So what is CALR in a quick summary?
CALR is a free to play and pay to play online gaming league. Offering a simple and easy way to get together with friends and Scrim/Pug using our own Match system. We are striving to create a community driven league that will include many LAN events as well as prize pots every season, even for free to play gamers. Currently we are focusing mainly on CSGO in the NA with plans to expand to 1.6, CSS and even EU.
The competition in that particular industry is really tough with ESEA, CEVO and FACEiT already well established - what do you feel is unique about CALR?
CALR will be redefining the gaming league industry. We at CALR are going to strive for nothing less than perfection. We plan on having a simple, easy to use league. With extensive features including: In depth player and team stats, Scrim/Pug Match system, Superior Anti-Cheat, High quality servers, Professional staff waiting to assist its community, Complete customizable Player and Team pages with social media built in, Very easy to use and navigate website. All of these features will be integrated within our site. There will be no external service needed for what we will be accomplishing. We make it our goal to make sure when we launch the community will be wondering how on earth did they get along without us.
Awesome, so you've been working on a fantastic new project recently and now its time to reveal it. Want to let everyone know what you have been up to?
I sure would. I’m pleased to give you de_calr_fire.
So why de_cpl_fire, is it an old favorite of yours or did you make it out of necessity for CALR?
Well initially it wasn't a map I was going to undertake after Mill. But after talking and reminiscing with fellow gamers about older maps, Fire came up. Then I started browsing forums seeing if anyone had undertook remaking the map. After seeing the communities reaction of dreaming for a Fire remake I decided to take on the task. I knew that if I'd bring Fire back, I would have to make some drastic changes. Firstly, create the map to fit the CSGO style and gameplay (Scale, Movement, Smokes) and secondly change the layout to make it more competitive - in its old state it was heavily CT sided. I reached out to the original author of de_cpl_fire, d00ds.com, to get permission for the remake. He quickly responded with giving me the rights to the map, and even the original VMF file for unit sizes. Thanks d00ds!
So what changes have you made to the map so far since the original?
I currently do not have enough time to go through them all but, the most noticeable is the layout. People who have played Fire will notice right away when they are mid, that this is Fire. That is about as far as it goes. CT/T spawns have been altered. In doing so, timings and choke points are now changed. Adding a connector between B-Main and B-long. There is now another way into A using a squeaky door. Both bomb sites have been altered, A-long has been completely opened up and is now much wider for entry into the bomb site, and now smokes and flashes can be thrown over any building. I tried to keep the essence of Fire alive in the map but create something that is new and fresh feeling that will really keep the interests of veterans that knew the map and even entice the “new to the scene” players.
"I tried to keep the essence of Fire alive in the map but create something that is new and fresh feeling, that will really help to keep the interests of veterens that knew the map and even entice the "new to the scene" players." - Moo
Which change is your favorite? Which one do you feel is the most effective?
That’s a very hard question to answer, considering how much has actually changed. If I had to pick a favorite I would say the changes I made to A are my favorite. The overall design and flow of the bomb site will make for some very interesting strategies, and the overall angles I think make it a very fun bomb site to hold and take.
The most shocking thing to me was the sheer optimization whether it's strategically placed objects, a fresh new color scheme or optimized layout. So I've ran around the map a few times and found a whole bunch of sneaky spots - were they intended or just luck?
Haha, well I would love to say “Yes 100% on purpose” but that is not always the case. When mapping sometimes things just become a happy accident. You might have the intention of putting a structure/cover in a certain spot for a reason, but then come to find out it serves a multi-purpose. Something you weren't actually intending it to do, but while in game its a moment of “I’ll be damned that worked out much better than I intended”. I will say while I was creating Fire I had one thing in mind “Refinement”. I wanted to make sure every box, every prop was for a reason. You won't see much “clutter” in this map unless I was intending it to be more for a visual block.
How many people do you think have play tested it in scrims or wandering?
Well, as of right now we are still testing the stability of the map. Making tweaks as we go. I am pleased to say after many pugs and walkthroughs, not a whole lot has had to of been changed. So far my goal of competitive refinement seems to have paid off.
What were some of the common things that people were saying?
So far the most used praise I have been getting is “I've never had so much fun on a map” and this puts a smile on my face. It’s what us "map makers" try to do every time we release something to the community. We want the end users experience to be fun and entertaining. I also get a lot of “Can you release this already, I want to scrim it” Haha.
So how many revisions do you think the map has gone through?
So far zero. The initial product is what stands before you. The changes I have made, have either been a clipping bug or maybe changing a few textures/models around. So far my work with the actual layout hasn't been changed at all. However, testing is still taking place so we will see what happens.
In your opinion how close do you think you are to finalizing the map?
As it stands right now I will say it's 95% complete. That additional 5% is from a competitive standpoint on balance of the map. Making sure there are no clipping issues. Finding all the ugly bugs and glitches that could bring this map to its knees if not ironed out before released to the community.
Besides de_calr_fire you also finished up de_calr_mill, a remake of de_cpl_mill, so I assume we'll see those two maps headlining the competition over at CALR - what other maps are you guys considering?
We at CALR want to bring freshness to the community, and one way of doing that is maps. However, we do have to keep a competitive standard. So we will be offering all of the Valve competitive maps along with three official CALR maps. Come our opening day we will be listening to the community on what maps they would love to see make into regular rotation. We will also have constant polls or what maps they want added/vetoed for additional seasons moving forward.
Sounds exciting, looking forward to carrying people on de_calr_fire from some of the sneaky one-way smokes I discovered. So when will people be able to check it out?
The official community release date is November 1st. However, It may be sooner. We have a few things planned for the map and if all goes well we may see it as soon as two weeks.
..and where can they go for updates?
To get up to date information on the map and CALR as a whole you can visit our website at: www.calreloaded.com also check us out and “Like” our facebook page at www.facebook.com/calreloaded
Ok, any last shout outs?, where can people contact you specifically?
You can always message me on the CALR forums or on our facebook. I would like to give a special thanks to all of the CALR staff for putting in such a hard effort getting everything ready. A big thanks to all the testers that helped with development of Fire, and also a big thanks to GosuGamers for this wonderful opportunity to share the map and what CALR is doing. Thank you guys! Also to the Black Mesa crew and Deh0lise for some custom models/textures.
Thanks again for your time, the map rocks, hopefully we'll get a sneak peek into the next one.
