Jump to content
Search In
  • More options...
Find results that contain...
Find results in...
Sign in to follow this  
captmellow

pls help w/ sp map review criteria

Recommended Posts

I have set up a do-it-yourself dm map review site called We the People. I think there are lots of people out there who enjoy maps, & have much to say, but don't run their own map review site, & so I have tried to give them a convenient outlet. I have the dm map reviews/nodes set up okay, but now I want to include sp.

I am familiar w/ review criteria for dm maps, but for sp I am not as comfortable w/ enumerating the virtues of sp maps.

I would like to hear the sage advice of any resident sp mapping/playing gurus in designing a fair list of criteria for sp maps. Please check out my WTP site to see the way I set up the dm map review form, & then offer me any suggestions for what makes an sp map great.

Share this post


Link to post

What makes a SP map great. Well I play alot of SP maps. I think its the following.

Use of textures=Using textures in ways that make sense. Not walls with slime on them for an office.

Balance=I dont wanna be faced up agains three barons with a chainsaw, pistol and shotgun. The balance of monsters, health, ammo and weapons really help a map play good.

Realism=Things that make you go wow. Like a computer that has a uac computer thing and has a "keyboard" with a cord. I saw a map (I forget what it was) that had a computer. It looked great. I was so distacted that I almost got killed by a shotgunner.

Lighting=I have seen some levels that either use the most improper lighting in areas or just use the same amount of light for the whole level. In others everything that looks like it would/does give off light has subtle shades as it gets farther from the object. That shows it wasnt rushed.

Hope this is helpful!

Share this post


Link to post

you forgot one major one... GAMEPLAY.

a good sp map should be medium-big size (unless it's a megawad, then the first couple should be smaller) that has a decent amount of monsters and ammo, depending on what type is in there. lots of baron of hells in a early level of a megawad isn't really appropiate. health should be common, but not 5 soul spheres in one level, unless it had a rather good reason (ie. secret level with a cyb in it).
to keep it doom 1 e3 style, invuls should be common (around 1 per 2 levels), but invisibilitys should be rarer. backpacks should be common as well, and also beserks. imps (and quite a lot of them) are acceptable, as long there isn't 25 in one room, unless a plasma rifle or 2-3 medikits are nearby. just my 2 cents.

Share this post


Link to post

Oh and lets not forget!

Style-If the map is called cavern and looks like a military base then well. That just sucks. If its called cavern well damnit I expect to see it look like a damn cavern.

Share this post


Link to post

Captmellow: awesome idea. I remember Fanatic was going to do something similar, but I don't think it ever took off.

When I did reviews for Team Insanity (I'll continue after Millennium is released), I began a rating system that went like this:

Item Placement: This counted for things like weapons, health and ammo, as well as decorations like torches, lights, candleabras, bodies, etc. I suppose this rating could be broken down into decorations and equipment if necessary.

Monster Placement: This goes somewhat hand-in-hand with the Item Placement category, but I figure it was worthy of it's own category. If there wasn't enough ammo or health to keep up with monsters, I usually deducted it from the Item Placement category under the idea that it was too little ammo, instead of too many monsters. Things I counted in this category besides the obvious were if the author used any tricks with monsters, such as pick up a red key and suddenly 6 hell knights teleport in, or walk down a hall and have monsters pop up out of the ground; surprises like that which go beyond just sticking guys in a room. Likewise, I'd take away points if they had a load of revenants 3,000 pixels across a giant open space which would be impossible to kill no matter how many bullets or rockets you fired over there.

Level Design/Layout: This is where all things like lighting, atmosphere, theme, texturing, etc. come together. Did the lighting make sense, did the level suddenly go from tech to hell without a reason, did the author create a totally real environment, totally fantastic, inconsistent, sloppy?

Gameplay: This could be seen as a mix of the first three, but I based it on how well they came together as a whole.

Innovativity: This is basically how original the level was. Is it a rehash of everything everybody's ever done, or is it a totally unique map? Do they use new concepts, new tricks, new architecture, new themes?

Misc: Sometimes I add categories based on addition things the author put in the map, like new sprites, new textures, new music, and how well each of those work with the overall map.

And then, I give it an overall rating.

Hope that helps a little.

Share this post


Link to post

Likewise, I'd take away points if they had a load of revenants 3,000 pixels across a giant open space which would be impossible to kill no matter how many bullets or rockets you fired over there.

Well maybe if you used a MOUSE they wouldn't be invincible.

Use the chaingun. The first two shots out of it have pinpoint perfect autoaim on them. Just keep tapping the button as you aim at them, they'll go down in no time.

Share this post


Link to post

Well maybe if you used a MOUSE they wouldn't be invincible.

They AREN'T "invincible", they're just 1 pixel tall. It takes at least 4 times as much ammo to kill them when they're roaming around on some island that far away. In the map I was talking about, everywhere you went those damn homing rockets were following you non-stop.

Share this post


Link to post

I like dis idea ve'y much. Ve'y much indeed. Where do we fin' it when i's done? I wanna review an sp. wad. Can' wait till dis is done. For me gameplay should weigh the most. How fun is the level. Then other things can come after that like how pretty it is or how much frickin' detail there is and all that happy crap.

Share this post


Link to post
Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.
Sign in to follow this  
×