Just like a fucked-up, preemie baby, Contrivance 1.0 was quickly sent back to incubate, and now emerges as the bundle-of-joy Contrivance 1.1. Actually, something must have gone wrong with the incubator because Contrivance has somehow come out more fucked-up than when it went in… thanks Obamacare.

However, Contrivance is still a beautiful looking map, more beautiful than I could ever hope to be. Ok, so that’s not hard to do, but keep in mind that Contrivance is one of the best looking maps to be released in years now. Fortunately, the recent update did manage to make the map even prettier, as if to hide the underlying damage to the actual gameplay it brought with it. It’s like giving someone muscular dystrophy and then a facelift as a consolation prize: I mean, I appreciate the gesture, but it would have been nicer to be able to be walk.

This update did a few things. It replaced the WAW guns with BO2 ones, added an easter egg, and added a way to buy perk slots, plus some “rebalances.”

I feel like the mapper must’ve just broken up with a hot-but-crazy girlfriend, because the entire update follows a trend of superficial improvements hiding a worse overall experience. Case-in-point is the new BO2 guns. You pick them up and think: “Wow, these look nice! They even have proper reload anims and sounds!”

But, oh, wait -- the iron sights are MESSED the FUCK up. Why aren’t my bullets going where I send them? The hell? Oh ok, I’ll see if PaP fixes the spread or whatever.

Surprise! Your new PaP’d rifle has a god-awful reticle on its reflex that is somehow worse than the misaligned sights you thought you had escaped from.

Jesus Christ, you just can’t win. And to top it all off, the M8A1 has a recoil pattern so abhorrent and broken it renders the gun unusable. Better hope you didn’t spend 1200 buying it off the wall!

That’s because the M8A1 IS a good value if you get it from the mystery box… because then it’s free! Just like how the Israeli government gives its citizens free guns if they decide to live on Palestinian soil, the mystery box will give you guns for free too! All you have to do is cause it to move from its starting location once, and BAM!, free guns for life!

“Alright, alright, so the guns aren’t “all there” (like my retarded uncle) and the sweet young mystery box is a little bit too loose with herself. Don’t tell me you’re gonna rip the whole map apart for that!” you might be saying.

Don’t worry, I’m not. Contrivance is a fun map, and there’s plenty of unique areas to explore and doors to open. It’s well-paced, but not too difficult. Actually, it’s easy as fuck. The zones are pretty screwed, and this can lead to zombies spawning really far-out, which makes it a joke to run trains. Sometimes the zombies will even ignore you completely for a few seconds and just go down the zipline instead. Wheeee!

Ok, now I’m back to ripping on the map again, and I’ve already dragged on for too long. So, I leave you with this:

Contrivance is a good, nostalgic type of map that sticks to the established zombies formula pretty closely. It doesn’t take many risks, which leads it to be somewhat routine and almost boring, but still maintains a superb sense of flow and balance that makes it feel like 3arc’s own work. Unfortunately the map is hampered by glitches and poorly-done weapons. So, I’d recommend that you just play the more stable version 1.0, unless you really want to solve an easteregg (which I couldn’t be bothered with).

Wow, that’s about the most professional thing I ever wrote.

DETAIL: 10/10
CUSTOM CONTENT: 6/10 (good perks and FX, loses points for bad guns)
FUN SCALE: 7/10 (good, classic-styled zombies experience)
REPLAYABILITY: 7/10 (layout and setup time holds true to 3arc’s model)

OVERALL: 30/40

DL Link: http://ugx-mods.com/forum/index.php/topic,10808.0.html

THE FOLLOWING IS THE REVIEW FOR VERSION 1.0. AN ADDENDUM FOR V 1.1 IS AT THE BOTTOM!

Bus Depot is easy. Easy-peasy. Easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy, you might even say (if you’re in 2nd grade). If Bus Depot was a girl, it literally wouldn't even have legs to close. It is THAT easy.

For starters, Bus Depot is WIDE open, just like… you know what, I’ll add a fresher joke here. Bus Depot is so goddamn full of open air, you could mistake it for the inside of Paris Hilton’s head. As soon as you pop the first door, you have more than enough room to run trains pretty much wherever you please. That’s not to mention the 100-meter sightlines you can easily draw on some spawning zombies!

It doesn’t help that the map (roughly the same size as Ascension) only contains FIVE pieces of buyable debris… you can buy out the whole thing faster than Donald Trump can buy out an entire Chinese sweatshop. That is to say, it’s not hard to open up the entire map by Round 5.

The wall guns are all bonkers powerful and cost less than 2k, so really there’s no reason to even use the box except to try more of the firepower out. Oh, and you can get the wonderweapon for free… by Round 5.

