Welcome to WorldPainter, a graphical and interactive map painter / generator. Quickly generate expansive, natural looking landscapes, with full manual control over the terrain, using an easy to use and well performing program.
Check out these great examples of both usage and results of WorldPainter. Note that I didn't create these landscapes, or these videos:
Features:
- Custom biome painting
- Create your own custom brushes
- Add custom objects from bo2 files or schematics to the world
- Customise the location and frequency of underground ores and resources
- Add snow and ice
- Easy to use yet flexible and powerful paint-like tools
- Create oceans, landmasses, plains and mountains
- Change the terrain type, add trees and create caverns
→ To download WorldPainter, go to the official website at https://www.worldpainter.net/
→ For support, please use the official WorldPainter subreddit!
Troubleshooting - FAQ - other documentation - support.
You can check the change log here. The installers were created with 
. WorldPainter is free and open source software, released under the GNU Public License (GPL) version 3. The source code is hosted on GitHub.
It should be pretty self-explanatory, and the rest you should be easily able to find out by clicking around. Don't forget to try all your mouse buttons, and try holding them down! Post in this thread to get support from me or other users of WorldPainter.
The Load and Save functions save the map in WorldPainter format. The Export function exports the map to a Minecraft world. By default it is exported right to your Minecraft saves directory. You can then open the world in Minecraft under Singleplayer.
The Import and Merge functions allow you to import the landscape from an existing map, and then merge any changes you make to the landscape back to the existing map. It is not meant for general purpose map editing! WorldPainter is, and always will be, a map generator, not a map editor. Note that this functionality is dangerous! Use it at your own risk. Please see this post for important information about how these functions work, and their limitations.
This tool is not meant to create ready to run single player maps, it's meant to create server levels and adventure maps. The idea is to create the basic landscape, with your mountain ranges, oceans, forests, snow and ice, lakes, hills, etc. using the tool, and then go in and fill in the details with other tools.
Please donate!
WorldPainter takes a lot of time to create and maintain. Even though it is free, please show your appreciation by donating: 
or 
.
Linking to WorldPainter
If you want to link to WorldPainter from your own site or another forum, I would be honoured! But please don't link directly to the downloads, or upload the files to file sharing sites or host them yourself! Instead, please link people to the official homepage: https://www.worldpainter.net/
Frequently Asked Questions
If you have a question which is not answered on the official Frequently Asked Questions page, please go to the official WorldPainter support subreddit.
Copy and Paste one of these codes into your signature!:
58
Songs used (in order)-
1.Gloom Horizon
2.Gathering Darkness
3.Bump in the Night
4.Final Count
5.Private Reflection
6.Right Behind You
7.The Hive
8.The House of Leaves Link
1
Thank you so much for this feedback! I am glad you still enjoy the map and appreciate the improvements over the previous updates. If you noticed any items that were renamed, such as "Map to Parside" or "Herb of Vigor" those were the main 1.5 improvements. I am also happy to hear the soundtrack got stuck in your head! Hopefully it is out of your head by now
Thanks again for your comments! I appreciate it!
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Intro
Hello! Welcome to our map reviews. Our goal for this topic is to create organized, trustworthy reviews. Our reviews are thorough, highlighting negative and positive aspects of each map. We will also rate it out of 10, based on the criteria found below. We have a growing team of quality-tested reviewers who give experienced, objective reviews for both the average player, and the prestigious map maker. Thanks for checking out our reviews! I hope you enjoy.
The Team
So far we have five reviewers, myself (Kmilley), StreamofAdventure, Fangride, Jemlee, and Zres. I started this thread a while ago and have created many reviews since then. After getting an overwhelming amount of map requests, I decided to ask some reviewers to help me out. Now, our team delivers reviews on a semi-regular basis, and we try to give the best reviews we can for those who wish to read them. Also, if you see any reviews from people that are not shown above, they were once a part of the reviews, but are not anymore from whatever reason. The reviews remain, as they are all good quality reviews that follow the thread's standards.
How We Rate Maps
Section 1- Review
In this section we write about what is good and bad with the map. This is done based on the reviewer's experience and perspective. We will give suggestions and point out bugs we find. We will talk about how well executed the map is, and how much effort we believe was put in. We will usually end it by saying if it is worth looking at, playing, or to be ignored.
Section 2- Rating
We will rate all maps out of 10. Why did that map get a 5? Read below to see the guidelines. Please note: These are just guidelines, and there are always exceptions.
0-1 - The map was unplayable. It was so confusing that I could not figure out how to play or what to do.
1-2 - The map was bad. Little effort was put into it. The map looked very unprofessional overall.
2-3 - The map was fairly bad. Some effort was shown, but it looked very choppy in all.
3-4 - The map was not good. I found many errors, but it made sense. Not good, but not terrible.
4-5 - The map was very "meh". I found some parts to be interesting, It was not a waste of time, but not exactly time well spent.
5 - An average map.
5-6 - A decent map. I found it interesting. Overall, I liked it.
6-7 - A good map. It was interesting and effort is clearly shown.
7-8 - A very good map. The map kept me entertained throughout, and I found it very fun and interesting.
8-9 - A great map. I looked back after playing this map and thought "wow, now that's a map."
9-10 - An excellent map. This map blew my mind. Stood out from the rest. This map was unique and very fun.
10 - The best map I have ever played by far. This map was perfect in every way. This map is game changing.
Please note: We may be brutally honest with our reviews and ratings. If it is a good map, we will tell you, if it is a bad map, we will tell you. If you do note feel like you can take that kind of criticism, then don't submit your map.
After We Review...
If after we review you do not understand why you got the score you got, or you just feel you deserved better, feel free to tell us. Just leave a reply in the comments, and whoever reviewed your map will further explain why they gave you the score you got. In a rare experience, it is possible your reviewer misunderstood something in your map and gave you score you didn't deserve. This is rare though, so don't count on it.
Intro
Want to help review maps on this thread? Now you can! Right now we have three people doing reviews on the thread. My vision is that we will have a team of 5+ intelligent reviewers, all helping to give consistent reviews, that will be based of the criteria and style we are using currently. Open up the spoiler to learn more!
Before you even think of applying, note that reviews on this thread all have to meet a certain standard. Make sure that you realize what it takes to make an good review. A good review, in terms of this threads standards, has the following-
-Good writing, no spelling mistakes, everything is grammatically correct.
-USE THE RUBRIC. I have made a rubric for a reason. You must follow it when rating your maps out of 10.
-Be a good analyzer. Look for the good things. Look for the bad things. Find the bugs and write them down, and then clearly write them in your review.
-Do not be biased because of the genre of minecraft. Even if you do not like parkour, think of how fun it would be for other people, do not rate it down because of its genre.
-Make your reviews thorough. Make them about 3-5 paragraphs long. Remember that you need to fill up your review with quality information, that helps the reader understand what the map is all about.
-Be critical, but not ruthless.
-Use all of the necessary components of a review in this thread, including the bugs/tips section.
-Does not go through the events of a map one by one, but instead reviews the map through different sections (story, architecture, ect.) in paragraph form.
-Make the review for the reader, not the creator. If you have any tips or bugs for the creator, put them in the bugs/tips section.
Reviewer Submissions
Think you have what it takes? Fill out this application-
Username:
Age (optional):
Gender (optional):
Map maker? (if yes, provide a link to map(s)):
Writing experience:
Review experience:
Have you read the entire "Join The Team" section of this thread?:
Additional info:
If I (kmilley) accept you, that does not mean you get to immediately start writing reviews for this thread. It means I will privately give you a test review to do. After that, I may give you more reviews to do, along with suggestions on how to improve your reviews. Once I feel you are ready, you will begin writing reviews for the thread, and will be given full credit for each review.
What We Will Review
We will review a few genres of minecraft maps including...
- Adventure
- Puzzle
- Parkour
- WIP
- AdventureCraft
ApplicationTo submit a map just post the following application with all the appropriate information. We will not review maps that do not use this format. If accepted, you will be assigned a reviewer based on their availability. Once a reviewer has been assigned to your map, his name will be shown in brackets beside your map in the "To Be Reviewed" section.
Username(creator):
Map Name:
Forum Link:
Genre:
Requirements(mods,texture packs,ect.):
Estimated Completion Time:
Additional Info(optional):
Make sure you have screenshots on your thread. No pics, no clicks.
To Be Reviewed
Unclaimed by a Reviewer
Assassin's Craft: The Secret of Altair's Library
The Hidden Kingdom
Spatial Distortion
Challenge to the End
CUBEception 2
The Terrarian Invasion
Temple of la mort
Freak Climber
Pranking Neko Magix
Parkour Academy
Project Johto
Crybral Labs Part 2
The Beginning Of The End
The Fortress
Beyond The Void
Creeper Quest
Awakening of demons: Skel-Rad´s curse
Power of the Void
Secrets of the Jungle
The Adventure
The Quest for the Blockforce - Part 1 - Zombie
Destiny
Prison Escape
The Asylum
O.U.T. Over Understood Testing
Castlevania NES
Mirror's Edge
Other Portal
God of Deceit
Extreme Limits
Woolington
The Dream
Glass' Obstacle Course
Old Hatreds
Hunt for the Fountain of youth
Lost Demon Lucas
Adventure of the Ancient Maya
The Learning
The Swarm
Kishin's Lab
Escape of the Mind: The Edge of Perception
Diamond castle
Trust Me!
Kmilley's To-Do List
-The Terrarian Invasion
-From Dirt to Bedrock
StreamofAdventure's To-Do List
-The River
-Lord of Bloodcross
Fangride's To-Do List
-Grinchmas
-The Cave of Human Redemption
-The Temple Of Jakawakamoo
Jemlee's To-Do List
-Dilpida
Zres' To-Do List
Castlevania: Blood Moon
Puzzle's Adventure #1
Puzzle's Adventure #2
Castlevania: Black Widow
Review Packs
After we review 15 maps in the "Latest Reviews" section, we create a review pack. We have three review packs finished, which can be found by clicking the link below:
The map has an interesting premise. It sets out to be a role-playing adventure that allows you to retain the elements of Minecraft that you love (i.e. mining, crafting, farming, etc.), and gives you quests along a river that you seem to be following. Well, it sounds good on the surface. What could go wrong? Well, as it turns out, quite a bit.
I'll outline my playthrough before getting to the meat of my criticisms. I began in a shack with a rather large supply of expensive items, including iron and stone tools to start with. It tells me to follow the path of the river, and sets me off. I quickly found my way to a visually displeasing hallway of stone that just lay bare on the sand. I shrugged it off and then found my way into a large tree which had some mild appeal. The story within the tree revolved around a man who was trying to rid the area of a disease and commanded you to destroy the tree. After doing so, I continued on my path and came across a naturally spawning village right next to the river, which should never be included in any map whatsoever, let alone an adventure map. No story explanation was given either, giving me the impression that the creator didn't care. Adjacent to that was a very disruptive and awfully constructive "castle" that was completely hollow. I climbed the inside, switched sides, found myself underground, and then ended up at a deck just outside. The map then ended.
So... what happened? I can't say that I know myself, even after analysing what I could from the map. The story makes absolutely no sense, as you are given no explanation as to why you are even following this river in the first place. The segment involving the large tree is shoe-horned in, and although somewhat decent, it has no place in the storyline. The castle and the village beside it are never explained, leading to what is the most disconnected story I've ever seen.
The mapper also seemed to create the map without any regard for how the player would progress and enjoy what the map offered. Gameplay and progression were never put to the forefront of the mapper's concerns, as while playing the map I realized that the creator was only hell-bent on making the builds of the map. It's a shame, really, because the builds were also some of the least appealing I've seen in an adventure map yet.
Sadly enough, all that is left are the creator's buildings. The only half-decent creation I noticed was the large tree toward the start of the map. The village should have been removed and the castle reconstructed, as it feels very hollow, empty, and uneventful.
It is a pain to so harshly critique a map that seemed to at least try a fair bit, but I find myself reasonable in the comments I've offered. I think the mapper realized his creation wasn't strong but released it anyway without regard for whether it would be enjoyable. That was a mistake, and as a result The River is essentially half an hour of my life I would like to have back.
Bugs/tips
-redesign the castle, add fences to outline its top, and include diversity in the form of towers
-scrap the natural village
-give a backstory as to why the player is following the river in the first place
-you need more than one side quest, as the included tree-quest wasn't very satisfying
-explain the appearance of the castle and its dock
Lord of Bloodycross 8.8/10
The adventure is adventure mapping at some of its finest. If you've played the previous adventures, you'll find the plot of the map very familiar. It won't be long before you realize that the map actually contains all three parts of the Convenience story arc in one adventure, and although the stories feel a little distant from each other, daDonn weaves all story bits from the previous two maps together in an almost seamless creation. The horror-suspense vibe of the previous adventures returns and is stronger than ever, with the storyline impressing throughout. The third chapter, or map, also impresses with the strongest story of the three chapters and multiple moral choices. The plot of the map is overall very well laid out, and quite commendable.
However, when you progress through the story, you most likely won't be marvelling at the plot itself. You'll be in awe at just how you are told the story. DaDonn perfects BlameTheController's already excellent method of using audio narration to convey the story. He mixes soundtracks from many a site with sound effects and really makes the world of the Bloodycross series come to life. The narration is easy to understand, dark, sounds professional, and never misses a beat. It is a very refreshing way to rediscover the plot of the first two maps and marvel at that of the third, even if you already know where the twists and turns are.
The difficulty of the map is kept at a safe level where the map can be finished, but a challenge is ensured. It relies quite heavily on combat but isn't light on puzzles and logic involving Minecraft mechanics (e.g. two seemingly-identical rooms may not function the same way). It involves a good mix of everything, even sprinkling in smaller bits of parkour when needed. However, the best parts of the map remain the puzzles, and daDonn knows this, so he keeps them at the forefront of obstacles delaying your progress.
Nevertheless, difficult challenges are never what propel you through the map. As with many role-playing style adventure maps, exploration and character motivation are put at the head of the map. Although the storyline is strictly linear, and there aren't side quests, it feels a great deal like the Cubeception series. You get the feeling that the world is whole, and even though you are only sticking to a certain path, you could leave and come across another castle or town. You can begin to relate with your character, and can liken yourself to him while exploring, because you really become the hero you are playing. The explorative aspect of the map is truly wonderful, because it gives you so much reason to believe in your hero and his world.
All in all, progressing through the map was one hell of a time, and so without a doubt the gameplay of the map was spot on. It is impeccably hard to nail the gameplay of a role-playing map without disrupting the atmosphere and still allowing for enough interaction between the player and the environment, but daDonn handles the challenge with ease. Moral choices in the third chapter are great to play through and feel much like content you'd get out of a professionally designed RPG game.
Role-playing adventures don't always require a great amount of detail or good visual appeal on a micro level, but it isn't surprising when daDonn includes fine furniture and medieval flare. The map is also beautiful when looked at on a macro level, as the castles, towns, and halls all look phenomenal.
The map relies heavily on the dark tones of horror, suspense, thrill, and obscure discovery, so it needs support from all aspects to uphold the adventure. The atmosphere is held secure by a dark story and creepily recorded narration, which really set the mood and help deliver a backing for character motivation. Exploring further strengthens the player's connection with the character he controls, and journeying through a visually impressive landscape solidifies the atmospheric suspense. The atmosphere also justifies the moral choices within the confines of the story, and although some seem a bit like they were thrown in there for the hell of it (the character is supposed to be strong-willed and good until the third chapter, so considering evil as a path to follow doesn't really seem realistic), nothing is overly awkward. The atmosphere is as strong as it needs to be, and is the sole reason you can immerse yourself in the world of Bloodycross.
Lord of Bloodycross provides a fine ending to a fantastic trilogy, one that has now changed how I look at Minecraft maps. It has its flaws, and although certain minor mistakes might pull you out of the experience for a short time period, you'll be back in the universe of Bloodycross within the minute. The map will leave you speechless after the experience, and so I without a doubt recommend it to any map player out there.
Bugs/tips
-in Chapter 1, Scene 8 is a little hard to find. A little more prominence might make keep me in the experience instead of scrambling around to find what to do.
-adding a hint of selfishness or evil depth to the character in the first two chapters might help justify the player's consideration of evil in the final chapter.
King of Hrothgaria is an adventure map that takes place in the fictional realm of Hrothgaria. The king mysteriously passes away, and with no hereditary heirs to the throne, the kingdom decides to hold a set of rigorous trials for potential candidates of the throne, testing their physical prowess and abilities in combat. The player is one of said candidates, and is vying for the title of king.
The first thing I notice in this map is that it is absolutely beautiful and full of visual detail. The creator obviously made much effort in creating pleasant aesthetics. The builds are massive; the points of interest being the royal castle and the stunningly large and gorgeous forest. The entire map may have been a pleasure to play simply because of how good it looked. I often found myself just stopping to smell the roses while walking down one of the paths!
