[Role Playing Game] Legend of Zelda - Master Quest

[Nebu_Bei]

Legend of Zelda - Master Quest (Alpha version uploaded!)

Legend of Zelda - Master Quest
Created by Nebu_Bei

UPDATE: Check the Download section for an early alpha version of the map!

1. Introduction
2. Motivations
3. Features
4. Assistance
5. Status
6. Download

Introduction

What is Legend of Zelda – Master Quest?

Legend of Zelda - Master Quest is both an update to the classic Nintendo 64 video game Legend of Zelda – Ocarina of Time and the most ambitious Warcraft III mod for said video game ever attempted.

Who are you?

My real name is Jordan, but I go by the screen name Nebu_Bei. 10 years ago as a 13 year old, I created the map "Legend of Zelda - Epic RPG". It was the most popular Zelda map for Warcraft III and one of the most popular RPGs of its time. It held the record for most downloads on the popular site "Warcraft III Maps N' Mods" at http://maps.warcraftiii.net/ for several years. It featured several dungeons to explore and a powerful Save/Load Code system. However, being only 13 years old at the time, I wasn't particularly fluent with JASS and wasn't aware of the power of the Warcraft III World Editor. I've always wanted to go back and remake/improve the map, which I stopped updating as of v7.0. However, as I improved my knowledge of the World Editor, I realized I would have to redesign the entire map from scratch, something that would take months of my time. I decided to move on to other projects, and retire my first completed project. Fast-forward to a few weeks ago, I was bored at home and decided to look up some of my old work. I hadn't really opened the World Editor in about 5 years, and I was curious to see if anyone had continued playing my maps. I was shocked to see the amount of negative feedback directed towards my Zelda mod. Numerous people complained about the poor quality of the map, and took advantage of the fact that I left it unprotected to modify it heavily, greatly reduce the quality, and remove my name from it entirely.

Motivations

Why are you making this map?

I want to make Legend of Zelda - Master Quest both to give the Warcraft III community the Zelda mod that it deserves, and to show the world what the guy who created that “crappy excuse for a Zelda map” can really do. I've always loved making Warcraft III maps, and working with the World Editor inspired me to pursue a career in software development that continues to this day.

Features

What features will it have?

I am planning on making not only the most creative, innovative, and engaging Zelda mod the Warcraft III community has ever seen, but the most fun and rewarding RPG experience any player has ever seen. I realize the difficulty of such a task, but I think that with my drive and ambition, coupled with some help from the Warcraft III community, it can be done. Here are a list of features I plan on including in the map. This list is by no means complete: - A unique, intuitive combat system with a "Zelda" feel - A robust menu system, allowing you to easily change items and equipment - A complete set of icons and music straight from the Ocarina of Time game - A collection of high quality models/skins to allow players to feel fully immersed in the world of Hyrule - 9 full-length, challenging, interactive dungeons - Fully-triggered spells and abilities to recreate all of the weapons and items found in the Ocarina of Time - Beautiful terrain that flows seamlessly from one area to another and recreates the world of Hyrule on your computer screen - Both Single Player and Multiplayer versions, allowing you to explore Hyrule by yourself or play with or against your friends - Much much more...

Assistance

What do you need help with?

I believe I can implement most of the above mentioned features myself. However, there are certainly a few areas that I do need help with if I am to fully realize my vision for this mod. Terrain: I am horrible at designing and creating terrain for Warcraft III maps. If anyone would like to assist me in this endeavor, please send me a message here on the Hive or simply reply to this thread with a copy of some of your work and how much time you think you'll be able to devote to the project. If your terrain skills are good and you have sufficient time to devote to the project, I'd be happy to send you a copy of the terrain for the map that I have so far so that you can touch it up with terrain/doodads of your choice. You'll also be fully credited both on the loading screen and in-game for your time and effort. Models: There are quite a few Legend of Zelda models for Warcraft III that have already been made. I have incorporated most of them into the map already, but there are still some that need to be made. Here is a list of models that I am still in need of: - Kokiri Child - Saria - Goron - Darunia - Ganondorf - Ganon - Any Zelda-themed enemy, like Poes, Octoroks, Like Likes, Deku Scrubs, etc. - Any of the Ocarina of Time bosses - A Zelda-themed or Zelda-looking custom UI/Game Interface As I receive or find models for items on the list above, I will cross them off the list. Note that not all of these items require custom models or skins. If you have ideas/suggestions of models already in the World Editor that I can use for the above characters, let me know. Testing: I can ALWAYS use testers to help find bugs with both the single player and, in particular, the multiplayer mode of the map. If you're interested in helping me test, or know of people who would be, send me a message here on the Hive or respond to this thread with your Battle.Net name and server. All beta testers will be credited just as the other contributors will be.

Is there anything else you need?

I'm not sure if it's still an option, but I'd love for this project to be hosted on The Hive as a featured project. That would give me my own forum and better allow for you guys to give me feedback and discuss the project amongst yourselves. It would also be much easier to communicate back and forth if I had my own forum as opposed to a single thread.

Status

When will it be done?

I can't say for sure, but if I get a lot of help from the community, I should be able to finish it before too long. I have a lot of the work completed already, and plan on updating my progress as time passes. You can always find the current state of the project at the bottom of this thread. If this project gets a big enough response, I'll create a separate website and host it out-of-pocket so that I can provide day-to-day updates and have a better form of community interaction. If it generates a decent response, I'll still try to provide day-to-day updates through this thread. Note: Once the map is in a stable enough state and I feel comfortable with it, I will attach it to this post so that anyone can play and test it. Be warned that, as the map is still very much in an Alpha state, it will likely contain game-breaking bugs and be absent of important features and be lacking polish.

