Update March 31st, 2021 – WINNERS ANNOUNCED: After weeks of careful playtesting and deliberation by our judging team, New World Interactive is pleased to announce the winners of the Insurgency: Sandstorm Mapping Contest. A list of winners can be found here. Our team will contact winners via mod.io to arrange prize distribution and additional feedback over the coming days. Entrants can now update contest submissions to reflect feedback from the community or any changes made during the judging phase. We hope this was a valuable experience for all involved and look forward to seeing many more community maps in the near future!
Update February 3rd, 2021 – Update on public voting: New World Interactive has been made aware of some potentially suspicious voting activity in the Insurgency: Sandstorm mapping contest and is working with Mod.io to verify the authenticity of these claims. If found to be true, we will take appropriate action to remove any votes in breach of the rules. As a reminder, entrants are not permitted to directly or indirectly encourage the use of duplicate accounts or automated scripts to manipulate votes, nor can any bribe, reward, or incentive be offered in exchange for votes, any entrants found to be acting in a disruptive or unsportsmanlike manner may be excluded from the competition. See Section 12 of the rules for full details. After internal consultation, we have decided that we will extend the public voting period deadline until February 10th, 2021, at 11:59 PM ET while we investigate. During this time, we will also allow all entrants to make ONE update to their submitted file version; this can happen at any time until the new voting deadline. For further questions, please contact us at contests@newworldinteractive.com. If the integrity of votes can not be determined New World Interactive reserves the right to manually review all entries and select finalists based on expert evaluation from our judges.
Update September 17, 2020 – Rules Clarification: After receiving a number of questions about what can be used in Submissions, we want to clarify that the following are okay to use in your mods, in addition to your own creations:Additionally we have posted a FAQ below with common questions. For further questions, please contact us at contests@newworldinteractive.
- Any assets (objects, textures, etc.) included in the “Insurgency: Sandstorm” game
- Assets for which you own the full rights, so that they can be relicensed to Sponsor and related parties as agreed in these rules
- Assets which are in the public domain or licensed under a Creative Commons CC0 license
com, and check this page regularly or join our newsletter for updates.
As a studio with deep roots in the modding scene, we are proud to be launching our first mapping contest for Insurgency: Sandstorm, and New World Interactive’s largest modding contest to date! Whether you are an experienced level designer or a complete beginner, this contest is open to all ability levels and is the perfect opportunity to download our Mod Editor, learn Unreal Engine and familiarize yourself with level design principles. Previous modding contests forInsurgency and Day of Infamy, have led to numerous incredible community maps, many of which have gone on to become official in-game content at a later date. With a 20 week contest and our largest ever prize pool, we can’t wait to see what fantastic creations level designers come up with, and wish all entrants the best of luck!
CONTEST BRIEF:
Participants will have 20 weeks from 2:00 pm ET on Thursday, September 10, 2020, until 2:00 pm ET on Thursday, January 28, 2021, to create, test, and upload a custom map for Insurgency: Sandstorm to mod.io. Maps will be judged by the public and team at New World Interactive for the chance to win a pool of over $17,000 in prizes! In order to allow maximum creative freedom, there is no theme for the contest, however, entries must be themed similar to Insurgency: Sandstorm’s art-style and created for one of the following core game modes using their default ruleset; Checkpoint, Push, Firefight, Frontline, or Domination. Full rules and eligibility criteria can be found at the bottom of this page.Prizes:
- 1st Place: $5,000 + 1x RTX 2080Ti GPU(1) + 1x Intel i7 7700k CPU + $100 Unreal Marketplace credit for each team member(2) + 1x Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition
- 2nd Place: $2,500 + 1x Intel® NUC 10 Performance + $100 Unreal Marketplace credit for each team member(2) + 1x Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition
- 3rd Place: $1,500 + 1x i7 7700k + $100 Unreal Marketplace credit for each team member(2) + 1x Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition
- 4th Place: $750 + 1x i7 7700k + $100 Unreal Marketplace credit for each team member(2) + 1x Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition
- 5th Place: $250 + 1x i7 7700k + $100 Unreal Marketplace credit for each team member(2) + 1x Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition
- Runner-up Prizes: Positions 5 through 10 will each receive 1x World War Z – GOTY Edition key (Epic Game Store)
1 Model to be confirmed at the time of shipping
2 Maximum $500 per team.
All prizes subject to change.
