Icearena - Dunkelschwamm

  

    Ice arena is a simple map that attempts to recreate a hockey rink. Due to limitations of the game engine and the author's modus operandi you can not actually play hockey in this map.

SCMapDB page

Author: Robootto

Date of final release: 2002

Maps in package: 1

Map review of Icearena

(originally posted on SCMapDB)

by dunkelschwamm | January 7, 2022 | 3155 characters

    Ice Arena is an idea that doesn't entirely work in current builds of Sven Co-op because of how the pushable brushes work, and I'm not sure it would have worked any better in the old versions. The idea is that the map is an ice rink and there are pushable brushes for hockey pucks. The players can drag these colossal pucks into the goal posts, though doing so really doesn't accomplish anything or update a score ticker or anything. Not that it has to by any means, obviously in real life when you play sports you keep track of points yourselves. I'd just like to emphasize how barren and simple this execution of a hockey rink is.

    I think that ultimately the simplicity is its greatest benefit, as this is one of the most functional Robootto maps for it. It isn't functioning well, due to the heavy friction which prevents the pucks from traveling very far at any speed, but it does serve a purpose, and I could see a group of friends actually having a fine time just messing around in this map. It doesn't have much, but what's there works.

    Aside from the rink, there's 3 hockey of differing colors on the side to play with, as well as an additional puck hidden in an area up above the rink. You can get here by taking an elevator off to the side. From here you can also jump down to your messy death in the middle of the rink, which is admittedly very fun.

    Now, I'm somewhat burying the lead here as the map does have one massive glaring issue. Robootto couldn't let this map be a good and functional map, and so for whatever reason the players spawn inside of the goal post brush and immediately get stuck. Now, at least in current versions of Sven Co-op, all you need to do about that is press C, 1, and then 7 to solve this problem. However, I could see this having been an issue in the past.

    It's also worth noting that, at least as of writing this review, the map page shows a description and screenshot that are completely and utterly unrelated to the map. My friend GrandmasterJ suggests that this may be part of the "Robootto experience". I hadn't considered that perspective, but I think that's a good way of viewing it. If you aren't confused and disappointed then you aren't playing a Robootto.

    If you're looking for a very casual hangout map or run a server that's essentially a virtual chatroom, I can see this map working just fine in a rotation. I'd recommend not having it last in the rotation for more than 10-15 minutes or so, as there's not much fun to be had once the novelty of shoving giant hockey pucks around wears off. Also you might want to tell people how to get unstuck from spawning inside of brushes because that's a big fat problem.

Pros:

• For what it is, it's a working version of that.
• Decent hangout space.
• It's fun throwing yourself to your death.

Cons:

• The hockey pucks are bad.
• The scenery is bland.
• Spawns are broken (thankfully fixable with simple commands, but still).

Score: 4 / 10