Featured Lobby Monday Map Testing

[alex quit]

TORQUE
Overall I think this map is a prime example of simple and solid design. While the map doesn't do anything particularly "new;" its simplicity allows for one's sweat to shine, even if you're new to the map.
I'm looking forward to how the new plasma caster platform plays.

HANGOUT
This map seems to be holding up pretty well over the play-tests that I've been apart of. I finally got my hands on the Phaeton and went on a rampage! While the Phaeton is still debated upon, I think once players learn that map more they'll be able to counter it much better. It's effectiveness seems to differ from game to game right now.

I've noticed that the majority of the upper level of the map is connected primarily around the map's perimeter. Most of the firefights/player movement seemed to be focused around the perimeters of the map. This seemed especially present in strongholds. While the map has been playing fine like this, I think it might benefit the map If you could find a way to pull players toward the map's center.

EAGLE SQUARE
I think all I can really say about this map right now is that I liked the aesthetics and the design seemed sound. The playtest on this map was kind of convoluted, we had some afk players and uneven teams if I remember correctly. - Hopefully I'll get a chance to play CTF on this map, it feels like that's what will play best on it.

SCI FI JUNKYARD
I'm really into this map's aesthetics, the environment is very immersive. The amount of verticality and drastic height variation makes the map fun to traverse and promotes some interesting engagements.

So far it seems like the warthogs have been under-utilized. Maybe moving their spawn points might help with that?

 

[Psychoduck]

Post feedback for the following BTB maps below. I'll share my feedback tomorrow.

Eagle Square by Shifty Time: inversely symmetrical urban map with a highway overpass (Strongholds, CTF)

Fracture by Squally DaBeanz: Symmetrical snowy map with bridges, a tunnel, and Mantises (CTF)

Ferrous by CommanderColson: Asymmetrical junkyard map (Strongholds)

Torque by The Fated Fire & The Psycho Duck: Symmetrical snowy Forerunner map (CTF)

Quixotic by MonsieurCrosley Asymmetrical interior map (Strongholds)

Kizingo by alex quit: Asymmetrical nighttime urban map (CTF)

Hangout by MartianMallCop: Asymmetrical toon-town map with a banshee (Strongholds)

Harbour by FD Bad Angel: Avalanche remake (CTF)

Rampancy by Xdemption & a Darkling Ninja: Asymetrical Forerunner map (Slayer)

 

[MartianMallCop]

Eagle Square - throughout the test the main feedback I can give for this is that there are some no man's lands by each of the vehicle routes across the center that make the space mostly unusable by infantry. I found very little reason to go down there unless I absolutely had to in matches.
Fracture - I feel this map still suffers from the same issues it previously had but to a lesser extent. The segmented nature of the center of the map gives too much incentive for infantry to pass through the middle of the map and in the process makes it so the side by the bridges ends up mostly unused. Mantices worked pretty well, and vehicles flowed very smoothly throughout the map. I still think you should move the Mantice spawn to a more fluent location where entry isn't so awkward.
Ferrous- vehicle and player movement is very smooth. Weapons are good. I do have concern for the Stronghold at the red ribcage area, where the dukes of hazard barell roll used to be. I feel this area needs more cover for infantry
Torque- Loved most of the changes. We already discussed that passive sniping is a little but of an issue. New flag spawn is really interesting. I feel that the warthogs aren't working out really well in the map. Players will pass it off and ignore it for the most part, and only really coordinated teams tend to take advantage of them.
Kzingo- From the playtests the biggest issue I have found is that red sides return route for the flag is way too easy. Players would take the flag then just go down the tunnel and would pop out right by their own flag for the capture.
Hangout- Players tend to be frustrated with the junction stronghold as it is a very open place on the map with little cover, which is flanked by a teleporter. In general that territory is a bit too hard to contest. I Plan to investigate ability for some more vertical movement opportunities primarily around Cafe building.
For both Rampancy and Harbour- Both if these maps need to scaled down. Harbor needs to be like a 3rd of its current size.

