Although I really enjoy your map and am glad Valve appreciates it, there are some valid complaints fewseb has listed. Most notably being:
- Off lighting.
- Low resolution/quality custom props, as well as some really old Valve assets that don't hold up very well.
- The sand and grass contrasted with the black rocks look rather unpleasant (sorry to say).
- Some textures look a tad bit repetitive, one example being the pavement.
- Other specific things I found that looked odd were the crane (among other red metal objects) having incredibly low texture resolution, that ancient white van, the houses looking full-bright, as well as some awfully low-res barrels.
Now that I've listed some problems, I would like to provide you with some possible solutions:
- Change the lighting for certain areas with different types of lights, maybe even some dust particles in the air.
- Increase the texture quality of some custom props, and also give them some overlays to give the illusion of more detail.
- Make sure all primary textures are at least 1024 by 1024, as that's what Valve did in their Danger Zone maps.
- Try using some custom 4-way blends similar to the ones Valve uses for particular areas.
- Lighten up and detail those rock props, give them the same style of crisp texture that Valve has on their DZ maps.
- Although not necessary, it'd be cool if you got some other mapper who's an industry veteran to assist in the making of custom assets. I just say this because I find that it'd be more expedient and likely more motivating than you being the sole worker on the project.
Also, just some questions out of pure curiosity:
- What percent of the map would you say is composed of assets made entirely by you?
- How long did this map take to create?
- Were you expecting Valve to respond as they did?
In conclusion, I really like what you've done with this map. You took a risk, and Valve recognized that. Although I am being very critical in this post, it's only because I would like to see the map improve. I supported this project when it was first uploaded, but now that it's under the light of the entire community, criticism means a lot more. Good luck with your future mapping endeavors, and I hope you integrate these valid critiques.