ctf_subwaysandvich

CTF ctf_subwaysandvich a1

dblxer

L1: Registered
Jun 16, 2021
6
2
ctf_subwaysandvich - Heavy retired from mercenary work and decided to open a sandvich shop.

My first map! Any and all feedback greatly appreciated.

Design Goals
I'm well-aware of the KotH/Viaduct formula prescription for first-time mappers, but I want to be different. :p So the next most simple standard gamemode to implement is CTF, however it is notorious for turtle-stalemate-hell.

Through the map's layout, I'm trying to mitigate this by designing flank and shortcut routes of varying risk levels. The center shortcut, for example, is the shortest route to the enemy, but is very exposed. Contrast this with the ducts and the boxes behind the shop stands, which provide more cover but are narrow and less direct.

There is a round timer (with overtime disabled) to help encourage offensive play. The clock starts at and is capped at 5 minutes. Whenever a flag is captured by either team, the clock time is incremented back up to 5 minutes. Therefore, the maximum theoretical duration of a "play to 3" round is 25 minutes, with stalemates allowed to last no longer than 5 minutes. If time runs out before a team captures 3 flags, the game ends in a stalemate regardless of if a team captured more flags than the other. These exact settings are almost certainly subject to change following playtesting. An alternative I considered was having flag captures add less time but the clock has a higher cap, like 10 minutes. My reasoning for not doing this is because that would mean stalemates could last longer and make the gameplay dull.

Open Questions
  1. Do the round timer settings provide a balance of preventing stalemates but also allow enough time for teams to capture flags?
  2. Is the map too generous to Snipers? I tried to mitigate this by reducing sightlines on home base exits and providing options for cover, but there's probably room for improvement.
  3. Is the map too generous to Spies? There are some intentional hiding spots and perch points I can remove if this becomes a problem.
  4. Should the jumping puzzle flank be impossible for slower classes? I'm guessing this whole feature is too gimmicky for it to matter, but I could see how having an undetected Heavy position himself in weird places using this route could be problematic.
  5. Are the all the routes to the enemy side utilized? Are they all well-balanced in terms of risk vs reward? For reference, the routes are: 1) the central route through the metro cars, 2) the one-way door to the enemy barrels, and 3) the inside of the central bridge (via the friendly sandvich shop or ducts), and 4) on top of the central bridge.

Known Issues
Please refrain from using the exploits I point out here during IMPS. :) Any other exploits you find are fair game, but it'd be greatly appreciated if you report what you find via feedback so I can fix it in the next version!
  1. The large gantry and silo props are casting unaesthetic shadows. I might end up remaking the gantries with brushes instead anyway if those areas need to be redesigned.
  2. One of the metro and vent unit props are extra dark.
  3. Demomen standing indoors can hide stickies inside the large door frame prop at the barrel area. I'm probably going to change this door into a custom brush-based door though, hence why I skipped fixing this.
  4. The one-way vent grate door above the barrels area is supposed to not allow players to remain in the vents while having the door open. However, if a player jumps onto where the grate hinges, the player can perch there with the door open, despite me disabling collision on the grate and frame. I'll need to spend some more time debugging this.
  5. The rooftop, balcony, and ramp walls should probably all be player clip handrails. I was just too lazy to place them for version a1.
  6. The clipping within the sandvich shop could use improvement.

01_open_area.jpg

02_sandvich_shop.jpg

03_barrels.jpg

04_ducts.jpg

05_computers.jpg

06_base.jpg

07_overview.jpg
 
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dblxer

L1: Registered
Jun 16, 2021
6
2
Conclusion: this map doesn't work at all lol

Main pros/cons from feedback and demo listed below.

Pros:
* Fun to goof around on / could make a nice trade or prop hunt map
* Height variation is fun for jumping/flying classes
* Sandviches are cute
* Trigger_hurt barbed wire was a cool albeit gimmicky easter egg
* No complaints about health or ammo packs

Cons:
* Layout doesn't provide much in the way of interesting gameplay or flow
* Reminded people of 2fort and turbine xD
* One-way door was annoying
* Spawn was too claustrophobic and unpleasant to navigate around the handrails
* Gantry stairs annoyed people (however, making these a ramp would be too steep to traverse, so if I ever try something like this again I'd need to make my own not-so-steep stairs out of brushes)
* Non-jumping/flying classes had a bad time getting to the intel
* Using HL2 props whatsoever is taboo
* Most people don't like prop-spam (I've noticed this kind of comment on other people's maps too in IMPs)
* Took a while for people to notice the ducts, though even then they were barely used
* No one used the pipes jump puzzle gimmick (edit: I watched the demo a 2nd time and a spy did try to use it)
 
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dblxer

L1: Registered
Jun 16, 2021
6
2
This at least looks like a very cool environment from the screenshots! Reminds me a lot actually of the "Arboretum" space station area from Prey (2017). https://youtu.be/xGjZyrezQt0?t=1676 Which has a bunch of windows to the outside space area.

Thanks for the comment! Wow you're right, it does look like as if I took inspiration from that, though I never saw or played that game before haha. It's always interesting to hear what your creations remind people of and what they think the inspiration and thought process were. During the IMP players thought the HL2 train station was my inspiration, probably because I had some HL2 props in the map.

My actual original inspiration was the Polis Station area of Metro 2033 (link), though I diverged quite a bit since Metro 2033 levels are usually way too dark and claustrophobic for TF2 if imitated too closely. I definitely want to revisit this idea and make a Metro-inspired payload map sometime, but currently I'm trying my hand at some more conventional CP and KotH first.