Come Get Some!

Age : 32 (2012)
Location : Netherlands
Occupation : User Experience designer.

CGS : When did you first get in touch with Build/Mapster?
Maarten : I would say 1996, or 1997. Not so long after the original game was released. I bought a cd-rom with extra maps on it on some kind of computer fair. Internet wasn't everywhere yet in those days. I toyed around a bit with the builder that was on the cd-rom, and left it for a while. A few years later, when I joined some online communities, things got rolling again. At that time I started adding and creating my own textures as well.

CGS : What was your first map, released or unreleased?
Maarten : I think I called it mprocket. It wasn't much though. No idea if that map ended up on a backup cd in a box on the attic somewhere. Must be!

CGS : What is your favourite among your own maps?
Maarten : I think my Crucial Conflict series was the high point in my 'career' (if you can call it that). Of those three, I like the second one best, without a doubt. The first one is nice, but I got a bit too much inspired by a shareware teaser level of Half-life :). The second one contains some nice puzzles which is something I've always liked a lot. It pushes the boundaries of the possibilities of the game.

CGS : How many maps have you done?
Maarten : I would say about 12 to 15? Fully finished I guess about 5 or 6. I've always chosen quality above quantity.

CGS : Where do you get inspiration from?
Maarten : There are two games that have given me tons of inspiration. Firstly Doom 1 and 2 with their unmatched gameplay design. Secondly Half-Life. Back in those days only HL1 existed, so HL2 (although matching in genius) didn't inspire me much. But HL1 is still for me the best game ever made. The fact that the main hero is an anti-hero, someone that is scared, disoriented, and insecure, has always appealed to me a lot. Apart from games I've always been interested in architecture, and quite a few buildings or details of buildings that I know in my own world ended up in my maps to some extend.

CGS : Do you listen to music whilst mapping? If so, what did you listen to?
Maarten : Hell yeah! My taste for music has changed a bit over the years but I remember spinning some Metallica, Dream theater, Therion, that kind of stuff. Some songs still trigger a memory of a specific map I was building at the time when that song was my favorite one. Funny how that works. Now I'm more into alternative and indie rock, but times change :).

CGS : Do you see mapping as competitive?
Maarten : No not at all. I saw it as a way to work creatively on things I loved doing. There have been times - a lot of them :) - when I thought: Man, why didn't I think of that. Especially Pascal Rouaud and Bob Averill caused that :). Credits to them!

CGS : Do you still touch Build/Mapster?
Maarten : No. I've picked up building some maps for Doom I think last year or the year before, and released one level (search for the one by Veincrawler, if you're interested :)). But it costs too much time and I forgot how the editor works.

CGS : Are you playing any DN3D maps these days?
Maarten : Not really. Tried a bit last year when I was bored. I installed the 3D version of DN3D (the hi res pack?) but I didn't really like that. Took away the charm of the old game for me.

CGS : What's your favourite map of all time?
Maarten : Hmm can't really tell. I love Bob Averill's maps and the Roch series, but it's been too long to really pick a favorite.

CGS : What are your opinion about the HRP and Polymer projects?
Maarten : I don't really like the HRP since I think it takes away the charm of the old game. The Polymer project I haven't heard about (haven't been there for a while :))

CGS : What other games do you fancy?
Maarten : Some old skool first person shooters. Doom, Half-Life, Wolfenstein 3D (made maps for that as well :)). I've played a LOT of Diablo 2. Recently I'm playing mostly Lego Batman and Lego Starwars on the Wii!

CGS : Finally, is it something you'd like to say to the DN3D community?
Maarten : It's fantastic to see the community is still so active! Keep it up guys!!