March/April 2010 Contest Voting

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Your probably the only one that noticed how bored I started to get of that particular theme. I'm glad I like what I'm making this time around, though.

Since when did you stop mapping?
 
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I hit the wall after half-assing the rest of FFZ2 (a year ago? two?) just to get it done, in hopes that if I moved on to a new map I could get my motivation back. It didn't work. I made such a big fuss in like three separate topics that I swear everyone saw it. Recently I picked up Doom Builder and had an "I'm back!" moment, but that was only a week-ish. Not enough time to make a full level, especially at my pace.

Although I suppose that explains why I'm so all-over-the-place with my theming. I get bored easily.
 
Wow, this contest sure feels empty... Anyone gonna vote, guys?

Need some filling? I could give some.

Maybe I will post my vote tomorrow, if I got some spare time. I've already played all levels and got some impression for my review.

BRB. =)

EDIT:

BZ4, nice to see you posting again.
 
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MAPF1 - Storm Temple Zone by Scizor300 - 3/10
Uh, Random monitors. Tons of them. THis is REALLY bad. The bases were also rather odd.

MAPF2 - Concrete Conflict Zone by ComRante - 6/10
I had fun here, even though it's way too small. The idea is neat, but needs work. One thing to note is that you can bomb people through the window, which is annoying. It's also symetrical.

MAPF3 - Clockwork Towers Zone by KO.T.E/Spherallic - 8/10
Great map, though rather confusing at first.

MAPF4 - Desert Dash Zone by darkbob1713 - 4/10
THis would have gotten a higher score, but that quicksand is VERY annoying. There's also some red monitors in blue base.

MAPF5 - Vivacious Valley Zone by RedEchidna - 6/10
Sorta ugly, but I thought it played ok.
 
Okay, guys, since the contest is drawing to a close tomorrow evening, I took the liberty of calculating the current standings. Note that these standings discount lower-bound trimming, so if you released a level and reviewed all the other levels in your category, your level's rating may be slightly higher than it is here:

SINGLE PLAYER:

RDZ: 8 4 3 2 4 4 4 4 9 4 - 5 7 4 5 5 3 3 3 5 6 (4.6)
CGZ: 6 4 4 1 3 3 1 3 - 3 3 2 3 1 2 2 1 1 2 1 2 (2.4)
BGZ: 7 - 4 2 1 4 2 0 1 6 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 1 1 1 3 (1.85)
MCZ: 7 8 7 9 5 7 8 7 - 7 8 7 8 X - 6 7 5 7 8 6 (7.21)
DDZ: 9 7 8 2 - 6 6 7 7 - 6 8 - X 6 5 5 6 7 7 9 (6.72)
ITZ: X 8 7 8 3 8 8 7 - 8 7 8 8 7 7 7 5 5 5 4 7 (6.85)
SHZ: 6 6 6 1 4 4 3 - - 6 4 2 5 3 2 2 1 3 4 3 4 (3.63)

MATCH:

EHZ: 4 5 2 3 6 2 2 3 2 2 3 3 2 (3)
SDZ: X 8 5 - 9 5 3 7 7 5 7 - 4 (6.36)
ARZ: 7 6 4 - 7 - 6 6 6 6 5 - 7 (6)
BC: 3 7 0 - 4 1 1 3 0 1 0 - 2 (2)
LCZ: 6 4 1 - 6 3 4 5 6 4 7 - 5 (4.64)
CCZ: 7 7 8 - 7 1 3 1 - 2 8 - 3 (4.7)

CAPTURE THE FLAG:

STZ: 7 - 0 2 3 8 1 3 1 1 2 3 3 (2.83)
CCZ: 8 4 3 4 4 7 3 4 4 4 6 4 6 (4.69)
CTZ: X 7 2 7 6 8 - 6 9 8 - 8 8 (7.18)
DDZ: 5 5 - 4 - 7 2 5 7 2 - 3 4 (4.4)
VVZ: 5 4 - - 3 7 4 1 5 2 - 5 6 (4.2)

CIRCUIT:

