Do we really need larger maps?
Runteh
Join Date: 2010-06-26 Member: 72163Members, Reinforced - Shadow
Join Date: 2010-06-26 Member: 72163Members, Reinforced - Shadow
<div class="IPBDescription">I miss corridors</div>After playing a few games on refining and previous games on mineshaft I have come to an opinion large maps do not suit this game.
NS2/NS1 have units that work in certain ways. This is in turn effected by the environment you play in.
The best moments are when you are working on both sides in close nit groups, walking round the claustrophobic corridors on Veil before a skulk leaps at you from no where and the battle ensues. Because of the melee aspect of the aliens, this works rather nicely for them too. Your job is to be stealthy and cunning.
As soon as you start to play on the larger maps, you lose this feeling completely. If I were to compare it to something, it is like taking the units from chess and trying to play it on a board of risk.
For marines you loose that sense of fear. On public servers players seem to scatter because of the freedom that gives them, and as aliens it is incredibly difficult to combat the advantage of space to a gun wielding marine. Large maps equate to an unbalanced feel to gameplay and negatively impact the aliens play style, hive teleport or no.
Marines now seem to see you a mile off, you can't attack them in small spaces which restricts their movement, and another thing I think helps is the visual 'overwhelming' of 3/4 skulks jumping on you in a tight space. It makes the best of players panic, no matter how much you are trying to focus on one alien. Swarming being an alien advantage.
The corridor aspect is sort of an advantage to marines, as much as it is a disadvantage at times. I like the way this works, standing off from them gives you a barrel to shoot into, so positioning becomes important. But get caught in them at close range and you are done for.
To me it feels a lot more deathmatch on these larger maps with less wit, cunning and team play. I feel it loses its way, and that whole feeling of the NS aspect of the game feels lost somewhere. I feel frustrated, and it is telling from playing on these maps with the newer players who feel lost in them.
Is it just me who finds the corridor-to-medium sized room gameplay of levels like Veil (and to a lesser extent summit and tram) more tense and exciting, and perfectly apt for this game?
The only real fundamental difference between NS1 and NS2 are the maps, and I feel this could be hurting NS2. I understand that people want larger open maps, I like the idea of them. But do they really suit this game? Can you create alien units that balance well on open and large maps, as well as small ones? Does it feel like the world of natural selection?
Sometimes I feel like people look at game design from the perspective that anything should be possible, and it should be some open world. But games should be designed around what they are good at, not what you'd like them to be good at. Games need rules.
NS2/NS1 have units that work in certain ways. This is in turn effected by the environment you play in.
The best moments are when you are working on both sides in close nit groups, walking round the claustrophobic corridors on Veil before a skulk leaps at you from no where and the battle ensues. Because of the melee aspect of the aliens, this works rather nicely for them too. Your job is to be stealthy and cunning.
As soon as you start to play on the larger maps, you lose this feeling completely. If I were to compare it to something, it is like taking the units from chess and trying to play it on a board of risk.
For marines you loose that sense of fear. On public servers players seem to scatter because of the freedom that gives them, and as aliens it is incredibly difficult to combat the advantage of space to a gun wielding marine. Large maps equate to an unbalanced feel to gameplay and negatively impact the aliens play style, hive teleport or no.
Marines now seem to see you a mile off, you can't attack them in small spaces which restricts their movement, and another thing I think helps is the visual 'overwhelming' of 3/4 skulks jumping on you in a tight space. It makes the best of players panic, no matter how much you are trying to focus on one alien. Swarming being an alien advantage.
The corridor aspect is sort of an advantage to marines, as much as it is a disadvantage at times. I like the way this works, standing off from them gives you a barrel to shoot into, so positioning becomes important. But get caught in them at close range and you are done for.
To me it feels a lot more deathmatch on these larger maps with less wit, cunning and team play. I feel it loses its way, and that whole feeling of the NS aspect of the game feels lost somewhere. I feel frustrated, and it is telling from playing on these maps with the newer players who feel lost in them.
Is it just me who finds the corridor-to-medium sized room gameplay of levels like Veil (and to a lesser extent summit and tram) more tense and exciting, and perfectly apt for this game?
The only real fundamental difference between NS1 and NS2 are the maps, and I feel this could be hurting NS2. I understand that people want larger open maps, I like the idea of them. But do they really suit this game? Can you create alien units that balance well on open and large maps, as well as small ones? Does it feel like the world of natural selection?
Sometimes I feel like people look at game design from the perspective that anything should be possible, and it should be some open world. But games should be designed around what they are good at, not what you'd like them to be good at. Games need rules.
Comments
Yes, open areas lead to DM-like matches, it has been like that in NS1 as well (on custom maps).
But I really would like to see larger maps in terms of the size of the map overall. And Hive teleport. Once we have that, the real strategic decisions will be made.
Looking at ns_veil, it is large but the rooms aren't too big.
Having only played one game at ns2_furnace I can't decide yet if its rooms are too big. In terms of graphics it looked awesome though from commander perspective.
Aliens are good on the map as well, but the tactics change <i>(lerk dominates obviously)</i>
Switching to mineshaft after refinery is bad though. . . default map cycle needs a little work
Also, it would promote and reinforce the extra mobility the Aliens have until Marines get PGs. If the Marines think they can win by playing firefighter as the Aliens swarm the map, they're in for a surprise. It's that RTS component from NS1 that I miss.