Knowing when your map is ready is like knowing when painting is finished, you've got to know what to look for; There are at least three things that every good map has: Practicality, Simplicity, and a good gametype to match the map. When you have practicallity, every piece of scenery has a purpose, whether it be a barrier for cover or a fusion coil for that perfect death-by-explosion kill that everyone likes. In the end, everything MUST fit. Most forgers go into forge knowing exactly what they want for the map, they want a floating teleporter here and a barrage of crates here, and maybee some barrels... but is this what the players playing the map want? Have you noticed how convenient that sniper is on Gaurdian? Or how great it is to have that shotgun in snowbound? When bungie created these maps they knew what the weapon or piece of scenery is used for and placed it acording to what they thought the player would do after they picked it up. Every good map has a reason for everything. Sometimes we can get carried away, placing a whole arsenal of weapons in a small area- creating your own armory so to speak. The weapons should be well balanced and placed according to thier function. This goes for scenery as well does a forklift really belong in the water? So there are a few things you want to look for when giving your map the touch ups it needs, Is it practical? does this piece of scenery need to be here? will the players accept it? Is it simple? will players be overwhelmed by the over abundance of firepower or be confused on where that mystery teleporter leads? Do you know what kinds of gametype will work for this map, if it's a custom gametype, does it work with the map, are players going to be confused out of thier minds when they play? When you forge, keep your maps crystal clear and be innovative, give them some scenery and make sure to listen to player feedback... -Rezzik26
I COMPLETELY agree Rezzik. Nice post. About the arsenal of weapons, on my best map, Beach Camp, notice how I didn't have an arsenal of weapons (the ones who played on it). I had Battle Rifles around the map in random spots leaning against a wall or container, I had 2 Snipers for each base, a Rocket in the very middle of the map. My weapons weren't scrunched together, I beleive I have GREAT weapon placement for my map.
You've got some great points. I especially like what you had to say on weapon placement. You've got a good head on your shoulders. =) Keep up the knowledgeable posts!
I'd like to add something: It makes a huge difference if you spend the extra time to line everything up perfectly, making sure that it all looks absolutely flawless. The extra attention to detail on a map makes a large difference in the impression your map is going to give. I have already seen a lot of maps posted that are good ideas but you can tell at a glance that they were hastily thrown together, and it makes them look like poo. Yes. Poo.
Thanks guys, i've seen some pretty scary maps, and not the zombie kind. this is just another way to get people to make better maps
Exactly. Humans should not spawn with an abudance of weapons. If they do, balance it out by making Zombies able to attack from multiple side. And yes make sure they are placed according to theit function. A shotgun in an open field is about as effective as trying to shoot across the sea with a rubber band.
This is exactly what I look for on my maps, although sometimes the only way for people to get it is if they read the description of the game/map like Hide and Seek X, people who are it will think they are stuck in a room and leave instead of waiting till the teleporter opens.
It all comes back to that "balance" issue. People who play matchmaking should understand balance. Even thought an extra rocket launcher may give YOU a sneaky advantage, what does it do to the effectiveness of the game?
Yes, balance, does it look complete, does it feel like a full new professionally made map? If not, people will complain the whole time you play it, then never play it again.
This is a great post... and people pay attention to his first point. Practicality... why would you place a ghost on a shottie snipers map (just a note to Insane... lol)? Think of how useful, everything on the map is. Why is it there, how useful is it, and how will people react against/with it. And also, Gravedigger and Titmar have similiar thoughts. PUT YOU TIME INTO YOUR MAPS!!! It is you r creation that you want others to enjoy. BE PROUD OF IT!!! Make it a thing to be proud of. **Advertisement/Example Spoiler** And Titmar got the full Forum **** speech about the making things perfect. When making The Labyrinth, Asper, Boss, and Tit were rushing the initial barrier to create the boundary of the map. I was screwing around (acting like a **** I guess) and screaming "WHY IS THERE A SPACE BETWEEN THOSE TWO WALLS!?!?!?! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?!?!? LOLZ!!!". I may have said it jokingly, but as the 8 hours moved on they began to understand my way of thinking. If they would have rushed it, then they would have thrown off measurements and stuff as well. But not only that... the map turned out to be a so-called "Bungie Map". We had many people think that "The Labyrinth" was the pre-made version of Foundry. Take the time on your maps... you won't regret it.
Thanks AZN FTW for the reply, yea you are right, people need to take thier time, from what I hear Labyrinth tokk a FULL 8 HOURS of work non-stop with a 4-man team. Another thing I want to point out is that you can't always do it alone, if you share your vision of the to-be map with other forgers, you can get thier input as fellow players along with yours. 2 minds are better than 1. As Titmar said, "take your time" watch those details, because it's the flaws that people will notice. You want to line up the crates so that they are flush and try and make the scenery meld with the map.
Totally agree man. you have some great maps. People need to read this before they make a map. I plan everything out from the gitgo and pay attention to detail. no sniperrifles on the ground or uber armories here. w8, I did make a map with an armory for each team but its an btb battle map and most people like that one.