WTZ: X 7 - - 7 8 8 9 5 7 6 8 7 7 (7.42)
GHZ: 4 3 2 - 1 1 3 4 1 1 1 0 2 2 (1.92)
JRZ: 8 6 5 - 7 - 9 9 5 7 6 6 5 6 (6.58)
EHZ: 5 7 4 - 5 7 5 9 5 8 - 7 5 8 (6.25)
ACZ: 7 6 4 - 3 3 - 8 4 6 3 3 2 4 (4.42)
CJ: 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 (0.64)

LEADERS:

Single Player:
1. Molten Cavern Zone (7.21)
2. Icelandic Tempest Zone (6.85)
3. Detonation Drift Zone (6.72)

Match:
1. Sloped Domain Zone (6.36)
2. Aquatic Relic Zone (6)
3. Complete Chaos Zone (4.7)

Capture The Flag:
1. Clockwork Towers Zone (7.18)
2. Concrete Conflict Zone (4.69)
3. Desert Dash Zone (4.4)

Circuit:
1. Wacky Tesseract Zone (7.42)
2. Jungle Ruins Zone (6.58)
3. Egg Hall Zone (6.25)
 
AFAIK, D00D's votes aren't counted because he was banned, though I'm not quite sure. It would certainly raise a certain map's score.
 
They are counted, and that is final.
 
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"Dropped the ball" is putting it mildly regarding the multiplayer maps. I realize this is not the best timing to be holding this contest, but what the hell, folks? I'd rather see a low turnout with several decent maps than half full of slapdash BS field filler (that aren't joke maps).

MATCH

Emerald Hill Zone by Warp - 2/10
<Mr. Mystery> this noob dares forsake the name emerald hill

Ugly as sin and hard on my eyes, whack-ass thing placement, copy+paste rampage in the center, no water colormap and of course the evil pool of SRM spamming terror that everybody just ends up hanging out in. Chaotic but hardly any fun. It barely even feels half finished, so why bother?

(heh, when searching my logs for quotes, I typed this place as EMERALD KILL)

Sloped Domain Zone by ComRante - 7/10
<Kaysakado> no thok barrier
<Kaysakado> hom zone
<D00D64> OUT OF THE FUCKING LEVEL ZONE

Yeah um, fix that, but fun map otherwise. Drop the random boxes (except maybe that one way up on the pillar) and turn one of the two rail panels into something else. Possibly throw in one or two more wall textures for variety, but the map layout is pretty solid (lol).

Aquatic Relic Zone by Spherallic - 7/10
I don't know what people are whining about the size, it doesn't seem that much worse than Tidal Palace. Then again, this place's rooms have a tendancy to be same-y and/or empty feeling. Either the ring boxes should be less hidden or the water colormap needs to be bumped up a bit. One of your more restrained maps, but maybe a little too much so.

Bone Cave by Brawl - 3/10
<Mr. Mystery> no wonder there are so many bones down here, it's because they all ran out of rings

Ok, to those who are getting up in arms stating the bloody obvious about Brawl's terrible maps, I am pretty sure he just submits ones like these for shits & giggles. Although, if you are doing team match or playing in a small group, this one is slightly enjoyable. Undoubtedly poor but playable.

Labyrinth Cavern Zone NOTHING IN HERE ZONE by darkbob1713 - 1/10
Even MORE desolate than Bone Cave and if you have 6+ people running around, good luck finding rings. Well, knocking people off into the abyss and playing the map to tunes 25 is funny. Maybe. God forbid if somebody finds a yellow shield!

Complete Chaos Zone by Blade - 6/10
<Inuyasha> lol special stage damage
<Dusk> LETS ALL GO IN THE WATER SO THE LEVEL ENDS FASTER.

Whee joke map. Cute, but needs lots of people for optimum insanity. Like THUS.