How? Because most of the map is a scavenger hunt. Find the giant flaming skulls, shoot all of them, then grab your CEL-3 Cauterizer. Run around staring at the dirt like some sort of senile mud-wrestler, then get thousands of points and quick powerups via the dig sites. Even the powerswitch is created through the tedious and annoying process of finding three separate buildable parts.

Does anyone enjoy this? The shameless rewarding of players for… really, just looking at a map, taking it all in like they should do anyways. Why not reward players for completing challenges, or surviving to high rounds, or simply being good? Well, that would ramp up the difficulty, and we can’t have that!

I sound like a salty old asshole, but you know what? I’m tired of maps that can essentially be beaten by Round 5. I’m tired of trying to limit my own character’s strength to raise the difficulty, only to find that the map is so easy nothing I can do will make it challenging. I’ll stop here before I pop a blood vessel -- but do you get the idea?

Moving on, let’s chill and talk about the pro’s: yes, there are a lot of them. The weapons are good, because they aren’t covered with those weird ass see-through holes and they don’t make little wet-fart noises when you left-click. So, they basically meet my standards. They don’t EXCEED my standards though, mind you -- I set them a bit too high for that  .

The map itself caught me totally off-guard, because it’s not really a Bus Depot. 90% of the map is actually comprised of customized TranZit locations, with a tiny Bus Depot area to lure you in under false premises. It’s like getting catfished, and trust me, I know a thing or two about that  ! Nonetheless, I’m glad I wasn’t relegated to playing in another pure remake map.

What else? The detail was good, the areas were interesting, and there are some fun toys to screw around with. Again, the main flaw of this map is just how boringly easy it is. However, if you are a new player, this is a great map to learn zombies on while testing out all the latest and greatest features the custom scene has to offer.

Oh, wait…

I ALMOST FORGOT ABOUT THE FUCKING SOUL BOXES. GODDAMN.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE STOP WITH THE SOUL BOXES ALREADY. THEY AREN’T FUN, THEY AREN’T INNOVATIVE, AND THEY RESTRICT PLAYER FREEDOM.

-1 point on Custom Content for Team Gryffindor. And yes, I will continue to subtract points from every map that includes these damn boxes.

While they are optional, the fact that they block the player from a WW until they are completed is gating off content using them in my eyes, and will be treated as such. Hence the loss of a point.


UPDATE V 1.1:

RichGaming has made very laudable efforts to make Bus Depot's gameplay more intense and responsive with the latest patch. Essentially, the update is an extensive rebalance of several aspects of the map.

For starters, the wall guns are no longer absurdly strong. This is a pretty big deal, as wall guns are what you might be using up till at least Round 7. They are also interesting choices now, such as (everyone's favorite) the SMR and the SVU-AS.

An even more important change is the massive rework the Depot area got. While it used to be open as all hell, the latest patch added more debris to the area and, most critically, improved the spawn zones so that zombies start much, much closer to you. This is a marked difference over 1.0, which saw training turn into an exercise in sniping.

Additional barriers in the Nacht part of the map open up the possibility of camping there -- adding some more replay value to the map.

Now, there are still some things I'm fundamentally against. These include the soul boxes, Double Tap 2, and scavenger hunting, BUT, if one wishes, these things can be avoided to raise the difficulty: although I wish this was done more effectively by the map itself.

However, Bus Depot is a significantly more fluid and challenging map for the rework it got. I look forward to future updates... perhaps a "Hard" mode with Verruckt sprinters, no WW's, and weaker perks? Whatever the mapper decides to do next, Bus Depot will remain a good map nonetheless.

REVISED SCORE:

DETAIL: 8/10
CUSTOM CONTENT: 8/10
FUN SCALE: 8/10
REPLAYABILITY: 6/10

OVERALL: 30/40 -- Excellent





DL Link: http://ugx-mods.com/forum/index.php/topic,10658.0.html

I cannot think of any reason why you shouldn’t play Das Herrenhaus. If you’re blind and missing both arms I still recommend you try to find a way to play this map. I am so certain you will enjoy this map that I am perfectly willing to drop such a blanket statement -- and if you somehow regret playing this map, then please write me a formal complaint seeking redress for your wasted time, in which case I will politely tell you to FUCK OFF you tasteless asshole.

Seriously, there’s almost no sense in writing a review. I mean, it’s fantastic, play it right now. Come back later and tell me I was right.

Nonetheless, I will still attempt this exercise in futility both for record-keeping purposes and to remind you that, no, your life isn’t all that shitty: you’re not the chump wasting his Sunday night writing a pointless review for a children’s vidya game.

