The original release of Return to Mars (RTM) included a very large, modified M2 Shapes file. Now, thanks to the Marathon2 Walls Extractor and the M2 Shapes Shuttle, a much smaller patcher is enclosed. To create the ShapesRTM file, duplicate the original M2 Shapes file and rename this copy to ShapesRTM. Then run the RTM Shapes Shuttle and select the ShapesRTM file as the Shapes file to modify. This will replace M2 walls1, but it will not change the other wall sets. Version 1.01 includes the RTM Shapes Shuttle and a revised readme, but no changes have been made to the RTM map.
This is a network map for Marathon2. It is a remake of Bungie's Mars Needs Women (MNW) map, which was one of my favorite Marathon maps. Also included is a Shapes file that contains the original Marathon textures for MNW. Return to Mars is not quite the same as the original MNW, although some parts are identical. I wanted to add some of M2's new features (water, for example), and I also wanted to make things a little different for everyone who has played the original many times.
There are two versions of Return to Mars included (as two levels in the map file). The first does not contain shield rechargers, but it does contain some randomly placed recharge packs. The second version is essentially identical to the first, except that it contains several rechargers and fewer random recharge packs. I have included both because of different opinions from the people who playtested the map: some thought the rechargers did not belong in the MNW setting, while others liked them. Both versions include aliens like the original MNW, but you can always turn them off for net games. Return to Mars will run on 68K machines.
Each player must have a copy of the ShapesRTM file in the folder with M2 (or in a subfolder). Only the gathering computer must have a copy of the RTMmap file. However, the RTM map contains a terminal which uses resources stored in the map file, and these resources are not transferred from the gathering computer to the other machines in a network game. This means that the terminal message will not look very good on machines that do not have the map file (but the terminal will work). Because of this, I recommend putting the map file on all machines in a net game (and selecting it as the active map before joining a game).
To use the new Shapes file, you can start M2 by using drop and drag to drop both the ShapesRTM file and the map onto M2 (select both and then drop both onto M2 at once). M2 will use the ShapesRTM and the map after it starts. Or, you can select the Shapes and map by using the environment option in the preferences dialog after you start M2.
Warnings
M2 may not see the additional ShapesRTM file if you have too many map files in the M2 folder and/or subfolders. The only way I know of to fix this is to move some map files to a folder above M2 (or combine them using Pfhorte2). Also, sometimes the pop-up menus in the environment section of the preferences are not updated correctly. If in doubt, reselect the file(s) you want before you close the preferences.
Return to Mars will run with the normal M2 Shapes file, but it doesn't look very good. Maps that do not use texture set1 will probably crash with the ShapesRTM file, although usually not immediately (if you accidently start another map with the ShapesRTM file, you can probably quit before you crash).
Shapes File Editing
I used a combination of a hex editor, ResEdit, and Pfhred1.3 to edit the M2 Shapes file. This was a time consuming and less than optimal method (it only works for textures, not sprites). I have included a separate file with more details on the M2 Shapes file, but the technique for editing the walls is mostly obsolete. Wall editing can now be done much more readily with MWE and/or the M2 Shapes Shuttle.
Hints
Because M2 uses a slightly different set of colors than M1, the walls in RTM may look a bit better with thousands of colors on, if you have that option (the wall textures will still use the M2 colors, but the lighting changes look better). If you are familiar with the original Mars Needs Women, some places that you might want to check out are the maze and the light switch tunnels. If you have not played Mars Needs Women, just explore!
Thank you's
Thanks to Bungie for Marathon, Marathon2, and the original MNW map! And thanks to Steve Israelson for Pfhorte2.0a4-a12, Bo Lindbergh for Hex!, and Br'fin for Pfhred. Thanks to Chris Vargas, Chris Cappalo, Lou Burtell, Claude Errera, and David Waring for playtesting various versions of this map. And finally, thanks to Claude Errera for the NW M2 web pages.
