CEONSS

It's time to take out of the box my new map (and maybe the last/almost from srcatch), started almost two years ago, that i wanted to be very simple and that was quite different to the end, originally based on the environment inspired from the stock map ONS-frostbyte focused on 32 players, mixed with somes ideas based on somes elements of DM-Albatross finally heavily transformed with external tools, custom sounds and StaticMeshs and lots of stuffs, with an external part that could practically have been sufficient on its own and an internal part more oriented towards pedestrians although vehicles could still be present.

But let's avoid big speeches now and hope you'll appreciate it.

ONS-MaxFrostmurii

Well done.

What looks cool like Frostbite but is better than Frostbiiiite? Frostmurrrrriiiite!

I really love what you've created here. It has the nice atmosphere of Frostbite without the frustration of the choke node and exhausting gameplay.
The map is very atmospheric with the thunder and lightning effects, especially with the moody dark smoke/clouds. I think adding some falling snow would complete the feeling of being inside or close to an approaching snowstorm. I would also consider making the tunnels a bit less bright.

The layout of this map is relatively complex, with two "floors" or levels in the center of the map. I think this gives both pedestrians (in the underground level) and vehicles in the upper level plenty of room to duel without making the center area feel crowded.

At the same time, it may be a bit difficult for our players to learn the layout of this map, in particular because of the team-controlled gates. I'm also a bit concerned that players will abandon a lot of vehicles when they want to reach the underground area (if the gates are closed by the other team). The upper level, where most of the vehicle action will take place, is also very hilly and I would suggest to flatten it a bit. It is also difficult to get from the core or primaries to 7 and 8 in a ground-bound vehicle. I think it will be a good idea to decrease the respawn time of vehicles. Is there any way to adjust the time when a vehicle disappears after it has been abandoned (only for this map)?

There are also teleporters from the center node (9) to the two other nodes on the underground level (5 and 6). I would remove those teleporters because I think the team that wins the center node could overrun the other two nodes too easily. Nodes 5 and 6 are on the same level, so reaching them should not be too difficult (I hope). I would also remove the PPC tank there, because I think it will dominate the area too much.

Here are some more random thoughts:

I love that there are many vehicles available at the bases. There shouldn't be any transportation problems.

Some of the snowy rocks at the primaries don't make sense. That is because they are covered in snow on all sides. The ruin at the right primary looks a bit out of place. If you compare it to the other architecture, the bricks are much larger and the wall is simply too thick (the walls in the castles are all relatively thin). Maybe there is a broken pillar or some loose bricks that could go here? It may be difficult to find nodes 7 and 8. I think if you add stairs from the ice paths, it would give a visual clue where players have to go. It would be enough to have a few steps or broken stairs. The alternative would be to flatten the terrain there, to help ground-bound vehicles reach those two nodes. I really like the cave nodes. I think the design looks really cool! But Dally is confused by the castles/towers around the nodes. I would suggest to make the tower next to the node shorter (or move it) so that players can see the light from the node when they enter the cave. They should not be able to shoot it from the entrance, but they should be able to see the beam of light from the node. I'm confused by the design of the paths at nodes 5 and 6. There are stairs in the middle (in the green circle) that go down. Then there are stairs at the sides that go up and down again... and behind the wall with the green circle, there is an elevator to the top.
I think it would be easier to push the main tunnel (with the green circle) back. That will allow for more space at the node. On top of the tower (with the green circle), you could have the elevator to the top. That way, if the players are going up, they know that they will reach the surface.
And instead of the stairs at the sides that go up and down again, an archway is enough. I hope I could explain this... I love the addition of the CEONSS logo to the minimap! Thank you for that! I think a dark grey background (like this forum's color maybe?) would have a better contrast with the logo, though.

I hope I could provide some ideas. Really great work, I'm looking forward to this map a lot!

First of all, I am very impressed with what you have been able to put together with this map. It really feels like a classic onslaught map and what Frostbite should have been. The atmosphere and environment is quite different to the majority of the maps we have on the server, so it's a breath of fresh (very chilly) air. Good work, Gloups!

I will list all the things came to mind while I was looking around the map. I think the map could pretty much be put on the server as it is after a few minor changes for balancing and navigation.

Environment and Pathing

• The bot pathing at node 4 seems to confuse the bots and causes them to pile up on a nearby hill (as shown below) and crash into each other several times before they finally find their way (or abandon their vehicles and go on foot). Maybe you could take a look there?

  

  Bot pathing not working.png (728.31 KiB) Viewed 11824 times

• I like how the gates are locked when a team gets a node, but I fear this will simply lead to confusion as there is no obvious visual clue as to why they are locked, and so players will not understand it (at least not initially) and will simply get frustrated. Additionally, the bots don't understand the concept of closed gates and get stuck on them.
  I think it's fine to keep them for now, but perhaps review them after we have a few trial runs on the server.
• The photo below seems to indicate a path towards one of the hill nodes due to its darker texture, and if you follow it does indeed lead you the node. However, I don't think it's obvious and I missed it the first time when going around.
  It would be good if you could make these hill paths more obvious by, for example, darkening the ground (to indicate wear and tear), placing a few trees along it, placing treadmarks on the ground, and/or by reducing the incline a little. The latter suggestion is because it is not obvious at first glance that vehicles can climb this path since it looks rather steep.

  

  Hill path.png (981.99 KiB) Viewed 11824 times

• The cave area is quite confusing. It is not clear where paths or portals lead and it is easy to get lost. If possible, reduce the number of paths in this area (which helps to lead more conflict as players have to take the same path) and/or add more visual direction, for example in the form of arrows pointing to nodes/areas.
• The portals at node 6 and node 5 (which lead to DD) do not teleport you back to the node, which is the opposite of what one expects as portals are nornally bi-directional. It is also not obvious how you get back to the node from the portal and it might be a bit annoying to have navigate back with DD.
  I would recommend making those portals bi-directional and adding more portals which lead to the various areas.

Pickups and Vehicles

• A lot of the map is empty without any incentive to look around or explore. It would be good if the corners of the maps had some pick-ups, for example super shield and big kegs.
• It would also be good to have smaller pickups like health and 50 shield near and around the primaries. This will help make fighting around a node more interesting as the health could save you during/after a duel.
• The portal to the raptor at the cores could be made obvious, or perhaps replaced with a jumppad for a bit of variety.
• The PPC tank is far too powerful to offer at two nodes. When one team gets both nodes, they can teleport onto the hill area and just camp there and rain death down below. I would suggest replacing them at their current spawns with badgers (or anything weaker) and spawning one PPC tank in the middle node.
• There is no weapon locker at node 1.