Feedback thread gm5

[Pulluxx]

I've played through version number 1.3.0 (and some levels I missed before), here's my feedback:

15 RIVER

I really like these levels as companion pieces to the longer levels: levels with not many variables to solve the puzzle, but is tricky nevertheless. I solved it in another way than the replay;

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I placed the block on the right side of the river, all hell broke loose but one glider managed to hit the green switch. During the chaos I ran to get the helmet, having a fun time dodging all the gliders going haywire

. Really fun level.

17 MORE TANKS

After reading what you had to say I got how it was supposed to work. It's a very interesting and cool concept, but I personally was pretty satisfied with tank-controlling hijinks after the first Tanks. It's a different kind of puzzle where you have to get into another mind frame, so I think others may enjoy this more than me.

20 MOROS' CAMPAIGN

This is a very carefully sculpted level, and it shows. One of the levels I was drawn into early on, it has a very nice layout. I was clueless at first however where to go, after some playing I managed to get all the chips except for the two at the end of the flamethrower path (I tried to solve that part multiple times but I'm pretty stuck there). As far as I've come this is probably my favorite of the new levels, however there is some things I think could be better: there is a lot of wires on this level that go pretty far - it's hard to see what they are doing and how to adjust your strategy after them. Also it's a lot of options available for you and no real direction available; it both contributes to the flavor of the level while also making it hard to formulate a plan of attack. From what I've played so far however I think it's one of your better levels with a fresh design.

21 SIMPLE FIERY MAZE

Very literal title . Straight forward level but kinda generic. The addition of the block you could move and the fire boots was nice though.

22 SET AND RESET

Naturally when seeing all those wires I was a bit taken back. Once I started experimenting with the level it was less complicated than I thought. The solitary focus of the level made the concept go down easily. A smart and fun to play level.

23 BUILDING A BRIDGE

Short and sweet sandbox-y level, neither too hard nor too easy. I liked it.

24 ALL THAT YELLOW

I like how some components seems haphazardly placed but are really integral to the level. Fun level, very neatly designed and compact.

25 OH NO! MORE PUSHING

This level. Woah. I think I can pull off the opening glider guiding and red key sokoban while sleeping due to the many times I've repeated it. I had a very difficult time with the yellow key sokoban, so personally this level was really hard for me. The fact that there was more sections after that made me a bit fatigued, thankfully they are much easier than the yellow key sokoban. The solution for the fireball problem I used seemed a bit off, and looking at your solution it was not the same as yours

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I brought with me a block from the yellow key room and placed it in the room with the doors and keys in order to revert the fireballs path into the turtle room

. This level was very hard for me, but in a good way. As a bonus it was also nice to look at.

26 100 SWITCHES

I did not understand the first hint, the grammar feels a bit off. I messed around on this a bit without any help from the hints, but without any idea of the logic behind it it was just guesswork (which I'm guessing it's not). I think a better worded hint is needed here.

RESTRICTIONS is really cool too btw, I actually had the same idea myself. Embarassingly enough I'm stuck on the last puzzle, but I think I can write that off to my brain being cooked after level number 25 .

As always, your levels are hard, neatly designed, usually with a constricted space to work in. I find myself spending a lot of time with most of them in order to solve them, I almost always know what I'm supposed to do (which is awesome), just not how to execute it properly. My biggest (and highly subjective, so take it as you will) gripe as before is the generic naming of the levels; I think it's fine with having literal titles for levels, but when almost every level has a plain as day title I become less excited about playing them. And I think a lot of your levels are great and deserve a good presentation. But I'm superficial like that

[_H_]

Feedback is always very helpful, especially such extensive one, so thanks a lot!

15 RIVER
Producing chaos - sounds deadly

20 MOROS' CAMPAIGN
The size and finding out what to do, makes this imo one of the hardest levels in the set. There is however no order in which you have to solve most puzzles; as soon as one is accessible you can choose to do it, or save it till the rest is done, and in the end you need all, as you need all three objectives to get to the exit. So it's not that mean in this regard. Each single puzzle is not supposed to be that hard, but some are not trivial, like the flamethrower one. If you end up, with a parity which isn't resolved that easily, an approach would be, step on some aoe buttons randomly, and try solving it again, since the probability to run into one isn't that high.

25 OH NO! MORE PUSHING
The difficulty from the first to the second sokoban ramps up really fast, just as in the lemmings game the title is referring to. I was a bit worried, that I made it a bit too tricky, so good to hear that you solved and enjoyed it.

26 100 SWITCHES
It's supposed to be a mathematical puzzle, in other words, no guesswork is required. Since I'm not a hundred percent sure, what makes the hints unclear, I'll try to explain them here first:
Part 1 reads: EITHER USE EVERY SWITCH ONCE THEN EVERY SECOND ONE, THEN EVERY THIRD ETC.
Part 2: OR THINK ABOUT IT AND SAVE YOURSELF A LOT OF WORK.
I guess it's the first phrase in part 1, use every switch once (a comma is missing), where use might not be unambiguous - which means step on a switch, so if it was off before, it will be on afterwards, if it was on, it will be off. A better verbalization might be, step on each switch one time.
Then every second one, might sound like there are two ways to interpret it in the first moment, but as long as you keep in mind, that the game has to terminate at some point, you know that 1, 3, 5,... is not an option.
Executing all the steps from part one is a lot of tedious work, that's where part two kicks in, which means, which switches will be on, and which off, after the termination.

