Sven Co-op Map Reviews

       Hyrule is once again under attack by the evil Ganon! Fight classic Legend of Zelda and Half-Life enemies and find crystals in dungeons to beat Ganon and save the land once again! SCMapDB page Authors: IceShaft Date of release: 2004 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Legend of Zelda (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | May 3, 2026 | 2692 characters      Legend of Zelda is a walkthrough map full of the jank gimmicks that I love to find in Sven Co-op. You spend most of the map with only a crowbar to defend yourself, so enemies like barnacles or vortigaunts wading in lava create devastating and frustrating hazards. Thankfully, the map keeps these interesting by making the major bulk of the map simple platforming puzzles and zombie-bludgeoning.      The whole map has an incredibly jank appearance to it. Outdoor areas are full of big unconvincing geometry, the lighting is mostly very flat and bright, and the custom models are...

      Hyrule is once again under attack by the evil Ganon! Fight classic Legend of Zelda and Half-Life enemies and find crystals in dungeons to beat Ganon and save the land once again! SCMapDB page Authors: IceShaft Date of release: 2004 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Legend of Zelda (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | May 3, 2026 | 5160 characters      It's the Legend of Zelda in Sven Co-op! Explore such fabulous locales as Hyrule castle! A big serpent head I assume to be Jabu-Jabu! A mountain I will call Dodongo mountain! A Lost Forest made out of boxes! FInally, a trapped castle with what I am going to generously call Gannondorf!      One thing you may notice from the screenshots on the map page is that this map looks kind of bad. I think the little village we start off in looks decent but much of the brushwork is overly blocky and there are a lot of opportunities to climb up ledges and access places that don't look like the...

       This map is a scrap, an experiment, a proof of concept. And boy howdy does it prove the concept, as long as that concept is 'make a model of the solar system'. Nothing much else in the map. SCMapDB page Authors: Keen Date of release: 2007 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Keen's Solar System (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | May 3, 2026 | 2116 characters      We start looking at the map's title over a little eye-candy rotating sprite effect. We run down a ramp toward the sprite and fall through the ground into a black void where the only things we can anchor ourselves to are the rotating planets in a massive diorama of the solar system.      I can't overstate that this introduction gave me a rollercoasteresque sense of disorientation and excitement as I took in the next thing the map had to offer: a glut of fun information.      The void is a big black room containing a large diorama, at the center of...

      This map is a scrap, an experiment, a proof of concept. And boy howdy does it prove the concept, as long as that concept is 'make a model of the solar system'. Nothing much else in the map. SCMapDB page Authors: Keen Date of release: 2007 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Keen's Solar System (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | May 3, 2026 | 1763 characters      The map description says its a proof of concept and not really a playable experience. Well I decided to give it a whirl anyway with zero expectations and I was impressed.      Players start in a slanted room with an intangible floor at one end and players take fall damage when going to the next room. But that's a gameplay critique and this map is a proof of concept, so lets look at the main attraction. This map has a massive solar system revolving around a dark room, the planets are made of sprites and are two dimensional but it still looks really good. There is a lar...

       Not to be confused with THE Hotel, this map is an unfinished project meant to be a Sven Co-op map and a Half-Life: Deathmatch map. The map page seems to suggest it is almost finished but who knows. SCMapDB page Authors: DennisG50 Date of release: 2005 Maps in package: 2 Map review of Hotel (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | May 3, 2026 | 3182 characters      Hotel is a very surreal deathmatch map converted into a Sven Co-op map (if I am understanding correctly from the description) that apparently isn't quite finished as of 20 years and some change ago.      The players start in what I at first thought were jail cells with buttons to open the doors. one of the four rooms has a door that opens very slowly for some reason. The doors open into a hallway which terminates at both ends in doors which open into a large lobby area. The lobby area has a big front desk that reminds me of the snack counter at a movie theater, ...

      Not to be confused with THE Hotel, this map is an unfinished project meant to be a Sven Co-op map and a Half-Life: Deathmatch map. The map page seems to suggest it is almost finished but who knows. SCMapDB page Authors: DennisG50 Date of release: 2005 Maps in package: 2 Map review of Hotel (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | May 3, 2026 | 2651 characters      No part of this map reminds me of a hotel. There are individual rooms with a couch and table in each one, but the grey textures and industrial doors operated by buttons evokes the idea of a prison. There are two maps included here and one is a deathmatch version of the map, except deathmatch is not enabled so it is a cooperative exploration of an arena.      The map has this abstract fever dream layout. In the regular(?) version of the map players start off in cells, I mean hotel rooms, and each one has a weapon and some ammo and a couple even have HEV batteries. One o...

