November/December 2011 Voting

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So here we go again. Another contest of suffering in Match because you have nobody to play with, but enjoying Circuit and SP stages, because you can play them alone. Let's go.

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Single Player
I'll take everything about enjoying the SP maps back. It was all too wrong to be true.
Running Special Stage Act 1, 7/10
~ZarroTsu
I don't really seem to care about description anymore. But well, pretty hard to handle inside it, but still interesting stage.

City Area, 1/10
~Internet Explorer
I... I just... I don't want to talk about it.

Polluted Plains Zone, 0/10
~742mph
I HAVE my reason to give it big fat zero, so shut up SC!
The level is cramped, ridiculously hard with your "modified" thok and even unplayable.
The Metal Sonic was an interesting fight, UNTIL: WARNING: State Cycle Detected. The boss disappeared and I was left in a closed room, without rings and no End Sector in sight. *sigh*

Note: -Initional post deleted- Wish granted, played through LAN with some of my friends. Most of the votes are staying, tough.
Match
...Whut? What's with the texturing in these maps? It's... just bad. Only BGZ didn't have error in its way.
Aquatic Egg Zone, 5/10
~akb778
The texturing was bad, but at least the layout would do for a good map.

Maple Lake Zone, 6/10
~ZarroTsu
Zarro, you again? Anyway, the texturing is erm... anyway, the same as AEZ, but only better layout.

Blissful Grove Zone, 8/10
~Scizor300
Looks like Match expression of Majestic Grove. Nice one. Only a bit laggy, but I still approve of it.

Capture the Flag
Only 2 maps for such a good gametype? I'm really disappoint now. But at least they weren't bad.
Castle Flagman Zone, 7/10
~EternallyAries Red X
Rather small map and felt like a maze for my first time playing. Still good, anyway. And I actually enjoyed it.

Spacebound Fortress, 8/10
~ZarroTsu
One may say that floor wasn't fitting, but I think it was genius. And I guess I will see you even in Circuit?

Circuit
Had the most entries, but was the worst of all divisions? Come on guys!
Aphotic City Zone, 5/10
~ThunderNova
Oh a lagfest. And your former Dark City Circuit if I'm not mistaken. Anyway, it was cramped, laggy and rather hard to notice holes.

The End of Circuit, 2/10
~akb778
Wat. A joke map? Okay. All SRB2 textures in one map? HELL NO! I didn't even know where am I going despite its straightforwardness.

Unstable Icicle Zone, 5/10
~Zipper
shot0000h.png
It could have been higher without that thing.

Mountainside Greens Zone, 1/10
~Root
Dafuq is going on. It's like a Sonic Circuit just with bigass layout of Jadeflower. (Seriously)

CastleLand Zone, 4/10
~EternallyAries Red X
The outside of castle was gorgeous, just beutiful... Scratch that, outside was maybe nice, but I still don't like maze castles.

Black Magic Workshop, 0/10
~Internet Explorer
noes.png


Quartz Caverns Zone, 2/10
~glaber
...

Requiem for a Soul, 3/10
~Boinciel
Bonk! We got another joke map! Shall we please move on?

Conveyor Climb Zone, 2/10
~Shadow Hog
lolwut?

Hot Chocolate Manor, 1/10
~Katmint
Enough said.

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Am I being rude? Those maps just deserve that!

Edited, for goodness sake.
 
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SpiritCrusher said:
I didn't even say anything.
For some reason, I always know that you would argue.

SpiritCrusher said:
You're not allowed to rate them if you didn't play them in a netgame.
Playing with bots is like playing with players, only with good connection. I don't see the reason why should bots not be allowed to test maps.
 
For some reason, I always know that you would argue.
But I didn't.

Playing with bots is like playing with players, only with good connection. I don't see the reason why should bots not be allowed to test maps.
No. The programming for bots is extremely basic. They don't recognize the terrain they're playing on, which is why they're completely useless for testing how well custom levels work. Hell, they don't even collect items.
 
