March 2013 Create Levels and Voting (and Results)
#2
Just to clarify a bit, you don't have to list all the levels in your votes, particularly your own, but you can omit others too if you can't make up your mind. You do not need to solve the levels to be able to evaluate them, as I think you an form an opinion on them even by not figuring them out completely. You can also state if you think two levels are perfectly tied in your opinion, though this will make combining the votes a little more difficult for me. Also, I think the levels are intended to be played first before you look at them in an editor, but of course you can still vote on them even if you first look at the map. Once you get your ballots in, I won't release the exact lists, but I may comment on statistical aspects regarding all of them combined.



I also thought I'd post everyone's write-ups of the levels here, so you don't necessarily need to get the ccx file and read them in TW 2.0.



Level 1

- Michael; no write-up, no worries.





Ancient Glider Temple

- Flareon350




Like 50% of my levels, this one was created while listening to this VGM (video game music) called "The Ancient Temple" from Pac-Man World 3. Here's a link to listen to the music, if you're interested:





This game is my 2nd favorite game of all time and this is one of the levels you play through in that game. Actually this specific level in Pac-Man World 3 I was stuck on for months on end, that I had to contact the makers of the game for help. The music though fits perfectly with both the game's level and the level I made for this competition.



The level I made, took about 40 minutes to create and make fully solvable. While viewing it in an editor, the level looks very difficult but it nowhere near as difficult as it looks. The level includes a puzzle, precision, a chase scene, backtracking, and a basic plot (if you were to view it on a storyline basis), all in a simple 60 seconds given to solve it. On top of all this, it is also Lynx compatible and is based off my favorite monster in CC, the glider. Not to sound modest, but I think this level would pull through being in an official set in the future (with a bit higher time limit though)!



Hope you enjoy! Slight smile



Tricks & Traps

- CraigV




I had always wanted a level with that set up of traps and buttons for a while, but I could never find the time to use it. So I decided to make it the first puzzle in the level. But the time it took for the tank to reach the first trap button was much too short, so I had to expand it greatly. Not having adequate space to do so, however, meant that I had to use an ice turn.



The next challenge is one I've seen in a lot of other levels, in a sense, but never have used myself. The teeth were just asking for use, however, so I went with it. The challenge here was the switching the toggles again. I found that, without the force floor pointed up next to the gravel, the teeth would not be able to push the button again when it was needed. This issue was solved with a little bit of creative thinking.



The final puzzle was the result of wanting to have a four-puzzle system with a central hub to return to. The three puzzles are just ones I thought would be interesting to switch to. And of course, for those who like it, optimize.



Shemozzle

- jblewis




I watched an episode of the American reality TV series "The Amazing Race" (in which teams of two people with a pre-existing relationship race around the world for a cash prize) where the contestants went to New Zealand. While they were there, they had the opportunity to partake in a rather interesting cultural touchstone called the "Shemozzle Race." To put it simply, competitors would race with a sheep dog through a very outlandish obstacle course. The version in which the Race contestants participated was much milder and included tasks such as crawling through tight spaces to get covered in molasses (or "tar") and feathers, carrying a dozen chicken eggs to the very end without dropping any (though they could make multiple runs until they got all of the eggs), and sliding on a slick slip-and-slide into a pit of mud or manure, where the finish line would be. The real version is a cross-country event and includes even more ridiculous challenges such as eating raw eggs, carrying around bull testicles in one's mouth, and more.



When I heard about the Create Competition for this month, I had two ideas I wanted to try: a "race" level with various stages and a "Replay"-style level in which all of the options were small and short. I started to design the latter and even went as far as to make it a "blown-up" version of LESSON 1's layout, with each of the rooms holding one of the chips the player could choose. But in the end, this linear race idea felt more fun. My original vision was to call the level "Boot Camp" and have the player run through an obstacle course like people do in a real boot camp. But with dodging and a bit of teeth-leading involved, I thought the Shemozzle race would be a fun "real-life" game to portray in CC. Obviously, not everything could be portrayed here. But I tried to include an "item collection" bit at the beginning (much like the "hold all of the eggs you can" challenge), plenty of quick dodging challenges that test the reflexes, a fun "slip and slide" near the end, and a "mud pit" as the final room. There's even a "shepherd dog" (teeth monster), but in the interest of keeping up the player's momentum, I thought it'd work better to have the teeth disappear from the first room and help you out at the end. Slight smile You'll also notice that there's at least one of every monster in this level.



Enjoy!



