Pretty Maps; Bad Design.

[JayRay]

In my opinion though. rooms and maps can be detailed, without having to be obstructingly so. Binding a player to have to negotiate gradma's cabin in the woods with all the pathfinding of a Pac-Man on the sixth act is ludicrous.

"Grandma! you hoarder! why are there a ton of boxes sitting in your living room, there's no room to walk!"

Sometimes people get stuck with having to put EVERYTHING they own in a map, just so there are more eye-catching things to go with.. and completely forget the central focus of the game, the player. Why hide them behind a million trees, bushes, clay pots and more?

If you're going to put obstacles, maybe develop a filmmaker's idea in giving the player obstructions but keeping things that hide the player's face to a very bare minimum.