March 2014 Time Trial - Push Something
#1
A new Time Trial is upon us! Well, almost, as I'm having trouble uploading the file to play Tongue I'll announce it anyway and type out the rules, and then add in the link later.

Your task, should you accept it, is to solve up to three levels from the soon to be updated CCZoneTT.dat. The levels are #62, #63, and #64. They are called

14.2 A - Block Me to the Moon (time limit of 150; built by Miika)
14.2 B - Braintime (time limit of 200; built by Miika)
14.2 C - Shambles (time limit of 400; built by J.B.)


EDIT:
the file is now
available
!


It's always a bit tricky to build the right level for a time trial. A good level is not too easy to optimize and it is not overly complicated either. It's fun to figure out what the best approach to a level is without it being too obvious, and on the other hand it is important to have some sense of security that one is on the right track. Random levels are annoying, because it takes the focus of the task away from figuring out the path to take, to one of executing a route with the most luck the quickest. Chaotic levels with tons of creature collisions are not fun either, as it feels like one needs the help of a computer to actually find what should be done. Boosting levels can divide opinions, so not every time trial level should be heavy on boosting, though it is a theme that can be visited. Levels where the solution is mapped out for the player feel like there is nothing to actually compete about. Sometimes a designer can come up with a nifty trick to save time on a level and build it into the level, but if this trick is too obvious and saves too much time, even that can feel like it is too easy. There are so many lines that should ideally be avoided when making a time trial level, that it's a wonder that any levels end up working well. Luckily, a time trial level can also take some paths that some levels can't, as the audience is not so wide. For example, a maze with chip collecting might be dull to play otherwise, but with the right topology it can become one of the most exciting time trial levels.

All of that is a preface for me to say that I have usually avoided block pushing in the time trial levels I have made. It is not simple to make an engaging block pushing area that actually has many approaches that might work well. On the other hand, if you just create a complex sokoban, there are programs that can do all the work for the player and the level fails to create any meaningful competition. This month though, I thought I'd take a crack at a couple simple block pushing levels. I made a couple simple ones but was a bit worried if the challenge would be too basic. Luckily, J.B. submitted a level for the February Create Competition that I felt would partner up well with my levels and provide a nice final challenge. A prefect time trial is one where several skilled participants can challenge each other without too much effort and still not end up in a tie, while at the same time more casual participants can still enjoy the levels. Let's see how this month turns out!

The usual rules apply in this form:
1) The person with the highest combined remaining time on these three levels wins! You may enter in either Lynx or MS, with the latter being the primary rules (meaning that any Lynx solution times that exceed the best MS solution time will be considered equal to that MS time, but otherwise all the times will be compared together in one category). Ties in overall score won't be broken.
2) Please send your solutions (either the tws file or avis) to me at valeosote at hotmail dot com
. Do not post your solutions or solution times or share them with others. All times will be published at the same time, and the quickest solutions will eventually be released. I will strive to respond to your message by a confirmation that your score has been recorded.
3) The levels shouldn't be too hard to solve. Don't be afraid to send in your solutions even if you sense they aren't perfect, and simple casual solutions are also appreciated. You may enter even if you do not solve all the levels.
4) This is part of the current 2014 season of the Chip Cup. Winner will be awarded 15 points, second place 12, third 10 points, and so on. If you win a competition here for the first time, you receive the "You're Winner!" award. All participants who haven't participated in a time trial earlier receive the "Run, Chip, Run" award. If your name is Tom, I will mention you in a comic I will draw.
5) Submission deadline is midnight on<span style="color:rgb(255,0,0);"> Monday, March 31st where you live. I will be a little bit stricter than usual with this deadline as I want to release the results before the release of CCLP1. You can send in improvements while the competitions is running, so there is no downside to sending in something you know might not be your best effort if you had forever to work on it.
6) I reserve the right to update the levels within the first week of release. If you find any odd things about the levels, please give me a nudge. I will only apply changes that make the competition better, which means I might fix a ridiculous bust or some other aspect that is obviously meant to work in some other fashion. If any updates are made, I will alert you in this thread. However, no updates will be made after March 12th in any case.

Report any problems or ask any questions here!
I would really love to see as many submissions as possible this time around. Most importantly, please enjoy!

