19 replies to this topic

[Homeless Bill]

Not tons of them. Not all over the place. But sparse patches of forest would allow for soft cover, better flanking lanes, and slightly more tactical gameplay. It would also give non-sniper builds a chance in hell. I realize that Alpine will never be a brawler map, but if you had the choice, why bring anything besides a sniper or a light to Alpine?

I've had a few interesting matches on Alpine, but 90% of them result in a sniper match around Epsilon. It's boring, it's unimaginative, and flanking is usually somewhere between a colossal waste of time and an automatic death warrant.

Do I think Alpine needs more work than that? Yes, but trees in the right places would sure be a hell of an improvement.

[FrostCollar]

Homeless Bill, on 01 May 2013 - 11:28 AM, said:

Do I think Alpine needs more work than that? Yes, but trees in the right places would sure be a hell of an improvement.

+1

Sounds good. Bring on the timber.

[Purplefluffybunny]

I agree. The reason why we have maps with limited trees is because PGI can't optimise the engine and their mod enough to do so. The only trees we would get would be fake ones that you can either run or fire through.

I don't expect to see any luscious maps with a lot of vegetation and trees until they solve their optimisation issues.

Edited by Purplefluffybunny, 01 May 2013 - 12:00 PM.

[Keifomofutu]

Purplefluffybunny, on 01 May 2013 - 11:59 AM, said:

I agree. The reason why we have maps with limited trees is because PGI can't optimise the engine and their mod enough to do so. The only trees we would get would be fake ones that you can either run or fire through.

I don't expect to see any luscious maps with a lot of vegetation and trees until they solve their optimisation issues.

It's not going to be a whole forest certainly. But scattered denser patches here and there would definitely help balance out the map. Especially in and around epsilon.

[Psikez]

I like TRAINS....err...trees

[Deathlike]

The irony of Alpine is that... I was expecting some trees... was disappointed.

[Sephlock]

If you could walk through them and they provided anything other than visual/sensor cover (and maybe even then), wouldn't that allow for more poptarting?

[Fooooo]

Alpine does need more from a gameplay perspective.

From a realism standpoint it probably doesnt much at all really......maybe chunks of ice around rather than the smooth ground (more like frozen city's sharp edge landscape on some parts)


However yes, it needs a lot more to create a little more dynamic play on the map. I don't hate it, I just think it could improve a LOT with more cover and just "stuff" around. So tree's would work for me in a way, I would prefer more ice / rocks or glacier type stuff, but trees would work.

[Hauser]

On one of the NGNG podcasts they interviewed the map designer. He mentioned that you're not supposed to go up most hills but that it couldn't be done in the engine yet.

Consider how that changes the balance of the map.

[Deathlike]

Well, it looks pretty evident that some of the steeper climbs are not meant to be climbed by Assaults...

[Tatula]

Has anyone been to the Alps? I have. There are no trees above the tree line. I think that's what the Alpine map suppose to represent. I'm not against the idea of cover, but maybe not trees. Maybe just a bunch of big boulders.

Edit:
Of course, this is a totally alien planet, so alien trees that thrive above the Earth tree line is quite possible, so never mind. Carry on.

Edited by Aloha, 02 May 2013 - 07:41 AM.

[Keifomofutu]

Hauser, on 02 May 2013 - 05:10 AM, said:

On one of the NGNG podcasts they interviewed the map designer. He mentioned that you're not supposed to go up most hills but that it couldn't be done in the engine yet.

Consider how that changes the balance of the map.

Off the top of my head I would say that would make it even worse for south side than it already is. The north base would only be accessable from the south via that narrow trail. And for south team to push north they would have to loop wide left taking shots the whole way. North starts with the high ground on this map after all.

[Homeless Bill]

Fooooo, on 02 May 2013 - 04:20 AM, said:

I would prefer more ice / rocks or glacier type stuff, but trees would work.

I don't even prefer trees. Stuff in general is what I'm looking for. Something to make battles more dynamic and provide ways to surprise people. Tourmaline has great flanking lanes - Alpine should take a few cues. Rocks, ice, or whatever would be fine.

Hauser, on 02 May 2013 - 05:10 AM, said:

...you're not supposed to go up most hills but that it couldn't be done in the engine yet.

Consider how that changes the balance of the map.

In terrible ways. It makes an incredibly static map even less dynamic. I'm not saying you should be able to climb up any of those hills, but they're what provide the map with what very little variation it has now.

In my mind, it also gives the team at the upper base a big advantage. Making climbing the main ridge impossible gives the upper team better positioning, high ground for sniping and scouting, fewer avenues of attack to defend, and they'd be in better position for the quick capture rush.

[MeiSooHaityu]

Alpine needs some major rework IMO, not just trees (Base balancing, lanes more designed to bring mechs together, etc...).

However, I think Alpine isn't going to change much, so trees will help. I would also like to see some tunnels through that mountain by the one base. That way every engagement isn't ALWAYS by that one radio tower by the high ground base.

Edited by MeiSooHaityu, 02 May 2013 - 09:53 AM.

[DaZur]

IMHO, the mountains should provide natural pathing and unique sniper locations for Mechs capable of getting there... Right now the mountains are largely nothing more than an arduous march over "something" to get where they want to be that is home to any Mech that decides to march to the top.

Topology should encourage avenues to large scale engagement points, paths to flanking positions and speed routs for fast Mechs... Right now none of this is relevant because you can effectively march (almost) in a straight line to get from point A to point B anywhere on the map...

[TVMA Doc]

The biggest issue I see with trees is that they really do nothing for cover. On the forest map there are plenty of trees and while they do obscure your precise view of the enemy mech, they don't even slow you down on getting a lock. It's kind of hard to miss just where in the huge red rectangle your enemy is located...

Trees should mess with locks to simulate cover. If you are walking within detection radius and are completely obscurred visually, you are just as exposed as walking directly across the meadows of Alpine.

[TVMA Doc]

Aloha, on 02 May 2013 - 06:39 AM, said:

Has anyone been to the Alps? I have. There are no trees above the tree line. I think that's what the Alpine map suppose to represent. I'm not against the idea of cover, but maybe not trees. Maybe just a bunch of big boulders.

Edit:
Of course, this is a totally alien planet, so alien trees that thrive above the Earth tree line is quite possible, so never mind. Carry on.

They could be like the trees in caustic valley-you know the ones that are thriving in a high sulfur, 85 degree celcius environment pelted with acid rain?

[Homeless Bill]

TVMA Doc, on 02 May 2013 - 03:49 PM, said:

The biggest issue I see with trees is that they really do nothing for cover. On the forest map there are plenty of trees and while they do obscure your precise view of the enemy mech, they don't even slow you down on getting a lock. It's kind of hard to miss just where in the huge red rectangle your enemy is located...

Trees should mess with locks to simulate cover. If you are walking within detection radius and are completely obscurred visually, you are just as exposed as walking directly across the meadows of Alpine.

I agree, but since Alpine is so big, even the trees they have now would help due to limited detection range. I'd love to see soft cover somehow disrupt sensors, though. Good idea.

[Ingvay]

I'll add that besides trees, a dead drop ship or two and even a scrap-pile of dead mech parts or something would be nice. But trees would be a good start...

[SillyBob]

I don't care about trees, i want 10 or 15 possible resource locations that are rotated though from game to game, the same 5 locations are getting old. Also, in assult mode I want to rotate through the different locations for drop, but you still have to protect your base.

This could go for all maps. Colony has 2 locations for Ep and Kappa let's expand on that.