Zephyr Pack - Discussion

[jbdude55]

Playing 550 levels in six weeks can really take its toll on a person, as is evident by me not completing a pack every day as I did at the start of voting! I'm going to be away for another week or so, so I thought I'd finish up one more pack before then. Here are my thoughts and comments on the Zephyr Pack:


#1 (Blockage) - Challenging, takes the concept a good distance without resorting to (excessively) dirty trickery. I'd perhaps like to see a slightly more generous time limit as a fair bit of thinking is required. Good level.


#5 (Stairway Mazers) - Great fun to play, not so great to reach the exit and realize you missed a chip five minutes ago that you now can't get back to.


#13 (Four Ants) - Frenetic and kind of fun in a weird way, but not sure it's the right fit for CCLP1.


#17 (The Maze that Turned On and Off) - Great concept that reminded me of SLO MO, but much more exciting. I struggled at first, but with a keen strategy it's possible to give the teeth monsters the run around all day long. Just the right size, as I feel the intensity would be diluted were the level any bigger. Good stuff.


#18 (Confounded) - Great level, although even with a +10min time limit I still only had 9s left when I completed it. The itemswapper section at the end was one heck of a hurry, and even though it was so simple, the speed meant I didn't really notice it. I imagine quicker routes might have to watch out for the tank, as I never saw it once I'd pressed the brown button.


#19 (Fresh) - Basically a JUMPING SWARM rehash, so I loved it. Saying that, I think a lot more could have been done with this level, such as spicing it up with some obstacles (fire and blocks would be the best choices since they won't kill the walkers), but not overdoing it so that the level feels messy and crowded.


#20 (Protect Your Fortress) - Made an educated guess which turned out to be correct. I must admit, watching all that junk pour into the circular FF room is amazing, even if the slide delay in MS is ludicrous.


#23 (Into the Vortex) - I completed it without using the suction boots a la Bouncing Blocks. Good, simple block pushing level.


#26 (Backfire) - Most useful hint in Chip's Challenge history. Loved it (:


#28 (Fireball) - This was one of the weirdest levels I've seen yet, I had to restart so many times since I had no idea what was going on and I was dead by the time I'd worked it out. The repeated quick-stepping out of traps required later in the level would probably defeat a lot of new players, as you can't simply hold the direction you want to go in or you'll get trampled every time (I'm sure everyone can relate to the pink ball/trap mechanism in CC1's PLAYTIME, no?). See the "Stupid deaths" thread for an example of this


#32 (Guarded Hallways) - I found that following the advice of the hint cooks the level, since going to the corner rooms first frees the teeth from the north central room, blocking the entrance. I would either change the hint wording to tackle this room first, or remove the teeth altogether, since it can easily be drowned anyway and only adds a minor dodging challenge.


#33 (Ratchet) - Very clever design and lots of fun to play, always wondering if the next blue button press will be your last... (:


#36 (4 Ways to Win) - Filled to the brim with shenanigans, but I'll forgive it since it's short and sweet. Finding all the solutions will keep most people busy long after the first has been found. Good level.


#40 (The Perks of Dodging a Block) - Who wants to see a level in CCLP1 that ends with slide delay hell like BLOCKBUSTER? I'm guessing no-one. The shortness of the level redeems it slightly, however, since it doesn't take too much effort to retry.


#41 (Novice Hall) - Rather simple, but not trivial, and does include nearly all the tiles in the game, so might work well in the early part of the set as a review level of sorts.


#43 (Snowflake) - A well designed ice maze that's not too taxing. I liked the room in the SE with the thin walls, and thought the rest of the level could have done with a little bit more variety like this room. Also, perhaps a slightly higher time limit?


#44 (Changing Lanes II) - Slightly trickier than the original, which I prefer. This isn't a bad level by any stretch, but avoiding the tanks (especially the one in the south) can get a tad annoying with a blob in control of the blue button.


#46 (Broken Portal) - After the Rainstorm in CCLP2 stumped many people with the requirement of the ram, so how is including it in CCLP1 (see below) in any way fair? Under the block in this picture is a thin wall S, which keeps the block on the N force floor (where the teeth is in this picture). But once Chip step on the thin wall S tile, the block gets dumped on his head, with no explanation why...



Also, as has already been pointed out, the "hint" does not serve its purpose in MS. Lastly, the NW room with the chips and gliders is incredibly annoying, exacerbated by the fact that it's right at the end of the level.


#50 (Chip Away) - The hint is somewhat misleading, as if you unlock the first yellow door you see at the end, you have no green keys and the level is cooked - but this is a moot point since you can see this from behind the yellow door. A great level that requires patience and consideration.