CustLemm Level List Game

[JM]

SOS is easy to figure out.It stands for "save our souls" if i'm right.

[Shvegait]

SOS originally didn't have an intended meaning. It's easy to transmit and recognize, so it was a good distress signal. You could take it to mean "Save our ship" or a bunch of other things.

Check here: http://www.answers.com/sos&r=67


Who's going to review "Remains of the roman empire"?

[tumble_weed]

yep, they just chose the letters SOS because it was easier...

anyway enough about SOS

I guess I'll do the next one I haven't done a level in a while...and I haven't done one from this pack at all

[JM]

Who is reviewing the 4th level of this pack?

[tumble_weed]

Me! I have uni work...but you know Lemmings > Uni

anyway, I have no idea whether I used a backroute in this level or not. My solution was:

Digging at the top of the pillar, floating down then building, letting another lemming go to the bottom of the pillar and start building, then turning the digger to a blocker. When one of the bottom lemmings reaches the middle of the arch they bash through, the two lemmings then take turns in building to the exit. Then get one of the trapped lemmings to dig down and release the blocker. then mine (will go backwards and die) then all the lemmings should be free. Although Raising the RR earlier and letting more lemmings accumulate should allow for the digger to dig to the bottom then to mine at the very bottom and then climb back to the top, and allow you to get 100%...but I haven't tried.

But to me this whole solution seems to be a backroute, as its possible (i think) to get 100%, and the "broken" parts on the left look like they are there for a purpose as well as the slightly raised steel area on the left, and the level can be completed 1 minute early.

anyway...



Hubbart4 - Level 3: "Remains of the Roman Empire"
 
1 - Climbers
1 - Floaters
0 - Bombers
1 - Blockers
5 - Builders
1 - Bashers
1 - Miner
2 - Digger

Terrain set -  2
Lemmings - 80
Save - 98%
RR - 30
Time - 3 Minutes

Good: Nice use of 2 directions, looks as though it could be possible on both sides (maybe it is, if i have a back route, and there is a way to get to the left exit)

Bad: Nice design, but could have used the column set.

[guest]

Bad: Nice design, but could have used the column set.

I think we're getting to the point where, despite the original premise of "CustLemm Level List Game", it's becoming ridiculous to find something bad to say when there isn't any.  O_o

At the very least, this example of forced-badness is particularly silly.  Does the column set have the "rainbow" arch?  No.  Does the column set have those irregular "hills" that forms much of the bottom of the level?  No, at least not that I remember.  In short, this level would be unable to look even remotely the same as the way it is, if the column set was used.

Come to think of it, your "Good" actually would fit the forced-"Bad" better, given the thing about possible backroute.  

[tumble_weed]

well actually they could have used some of the limestone pieces to get a similar effect and it would have been great to see an arch built from pieces from the columns set...

I'm sorry if my critiquing was not up to standard...

anyway I agree, it is hard...

but lets see if i can give it another shot...

Good:

*Has a complex solution, which is not overtly obvious at the start.
*There is a definite attention to detail by the use of holes in the pillars, as well as an attempt to vary the texture of the land.
*Good use of layering (such as the exit appears to be buried in rubble as well as pillars appearing in front and behind the land to create a kind of three dimensional feel.)
*Nice use of timing in the level, however the timing is not excessively precise, which makes for a good level. It is usually a bad thing when a level has to be TOO precise, there usually should be some room for error in the level.
*Good concept for a level and good use of a theme.
*The player has to save all but one, which in my opinion is much harder (and makes for a better level than saving 100%) since the player is made to think about how and why a lemming must be killed, as opposed to a 100% level where the player automatically assumes that all lemmings must be saved.
*Good use of terrain and skills, which prompts the user to explore the level as there are enough skills to allow the player to explore all parts of the level, although both sides of the level initially appear to be possible which encourages the player to explore (instead of having one side of the level blatantly incorrect). Although the left side doesn't actually have a purpose it does make an interesting puzzle, where the player has to decide the possibility of each side being correct.

Bad:

*The gap on the far right seems suspicious and is an easy tip off that you need to build over that gap since it doesn't remain constant with the other gaps (being filled with sludge), a possible solution is removing all sludge, as it doesn't really fit well with the theme of the level. The parts that contain sludge above land could maybe be made into holes.
*Could have used the column set, this statement still stands, as it would have fitted the concept of a Roman styled level far better.
*Having a climber is not necessary; however, it is possible to achieve 100% with just slightly more effort (and the climber). This should be avoided as it is pointless make it possible to complete the level with 100% when it is only required to have 98%, an alternative to this would be to remove the climber. Having it possible to only complete with 98% would also remove possible back routes where a lemming can die somewhere else in the level.
*An extra minute is given to complete the level, the time limit should be changed to 2 minutes, and this will make the level appear more concise as well as adding the "thrill" of timing.

there.

Happy?

a 477 word "analysis on this level detailing both good and bad points.

[guest]

<laugh> you didn't have to really rewrite the whole thing.  I was just picking your example (because it's there) to make a general point about the CustLemm Level List Game.  

well actually they could have used some of the limestone pieces to get a similar effect and it would have been great to see an arch built from pieces from the columns set...

Well yes, if Hubbart has as much time on his hands as you do in rewriting the review, I'm sure he'd be happy to painstakingly take a whole bunch of limestone pieces which consists only of straight edges, put them together to form a crude arch, and then use yet even more black pieces to round it out so it looks curved instead.  O_o

(Or do you have a better way to do it?  Any technique to quickly create reasonable-looking curved pieces out of straight pieces would be really cool.  Seriously.)

*Could have used the column set, this statement still stands, as it would have fitted the concept of a Roman styled level far better.

Actually, since I haven't really taken much history, is Roman architecture really so prominent with the use of columns?  I thought the Greeks also uses columns quite a bit.

And I have to point out that in the original Lemmings, the columns set was used for such decidedly non-Roman levels like "Curse of the Pharoahs".  :-/  Anyhow......

[Proxima]

I completely disagree with one point; it's always good to make it possible to achieve more than the minimum, if this can be done without spoiling the level. (Just look at how much fun guest has been having saving the most possible on the original levels!)

[JM]

The level design isn't that bad.

[DragonsLover]

Where do you put the images to appear here? I don't have any online space to stock my future images for this game.

[guest]

Who's reviewing the rest of this level pack?

[Conway]

Hubbart4, level 5 - The Billboard

  Save: 80/80
  Time: 2 minutes
  RR: 1
  Skills:
    Builders: 7
    Bashers: 1
    Diggers: 3

  Good: Can be tricky trying to contain the crowd while letting one lemming build to the exit.

  Bad: Most of the terrain is wasted.

[Mindless]

IMHO the Hubbart levels have beautiful designs, even if they are somewhat simple to solve...
I really wish I could design like that...

[guest]

Me too!  So far I'm only able to attempt designing a level around certain tricks I have in mind.  That generally doesn't lend itself to such artistic levels as Hubbart's.  I'm pretty impressed with these levels.

I guess it's the same deal with the "special graphics" levels people occasionally design in Cheapo.  Lots of people tend to whine that it's hard to make a special graphics level that's also a good puzzle.  With that in mind, Hubbart here clearly decides to balance the trade-offs favoring the artistic side.