 

[Psychoduck]

Eagle Square

The inversely symmetrical layout did not lend itself to Strongholds terribly well. At any given time, holding the central territory was a requirement at all times so things just boiled down to teams attempting to pair that with either of the side territories. When they were overwhelmed, they would simply respawn nearer the other side and grab that one instead. The layout suits CTF much better, in my opinion. The flag saw some decent variety in how it moved, though I think it would be hard to justify taking it across top mid, meaning that the upper level will be a bit less relevant in this mode. The map geometry, layout, and weapon set are all solid. However, there are several areas along the central low lane which are very unattractive to infantry as mentioned above. The tight interior spaces connecting the bases to the corners where the Strongholds are are somewhat awkward to traverse and will likely not see many enjoyable engagements. It may be worth simplifying these interiors as they appear to function primarily as connections. Moving the ghosts to spawn at the Stronghold corners would be a welcome change as it would spread vehicular options more evenly throughout the space. Making some of the low lane more infantry friendly through descaling or additional indirect cover would lessen the need for this, but it's currently easy to feel somewhat stranded when no vehicles are nearby due to the scale of the map.​

Fracture

The new scale of this version is a significant improvement. New geometry is working well, too. The railguns and other weapons appear to be adequate in keeping the mantises in check and the light vehicles seem quite viable when avoiding the mantis. The bases themselves are well suited to CTF, but their proximity to the largely enclosed and internally segmented central building is problematic. Running the flag to one of this structure's entry points, disappearing, and popping out at a somewhat unpredictable location is too common. Thankfully the bases are close enough that the flag can be contested briefly after leaving the central structure. Other flag routes will likely be used almost exclusively for vehicle-borne flag runs with the center being far too attractive an option currently. Taking the flag through here also allows runners to almost entirely avoid the mobile deterrent that is the other team's mantis. The way this structure is accessed from the bases as well as its interior may need to be reevaluated to solve this problem. Spawning on either team's back cliff, behind the big rocks, seems rather prevalent and allows the mantis to spawn kill with relative ease.​

Ferrous

The new geometry is solid. The segmentation created by all of the tunnels and sneaky low routes will likely make the map play too large and unfocused in Slayer, but Strongholds plays as well as ever. Red ledge is undesirable, and good teams will almost always opt to set up in the other two territories and trap the opposing team in the area surrounding this Stronghold. This is a common pillar of Strongholds strategy on asymmetrical maps (Yard on Plaza, BR Base on Rig), but that doesn't necessarily make it a good thing. To change this, Red Ledge and its surroundings would need to be brought in closer to the other two territories and would likely need more power in controlling the approaches with powerful lines of sight. It's also worth noting that this is the only territory which vehicles are currently not encouraged to interact with. Whether this change is considered feasible or necessary is up to the author. The speed boost seems to be somewhat off the beaten path for such an important pickup.​

Quixotic

This map is obviously very unfinished. The layout in its current state appears rather confusing. The map suffers from oversegmentation, making it play too large and slow. Because of this, movement becomes aimless and players merely wander around hoping to stumble upon opponents. The map needs more defined routes and positions in order to encourage more deliberate and team-based movement and setups.​

Kizingo

The vertical geometry and asymmetrical layout make this map exciting to move around and fight on, whether on foot or in a vehicle. However, the flag placement seems somewhat imbalanced. Blue Team's flag is tucked into a building while Red's is placed in the center of an open road. The map's asymmetries are going to make balancing flag placement and routes for each team rather difficult, unfortunately. In general, the approaches to the flags seem less than ideal on both sides. This layout may be much better suited to Slayer and Strongholds. The dead end we discussed in-game is also misleading and extraneous.​

Hangout

The new vehicle and weapon set are an improvement. There are several areas along the lower levels, particularly beneath cafe, which seem somewhat superfluous. These areas are not terribly attractive spawn locations given the lack of proximity to routes up top. The teleporter itself seems to be a band-aid solution to make this area more relevant, but it isn't working. In general, the map's lower levels are not integral to movement and are not attractive places to be. Players stick to the raised exterior locations (Cafe, Pink Two) whenever possible and avoid the map's center unless they're in a vehicle in most cases.​

Harbour

This remake is far too large and has far too many heavy vehicles. This results in infantry having zero incentive to venture out of the central keyhole route or the bases. The fog and sun also made target acquisition at a distance very difficult.​

Rampancy

The scale and segmentation of this map result in it playing very slowly as demonstrated by the fact that we did not reach the score limit in the allotted time. The verticallity of the structures is interesting, but there are currently too many separate areas. This oversegmentation again results in aimless, wandering movement at times. The map would greatly benefit from being smaller and having fewer but more purpose-built routes and positions.​

 

[Squally DaBeanz]

