Germany Revamp Competition - FINAL VOTE (page one)

[sully800]

F is excellent. Great job to all the contestants!

[perchorin]

Great work everyone! I voted twice because I could, and apparently chose F and I like everyone else has. Ultimately if I had to choose one, it would be I simply because of the two it's easiest on the eyes, but if F were a little less dark I could really get behind it--love the design!

[kajkajete]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

[the.killing.44]

Hodayum. Some entries! Well, maybe I'm not original, but I voted for F and I

A. Well, what to say that has not been said before. pep

B. Ehh, it's pixelly and flat. The mountains aren't exciting, the colors are too faint, the army lines are kinda weird…sorry, but not my slice of pie. Seems a bit lower than natty, but that's my best guess

C. Basically the same complaints about B., sans the borders. The weird pictures at the top are jarring, and the impassables are just … ehhh. someone new I think

D. Pretty nice. Very like the original. I like the mountains, but the rivers aren't great. I also think the mapper overdid bevel. It's nice, but not FF quality. pork

E. Also pretty nice, but it's a bit plain. Legends should be singular The huge flag in the background isn't great, and it's nearly impossible to see the borders and things in the black area. not sure who made it…

F. Jeez. Love it. Maybe a bit dark, but it fits the theme great. Vote #1. sam (because of the curls )

G. I'm actually surprised it didn't get more votes. Not FF-quality, but it's a very nice map. They should make another map with the same graphical theme. Neon

H. Err, no thanks. Einstein? What? Too much … yikes. The land texture is nice, but I have no clue how to differentiate between bonuses. dunno, might be pork

I. Hodayum. Only competitor to F. Too grungy, but it's very nice. I would've used a more exciting font, but that's nothing really. WM

Now, I worked with one of these mappers, but who? I vote F & I, btw

[natty dread]

I would wager a guess that we'll have a run-off poll between F and I...

To the organizers I propose the following: take it to second round if no map gets over 50% of the votes. That's how they do the presidential elections in Finland... The logic behind it is obvious: If a candidate gets the most votes on the first round but it's less than 50%, it can be argued that the majority of voters voted for someone else than the candidate. Thus, the 2 with most votes go to the second round. Simple, eh?

[isaiah40]

I assume it will happen, but be sure to let us know who did which map after the competition ends. OK, I'll be honest - I only care who did map I. BEAUTIFUL.

Jake

I know who did map I! And it wasn't me, so the secret stays with me I guess eh?

[Tobikera]

Most of these maps are TOO DARK. I wish we could have kept the original Germany map as one of the choices. Contrasting dark colors, employing stylistic, oversized fonts are the pits, IMHO.

[dixonfamily91]

I like I - the texture of the screen and color choices. F is my 2nd choice. Good job to all!

[The Neon Peon]

Note: These are my first impressions of the map, I typed them up very quickly and did not alter or delete anything (unless there was a spelling error) and did not read them over again. Please keep this in mind when you read what I have to say.

Map A:
The mountains and the texture are very well done. The font is very well chosen, it fits the theme really well. If we learn nothing else before removing this map, the minimap is something we should pay attention to. A good example of how one ought to be done. The images used for the background of the regions are a nice thought but they do not come through enough. I have never been able to make out what some of them were. I'd have liked to see some of the territories made into more square shapes so that all of the territory names are horizontal, and for the bottom river impassable to simply be mountains again.

Map B:
- I'm sorry, but I can't think of anything positive to say for the map. It does not look horrible, but the style is definitely not for me. I think I'll just pass over this one.

Map C:
- Again, I do not have much positive to say. I like the fact that all of the territory names are horizontal, which is a big plus for me. (not that I have a trouble reading sideways names, it is simply nice to have the map be uniform) The texture in the back is very well done. I'd love to know how you created it. (or where you copied it from). Again, I think that the impassable in the South should be a mountain instead of a river. I like how you created it as a cutout of the map, but the legend for it needs to have had work put into it. The drop shadow does not work well on maps, since they are not really 3 dimensional and there is no need for them to be. The mountains are one of the hardest things to get right, and they haven't been on this map, but we all know what a pain it is to make them.

Map D:
- The flag with the grunge in the top left looks very good, I also like the bevel that you used on the legend. The mountains are well done, it's a new style, but a good one. Again, it must be something with me an rivers, but I'd have liked that impassable to be more mountains. The color scheme for the map works well, but not with the flag of Germany next to it. (bold, bright colors that contrast each other next to light colors that are similar).

Map E:
- Very nice work on the color scheme, I love it. The mountains also look very nice, although in the future, I'd like to see a bit more snow than just on the tips. This is the first map so far (I'm just scrolling down in another window) in which I like the use of the rivers, they look fantastic. Another great legend, but the symbol above it is very distracting. It is far too large in proportion to everything else on the map. And I know it's the official coat of arms of Germany, but it is not good looking enough to have that much attention drawn to it.