DETAIL (9/10)

The map utilizes dynamic depth-of-field, which basically makes stuff further than 10 meters away blurry. It’s like putting a paper bag on my mom’s head when you fuck her: yeah, she’s still ugly, but at least now you don’t have to SEE how ugly she is.

Although whether this map even needs DoF is questionable, as this is definitely one of the best-looking maps ever made. The lighting is absolutely on-point, there’s detail everywhere. Yep, it’s like fucking my mom, only if she was attractive and not dead (unless you’re into that of course).

Also, there’s a dynamic music score that shifts every single round. And now that I’ve experienced it, every other map feels a bit hollow, because goddamn does it add to the immersion.

GAMEPLAY (8/10)

This map comes from the “classic” school of zombies gameplay: that is to say, ACTUAL zombies gameplay. You open the doors, you get to power, you buy your way to PaP, you collect your perks and guns. That’s why I love it: there’s none of the cocktease BS like hiding PaP behind an easteregg, or locking doors until you fill a soulbox, or whatever else people do to deliberately hobble their own maps. So for once in my life I don’t feel like the crippled kid in the candy store, whatever the fuck that means.

There actually is an easteregg, and I’m told it’s quite expansive, however I honestly can’t be bothered to do it. Sorry, those things just aren’t my type. But since I wasn’t forced to do it in order to fully experience the map, I don’t have to take points off the gameplay score. Yay!

You’ll love this map if you just wanna sit down and have a wank have a drink as you explore a huge map across dozens of unqiue rooms.

CUSTOM CONTENT (9/10)

The weapons are “on-fleek” (as the kids say these days), without being overbearing or dominating the map. I say this because a lot of maps cram in so many weapons, all with completely confusing and random stats, that they just dominate the entire experience until the map feels like a slushy pool of gray muck with some BO2 guns poking out of it. Instead, there’s a nice variety of WWII and Cold War guns on display here, plus a really cool Bioshock Infinite inspired shotgun. Boom-boom motherfucker.

On top of that, there’s custom textures, custom zombie skins, and the previously-mentioned custom music score. Oh, and nova crawlers. They’re pretty short, so I tend to overlook them (wow, that was terrible).

REPLAYABILITY (9/10)

Because this map focuses on creating an easily accessible and familiar layout, there’s no reason why you won’t wanna play it over and over. You won’t feel like you have to play 20 rounds just to take it all in, or have to complete a complex EE every time you try to get to PaP. For that reason it’s about as replayable as any quality BO1/2 map, and that’s saying something. Plus, you can always attempt to do the EE if you get bored.

DETAIL: 9
GAMEPLAY: 8
CUSTOM CONTENT: 9
REPLAYABILITY: 9

TOTAL: 35/40

EDIT: Oops, forgot to put a line thru "have a wank" (was thinking too hard about wanking) AND a download link! I am a smart man. Fixed both: http://ugx-mods.com/forum/index.php/topic,9998.0.html

Remember when you were a little kid and the greatest shit in the world was rolling around in a cardboard box? Like, you would sit in one and your parents would push you around? Wasn't that great? I wouldn't know, since my parents died in a freak chewing gum accident, and this entire metaphor is really fucking terrible and where am I even going with it.

Well, I guess I'm just trying to say that this box map is not like rolling around in a cardboard box. It's like rolling around in your own fetid waste next to your dead parents. It's just fucking terrible.

I was suckered into this "joke" (not funny) map by NGCaudle's profile picture: http://ugx-mods.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=48282
Why, it's an attractive young woman's profile picture that was most likely shamelessly pirated from instagram given the fucking terrible fucking white girl shit filter that it's coated in and it looks like it's smeared in shit but she's hot and maybethatsenoughtosuckermeincauseimdesperateand

*whew*, I'm sorry, I'm not thinking clearly after the nine rounds of torment I just endured. Anyway, the map is textured like a 1997 Russian bootleg of Sonic the Hedgehog, but I stopped noticing after a few minutes. My eyes were bleeding too profusely for me to even tell what the fuck was going on.

The one purchaseable item in the map was the StG-44 -- the Amm-o-Matic just layed there worthlessly like a paraplegic hooker.

But there was a way out of the nightmare, besides a self-induced shotgun blast to the mouth. Rack up 25k points and the map will release you from its cold, dead bosom: I had no choice but to persist.

With sweaty and hairy palms I brutally fought dozens of undead at close range through rage, fear, and PTSD-induced hallucinations. But my struggle was finally over -- with not a minute to spare, I escaped the map on round nine!