Submission and Judging Criteria:
All mods must be uploaded and tagged as “2020 Mapping Contest” on or before 2:00 PM ET on Thursday, January 28, 2021 after this point no changes can be made to the entry until the final results have been announced. On January 29, 2021, mod.io ratings on all eligible submissions will be reset and a one week period of public testing and community rating will occur. The public judging period (“Public Judging Period”) will begin on January 29, 2021, at 12:00 AM ET and end on February 5, 2021, at 11:59 PM ET, during which Public Judging Period, the public will be invited to judge the Submissions by clicking the “Recommend” button on any Submission they believe should be in the 10 finalists. The 10 qualifying Entrants whose Submissions have the highest result from calculating the number of Positive User Recommendations (Thumbs Up) minus the number of Negative User Recommendations (Thumbs Down), at the end of the Public Judging Period will be declared the finalists. The 10 Finalists’ Submissions will be judged by a panel of judges comprised of New World Interactive team members and Promotional Partners, who are experienced industry level designers based on the following judging criteria :- Gameplay (50 marks)
- Visual Aesthetics (25 marks)
- Performance & Optimisation (25 marks)
Advice, Guides, and Tutorials:
To qualify the map must be an original piece of content created specifically for this contest. Remakes of existing maps from Insurgency or other games are not eligible, nor are any maps created before the launch date of this contest (September 10, 2020). If you are working as a team or using any custom content you must ensure you have full legal permission to use any and all work submitted, as well as being legally able to grant permission for New World Interactive and contest partners to use the submitted entry if selected. This relates to all map content including the design/layout as well as any assets. The submitted entry should support at least one of the following core game modes, Checkpoint, Push, Firefight, Domination, or Frontline, and must be playable with the selected gamemode’s default ruleset, as per our official playlists. Please clearly state in your submission which game mode(s) and scenario(s) it was designed for. If the entry supports multiple game modes, or scenarios, please specify which mode(s) you wish New World Interactive to judge the entry on. No changes may be made to the submitted map file during the judging processes, for that reason, it is important to thoroughly playtest your entry before the deadline. We encourage participants to upload work in progress versions of their content to solicit player feedback early, as well as submit a final version of the project in advance of the deadline to ensure the file uploads correctly. No individual exceptions will be made to the deadline. This includes if you are unable to upload the file due to connectivity issues or forget to include any assets. Please do not leave your uploads to the last minute! Given the limited timeframe, we encourage participants to think carefully about the size and scope of your entries. We are placing very few restrictions on entities in order to maximize creativity and are looking forward to being blown away by your entries, however, when it comes to judging quality is key.FAQ
Am I allowed to use Quixel Megascans for my level? Yes, but keep in mind that the assets need to be optimized to avoid any performance issues and keep the file size reasonable. It’s easy with several 8K and high triangle count models to exceed the 5GB upload limit. Do I need to add restricted areas to my level? We recommend adding restricted areas in your level, however, it’s up to you how you use them. Keep in mind if a map doesn’t play well due to the lack of restricted areas, the gameplay mark during judgment could be significantly lower. Do I need to stick to the same setting as Insurgency Sandstorm “Middle East”? For this mapping contest we want to offer you as much creative freedom as possible, and give our entrants an opportunity to explore different parts of the world. Just avoid extremes, like going to mars or an underwater map. Can I make a Push Layout with more than 6 objectives? Maps must follow the gamemode’s default rulesets, for Push the maximum objectives is 6. What software can I use to create my assets? Any software that you have a valid license for can be used, as long the result is 100% owned by you, available for commercial use, and is fully functional without any additional software. What is the maximum file size my map can be? Your map (including assets) must stay under 5 Gigabytes of data. Can we release the map to the public for early testing? Yes, we encourage you to test the map with the public and get as much feedback as possible to iterate and improve your level before the deadline January 28, 2021 2PM ET. Am I allowed to use modular assets included in the modding tools? You are allowed to use modular assets found within the editor, however, we encourage entrants to construct their own maps from these assets, instead of copying and pasting entire segments of the included maps in the modding tools. Are you