Eagle Square

As Duck said, Strongholds wasn't the best on this map. I think part of this is the fact that the lower strongholds are really easy to approach, but difficult to leave. I feel like the center stronghold could be a little more flashed out as well instead of being just four walls around a pillar. My biggest issue with the map is the lack of vertical movement options in the streets around the edges of the map, and also how long some of those street sightlines are. Personally, I would like to see a ramp or lift or something going from the open courtyards at the bottom of the map up to the rock gardens above each stronghold, as both of those areas feel like dead ends compared to how the rest of the map flows. I would also experiment with making the bottom middle street have a "hill" in the middle to break up lines of sight across the map.
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Fracture

I'm going to look into making flag runs through the middle of the map more difficult/predictable. I felt that having the bottom route connect directly between the two bases could prove to be problematic in the future. Any thoughts from anyone else on this would be appreciated. I'm also considering either putting the flags on the upper balconies of the bases to allow last second flag stops from ore angles, or slightly redesigning the bases altogether so that there is a balcony on the opposite side to accomplish that same goal, but also add more emphasis on the bridge side of the map. Any thoughts on this idea would also be appreciated.​

Ferrous

This map has come a long ways. The newer version definitely plays smoother overall, though there are a few things I feel the old one had right. I still like red side from the original better (as you know). I'm also second guessing our decision to block off part of the beach. People kept looking for a way around the ramp and ended up driving to their deaths. It also puts too much emphasis on the long stretch of land going under the crate bridge, making the area even more undesirable than it already was. The red ledge stronghold is definitely the weakest of the three. I feel that going back to a more covered structure there will help alleviate this. This will also allow you to bring the ledge closer to the rock jump like it was originally. As for the rest of red side, I still think the hanging platform approach to the design allowed for a more interesting environment to fight in and fit the theme of other areas of the maps better. Maybe finding some middle ground between the two will be best. Aside from that, my only other complaint is being able to easily camp the tunnel looking into the blue trench stronghold. Everything else is just a matter of polishing the geometry for intuitive movement and readability. I'll hop in forge with you later to talk about specifics.
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Torque

This map has improved significantly on an already solid baseline. I couldn't find any major complaints on the latest playtest. There were times where the heights of the jumps into the cave from the bottom tunnel felt a tad awkward, and the mohawks on top of the bridge led to a few nerdy fights. There was also a nerd rock on the tree side of our base (forgot the color, right side if you're looking at bridge from caster side) That I was able to perch on top of with a sniper and watch the top of the enemy base. I kind of liked it, but you may want to look into removing that spot.
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Quixotic

Not sure what I could add that Duck hasn't already addressed. The map looked like it was still being forged, with entire chunks of geometry missing. Trying to look past this, the map seems to have no definitive landmarks or routes. It honestly felt like it was just a pile of random pieces surrounded by rocks. There was a lack of focus and no defined routes, making it extremely difficult to navigate and learn. I would scale things back a little and think about what it is you want this map to accomplish in terms of gameplay. The geometry of the map has to naturally give players incentive to move to certain areas or through certain routes in order to control the map and its weapons. Right now, there is too much going on for players to be able to understand what it is they should do or where they should go to gain an advantage. The gameplay boiled down to wandering through the labyrinth in hopes of finding someone to shoot.
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Kizingo

This map definitely feels better in terms of scale than the previous version. However, as other have said, flag still play awkwardly on here due to the asymmetries.Red side has a clear advantage here due to their flag being in a safer location that is easier to protect, and blue flag being too close to a covered route and the middle of the map. Moving the blue flag to a position comparable to red flag in terms of defense and ability to access different flag routes would definitely help this. Aside from this, there are a few things/areas on the map I feel need to be addressed. There are a few dead end areas that are visually misleading. One is at the end of the bridge on red side, one is the ramp leading up to the fake door by the tree in the middle, and the other is the large indent on the back wall of blue side. All three of these could easily be mistaken as actual routes and cause confusion and/or campy gameplay. The other major thing I think should be addressed is the height of the blue "tower". It has a massive advantage over every other part of the map, and is only accessed by one clamber route from blue side. If you were to lower this area to the same height as the top of the ramp leading to it, it will allow players to access it from the front and back, making it more like red and more balanced with the rest of the map. The only other complaint I have is the sharp angles on some of the streets due to the extreme change in elevation. The two spots I feel are too steep are the side of blue leading into the Ghost tunnel, and the street going from red bridge toward the middle of the map. Adjusting the height of the streets surrounding these areas will lead to less awkward movement and engagements on those slopes, leading to more of the map being useful to players.
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Hangout

