Night of the Living Headcrabs - Source Engine

Map Title: Night of the Living Headcrabs

Completed Date: March 2011



*UPDATE* Night of the Living Headcrabs was featured on mod review site, Planet Phillip.

Goal

To create a new take on Tower Defense games, using the Half Life 2 setting.

Overview

Night of the Living Headcrabs is a two part level. In the first part, the player searches a warehouse for a power box to fix a broken generator in order to escape the building. While searching, the player stockpiles objects used to defend himself against the enemies outside. The second part of the level consists of waves of enemy zombies flooding through the open gates. Using the items collected earlier, the player fights off the hordes with short breaks between each wave. The more time a player spent preparing for the battle in the first part, the easier the battle becomes.

Aesthetics

Night of the Living Headcrabs draws its creepy atmosphere and high intensity climax from zombie horror movies. A protagonist locked in a building surrounded by monsters must use his wits and resources to come out alive. To accomplish this feel, I used clutter and lighting to provide a spooky atmosphere and the constant creaking and moaning of the zombies keeps the players on their toes. As an added fright, headcrabs jump out during specific moments to scare the player.

Scripting

During the second half of the game, I created a wave based system of enemy spawners. After opening the gate, a wave of zombies presses inward from one of two entry points. After a wave has been wiped out, the player receives a thirty seconds rest so that he may pickup health and reset his defenses. After the thirty seconds are up, another wave starts and more zombies appear. After several waves are complete, a friendly AI tells the player to escape and the level ends. I designed the zombie AI to constantly seek the player. The zombies have multiple entry points into the warehouse and several pathing options, leading them to swarm the player rather than head toward the player in a single line.

Role: Solo Project

Engine: Source Engine

Game Type: First Person Shooter, Single Player

Build Time: 8 Weeks

Play Time: 25 Minutes

Trailer

Download Map and Trailer


To fix the main generator, the player looks for the circuit breaker upstairs. The player explores the area to find the useful items such as blades, explosives, and health pickups.


Headcrabs hide on top of large objects or hang from the ceilings and vents. They drop on unsuspecting players to intensify the horror element of the map.


Lighting leads the player from flickering lights that reveal the circuit breaker to red lights that tell the player there are explosives nearby.


Upon fixing the generator, the doors open and the power goes out. Red, warning lights turn on and waves of zombies begin to emerge from the warehouse gates. The player uses the items collected upstairs to fight off the zombies.


The outdoor area is better lit and less crowded but offer fewer items to be used against the zombies. Players can run here if they become overwhelmed inside.

Nadav Pechthold | 973-902-1916 | nadav@nadavworks.com