CTF

Storm Temple Zone by Scizor300 - 2/10
Even the creator of this disaster hates it so not a lot to say (though why it's even in the contest to begin with is the operative question). Laggy, exploitable layout, camping heaven at the bases and 50 million random boxes. Another unplayable one in a large crowd. Shoot, hardly playable with anybody.

also what the fuck is this aaaaaaaa

Concrete Camping Conflict Zone by ComRante - 3/10
Wherever you are on this tiny map, you're camping. This just does not work. I like a good chaotic map that isn't garbage in the process, but when there are any more than 6 people running around, there is so much uncontrollable mayhem that it takes forever to score a point, much less be able to stop your head from spinning. Fitting music choice at least.

Clockwork Towers Zone by KO.T.E/Spherallic - 7/10
<Kaysakado> who builds a clock tower over a bottomless pit

Lots of fun, just riddled with problems: for starters, it's initially very obtuse to navigate (in a Spherallic map? no!). The way to the flag room should probably be better marked somehow. I'd remove the rain (it lags this place) and replace it with just thunder. I already mentioned it previously, but the sniper "towers" are ironically useless to snipe with and should be jacked up in height a bit; also consider a couple more windows on the towers to rail through. If no better solution can be found to keep the spinning gears from pinching people to death, stick an invisible barrier around them to keep people from falling in.

REALLY problematic is the flag rooms, which are almost as easy to camp in as Storm Temple. Half the time i'm running to get the point, some jackass (or several) hiding in the giant gear or in the window pops up, shoots me, takes their flag back and runs away with mine. Not even the bridge perch in Nimbus Ruins is as evil as this. It's such that it's never a very good idea to head to the flag room alone; you gotta have somebody to run in first and smoke the roaches out. Fix-fix plz.

Desert Dash Zone by darkbob1713 - 4/10
The layout is ok, but a strong contender for the worst gimmick ever. That sand is so frustrating it is unreal, you so much as touch it and 9 times out 10 you are a sitting duck. It had just about everybody in fits.

Yet, since the sand is so evil and there are two bomb panels in easy reach of each other, this leads me to the only way I ever have fun with this map (note there were at least 6 people playing):

Metal Sonic 2.0 was hit by Mr. Mystery's explosion ring.
Metal Sonic 2.0 was hit by Mr. Mystery's explosion ring.
Metal Sonic 2.0 was hit by Mr. Mystery's explosion ring.
Metal Sonic 2.0 picked up the blue flag!
Metal Sonic 2.0 was hit by Mr. Mystery's explosion ring.

EXPLOD. Railing people from the top of the bases is cute too. Not a horrendous map, just not thought out and more entertaining when abusing it. Also, just what might be wrong with this picture? (PROTIP: check the top of that base while you're at it.)

Vivacious Valley Zone by RedEchidna - 7/10
So I trust the name was subject to the same toxic stupid treatment as the amazingly fugly wall textures? Actually though, the map's not too bad; like Lime Forest at high speed. Grenade panels in the bases probably aren't a good idea, and trying to escape with the flag underground is uh, chancey because GOT FLAG! will be sticking up through the ground above for all to see. Think about toning down those red springs next to the bases since you can shoot clear across to the other base very quickly with them.

CIRCUIT

Wacky Tesseract Zone by Fawfulfan - 7/10
A slight thokfest in a couple places, but very good up until

<Mr. Mystery> fuck 2D?

This may not seem like a bad idea on paper, but it throws non-chasecam users (yes, in race) for a loop. The area also lasts like 5 seconds and mostly consists of "hold right" so it's obviously a weak link. Either make it less simplistic or replace it entirely. Otherwise, this is good stuff and needless to say destroys that bloody mess of yours from last contest. The "wavy stairs" bit was especially clever. The translucent blue blocks should prolly not kill people from the sides...

Green Hill Zone by WEREHOG - 1/10
Hey look he remembered to put springs in the water! And a (map-breaking) shortcut! And hee hee a spike strip at the finish line to trip people!

Puke.

Jungle Ruins Zone by darkbob1713 - 6/10
Not bad, certainly beats most of the crap this contest, and it's nice on the eyes. Short and straightforward though. The spike pit needs fixed as it's almost impossible to see coming until you step right on it. It's possible to fall into a couple of the cracks and get stuck if using Sonic.