Here's an idea: Try them in vanilla SRB2, don't vote on Match and CTF until you properly play a netgame, give criticism that's actually helpful(optional) and DON'T give absurd votes on race maps when you get stuck ONCE and just try again until it doesn't go horribly wrong.
 
Here's an idea: Try them in vanilla SRB2, don't vote on Match and CTF until you properly play a netgame, give criticism that's actually helpful(optional) and DON'T give absurd votes on race maps when you get stuck ONCE and just try again until it doesn't go horribly wrong.

Okay, okay! Don't yell at me. I did as you wished. But keep in mind that that thing is like you just simply walked into Mordor. Hitting that spring will make the game unplayable.
 
Okay, okay! Don't yell at me. I did as you wished. But keep in mind that that thing is like you just simply walked into Mordor. Hitting that spring will make the game unplayable.

1) I wasn't yelling, just pointing something out. Nothing serious.
2) I think you missed my point. You can vote any map anything you want, I'm not trying to put pressure on anyone. It's just that barely touching the maps before voting on them is really bothersome.
3) Blackmagic Workshop STILL not working is a little suspicious...
 
Steel, what are you talking about with your "WARNING: State Cycle Detected"? That boss was programmed more than three months ago and I've played it many times since then in many different arenas. I've never seen that error message and never had the boss disappear on me in all that time, and now you're telling me that it glitched on you? Not only that, but you're the only one of the voters who's described this in their reviews as far as I know. What version of SRB2 were you playing this on? I'm pretty sure that votes based on pre-2.0.6 versions and custom modifications such as SRB2CB aren't allowed, although I may be wrong (am I, SC?) Seriously though, I don't think you have any right to give my level a zero because of that single isolated glitch that no one else has experienced.
 
Alright. Because I actually took time to take a look at these, I'll say my little review and ratings. Not to be offensive, but I did not really find many of these enjoyable. I felt a lot of it was cramped and had no real visual appeal. A lot of them felt boring and some weren't even enjoyable. I'm not saying all, but the majority.

I'll start off with the multiplayer pack because I actually haven't gone through most of singeplayer maps.

Match:
Aquatic Egg Zone by akb778 - 4/10
The one wasn't that bad, but I really don't understand it in a visual sense. Is it suppose to be an aquarium built by Eggman? It is a little cramped in there though. Emeralds are seriously easy to find here too. I don't have much to say for this one, but its a start.

Maple Lake Zone by ZarroTsu - 5/10
It's a little bit spacious but still fun to actually run around and play match. But because of its huge space, I believe there could be a little more added for aesthetics. It's a great level to play match with a lot of players, but when it is just 4 or maybe less, sometimes it is hard to find others. This is probably mentioned, but I found several red walls.

Blissful Grove Zone by Scizor300 - 6/10
Not too big or too small of a map for a small amount of players in game. I loved how this stage flowed though, at least to me. I was able to make a path for myself and I actually did like how simple the level was. My concern though, (and most likely mentioned already once again) is that.. How in the world does anyone who cannot fly or glide get those Chaos Emeralds? It just doesn't seem to be fair for those who play as Sonic or any other character that can't reach them. I think it is best to keep all characters matched out equally to be fair amongst all players and their choice of character.

srb20095.png

Capture the Flag:
Castle Flagman Zone by EternallyAries Red X - 6/10
Pretty good in my opinion. I feel it is a little small and cramped, and hard to actually flow through the stage, unless you're like me who has a hard time figuring out paths of new levels. I've gotten lost numerous times and it is a little frustrating when you play this fast paced gametype. I believe putting crushers and an item box below it is a bad idea. I don't believe I've ever actually tried to go through that, unless I'm asking for a death wish, especially in netgames if you happen to lag a lot. Usually I'd keep away from crushers in CTF. But in visuals, I can tell it's a castle zone clearly. At least the weapon panels and items seem to be spaced out fairly.

