Modded Gameplay

[Duck]

Recently I've been playing SFD a lot on maps that I have made, after joining servers I found myself constantly infuriated. I then realized how much luck and randomness really does affect SFD gameplay. My biggest project right now is a deathmatch style Class Battle map similar to maps like NF 3. The premise of the gameplay style I've been working out with this map is making a heavily SKILL based map, where you know you won because you deserved it, and you know you lost because you earned it. No luck.
What I have been working on could be applied to many maps in the future:
-A balanced class system (you lost because of your skills not because of "OP M60 NUB")
-No randomly spawned objects (the arena is bare, no barrels and crates lying around)
-No health drops
-No weapon drops
-You avoid gunfire by having a map layout that allows players to move around the blocks and pillars that make up the map.

I haven't seen anyone really flush this out, but these "Arena" style maps have popped up here and there.
Once more Arena maps are out there I could see myself having a very hard time going back to Vanilla SFD. There is something extremely satisfying to me about knowing that nothing was random.

I do think that there is a large demand for maps like this as well. It's easy to see how popular NF 3 was for having a more skill focused design.

[KliPeH]

[...]
-No randomly spawned objects (the arena is bare, no barrels and crates lying around)
[...]

Why is this considered to be "balanced"? I get the "randomly spawned object" part, since you don't want one match to have proper cover in a certain area and another full of explosives barrels, but how comes no dynamic cover = balanced design? I think if the prop layout stays the same, you could make your map both balanced in terms of "no bullshit instakill explosions" and also more tactically varied, where you delibaretily go to that certain place to take cover/can use that cover in a sticky situation.

Think about it: if the weapons are preset, and the covering object stays the same, you can count how many bullets it would take and strategize around destroying it or taking cover behind it and retreating once it breaks.

The last "balanced" arena I played (was it created by you?) was, indeed, BALANCED, but it felt empty and boring to play because you'd always use the spots because they're more advantageous than the ones below them. Even if your map is balanced you still want people to play it, right?

[Duck]

Hmm, yes that is true. Replay-ability.

I wish there was a way to randomize the tile layout. I find barrels and crates to be annoying. The kick and camping I just don't like it. I never put chest high spots in my maps, especially with IA on.

Perhaps I could make these maps with 8 different layouts built in and then it would pick a random one on game start.

[KliPeH]

I wish there was a way to randomize the tile layout. I find barrels and crates to be annoying. The kick and camping I just don't like it. I never put chest high spots in my maps, especially with IA on.

There's already a way to do this. The method is used in some of the default maps such as Storage and Hotel.
Many custom maps use it too; gwendalaze's maps use randomized layouts a lot, and this map is a good example of one. He also helped me create the Backstreets remake which uses randomized layouts to replicate the original map better.

You can open these in the map editor to see how they're built and do something similar in your own map.

[Duck]

Alright that is what I will begin working on next, I've already looked into it.