-Miika

http://cczone.invisionzone.com/index.php?/files/file/360-%7B?%7D/
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#2
Submitted times already Tongue

Glad there's no Fire block in these levels.

edit: Should I re-send in a TWS if I improved the tenths, but the second value remained the same?
My CC1 levelsets: (25, 150, 149, 149, 149, 149, 60, 149, 43, +2 = 1025 total)
25 levels.dat | Ultimate Chip.dat | Ultimate Chip 2.ccl | Ultimate Chip 3.dac | Ultimate Chip 4.zip | Ultimate Chip 5 | Ultimate Chip 6 Walls of CCLP4 i^e
IHNN-Ultimate: 147 of my best levels (through UC5), plus 2 entirely new ones. May be overhauled soon.

My CC2 levelsets: (100, ???)
IHNN1 | IHNN2

My CC score tracker. Has lots of cool automated features!
Twitch | Youtube | Twitter
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#3
Thanks for the quick submissions already from three people! There's already some pretty good entries here.

Only full seconds matter in the results, so don't worry about fractions except for your own peace of mind.

I also forgot to say that I'm not participating myself this month, but will work on some times for comparison. Match my times and I'll send you a post card!
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#4
One more day for submissions...assuming everyone's not too busy with CCLP1. Really looking forward to seeing what the results are. Slight smile
My CC1 levelsets: (25, 150, 149, 149, 149, 149, 60, 149, 43, +2 = 1025 total)
25 levels.dat | Ultimate Chip.dat | Ultimate Chip 2.ccl | Ultimate Chip 3.dac | Ultimate Chip 4.zip | Ultimate Chip 5 | Ultimate Chip 6 Walls of CCLP4 i^e
IHNN-Ultimate: 147 of my best levels (through UC5), plus 2 entirely new ones. May be overhauled soon.

My CC2 levelsets: (100, ???)
IHNN1 | IHNN2

My CC score tracker. Has lots of cool automated features!
Twitch | Youtube | Twitter
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#5
Me too! Thanks for using my level in this competition, by the way. It was fun to optimize it. Slight smile (and the others too)
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#6
Results time!

Sorry it has taken me a couple of days to get to this, but I've been enjoying the early release of CCLP1. If it's any consolation, I have been waiting for a month to find out what you guys submit and who joins in the fun. I would still love to see more submissions from the likes of at least Markus, Tom R, quiznos00, Hornlitz, random 8, and James. All of you are capable of giving JB a run for his money! And I'm sure there's more of you out there too, so feel free to join in! I always enjoy seeing less optimal submissions too, so don't hesitate to join in no matter what your circumstances are! Granted, it might be a while before we have another Time Trial because everyone is occupied with the new set (and rightly so).

Anyway, here are the submitted times to this competition:

jblewis:_______ 94+165+329=588

Ihavenoname248: 94+152+331=577

Reynaldi:______ 87+144+321=552

Syzygy:________ 81+126+272=479

Jupey95:_______ 76+125+97=298

chipster1059___ 85+130=215

Minus3K2:______ 42+113=155

Congratulations to J.B.! How long can you keep the streak alive? Thanks to all the participants. A couple of you also get the award for participating for the first time. I also promised to send a post card to anyone who matched my scores, but unfortunately even J.B. fell four seconds short. My times as the competition started were 94 + 165 + 333 = 592
. You can view the quickest solutions here:




A word about the levels. I received good feedback on the them, thank you. Though I made the first two myself, I think they were fun and short enough for a competition, and yet required some analysis. I did accidentally require one fewer chip than I intended in the first level, because of a late change in the chip arrangement. I tried to work it out so that the best score would require the optimal route, but as you can see in the video, IHNN scored 94 by wasting two moves right at the start by going first to the teleport. (J.B. lost two moves by not utilizing the spring steps available by going through the teleport multiple times.) Of course, neither player needed to find these last moves as they would have scored the same. The second level turned more into a boosting challenge than I intended. I did like some aspects of the level though, and have a sequel planned for some other time. Luckily, the third level fit the theme pretty well and was open ended enough to provide several approaches. Numbering the chips in reading order, my solution collected the chips in the order 8,10,13,17,14,16,11,9,12,15,6,7,1,2,3,4,5., while IHNN settled on a slightly different 8,10,13,17,11,14,16,15,12,9,6,7,1,2,3,4,5. J.B. used the slower 9,11,13,17,14,16,15,12,6,7,1,2,3,8,4,5,10, but he did manage to find the quicker way to get to the chip from [27,3] by going RDRDLDRDRD, which both us missed. At least for me this all resulted in an interesting little competition. Slight smile

If someone still wants a post card from Finland, you can send me your address and I just might hook you up. If you find an inspiration to create a level to be used for a future TT, you can also send that and I can use it at some point. Send both, and you'll make my day!

That's it!

-Miika
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