I thought maybe the description was a bit long when coupled with 5 photos, so I put it in spoiler tags. Description includes list of weapons, hazards and extras, as well as a little backstory. Anyway, this is "Atlantic Labs"! Hope you all enjoy! Spoiler I initially thought of doing "Atlantic Labs" after watching a documentary featuring the eco-friendly, futuristic archtecture of Jacque Fresco. I designed the map with the idea in mind that I wanted rooms that were round, had windows and seemed to intigrate nicely with the nature around them. As the idea progressed, and the reality of Forge's limitations came into play, I decided to build the structure over water. In this way, I had more space, and Forge's pieces fit better in an aquatic setting for the idea I had in mind. "Atlantic Labs" features two bases, red & blue, that lead diagnonally into the first set of rooms, which feature a "camp" or "post". I have named these rooms "Post A" and "Post B" for the weapons map. From these rooms are four seperate paths that either lead to the center of the map, to the second set of rooms, or to the man cannons. Two man cannons, located at the far ends of the map can send you to the opposite side quickly, perfect for that daring escape or pursing your target. Gravity lifts located opposite each other in the center of the map put you on top of a "reciever room" or tunnel bridging the gap between both sides of the map. In the upper rear of each base is a teleporter that takes you to what I call "nature rooms", where you can find a couple of power weapons and enjoy a natural contrast to the ocean setting of "Atlantic Labs". The map is great for 4 vs 4, and is set up for a number of gametypes. I'm still learning the mechanics of setting up for gametypes, so if something is off or not working properly, please let me know. *Note! The Fuel Rod Gun (located center map) is only available for Slayer matchtypes. ---------------------------------------------------- Weapons List Assault Rifle x 4 Magnum Pistol x 4 DMR x 4 Spiker x 2 Plasma Repeater x 4 Shotgun x 2 Needle Rifle x 2 Frag Grenade x 4 Plasma Grenade x 8 Rocket Launcher x 2 Sniper Rifle x 2 Needler x 2 Fuel Rod x 1 Plasma Turrets x 2 Hazards List Plasma Battery x 4 Fusion Coil x 4 Propane Tank x 4 Soft Kill Zone x 3 (On top of both Red & Blue bases, in "Reciever Room".) Others Health Pack x 6 (Listed on Weapons Map) -------------------------------------------------------- Known Issues The roof of "Post A" (Near Red Base), made of two "dish" pieces, becomes uneven when loading the map. It's barely uneven, and does not affect gameplay, but it is still annoying to me. It only happens with "Post A" even though the other three rooms also use "dish" pieces for the roof. If anyone has any tips to keep the roof in place, please let me know. And here is a Weapons Map.. Spoiler Again, if any of the gametypes I have set up are not working correctly, please let me know so I can fix it!
I'm spotting several problems with this map. First, the only ways between the separate bases, besides the man cannons, are linear, narrow, exposed walkways. Grenade spam would be extremely prevalent, not to mention cross-map fire. Another problem has to do with performance. I see from the pictures that the bases are all outlined by glass windows. Glass is a huge factor in framerate lag, and I think that the map will suffer a lot from it. I also don't know if you used Bridge Larges for the walkways, but those contribute to lag as well.
Reminds me something of Kamino. One thing was I thought this map would support infection. Very suprised about that. The weapons list seems overpowered but Im not sure of the gameplay. Looking as a small map, you wouldnt need much firepower on a narrow base to base map.
We haven't noticed any framerate issues, but let me know if anyone encounters any. I do see what you mean about the long bridges from the bases. I'll ponder on that, and figure something out. Most of the walkways have at least partial cover from other walkways, but if anyone finds it to be an issue during gaming, let me know. We've played the map quite extensively, and I can assure you that everyone enjoyed it quite a bit. Please let me know though if either framerate, or spamming is an issue you encounter. I will certainly think about how to address the base walkway openess. You know, its funny...when I typed up the list of weapons, I even thought "damn" but they seemed to work fine when we played. The power weapons have no extra clips, and longish spawn times, so noone was able to dominate with them for long, if at all. But that too...if anyone playing notices the weapons becoming an issue, let me know. This map has been in a constant state of small tweaks and changes, so I welcome anything to make it better. As for Infection, I'm still working the kinks out on that. I was pretty sure I had it all set up right, then it didn't work, so I left it off the list. Once I work it out, I'll update the map for sure.
I have never been a fan of catwalk maps. That said, I went into this with a bit of prejudice, so bare with me. First, why is there only one path into the bases? I could see the first team to get lead just camping here the rest of the game and nade spamming anyone who tried to enter. Second, it seems like you placed spawn points at random. Spawn placement is a major factor in controlling a maps pace so must be placed with extreme care and forethought. Typically, you want to face them towards what paths a player can take, while taking into account what weapon are in view, along the path ect ect. This is how we help players learn our maps. Also, many of them are in exposed areas. Nobody likes being spawn killed. Third, and lastly, I really do like the idea of this map. It looks cool and I love the rocks you placed coming out of the ocean. Great area for it too. I would say make it less linear, work on spawn placements, and you'd have a pretty decent map on your hands.
I like the look of the map, it has some nice aesthetics but I think there is one major change that could improve gameplay. I try to follow a pretty simple formula, there should be a direct relationship between the narrowness of a pathway and its length. Meaning, the narrower, the shorter. You could probably just cut the pathways down to about half the length they are and the map would probably have a much more opened up feel.
I appreciate the map design, I really do. It's visually appealing. With that said, I think there are two things to consider when making a competitive map. 1) Multiple access points. There should be various ways to arrive in most sections of the map, thus eliminating overly redundant entry in certain areas and eliminating any easy to hold out spots. 2) Size to weapon ratio. Think about your map, look at it's size, think balance without going over the top. This map is completely saturated by power weapons. To cancel out one launcher you don't necessarily need two, figure your map and spawns correctly so there is even footing to grab it, etc. Nice ideas, just needs a little more thought in terms of actual competitiveness.