[PoC] Map Screen

[Abion47]

I haven't gotten Doom yet (though I want to), but I was watching some Let's Plays of it. When I saw the map screen, it reminded me of the map screen that was in the Metroid Prime games, and those kinds of level maps I think are very cool. So, naturally, I decided to make one.

In contrast to some of my other HUD-altering projects that I've undertaken in the past, this one I actively tried to accomplish without any custom modules. I managed to actually get away with that, discovering the way to draw directly to the screen without relying on modules and instead using the capabilities of the map script alone.

The map screen can be panned and rotated by using the mouse and WASD keys. The screen will print a label showing you the name of the room you are looking at as well as highlighting the room itself. It also indicates where the player is standing as well as the room the player is currently in.

There were a few ways I thought of pulling the map screen functionality off, and the first was to use a camera object within a terminal screen. My issue with that, however, is that there are some effects and capabilities that I might want to use that a camera-terminal pairing wouldn't support, so instead I took the other approach - actually move the player camera itself.

Now working with a 3D map screen meant that while it's technically possible to do all the work in an OnGui function, that approach would make the entire process far more complex than necessary. Instead, I built the 3D map layout in an unvisited part of the map and positioned the camera to view that. Remember, cheating during the design process is never a bad thing.

It's pretty rudimentary, but hopefully this lays out the foundation for people who want this kind of stuff in their mods. As usual, you can get it on the Steam Workshop or by downloading the mod files directly from here.