(Note: This map originally reviewed on 25/10/00)
Yet another map appears where I know nothing of the author. I was only able to find it on the rather iffy <!-- BBCode u2 Start -->
WonSwap<!-- BBCode u2 End --> site, where there seem to be many horrendous levels lurking. However, this map has pretty much made me forget about the evils of the snipe duo and other maps that are too evil to speak their name (yet...), as it's actually quite good.
Quite good in a sense that it's fun to play- but it's one of the ugliest (indoor) maps I've yet seen (not ugly as in just-not-made-very-well). It's a tiny arena that looks like something out of the Quake or Unreal series <<!-- BBCode Start -->
spits> if you've ever had the misfortune of playing them. It also has the frantic gibbing action of them, too. The level is just a floor, with a few walkways going around the edges. There's plenty of powerful weapons and ammo lying around for anyone to pick up, and at either end of the level there's an HEV or health charger. Next to these are either the gauss or RPG- you can tell as soon as you see this level you're not going to live for very long...
I've already said that this is a damn ugly level. Textures are all grey and boring, and lighting is often overdone. For instance, over the health charger there's a huge white light, which is a fairly un-inspired structure too. Other lighting is provided by strips of blue or greenish lighting, which, although it works, looks a bit basic. At least it's not entity lighting! There's some fairly odd architecture to go with it too- for example, stairs leading up to the health/HEV chargers start off as steps, then change to a ramp, then stairs again, which is a nice invention, if unsightly.
Although powerful weapons are within the grasp of anybody who can do so little as to move their player around the game, they work fairly well with this tiny level. More often than not, you'll either kill yourself with the RPG hitting someone close by (or the gauss will hit a weird edge and ricochet back, killing you). Due to all the corridors, you're also likely to be caught in crossfire, and the roof is too low to effectively gauss jump out of there. Most of the time though you'll be using the 9mmAR (and there's plenty of ammo/grenades to go with it), which is effective in this kind of level- but again, you'll probably kill yourself with the grenades. I can't remember seeing any batteries or health kits, so the only place to heal yourself is at the vulnerable chargers- each of which can be seen from much of the level, and there's 3 entrances to the small room in which they're contained.
One of the most annoying features of this map is that it's only one of two OP4 maps that I know has the evil hornet gun in- PLEASE mappers out there don't include this weapon unless it's sitting upon a land mine! It's situated in a small crate room which makes it seem like the author's jump key wasn't working properly. There are lots of tiny 8 X 8 sized crates going all the way up to the full sized 64 X 64 arranged so that you can just walk up the crates as if they were stairs! I'd say it was lazy, but it's not- it's just pointless really.
As can be expected from these puny little levels, r_speeds are perfect, so the only thing that'll slow down your level are all the explosions that'll be occurring all around you! It's a shame this level doesn't look any better, because if it did it would be a truly awesome map. Now do excuse me, I'm off to join the server which I saw earlier that runs this map.
*Yeah I know I said that it's fun 'cos the game play is like Quake etc., but I hate Quake as, um, well...
Design
It's dark, grey and full of boring structures. Like your garage I suppose. 3 marks.
Gameplay
Like the frantic bits out of Datacore, or the unmentionable other-game-beginning-with-Q. But maybe too cramped... 4 marks
Verdict
Very ugly map. Very ugly corpses littering the floor everywhere too. Sweeeeeeet.
Pros
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Design
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