Spacebound Fortress Zone by ZarroTsu - 4/10
It's okay. Playable at least. I just find this stage boring. No real visual that catch my attention, or even playing through it. It just seems to be almost like running back and forth on a path, making sure if you have the flag you don't make a mistake and fall into a pit.

Race: (I still find it sad that circuit in OLDC is ending. I guess nothing ever last forever.)
Aphotic City Zone by ThunderNova - 2/10
This is not how you start out a circuit stage. It's a little small and cramped, and can be frustrating, especially if you're lagging a lot. It's almost like if you're Sonic, you're asking for a quick death wish. Tails has a great advantage in this stage at least. But I think jets (I think that's what they are) and fans to get to higher places isn't a good idea if they aren't used correctly.

srb20096.png

The End of Circuit by akb778 - 0/10
Most likely a joke map and therefore I cannot give any real review. But.. ;c Thanks for making me miss circuit once again. R.I.P Circuit.. I always loved race more.

Unstable Icicle Zone by Zipper - 4/10
First of all.. How many paths are here? I was playing this with others and they were on a normal path, where I was at a path with so many springs. I hope someone understands this, because I thought the level shifted for me. Perhaps I'm just not paying close attention maybe. It is confusing and boring. Even the ice themes are getting a little boring now. But the stage isn't too bad, its still playable :) I think there was one part I think that was unnecessary though.

srb20098.png

Mountainside Greens Zone by Root
- 1/10
I'll give 1 for at least trying. Maybe it is your first map? I can't tell with these new usernames and especially since I don't come on a lot these days. A flat stage and a bad shortcut with bombs isn't going to cut out in circuit. It's pretty spacious and boring. All you can really do is have a thok fest. I have nothing more to say for this stage.

CastleLand Zone by EternallyAries Red X - 7/10
I actually liked this one and I'm starting to think you're liking castle themed stages. The visual is nice here, and makes sense. I enjoyed playing through this stage, I've even tried a few times to speedrun it. I still think the stage is a little cramped. Not too much though, I just get this small feeling when I'm in the castle.

Black Magic Workshop by Internet Explorer - 6/10
I'll say.. The visuals in this stage are unique and gorgeous looking. I'm not usually too fond of devils and witchcraft kind of subjects, but this is probably the best looking stage in this OLDC. Thumbs up on the visuals, but the gameplay wasn't so hot. I've often get confused and lost, especially in the library. Sometimes I believe tricking or giving a character the inability to escape isn't a great idea in circuit . It's great for players playing as Sonic, but those who choose not to will have a hard time, especially with the "space countdown." At least it gives heat that you gotta RUN :P! Excellent visuals, but poor gameplay is all I have to say.

Quartz Caverns Zone by glaber - 3/10
Very spacious. It feels a little confusing with the different paths of Sonic and Knuckles. Jumping on stairs is also not a great thing. I feel its unnecessary to be jumping over a series of stairs. Not much to say, but I just didn't find this one enjoyable.

Requiem for a Soul by Boinciel - 7/10
This level is just way too long, it takes me almost 3 minutes to just complete a lap. Often I've gotten lost and confused. The ice theme here though I actually loved and it looked beautiful in a sense that I actually spent most of my time sight seeing than actually running the stage because of how long it was. I can tell there was much effort put there though.

Conveyor Climb Zone by Shadow Hog
- 5/10
I love the idea of using Knuckles' glide and climb ability to race. Unique in a way and plus I haven't actually played Knuckles in races much. It is nice for a change, but because I'm more of a visual person, I didn't find this stage looking nice. Though.. I am guessing the focus here was mostly creating a different kind of style to circuit. The change was actually what made it stand out more in circuit. So.. I love the idea!

Hot Chocalate Manor by Katmint - 2/10
I think chocolate is spelled wrong. Cramped and small, and jumping platform to platform dodging fire isn't always fun. No real visual sense either. I could sort of tell it had to do with chocolate though.

