I might as well post my thoughts on these levels since I completed them all today and the thoughts are still fresh. There may be spoilers in here if you haven't beaten the levels yet. Here are my rankings:
13.
Headbangers Walls
It was hard to rank these because, as Miika said, all these levels were really good. This one in particular stumped me for a while. There were so many unnecessary items and blocks that they proved to be effective red herrings, at least for me. Very strange level, but very good nonetheless. The name is another misleading factor; you would think you would have to push the blocks at the beginning into the force floors because you'll need to later, but no.
12.
Chipyramid
Another weird one in my opinion, but on a much smaller scale. The fireball cloner and tank/glider section in the middle were problematic, but only slightly, as this level isn't that hard once the trick is discovered.
11.
Slytherin Common Room
Probably an injustice for this to be ranked so low, as this is a very well made level, but it's a blob level, and so annoying parts are to be expected. But there are not too many and they can be overcome with some patience. You can have fun in the first room and there is a very easy route you can take. The most stressful room is probably the thief room despite there only being one blob to maneuver around. It may be a blob level, but it's a good blob level.
10.
Hyperspace Runway
I like the look of the runway, with a mix of force and ice. I thought I might have cooked the level in the block sliding section because I accidentally pushed a block into a corner. Thankfully, it's more forgiving than that, as there seems to be an extra block. The disparate sections of the level felt a little disconnected to me, but it's a fine level.
9.
Eden
A nice little level in the vein of "Tiny" that even feels a bit like that level, beyond just its wall layout.
8.
Choice Tools
Again, probably a miscarriage of justice that this isn't higher, but its gameplay was a little lacking. It's a much more impressive feat in creative terms. The whole time I was playing it, I couldn't help thinking about how hard it must've been to construct a level with so many layers and making sure it's possible with every combination. Kudos.
7.
Nitroglycerin Below 57F
A fun ice maze. I actually liked the title for the obvious CCLP1 level reference. It's harder to find your way around than you would think, while remaining completely safe which is appreciated. A careful player should be able to solve it on their first try thanks to a very lengthy time limit.
6.
Tonberry Estates
I disagree with Miika about the sokoban being "plain" as I thought it was very clever my first time playing. It may be a pretty easy sokoban, but it doesn't have to be hard to be good. The dodging sections were also fun. It wasn't immediately apparent to me what the purpose of the toggle walls was, but it's obvious by the end. I didn't open the doors with any kind of forethought, but was still able to make the fireball go where I wanted and now I wonder if there is a way to cook the level by opening the wrong set of doors. I was also wondering if there was something else to do because the recessed walls were not needed, but I guess it's just a shortcut back.
5.
Bomb Blockade
Now we're getting to the really good levels, and this level certainly is amazing. At first what appeared to me to be a fun and easy concept unraveled in the last room. I thought the flippers could be extra too, but my solution required me to get them, so I'm surprised there's a way to do it without getting them, apparently. This level exceeds initial expectations and is very memorable. To hear that this was Ruben's first level in 18 years is astonishing. It's great.
4.
Key Party
I know, I'm ranking my own level fairly high and I will probably be the only one to do so. But I surprised myself with this one. I was very satisfied with how it turned out, but the biggest flaw here is the 3 block slides at the end. I figured this would frustrate players, but unfortunately it couldn't really be helped because of what I had in mind for the solution. I thought of putting a hint at the beginning saying something like, "It's one of those 'don't collect too many keys' deals," but felt that that becomes pretty obvious right away. I thought Miika's assessment was fair, as the rules did say, "Do not make an overly difficult level" and I went pretty puzzle heavy. But for my first ever entry in a create comp, I think it's pretty good.
3.
Sticky Controls
Wow. First level in the pack and right off the bat, it's a puzzle that's a lot tougher than you think. I was stumped for quite a while, struggling with the flipper section in particular for some reason. I was surprised when Miika called Key Party perhaps the toughest puzzle in the running, because for me this was it (I know it's easy for me to say that, having always known the solution to Key Party, but I thought this level was very hard.) Genius level design with the space allotted and just a genius concept that I've never seen done this way before. The teleports at the end may be redundant, but I've always liked when there's a fun path to the exit after a very difficult puzzle so I liked that part. Amazing level.
2.
Frostbite Fortress
Really fun level with some moderate difficulty dodging and puzzles and then a surprisingly difficult sokoban towards the end that I just loved. I was going to rank Sticky Controls above this one but thought that this has more replay value so I gave it the # 2 spot. I didn't really think about it, but the tank room kind of does solve itself, but at that point in the level, it was good to have some easy sections after that sokoban that already caused me to restart once. I also loved the key puzzles at the beginning, even though those are easy as well.
1.
Warehouse of Lost Hopes and Dreams
I knew this would be my winner as soon as I finished playing it. This is not only my favorite level in the competition but maybe my favorite level ever. I just loved the flow, how you're not really certain what to do next, but somehow all your guesses turn out to be right. It's reminiscent of Ravaged, another of Josh's levels that uses the walls of a CCLP1 level (sort of), in terms of flow and that feeling of uncertainty followed by the great satisfaction of getting it right. Only this level is even better. It's never really that hard, although I did have several restarts, but they were all me making stupid mistakes. It's also a beautiful level, and the level it came from is so far removed, you won't really recognize it. Josh has a knack for creating levels that feel great to solve. You hit it out of the park with this one, Josh.
It's too bad these levels couldn't be in the voting pool, because I'd love to see some of them in CCLP4, especially Sticky Controls and WoLHaD. Everyone really did awesome with this comp and I thank Miika for hosting it.
~Bowman
13.