planning to add levels from the contest in the official game? We would love to, however, this is not guaranteed. Consideration for inclusion in-game depends on the quality of the levels submitted and the product’s development cycle. Contest winners have the highest chance of being considered for inclusion in the official game, however, any map can be considered. Can I make a map based on a battle or event that took place in the world? You may take inspiration from real-world locations and events, however, please keep the submitted entry in line with Sandstorm’s fictional conflict – where possible avoid referencing real-world names, places, groups, people, etc.. . See guidelines for material that we don’t want to be included. If I create a map for one of the core modes does it need a Security and Insurgents layout to be qualified for entry? The map doesn’t have to include a layout for both factions, one is enough. If you add multiple layouts make sure to add in your description which layout you want New World Interactive to judge the entry on. Do I need a day and night variant for my map? No, single light scenarios are accepted. Though for PVP modes, day maps are preferred by the community. Will I be judged on my screenshots, map names, etc..? New World Interactive will be judging entries on three criteria (Gameplay, Visual Aesthetic, Performance and Optimisation), however, we encourage participants to also spend time on their submission profile as the first phase will be decided by community vote. Think carefully about your thumbnail, map name, description, and overall presentation. To help players get started with creating custom content for Insurgency: Sandstorm, New World Interactive has created a series of guides and tutorials.- Download the Insurgency: Sandstorm Unreal 4 Editor
- View the Insurgency: Sandstorm Unreal 4 level editor quickstart guide
- Find game mode specific tutorials and community guides on mod.io
- Join the Community Modding Discord
JOIN THE NEW WORLD INTERACTIVE MODDING NEWSLETTER
OFFICIAL RULES
The Insurgency: Sandstorm 2020 Community Mapping Contest OFFICIAL RULES NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW OR REGULATION. PARTICIPANTS MUST BE AT LEAST THE AGE OF MAJORITY IN THEIR JURISDICTION AT THE TIME OF ENTRY.
- SPONSOR: New World Interactive, LLC, located at 400 S. Broadway, Denver, CO 80209, USA (“Sponsor”). Additionally, the following parties are promotional partners for the Contest (each, a “Promotional Partner”):
- Epic Games
- Nvidia
- Intel
- Focus Home Interactive
- Saber Interactive
- Mod.io
- AGREEMENT TO RULES, TERMS OF USE AND PRIVACY NOTICE: Any personal Information collected from Entrants in connection with the Insurgency: Sandstorm 2020 Community Mapping Contest (“Contest”) will be used by Sponsor and its service providers in accordance with Sponsor’s Privacy Policy. By participating in the Contest, the entrant (“Entrant” or “you”) agrees to be bound by the Official Rules (“Rules”) of this Contest and Sponsor’s Privacy Policy. Note that any collection and use of your personal information by a third party or Promotional Partner, other than to perform services on Sponsor’s behalf, will be governed by such third party or Promotional Partner’s privacy notice.
- ELIGIBILITY: Only people who (i) are residents of a jurisdiction where entry in the Contest is not prohibited by law, and (ii) are the age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence at the time of entry, or are at least the age of 13 and have their parent or legal guardian’s permission to participate, are eligible to enter.
- CONTEST PERIOD: The Contest begins on September 10, 2020 at 2:00 PM Eastern Time (“ET”) and ends on January 28, 2021 at 2:00 PM ET (the “Contest Period”). Sponsor’s computer will be the official clock for the Contest. All Entries must be received during the Contest Period to be eligible to win a prize.
- HOW TO ENTER: An Entrant may submit multiple entries (each, an “Entry”). Entries may be created by teams of up to 5 individuals (a “Team”), though each Entry may only be submitted under a single mod.io account.
- The Submission must be the Entrant’s original work and owned 100% by the Entrant (if the Submission is created by a Team, each Team member’s contribution must be their original work and owned 100% by the Team member for submission to the Contest). No pre-existing, licensed, or marketplace assets may be used in Submissions;
- Update September 17, 2020 – Rules Clarification: After receiving a number of questions about what can be used in Submissions, we want to clarify that the following are okay to use in your mods, in addition to your own creations:
- Any assets (objects, textures, etc.) included in the “Insurgency: Sandstorm” game
- Assets for which you own the full rights, so that they can be relicensed to Sponsor and related parties as agreed in these rules
- Assets which are in the public domain or licensed under a Creative Commons CC0 license
com. - The Submission must be a playable map for one of the following core game modes using their default ruleset: Checkpoint, Push, Firefight, Frontline, or Domination. Maps that are not playable in the core game modes will be ineligible.
