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Mathew Steel

Approving Downloads - Our Regulations

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Good day to ye all! I trust you are doing well.

 

With an increase in uploads being made to SHN Download Central, I thought now would be a good time to set a reminder on what we define as a "good quality map" as this is what will determine the fate of your upload.

 

"Good Quality"

It may be surprising to hear but your map doesn't need to be the most beautiful, with the best storyline, and the most interesting gameplay, for it to pass as a good quality map. This means creators of any experience are free to upload to the site and give everyone the chance to play new missions!

 

"Good quality" can be defined as:

A functioning map - The map works as intended. There are not any major bugs or issues caused by poor setup of the map itself. Any bugs and glitches that occur are a result of the base game. All missions must be able to be completed. Missions that are impossible to complete are considered game breaking and thus do not get approved to SHN Download Central.

 

An original map -?Your map cannot be a clone. By all means, create different versions your own map - perhaps you wish to make a version for an experienced player, and another for a beginner - but do not plagiarise. If you do upload somebody else's map, be sure you have their consent, and ensure to give them credit in the description.

 

Some gameplay element - For almost all maps, this factor will not come into play. However, many "tutorial" maps exist that are overly basic. Maps that show off gameplay mechanics and features are great! However, "move Lord from point A to point B" is not a tutorial. Maps that appear to be tutorials must offer some lesson that is not easily learnt, i.e. Telling the player they can kill enemy units with their own units is too basic to pass as a tutorial map.

 

Some effort in design - Map design is not an easy task by any means. However, we do ask that creators put some effort into eye-candy. A fully flat map with nothing but resources is not exactly the most enjoyable experience. For players who really enjoy the genre, it can really ruin the immersion.

 

 

Q&A

Q. I have created a map previously, but wish to reuse the map and change the story. Is this still original??

A. The originality of a map is of course checked by us. We are humans (...) and can tell the difference between a clone and a remake. If you wish to reuse your own map for the purpose of a "second ending" type of story, then by all means, do so!

 

 

Q. My map has mountains, trees, and other resources, but it is untextured. Is this okay?

A. Of course! Texturing a map is not an easy task, especially for newcomers. As long as your map has some element of design to it - it will pass this requirement.

 

 

Q. I uploaded my map but it was denied. I have made changes since, should I resubmit it?

A. Please do! Understand we must still check the resubmission as we would have the first time. This is for the safety of our download section, and to ensure the same issues that were previously raised have been fixed.

 

 

Q. My map still has not been approved. Why might this be?

A. Currently, all SHN staff members are either in full-time education or a full-time profession. We love Stronghold, and we truly enjoy the commitment to the community, however, we also have to prioritise our daily-lives over it. Unless there are any extreme cases, the decision on your submission will be made within 3-5 days. As expected, maps that contain multiple missions, especially difficult missions, take a lot longer to test.

 

 

Conclusion

We love all your maps and we really do appreciate the hardwork and effort put into them. Whilst we would love to trust all our users and not have this system in-place, it is essential in terms of security, and a positive experience for our members! We understand waiting a while for your map to be approved can be annoying at times, but we ask for you to please be patient. We will do it!

 

 

As always,

Best regards,

Mathew (Tom)


"Gofyn wyf am galon hapus, calon onest, calon l?n."

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