Sven Co-op Map Reviews

      Auspice (ôspəs), noun, a divine or prophetic token. This is an officially released map for Sven Co-op 3.0 taking place somewhere in Black Mesa with good variety of combat, puzzles, and exploration. Author: Seraph Date of final release: 2003 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Auspices (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | August 18, 2022 | 5266 characters      Auspices is a map that I always dread playing but everybody else seems excited to play. I never protest, because I can never remember why I dread playing Auspices. I usually don't remember much of this map at all.      I was excited, this time, to explore why that may be, as I played to review this map. I think I've figured some things out along the way. Let's cover basics.      First of all, Auspices is not necessarily a map anybody should dread- it's full of fun ideas, a great arsenal, some really action-packed combat, very well brushed and textured, and has some great checkpoints. Before I delve

    Auspice (ôspəs), noun, a divine or prophetic token.  This is an officially released map for Sven Co-op 3.0 taking place somewhere in Black Mesa with good variety of combat, puzzles, and exploration. Author: Seraph Date of final release: 2003 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Auspices (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | August 18, 2022 | 5249 characters      This is yet another Black Mesa map. At this point I'm kind of over Black Mesa themed maps, but the difference with this one is that it is done extremely well and offers pretty good variety.      The map starts players off outside at night, in a military themed area with bunkers, tanks, snipers, and soldiers. The map goes through some Black Mesa themed areas pretty quick, starting with the military exterior, moving to a lab complex of tight hallways, gonomes, alien grunts, and shock troopers, ending in a big fight in a wide open room with soldiers storming in from above. It moves on to some pipes and vents (this m

       The follow up to Svencoop 1, the sequel continues showing off things that can be done with Sven maps. Be warned, the map can be rendered unwinnable if you aren't paying attention. SCMapDB page Author: Sven Viking Date of final release: 2008 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Svencoop 2 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | July 17, 2022 | 9968 characters      200 map special wooooo      Sven Coop 2 is the continuation of Sven Coop. It's a mostly linear walkthrough map with a couple puzzles, some combat, a crazy action setpiece at the end, and some wacky design decisions. Here I'll discuss them.      So, what is Sven Coop 2 trying to do with its design? I think it's trying to experiment- show interesting things that can be done in Sven Coop and spur creativity. Design is problem solving, and Sven Coop seeks very much to solve the problem of "How do we broaden what coop gameplay can be when applied to Half-Life's sensibilities?" Sven Coop 2

      The follow up to Svencoop 1, the sequel continues showing off things that can be done with Sven maps. Be warned, the map can be rendered unwinnable if you aren't paying attention. SCMapDB page Author: Sven Viking Date of final release: 2008 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Svencoop 2 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | July 17, 2022 | 7913 characters      I couldn't really give an honest review of the first map in this series. It was really a demonstration and a bar setter for the rest of the maps for Sven Co-op. To be honest, I didn't much like it, but I'm spoiled with over 20 years of not only improved mapping resources but also fewer limits and more functionality of the engine. Svencoop2 comes right on the heels of the first map, just one year later. It keeps on demonstrating gameplay mechanics and has very fun cutscenes but it definitely wears on me a lot more than the first game.      The map starts off where the last one ended, a flooded room. T

       Another Unit is an official Sven Co-op map release, it's flavored in typical Black Mesa aesthetic and presented from the HECU perspective. SCMapDB page Author: B-dama Date of final release: 2003 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Another Unit (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | March 26, 2022 | 4594 characters      Another Unit is a map by B-dama which comes default with Sven Co-op. It is a standard walkthrough map, with lots of mixed alien combat and fighting with Barnies, turrets, and robogrunts.      First thing you'll notice when playing this map is that it looks rather good. It has a lot of the same aesthetic that Black Mesa style maps usually do- industrial, mostly subterranean concrete brutalist corporatism. However, it also has that look that's a little past the generation of Half-Life's original graphics, with more ambitious brushwork and scale. Everything in this map looks good, is decently well lit, and every location in the first half of t

      Another Unit is an official Sven Co-op map release, it's flavored in typical Black Mesa aesthetic and presented from the HECU perspective. SCMapDB page Author: B-dama Date of final release: 2003 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Another Unit (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | March 26, 2022 | 4129 characters      Another Unit is an official map and it shows. The level architecture is beautiful. Everything is detailed and would look at home right alongside levels in the original Half-Life.      Players spawn right off the bat with a shotgun, mp5, full ammo for both, and 40 armor. This means players don't have to rearm when respawning. The map starts off with two long hallways side by side with turrets everywhere. You have to toss a grenade in the booth with the evil Barney to open the door, then you can use the big unlock machine to open up the doors at the far end of the hallway. Going through the hologram walls triggers barricades to rise up and robo grunts

