Catamaran: 1v1 Slayer Catamaran is a 1 vs 1 slayer map forged underneath the coliseum and above the water. A couple weeks ago I decided to create a map for my former clan's 1v1 tournament. When I designed this map I focused mainly on vertical practicality and the ability to escape or hide from the enemy after losing one's shield. This map mainly focuses on precision weapons and strafing with a bit of close range towards the center of the map. Catamaran is a layered map, featuring variations in cover and weapons. On the first layer, a sniper rifle spawns with a single clip in the center of the map. No cover is provided because this is the main power weapon of Catamaran. Providing cover would be too easy. Across from the sniper rifle are two symmetrical spikers. Located behind each spiker are two plasma grenades and a health kit. The top layer of catamaran is where the main battles take place. Medium range weapons are most effective here. The second floor of Catamaran is a bit more close range and asymmetrical in nature. With more cover to hide behind and a couple of hiding spaces, if you can find them, you can recharge your shields pretty easily on the second layer. Teleporters that are asymmetrically connected to the top floor are located on the second floor, as well as plasma pistols and health kits. The third floor of Catamaran is pretty simple; an octagon and a grenade launcher. Also asymmetrical in nature, spire rocks can be located as alternate leverage to jump out of the third layer and onto the second. An overhead view of Catamaran. Weapon Overview: x2 Spikers x1 Sniper Rifle x2 Plasma Grenades x2 Plasma Pistols x1 Grenade Launcher
CATAMARAN Catamaran is a one versus one, close range map that supports its own gametype. The first thing that will instantly annoy players about this gametype is that it effectively abolishes tactics. The recommended game type offers two loadouts; sprint with a precision weapon, or sprint with a precision weapon. The sheer fact that there is no loadout variation will annoy and frustrate players, as it limits their tactical options. On a one versus one map, the map should reward players taking a tactical approach to the game. This refusal to let players have a choice of tactical options results in a map that is not immersive in the least bit. Players will often want to change to the standard gametypes offered. Although this change may make a game on Catamaran at least vaguely entertaining, many durability and balance issues are caused, namely escape-ability and camp-ability. With a jet pack, players can go wherever on the map they want to, which will totally destroy a game. This itself makes Catamaran have a poor replay value, as the moment it is loaded up a second time, players will run to the exact same escapes as before. Moreover, Catamaran has an appalling flow to its gameplay; battles are constantly stopping and starting. The battles are entertaining at the beginning of games, but the bits in between are mediocre. Because of this, a game on Catamaran finishing after reaching the kill limit is impossible. Players can expect a game to hit the time limit on anywhere from five to fifteen kills because so much time is spent just trying to find the other player. However, when one of the short simple battles begin they can be somewhat entertaining, as they have a cat and mouse like feel that is constantly changing round. A player can be searching one moment then defending to the death the next. When these brief moments on Catamaran do happen, players will find themselves in an enjoyable situation. Catamaran is also one the most repetitive maps imaginable. Because there are few useful weapons placed on the map the only type of battle going is a DMR battle which makes gameplay tedious, frustrating and forced. Catamaran is unlikely to survive on the hard drive for very long, if at all. In a competitive map, players should have better success by moving around the map and picking up weapons. However, there are arguably no useful weapons on Catamaran. The power weapons are miles out of place on Catamaran, so much so that standard issue weapons are more useful and effective than them. Take the sniper rifle for example. A long range weapon is of no use on a close quarters map which makes the sniper rifle vastly under powered. The only time the sniper is useful is when the map is escaped and a player is standing on top of the map with a weapon that has suddenly become vastly over powered. The grenade launcher is useless as it comes equipped with one grenade round, which is often wasted. The only positive thing about the weapons is that because the map is symmetrical the spawns have been placed on opposite ends of the map, with each player getting an equal opportunity to pick up a power weapon, as they have both been placed dead centre. Other weapons placed on the map are needless and are detrimental to the map, the worst of which being the inclusion of the plasma pistol. Spawning players with a precision weapon and a plasma pistol will give players easy instant kills. Considering that there are several of them scattered across the map, games on Catamaran may turn into EMP headshot wars. Also, there are a few areas in which camping and hiding is easily possible. In the lower levels, one by one block pieces have been placed round a narrow corner in which any player could hide in. However, Catamaran gives both players an equal chance of success because it is symmetrical. Although opposite pathways have equal amounts of cover, the top ends of the map may as well be bomb shelters. At these ends, players will have full toe to head cover, and a health pack directly behind them. Immediately out of these miniature bunkers lies even more cover. Because players cannot jump from one end of the map to another, a