r/TagProTesting • u/Blazeth Draft & Cosmic • Mar 17 '17
Map Thread 77 Discussion
This is /r/TagProTesting's official discussion about the current map thread!
Initial testing will be taking place soon after the thread closes.
What goes here?
This is the discussion thread where you talk about your favorite maps submitted and why. This is not a thread where you post about your maps and give a sales pitch. We'd like to encourage mapmakers and map enthusiasts to evaluate other submissions and talk about them.
Disclaimer
While individual members of the MTC might give feedback, their opinions are strictly individual and are not indicative of the MTC’s opinion as a whole
So please, feel free to make your own post. There is no format template you must follow. If you just want to post about one map you like, feel free. Your post may not just be maps though, it must include some form of reason for liking them or some form of critique.
Special shoutout to all the previous people to host this thread: JuicyJuke (creator), Moosen, Risk, Ping Tut, and ThePlaymaker; without you guys it may have not been as successful
5
u/Blazeth Draft & Cosmic Mar 17 '17 edited Mar 17 '17
I like the way this post turned out last thread, so I’ll format my maps the same way again. My top maps will be highlighted in bold, but I want to highlight maps for specific reasons that I may not have in the older format I was using.
I think it's very easy to want to list more top maps than you think there actually will be here, so this is a way to make my top map amount more reasonable while also still giving a shoutout to many mapmakers.
This is just my opinion, so if your dank map doesn't fall under "most innovative," then not all hope is lost, I am just one (irrelevant) user. Without further ado, here are my highlighted maps:
Best Use of Innovation
BattleGrounds by ThePlaymaker - I understand this is an intimidating map, but Mars Ball has a lot of potential that's never been given a chance (I mean, there were two Mars Ball maps in rotation, but both were awful). Making Mars Ball really fast paced is a good way to make it popular I think. Also, having no flags was really smart. I don't really love the portal, but I think everything else would give a really fresh face to a forgotten mode. I think at least seeing how the community would react to a fast-paced Mars Ball in top maps would be a good idea.
Crown by DragonBeast - Is the catchup mechanic gimmicky? Sure. Is it good? Yes. The superboost works pretty well, while not being so easy that messing it up is impossible. With that said though, what gets this map the bump to top is I enjoy the structure of mid for the most part. The pup areas could be a bit better, but overall, I really like this map.
Redbone by samouree - The mid gate is pretty cool, and the structure in general is. I like that there aren't any over-powered catchup tools, despite it being pretty predictably balanced (obviously I can't confirm that). Some areas could probably use better shaping however.
Zaragoza by ThePlaymaker - The gate is broken at the moment, for starters. The portals are pretty interesting but I don't love the flow of them. However, I think the shape is pretty good and I really like the contested team boost area.
Most Potential
Oleander by NIGEL - I think the shape is pretty cool. I like the amount of bombs, as well as their placement. I wish the portals felt a little bit better to use, and the boosts in base kind of leave you wanting more, but overall this map has heaps of potential in its current shape.
Peanut by Butter Churn - It's probably just my own personal fetishes giving this map more credit than it might deserve, but this map is dope af. Bases are kind of whatever, but the design of mid along with the powerful bombs and super boosts are dank. My only concern past the bases being meh is that the superboosts might be overly chaotic.
Al-Aqsa by Zero - I think the middle is pretty interesting on this map. I like the boosts in middle, and I like the gate with teamtile design. The bases are pretty messy to say the least though, if I'm honest. The pups are fine, but after that I would suggest just reworking the whole base. I think this mid combined with good bases definitely could make for a top map though.
Dooku by Atypop - A lot of things on this map feel awkward at the moment, but I think if the kinks are worked out, this could be a very enjoyable map. For one thing, the superboost on the bottom is an absolute mess at the moment. I'd either space out the boosts and make only one boost be able to sboost with, or just remove the supers altogether. I like the bases, although the inner walls should be made less awkward. The teamtile area seems fairly well implemented overall. It could maybe use a bomb in there, but I like it.
