Level Design Contest #24 - Playing Phase (Discussion Topic)

[kaywhyn]

Solved kaywhyn's "Shimmier Lab Rules" V2. This one looks more intended but it also could still be a backroute...

100% intended! Nice job! Thanks for resolving and letting me know if my R1 is now properly patched up Also, thank you for the compliments on the V1 of this level. What do you think now, still a fine level? I think this is a first for me in a contest in that I have a level backroute proof after only two versions Of course, there's a possibility that it still can be backrouted, but I don't think it's likely here anymore.

[Kingshadow3]

Solved kaywhyn's "Shimmier Lab Rules" V2. This one looks more intended but it also could still be a backroute...

100% intended! Nice job! Thanks for resolving and letting me know if my R1 is now properly patched up Also, thank you for the compliments on the V1 of this level. What do you think now, still a fine level? I think this is a first for me in a contest in that I have a level backroute proof after only two versions Of course, there's a possibility that it still can be backrouted, but I don't think it's likely here anymore.

It's still a great one. Great work!!

[Armani]

solved rule3 levels

Alluring Shimmer

Nice and easy level, also it's very pretty I think it well fit to laserer introduction level for the NL introduction pack.

EMERGENCY EVACUATION

probably a backroute My solution is too simple with a leftover builder and a walker.

What Goes Up...

The solution is quite straight forward, still a nice one!

Not the Annoying Gap in the Floor Again!

I'm already well aware that you are a big fan of builderless level from your LPs and this level shows It was pretty nice puzzle with lots of possible way to solve.

[Armani]

and resolved updated levels(+new levels)

Starstruck

It's similar to my first solution but now I saved 3rd lemming, used all the skills and meet the save requirement exactly.

Shimmier Lab Rules

This feels intended. I like this level very much Using a builder backward so one lemming can shimmy to the left and lemmings from the hatch can shimmy to the right is my favorite part. Also I can see you are also improving in visual part

Save Ne Once More

Now I used all the skills. It took me a while to solve.

Aerial Antics

Oh.. Now I have too many leftover jumpers And there's a spot where you can save a builder and I don't think this is what you intended(building over the gaps part after the first OWW, you will see what I mean if you watch the replay)

So Near Yet So Far

I think you successfully enforce your solution. I also have some leftover skills but I think this is just an anti-frustration measure as you said

Guide to Clone Survival in the Jungle

Something tells me that this is not intended. (especially the exit part) I also have some leftover skills.

[∫tan x dx]

@Armani Oof, that's a backroute. I think this can be resolved with some skill changes. I'll upload shortly.

[NieSch]

Aerial Antics

Oh.. Now I have too many leftover jumpers And there's a spot where you can save a builder and I don't think this is what you intended(building over the gaps part after the first OWW, you will see what I mean if you watch the replay)

You... clever person! But it was easy to fix.

[The Tomato Watcher]

@Armani I suppose I did, but I messed up in the worst possible way.

Spoiler

There were supposed to be two more Bashers. If I hadn't forgotten them, you wouldn't have had to wait for good lemming spacing like you did. I hate that the level is still solvable like this, in this finicky annoying way. The moment I get out of school I meed to fix that!

[IchoTolot]

@Armani

This is now intended for my R1! Great job!

[ericderkovits]

@armani

Not quite intended for my Rule 2 level even though you used all the skills, so I

1) added terrain
2) added traps
3) added buttons
4) added steel

[kaywhyn]

I think it's a good reminder to paste this from the update topic:

Please follow these rules for updates:
1. When posting a new updated version of a level, remove any old updated versions of that level --> Have all your recent updates stored in 1 post! I will delete such old posts eventually if the author doesn't; so don't store any important information in them.
2. Make a new post for a new update; do not edit your most recent post. You may, however, post updates to multiple entries (if you have more than one) in the same post.

As already I didn't expect and am seeing quite a mess, please remember to only make one post and to delete older posts and not have multiple posts. Otherwise it will get quite messy and chaotic finding the most recent versions of your levels, as they can easily get lost in the mix this way! Icho will eventually delete such posts, but please take the time and responsibility to delete your own posts yourself by observing 1 and 2 quoted above ( though one user has already corrected this, so thank you for that )

@armani I will address your solutions to my R2 and R3 later  on, as I'm not at a computer atm.