Egg Hall Zone by Blade - 8/10
Another winner here. I get hung up on walls and corners a hell of a lot in this place so possibly make it a little less narrow in places, but it's awesome. Killer ambiance and love the maces.

Arctic Caves Thok Zone by Simsmagic - 2/10
More fun if you be a pro and race the thing backwards. Otherwise, whoohoo translucent walls (but opaque water, go figure).

City Jump by Brawl - 0/10
Oh wow, I can win going the wrong way! Stunning!

I repeat: he surely must enter maps like this to laugh at the voters' expense. Trouble is, this is hardly even definable as a joke map because there is nothing to it or its' presence in the contest. By definition that makes this a non-entry, so a goose egg it is.

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I won't be voting on the SP maps, but Detonation Drift is pretty epic and seems like the deserving champ this time (awful music choice notwithstanding). Molten Cavern is neat with a slick badnik (Gola remake FTW) but a little bland, Icelandic Tempest is...interesting, and Sparkling Hill is all the reminder I need that anyone who thinks the "music" of Sonic 4 is quality listening needs to soak their head. Repeatedly.
 
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REALLY problematic is the flag rooms, which are almost as easy to camp in as Storm Temple. Half the time i'm running to get the point, some jackass (or several) hiding in the giant gear or in the window pops up, shoots me, takes their flag back and runs away with mine. Not even the bridge perch in Nimbus Ruins is as evil as this. It's such that it's never a very good idea to head to the flag room alone; you gotta have somebody to run in first and smoke the roaches out. Fix-fix plz.
I dunno why everyone says this, but in the netgame I played, it was piss-easy to just run into the base campers, knock them all down and go away, possibly taking back your flag while doing so. I'm not kidding, it was possible to hold two campers under control alone by running in, shooting all rings, heading out to reload, and return. This either means I got a hilariously weird netgame or that it really just depends on who's playing.
 
Continuation from before...

Sloped Domain by ComRante 4/10

-The level is okay, just nothing is really notable.
-Those blue pipe-like structures is a nice idea, just did not get used much except that one where snipers can go on.
-The visual in this level is great.
-The level design needs some work, there seems to be no reason to leave that one area where you get the Rail Ring since there is not much to them , and even that area could use some work.
This level feels kind of constricted since the area with the Rail Ring is worth staying to fight in, a bit more effort towards the level and it would be even better than before.




Aquatic Ruin Zone by Spherallic 7/10
-The rooms are pretty solid and work pretty well.
-All the rings, weapons, and boxes are well placed, except that one placed in the water that gives you shields, it pretty much is easy to reach but no will be able to get much use out of the Attraction Shield though.

There is not much to say, the level might be the best match level in the contest, but it still need some work though.


Bone Cave by Brawl 1/10

-There is not much room to move in the level
-Rings are scarce
-It is pretty easy to fall into the lava, especially when trying to going through the pillars
-Design is pretty lacking because of the small space and crowded areas
-The lava is a death pit in disguise, there should at least be some platforms to be able to reach another area instead of being stuck in the bone pillars

This level is too crowded and there is not many rings to work with, it is not that fun to play in. The lava should not be insta-kill, especially in match. Making some platforms to be able to cross over the lava is a part of a solution to improving the level and making more areas is another part that will help alot.


Labryinth Cavern by darkbob1713 1/10

-Pits are placed in everyplace of inconvienence combined with flats of the same color
-Nicely placed weapons for this type of level but only a few of them will be of use.
-There are only one room that greatly differs from the other ones in the level, and it is the one with the 3 pipes and one of the Automatic Rings, and I mean how there is not a death pit that is nearby.
-The rings become hard to reach when many people are playing due to the pits and the amount of rings there are, it is not a scavenger hunt when less people are playing though, at least all the time.

This level is pretty small and the death pits can get very annoying when people are trying to survive and find rings to stay alive.



Complete Chaos by Blade 6/10

-This level is pretty good for a rush job, though it is missing some panels.
-The special stage damage water works pretty well.
-The use of blue springs is annoying outside of the water, the only useful ones were consecutive row that helped you reach the highest area as Sonic.
-Sometimes the level seems kind of empty because of all the wide areas, it is better than crowded areas though.

