Messages

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Map Gab / Re: VGMaps.com now has over 50,000 maps!

« on: Yesterday at 07:32:25 pm »

Well this is quite a thing to happen! ^_^

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VGMaps Social Board / Re: So I'm gonna guess people here has heard about this interview

« on: April 10, 2022, 12:16:00 pm »

I remember that. It was a book for kids called "If Maps Could Talk". This was in 2007, and they were originally gonna use Silent Hill, but found my map for Hotel Delfino for Super Mario Sunshine more appropriate. I still have a couple copies of that book

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VGMaps Social Board / So I'm gonna guess people here has heard about this interview

« on: April 10, 2022, 10:35:56 am »

Word is spreading like crazy across the internet and it's beyond overwhelming to keep up lol

https://www.pcgamer.com/meet-the-gamefaqs-user-whos-created-3700-game-maps-and-counting-in-ms-paint/

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VGMaps Social Board / Re: So... how is everybody doing? *slight trigger warning*

« on: November 20, 2021, 12:40:19 pm »

StarFighters76, I have to admit that for the longest time, I hadn't realized (or had simply forgotten) that you were the author of the vast majority of the original maps on GameFAQs! Given that you never use in-game graphics for your work, you're probably the mapper in the best possible position to try and make money with them, though you should still be careful from a legal standpoint.

A number of months back, someone named Phillip Summers started a Kickstarter to create hand-drawn game guides for older NES games that would not feature any official graphics or artwork. The project looked really cool and the art style meshed really well with those from game manuals of the time. Unfortunately, he was contacted by an unnamed lawyer and had to cancel the campaign. The guides are thankfully still available though and for free (check out the latest updates on the Kickstarter page for the links) but it sucks that the creator can't make money for his hard and impressive work (although you can pay what-you-want for a kind of making-of art book for the series). But hey, if you ever manage to make it work financially, make sure to tell us so that we can celebrate!

I think for me, this is my ideal way of making money:

1. A site willing to pay for each map I have to be hosted on their site. I did this in 08 with a site called ChapterCheats, and while I did get a few hundred dollars out of it, they realized that their gimmick didn't work so well when it came to me, so we parted way, even though someone is using my name on their site and there is no way to contact the owner to get that fixed.

2. Ad revenue would also be nice. GameFAQs years ago was working on the idea of ad revenue, where they would place on ads on every walkthrough/map and we would get paid through that. Unfortunately CBSI (at the time) decided after years of debating, they just didn't want to bother with it. Now that GameFAQs is owned by Red Ventures, maybe it could happen, but I highly doubt it.

3. Donations. Since I started using Twitter, I decided to put a donation link in my profile to my PayPal account, to get donations. So far that's gotten me about $55. I figure I should do this as another way to get paid, seeing as for some unknown reason GameFAQs decided to remove the donation link from all maps (regardless of the creator), but kept the donation link for written guides.

So any combination of those would be pretty ideal for me. Sure it wouldn't amount to much, but it's something.

Also a friend  (who is an game developer himself) gave me an idea about mapping out indie games, which I mean, I suppose I could look into it, but I'd have to think long and hard about that.

But yeah, 20 years and 3,600 maps, I think it's time I start getting a little bit more out of it than what I have been lol.

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VGMaps Social Board / Re: So... how is everybody doing? *slight trigger warning*

« on: November 17, 2021, 11:12:55 pm »

So I am still around, still making MSPaint maps (planning on reaching 3,600 maps by years end). Although now because of some decent exposure, I decided to now use Twitter to show off my work and  hopefully it'll go somewhere for me.

Next Spring, it'll be 20 years since I've started game mapping and really, there are times that it's hard to keep it going. And now because I have been at it for so long, I want to get something more out of it. And yes, that includes money (still trying to work that out in my head). Sure I should be doing this for fun and free, but after 20 years, how much longer can I really be saying that? And after one interview with PC Gamer (not even sure if that went anywhere) and another interview that never happened, plus when someone gave me a shout-out on Twitter and my work went viral, I really feel like it's time I become more proactive and start aiming for bigger things. Though it's doubtful it'll happen, but who knows I guess.

