Left 4 Dead - The Escape [Part 2]

Wow, I'm first to comment?
Anyway I loved your original map; the whole feel of traveling through the sewers busting up zombies is great. I like the fact that you made the sewers even longer than you did in the last map. The manhole cover looks good. I also like the fact that you continued the whole city feel to the map. Definitely a great infection map series and I can't wait to see what you do next.

<3 Squidman

 

Wow only 2 comments this map deserves more than that.I realy love the city.The whole infection series....I loved it and like SquidMan said I can't wait to see what you do next

 

Left 4 Dead - The Escape [Part 2]

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Left 4 Dead - The Escape [Part 2] is a linear infection map patterned off of the Left4Dead campaign. This involves a path that the humans must follow in order to reach the end, which is typically a safe house or some form of evacuation. The map itself brings together various locations, yet the creation as a whole does not flow cohesively enough to convince the player that they are in a post apocalyptic world.

The style of map involves reasonably weak zombies attacking stronger humans, meaning the humans can receive as much as four hits before becoming infected. Following the pattern set by the Left4Dead games, such maps also offer crescendo events which force humans to wait in order to continue on with the journey. Left 4 Dead – The Escape [Part 2] presents these features in a logical and effective manner, albeit at the cost of certain realism aspects.

Humans begin in a small area with a few weapons to aid in survival. Among these weapons are two shotguns, each with two extra clips, and a grenade launcher. Directly in front of this spawn is a manhole that grants them access to the sewer system. However, in an almost comic fashion, the humans pile up on the manhole since it is only large enough to allow for one human to enter at a time. On the rare occasion, this also provides the zombies with an easy assassination. A feeling of apprehension is immediately present as the humans drop down due to the rocks that frequently block lines of sight. These rocks provide plenty of cover for the infected to hide behind in hopes of surprising the humans. After some traveling, they reach their first holdout point. This area contains a couple of healthpacks and a DMR to enhance the human’s lifespan.

The area, which involves two intersecting paths, only has a couple locations where the infected can attack from. The first area requires the infected to come from the same path that the humans came along. However, despite the cover offered, the zombies are typically easily picked off by headshots from the magnum, a weapon that the humans start with. The other spawn is directly above the intersection, which allows for a clever zombie to get an quick assassination as the humans approach the holdout point. While it is a slightly better spawn, a lack of easy orientation makes it hard to efficiently pose a threat to the survivors.

At some point during this holdout, an alpha zombie will spawn that requires the humans to focus fire in order to keep the causalities to a minimum. The alpha zombie effectively trims down the survivor population, despite the nature of the location. Usually one or two humans become infected before the alpha zombie is taken out. However, since this tank of sorts is given a waypoint, the element of surprise is completely removed from the situation. Generally, the humans will know when the alpha zombie is coming. Nonetheless, the expansion to the zombie population increases the urgency felt by the humans to leave the sewers.

After about 100 seconds, the door opens, allowing the survivors to continue on through the map. A gravity lift provides a route to the surface where two health packs await the first humans lucky enough to grab them. However, on the streets, survival becomes even more of a challenge as the infected can drop down from nearly anywhere. This adds a certain thrill for the infected as they pounce on the unsuspecting prey from nearby rooftops. Humans, on the other hand, begin to act increasingly cautious as they know that the infected can come from any direction. At the end of the street is the second holdout point, which is right outside the safe house. Weapons are nearby, but since they require the humans to travel further than the holdout point, many just assume that the stairway in which the weapons are on is merely an aesthetic feature. The few who are lucky enough to survive until the door opens are granted access to the safe house. A mancannon spawns pushing the door in, allowing the humans to enter. However, since the area is so small, a survivor may be locked up against the crate by the force of the mancannon. This area is prime for racking up points. Humans are given invulnerability as soon as they enter, meaning that the remaining minute of the game is filled with killing helpless zombies who are unaware of the humans’ newfound traits.

The exit from the sewer system prohibits anything from entering the sewers once more. Any attempt to return to the sewers is blocked by the upward force of the gravity lift. A human who joins the game late may be impossible to kill if the infected are all on the streets.

Overall, enjoyment is greater in the second portion of the map, which feels exclusive from the sewers. The region between these areas is an instantaneous, one-way connection which makes them feel completely separate, meaning the map lacks a cohesive flow.

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The balance between humans and zombies can make or break an infection game. A zombie that’s too strong results in a quick game in which humans are quickly killed off by the undead. A human that’s too strong results in an extensive game in which zombies are gunned down, or, in some cases, give up entirely. On paper, the Left 4 Dead – The Escape[Part 2] gametype attempts to strike a balance between the two combating species. However, as soon as it is implemented in game, flaws become more apparent.

In most cases, the balance is tilted in the humans favor. The two shotguns present at the beginning only exacerbate this problem. While the weapon is only deadly at a close range, the lethal cone of fire is still longer than the sword lunge, resulting in countless zombie deaths. In gametypes like this, teamwork is typically enforced, but with the excess shotgun ammo coupled with the magnum start, any human is given the ability of a one man army. The magnum allows for instant headshot kills on all the normal infected, while the shotgun provides as a back-up for the few enemies that draw close. Even the element of surprise doesn’t always guarantee a satisfying attack for a zombie player. A quick human can melee the infected which results in an instant death. And while it’s true that the tank, which can be accessed by picking up a timed custom power-up, works to combat these flaws, its occasional appearance does far too little to combat the issue.

