POTW Knockout Nr. 4 - Interview with the winner - Skaz
Back to top Back to main Skip to menuHow did you enjoy knockout last night? Was that your first time?
Yeah, it was my first KO last night. I've heard about it before - Anderson takes part to KO events really often and Chamo won the last one. Anderson wanted me to take part, and once you told her there was one free spot, she asked me if I'd like to take part. I thought it would take more time, but it was only 1 hour, which is enough, imo. Plus, we played unusual or custom maps, which is nice for this kind of events.
Did you enjoy it? Are you coming back for one of the 4 we have left this summer?
Yeah, I enjoyed it, it was fun to play. Maybe I'll take part to another one, I can't tell yet.
Speaking of maps, next week we're letting the first person who signs up pick one of the four knockout maps. What would be your choice?
Definitely one of my maps - haha
Which one? 
Depending on how many players are remaining. For a larger number I'd say beijing, otherwise pandora.
We already played beijing, in our first week with 7 players. It played great. With pandora, it seems like you had ctf in mind when you made it. What were your intentions with beijing?
CTF as well but the map is slower than I've been expecting. In the next version, I plan to put the CTF spawns outdoor, not inside a building.
It's only slower because people take the "long way" to attack quite often.
Maybe yeah, going with more than one person middle and then split to the different parts could be a better idea than the scheme. I think it's mainly because people are not used to playing it -it's like abbey or algiers when you're not used to these maps.
So playing beijing algiers-style could be really useful?
Yep. That's what I keep saying when we play CTF with owls. Defenders: do not stay on the flag! Keep pushing.
The most talked-about map you're involved with is Nevada. How did you take on that project and why?
Well, I've been contacted by some FS members, Bladekiller, Barbatos and Kalish, about 2 years ago. They asked if I wanted to join them to make maps for the HD version. I accepted and I really wanted to remake Turnpike. I had to pick a theme for the map and it's totally different from the current one, only the layout is identical.
Weren't you worried people would really have problems accepting changes to the most popular map in the game?
I had the Nevada theme in mind a long time before, even before I knew I was going to work on a turnpike remake, and I think the Nevada theme fits well with the turnpike version I made. Even though I've got a lot of complaints from people who wanted to keep the current city theme. Plus, they were worried about jumps, "what if I can't make this jump anymore?" Well... the map is not the same; there are level variations now, like the ground is not just flat, there are some stairs inside. It makes the map more realistic and it adds details to the map atmosphere.
Is it slower to get around, faster, the same?
The same, I'd say. The famous van jump is still working, for example. I had to keep this one or I'd have been... killed 
From your point of view, what are some of the really good custom maps that deserve to be played more in the competitive scene?
In TS: facade, cambridge, tohunga_b10 (the layout is different). In CTF it's harder to tell. And in bomb: Bohemia and Cascade deserve more attention, even though they are not custom maps. For public servers, all the maps are OK. When I'm going on a public server, I'm not looking for a TP only, I really want to play custom maps and have fun there. I play enough abbey, turnpike, casa in CW.
Do you think turnpike layout is the key to a successful custom map?
It's the simplest layout - only three ways. So if someone wants to make a map with a better chance of being played by the competitive scene, I think it's the best layout. I think abbey/algiers layouts are more fun in CTF, and so different from TP. It's harder to think about a totally new layout that will work - it'll need testing, modifications. That's a lot of work. It usually takes 6 months for me to make a map, so you are better to be sure about what you're doing. I think many mappers get demotivated because they spend so much time making maps, and then those maps are not played. It‘s really frustrating. And I'm not sure the community is really looking after new maps for the incoming versions of URT; they‘re worrying about whether their favorite maps will still be available or not.
Personally, I am a custom map animal but it's difficult to find a game with customs.
The UZ maplist is nice in this way. There are a few "custom maps" - not usually played but that you can pick if you want to. The CB system this season was also nice. You had the choice between three maps, 1 usual map and 2 custom.
Are you working on anything right now?
A new version of beijing and another map, but it won't be released under 4.x.
Neither of the two?
No.
Last week I talked to Chamonix about Owls. What got you to play with such a distinctly non-French team?
First I was playing with intribe. Tizz was in the team at this time and we are great in-game friends. That’s why I joined intribe in the first place. Then he stopped playing urt but I stayed with intribe. And now intribe is the same as owls.
Are you as enthusiastic about the team as Chamonix? What makes it the right one for you?
Well, Chamonix said everything about the team. We're all friends, not only talking about the game but also about our real lives. We're playing other games and we like to be on ts3 just to talk about one thing or another. And it's pretty nice.
Is this THE team for you or would you accept an offer if it came?
No, I wouldn't change for anything. It is perfect.
You're going to start making me jealous.
I know, right?
What would you change about the community? Is there something you dislike or something you'd improve?
I would mention something about the behavior of the community. We need to continue to work on cross-team events so that people get to know each other (such as knockout, etc.) and the community becomes friendlier with each other; fun rivalries are sparked between clans or individual players. It would be nice to have players exposing the game to their friends in real life to get more people into the game. I think the best way to promote the game is the word of mouth. The game is free, it costs nothing to give it a try.
Who's the next guy the Owls are sending in to win the knockout?
We're trying to convince ginko to take part to the next one, and we hope Anderson will win one KO. We're training hard with her, playing internal FFA while we're looking for Summer Cup matches.
Any shoutouts, etc.?
Right now on TS3, ginko, anderson and Chamonix are asking for a shoutout. I give one special shoutout to Champ and Slash as well. Actually, all of my team mates.
Thank you
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