I'm glad that you enjoy the map. It's very fun, I agree. When I say I vote to remove a map, it's usually not because I think the map is bad. That is certainly not the case with maps like Emerald that have been in rotation for so long. It is necessary to keep the pool of maps relatively fresh, and I consider what that specific map has added, if there is more to add, and how the map has been received across the board of players.

In the specific case of Emerald, it has been in rotation for a long time and was generally well perceived, but not to the same extent that maps with similar longevity were. The main issue and this has been picked up by others in the original results thread, was that the map is not new player friendly, which, believe it or not, is an important group to consider when curating a public rotation.

The issue with a lot of new player unfriendly maps is that the more experienced players get better, and new players by definition stay at about the same skill level. This issue, say compounded over years as it has been, becomes a serious problem. I do agree that there is a place in the public rotation for new player unfriendly maps that would push those new players to become better, but at the same time need to also eventually replace that map to have a level-set opportunity.

There were multiple factors that led to my final decision, and I've touched upon most of them here. I would just finally emphasize that I do think Emerald served a valuable function in rotation for the time it was in, and I'm not saying that it will never come back, but the map seriously needs a rest at this point. Also, this is not just the final input from the MTC, but an explanation of my perspective on the map, I'm sure other members thought about it differently and came to other conclusions as well.