Apr 14, 2009, 07:30 PM
You have some good points, Aqua. You are right that being able to play several classes is an important skill.
However, it sounds to me you don't play arena a lot or at all, which is understandable. I also understand why you would suggest a spy to take care of the snipers. However, this doesnt work and i'll tell you why. The most prominent sniper positions are actaully from the spawn, not from the high ledge as you would think. A spy has to traverse about HALF of the map CLOAKED. He would need to have full cloak to even have a chance of getting close to the snipers. This alone makes it difficult for spies to get snipers. Also, a single soldier or demo that stays behind renders spies useless. I am a pretty decent spy, and trust me when i say that I dont even bother going for snipers at spawn unless they are totally alone and incompetent.
And it's not that the map isnt my cup of tea, because I can do well on it and i know how to. However, I just hate that when playing on watchtower, most teams will unconsciously drift towards a more sniper-orientated lineup. This results in lots of scouts, lots of snipers, and few engis and pyros. You are right that tf2 requires teamwork and strategy. I've already offered examples of how you can use teamwork to win in watchtower. But my problem with watchtower is simply that there is a lot less freedom to choose your class. Each of the valve-created arena maps are different in some way; but they are all the same in that every class can be used effectively, and that there isn't really a stronger or more preferred class for any of the maps. Obviously, watchtower is the exception.
To summarize: We shouldn't have to have snipers on our side to deal with snipers on the enemy side. If a team doesn't have snipers and the other team has several, they are nigh untouchable.
This is just my opinion, but I think that Valve chose to sponsor Watchtower not because it was balanced, but because it was original, had great visuals, and presented a new idea. (a map where you often have to fight vertically)
Also: a heavy cannot avoid being sniped in watchtower. That is the truth. If you aren't hit at all before making it to the point, you are either lucky or the enemy snipers are preoccupied. Movement in watchtower is not nearly as open as you would imagine. It's more like moving down corridors than an actual open environment.
However, it sounds to me you don't play arena a lot or at all, which is understandable. I also understand why you would suggest a spy to take care of the snipers. However, this doesnt work and i'll tell you why. The most prominent sniper positions are actaully from the spawn, not from the high ledge as you would think. A spy has to traverse about HALF of the map CLOAKED. He would need to have full cloak to even have a chance of getting close to the snipers. This alone makes it difficult for spies to get snipers. Also, a single soldier or demo that stays behind renders spies useless. I am a pretty decent spy, and trust me when i say that I dont even bother going for snipers at spawn unless they are totally alone and incompetent.
And it's not that the map isnt my cup of tea, because I can do well on it and i know how to. However, I just hate that when playing on watchtower, most teams will unconsciously drift towards a more sniper-orientated lineup. This results in lots of scouts, lots of snipers, and few engis and pyros. You are right that tf2 requires teamwork and strategy. I've already offered examples of how you can use teamwork to win in watchtower. But my problem with watchtower is simply that there is a lot less freedom to choose your class. Each of the valve-created arena maps are different in some way; but they are all the same in that every class can be used effectively, and that there isn't really a stronger or more preferred class for any of the maps. Obviously, watchtower is the exception.
To summarize: We shouldn't have to have snipers on our side to deal with snipers on the enemy side. If a team doesn't have snipers and the other team has several, they are nigh untouchable.
This is just my opinion, but I think that Valve chose to sponsor Watchtower not because it was balanced, but because it was original, had great visuals, and presented a new idea. (a map where you often have to fight vertically)
Also: a heavy cannot avoid being sniped in watchtower. That is the truth. If you aren't hit at all before making it to the point, you are either lucky or the enemy snipers are preoccupied. Movement in watchtower is not nearly as open as you would imagine. It's more like moving down corridors than an actual open environment.