Personally, I'm still not really a fan of this map. I feel like movement options are still very awkward and forced, as they are mainly seeing band-aid fixes and changes. The biggest concern in this area is the lack of meaningful vertical movement options out of the bottom of the map. The bottom is already undesirable by the nature of the map, and this problem is compounded by the fact that it is difficult to escape when being shot at by those far above you. There is too much reliance on ring jumps and other tricks to smoothly move around, and cover is spotty and unreliable in most cases throughout. The flow rarely goes to the middle tower, leaving players two options to move to another side of the map: risk running through the bottom of the map and struggle to find a way back up, or slowly zigzag around the outer ledges and move from cover to cover. The teleporter feels like another band-aid fix to these movement problems, and becomes a bigger issue in Strongholds. It adds yet another unforeseeable hazard to an already risky position to hold. I think the map could benefit from experimentation with other stronghold points, so as to find a layout that doesn't favor any particular hold than another.
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Harbour

Avalanche was never a great map to begin with, as it was essentially two giant fields where vehicles reign supreme, and a single infantry bottleneck in the middle. This remake not only left out key geometry to help infantry throughout the map, but it was scaled much larger than it should have been, with some areas feeling twice as large as the original. A flat vehicle heavy map like Avalanche really has not place in a game like Halo 5. If anything, I would take inspiration from the design and try to create something more original with similar design pillars (U shape, BTB, infantry middle, man cannon movement, etc).
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Rampancy

As we all said in the lobby, this map also felt overscaled. I probably spent 75% of my time running around the map trying to find someone before figuring out that all the gameplay focuses on the middle tower. Because of this, the rest of the map became irrelevant. The meta boiled down to slowly climbing the tower, killing anyone along the way, and then camping the top as you wait for the enemy team to start over and try to reach the top. It was just a massive game of Tower of Power. I would look into redesigning major chunks of the map to make the tower less of a focus and rescale the whole thing so gameplay doesn't become stagnant. Vehicle routes don't have to be quite as big as you made them, and the main structure of the map doesn't have to be as complicated as it was. The overall shape and idea of the map showed potential, but it's current state leaves something to be desired.
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[Psychoduck]

This is the official thread for my recurring Monday Map Testing lobby. This lobby will be held every Monday at 9pm EST. Each week, the event will be posted in the custom games portal. The player count will vary, but the target count each week will be announced ahead of time as this will inform the type of maps we test. This lobby will be used for testing maps for Community Forge Playlists in matchmaking, testing and gathering footage for ForgeHub video features, and for general testing and feedback.

Signups

To sign up each week, reply either to this thread or to the lobby in the custom games portal with your gamertag. You'll need to message me (The Psycho Duck) on Xbox Live to request an invite. These invites will be sent out on a first-ask, first-serve basis though lobby regulars will ultimately not need to message me to request invites. If you'd like to test a map for our target player count in a given week, include the name of your map as well as the gametype you wish to test on it in your signup post. Each attendee may request up to two testing slots. These can be used either to test two different maps or to get two games on the same map. We will go through our rotation one author slot at a time meaning that if you request two slots the second will not be tested until everyone's first slot has been tested. Exceptions can be made for special circumstances. Primary slots are given to those who will be attending the lobby and will take priority. Backup slots may be used to test maps for those unable to attend, but they not be tested until all primary slots have been.
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Feedback

Some feedback will surely be given in-game each week, but the bulk of it will be shared in this thread. Following each lobby, I will make a post recapping the maps played with brief descriptions of each to jog everyone's memory. From there, posting feedback is up to you. This is purely voluntary, but it is asked that anyone who uses this lobby to test and receive feedback on their own maps reciprocates and shares feedback for the maps of others. Feedback must be thoughtful and constructive.
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That'll about do it. I'm excited to be hosting these lobbies more consistently and I look forward to testing your maps.

 

[Zandril]

The time this lobby starts is the exact time that my class starts so I have no hope of getting in these customs until the semester ends(which is a long ass time from now). Would it be possible for you guys to test Staredown(my 4v4) for me? Put it last. You can play it once everyone's map has been tested.

