Do People Seriously Think Maps are Stronger Than Flashlights?

Everyone keeps saying flashlights are the 'weakest' survivor item, but I have seen perhaps a dozen people bring maps in all my time playing, whereas flashlights would easily reach into the hundreds at least. Are survivors just being so magnanimous by refusing to use the clearly OP maps in favour of the weak flashlights, or what? And ever since the nerf to hatch keys are perhaps even more weak and rare.

Comments

  • Veinslay
    Veinslay Member Posts: 1,959

    You can't troll the killer with a map

  • StarLost
    StarLost Member Posts: 8,077

    ...It depends entirely on the map.

    A good map can allow you to get rid of Ruin or Devour instantly. Put down a boon immediately. All sorts of wonderful stuff.

    A flashlight can be nice, but if the killer is smort it can also do very little. Against Wraith and Nurse though, flashlights are crazy good.

  • humanbeing1704
    humanbeing1704 Member Posts: 8,970

    Green maps are bad rainbow maps are where its at

  • StardustSpeedway
    StardustSpeedway Member Posts: 882

    Opposite experience for me. I hardly see anyone ever bring maps lol.

    Maps with the add on that allow others to see gens and totems are useful when the killers bring ruin or other hexes which is basically every game. It is especially useful on maps where totems are tricky to find like Midwich and The Game.

  • sizzlingmario4
    sizzlingmario4 Member Posts: 6,707

    It depends, but in general no.

    If it’s a good map vs. a multi-hex killer or if you’re seeing trapper’s traps with it then yes.

  • humanbeing1704
    humanbeing1704 Member Posts: 8,970
  • sizzlingmario4
    sizzlingmario4 Member Posts: 6,707

    Yeah. Maps could get a buff but their interaction with certain killers’ powers is dumb imo

  • GillyBeannn
    GillyBeannn Member Posts: 554

    The only use I would use a green map is to pair it with detectives hunch. It's not a bad combo tbh

  • Star99er
    Star99er Member Posts: 1,447

    Yes & No, it really depends. If the killer is running 1 or multiple hex perks a map can help clear them out quickly. If the killer isn’t running any hexes then no.

  • Blueberry
    Blueberry Member Posts: 13,590

    Lots of people running something doesn't mean they're stronger. That's an incorrect assumption to make.

    People run flashlights a lot because they actually add fun to the game.

    Flashlights are the weakest item though. They actively hurt the team because they end up wasting gen time trying to go for flashlight saves and even end up giving lots of free pressure because of it. You aren't getting a flashlight save unless the killers just flat out bad.

    Flashlight will more often then not hurt your team more than help, so even though you may think maps don't add a lot, even a tiny usefulness is better than negative usefulness from flashlights.

  • WishIcouldmain
    WishIcouldmain Member Posts: 4,082

    Because it becomes quite easy to deal with flashlights. While maps can take out perks and find gens

  • Yatol
    Yatol Member Posts: 1,956
    edited April 2022

    there are 3 flashlight all 3 of them are decently useful meanwhile there are two maps and only one of them is really useful and even then its addon dependent. IMO Maps at their strongest are better than flashlights but the weakest flashlight is more useful than the weakest map build.

  • Vampwire
    Vampwire Member Posts: 709

    Maps are actually really helpful against hexes and such with the right add-ons. Flashlights help against like 2 killer powers in the entire game and even then it's niche. Most competent killers will bait flashlight saves or just look at a wall. Pallet blinds are completely nullified by just listening for footsteps and they also make less distance than just stunning and running. So yea, they're miles better. Flashlights are probably the worst item in the game in actual utility. They don't offer much of an advantage outside of saves, but those take a bit of set-up and being in the right place at the right time. If you follow the killer with a flashlight you're basically committing suicide for the whole team.

    Flashbangs are where it's at B)

  • Aurelle
    Aurelle Member Posts: 3,611

    Regular maps are bad unless you have addons on them, but Rainbow Maps are really good.

