DO NOT TEST WITH BOTS
I see a lot of people who are new to mapping say they tested with bots. It made me wonder how many people are testing their map and making changes based on bot behavior.
This is a really, really bad idea.
Bots are stupid. Even on their highest difficulty, they are stupid. They come nowhere near a human player in terms of AI. They choose classes randomly, without thinking about team composition or previous class--so an Engineer with a full base set up might randomly change to Heavy. They build and snipe in arbitrary spots--unless you bother to edit the nav mesh that is generated for your map.
They don't even jump.
That includes rocket and sticky jumping. That means no double jumping Scouts, either. And you know what else? They won't walk off anything higher than about a hundred units. Bots are stupid. (Their code is based on the AI for zombies from Left 4 Dead. Does that explain their stupidity yet?) This also means they always take the stairs--they will never just hop up a short ledge to grab health or ammo.
All this means that if your change your map based on what the bots do, you're bound to be heading in the wrong direction. You don't want your map in rotation on servers where only bots play, right? Then test with humans.
They aren't your only option, either.
TF2Maps (this website! the one you're on!) runs tests of custom maps all the time. It is free to join them and get your map played by real, human players. No bots, ever. Just watch the Events forum for game day announcements or other events and submit your map. You don't even have to be there! STV demos are automaticaly recorded and you can watch them later.
You can also join the Steam chat room and hope to be included in an impromptu test.
Bots are good for one thing, though.
It's fine to use them if you want to check your map's logic to ensure all doors and timers are functioning properly. But you should be able to do this yourself, alone. Just remember, whatever you do, don't pack the nav mesh into your bsp!
I see a lot of people who are new to mapping say they tested with bots. It made me wonder how many people are testing their map and making changes based on bot behavior.
This is a really, really bad idea.
Bots are stupid. Even on their highest difficulty, they are stupid. They come nowhere near a human player in terms of AI. They choose classes randomly, without thinking about team composition or previous class--so an Engineer with a full base set up might randomly change to Heavy. They build and snipe in arbitrary spots--unless you bother to edit the nav mesh that is generated for your map.
They don't even jump.
That includes rocket and sticky jumping. That means no double jumping Scouts, either. And you know what else? They won't walk off anything higher than about a hundred units. Bots are stupid. (Their code is based on the AI for zombies from Left 4 Dead. Does that explain their stupidity yet?) This also means they always take the stairs--they will never just hop up a short ledge to grab health or ammo.
All this means that if your change your map based on what the bots do, you're bound to be heading in the wrong direction. You don't want your map in rotation on servers where only bots play, right? Then test with humans.
They aren't your only option, either.
TF2Maps (this website! the one you're on!) runs tests of custom maps all the time. It is free to join them and get your map played by real, human players. No bots, ever. Just watch the Events forum for game day announcements or other events and submit your map. You don't even have to be there! STV demos are automaticaly recorded and you can watch them later.
You can also join the Steam chat room and hope to be included in an impromptu test.
Bots are good for one thing, though.
It's fine to use them if you want to check your map's logic to ensure all doors and timers are functioning properly. But you should be able to do this yourself, alone. Just remember, whatever you do, don't pack the nav mesh into your bsp!
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