Thank you very much for playing our pack and for the detailed feedback!
I can confirm that all of your solutions (at least for my levels ) are either intended or perfectly acceptable. In particular I would call your solution to The Bear Necessities a "clever alternative," while all the others are exactly as intended. Mobiethian and I had great fun making this pack so I'm really happy to hear that you also enjoyed playing it!

Here're some comments on individual levels

Spoiler

Lems Are Playing Freeze Tag – I hoped this level would help you get used to the slider mechanic for the upcoming more difficult slider level.(Watch your step... )

Lighter Than a Snowflake – Looking back now this level might be a bit too difficult for where it is placed. I've received similar feedback from several people.

23:58:30 12/24 – The idea behind this level was: can you make a level with a single hatch and n exits, with a time limit that only allows a solution if you go for all n exits? The answer turned out to be a relatively easy "yes".

Lost and Found – I wanted to give some spotlight to one of the least-used skills: the stoner. You can create terrain mid-air without any starting point for constructive skills and that's a unique feature of the stoner!

Claustrophobia 2 – A spiritual successor to my level Claustrophobia from the previous Xmas pack. The urgency created by the tight timer is completely intentional!

Happy New Year! – Just for your information, several levels were co-authored. The general rule is: the first author listed creates the terrain/objects and the second author creates the solution.

Living in a Fairy Tale – This is my favorite tileset.

The Bear Necessities – Not exactly intended, but your solution is actually better than my original one!

Walking Bearfoot in the Snow – Yes, I didn't want to add too many extra elements beyond the main idea of the sacrificial jumper.

Sky Shield – I think you could have solved this level even without the hints!

Watch Your Step! – The theme I had in mind was that all skills must be provided as pickups similar to rule #3 in the current level design contest.

Warm Cozy Basement – I'm glad you liked this one. It's my personal favorite level in the pack!

Constructus Interruptus – Yes, this level stands out a bit in terms of difficulty. I could have removed some tricks to make it easier but ultimately I ended up liking them too much and kept everything as-is.

Where Angels Dare – Yes, this one is more of a visual level. I drew the scenery first and the solution came afterward!

And They Lived Happily Ever After – If this level made you laugh, then it achieved exactly what it was meant to do.   I didn't have any particular reference in mind when choosing the title.

@JawaJuice done!
I wanted to respect the advertised difficulty given by the authors.
Though if we are to assign difficulties to packs that don't come with one by the authors, kaywhyn's extensive experience would be very helpful. And yes, Lemmings Stampede is quite a hard nut to crack!

Quote from: WillLem on November 27, 2025, 02:44:31 PMHow would this differ from the platform we already have (i.e the Forum)?

The idea I had in mind was something like this: for the NeoLemmix Levels board(and a few similar boards whose purpose is specifically to publish levels), the post form itself could have a dedicated section for uploading the level pack file(+ other elements). A repository would then store the uploaded level pack and automatically link it with the thread title + authors could optionally upload other elements such as pack-exclusive styles, replays, custom music etc. These optional files would be managed together with the level pack they belong to.

Ideally players who have online features enabled could access level-pack data in a way similar to the style manager: they'd be able to browse available packs and download whichever packs and whichever optional extras they want.

Personally, I like organizing things so that everything is easy to access. Keeping all previous contest levels together in a single pack(LDC Compilation Pack), or maintaining a list of all level packs that have been published so far(List of all NeoLemmix Level Packs) is part of that same effort. (And you just reminded me that I still need to add a couple of newly released packs to the list! )

@JawaJuice 


Plus, here are some of the replays I uploaded to Discord before that are probably worth keeping

Quote from: JawaJuice on November 26, 2025, 01:03:48 AMWell, in that case, I'm afraid Outside the Box Part 2 has got me beat. Much like The Oubliette, I just can't see what you want the player to do with this one. I'll be interested to see if someone else can do it!

Quote from: Crane on November 26, 2025, 01:27:27 AMThink outside the box... *grins*

The title literally describes the intended solution in a sense


also Last Lemming Standing is one of the most enjoyable open-ended & infinite skills levels I've played so far. (especially time crunch talisman!)

@JawaJuice
Thanks! I'm flattered.

If you want my more challenging stuff, you can check out my Halloween pack. Its overall difficulty is slightly above my usual contest level. But judging from how good you are at this game, it probably won't give you much trouble. I honestly don't know if my levels are that difficult though.
If you want something easier, you can look at Holiday Lemmings, which I collaborated on with Mobiethian! For that pack, I focused more on the visuals while keeping the puzzles simple.
There are also some much earlier levels I made, but those were literally the first ones I ever created, so I can't guarantee their goodness.

P.S. I used to be more of a math person back in the day, but these days I'm more into art.