       Journey to Northern Africa during World War II and challenge the German occupiers under Rommel. It's somewhat hard to tell this is a WWII themed map, probably due to the lack of swastikas everywhere. SCMapDB page Author: MysticMDT Date of final release: 2003 Maps in package: 3 Map review of Afrika Korps (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | February 20, 2022 | 4405 characters      Afrika Korps is a classic Sven Co-op scenario set in a WWII setting. Shoot nazis, blow up their tanks, blow up their guns, steal their documents, blow up their radios, blow up their radars, and then shoot nazis some more. That's the name of the game. Expect to use the handgun, revolver, crowbar, grenades, MP5 (sans sight), sniper rifle, and rocket launcher (sans laser).      This mapset consists of three maps. You could think of them as a training map, the actual level, and a boss battle. The first map slowly introduces the player to the types of combat and missions they'll be e

      Journey to Northern Africa during World War II and challenge the German occupiers under Rommel. It's somewhat hard to tell this is a WWII themed map, probably due to the lack of swastikas everywhere. SCMapDB page Author: MysticMDT Date of final release: 2003 Maps in package: 3 Map review of Afrika Korps (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | February 20, 2022 | 5293 characters      Afrikakorps is a map I don't have fond memories of. Maybe it was my computer, but I remember the map being glitchy and lagging a ton. I was wrong, it was an overall nice experience.      The map starts off going room to room clearing Nazis. There are weapon replacements and even a little scripting to turn the mp5 into a tommy gun. The Nazi enemy models and the guns really helped bring the map together, although I do think the generic HECU grunt chatter that the Nazis used was a little jarring. Really nicely detailed tanks dot the map and look very impressive.      The map is very comb

       Aerial Contact is a reimagining of the classic map series Apache Battle. Five Apache helicopters will assault the player and all five must be destroyed to win the map. SCMapDB page Author: Hezus Date of final release: 2004 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Aerial Contact (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | February 19, 2022 | 3324 characters      Aerial Contact is a map that takes a strange approach to a simple concept: fight five apaches, one after the other, from a secure complex while grunts and male assassins harass from afar. The assassins and grunts respawn endlessly, while the apaches only respawn enough times for you to fight five before the map rather abruptly ends in fanfareless victory for the players.      One of the main features of the map is two large turrets. One is situated in the fortified complex in which the players spawn- this turret is a big machinegun which turns at a glacial pace. Across from the fortress there is a rocketlauncher turret whic

      Aerial Contact is a reimagining of the classic map series Apache Battle. Five Apache helicopters will assault the player and all five must be destroyed to win the map. SCMapDB page Author: Hezus Date of final release: 2004 Maps in package: 1 Map review of Aerial Contact (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | February 19, 2022 | 2522 characters      The map concept is simple, kill apache helicopters. The spawn area is at the bottom floor of a tower along with a door to the outside, a tiny bit of HEV and ammo, and a ladder up. The middle floor has a glass window that will instantly be shattered by the apache shooting inside. There is a shotgun and grenades along with some trip mines here. There is also a gun turret that is so very slow, I find it useless. The third level has unbreakable glass, a magnum with some ammo, and the button to open the door at the bottom floor. This door will close slowly both setting a time limit on getting out and ensuring players can not retur

       Svencoop is THE eponymous Sven Co-op map. It is the first map ever created for the mod, it was the only map included when Sven first came out, and it's been included in every single release since then. SCMapDB page Author: Sven Viking Date of final release: 1999 (updated a lot, last in 2010) Maps in package: 1 (but there is a separate Svencoop 2 map) Map review of Svencoop 1 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by dunkelschwamm | February 5, 2021 | 2906 characters      SvenCoop 1 is a charming and simple cooperative map from a simpler time that is largely overshadowed by the maps which have since followed.      Throughout it makes many attempts at fun cooperative activities. A couple times this involves two guys pressing buttons at once, there's this one puzzle where you have to lower these blocks which slowly raise back up which each have buttons behind them to press at the same time but while you're trying to lower these baby gargs spawn in. There's this one puzzle w

      Svencoop is THE eponymous Sven Co-op map. It is the first map ever created for the mod, it was the only map included when Sven first came out, and it's been included in every single release since then. SCMapDB page Author: Sven Viking Date of final release: 1999 (updated a lot, last in 2010) Maps in package: 1 (but there is a separate Svencoop 2 map) Map review of Svencoop 1 (originally posted on SCMapDB) by GrandmasterJ | February 5, 2022 | 4279 characters      I've reviewed quite a few maps on this site, for my 100th map I decided I wanted to try out the original map, the eponymous svencoop1. Don't actually fact check if this review is my 100th, just take my word for it. I didn't quite know what to expect.      To get straight to the point, overall, its good but not amazing. But I'm playing this in 2022, more than 20 years after its release, well past the point where talented mappers have flooded the market with high quality maps. That other review written b