[kaywhyn]

@Armani Ok, I finally got a chance to look at your solutions to all three of my contest entries, and here is my feedback:

R1 - 100% intended! I'm glad you also liked this level, and honestly I kind of feel proud of this one too, probably slightly a bit more than my Bubble Trouble R1 level from LDC #22, if only because it needed more patches than this one Even then, it was apparently a very well-received level for my very first attempt at level making, although to be fair it might had simply been due to the grouping my level was in. It was the second most popular R1 level, after rtw's "Warmth," falling short by just 1 vote in the rule voteoff

Thanks for the compliments on my visual design! Honestly, I'm still terrible at art, and I don't think it's that good at all in this level, but you thinking otherwise and reading this from you here really made my day So, I guess I am in a way getting better with the visuals, but it can still use more work, as there's definitely room for improvement.

Spoiler

I wanted to enforce the Dolly Dimple builder trick so that the player needs to send a shimmier over to the left. This is important, because you have to realize that it's not possible to build from the right side to get to the exit. The builder stops 1 pixel short Or, you could make it so that you can seal the gap from the right side, but, if you do that, then the digger leaves a pixel of wall to the right and therefore the crowd won't be able to get to the exit. Therefore, the only way to help the crowd get to the exit is to build from the left side.

R2 - This is a bad backroute. I've uploaded a V3 that added steel, added a vine trap, and made the cloners pickups. I don't know if this will be enough to enforce the intended solution yet, but it should hopefully at least eliminate the big ones. Not to mention that my head was kind of hurting a lot thinking about if there's still the possibility of the level being backrouted, but well, I shall see when I get more solutions to this level from this community I do have some other fixes in mind in case it does get backrouted again, but I'll wait for some solutions first. I have to suspect that my R2 will be the hardest one to both force the intended solution, as well as the hardest to find

edit: reuploaded V3, as I ended up shifting around some pickups some more.

R3 - The title here is a reference to Insane Steve's level "The Annoying 1-Pixel Gap," because if you were provided even 1 builder it would already be a solve. Therefore, it's a no builders level. However, I went much further than that here with one of my own no builders level. This would also be the very first such level from me And yes, you are correct that I'm a huge fan of these levels.

As you might had guessed, this level is open-ended, which would make this the very first level of mine in which I don't have any specific intended solution in mind. So, I will accept nearly any solution to this level. However,

Spoiler

you did bypass having to get the crowd up the level on the right side on the other side of the gap in the floor, which I would like the player to do.

So, for V2 I shifted and added some terrain. The replay solution I have needed some minor tweaks to work again, but while doing so, I was thinking of maybe reducing the skillset, as it seems that I was able to save a lot of skills. However, I will leave the skillset alone for the time being, as I will change it if I am getting a lot of solutions that are saving too many skills, meaning there's a bit too much degrees of freedom.

Thanks again for playing my levels and the replays, as well as the compliments on my R1!

[Armani]

more replays.

Save Me Once More

This feels intended. I used all the skills and the solution doesn't have any fiddly or timing heavy things now

Aerial Antics

attached 2 replays. The first one is probably not intended. I totally bypassed rightmost/leftmost structures. And the second replay seems intended to me.

Guide to Clone Survival in the Jungle

This seems better than my previous solution. I have a leftover bomber so it's still not fully intended.

EMERGENCY EVACUATION

One more backroute I have a leftover builder and this solution is not viable in version1

Not the Annoying Gap in the Floor Again!

I tweaked my previous solution a bit. If you reduce the skillset in the future, I think making this level 4 of everything can be a good idea. It's still open-ended enough but you can't wasted that much skill to clear the level.

[ericderkovits]

@Armani

There was a minisule thing you did different but your solution now is perfectly acceptable.

[NieSch]

Aerial Antics

attached 2 replays. The first one is probably not intended. I totally bypassed rightmost/leftmost structures. And the second replay seems intended to me.

First replay: clever backroutes again! I fixed this in V5.
Second replay: 100% intended.

Regarding your R3 level Armani: I just love the way you made this a "two intended solutions"-level. Creativity at its finest.

[∫tan x dx]

@Armani Still a backroute! I've amended my post in the other thread.