The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
StarFighters76

Some gamers see video games as casual entertainment and nothing more. Others have a long-lasting love affair with specific titles, and then there is the hardcore gamer for whom there are basically no limits. However, there are players who invest their patience, talent, and knowledge to develop guides, walkthroughs, cheat lists, and of course, maps. One such player is StarFighters76, a user of the GameFAQs portal who since 2002 has shared with the community more than 3,700 maps, all made in Paint.

I imagine many of our readers must remember the old Micromanía. At one point it adopted the newspaper format, which allowed it to include very valuable maps of popular titles. Personally, I can say that I only managed to finish Future Wars thanks to the giant map that Micromanía shared of its final level, but in many other games, users didn't have that privilege. The only way to create maps was freehand or by buying official guides, and sometimes they generated more profit for developers than the game itself.

However, everything changed with the expansion of digital tools and the arrival of the Internet. In November 1995, the GameFAQs portal was born, becoming the premiere distribution hub for all kinds of guides, solutions, cheats, and maps. And so we come to the user StarFighters76, who in 2002 began publishing his first video game maps using the venerable MS Paint. How many has he made to date? More than 3,700, and their quality is incredible.

The GameFAQs Legend with Over 3,700 Paint Maps

The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
Tick Tock Clock, Super Mario 64. The 3D effect, please!

Some users may think his map designs are simple, but that is not a flaw; it's a gigantic advantage. StarFighters76 has always focused on the most important details, adding multiple visual references and leaving aside anything that could cause distraction. His preference for classic systems is also clear, but that doesn't mean he has avoided 3D titles. His maps for Super Mario 64 are true works of art, and once again, all he used was MS Paint.

The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
Frozen Cliffs from Chrono Trigger for DS. How can it communicate so much...?
The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
Antlion Cave, FFIV. I have a pending debt with many Final Fantasy...
The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
Brookhaven Hospital in Silent Hill 2. This is pure gold...

Why Paint? StarFighters76 admits he has used it from day one, and even though there are plenty of more advanced tools available, he simply doesn't want to abandon it. His process hasn't changed much either: the first version is on paper, taking notes while he plays. The next step is to transfer those sketches to Paint, maintaining the drawing-and-playing cycle.

The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
Routes 17 and 18 of Pokémon Black/White. There's a lot of Pokémon in his profile.
The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
More Super Mario 64, because it's great
The Player Who Created Over 3,700 Game Maps in Paint
Link's Awakening... I give up. This is impressive, and it represents just one of the overworlds he made for the game.

If you want to learn more about StarFighters76, the PC Gamer interview (link below) is full of additional details. Otherwise, we can always go to his profile and browse through thousands of maps. Who knows? Perhaps StarFighters76's art will help us finish that game we left dormant for years...

StarFighters76 on GameFAQs: Click here

Interview on PC Gamer: Click here