Well, sadly I have issues with the new mapboard. Surprisingly, the map is not the creative work of Fantasy Flight Games, but instead of 'Edge Studios', and it shows. It reminds me of the graphic design akin to the 3rd edition of Axis & Allies (pre-painted stains, crease marks and miscellaneous objects - bullets, radar screen, compass - really, a compass in the age of laser defenses and hovering tanks?). Gone are the textured-looking mountain spaces, to be replaced by a simple brown screen gradient. Also, spaces have no color distinction from one area to another, unlike the original. So much easier to distinguish different zones when colored slightly differently from neighboring zones.
I'm sad about the look of a map such as this, coming inside of a box with the FFG logo on it. But there are now two issues I've sent regarding legal movement on the new board. I will post here with my answer, but it involves the 3mm boarder between the 4th-down red invasion zone, and what would be South Carolina, and another 3mm gap from same South Carolina, going NW to what would be western Virginia (the space with the 'A' and 'S' from the label 'EAST'). Neither of these gaps existed in the original board, and it would create the first and only 'beachhead' landing space that could be attacked from TWO Invasion Zones in the game.
Disappointed about the map. Rest of the game was as expected.
I'm not usually critical of FFG, being a fanboy with almost 50 different games of theirs, but I'm sad about this.