The challenges themselves seemed fairly cookie-cutter. Fighting off zombies and destroying a monster's lair seems fairly standard for any adventure. What I found good, though, was that there was a very tangible consistency between challenges. Not once did I feel put off by the pacing of this map, and I never saw anything in this map that stuck out like a sore thumb from the rest. There were no random or badly-placed puzzles; the challenges made SENSE in the map's world. I found them rather difficult, but not frustrating. This was key: it was all strung together quite nicely and never became annoying or tedious for me. It wasn't just the challenges that had a nice progression, either. The storyline itself moved along in such a way that made for a very intriguing and believable experience. Still, I couldn't help but feel that the adventure as a whole was fairly unremarkable. In regards to what the player has to do to beat the map, it isn't anything special. However, it makes up for this greatly by simply being well-done in every way.
Overall, there are so many things that King of Hrothgaria excels at. The standards of this map are so high all around that I can't think of a single aspect that it was lacking in. It manages to have everything that an adventure map needs, and does it well. It's a solid map. Simply put, this map is GOOD, and I mean that sincerely. While not necessarily outstanding in terms of gameplay, this map still does everything right. With a world rich with detail, a good story, and fun challenges, this is a fantastic example of what an adventure map should be like. Go give it a shot, will you? And expect a sequel, because King of Hrothgaria 2 is in the works!
Bugs/Tips
-Check on your grammar and spelling mistakes. Really nitpicky here, I know, but try to make the map as polished as you can!
-There was a really deep open pit somewhere inside Castle Hrothgar's walls. I fell into it, nearly died, and got trapped until I switched to creative and had to fly back up.
For what little there actually is, the map consists of two bland and frustrating mazes. They both are rather large, and they both are tedious. Combining these two elements turns the entire experience rather tiresome and stale. There aren't any interesting builds, no original gameplay, and an extremely weak story (about a guy being trapped in a maze, naturally.)
There is nothing redeemable about this map, if it can even be considered a map at all. There isn't enough material in it, and the material that IS in it is far more annoying than it is fun. Perhaps infinitely so.
Bugs/tips
-Think about how your players might feel when they play your map. Sympathy is a fantastic skill in mapping and, well, everything!
-Come up with a significant amount of work before you upload it for everyone.
-Large and winding mazes could be a refreshing change of pace, but it tires people out very quickly. They're confusing, and confusion leads to frustration. Unless you can find a way to make mazes interesting, I personally don't recommend making them your entire map.
That's not to say it's without flaws. The somewhat lackluster visuals on a large scale and some confusing pathfinding predicaments are proof of that. But all of my complaints are uneventful and meaningless when you realize exactly just what Geminos and Piecia997 have accomplished. You'll find a phenomenal story waiting for you, incredible details, a mysterious and well thought-out atmosphere, and more if you're willing to begin the adventure. But trust me, you really want to play this map.
As I mentioned earlier, I was concerned with how the parkour and adventure hybrid would work, and thusly how the story would manage with no puzzles or combat-oriented experiences to boot. But the intricate tale these two prestegious map makers weave into the parkour is absolutely stunning. It is strong by any standards, and while it begins slowly, you begin to remember things from your past before too long. The whole plot feels like a puzzle whose pieces are scattered around, and while trying to complete it, you stumble upon new pieces of information that make you reconsider what you thought was certainly correct before. It all leads down an incredibly long four hour journey that rarely misses a beat, and finishes on a strong note that you won't see coming.
While playing through the adventure, you'll also stumble upon many gameplay techniques that are present. If you too are a map maker, I suggest you take notes. The layout of the overall plot is intelligently obscure, and so you discover new pieces of information along with consecutive parkour at intervals that are unusual and yet moving at the same time. The whole off-beat gameplay style of Cubeception plays out very similarly to Gloria, and so you are constantly awaiting new areas and story bits to complete your understanding of the map.
However, there are certain things regarding the gameplay that I felt Cubeception could improve on. For one, certain areas felt shoe-horned into the environment for the sake of simply providing more time in the map, and so as a result the adventure ended up carrying on for just a little too long. As someone who has played the map's sequel, I know that after playing certain maps the length of this one will be no problem, but it still feels a little dragged out. Thank God for the plot.
Pathfinding errors were a large portion of the problem here. Often I'd find myself lost or confused in certain areas, and while most often that sense of lostness was enjoyable, towards the end of the map it began to devolve into a problematic element. Yes, I'd want to continue, but I wouldn't exactly be happy during that relatively long time period.
Thankfully Geminos and Piecia997 have provided an in-depth walkthrough to guide new users into the complex nature of Cubeception. I am certainly happy to have such a guide to refer to, but at the same time I wish it wasn't necessary.
And yet despite all of this, you'll never feel like there's much out of place in the adventure. Most of the complaints read like afterthoughts, and they truly are, not to mention those of a critic. The average Minecraft player will likely never come across such flaws unless they go looking for them. That's exactly what a Minecraft map should play like, with appeal for everyone and flaws only if you endeavor to spot them.
Which is why the successes flaunted in the adventure are so much more prominent. Take the aesthetics for example. Builds are so-so on a large scale, as there's only so much you can do with a cube, but the minor details like furniture, sewer systems, the interiors of villages, and the like are fantastic. And they really give the feeling that while the map is strictly linear, you could get lost in its complex web of builds. No two areas look the same, so you'll constantly be surrounded by refreshing visual appeal.
Atmospherically, the map really shines. The story is largely to thank for this, because it vastly helps the overall feel of the map, but every aspect contributes. The overly long playtime of the map and those occasional poorly thought-out areas where you can get lost certainly make their mark, but there's always new great content around the corner. As a player embarking on this adventure, you'll realize this, and so character motivation is brought to the next level. I'm happy to say this adventure's atmosphere is one to remember.
All map players who've made it this far, think of the score this map received as the appeal of the map to a reviewer, not a simple player. I'm obligated to address its content in a critical way, and so I hope what you've read reflects that. As a player, I really loved the adventure. As a critic, I recognize the way the map adds up and notice its flaws, but can't stop myself from still thoroughly enjoying it. That's precisely why you need to pick up this map from its thread. You need to play it and realize all that it brings to the table. I highly recommend it to any fan of parkour, adventure, and certainly anyone in between.
Bugs/tips
-there are some minor grammatical errors and spelling errors toward the beginning of the map
-some background music would be very nice, and would boost the already solid atmosphere even higher
-I like that sense of lostness until it gets too repetitive, so I'd recommended making a few areas easier to find
-it's a little too late to fix this now, but for future reference, don't make the map 4 hours long (and Cubeception 2 was freakin 6 hours, for Christ's sake) because it wears out the story to a degree where it just is stretched out too far
The best part of the map was indeed the story and how it was told blending well with the gameplay and the puzzles. Overall, the map progressed very fluently and didn’t have much if any trenches of uncertainty and disorientation. The story begins in an unoriginal manner as the player is trapped inside an insert-name-and/or-purpose-here facility and has to escape. However the story evolves quickly, bringing in a vast array of different human relations and conspiracy theories of a small group of escapees in their desperate attempt to achieve freedom. The story was so well built that when finally reaching the end I felt sort of disappointed on how it all finally got to an end, hoping that the final scene would have been more than what seemed to be maybe a little rushed ending. Also in one point during the map there was a sudden lack of storytelling for a while which confused me a little after the more intense earlier parts.
As I already said the puzzles blended great with the flow of the map and the story, usually being subtle enough that the player hardly realizes they are doing one instead of just making progress travelling through the map. While not being wondrously original or well executed the enjoyment factor of the puzzles still rank high at least in my criteria.
While the story and the puzzles were the best parts of the map, the most notable downside was its design and architecture. They aren’t bad per se but they were at their best mediocre. Especially the end area was kind of a “meh” experience for me as I was expecting something more, you know, spectacular? Maybe not the right word to use but I hope you get what I mean. It still shows that the map maker has put some effort for aesthetics but the final outcome isn’t nearly good enough to compete with the story or the puzzles.
Overall the map was very impressive considering that when I downloaded it I really wasn’t expecting much. The sheer enjoyment factor and the flow of the map accompanied with an awesome story and great enjoyable puzzles left me with a big smile in the face (which may have been a little worn out by the end which was in my opinion not in par with the rest of the map) after finishing it. While Maxwell’s Escape may not be visually the most astonishing and pleasing map out there it is still a great pastime. I definitely recommend this map to anyone liking casual, well done custom maps.
Bugs/tips
-The rollercoaster part got me killed.
-After the sewer part there was an odd lack of storytelling as earlier the player had got used to it happening all the time. This might be more of an opinion than a tip/bug.
-The ending was kind of disappointing and I found it a little rushed and bland.
At the beginning of the map, it shows promise. A mystery to solve, a tricky redstone trap, and absolutely malicious signs set a fantastically oppressive mood. Then all of a sudden, a pathway through a world-generated mineshaft, abrupt and out-of-nowhere story exposition, and a nether portal? This is already about the first half of the map, and so far it has only taken me around 15 minutes to get through. This map is unsatisfyingly short!
The only true challenges of this map are small parkour sections, and they are extremely easy and boring. There is no real way to lose or die in this map, as the creator gives the player gratuitous amounts of gear, often providing swords for the occassional monster, and eventually, a full set of diamond armor. I didn't even see any true need for swords or armor anyway, because the only place where monsters could spawn was a tiny cave. I breezed through this map on account of it being far too forgiving. There's no fun in overcoming difficult tasks when they don't exist in the first place.
The story was confusing and rushed. Because the map was so short, the explanation of the story was more or less squished into a single room. This sudden jump in the progression of the plot, I believe, tears the pacing of the rest of the map apart. It barely makes any sense, because the map wasn't making much of an effort to explain it's world beforehand. Sure, the map had notes for me to read, but there were so little of them (five) that they felt thrown in and random. I wasn't able get a feel of the world that I was playing in, and that ruined my experience.
I can see that the creator of The Syndicate tried to do many things with it. I saw a few jumping obstacles, a small semblance of a story, and the slightest hint of world-building. But it's so short, it's so easy, and I hate to say it, but it all felt lazy and sloppy. From the challenges, the story, the pacing, to even the architecture, I did not notice any part of this map that was executed with much effort or simple consideration to gameplay. There was no consistency between the story and the challenges, there was barely any substance to the map, and the entire thing felt like the definition of unremarkable.
If you read through this, I can safely assume that you are looking for a good map to play. And if you're like me, you have become bitter and critical because maps like The Syndicate have become so common to the point of them being considered generic.
Bugs/tips
-The mineshaft area is a mess. Block off areas you don't want people to go, or they just might get lost.
-Stop being so generous with the equipment!
-Pace the map more smoothly. Sudden and full exposition to a story isn't good, and a really short journey with an anticlimactic end is definitely not the way to go. Time these things better. Imagine what a player might think when they play your map. And on that note...
-Get playtesters. This is so that you can have various opinions on certain areas, challenges, and bugs.
-Get more creative with your challenges. Also, make them harder.
-Read articles on game design and level design. Take some time to think about what makes a fun game.
-Don't let this review get you down. There is always room for improvement, especially as this is your first adventure map. Keep trying!
It redefines the adventure genre as we know it today, in a way few maps have. It packs the very same punch that made such monstrosities such as Eronev Mansion Adventure or the Paladin's Quest series, both of which brought new gameplay mechanics to the table in a believable and refreshing way. While ColdFusionGaming may not introduce very many new elements to the table, everything it contains is refreshing and wondrous, save for one gripe I have regarding the progression. Whether it be a staggeringly exciting boss battle or inventive ceiling-credits, there's lots to impress you no matter what corner you turn.
The map has an incredibly solid story. It mentions clearly that it was inspired by the television show LOST, and the way the story is textured and layered carefully in separate parts is evidence. CFG doesn't give you the whole story right away the way most adventures do. It carefully plots its storyline to reveal what exactly is going on at just the right moments. You begin as a survivor of a shipwreck, barely alive, with little to guide you. A short introduction finds you helping out fellow survivors, but it isn't very long before you begin to realize things aren't exactly as it seems. A nuclear reactor is found. You begin a treacherous journey through a plethora of interesting locales, and over time you start to realize something. Your character is growing, learning from his mistakes, interacting with the environments with care. He isn't a survivor anymore. He's an explorer. A fighter. Everything you want him to be. A hero.
There is but one gripe I have about the story. It is all well plotted-out, straight-forward, gripping, until you reach the penultimate point of the story. And it falls flat. You are presented with a maze ("The Maze of Insanity", a name it shares with the infamously clever maze from the first Kingdom of the Sky) which doesn't fit the story at all, and while well constructed, ruptures the atmosphere in a place where it really shouldn't have, considering that the adventure had reached the peak of its quality just minutes prior.
But when I played through the adventure, that's not what was in my notes. It was merely an afterthought. And that's great, because it shows truly how much CFG gets right about adventure mapping. Take the visual appeal for example. Gloria is not so much about scale as it is atmosphere, and so it doesn't try to be. The aesthetics you'll encounter in Gloria are refreshingly original and make use of blocks in ways I truly wasn't expecting. They aren't huge and overwhelming or small and pitiful, instead remaining just in line with the way the atmosphere dictates. It is mysteriously science-fiction in a world that shouldn't be that way, and while that may seem contradictory, it falls right into the path the story creates.
However, none of these reasons are why you'll truly divulge in Gloria's web. Sure, the visuals and plot are great successes, but it all boils down to the atmosphere's strength. And really, not only does the atmospheric value uphold the entire adventure, it lifts it above where it needs to be. Gloria recaptures that feeling of odd and gripping discovery that made LOST so incredible, and improves on such key elements. For one, the background music selection is sound, and yes, pun intended. It is probably the most well-chosen selection of score of incompetech.com that I've seen to date. It does a huge favor to the atmospheric stroke of genius that is Gloria, but it isn't the only element. Gloria is completely unpredictable. You'll never guess where it is going next, and it is for this reason alone that it fails to fall into traditional story clichés.
I won't ramble on further, even if it would be for a good cause. Instead, I'll leave you knowing the following: Gloria is one of the finest blessings ever to fall upon the mapping community. You'll never find another one quite like it, and its only successor I see in true sight is its sequel, set to be released very soon. The adventure is a magnificent triumph, and you'd be doing yourself a huge disservice to not download it. CFG has eventfully crammed all of his knowledge into an hour and a half of his best work.
Bugs/tips
-my only major gripe is with the Maze of Insanity and the "added math", neither of which even remotely fit where the story was approaching. Either alter the story at least slightly to compensate, or remove it completely. In either case, get rid of the math, which made no sense and was random in a map that seemed so well thought-out prior to that.
-signs, god darn-it! They got in the way of the inventory space so many times! Any chance you could provide a hole to dispose of them or simply collect them with some fancy redstone? Just a thought.
The map has a simple premise: the player is a thief tasked with stealing a diamond and bringing it back to his or her hideout. Along the way, the player has to navigate through and over buildings and similar obstacles. I enjoyed how this map felt and looked; the towns and cities are definitely a sight for sore eyes, considering that most parkour maps nowadays consist of random floating blocks. This map felt natural to move in, to jump and climb around. It is very important to have the player feel immersed inside the world the map creator makes, and The Parkour Thief does this fairly well. However, despite all of this, there is something I need to bring to attention:
The map felt very short and did not give off the feeling of any real substance. This, I feel, is due to the map's story. With the map being nothing more than the player trying to reach a certain location, the map's creator seemed to struggle with a good progression and pacing of the map. The various cities and towns in the map, while interesting in their own rights, looked to be nothing more than filler and an excuse to have more parkour before the map ended. They were ultimately very arbitrary, having nothing to do with the map's overall experience or story. There wasn't much in this map to tie the world into the player's quest other than the cities being mere obstacles to give the player something to do. The ending felt very abrupt to me because I trekked across a handful of cities only to remember that the story was extremely simple. In reality, I had only accomplished stealing a single diamond despite going through all sorts of random jumping courses that seemed to be building up to something, but actually weren't. This was disappointing. With all of the content in this map, it was still uneventful and plain.
I mentioned before how I enjoyed the map's aesthetics being believable instead of being floating blocks. This is wonderful and shows the mapper's realization of the importance of creating interestingly designed levels for players. My concern here is that even though the map looks the part, the gameplay is still the bare-basics of parkour. With real-life landscapes, there are many opportunities to make traversing the world a very fun and engaging experience. But I was still essentially climbing ledges, jumping over gaps, and just trying to find the next place to go. It's one thing to make a nice visual design such as this map's, and it's one thing to make it fun to play. It's ANOTHER thing to carefully weave the two together. The Parkour Thief did not seem to incorporate game and atmosphere together very well. I noticed elements of this map that really looked like the mapper viewed level and overall game design differently from one another. The entire map experience looks like a mess of different processes of thought that the creator went through as he was mapping, or rather, the map's experience has every single element that a good game needs, but fails to mesh it together into a solid, consistent mix.
All in all, I cannot recommend this map. On the other hand, I can't call it bad. The map looks and feels interesting, and I enjoyed jumping in and around actual buildings for a change, but in the end it was nothing more than a pretty parkour obstacle course. Story, visuals, and gameplay were very separated in regards to the overall experience and the map would have been so much more fun to play if those things were tied together nicely.
