So, I said I had something special planned for the next contest... and here it is! The
LEVEL OF THE YEAR contest!
(Yes, I know the last contest hasn't quite finished yet, but I wanted to get this one underway before the year's over.)
So, this one will be a bit different from other level design contests, in that you don't make a new level for it - instead, it's a contest between levels we've seen released over the last year! For the avoidance of doubt, this will count as
December 2014 to November 2015 (inclusive), and the following conditions apply to qualify:
1. The level must be for Lemmix, NeoLemmix, Lemmini, SuperLemmini, or
single-player Lix.
2. The level must not have been
publicly released during the eligible time period. It is fine if it was released privately (eg. to testers) outside the time period, as long as it was also publicly released
during that time. Only the release date of the
level matters - if it was a later addition (during this time period) to a pack that was released outside the period, it's still eligible.
3. The level must not have been entered into any previous Lemmings Forums Level Design Contests. This rule has been revoked.
4. The level must be designed by a single author. Levels inspired by other people's levels are fine, but direct modifications of them (including from official levels) are not.
5. The author of the level must not have specificially requested that it not be eligible. So far, no authors have requested this for any level.
Being a
derivative of an ineligible level (as long as it's from the same author) does not disqualify a level; as long as the level in question is clearly intended to stand as a seperate-but-related level rather than a newer version of the same level.
I'm attempting to make an eligible levels list
here, but please note that it may be incomplete and/or may contain mistakes. If you're sure a level should be eligible but it's not on there, ask (or nominate it anyway), because what matters is
whether it meets the above rules, not whether it's
specifically on that list - the list is just a helping guideline.
So... time to get onto how to nominate levels!
To nominate a level for the contest, simply send me a private message with the list of levels you're nominating. But... to keep it from getting too crowded, some limits apply:
- You may nominate up to eight levels in total from authors other than yourself
- You may not nominate more than three levels from the same author
- You may additionally nominate ONE of your own levels if you nominated at least 4 other levels, or TWO of your own levels if you nominated a full 8 other levels
If you wish to change your nominations, that's okay, but please send an entire updated list, not just "remove this one, add this one, etc".
The list of nominated levels is publicly visible
here, but who nominated which levels is not public unless they choose to disclose it.
Nominations are open until the start of December 25th, 2015. After this, I will double-check the eligiblity of all nominated levels, and those who have nominated ineligible levels will be given a chance to pick other levels instead. Once the list has been finalized, it will be posted, and a time period of around 2 weeks will be given before voting opens.In order for the contest to go ahead, there is a certain number of nominations that must be reached. I won't disclose what this amount is, but in the event that it isn't reached but is close, I may consider continuing the contest but with only one prize.[/b]
The voteoff will occur in three stages, with the exact details possibly being tweaked depending on how many levels are nominated:
Stage 1This will be done similar to how the first rounds of the voteoffs for the official games were. The levels will be put into random brackets, and the top ~50% from each bracket will qualify for Stage 2.
Stage 2This will also be done in regular voteoff style. The aim here will be to get down to around 4~6 remaining levels, so exact details will depend on how many levels are entered.
Stage 3This will be done in an elimination format over multiple rounds; each round, one level gets knocked out, and the others continue onto the next round.
Prizes will be USD $15.00 for first place, and USD $7.50 for second place. If you win and would prefer a non-monetary prize, that can be negotiated at the time. Alternatively, you can request it be donated to a charity.
Since I realise the format of this contest raises the possibility of someone winning who is no longer active on the forums - once the final voteoff round ends, I will contact the winners by PM as usual. If they don't reply within a few days, I'll send them an email through the admin panel. If they haven't made contact within 28 days of the initial PM, then their prize will be donated to a charity (within reason) of the other winner's choice; if both winners are unreachable, we'll sort that out when it happens, but most likely I'll get input from the forum to choose a charity (or charities) to donate to, or possibly just make the next contest's prizes a bit bigger than usual. If you do not wish for your levels to be included (whether a general "don't include any of my levels") or only specific levels, let me know - but please consider allowing it, and donating the prize if you do win.
The format also raises the possibility of a single user getting both first and second place. In this case, it will be treated as if that user won first place, and a user who cannot be contacted won second place - in other words, the user in question gets the first place prize; they do not get the second place prize themself but may choose a charity for it to be donated to.
Also - the rule about "you may not discuss contest levels anywhere on the forums" does not apply in any way to nominations (including that you may discuss, if you wish, the levels you're nominating), and I feel it would be unfair to impose this restriction on levels that weren't specifically entered, so it will not apply outside of the contest topic during voting,
as long as the discussion isn't in the context of the contest (ie: you can talk about the level in general, discuss solutions, etc; but no saying "I voted for this one" or trying to encourage people to vote for it).
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