In or Out

- jblewis




This level was somewhat inspired by Miika's "Volcanic Island." Slight smile The 9x9 room in the middle is an adaptation of an (unreleased JBLP2) level that was originally a lot bigger. It's also based on an idea I saw in a Chuck's Challenge custom level, called "Splash" (and which has also been used in some custom CC levels, like Pit of 100 Tiles's "Bridges for Bugs." However, I wanted to take it step further and initially make the puzzle appear impossible at first by forcing the player to block the path to the exit via toggle button pressing should all the blocks be retrieved. In reality, though, only five are needed.



Initially, this level contained only the central room as an island amidst a large body of water on the outside that connected to the "path" of water inside the room. Then, I thought, with that "path" in the central room, why not make a bunch of "streams" on the outside to which it could connect? Before I knew it, the whole thing was turning into a maze...and then I started to wonder, why not actually offer a maze as a second option to complete the level? Players could either figure out a puzzle under pressure or wander around outside the puzzle while dodging a few monsters under pressure. But either way, they would have 60 seconds. Originally, the maze was very strict and had some terribly mean dead ends. The pop-up wall that allowed easy access to it wasn't even there. But after a while, I figured going the "Half and Half" route with tons of deceptive paths wasn't entirely the best option, so I decided to modify the maze such that multiple paths led in the same direction toward the exit. There's only one real "dead end" area of consequence, as well as a long path toward the goal that can be bypassed via a shortcut toward the beginning of the maze, so it should be fairly reasonable to complete.



The Beach

- Minus3K2




My sister draw a level that was full of dirt. From that I got the idea of making a beach and the player would visit different islands. Before you go into the water, you have to put on your swimsuit in the changing area. Watch out for other swimmers! At the end you go to have ice cream at the bar.


Flip-Side-Up

- random 8




The idea for this level started with an unfinished level in CCMiniLP.dat/ConsistentInconsistency.dat, "ALSO UNFINISHED" (the previous level was called "UNFINISHED" for similar reasons). After CCLP1 submissions ended, progress on this level stalled indefinitely.



Fast-forward to the March 2013 Create competition. In the opening post, Miika mentions that the previous year's March Create competition involved restricting the level to a 9x9 area; this inspired the idea to use this UNFINISHED level as a template. Several days were spent making this level, with some playtesting along the way. During one of these playtesting moments, when most of the fourth room had been built, the level proved to be too long to fit the 60-second time limit requirement; thus, decisively, the level was cut in half for the competition. The original 4-room level, however, will be untimed, slightly renamed, and released in ConsistentInconsistency.dat on the set's next update.


That Ticking Noise

- rockdet




I had that sudden idea: What if you were awaken by a ticking noise, to find out someone placed a bomb under your bed? That's quite a twisted situation, but let's say you don't necessarily have to live a clean and fair life as well for your head to be wanted. Now they're trying to get you and your family, so you have to gather your things and leave the house.


I had as an initial idea to place some Chip characters in the other bedrooms as the kids and the wife, but I still wanted the level to be Lynx-compatible, so instead I placed chips in the respective rooms. The walls are all painted in blue, the X-shaped things are beds with blocks as pillows, the remaining blocks are desks. There are chips in the bedrooms (more precisely: in the wardrobes and drawers): they represent clothes, since it's freezing cold outside. The pink ball is a toy, two ways to explain why it moves: Either your kid is playing with it right now (but not represented for Lynx purposes) or it's simply possessed. I should also point out that the thin walls are doors in the house. Anyhow, get your kid and move on!


Now the second bedroom: The teeth there is an electric toy powered by a battery, but you don't have time to mess around with it! Instead of Chip characters, I placed a chip in there as well to assume you're getting your kid to follow you and actually take his clothes as well.


Now the bathroom: I really like my washing machine with the blob cloner, like it's saying "dirty stuff goes there". Shower with sliding door at the far left, toilet at the far right and sink also on the right. No time for all of this so let's just grab your pants out of the drying machine and quickly urinate because you can't hold it...


Random room with dumbbells: they be toys, let's not even open it. Now's the kitchen. Your kid is starving, so quickly get something to eat. The youngest one has forgotten his favourite toy which is in the living room, lying on the couch. Quickly get it, but don't hurt your pinky toe on the electric train lying in the way! Now prepare to leave, get your coats on, but what? Have you forgotten something? Yes: the car key. Go get it and leave the house!


Not pointed out yet is the TV, made of gravel tiles. That makes it look like you don't get the signal, which could be the case, since opening it with the green button doesn't seem to work... There's also a computer around. The dining room table has a glass middle, and the chairs had to be movable to be realistic! The fire tile is the oven, there are also 2 sinks in the kitchen. The blue thing in the middle of the kitchen also represents a furniture. Also, the blue button outside is the doorbell. Many details out there, but last thing to know is that it's a reproduction of my house! I just added the toys for the sake of having a decent yet not that difficult challenge, and the bomb as for an emergency scenario. So there you are: That Ticking Noise!



