DM-BlastPit
Map Info
	File Name dm-blastpit.zip Author shaithis Gametype UT Deathmatch Date Added 10-05-2001 File Version 1.00 File Size 787 kb Player Count 12-16 Map Description None Review Rating 5 User Rating 5.5 Overall Rating 5
Review
Reviewer ArcadiaVincennes Awe Score:  1.0/3 Date 05-07-2005 Build Score:  2.5/3 Review Schema Cast Score:  1.5/3 User Point:  0 Overall Score:  5/10 DM-BlastPit (UT99) A multilevel plaform map that, thankfully, is not floating in space. Instead, it's floating on green slime and the overall map is just slightly more appealing than that. AWE: 1.0 The textures are very basic here. Rusty metallic platforms joined by rusty metallic ramps with rusty metallic light poles and some stone around the outside. It's all the same, it's bland and monotonous and the only positive aspect is that at least it's not all brown. Some of the stone textures are certainly not aligned and some of the rest of the textures are not as well but none but the stone textures are really obvious. In general it's just a very drab pallette. The lighting is very much a mixed bag. Half of the lights come from either light poles or overhead fixtures. Most of the light comes from the open sky, and colored square lights set in the floor of the platforms. These lights are colored red blue and green and really interfere with the lighting cast by pretty much everything else. They're oversaturated, and spread too far. For example there's a green floor light directly beneath a white ceiling fixture. Instead of the white fixture's white light, blending with the surrounding light, and then muting the green light, the green light overpowers the white light and caused the surrounding walls and ceiling to look like both lights are casting green light. Most of the colored lights are this strong and have too much of a colorizing effect on the map as a whole. The remainder of the lights are all white which is especially dubious the lower you go in the map because eventually you should reach a point where the white light reflects off the slime pool green and begins to reflect that back up onto the nearby surfaces - which is certainly does not. However, no where is too dark so at least you'll be able to see the unnappealing light. As for architecture, the map doesn't have a lot to say. Platforms and ramps, platforms and ramps, all the low-grav instagib players love platforms and ramps. There are 3 central areas that break out of this layout curse but they don't help matters much by doing this. On the lowest level is a wide, cylindrical 'room' accessible by a spiral staircase. In here we have the shield belt. Next center area above is a long straight extended platform running across the level with low sides to promote jumping. There's nothing really all that exciting here. Finally, there's an enclosed platform/walkway with no ceiling. Nothing exciting here either and because of the walls, you don't have the option of jumping down to the next lower platform. The only interesting piece of architecture in the entire map is the tops of the walls on the highest platform area. Octagonal forms top the walls here and I, personally, like this. Too bad the author didn't extend the idea anywhere else in the map. Finally, there aren't many obvious supports holding up the whole structure so it doesn't really feel all that solid. The texture work is bland and homogenous, the lighting although using good brightness overall, lets the colors dominate, and the architecture is uninspiring. BUILD: 2.5 Despite the visual deficiencies, the map is built fairly well. I was particularly impressed by the author's use of ambient sounds although they were flawed. The author used various general ambient sounds on the basic three levels of the map. Also, the author used more locational ambient sounds at four different points around the outside bottom of the map which was a nice idea but the sounds chosen don't mesh with the overall map. The sounds are predominantly jungle and/or forest sounds when there isn't a scrap of vegetation to be seen. The central lower cylindar housing the shield belt is awkward to ascend due to the narrowness of the stairs and I never saw the bots go for it once. Finally, the overall layout of the map prohibits use of zoning so optimization is a bit lax. In general, some bad design decisions affect the build and although this suthor went furthur with ambient sound than most, his choices in sound selection are suspect. CAST: 1.5 Lots of z-axis and plenty of weapons would make one think this is a pretty good map in terms of gameplay, right? Well, normally yes, but using solely ramps and the addition of the weapon layout, actually caused the gameplay to be not so much of a blast after all. Practically each platform has two weapons on it. This is overkill. Too many weapons too close together renders a lot of strategy lost completely and it turns into more of a spam match. Also, although bots don't intrinsically have problems with ramps, they're easily distracted by enemies. The ramps, combined with the openness of the map, means that the bots do try to ascend the ramps but quickly get distracted by other opponents and jump down to attack. This means that the lower area is, by far, the most active area because the only bots playing above are the ones that spawned there. Another problem is that aside from the weapons, the bots have no good reason to go to the top level. One would expect that there would be a great big prize at the center of the top-most platform/corridor. But all there is is some ammo, health, and, in the center, a set of thighpads. Perhaps if the shieldbelt or damage amp were placed top-center, the bots would have more of an impetus to ascend the structure. Despite the amount of z-axis, this is a map much more suuited to human players but the preponderence of weapons and ammo will usually turn it into a spam-match. The big picture here is that DM-BlastPit isn't so much of a blast to play. It suffers from bland, homogenous texturing, overcolored lighting, unrelaistic, uninspriing architecture, suspect bot play, and no incentive to ascend the structure. It will probably be good for low-grav instagib play but other than that it's pretty much a miss.
Map Comments
Manticore 04-23-2005 07:00 PM MDT Rating: 5.5   Played this map years ago. Was o.k. platform action; that's all. Average...... Defeat 04-23-2005 09:28 PM MDT Rating: 5.5   >Fun but needs trim and a sniper rifle.