Map reviews

[Recounted]

Gather in here, bout time we start to talk about the 2 maps (ice colony and lV) that we have overtime grown to love and hate in both aspects.

what makes this map better than the other map?

How exactly can we switch up the way marines do stuff on the two maps?

im just laying some stuff out so the thread don't die out rather quickly.

[SpecialAgentOrange]

Ice Colony is literal garbage.

[Crab_Spider]

Ice Colony is pretty good. It'd help to have snow easier to melt and have a tool that removes snow. Plus there's the whole issue with comms, although we can literally pack SLs and Specs with station bounced radios or autolathe parts.

[Monoo]

Ice Colony: better atmosphere, more interesting locations to explore. The novelty of the underground base is really nice, and the map is quite a bit larger (I think). Strategies and meta are still being figured out.

Lazarus: more streamlined and balanced, rounds are shorter and more lively. However, also more bland. Played-out meta.

[tempchar]

Lazarus > Ice Colony

And from what I am seeing: Lazarus > Big Red > Ice Colony

I have a few problems with ice colony, for one is its enormous size and two Z-levels. Ladder camping is such an issue that rounds on ice colony often go to the 3 hour mark. Lazarus is really my "ideal" map. It is spacious but compact enough that there is constant action. There are places with chokepoints, semi-open areas with foliage to use as cover, and wide-open areas that the aliens need to build walls on for cover. Ice colony has wide-open areas topside but long narrow choke points underground. Just based on the geography, you can really see why rounds turn into stalemates where both sides don't want to leave their favorable territory.

The FIRST Big Red seemed to be going in the direction of ice colony. Big and barren, however it did not have as big a problem with terrain balance. The new Big Red is really piquing my interests. I think it is a combination of ice colony and Lazarus, with compact buildings to duck in but an exterior with no covering foliage, and only one z level. I think the new Big Red has the potential to be a really swell map.

[TheMaskedMan2]

Ice Colony > LV (I won't comment on Big Red as it's unfinished, but it looks neato so far)

LV
-Too samey, the hive is always NE, the Nexus is always FOB, fights at bridge/hydro, cue the endgame. No variation
-Too short, rounds happen quick.. its a matter of opinion but I like some decent length.
Basically it's a good map for some quick old shooting, less RP.
-It's super well balanced though. A nice basic starter map. Classic.

Ice Colony
-Definitely some problems, but overrall I like it.
-Variation! Xeno hive locations! The new lz2 potential FOB, elevators! The underground can be used by marines finally besides being a xeno hive hell hole!
-The length, the snow, after first hating it, I love it now for causing rounds to take a bit more time, and I just love the environment and heat coil looks for marines.
-Comms... neat idea, new location is good but honestly are more annoying then fun, I think it should be slightly reworked, still able to be cut but not so easily? Make it require acid? Also Xenos meta slashing APC's/Lights before marines land, slightly off topic but it annoys me even as a Xeno.
-It's just cool, if ya know what I mean.


In conclusion, I really think LV needs a rework or something, just to make more cave areas viable or a reason to use the entire west of the map at all... Ice map i have fun on, though hydro/research could do with more use. The map definitely has a few problems though, but nothing I don't believe will be ironed out.

[Wubs4Scrubs]

Ice Colony > Lazarus

While I don't dislike either map I personally prefer the Ice Colony as I actually see different strategies each round vs Lazarus where the same tactics are used every round. The Ice Colony is much larger and there are numerous routes of attack which make for varied rounds vs Lazarus' set up FOB, push hydro/hold bridge, then push caves. On Ice Colony there are many different routes of attack and a coordinated marine force could push from a number of different locations at once. My only real complaint about Ice Colony is ladder combat.

[TrollanKojima]

Definitely love Ice Colony. It feels like there's more strategy to devise. Lazarus really has hit a point where it's too meta'd out.

The only issue I have with IC is that there isn't enough of a colony feel. The Nexus feels like some place you'd head to for a meal, or to socialize before shit went down. I haven't found an area that makes IC feel more like a colony than a military base.

[Simo94]

Definitely love Ice Colony. It feels like there's more strategy to devise. Lazarus really has hit a point where it's too meta'd out.

The only issue I have with IC is that there isn't enough of a colony feel. The Nexus feels like some place you'd head to for a meal, or to socialize before shit went down. I haven't found an area that makes IC feel more like a colony than a military base.

Lazarus became stale the moment they changed LZ2, the map lost all variety, there was 2 possible hives, NE or NW, and 2 FOBs, Nexus-LZ1 or Tcomms-LZ2, after that change its all NE vs Nexus now, same damn thing every single round

[Imperator_Titan]

Lazarus > Ice

Ladder camping makes marine pushes impossible. You don't have that in LZ, you just have straight-forward pushes and straight forward flanks. It's not that complicated. Ice Colony however, you spend roughly 15-20 minutes looking around for a place to attack from because usually 90% of all the ladders and elevators are guarded and then when you finally DO go down, you get cucked by the narrow corridors that Ravagers and Crushers charge through and back.

