- edit
- /
- history
- /
- upload images
Map review of The Room
by Chimz | September 20, 2025 | 3206 characters
The map is average.
I'm a sucker for horror maps in Sven and all the positive comments on this really set my hopes up. However, in the end it was just another average map.
The gameplay revolves mostly around atmosphere and environmental puzzle solving. It is a nice touch and sets it apart from most other horror maps and the experience offers a good length of around 20-30 minutes. However it does still fall into the same pitfalls.
The first and biggest one is that it is EXTREMELY DARK! Most times it is darker than Afraid of Monsters and that mod is already too dark. So a lot of the times you're scouring pitch black rooms, looking for a texture difference or bump on surfaces while having the goldsource's garbage flashlight as your main and only source of light. It gives headaches.
The music tracks are all played in the SFX channel (not MP3) so they become extremely loud, drowning out all other sounds and you can't turn it down without turning down the game's entire volume. Pretty annoying AND sad because the music is good, but having it deafen you is not.
There is a climbing section similar to KZ and Jump maps. Not something that I would find annoying, but unfortunately reaching it requires another player to boost you. So if you're playing as a duo, only one of you can ever try it at any time, and worst of all, it has MANY breakable platforms which cannot be foreseen until you've fallen for it. So it becomes an irritating section that takes longer than it should.
Throughout the game, while a few shortcuts open, they're not enough. Everytime you die you have to spend 1-2 minutes (depending on how far you've gotten through the map) to pickup weapons again and B-line for where you died. After a few deaths, it gets frustrating.
And finally, for the few combat sequences it offers, you're pitted against fast, tanky enemies while severely underequipped. The map's size and structure is claustrophobic, more suitable for 2-3 players than a full server, but the enemy count is overwhelming for such a number.
Overall, the map offered interesting atmosphere and puzzles, but fell into the same pitfalls that all other sven maps do, leading to it never rising to its potential and becoming just another average map in a sea of average maps.
While the project has died, it could still be a source of inspiration for other mappers to learn from and make something better.
Pros:
- Good and Immersive atmosphere
- Environmental Puzzles
- Focused more on atmosphere, immersion and feel rather than combat
- Good length (takes around 20-30 minutes to complete)
Cons:
- (Lighting) Extremely dark levels, even darker than Afraid of Monsters
- Forced to scour such dark areas to look for small details like texture difference or bumps
- Music tracks are played in SFX channel (not MP3) so they drown all other sounds
- Climbing section includes unforeseeable platform-break traps
- Lots of running each time you die (to pick up gear and reach location where you died)
Review originally from *
Back to The Room | All map reviews