Bugs/tips
-Didn't see any bugs. Nice.
-As mentioned throughout the entire review, make a tangible connection between story and gameplay. Games are often considered to be the ultimate form of media because it combines video, audio, writing, and ties it all in with player interaction. Consider the entire map as a whole, rather than looking at elements of your map separately.
-There are many creative things you can do with a realistic world. I liked jumping the rooftops, but the potion and mining buildings looked like they were built based on generic parkour jumps. Try basing the jumps around your buildings, or, following the previous tip, find a balance where you can design and build them together.
-When making a story or narrative, just about everything needs to have a reason to exist. It's cool that you made realistic scenery, but why was there an old abandoned tunnel that led to a random tribe of vicious warriors? Make it significant, or don't have it at all.
-It may just be me, but make your map harder
The premise of the map is an interesting one, and I think I've conveyed my views on it clearly prior to this. Nonetheless, I feel the need to prove exactly why it works. We all know that escape maps can be well done (the Escapecraft series, Escape the Puzzlemaster, etc.), but a substantial portion, most likely a majority of these maps are just so bad. I've seen so many people attempt to refresh the escape sub-genre by flaunting originality, but unfortunately many of these efforts are in vain. So Accept Your Own Adventure analyses why this is, and presents it to the player in a new light. Those who frequent escape maps will notice the way Gregolas presents these flaws very evidently. It's clever.
The sad fact is, the message that Gregolas42 tries so hard to convey is often missed, and there are a number of reasons that contribute to this. Firstly, it contains many possible endings, whose quality ranges from great to somewhere far below terrible. If you happen to choose a path through the map that sends you on a path to one of the better endings, then you'll have fun and realize what Gregolas42 was going for all along, and perhaps even be interested in revisiting the map again to replay and get another ending. But if you get one of the less-than-stellar endings, chances are you'll curse and never want to glance at the adventure again, regardless of whether there are supposedly better endings down the road. All in all, the message is sloppily portrayed, for one, because it isn't always clear amidst certain endings. As I hope you can guess from now, Accept Your Own Adventure's gameplay aspect is not the strongest I've ever seen.
The storyline of Accept Your Own Adventure is another reason why you don't always get the point of the message the map creator is trying to send. The plot is actually fairly decent, mainly because the Glados-like character is a thrill once you get past the droning anonymous-style voice. He torments you thoroughly if you misbehave, maliciously kills you in at least one ending, and is a real comedian in others. He also is presented as the "map maker" who, as it turns out, is also the main way Gregolas42 proves his point about escape maps in general. He realizes you don't like a certain map because it is horribly dull, but gives you another chance by replacing that flaw with another. If you get fed up with him simply because you want to and disobey, then *poof*! You're dead. But as it turns out, if you choose a completely "good" path where you obey at least three quarters of what the "map maker" tells you to do, you'll miss the point, and instead carry on through a messy adventure. You'll recognize the flaws of the adventure for sure, but because the Glados character likes you so much, he won't get mad or show you another great path, which in turn doesn't give you the message. I have mixed feelings toward the story, and while I have quite a few positive mentions on its originality, I think its flaws outweigh its successes.
Which brings me to Accept Your Own Adventure's final major aspect, its progression. On an everyday occassion, I'd critique a map's success in this department in the same way I would its gameplay, but progressing through this map is different. It is a "Choose Your Own Adventure"-themed map (a series I loved as a kid, and so I smiled upon seeing this) in the sense that there are moral choices to be made, consequences, and of course, multiple endings. Now, this is all great, but it gets a little cluttered. It is yet another reason why Accept Your Own Adventure's moral pretentions are beyond its less-than-vast capabilties, and you ofter misunderstand what the whole point of "Accept Your Own Adventure" is. Progressing through certain paths is thrilling, while others are less so. There is often little to motivate you to progress through the adventure, and therefore a less-than-useless atmosphere. Simply put, you don't want to progress through Accept Your Own Adventure unless/until you realize what it is trying to communicate to you.
When you finish Accept Your Own Adventure, you may not truly understand what it was trying to tell you. I'd say there's a 50/50 chance this will be the case for you, and if you take a peek at the score the map received, you'll realize it is about close to that. You may get the message, and you may not. One way or another, you'll have mixed feelings about the map. You probably won't call it great or terrible, unless you got one of those freaking awful endings or one of the incredible endings and didn't come back to find the others. Analysing this map was a real pain in the **** because there were so many factors that contributed to its successes and failures, but I knew what was going to come my way when I sign up for the job of reviewing. In a nutshell, Accept Your Own Adventure has its own take on the puzzle crisis the mapping community has been in for the past year or so. It is a little too sloppy to fully present this at the moment, but it may get there eventually. Only time will tell. Hopefully this review will accelerate that change.
Bugs/tips
-improve the endings of the strictly "good" paths. This could mean a slightly more epic ending or some more interactive content, but whatever the case might be, keep in mind that you are trying to inform the community of what it is doing wrong. No matter where you take this, make sure you present the flaws of escape maps prominently.
-is there anyone you know capable of doing a computer voice that doesn't sound like anonymous and isn't as annoyingly repellant as the automated voice you chose? It would help the first impression, even if you do get used to the voice about halfway into the adventure
-include more endings on the "bad" side of the chart. They are the most fun and the most intuitive, and I recommend getting started on them right away!
-I personally wouldn't mind a deeper story. You've got the flawed aspect down perfectly, and you can keep that, but something more to motivate you would be nice
Unfortunately, while there's a lot to like in Quest for the Egg, there sadly isn't much to love, save for its main hero, Professor Gandy. Gandy is equal-parts funny, silly, stupid (in a comical way) and just as much fun to be enthralled by as Grizwold, if not even more-so. He is, sadly, the only refreshing element to an otherwise dull tale. You have no recollection of your past (Hmm... does this sound familiar?) and through a series of ill-communicated theories Gandy decides you ought to seek out eight keys in order to assist him in sending you pack to where you belong. While the premise is somewhat engrossing and preps you for the adventure, the hunt for each key feels jarringly separate from the others. There is no interrconnecting plot to glue the separate pieces together, and for this one reason the entire plot feels disjointed. Additionally, the storytelling element of the map is severely flawed, as you are only sent to find four of the eight keys. And while I understand that Writr has abandoned this map and left it unfinished, the plot needs some closure. How hard would it have been to devise a short ending and conclude the story with only the need for four keys, not eight? I would assume not so much so, and as was the case with Boulefield, the story needn't be cut short because a temporary fix is beyond the capabilities of the map creator.
Meanwhile, the gameplay is a refreshing change from simply combat and puzzles. It, unsurprisingly, focuses upon exploration-based conquest in order to steadily achieve goals, but it isn't meaningless. The exploration Quest for the Egg sports progresses perfectly and through some relatively simple redstone keeps up just enough momentum without becoming overdone or breathtaking. I will admit I was not a large fan of the plot, but the amusing visual appeal suits the gameplay enough to propel you forward further into the world of Quest for the Egg. It is for this reason that the gameplay mechanics work, even if they do so on uneven footing.
As I stated previously, Quest for the Egg has some mild visual appeal. I found that the labaratory in Quest 1 was thoroughly elevating, and the same can be said for many examples throughout the following quests. But I feel like Writr only succeeded with his builds when he was attempting to enhance the atmosphere on a less-than grand scale. When he attempted to create large buildings like Gandy's castle they came off as flat, dull, and too squared for my liking. They were, frankly, unappealing. I know Writr has cast this map away in favour of more important ideals in his life, but should he return to improve it, I would recommend he begin fixing it to bring out further aesthetical pleasure.
But Quest for the Egg doesn't lean upon any of these aspects to succeed. The plot is crucial but would not be devastating if removed. Neither would the gameplay mechanics if altered. And I've addressed that there are more suitable routes to take in regards to the architecture present. Instead, Quest for the Egg's success boils down to the atmosphere.
Does the atmosphere succeed on any levels what so ever? I say yes. I found Quest for the Egg had me on the edge of my toes for Quest 1, and while it seemed to falter in light of the second and third quests, Quest 4 garnered my attention like no other and truly pulled me into its enthralling daliance without hesitation. I had almost lost hope by the end of the third quest, but the atmosphere in the final quest was enriched by a stronger plot, its serious nature, and a heartwarming conclusion.
Quest for the Egg is not a perfect map. It doesn't even approach such a designation. But to me, it at least reaches the standard of enjoyable. It certainly isn't the best adventure you will find out there, and it isn't the worst either, but if you are looking for an adventure reminiscent of the old adventures of early '11, give this one a try. You won't love it, but you'll surely find a ton to enjoy.
Bugs/tips
-architecture needs some work. Fix up the towers in Quest 2 and Gandy's primary tower accordingly to make them less square. Refer to the review for how to accomplish this.
-Gandy is the only shining light in an otherwise murky plot. Bring him further into the spotlight to flesh out the character further. You can add easter eggs, a small secret backstory among them that details who Gandy is and his motivations, and a more outlined nemesis, his apprentice.
-make the multiple plots of the separate quests more connected. I have a feeling you were attempting to accomplish this while finishing the later quests, but as of now, they are too distant from one another.
-conclude the plot with four keys. Just leaving us hanging to ponder what happened doesn't cut it. Even if temporary, provide some closure to at least partially satisfy the player.
Review our maps?
Kmilley: Levi's Nightmare
Fangride: Paladin's Quest
2
In short, SoulForge: Elemental Rebirth is a minecraft server that strays away from the typical factions/mcmmo/iconomy pvp server. We have created new, custom-made plugins, that cover all of the areas of a good minecraft pvp server, and expand on them in a unifying way that will make SoulForge feel like a game of its own. We are currently in late alpha, and are in high need of testers of this amazing new experience.
Where can I learn about SoulForge?
In the future, we will have an extensive, in game helpfile database, along with an easy-to-use tips broadcaster. Right now, the easiest way to learn about the numerous custom plugins, is to visit our wikipedia, here.
For a brief meet the team/overview of SoulForge watch the video below:
How can I try it out?
To get onto SoulForge: Elemental Rebirth, you must apply for tester. After that, a staff member will check your application, and if everything is ok, you will be accepted. The application is below, post it in the comments of this thread.
Is there any way I can help?
Of course! One of the easiest ways you can help, is to get on the server, and try everything out! In the alpha stages of the server, there is bound to be many bugs/problems. By trying to break plugins, finding typos, and experimenting with the server, you are helping out immensely. Please post all bugs/problems on this page as you find them: Bugs/Problems.
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4.59.125.152
1
Review Pack Four
Contents
Out of the few puzzles only one was something I’ve not seen before. On most of the puzzles the map maker seems to have tried to add something original to them, but has mostly failed, occasionally making the puzzles even worse. Even though the puzzles were hard and unoriginal I enjoyed the challenge most of the time. But eventually, after failing dozens of times and raging over design flaws which in the worst case scenario got me trapped, unable to progress without cheating and/or bypassing some parts, it became too overwhelming. When also considered how short the map is the time consumed on a single puzzle is way over the top.
The design and the visuals of the map are at their best low-mediocre and at their worst just plain sloppy. Redstone and TNT visible, chunk error walls and broken redstone contraptions are something that cannot be forgiven to any map maker. The story of the map is an unoriginal “ur trapped man, escape” and it gives a feel that of being just thrown in when all the puzzles were finished to make the map look more “professional.”
Difficulty isn’t always a bad thing. But when it is accompanied with unoriginality, sloppiness, bad story and overall bad execution it does only harm. Overall this map had very few good things in it, one of them being that for some unknown reason I enjoyed (at least in the beginning) the difficulty and the puzzles. If you want hard map to play you are free to try this one out. Otherwise I can’t recommend it to anyone with a good conscience.
Bugs/tips
-Hide the redstone.
-In the first puzzle (parkour over lava) at the second tip room there is no button to press, trapping the player there leaving them no choice but cheat their way out.
-Also in the first puzzle down to the TNT mine I kept dying from the fall, not sure why.
-Fix the piston elevator.
-Scale down the difficulty and/or add more puzzles and variety.
This is what raced in my head as I was downloading Quest for Vendria, supposedly an adventure/parkour map that appeared to feature all of those things above. When I played it, however, it failed to deliver anything good, or decent, at that. This map was more of a leisurely stroll in the park, rather than one of dungeons and demons. Needless to say, it was immensely disappointing to me. This review will essentially be my first impressions and reactions to the entire map. Yes, I can do this. The map is that short. So without further ado, my review:
At the start of the map, I am given some porkchops. Why? The map's creator told me to play on peaceful difficulty. I am also given torches. Why? Every area in this map that matters is already well-lit with already-placed torches, anyway! I am also given a set of leather armor. Do I need protection from monsters? No, I'm told to play on peaceful. What about protection from lava pits and TNT? Well, this is applicable, but barely (more on this later). The point is, I am given a set of items that I will pretty much never need.
The map requires me to go to three separate dungeons so I can find the keys to open the final area and defeat the dark spirit that is beginning its reign of destruction. Okay, sounds good enough. The locations seem interesting at first: The first dungeon is in a forest, the second is a giant tree, and the third is a desert ruin. Hey, this might be a pretty cool map after all!... Oh. The first dungeon is made of three tiny rooms. Three. Tiny. Rooms. It consists of a ludicrously easy and boring underwater cave that I have to get through to find the first key. It took less than two minutes to get by this challenge. Is it meant to be like this?
Second dungeon. The giant tree. It's a parkour course. Again, it took me less than two minutes to complete and was ridiculously easy. Moving on.
The third dungeon in the desert ruin involves a confusing and frustrating maze. This was not easy. This was not fun. This was nothing short of frustrating, given my annoyance from the past two dungeons. Despite this, it still took about a mere five minutes to finish.
Well, off to the final area. I have to do another challenge? Sure, why not? This dungeon, to my surprise, actually posed a slight challenge. This makes no difference to me, however, as it presented me with forgettable jumps over lava pools and a fairly weak piston-ledge challenge. Yes, it was more difficult. But it was still really easy. I still managed to breeze through this area.
So, I'm given the final nether area. This is it. The end. The climax. The big finale. The final challenge you do is... A soul sand race. This is the grand final challenge? This is pretty underwhelming. I finish the soul sand race, get the button to blow up the nether, and set off a load of TNT. That's it. Credits roll, I see a "to be continued" sign, game over.
So what can I say about this map? Ultimately, I get the feeling that this map was going for something so big, so epic, and on such a grand-scale. But it falls short on all accounts, and ends up small, weak, and overall a waste of my time. Why couldn't the dungeons be larger? Why couldn't the map be more difficult or challenging to anyone that is more skilled than someone who had just played Minecraft for the first time? Why was any semblance of effort wasted on fancy redstone contraptions instead on good map design? I feel horrible for trashing this map, and by extension, the map's creator, but Quest for Vendria was boring, pointless, and badly designed. I wanted to like it; I love adventure maps. But to me, this wasn't anything more than getting past trivial obstacles to get keys so I can open doors. I'm afraid to say that this map did not impress me.
Bugs/tips
-I did not find any bugs. A commendable achievement!
-Don't give the player pointless and arbitrary items.
-Take your time when making maps. If it's going to take another day to make a challenge really fun and interesting, do it.
-Pull out all your stops. I'm not trying to insult you, creator, but try harder. Even if you don't realize it, you can always pour out so much more effort into your creations. Don't settle for "good enough."
-Consider basic game design and think about what your players may think when they play your map. Is it actually fun for you to play? Is this interesting, or annoying? Is this area needed? Should it be shortened? Should it be longer? Attempt to consider all possibilities when you make a map.
-Come prepared with a plan. Doodle on a piece of paper, or just exercise your brain and think about what you could do to make your maps interesting before you actually make the map itself. Architects don't build skyscrapers and bridges without blueprints, do they?
The free roam –aspect is the strong point of the map. Even though it is lacking and occasionally confusing, it is a nice change from the majority of maps with strictly linear plot. The way the map was meant to travel through made it confusing though, as the player may get easily lost and frustrated over where he or she is supposed to go. The main areas on the map need a button or a lever to enter, but an unscrupulous player can easily bypass some of the restrictions because of flaws in the design of the map.
The design and visuals of the map were generally poor. What I saw mostly gave me an expression of an unfinished and sloppy map with not enough attention given to details and functionality. One huge downside was the fact that the map was built on a superflat world, which has two major problems: firstly, the ridiculous amount of slimes almost drove me crazy with their constant jumping and secondly, when getting towards the end of the map the aesthetics of the map suffer from the fact that the landscape is - you know - flat and the small actions done to make it look better are to no extent enough. Another flaws in the design were the small errors in grammar (u and i are not proper English) and the laziness with redstone, such as uncovered paths which one could use to pass some important areas and redstone torches sitting by powered rails without even attempting to hide them. When it is not functional or that detailed, the architecture of the map is actually mostly quite good and enjoyable, especially in the very end.