Map F:
- Stunning! The legend is wonderful, of course, and the overall style and texture is great. Mountains are very well done, I like how you made them rather small, it's interesting, but I don't think they look that great when shrunk down in the minimap. Insert my comment on the river down south for all other maps. I don't really care if it's more accurate, I don't like it down there for some reason I can't quite put my finger on.

Map G:
- Very nice texture, and theme. great minimap. I like the mountains in the south, but I have no clue what the green spikes are up North, they look... well... bad. I'd like to see all the names horizontal. If you've been reading my post, you should know what I have to say about the river. I think I've figured out what the problem is at last. It's just that it looks odd extending out that far through empty space.

Map H:
- The sea is done very well, and I like how you've used up all the space vertically (I just received a laptop that is twice as wide as it is tall in pixel amount, so I'm liking anything that helps me get used to that), but I think the tradeoff of the title isn't worth it. I never really liked vertical text. Well done on the texture of the land, and keeping all the text vertical, but I would really like to see some color change between the regions. It took me a bit to figure out that the text was colored to match them. I like that you stuck to one type of impassible, but the rivers are not very uniform. Their width and color keeps changing from one to another. Overall, I'd go with a bit wider to make them stand out more. The Germany flag does not fit the color scheme at all. Not one color on it does.... that should tell you that the color scheme does not really suit the place. I'm not saying that we should make each of our maps the color of the flag of that region, but the colors seem to have never been changed. I would be interested in hearing why you chose a bluish green and brown for the colors of land. I don't think land is ever either of these colors when look on it from that far above, unless you zoom in on a patch of dirt. The car in the bottom right just needs to go. Your style for the map it self (not the stuff around it) is very good. I would love to see a map made using it, but I don't think that Germany is the right place to be using it. I would like to see it on some islands, seeing the amount of blue you enjoy using.

Map I:
- Another fantastic map. The style is really nice, the mountains look amazing of course. Another map where I like the river down South, although I'm wondering why you didn't change the color of that region but instead made the river white. I'm also wondering what is going on with Braunshweig. Nothing negative to say here.

[vodean]

I liked A and G, because they are easier to read, tho the others are nice. I looks cool, but it is very difficult to make out, and so my vote is cast!

[cairnswk]

Most of these maps are TOO DARK. ....

I have to agree with this. Why does almost everyone present Germany in a darkness...surely the War is over...or is it because the light of the Foundry fails to shine so brightly being closed down.

I will have to come back and look at them again before voting.

[Industrial Helix]

Wow... nice lot of options here

a - I like it, it fixes all the problems with pep's map save for the fact that there's mountains where there shouldnt be mountains. I wish you could take map A and use the impassables of map G or I.

b - Very interesting style. I don't think it works for Germany but I hope the mapmaker takes this somewhere else with another location of game.

c - not a fan, sorry. Seems too throw together with the mountains and the picture. I also like to see a map that's set in its geographic location as opposed to floating on a piece of paper.

d - The old map with a bit of an update? Not bad. I like the approach to the strange impassables.

e - The reds seem really blown out, I hope it not my browser... Interesting take on the old map, but the strange impassables are still there and I don't like how its floating on a piece of paper and not set within its geographic context.

f - I almost gave this one my vote... I like the style but the grain is too much and it hurts the map. I'd rather there be some pseudo-Rhine in the west instead of the mountains. But if the grain was taken out, I'd go with it.

g - I really like this one. Using the tree's instead of mountains was brilliant. The colors are great in terms of tone, but I'd like to see a gray or black in place of blue. Nice work whoever did this one, it looks great.

h - Not a fan. It's too dark and the highlights act in contrast to the darkness, making a distraction rather than a cohesive image. Too much bevel in my opinion and the font is far too plain. The Einstein was an interesting touch that I kind of liked though I dunno if it has a place on this map. Plus it looks like he's driving a GDR secret police vehicle or something...

i - It got my vote. Quite simply its a beautiful map. I especially like the pseudo-Rhine in the north west and the mountains look great. One thing that might need fixing is that the Impassables are not listed as impassable. To be honest, I think its obvious to anyone using this site that mountains and rivers aren't passable, but I got nabbed on that with one of my maps.

Nice work everyone, they look great!

[porkenbeans]

Wow, nice job guys. I like them all, and I think that any one of these wonderful entries could (with a tweak or two) be a fine revamp for the Germany map.

I do have a problem however with the poll. The reference letters are confusing in that maps C,I, and F have their letters next to the previous map, and this fact is quite possibly causing miss-votes. I actually cast the wrong vote on one of my choices, because of this. The fact that I and F have received more votes than the others, shows that others too may have miss-voted.

I like both of those maps very much, but, in order to run a fare and true contest, I think that these problems should be corrected, so there is NO question in the end result. To make it perfectly clear, I believe that each map should given its own line, and letter them so that there can be no mistake as to its reference letter. (the full image view at the bottom is set up just how it should be).

If I can make a mistake, others can as well. So please make a quick fix, and restart this poll.

And oh, My favorites are F,G,H and I.

[natty dread]

The fact that I and F have received more votes than the others, shows that others too may have miss-voted.