That's it for now. I'll give me singleplayer review later on when I'm not so busy. Hopefully I didn't make any typing errors here because lately I've been having horrible typing skills. Good luck you guys!
 
too lazy to do the rest of the divisions right now so here you go

MATCH

Aquatic Egg Zone by akb778 - 4/10
  • The hallways are extremely cramped
  • The SRM is easily campable
  • The textures clash horribly, especially in the inside areas
  • The outside is the only decent spot

Maple Lake Zone by ZarroTsu - 8/10
  • Visuals are simple but get the job done without being too barren/cluttered
  • Really open
  • ffff still needs more variation with the lighter brown bricks like i told you[/rant]
  • Weapon ring placement is fairly easy to remember

Blissful Grove Zone by Scizor300 - herp/derp
  • whee forgot to reset the emerald heights when i went to place them
 
I probably should have written these ages ago, but... eh. I may re-write these later.

Running Special Stage Act 1 by ZarroTsu: 3/10

The concept of this stage is running, but for the most part, it was... pretty much the same as always. The falling floors just feels half-assed compared to actual autorun, and you added nothing else to make it feel any different than the current special stages. As a result, it has almost nothing going for it and is another example of SRB2's lousy special stages.

City Area by Internet Explorer: 2/10

Giving critique on this is pointless, as you already have shown better work, given how old this level really is. If there is anything I can say, its how odd this level is in terms of... plot.

Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles all wake up in Sonic's bed, and then their toad roommates warn them of a Crawla infestation in the insanely huge garage that apparently got hit by an earthquake, but rather than take the elevator, Sonic and Tails go through an air vent (as Knuckles breaks through a door) to get to the power room and jump down the incomplete fire station pole slide-down thing and then they go through the garage, then jumping around on some chains near the end (implying the garage was actually an elaborate dungeon) to hit a random signpost in a cramped hallway with conveyor belts...

...Yeah.

Polluted Plains Zone by 742mph: 3/10

Okay, why did this map get the explanatory cutscene over City Area, I don't know. All it does is show just how terrible the map you are about to play really is. "Sonic, you know that wouldn't be fair!" This line sums up the entire wad. Eggman completely ignoring his one chance at killing his greatest enemy to give him a fair chance. This single sentence tells the player all they know: The wad is not going to be any good. And damnit, it was right.

The map is incredibly cramped the entire way. There is little to no breathing room as you try to avoid the instant death slime and try to hit enemies. The split paths are also very easy to get mixed up in, as you enter what seems to be the right way and its actually the way back. The platforming itself is also quite basic, and Sonic's nerf'd thok comes wit no explanation or need.

The SOCcing is also pretty poor. The enemies TELEPORT the rings onto you. No, not give; TELEPORT. Get hit with an Armageddon shield, which you got from the random monitor? They just float in the air. The Jettys in the Eggmobiles look like something out of Dumbventure: Ridiculous, clashing with the "serious" 4th grade fanfic you started the game with, but you don't even fight them, which could have been the only real saving grace of this wad.

Your laziness in SOCcing also shows in the boss fight, which is basically "an Eggmobile which you cannot tell what is doing until it is already doing it, has the charging move in its normal moveset, and can be beaten by jumping in place after the first hit if you time it right.", and also plays the shittiest tune in vanilla SRB2. Speaking of tunes, your choice isn't even the looping version from the re-release of Sonic CD, which given how late you chose to pick a tune (as stated in IRC), you had plenty of time to see about it.

However, despite all this, I can say its not COMPLETELY awful; you ARE trying with SOCs, which is a lot more than I can say out of anyone in this community, but they suffer from a lack of polish. A story was attempted, but it falls flat on its face with how ridiculous it is. You had a concept for ring gaining, but it suffers from several problems (the teleporting rings, the boss arena having no enemies near it).

You are just trying to fly way too high; Trying to present us a story and alternate ideas like the Rings Only From Enemies deal was too much for your obviously lackluster level making skill. I suggest starting with just some normal, vanilla levels before something this ambitious.