The gameplay of the map was average. The puzzles were quite unoriginal excluding a couple of pleasant surprises. Most of the puzzles were relatively easy, getting a little more challenging towards the end. There were however some serious problems regarding gameplay and playability. First of all I think the map should have better lighting because the amount of aggressive mobs can get overwhelming, especially when the slimes are counted in. Then the main problem of the map; I had to download Single Player Commands just to be able to /killall in order to be able to play the game. I usually get around 50-60 fps with fancy graphics and far render distance but in this map it dropped down to 4-8 with fast graphics and short render distance. Originality with puzzles is great but everything isn’t acceptable and the abuse of spawning of passive mobs is one of those things. The mapmaker must also think about whether the customers - who may not be as well equipped as he/she - are able to play the game properly without suffering from huge amounts of lag.
Overall the map was ok, it wasn’t spectacular but it wasn’t a total disaster either. It had its upsides and downsides, and with some polishing it could easily be a solid 6-7 map. But, as it is now and with all the problems and issues it has, I think the score is quite fitting.
Bugs/tips
-The energy supply building can easily be entered by simply climbing the vines to a nearest hole of suitable size.
-For aesthetic purposes, try out something else, or at least add some variety to the plain walls of the main area.
-Also notice the limits and downsides regarding aesthetics while using superflat world type as the base of your map.
-Add more hills and trees outside the main area.
-Cover your redstone!
How long has it been since you felt that in our dear game? You're not a newbie anymore, and that magic feeling of Minecraft may not be as strong as it used to be. Perhaps you should take a break from the game. Or maybe, just maybe, you need to be reminded about how amazing this game actually is. Maybe you should play Across the Land.
Across the Land, at first glance, appears to be a parkour map. Well, it is, I won't deny that. But to me, it is so much more. It's a journey through Minecraft as you know it, but it manages to capture the raw beauty of the world around you. Taking you to the cliffside of a mountain, through a thick wood, down a dark cave, into an icy tundra, and more, it would seem like pretty standard scenery as far as Minecraft goes. However, the very concept of simply travelling across the world is a surprisingly good one.
The actual parkour aspect of this map is extremely easy. It isn't meant to be difficult, however; the mapper seemed to want to remove any possible sense of frustration (there were some parts where I was slightly confused as to where to go, but I was quickly back on track). There is no real challenge in this map because it appears to be meant to be a simple and raw experience of the Minecraft world. The running course is fast and it flows very well.
Despite the fact that all I am doing is traversing over and under very familiar terrain, it brought the entire world into a very different light. This map is gorgeous. This map is absolutely beautiful! Then it hit me: MINECRAFT is beautiful. I can't believe that I had forgotten. This game is downright beautiful.
There isn't much more to say about this map. It's easy, straight-forward, and really short. Seriously, it took me one Minecraft day to finish it. But I'm not sure if that's even a problem. It didn't need to be long at all. It was as if the map was just there to say, "Hey, remember what this looks like? Remember how you used to be in awe at this game's world? Let me show you for ten minutes."
Some ugly part of my mind is ransacking this map, turning it upside down, just so it can find any serious flaw with this map. It can't find any. That's because Across the Land doesn't try very hard to be anything. Is that a bad thing? I do feel the need to point out that there isn't much to this map at all, and that the creator simply made platforms on top of the Minecraftian landscape and called it a map. It's not a challenge, it's not an adventure in the conventional sense of the word, and it's almost exactly like the default world of Minecraft. However, there is something to be said when you feel like a map is trying it's hardest to make you enjoy every step you take. This confounds me. No megabuilds, no dungeons, no semblance of story. All it gives you is a pathway and sets you off. Most of the world is untouched, yet it is a fantastic experience. It may not be brilliant because of what the creator put into it, but it is definitely brilliant for what it is. I would highly recommend this map simply because of how it presents Minecraft's sheer beauty.
Bugs/tips
-Sometimes the path was unclear. This big offender here is in the pyramid area.
-I would love for this to be expanded upon, but that's just me.
The map is paced as an RPG medieval-style adventure, and as such the story is appropriately noteworthy. It begins on a mediocre level but builds until it reaches a fairly suitable climax. I won't spoil the entirety of the map's narrative, but will give positive mentions on the storytelling technique, the pacing of notes, and the complexity of the characters whose hearts are spilled into the rich text. I wasn't at first intruiged by the map's storyline, and as first impressions are key; I can't say you, the reader, will be, either. But if you press on past the lackluster beginning you'll be pulled into its engrossing plot and respect it for what it offers.
However, while the plot was a solid aspect, I was less certain about most others. One of these was the exploration-based role-playing. I did love the sewer sequence, but I was less than compelled to visit the other designated locations, or even attempt to find them. Whether this is just my personal opinion on exploration or not I'm uncertain, but I'd hope that others will find more in exploring the world of Living in the Shadows than I did.
Meanwhile, I felt the puzzles had little to offer the adventure. Their overall design was well-constructed, but the lackluster polish and often even signs or notes that told you what to do reduced their charm to a inexplicable nonsensical mess. The parkour was a nice touch, even if brief, and fit the scenery well. But a puzzle allowing the player to progress into the castle sewers completely wrecked the atmosphere and disrupted the scene in a very violent way. There were a number of occurances like this, but I won't mention them all, as redundance is a real pain.
On a more positive note, I did like most of the architecture Living in the Shadows had to offer. It wasn't particularly grand or even noteworthy on a fairly small scale, it accomplished what it needed to and did so in a professional fashion, even if the world of Living in the Shadows was rather small. I liked the castle, the intricate furniture, the detail, and the well-done appeal of the adventure, even if a few places stuck out as a sore thumb among the otherwise solid visual atmosphere.
Living in the Shadows is a relatively uneventful map that has little to offer that you won't see elsewhere. It has a good, unique story and some great architectural detail, but its exploration and puzzles are influences that don't affect its score in a positive way. If you are looking for a solid map with beyond average aspects in every regard, there are a plethora of assorted maps to weave through among the fray of the forums. Living in the Shadows, unfortunately, is not one of these, but as I can see a number of ways for it to be improved, there's nowhere to go but up.
Bugs/tips
-fit your puzzles into scenes where they won't interrupt the atmosphere too greatly, and blend into the story
-don't tell the player character exactly how to solve a puzzle. Give them hints, but let them achieve the final answer free of spoils.
-enforce the story and give more of a reason to explore when bringing exploration into the mix
As stated above, the player wakes up in a mysterious complex in which he or she is tolding nothing except that he or she needs to complete "tests." I will say now that this theme is horribly cliché. However, my interest was piqued again as the map creator added notes of someone else speaking, indicating that there was something more to these tests. Playing on the my curiosity, the mapper had me press on, giving me hope that this map could stand out from the many puzzle-escapes from before.
As I finished the introduction area, the map presented me with a hub with gateways to a rather large plethora of challenges. They range from parkour, multiple choice questions, archery, and a dark maze. And a cactus maze. And a glass maze. What struck me as odd was the fact that the challenges are so similar to one another. Despite the high amount of content that this map features, it seems that the mapper was not able to find many creative ideas in his challenges. They were all the same or were variations of past challenges, and all of them were challenges that other puzzle maps have done so many times before to the point of overuse. I don't see the innovation, nor do I see the inspiration. That being said, I admit that these challenges were well made and were fun in their own rights. They just weren't original. As for the puzzle aspect itself, there was only one challenge that scratched my brain: the sand and piston puzzle (which was the only puzzle that was noteworthy, as it looked very original and it could have been expanded upon.) The rest of the challenges were not at all too puzzling, as they consisted more of obstacle courses rather than challenges that make people think. For a puzzle map, it didn't contain very many puzzles.
Throughout this entire map, the main reason of my pressing on was to figure out the mystery of what was going on in the story. The map looked like it was building up to a climax, and just when I could taste it, it shoehorns a random plot about how the player is the only one who could save the world from an evil race of creatures that are apparently the scourge of the planet.
Wait, what? Where did this come from? As far as the players know, they were just doing random tests in countless chambers. Now they suddenly have to go save the world? One of the main problems that I have with this map is that the creator does not seem to know how to create a good narrative. Despite this jarring and sudden revelation, the player is still forced to go through many more test chambers and complete challenges.
I fail to see the connection between the story and the map itself. This is what I believe to be the main flaw of this map. It has everything that it needs to be a good challenge map: well-put-together levels, a decent difficulty progression, and a lot of things to do. It excels in this aspect, but the story was not done very well and only seemed to be there as a flimsy excuse for the player to partake in the challenges. I wish the story was more integral to the gameplay; the mapper even bothered to create interesting names and visual designs for all of the hub areas, implying that the world was rich with detail. If the map featured real environments rather than claustrophobic boxes, I don't think I would have had too much of a problem here, simply because it would have made me feel like I was more part of the world. Instead, I feel tragically disconnected.
Perhaps I have become bitter and jaded. There are so many "escape the test chamber" maps out there that I struggle to find anything new or original. I must give credit where it is due, however; calpol55, the creator of this map, made his first adventure map decently fun. It's a shame that the adventuring part left a lot to be desired. For all intents and purposes, though, this map was fine. It was just very uninspired. Keep at it, calpol55. You can only get better and better from here on.
I don't think that I have mentioned that Escape the Madman is still a work in progress, yet. Well, it is a work in progress, and the map's creator will be adding more onto this map. If you enjoy challenges, keep an eye on it!
Bugs/tips
-The TNT challenge broke somehow; I managed to set off a chain reaction of explosions and I cleared out the entire room! Oh yeah, I died too.
-If it's an adventure map you're making, I HIGHLY advise you not to make your entire map made out of separate challenges. It detracts from player engagement because of how disconnected everything feels. The story would seem nearly pointless when you make maps like this. Try making detailed terrain!
-Get more ideas for your puzzles and challenges. The map felt very repetitive at some areas because some puzzles were literally the same as other ones. Many puzzles were used by countless other maps as well, making yours very generic and run-of-the-mill.
I'll begin with the flaws and work my way up to the grand finale. What's first up? The story, or perhaps its disappearance. Yes, CreeperEye is without a story. As a puzzle map this was a very weak choice, as the map felt hollow without one. I did notice a couple of signs addressing this in the beginning, where apparently the crew who made this map hated long and detailed stories in puzzle maps, so they didn't make one. The problem is, the story didn't have to be long and complicated. Look at successful maps like Escapecraft and Escape the Puzzlemaster, both surprisingly similar to this map. Their plots were next to nothing and yet they made the map feel exciting and whole. Even the basic escape plot would have brought the map's score up MUCH higher. You'd be surprised at how much fun it is creating signs that **** the player off by taunting them.
Next, the difficult level was honestly something I didn't fully appreciate. It wasn't bad, per se, but flawed. You see, the map's signs basically told the player EXACTLY what to do or EXACTLY where to go, like looking near water. The resulting experience is not enjoyable, but luckily, the crew of the map seemed to realize their error and quickly refrained from placing any more of these signs near the end of the map. Also, the map was played entirely on peaceful. I understand, having helped a friend make a map before, that creating monster-fighting based challenges can be difficult, it really does help the map and the quality of its difficulty.
Lastly, in terms of flawed execution, the map's theme was 100% unclear. This is a major nitpick in my opinion, because honestly, the map was all over the place. Forests, wool, sandy areas, ice... if the entire map's theme had been previously established and whimsical and wonderful like Marvellous', then this would not have been a problem. But while the average player might not notice it, as a reviewer I feel obligated to inform you.
However, aside from those little flaws, the map was quite the feat. Some very original puzzles (wool colours? Genius! Never would've thought of that) mixed with new and cool locales created a lovely puzzling experience. All of the puzzles were executed with precision and crafted with care, and honestly the difficulty was averaged out to moderate (my favourite level!
As well, I felt architecturally the map was very strong as well. I absolutely loved the multiple creeper faces strategically placed around the map that somewhat gave purpose to the map's title. Similarly, the map's locations were always diverse, made out of varying materials and the like. But I can't say I was expected the sheer *excuse my language* awesomeness at the end when I witnessed a phenomenal room that completely blew by mind. Absolutely fantastic. Very great architecture, guys! Good job.
The map's main aspects, its puzzle and the surrounding architecture, are really what make this map a success. Absolutely great job. Had the flaws been fixed, in the sense that a story was added, the theme was clearer, and the signs saying exactly what to do were removed, the map's overall score would be a minimum of 2 entire numbers higher. But until then, the map is nothing special. I recommend the map to anyone who just feels like playing puzzles and just enjoying Minecraft. However, hardcore players may just skip this one.
Bugs/tips
-literally NO bugs! Seriously?
-as mentioned above, the absense of a story was a really big downfall. Even a simple one, about escaping, would have been nice. The map will feel much more whole then.
-THEME!! Specify it first as whimsical or a varied obstacle course, and then you should be fine.
-take out those signs near the beginning telling you the exact area of the blocks.
The story was where a large mass of the mess was concentrated. It's a mainly linear storyline with exploration and combat playing major roles, and comedy laced throughout. The comedy is refreshing at first, in comparison with the many serious role-playing maps and games out there, but it soon grows tiresome, even though it dies down. The story itself is also pretty predictable, and despite being original, is somewhat traditional and redundant. It doesn't help that the notes often lack proper spelling and occasionally even grammar. And while this is all supposed to play into the comedy role of the map, it distracts the player from the main quest and the three side quests far too much. So much so, that in fact I actually didn't care about most of the story by the end of the adventure. But put aside the comedy, and the story is much sturdier. The somewhat silly tale being told is more intruiging, and at least two of its three side quests are enough to hold your attention without distracting you from the main quest too much. I won't go so far as to say this is the worst plot execution I've seen in a map, but it certainly isn't the best.
But putting aside the story, it is far easier to see where the map strives. One particular aspect it does fairly well in is its architecture. Builds are often no more than mediocre, but occasionally there will be a structure that makes you go "Wow." The map maker isn't too new to the concept of a map and its components, and it is very clear that those buildings were just as awesome as intended. There weren't any structures that were terrible or even remotely bad, as even the most mediocre of builds had their strengths and diversities. And those that made me say "Wow" were breathtaking. The limits of Minecraft were sometimes even pushed with what I witnessed, and I mean that as a huge compliment. It's needless to say that the map maker is no stranger to construction.
The atmosphere of a map is always a tricky aspect to analyse because it so heavily relies on gameplay, story, builds, and creativity, but it becomes easier when you see how seamless those aspects are integrated into one another. The story is suitable for the builds provided, and the gameplay is creative, even while not in its prime. I can't say too much on the atmosphere's behalf, save for that it did what it had to.
Gameplay was a final aspect of the map I felt was fairly strong. Side quests felt a little forced, often considering where they were precisely placed, and some didn't make much sense, but all provided their moments and were worthwhile. But I must also present a criticism I have here. The questing is rough around the edges. Often it overpowers the exploration by telling you exactly what to do and where to go. And while linear gameplay can be decent, it is not nearly as fun as Boulefield's openworld style questing where you had to explore small, realistically diverse areas in order to advance the story. For this reason I say that Nostalgia is weaker than Boulefield, but like I said previously, it could be improved to come closer to that high standard.
However, when it came to exploration, the map was top notch. Even though exploration often felt needless and sometimes convoluted when integrated with the story, other times it was supremely superb, perhaps even stronger than Boulefield's. The story provided motivation, the builds provided astronomical support, and the well thought-out atmosphere was touching. There was so much reason to want to explore and so many options that sometimes it even felt like a treasure hunt, what with the player being the hunter hoping to reap the rewards of exploration. I won't go into further detail on the matter, but say that if the map excells for one reason, it's this.
As I stated long ago, Nostalgia has potential. I dearly hope I've helped the map maker realise this and that he fixes the map accordingly. I feel compelled to compare it to Boulefield because it was clearly striving for a different adventure but similar goal: to create the best RPG Minecraft experience ever. I feel that only Boulefield did this, but I have yet to give up hope for Nostalgia. There's lots to improve, and little time before more role-playing styled maps begin to appear, so it's crucial that Nostalgia: A Simple Quest fixes its problems now rather than later.
Bugs/tips
-comedy. Tone it down or remove it entirely. It is unstable and close to annoying by the end of the adventure.
-spelling. Hate to be a grammar Nazi, but you need to fix that too.
-implement the side quests at more appropriate times during the few exploration sequences, not during linear questing.
-make the side quests somewhat related to the main story so that they are less distracting.
The puzzles were this map's strong point. Like most maps, there was a some parkour and other overused puzzles, but I did get the feeling that the creator attempted to be original with a few of the challenges. It also has a good balance of easy and calm puzzles, such as spot the difference, and fast paced, timed challenges. But like many of aspects of the map, I found that some of the small touches were lacking. In all though, it was the highlight of the map.
In a puzzle map, the puzzles are obviously the most important part. But they also need the right adhesive to glue it all together. When puzzles are not glued together properly it can make things feel incomplete and confusing. If a perfect puzzle map used extra-strength superglue, this map used a dried out, all purpose elementary glue stick. In other words, the map's story and finishing touches were not up to standard with its puzzles.
