DM-AbandonedCity][
Map Info
	File Name dm-abandonedcityii.zip Author timschat Gametype UT Deathmatch Date Added 12-03-2002 File Version 1.00 File Size 3.49 mb Player Count 8-12 Map Description None Review Rating 3 User Rating 4.5 Overall Rating 4.0
Review
Reviewer Mister_Prophet Awe Score:  0.5/3 Date 01-01-2003 Build Score:  1.0/3 Review Schema Cast Score:  1.5/3 User Point:  +1 Overall Score:  4.0/10 Anyone who knows me knows that I like Urban maps. I downloaded this map hoping for that theme I cherished in such maps as DM-UrbanArea and DM-Sleepytown. Sadly, I didn't find AbandonedCity][ very good as either an Urban themed map or map in general. The map uses custom texture packs, among them is the classic a3 one from Urban Arena. This pack is the Rich Rig of urban maps, and likewise it is overused. 9 times out of 10 it is used in boring fashion, as in the case of this map. Visually, the map is nothing new and nothing inspiring. Architecture is bland and simple, made up of mostly cubes. Littered around the map are a bunch of UT decorations and a few tables and chairs from the Nali maps of Unreal 1. None of these decorations fit the theme of a city, they are either alien or high tech. When there is an actual city decoration made by brushwork, like a dumpster or a door, it is made very basically and usually out of one shape. Lighting is also simple and I didn't notice any color besides white. Bots could navigate ok I guess, they weren't especially gifted at stragety and When I was in a window snipering down at like 10 of them they couldn't really take me out until one stumbled upon me via elevator. I also found item placement spread out and alot of dead ends were in the map. I've heard reports that this map causes slowdown, but after playing 4 straight rounds I gotta say that those reports are utter B.S., this map runs fine. If it is running slow, your computer is ancient, there is nowhere near enough detail in this map to give anyone problems. Get some freakin ram. The Prophet's Verdict: This map does not even rank with the classic Urban maps of UT, but you should still check it out if you need some more urban maps in your blood or you just like sniper maps. The design is simple and will turn off people looking for beauty. It ain't pretty, but it plays ok as a simple sniper map despite the dead ends and I suspect it will run on a few servers.
Map Comments
Fernando 08-31-2003 09:43 AM MDT Rating: 3   I was somewhat disappointed with this map. The readme file warns the user that, quote: "The map may slow down on older machines." "I created these textures from photographic sources." I have a 1 giga-hertz computer with 128 ram. I turned down the graphics choices to 'low' for world and skin detail and set the game resolution to 640x480 16 bit. Even with these changes, the map lagged with the minimum recommendation for number of bots. The lag was frequent enough to make the open areas unenjoyable to play. The AI for the bots are well pathed, however, and they seem to have no trouble moving from place to place in the city. Items and health are hard to come by. Playerstarts are near weapons, however. The readme promises: "Weapons: Enhanced Shock Rifle, Flak Cannon, Ripper, Sniper Rifle, Enforcer, Pulse Blaster, Redeemer, GES Bio Rifle, Minigun, ASMD Shock Rifle, Rocket Launcher Armor and PowerUps: Invisibility, Health Packs, Shield Belt, Anti Grav Boots, Health Vials, Damage Amplifier, Armor, Keg O' Health, Tight Pads" But I could not locate the 'Enhanced Shock Rifle.' Opening the map with the editor and searching for the 'SuperShockRifle' as the editor knows it, the 'Enhanced Shock Rifle' still eluded me. (I did not modify the map) I'm actually glad I did not find it because I believe the weapon bogs down gameplay when everyone does not have it. Opportunities for Z-axis combat are included in the city, though most fighting does take place on the flat streets. There are sniping positions and a few buildings have roof access that allow the player to snipe from buildings overlooking the city square. The strength of the map lies in the exploration of it. This map is very large and many buildings can be entered. All of the buildings are well-lit on the inside as well as the outside. Lighting poses a problem in this map, as most of the lighting comes from plain, ambient zone lighting. There are streetlights that attempt alleviate the problem with colored lighting lens flares, but they are not enough. Music is also a problem in the map. It is non-existant. There are some well-placed ambient sounds, however. Changing the settings in the game to 1280x1024 32 bit and 'high' detail, (and removing the bots),The city has realistic and appropriate texturing. Still, the lack of strong lighting hinders the graphics and dulls the experience. "Warning: The centerpiece fountain does not actually contain water, do not dive into it." Bottom Line: If you like urban combat and have a top-of-the-line computer, this is an average to below average map you might enjoy. EDIT: Get some skills! timschat 01-01-2003 09:40 PM MST   Cmon, maybe you would have more fun with a REAL computer ;) Anyone playing UT with 128MB is quite ... well ... optimistic ;) Anyway, youre right about the enhanced shock rifle and wrong about the the ambient lighting ;) Finally, you tend to give bad scores to all maps that suck performancewise on your machine ? Hell, youre missing something ! FlakMonkey 01-01-2003 11:02 PM MST Rating: 7   I agree Get a real computer, I enjoyed the map UnknownSpecies8472 01-02-2003 04:29 AM MST Rating: 6   city maps are cool in principle, hard to present effectively. This isnt any more or less pretty than most city maps. my comp has no problems with it at all. Not bad. Better then most city maps. would have liked more things to do or see inside the buildings. i like it gyokusai 01-02-2003 06:52 AM MST Rating: 4   @Fernando: my "smallest" machine is a 1-Gig-Rig too, with a Matrox Millenium G450 (!). It got 512MB RAM though, and guess what: with medium settings at 1024x768, AbandondedCity runs as smooth as silk. Get! Some! Ram! Bot40 01-04-2003 08:39 AM MST Rating: 3   The map doesn't run properly on a medium UT rig. Lets penalize the score...oh, but wait, it run really well on a really leet rig, I know, let's give it a 8/10. That really makes sense O_o The map sucks, period. If it doesn't run well on lower end systems, that's a flaw in the maps design. Period. All UT maps should run smoothly on a rig with 128Mb ram. Look at CTF-Shadar for example, absoloutly huge map, loads of detail, runs fine on a 700Mhz 128Mb ram and a TNT2... This is just a standard Urban map with no decent visuals or decent lighting, that loses more marks for not being able to run on a medium system. The end. Cat Fuzz 01-05-2003 01:25 AM MST Rating: 2   A 1gig computer should have no trouble running any UT map, especially with all the stuff turned down. Obviously a design flaw. UT is 3 years old now? A top of the line comp 3 years ago was, what, 500 megahertz? Think about it. Sir Xavius 12-07-2005 02:13 PM MST Rating: 4.5   Medium polys, a little boring, no music, yes, that's all true... It seemed the bots got stuck in a couple of places where the only way out was by elevetor, but otherwise bots seemed to do okay... With all that said, the layout was decent — open streets, a few nooks and crannies, places to camp and defend. If you find it too boring (not much to explore, tedious texturing, etc.), apply a couple of mutators, namely Volatile Ammo (that's fun anywhere) and Spell UNREAL. I believe these came with one of the mutatuor packs. Anyway, it gives you something to do between frags. All in all, seeing that i love city maps, this isn't the best, but it's certainly not the worst.