- The submission must stay under 5 Gigabytes of data – this includes all assets needed to make the level 100% functional;
- The Submission cannot have been submitted previously in a promotion of any kind or exhibited or displayed publicly through any means and must be an original work created specifically for the Contest. Remakes of previous content are not permitted;
- Each Submission may only be uploaded once, and duplicate Submissions will not be counted. In cases where a Submission is uploaded multiple times (for example, if multiple Team members upload the Team’s Submission), only the first upload of that Submission will be counted;
- The Submission may not contain any of the following:
-
- personal information (e.g., email address, name, phone number);
- disparaging or libelous remarks about any individuals, organizations, brands or companies;
- information known by Entrant to be false, inaccurate or misleading, including false, inaccurate or misleading claims about Sponsor, or its products;
- reference, to or depiction of, the name or likeness of any public or private person;
- reference to, or depiction of, any political, religious or other group or organization;
- reference to, or depiction of, any content or brands owned by any third party or entity or that otherwise infringes any third party’s copyright, trademark, trade secret, right of publicity, right of privacy, including, without limitation, music lyrics, brand names, logos, taglines, slogans, artwork;
- advertisement or commercial solicitations;
- material that is inappropriate or unsuitable, in Sponsor’s sole discretion, including without limitation, any material that is inappropriate, indecent, profane, obscene, hateful, tortuous or offensive to individuals of a certain race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or socioeconomic group;
- material that violates any law, statute, ordinance or regulation;
- material that is, or may reasonably be considered to be, hate speech, whether directed at an individual or group;
- material for which the Entrant has been or will be compensated by any third party;
- material that refers to, depicts or encourages violence or the commission of a civil or criminal offense;
- material that impersonates another person or entity; and
- any viruses, worms, bots, spyware, malware or any other computer code that is intended to damage, interfere with, or intercept or expropriate any system, data or information.
- GRANT OF RIGHTS: By participating in this Contest, the Entrant grants to Sponsor, Sponsor’s licensees and assigns, and the Promotional Partners and their licensees and assigns, a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, distribute and display Entrant’s Submission in whole or in part, and otherwise exploit the Submission in all media now known or hereafter devised, throughout the universe, in any way Sponsor sees fit including, but not limited to, entertainment, instruction/education, promotional, advertising and/or marketing purposes. In connection with all rights granted in these Rules, Sponsor (and Sponsor’s licensees and assigns) shall also have the irrevocable right to incorporate Submissions, in whole or in part, into other works, in any form, media or technology now known or hereafter developed, including the Insurgency: Sandstorm game and other Sponsor game products. If necessary, the Entrant (and any constituent Team members who contributed to the Submission) will sign any necessary documentation that may be required for Sponsor or its designees to make use of the non-exclusive rights the Entrant is granting Sponsor in the Submission.
- IDENTITY OF THE ENTRANT: In the event of a dispute over the identity of an Entrant, the authorized account holder of the mod.io Account submitted at time of Entry will be deemed to be the Entrant. “Authorized Account Holder” is defined as the natural person who is assigned to the Account by mod.io. Each potential winner (individually, “Winner,” collectively “Winners”) may be required to show proof of being the Authorized Account Holder of the Account associated with the Entry. It is solely your responsibility to update your Account and notify Sponsor in writing if you change your email address or other identifying information contained within your Account. Multiple Entrants are not permitted to share the same Account.
- JUDGING: The Sponsor will review all Entries for compliance with these Rules. All qualifying Submissions received during the Contest Period will be posted on the mod.io Website for public viewing. The public judging period (“Public Judging Period”) will begin on January 29, 2021 at 12:00 AM ET and end on February 5, 2021 at 11:59 PM ET, during which Public Judging Period, the public will be invited to judge the Submissions by clicking the “Recommend” button on any Submission they believe should be in the 10 finalists. The 10 qualifying Entrants whose Submissions have the highest result from calculating the number of Positive User Recommendations (Thumbs Up) minus the number of Negative User Recommendations (Thumbs Down), at the end of the Public Judging Period will be declared the finalists (“Finalists”).
- Gameplay (up to 50 points)
- Visual Aesthetics (up to 25 points)
- Performance and Optimization (up to 25 points)
- WINNER NOTIFICATION AND ANNOUNCEMENT:
- PRIZES: Only the Prizes listed below will be awarded in this Contest. If the Winner is a Minor, the Prize will be awarded for the benefit of the Minor to their parent or legal guardian, who will be solely responsible on behalf of the Minor for all applicable documentation and taxes.
- 1 First Prize: The First Prize consists of USD $5,000, one RTX 2080Ti GPU (with the specific model confirmed at time of shipping), one Intel i7 7700k CPU, up to $500 Epic Marketplace Credit (Max $100 per eligible team member), and one Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition. (Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”): $7,825 United States Dollars (“USD”)).