To go into detail, the story didn't translate well onto the signs around the map. I found it confusing at times, especially during an awkward switch between pure puzzle-after-puzzle, and an enclosed adventure portion. There were also many small areas that could have been improved with some detail additions. Small bugs also littered the map, and made it a bit of a clunky playthrough. My only other complaint would be that it isn't finished yet, so the ending was a couple signs in a room.
Overall, It was a good map. It could definitely improve in the story and detail aspect, but other than that it was solid throughout. It's Nothing special, but could be worth checking out if you are into basic puzzle maps.
Bugs/tips
-Add a scoring system
-Fix the door glitch that occurred after the recent update
-Add more checkpoints earlier in the map specifically, possibly some shortcuts from early in the map to later
-2 player support is inconsistent. If you are going to make 2 slots for minecarts do it for the entire map.
-Small typo at the beginning of the minecart puzzle- Minecraft should be minecart
-Following the tracks back to the start of the minecart puzzle is a pain in the **** and unprofessional. Make a hall to the start again at least.
-Add more items in the chests of the offices and houses
-Don't give water and lava at the start. People may use them to cheat through later levels
Just why does the map succeed on so many levels? Moving it along is a powerfully original tale that just sparkles with excitement and intruige, with mystery playing a signifigant role. Despite a fairly lackluster beginning and a highly implausible twist right when you begin, it soon picks up and changes direction completely. The entire adventure centers around exploration and your ability to uncover secrets and find just what is going on. Magic (in Vanilla Minecraft!) also is mixed well into the side-plots and major story points, even if at times it feels a little forced; almost as if Priestbob is dying to get the ingenius idea out into the world right away. From a gameplay standpoint, this is exceptionally strong, but I'll explain why later. The final ending to the map is not even complete, so it means map maker Priestbob is still ready to embrace the community and gift it with more classic adventure. However, the lack of a final ending is also one of the few places where Boulefield let me down. Even though it is left open, the plot is sort of left hanging where it shouldn't be. In fact, the story has just managed to build up enough tension when the map adruptly stops. I won't blame the map maker for this, as apparently it has been "18 months in the making," but it would be appreciated if a more exciting finale was available to suitably end the map for now. This, of course, would be temporary, but certainly helpful.
The story/plot aspect of the RPG is immediately intertwined with the atmosphere, as the two share a crucial role and relationship in the making of an adventure map. The atmospheric touch was helped along by some aesthetically pleasing structures and a powerhouse plot, but at times I felt it was lacking. Notes were often a little too long for my liking, as while I used to enjoy rich narrative, I've come to prefer short, concise story in narrative. Whether this is just personal preference or legitimate concern is yet to be decided. I would either shorten the notes to focus in on the topic, or record the notes in audio form. The technique works wonders in RPG-style adventures, such as DaDonn's Lord of Bloodycross or BlameTheController's Kingdom of the Sky. I recognized that Priestbob mentioned he was going to attempt this, and I highly recommend going in that direction. The map will be far more successful with audio narration to enhance it. The strong atmosphere, however, was helped by a separate audio component that really fleshed out the world. The score of the map, composed by a friend for Priestbob, is heartwarmingly epic. I can't thing of anything more suitable for such a masterpiece.
A final strength of the map is its revolutionary gameplay strategy. After an extremely short beginning (which I wouldn't even call introductory), a path is followed and the adventurer (you) reaches the town of Boulefield. While nothing here struck me as exciting or visually pleasing, there turned out to be a lot to do. The village was actually a hub! It teaches you many of the basics the map plays with and let's you get the hang of questing. It also introduces magic and weapons to the mix, two aspects that are held in high-regard when it comes to RPG map making. Then you are able to enter through the first portal and into "Level One". Level One deals highly with questing and is a real pleasure to complete. It's exploration-centred story is seamlessly integrated and always leaves for momentum to reach other areas of the map. Side quests don't usually feel forced, but they can get a little distracting. I'll be enjoying my search around the submarine for a railroad, then bid on a horse-race, and then return, but having forgotten my first intentions. But as I don't see a way to fix this in the forseeable future, I don't consider it a valid point. The gameplay is also enhanced by moral choices that actually change the ending of the map for the better. At several times during the map you are presented with two opposite paths, and I actually replayed the map several times to experience them all. Levels Two and Three aren't done yet, but I hope for them to be just as intense and exciting as the first.
That's about it. I didn't mention how epic the builds were, or how intense the tension was, but to be honest, there are only so many ways to say "That was awesome!" and I didn't want to seem redundant. I thoroughly enjoyed Boulefield and what it offered, and could find only a few ways it could be improved. But don't take my word for it. Try it out yourself. I can guarantee that you won't regret it.
Bugs/tips
-the only problems I had with the builds were how squared they were. I know its freaking Minecraft, but more is possible than just cubes.
-speaking of sound, you need some audio. Some of the notes are just too damn long. Shorten them or record them.
-some mechanics such as magic felt a little forced when used in side quests, such as the first appearance of the life wand. It didn't quite fit the quest, even if I loved the mechanic a lot.
Well, the most prominent of these flaws is the unprofessionalism and lack of creativity that is consistent throughout the entire map. It doesn't even appear that the map maker was overly joyous with his product; one can see this clearly through the lack of grammatical, spelling, and punctuational errors that are abundant on the signs that decorate the linear path. As a critic I understand many map-makers feel like making the conversational aspects on the map grammatically proper is a large burden, but even a small flaw such as misspelling a simple word or not starting a sentence with capitalized letters (both of which the map maker accomplished in this short puzzler) gives the player the feeling that the creator doesn't give a sh*t about what they're making. This particularly flaw was too apparent and strong to be ignored, and it is for this reason that I cite it as a major issue.
The second of the three primary flaws the puzzle-adventure contained was the story, or in this case, lack of one. I won't condemn the map-maker for leaving a strong story out of the map, or for attempting to place one into a puzzler of this ordinary-state, but I will say that what little was given was ineffective. It tried to evoke a Cube Inc meets Portal meets Escape the Puzzlemaster feeling, but even if that wasn't the intentional case, I didn't care for it. Furthermore, the flawed gameplay element that often forces you to die interrupts the infrequent story, and does so until the player stops caring about what any of the signs, story-related or not, say. I also found the ending to be anticlimatic and almost cliched, but I'll leave it to you, my fellow players, to decide whether you agree.
The final, and in my opinion, most effective of the flaws found in the map is the gameplay element, which is frayed and broken in ways that simply cannot be fixed. This flaw can be dissected and disassembled into separate ones, but for the sake of public impression, I'll collect the ideas into this. For one, the scoring system was ineffective, and quite frankly silly. While innovative, and in my experience innovative, having a score that decreases by one everytime you die is a little annoying when played through. Worse yet, this scoring system was put at the centre of the map, in the heart of the content within, so it played a prominent role. And it was quite the nuisance! I'd remove the scoring system, or make the deaths less frequent, to improve my overall impression and receive a far higher rating if I were the map-maker. The other element that negatively affected the gameplay noticably was the puzzle difficulty. Often you were told directly what to do in the instance of a thinking or redstone puzzle, and I also found the difficulty of combat and skill-testing puzzles to be inconsistent.
But the map did do some things right, even though I'm not entirely sure whether they were on purpose or not. It evokes a dungeon-crawler, mystery feeling when delved-into, and its puzzles are well crafted, even if the map is visually unappealing (it isn't the most aesthetically pleasing map I've seen, to be sure). In fact, though the difficulty pacing could use some work, the parkour was great fun, and so was progressing from puzzle to puzzle. The offbeat way that they were lead out might confuse some and anger others, and while as a critic I found myself annoyed, I loved it as a player. Not everything was as it seems, and when something comes out of the blue, fascination grows into appreciation.
Spawners and Co. has potential. It isn't the best or worst of adventures, and is somewhat redundant after a while, but its successes are noticeable admist what might otherwise be considered a mess. Don't give up, minijack! With some tweaks, adjustment, and a MAJOR grammar overhaul, this map's appeal could soar. If what I've mentioned above and listed below is achieved, I can guarantee a rating increase of at least 1.5.
Bugs/tips
-grammar overhauls, so on, so forth, as mentioned before
-better pacing of the puzzles and their difficulty so that it gets progressively harder as the map goes on
-scoring system must be fixed; either give the player a way to gain points, or make the deathly appearances less frequent
-either omit the story entirely from the map, or make it stronger - look to maps like Cube Inc that drew heavy inspiration from video games/other maps but felt original or unique on their own
First off, this map was lacking in perhaps the most important area, the questions. Ideally, this map would have questions that got harder as you advanced, and the questions would all be relevant and well thought out. In reality, the questions started off easy, and gradually became dedicated to your knowledge of the history of minecraft. Many of the questions just had to do with when items/mobs were introduced, and seemed to leave out many important minecraft aspects. This made it so that if you hadn't played since 1.2, you would have to guess many of the questions. These questions are not fun to answer, and really don't fairly test new players who are knowledgeable of minecraft. It's too bad, the question were such a huge player in this maps success, and it is unfortunate that they weren't implemented well.
Next, the map needs improvement in another game-breaking aspect: When you get a question wrong, I was hoping for a puzzle or something related to that to complete. Now, the creator does do this, but only for 2 of 17 questions. The rest are just a auto death. I believe that if you have a score implemented, you should not kill off your players when the get a question. If you get a question wrong, I think that you should be dropped into a puzzle of some sort, and then NOT get a chance to re do the question. If you get it wrong you should not get another chance. This would have added an extra element to the map, and really would have made it great.
Other then that, this map's scoring system needs improving. It basically makes you count the amount of question you got right yourself, and has no end scoring table. If a scoring table was to be added in game, I would predict that the amount of comments on the thread would double. It would have also made this map more re-playable.
I hate to go on a rant about this maps problems, but the truth is, these problems are what is preventing this map from becoming a huge success. It's really a shame, because I would like to see this idea properly executed. With what I have talked about fixed, I would definitely recommend this map, but as it stands, ignore it.
Bugs/tips
-Fix all those little spelling and punctuation mistakes.
-In the piston puzzles, you can easily avoid death by standing on the ledge
-less diamonds in each chest, make it only 1 or 2
-The ladder after the snow golem question doesn't extend far enough. At least for 1.1, it is impossible to get up after that point.
The Bad: The first 3/4th of the map. The naturally generated village, the poorly designed opening cave, and the really poor pathfinding almost made me give the map up due to extreme confusion and annoyance with the way the map was made. The story felt a bit contrived at the start, and the fact we *knew* we'd be fighting the Ender Dragon was a bit anticlimactic. I felt it needed more leadup. The initial challenges, as well, were very poor, and just consisted of really simple parkour, some general survival, and lots... and lots... and lots... of walking. It's cool and all, but walking and boating gets horribly boring really quickly.
Another problem was characters. They were spoken of constantly, but I had no idea who was who, and where they were. Saying "Farmer John from Grary" is nice (not real character, just example), but when I have no clue who Farmer John is, nor where Grary would be, it doesn't help me at all. Pathfinding does really need a change, and an Out-of-game map would be really nice.
Another problem I had was the way the later puzzles needed to be solved. It involved way too much general wandering, hoping you stumble across the answer. Same deal with the Pyramid, but I enjoyed that a lot. For the Wizard's House, all I did was just wander around the house and surrounding areas until I found a way to progress, which was rather frustrating, considering how natural most of your landscape looks.
The Good: Everything from the Desert town up. The story felt like it picked up from there, pathfinding did become more clear, things looked more built than found, finally, and the Pyramid was a highlight of the map. The whole Wizard thing was never really fully explained for me, but I won't whine about it. I had fun at the end, and that half really picked up. I liked how you finally started to give me some clearer instructions, such as "Follow the light made with no torches". That gave me clear directions, rather then "Yeah, that guy in this town you've never heard of" The game also upped the ante, becoming harder, but managing to stay clearer than it was before.
Finally, the story managed to weave itself closed nicely at the end, and the map definently displayed a strong element of storytelling. That was really nice to see in a map. The characters were a bit underdeveloped, but that's understandable, with limited text. I would love to see characters expanded upon in the future, but they don't really have to, as it makes sense for you to just pass on that.
All in all, a solid middle map. The beginning is pretty poor, but if you continue through, you'll find a real gem waiting to be uncovered.
Bugs/Tips
-The pathfinding for the entire 2/3rds of the map, to the Desert town. PLEASE make it easier to work out where we're going
-Make your buildings look less 'natural'. I like to see hard work put into a map, and when you use a natural cave and natural NPC villages, it feels lazy!
-The Wizard's home had a few bugs, mostly with the way to move on through each room.
-The Pyramid's entrence didn't work very well.
Alright, let's start with the weakest point, and go up from there. To me, the weakest point was definently Archetecture. With the exception of the Pandemonium Fight Arena. this whole map wasn't very good with the builds. They were erratic, a bit sloppy at several points, and didn't help too much in building atmosphere. Some it had to do with the required Texture Pack, as I've, as mentioned, rather found the Painterly set a bit hard to look at, but all in all, it was in build. The buildings served their purpose, but weren't all that great. Some sections felt especially sloppy, such as the Nether King, and some of the Nether-based areas, as well as the Underground portions.
Next up, let's discuss the Puzzles. I'll admit right off the bat, there aren't as many as I would have liked from this. Because the player had the choice to play on Peaceful, it removed a lot of the difficulty that could have been added to the map. Several times we were actually forced to be on Peaceful, in sections that could have made great use of the danger of combat. Also, the Ice Maze was seriously infuriating. The path never did make sense to me, and I just stumbled across the end somehow. The other puzzles worked, but my biggest issue here is that we required way too much walking. It felt very lazy, and could have been spiced up with some more puzzles and more interesting things. However, your use of map mechanics, especially with the use of portal transport to tell story was very well done. The map notes were also pretty well executed, though they were a bit confusing.
Following up with Atmosphere. Demons of the Nether did this bit quite well. It held a very creepy feel throughout the map. Your character is basically alone the entire time, and the feeling of progressing into some kind of insanity was very well done. Not the best, granted, but the overall feeling of being alone and manipulated by both sides was felt very heavily. The map makes me wonder if there's more to the story, in that our character has actually died in the plane crash, and is stuck in a battle between heaven and hell, and your choices decide the winner. Biblical references lead some undertones to the atmopshere that are subtly wonderful.
Story wise, this map definently excelled the most. The story is a dark, twisting adventure in which the player crashes horribly in a plane, left nearly dead and starving. After exploring an oddly deserted town, and solving some puzzles, we learn of a sprawning backstory through a "flashback" that was very cleanly executed. The story is one you should experience for yourself, but it was most definently the strong part of the map. If there's anything that should be remembered about this map, it's the strong story-element the map has.
All in all, Demons of the Nether is a pretty strong story-map, but still needs some effort in the atmosphere, build, and puzzle department. An overall fun experience though still flawed. I still applaud the effort put into the map, and I had a rather fun time playing.
Bugs/tips
-Both of the initial Elder Challenges' rewards can be accessed without completing the challenges, by breaking the clay. It was well hidden, but I accidentally found the Ice one before I knew about the challenges
-Since the map is supposed to be Linear, the map does get a fair bit confusing at times. Perhaps help with pathfinding a bit better in future updates, to help a player have a more streamlined map.
I don't expect this review to be very "long", due to the fact that this is a short map, with little to talk about, but I'll try and be detailed. Fortress Escape is, as mentioned, an Escape map, where you are a prisoner, and after the "Fortress" mysteriously empties, you try to escape. You progress through three floors and then the roof to get out, and finally succeed (or don't...) in escaping from the Alcatraz-like Island. The story is pretty generic, but it ran well, though the map was VERY unclear. Many times I just wandered about, and finally stumbled across what I was looking for. This made me rather frustrated, and definently broke the atmosphere. Another issue atmosphere-wise was the build. While it didn't look very bad, it didn't really feel like a prison. The signs hanging around were also very out-of-character, and didn't feel like they belonged.
Puzzle-wise, this map flopped flat on its face. Every single puzzle, with the exception of the Parkour was broken. I had to noclip through the floor, through walls, and fly to repair broken sections, be it redstone, or a mechanic part that failed. This really annoyed me, and felt really sloppy, as if the creator didn't know Minecraft mechanics, didn't test, or didn't go back and fix things that had been broken during updates (such as redstone and Glowstone problems, which broke one puzzle). I ran into so many problems during this map, that the creator really should go through and just test the thing better to stop all of the issues I found.
Unfortunately, there's not really much else I can talk about. The map has almost no story, the puzzles are broken, and the atmosphere is still pretty flawed. Also, being such a short map, there's little to discuss. So yeah, creator, please take this review well. You've got a shell of a map here, and with some heavy repairs, you could be doing a lot better.
