Elephant Pack - Discussion

[Ihavenoname248]

Unwanted Guest (#4): I had to replay this level a few times, as I can never remember what my thoughts were on it. And I have to say, I kept underestimating it. At first, it seems to be a 'rush' level where mistakes will force a restart. But then you realize that doesn't work out and try to look for different approaches- the low time limit helps by making it seem like there's only one method. The teleport and buttons end up working very nicely as well. 45 seconds is low, but the level can be done in ~20. I can't completely quantify why I like this level.

No Green Key (#14): Simple in concept, but quite fun. I especially like the symmetry used here and the ability to manually set the toggle and tank cycles.

Escaping Nowhere (#19): SE thin walls are the only multi-thin walls in CC1, and stacking them in a grid like this has a lovely aesthetic to it. However, that's really all the level has going for it- I enjoyed it, but there's a lot of wandering around through winding pathways. I wouldn't mind seeing it in CCLP4 as a 60-90 breather level, but I think there's probably stronger picks for both itemswappers and this sort of aesthetic. (Still comes to mind)

Totally Inappropriate (#22): So, it's a medley level of concepts from its source set. (Bowman? KTNUSA2) There are some really neat rooms (the glider room especially) but the tank and walker sections really just aren't fun to play.

Typical Hollywood Christmas (#26): Ugh. Speaking of not fun to play. I'm really not sure how this is in the voting- I remember testing it to make sure it was solvable and it's just a chaotic mess. There's no safe places and you can get trapped and killed by collisions you couldn't even see beforehand. There's melee levels, and then there's memorize the safe route levels, and then there's this level where you try to find a route and then hope the walkers don't screw you over.

Chip Leak Watermelon (#36): Not a very strong pick from me. The solution is pretty much just follow a wall and zigzag around- I solved it on my first attempt without the map. There's just not very much going on here for a recessed wall level- Connect the Chips from CCLP1 looks like a burned chip tile which is neat and makes up for the lack of gameplay depth. So that leaves this level as a puzzle... which, well, it's not much of one.

Come to the Light (#37): I haven't replayed this level since I went through the CCLP1 voting packs. I didn't like it then, and looking at the map and remembering what the solution takes, I don't like it now. Similar to Unwanted Guest, I can't really completely put my finger on why I can't stand this level. Sorry Dave!

Death to Us All (#43): Everything has it's place. The neat part is how the 'excess' blocks are used for redirection and then dirt to deflect the pink balls at the end. It almost solves itself, slowly, but there's a few design elements I'm not huge on with ordering and such. Still a great level, but at least for me it's not quite exceptional. (If there were decimal ratings, this would be ~4.3 from me)

Favorite level: Variety Show (#29)

Least favorite: Typical Hollywood Christmas (#26)

Yes, I know that my favorite from the pack is one of mine. I just really like the flow of the level and the ball room at the start. This pack has a lot of very good levels- I expect to see 6 to 8 from it in the final set.