What makes a good map?

[slate inlet]

I'm not sure where this is best posted, but I think this place fits best. I'd much appreciate your opinions on something: What do you guys think makes a map good - balanced, fun, replayable, etc - for 1v1, Small Team, Large Team & FFA?

[reef acorn]

According to the number of lobbies, a map is good if it is named Supreme Isthmus.

[dark oar]

my personal opinion is that a map where the balance shine is a good map, mariposa comes to mind. tidal, solar and wind are all viable, theres sea but its on the outside of the map so the sea to land balance disparity is offset by strategic location and opportunity cost, theres mex you can only reach with air and its mostly flat for vehicle but has reclaim for bots.

what makes a map popular though is definitely
replayability (wind variance, strong side weak side, etc)
accelerated gameplay (high avg wind / tidal / mex income)
and big defender advantage so that games last longer (elongated/opposite corner maps)

[turbid garden]

my idea of a good map in 8v8 is basically

decent/high metal income
mexs to fight over in specific locations, they allow snowballing but also are harder to defend which means a potentially weaker frontline

examples are rosetta, glitters, that one map with 0.8m and a 10m mex in the middle with reclaim, isthmus kinda (but its kinda easy to defend), flats and forests, the one that looks like flats and forests with geos and hills

ability to raid people, usually larger maps with more exploitable openings, allows for punishing plays, greeding etc

high metal income / high wind income without 1 min

larger maps, kinda sucks to play this game without good amount of space

no water (no one plays that sht and its always so snowbally)

GEOS

Reclaim to fight over

[slate inlet]

Thanks for the response!

[slate inlet]

Thanks!

[quiet venture]

In my opinion, the best maps are maps where M income is high, and in major chokepoints to fight over, and on the E side all options of E generation (wind, solar, and even tidals)
I also like maps which use specific terrain in such a way to allow for unique raiding tactics in unconventional ways (Salt Reef with the ponds where you can send hovers play/duck and eventually marauders comes to mind)

Larger maps with flats and hills also come to mind so that neither bots nor vehicles have an explicit major advantage

I would also say that maps with all-front would be good, since an all-front match means that if you want to get crafty you'd have to make the tradeoff of having your team as a support
Like if you want to prepare a sudden airstrike on say esker creek you can rely on your team to help defend while you ready your bombers to take out an enemy com

[quiet venture]

Also, maps where sea either isn't present, or isn't required for game domination are very important for a good map currently, due to the currently awful naval balance (the worst offenders imo include maps like Melting Glacier and Red River, where as soon as one of the dedicated sea players fall, the team whose player fell basically auto-loses no matter how well the rest of the team is faring)

[slate inlet]

I like maps where, as you sort of where getting at with all-fronts maps, contesting sea means taking focus and pressure off front. No matter if sea is won, if front is lost game is lost.

[spark grail]

being a copy of Painted Desert from TA is what makes a map good yw

[deep elbow]

Copy other popular RTS maps

[idle sleet]

Prioritizing different areas is possible, different unit strategies possible (I.e t1 and t2 lab diversity)

Both land/navy are important. The map and lanes do not have an obvious best way to play them.

Advanced things is use of slope to subtly balance vehicle and bot. E.g. ark valley. There are lots of features or ramps that are more restrictive to vehicles. You can take advantage of them if you study the map.

[lofty storm]

Make the map chokey like rosetta, ithmth, and glitters.

[slate inlet]

Chokey maps are kind of boring though. But I don’t know if I’d call glitters and rosetta chokey. Isthmus for sure though.

[lofty storm]

But they are easy thats why people love em

[prisma hearth]

like this https://www.beyondallreason.info/map/painted-desert ?

[spark grail]

OP

[slate inlet]

That's awesome 🔥

[spark grail]

I think it may be missing default spawn boxes

[slate inlet]

Played a 1v1 on it just now. Didn't seem to miss them

[spark grail]

maybe a bug

[slate inlet]

Maybe

[prisma hearth]

1v1 does not use the boxes, its just spawn points, they are defined

boxes are taking more time to sync, so it will be there tomorrow i believe. you can jsut set up boxes yourself for now

[slate inlet]

Ah

But spawning is confined to a box even in 1v1. What's the difference?

[solar dome]

@prisma hearth can you make it a bit more symmetrical so i can include it in Sigma Series_

[prisma hearth]

original map is not very symmetrical 🙂
whats sigma series?

[jolly trench]

Lots of metal, stupid high wind, geos, and a sea

[vernal cipher]

has alot of mountaisn idk abt it make canyons instead imo. the theme is very cool though