Big thanks for the appreciation RockPharaoh.
You're right of course. This is why servers like those, for example - with my exploration maps are on-line 24/7. The idea since 2011 was to have also Crysis for exploration, jumping, flying and things like that. So we had even no-fight events for a while or meetings on those maps + fighting on custom maps for years in CryMP.Net. It will be continued in the future for next 5-10 years here.
The problem is, and was right from the start - that 90% of players (random ones and also most active ones) want to play/fight the same, stock maps almost all the time. The only way to make them play custom, huge or new maps would be to disconnect all other servers with stock maps. Which wouldn't make any sense because the idea of CryMP.Net is that anybody can create own server with any maps including stock maps - and you can be sure most of players will always join there in a minute. No matter what amazing maps you download from internet and put on your server, no matter how many months you put in creating your own maps - those will be visited only randomly - and most of players will always switch to stock maps to stay there almost every time.
This is the issue we've been struggling with for 3,5 year and there is no way to change it. Sure, sometimes if you bring 3-4 friends to fight maps like for example my PlantationTown/ShoreHotels server - which you mentioned - others will joing for 1 hour max. But only if there are some players already there fighting. After 30 minutes there they will move to classic maps. Mostely people will go to Mesa or Refinery and stay there for a half of a day or play duels on Pool Day for 6 hours (can you imagine that?) - rather than trying 100% new maps, with open environment and 100x more options to have fun with. To try new mods and learn new skills.
To tell you the truth after years I can understand that. It's a matter of getting used to things. That's why most of people prefer this kind of Crysis MP and that's fine as long as the game is alive. We have to accept - that for most of players "Crysis MP = Classic maps" and other modes and advanced maps will always be ignored.
No way to change Crysis to "New Crysis" as we wanted here 3,5 years ago - It's been tested for years, we've been trying to add new maps, new mods, new options - you can trust me on that. I've prepared myself over 20 maps just to make them playable especially in our network.
I'm glad we can play them with friends from time to time. But there is no way to make people play custom maps (not just mine but also other 200 maps from !HS rotations) instead of stock maps as often as you would wish. I'm sorry.
You can try it yourself if you feel the power to. I've put some in rotation of [FP] servers already now. If you want other maps there - simply send me PM on Crysis1.com - but it would require hours and hours of your time to wait on those servers for others to join. And it's not because some maps are HQ, are unplayable or have low FPS. Some are optimized even for super LOW PCs - and it's not enough. Mesa/Refinery/Shore/Plantation will always win over any map that anybody will ever make in the future. This is why only 2-3 people are making Crysis MP maps now. Wonder why.
So feel free to explore my abandoned custom maps on [FP] servers or those great maps that Youda have collected from internet and put together on !HS servers in really huge rotations. The idea always was to make maps available even for 1 player, for hours of lonely exploration. But if you expect many people playing there with you or fighting there often - unless you make an appointment with few friends there - it's harder than you might think. Even though sometimes those custom maps had even 10-14 players - it never lasted longer than 30-60 minutes max. But again - if you have time for it - just be there in the evenings - maybe you're lucky and many people will come.
I just need to mention that none of us from CryMP.Net crew won't probably ever try to change preferences of players anymore. We've tried for years and It just doesn't work. Custom maps and custom modes (no matter how advanced and interesting) will always be for explorers mostely and only for them - and standard/stock maps will always stay most pupulated - no matter what you do. Even when people join custom maps on IA/PS events when already 3-4 of us are there - they leave after few minutes and join stock maps instead. If none of servers have stock ones in rotation - they will always create own server (I saw it many times) - and 90% of people are going to move there anyway.
If I see it changing some day in the future - I will literally consider it a real mirracle. Just not possible.
Anyway - have fun and I hope you're gonna find people to play with on maps that you're interested in. If you're interested just in exploration maps though - there will be events during the week or weekends on those maps starting again in early 2018. You can be sure of that because this is huge part of Crysis MP and it won't ever die.
See you RockPharaoh, thanks again and have fun.
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