Is it just me, or do the new maps look visually really bad overall? I mean they're basically... just dirt. Every. Single. One. I don't think it would have killed 343 to cover Harvest's ground in green grass instead of just dull dirt for example, and maybe put a few nice looking pink cherry trees or even just pine trees instead of a few of the rocks. Also, I'm starting to notice 343 is really over-doing the lighting on a lot of maps. The lighting is so "thick" on a lot of maps that it makes the maps look worse, like FX in forge maps. Abandon, Shatter, and Wreckage are examples of maps that would look better if the atmospheric "lighting" was toned down, and not so greenish or yellowish depending on the map. It makes it look sloppy and lower quality in my opinion. Maybe 343 went heavy with lighting on some maps to try to cover up the 360's lack of graphics detail capability or something, in other words, maybe its a graphical trick they're using to make Halo 4 look better by "hiding" not as detailed graphics. I don't know, just speculating I guess. And why do all of the Crimson maps have a 10000 forge budget but no items, or even vehicles hardly? That makes no sense!
I think the maps and the lighting look pretty good. I do think these 3 maps are a little boring but not too bad. These maps have been done for like a year and I recall them saying Harvest was one of the first maps they made to test CTF. However, I do not really like 343's Big Team map style. Their maps feel too cramped, too much cover, and too many hills (usually). I miss the Bungie style of open areas for BTB. Luckily they remade Valhalla. I keep seeing Wreckage and Shatter come up in the BTB playlist. These new maps are not big enough for 16 people...it's way too chaotic and cramped. These maps are more for 8-12 players.
Interesting. I just dislike the lack of clarity the lighting leaves on some maps. The maps I'm talking about would be the maps like Abandon, Wreckage, Shatter, Vortex, Erosion (its just too dark not really blurred and/or discolored like these other maps), and to some degree Solace and Impact. Maps like Adrift, Complex, Exile, Haven, Longbow, and Ragnarok have very good lighting because it doesn't interfere with map visibility/clarity, and the lighting actually enhances that in some of those maps. The new maps do play good at least. I actually loved the only sole game I got on Wreckage, and I even like the dirt look to it. I just wish it was the only map that's mostly just dirt lol! It reminds me of Burial Mounds from Halo 2 (I think that was the name). I love 343's big team map style! Their maps are designed very well, and even work well for both vehicles and infantry. We haven't really seen that in hardly any maps since Halo CE really. Halo 2, 3, and Reach generally only had maybe 1 map each where vehicles and infantry both worked great at once. Although, I do see what you mean about them being very fast and chaotic. I think that might be more of Halo 4's multiplayer than the map designs though, but I guess they could make a massive big team battle map to have one map that plays a bit slower. Bring back Infinity, Death Island, and Ice Fields from Halo CE PC 343 lol!!!!!