I’ve made a melee maps couple of times. Now I want to challenge myself to create a small arcade map. I know it will be tricky. I’ve haven’t decided what it should be I’m more of through it together type of person when it comes to map editor than thinking deeply about it.
What are some of yours that you have done or trying to make? Or perhaps I should say what things a person can tell a person who is interested of making an arcade map to look out for?
To summarize:
It will take you 10X longer than you expect it will.
Data is a witch. Very time consuming, and a lot to be learned.
If you don’t know much about triggers, that too, will be tricky.
Set your goals very low initially. Don’t even plan to make a game you want to make. Plan to make something super simple; just to learn how things work. Take a simple game like Desert Strike, and try to recreate the basics of it. Spawning and auto sending units, timed waves, income, ect.
Then when you decide on your project; break it into parts; and complete each part like that is your overall goal. As you progress, you may decide to alter your 2nd system, due to how you worked out your first one. And by creating them separately, if you need to alter one, it wont screw with another.
Thank You for groundbreaking information. The way you organize what you said I can really understand it. =)
I know this has been said already but creating Arcade maps is very time consuming, especially when you start out.
The best way to learn is to download some simple maps off of SC2mapster, look at theyre triggers, and Units and try to understand exactly what they’re doing and how they do it. They’re is a lot of information in those that can really help you learn. Starting by yourself, and teaching yourself without any knowledge or help is very had.
At first you may make maps very insufficiently and very unorganized but especially with being able to see other peoples work you will become efficient and organized quickly. The Data Libraries are honestly the hardest part of the editor. Sort your work out. Start from creating the very basics of what you want to do than slowly add each system or part.
If you need any help just ask, I am willing to help you, and even let you look at my maps as examples.
Looking at quality of anwsers, it seems you’d better not asked that question. A lot of stoppers like hard/difficult and no insight and useful practical advises. At least, I expected a link to blizzard arcade archive to download example maps or the map available to play in arcade mode. But, nothing. Taking into account the topic is already 2 year old, either the community here is ridiculously unsupportive or the arcade map editing is a top secret topic.
Most of the arcade map making community has moved to discord on the SC2Mapster discord. It’s quite active with a lot of cool helpful people. If you’re interested in learning check it out!