  • indieeden7
    indieeden7 Member Posts: 3,369

    Maps don't encourage survivors to waste time trying to get map saves do they? Flashlights have the POTENTIAL to be good items, but they're so easy to counter that they rarely ever live up to that potential.

  • kate_best_girl
    kate_best_girl Member Posts: 2,184

    I mean a SWF who know how to use maps are no where near as deadly as a SWF who know how to use flashlights. Flashlights are only easy to counter if the team isn't coordinated

  • indieeden7
    indieeden7 Member Posts: 3,369

    A team doesn't need to be uncoordinated for the killer to either bait the flashlight save or look at a wall.

  • kate_best_girl
    kate_best_girl Member Posts: 2,184

    Not every map has walls at every location to turn too and if you're against a coordinated they'll just bring UB and keep you focused on chasing away the one with the flashlight while the one on the ground recovers just fine. Or if someone else is close they can pick them up easily while you attempt to chase someone else away.

  • JoaoVanBlizzard
    JoaoVanBlizzard Member Posts: 555

    It's just that if you feel uncomfortable with the flashlights why don't you use the lightborn perk? she's there for you to avoid flashlights, if it really bothers you you'll have to give up a perk slot, it's the same thing as me complaining about noed and not wanting to use perk to find totems

  • Kurri
    Kurri Member Posts: 1,599

    They are?

    You are going to get a lot more value from a map in a match than a flashlight. Flashlight saves are not easy to perform, and the Killer has multiple ways to counter it. A map is a consistent item with a lot of information that is consistent throughout the match. In a game where the most powerful tool Killers and Survivors have is information, then ultimately the map is the better item.

  • ukenicky
    ukenicky Member Posts: 1,352

    I love maps, green or rainbow. Obviously rainbow is MUCH better but yeah, when paired with Detective's Hunch and a Crystal Bead the map becomes a powerful aura reading tool and offers your entire team incredible information value.

    I typically pair it with a Boon of some kind and Sprint Burst for a scout "map runner" build. You also get a ton of Objective points for map scouting score events. But uh yeah, I like to run maps when I wanna be a support like that. It let's you locate and cleanse problem Hexes quickly.


    Flashlights aren't bad either but there's no reason to have a lobby full of them. Flashlights are good vs. Wraith, Hag, Nurse and Artist and also decent for getting Boldness points for blinds. Really just depends on your play style. I'm not super good at flashlight saves so I tend to go with maps or medkits.


    Also green map is also completely viable you just have to run Red Twine so you can track totems which sucks but it's still effective with retardant jelly.

  • GillyBeannn
    GillyBeannn Member Posts: 554
  • SonicOffline
    SonicOffline Member Posts: 917

    They can both bait you into wasting the flashlight then punish you for not trying to waste the flashlight. So it's like, yeah they're good but they're also a catch 22. Wraith will just run circles around you and all you get is a couple seconds. Significantly less than if you just stunned him. Nurse is a similar boat. She can just blink away then blink back if she knows you're gonna burn her.

  • EntitySpawn
    EntitySpawn Member Posts: 4,233
  • The_Krapper
    The_Krapper Member Posts: 3,259

    You can literally run a perk and take all 4 flashlights out of the equation which you can't do with a map, flashlights are easily avoidable even against the best players you just can't be one of the killers that pick up straight away

  • StarLost
    StarLost Member Posts: 8,077

    Or just play smart. I can generally counter flashlights, but there isn't much you can do to counter a map that tells the survivors where every single one of my traps are.

  • kate_best_girl
    kate_best_girl Member Posts: 2,184

    Run a perk and now you're running 3 perks and a non meta perk against a meta SWF no matter what you lose in this scenario. You don't pick up right away they'll just get back up and undue all your progress. Best case scenario is you injure one while the other gets back up so you can try and focus the one you just injured