Posted December 05, 2016
Trying to design a map for Blockstorm got me thinking...
If the nature of the game even in a competitive environment is that every wall can become a door, every door a wall, every structure dug under or collapsed or built over, and any player can get whatever combination of destructive and building tools that they wish, does level layout matter at all beyond "keep the spawns away from each other"?
Trying to design these intricate layouts with balance and flow in mind feels so useless when EVERYTHING can be changed by ANYONE during the course of the match. I've always been so used to designing competitive FPS levels with principles like "always at least two ways in and out of every area", "keep the spawns protected" and "keep the sniper sightlines limited", but then comes Blockstorm and goes "yeah no this hallway will have 4 new doorways within 10 minutes".
When you reach a point like that, should I even bother with a balanced layout, and instead just focus fully on a visually interesting layout instead?
If the nature of the game even in a competitive environment is that every wall can become a door, every door a wall, every structure dug under or collapsed or built over, and any player can get whatever combination of destructive and building tools that they wish, does level layout matter at all beyond "keep the spawns away from each other"?
Trying to design these intricate layouts with balance and flow in mind feels so useless when EVERYTHING can be changed by ANYONE during the course of the match. I've always been so used to designing competitive FPS levels with principles like "always at least two ways in and out of every area", "keep the spawns protected" and "keep the sniper sightlines limited", but then comes Blockstorm and goes "yeah no this hallway will have 4 new doorways within 10 minutes".
When you reach a point like that, should I even bother with a balanced layout, and instead just focus fully on a visually interesting layout instead?