Alright, I have my two cents on this OLDC. And no, I am not doing the race maps.
 
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I'm not going to argue with your vote, D00D, as we both know how pointless that would be, but let me just say that teleporting the rings onto the player instead of just giving them with A_RingBox was done for the sparkle effect when the player collects one. However, I am using a similar gimmick in the modification I'm working on, and the player is simply given the rings there, so you don't have to worry about the Armageddon Shield bug. As for those pods you saw in a couple of places in the level, they're actually transport pods for newly constructed badniks. I thought this would be incredibly obvious, considering how you see them twice in the level, one empty (without the Jetty-Syn) and the other full.
 
I think I shall only vote on Circuit this time around. Aside from the issue of time and priorities, I never got to play all the match and CTF maps in a server, so I won't vote on them like some little bastards.

Anyways, Circuit was most dear to me this time. So, here we go.

Aphotic City Zone by ThunderNova
1/10 - Horrendous

I've told you everything that is wrong with this map. From the horrible flow breaking platforming, to the horrible texturing, to the ridiculous and counterintuitive teleporters. Speaking of which, aren't they still broken? I got all my criticism and suggestions to you... what, two weeks before the deadline? Sure, I didn't expect you to be able to retexture the whole map, or redo it. But when the contest came, none of it was fixed at all, not even something as simple as textures on the teleportation walls!! What a lazywork this is. Positively shameful.

The End of Circuit by akb778
1/10 - Horrendous

The most laughable joke attempt ever. The funny thing was how it started out absolutely normal. And then the "All your rings are belong to us" texture. And then, when you were still confuzzled by that, "WHAM!" Every texture in the game.
Despite the humor of it, it is most certainly not worthy of anything more than a one, like some others seem to think. :p

Unstable Icicle Zone by Zipper
5/10 - Average

Congratulations on a completely original idea. You already know what I think of this level, for the most part. You did a decent job constructing it, and certainly a nice job of implementing the changing level idea. It isn't anywhere near perfect, but you're definitely progressing. I was a tad disappointed at the visual improvements. They weren't nearly as drastic as I expected. But what there was was indeed nice, and I shall blame my disappointment on lack of time on your part. It was the day before the deadline that I gave that suggestion, wasn't it? :x
If there is one thing that bothers me most about this level, it is the complete unnatural look it has. Just take a look at it in DB. For a natural theme level, it looks very artificial. and that shows in the gameplay. Environment is a big part of circuit gameplay, and when an environment is as shoddy looking as this one, it makes me NOT want to go through it three times.
As for the changing level gimmick, it is giving me some interesting level ideas. If I decide to go through with any of them, I shall have to contact you in interest of collaborating.

Mountainside Greens Zone by Root
1/10 - Horrendous

Ahahahaha. 8 sectors.

CastleLand Zone by EternallyAries Red X
7/10 - Good

I admit, that when you talked to me about joining the circuit division this time around, I was more than a little skeptical. Previously, I had only known you by the roleplay map you submitted a few contests ago, and your in-need-of-improvement typing skills. I had got the impression that you were a complete newb who didn't know much about level designing. Thank you for proving me wrong. I stand corrected. The moment I opened this level for testing, I was struck. This is quite a beautiful creation of yours. I had a good time exploring it. It doesn't play too badly, either, despite the cramped feeling indoors, and that horrid death pit in the beginning hallway. I enjoyed every part of the level, even the library, which seems to be a controversial point. Oh well, that only serves to illustrate the point that no one can agree on what is proper for a circuit level. But indeed, this level was a proper finish to the circuit division.