- 1 Second Prize: The Second Prize consists of USD $2,500, one Intel® NUC 10 Performance, up to $500 Epic Marketplace Credit (Max $100 per eligible team member), and one Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition. (ARV: $3,635 USD).
- 1 Third Prize: The Third Prize consists of USD $1,500, one Intel i7 7700k CPU, up to $500 Epic Marketplace Credit (Max $100 per eligible team member), and one Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition. (ARV: $2,525 USD).
- 1 Fourth Prize: The Fourth Prize consists of USD $750, one Intel i7 7700k CPU, up to $500 Epic Marketplace Credit (Max $100 per eligible team member), and one Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition. (ARV: $1,775 USD).
- 1 Fifth Prize: The Fifth Prize consists of USD $250, one Intel i7 7700k CPU, up to $500 Epic Marketplace Credit (Max $100 per eligible team member), and one Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition. (ARV: $1,275 USD).
- 5 ‘Runner-up’ Prizes: One Epic Game Store key for World War Z Game Of The Year Edition. (ARV: $50 USD)
- PRIZE CONDITIONS: With respect to all Prizes, Sponsor is not responsible for lost or stolen prize certificates/redemption letters.
- DISQUALIFICATION/FORCE MAJEURE: Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual who Sponsor determines to be: (A) tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Contest, acting in violation of these Rules, including software-generated, robotic, programmed, script, macro or other automated votes; (B) acting in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner; (C) disrupting or undermining the legitimate operation of the Contest; (D) annoying, abusing, threatening or harassing any other person, or (E) offering prizes or other inducements to members of the public, vote farming, or any other activity that artificially inflates such Entrant’s votes as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion.
- PUBLICITY RELEASE: Acceptance of any Prize constitutes Winner’s permission for the Contest Entities to use Prize Winner’s name, photograph, image, likeness, name, hometown, voice, biographical information, statements and prize information, including those of each Team member (collectively, the “Attributes”), for advertising and publicity purposes worldwide and in all forms of media now known or hereafter devised, in perpetuity, without further compensation or authorization, (except where prohibited by law), and releases the Contest Entities from all claims arising out of the use of such Attributes.
- DISCLAIMERS: The Contest Entities will not be responsible for: (A) any late, lost, misrouted, garbled, or distorted or damaged transmissions or entries; (B) telephone, electronic, hardware, software, network, Internet, or other computer- or communications-related malfunctions or failures; (C) any Contest disruptions, injuries, losses or damages caused by events beyond Sponsor’s control or by non-authorized human intervention; or (D) any printing or typographical errors in any materials associated with the Contest. ALL PRIZES ARE AWARDED “AS IS” AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY).
- GENERAL RELEASE: By entering the Contest, each Entrant, for Entrant and for Entrant’s heirs, executors, administrators, successors and assigns: (A) releases and holds harmless the Contest Entities from any liability whatsoever, and waives any and all causes of action, for any claims, costs, injuries, losses, or damages of any kind arising, directly or indirectly, out of or in connection with the Contest or delivery, misdelivery, acceptance, possession, or use of or inability to use any Prize (including, without limitation, claims, costs, injuries, losses and damages related to personal injuries, death, damage to or destruction of property, rights of publicity or privacy, defamation or portrayal in a false light, whether intentional or unintentional), whether under a theory of contract, tort (including negligence), warranty or other theory; (B) agrees that Contest Entities have neither made nor are in any manner responsible or liable for any warranty, representation, or guarantee, express or implied, in fact or in law, with respect to any Prize, including, without limitation, to such Prize’s quality or fitness for a particular purpose; and (C) agrees to be bound by these Rules and to waive any right to claim any ambiguity or error in these Rules or in the Contest itself, and to be bound by all decisions of the Sponsor, which are binding and final.
- DISPUTE RESOLUTION:
- LIMITATION OF LIABILITY:
- All disputes, actual or alleged claims and causes of action at law or in equity (“Claim(s)”) will be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action.
- Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in these Rules, in connection with any Claims, judgments and awards, Entrant waives all rights to attorneys’ fees, punitive, incidental, special, consequential damages, and to any multiplied damages.
- In no event will Entrant be entitled to recover any expenses other than reasonable and actual out-of-pocket expenses.
- Sponsor’s entire liability and your sole and exclusive remedy will be limited to a distribution of the equivalent amount of Prizes set forth in these Rules.
- MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS:
- WINNER’S LIST/RULES REQUEST. For the Winner List, send an email with the subject line: “2020 Mapping Contest Winner List Request” to [email protected] after March 5, 2021 and before May 5, 2021.