Postby Yurian Stonebow » Jan 18 2008, 10:34
@Muszka
Thank you for the feedback. Here are some of my own 'findings' after doing some more testing on "Operation Turning point". These are thoughts that came to me as both from the map maker's point of view and that of a "regular" player.
"Operation Turning Point" is free of bugs but somehow I still see that I didn't quite get the best out of CPU players and their skills. Of course this seems to have more to do with how the AI in Heroes III is built and less on how I would like to see the AI performing on that particular map. Overall the AI manages quite well its duties in the starting positions available to it.
Each starting position is indeed unique and that is what kept bugging me for many many months. I wanted to achieve balance but still different "feel" to playing each Human available starting colour. I believe I managed to get there in the end.
"It's a pure MP map, though it can be played SP it's by far nat that enjoyable. Even more it's a very good quick-time-2vs2vs-some-AI-map.
I would have only one suggestion. You could let Blue to be Human or CPU instead of CPU, for those who can't or dislike MP with CPU to be a better SP map, but this is only a suggestion."
Including Blue Player on the map was not in my original plans but somehow slipped in during mapmaking and early testing sessions. In my opinion, (as I observed later on) overall game balance needed one more pure CPU player so I crafted Blue his own area and its limitations and advantages on the North-West corner of the Underground territory.
That area is planned and designed exclusively for CPU player and not for Human players. It's not well enough balanced for a Human/CPU starting position. I believe that giving access to that colour in terms of "regular" playing type would jeapardize Human vs Human balance. I do understand and have noticed myself as well that one additional Human starting position outside the Human teams could add to the singleplayer experience but I still chose to abondon this idea because of overall balance issues.
"I played on Impossible, so it's must be playable on other difficulties too. But if you want I may give it a try on an easier setting."
I have finished the map both on Expert and Impossible levels so my own testing supports your conclusion, Muszka.
"Also, the are no unreachable areas.
Also a mention, that, some may don't like the angel wings, but still I think, that there are more who do, and anyway till anybody reaches it, it's already the end of the map."
"Operation Turning Point" is designed to be a moderately quick map with special areas as a nice bonus for those who like doing Quests and are also
curious to explore the entire map. It seems that the map plays well with this idea: the Quests are quite reasonable and require no utterly hard work to complete them.
As for Angel Wings, that is a special feature of the map's internal design. Not excatly game killing in the hands of CPU player and as you noticed, the artefact will play its part only towards the end-game. I included the Wings on the map to help Human player to finish cleaning up remaining CPU field armies.
"The make a long story short, the map can be posted."
Thank for your comment and observations so far and please keep that feedback coming in. You can send me email or just simply reply here on CH, which ever suites you best. Don't worry about sending me "silly" posts about this and that little thing found on my maps. I appreciate all feedback I get and will reply to any message depending on my remaining free time.
Sincerally,
Yurian
Don't worry if things are going badly today. They will be much worse tomorrow.