Black Magic Workshop by Internet Explorer
8/10 - Great

KOTE, you just got your butt whooped. Eggmansion Zone looks like a stroll through the park. This is some seriously creepy stuff right here. I'm shocked that you even took this step, Internet Explorer. Let it suffice that if I hadn't talked to you beforehand about your motives in this map, I would be seriously worried about you. Whether you believe in the existence of demons or not, the subcultures represented in this map are pretty horrifying things. And oh, the time spent on such odd little unnatural details, such as the moving windows, blood stains, laughing voices, and flashing sectors. I'm not even sure how you did the latter, but it certainly gave it an unnatural feel. As did the colors. The whole level feels as if it is alive. o-o
I'm trying to find out how to vote this map. Between my natural attraction to it as a neat level, and my natural repulsion to it because of its satanic themes, I'm sort of confused. I think I shall give it an eight. It was fantastic gameplaywise, though perhaps a bit too difficult in some of the demon possession sequences, the last most particularly. The lighting could cause some confusion with pits, but that seemed like a minor issue. As ideas go, it was absolutely amazing. The demon possesion area with suction towards the pentagons and flames was quite something, as was the gargoyle conveyor. That impressed me.
But to tell the truth, my reaction to this map is the same a Jew would have to "Swastika Zone", a level consisting of gas chamber runs, oven hazards, and concentration camp themes. Structure wise it may be good, but it is pretty much against everything that I am. I played it for the contest, and now I'll put it down and likely never touch it again, because I simply don't feel right playing it.


Quartz Caverns Zone by glaber
4/10 - Mediocre

When I was having a conversation with you about the map, you asked me if I thought you had reached 1.09.4 quality in your level design skills. I really didn't know what to say at the time, but now I do.
And what I have to say is this: No. It is not. That doesn't really mean anything, though. What exactly are 1.09.4 standards in the first place? And why would you compare your works to them? Is this all a game to see who can make the most suitable stuff for SRB2? I guess there's nothing wrong with basing your works qualities on something else that you know has quality... but make sure you're not just aiming to copy it. What I'm saying is, you have a different style. That's very obvious. Now, instead of striving to copy something elses style, like you appear to be trying to do, learn to perfect yours in a way that is fun for you, and for others. Art is something that should be a piece of your heart, not others. But art is also useless if that heart doesn't affect other people. Learn a healthy balance. :D

As for technical aspects of this map, I think this map is about the best it will ever be. To make it any better, you'd probably have to remake it entirely. Next time you make a map, focus more on making every ince of it interesting. There are way too many flat stretches in here, with nothing to keep the player interested. But if there is one thing you did excellently, it was the path splits. So many options! Next time, work on making each choice a new and interesting thing. As it was, they tended to be very similar. Two more things: Those staircases are nasty and flow breaking. I should have said something to you beforehand, but for some reason I didn't. And lastly, that pit that the springs send you into if you hold forward is splendidly done.

Requiem for a Soul by Boinciel
1/10 - But Still Awesome

It really took me a while to figure out what to rate this. You see it plays horribly for the sake of actually racing. Yet at the same time, I abslutely adore it. It's like... Pure, unrefined imagination. Almost as if you didn't make this level for contest, but just because you wanted to make a cool place. And you certainly did.

Funny thing is, this level used a lot of ideas similar to ones that I was going to use. Such as, the start not being part of the actual circuit. Plus, many of the secrets were hidden in ways I had hidden mine. Once I noticed this, it was really easy for me to find them, because I only had to look where I would hide them. Not sure who that girl is though. Or for that matter, what HELIO means.

Conveyor Climb Zone by Shadow Hog
1/10 - Horrendous

You know what was good about the game "Braid"?

There was no filler material. Every puzzle was a new thing. Never once was it re-using concepts from before. It always was changing, the challenges were always fresh.

Hot Chocalate Manor by Katmint
2/10 - Awful

Ahahaha. Awesome theme. I hope this was a rush job, though.
I have nothing to say about this that wasn't said by everyone else.
 
It really took me a while to figure out what to rate this. You see it plays horribly for the sake of actually racing. Yet at the same time, I abslutely adore it. It's like... Pure, unrefined imagination. Almost as if you didn't make this level for contest, but just because you wanted to make a cool place. And you certainly did.
You do realize that this is literally a bunch of leftovers lazily slapped together with a Find/Replace texturing job, right?
 
