What Makes You PLay A Map?

[Sniggers]

Combination of things.

If I look at the screenshots and think 'blocky and uninteresting' you lose 90% of my interest.
If I look at the features and think 'standard and uninspired' you lose me completely.

I look for originality in the form of clever entity set ups but also some 'wow' moments with sexy lighting and/or brushwork.
In short, a cool looking map with some interesting features (hence my current WIP, top secret ).

[ForceFist]

I have no idea how old this is but i'll post anyway.

What makes me play a map?

Well it has to be pretty original, new thinking.
The lighting is very important to me as well as good design that fits for the gameplay. Not too straight either, like stairs down to another floor or something like that makes it more fun. If it is a CS:S map its good to have the bombsites far from each other and good camping spots.

[MaK]

The graphics are what make me download the map.

The gameplay is what makes me continue to play the map.

[Dead-Inside]

As long as the map doesn't look like shit, and I mean shit now, I don't care if it just looks "okay", I only go by gameplay.

Always have and I probably always will.

But if we're talking about a game or mod, it's a whole other story.

To elaborate; I'd be happy to play a glassmap that I'd enjoy the gameplay of even if it looks like shit, but I wouldn't like to play a Dust-clone that looks good, but plays okay or less.

[KILLA-COW]

Asthetics.

I'm not going to look at and then play a map if my first impressions are, 'looks like gary colman shat it out and stamped on it.'

Other important things are freshness, if someone tries something new and thinks outside the box.

[Joker]

Gameplay and uniqueness. Im always looking for maps that are different then others. A whole new theme. Also maps that provide sniping spots, great encounter spots, and spots for close range. All of those increase gameplay

[MrTwoVideoCards]

The creativity has always drawn me in, mainly with the Source Engine, Being a mapper i know what you can and can not do. So it's fun to see when people defy that law of limitations.

[t3nacious]

As far as multiplayer maps go for games such as CS or Dods..

I will usually rule out a map right away if there's some unnecessary FPS loss. Right there you know you're dealing with A) an inexperienced mapper or B) a graphics whore. If the map flows well and feels right, I'll start roaming around, looking for landmarks so that I can better understand the layout.

Even if a map looks bad, or has the cheap "fy" style of gameplay, I'll give it a god honest attempt for 3-5 minutes. That's usually enough time to scope out the general area and decide if A) I can find a unique area to catch the enemy off-guard, or B) The level itself has created a new and exciting way to play the game. I will also hang around for any map that makes me laugh.. I mean, how can you not enjoy 1337 sk33t.

Sometimes a map will only be entertaining for 5-15 minutes. Generally I'll lose interest if there's a lack of balance to the sides. If one team clearly has the advantage, it becomes unenjoyable to me whether I am losing or winning.

What gets me hooked on a map is a map with lots of well thought out hiding spots. I know it promotes camping, but to be honest, there is nothing more rewarding than finding that balcony that nobody's touched all game, and mowing down an entire team from the back. It keeps you coming back and exploring the map again and again. Just look at dod_avalanche. You can never truely master a map with that many possibilities. Every player finds a way to make the firefight their own unique situation.

There are a lot of other factors involved, but I think the key for me is that it has good FPS, good balance, unique situations, an attention to detail, and a server full of people having fun.

[Knights]

I'll play a map if it's on a server Only then you know it'll be good, but don't quote me on this a lot of servers will play the worst maps eva.

[Sacul15]

For me it's the balance of different gameplay styles. There has to be room for snipers, but there also must be a way for players to sneak around him and shank him when he's not looking. There has to be close range areas for shotgunners and mid-range areas for the AK lovers. Also, a map must be able to be played solo as well as in a cooperative unit. This is one of the things I don't like about cs_assault. I love the map when each side cooperates, but it gets boring really quickly when the stupid CTs decide to camp outside with 15 awps. The maps cs_Italy and cs_militia greatly succeed in all of the afore mentioned requirements.

I'll try out pretty much any map that looks like the creator put some time into it. Though fy maps and the like have to look damn nice to get my download. And I must admit, a few of these have managed to keep my interest, at least for a while.

So in conclusion, as what most of the people on here have already stated, if it looks nice, I'll play it. If it plays nice I'll keep it.