@JawaJuice
Close enough well done!

@WillLem

QuoteJust because something is "long-standing", and a "standard", doesn't mean that (a) it's the right way to do things, (b) it's the best way to do things, or (c) it shouldn't be subject to scrutiny, review, and potential updating.

In other words, "it's always been that way" shouldn't be a strong argument not to try something different.

What I mean by a long-standing community standard is simply that most people have just always done it that way when uploading level packs. They've always had the option to include or not include replays, but most chose not to. I've given my own reasons, but I assume everyone else has their own reasons as well. My reluctance toward your idea can be summed up in one sentence: "I worry that it could create an undeserved disadvantage for the majority of authors who choose not to include replays." Everything else I wrote was simply a response to your response.

QuoteSurely if we can trust users to make solvable levels, we can trust them not to look at solution replays for spoilers! !

Including replays or not has nothing to do with whether we trust players or not. I enjoy seeing how far players can get without having the answers available from the start, but I also understand that some people don't want to put too much time into a single level and prefer to see the solution and move on. So another main purpose of including replays is to allow players to compare their own solutions with my intended solution without having to upload their replays, wait for me to check them, and then wait for my response. By releasing the replays after some time has passed, I can filter out any obvious backroutes or major design oversights before a self-sufficient "ecosystem" forms where players can check the intended solution on their own without my involvement. It has nothing to do with whether I trust users or not, because my intention from the start is to let players freely compare their solutions with mine whenever they choose. Conversely, during the early stages after releasing a level pack, I actually want players to report any fatal issues so I can fix them. That's another reason why I don't publish the solution immediately.



@namida

QuoteLevel-as-directory in general seems like an interesting idea.

This made me wonder : what if, in a completely new hypothetical engine, we created a dedicated website where users could voluntarily upload all sorts of assets related to each level, including styles, solutions, music, previous versions of the levels and so on so that players could download as much or as little as they want.
In a sense, it would be like an expanded version of NeoLemmix's style downloader extended to other categories. By  keeping a core NXLV format and allowing players to download the level, the required styles, and optionally the replay directly from the forum thread, the traditional method would still remain available.   My workplace actually has a similar internal network: all the artists upload their characters, 3D models, sprites, and all sorts of components to the internal repository, and each department can pull whatever they need whenever they need it. The idea I'm suggesting would work somewhat like that.

@JawaJuice

You found the intended solution! I'm glad you like the level.   Yeah, thinking backwards can really help sometimes.

Spoiler

I guess you could call this a trick. Every skill behaves as it normally does but the fact that the blocker is placed right at the edge of a cliff makes the interaction interesting.

regarding your solution to Icho's R1...

Spoiler

Ah yes, the infamous ultimate weapon for backrouting a level.   It's a very powerful tool for breaking things. If I really want my level to be backroute-proof, I check whether the level can be broken if blockers are replaced with any other skill that can cancel a basher(like the walker, builder, jumper, shimmier etc...) But these days I often just live with it and move on.

QuoteWhatever the reason, the level was unsolvable, causing the player unnecessary annoyance and wasting a significant amount of their time. If there's a simple way to help prevent this, we should do it.

QuoteYou're right that it works the majority of the time, but there will always be examples that slip through even when it isn't the author's fault. Unsolvable levels have been a problem since the beginning of custom level creation; if we can introduce a way to ensure that levels are solvable, we should do it. And as others have pointed out, there are other benefits to ensuring a solving replay is provided/available (i.e. documenting the intended solution).

I want to emphasize again that this incident began with the level of one specific user. And I think most people here are already aware that this user has caused other issues in the past, even aside from releasing an unsolvable level this time. I've been on this forum for six, almost seven years now and I've never felt that unsolvable levels were a problem serious enough to require any sort of drastic measure. In fact, despite having played countless levels over the years, this is the first time I've ever encountered an unsolvable one.

While unsolvable levels may have been a problem at the very beginning of custom level creation, they have become extremely rare as time has passed and as level design culture has developed. The history of Lemmings custom level design is long, and of course various issues have come up along the way. But NeoLemmix has grown through many discussions and community consensus and from that the NeoLemmix philosophy was formed.

Whenever a new designer published levels containing elements considered "bad design," the community explained why those elements were problematic and offered advice on how to improve. We haven't ignored or disincentivized the levels just because that's the simple method. I think the same approach is sufficient here as well. We can simply continue advising authors on why maintaining a working replay is beneficial for everyone (documenting the intended solution, providing it when asked etc...) And in fact, kaywhyn has already done an excellent job of this in this very thread.

QuoteYes, exactly. If you fail to provide verification for your level, it should be marked as unverified.

