How do YOU come up with a layout for you maps?

[neoseagull]

Hello peeps, I'm playing around with the new sprites and it got me to thinking about good city planning in addition to designing spawns that feel natural yet captivate the player.
Working on a city at the moment and want everything to feel thought out and planned. At the same time I'm worried that if i make everything adhere to a grid it will feel to rigid and for lack of a better word 'synthetic'.
A lot of good cities i have seen have an underlying theme but they have areas that differ from the norm and make the mapping feel more alive.
Do you have a method for designing the layout for your maps? If so would you like to share?
Not sure if this is the right board so please let me know if i posted here in error.
Regards

 

[Pyziol]

I always imagine how would it look like in real life. This brings me more ideas to add some special details which usually look (at least) good when finished. I ain't a professional mapper tho.

Idk if I unsterstood your post well. English is not my native language

 

[neoseagull]

I always imagine how would it look like in real life. This brings me more ideas to add some special details which usually look (at least) good when finished. I ain't a professional mapper tho.

Idk if I unsterstood your post well. English is not my native language

Thank you for the input. My problem is that unless i plan ahead the map will look crowded, not sure how to fix that

 

[Michael Orsino]

Maybe this might help :>

I start with a Port of some description, with a slum & market area adjacent. Perhaps there is a tavern, storehouse, brothel, lower class living, fishmonger.
Some kind of central pathway through the slums to a gate, leading into the city-main. A town hall would be prominent, perhaps a barracks beside external gate #1, a tavern by external gate #2, and a middle-class market place between them. A blacksmith? Maybe throw in a place of worship?
(I like to build the city features first and then infill the residential housing / flats etc.)
Somewhere in the city i'd introduce another gated area - through the gate would be the upper-class area. A small castle of some kind perhaps, upper class living, magic-related-tower of some kind?

I like to keep things quite close together. I like to create narrow passageways between buildings especially in the middle/lower parts of town.
I generally map to force interaction between players.

 

[neoseagull]

Maybe this might help :>

I start with a Port of some description, with a slum & market area adjacent. Perhaps there is a tavern, storehouse, brothel, lower class living, fishmonger.
Some kind of central pathway through the slums to a gate, leading into the city-main. A town hall would be prominent, perhaps a barracks beside external gate #1, a tavern by external gate #2, and a middle-class market place between them. A blacksmith? Maybe throw in a place of worship?
(I like to build the city features first and then infill the residential housing / flats etc.)
Somewhere in the city i'd introduce another gated area - through the gate would be the upper-class area. A small castle of some kind perhaps, upper class living, magic-related-tower of some kind?

I like to keep things quite close together. I like to create narrow passageways between buildings especially in the middle/lower parts of town.
I generally map to force interaction between players.

I love it thanks, you make an excellent point and one thing i always hate as a player are huge open spaces in towns that force me to waste time walking.