[tempchar]

Although I still prefer Lazarus, I do have to acknowledge that the map has a few problems.

I really think the "new" location for LZ2 really made the meta stale. Like other users have pointed out, nexus is the only viable FOB because LZ2 and robotics is a small area surrounded by many entrances for aliens to abuse. Because of this, you can see rounds where marines literally do not set foot in the western portion of the map. Robotics, secure storage dome, NE hives and NE cargo area go completely unexplored. I really miss the strategics diversity that two possible FOB locations gave the marines, because in both maps LZ2 is just used on the first drop for marines to set up engineering (and never go to engineering again because the journey back will likely get you killed).

I don't dislike playing on Lazarus, but I preferred the older version better.

[RedsPro]

Ice Colony over LV easily. The under ground is a fun new place that really feels like a maze. WO Is fun in small doses.

[Varnasis]

Ice Colony > LV (I won't comment on Big Red as it's unfinished, but it looks neato so far)

LV
-Too samey, the hive is always NE, the Nexus is always FOB, fights at bridge/hydro, cue the endgame. No variation
-Too short, rounds happen quick.. its a matter of opinion but I like some decent length.
Basically it's a good map for some quick old shooting, less RP.
-It's super well balanced though. A nice basic starter map. Classic.

Ice Colony
-Definitely some problems, but overrall I like it.
-Variation! Xeno hive locations! The new lz2 potential FOB, elevators! The underground can be used by marines finally besides being a xeno hive hell hole!
-The length, the snow, after first hating it, I love it now for causing rounds to take a bit more time, and I just love the environment and heat coil looks for marines.
-Comms... neat idea, new location is good but honestly are more annoying then fun, I think it should be slightly reworked, still able to be cut but not so easily? Make it require acid? Also Xenos meta slashing APC's/Lights before marines land, slightly off topic but it annoys me even as a Xeno.
-It's just cool, if ya know what I mean.


In conclusion, I really think LV needs a rework or something, just to make more cave areas viable or a reason to use the entire west of the map at all... Ice map i have fun on, though hydro/research could do with more use. The map definitely has a few problems though, but nothing I don't believe will be ironed out.

I completely agree with what Mask says on the topic of the maps.

In my opinion though Ice needs some work but not as much work as LV does, new caves or something would be great.

[Marcus Jackson]

I have some minor issues with Ice, but I really don't like the moving of the Pod-LZ or how the surrounding buildings have been moved around either. Really though my main issue is with the Fog, both for Marines, Xenos, and Survivors it just gets in the way and is a pain in the crack to deal with... especially since I'm usually Drone and I go ham with defenses.

[Katsukai]

LV
+ Simple and easy to understand map layout.
+ Fights at the river and tablefort are fantastic keeping it kinda balanced due river acting like an natural border by it's slowing effect.
+ Has nice variation of closed and open spaces to fight at northern portion of the map.
+/- Easy to setup colony power
+/- 45 minute time before both sides can go all out due new fog mechanic, it's an good thing for new players but new players from marine side still gets punished for going alone cause xenos can still travel freely using tunnels, and tunnels cant be destroyed with c4.
+/- Working telecomms with no maintenance required.
- Buildings are claustrophobic with lot locations near buildings being kinda tight spaces which favors close combat.
- Open and almost impossible to secure landing zones, due having many open flanks that are not easily traversable, mostly LZ1 suffers from this.
- Fog prevents round variations, so almost all games can be identical on pacing and fighting locations.
- Marine FOB locations on this map is hard to defend due lack of R- walls on this map or open fields compared to other maps, Nexus FOBs suffers mostly due xenos once inside nexus can flank marines easily by melting walls around them, only exception of this is tablefort but due it not being close to an LZ it isn't really an FOB.
- Map lacks materials and firearms compared to other maps.
- Indestructible objects at Nexus that serve mostly protective pillars to xenos.

On overall LV is an nice starter map but honestly could be balanced better.

[driecg36]

Overall, I think ice colony is a really neat map. It looks good, all the custom sprite designed for it look good, and it has an interesting two layer design.

Really my main problem with it is that it fucks over marines a little too much. Ladder and elevator camping is an issue, meta-nesting telecomms is an issue, huggers removing heat coifs, tight as fuck corridors with a lot of friendly fire, etc.

Still, I have a lot of fun playing on it, especially the areas underground around lz2. It just looks nice, and is designed in a neat way. Also, one of my favorite moments ever happened on that map as my squad went the tcomms elevator to retake lz2. Best alien ambush I've ever seen, 14 or so men go down, 3 come back up.

[Jory13]

Anyone remember Halloween map? That was great.