Date: 06-10-99 Teams: 3 File: HZgamev2.zip Players: 9 per team (27 max.) Game: TFC Size: Large Briefing: It kinda grows on ya...

Hazard Course: Deadly Game v2

The beginning...

Look familiar?

Watch your step...

The flag's over there somewhere!

Author: Bluestrike McQueen | Reviewer: Borg

Objective:

Join the Blue Red or Yellow team and try to make it to the finish [flag]. Only class allowed is the civilian (AKA the hunted). The acid is deadly, so are the other players crowbars.

Scoring:

Making it to the finish will reward your team with 50 points.

Evaluation:

The author states that this map was inspired by the Valve hazard course map included with the game, and it certainly does stay true to form. You'll recognize one or maybe 2 areas, but the author was original enough to dream up some pretty good obstacles all by himself. Some people didn't like it at all, but most found it fun for a while. This would be a good free-for-all TFC map, and may find an audience for it's novel approach.

I guess I should mention that the author is an active clan member, for the clan Wildcards, and his efforts in mapping have definitely been influenced by this involvement. This can be a positive thing, as experience working with a clan can teach you an important thing, teamwork!

Construction of the map was pretty good overall, and I didn't see to many errors. Everything lined up nicely, and the colors weren't too overpowering. Some additional lighting in the flag area might have been nice, but I think this was left dark to allow some sneak attacks to happen. There were some pretty funny instances were we chased each other around the flag, trying to brain one another, just for the fun of it. The theme was actually pretty good, as the author achieved what he was looking for, a team hazard course. While not anything original, at least he had a gameplan.

Layout was clean, due to the linear design of the map. There's no ammo or health packs to worry about, you just run, run, run! You have the standard civilian umbrella, so match-ups in the main launch room can get pretty brutal. You can't make a wrong turn on this one, which helped greatly in assuring that everyone could focus on the game. My only gripe is about the floor button, which was too low in profile for people to actually recognize. A wall mounted unit might have been the better choice here. True to the maps design, this was a true hazard course, so your ability to get from start to finish was supposed to be impaired. Some funny moments were had when watching opponents make the wrong step.

Teamwork was actually pretty good on this map. Although it's a hazard course, and the original design was to teach you how to play the game, adding the team mate perspective didn't hurt it's implementation. You could actually make team efforts to get the door to the course open, while holding back opponents until your team made it through the door. Once through, strong teamwork could successfully dominate, and ensure your team would reach the finish. Strategy wasn't a strong point, but with a limited scope of play, and choices (none) of classes, this didn't really matter much. I'd recommend this one to aspiring clans out there to cut their teeth on, and get a little more comfortable with playing under pressure.

Verdict:

Not too bad, but not too good. This map was fun for a lot of the testers during our playtest, but it does get old after a bit. A good idea, and one you don't see very often, but it's not much more than a one-hit-wonder. Try it, and see for yourself, but only if you've gotten all your other "must-have" maps.

Delta Bravo Final Score: 
- 26/50 -