Common map intuitivity concerns #868
Description
Of course there's the will to explore, inevitably getting newbies lured into unfavorable areas pros know to skip, especially in mazes. But other than that, accross thousands hours of Average Public Lobby (tm) experience, I've learned that certain map sections can be surprisingly hard to stomach at first glance (like #752 ) - perhaps some suffering can be reduced.
• Probably a separate topic, but: BINARY HACK! Confuses most people for at least several minutes, since 2010! At the very least, the right rectangles probably shouldn't exist.
• Jacob's Rest - Timor Station: As the countdown begins, some attempt to break their nose ramming east walls in minimap marker's direction instead of backtracking as soon as possible.
• Nam Humanum - Groundwork Labs: After north-east buttons, map should direct team back to the central hub first - too many go a bit south then run back north for some weird reason.
• Tarnor - Oasis Colony Spaceport: After north-east button, some backpedal west all the way to airlock instead of moving south to unexplored areas.
• Paranoia - Crucial Point & Research 7 - Illyn Forest: Notifications of progress pause aren't strong enough - #804
• Accident 32 - Confined Facility: Team almost never follows me into the floor hole after first electruber (even if emoting during fall for visibility), plus enemies/explosives can push north decorations to cover the hole, and the previous mission teaches to avoid holes.
• Accident 32 - Lab Ruins: Timed buttons need tips - very few notice something happen after pressing the mid button.
• Area 9800 - Landing Zone: In case the binary hack is forgotten, perhaps add a pathblocker somewhere before final hack's infinite enemies? I'm yet to see someone survive the double-backtracking from the finish area.
• Area 9800 - Power Plant's Generator: After the binary hack, there's quite a chance nubes will collectively rush back west to the central hub and die there; you'd think they'd magnet to the 200% ammo by the next objective and then notice the nearby hack, but alas - they ignore the ammo. Honestly I have no idea what to do - the objective marker and the big map suggest directly against their maneuver; maybe they think they need to go back to the previous mission's binary hack?
• Tilarus - Cold Catwalks: An intermittent objective marker between the 2 hacks should reduce the odds of misguidedly backpedalling towards start after first hack.
• Tilarus - Forgotten Factory: Minor but after biomass there's always someone running south while someone else is busy kissing the north-east corner in the objective marker's direction, inevitably dying from enemy accumulation.
• Approximately nobody notices floor holes like in BioGen - Operation X5 vents (both the entrance and the death traps) or Accident 32 - Research Center.
• BioGen - Invisible Threat: Hidden red ubers are waaay too strong - #816
• Lana's Sewer in its entirety: From barely-reactable rotatatron to bosses (holy shit, have they never fought a shieldbug before??) to the "left path button opens right path door and vice versa" final defense gimmick.
• Lana's Maintenance: It's rather difficult to get a tech to not walk right past the random hacks even when chatting and drawning da wae on the minimap. Also, the north-east tip repeats wrongly, leading team away from finish - #758
• I don't have much experience with Reduction, though I despise all the "nothing's happening, what am I supposed to do? maybe it's a ghost session, and the host's computer has long exploded?" empty waiting created by dialogue removal.
• IAF Marine Academy: insufficent exit guidance in conveyors and lava arenas, and I can't even draw "IQ 20" arrows on the map.
The real question is: what's the real source of those hiccups, and how can they be solved, if they should?
Some seem to be caused by, again, following the objective marker too religiously without checking the Surface Map screen, but what if I'm wrong? Would the suggested noob-pathing-helper pseudo-objectives do anything at all, or would the majority not check them?