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With simple combinatorics and number theory, the solution is pretty obvious, but in fact you just need to know how multiplying and dividing two numbers works, and how numbers are compared (what a number is greater than another one, or equal,... means) to solve the puzzle.

The main question is, would the wording for part one Either step on each switch one time, then every second one, then every third etc. make it perspicuous, or are there more problems regarding the hints?

[Pulluxx]

I think it's the fact that the first hint has 'either' in it I naturally assumed that the suggestions separated with commas was the multiple options the 'either' referred to, as in:

Either step on switches 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,10,11,12,13...

or step on switches 1,3,5,7,9,11,13

or step on switches 1,4,7,10,13 etc.

or think about it

If that is the case, I would word it something like "Either use every switch, every other switch or every third switch etc." and start the second hint with something akin to "Otherwise you can just think about it..." in order to properly separate the two hints. Otherwise, if the hints are supposed to be connected and the two options are:

Either step on switches 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,10,11,12,13...

and then step on switches 1,3,5,7,9,11,13

and then step on switches 1,4,7,10,13 etc.

or think about it

I would move the 'or' to the first hint or end it with a semicolon so you know for sure that both hints are part of the same sentence and that the 'either' refers to the second hint.

Oh, and to clarify: I don't think MOROS' CAMPAIGN is mean, it's just tricky and a bit difficult to see how the wires go, as in the room to the right of the exit (is the title an anagram by the way?).

[_H_]

Now I get it
Just to avoid confusion, it's:
Either step on switches 1, 2, 3,...
and then step on switches 2, 4, 6,...
and then step on switches 3, 6, 9,...
and so on,
or think about it.
I will change the hint the next update. Due to the length restrictions it will be:

Part1: EITHER STEP ON EVERY SWITCH, AND THEN STEP ON EVERY OTHER SWITCH, AND THEN STEP ON EVERY THIRD, AND SO ON, OR THINK ABOUT IT.
Part2: IF YOU SOLVE THE MATHEMATICAL PUZZLE, YOU CAN SAVE YOURSELF A LOT OF WORK.

I thought of Moros, the personification of impending doom, and deadly fate in Greek mythology B)

[geodave]

I actually know the answer to that puzzle. I hope someone posts a let's play trying to figure it out. :-)

[_H_]

[Pulluxx]

Nice with a new update! I'm downloading it now

[mobius]

I started playing this pack. Some really nice levels. I liked the sokobons near the beginning so far. Some good challenges. Fyi; I generally only play levels which are short or small or don't require a lot of redo.

Ships -- nice dodging puzzle. I like the effect created. I like having to work out a path instead of just quick thinking/dodging. I made (plan to remake) a level with a sort of similar idea.

Tanks was a really cool concept. I loved that one. What Josh Bone said about the tanks missing a step on the teleport; I did not even realize this. The level was pretty simple for me without knowing that or a whole lot of planning either--there's a limited number of options after all. But it still required some thinking and I liked it.

In Beijin Demons; I wanted to look at it in the editor to see how the exit thing worked [that shocked me] but you're titles are different so could you explain it or tell me which file is this level so I can see it?

[_H_]

Thanks for your feedback

Tanks was a really cool concept. I loved that one. What Josh Bone said about the tanks missing a step on the teleport; I did not even realize this.

I changed the step mechanic by delaying the movement to the right, so the mentioned behavior in #2 is not in the level anymore, as written in #3.

In Beijin Demons; I wanted to look at it in the editor to see how the exit thing worked [that shocked me] but you're titles are different so could you explain it or tell me which file is this level so I can see it?

The file name for this level is od.c2m
The idea is cloning chip, as there is initially just one chip in the level, as soon as a clone makes it to an exit, the level is finished.

[mobius]

I really liked: Set and Reset and Bouncy Balls Restrictions was also good, and difficult. I agree the last sokobon is quite a hard one.

I need some help on 100 Switches, first of all, regarding the hint:
Can it be summed up with: either use trial and error or solve the puzzle? (in which case I suggest changing the hint to exactly that or something similar otherwise it's way-over complicated and confusing. Or don't even bother with a hint, I think it's pretty obvious there is a puzzle going on here.)

Trial and error is obviously ridiculous here, but as to the puzzle; unless I'm totally missing something all you have are 100 switches, numbered from 1 to 100. And the question is: which switches need to be on? With out any other information there is no puzzle.

Or is the hint part of the clue to the puzzle? If so, I still don't understand it; even after reading your hint in your above post. The only thing I can think of is some commonly known number theory involving 100 numbers (or items) that I don't know about. I don't know where to begin.
Are there audio or visual clues that happen after so may switches are pressed? (I tried but heard none) Do I need to press a whole lot of switches before something happens? [i don't see what can happen and you can't go up and check to see if the door is open and return].

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I see you are also a fan of Oh, No More Lemmings