Hi there!
I'll also give my five cents regarding cliffside.
Other map reviews will follow.
Cliffside By LURKingThis map has almost everything a deathmatch or ctf map needs. That is some really good Sauerbraten release material here.
I decided to split the review into 4 parts
- Design & Geometry
- Immersion
- Gameplay
- Lighting & Sound
Design & GeometryOne thing I want to point out up front: For a month worth of level design for this competition, the map really looks well designed and balanced. And taking into account you have made one map for ~3 weeks and then decided to work on an entirely new map is pretty astounding.
One thing that definitely was done right on this map was the blendmap. Thumbs up for that!
There are however a few details that would have been nice. That would make this a memorable map. I think given the deadline you have made the best effort to make sure the details that went into the map are highly visible and well placed.
Except for one thing. It is almost a shame that the thing that really stands out on the map is so well hidden - and that is the inside of the chapel/church building.
The church is unfortunately a dead end (with a purpose, more to that later), so you don't end up there naturally, only to take a risk to grab the healthboost. Other than that, it is a really well designed place.
In any map, I look for a specific landmark that intuitively makes my subconscious know: "ah, here is where I am". I just noticed that the churches look different, so that is a good way to differentiate bases besides color.
While every building is correctly marked in the team color, red and blue, and the flags also show you which way the enemy is, I feel that something is missing.
ImmersionI feel like I'm in greece. That part is well made!
The environment around the playable map would have been the perfect place to remind the player where they are.
Maybe a little temple on the top of the mountain or a summit cross would have helped to make one of the sides (red/blue) really stand out.
Or a tiny fishers house at the beach, a boat in the distance (like Windecker did with Semiramus)
But there is one thing that I really like of this map: Nobody has done a greek style map before, at least not in that outstanding quality!
For a theme like that, a tiny bit more verticality would have helped to make it more interesting, as it is known for the typical greek islands. At least there are the roofs.
Overall you have done a good job on making it good looking.
There are other places that could have needed details as well. The rooms are all looking really bland. Maybe paintings, plants or bookshelves would give it a bit more diversity. Compared to the very detailed map you made previously (the office), it feels like these rooms were given the least love.
One last thing regarding the beach: Maybe a fishing place or a storage depot would give the map a bit more diversity compared to the purely stone buildings.
There is one negative thing that is making my heart as level designer bleed. Something that would have been an easy fix: The suddenly cut off ocean.
Making a bigger map that fades into the fog is a no brainer. You get these awful cutoffs and graphics bugs with Sauerbraten otherwise:
GameplayThe first thing I did, when I was loading the map, was to explore the beach. Dang - I'm dead. There is nothing much that points out that the beach is a no-no for players. Making it a bit deeper would have shown the player that he could die from depth. Otherwise the little place where you can stand barely makes sense.
I would probably have made it dent out or give a little pillar to stand on to place another hard to reach goodie. Something like this:
Or this to help the flow of the map.
Like any good CTF map, it offers different paths that allow for a quick grab (middle lane), sneaky stealth path (bottom lane) and a mix of both with the top lane.
With some of the goodies being on the roofs, you have given a good balance between too open (dangerous for the player) and bonus for taking the risk.
Other very good examples of that balance can be found with the healthboosts as part of a dead end (if somebody sneaks up, you could have trouble getting out again). Or with the quaddamage being hard to reach, giving other players enough time to stop you. But once you are up there, you have an open space to hit almost anything that moves on that map. I couldn't come up with a better place for the quad than that!
I really like the fountain that you even gave a purpose: they provide health.
There are little windows that you placed grenades in front of, that intuitively give the player an idea: "hey, I can spam grenades in there to stop the enemy" I like that thinking!
Sniper rifles go on roofs - that is also a good choice
All the other pickups are fine. There is enough health.
The windows feel too little sometimes. Maybe a door would be better for entry nearby the flag.
Lighting & SoundIt is quick and dirty but it works.
In my opinion, the light inside the houses could be a bit more warm (orange/red).
Original:
My change:
All the lights except for the church are set to maximum white (255, 255, 255). Which makes it look a bit artificial (given that it is a modern map, it is almost okay)
But that rusty warm look would give these rooms a bit more
I am a bit disappointed by the glass lamps inside the buildings. Considering that even though the map looks pretty medieval or old, there are park benches that give it a modern touch. So it almost justifies the modern lamps. But they still look odd, with no real light source visible in the middle
Summary----
I'll post a ranking of my favorite maps once I'm done rating all maps.
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