Testing of Gamersutra's AS_Towkay BETA 5

By Avenger - 5 October 2000

It's been a while since Gamersutra first released their CS map cs_towkay, together with a sound pack that featured local voices that replaced the cheesy default commando voices that come with the typical Counterstrike package. I had the pleasure of beta-testing AS_Towkayb5 together with another 8-9 other local CS buffs on deadfish's own server last Sunday.

AS_Towkay, Gamersutra's latest variant of their incredibly popular CS_Towkay map has evolved a great deal from the cs_mansion map it was originally based on. Although gamers who had tried CS_towkay would be somewhat familiar with the layout of AS_Towkay, deadfish has added a number of new routes in the map to distinguish it from the official CS_mansion map that towkay resembled greatly.

The storyline has been changed to reflect the new outlook of the map. The VIP (or towkay as you might have it) goes to a chinese temple along Tanah Merah Besah to pay his last respects to his deceased brother, who was brutally murdered by a terrorist group known as the "Righteous Brotherhood of Light". Under government protection due to his stature in the local community, the towkay visits the temple only find himself besieged by terrorists who have discovered his whereabouts. Seeking shelter in the attic, the towkay waits impatiently for SAF commandos to rescue him while the terrorists close into the temple.

The map is defined by the creative start points of the terrorists, counter-terrorists, and the VIP. The towkay is locked up in the attic and protected by 3 very powerful barriers that prevent terrorists from breaking in easily. The terrorists, meanwhile, start all around the temple, finding a way to blast into the attic to eliminate the towkay. Fortunately, the counters are positioned a short distance outside the temple, so they should reach the temple before the terrors can break into the attic and eliminate the towkay.

Being part of the testing team that logged on to check the viability of the map, I noticed that everybody who played the map found it to be a great challenge to be the VIP himself locked up in the attic. The problem with being the VIP was that you had to sit still in the attic and wait for the counters to arrive. Breaking through the barriers alone would be suicide since the terrorists would always be standing outside to guard the area. However, explosive crates were also placed at strategic points in the attic to ensure that the VIP could hold back an attack from a couple of terrorists.

Gaming on the map was pretty neat, considering that the relatively large number of people playing ensured that all possible routes to the towkay were tested thoroughly. I had numerous run-ins with the same person at the same location, but found that there were always many other alternative routes to the places I wanted to get to.

There have been a good number of changes in AS_Towkay compared to the first CS_Towkay. These changes include a new manhole that leads directly to the basement of the temple, a wider variety of routes to the areas surrounding the temple via the sewers, and a few stationary vehicles that add to the local feel of the map. Overall AS_Towkay is a refreshing change to the first map that Gamersutra put out a few months ago, and shows how much their mapping techniques have matured ever since their critics complained that the towkay map resembled mansion too closely.