Which map do you think is the most well balanced and why?

[AlsoDededork649]

It's no doubt that most maps, with some exceptions, (looking at you Saltspray and Moray) are good, well-balanced, and fun. But which maps do you, the people of the United City of Inkopolis, find the most well-balanced?

Personally, my picks are Mahi-Mahi and Walleye. While Walleye Warehouse was originally intended to be balanced and support all weapons, it does a great job of it. Rollers have a lot of space to work with to sneak up and ambush targets, shooters are shooters, sloshers can hit over the U-tower, which, I guess is something, and Chargers/Splatlings have good posts like the crates and the U-tower if necessary. Mahi-Mahi Resort is really fun. The fact that it changes half-way through the match is really cool and innovative, plus all weapons can do well. Rollers have that space in the center, shooters are good on every map, Chargers/Splatlings have several high spots to kill from, and sloshers can take those spots down.

 

[SupaTim]

Walleye is my favorite stage because it is so well balanced. Short and long range weapons can do well here. Flanks are possible, even likely. Action is usually confined to one area, but it is big enough to not feel cramped and has multiple getaways. Snipers have good perches that are accessible but not indefensible. I like it for its simplicity.

Ancho-V games takes a similar design and adds a few gimmicks, but I like it.

 

[Monster]

I'm with Walleye cause it has safe places for chargers/splatlings and mid is a fight pit thats great for shooters/rollers. Chargers can hit almost anywhere on the map cause its so small which is good for them but its not too hard for shooters to flank them. I'd say its overall a pretty balanced map.

 

[birdiebee]

Walleye for sure. I guess I'm not in the minority here! Fantastic on every mode, with just about any weapon standing a fair chance.

I think Flounder is an oft-overlooked runner up. I agree that Mahi-Mahi gets a lot of things right, too, but unfortunately I think many will disagree on this fact.

As for least balanced, Moray, Museum and Hammerhead are good contenders. Haha

 

[Deleted Member]

Kelp Dome.

 

[Flareth]

I'm no expert, so I can't really give a thoughtful opinion on this. But I'm-a try anyway.

Walleye Warehouse is neat. While it's on the smaller side, I like how there's still ample room to move around with only the stacked boxes in the middle to block shots. It's a good map... for Turf War, anyway. I'm not a big fan of it in Splat Zones, because I find the layout of the zone to be rather awkwardly placed. I've seen it happen where it looks like it should be under our control, but the aforementioned boxes are still the enemy's color, thus keeping it in contention.

Kelp Dome... I can see where @GeneraLight is coming from. It's got a huge amount of open space, meaning multiple ways to get places and plenty of areas for rollers and chargers/splatlings to work their magic. The center cylinder isn't all that obtrusive either. But again, Splat Zones can be a pain because of the zone's layout, although it's less of an issue because that structure takes up so much of the zone to begin with; anyone trying to take it by just inking the corners is gonna have a rough day.

 

[Shuggi]

I have to say Saltspray. Sure, it might favour chargers, but shooters can use the sniper perches to shoot down. Also, rollers are really good for capturing the northern most area. Splatlings are similar to snipers and guns, and sloshers are really good at splitting people on the perches.

 

[binx]

Well I don't really have an opinion about this, but I wanted to answer to the Mahi Mahi map. At least in DDZ, it's a map where chargers are absolute. In comptetitive play, a team with a good E-Liter and a team with no sniper is unfair from my point of view. The very wide central area, containing the zone, favors long range weapon. If one team got A good E-Liter and mid/long range weapons, while the others only have mid/long range and no shooter, the E-Liter can destroy the opponents while they are fighting, or the rest of the team can destroy the ones trying to get the charger.

Because I had such a hard time against E-Liter on this map, I picked the E-Liter and went on the map alone, just to see where they could actually hit. I advise everyone to do the same. But basically, they can hit everywhere. Even the little "islands". Between Moray and Mahi, I would say chargers are even more absolute on the latter at S+ level.

 

[Anaru]

I can't really decide on this, but I will say that Saltspray rig, while it is fun to play on, is slightly less balanced since the left side team has a small advantage

 

[Floating Eyeball]

Walleye Warehouse is neat. While it's on the smaller side, I like how there's still ample room to move around with only the stacked boxes in the middle to block shots. It's a good map... for Turf War, anyway. I'm not a big fan of it in Splat Zones, because I find the layout of the zone to be rather awkwardly placed. I've seen it happen where it looks like it should be under our control, but the aforementioned boxes are still the enemy's color, thus keeping it in contention.

I totally agree with all of this.
Walleye Warehouse kind of feels like a beginning sort of field, since it keeps it pretty simple and doesn't have many areas to come up with a certain plan for it, but it still has opportunities for weapons to do their specialties. (more open spaces for rollers, higher ground for snipers, etc.)

 

[TheSquidling]

I can't really decide on this, but I will say that Saltspray rig, while it is fun to play on, is slightly less balanced since the left side team has a small advantage

Why does the left side have an advantage when on the mini map on gamepad they look identical

 

[MaryLa]

Why does the left side have an advantage when on the mini map on gamepad they look identical

It has to do with Snipers and Peeking. If you peek from the walls on the left side, your inkling is more covered, thus harder to hit (Only the weapon is visible to others). But if you try to peek from the right side, your inkling is almost fully exposed, due to your weapon always being on your right arm.This gives snipers a huge advantage, because they can take out the right-side-sniper more easily. (I hope I made it kind of clear, I'm not the best at explaining things...)

