Difference between revisions of "MTS2:Creator Guidelines/Neighborhood Maps"

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|No matter what style or design you choose, your neighborhood should be unique and different.  We already have plenty of perfectly flat grid neighborhoods available, so try to do something interesting that other people haven't already done before.
 
|No matter what style or design you choose, your neighborhood should be unique and different.  We already have plenty of perfectly flat grid neighborhoods available, so try to do something interesting that other people haven't already done before.
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|A neighborhood that's lumpy all over with few, if any, flat, buildable areas, and very few roads is really not going to be very useful for anyone.  Remember, you're creating something that people are going to actually use in their game, so it should be as useable as possible!
 
|A neighborhood that's lumpy all over with few, if any, flat, buildable areas, and very few roads is really not going to be very useful for anyone.  Remember, you're creating something that people are going to actually use in their game, so it should be as useable as possible!
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|We don't need any heart shaped, spiral shaped, star shaped, etc. neighborhoods.  Getting creative with your terrain sculpting is fine, but remember to strive for realism.
 
|We don't need any heart shaped, spiral shaped, star shaped, etc. neighborhoods.  Getting creative with your terrain sculpting is fine, but remember to strive for realism.
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|[[Image:EnchantedCove.jpg|right|300x300px|thumbnail|A good overview shot.  Example is [http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=261680 Enchanted Cove by enchantedw0lf].]]You will need to include at least one overview shot of your neighborhood that shows the whole terrain.  You can, of course, include multiple pictures of your neighborhood if you like, showing different aspects of it, but you do need to include at least the one whole pic.
 
|[[Image:EnchantedCove.jpg|right|300x300px|thumbnail|A good overview shot.  Example is [http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=261680 Enchanted Cove by enchantedw0lf].]]You will need to include at least one overview shot of your neighborhood that shows the whole terrain.  You can, of course, include multiple pictures of your neighborhood if you like, showing different aspects of it, but you do need to include at least the one whole pic.
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Once you have your creation made and screenshots taken, you need to make sure you have all the fiddly bits in order.
 
Once you have your creation made and screenshots taken, you need to make sure you have all the fiddly bits in order.
  
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===Right Files===
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! style="text-align:left" | Files Required for Upload (*)
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You will need to upload:
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|* One .sc4 file.  This file will have the name of your neighborhood.  For example, "EnchantedCove.sc4"
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* One .sc4 file.  This file will have the name of your neighborhood.  For example, "EnchantedCove.sc4"
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* At least one .png file.  This should be the default neighborhood picture for your neighborhood and should be named the same as the neighborhood.  For example, "EnchantedCove.png"
 
* At least one .png file.  This should be the default neighborhood picture for your neighborhood and should be named the same as the neighborhood.  For example, "EnchantedCove.png"
  
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* Four additional .png files, taken of your neighborhood using the different terrain types.  These will be named the same as your neighborhood, with an underscore, and the terrain type.  For example, "EnchantedCove_concrete.png", "EnchantedCove_desert.png", "EnchantedCove_dirt.png", and "EnchantedCove_lush.png".
 
* Four additional .png files, taken of your neighborhood using the different terrain types.  These will be named the same as your neighborhood, with an underscore, and the terrain type.  For example, "EnchantedCove_concrete.png", "EnchantedCove_desert.png", "EnchantedCove_dirt.png", and "EnchantedCove_lush.png".
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===ZIP or RAR===
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! style="text-align:left" | .ZIP-ing and .RAR-ing (*)
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You will need to put your neighborhood's files - the .sc4 file as well as the .png(s) - into a RAR or ZIP file to upload here. Please see [[MTS2:Creator_Guidelines/RAR_or_ZIP_Your_Custom_Content|here]] for instructions on doing so.  Please do not include both a ZIP and RAR with the same contents - just choose one.
 
You will need to put your neighborhood's files - the .sc4 file as well as the .png(s) - into a RAR or ZIP file to upload here. Please see [[MTS2:Creator_Guidelines/RAR_or_ZIP_Your_Custom_Content|here]] for instructions on doing so.  Please do not include both a ZIP and RAR with the same contents - just choose one.
  
 
Please do not double-compress your files - you should not have a ZIP inside a ZIP or a RAR inside a RAR.  This does not compress the files any more and just makes an extra step for downloaders.
 
Please do not double-compress your files - you should not have a ZIP inside a ZIP or a RAR inside a RAR.  This does not compress the files any more and just makes an extra step for downloaders.
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===Upload in Sets===
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! style="text-align:left" | Uploading as a Set (*)
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If you have created several similar neighborhoods at the same time, please upload these together in a single set, all on one thread (instead of all separately, one by one, on different threads).  This is easier for everyone: on our upload moderators, as they only have one thread to review rather than several... on you, as submitting a single thread is much quicker and easier than several... and on downloaders, as they can get everything they want all in one place rather than having to hunt around.
 
If you have created several similar neighborhoods at the same time, please upload these together in a single set, all on one thread (instead of all separately, one by one, on different threads).  This is easier for everyone: on our upload moderators, as they only have one thread to review rather than several... on you, as submitting a single thread is much quicker and easier than several... and on downloaders, as they can get everything they want all in one place rather than having to hunt around.
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===Expansion/Stuff Packs Required?===
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Expansions and stuff packs are not required for neighborhood maps.  They are all base game compatible.  Do not mark any EPs/SPs as required for your neighborhoods.
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===Good Title===
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You'll need a good title for your upload - something descriptive... like, "Mystery Cove" or "Seaside Resort" is good.  Something non-descriptive like, "My First Upload!" is not.
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{{Guidelines-InfoFiles-EPRequired}}
  
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===Good Description===
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{{Guidelines-InfoFiles-Title}}
  
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You'll need to write up a little basic description of what your upload is... you don't have to get too fancy, but you do need to write something to get people interested.  For instance, "This neighborhood map features plenty of flat area to build overlooking a seaside view, with areas along one road suitable for beach lots."  Something like, "This is my first upload... I don't know what to put here..." really doesn't make it sound like you've put any effort into it - and will reflect poorly on your creation.  You don't have to write a novel, just something that makes it sound like it's worth taking a closer look at.
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Revision as of 03:34, 22 May 2011

Contents

Neighborhood Maps

Quality

Have you made a new neighborhood map using SimCity 4 and want to share it? This guide will walk you through every step of what we require on MTS.

