Expedition Lost is probably the worst map ever created. It's literally everything bad in a map. Back rocks to the main, gold bases, super far away 3rd.

Secret Springs just kinda sucks. The third is too far away and I can't understand why.

Vaani is actually pretty good. Am a fan.

If they remove close spawns, Inferno Pools will be okay for the most part. The high ground behind the gold base is pretty fucking lame but eh.

AFSpeeDy

126 Posts

January 12 2015 22:32 GMT

#323

On January 13 2015 07:29 RPR_Tempest wrote:
Expedition Lost is probably the worst map ever created. It's literally everything bad in a map. Back rocks to the main, gold bases, super far away 3rd..

Yeah. Remember Dreampool?

Big J

Austria16289 Posts

January 12 2015 22:34 GMT

#324

On January 13 2015 07:23 Gwavajuice wrote:

Show nested quote +

Expedition lost : made by community map maker (algue)
Catalena : made by community map maker (timmay)
Overgrowth : made by community map maker (EastWindy )

Plus, in season 3 :

Foxtrot : made by community map maker (Uvantak )
Merry go round : made by community map maker (Winpark )
King sejong's station : made by community map maker (Str18-02 )
Nimbus : made by community map maker (Icetoad and wrl )
Deadwing : made by community map maker (JessicaSc2)

be happy cause the day you were longing for happened a long ago already.

But maybe you think all these mapmackers are trash? In that case feel free to open your map editor and give the wonderfull maps that exists in your head...

Well, but this time for the first time in forever blizzard added 3 of their own maps. And not one of them even tried to be a generic map that blizzard is very well capable making. They are all experimental.
It would be much better if they only added 1-2 maps. Or if they at least tried to make one map in which they wanted to get the usual stats like rush distance, air rush distance, first 3base expansion layout, numbers of attack paths, size of attack paths right. They didn't manage that with even just one of their maps.

RPR_Tempest

Australia7798 Posts

January 12 2015 22:35 GMT

#325

On January 13 2015 07:32 AFSpeeDy wrote:

Show nested quote +

Yeah. Remember Dreampool?

I would rather any dreampool map than Expedition Lost.

Tuczniak

1561 Posts

January 12 2015 22:43 GMT

#326

On January 13 2015 01:37 SC2Toastie wrote:

Show nested quote +

So many people are always so quick to jump to conclusions. How can you determine in one day of play that a map is shit and sucks and fucked up and Zerg so underpowered never gonna win etc blalalal?

If you understand how strategies and engagements work, it's pretty easy to tell big design flaws. Usually certain map feature hugely favors certain strategy (immortal allin, blink allin, aggression against 3rd base ZvP TvP, aggression against 4th TvZ, against 4th 5th PvZ, hiding natural in ingame etc etc). And SC2 is not all around game when you have different map, everything will be changed and still balanced, even very standard game on standard map has imbalances many consider big. Having certain strategies suddenly supercharged doesn't add to balance and asymmetric balance very rarely works in map design ( = I abuse that, you abuse this).

Zerg usually gets short end of stick in maps, they are either abused or the map is balanced (with the exception of open and distant thirds/superopen naturals - Daedalus). Adding features that make immortal allin even stronger or taking 4th against terran twice as risky won't really add gameplay diversity unless one want to see allins more. (<- random examples)

I believe you can make different maps. But adding features "you won't take 3rd/4th in this matchup", "you can't scout that" don't help the game. Anyway I wish we would get 'Overgrowth - Winter Edition' or other things like that. It's one of the few good maps, that's why it stayed for so long.

[PkF] Wire

France24238 Posts

January 12 2015 22:49 GMT

#327

I vetoed Secret Spring, Expedition Lost and Inferno Pools. Overall the maps I'll play are decent, but I'm worried about competitive play. I won't be too harsh on Expedition Lost which is quite innovative and takes a lot of risks, but Secret Spring and Inferno Pools are just dreadful. I'd rather play Foxtrot Labs a hundred times.

Musicus

Germany23576 Posts

January 12 2015 23:05 GMT

#328

wrong thread sorry

Thalandros

Netherlands1151 Posts

January 12 2015 23:08 GMT

#329

Right, so I decided I'd give these a shot on ladder. Holy shit they're terrible. played a couple of games on Vaani Research Station, and Secret Spring, and the old truth stays: Free naturals are a TERRIBLE idea. It's just adding a huge randomness factor into the game. Outside of that the map seems decent, but the free natural base stuff is just terrible.

