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DM-1on1-Mnemosyne (UT)
MapAuthor: Fr0sT
Date Reviewed: 8 June 2002
Reviewer: SkaarjMaster



Fr0sT is part of the Artificial Insanity (AI) team and this is his first completed map. He says there is no real story behind the map, but Mnemosyne is the Greek goddess of memory. It is also one of the maps in the AI duel pack. It was made for 1on1 and the author recommends only two players, but can be played with 3 players as well. Since there are only 5 player starts, then anymore than this and it could get a little spammy.

The setting of this map seems to be some type of industrial house of worship where people used to work hard and pray hard. Of course, now it is an arena for deathmatch and now there's just a lot of dying and respawning going on here. The variety of textures chosen for this map (wood, stone, chains, ...) makes for a convincing scene. The various shades of brown and green set each other off well; although, there are places where the textures don't line up correctly. The author should have taken the time to align these better. The trees, little tufts of grass, rustic floors and cobwebs definitely add to the decor. I thought the various color shades could have been chosen better though. The surrounding area is mountainous terrain and a 'slow moving' skybox for a change.

The lighting consists mostly of standard lights of white on the ceilings, walls and floors. There are red lights, but they don't seem to shine enough and the color coming from them seems almost purple; they seem more like decoration than lights. The glare through the windows in one very interesting and important back room is unbelievable and needs to be toned down. Shadows aren't bad but could use a little more definition. The sun from the skybox is lighting up most of the rest of the map but it's hard to believe that a few areas actually are lit by the sun or just made to look that way. For instance, some of the open areas that are still covered by something overhead are completely lit up and some parts of hallways are completely lit where some shadows should be. Zone lighting was used for the skybox and water areas. Once again, if you like darkness either turn the gamma way down or just forget this map. One thing I didn't like was the killing water in that one large pool. If the water kills, then at least make it look more like slime. I have seen this on other maps and thought it strange as well.

Some custom music could have added to the atmosphere, but the custom track seems chosen carefully and works for this map. What did add to the atmosphere was the squawking and screeching birds from the original Unreal. I left my computer on with this map running and could still hear it in another room and it was kinda unnerving until I realized what is was. You will definitely notice someone walking through or falling in water here and could be a dead giveaway.

Seems like every weapon is here except the biorifle; of course, this isn't missed at all. Well, the redeemer is missing too but is that really needed here? The sniper rifle can be used for distance or from a high position on this map. This is practically the only opportunity for z-axis here. Other weapons are set in good places, but the shock rifle and minigun should be switched so the shock can be used for distance down some of the halls after immediate pickup. The ammo is in plentiful supply with and without adjacent corresponding weapon. There is no scarcity of health in this map either. You have to jump just right to get the armor; also, the thigh pads and shield belt are in the map but don't register on NGstats. I'd like to see someone get the shield belt in real life; it could be a bit difficult, no snatch and grab here but a little unsnapping of the belt is in order. Wow, don't go blind looking for the Udamage and hope you have balance.

The bots go for all the weapons and use them well, especially on Godlike. In general, the bots are fairly easy, but get them in areas of odd wall angles and overhangs and it could be tough to maneuver. They don't use the x-loc at all, so sometimes it's fun to x-loc up top and snipe them as they run by. It's too bad the bots couldn't do this, it could have added a lot to a bot match. Even if they had only one x-loc up at one spot and one down at another, it would still add a little more to botplay. Snipe camping (and I only do this against bots) gets boring after a few frags, so it's back down into the action. The bots use the Udamage and armor, but avoid the thigh pads and shield belt elevated location like the plague. Maybe these two powerups not appearing in NGstats has something to do with this. I have seen the bots just run in place on a crate and it was easy pickings then.

With a 1on1 map, you have to hunt and hide more and this was no exception. It's large enough that you can hide and ambush, but small enough that it won't take too long to find your opponent. I found it was more fun against 2 opponents, since the action picks up a bit. Flow can be interrupted by the architecture with tight angles through the halls and stuff sticking out including the crates. No system slow downs were noticed since the polys were kept down. I found this to be one of the better maps in the AI duel pack and both this map and the pack are definitely worth checking out. Check out more of FrOsT's work here. It's a new site that should be working soon.

Bottom Line: Even though there is a few things wrong with the textures, lighting, bot play and flow, the item placement is fine and the extra sounds and foliage enhance the atmosphere.

Score: 6.5
Average User Score: 7.5 (1 scores)