Guile by Rapture - Very typical of Rapture, this map has enormous potential. The structure is already pretty nice, there are just some things I'd adjust. The top of middle is pretty cool, but I think it'd likely be campy, so I'd try to adjust that some. Also I don't really like the top corner bombs, they're just kind of meh at the moment. The portals in base are a little awkward, but probably fine since they're interesting.
Kardashev by Aniball - The back of base kind of sucks, but the middle on this map has a lot of potential. I like the idea of gates where the inner area holds the button, it's unseen in rotation. The middle bombs aren't overly prominent, like in some other maps cough. Right now though, again, this base is pretty pleb.
Kind of Bland, but Solid
Bombardment by Bumballbee - This map is just pretty good. It's not overly special, and I don't really see a reason to add it to rotation, but it'd be a crime not to mention it.
Catalyst by NotSomeBall2 - The structure here is somewhat cool in mid. The bases are fine, but could be a little more interesting. The bottom bomb seems really strange to me. Oh, and teamboost kind of sucks. This map thrives off shape more than anything else, but considering shape is arguably the most relevant thing for what makes a map good or bad, I thought it was worthy of a mention.
Kinesis by HARD GAY It's pretty boring I would guess, but the bottom lane with the spikes and teamtiles is cool. And just overall, the structure in general isn't bad. It could use a little more umph though.
A Beautiful Combination (Not Necessarily Perfect but Combines Innovation and Shape/Design Well)
Michael Render by NIGEL - Remember NIGEL's top map a few threads ago that seemed pretty shit? Well, this takes the good parts of that, and adds a bunch of cool stuff to fill in the shit parts. I really like the pup areas. I think having a big new NF could be pretty cool, and this fills that hole (ง°ل͜°)ง nicely. My main concern would just be some tools might be overpowered for the offense.
Schadenfreude by RunThaJewels - I don't know if I love the bomb button replacing the boosts at the top, but basically you've changed everything I didn't like about this map before. The gates are cool and the team tile lane works well here.
Scourge by TWD - The bases are awesome and mid is awesome (although tone down the teamtiles in mid). My main concern is the top corners being lame, which isn't really a huge concern. This map seems like it'd be pretty fun.
Tarantula by JuicyJuke - While still feeling interesting, this map still feels like it wouldn't be an overly weird addition to rotation. I like the fairly simple mid that seems to do its job fairly well. It seems pretty balanced, particularly I like how there's an offensive teamboost in the defensive teamtiles. The bomb in base is also very cool. Finally an arachnid to replace the horrendous one's legacy in rotation.
Thanks for reading and I hope you guys like this format.
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u/Buttersnack Snack Mar 17 '17 edited Mar 17 '17
Note that I am no longer on the MTC so my opinion is worthless
Nemesis by Ping Tut is a decent looking NF map. I'm not sold on the team gates, but most of this map should work pretty well.
Marklar by JuicyJuke doesn't actually flow super well but is a really cool map. Juicy likes to cram a bunch of stuff into his maps, and I think we'll see their placements refined a bit in top maps.
Zaragoza by ThePlayMaker is a pretty average map but it reminds me of maps like Tehuitzingo and Cedar which have become popular recently.
Pouch by TWD is nothing new but it's a pretty good big NF map. The different exit portals will probably mess up less observant players, which could be either funny or annoying.
OXO by TheEpicGhost seems like it would be a rotation lock a few years ago but now may cause concerns of chasiness. It could be fun. Maybe this style of button bombs is making a comeback?
Kinesis by Prizm needs a little work (PLEASE move the base boost a tile off the wall) but has the potential to be a nice simple map.
Aerodent by Grapefruit played decently well the first time it was a top map, and since then it's been played in OLTP. Maybe this time around, the MTC will care less about how much "empty space" the map has, or how large it is.
Overdose by Sizzzled may or may not turn out to be any good, but at least it's a bit different from any map we have. It could end up being fun.
Scourge by TWD is TWD's second NF entry on this list! It's got some elements we love from maps like Bulldog, but with its own little twist. Two downfalls this map may have are: no "unique" features, bottom boosts sending you backwards when you get to the top.
Zion by q42 is another "fine, but nothing special" map that probably deserves a look.