You do realize that this is literally a bunch of leftovers lazily slapped together with a Find/Replace texturing job, right?

I figured it was something of the sort. A mish mash of bits of levels from over the years. Yet, some of those leftovers are pretty interesting. And yeah, the hasty texturing job was apparent. :p
 
Alright, I guess I'd better do some voting before deadline hits. I only care to vote for Circuit, frankly.

Aphotic City Zone by ThunderNova - 3/10
First of all, you're already well-aware of this, but I have to get it out of the way: the map is broken as all get-out, since several participants can't finish the map at all, due to broken teleports.

For that matter, why are there teleports? They're not in terribly logical places whatsoever (thok towards solid wall = teleport for some reason) and strike me as utterly meaningless. You'd be better off cutting them out entirely and just making the path connect to itself properly, outright, or otherwise having the teleports behind darkened sectors (ie: fade to black, and you teleport once you reach the black).

Add to that that there are a lot of annoying jumps as Sonic, particularly towards the beginning of the stage where you have to go around the obvious platform to find a tiny foothold low enough to jump on (either the platform itself should be lower or the foothold closer to the side you approach it from), and this stage just annoys me all-around.

The End of Circuit by akb778 - 1/10
You put a remarkable amount of effort into appearing to have put absolutely no effort into this. I really shouldn't even waste my time criticizing it since it was obviously a joke entry, but for the hell of it, I'll mention a few things.

One, the tunnel at the beginning is fine and all, but the areas on the sides kind of annoy me, because they look like legitimate paths, until you try going down them and realize that the truth is pretty far from that, causing you to waste valuable time. Obviously this only applies to early races, but still, it's annoying.

Two, the area with the water and the springs - it really looks like you should be able to just get over it with one spring, but for some reason you just barely can't. That sort of thing should be avoided.

But really, this was an obvious joke, so frankly, you're going to get the score that kind of map deserves.

Unstable Icicle Zone by Zipper - 6/10
I thought this map was simply okay. Nothing especially revolutionary, nothing especially awful. Art design was nice enough. I liked that you attempted a high-risk, high-reward shortcut, but it's extremely easy to game over in it, and I'm not even sure that it's all that much faster than just going forward. I also recall that this map was supposed to have layout changes between laps, which I saw no evidence of - although it works alright despite that.

Mountainside Greens Zone by Root - 1/10
I'm sure we've beaten this into your head several times now, but just to repeat: absolutely no height variation. Alternate path that doesn't add any real risk to the equation, and is thus always the safer choice. Only one checkpoint, meaning you could feasibly run the entire race backwards (in fact, I think I saw people doing that after hitting the checkpoint). No "deaf"/float flags checked on any of the rings or mines. It's just not a good map by any stretch of the imagination.

CastleLand Zone by EternallyAries Red X - 6/10
Another okay map. I don't recall it doing anything especially offensive, but then, it didn't really do a whole lot astounding, either. I suppose there was that library room where you arbitrarily go around in a circle - that was kind of unintuitive, all things considered. Still, I liked it, but it's really just above average at best.

Black Magic Workshop by Internet Explorer - 2/10
I don't get why this is rating so high. Obviously this score is fairly harsh, so let me explain a few things.

This map looks great. There was obviously a significant amount of time spent on making sure it looked as good as it could, and I respect that.

The problem is, it doesn't play great - actually, it plays pretty bad. It starts off fine enough, nothing too out-of-the-ordinary, but the theme helping it out considerably. Then you hit the suction rooms with the space countdown, with barely enough time to survive it the first run through (in fact, I'm not sure I did survive it the first time through). Talk about adding a new gimmick and expecting the players to adapt to it almost immediately. That's not fun.

Then we get to the altar room, where you're left wondering just where the hell to go. That's neither fun nor intuitive.