Screenshots

People want to see what they're downloading! Your screenshots sell your upload - if people don't like the look of your screenshots, they're not going to download - and if your screenshots are too bad, you won't get your upload approved.

Big Enough
The larger your pics, the better! Tiny pics won't show enough detail to see what you've made.
  • Minimum Size: 800 pixels wide by 600 pixels tall is a good size for the smallest pic you would want to upload. You may have smaller pics for thumbnails and the like, but for your required screenshots, please go as big as you can!
  • Maximum Size: MTS allows pictures up to 2560 pixels wide by 1440 pixels tall, and a file size limit of 800 kbs - so you can have nice, big, pretty pics. You may have to resize your pictures or apply compression to get them to fit within that limit.

Please don't just take a small pic and size it up in your graphics program to get bigger pics - this only makes the dimensions larger but doesn't add any detail and just gives you a blurry, pixellated larger pic, not a nice clear one.

Maximum Number of Inline/attached screenshots
  • Inline screenshots are images that appear in the text of the upload that load for the viewer along with the rest of the text. Inline screenshots can either be linked from the attached screenshots, or from an external hosting site like Tinypic, Photobucket, or Flickr.
  • Attached screenshots are screenshots that have been attached to the upload using the "manage attachments" feature on MTS. They display as small thumbnails until clicked on.


You may host your inline screenshots elsewhere like Photobucket, Tinypic, or Flickr - however, these screenshots hosted elsewhere must be additional "bonus" screenshots. All of the screenshots we actually require for your upload need to be attached to the thread itself. If your Photobucket account runs out of bandwidth or you delete the pics, people still need to be able to get the required screenshots on your thread.

You may now upload up to 100 pics! Of course, please keep it to a reasonable quantity... only things like huge sets, full worlds, etc. should have that many pics! Remember, you can always collage several different images together into one image if you have a bunch of stuff to show off, or want to show multiple angles of an item.

For the bonus photos, we recommend you use a spoiler tag to hide the images, then people can click on it to see them. Their pages will load faster if all the images aren't downloading at once. [spoiler=interior rooms]http:// wheveremypictureis/picture.jpg[/spoiler] The 'interior rooms' can be replaced by whatever grouping you want to present, 'hidden garden', 'pool views', 'master suite', 'kids room', etc.

You may place as many photos within a spoiler grouping as you'd like.

Right Info/Right Files

Once you have your creation made and screenshots taken, you need to make sure you have all the fiddly bits in order.

Expansion Packs or Stuff Packs required?
Particular items may be added with expansion or stuff packs, and depending on how your creation is made and the item you based it on, your creation may not work for users who do not own that expansion/stuff pack. You need to be sure of which packs are necessary for the items you have made. If users don't have the EP, your stuff may not work! If you are unsure of whether or not your creation will require an expansion or stuff pack, you can ask about it in the appropriate Create forum (under the Create menu on MTS) before uploading.

Make sure you only mark the EPs/SPs required that your upload actually needs! Don't just mark them all! For specifics, please read: MTS2:Creator_Guidelines/Compatibility


Checklist

This is a checklist of everything gone over above so you can be sure you've done everything you need to do to ensure your submission is correct. This is just for your own use - checking these boxes doesn't actually -do- anything, just is an easy way to keep yourself organized.


Quality

Time and Effort - You have spent a substantial amount of time and put a good deal of effort into creating your neighborhood.
Uniqueness - Your neighborhood represents a unique, interesting overall look.
Useability - Your neighborhood is useful and useable, with plenty of flat, buildable space and roads to put lots on.
Realistic Shapes - Your lot is a realistic, regular terrain and not in any silly shapes.

Screenshots

Big Enough - Your screenshots are large enough to clearly see what you have made - limits are 1280x1024 pixels and 195 kbs.
In-Game - Your screenshots are taken from within the game, and are not just pictures of your textures.
Required Pic - You have included at least one overview picture showing your whole neighborhood.
No Over-Photoshopping - Your screenshots show the neightorhood as it appears in-game, with no additional filters applied which change the look of the image, and any added text does not cover your creation.
Inline/Attached Screenshots - Your inline screenshots are no more than 800x600 pixels, you don't have more than 4 of them, your required screenshots are actually attached to the thread, and you don't have more than 8 screenshots attached.
No Pay Content - You do not have any pay content in your screenshots.

Adult Content/Nudity

No Adult Content - Your content doesn't have any swear words, nudity, or illegal drugs.

Right Info/Right Files

Right Files - You have an .sc4 file, and at least one .png file.
ZIP or RAR - You have compressed your files into a zip or rar archive (but not both).
Upload in Sets - If you have created a set or several similar/related maps, you have uploaded them all together in one thread, rather than on separate threads.
Expansion/Stuff Packs Required - You have not marked any expansions or stuff packs as required.
Good Title - You have given your creation a good, descriptive title.
Good Description - You have given your creation a nice description that makes people want to download it.

Retrieved from "http://simswiki.info/index.php?title=MTS2:Creator_Guidelines/Neighborhood_Maps&oldid=50440"
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