200m Free Style

- rockdet




I had that idea in my bed one night, and I thought that it would be a very rad concept. Ever wanted to play it Phelps-style!? Now's your chance! Chip has his chance to shine at the Olympic pool. Now building this level was much harder than what I thought it would be, and it left me with not a lot of possibilities, especially on the interactive side. The solve is trivial, but at the same time, those races ARE trivial, Chip does the effort. It's an individual thing, and there's not a lot to influence the other swimmers' performance, since everything flows 5 tiles a second. Chip has the potential to beat them, though.


Mechanics include pink balls giving the starting blow, on the form of "On your marks", "Get Set", GO! Those appear as blocks on the bottom of the screen, while the first ball blows the bomb, the second opens the gates and the race is on! First 50m gets the suction to get the red on the 2nd one. 3rd gets the chip for the socket at the final rush. Excitement!!! You have to win it or tie it, or else the tank will turn around blocking the access to the gold medal. That happens exactly 1 move after the other swimmers would pass there, controlled by the fireball.


Last thing worth mentioning: This is always the same race. There wasn't really any way to make it randomized in a way that would benefit Chip, so like I said, it's a trivial solve, the idea's the real plus of that level. It also works in Lynx, but because of the boosting, your head start will be greater in MS.



There you are!



Protect Me as I Protect You

- BlazingApollo




Uh... what should I start with?



Ah, right. In this short level, your task is to guide Chip to climb to the top of the tower. The tower design itself is quite simple: just a straight path, with ice floors surrounding it, and switching toggle doors as the wall. At the start, a teeth will try to kill you in the corridor. Of course, there's no other way to sneak through this guy, as you will bounce back when moving left or right, sliding and hitting the toggle door.



Good thing is, you are protected by a single block.



And this block is special, as it can protect you from all but one hazard, and that is the deadly, magical pink sphere. Once the block gets a full-hit from it, the block will lose it's power to help you finish the level.



Be careful, the tower is not an easy challenge to beat. Fireballs, missiles (gliders), tank guards, and magical spheres, they will be fired into the small pathway.



Can you use the block wisely to protect you as you climb the dangerous tower? And also, can you return the favor by protecting it from pink spheres?



...And I can't believe that's what I wrote xD



Bricks

- random 8




The decision to make a second entry grew as more people posted in the thread that they submitted second entries. The chances of Flip-Side-Up making the top ranks began to appear worrisome, though now that this level is complete, Bricks appears to have a WORSE chance. But enough of my time has been spent on this competition as it is.



Like the previous level, the original construct proved to be too long to be reasonably solved within 60 seconds. However, [spoiler: read backwards].sdnoces ytxis naht erom eriuqer yam ti hguoht ,noisrev siht ni elbaod llits si noitulos lanigiro ehT ."tuc trohs" a wolla ot deifidom saw level eht ,devlah gnieb fo daetsni


The level layout/idea was originally intended for what is now Black Jack (made approximately 3-4 years ago) in ConsistentInconsistency.dat: "Chip is running to the exit, but--Oh, no!--there's an invisible wall in front of it! Now he's definitely going to get hit by the--wait, there's a secret side passage...and another exit!" And so it would continue (this idea isn't entirely my own, either, but partly suggested by an old classmate of mine). From Black Jack and this level, it should be clear that this idea still hasn't been completely fulfilled: one only has the layout, the other only the concept. It probably never will be fulfilled either, given my change in tastes since that time.



Impedence

- random 8




I know, i wrote that i can't spend any more time on this competition, but this concept was really simple to implement. The inspiration to make this level was actually recent, coming from Miika's "Nested Replay" in the March 2013 Time Trial Competition. The main difficulty when making this level was probably the name. Unlike the other two levels, there were no issues keeping the time limit within 60 seconds. It was initially titled "Catalyst" but that seemed too revealing (as if this level is one of the toughest in existence).



...Yeah, not too much on this last one. Sorry about that. Hopefully my lengthiness in the other two descriptions compensate for it.



Addendum: The "CHEATER!" written at the bottom of each level was inspired by level 17, "Wormhole Blockage", in the set BigOto Returns.



Bringing Up the Rear

- BigOto2; appropriately for a last-minute entry, no write-up.





Now let's here all of your reactions to the levels!



-Miika

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March 2013 Create Levels and Voting (and Results) - by M11k4 - 09-Apr-2013, 2:33 AM

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