player inside this bunker will only have one side to defend, making these reas vastly overpowered and unfair. Most of the map goes unused as the upper layer allows easy domination over those below them, and also contain these bunkers. This section has been written by Hobbes Catamaran can easily be escaped from. For example, it is possible to exit the map behind the long pillars that poke out of the map. There are surrounding cliffs that players can jump onto and hide there the whole game which destroys the entire idea of a one versus one, when Catamaran becomes more like a one versus zero. From these points players can pick up the sniper rifle and use it in a useful position; a high up pillar overlooking the entire map. Players that are able to grenade jump have access to six new locations that should not be accessible, such as the centre cover roof and the walls, all of which are perfect spots for camping, and the spawns in Catamaran are very predictable, which can often lead to spawn-killing. As mentioned before, if players change the gametype back to the standard slayer game type for a more enjoyable experience, a whole new realm of escapes come into play. Using the jetpack, players can totally escape the map, all the way to Paradiso and beyond with relative ease. On the other hand, Catamaran has clearly been lovingly forged. All the forge pieces' transitions are smooth and clean, and do not obstruct the player’s movement at all. Some smaller details have been added, such as a partly merged light in the top middle of the map. However, these smaller touches are seldom seen. On the other hand, there is no lag evident in Catamaran, probably given the fact that it is a small map with no interlocking structures and is only meant for two players. Although no pre-made structures have been used in the creation of Catamaran, the choice of pieces was hardly a good one. The majority of the map is made up of upside down bridge pieces. All of this is in plain sight to players walking around the lower areas of the map. Other random pieces have been put in to make up what appear to be supporting pillars for the centrepiece cover of the map, but even these have been poorly selected. Walkway cover pieces make up the pillars despite looking out of place in context with the rest of Catamaran. The backs of these pillars can also be seen when traversing around the map, as if to remind players that they are not in an arena, fighting it out, but on a user created map in a video game instead. This reinforces the fact that Catamaran is not a particularly special map. This long into Halo: Reach, it is understandable when nothing totally new is brought to the forge scene. However, this is not an excuse for using techniques and layouts that are vastly overused and dull. Using bridge pieces for a layout is hardly new. Nor is a two layered map in the ocean of forgeworld hardly interesting or underused. Rating Multipliers [floatleft]Enjoyment: 3 x 3.0 = 9 out of 30 Balance: 4 x 3.0 = 12 out of 30 Durability: 2 x 1.5 = 4 out of 15 Aesthetic : 5 x 1.5 = 7.5 out of 15 Originality: 3 x 1.0 = 3 out of 10 [/floatleft] Catamaran is a very unenjoyable map that has no replay value and is embarrassing to play. As sad and painful as it is, Catamaran is most certainly not a map to put on the hard drive at all. Final Score Understanding the Review Hub's Ratings Have a question about your review? Review Hub Community Feedback
Spoiler This section REALLY confuses me. To me, it sounds like 'The gametype wasn't enjoyable, so I changed it to have jet-pack. But then the map was breakable, so it became less enjoyable.' The map shouldn't have been tested with anything aside from the designated gametype. Along with that, there are quite a few players who dislike most armor abilities, and prefer sprint limitations, myself included. The other AA's don't add tactical depth, they just add randomness. Jetpack breaks map flow, Armor Lock slows down the game, Camo also slows down the game, etc. That's why MLG goes with sprint starts. It's more skill-oriented and less random. Especially in 1v1s, sprint starts are optimal. Now I haven't played this map, but it sounds like there was a massive bias during your testing sessions. You need to get advice from all levels of players, especially if you're trying to do a competitive 1v1 game.
Rorak I always test with several people, and I put their opinion on the map first. I sent you a PM with all of this but it is worth saying. Even still, your opinions are valid and I will take them on board. If you have any futher questions please pm me
That review was horrid. Not only was part of it writen by Hobbes (Dratical reviewed one of his maps recently) it was very biased in many ways. You looked at the map in a very un-competitive player view. You also made the same point (hidden spots in the map) over and over, you only had to make that point once. Another thing, this map was made for a competitive skill-based tournament. The reason the power weapons are under powered is to emphasize skill with regular spawn weapons and equipment. Think about this, if there was a rocket launcher on this map with 4 rockets, you would be guaranteed 4 easy kills. The map would then be centered around the rocket, turning it into a race for the rocket launcher, rather than a DMR duel.
The Review Hub is not about "We made the map a certain way and should only be played this way." We look at all ways and we weed out the imperfections. I assure you that we are not biased.
Look at Dratical's review of the other guy's map. If it's a competitice 1v1 map, it should be looked at like a competitive 1v1 map, not a casual slayer map. I wouldn't look at an invasion map and judge it as an infection map, it' just wrong.
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