This level has some good to it but the blue springs out of the water are the single most annoying thing in the level.

CTF

Storm Temple Zone by Scizor300 0/10

The lag is atrocious and the design needs a lot of work too. The ones with the flag can camp behind where the flag is supposed to be until their own flag has been returned or others can stay behind there and do sneak attacks. The placement of death pits is a player killer for those with a lot of lag, and the other pathways have no use except for getting weapons other than that it is all bumrushing towards the bases and hope to score a point.


Concrete Conflict Zone by ComRante 5/10

This map would be a lot better if there was a middle area and some more areas before reaching the bases other than that there are a lot of great ideas here, just needed more work.

Clockwork Towers Zone by KO.T.E/Spherallic 9/10

Best level hands down. Placement of item is great and the design is amazing. It is a bit difficult to navigate through, sometimes it is easy to get lost but there are great multiple paths to chose from.

Desert Dash Zone by darkbob1713 3/10

It is hard to play in with the rising quicksand and it is the only path to get to the bases for Sonic players. It is relatively small.

Vivacious Valley Zone by RedEchidna 6/10

The weapon panels are right in front of you half the time unless someone collects them first. It is pretty empty and the textures do not fit very well. Plays pretty well though.

Circuit

Wacky Tesseract Zone by fawfulfan 9/10

There are great ideas that are used for this level. I wish the room with the falling orange rocks was a bit longer though, the room with the wavey effect works pretty well, and so does the room after that. The 2D section does not fit at all, it is just odd and does not really play that well, it could be replaced with something else or just taken out.

Green Hill Zone by WEREHOG 0/10

This level was actually on par with City Jump, mostly because the shortcut makes anyone one thok or spindash away from dominating the lap. The row of spikeballs does not even fit in this level either. The level needs a lot more effort, it was too short.



Jungle Ruins Zone by darkbob1713 6/10

This was

Egg Hall Zone by Blade 8/10

This was one the most well designed race courses of this contest, using the enemies as scenery worked pretty well.
The maces added to the challenge of the race



Arctic Caves Zone by Simsmagic 1/10

...That bridge... cost me the race... The level is mostly a figure 8 thokfest, except when it comes to that one turn around the corner then the bridge can seriously mess you over :< and the water of course.

City Jump by Brawl 0/10

This was plain terrible, those jumps made this race nearly unplayable, only one person completed the whole race. Making people take nearly blind jumps around the corner is not fun.

Single Player

River Dash Zone by Whackjood 1/10

This level is way shorter than Greenflower Zone, it could easily be considered Greenflower Zone Lite. The row of spikes seems pointless, it was the only one in the level. The only good point were the spring gimmick and the water slide gimmick, but the water slide could have been a bit faster and the Eggman boxes probably would work better as spikes and the room with the red springs could be redesigned a bit or something to make it a bit more difficult instead of being overly easy.

Everything is too crowded and both of the paths need a lot more work. This level has great idea, the level needed a lot more work though.

Castle Goth Zone, Act 1 by Spongecar 0/10

This level is just too cramped and bland. I thought this was supposed to be some castle like level but I did not see a castle once, all I saw was Castle Eggman's textures used for the outside areas. Hang Castle and the other zone like it from Sonic Heroes can probably give some ideas on how to use the gravity and teleportation gimmicks, but the level design still needs a load of work.


Bolt Gardens Zone Act 1 by WEREHOG 0/10

Not completable as Sonic and the level does not have anything interesting in it, it is very empty.

Molten Cavern Zone, Act 1 by Chrome 9/10

The level design was fantastic, and the new enemy made the level even more fun. I really liked



Detonation Drift Zone by RedEchidna 7/10



Icelandic Tempest Zone by Akirahedgehog 7/10

Liked all the different themes and the textures used for them and even what obstacles were in each, but all of them seemed too short and devoid of any challenge most of the time.
And


Sparkling Hill Zone by Brawl 0/10

The slippery ice effect does not work well as slopes. The custom enemy sprites need alot more detail, they look like a rush job.
The level design was completely odd, the FOF blocks were mostly meaningless and the there were some areas were would suspect you would just run through like the one wooden wall. The background is going in the right direction but could be improved a bit more. The textures were great. The lake as a death pit is not such a good idea, people would suspect this to be like a first zone.