The moral of the story: ...uh… I dunno, I guess just don’t play this map.

Just like any terminal illness, ShotgunRagtime is back after a temporary remission, bringing you a lovely little review about a relatively unknown map. Please, attempt to enjoy:

GAMEPLAY: 7/10

While looking over Andromeda’s description, I glimpsed the peculiar phrase “large map”. As we all know, box maps have been clogging the mapping scene like cholesterol clogs a fat man’s heart valves, so now anything bigger than my left-fucking-nut gets to be called a “large” map. Needless to say, I was skeptical.

But unlike women who say they love me, this mapper WAS NOT joking -- Andromeda is HUGE. And not copy-paste Aztec-style huge, I’m talking fully fleshed-out map sections encompassing different themes, values, and freaking ethical codes. I nearly popped a blood vessel when I realized that there were FIVE (count ‘em!) doors leading out of spawn! I couldn’t handle such an unexpectedly large choice!

This hugeness carries the overall experience quite a bit: in fact, I believe it may actually be the largest custom map ever made. However, as the old catechism goes, it’s not just the size that counts, but what you do with it (at least that’s what I tell myself)

The map makes no real effort to actually ejaculate you from the starting room… err, remove you from the starting room. It’s the best place to run trains, so good in fact, you don’t even need Jugg. So you run a circle in the first room, building up a load of points before blowing them all over several doors, looking around, and then retreating back. Despite this, the experience was rather relaxing and enjoyable, and the custom perks, guns, and huge amount of stuff to see redeemed the linearity a bit.

DETAIL: 8/10

I’m giving the detail a much higher score than I usually would, simply because it is applied evenly across the entire map, an overwhelmingly impressive feat when you consider the size.

Andromeda is supposed to take place in a dream-like environment: not a unique idea, but this map nails the concept. All of the map sections (a town, church, facility, etc) are linked nicely, but there’s an overarching feeling of disquieting…  uncomfortableness, like that creepy old guy at Drug Mart who keeps looking at you funny (maybe it’s just your hair?). You’re left feeling like you’re in a suitably surreal landscape, although the immersion is broken by strange architectural decisions that sometimes make you wonder if the laboratories were designed by blind midgets. Anyhow, the map could use a good once-over and some spooky lighting, or any interesting lighting at all, really. Seriously, what the fuck is it with custom maps and fullbright? Quit it already, it’s lazy and ugly and unimmersive.

CUSTOM CONTENT: 7/10

The map has custom guns: they look nice and they work, although some have small issues such as incomplete reload sounds and holes in the models.

Huh. That was a sentence so generic it could be applied to nearly any map in the last three months. Essentially, Andromeda doesn’t bring much new to the table in terms of custom content. The map does, however, meet the standards bar -- the guns are nice and varied, there’s like nine perks and no limit, and there’s even a custom PaP camo. In fact, I was somewhat horrified when I saw my first PaP’d gun slide out:



Yep, it’s called the “Wet Dream” and it looks like it’s covered in… yeah, that’s gross. I would NOT pick that thing up and shoot it.

In any event, the content is there and it’s functioning as-intended. I would give an overall score of 8, if it weren’t for the fucking soul boxes. WHY are these in EVERY. STINKING. MAP?!

1. They are boring as hell to fill
2. They require you to sit in some uncomfortable spot, removing player freedom
3. The model is uglier than Caitlyn Jenner without makeup

I don’t even bother with them anymore, I don’t care if there’s a Ray Gun, a free perk, or a topless Katy Perry behind them. It’s just not worth it.

REPLAYABILITY: 8/10

For all its flaws, the map seems… oddly similar to any major 3arc release -- it is huge, unique, and rather pitifully easy. With all the paths to go off of spawn, guns to try, perks to buy, and soul boxes to fill (if you’re a masochist), there’s a lot of incentive to play Andromeda over again, particularly on the strength of its layout. I also noted that playing in co-op may allow camping strategies in several different areas, so there’s something to do with friends.

OVERALL: 30/40 (excellent)


Gameplay: 7
Detail: 8
Custom Content: 7
Replayability: 8

DOWNLOAD: http://ugx-mods.com/forum/index.php/topic,9062.0.html (EDIT: I'm retarded, there is a UGX DL  )

PS: The mapper has said that he's working on an Easteregg, so stayed tuned for that -- will update review when it launches!

