According to the latest poll you guys wanna see more map packs. Your wish is granted. Here's Darth_Maul's second 607th map pack. This continues the story of the 607th clone legion as they face Darth Armonus, the new baddie. Included in the map pack are three maps -- Kashyyyk, Murkhana, and Xagobah. Rather than just review the pack as a whole I'll simply analyze each map one by one.
This is probably my least favorite of the three maps but I'll get to that in a minute. The CIS starts off in a thin valley and travels up river to a small village where the 607th await them. Joining the fray are the new Dark Force Droids, which are like the Sith equivalent of Magna Guards. Leading the CIS is the new villain Darth Armonus who's been dispatched by Darth Sidious to take out the 607th.
There are a few reasons why I'm not particularly fond of Kashyyyk. For one, it's difficult to see. The map is dark to begin with and if you're a clone trooper it's even more difficult because the battle droids blend in perfectly with the environment. The only time you can see them is if they're shooting at you but by that time it's usually too late. There's a lot of foilage which slows the frame rate down and makes it difficult to perform at your highest capabilities. And to top it all off there's a ton of enemies shooting at you, making the map extra hard. I think I got the "Bantha Fodder" reward each time I played this map. Figures since vision obviously doesn't have any impact on the AI.
I probably would have liked this map more if it weren't so darn dark.
Murkhana
Unfortunately Murkhana is even darker than Kashyyyk, however the enemies don't really blend in so you're not at such a disadvantage. The map is designed quite nicely. In the center is a city/fortress under the control of the CIS that's protected by several auto turrets. The 607th start out on bridges outside of the city and have to make their way past the turrets to get inside. It's a tough fight, no matter which side you choose. You'd probably do better if you hung out inside the buildings and guarded them rather than running head-first into the chaos consuming the dark streets.
As mentioned before the map suffers from poor lighting like Kashyyyk, but you can still see enemies. Another problem Murkhana has in common with Kashyyyk is a large number of units on the field. I know, lots of people love having huge armies clashing, but sometimes it just doesn't work. The battle sometimes gets a little too chaotic, causing players to become frustrated or perhaps even bored from repeatedly shooting down enemy after enemy but ultimately accomplishing nothing. However I do like Murkhana and consider it way better than Kashyyyk.
Xagobah
Xagobah is a breath of fresh air since it isn't plagued by bad lighting, unlike the previous two maps. The CIS is burrowed in the hill side while clones charge into the base. Xagobah also has a nice design but my biggest problem with it is the terrain. It seems like it's all one texture, and it really shows whenever you look at distant hills. Some terrain variation would be nice, whether it be in color or texture. Again, there are lots of units on the field but it actually works for this map. Any fewer would make the map dull. Other than that I don't have much else to say. Xagobah is easily my favorite of the three.
If I had one piece of advice based on all three of the maps it'd be to put more thought into how many units you put into a map, and look at it from a gameplay perspective rather than going by what would seem more realistic or more intense.
Since it's a pack I won't really give a grade but rather I'll just give it a stamp of approval and a nod. Good job.
Kashyyyk
Darth Sidious is furious. The 607th Legion is giving the Republic too much of
an advantage in the war. Sidious knows he must destroy the 607th if his grand
scheme is to succeed.
He assigns Darth Armonus, once the leader of an underground Sith cult, to
destroy the 607th. Armonus leads the CIS to attack a Republic cruiser
carrying vital Republic supplies, which crash lands on Kashyyyk.
The 607th is sent to defend the crashed cruiser from the impending CIS
attack. Unknown to them, Darth Armonus has set the crash up as a trap to
destroy the 607th. This could be the 607th's toughest battle yet. Armonus is
cunning, powerful, and a brilliant military strategist. This time, the
607th may be defeated for good...
Murkhana
After successfully defending the crashed Republic cruiser on Kashyyyk, Zhaus
and the 607th pursue Armonus' fleeing army across the galaxy.
The 607th traps Armonus in a city on Murkhana, surround on all sides by a
deep canyon.
Armonus has not given up, however. He surprises the 607th with a fully
equipped army, even after his massive losses at Kashyyyk. The battle will be
tough, can the 607th hold out?
Xagobah
607th Commandos have intercepted a message with encrypted commands sent to
Armonus from a secret Seperatist outpost on Xagobah.
Capturing the outpost's communications center would enable the 607th to track
down all the major Seperatist leaders, including the mysterious Darth Sidious.
Little does the 607th know what awaits them on the surface of this barren,
fungus-covered planet; Count Dooku himself, with a full army of battle droids
under his personal command...
Installation
Unzip the 607th Map Pack 2 to your addon folder in the Star Wars Battlefront II
directory. (...Program Files\LucasArts\Star Wars Battlefront II\GameData\addon)
If you do not have an addon folder, create one there.
Now, take the three folders inside the Map Pack folder (KA1, MU1, XA1) and move
them out of the Map Pack 2 folder and into the addon folder.
Start up Battlefront II, and these maps should be on your map select screen.
Unistallation
To uninstall, remove the following folders from your addon folder: KA1, MU1,
and XA1.
If you have any problems, e-mail me at dragon-shadow@comcast.net or drop me a message at
the Xavious Mods forums.
#22 - Posted by: labj (Member) - 04-10-2008 at 21:01
#23 - Posted by: camer0nrocks (Member) - 07-11-2008 at 14:51
#24 - Too dark... - Posted by: Corr (Member) - 08-24-2008 at 11:45
#25 - Posted by: supersonic24 (Member) - 08-26-2008 at 08:45
#26 - Posted by: Nihlus (Member) - 09-01-2008 at 14:19
#27 - Posted by: Hawkeye9 (Member) - 10-24-2008 at 13:47
#28 - Posted by: kobrele (Member) - 04-11-2011 at 06:14
#29 - Posted by: EMPblast (Member) - 05-11-2011 at 12:39
#30 - Posted by: DarthEvil3000 (Member) - 05-18-2012 at 15:58
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