           The map page has a story written out for us, plus a promise to deliver more maps in the same story at a later time. But it's been over two decades and this is all we have, a very short map. SCMapDB page Authors: [Barney]_Mouge Date of release: 2000 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Horror 1 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | May 2, 2026 | 3143 characters      Horror 1 is a very short outdoor zombie-shootin' map with some very cute brushwork and textures. There's meant to be a foreboding horror theme, and frankly whole map is just adorable.      Here's the progression: You start by your car, walk through a tunnel with a few headcrabs in it, walk through wilderness where zombie ghosts (I presume- they have the additive draw mode) ambush. The players pass by what looks like a church (which I thought was a very fun visual, even if a bit blocky and janky in places), and a stack of boxes with a key hover...

           The map page has a story written out for us, plus a promise to deliver more maps in the same story at a later time. But it's been over two decades and this is all we have, a very short map. SCMapDB page Authors: [Barney]_Mouge Date of release: 2000 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Horror 1 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | May 2, 2026 | 1670 characters      This is a very short and cute map, It's over 25 years old at the time of writing this. It's endearing in its presentation but there really just isn't a whole lot here.      Players start off at the bottom of a road so slanted I see no possible way any car can drive up it. We go through a hallway, take a few turns, pick up a key on a stack of boxes, and find a fork in the road near a cemetery. Going right take sus back to spawn, unlocking a shortcut with a fun explosive plunger. Going left leads to a locked gate we use the key to open and the map end...

        They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Look at the above picture. If the link isn't broken then you know what kind of map this is. SCMapDB page Authors: Keen Date of release: 2008 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Horsecock 7 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | May 2, 2026 | 2721 characters      Horsecock 7 is a nonsensical toy map where the toy is an enormous horse cock that you are ejaculated from and then try to land in one of many floating toilets while monsters and assassins in the enormously tall surrounding walls take pot shots at you. You simply line yourself up in base of the cock's urethra, shoot an adjacent brush (as instructed in the MOTD, which otherwise would have been impossible to independently discover. Why not just a button?), and then with the sound of a horse whinnying you are launched high into the air with a jet of white mist.      In this map, you are the horse spunk.     ...

       They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Look at the above picture. If the link isn't broken then you know what kind of map this is. SCMapDB page Authors: Keen Date of release: 2008 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Horsecock 7 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | May 2, 2026 | 3823 characters     We'll start out by addressing the elephant in the room, this map is centered around a giant penis that jacks players off into what I will describe as the realm of the toilets. There is a horse sound when this happens but nothing else to really suggest this penis belongs to a horse. You'd think such a map would be wacky and fun but the respawning enemies, especially the snipers, make it a chore to actually play.     Near spawn there is an indent in the wall where players can float up, my teammate and I do so right as the map starts and we get to a ledge where we are sniped to death. At some point around here, either by som...

       Appear in Dojo. Enemies rain from above. Hit them with your sword. SCMapDB page Authors: PU_1338 Date of release: 2007 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Dojo (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | April 26, 2026 | 2218 characters      Dojo is a really cute wave survival map. Players must use their swords (crowbars) to fight against ninjas (unarmed Male Assassins) for five waves to defend the dojo.      The map is very simple. There's no button to start the map, just a wave starting after an arbitrary amount of time. The map itself is a ring around a building with doors straight through it. Enemies are launched into the arena from above the outer walls. Their health is so low the crowbar gibs them. The only dynamic element is that after a few waves it adds Female Assassins (guns and grenades and everything) to the mix.      Then, at the end, it sends four VERY beefy melee samurai at the players. We wer...

       Appear in Dojo. Enemies rain from above. Hit them with your sword. SCMapDB page Authors: PU_1338 Date of release: 2007 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Dojo (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | April 26, 2026 | 1431 characters      Dojo is a short and sweet map about fighting off waves of assassins with only a crowbar retextured to be a katana. It's got some fun Kill Bill sounds and some cool samurai custom models at the end.      The enemies do have a lot of health, so the fight itself is a little bit of a slog, but we all get long jumps to start with so it is very easy to end up standing on top of the enemies and hitting down, usually gibbing them in the process. It is very fun. But also there are a lot of times when we spawn, swing about three times, and then die. It has its frustrating moments.      I think the real strength of the map is how much action it fits in a small package. If you want a shor...

       "You hit your head and now you are dreaming" of some blocky stairs covered in respawning enemies. This map really embodies early Sven Co-op, where things appear to be optimized for a rush of people. SCMapDB page Authors: JJ45 aka Aurora Date of release: 2003 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Dreamstairs (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | April 26, 2026 | 2576 characters      Dreamstairs is walkthrough map in which the players ascend a spiral staircase surrounded by death drop and filled with respawning enemies. All progress made is immediately met with enemies reappearing to wreak vengeance on your buttocks. The story implies that the scenario is a hallucinatory manifestation from head trauma, and I think it succeeds as a headache simulator.      The visuals are dirt simple, to an almost respectable degree. The only real flourish to the grey concrete staircase is layers of semitranslucent grey planes which create a m...