Bugs/tips
-Wood Pressure Pad puzzle - fix the redstone. All the glowstone has made it pop off, due to 1.0.0 changes
-Library Maze - Fix the pistons; one of yours is stuck out, and as such is broken
-Shoot the Painting puzzle - The painting rarely falls onto the pressure pad, and breaks that puzzle too. Fix it up!
-Dispenser Egg puzzle - The Chickens almost never go where they're supposed to.
-Craft item; pull lever "puzzle" - Didn't work at all!
4
Contents
1. Hero's Quest III: The Forest of Shadows---9.6/10
2. Paladin's Quest Episode One----------------9.1/10
3. Into the Depths-------------------------------8.2/10
4. Dr Robert and the Mysterious Ruins--------7.9/10
5. Punishment: Parkour----------------------6.9/10
6. Marvellous--------------------------------6.6/10
7. The Iron Hallway-------------------------4.5/10
8. Trapped-----------------------------------4.3/10
9. Levels--------------------------------------3.9/10
10. Claw Adventures------------------------3.7/10
11. Puzzlecraft--------------------------------2.6/10
12. Laboratory--------------------------------2.3/10
13. Glass Maze--------------------------------1.4/10
14. Bloody Mary--------------------------------1.3/10
15. One Wrong Choice------------------------1.1/10
The story feels original, exciting, and fresh, and Jamspots makes use of incrediblly descriptive and accurate words to create several intuitive layers to the plot. The story itself appears quite standard near the beginning, where a friend requires you to complete certain tasks and accomplish goals. Yet the map takes a surprising and sudden swerve right near the beginning, completely morphing into a fantastic RPG story-driven adventure. The plot is great help, and ties into the linear-branching gameplay seamlessly. I, in particular, especially enjoyed how the plot played out and gave you multiple options and areas to explore. The end of the plot was nothing short of breath-taking, and while I won't give away any particular spoilers here, I will guarantee the player that it will not disappoint.
The architecture of the map is caught about halfway between decent and absolutely mind-blowing, as certain builds are deceptively simple, and others are outright boring cubes. The overall visual appeal of the map as a whole is quite good, and supports the modern RPG-epic story effectively. The creations within the earth also look appropriate for most situations, including the ruins themselves. I was fairly disappointed near the beginning when greeted with only a decent landscape, but it was up close that I really realised how well most of the structures were built.
The map's difficulty is its only weak point, where it struggles to grasp the concept of consistency, but even so, the parkour points provided are quite exciting and a nice change from the mainly exploration-based gameplay that makes up almost the entirety of the custom map. While the fact that the player is forced to play on easy or higher the entire game is sometimes utilized very well, at other times it feels out of place and awkward. If I may make a suggestion, I would recommend that Jamspots feature signs that tell the player to switch difficulty for underground sections of the maps, and switch back to peaceful for the exploration aboveground. Despite the flaws mentioned, I did very much enjoy side-puzzles like getting your pocketwatch, scaling the Hellbox, and finding the Pharaoh's treasure.
Difficulty aside, the map was quite consistent, and this was extraordinarily noticeable when it came to the atmosphere of the map. The story flowed smoothly and likewise brought the player to numerous locations along the way, keeping the atmosphere steady. The atmosphere took a deep plunge for certain missions somewhat unrelated to the major storyline, but nonetheless, was incredibly strong in comparison to the atmospheric nonsense featured in countless other poorly done maps. I enjoyed the varying degrees of puzzles and numerous story twists, all of which tied into the atmosphere and its beautiful final result. The only suggestion I might make is that adding royalty-free music in the download to enrich the gameplay would be a great idea!
I left the gameplay aspect to the end of the review, as I feel it was what really sold the map. Linear exploration often feels forced and pointless, but when a strong story is provided, it can turn into a masterpiece. The multiple options for things to do next, coupled with the clever idea of listing all objectives in the note files, create an easy-to-understand, hard-to-master gameplay style that completely revolutionizes linear-mapping. As mentioned previously, adding music to play while in the map would make the entire experience completely smooth and entirely professional. Lastly, in terms of gameplay, I would like to mention the constant feeling of danger throughout the map, whether it be a burning ship, or molten magma below your feet as you carefully tread. The gameplay is nearly perfect, and with one or two tweaks could bump up this map's score by at least a full mark.
When it all comes down, Dr Robert and the Mysterious Ruins is a truly strong map, and stands out as a prominent display of just what is possible with Minecraft, and (let's face it) a little bit of imagination. Jamspots' adventure map is one of a kind, and I can't wait to see what else he has in store for the mapping community. No matter what you are looking for, be it survival or roleplaying or adventure of puzzles, I say you should give this map a look. You won't regret it.
Bugs/Tips
-If I were you, I'd try to keep the building style more consistent. The town felt like a city in certain areas and a fishing village in others. Try to define the settling using architecture.
-The difficulty was inconsistent. At this time it may seem pointless and may be the hardest of the map-creating endeavor thus far, but if you could try to make the difficulty similar throughout, then the map's score would be rocketing into outer space.
Now, simply being a glass maze might not be a bad thing. In fact, it could even be clever, as at first the all-glass-ness of the maze can easily disorient players. However, this was not the case in kebapmanager's rendition of the popular genre. Glass mazes suffer from solid-wall syndrome - solid walls, if they are close enough, make it easy for a player to spot holes or stairs in the glass, assisting the player in discovering where they need to go. Glass Maze especially suffered from this because it was so small - in addition to causing the map to last for less than ten minutes, it took away what could have been incredible difficulty by confining the maze to an approximate 30x30 blocks.
The ending showed laziness on the builder's part, as well, as the last level of the maze was not a maze at all - just an annoying series of one-block jumps over a pit of lava, not annoying in that they were difficult, but annoying in that they were painfully easy. Overall, this map lacked the ingenuity others within its genre have, being overly simple and not really trying hard to provide any sort of a challenge, for both new and old players. If you're looking for a challenging maze, this isn't where you want to look.
Bugs/Tips
-In the very beginning you could see the redstone that would open up the path down to the maze; it looked very out of place and just ugly.
-If you're going to be making a glass maze, make sure that the solid walls are either very far away - meaning make each level larger - or simply put glass for miles on end. With the solid-block walls like what you had it was very easy to tell where you needed to go to get to the next level. Putting some of those stairs in the corners wasn't a very good idea, either.
-The ending was very anti-climactic, with just that single sign and not even a room. Come on, the player just went through a maze! Even if it was a short maze, toss them a few diamonds or something to make them feel like they were actually being rewarded.
The Oblivion-style questing was just a phenomenal idea, briliantly crafted into an immersive and intuitive sequence of videos that really harmonize the atmosphere and the overall feel of the gameplay. Never does any video feel pushed or unrealistic, and while the voice acting may not be 100% perfect, it sure as hell is quite close. Medieval fantasy has never felt so enriched, and neither has the Minecraft experience at all. Video-related questing is a gift to the Minecraft community, and was almost perfectly executed. Well done Noxcrew.
The atmosphere was crisp and detailed, with a satisfying story and building emotional quests. Enhancing this was not only a well-thought out system of relaying tasks and quests, but fantastic builds. While nothing so large as a castle is attempted, the medieval architecture leaves nothing to be desired. As a fan of the Elder Scrolls series and the expansion packs, I can see where specks of influences have arisen and made the architecture feel even more fitting to the medieval-questing era in which Morris lives.
The story was yet another aspect where the map shone like sunrise, peaking out from a beautiful landscape filled with towers and small homes on the island. The fact that you could look for any character on the island and complete beginning quests in any order didn't hurt the story at all - instead enhancing it with some lovely side-stories and such. On a side note, all of the videos that accompanied the quests felt fitting and took place at the right times. Lovely work as a whole.
Redstone engineering did not play a major part in the map, but was present and thriving nonetheless. It was thrilling watching the way things unfolded as certain quests were achieved, others unlocked, and tasks given through the executed storyline. It appeared well hidden as well, as I never saw any at all.
Lastly, but certainly not least, was the execution of the map outside of Minecraft itself. The passwords on unlockable quest .rar fles was genius and frustrating at the same time, as some quests were a litter harder to gain passwords for than others. Nevertheless, it appeared well-executed. The only major problem I had in the end was having to transfer out of Minecraft and into Youtube to watch quest videos. The Youtube screen surrounding the video pulls you right out of the atmospheric magical touch that the map itself has and into the cybernet that feels unwelcoming. If the videos themselves could be downloaded, then the need for Youtube would no longer be apparent and the transfer from Minecraft, to video, to Minecraft again wouldn't feel so choppy. At the same time, arguing this feels unreasonable, as Noxite already attempted this and the file was too large and the amount of downloads to plentiful in the first few minutes.
As a whole, Episode One of Paladin's Quest is a spectacular feat in the field of map-making, revolutionising the way we quest and look for adventure. I recommend it with all my heart. With few flaws and more successes than can be accounted for, it feels like an adventure. It feels like a role-playing phenomenon. And I want more!
Bugs/tips
-The voice acting wasn't top notch, though I must say it was pretty well done as you are doing this for free. Perhaps more pronounced accents and personalities would make the experience even MORE immersive.
-As discussed before, there is the issue of Youtube. The only thing weighing the map down. If there would be some way to download the videos in lower quality in a .zip package, the map experience would be perfect.
But why? The story started out fine, except for a few historically inaccurate details and the like, but whatever. It's Minecraft, not history. But the small backstory about some ruler named "Bloody Mary" locking up random people and you being one of them feels pushed to the rear as an Escapecraft-style storyline pushes through. The saddest part about this is that, unlike Herobrine, this villain shows no cunning skills or torturous humor. She threatens to kill innocent civilians time and time again, which could possibly have been a decent threat had the threat been executed effectively and at the right time. Instead, Bloody Mary announced her plans to kill civilians halfway through or right after puzzles, creating an off-time beat for the map. Yet the plot weakened itself further as it was almost completely destroyed in the third quarter of its progression. Bloody Mary returned to the signs of the map to say a few last words before a long and utterly pointless, malfunctioning minecart ride shoved the player through a small hole in the ocean. It is at this point the player realizes they must've escaped, as the map literally ends right then and there without a conclusion.
The puzzles themselves were honestly nothing more than unoriginal. Parkour filled up most of the map, but redstone did make up a small minority of the unsatisfying puzzle selection. I do commend the map maker, cookieman999, for attempting to use pistons effectively. In one particular room it worked extremely effectively, and felt worthy of a place in an updated version of Escapecraft. However, the quality was nothing more than decent for the rest of the map. I hate to leave such little critique here, as the map's genre is quite clearly specified as puzzle, but to be honest nothing wowed me. Nothing had enough wonder to support an entire puzzle map.
Architecturally the map suffered from flaws I've noticed in numerous maps: the constant, unyielding amount of stone that makes up a majority of the map. Of course, as in almost all maps, lava makes a prominent appearance. A pointless break in the atmosphere for a trip to the nether offers a little variety but overall is nothing spectacular. Neither is the appearance of cannons, which were fun but did not positively reinforce the atmosphere. For what its worth, the puzzles weren't designed too terribly.
And last (and certainly least), we have the atmosphere, the one reason this map fails so astronomically. Too be honest the map is one of the most atmospherically unstable puzzle maps I have ever played, and having an awfully-executed plot as the only aspect to withhold it didn't help either. Never once do we find out who this mysterious person is, or why he's helping us. I assume that is what the "part 2" of the map will clear up, yet still it makes the overall experience unsatisfying. I also refer back to the plot and architecture critique, as the plot never fully ended and the buildings were square and boring.
When it all comes down, Bloody Mary is map of really poor quality. Judging from the forum post, I can tell effort of some degree went into the map but never shone through the thick veil of the nothingness that surrounded it - the terrible atmosphere and plot. While it may have one or two redeeming qualities about it, there is honestly nothing you will find here that another map doesn't have. Just ignore this one. It really isn't worth your time.
Bugs/tips
-The trip to the nether was explained in one or two signs but still didn't seem to fit. If I were you, I'd either revamp the explanation or get rid of it entirely.
-Stone is WAY overrated. I don't know why so many puzzle maps seem to coexist upon it. Try out some variety in material, as all we got visually was a lacklustre, unexplained trip to the nether and a flop into the ocean at the end.
-There are a few spelling errors. Check twice or thrice before publishing!
-The rooms are all rectangular. Variety, please! Spheres, decorations, anything to make them look different from one another would work perfectly.
-That piston challenge was amazing. Experiment more with it to see how you could change it and use these in another challenge.
Levels was also suprisingly short. It took me all of 35 or so minutes to finish, 10 of which was wasted on a room that didn't work at all. It also had little narrative. It certainly started off well, where it mentioned at the start that you would go through "Three sectors", and were a prisoner that was condemned to life in the Nether, however, our overseer seemed to know that we were innocent, and instead had us complete some tests to prove we were good enough for freedom. I was interested to see how the story progressed. And then it didn't. At all. Very few notes were written after that, other then a slight intro to a few puzzles, which left me hugely dissapointed on that front.
Puzzle-wise, Levels doesn't shine much either. Staring with a confusing Lava Maze (The hints didn't seem to be of *any* use at all!), it didn't really do much for me. One of the opening puzzles; which was unfortunately optional; was an Ender Pearl throwing maze, which was definently a unique twist on the type! Of all the mazes; and there were a lot; this one was definently the most interesting. However puzzle-wise, Levels did suffer. Being a Puzzle map, it needed to be skillful with its puzzles, and it wasn't. Lots of mazes, lots of parkour, and one room where you were supposed to find some items by digging/chopping/mining,, that I never was able to find (Speaking of, creator, take a look at that room. It makes no sense at all, and after 10 minutes, I busted through the door from sheer exasperation.). We get more parkour after a very Escape the Puzzlemaster-y maze (Observatory above, find 4 levers and then the door to move on) and then we just got a lot of Parkour, to the best of my memory. However, the large and pretty "Rainbow" room, as I'm calling it, is bugged, and allows a player to progress directly into the Tower without completing *ANY* of the Parkour. A lever was already on the door when I walked up, so all I had to do was climb to the top of the tower, and hop down one of the two shafts.
All in all, Levels seems like the creator really channeled Escape the Puzzlemaster, but unfortunately couldn't really deliver the same experience in the end. Multiple bugs permiate the map, as discussed above, and the puzzles just aren't satisfying. I was really hoping for more, so perhaps the creator will start working on the map again, and significantly improve it. Perhaps removing most of the old mazes, and adding in some more complex ideas, as well as finding some more unique things then parkour. You had a great "reverse frogger" game in there, I saw, and hoped for more like that after finishing it, but the game basically ended after that due to the bug in that the final tower was open. Levels needs some work, and many of the puzzles are forgettable, but it wouldn't *hurt* to give this a try. I just didn't really enjoy it, and felt that Escape the Puzzlemaster did it all better anyway.
Bugs/tips
-Just bringing it up again; in the giant rainbow, a player can easily skip ALL of the parkour and just head right into the tower
-Figure out what's wrong with the room that you're supposed to find a button and a furnace. They don't seem to exist; as I just found a Gold Legs and a Diamond Chestplate.
-Adjust the minecart timing in the Frogger puzzle. It's really annoying to try and catch them now.
-Adjust some of your jumps. Some of them seem to be next-to-impossible, which is annoying when the rest of the puzzle is quite easy.
Perhaps I have become spoiled off of some of the longer maps that at least attempt in-depth plots and complicated puzzles. Perhaps it is simply that because of building my own maps that I have begun to judge others by the expectations I set forth for myself. Regardless, the fact of the matter is that this map was simply too short. While I am not the best Minecraft player when it comes to jumping and parkour and even sometimes puzzles, I was able to blow through this map in less than 10 minutes.
In spite of the brevity and simplicity of Iron Hallway, I was taken aback by the lack of problems. True as it may be that the rooms were not incredibly imaginative - with the exception of one room involving two levers that simultaneously put out lava and opened the door - the puzzles were in no way flawed. At no point did I find myself thinking "God what a terrible map!". No! In fact I thought it was pretty good for what it was - it never tried to appear as some epic journey, with only a few scattered signs throughout to help give some guidance or to mock you for your failure.
However, the lack of plot was a bit annoying. In the short time I was playing the map I was wondering exactly what the purpose of these challenges were - why was I investing any time in trying to solve these? What was waiting for me at the end of all of this? I realized that I had no idea why I was playing this map at all.
In the end, however, I would have to say that the map was charming. It was short, sweet, and never tried to become too complex. What little it attempted it did well - nothing was half-assed, if you'll pardon my language. As Jaycerulz' first map, I have to say that it shows promise...just try to make it a bit longer next time.
Bug/tips
-There were literally no bugs that I could find on this map. What is wrong with you? ;P
-To keep your audience engaged, try to throw out an occasional sign, even if it's to insult them. For reference, look at Vech's Super Hostile series - even though he has no plot, he still keeps the player engaged with his signage
-To make a map longer, either make puzzles that will stump players for a while, or make more simple puzzles that don't become repetitive. You managed to keep from being repetitive in this map, but it is an inherent problem in longer maps.
