:popcorn:FREAKSHOW:popcorn:

"Screams of laughter once filled this now-abandoned carnival. Now, there are only growls."
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NOTE:
This map has been finished! DL link is kind of broken, use this one:
https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/games/halo-5-guardians/xbox-one/map-variants?lastModifiedFilter=Everything&sortOrder=BookmarkCount&page=1&gamertag=WeedCough#ugc_halo-5-guardians_xbox-one_mapvariant_WeedCough_7f3bb4e5-646d-4698-8321-3f0a20c93607

Enjoy.

-WeedCough :donut:

Hey guys! I am finally finished a map I have been dreaming of since H2A. Freakshow is a medium sized Infection map set in a decaying road-side carnival called Happy Land.

Pictures!

AESTHETICS/MAP HISTORY
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The road to the creation of Freakshow is one with many twists and turns, much like the rides in Happy Land.

I chose this concept mostly because I fucking love carnivals/amusement parks. I always have, always will. Theres just something about them that make me happy and at peace with the world. Other than the lines, they suck. Which is one of the reasons I also love abandoned carnivals! But seriously, abandoned carnivals are dope looking. So sad and creepy. To see something that was meant to bring people joy and happiness in states of disrepair is really weird. Sad magic.

Also, as a student director who wants to make horror films, creepy carnivals are right up my alley.

The map started basically as an aesthetic concept in H2A. At that time, the fourth season of American Horror Story (a horror drama on FX) was airing and me and my girlfriend were hooked. As some of you may know, AHS has different concepts and settings for each season (haunted house, asylum, witch coven, creepy hotel) and the fourth season took place in a old 1950's carnival/freakshow in Florida.

Although the plot stunk, I loved the aesthetics and cinematography of that season. I wanted to re-create it in H2A's forge, but the limited color palette and piece selection prevented it from even looking good, let alone playing well. Honestly, looking back at how limited forge was, this map couldn't of been made in any game other than 5.

The project went unfinished. Cut to a few weeks ago. While brainstorming map concepts I fell deep into the dark world of YouTube Let's Play's and found a little horror game by the name of The Park. For obvious reasons that I've mentioned before, I fell in love with the art style. I watched the whole Let's Play and with the then-newly added textures, I immediately knew what I had to create in forge.

The final state of the aesthetics is something I am extremely proud of. The look of the map took cues from the
aforementioned AHS and The Park, but I also looked at images of abandoned Carnivals all over the world, Banksy's art exhibit DismaLand and the two main amusement parks closest to where I live, Wonderland and the Toronto Exhibition. I gave the map a mostly Red, White and Blue theme to give off an old-school Americana vibe, but also threw in greens to break it up. I heavily used the Grime overlay to truly make Freakshow look decaying and old.

MAP DESIGN
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Finding the correct layout was one of the most difficult parts about creating Freakshow. Carnivals are usually set on huge flat pieces of land, so finding places to introduce verticality was a hard process. I eventually settled on a circular plot of land that slightly raises upward at the top half of the map (Ferris Wheel/Swing Ride area). I also included a sunken dried up moat surrounding the castle.

Another difficulty was my complete lack of experience designing for Infection. Luckily, I have played a lot of Infection, so I designed holdouts and areas to be fun for both Humans and Infected, as this struggle is one of my main issues with a lot of Infection maps.

Holdouts were relatively simple. There are three main holdouts on the map; the Funhouse, the Castle, and the Merry-Go-Round.

I knew that the main structure on the map had to be some sort of red and white striped building with a giant clown mouth as the door. Originally, this building was some sort of circus tent with a stage inside. But after doing some sketching and basic forging, I figured a Funhouse would work better because of the different height variations I could work in. My goal when designing the Funhouse was to: create a unique layout that would be fun for both the defending spartans and attacking Infected, further immersion through proper scaling and believable visuals, and to provide a close quarters indoor holdout for the map.

Funhouse Images"

The Funhouse is divided into five sections: bottom floor, ramp, hallway, arcade, and red room. Each provide unique gameplay opportunities to the playspace. The bottom floor is a small space decorated with rotting colourful punching bags. The hallway is a open area, useful for movement throughout the different parts of the Funhouse. The arcade is a nice little fun addition I put in. Finally, the red room, home to the huge hypo-spinny thing. Red room is probably the area most players will want to hold out in. It holds the Magnum.

Visually, I added many things to make it feel visually like a funhouse such as the aforementioned arcade, the colourful raised platforms, the mirrors and the hypno-spinny thing. Lighting wise, I wanted to go with very polar opposite colors for each half of the space, pale blue for arcade side and blood red for the red room side. Usually using such vivid colors so close appears chaotic, but I think it really works for a funhouse because it makes you feel uneasy.

Other areas of interest include, the play-ground, the Midway's, and the Swing-Ride.

Additionally, you will find a rusted old Ice-cream truck, a creepy bus that was home to the owners of the park, midway games, and animal/freakshow cages.

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WEAPONS

1x SAW, 0 spare clips
Located at [REDACTED]

1x Railgun, 2 spare clips,
Located at Ferris Wheel

1x Magnum, 1 spare clip
Located in Funhouse

1x AR, 0 spare clips
Located in Park

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CONCLUSION

Well, I guess thats it.

I had a great time designing, building and testing this map. I owe a big thanks to everyone involved (mentioned in previous updates), everyone who has downloaded it and given me feedback, YouTubers that featured it, and 343 for putting in their Community Update a few weeks back.

Oh, and I guess American Horror Story for giving me the idea, the look and theme and the name.

Overall, I've learned a lot from this map and I can't wait to show you all what I have coming.

Happy forging freaks, and enjoy your stay at:

-WeedCough :donut: