis voice you're using and I'll see if I can replicate it with the words he used on Map 11. Otherwise, we can simply start the Otis Shift maps after we see Dr. Bellmer leaving.
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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Again, using the one-liners is certainly not a hard requirement. It was just a silly whim I had, that coincided with an excuse to import the Desert Eagle into Paranoid. The executive decisions on this are totally up to you. :wink:
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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I'll listen to these and see if I can replicate the voice acting. I must confess that I have limited talents in that area. Although I did the voices for Dr. Zimmerman, Sgt. Harrington, and Otis, I doubt I can properly do voice mimicking or voice impressions.

I actually really like the notion of using one-liners. For Paranoia I had Lt. Col. Alvarez spouting one-liners throughout the game, except it was conveyed via text messages on screen. Having Otis spit out one-liners will make this part of the game unique (and, perhaps, more light-hearted - the rest of our game is quite dark).
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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I always felt that you definitely have range, considering how different those characters' voices were. Speaking of Harrington, I guess one thing I had considered is that we could try giving Otis on Map 11 a different identity, like how Harrington isn't Barney (though he is *a* Barney, in a manner of speaking). Then it would be okay for the playable Otis to have a different voice.

Alternatively, I'm a bit hesitant to offer, but... I've been told I have a nice voice, and I'm pretty good at mimicry, but I'm not confident that I'd be an exact match... I might be willing to give it a try sometime, but I'm not ready to make any promises.
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Re: Otis Shift [Spit-Balling For Now]

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I listened to about a minute and a half of the Otis one-liners to get a flavor for the character. I definitely believe we ought to use some of those lines in the Otis Shift maps, but I'm not sure I will be able to emulate his voice for the intro (Map11 variant). If you want to take a shot at redoing the intro in the Otis voice, go for it.

As for giving Otis on Map 11 a different identity than the playable Otis, I suppose players won't care. But it will defeat the purpose of the intro.

Of course, another option is to completely avoid the Map11 reference/intro, and begin the Otis Shift maps somewhere else entirely. This might not be such a bad idea, as I'm guessing that players that start the Otis Shift episode will likely have forgotten the Map11 encounter.
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