 

[birdiebee]

Well I don't really have an opinion about this, but I wanted to answer to the Mahi Mahi map. At least in DDZ, it's a map where chargers are absolute. In comptetitive play, a team with a good E-Liter and a team with no sniper is unfair from my point of view. The very wide central area, containing the zone, favors long range weapon. If one team got A good E-Liter and mid/long range weapons, while the others only have mid/long range and no shooter, the E-Liter can destroy the opponents while they are fighting, or the rest of the team can destroy the ones trying to get the charger.

Because I had such a hard time against E-Liter on this map, I picked the E-Liter and went on the map alone, just to see where they could actually hit. I advise everyone to do the same. But basically, they can hit everywhere. Even the little "islands". Between Moray and Mahi, I would say chargers are even more absolute on the latter at S+ level.

I want to try this. Perhaps I havent faced opponents quite on that level on Mahi Mahi before. Snipers I've faced have never been too terrorizing, but I suppose that is due to inexperience. I'm still learning how to use Chargers myself.

I do agree that Charger dominance on Moray is a liiiittle exaggerated. Maybe with the exception of Turf Wars, there are enough ways to flank to where I am never too stomped by them.

 

[Anaru]

Why does the left side have an advantage when on the mini map on gamepad they look identical

In Splatoon, characters shoot from the right side of their body, where they hold their gun, and so most maps are made with rotational symmetry. However, Saltspray is just reflectively symmetrical, and so one side gets to hide most of their body behind a wall, while still being able to shoot other people, while people on the other side will need to reveal their entire body to be able to shoot, if they are firing around corners.

 

[HypernovaSoul]

It's hard to say since opinions seem to be split on a lot of stages, and some of my favorites I think don't necessarily benefit every weapon type. I love Urchin Underpass, but I've seen a lot of people say that it causes issues for chargers and other ranged weapons, and also that they don't like how it was changed in the big update. Personally, I like having the additional protection from oncoming opponents, it's a very "FPS" stage I think with mid-sized walls to hide behind and a few alternate routes, but not so many as to make it a hectic mess (like Hammerhead). I also like Kelp Dome since it just works out nicely for a lot of my weapons, but I've also seen mixed opinions there.

Overall though Camp Triggerfish is my favorite stage in pretty much every mode, though I'm not a huge fan of how it's easy to fall to your death while riding the tower in TC. But I do like that it requires a unique type of strategy for TC, having one rider brave the tower while the teammates have to give pressure & support on each sideline without being able to escort the tower directly, up until it's really close. It makes for a cool dynamic that requires even more teamwork and strategy than usual, and more precision from both the tower rider and those attacking it.

The long straightaways can make Killer Wails and Inkzookas especially overwhelming sometimes, but personally I think it has more breathing room in its straightforwardness, random clusters of big obstacles I always have mixed feelings about in this game.

 

[mezzo]

i agree that walleye is definitely the most balanced map of the game, but i also think that bluefin depot and camp triggerfish are similar in how balanced they are. there never seems to be an unfair advantage to any weapon on bluefin or triggerfish, however, i do think that certain range-based subweapons have a slight advantage on camp triggerfish specifically. it's still a pretty balanced map, though.

 

[Elecmaw]

Walleye, TW and SZ at least. An open field for chargers to snipe around and side areas for more shorter-ranged weps to do fighting. The boxes in TC and RM make it easier for short-ranged weps to take down chargers.

Well I don't really have an opinion about this, but I wanted to answer to the Mahi Mahi map. At least in DDZ, it's a map where chargers are absolute. In comptetitive play, a team with a good E-Liter and a team with no sniper is unfair from my point of view. The very wide central area, containing the zone, favors long range weapon. If one team got A good E-Liter and mid/long range weapons, while the others only have mid/long range and no shooter, the E-Liter can destroy the opponents while they are fighting, or the rest of the team can destroy the ones trying to get the charger.

Because I had such a hard time against E-Liter on this map, I picked the E-Liter and went on the map alone, just to see where they could actually hit. I advise everyone to do the same. But basically, they can hit everywhere. Even the little "islands". Between Moray and Mahi, I would say chargers are even more absolute on the latter at S+ level.

There are plenty of pieces of cover for short-ranged shooters to hide in, additionally there are few useable spots for the E-Liter(and they are spaced quite far apart) to make the most out of their range. To be fair the map layout differs quite a lot depending on the gamemode, and that's not even taking the water-level mechanic in mind.

 

[Koah15]

Well for me I don't think Walleye is that balanced sure it's a good map but I think for the most balance (which is a hard choice) skatepark is the best by truly skilled wise

 

[zugdude47]

I think kelp dome is the best most balanced stage. Every weapon is given an angle to shine and and a location to be punished. Snipers have viable but assaultable perchs. The overhead perchs are a blessing and a curse for rollers and blasters. Sloshers and longer range weapons can fire over walls while shooters have a large central zone to move in with cover. It's a level where skill and situational awareness often decide the winner and really showcases turf control while giving lots of options to counter. Teams that don't check the map often will be flanked and beaten.

 

[Koah15]

Yes I couldn't agree more