Kunst ist schön, macht aber auch viel Arbeit.
[Art is beautiful, but it is also a lot of work.]
– Karl Valentin

So, this study / draft / possible first iteration of an Island of Monkeys is almost only good for learning. I did learn:

• The map of Monkey Island™ does not match the scale of the environment images.
• I don’t know half of what I need to know to make an experience such as this nice.
• Theory vs. practice:
  • A) Knowing the tools does not mean knowing how to employ them effectively.
  • B) Some tools are great ideas, but are yet lacking in implementation (or I am guilty of A).
• The medium is the message: what is nice as a top-down map or satellite image might turn out boring seen in first-person point of view.
• When you want to achieve a very specific vision, then you will have a lot of work.

What I might focus on differently in a purely hypothetical next version:

• Everything takes longer than expected.
  (This is not the first time I have noticed that, nor will it be the last – I never seem to learn this. [That’s a thesis against that this might be due to my lack of experience in environment design. Because in my jobs my expectations are also off, although just by multiples, not, like here, by magnitudes …]
• Even though I like maps, making a »map« (= level) is very different because of the POV through wich one experiences it. I should try to make the experience fun, not the idea. Or make it not as a »game«.
  (In this case: how can I make walks through the jungle more interesting? Various plants, various micro-biomes, smaller-scale area, suggestions of paths to follow [which will act like a reward: the setup is the path, and the payoff is reaching the next »scene«]? Or maybe a simple game mechanic like Matt »cavesrd« Newell has used to great effect? …)
• If I love »proper« rocks, I should concentrate on getting those right, and don’t bother with accurate underwater shore falloffs or »natural« plains erosion. One won’t see the latter anyway! Or I decide for a gently cartoonish style closer to the reference, which might mean low-poly, too … and can one have properly eroded rocks and terrain features in low-poly?

Either way, next time I’ll fight like a cow!