Weaponry in this map appears in pockets, as opposed to scattered around. Aside from the starting magnums and aforementioned shotguns, weaponry includes grenade launchers, a sniper, AR’s, and DMR’s. The grenade launcher at the beginning is rarely picked up as it requires the humans to deviate from the path, and instead travel into a back alley. The initial AR works well as a secondary weapon, but due to the headshot capability of the pistol, it is usually kept on the back of the survivor who picks it up. The DMR proves useful at the holdout, but unfortunately it causes much grievance to the infected that are constantly subject to a near instant death as soon as they drop down. As mentioned earlier, the other weapons outside of the saferoom are rarely utilized.

Once inside the saferoom, the humans cannot be damaged. This typically results in innumerous infected running into the room in a futile attempt to kill off the final human adversaries. The final minute of the game is therefore an endless slaughter of infected as the humans rack up points.

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Many journey maps allow the infected to have useful spawns at the cost of allowing them to escape the map. For example, a zombie spawning high on a building may have a great vantage point of the field below, but may also be able to turn around and run right out of the map. The Escape allows for no such inconsistencies, as the entire map is walled in, and such walls stretch on high above the infected spawns.

Timing on the zombie teleporters works well to match the progress of the humans; however one point in particular can cause a stalemate between the two opponents. As the humans exit the sewer, they arrive in a small rectangular area with a thin path that leads to the streets. This allows for zombies to wait on the other side, not wishing to run out in the open, while humans wait by the manhole, paralyzed by the fear of assassination. On a related note, the direction in which the teleporter spawns, right to left, is contradictory to the assumed order. Since the human eye is conditioned to move from left to right, many assume that the teleporter on the left leads to the receiver closest to the human spawn. However, the left teleporter leads to the finale instead. Conversely, a zombie that enters the right teleporter in hopes of killing humans at the end will be teleported to the beginning and will be forced to traverse the entire map to reach the survivors.

Unlike many games, the infected can jump from a six story building and land without a scratch. While it may not be entirely realistic, it is much more beneficial to gameplay, and in a map like this, gameplay trumps realism.

However, two aspects in particular are detrimental to the durability of The Escape. The first, as mentioned before, is the saferoom at the conclusion of the map. Not only are humans invulnerable, which puts a serious damper on the balance, but the fact that a human can be frozen against the crate can be a slight nuisance to those interested in exploring the room. The other aspect is located nearby. Occasionally when approaching the finale, there appears to be a barrier, half merged into the ground. Such a minor detail can cause problems when a player approaches it, often launching them high into the air, and on the rare occasion, killing them on impact. While such particulars will not ruin the game, they can certainly put a limitation on the enjoyment of the experience.

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The Escape is one of a few select maps that can tell a story solely through it's design. Players approaching the street automatically take note of the destruction present. Whether it be the collapsing buildings and bridges, or the abandoned vehicles, it’s apparent that something detrimental happened to the city. No backstory is necessary to see that a terrible incident had recently occurred. The map even incorporates smaller details, which on their own do little to help, but when simultaneously incorporated into a map, they work wonders. Manholes have covers lying nearby, showing that other survivors had once traversed this area. Cones surround vehicles, displaying initial attempts to protect those still alive.

Although, aspects like the variation of textures and oddly placed objects restrain the map from reaching its full aesthetic potential. A coliseum wall may be abruptly interrupted by landing pads due to budget constraints. As trivial as it may seem, it halts the aesthetic flow of the map.

On a realism note, it seems odd that rocks would be present in a sewer, especially large
ones that stretch from the ceiling to the floor. While objects like this are necessary to break the line of sight, there may be more fitting objects that make more logical sense in context of the surrounding area.

Nonetheless, the attributes heavily outweigh the irregularities in this case. The ability of the map to tell a story through its aesthetics is far more important that the minor flaws that are hardly criticized. While it wouldn’t be a terrible thing to keep realism in mind, it does not ruin gameplay if it is not implemented.

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The Escape is an infection journey map that utilizes the forge palette in unique ways. Flags used as street signs, braces used as benches, and techniques of the like are used to create new and interesting architecture.

Though despite the clever uses of items, the locations seem all too familiar. The sewers and streets are stereotypical locations for a zombie apocalypse and bring nothing new to the table. Confined tunnels with waist-deep water have been used and created since the day Reach came out. The scenario is not exceedingly novel.

Many attempts have been made to recreate the experience given to us by the Left4Dead series, and few manage to successfully do so. The Escape is among many maps of this style, though it is certainly a minority genre. It’s a difficult style to pursue, but the map draws feelings from the players: Anxiety as the humans wait for the door to open and anticipation as a zombie pounces on a survivor from high above. And when it comes to infection mapmaking, few things contribute to re-playability more than the feeling a player gets when roaming the map.

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Rating Multipliers

Enjoyment: 7 x 3.0 = 21 out of 30
Balance: 4 x 3.0 = 12 out of 30
Durability: 7 x 1.5 = 10.5 out of 15
Aesthetic : 7 x 1.5 = 10.5 out of 15
Originality: 5 x 1.0 = 5 out of 10


This map could be better if the zombies did not die as easily. A different starting weapon would aid this, as well as a decrease to the human melee damage.

Final Score


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Dude, Fix articles on the " Zombie Teleporters " Photos... And You map is pretty good but " " Plasma Blades " is right, Zombies are dying too easily and If you are a zombie you get cray easily cause of easily deaths