Trying to recreate the slope physic was not a great idea, try referncing zones from the Classic series, Advance, or if you can make something good out from you own ideas as well the Rush series minus the loops and slopes and gimmicks that cannot be recreated with some original ideas.

I do not know if I have time left to finish the criticism.
 
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Feel free to ignore my vote once I'm late.

River Dash Zone - 3/10

I feel your level is a sequence of rectangular rooms, straight paths ("hey, just follow the parallel walls") and obvious traps. But it gives your map a charm, believe me. It was as if I was in a comic world. 4 years-old children would love it.

The map is captivating (consistent music and visuals) in some way. I realized the things and map elements have purpose. You mastered the basic techniques in map making, but the map needs improvements in its architecture (the shape of rooms and space, as I said) and to be expanded upon to make it interesting.


Castle Goth Zone, Act 1 - 2/10

Narrow corridor: How would I dodge the Crawla Commander there? "Blind-corner" Crusher: How could I figure out I would be crushed against the ceiling so quickly? Remember: give the player ways of foreseeing and dodging enemies and hazards.

"Goodies" aren't that "hidden" or "difficult" to get. You are in a dark room, get close to two monitors, you see an Egg Monitor and a 1Up, what should I do? ^_~


Bolt Gardens Zone, Act 1 - 1/10

Your maps has a problem with identity: ruins, aerial journey, gardens, caves, castle, canyon, o well where am I... the level needs theme consistency. Adopt a theme and follow it to use enemies (if used), textures, obstacles, path and scenery.

I can't continue with Sonic when I reach Sector #5. Confusing paths. Pits are either "blind" or too obvious.

I realized you expended a fairly good amount of effort to make it. You're not lazy. You just need to figure out how level elements (obstacles, paths and things) work out. Open a good level and expend a good amount of time to understand how they work, how they make the "trip" interesting, how they test the player's skills and how they were set up in the context of the map.


Molten Cavern Zone, Act 1 - 7/10

Good difficult curve. Good enemy layout. Good sequence of obstacles. Good movement flow. Usage of visual cues.

I finished the level but I missed more length. Sure. It was fun while it lasted... As Sonic, mostly whole level tests the player's timing. As Tails, the level seems so easy. I just need to fly over almost all obstacles and I'm done.

Please, take care of a HOM near @9700,31600. The last death pit has no death. =P


Detonation Drift Zone - 8/10

Excellent variety of obstacles. Interesting gameplay. Character paths were the big deal. I had good moments with Sonic, and scary ones with Tails.

I'd like to see where Flame Jets (vertical) come from the floor. Visual cues here would help.

The starpost near @2228,-14150 is too much close to the lava. I keep falling into the lava until I get a gameover. It's easy to miss the starpost in the middle of 2D section.

(What does 1313 in Roman numbers stand for? ^^)

you die TONS AND TONS of times. It's a slaughterhouse.

Slaughterhouses are so cools... :3


Icelandic Tempest Zone - 6/10

Main problem: Unbalanced paths. The first one I got was too bland, has empty rooms, too straightforward, I made it in 1:12; other paths hold almost all awesomeness of the whole map. Why did you make that? Why?

Another problem: I feel you're undecided with the theme. Ice, fire, fossil, mines, techno (I found the "control room"), mushrooms... Probably you got amused with texture pallet. I like variety, but I prefer to keep a theme per map.

Sector #402: missing texture.


Sparkling Hill Zone - 4/10

(You should know I like 2D maps.)

It has a nice visual, but could be richer in details.

Methinks, death pits should look like... death pits, not innocent shallow lakes, in my opinion.

And why did you make the last part slippery and nothing tells the player that part is slippery?
 
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What the heck? I might as well squeeze in my Match and CTF ratings before the voting closes.

