Map Review of shattered

Map review of Shattered

by Sierra Hotel | April 19, 2003 | 3081 characters

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If you were asked which of the new, full-featured 2.0 beta maps was originally aired late in version 1.9, would you know what the answer is? Why, the answer is Remy's Shattered, of course! The fact that the map didn't lose its touch early along with its release, perhaps is testament to the quality the SvenCo-op gamer finds within.

The architecture leaves not much to be desired. Never a dull, boring cube, the rooms in shattered contain pipes, computer consoles, and all sorts of 'nice touches' to keep the map visually interesting. One of the nicest of these touches is the destroyed subway train, which you can crawl through on your way to your objective.

The lighting is atmospheric throughout the map, a good example being the dark, flickering lighting in the pipe tunnel which conceals an alien ambush. It makes for quite a challenge, and a good challenge is what i expect from any map.

There are several extremely welcome shortcuts which can be accessed at different points along the map. This way the players can get to the action faster as they progress, rather than have to run across 3/4 of the map because they died near the end and can stay closer to the action.

There are a good number of times when you have to side-track from the main route to find an important switch, etc. in order to progress. The pseudo-nonlinear nature of the map makes it more interesting to explore, since you dont get stuck with a rather bland point A to B fastwalk.

Perhaps a side effect of the sheer size and complexity of this map is that occasionally people who have never played through it before will get lost. Especially if a ton of shortcuts are open and they aren't sure which one to take. Admittedly, the first time I played it I wasn't exactly sure where to go either.

The least desired puzzle in the whole of this map is the fan puzzle. It's a pain in the arse to get through this insane 'jumping puzzle' successfully, especially if you happen to have a slow connection. 'Player was mooshed' will be appearing in the top left corner of your screen quite more than you'd like. One of the worst problems plaguing this map is the SFX_T crash. I know Remy couldn't have done anything to fix it, so I won't hold it against him. However, crashing half way through the map and needing to restart is a major bummer and can ruin a good time.

Overall, Shattered lives up to be a very engrossing SvenCo-op experience, one of the true mapping masterpieces. And while it is tarnished by a few potential problems, they are too insignificant to prevent this map from claiming the score it has rightfully earned. Well done Remy.

Reviewed version included in Sven Co-op 2.0 Beta

Pros:

  • Visually appealing!
  • Complex!
  • Challenging!

Cons:

  • Complexity leads to confusion at times.
  • That dang fan puzzle.
  • Annoying SFX_T crash.
Score: 8.5 / 10

Review originally from *

This review was recovered from CreepsWorld.

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