I'm bored as hell, so here's a little discussion for us: your top 4 favorite (for any reason) custom zombie maps. Me first:

1. Totsand

This is one of just two maps that has acually made my jaw physically drop. Starting in a hauntingly beautiful desert vista, the map soon opens up into probably the most impressive underground area ever devised, it's really something else. Tons of sprawling floors and dozens of doors in a descent to the bottom of the facility. Everyone should play it: just make sure you DON'T go past the door out of the Jugg/PPSh wallbuy room on round 9, otherwise you might crash!

2. Dead Ship

This map is a favorite of a friend's and mine: its overall campiness lends it perfectly to co-op matches. Ticking all the right boxes -- detail, weapon selection, custom perks and even voice-acted stories, Dead Ship feels like a game-within-a-game through the fantastic TMG mod.

3. Lockdown

This map flows so perfectly it's almost unreal. If I was forced to pick one map that could be passed off as official 3arc DLC, it would be Lockdown. Branching paths, quality weapons, beautiful aesthetics, and challenging difficulty with a nice little easteregg form the definitive recipe for a good time.

4. Farm Swamp

I can't really say much about this one other than the fact that it is the best looking map ever released. Seriously, just play it.

Sup all,

I've been (attempting) to learn how to make custom maps for a few months now. I'm at the stage where I would really love to get some custom models from BO1 into Radiant, but... it's just not working. I'm watching this tutorial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JH8-3Zj32lk but it's really not helpful in the slightest and just flies around too much.

I would like to politely ask anyone knowledgeable on this subject to explain, from start-to-finish, how to export one model from BO1 to Radiant in clear, concise English.  I have Lime and know the bare basics, but beyond loading up the models in a level and exporting them to the "exports" folder I'm lost. Thanks for your consideration.

I've been away from UGX for a while, so it wasn't until recently that I noticed the beta for Oil Rig was out. And it's paid. So, a thread.

Let it be known -- I have an open mind. I've actually "paid" for a beta already, although the beta was more of a bonus (as I originally donated DLC to the mapper that he was going to mod... long story). I do NOT come here to complain or make an ass of myself (we have enough of that already on the forums), but rather to give my honest, thought-out opinion.

I do not agree with the practice of releasing paid betas. There are several reasons for this.

Mapping should be done for FUN, not financial gain. The first retort to that statement is that mapping takes hours away that could be spent doing other things. However -- ANY form of recreation takes away time that could be spent working. If one does not gain the same enjoyment while creating maps that they get from reading a book or playing a game, then they should stop mapping. Mapping is a creative process, tedious at times, yes, but a creative process should be enjoyable to the creator. If it is so unenjoyable that financial compensation is requested, then you may as well just stop mapping entirely because you clearly despise it. Otherwise, asking for money to map is like me asking for money to sit on my ass and play games -- what one does for recreation they do for recreation, not cash.

I would consider situations where donation money directly covers legit financial expenditures (put towards mapping) exempt from this claim, though. For example -- I have no problem with UGX requesting donations in exchange for a Requiem beta, because UGX.com costs money to keep on the internet. As such, the donations are rightfully funding the site, rather than providing a financial reward.

And let it be said -- if someone is so desperately poor that they feel it necessary to request donations, then they need to look elsewhere for money. Why? Because it is EXTREMELY unlikely that the amount accrued from donations on UGX will be anywhere near enough to keep someone afloat. Furthermore, it is impossible to discern if someone is making up claims to grab some quick bucks. Again -- mapping is NOT a career, it is a recreational HOBBY.

But, there are even more important arguments against paid betas. The main issue I have with it, above all else, is that betas should be given to RELIABLE, DEDICATED testers, not average joes who paid $4. This is similar to the EA craze on Steam. A beta should not be for funsies, it should be for testing. It should not be a reward, or a privilege: betas have always existed to polish a map to the highest standard before release. Average joe is NOT going to give good feedback or hunt for bugs. Only a dedicated tester who seeks simply to better the map can do that.

As another user pointed out, paid betas can lead to exploitation, as a mapper could simply keep a map in beta for an extended period to get more from donations. But this is a fringe issue compared to the ones explained above.

In closing:

-- Map for FUN, not PROFIT. It's a hobby, not a job, and if you consider it such you ought to stop doing it
-- Give betas to responsible, trusted individuals who will work to make the map fit for public consumption, rather than feeding the public raw meat and asking that they "test" it
-- A beta is not an early release, it is an unfinished copy. We do NOT need Steam EA craze here on UGX.

Thank you all for your time.

Industrial Estate is a bit of a letdown.

I had just noticed a brand-spanking-new map -- Industrial Estate! I thought to myself

“Wow! I bet this one will be really nice! An estate, imagine that. Perhaps a rich, nineteenth-century industrialist’s luxurious manor? Hell, with a name like that it’s GOT to be lovely. I’m so tired of having to kill zombies in dark dungeons, filthy factories, and blown-out bunkers. It’s time I got to go somewheres nice for a change!”

