Helms Deep Beta

Ryukaji's "Helms Deep" beta map is, as you might guess, a recreation of the battle of Helms Deep (as depicted in the "Two Towers" movie), and those of you who are familiar with the movies should be pleasantly surprised to find this beta version... surprisingly good.

I know that I was pleasantly surprised. I can recall several "attempts" at versions of this map, dating back years ago, but I don't believe any ever got finished, and it's just as well, because this version looks like it's shaping up to be better than those ever would have been.

The first, best, and most obvious thing to mention about this map is that it's got what is - in all appearances - a fairly accurate (if not necessarily to-scale) recreation of the movie's mountainside fortress. From the tunnels leading into the hall, to the parapets, even to the drain that got blown up by Saruman's Magic Fireworks. What's best about it all is that it's all tied together well to make not only a faithful reproduction, but a playable one.

The drain gate is big enough to be entered by many units at once, rather than being simply a small dead end, and the tunnels lead outside to a steep, mountainside entrance (in addition to their leading into the meeting hall). I do not know how entirely accurate that is, but it is definitely a good decision for gameplay's sake; making sure there is not just one linear path through the whole map was a wise decision.

The environment is really neat, too. The right ambiance, set by the rain, lightning, and sky, creates a very, very cool sensation of being in a classic medieval battle.

There are some things that I would do to change or fix this, though - and this of course being a beta leaves plenty of room for that. I would first tighten up the area to the outside of the castle, and make it much more accessible for the attackers. At the moment, they have a lot of empty ground outside, and this can lead to a very easy bottleneck for the defenders.

Secondly, I would add in some torches (with lights attached). It is very cool to see the battlefield lit up at times by lightning, but sometimes it could definitely use a few more lighting sources. See the SWBF1 Kashyyyk and Rhen Var assets for some good hanging and standing torches.

Finally, and this may just be personal preference, I would darken up (or just change to a grey rocky texture) the terrain a bit. Right now it seems a bit green to really fit well with the rest of the scenery.

All in all, this is a really promising beta map and a great use of some custom models. Be sure to check it out; it's definitely worth a look.

-Mav