Instead of taking a break I decided to work on a new map. Which is kind of like taking a break because I really enjoy working on maps (for the first 20 hours, and then it becomes a bit of a chore.)

Isolation

If you were an original Morbus player you might remember the map Isolation. This was either the 2nd or 3rd map I made for Morbus and I really enjoyed the general layout of it.

The map was based on the idea of creating 3 parallel passages that run along the entire map, and then connecting them at a peak on one end, and then having other passage ways across to connect them.

By having 3 paths to traverse the map a player can more easily avoid other players. As a human this is helpful if you’re paranoid and untrusting, or as an alien this is helpful to avoid detection. That’s kind of why the map was called “Isolation;” If I want to isolate myself I can choose a path to avoid other players.

Each path has it’s own strengths and weaknesses;

The center path allows you to be on average closest to all need locations. It takes takes you through the central room which is wide and open, mostly preventing ambushes. Since you’re in the center it allows you to potentially see the side paths giving you the most information as well.

However you’re also in the center, and therefore the most detectable, and you’re forced to walk through the north center hallway which has lots of divets in the side allowing an alien or brood to hide and ambush you.

The side pathways are more secluded and take you through 2 pillar rooms. These rooms offer great hiding places for aliens and are generally dark. The final approach to the north tip of the map is a tight hallway with no hiding places which prevents ambushes.

Since the side passageways are on the edges of the map, alien senses often allow players to slip through them without being detected.

Issues with the map

The map had two large open backrooms which were supposed to be “cargo bays” that had equipment for humans, as well as entrances to the “vents”.

These rooms were kind of useless. Nothing motivates humans to enter these rooms and for humans entering the vents, it was very dangerous, because that’s where swarm aliens spawned.

There was also a basement with light switches, each switch would shut off lights in a section of the map. But getting out of the basement usually meant going into the vents which was dangerous, or back tracking which sucks.

Human players rarely left the main floor because doing so was dangerous and generally a confusing mess.

There was also a random light switch in the vents that allowed you to turn the lights off in the center room. Was this explained, did anyone figure this out, did anyone use this? The answer to all of these is no. You couldn’t even see the result of the pressing the light switch!

Also there was a light switch in the north tip of the map. This switch didn’t turn the lights on/off, instead it turned of all the lights for maybe 10 seconds, then turned them all back on; Like a reset switch.

TL;DR; confusing light switches suck, confusing vents suck, and a basement which feels more like a dead end sucks.

Despite all this…

The map was actually pretty fun to play on though. I had a lot of fun making it the first time and remember that I had lost steam when it came to the vents and basement. They were hacked together because I wanted to be done, not because I had a master plan. That’s probably why they’re the things I like the least about the map.

Our new version

Okay let’s go over the biggest changes first

Only “two” floors

No longer is there a basement and vents, there’s just an “upper floor” of the map. Giving us essentially just two floors; main and upper.

The main floor remains mostly untouched. The useless backrooms have been removed though.

The upper floor

This floor is supposed to be an alternative traversal route through the map. It’s the “guts of the ship” (I imagine this map is a space ship or something) you see exposed structural beams.

Following the 3-path theme of this map there is 3 paths through this space (you could technically say 5 though since it’s mirrored)

Lower Path; This is the “floor” level of the upper floor. You will almost always enter at this level. This is the most dangerous place to be as a human since aliens can attack you from above, and there are a lot of hiding places above you.

You can take a ramp from the lower to side paths at the A locations on the map.

Side Path; This path is elevated above the lower path and provides a mostly clear view of the lower path. You can cross over to the Center Path at B locations on the map.

Center Path; This path is also elevated, and is more protected than the side path. It has a few windows to look down upon the lower path or over to the side path, but is much more protected.

Jumping Brood Upgrade

This was designed with the brood jump upgrade in mind. A brood alien with the jump upgrade is easily able to jump from one passage way to another. The upper floor becomes a jungle gym for them. I’m really excited to see some cool ambushes happen in this area.

Multiple Entrances/Exits

There are 5 human friendly entrances to the upper floor. 2 at the north end of the map, 2 on east/west, and one at the bottom.

A caveat on the east/west entrances is that there is no ramp way to the side/center paths so entering there forces the player to traverse the lower path.

There are many more additional drop down points as well. These are one way for most players, except for brood aliens with jump upgrades who can jump up these with a well timed jump.

Swarm Spawn

Swarm aliens spawn above the upper floor and then drop in at the north end. They are forced to drop into the lower path, decently far from a ramp to the side/center paths.

More

There are more little changes and tweaks, i’m sure you’ll discover them when you play 🙂

Possible future changes

I may shift around one or two of the need locations into the upper floor to encourage movement to the upper floor. Potentially the food could move to the upper floor but stay in it’s central location of the map. I think would have to add path to get to the upper floor from central room to make this work properly.

Demo Video

I’m still polishing some parts of the map but here’s a little video showing some of it.