I immediately downloaded without so much as a second thought or a mere glance at the thread.

Booting the map up I was absolutely crushed. There was no beautiful estate. No dark hardwood floors, no crackling fireplace, no impoverished servants at my beck-and-call.

Instead I was greeted with a gritty view of a rust-belt factory. Rotting bricks, cold concrete floors, and graffiti swam through my eyes. Godammit, if I wanted THIS I could just take the local AMTRAC down to East Cleveland! Why, why do I never get to have nice things?!

DETAIL [7/10]

Alright, the map DOES look pretty good. For a piece of urban refuse, that is. The facility gives off a convincing aura of ruin, of a downward spiral -- much like M. Night Shyamalan's film career after The Sixth Sense.

You can tell that a lot of attention was given to every area of the map -- wooden planks, rusty tools, and plastic bottles are layered on thicker than Bruce (sorry, I mean Caitlyn) Jenner’s makeup.

However, the lighting is a massive disappointment. It’s just the usual WAW fullbright. Boooooring. Like any abandoned building, the factory has an inherent “creepy” factor that could’ve been brought out with a nighttime sky. Instead, a sunny afternoon kills any sense of dread you may have harbored.

So, I shall ruthlessly deduct 3 points for “Failure to Properly Light Map”, and I will continue to do so for EVERY map that presents such insolence.

CUSTOM CONTENT [9/10]

Spinning the box for the first time is like running dick-first into a brick wall.

Erm, wait, wrong simile.

Spinning the box for the first time is like diving head-first into a pool of Jell-O. There are just so many previously-unknown sensations engulfing you, it’s hard not to get dizzy. Watching fantastically ported guns from uncharted territory, such as AW and Ghosts, whirling by will fill you with absolute giddiness -- and that’s before you even pull your prize out!

The map also features a wide variety of enemies -- super-sprinters, nova crawlers in two flavors, and even freaking juggernauts (again, in two flavors!)

All of the new enemies are well thought-out, and serve as delightful targets for the absurdly powerful weaponry you’ll be wielding.

This is all rounded out by two buildables, an Ammo-Matic perk machine, and the Zombie Blood powerup.

So, why am I docking a point? Well, all of this stuff is very, very nice…

But the map ITSELF lacks any custom features. No traps, no transportation, no custom tweaks to gameplay. It’s just your standard “Buy doors, get to PaP” layout, and that really hurts it.

Also, the PaP camo is absolutely horrific. Please, if you’re gonna use something that bad just stick with the default WAW one instead.

FUN SCALE [7/10]

Unfortunately, the map is tipsier than a white girl at a bachelorette party. The difficulty swings bizarrely -- the map starts out easy, with the starting wallbuys quickly dispatching zombies. Then, in the mid-game, it spikes up suddenly as sprinters, novas, and juggernauts are introduced. Lastly, we see the challenge fade as you acquire super-powerful guns and tear shit up.

This uneven curve is the result of a couple of factors. The prime culprits are the buildables and the map’s small size.

Since there’s relatively few blockers, the entire map can be opened up very quickly. What does this mean? Well, it means that you can get yourself a Sliquifier and zombie shield really damn fast, that’s what! And that right there is the problem with buildables -- they give you something for nothing. Reward players not for their skill, but for the amount of time they spend running around looking for tiny parts.

So, you can open up the map quite quickly, carried by the strength of your starting weapon. So, you get Jug and your buildables before the zombies are able to effectively cope with such strength.

Then the novas, juggernauts, and sprinters hit you like a ten-ton truck. I had several attempts that featured a very strong early-game with a ton of points and all of the barriers open, only to end instantly as I was bombarded by these enemies while still trying to learn my training spot.

But that’s ok -- I love a challenge! I feel like more maps should punish you, force you into attempting them multiple times. Hopefully I don’t sound too much like some sort of masochist yet. Anyway, the issue is that the early game isn’t as hard as what you’ll run into here, and neither is the late game.

If you weather the shitstorm of brutal enemies, you’ll get enough points to spin the box, PaP, and grab more perks. It’s then you realize just how easy the map really is -- you’ll be melting zombies like marshmallows stuck in microwaves. The juggernauts quickly become a source of free Max Ammos and Death Machines, and I ended up being more grateful for their arrival than anything else.

In closing: this map goes from soft to hard to flaccid waaay too quickly, much like an old man wi…

Uh, let’s just drop that comparison now.

