If you dislike building stages, what do you create instead?

[The Doctor]

Many many many ... MANY ... levels are made with building in mind. I know, however, that many level designers hold a disdain for stages with excessive building (myself included). Levels like "Heaven can wait (we hope!)" and "Pillar of Hercules" make me want to claw my eyes out.

What do you make as alternatives? A few I've seen are about nicely timed digging, bashing, mining. Some are about one Lemming going forward and digging a path backwards. Some are about blowing up blockers or walkers.

What do you do?

[Adam]

I try to keep excessive building to a minimum. I like climbing and mining instead.. it's just as slow, but you can set two climbers off on the start of a level, have one work ahead and have one work back.

Some levels, for instance, No Added Colors or Lemmings show how creative use of skills can be used to make short but sweet levels! They're the sort of levels I try to design.. nobody wants to have a level with an excessive amount of time spent using just one skill. It's boring for the players, and it's boring when testing.

There IS an exception to the rule with building levels. Levels such as Go For It (Fun 22 - Sega Master System) show how building can be used in a different way - the speed of building works to your advantage there.

To sum up... I try to create a mix of building levels and other levels.

[Luis]

It's kinda hard to make a difficult level without using builders. It takes a lot of thinking for me.

[Dullstar]

I use miners and climbers, and maybe [creative] use of the builder (such as protecting a lemming from splatting).

[Adam]

Builders when used creatively can create an enjoyable level, but when you have to build a mahoosive bridge to go from A to B, you start to get bored. Take a Running Jump is a perfect example of a level which uses builders in several different ways - you turn a lemming around with a builder, you slow other lemmings down with builders, you cross gaps with builders, and you stop other lemmings splatting with builders. There is always going to be the need for a few building levels, but you have to make them as interesting and as challenging as possible! If you master that (which I haven't), you'll be able to make some pretty enjoyable levels!

[Clam]

Short and sweet is good. I like to explore and find new uses for the skills - often this means combining two skills in new and unexpected ways. If that includes builders, then so be it, but more often they're just there to link things together. That said, I have made some levels with a builder focus. "Escape from Alcatraz" is a special case though - this was primarily an exercise in landscaping, with a few lemmings thrown in http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/smiley.gif" alt=":)" title="Smiley" class="smiley" />

[geoo]

Short and sweet is good. I like to explore and find new uses for the skills - often this means combining two skills in new and unexpected ways. If that includes builders, then so be it, but more often they're just there to link things together. [...]

This. Pretty much this. http://www.lemmingsforums.com/Smileys/lemmings/thumbsup.gif" alt=":thumbsup:" title="Thumbs Up" class="smiley" />

Builders are not bad per se. The only reason they are worse then bashers, miners, diggers over long distances is that you even have to take care about them, i.e. re-assign them, and they are damn slow. Time should be spent figuring out the solution, not executing it. If a level's amount of builders can be cut without changing the gist of the solution, then it should be done (If the level then comes down to using a builder and being right at the exit, then there was something wrong with the solution right from the beginning). I'd say avoid filler that doesn't affect the solution if not needed, whether it be building, or just long distances. As ClamSpammer said: Short and sweet is good.

[Dullstar]

I like the builders, just not the long bridge builders!

[Adam]

I think geoo has summed building up perfectly! Heaven Can Wait (We Hope) is slightly different to the other long building levels. The level has a very short time limit, but the amount of building is directly linked to the amount of time needed to complete the level. Fewer builders would make the level too easy! Pillars of Hercules and Hunt the Nessy both use a huge amount of builders for the sake of using a huge amount of builders. I've not met anyone who really likes either of those levels, and I think the reason why people dislike the levels is pretty obvious!

I'm struggling to think of a style which doesn't have a horrible building level. All the styles have at least one evil building level. The Ascending Pillar Scenario, Heaven Can Wait, Lemmings in the Attic, Steel Works and Going Up... are some of the worst examples of building levels.

Try to avoid levels like those listed above at all costs! If you're making a pack of 30 levels, I'd have one long building level at most! They're needed, but they shouldn't be overused!

[Dullstar]

It's not the style's fault that they decided to give levels with that style the "Curse of the Builder."

[Adam]

True, but it shows that choosing one style over another isn't necessarily going to stop a huge building level being created! Some people may choose the blue style to create levels without as much building. The netting is an excellent way to move your lemmings to the top of a level without having to build, but there is still the potential for a huge building level in there... just like Going Up.

[Dullstar]

Who said you had to use it to do that?
Look, these building levels are stupid.
That's that.

[Clam]

I didn't think Ascending Pillar Scenario was terrible for being a building level - it was terrible for other reasons, namely 100% requirement and stingy time limit.

[Dullstar]

Same problem with Heaven Can Wait (We Hope!), only more boring, I bet.

[The Doctor]

Those levels became extremely lovely once I played them with Fast Fwd. lol.