mf-shroom
New Member
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Hello all, it has been a while since I have posted on this forum, but the allure of Warcraft 3 and its addictive world editor has drawn me to it yet again after many years. As a preface for those who may not be familiar with the classic Reign of Chaos map "Arena Nexus" originally released in 2005 by Crux; it is a hero arena styled map, with a Tome system for heroes to increase their power over the course of the game. Like many hero arenas before it, it featured a creep spawn system where slaying neutral units served as a supplementary source of income and experience in addition to killing neutral heroes and player heroes.
That being said, playing through it again recently has been rather nostalgic, but the age of the game shows almost immediately. Many of the original heroes were designed in such a fashion that they seemed all too similar to each other and there did not seem to be any high points of action apart from period duels - and even that did not involve heavy or engaging teamplay.
So, having some experience mapping in the past, I have decided to rebuild the game from scratch, taking only the base heroes and terrain that Crux had designed and filling in all new triggers and abilities for the map and its denizens. However, lacking a large sample of willing testers - I am often only left to make an assessment about the direction of the map either by myself or with only one or two other inputs. Realizing all too quickly of the biases that pervade this method of development I come here, looking to find fresh ideas and feedback for a rapidly growing project.
My goals for this map upon completion of a final test version are:
1. Improve Player Interaction. Currently, the gameplay is very linear, involving much farming and no high points of interest apart from the duel. I intend to make the game more objective focused while preserving the idea of a deathmatch.
2. Increase Hero Diversity. Originally, although the game featured a wide selection of heroes from the Undead, Human, Night Elf, Orc and Elemental Factions, differences between the heroes were slight, causing gameplay to feel linear and uninspired. My intention here is to create a unique identity for each hero while staying true to their original form as much as possible.
3. Streamline Gameplay. As of now, the game progression has a great degree of variance, either ending too quickly to be of any interest, or dragging on for too long. Creation of a game with better flow and sense of player goals would create a more fun experience overall.
4. Incentivize Alternative Playstyles. Although I do intend to retain the current toming system for heroes to advance in strength over time, I would also like to add items that add value and interest to the gameplay for players as a whole. In this way, playstyles can be defined such that teams might prioritize their overall composition rather than individual picks and counter picks.
Steps I have taken towards these following goals are:
1. Being that the map is still within the twenty-fifth percentile of development, and that there has been a dearth of testers and new feedback over time, player interaction has not yet been a target of change.
2. Hero diversity has improved greatly with respect to how it was in the original game. While preserving original skillsets in terms of general function and nomenclature, I have constructed what I feel is a great variety of gameplay and synergy amongst the individual heroes.
3. By changing the income system, accelerating creep spawns and tweaking the experience system - I have taken the first step to streamline gameplay. Although it is still quite far from ideal, I look to change things for the better.
4. Unfortunately, before heroes are all completed, items and alternative playstyles are being put on a lower priority since an accurate assessment of these things (I believe) should not be done without a stable basis to work with.
Before testing, please note that only the HUMAN and UNDEAD heroes are finished at this point and only basic and essential systems have been implemented as of yet. Balance is probably not a point of interest yet, since the hero base is incomplete, although please note that some heroes may be incredibly strong or weak - this is for testing purposes only. (Map is for RoC and Frozen Throne)
With this, I would like to call out to those who wish to make their contribution to this project for their valuable feedback and opinions.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for those who are interested,
The Rift Awaits
That being said, playing through it again recently has been rather nostalgic, but the age of the game shows almost immediately. Many of the original heroes were designed in such a fashion that they seemed all too similar to each other and there did not seem to be any high points of action apart from period duels - and even that did not involve heavy or engaging teamplay.
So, having some experience mapping in the past, I have decided to rebuild the game from scratch, taking only the base heroes and terrain that Crux had designed and filling in all new triggers and abilities for the map and its denizens. However, lacking a large sample of willing testers - I am often only left to make an assessment about the direction of the map either by myself or with only one or two other inputs. Realizing all too quickly of the biases that pervade this method of development I come here, looking to find fresh ideas and feedback for a rapidly growing project.
My goals for this map upon completion of a final test version are:
1. Improve Player Interaction. Currently, the gameplay is very linear, involving much farming and no high points of interest apart from the duel. I intend to make the game more objective focused while preserving the idea of a deathmatch.
2. Increase Hero Diversity. Originally, although the game featured a wide selection of heroes from the Undead, Human, Night Elf, Orc and Elemental Factions, differences between the heroes were slight, causing gameplay to feel linear and uninspired. My intention here is to create a unique identity for each hero while staying true to their original form as much as possible.
3. Streamline Gameplay. As of now, the game progression has a great degree of variance, either ending too quickly to be of any interest, or dragging on for too long. Creation of a game with better flow and sense of player goals would create a more fun experience overall.
4. Incentivize Alternative Playstyles. Although I do intend to retain the current toming system for heroes to advance in strength over time, I would also like to add items that add value and interest to the gameplay for players as a whole. In this way, playstyles can be defined such that teams might prioritize their overall composition rather than individual picks and counter picks.
Steps I have taken towards these following goals are:
1. Being that the map is still within the twenty-fifth percentile of development, and that there has been a dearth of testers and new feedback over time, player interaction has not yet been a target of change.
2. Hero diversity has improved greatly with respect to how it was in the original game. While preserving original skillsets in terms of general function and nomenclature, I have constructed what I feel is a great variety of gameplay and synergy amongst the individual heroes.
3. By changing the income system, accelerating creep spawns and tweaking the experience system - I have taken the first step to streamline gameplay. Although it is still quite far from ideal, I look to change things for the better.
4. Unfortunately, before heroes are all completed, items and alternative playstyles are being put on a lower priority since an accurate assessment of these things (I believe) should not be done without a stable basis to work with.
Before testing, please note that only the HUMAN and UNDEAD heroes are finished at this point and only basic and essential systems have been implemented as of yet. Balance is probably not a point of interest yet, since the hero base is incomplete, although please note that some heroes may be incredibly strong or weak - this is for testing purposes only. (Map is for RoC and Frozen Throne)
With this, I would like to call out to those who wish to make their contribution to this project for their valuable feedback and opinions.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for those who are interested,
The Rift Awaits