MATCH

Emerald Hill Zone, by Warp
Rating: 2/10
Explanation:
Ugh, this level really had a lot of beginner's mistakes. Just one of those trees would be unattractive, and you had them all over the level. But worse than that, the level design was just unnatural and ugly. It was too square, the rings were placed poorly, and there were too many monitors on top of the trees. The weapon placement could have used some work, too, but it was at least passable.

Sloped Domain Zone, by ComRante
Rating: 7/10
Explanation:
On my first playthrough, I didn't like this place all that much, but it grew on me. The landscape was done pretty well and I liked the weapon spread. However, there is still a pretty big flaw: the texturing. I'll grant you that since the TPZ textures are pretty new and as of now have been used in very few levels, it's hard to know how to use them well, but there were some things you did that just made no sense no matter how you slice it--multiple types of same-height grass separated by borders, for example, or alternating wall textures. I actually think some people told you to fix that when you posted screenshots of that level prior to the contest. If you had heeded that advice, this level might have been worth an 8/10.

Aquatic Relic Zone, by Spherallic
Rating: 7/10
Explanation:
The level layout was a tad boring, but I have to give you credit: you are an expert in using the Deep Sea Zone textures appropriately and creatively. Some more scenery and obstacles wouldn't have gone amiss in this place.

Bone Cave, by Brawl
Rating: 5/10
Explanation:
The texture choice was mediocre at best, and you had a freaking lava death pit that really disrupted things. NEVER use a lava death pit, in any gametype, ever. Lava should deal Fire Damage, not insta-kill you. But other than those rookie mistakes, I actually kind of liked this level. Sure, it was awfully cramped, but that just added to the distinct style of fighting that goes on in here. I'd try for a completely different theme next time you make a Match level, but all the same, this wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been (or as bad as a lot of people in the voting seem to think).

Labyrinth Cavern Zone, by darkbob1713
Rating: 4/10

Explanation: I usually think of you as having much more level-designing skill than this, darkbob1713. First of all, what was the theme supposed to be? Pure Mario, or Mario combined with something else? Second, the level was pretty plain, and had a lot of emphasis on death pits, which is a big no-no in Match. I just didn't have fun with this one.

Complete Chaos Zone, by Blade
Rating: 8/10
Explanation:
It was a rush job, the scenery was plain, the items were too sparse, and everything was quite flat and square. By now, I'm sure you're thinking I made a typo when I rated it 8/10. BUT I DIDN'T. On paper, this level should be horrible, but I had a blast playing it. Kind of like Meadow Match Zone, this level seems designed not to provide its own thrills, but force players to make their own. Granted, the level is a little too big for fighting to be "unfettered", but Meadow Match kind of had this problem too. I like this level...I mean it.

CAPTURE THE FLAG

Storm Temple Zone, by Scizor300
Rating: 1/10
Explanation:
I would say, "nice try", except I don't even think it was that. This is the worst CTF level in the contest, and the second worst level outright, after City Jump. Judging from this Map, I would guess you know a moderate amount of Single Player designing skill, but no CTF designing skill whatsoever. I don't know if I can manage it, but I'll do my best to list everything that was wrong with the level. For one thing, LAGLAGLAGLAGLAG. What were you thinking, giving weather effects to an extremely open multiplayer level? For another, you failed to add the Not Climbable flag to your Solid, Invisible FOFs ringing the side of the level, so Knuckles can climb in midair. Random Monitors should never be used in CTF (or Match, for that matter), and you can't turn around without breaking one and maybe getting a powerful game-disrupting item. Players have no incentive to take the alternate paths, as they are longer, more dangerous, and feature less powerful items. The bases are hideously awkward, with narrow staircases leading up to the flags that you can easily fall off of, and as a result, it's tough to guard the flags. The weapons were not placed well. The theme of the level is overused, plain, and boring.