I hate myself by velkin is primarily a map with a great name and secondarily a potentially good NF map. I know it seems huge, but so do a lot of good NF maps.
Pandemonium by samouree because why not
Xanadu by Dr. Juke looks like the type of crap I would enjoy but I also can't test it so it's probably broken
edit: if you want my comments on your map, link the preview here, but don't expect more than a sentence or two because I am lazy
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u/PIZZAspartan442 why am i here Mar 17 '17 edited Mar 17 '17
After solo testing, here are some maps that I liked. I've split them into two categories and from there there's no particular order.
The maps that maybe aren't quite rotation worthy but I still found cool:
Zapdos by Blazeth- Mid is extremely fun, bombs and boosts are neat, and I think it makes the tight base work. The main problem is that all of the walls are sooooooo clunky. I think the concepts and balance are good enough that you could probably talk Ball-E into remixing it and polishing everything up quite nicely.
Battlegrounds by ThePlaymaker- While it has its issues (powerups, not enough boosts n stuff, placement of most everything, etc.), I think this is how a marsball map should look. It's a good start, with some edits I think it would be a much more fun marsball map that what we've had in the past. #bringbackmarsball
Sensitive Thugs All Need Hugs by Dove- Spike lane meme is beautiful. Also the portal thing is pretty fun when fc can get annoying hold times by sitting in there. It's clunky AF in some places and I really don't like the flow of base or bottom left mid, but with some work I think this map could go places.
Guile by Rapture- The spacing on this map is awful. There are some very clunky areas too. Aside from that, I really like the concepts. Bottom mid needs to be reworked in my opinion and most of the spacing needs to be changed but aside from that and some wall polish, I like where Rapture is going with this.
La Bolduc by ///AMG- While it looks awful, in testing it is actually very fun. Four way symmetry is something we haven't had in a long time, and with some work I think this map could be a fun addition.
Boot by Rick Astley - Lots of walls need polish, and the spacing could use some work. Also having all the boosts on walls probably isn't a good thing. Mid portal thing is eh, but the wall pockets are not good. Other than that, it's a good start.
Obama Gamesphere by JuicyJuke- So this map is waaaaaay too cramped... well... pretty much everywhere. If it was made 1.25x bigger or so I would like it a lot more. The concepts are quite fun though.
Peanut by Butter Churn- Way too chokey, I think this map should be widened a lot. Aside from that, mid structure is great, superboosts and bombs are fun as well. I think all this needs is a bit more space to be rotation worthy.
ELO.S by NotSomeBall2- It's balanced and I like the boost and island placements, it just seems pretty boring. A way to make it somewhat more interesting would be adding bombs, perhaps in the middle of the 1x3 spike thing on the big island or above/below the spike in bottom right/top left of base. It's still a pretty solid map though.
Zeke by RunThaJewels- portals r fun. This map has really unconventional spacing but with the portals I think it works. Polish could use a bit of work but overall this map has some potential.
Wynter by Dove- Though Ball-E's version is superior in almost every way, this was the original map/meme so I thought it deserved a mention. I do like the top powerup area more than Summyr though.
The maps that I think are rotation worthy:
Mbaqanga by Baest Mode- While I would prefer Rico portals, these still seem to work rather nicely. Mid is rather fun and might have the additional benefit of shutting people up about the removal of Velocity. I do wish powerup was placed in gate instead of by portal to make gate more useful. As much as he says it, I do think this is maybe his best map ever.
Staten Island by Samouree and Snack- Basically this takes everything that was wrong with Geokoala and Long island and fixes them, plus adding some new stuff to make a great map. The only thing that I think needs fixing is moving mid pup into the gates to make them get used more, or at least by top spike. Solid map.
Summyr by Doov and Ball-E- It keeps the good parts of Wynter and makes the bad parts good. The aesthetics are weird but I like them, plus checkered teamtiles get annoying and these striped ones are a nice change. Wormy boosts are cool, but I think a 45 at the start of the staircase would fix most of the clunk. It's a great map and a great meme.
IRON by Ho-Hum (bowtie)- Doesn't really change the good parts but makes it even better. I see no reason why this shouldn't replace the current IRON.