No, it just shows those maps are awesome and people like them. The problem btw is due to your screen resolution, which makes the images on the right fall on the next line. Try zooming out and you'll see what I mean.

If I can make a mistake, others can as well. So please make a quick fix, and restart this poll.

I agree that the post should be fixed but to restart the poll now would be pointless. You made a mistake but you also noticed it and corrected it, others are capable of it as well. Let's not underestimate the intelligence of CC members.

(mainly I'm just happy that my entry got at least a few votes and I'm afraid of losing them )

[WidowMakers]

Well pork I completely disagree with you. I don't think the poll is very hard to read/understand.
Plus I needed to look over the large images in the Spoiler anyway and they are clearly marked there too.

Plus, people can easily adjust their votes anyway.

[MrBenn]

Click image to enlarge.

The thumbnails are formatted to be in a 3x3 array, and only skew if your browser window is less than 1040 pixels wide*. The full-size images are very clearly labeled, and I'm wary of making amendments to the first post now, for fear of messing with the poll (the first rule of foundry polls is not to tinker with them) and losing the couple of hundred votes that have already been cast.

I'm not convinced that mis-voting is going to be a big issue, although as I read the other day:

It's nearly impossible to make something idiot-proof, because idiots can be so ingenious...

*This raises an interesting point in the map-size debate, but I'll save that for another day

[porkenbeans]

I just want the winner to be able to rest comfortable in the fact, that their map was indeed chosen over the others, without any question whatsoever. As it stands now, that may not be the case. So why not just fix the discrepancy, so that there can be NO QUESTION ?
It just may be that my map IS one of the leaders, and I am only trying to make sure that nobody questions my win.

[porkenbeans]

Click image to enlarge.

The thumbnails are formatted to be in a 3x3 array, and only skew if your browser window is less than 1040 pixels wide*. The full-size images are very clearly labeled, and I'm wary of making amendments to the first post now, for fear of messing with the poll (the first rule of foundry polls is not to tinker with them) and losing the couple of hundred votes that have already been cast.

I'm not convinced that mis-voting is going to be a big issue, although as I read the other day:

It's nearly impossible to make something idiot-proof, because idiots can be so ingenious...

*This raises an interesting point in the map-size debate, but I'll save that for another day

Mr B,
Can't you just put one map per line to help with decreasing the "idiot" factor ?

[natty dread]

I'm wary of making amendments to the first post now, for fear of messing with the poll (the first rule of foundry polls is not to tinker with them) and losing the couple of hundred votes that have already been cast.

You can edit the post without it affecting the poll, as long as you don't touch the poll options.

Why not crop a piece of that screenshot and post that instead of the multiple images, that way the resolution cannot affect how they are aligned...

[MrBenn]

Why not crop a piece of that screenshot and post that instead of the multiple images, that way the resolution cannot affect how they are aligned...

The thumbnails are also urls to the large map images... doubly idiot proof... (or so I thought)

edit: I've switched the order of the spoiler and the thumbnails - I think it looked better previously; but the idiots may have their wish...

[sully800]

I think the current setup is fine, because there is also a single long list with all the maps in one column. If anyone cares about their vote they can recognize possible resolution issues and make sure they are voting for the correct map. And if a mistake is made they can edit their votes (which was apparently not intended but possible).

F and I are sweeping the votes because they are the two best renditions [modedit]

[Incandenza]

Why not crop a piece of that screenshot and post that instead of the multiple images, that way the resolution cannot affect how they are aligned...

The thumbnails are also urls to the large map images... doubly idiot proof... (or so I thought)

The competition is as idiot-proofed as humanly possible. There are always going to be misvotes and what not, but given the vast, vast gulf between I&F and the field, any potential misvotes fade to insignificance. Anyone who claims differently, i.e. that another map would be among the top vote-getters but for some sort of bias or Florida-2000-style cock-up, is being disingenuous.

[porkenbeans]

I think the current setup is fine, because there is also a single long list with all the maps in one column. If anyone cares about their vote they can recognize possible resolution issues and make sure they are voting for the correct map. And if a mistake is made they can edit their votes (which was apparently not intended but possible).

F and I are sweeping the votes because they are the two best renditions [modedit] hmmm)

You might be right there about them being the best. Although I think That the two maps that could possibly be stealing votes from another map, ARE INDEED THE ONES THAT HAVE THE MOST VOTES. Curious ?
Instead of saying that this discrepancy does not matter, and is not corrupting the poll, Why not just fix it and start the poll over ? If there is a question, then there is a problem. ...period.

If the front runners are so much better than the others, then there should not be any worries. Right ?

[the.killing.44]

pork, you're just pissed because your map isn't winning. Sorry.

Don't forget people, you can select two options

A - xxx
B - xxx
C - xxx
D - xxx
E - xxx
F - xxx
G - xxx
H - xxx
I - xxx

and I worked with one of the above.

[porkenbeans]

pork, you're just pissed because your map isn't winning. Sorry.

I am not pissed off. I was waiting for someone like you to say that.