Firstly, I'll touch on the story, sitting on the atmosphere of the Punishment: Parkour map planet. While the beginning offers an intriguing backstory and some incredibly mature themes, whilst being engaging and well written at the same, it feels ignored for some time. Instead, two characters previously mentioned in the backstory become prominent Herobrine-like characters and have such similar personalities that the point of having the two of them seems a dull one. Comical signs completely disrupt the atmosphere that the backstory seemed to be leading up to, and horror simutaneously appears and disappears from the map, like little sparks that try desperately to start fire and never do. The story picks up a fair bit further into the map, when you finally realize why there were two characters. The parkour bit fades into a completely original story-arc and the story becomes (once again) a prominent factor. It ends on an extremely high note, though for the sake of readers, I shall not spoil it. The story fufills itself, and despite its shortcomings near the middle of the map, is an extremely relevant factor in the map's success.
Secondly, I'll critique the main factor of the map: the parkour itself. It starts at the beginning by claiming to be one of the hardest parkour maps in history. It is a fairly bold claim that I would assume is supported by many who played the map, as shown by the poll results thus far. I myself found it to be particularly challenging, pushing my skills to the limits with some well timed jumps. Many jumps are quite well done, and fit in so well that they create the illusion they are even part of some rooms. The difficulty remains steady and controlled for a majority of the map, though certain ones might catch those unexperienced puzzlers off-guard. Jumping is normally something that can entertain most players for a short period of time, though this particular map feels like I could play it for a long number of hours. Engaging courses that even require some looking around make the map's jumping puzzles seem original, even revolutionary for Minecraft standards.
The atmosphere moves inelegantly from strong, to weak, and back again, with a few flaws mixed into the fray. Parkour as a punishment is rather weak story-wise, but it begins to become less noticeable as it progresses. That aside, the map also suffers from location-flaws, which seem bright and cheerful, despite what the story would imply. The signs that portray the areas as "courses" like a free-roam parkour world don't help either. The torture machine-aspect fades throughout the course of the adventure as well, unfortunately. However, if you cast these two prominent flaws aside, the adventure appears well done and hellish. Of course, being set in the nether probably doesn't hurt in the least bit, but it feels appropriate. It also reignites the torture flame as the map seems to force you through rapid cycles of seemingly never-ending parkour, with no escape, as each time you die, you must restart the map.
When the core (puzzles), atmosphere (surface), and story (atmosphere) collide, they form a parkour-map planet that maintains off-beat progression and incredible parkour, with a somewhat-strong and inconsistent story and a mildly enjoyable atmosphere. I would recommend the map mainly to a strong puzzler, due to the difficulty of the puzzles, but even if you are looking for a strong story, I'd say there's a good chance you'll find one here.
Bugs/tips
-The atmosphere feels weak because of the colourful landscape and surroundings during parkour. This is especially noticeable near the beginning. It doesn't really help the torturous theme.
-What happened to the story? It went away after the first chapter and only returned much later on in the story. Perhaps a little extra info or escpecially cruel things said on the signs would be more appropriate than little comical bits.
Mind blowing.
To start off, the map has some incredibly well-executed NPCs to help organize and manage the side-quests into possible and fun endeavors up trees, around floating islands, and... collecting wheat for bread (actually, even that is made out to be rewarding and enjoyable). The NPCs are also in vanilla, as they are snow golems, and do not require any external or additional mods. They are implemented very well when needed and never feel forced into the map just for the purpose of side-quest flavour.
Secondly, the notes are extremely well-written and engaging, forcing you to do some very obvious thinking while providing well-hidden hints at what to do next. The third version, 1.03, further adds another layer to the map's success in this aspect of the adventure as it contains audio recordings that can be listened to while playing through the map. I thoroughly enjoyed the story arch in its entirety and had a blast finding the new notes.
Thirdly, the builds were really, really astonishing. Unbelievable though it may be, I honestly think that the clear, unveiled architecture present in Hero's Quest III is enough to make the castle in The Redmurk Mystery look like a tiny little house. All of the trees were carefully crafted as were the rest of the gigantic map. I'd honestly like to go further, but I'm afraid I can't without revealing massive spoilers. Regardless of whether or not I do, you're still going to check out the map, right?
Lastly, and most importantly, is the clear detail that went into everything on this map. Nothing here looks unpolished in any way, and all of the areas look professional and fit the atmosphere well. A large number of well-thought out details enhance the player's experience A LOT, including the positions of key areas, checkpoints, notes, and Building Challenges. There are so many brand new features that this map adds to the game that most players will overlook ColdFusionGaming's contributions to the mapping community in terms of details, but I encourage players to still look out for them and see how well all of the aspects of this map were thought out.
So, how did this map compare to the rest I've played? Well, it was alright, but some things could've been improved...
Nah, I'm just kidding around. This map is incredibly solid and holds its ground amongst the many other maps out there with ease. It is an overall lovely experience with a frustrating cliff hanger - as I want Hero's Quest IV so badly - and a ton of clear effort put in. Please everyone, head over to the Hero's Quest III forum page and check out the map. I swear on my life you will not regret. So, sure as hell, I recommend this map. I recommend it so strongly that everyone reading this just has to get off their a$$es and download the map.
Bugs/tips (tiny as these may be)
-Finding the area to get back to the professor after Note 4 is a bit of a hassle, though it would seem like I was the only one to have that problem. I would recommend checking it out anyway.
-The side quests add a lot of flavour, but sometimes feel neglected or unimportant. Whereas in certain other maps I've played, side quests mingle with the main storyline, though these almost feel random.
-The gun mod doesn't seem to fit in with the map. Apologies in that regard, though they don't go with the overall mood.
The world itself was not entirely flawless or terrible, instead caught somewhere in the middle. Builds were mediocre for almost the entirety of the map, yet certain places managed to stick out as memorable or worthy of great praise, like the castle wall around the first town. Another nitpick I must mention is how the map switches genres from medieval-style (castle town) to modern day (small town right next to it), where the transition feels sloppy, silly, and out of place. Despite the memorable flaws that make a huge impact overall, the buildings look absolutely gorgeous in the recommended texture pack, Misa's Realistic.
I was thoroughly disappointed by the story, or in this case the lack of one. The map had an incredibly interesting back story given at the very start, but this was ignored as the map progressed. It even lead to a few loose ends. Instead, an medieval-RPG theme was implanted and quickly assimilated the previous trend into it. The RPG theme also turned out to be unsteady, destroying the atmosphere and story at once, with unstable plot-twists and a weak array of gameplay mechanics (read on). Eventually, the story is demolished completely and the map maker decides that action-propelled gameplay is more important. I feel that this was the wrong choice to make, as in my opinion the gameplay was incredibly weak in comparison. Nonetheless, my feelings were negative toward the story aspect of the map.
Problems continue to arise as the atmosphere carries on. As mentioned before, a dramatic switch in theme (TWICE!!) was not appreciated and didn't assist the atmosphere either, while builds were mediocre at best. None of these flaws assisted the map in any way, and quality drops became even more frequent later on. Long roads to travel and awkwardly introduced quests (again, read on) made the atmosphere continually weaker, and with visually displeasing minecart rides to assist the dilemmas, the atmosphere grew barely tolerable. As a map maker myself I saw one flaw in particular drop the atmosphere and gameplay quality to an absolute low. The map was not in any way interactive. By the time I myself had played the map for 25 minutes, I was ready to quit. Redstone is literally non-existent, and with no story to cover for its absence, I'm afraid there wasn't much that was done to improve quality.
It may be difficult to believe, but the map's flaws stem mainly from the gameplay aspect. While it originally comes off as strong, the player's inability to do much, especially when presented with lots of great items, is really frustrating! Coupled with the fact that quests are merely listed rather than creatively given to you, and that the quests themselves are barely more than just looking around, make the experience very unenjoyable. As mentioned before, exploration feels forced, and it is partially because gameplay never forces the player anywhere. After exploring a town they are supposed to head there with no clues as to WHY or HOW.
In a nutshell, the map feels flat in many conflicting aspects. Puzzles? Non existent. Story? Weak and derivative. Atmosphere? Wavering in quality and appearance. Gameplay? Forced and unenjoyable. Claw Adventures is the very basis for a map with so much more potential. While I understand accomplishing a good RPG map may be hard with vanilla Minecraft, it is certainly possible. It just wasn't accomplished here. ClawXIII is quite obviously fairly new to map making. The adventure itself shows clear signs of effort, but fails dramatically nonetheless. I cannot recommend the map in its current form.
Bugs/tips
-Try making the buildings a little more original. Here's a tip: don't build with only one material! I see that you tried to accomplish this for certain buildings, but as the frequency of certain materials is very great, try it out some more!
-The story is very weak. Why are my crew members missing? What is the whole story to this world? Answer these questions and the story might be formidable against brutal critique.
-Atmospherically, the genre was wavering. Was it medieval themed, or modern? I didn't understand at all. Try making this more clear with a map description answering my question here.
-Puzzles were virtually non-existent. The whole map was just walking around! Add some flavor, and implement puzzles into the mix!
At a first glance, Marvellous seems like a rather awkward map that doesn't quite have the guts to become a thriving adventure. Silly signs and notes, some ridiculously pointless puzzles, and subtle parkour steps are so childish and while somewhat fun, not exactly ideal for the majority of the Minecraft audience. But as the map progresses, these silly signs are replaced my comical, enjoyable ones and are placed in ever changing locales, from the desert, to a forest, to a town, to a prison! The atmosphere completely switches around on the player, maintaining the whimsical side of it that makes it so playful, and adding a side of hard puzzles in incredibly well-crafted locales. The atmosphere, sadly, doesn't completely prevail in the end, though. While by the ending it is steady, in the beginning the basic locales and repetitive puzzles make a weak first impression.
The puzzles were another example of a pass-fail. Good in one way, bad in another, they were never quite steady in their difficultly level. Some of the easiest puzzles were seen somewhere near the end, and the rapid switch of difficulty in the forest level really surprised me, as its main quest featured very difficult ladder jumps and sprinting. This didn't neatly balance out with the first half of the puzzles, whose parkour and puzzle areas felt designed for beginnings. Despite being well crafted and fitting for the locations in which they were built, my opinions for the puzzles in the map were mixed as well due to the difficulty of them.
A story was barely existent. Some lazily written notes at the beginning depict your adventure heading into Marvelland, starting with MarvelTown. And that's about all you get story-wise. No real story-line built up after that, just recommended quests that proved unfitting, as they were linear in an otherwise open-world style adventure. Normally I'd respond negatively to an absense like this of an adventure's story, but that being said, it is a puzzle map, and after further consideration, I feel that a story implemented now would feel almost rushed and forced into the map.
Gameplay is exactly where the map saved itself, proving once again that map maker MinecraftMasterz knows exactly what he's doing. While no story really pushes you through the adventure, the player never at all feels forced to complete the map. Instead, they are propelled forward by its whimsical and playful nature, its enjoyable although unsteady puzzles, and brand new locations.
As a player, I really loved Marvellous. Soaring effortlessly through gameplay and atmosphere, I was always compelled to find out what was lurking in the next location and just what I might find. As a critic, I also liked it, but my feelings also remained mixed upon its successes puzzle-wise and story-wise. That being said, I feel it will most-likely be enjoyable and interesting to most Minecraft players out there, regardless of what sort of map they like. I recommend it for sure.
Bugs/tips
-The ending was very sloppy. Instead of just saying "that's the end of Marvellous v1.55, why not create a gigantic room with cake all around and comical signs telling you that "you've reached the end of your adventure" to match the whimsical nature of the map.
-See if you can create a way to keep the player engaged right from the start. I would recommend stating at the beginning and also on the forum post what the map difficult is, and try to stick generally around that level.
The problems begin right at the start. Ugly unoriginally shaped rooms fill up the space, made out of the most basic material that every puzzle map makes use of: iron. Diversity color-wise appears later on, though never satisfies, as rooms are then filled with mismatched colors that feel out of place. Signs, for the most part, are well written and easy to read. The appearance of the overall map was also disrupted by instantaneous bursts of rapid light-dark switches, and multiple times the "puzzles" were surrounded by obsidian and then iron right after.
Quality really drops when the puzzles themselves are taken in for consideration and critique. The map is based entirely on guesses to proceed, and not any logical or mathematical estimate. No clues are given, a factor that could possibly have made the map reedeemable if they had been implemented. For an example of a situation like this, one particular room contained eight or nine sets of doors, and the player was supposed to choose which one would lead to safety. If you chose wrong, you were mercilessly dropped into lava, which in turn became overly frustrating and surely caused many players to ragequit. This trend continued with many different "puzzles", and gameplay dropped to an overall low for the most part. One particularly decent attribute of the gameplay was the break in between hectic rounds of being dumped into lava. During this, the player is thrown into an obsidian maze and must escape to the next challenge. The maze is well done and difficult, and does prove that islandalohaha does know what he is doing (somewhat).
The map really does not contain much else. A story is practically non-existent where one would most definitely fit, atmospherically the adventure is null, due to appearance-related flaws and a lack of story, and the puzzles are tiresome, tedious, and boring. The length is also something to work on, as the puzzles cannot support such a long map. I would not recommend the map at all. Effort is shown, and I commend the creator for taking the time he did to create and finish the project, but it is simply flawed in too many aspects to make it enjoyable to the average player.
Bugs/tips
-Story! The map appears dull without one. Even the average trapped-in-a-facility-with-absolutely-no-where-to-run-so-you-have-to-complete-challenges-and-escape-an-evil-sadist plot works.
-Try and choose a color theme and work with it, as jumping from obsidian to iron isn't attractive...
-Puzzles! It's a little late to do much now, by the entire basis of counting how many lives you have left is tiresome and boring by the end, with the amount of deaths the player experiences!
The start of the map seemed as if it might be decent, though I wasn't really sure why the creator made the decisions they made. The map starts off awkwardly, with a random, poorly constructed boat ride down a hill, that breats your boat halfway nearly every time. This set a damper (no pun intended) on the rest of the map right off the bat. We get into a square iron room with the rules, and the first of the poorly constructed, and overall useless Checkpoint system. A bed. We also have a 'score' system, diamonds scattered throughout the map, however you start off with around 26 Diamonds in your inventory already. This kinda ruined the achivement feeling for me, as I already had nearly half a stack to start, and quickly found another 10 or so. Making matters worse, is the ladders. For some reason, the map-maker forces you to climb a ladder to the top before each puzzle, and at the top is another checkpoint room, when there was one right below you. Then, instead of doing a puzzle at the top, you just drop right down into a not-deep-enough pool of water, and take nearly all your hitpoints at damage almost every time. While playing this map, I actually had to turn off Fall-damage to stop this from plaguing me. Archetechture-wise, there is NOTHING that makes it stand out. Many just square rooms, and one poorly constructed 'town' is all we really get.
Story-wise, there is NOTHING. There's no reason to complete the map. We just are told to ride down the waterfall, and that's it. Before each puzzle, the map-creator taunts you, and claims the puzzle is really hard. You then complete a ridiculusly easy puzzle, and then the creator has a sign that talks about how hard the puzzle was. Either this is on purpose, or the creator seriously overestimates their puzzles. They are generally just the cliche puzzles as well, found in the poorest puzzle maps. There's one decent puzzle, one of the early ones, where you have to move some paper down a water current to open the three doors. All of the others were either a "find the items in this space", maze, jump, or throw item puzzles. This led me to get really bored by the end of it. At the end, the creator also rebuilt Sethbling's (a great redstoner) Cake Conveyor as part of a puzzle, but deeply disused it, which was really unfortunate.
All in all, this map is really poor quality. It has some fun points, but overall, it doesn't have a lot to offer that a better map doesn't have. The puzzles are overly simple and there's no story to speak of. The appearance is dull, and the hidden items are basically in plain sight. I cannot really recommend this map, because there are so many others out that there that do what this one wants to so much better.
Bugs/tips
-Give it a story!
-Make your puzzles a bit more difficult - currently it's just pointless to have to complete puzzles that are that ridiculously easy.
-Fix your water at the bottom of the drops, if you insist on keeping them. I mentioned this on your thread before, and you just blew me off. Not a good way to go, when I try to tell you about a bug.
-To be honest, get rid of the ladders. They have NO reason to be there at all, and are just a waste of time.
-In the 'town', under one of the homes to get a lever, you can easily get both of the levers by placing one of the pressure pads in front of the door.
The map showed clear signs of severe flaws right from the start. Ugly redstone was shown in a large number of places, with no attempt to cover it up at all. This leads me to the conclusion that the map maker was just experimenting with map creating when releasing this, and if that is the case, then he is not entirely on the right track. The overall look of the map, redstone aside, is also sloppy and boring. Rooms are squared and rectangular throughout, with no change whatsoever. While the material that these rooms are made out of vary, there are multiple seams at every turn, as the map even switched theme from library to bedrock hallway at one point. With an extremely weak architectural aspect, the weight falls onto the story, which is literally the only part of the map that could possibly save it. Unfortunately, it doesn't.
