Review - Right Triangle Island
(Version June 17th 2023)
Synopsis: Right Triangle Island is a two-player melee map with generic, classic layout spiced up by an additional expansion Gold Mine accessible by a ship access. The mirroring is not pixel-perfect, giving the map slight asymmetry without a noticeable impact on balance. Still, the map suffers from gaps between trees and slightly awkwardly placed creep camps that can interfere with players unintentionally.
Map Aesthetics: The visual style is quite close to old Blizzard with a modest decoration that still is present. Cliffs could be used more in the edges of the map to hide the black barrier, rather than having the camera brought so close to it, especially at the bases. The idea of a triangle island is a little funky wordplay that works, though it does not bring much value to the map itself (the bases pushed to the corners with limited access can be a little hard to work with). At some areas the map can look rather empty but the aesthetics are sufficient.
Map Layout: The layout is quite classic, apart from the naval-accessed island with an additional expansion. The limited expansions make the map quite contesting-heavy, sadly the Computer controlled enemies cannot work too well with this map. Interesting choice to place two Taverns and one Goblin Laboratory, instead of the other way around - not sure how good this decision is. Being limited to one Shipyard only is also an unusual choice, but it can work. Typically maps with Shipyards are not very competitive as the naval aspect of Warcraft III is rather rough one.
Neutral Objectives: Some of the creep camps are placed a little in the way (Goblin Merchants, Shipyard Murlocs, Ogres). I'd want to see the creeps pushed away from the pathways so they don't aggro on the player who just tries to pass by. The neutral objective seem to be mirrored fairly. The creep camps are suitable for the map and are neatly placed in a fitting surroundings. The item drops on the other hand could use some tweaking: Shipyard Murlocs (Level 12) should drop more than just Level 2 Power Up, Goblin Merchant (Level 14)'s item drop is on the weak side, being only Level 2 Permanent - it can be enough, but it could drop an additional Level 1 Power Up.
Map Gameplay: The biggest issue on the map is the gaps between tree lines - this needs to be fixed. The starting locations are also placed too far away from the Gold Mines, resulting in advantage against Human and Orc players. The limited number of expansion sites and contested objectives to access the extra expansion make the map very contest heavy. The bases are quite secure with only one route to access them, though the central area of the map has various pathways.
Recommendations:
Fix the gaps between the trees.
Fix the item drops in the camps mentioned.
Try to move the creep camps so they don't aggro the players passing by (the macro-placement of the camps are fine - the second green camp could be closer to the players).