I'm usually able to play during weekends but I can provide my presence and fanboys then if you need extra people for your own lobbies

 

[Squally DaBeanz]

Sign me up for CTF on Fracture as usual

 

[Psychoduck]

Monday 2/15/16​

Lobby type: BTB (12+ players)
Lobby post: https://games.halocustoms.com/lobby/432kB3qHk3EYyMJqm
Primary testing slots:

CommanderColson - Ferrous - Strongholds x2
Squally DaBeanz - Fracture - CTF x2
alex quit - Kizingo - Strongholds, Slayer
The Fated Fire - Artemis - CTF x2
MartianMallCop - Hangout - Strongholds
CDX34 - Badger Cliffs - Slayer, CTF
SHIFTY time - Eagle Square - CTF x2
HalfDemonANBU - The Cradle - Strongholds, CTF​

Backup testing slots:

Zandril - Staredown - Slayer (4v4)
BlazeDillon - Gallows - Slayer
NOKYARD - Keyhole Nine - Strongholds
​

 

[alex quit]

sign me up
Kizingo - Stongholds & Slayer

 

[The Fated Fire]

Artemis - CTF x2

 

[BlazeDillon]

That's about the time I need to get off to sleep so I'm not sure if I'll be able to make it. I'd love to get some feedback on Gallows. Just slayer for now. It's the very first playable version, so it's barebones, sloppy and ready for rapid changing when needed.

Gallows 0.1.0 - 8v8 - BTB Slayer

 

[MartianMallCop]

Hangout for a testing slot

 

[WARHOLIC]

see everyone at 9pm

 

[Psychoduck]

Alright, who's bringing the beer?

 

[GodlyPerfection]

I'd like in for the first hour. No map to play.

GodlyPerfection

 

[CDX34]

GT: SonicWolf CD
As if the site didn't make it obvious enough.

With any luck, I'll be able to make it.
I'd also like to request a map slot if there's still room.
Map name: Badger Cliffs - Gamtype: Slayer/CTF/Strongholds. Take your pick, any of the three will do.

 

[HalfDemonANBU]

GT: Half Demon ANBU

If there is still any room later on in the night, I'd like to test my BTB map for either Strongholds or CTF
Map Name: The Cradle V2

Hope I can get in!
=]

 

[RipShaDe 41]

Alright, who's bringing the beer?

Duck my map isnt even listed. Funny thing is that i have had a halo customs account and forgot lol

 

[RipShaDe 41]

My feedback:
Ferrous - I thought the map played extremely well and was very fun. the pathing is very unique and i like the different height variation. I thought strongholds played really good and i like the overall new look to the map as well.

Fracture - This map stood out to me a lot because of the interesting layout. The map has some nice segmentation with some great movement options. I thought the ctf games were fun and the only issue was fast flag caps through bottom mid which was addressed in another version of that map which was playtested and played better. The helipad area wasnt used much by me but i think by altering the height it could be more viable.

Kizingo - This map i felt was very fun. I thought the ghost played very well and the paths were connected well. The flow was nice and i thought team setups were rather good. The warthog was also a beast on the map and i like the concentrated areas for fights. Each area felt unique and fun. Had a good time on this map.

Artemis - I really liked this new version of the map. The middle was hectic and the top/bottom bridge area was fun. The teleporter was the only thing that i was unsure of. I didnt use it once but the addition i think is fine but it could do without imo. The map plays how recurve should have played.

Hangout - This map was very fun to play on. The strategy it takes to control specific strongholds was awesome. Each part of the map felt unique and different. The one thing i was worried about was how high certain areas were but they didnt become an issue through the testing. The vehicle gameplay was balanced and nothing felt weird to me. The look of the map was also nice and i enjoyed playing it.

Eagle square - This map not only looks good but it plays well. The flag matches we played were intense and very fun. The map felt familiar but fresh. The new bottom mid design helped with sightlines and cover. The curved bottom also allowed for more traffic down there. I think the corner/garage areas werent used as much but i think they are nice as options. I used them a couple times and they were nice transitioning routes. The vehicles also play very well on the map.

The Cradle - This map is impressive for it unique ideas. The gondolas are a great idea and i think they are very fun to fight on and to travel on. My only complaint is the scaling is on the massive side. The map looks awesome but it was mainly snipers decimating one team. The map down-scaled could be a great btb map.

Gallows - This is the only map that i actually didnt have fun on. The map felt very open and large. The fact that there is two banshees is also kinda bad. At one point the enemy team had both banshees and it was too hard to take them out. The rocket hog didnt help either since the banshee could maneuver all shots. I dont think its a bad map but i do think it could use some work like less segmentation and more overlapping paths. I do think maybe another playtest would be need to get a better feel of the map and i think objective should be tested.

A couple of the maps i didnt get to test either because of my own horrible spawns or because there were to many people. I had 2 decent playtests on my map but i wasnt happy with them. I'm hoping that i can get some better test in the next playtest lobby.