Statusphere

Statusphere
A FFA map created by Status 5000

Download Statusphere @ my Bungie thread!

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More screenshots are at the bottom of this post.

*Note: This description was copied directly from my original thread at another site. I will certainly add more, updated information about this map soon.

This is a FFA map that I have been working on for a long time. I originally intended to enter it into the Forge the Foundry contest, but after missing the deadline, I decided to just take my time and create a map that I think will work very well for Halo 3 FFA.

Here is a video walkthrough that I created set to "Asilos Magdalena" by The Mars Volta. Please excuse any redundancy in the walkthough, as I know there is some. I'm in a somewhat delerious state as I've been up for two days straight finalizing this map.

Video "Stumble-Through": http://gameroom.mlgpro.com/view/dbV2FKSBJyg.html

As you can tell by watching the walkthrough, Statusphere is an intricately designed FFA map made with optimal balance, gameplay, and aesthetics in mind.

The main focal point of the map is top center, which houses a regular overshield on a 1 minute timer. The floor of top center is made entirely of fence walls, so that people on the bottom of the map still have the ability to kill people up top by shooting through the fencing.

Top center is accessable by 4 ramps, one leading up from each side of the square-ish map. Each ramp can be accessed by going through a teleport on the opposite side of the map, or by jumping from various locations. You can also use the gravity lift located bottom-mid center to propel yourself quickly to the top of the Statusphere, directly in line with the overshield spawn.

The map is symmetrical in a diagonal sense, apart from a few minor differences in the layout of two of the corresponding quandrants.

Statusphere was designed for optimal FFA gameplay. As such, there is not one all-powerful position that must be fought over for control. Instead, strategic map design provides some amount of cover to nearly every position on the map.

Players at top center have an excellent viewpoint and can see a large portion of the map. These players also have the benefit of being near an easily accessable overshield that spawns one minute after it is picked up. Four barriers provide these players with additional cover, but it is important to remember that because the floor is made of fencing, you are vulnerable to being shot from many different locations.

All spawn points are on the bottom floor of the map. Players have the choice of working the bottom of the map while utilizing strategically placed cover to keep them from being sitting ducks to opponents at higher altitutudes. Several dumpsters, four teleports, and two corner walls situated in roof-like position provide fast access to the middle teir of the map.

Spaced fairly evenly and consistently about the perimeter of the map are a variety of locations and cover that give players a better view of the map. None of these places have solid enough cover that a player could set up camp and go on a running riot from. Instead, the map can quickly be traversed in several different manners. The purpose of this map design was to encourage the use of advantageous spots for different circumstances, while at the same time requiring players to constantly be on the move for fluid, dynamic gameplay.

Statusphere was designed for 8 player FFA's. A few people who got early peeks at the map commented that they thought it would play well for 2v2 team slayer as well. Unfortunately, I have not yet taken the time to setup a team spawning system to optimize the map for TS. I most likely will in the future, if the demand is great enough.

Also, while Statusphere was created and designed to be a very clean, precise, and symmetrical map, it is a little rough around the edges in which I had to pile **** on top of more **** to block off the less stellar parts of Foundry. Granted, said roughness is not to a degree that it should greatly affect gameplay. However, a cleaner, more eco-friendly Statusphere version 2 is definitely a possibility for a future release.

Please run FFA's on Statusphere with your friends to see how it plays. As it stands, the map has not been playtested once. I can't forsee it being an abysmal failure though, and thus I would greatly appreciate any and all feedback and opinions you would like to share after playing.

Also, a "more baller" map description was planned for Statusphere, but for some reason Xbox Live mistakingly thought that something in said description was offensive. You can rest assured that a new description will be included with version 2, with well sure to be definite higher markings on the badass meter.

So please.... Download, play, and enjoy Statusphere.

It's in the 6th slot of my fileshare.

Make sure to let me know what you think, as I am definitely interested in creating more FFA and team maps in the future.

Screenshots:










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Thanks for the replies and compliments so far.

I can't believe I forgot to post a link! Sorry about that.

I made the title that way because the MLG community was reaching this point where everyone was claiming their own maps as Godly just in hopes to win that design contest. I don't like boasting like that. Sorry about that.

Second, must I make a bungie thread about the map? By linking to my fileshare, I'm not expecting everybody to download everything I have in it. I'm not sure why you guys think that way. Maybe it's the equivalent of claiming your own maps as awesome over at the MLG forums. I guess I could see how some people here could be fileshare whores, haha.

Nevertheless, here is the Bungie thread dedicated to my map as you requested: Download via Bungie thread

Here is the link to my fileshare if for some reason you don't have any desire to read a redundant thread. Again, Statusphere is in the 6th slot.
Download via Fileshare

 

I think so too.

Thanks for all the replies and downloads so far. Feel free to give me feedback once you've played the map.