REPLAYABILITY [7/10]

The map’s small size lends itself to many fast, simple playthroughs. You can just fire it up, play it to Round 20, and be done with it. It’s like a one-night stand that doesn’t end with your partner getting pregnant.

Unfortunately, the buildables and linear path through the map lead to very limited player choice, so if you give it another go, expect to do it the srem way you did it the first time.

In closing, Industrial Estate is a great map. It’s a bit too small and erratic, like a bipolar midget, but it does its job nicely and will provide several hours of quality entertainment.

DETAIL [7/10]
CUSTOM CONTENT [9/10]
FUN SCALE [7/10]
REPLAYABILITY [7/10]

OVERALL [30/40] -- Give it a go!

Link: http://ugx-mods.com/forum/index.php/topic,7842.0.html

Have you ever gotten lost in a supermarket? Maybe in a parking lot? Or how about the woods? Ever lost your car keys?

How about lost in a giant maze infested with zombies?

Labyrinth attempts to translate the endless frustration of losing your car keys into video game format, proving once-and-for-all that there is no such thing as fun, and that games should be work.

So now we can all stop bitching about losing our car keys.

Wait, where was I going with this? Oh, right, a review:

DETAIL [4/10]

I mean, look, it’s not a box map. So that’s 3 points for effort. The other 1 point comes from the little ridges on the tops of the walls, they look pretty nice.

Aside from that little aesthetic touch, the long hallways are empty, much like a young boy’s heart after a middle-school rejection. Just begging for some love, some attention. Alas, none is given.

Actually, the most bothersome thing is the lack of any real lighting. It’s just your bland, fullbright WAW sky. I mean come on, can we at least get some romantic “mood” lighting? Like a pretty sunset? Or a majestic morning sunrise?

Hell, even making the map pitch-black and forcing players to stumble around in the dark like morons would’ve been more exciting.

CUSTOM CONTENT [8/10]

Alright, I’ll admit it, I have a problem. The default Zombies weapons just don’t, y’know, DO it for me anymore.

I need guns that I HAVEN’T used in a map before. Nothing else entices me. And I don’t just mean the basic WAW guns, I mean the BO1/2 guns that I’ve used even more!

Geez, I’m like a drug addict who just moved from meth to freaking tar heroin. I NEED something better, man!

Fortunately, this map delivers with some of the BEST ports I’ve seen in a while. There’s some really interesting weapons in this one -- the MSMC, the CEL-3, and even the Storm-PSR! And that’s just to name a few.

All of the weapons are well-done, and none have nearly as many issues as I do (well, the STG does have a hole in the model, but it’s small, ok?)

Rounding it all off are a couple of custom powerups, a brand-new perk, and a weapon disposal thingy. The powerups are very fun: one gives you unlimited ammo, and the other grants you bullettime.

Unfortunately, the custom announcer is just… uh, bad. Sorry. I mean, it’s nice for the mapper to give a shoutout to a smaller Youtuber (who’s quite skilled) with this opportunity, but he just sounds very British and it breaks my immersion.

The new perk (Multiplier Milkshake) is cool, but waaay too OP. I’ll talk more about that later.

There's also a weapon disposal machine that will toss you 200 points when you slot your weapon in. It's not much compared to the massive amount of cash you'll be accumulating later on, but it's a small boon that might help in the early stages of the map.

FUN SCALE [7/10]

Labyrinth is fun. It really is. But it’s just let down by the fact that it’s easier than a high-school hoe on prom night. Yeah, the map starts out a bit tricky, but once you reach the pyramid in the center of the map (which can be accomplished quite quickly) it’s GG. You can run trains for days without the slightest fear of reprisal from your shuffling friends.

At the pyramid you can teleport to a “gift shop” to buy two very powerful, very expensive weapons, hit the PaP, or upgrade your perk capacity. This is nice, until you realize how cake it is to build points.

Multiplier Milkshake is actually broken. Seriously, it is -- it TRIPLES the amount of points you get upon the kill shot. So that means you’ll be getting 300! points per headshot, and a whopping 600 if there’s a double points on! At that rate you’ll be as rich as Donald Trump in just minutes, literally accumulating 25k + points during a single round!

At that point there’s nothing left to do except sigh as you easily wipe 25 zombies in seconds with a Storm PSR while your point-counter has a stroke. I guess you could try to do the easter egg, but I couldn’t figure out how to even start it. And I’m pretty sure that the reward is only a paltry PaP’d Tommy Gun, which will be worthless compared to your current armaments.

REPLAYABILITY [5/10]

Not much to say here. Play it again if you missed some guns the first time, or if you just want to experience being completely OP again. That would be a fun challenge: see how quickly you can acquire all of the perks and the PaP’d versions of the Storm, CEL, and Ray Gun.

