One note to add here, is the concept of risk/reward. In later FPS games (I.E. after quake 1) when the basic mechancis were better known, you'll note a trend that places the best and most powerful items in a position of great risk. DM17 from Quake 3 demonstrates this extremely well. You have on the map, a +100 health sphere, a suit of red armor, a suit of yellow armor and some shards, a railgun, two rocket launchers, two shotguns, a quad damage and some +25 health spheres.BonsaiK said:
Both the rocket launcher and shotgun are readily accessable from any of the spawn points and the weapons respawn quickly, ensuring that in smaller games you are always well armed quickly. Because of the wide expanse the game offers, the railgun is often fantastically useful but it can only be retrieved by use of a jump pad. If a player is shot in the back or finds a rocket at the landing they generally are knocked off the map to their death. Returning to the field is just as dangerous. The mega health has the same problem - It's located in the center of the map where you can be fired upon from any direction from nearly any part of the map. It also requires the use of a jump pad, meaning that you'll be stuck in the air unable to significantly maneuver while you attempt to retrieve the health - if poorly timed it's common to lose more health than you gain, even against a single player and the threat only rises as more guns take to the field. The quad damage is the worst of them all as it requires the use of a double jump pad maneuver, leaving the player exposed for a long period of time, and a slight amount of damage can cause the player to miss the second jump pad entirely. The upgrade itself is placed at an angle that makes it difficult to effectively employ any weapon against the oppositon until you retake the field.
DM17 is probably the greatest example of the risk/reward idea I've seen in a game. Camping is discouraged naturally by ensuring the greatest items are associated with the largest vulnerability, and attempting to exploit powerful weapons and items often lead to disaster.