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Gaming / Re: 3DNES - Turning NES games 3D

« on: July 11, 2016, 09:12:37 am »

Looks interesting.

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VGMaps Social Board / Re: Welcome! (Autumn 2015)

« on: November 02, 2015, 07:42:16 pm »

'Sup.

Let's see... I think I first found it through word-of-mouth, really. On GameFAQs, there's this thing called the NES FAQ Completion Project (basically getting a guide out for every last NES/Famicom - and now Famicom Disk System - game out there), and at some point they linked to an overworld map of Double Moon Densetsu on here. Having done quite a few maps myself, I figured I'd send those not covered here along since it wasn't as annoying as uploading ~1,000 maps one at a time.

Don't I know you from somewheres

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VGMaps Social Board / Re: New Atlas Directory

« on: December 08, 2014, 08:40:19 am »

Definitely love the layout of all the game titles on the contents page.

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Maps In Progress / Link Between Worlds Maps

« on: February 18, 2014, 10:37:15 pm »

Yep, in my never ending journey of game mapping, I have made maps for Link Between Worlds. I was thinking of sending them to this site, so that you guys can have them. But if any of you want them for whatever reason, just credit me

Here's a sample of what I have!

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Gaming / Re: What Games Are We Playing

« on: January 05, 2014, 11:41:14 pm »

Currently Link Between Worlds (yes I'm mapping this out as well lol) and Chrono Trigger DS Version (again with the mapping).

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Gaming / Re: Super Mario 64 Maps from Japan

« on: August 04, 2013, 12:14:11 pm »

That is freaking awesome! And it can give me some idea what to do with the remaining two maps I'm making for the game.

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Map Gab / Re: So I am working to do Super Mario 64 (hand drawn of course)

« on: June 10, 2013, 06:31:22 pm »

IS it just me or did you forget to put the "START" label on the Hazy Maze Cave map?

So I did lol, thanks!

Mike you are one of the higher ups.  You're one of the highest ups, you've made more maps then any of us.  You could draw vertical overlapping rooms off to one side.  Maybe in their own little box or something?

I meant higher-ups on this site (as in staff). But thanks

As for drawing a little something on the side for overlapping areas, yeah I guess that could work. I'm trying to make them as authentic as possible, but maybe I can wiggle something together.

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Map Gab / Re: So I am working to do Super Mario 64 (hand drawn of course)

« on: June 06, 2013, 09:34:25 pm »

I like them. They're charmingly simplistic while still having a sense of quality and accuracy. Unfortunately, I don't have really have any tips for those tall stages, unless you don't mind slicing the level up into chunks with redundant features.

Thanks anyways for the advice

(When I first saw "hand drawn", for some reason I was expecting a pencil/pen drawing of a perspective view or something.)

Well, pencil and paper is how they got started, then moved onto MSPaint. You don't want to see the rough drawings, trust me, no one would be able to figure it out lol

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Map Gab / Re: So I am working to do Super Mario 64 (hand drawn of course)

« on: June 06, 2013, 04:32:13 pm »

I second Revned's sentiment. I think it's the 3D effect that makes them look as good as they do. I wonder how you're going to handle stages with both a vertical layout and stuff to show on all sides. Multiple viewpoints?

For the most part that hasn't been a problem, because what's on all sides aren't tucked away underneath certain layers (like a hidden area). Course 4 and 12 however is where the problem is lying because of stuff underneath the main paths. Which is why I am having trouble figuring out to do them.

Course 3 and 14 I'm having issues with but for different reasons.

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Map Gab / Re: So I am working to do Super Mario 64 (hand drawn of course)

« on: June 06, 2013, 02:02:55 pm »

Here are four maps I have done. If allowed, I will post more in a following topic, but only if that's okay by the higher-ups