FORUMS_

I dissagree I think the maps in this game are really good. Usually I think treyarch maps are poor. WaW were average maps, black ops were all poor apart from firing range and nuketown, however on here I like all the maps because it keeps a good balance of simplcity but variety. I think there should be more variations on long range sight lines though as most mapes are catered towards cqb.

But in general I think the maps are all generally good apart from drone.. and on some matches raid (one of them maps you either do abysmal or great on)

I think apart from the high standards of the CoD4 maps this game has the best maps.

Compared to MW3 woefull generic maps this is a huge step up.

The conspiracy part of my brain tells me that they make the maps boring to boost DLC sales with hopes that the maps will be better.

Yeah none of the other COD maps had 3 basic routes in them (sarcasm).

Almost all the other maps had 3 basic routes on them in the past 5 years I played the game.

OP is right. I think variation was great in the original MW and has been going downhill since then. Now we're to a point where there is very little eleveation in maps and there are always 3 routes with almost complete balance on each side. If one side has elevation, so does the other side. If one side has a sniper nest, the other side does too.

MW had some great, great maps that weren't completely balanced. I'd take that any day over these maps that are so homogenized that you feel like you're just playing the same variation on a theme over and over. If you're playing a competitive mode that switches side, some imbalance isn't a big deal. Counter-Strike maps had some notoriously unbalanced spawns but it was switched up during any competitive match so it worked.

this extends far past BLOPS2. lets take a trip back to various maps in various games:

hanger: 3 main routes. all comprised of either goin into the hanger our out of it.

cliffside/hazzard: 3 main routes all comprised of getting from one side to the other. one with higher ground and one with cover.

nuketown: 3 main routes. one on each side of the house and then the middle.

summit: 3 main routes. catwalk, control room, snow path

havana: 3 main routes. two routes flanking through buildings and one center path for the daring.

hotel: 3 main routes and 3 entrances to each hotel.

stockpile: 3 main routes. 2 that flank around the center building and one main route(with doors) that goes through the center building.

foundation: 3 main routes. one on each side of the cement prepping area and a sure death down the middle

overwatch: slightly different. 2 main run routes vertically and 3 across. the middle, again, being suicide.

etc..etc..etc..

Favela is still my favorite map of all time. That, and Terminal(the mw2 version).

I still feel the Treyarch maps have always been a tad too basic. I like complex routes that require strategy.

I don't think the map designs are bad. I just feel they lean towards rushers and smgs more so any other weapon's, that not to say you can't use other weapons but when push comes to shove most player reach for the smgs before the any other weapon.

the problem with map design is you have to make then fast paced for rusher but also have spots where campers can also put there mark on the game.

EG

Take seelow from WAW, a large map that was slow paced where rushers got punished, then you now have hijacked where you sit for 2 seconds or you'll be shot in the back. 2 very extremely different maps, that offers has the same out come ie one type of player will get punished.

On the other hand firing range had everything, long and shot sight lines with just enough cover to allow players to either rush or camp, most maps in blops1 gave this and thats why they were great maps. blops2 needs to open up a bit and bring in more mid to long range sight lines

Personally speaking WAW had the best designed maps just a shame the weapon balance back then wasn't what it is today

Maps are just one of those things that are going to boil down to personal preference. For me I'd have to agree with the OP.  Not so much because of the symmetrical aspect but for me most of the maps are just blah. I don't necessarily hate them but I don't exactly love them either.  Can't really explain it.  There are a couple I enjoy more than others but ya.  Probably my least favorite in the series but we'll see what they come up with in the map packs.

Team A shoots team B until they push far enough into the map to switch spawns.

Rinse

Repeat

All these maps work left to right, up and down whichever way you want look at it, there's no real flanking opponents it's just an option of picking door 1 2 or 3 and rushing spawns.

There are no power points that take battles and skill to control, no sneaky routes through areas to flank it's just run run shoot die, run run shoot die, aka boring