Screenshot map
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A screenshot map is a map of a video game level compiled from various screenshots. The screenshots are usually taken using an emulator in order to preserve quality. Adjacent screens are pasted together in a graphics editing program, and the onscreen sprites are usually removed. The maps allow people to see levels or worlds in their entirety.
Some mappers prefer to leave the levels completely untouched, while others prefer to put accompanying strategies directly on the image. Many mappers also fill in areas the original game designers left blank with patterns copied from other sections. It is typically a question of accuracy or aesthetics, depending on whether it is made for navigational or nostalgic purposes.
Screenshot maps were a common feature of the tips, hints and walkthroughs sections of magazines throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, such as Nintendo Power. They are fairly rare in modern gaming due to the dwindling number of games rendered in 2D, but are popular in retrogaming where the two required ingredients—2D and emulators—are both common.
[edit] Creation
First, screenshots must be taken from the game. Since many games use parallax scrolling, the map may not look correct if the images are simply pasted together with the ground lined up. Also, moving objects and other dynamic elements can make the map look different from how it would in the game. A better approach is to map the foreground and background independently and combine them afterwards.
For some games it can be simpler to mock up the image directly from the sprite and level data included in the original game code than to capture shots from an actual emulator. An additional advantage of this method is that with little extra effort one may also automatically extract information which would not be visible from a screenshot (e.g. invisible objects, difficult-to-reach areas, etc.) and mark it on the map.