Xinzoe

Korea (South)2373 Posts

January 12 2015 23:21 GMT

#330

the inbase expansions and short rush distance means pvp will have to check both third, natural, and in front of the main for proxies. secret spring is just hilarious on so many levels

yokohama

United States1116 Posts

January 12 2015 23:24 GMT

#331

Inferno Pools reminds me of the Dual Sight theme. While I didn't necessarily care for the map that much, I thought aesthetically it looked really neat. All in all I like all these maps though I don't care for Vaani as much as the rest, I think it adds a different element to the map pool and I am fine with that.

Dav1oN

Ukraine3164 Posts

January 12 2015 23:29 GMT

#332

Playing Expedition Lost PvZ is "fun", my zerg opponent took both gold bases as expand, and the game became dietrying. Backdoor rocks are made for allining? Main is very narrow.

Secret spring PvT, come and try to counter mass drop play. 3rd? Forget! :D

Vaani Station looks a bit more promising between all the new maps, and still had few proxy gateways/rax there.

Inferno Pools looks huge, but if I opens with Nexus first vs Z it's pretty damn hard to hold ur natural ramp, which must be blocked by 3 buildings + pylon + zealot. Horizontal spawns should be remowed. All the time zers opens with pool first and I opens with Nexus first, I dies, doesnt matter what spawns are.

Too much cheeses and allins happened today, like every 2nd PvP I see proxygateways on my natural or somewhere around.

Feeling like deadwing is a perfect map in comparison to all these new.

Lateral

United States3 Posts

January 12 2015 23:56 GMT

#333

Holy shit Inferno Pools is terrible. Who even thought this would be even close to acceptable for the 1v1 map pool? That natural is disgusting.

As a Protoss, it's basically a must-veto. You can't even FFE on that map.

The_Templar

your Country52797 Posts

January 13 2015 00:12 GMT

#334

On January 13 2015 08:56 Lateral wrote:
Holy shit Inferno Pools is terrible. Who even thought this would be even close to acceptable for the 1v1 map pool? That natural is disgusting.

As a Protoss, it's basically a must-veto. You can't even FFE on that map.

Um, I'm pretty sure it's a single double-wide ramp at the natural?

duckk

United States622 Posts

January 13 2015 00:22 GMT

#335

The new maps are pretty interesting, need to play on them more to see if they are good or bad. I am comfortable saying vaani is the best map introduced in a long time, possibly ever? Also it has an odd number of mines which something that should be tested more often imo. Then again anything would have me excited over the 14 awful maps last season.

Big J

Austria16289 Posts

January 13 2015 00:38 GMT

#336

On January 13 2015 09:12 The_Templar wrote:

Show nested quote +

Um, I'm pretty sure it's a single double-wide ramp at the natural?

it's triple wide. Which isn't new, there have been other triple wide ramps without additional blocking through the history of SC2 as far as I remember, quadruple is the big problem.

Still waiting to get SS in TvZ. Can't wait to see what stupid shit I can pull of when I'm allowed to block the whole map with a single barracks or ebay.

KingAlphard

Italy1705 Posts

January 13 2015 00:54 GMT

#337

Secret spring will basically be a blink fest in PvT... the main is so pathetic. I think there's never been a main that is so wide and has so much surface for blink.

TelecoM

United States10708 Posts

January 13 2015 01:01 GMT

#338

I love all of the new maps. I think they are all really great maps. Way better than dream pool + last seasons map pool.
Top master Zerg in all seasons except last season lol.

las91

United States5080 Posts

January 13 2015 01:27 GMT

#339

I like Vaani the most, I'm undecided on Secret Spring. The inferno map serves no purpose while deadwing is in the pool and I despise Expedition Lost. THere are way too many difficult/impossible thirds for any matchup for some of these maps, and expedition lost feels like it's from 2011 or something.

Overall, vetoeing Secret Spring, Expedition Lost, and Inferno in a week once I get completely sick of them.

On January 13 2015 09:12 The_Templar wrote:

Show nested quote +

Um, I'm pretty sure it's a single double-wide ramp at the natural?

It requires 3 large buildings + a pylon to wall off, it's not FFEable