Skaarj Castle

Well, lets see now...

This is a difficult review to write. The map is just so darn big, I don't know where to start. I guess we could begin by saying that this is a 'coop orientated map,' aimed at the many servers for unreal which were in need of a large map for a large amount of players. In that respect, I think this map is successful.

However, I also think that this map is too big. Trying to complete it in single player is a right pain in the bahookey, and playing it on most unreal coop servers results in large amounts of lag from downloader's. Even in single player, you will get a large drop in frame rate. Really, I don't know what else to say about this map, but seeing as it is a 'coop orientated map,' I think we should see what the players think of it:

Dan, who frequents Jeanruss' coop server, says: "A little bit complicated, but an excellent map."

Yoshi, whom I tested the map with on a server, says: "What is noticed early when playing this map is that it lags quite allot, but it isn't the biggest issue however... The real issue is that it's way too big for it's limited amount of detail...since it's also very big in play-size creates more lag."

Kajgue, head of N Team, and regular at UnrealSP.org, says: "Skaarj Castle is a vast multitasked co-operative map. Good game play has been implemented through a large variety of creatures, and the randomization of creature places."

When I asked Predator about his thoughts on the map, he replied with "insert explicative here"

He later said "I hear it is big."

Santi says: "The truth is I don't remember it very well. I remember it was a big and nice map that I had to use intelligence to finish."

.:..: (Dots), author of the Pack and Coopg coop mods, said: "Big and nice map, with huge outside scene. Very tricky map and maybe too tricky in some places when you have to search around for button to open one door and another-. In other words, a huge maze. Map base is very well done, but some lightning could be done better."

Dante, leader of the Klingon clan, says: "I never beat it, but it's kind of big from what I assume the file size is rather big to download. If people can download it, then they can download Upak. The level itself is well pathnoded. It can support bots. ;l "

So there you have it. Many quotes from random players. Now on to the scores:

Geometry: 9/10 - Pretty good, considering the size of the map
Lighting: 6/10 - Too much use of zonelighting. Forgivable considering the enormous effort needed to use individual lights.
Texture: 7/10 - Alright I guess, but nothing spectacular.
Flow: 6/10 - Often left wondering what to do next...
Tilt: 5/10 - The low FPS in some areas, the glitchy skybox in OpenGL rendering, and the server lag bring this map down a notch.

Overall: 7/10 - One of the best coop orientated maps around, but just too big.

Note: About the 'flow' and 'tilt.' Flow is decided on weapon placement, story, locations, attention to detail etc. Tilt is basically the reviewer's way of adding or subtracting a point from the final score, for reasons not covered in Geometry, Lighting, Texture, and Flow.