What's a w00t map anyway?
The history of w00tabulous !@
It all began back in 2001 when w00tabulous was first released , everyone loved it's fast paced, spammy action, and an equal amount of people hated it for the same reasons. Serious mappers derided w00t for it's simplistic layout and lack of bot support. Opinion has been polarised ever since.
About a year ago I started playing on a neat Dutch server called J@ckals extreme w00tabulous !@ - after playing the many and varied home made remakes and loving the fun of playing them online I thought I'd have a stab at doing one myself, so , a month or so later I had the first version of "All Your w00t" - a completely scratch built (to mappers, no brushes/geometry were kept from the original map) remake with a focus on making the bases and the general layout far more colourful. This was reasonably well received on the server but gameplay was commented on as needing work ( "n00b crap" , "*^% map", etc.)
So, the clock rolls on a good 10 months , and one day I decided to set things straight and do my best at putting together a series of w00t style maps with an even balance of style, layout, great flow and killer AI.
In creating this map pack I've stuck to a loose set of guidelines around which to base the maps and get a consistent feel throughout.
These guidelines were as follows.
Keep it simple
All the maps have symmetrical layouts and have been designed with easy flow and memorable navigation. Wherever possible I’ve tried to keep route changes quick and the kicker routes as easy to follow as possible. Each map has been extensively play tested with both new players and veterans alike and a lot of heed has been paid to feedback received, both in terms of flow and ease of navigation.
Keep it quick
This was twofold, first was ensuring the maps had a reasonably low polygon budget and didn't tax older machines too much; the second was keeping to a rough limit of a maximum 15 seconds between flags. Given that the maps are predominantly designed for Instagib play, the latter is especially important.
Keep it fun
The was probably the most difficult to quantify but with numerous play testing over the last few months has ensured that each map has been honed to it's full potential with attention paid to fluid movement around the maps and ooth flow .
Keep it smart
Special thanks to Switch' for making this the first series of w00t-inspired maps to feature fully functioning AI that can do anything humans can do. With a brand new Jump Pad actor coded exclusively for this project bots are now as smart and fast with the JumpPads as humans are, meaning the pack will be playable offline as well as with the regulars on the dedicated Extreme w00t server.
Keep it colourful
All the maps are bright and clearly team coloured, leaving no confusion over which direction to head in. There’s a trade-off between realism and playability and while it may look sexier to have more washed out, dirty colours, it can lead to ambiguity in what is a team based game after all.
Sabby, DEC 2005