Then you finally figure out that it's the wall behind the altar you go through, so you run through the exact same room, but with a ring suction gimmick. Okay, I can deal with that. Do it again, same room but with space countdown. Well, it's short and straightforward enough that I can deal again. Then you wind up in the same damn room with the same damn gimmick still going. This led me to believe that I was supposed to find another exit, because I was obviously looped to the same place I had been - further attempts to do this would only result in an infinite loop that would end me up dead. Worse, I had less than ten seconds to figure it out. So naturally, I died of asphyxiation. Turns out that the loop only happened once and I could've just gone through the wall behind the altar one last time and I'd be safe-ish. That's not only not fun nor intuitive, it's downright misleading to the player.

Then finally a room with Brak Eggman, who doesn't belong in a non-SP map in the slightest. Guess what? Beat him, the map ends for everyone. Didn't really think this through...

I've also been informed that it breaks after one lap, although I can't say as I can verify that.

Either way, this would probably make a better single-player map. Thematically it's very original, and a lot of the gimmicks could probably work provided you don't have the overbearing sense of "gotta go fast" that Circuit adds to everything. However, the above flaws (Brak Eggman aside) would still apply, even in a single-player context - it's just that in a Circuit context, they're that much worse.

Quartz Caverns Zone by glaber - 4/10
This map's not especially bad - in fact, it's fairly competent considering some of the competition - but it's so dullllll. Also, jumping up spiral staircases of that size is annoying as all hell, and having to do it as fast as possible simply isn't fun - that sort of thing shouldn't be in a Circuit map, except in a few scant places, because it's so slow.

Requiem for a Soul by Boinciel - 3/10
You really should've just finished this up as a SP map as originally planned. It's just too long for it to work as a Circuit map. The level design is just barely competent enough to work, considering it's bits and pieces taken out from other maps to make one giant Frankenstein's monster of a map, but the fact that it takes a good four minutes to get through it once doesn't work in its favor in the slightest.

That being said, it'll be an excellent SBaHJ map.

Conveyor Climb Zone by Shadow Hog - N/A
No, this map wasn't a joke entry. I actually thought I had a decent map on my hands here, albeit one that I hadn't tested thoroughly and that I'd thrown together in 24 hours. I was expecting somewhat low scores, maybe averaging around 3-5, but all the 1/10s came as an honest shock. That being said, at this point I'm more morbidly curious as to how low it can go, since obviously almost nobody likes it.

Hot Chocalate Manor by Katmint - 5/10
This actually is a pretty decent map at times. I like the repurposing of the Disco textures as chocolate bars. However, that room with the bottomless pit, all the annoying jumping and the flamethrowers on top of it is pretty damn annoying as Sonic. Fortunately, by coincidence, it came after my map forced everyone to Knuckles, and that room plays a LOT better as him, since you can ignore the tops of the things entirely and just climb up the exit wall. Still, it is what it is...
 
Just to get these in, no time for commentary right now:

== MATCH ==
Aquatic Egg Zone by akb778 - 5/10
Maple Lake Zone by ZarroTsu - 7/10
Blissful Grove Zone by Scizor300 - 7/10

== CTF ==
Castle Flagman Zone by EternallyAries Red X - 2/10
Spacebound Fortress Zone by ZarroTsu - 9/10

== CIRCUIT ==
You want to talk about out with a whimper...

Aphotic City Zone by ThunderNova - 3/10
The End of Circuit by akb778 - 1/10
- lol
Unstable Icicle Zone by Zipper - 4/10
Mountainside Greens Zone by Root - 1/10
CastleLand Zone by EternallyAries Red X - 7/10
Black Magic Workshop by Internet Explorer - 0/10
- The first two times I played this, I was unable to clear more than one lap for some reason, and the third time it crashed SRB2. I give up.
Quartz Caverns Zone by glaber - 2/10
Requiem for a Soul by Boinciel - 4/10
- mega lol
Conveyor Climb Zone by Shadow Hog - 4/10
Hot Chocalate Manor by Katmint - 2/10
 
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