Half Life 2 Mods For Dummies (For Dummies (Computers)) [Paperback]

Erik Guilfoyle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 17, 2007 | Series: For Dummies (Computers)

Modify gameplay, add textures, and integrate amazing effects

Develop intense environments, then share your design with players online

How cool would it be to build your own levels and customized weapons for Half-Life 2? This book will get you ready to mod so you can enjoy the ultimate gaming experience. You'll find out how to create your own maps, strategically place high-tech military equipment, and modify your levels for smoother play.

All this on the bonus CD-ROM

• Samples from the book
• A video walk-through of your first mod
• Adobe(r) Photoshop(r) CS2 tryout version
• NormalMapGenerator and Compressonator by ATI Technologies, Inc.
• Packrat version 0.95 for Half-Life 2 and Adobe Photoshop Normal Map and DDS Authoring Plugins
• For details and complete system requirements, see the CD-ROM appendix.

Discover how to

• Design maps and playing levels
• Load your creation into the game
• Expand your map with additions
• Include armor and weapons
• Distribute levels on the Web

Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Modify gameplay, add textures, and integrate amazing effects

Develop intense environments, then share your design with players online

How cool would it be to build your own levels and customized weapons for Half-Life 2? This book will get you ready to mod so you can enjoy the ultimate gaming experience. You'll find out how to create your own maps, strategically place high-tech military equipment, and modify your levels for smoother play.

All this on the bonus CD-Rom

• Samples from the book
• A video walk-through of your first mod
• Adobe® Photoshop® CS2 tryout version
• NormalMapGenerator and Compressonator by ATI Technologies, Inc.
• Packrat version 0.95 for Half-Life 2 and Adobe Photoshop Normal Map and DDS Authoring Plugins

For details and complete system requirements, see the CD-ROM appendix.

Discover how to

• Design maps and playing levels
• Load your creation into the game
• Expand your map with additions
• Include armor and weapons
• Distribute levels on the Web

About the Author

Erik Guilfoyle is the originator and manager of the game-modding Web site www.modsonline.com, as well as vice president of Tres Inc., specializing in 3D modeling, animation, and motion graphics.

Product Details

• Paperback: 334 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies (January 17, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470096314
• ISBN-13: 978-0470096314
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #407,552 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Erik "foyleman" Guilfoyle joined the game-modding scene shortly after the release of Half Life in early 2000 by creating a custom level and supporting material for the game. After that, Erik was hooked on modding games.

Two years and a lot of practice later, Soldier of Fortune was released. Erik jumped at the opportunity to map a custom level for this game and was among the first to release a map for the game with custom textures. This led to a flurry of emails requesting advice for constructing custom material, and the beginning of a compendium of game modification tutorials.

Not much later, Erik started up his own Web site to host existing and new tutorials. The site grew until he had the largest collection of tutorials on the Internet for Call of Duty mapping. Now, Erik is running the MODSonline.com modding community with the assistance of two other administrators and several friends, covering many games including Quake 4. As new games are released, he starts off the tutorials section with beginner instruction and leads the member forums in preparation for the next up-and-coming game.

Aside from his love for games, Erik is also the vice president of an established media company, Tres Inc. His company has been producing 3D models, animations, motion graphics, and websites for companies and corporations throughout New Jersey for over five years. Tres Inc. is now working on an animated short and preparing for a game of its own.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Worth $20, but be prepared..., March 31, 2007

By 

Midloo "the lutefisk" (Madison, WI) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Half Life 2 Mods For Dummies (For Dummies (Computers)) (Paperback)

Half-Life 2 Mods for Dummies is a bit of a mixed bag. Much of the information contained within the book is available on the web for free, but there is something to be said for containing a solid amount of beginning information in one volume. It's also one of the few HL2 modding resources in print, and Guilfoyle has some genuinely solid tips and tricks for level building quickly. Still- I can't wholeheartedly recommend it to the entirely new modder as there are a number of critical typos and incorrect file paths. Buyer beware- make sure you know your general way around Valve's file trees before plunging into this book thinking it will guide you flawlessly.

Guilfoyle does an admirable job of writing in a clear and concise manner. The book will tell you exactly what to do to build a basic level and give it some more advanced spit and polish, but that's also about all it does. "HL2 Mods for Dummies" rarely gets into the nuts and bolts of why certain functions do what they do. "Do this, then this, then this, and you'll end up with this..." is the modus operandi. A bit more information on why Valve's powerful editors do what they do would have been helpful.

I don't mean to be too hard on what is a good beginning guide. If you don't want to spend days wading through the fragmented tutorials on the web, this is a fine place to start. The price is right and I'm tempted to give it four stars because of the cost and the singular place it occupies in print, but...

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars only covers mapping, June 17, 2007

By 

Brad - See all my reviews

This review is from: Half Life 2 Mods For Dummies (For Dummies (Computers)) (Paperback)

I want to warn anyone who wants to buy this book that it only covers mapping levels and has no advanced material other than using the compiling console for error detection. If you want complete coverage of the basics you can download the 3DBuzz.com video tutorials for HL2 mapping for free which will start you out with better quality examples and lead to some more advanced material. I was hoping this book would give a better overview of the advanced material you find in the 3DBuzz videos as well as other HL2 mapping video tutorials on the net, but it doesnt. As the other reviewers have said, it is an easy to understand book, but its simply redundant to all the online material that is freely available and doesnt go into the detail it should.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very basic, but well written, May 26, 2007

By 

Pavol Almasi (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Half Life 2 Mods For Dummies (For Dummies (Computers)) (Paperback)

I just love this book. It explained things clearly and was just what I needed to start modding. I never made any mod before, so I was a complete noob to this subject. And if you want to benefit from this book, you better be a noob too. The book explains the very basics of modding, you will not learn modelling, programing nor you will work with 3rd party (yours) models and props. You will learn simple map creation and texturing (using half life 2 native textures). So, if you need to know how to start modding - this book will deliver. If you can make your own basic rooms but need to optimize them, this book is for you too. However, if you can make your own basic optimized room, there's not much for you in this book.