VN ShowMatch #2 Review

So here we are at the second Vita Nova show match, this time featuring mp_backlot_fix and mp_hideout_beta3, two maps we might see introduced into the competitive map pool in the near future. TEK9 were on hand to see the maps in action, you can find our thoughts below. 

The Teams
Both teams were compromised of top talent from all around Europe, featuring top TCM AK Roe "Froz" Langaas and LowLandLions player Tomas "Choobie" Mead. The full roster run down of all the player that took part can be found below:

Team iarus						Team win
Erik "Froster" van den Biggelaar (Who?) Chris "KexSTAR" Tuck (Infused) Roe "froz" Langaas (TCM) Michele "skkiNNN" Mancini (TCM) Ville "rEplan" Ijas (teaM2K)						Thomas "CHoObiE" Mead (LLL) David "Stormy" Fezler (Anexis) Jasko "cozje" Berbic (LLL) Robin "roboNz" Bakken (Phan) Christian "kaTana" Hofmann (Phan)

 

The first map up is mp_hideout_beta3, a relatively untried map that is slowly becoming more mainstream. With a distinct mp_strike feel the map is off to a good start but contains a number of elements that could bring a whole new dimension of play to the game we all know and love.

It’s always interesting running around a new map, finding out new quirks, but it’s always more interesting watching two teams of highly experienced players run, explore and basically forage for new hot spots to annihilate the enemy from. Kex for example, looking for new bottlenecks which would allow him to take full advantage of his chosen weapon and cozje looking for new unfound high ground.

All in all the entire map seems pretty well thought out and polished, little can really be said without seeing the game in action. There are several interesting areas, including a vast array of what I presume will in the future be referred to as link's, tunnel's and as me and machine coined it whilst waiting for mennace, crawly hole. Anyhow, here we go, time to go live.

The knife is a sight to behold, neither team knowing where their opponents could pop up from. Team Win rush to A site to plant, to draw their enemy closer, but will their tactics work out ok? No. Froster knifes them both and he gets first pick, he takes Froz, who would have guessed right?

The first thing that you notice is the lack of a mini-map, just hovering bomb sites in a freckled square, I presume this will be fixed sometime in the maps final development, lets hope so at any rate.

The B bomb site seems to be the favoured site to advance upon throughout the game, with a vast array of cover for both sides to push, hold and assault the opposing force. It really is a complex site to attack from, and you can be attacked from nearly a 360 degree perspective on the assault, but despite this both teams found this the easier site to attack, with I believe only one bomb plant actually going down on the A site.

The reason for this may be that the A site seems too easy to progress too from the defending side, simply pushing through a collapsed wall and into a tunnel. Round after round you see Froster using the same route, but it would be worth noting that the A site does have a large array of potential peeking points, both high and low. One nice feature about the map, as seen in round four of the show match is the ease of rotate, this really could develop some interesting moments in the future.

Choobie once again with bomb in hand pushes to the van link, near “crawly hole” only to see his team mate die from an early rush nade, then to only fall to a similar nade in the following round. I mentioned earlier that this map has elements of strike, but from what I can see now it seems to be a bit of a hybrid. It definitely has a strike feel, but there seems to be a nade for every spot and for that, it screams backlot.

The market seems to be in an interesting location, one that both teams rarely seem to use, but when taken advantage of it usually leads to success. With the bomb site directly opposite from it, with a middle area adjacent it seems to be a key area to hold with plenty of cover to fight the opposing team from.

Teams switch at this points, let’s see what happens as the different skill sets switch sides.

Team iarus seem to take a more disorganized approach to their offensive, taking a slow, more spread assault. They seem to utilize the mid ground, attempting to the get picks before assaulting the other side. It doesn’t appear to be that effective.

The height levels on the map seem to be very interesting, wherever you find yourself to be you will always be exposed at a different angle, there is always somewhere else you can be shot from, and for that spot aimers everywhere need to be aware.

Both sides currently seem to be unbiased, at least without the tac nades and map knowledge that it is clear both teams are currently lacking.

The Second Map - mp_backlot_fix
Over the years, and especially during recent months since Mark “Phantasy” Pinney announced it to the world via his video tutorials, mp_backlot has been under immense scrutiny for it’s numerous lights, which for those that do not know, caused immunity to damage for all those that laid in wait behind them. As the community cried out for change, topher was happy to oblige bringing out this fixed version of the map taking the pre-existing lamps and placing them beyond the map limits. The question is, how does this change affect game play?

In all honesty, from looking back at the match there wasn't too much to comment on. Both teams played as they normally do, little changed. Defence was the easier side for the most part, so the removal of the lights doesn’t appear to alter map balances. If anything, it just fix's something that made the map a tad unpleasant to play.

Summary
Looking at mp_hideout_beta3 in action I think it's safe to say that we'll be seeing more of the map in future months. It appears to be a highly competitive map, and a highly enjoyable map to spectate which is always important. Despite its aesthetics, it truly does seem unique which is something a lot of maps struggle to do successfully.

In my opinion mp_backlot_fix should be used immediately, it does not affect game play in a major way; it just eliminates bugs that really should never have existed, and for that we are all, as a community, in topher's debt.


Related
VoD Showmatch #2