      "You hit your head and now you are dreaming" of some blocky stairs covered in respawning enemies. This map really embodies early Sven Co-op, where things appear to be optimized for a rush of people. SCMapDB page Authors: JJ45 aka Aurora Date of release: 2003 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Dreamstairs (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | April 26, 2026 | 2805 characters      You hit your head and now you're in a dream … . where you climb stairs covered in respawning enemies.      My first reaction to this map was pretty negative. We start off on stairs and we climb upward, with full armor which really does help our survival, until we fight globs of enemies. Each enemy has a ton of health so its slow going and each enemy respawns so when we clear out a patch and move forward we sometimes have to deal with enemies behind us, putting us in and endless loop of being pincered.      But my teammate suggested just r...

       Welcome to The Hotel, not to be confused with Hotel, a horror adventure set in a single building. It's a simple map with a couple of surprises, some good and some bad.  SCMapDB page Authors: W00tguy123 Date of release: 2007 Maps in package: 1 Map review of The Hotel (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | April 25, 2026 | 3391 characters      The Hotel is an odd little half-finished thing that chooses the oddest places to impress. While the overall premise is slapped together and roughly as functional as somebody's second-ever map, random details are given a level of attention and show expertise that I ooh'd and ahh'd at.      The map takes place in a massive hotel building with several floors. Some of these floors contain halls of rooms, some contain setpieces, some contain nothing at all and were clearly left unfinished. The floors of rooms are generally pretty decent, with ambient zombie ghosts milling around cau...

      Welcome to The Hotel, not to be confused with Hotel, a horror adventure set in a single building. It's a simple map with a couple of surprises, some good and some bad.  SCMapDB page Authors: W00tguy123 Date of release: 2007 Maps in package: 1 Map review of The Hotel (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | April 25, 2026 | 3594 characters      A horror map from 2007, 19 years ago, I did not have high expectations going in. But the map starts on a cutscene, a car drives in and the wheels are actually spinning! It takes a turn and … is it leaning into the curves? Did the map author model suspension in 2007????      This map knows how to set atmosphere and create a scene. The opening cutscene instantly draws me in and we get a really nicely made cutscene every time we accomplish an objective. This did kill me a lot, as I was running from zombies as my teammates soldiered on. There are creepy ambient sounds, custom zombie model...

       Welcome to the Nuclear Power Plant, a short mod for the original Half-Life from the ancient year of 1999 ported to Sven Co-op in the modern age. As the name implies, it is a nuclear power plant, and since this is a shooting game, we get to fight in the power plant. SCMapDB page Original map author: Alexei Frolov Conversion author: Reuniclus-579 Date of original mod release: 1999 Date of final Sven Map release: 2026 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Nuclear Power Plant (originally posted on SCMapDB)  by dunkelschwamm | April 25, 2026 | 2018 characters      Nuclear Power Plant is a simple walkthrough map with a bit of platforming, a bit of vent scouring, and a bit of firefighting.      There's lots of fun bits, like shutting off an electric coil before climbing up it like a ladder, or a caged HEV suit that we used to gib a local Barney and grab a gun before it should have been possible. There's a bit where a spinning piece of ma...

      Welcome to the Nuclear Power Plant, a short mod for the original Half-Life from the ancient year of 1999 ported to Sven Co-op in the modern age. As the name implies, it is a nuclear power plant, and since this is a shooting game, we get to fight in the power plant. SCMapDB page Original map author: Alexei Frolov Conversion author: Reuniclus-579 Date of original mod release: 1999 Date of final Sven Map release: 2026 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Nuclear Power Plant (originally posted on SCMapDB)  by GrandmasterJ | April 25, 2026 | 2898 characters      The starting area of the map is a room with a barney and two HEV suits in weird spiky cages. There are two buttons, one opens the cage for the HEV suit on the right and the other button seems nonfunctional, I could not open the cage on the left. Anyway, we opened the cage on the right, lured in the barney, closed the cage, and I think that alone is going to boost the score for this map.  ...

       Do you like history? Do you like Albania? Then you might like this map, a recreation of a famous (to Albanians maybe) battle from history! Defend the fortress from . . . cockroaches? SCMapDB page Authors: Grunt Date of release: 2024 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Battle of Albulena (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | April 19, 2026 | 2727 characters      What a map.      So, on a superficial level, we're fighting a bunch of low-health roaches with a wrench (and subsequently, a flamethrower) to keep them from breaking through a gate. There're some great features: the flamethrower is a scripted weapon, there is a health bar prominently displayed above the gate (though that makes it hard to see from a near defensive position), and a counter in the corner of the screen tracks how many roaches we must defend from.      The roaches are fun to smash and roast, and there's enough to keep it tense. My buddy a...