Concrete Conflict Zone, by ComRante
Rating: 4/10
Explanation:
Well, it's got a unique structure, but it's incredibly small. It's an ideal map for camping. Also, it's got an unusual combination: tough to guard the flag, but just as tough to make it back to your base alive with the opposing team's flag. This means there's a lot of flag grabbing, flag dropping, and flag returning, with only an occasional flag capturing. I still haven't worked out whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, but the level as a whole is solidly mediocre.

Clockwork Towers Zone, by KO.T.E/Spherallic
Rating: 6/10
Explanation:
You deceived me! You told me that the gears would SPIN! Oh well, I guess that was either too difficult or made the level lag too much. Which one was it? Okay, back to reviewing the level...it was the clear winner in scenery, but in every other regard it was pretty bad. I really had no idea where anything was...I couldn't find panels, ammo refills, or even the bases! Shame, because I think you really had a chance to make this level a LOT better. I'd really like to see this theme used in a Single Player level...I honestly think that's by far a better use for it.

Desert Dash Zone, by darkbob1713
Rating: 7/10
Explanation:
Yours was definitely the best level in terms of gameplay. Rising quicksand is annoying as an obstacle, but I like how you made it pretty easy to avoid it as long as you know what level it's at and stay away from low-lying sections while it's high. This means that there are intermittent easier and harder periods in which to seize the opposing team's flag, which is kind of cool. Your scenery also wasn't half bad, although those sector-based cacti were hideous. Take a look at the ACZ cacti for tips on how to do it right.

Vivacious Valley Zone, by RedEchidna
Rating: 4/10
Explanation:
...aaaaand we get back to crappy visuals with this level. Those yellow textures were really designed only for the distant background of a 2D level. Besides that, the level design isn't very good, either. Parts are too cramped, and there are places where the ceiling is too low. Back to the drawing board, RedEchidna.

Overall, a pretty average batch of Match levels, and a very mediocre set of CTF levels. Hope to see a better set of levels next contest.
 
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I have recorded all of the votes and am currently calculating the averages. All votes after this post will not be counted.

And the scores are in!

4.571428571 River Dash Zone by Whackjood
2.272727273 Castle Goth Zone, Act 1 by Spongecar
1.80952381 Bolt Gardens Zone, Act 1 by WEREHOG
7.4 Molten Cavern Zone, Act 1 by Chrome
7.052631579 Detonation Drift Zone by RedEchidna
6.95 Icelandic Tempest Zone by Akirahedgehog
3.476190476 Sparkling Hill Zone by Brawl

2.866666667 MAPM1 - Emerald Hill Zone by Warp
6.333333333 MAPM2 - Sloped Domain Zone by ComRante
6.416666667 MAPM3 - Aquatic Relic Zone by Spherallic
2.133333333 MAPM4 - Bone Cave by Brawl
4.071428571 MAPM5 - Labyrinth Cavern Zone by darkbob1713
5.5 MAPM6 - Complete Chaos Zone by Blade

2.642857143 MAPF1 - Storm Temple Zone by Scizor300
4.5625 MAPF2 - Concrete Conflict Zone by ComRante
7.615384615 MAPF3 - Clockwork Towers Zone by KO.T.E/Spherallic
4.5 MAPF4 - Desert Dash Zone by darkbob1713
4.857142857 MAPF5 - Vivacious Valley Zone by RedEchidna

7.6 MAPR1 - Wacky Tesseract Zone by Fawfulfan
1.764705882 MAPR2 - Green Hill Zone by WEREHOG
6.666666667 MAPR3 - Jungle Ruins Zone by darkbob1713
7 MAPR4 - Egg Hall Zone by Blade
4.133333333 MAPR5 - Arctic Caves Zone by Simsmagic
0.529411765 MAPR6 - City Jump by Brawl

EDIT: Whoops, bolded the wrong person for Singleplayer. Fixed.
 
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I'd like to thank Spazzo for playtesting and critiquing the alpha of my level. Without that guidance, I don't think my map would have been anywhere near as good.
 
Darn, I thought I had some time to post at least my scores, but nope! I agree with the scores as far as the winners go except for Circuit; I actually though Egg Hall was better. Anyway, that's what I get for goofing off and not focusing on judging! Good luck for those who want in on the next contest!
 
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