The story, despite being very well written, doesn't at all explain what on earth is going on. I had absolutely no idea what everything meant by the end of the map and where I was heading. The ending, which I suppose was a decent cliffhanger for the next part of the map series, left me with even less of an understanding of the plot, and believe me, that's just beyond sad. I commend the author and creator of the map for attempting such a complex plot and trying to implement it into a 10 minute long map, but in the end it feels hopeless and sadly falls flat.
Hard as this may be to believe, that is all there is to the map. A complex, somewhat interesting story with a number of gaping holes, and a very unstable architectural display that makes up the entirety of the map. Glitches appear left and right, and even those clever ideas like key codes and spooktacular notes didn't make a large impact. I felt extraordinarily disappointed, let-down, and even frustrated with the map for its lack of effort shown. I cannot and will not recommend this map for the foreseeable future.
Bugs/tips
-Use a format for the notes and key codes that everyone can use, like a .doc or .pdf or.txt file. Not everyone on macs can read .odt or .odg files!
-Give a much more clear idea of what the hell is going on!! This is a severe flaw, and as the map is extremely short, the flaws are very noticeable and make a large impact on the player's opinion of the map.
-Come up with more creative shapes for the rooms, instead of all this rectangular nonsense. At least change the size.
-The flow of the map as a whole is unstable. Themes change entirely, and with no plot to explain WHY, the player feels confused, lost, and frustrated.
-PUZZLES!! A linear map with no puzzles or anything to propel the player along can be very weak, especially in the case where a story is practically non-existent. Add some into the mix for a bit of a change.
-Check your grammar and spelling, as there were multiple mistakes and misspellings of words in the notes file. If required, I'd be happy to help out here.
-Monsters! I noticed that in the readme/notes file you stated you didn't have the programs to add the spawners in. Good thing now that we have mob eggs and dispensers to help! (snapshot 12W03A update)
Let's start with the story, as it is usually a category that is lacking in most puzzle maps. Luckily, there was a story implemented into Laboratory. Unfortunately, it made no sense whatsoever. You wake up in a room and can't remember anything about why you got there. Apparently I am the pilot of an airplane, and I managed to end up in a creepy laboratory. The rest after that point is a blur. I couldn't manage to figure out anything more about myself and the place I was in, despite the many walls of signs throughout the map. Like Creation, I felt like this map had a half-decent story in mind, but failed to convey it to the players, due to the nearly incomprehensible writing, many typos, and punctuation problems. Maybe the story was actually great, but once I got to the end of the map, I had absolutely no clue what was going on.
Puzzle-wise Laboratory was not very good. The puzzles in this map are mostly parkour, combat, and mixtures of the two. The parkour was very "meh," and the the combat was fairly easy. The final boss battle was actually kind of fun, and would have been even better if it wasn't quite so easy, and I wasn't given what felt like unlimited supplies.
The puzzle layout is something that I disliked. It is a small problem, and an easy fix, but it greatly effected the map. There were signs everywhere that basically walked you through the map. I literally didn't have to even think about what I needed to do next. To give an example, after entering a room with a few random things in it, I am told how to proceed. A sign says, "That pumpkin cross looks weird, I think I should break it." A better way of approaching this would to just tell the player a hint, without actually telling them what to do. I found this sort of thing throughout the map, and it almost felt like I was being told how to play the map, instead of actually playing the map myself.
Overall, there were many problems in this map, and without a good story or mediocre puzzles, this map ended up being just another under-average puzzle map. If you are looking for a solid puzzle map to play, look elsewhere. I cannot recommend this map.
Bugs/tips
-Fix those spelling mistakes and punctuation errors!
-Cut down on the supplies given prior to the boss battle.
Sadly, Secret of Castle Remberg is one of those atrocities. While it certainly attempts to be a decent map, it has not one truly redeeming quality about it to give it even a decent scoring.
To start with, the plot was worse than a Twilight novel: I have tried to play through the map 3 times now and search for every sign, yet I still have no idea what this "secret" of Castle Remberg is: is it the library found at the end? Is it that you've just traveled through the Nether for no apparent reason other than to show off some poor building quality? I honestly have no idea, and it saddens me because it is clear that the creator wanted to try and have an interesting story - certainly, had he expanded on some of the smaller plot details (the laboratory, the missing villagers, or even Castle Remberg itself) the map would have been far more interesting. Instead, it was short and plot-less.
The builds were also of poor quality, incredibly contrasting with Castle Remberg - which, according to the creator, he didn't even build himself. The Nether castle was close to good, but looked out of place on a square block of Netherrack above a lava lake. The room with the unique Nether portal looked terrible, with random glass on the walls and an obsidian border that didn't make any sense.
As for puzzles or traps...they were almost non-existant. Aside from a TNT trap in the Nether there was nothing to truly challenge the player aside from figuring out where to go next due to poor directions from the creator. The player was given a sword and torches, yet needed neither; monsters were almost nonexistent because of torches placed well-enough to protect the player from ever needing them.
In short, this map had some potential, but fell flat on just about everything. It was too short, the directions and plot weren't there, and the builds were awkward and not very good. Had there been a bit more effort on the creator's part, perhaps the map could've been truly great.
Bugs/tips
-There are a few points within Castle Remberg where you will need to fix the ladder due to the 1.1 patch - they are impossible to climb unless you've avoided updating or have mods
-The gravel path was a good idea, but once it was gone your signs gave no further help as to either where the player was supposed to go or how they were supposed to get there; specifically, the Nether castle: there was no way to actually get to it without hacking, and the first place I went to was the portal that led me out of there rather than the actual castle itself
Into the depths creates an amazing and intriguing rpg experience. In fact, it almost felt like I was in a completely new game. With almost 3 hours of content, there was a couple of cool features that helped to make Into the Depths as immersive as it was. One of those features was the gold and shop system. Throughout the map, observant players may find gold ingots. These ingots are usually found in tricky places, and reward those who take a good look around. At specific points in the map, players may come across a shop. Here they can put those gold ingots to use by buying new equipment, food, potions and armor. The shops were implemented with great care, as it was never easy to buy the best materials. In general, shops really made me look around, creating a greater appreciation for the stunning and realistic architecture.
Another interesting feature was some of the rules. In order to make for a creepier experience, the creator implemented some rules that I have never seen, nor thought of before. One addition was that you must turn your render distance down to tiny. Another is that you must turn you brightness down to moody. Now, I realize that these are only small additions to a very large map, but really, the difference were noticeable, and really made me think to myself "I wish I thought of that."
Now on to the story. Being such a vastly large map, exploring gave you two rewards, one being ingots, and the other being notes. Yes, finding notes is a reward, at least for me it was. The story was very compelling and constantly had me wondering what was going on in the castle. The notes were well written, and I was pleased to see that each character was written with its own personality in mind, each unique in their own way. My only complaint is that, despite having minimal spelling errors and typos, the creator seemed to inconsistently capitalize his "I's." But that is a minor trifle compared to the brilliantly formulated story that can be found consistently throughout the map.
So why an 8.2 and not higher? Well, for one, I found it quite confusing at times. It is understandable, as the map is so large and complex, but it really doesn't follow a clear linear path. With so many places to go and explore, and with such a large castle, it can sometimes be overwhelming. At minimum, my suggestion to the creator would be to create a walk through on his thread, to aid those who get lost or off track. And the only other other substantial reason why this map didn't get a higher score, is it's not done! At least in the version I played, there is no end, and many parts are still unfinished. If the creator finishes the map with a solid conclusion, I am sure the score will be even higher.
Overall, Into the Depths is a rpg/horror masterpiece, and deserves way more credit then it is currently getting. I would love to see this map go big, because it really has the potential to earn a spot amongst some of the best maps. I would recommend this map to anyone who is looking for a long, entertaining, and atmospherically creepy map.
Bugs/tips
-Capitalize your "I's"
-Door glitch has caused some of your doors to remain open after going on a pressure plate
-The beast should hide its redstone. Specifially when you must sacrifice and item to him
-The part where you get the obsidian could use some aesthetic work. It looks very MC edited
-Lumberjack's diary needs re-wording
-Make a more visually appealing forum thread
The main problems I noticed in the map stem from and center around the nearly impossible and sadly tedious puzzles placed around the map. While the idea of posting deaths in the entire map is a clever one, it feels completely overused when the map begins. Puzzles at first seem to be completely focused on lava, and do not stray far from that repetitive path for a majority of the challenges contained before the player reaches the First Checkpoint. In fact, I and most likely a fair share of other players lost count of my deaths before I reached the first checkpoint. What appeared to be a clever idea merged and then transformed itself into a frustratingly overused one, and my deaths became so plentiful in number I was close to losing my marbles.
But the puzzle problems didn't end there. The map completely flips itself around when the first checkpoint is passed, and lava is replaced with colorful blocks and the like, making the room a lovable, rainbow-induced space filled with ladders, floating blocks, and pistons. While challenging nonetheless, they feel unremarkable compared to the combination of sprint jumping and lava that made the first bit appear like a seamless dungeon that never ended. The map alternates between exciting lava puzzles and rather slow parkour areas for almost the entirety of the map therein, making for a very uncomfortable and unstable experience.
Yet the map was not entirely a waste of time and blocks. Puzzles were well constructed, and placed in somewhat clever locales. Despite the everchanging rooms and their appearances [which lead to the defeat of a good atmosphere likewise], they feel well constructed and original in their own way, shaping themselves in awkward circular and rectagular ways that somehow work well! Sprint jumps are also well engineered and timed, making perfect use of 1.8.1 and of course, 1.0.0. Additionally, piston jumps were crafted with near perfection, even if they came close to turning my face red with exhaustion.
All in all, the puzzles are flawed in the sense that their originality seems limited, and the near-impossible feeling of the map is really frustrating for the casual player, not to mention the atmosphere and difficulty level was unstable. So that leaves the heavy weight of keeping the map together falls upon the shoulders of the thin storyline. Yet the map feels somehow humane here, and in a good way. The humor used in the map is comical and actually funny, and feels well written at the same time. The signs on the walls represent the speech of a Herobrine-like character who feels strangely effective, and though his motives remain unknown, he also appears clever. I thoroughly enjoyed how near the beginning of the map he mentioned that the only reason he kept the player alive was because he needed entertainment, and by the end, the player is boring him. It was a neat and, though predictable, fun twist and joke all at the same time.
Broken down, the map feels inconsistent, as it suffers from everchanging and sometimes frustrating difficulty, lack of originality, and an unstable atmosphere, but strives story-wise and is well-crafted as a whole. Sadly, the flaws appear slightly more plentiful, and therefore cause the map slightly downhill from where it should stand. Luckily, all this map needs are a few slight tweaks to make it a great, very enjoyable map! At the moment I'd recommend this map only to the hardcore puzzler and parkour fanatic. If you are new to Minecraft and/or the concepts of sprinting and jumping, I would avoid this map.
Bugs/tips
-The first bits of the map made it appear as a dungeon-style adventure. If that's the first impression, stick with it, and don't switch around to rainbow hell
-Keep the difficulty just a little lower, as to accomodate average players and let them feel like they have a shot. Keep this consistent throughout the map
-Puzzles don't need to be consistent, but most of the puzzles felt recycled from the EscapeCraft series and other puzzlers I've played since I started Minecraft. At least try giving them a twist, presenting them as something different
2
As stated above, the player wakes up in a mysterious complex in which he or she is tolding nothing except that he or she needs to complete "tests." I will say now that this theme is horribly cliché. However, my interest was piqued again as the map creator added notes of someone else speaking, indicating that there was something more to these tests. Playing on the my curiosity, the mapper had me press on, giving me hope that this map could stand out from the many puzzle-escapes from before.
As I finished the introduction area, the map presented me with a hub with gateways to a rather large plethora of challenges. They range from parkour, multiple choice questions, archery, and a dark maze. And a cactus maze. And a glass maze. What struck me as odd was the fact that the challenges are so similar to one another. Despite the high amount of content that this map features, it seems that the mapper was not able to find many creative ideas in his challenges. They were all the same or were variations of past challenges, and all of them were challenges that other puzzle maps have done so many times before to the point of overuse. I don't see the innovation, nor do I see the inspiration. That being said, I admit that these challenges were well made and were fun in their own rights. They just weren't original. As for the puzzle aspect itself, there was only one challenge that scratched my brain: the sand and piston puzzle (which was the only puzzle that was noteworthy, as it looked very original and it could have been expanded upon.) The rest of the challenges were not at all too puzzling, as they consisted more of obstacle courses rather than challenges that make people think. For a puzzle map, it didn't contain very many puzzles.
Throughout this entire map, the main reason of my pressing on was to figure out the mystery of what was going on in the story. The map looked like it was building up to a climax, and just when I could taste it, it shoehorns a random plot about how the player is the only one who could save the world from an evil race of creatures that are apparently the scourge of the planet.
Wait, what? Where did this come from? As far as the players know, they were just doing random tests in countless chambers. Now they suddenly have to go save the world? One of the main problems that I have with this map is that the creator does not seem to know how to create a good narrative. Despite this jarring and sudden revelation, the player is still forced to go through many more test chambers and complete challenges.
I fail to see the connection between the story and the map itself. This is what I believe to be the main flaw of this map. It has everything that it needs to be a good challenge map: well-put-together levels, a decent difficulty progression, and a lot of things to do. It excels in this aspect, but the story was not done very well and only seemed to be there as a flimsy excuse for the player to partake in the challenges. I wish the story was more integral to the gameplay; the mapper even bothered to create interesting names and visual designs for all of the hub areas, implying that the world was rich with detail. If the map featured real environments rather than claustrophobic boxes, I don't think I would have had too much of a problem here, simply because it would have made me feel like I was more part of the world. Instead, I feel tragically disconnected.
Perhaps I have become bitter and jaded. There are so many "escape the test chamber" maps out there that I struggle to find anything new or original. I must give credit where it is due, however; calpol55, the creator of this map, made his first adventure map decently fun. It's a shame that the adventuring part left a lot to be desired. For all intents and purposes, though, this map was fine. It was just very uninspired. Keep at it, calpol55. You can only get better and better from here on.
I don't think that I have mentioned that Escape the Madman is still a work in progress, yet. Well, it is a work in progress, and the map's creator will be adding more onto this map. If you enjoy challenges, keep an eye on it!
Bugs/tips
-The TNT challenge broke somehow; I managed to set off a chain reaction of explosions and I cleared out the entire room! Oh yeah, I died too.
-If it's an adventure map you're making, I HIGHLY advise you not to make your entire map made out of separate challenges. It detracts from player engagement because of how disconnected everything feels. The story would seem nearly pointless when you make maps like this. Try making detailed terrain!
-Get more ideas for your puzzles and challenges. The map felt very repetitive at some areas because some puzzles were literally the same as other ones. Many puzzles were used by countless other maps as well, making yours very generic and run-of-the-mill.
1
Absolutely. I know a lot more can be done with this idea, and I would be interested in seeing a better version of this. I am glad the review helped you, and I am thankful myself that you didn't take the score negatively. It is a lower score of course, but that's not the point. Learning from it to create something great should be your main goal.
Glad I could help!
1
Here is Kmilley's review of Minecraft IQ-
First off, this map was lacking in perhaps the most important area, the questions. Ideally, this map would have questions that got harder as you advanced, and the questions would all be relevant and well thought out. In reality, the questions started off easy, and gradually became dedicated to your knowledge of the history of minecraft. Many of the questions just had to do with when items/mobs were introduced, and seemed to leave out many important minecraft aspects. This made it so that if you hadn't played since 1.2, you would have to guess many of the questions. These questions are not fun to answer, and really don't fairly test new players who are knowledgeable of minecraft. It's too bad, the question were such a huge player in this maps success, and it is unfortunate that they weren't implemented well.
Next, the map needs improvement in another game-breaking aspect: When you get a question wrong, I was hoping for a puzzle or something related to that to complete. Now, the creator does do this, but only for 2 of 17 questions. The rest are just a auto death. I believe that if you have a score implemented, you should not kill off your players when the get a question. If you get a question wrong, I think that you should be dropped into a puzzle of some sort, and then NOT get a chance to re do the question. If you get it wrong you should not get another chance. This would have added an extra element to the map, and really would have made it great.
Other then that, this map's scoring system needs improving. It basically makes you count the amount of question you got right yourself, and has no end scoring table. If a scoring table was to be added in game, I would predict that the amount of comments on the thread would double. It would have also made this map more re-playable.
I hate to go on a rant about this maps problems, but the truth is, these problems are what is preventing this map from becoming a huge success. It's really a shame, because I would like to see this idea properly executed. With what I have talked about fixed, I would definitely recommend this map, but as it stands, ignore it.
Bugs/tips
-Fix all those little spelling and punctuation mistakes.
-In the piston puzzles, you can easily avoid death by standing on the ledge
-less diamonds in each chest, make it only 1 or 2
-The ladder after the snow golem question doesn't extend far enough. At least for 1.1, it is impossible to get up after that point.
1
Check up in the attic of the mining apartments. There will be a map and info on finding the mines.