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Did you like the flag capping on the luxurious boulevard of CTF-Boardwalk? Yes? Well then...get on board. We're sailing out for more flags on our beloved planet earth. This time, I'll guide you through a Chinese harbor, where the two sides of a canal become a war of attrition in an effort to conquer a bit of linen.
A closer look into the setting reveals something I'd like to call a "layered theme." By this, I mean that there is no single unifying theme, but three to four, gradually shifting into each other. The center consists of the already-mentioned canal. A big sampan (a traditional Chinese boat) divides the level into a red and a blue part. Alongside those is a wall, on which blossoming trees invite the players to go on. This initial beauty quickly fades; directly behind this lays a slum consisting of garbage bags, empty noodle boxes, and some grubby couches in squatted quarters. On the other side is a majestic, 'L'-shaped lane. This street spans over the actual base: an old complex with abandoned computers, broken glass and all-seeing cameras. All in all, it's pretty varied. It misses some overall consistency, if you ask me. However, the micro level makes up for this: the oriental theme is omnipresent, and it's topped of with orange. The boat is orange, the pavement is orange, there's an orange skybox...even the garbage cans are orange!
Lighting is rather interesting. The different parts of the map are lit in a different fashion that creates different yet believable moods. The colours are brighter than usual (even more so than in CTF-Boardwalk) and show a beautiful pattern of light, dimmed light, and shadows. It's kind of strange that there's a completely bright sky while it's raining, but I have seen this happen in Real Life as well (though not during the sunset period). This rain, however, brings me to the worst part of the map: framerates. There is much detail in the level, which comes at the price of low framerates. If there is any difference between the detail levels, I don't notice the influence here: it's all (or almost all) full quality. I even mentioned this to Marsfyre when the map was in beta status, but since this rain isn't used as a normal weather effect (it's done through emitters...for performance reasons), it can't be turned off. As a result, framerates are considerably lower than average for a CTF map.
The layout of the map is more than playable: the standard "three ways in and out of the flag room" rule works perfectly, and the routes intersect many a times with a good bunch of corners on the way to the other side. I have the impression that the sewer route was more popular than the other ones (albeit slightly confusing), but the upper routes contain by far the most pickups and opportunities. That sewer route is intentionally cramped, by the way. A pack of attackers can't give each other cover while retreating with the flag, but the fights are so quick that defenders usually don't have a chance to return the flag before the attackers behind the carrier picks it up. It's also worth noting that there is no way out between the flagroom and the center, only a way in. Other than that, flow is pretty fine...on the macro level. Canal suffers a bit of the "Avaris syndrome" - the large amount of decoration hinders swift movement. At least it's positioned so it doesn't allow for a multitude of flag hiding spots; the level seems even balanced nicely between offensive and defensive (though these things are hard to predict with just bots).
Item placement is as it should be. Not too close by...not too far apart...not too much...not too little: a classic example of how it should be done. There is no supershield, but a keg and two small shields make up for this.
From playing around with our computer-controlled friends, I mostly remember how eager these guys were to use the sewer route; it's as if they didn't like the other routes (probably because these are more populated). Other than that, they do what they expect you to do, with one exception: next to the keg is an entrance to the flag room that requires some box jumping. As you can expect when multiple jumps are required, bots take "somewhat" longer to climb it than normal. Also as you can expect, they mainly need extra time when they're carrying a flag. :-\ It only happened to me once (in about 90 minutes of playtime), but it wasn't a fun experience...
And now for the summary of this map... Hmm...erm...Hmm. Gimme a minute, here. This isn't easy. Not easy at all. And there are two reasons for that. One of them is that I beta tested this one. Under normal circumstances, I never do both beta-support and a review of the same map (personal integrity rule). However, there is no such thing as a "normal circumstance" if the task involves creativity (no matter whether it's mapping, writing, coding, or anything else), so here it is. A map that I don't know how to evaluate. :-\
The other reason for this end-review rant is that the map itself doesn't make it easy on me. There is nothing wrong with it. It's got better visuals than gameplay, but...there's nothing wrong. If only there was something extraordinarily good about it, then there would be no problem. But that isn't the case either. It's just...it's just a map. For once, I hope that people don't read the review, but rather download it based on the score and see for themselves (and then read the review afterwards, of course). Usually, I grade maps based on a scale somewhere between "the perfect map" and the 100% average map, considering what I've written in the review. Not here; at first, I used the Insite marking scale, but it isn't a perfect point of reference. Therefore, I used some maps I'm familiar with to determine a score for CTF-Canal. It may not be a good way to enforce objectivity within maps, but it was a good way to solve my dilemma...
Bottom Line: Slightly better in the visual department than in gameplay, but worth trying.
Score: 6.5
Average User Score: 7.3 (4 scores)
(marking schema)
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Manticore
Score: 7.0
Both gameplay and construction in this map were problematic. The theme really was the strong point.
2006-02-02 19:43:13
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The Warden
this map DEFINETLY looks cool, but the map is plagued by tight corners, where you are nothing more than flak primary bait.
2006-01-15 11:37:43
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Virgo47
Score: 7.5
Uh... there's nothing to add. ;-) Another map I tried and I like it - although not for a longterm playing. ;-) So I'm just joining the 7.5 crowd. ;-)
2006-01-12 05:36:20
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T2A`
Score: 7.5
TW's right: this map *is* fairly hard to score. In the end, I enjoyed the theme quite a bit, though I think it could use a little toning down with the overbearing oranges and yellows. The gameplay, though not the map's strong point, isn't bad. It's a bit cramped and limited, but I've seen much worse in maps that don't look half as good.
2006-01-11 23:15:00
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Icarus
Score: 7.5
Really interesting theme, which I guess is executed pretty well, seeing as there is no other medium to judge it by. A bit cramped in the sewer area, and the flag rooms are somewhat bland. Overall pretty interesting.
2006-01-11 16:00:41
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