All-in-all, Labyrinth is a good map held back by a lack of difficulty and detail. I hope that the mapper translates the same custom content into a more challenging and pretty map the next time around, but this one is still worth your time.

DETAIL [4/10]
CUSTOM CONTENT [8/10]
FUN SCALE [7/10]
REPLAYABILITY [5/10]

OVERALL: [24/40] -- Worth Playing

http://ugx-mods.com/forum/index.php/topic,7733.0.html

Hello!

This is an issue I've subconsciously noted for a long while, but never paid much attention to. It's the glaring lack of exposure maps/mods are getting in the "Releases" subcat.

The issue is simple: this subcat uses the same format as the rest of the forum (threads with recent posts going to the top, dead ones getting buried). This format causes old maps to become "lost" amongst newer ones, often appearing several pages back from the front page.

This absolutely cripples a map's visibility in the long run. I noticed that maps on ZM often have SIGNIFICANTLY more views and downloads compared to ones on UGX -- I doubt that's just because of the larger userbase. It's probably a result of all ZM maps being organized into categories that can be viewed easily at any time without getting lost amid dozens of other threads.

I'd just like to urge site moderation to make a new "Release" section that's similar to ZM's -- it will allow more people to play more quality maps. Thanks for your concern.

Hello. I haven't really thought it necessary to comment about this topic previously, as I generally enjoy the lenient moderation and casual atmosphere on the forums.

However, I've begun to notice that the amount of WiP (and other threads, to a lesser extent) threads getting derailed by off-topic comments is getting excessive.

I think that WiP threads were designed for mappers to receive quality feedback and encouragement on their maps. Despite this, a vast amount of the posts in any popular WiP thread consist of off-topic jokes and conversations that do nothing but bloat the thread size and make it harder to find quality information. I'm not sure that some people realize it, but it's very rude to the OP and is behavior that is strongly frowned upon on any forum.

It's even more irritating when the derailment is centered around picking on the mapper or another user. Especially since the "picking on" is usually focused on some sort of insignificant detail, such as a poster's use of English or a person's opinion on some aspect of the map.

It's extremely immature and, quite frankly, makes the entire site seem more hostile and less friendly than it actually is. People should be able to make a thread without the fear that it will soon be infested with shitposts and image macros after being up for a couple of days.

I won't deny that, yes, I've made off-topic remarks here and on other forums. Nearly everyone has. But it's getting excessive when one remark snowballs into several more posts of junk before the thread is brought back on track.

So, I would like to RESPECTFULLY ask the mods here to start deleting these off-topic posts instead of just asking everyone to get back on track. I've seen mods delete before, but only in EXTREME cases. I feel like deleting off-topic posts consistently would discourage the behavior in the first place, and also make it much easier to check a WiP map's progress.

Also, mappers, please update your WiP threads by placing the additional info in the OP and updating the title with "New Update! (the date)". This will make it much easier for users to actually know that the thread has been updated, and the info will not get buried.

Hello everybody. I've recently begun mapping, and, for the most part, I've found the basic WAW models and textures sufficient. However, I find the interior textures (such as the wallpaper ones) and a couple of the exterior ones extremely poor. I'm looking for suitable replacements for interior home textures and outside wall textures. I don't know exactly where to start though. If someone could provide a link to a good place to download custom textures, or provide a good explanation on how to pull them from other Call of Duty's and put them in a map, I would be greatly appreciative. Thanks in advance!

Hello all,

I sometimes like to DL older maps and play them, as I remember a lot of them from my childhood (ie. watching YouTubers play them and wishing that I could also).

Sometimes these maps (from 2008-2010) still have working links on ZM that have installers included. However, some of them don't.

I know how to get mods to work without installers, but I've been running into an issue lately with some maps. They will say (in the readme) to drop the mod folder under Activision>WAW, etc. However, I have a Steam copy of WAW: my "Activision" folder is empty. Dropping it into Steam WAW's mod folder does nothing. Furthermore, the instructions in the readme are for only Vista/XP, not 7.

Any help on getting these maps installed and running is appreciated.

So... in my effort to get started mapping I downloaded all needed tools and the UGX script placer. I made a map in the script placer and hit the "converter" button in the launcher (following all instructions in the tutorial I was using so far). However, I can't seem to open the map in Radiant via the launcher. No matter what I do I get a window titled "Open" with a blank bar labeled "File name" that I can enter text into. I dunno what to enter into this bar, and whatever I do I just get a "Radiant error". Please help an aspiring mapper get started! Any advice is appreciated