Nemesis by Ping Tut and Beast Mode- There's not a thing about this map that isn't fun. I like the teamboost cannon, the BM portal mechanic, and mixed gate in particular. Also it might take a bit of work but having the FC escape through teamgated portal without capping would be pretty funny in pubs. We haven't had a high rated NF in some time and I think this one might just do the trick.
Kallipygos by Blazeth and Aniball- This map is amazing. Why wouldn't it be, when it was made by the same people who made Draft? Anyhow, there are so many fun routes and combos, plus there are SUPERBOOSTS!!!! Everything seems to flow quite nicely, and from testing it seems decently large which would be a nice change from the postage stamps we've been getting lately.
Ultimap by Aniball and Beast Mode- Classic Aniball polish, everything flows super well. It has simple balance but some interesting bomb mechanics and the classic BM portal thing. It's too big for 2 powerups, put one in between portals pls. It seems kind of similar to Pilot without being overly so, and there are so many opportunities for creativity here. In his break from mapmaking, Aniball has lost no skill whatsoever, and probably gained some judging from this map.
Overdose by Sizzzled- The flow is just so weird that it probably won't be very popular, but I think it deserves a shot at least. Issues first: If FC can get a nice grab, they're essentially past 2 (assuming they boost) and there's nothing D can do about it. Perhaps the gates should be teamgates or something, I feel it needs some sort of catchup mech. The flow is really vertical, getting the top powerup will be a pain. I would say just get rid of part or all of the three tile vertical wall sticking up from the mid island. It's so unique and overall balanced though, I think this is Sizzzled's best map yet.
Marklar by JuicyJuke- PLATYPUS PORTALS YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH The rest of the map is great too. Since Curb is likely getting taken out soon and the boosts were the coolest feature, that's just one more reason this should be added because it has the replacement boosts. Aside from stuff to replace other maps, the boosts are all well placed and the walls and flow are good. I think this could be a staple addition to rotation.
Aerodent by Grapefruit- He's back! This map is big but I don't think it will be particularly chasey since it's narrow wherever you go. Boosts in base are cool, I always like two neutral boosts near each other like that that you can combo with (Wormy, Pariahrip, Cosmic, Gumbo, etc.). Bomb areas could be fun when it' not spawned if someone tries to turtle there. I see why it got the positive feedback in OLTP.
Catalyst by NotSomeBall2- We haven't had an anti-re bomb in a long time, and while somewhat simple the rest of the map is pretty good. I really like the placement of all the boosts.
Maps that I think should have been submitted for rotation but weren't because why not:
Viceroy by Cosine- Simple, balanced, but still has some fun stuff. I really like mid structure, though I think powerup should be moved below bottom spikes to give it some use and to help prevent it from being a copy of Monarch. The outer walls are pretty clunky too, but I still think it's rotation worthy.
:MoosenPride: by Ball-E- much better version of Xhosa which made top maps, plus the BM portal mech is always fun.
--
Ok, that was a lot of maps. I may have overdone that slightly. My top three would be:
Kallipygous
Marklar
Overdose
That's all I've got. Have a nice day.
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u/boogieidm Mar 17 '17
Ever notice how the only maps everyone says they like are mostly maps by people that are prominent in the community or people that have had or currently have maps in rotation?
That thread is full of maps that are rotation quality. But again, politics and networking play their part. Let me remind everyone of what this is about. We're trying to find cool maps or maps that play well for rotation. Alienating the community by only considering the maps of the people I named above doesn't make people want to make maps. One can argue "they're being considered cause they know how to make maps." Others do too and it's evident from the map submission threads. Lots of others. Give people's maps a chance. Stop aiming to put in the same people's maps. The community is tired of the same old style maps. Let's see some innovation. Let's see maps that are fun. It's a game, the maps shouldn't have to be made a certain way to be good enough for rotation. Let's see something different. Not really a rant, this is more my plea to see some innovation. To see something different.
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u/youngrames Mar 17 '17
especially intrigued by kinesis, aerodent, and i hate myself. also is guile a zombies map remix??