What is the current state of the project?

As of 7/1/2013 Dungeons: 11% Combat System: 100% Inventory/Equipment System: 100% Custom Models/Skins: 50% Custom Icons: 90% Cinematics: 20% Terrain Refinement: 5% Item Abilities/Effects: 25% Final Polish/Testing: 0%

Download

Where can I download this?

The map is still in early Alpha stage, but I have reached a point in development that I am comfortable enough to release the map to the public for testing and feedback. Make SURE you check the Features section to be aware of certain issues/features that have yet to be addressed or implemented. Download

 

[Nebu_Bei]

Reserved for updates or other needed space.

 

[Veritas 117]

Well this definitely sounds interesting. To this day Ocarina of Time is the best game I ever played. Your description is very informative, but it's all text. If you want some more interest I would recommend screenshots. If the terrain isn't ready for screenshots yet at least some screenshots of your systems.

Anyways good luck on this one. I'll be checking it for updates from time to time.

 

[Doomguy80]

This is interesting! Hope you will get this done, and by all means you will have my good luck on this!

 

[Nebu_Bei]

Added an early Alpha version of the map! Feel free to give me any feedback you have.

 

[PurgeandFire]

I tested it and it was pretty enjoyable.

I like the approach you took to the combat system, it seems pretty novel. I didn't expect it to have it that way. However, I feel that it is a bit difficult to jump in to right away. Perhaps you should have some instructions or some sort of game to learn it. Remember the sword practice shop in majora's mask? Where you cut all those logs? Maybe something like that.

And poor Saria doesn't have a model. You should give her some placeholder model in the meantime.

The music didn't seem to loop. It might've been a problem on my side though, since I know Mac's have an issue with looping the music in Warcraft III.

Overall I found it pretty interesting. One suggestion I have is to perhaps implement a better way to interact with people. I kept walking up to them trying to talk, but I couldn't figure out how. Maybe an interact button kind of like TKoK.

Also, for Link there is always this option:
http://wc3jass.com/media/sa/item/in/477/

 

[Nebu_Bei]

Thank you very much for the feedback PurgeandFire. I'm glad you found the map enjoyable.

I do agree it is a bit tricky to figure out exactly how the combat system works right off the bat. I am planning on having some sort of tutorial or instruction at the beginning to teach people how to attack and use items. The Sword Practice Shop from Majora's Mask or the training on Outset Island in Windwaker are good ideas.

I wasn't able to find a good model for Saria, and I've never tried making models myself. I'm definitely open to any and all suggestions though!

That's weird that you're having problems getting the music to loop. I'm guessing it's a Mac issue, but I'll make sure to ask other people if they're having the same problem.

I wasn't quite sure how to do interaction with other NPCs. One idea I had was for you to click on people and, if you're close enough to them, you interact with them. I settled on Floating Text coming up when you get close, but since I gave some of the Kokiri the Wander ability, I can't use the standard "Unit Enters Region" to check when the text needs to come up for every single NPC.

Also thank you very much for that Link model. It looks amazing and exactly what I was looking for. I'll probably use the one I have now for Kid Link and the one you linked for Adult Link. Also that website seems to have a lot of good resources.

Again, thanks a lot for the feedback!

 

[PurgeandFire]

or the training on Outset Island in Windwaker are good ideas.

Shhh I still need to play Windwaker!!

As for the music looping problem, if it works fine for you then I am 99% sure it is an issue on my side (Mac-related). I get the same problem in melee maps with regular music.

I recommend that you put up some screenshots. I'm sure people will love to see a nice shot of the deku tree with its fancy moustache.

Alas, I wish I could be of more use but I can't do a whole lot to help at the moment. But I'll be sure to pop in and test occasionally/make suggestions. Good luck on the project!

P.S. I actually think I remember the map you speak of (on Maps'n'mods) since that was the first site I was active on. It is nice to see you return.

 

[sonofjay]

Well tried it for a little bit and I think it has tremendous potential to be something. I like the combat system and only took a few trials to get a used of it. The map is just really suffering because of the poor terrain. I hope you can improve that part of the map. Oh also I have no idea what those icons in the multiboard are for. Well I haven't really play any Zelda games before but I think this one is fun.

 

[BandolXD]

I tried it but I can't kill the Shrub blocking my way -_- Although nice map ! Keep on working ! +Rep

 

[Nebu_Bei]

I tried it but I can't kill the Shrub blocking my way -_- Although nice map ! Keep on working ! +Rep

The Legend of Zelda games do involve a lot of puzzle solving. Make sure to try every item in your inventory with every object in the environment. If you haven't played a Zelda game before, it can be tricky, but I'm sure you'll figure it out!

 

[Veritas 117]

I like the gameplay and puzzles a lot. My only reservation is about the terrain. Although good terrain doesn't necessarily mean a good game, it makes it easier to get lost in the world you are trying to create (in a good way). Part of the greatness of Zelda was the expansive terrain (at least in the Ocarina of Time and later versions). If you can recruit someone to enhance your terrains I can see this being an amazingly popular map. But that's just one man's opinion.

 

[bethmachine]

I am not a pro but seeing you need a terrainer I can help if you accept.