 

I can honestly tell you that I thought of the top center (and the rest of the map) design entirely by myself. This is the first time I've seen "barrel blaster" and I find it pretty cool that we coincidentally made the same top center design.

 

Yeah, it was a pain, haha. It was the first part of the map that I made.

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Thanks for the explanation of why you like maps posted via Bungie threads as well.

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Also, what's with all of the squirell? emoticons? lol

 

I just made this post over at MLG, and it's more of an essay as to why this is a good FFA map and why you should give it a chance. It's a little lengthy, but I'll greatly appreciate anyone who takes the time to read it.


Thanks for the feedback and kind words so far, SaLoT.


Everybody, please read this entire post. It explains Statusphere FFA better than I ever have before.

Obviously our map preferences differ. There was much thought put into it. There is obviously a lot more than one that has "nothing" to it. I'm not a fan of setups, but obviously you are. It's designed purely for good combat and movement, hence the importance of jumping. I'm sorry that it isn't like any other Halo map you have ever played.

Midship was a great FFA map because its the best Halo 2 had to offer in that department. Just because midship FFA became a staple and was very fun, doesn't mean that it's the definition of a perfect FFA map. I liked Midship FFA. But I love playing FFA on this map. It's just really fun - and really competitive.

(This isn't directly targeted just to you, Cadillac, but also to everybody who says they feel this is too open for FFA).
As for kill stealing because of openness and the randomness that it lends to gameplay, hear this out:

You and others say that you liked the closed off spaces that midship FFA provided for the occasional 1v1. Most of the complaints I've heard about Statusphere are about how it's open and that you can get shot almost anywhere by anybody given the right angle. I've heard the complaint that it seems like FFA on this map would just constantly be battles between people with half shields and people who are just respaawning.

The openness (and again, this depends VERY much on the angles of fire and degree position you are taking) is a positive for FFA in my eyes. Free-For-All implies that all kills are free for the taking for all. On Statusphere, upon spawning you can pretty much effectively see ALL of the map within 3 or 4 seconds. This means that you can make the decision to shoot anybody that you want to given that you put yourself in the angle that lends itself to having a good shot on them. Of course, everybody else is in the same situation, but that's why this is a F-F-A map.

Which seems more fair and balanced?

- Midship: You're underneath one of the bases fighting somebody 1v1, out of sight of most of the other players. You get your opponent down to no sheilds, but right before you kill him, somebody happens to get lucky and get a good view of him for 1/2 a second, allowing him to kill him and "steal" your kill.

- Statusphere: You're fighting somebody 1v1, but you can also see other players who aren't paying attention to that you could also possibly try to finish off. The map is laid out so symmetrically (in EVERY axis), that you can literally get an angle to shoot or grenade anywhere on the map within 3 or 4 seconds. Thus, you need to make the best decision you can as quick as you can (just as everyone else must do as well) in order to capitalize on whatever situation you may be in. You could spawn and easily die without getting a kill because of a bad decison, or even purely because of bad luck. But you could also spawn and make a brilliant decision after seeing where a few injured players already are, by quickly moving to a position that allows you great shooting angles on the injured players.

More than one person has said that they LOVE playing FFA on Statusphere. To all of the people who thinks it should have more cover ala Midship, please do this for me. Just play a few 6 or 8 man FFA's on Statusphere and give it a chance. It really does seem like a more fair and balanced FFA map than Midship to me. It forces you to play at your very best (optimal awareness, reflexes, and decision making) to win a game on it. Nearly every spot on the map has about an equal number of advantages and disadvantages in the case of an 6-8 man FFA. It's all about the possibility of being able to position yourself optimally in almost any given situation in the matter of a few seconds.

There is really only one drastic issue with the map as I see it now, and that is spawning. I definitely don't think the current spawn system breaks the map or makes it bad for FFA, but it definitely isn't optimized. I'm going to work to make it less likely that you spawn in between the direct view of two or more players.

But please, everybody just give this map a chance before claiming that it would suck for FFA's because it is too open. Halo FFA has been played the way it has because we had to take the best of what Bungie gave us to work with. (Derelict and Midship were great FFA maps.) That doesn't mean that we have yet witnessed the possible pinnacle of Halo FFA. I designed Statusphere with that goal in mind. To make it as fair, balanced, fun, and interesting as possible. I believe that I have been somewhat successful.

So please, just play a few games of FFA on this with your friends. Even if you think it's going to suck, play it anyway just so that you can have the experience. Keep an open mind about the nature of the FFA as it plays out, don't just constantly have the mindset of Midship FFA in your head while you play Statusphere.

Thanks to everyone for the feedback and support so far, I really appreciate. And if you see me online, send me a message telling me you want to play some Statusphere FFA. I'll go out of my way to play this gametype more than anything else in Halo 3 because it's the most fun to me, and I want as many people to experience Statusphere FFA as much as they can.