Talking newly as someone who played a lot of Warcraft 3 custom maps I would say the problem is and always has been the user interface for custom maps. At the moment I find I only play the 3 maps I enjoy and that is it. The interface turns me off wanting to try out new or different maps. And personally, I think it is solely responsible for the drop in players of the arcade, to this day.
1 - The only and easiest way to find a game was always some form of a 'Most Popular' list. Popularity, in all its forms, has been an aspect of SC2 custom scene since the beginning. The fact you couldn't see if anyone was currently hosting or playing a map meant that you were never sure if you were going to wait forever to get enough people to play a game of a new map. With warcraft 3, because the map was open you KNEW there was a host, it was on the constantly updated list or it was bot hosted because it was popular.
2 - The Interface is LAGGY I mean seriously, it bugs me to this day the numerous, insurmountable amount of things that made getting into any form of starcraft 2 map painful. That painful loading thing on 'entering lobby', the the stupid vague little loading bar if you just wanted to join a game. It gave you NO SIGN of what was going on and what likelihood you had of getting game. Warcraft 3 there was always a nice mix of people who wanted to host a particular game and it advertising fairly.
3 - Shitty games and poplar games and unpopular games all had EQUAL advertising coverage. Personally I hated DOTA, because the community was so terribly elitist (and I was a noob), so I would go and seek the more unusual games where noobs or learning was more encouraged. Even if 30-50% of the custom list was DOTA, and 45% was the same small map pool, you knew there was a game you'd never played sitting on the list with at least ONE person in it waiting to get a game started.
4 - People shifted really quickly. Because maps that weren't hosted weren't advertised or listed, it meant that even shit awful maps or games got enough people to play quickly.
The actual quality of any said maps, players etc just DOES NOT MATTER. If someone hosted a popular custom map they tweaked so they would always win or had poirn, you quit and were back into something new or familiar in 10-20 minutes at most. At the moment, I'm writing this post whilst waiting for a Starjeweled game (a very popular official blizzard map) for about 30 minutes and the only clue as to when I'll get a pop is a stupid fucking blue loading thing and Star Jeweled at the top of the screen.
Don't blame the mapmakers, the players, the change in the community, the availability of new games or any of that. Blame the godawful inability to play ANYTHING in SC2 that isn't Nexus Wars reliably. I still don't have a Starjewelled game. Is the lobby bugged, is no one queuing? I DON'T KNOW, I HAVE NO CONTROL. STAR FUCKING JEWELLED. It's on top rated and often on top played and I CAN NOT PLAY IT.
This is why Starcraft 2 Custom Maps have failed. Removing any ability to advertise your game, any ability to join a game that is advertised or even popular games sometimes. I remember fondly playing weird awful new maps with the guy who had made it, seeking some feedback on what worked and what didn't. Oh and don't even mention open games, the third item on a small button on a shitty list that immediately opens on Most Played and Highest Rated, on a shitty menu system that seems to take 3 seconds to load any new part of the ui because...? Seriously, why is it EVERY PART of the User Interface has a fucking loading screen? Oh I tried to use 'open games'. Was stuck waiting forever for noone to join. No thanks, if open games was the only or at least the first thing to pop up, arcade might have made a small comeback for HoTS.
Sure the Warcraft 3 Doors and Chains etc took as long but they were 100% cooler and there was not loading screens for EVERYTHING like now.
PS. I gave up queuing for Starjewelled may as well play nexus wars, at least I can get a game of that going.
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Talking newly as someone who played a lot of Warcraft 3 custom maps I would say the problem is and always has been the user interface for custom maps. At the moment I find I only play the 3 maps I enjoy and that is it. The interface turns me off wanting to try out new or different maps. And personally, I think it is solely responsible for the drop in players of the arcade, to this day.
1 - The only and easiest way to find a game was always some form of a 'Most Popular' list. Popularity, in all its forms, has been an aspect of SC2 custom scene since the beginning. The fact you couldn't see if anyone was currently hosting or playing a map meant that you were never sure if you were going to wait forever to get enough people to play a game of a new map. With warcraft 3, because the map was open you KNEW there was a host, it was on the constantly updated list or it was bot hosted because it was popular. 2 - The Interface is LAGGY I mean seriously, it bugs me to this day the numerous, insurmountable amount of things that made getting into any form of starcraft 2 map painful. That painful loading thing on 'entering lobby', the the stupid vague little loading bar if you just wanted to join a game. It gave you NO SIGN of what was going on and what likelihood you had of getting game. Warcraft 3 there was always a nice mix of people who wanted to host a particular game and it advertising fairly. 3 - Shitty games and poplar games and unpopular games all had EQUAL advertising coverage. Personally I hated DOTA, because the community was so terribly elitist (and I was a noob), so I would go and seek the more unusual games where noobs or learning was more encouraged. Even if 30-50% of the custom list was DOTA, and 45% was the same small map pool, you knew there was a game you'd never played sitting on the list with at least ONE person in it waiting to get a game started. 4 - People shifted really quickly. Because maps that weren't hosted weren't advertised or listed, it meant that even shit awful maps or games got enough people to play quickly.
The actual quality of any said maps, players etc just DOES NOT MATTER. If someone hosted a popular custom map they tweaked so they would always win or had poirn, you quit and were back into something new or familiar in 10-20 minutes at most. At the moment, I'm writing this post whilst waiting for a Starjeweled game (a very popular official blizzard map) for about 30 minutes and the only clue as to when I'll get a pop is a stupid fucking blue loading thing and Star Jeweled at the top of the screen.
Don't blame the mapmakers, the players, the change in the community, the availability of new games or any of that. Blame the godawful inability to play ANYTHING in SC2 that isn't Nexus Wars reliably. I still don't have a Starjewelled game. Is the lobby bugged, is no one queuing? I DON'T KNOW, I HAVE NO CONTROL. STAR FUCKING JEWELLED. It's on top rated and often on top played and I CAN NOT PLAY IT.
This is why Starcraft 2 Custom Maps have failed. Removing any ability to advertise your game, any ability to join a game that is advertised or even popular games sometimes. I remember fondly playing weird awful new maps with the guy who had made it, seeking some feedback on what worked and what didn't. Oh and don't even mention open games, the third item on a small button on a shitty list that immediately opens on Most Played and Highest Rated, on a shitty menu system that seems to take 3 seconds to load any new part of the ui because...? Seriously, why is it EVERY PART of the User Interface has a fucking loading screen? Oh I tried to use 'open games'. Was stuck waiting forever for noone to join. No thanks, if open games was the only or at least the first thing to pop up, arcade might have made a small comeback for HoTS.
Sure the Warcraft 3 Doors and Chains etc took as long but they were 100% cooler and there was not loading screens for EVERYTHING like now.
PS. I gave up queuing for Starjewelled may as well play nexus wars, at least I can get a game of that going.