[Click to Show Content]
Headbangers Walls
It was hard to rank these because, as Miika said, all these levels were really good. This one in particular stumped me for a while. There were so many unnecessary items and blocks that they proved to be effective red herrings, at least for me. Very strange level, but very good nonetheless. The name is another misleading factor; you would think you would have to push the blocks at the beginning into the force floors because you'll need to later, but no.
12.
[Click to Show Content]
Chipyramid
Another weird one in my opinion, but on a much smaller scale. The fireball cloner and tank/glider section in the middle were problematic, but only slightly, as this level isn't that hard once the trick is discovered.
11.
[Click to Show Content]
Slytherin Common Room
Probably an injustice for this to be ranked so low, as this is a very well made level, but it's a blob level, and so annoying parts are to be expected. But there are not too many and they can be overcome with some patience. You can have fun in the first room and there is a very easy route you can take. The most stressful room is probably the thief room despite there only being one blob to maneuver around. It may be a blob level, but it's a good blob level.
10.
[Click to Show Content]
Hyperspace Runway
I like the look of the runway, with a mix of force and ice. I thought I might have cooked the level in the block sliding section because I accidentally pushed a block into a corner. Thankfully, it's more forgiving than that, as there seems to be an extra block. The disparate sections of the level felt a little disconnected to me, but it's a fine level.
9.
[Click to Show Content]
Eden
A nice little level in the vein of "Tiny" that even feels a bit like that level, beyond just its wall layout.
8.
[Click to Show Content]
Choice Tools
Again, probably a miscarriage of justice that this isn't higher, but its gameplay was a little lacking. It's a much more impressive feat in creative terms. The whole time I was playing it, I couldn't help thinking about how hard it must've been to construct a level with so many layers and making sure it's possible with every combination. Kudos.
7.
[Click to Show Content]
Nitroglycerin Below 57F
A fun ice maze. I actually liked the title for the obvious CCLP1 level reference. It's harder to find your way around than you would think, while remaining completely safe which is appreciated. A careful player should be able to solve it on their first try thanks to a very lengthy time limit.
6.
[Click to Show Content]
Tonberry Estates
I disagree with Miika about the sokoban being "plain" as I thought it was very clever my first time playing. It may be a pretty easy sokoban, but it doesn't have to be hard to be good. The dodging sections were also fun. It wasn't immediately apparent to me what the purpose of the toggle walls was, but it's obvious by the end. I didn't open the doors with any kind of forethought, but was still able to make the fireball go where I wanted and now I wonder if there is a way to cook the level by opening the wrong set of doors. I was also wondering if there was something else to do because the recessed walls were not needed, but I guess it's just a shortcut back.
5.
[Click to Show Content]
Bomb Blockade
Now we're getting to the really good levels, and this level certainly is amazing. At first what appeared to me to be a fun and easy concept unraveled in the last room. I thought the flippers could be extra too, but my solution required me to get them, so I'm surprised there's a way to do it without getting them, apparently. This level exceeds initial expectations and is very memorable. To hear that this was Ruben's first level in 18 years is astonishing. It's great.
4.
[Click to Show Content]
Key Party
I know, I'm ranking my own level fairly high and I will probably be the only one to do so. But I surprised myself with this one. I was very satisfied with how it turned out, but the biggest flaw here is the 3 block slides at the end. I figured this would frustrate players, but unfortunately it couldn't really be helped because of what I had in mind for the solution. I thought of putting a hint at the beginning saying something like, "It's one of those 'don't collect too many keys' deals," but felt that that becomes pretty obvious right away. I thought Miika's assessment was fair, as the rules did say, "Do not make an overly difficult level" and I went pretty puzzle heavy. But for my first ever entry in a create comp, I think it's pretty good.
3.
[Click to Show Content]
Sticky Controls
Wow. First level in the pack and right off the bat, it's a puzzle that's a lot tougher than you think. I was stumped for quite a while, struggling with the flipper section in particular for some reason. I was surprised when Miika called Key Party perhaps the toughest puzzle in the running, because for me this was it (I know it's easy for me to say that, having always known the solution to Key Party, but I thought this level was very hard.) Genius level design with the space allotted and just a genius concept that I've never seen done this way before. The teleports at the end may be redundant, but I've always liked when there's a fun path to the exit after a very difficult puzzle so I liked that part. Amazing level.
2.
[Click to Show Content]
Frostbite Fortress
Really fun level with some moderate difficulty dodging and puzzles and then a surprisingly difficult sokoban towards the end that I just loved. I was going to rank Sticky Controls above this one but thought that this has more replay value so I gave it the # 2 spot. I didn't really think about it, but the tank room kind of does solve itself, but at that point in the level, it was good to have some easy sections after that sokoban that already caused me to restart once. I also loved the key puzzles at the beginning, even though those are easy as well.
1.
[Click to Show Content]
Warehouse of Lost Hopes and Dreams
I knew this would be my winner as soon as I finished playing it. This is not only my favorite level in the competition but maybe my favorite level ever. I just loved the flow, how you're not really certain what to do next, but somehow all your guesses turn out to be right. It's reminiscent of Ravaged, another of Josh's levels that uses the walls of a CCLP1 level (sort of), in terms of flow and that feeling of uncertainty followed by the great satisfaction of getting it right. Only this level is even better. It's never really that hard, although I did have several restarts, but they were all me making stupid mistakes. It's also a beautiful level, and the level it came from is so far removed, you won't really recognize it. Josh has a knack for creating levels that feel great to solve. You hit it out of the park with this one, Josh.
It's too bad these levels couldn't be in the voting pool, because I'd love to see some of them in CCLP4, especially Sticky Controls and WoLHaD. Everyone really did awesome with this comp and I thank Miika for hosting it.
~Bowman
~Bowman