How the hell do I design a good map
- Thread starter Nixon
- Start date
Practice. If you make a lot of maps they will get better, and soon enough you can make good, fun maps.
Putting a lot of thought into what you want to make and how what you are making achieves that as you make it - and if it doesnt dont keep that. That seems like a good idea, though personally i cant really do that - give it a shot though!
Putting a lot of thought into what you want to make and how what you are making achieves that as you make it - and if it doesnt dont keep that. That seems like a good idea, though personally i cant really do that - give it a shot though!
The guys and gals who make really good maps nowadays have an infinitely bigger backlog of really shitty maps they made years ago. Same goes for all creative pursuits.
And on top of that, nobody's first draft is perfect.
You just gotta keep at it. If you enjoy what you do, you'll have no problem.
And on top of that, nobody's first draft is perfect.
You just gotta keep at it. If you enjoy what you do, you'll have no problem.
It's simple. Just make a giant block the size of your entire map, then use the carve tool to remove everything that isn't a good map.
But seriously as already said, it takes practice.
You make your first map to throw away. Don't even release it. Seriously. And after that, you still make lots of maps that you never release. Small maps to test ideas. Rooms that just have stacks of brushes just so you can understand how verticality feels from first person. Areas that are just long stretches of weird displacement practice. And so on. Whatever little random idea you get, toss it in Hammer.
And of course, play the game a lot, too. Every class. Even the classes you hate. Understanding how the classes work together and against goes a long way towards understanding what works well in a map.
Over time, those little experiments and a greater understanding of how the classes work will naturally come together in a map that you'll actually want to develop and craft into something special.
But seriously as already said, it takes practice.
You make your first map to throw away. Don't even release it. Seriously. And after that, you still make lots of maps that you never release. Small maps to test ideas. Rooms that just have stacks of brushes just so you can understand how verticality feels from first person. Areas that are just long stretches of weird displacement practice. And so on. Whatever little random idea you get, toss it in Hammer.
And of course, play the game a lot, too. Every class. Even the classes you hate. Understanding how the classes work together and against goes a long way towards understanding what works well in a map.
Over time, those little experiments and a greater understanding of how the classes work will naturally come together in a map that you'll actually want to develop and craft into something special.