QuoteAuthors who (for whatever reason) don't want to provide verification can choose not to, but their levels should then be marked as unverified. They would still be playable, and if it's a well-established author such as yourself, I imagine the "Unverified" marker wouldn't really matter so much.

For me the marker actually would matter. It's true that long-time forum members wouldn't doubt the solvability of my levels but new users join from time to time, and I would not want my levels to carry a label that might unintentionally suggest something is wrong with them. The word "unverified" can easily create the wrong impression, even if that's not the intention.

QuoteWhy not?

I prefer not to release all solutions at the same time I publish my levels because I enjoy seeing how far players can get without having the answers available from the start. For me, part of the fun of creating levels is watching people try to solve them on their own first and many players also enjoy the challenge of approaching a new pack without immediate spoilers. That said, whenever someone tells me they're stuck on a particular level and asks for the solution I always provide it. This has been the case for every pack I've ever released without exception.

Also, it's worth noting that on this forum, it's actually quite rare for authors to release full solution replays upfront. Only a small number of packs include solutions from the start. Most authors publish their levels without replays and later respond by confirming whether a player's submitted solutions are intended. My approach is very much in line with that long-standing community standard.

QuoteI suppose the counterpoint would be: if the author doesn't provide a replay, the player can simply choose not to play the level. This in itself might help to incentivise authors to provide solving replays.

I see where you're coming from but I feel that this would effectively turn into a disincentive for authors who choose not to include a replay. I think providing solution replays should remain entirely up to each author and they shouldn't be penalized in any way for their choice.

here're the solutions to my own levels
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRdHVcEym9k&list=PLYzhWZf5q4HtJ9Une6MN-vW_WY1tLo4iN&index=7

afaik, the impossible talisman that kaywhyn pre-tested wasn't because the author intentionally added an impossible talisman to their level, but rather because a bug fix ended up breaking the talisman. (Previously, Lemmings were able to step up higher than 6 pixels under very specific conditions.) Fortunately, that bug was fixed before the deadline, but since the level had been created before the fix, this issue occurred.

QuoteAnother idea might be to require the presence of a working .nxrp file in order to load a level. On first loading the level, we run the MRC for just that level and its detected replay (this would take milliseconds and would happen silently). If it passes, we can display "Verified Solvable" on the preview screen. If it fails or the replay is missing, we display "Unverified" instead.

To me, this sounds like: If you don't provide solution replays when publishing your level, your level will be given a "Unverified" label on the preview screen.

I don't intend to release all solutions at the same time I publish my levels. (For all my previous level packs, I've always released the solution replays after some time had passed.) So I also don't want my levels to be marked as "Unverified" just because I didn't include the solutions right away.

QuoteBetter yet, adapt the .nxlv format to contain replay data.

To me, this basically means the same thing: requiring authors to provide a solution together with the level, unless the replay data is somehow encrypted.

People on the Lemmings Forum have done a great job ensuring that their published levels remain solvable. The honor system has worked well so far.(outside of the broken talisman, it's just one person so I think it's more likely on their end) I believe we should continue trusting level authors to ensure their own levels are solvable, rather than enforcing something systematically.

Thanks for voting everyone and Crystal has officially joined the team!   Here're two crystal levels I've made so far.



Fairy in a Bottle


Lunatic Asylum


As I said eariler, I'll quietly continue developing the level pack for a while. Probably once I make enough levels, I can showcase some more levels. But it'll take some time!

I just try the four levels that were mentioned as impossible. (I downloaded the levels by following minim's link )
A Higher Platform and The Top Card are outright impossible. They are short by one or two skills. Statue of OilDrums is probably impossible as well. I did find a solution for The Lem Stairwell though.

Played through the contest levels 

No Way In Hell

The level looks simple with a minimal skillset, but the solution is well hidden. Watching a basher slide down a builder bridge is always satisfying!

It's Crazy Sports Day!

Nice level with two similar interesting tricks. First, you park a lemming with a blocker and later release him using a digger. Second, you temporarily store a lemming as a bomber and release him with a miner directly toward the exit.

Social Distancing

It's a cute little level where two lemmings work together back and forth to build the path and reach different exits. Since I thought the rule was tricky to satisfy without using buttons and locked exits, I really like that you managed it without them.

Help Me, Help Dune

Once you recognize the big miner extension everything falls into place nicely. I love how the two lemmings work in opposite directions at the same time, then eventually swap positions and reach the opposite exits.

Lem In The Box

Probably the hardest level in this contest... though still nothing too tricky. Diggers are the most valuable resource here, so picking up as many digger pickups as possible naturally leads you to the solution.

We Got Mad Lemmings 3 Lab Skills!

The well-placed miner was the key to solving the level. It single-handedly gathers the whole crowd and also creates the path to the exit.