Lemmings Level Jam - #1

[Adam]

Thanks to Geoo for suggesting I run the next contest.

I think it'd be good to have our first Level Jam to take us to the end of the month, before starting our next serious competition in April.

As this is the first Level Jam, I feel it'd be appropriate to use the original five styles to create the level - the style with the highest number of votes will win.  I've also randomly selected three topics to choose from, and again, the topic with the highest number of votes will win.



Copypastaing from geoo here.. here are the rules:
Level design phase.

Deadline
As this is a short and fun contest, the deadline for level submissions is Wednesday, April 10th, at noon UTC. (May be extended upon popular demand or if I end up needing an overnight stay in hospital.)

Submission
You may submit only one level. There are two ways of submitting a level:
1. You can post them in this thread. Then players can attempt your level already before the deadline. If you update your level, please post a notification and make clear which version of your level is the one to be used in the contest.
2. You can send your level via PM to me if you don't want other players to see your level before the deadline. If you don't trust me, you can send me the level in an encrypted archive, and send me the password within one day of the deadline.

Theme
The topic of the contest is to design a level using the crystal style with NO builders.

Platform
The game the levels have to be designed for is Lemmix, specifically 'Custom Lemmings' viewer style.
If you have trouble setting up Lemmix, feel free to ask here.

Glitches
Levels must be solvable without glitches. To determine what is a glitch and what isn't, use these lists for reference: non-glitches and glitches. If some behaviour is not listed in the glitches list, you should be safe (unless it's something really obscure; try to use common sense here.) Note however that other players may use glitches to solve your levels, so you should try to protect your level against glitchy solutions.

Level solving phase.

Levels
I will try to post all level within one day of the level submission deadline.

Deadline
The level solving phase will probably last about 10 days as well, but may be longer if many levels are submitted. The exact deadline for phase 2 will be announced once the levels are posted.

Submission
I will post the solution to my level (and votes) one day before the deadline in an encrypted archive, and I will not change them. I will announce the password for the archive once the deadline has passed.
Submit your solutions to me via PM (as an attachment). Solutions may be posted in an encrypted archive, and the password sent one day before the deadline.

Scoring
3 categories:

• Most original level
• Best looking level
• Most fun level

Stealth edit: Unlike in the main contests, you can rate every level - give each level a rating between 1 and 10 in each category. 1 is the lowest score, 10 is the highest score. You must vote for every level in this Jam. The level with the highest combined score wins!

Voting
Submit your votes in a PM (it can be the same PM as the one with the solutions). You can put them in a text file and encrypt them as well if you want.


If anyone has any suggestions for modifications to the rules, feel free to suggest them. If the general consensus is that the rule change will benefit the contest, then it shall be changed.

[geoo]

For the voting, instead of using the system where we distribute 6 votes over the levels like in the first contest, I'd suggest that for each level, we give a rating in each category (i.e. some value between 0 and 1, or if you prefer integers, perhaps something between 0 and 10). Has the advantage that you don't just pick your favourites, but rate everything.

As for the theme, I went with 'no terrain removal skills', as 'no builders' seems like a nice theme for a full-fledged contest (unlike 'no terrain removal skills', which is more restrictive and thus perhaps nicer for a jam).

[Adam]

For the voting, instead of using the system where we distribute 6 votes over the levels like in the first contest, I'd suggest that for each level, we give a rating in each category (i.e. some value between 0 and 1, or if you prefer integers, perhaps something between 0 and 10). Has the advantage that you don't just pick your favourites, but rate everything.

Good plan, geoo!

[ccexplore]

Hmm, once again I want to mention that intuitively I'm not in favor of having everyone's levels all using the same graphics set.  However, they say try anything once, so I suppose we can all live through that at least one time and see if it's worthwhile or not.

[Adam]

There's no harm in trying a same-style level competition once.. it might turn out to be fun, it might turn out to be crap. There's only one way to find out!

[Adam]

Just to let you all know, the poll closes in about 4 hours' time.

[Adam]

And the poll is closed!

The winning categories are: Crystal Theme & No Builders!

[geoo]

Just wondering, considering there's no scoring for most levels solved or anything, wouldn't it be easier to just post solutions here if we wanted instead of sending them back and forth? After all, it's just about presenting an interesting level.

[Adam]

Sure!

[Pieuw]

Hi there.
I finally got my Lemmix player working (thanks to Akseli) so I think I'll make a level for this contest !
Now to find some ideas...

[mobius]

lol “least favorite terrain theme” turned into everybody’s favorite theme. Now I kind of wish I voted for one of the other options as I made a crystal level with no builders not long ago (one of my newest levels). And I forgot to vote for the terrain set altogether. But out of all the options I think I do like this one the best… Doing something out of your comfort zone always yields the best, if not, most amusing results.

I was really looking forward to ISteve making a level in something one of the “bad” sets.

nice to see you here Pieuw

[chaos_defrost]

I was really looking forward to ISteve making a level in something one of the “bad” sets.

I promise I'll put a Rock level in ISteve11 

I definitely have some ideas for this, let's see how everything turns out

[Luis]

It's like as if the poll looked through my PSP memory stick and saw my level. I have an unfinished no builder crystal level, that I never got around finishing, because I couldn't come up with how the rest of the place should look like and I will get bored of staring at the level for too long.

[Clam]

lol “least favorite terrain theme” turned into everybody’s favorite theme.

Don't look at me, I voted for Fire

On the plus side, this means we can save our real least favourite theme for the full contest

[Minim]

Hey, I'm the first to come up with a level idea that fits both aspects.

This is called the Electric Factory. The level uses blockers, bombers and bashers instead of builders.

[Adam]

It's a very enjoyable level, and I'm not sure if this is the intended route, or a backroute, but this is how I did it.

[Proxima]

92%, just wants some RR tweaking to pass the level.

[Minim]

Well well well, Adam has found a very unusual way of solving my level, using only 10 skills, but it works! There is an easier way to do this, one which saves a bomber.

Sorry Proxima, but I can't see your replay. You've probably used CustLemm again, which is what I don't have access to on Lemmix. Could you explain your method on getting 92%?

[Proxima]

Sure:

1. Make the first lemming from the upper entrance bomb and block before the trap, bringing both groups of lemmings together.
2. Make the second lemming from the upper entrance air-bash twice so he doesn't turn round before the blocker explodes.
3. Make the first lemming from the lower entrance bash under the trap, then bash the mesh so the lemmings don't splat.
4. Make the second lemming to fall from the mesh bash immediately, then block after one stroke. This traps all the lemmings except one just to his right.
5. The one lemming who went past will return, go through the blocker again, and head up the mesh. Make him bash one strand, then block on the far left.
6. When all lemmings are compressed by the blocker, blow him up. In my replay, I still lost two to the final trap (hence 92%) but this could be avoided by fine-tuning the RR changes.

[chaos_defrost]

I can already hear the backroute goddesses laughing uncontrollably behind my back here, but have a level

[geoo]

I'd appreciate a deadline extension  Even just a single day would help.

I have two other things that I need to get done by Monday, so chances are I wouldn't even be able to whip up a quick level by then.

[Clam]

I started looking for a proper solution for Mazeochism, but then I found a rogue steel block under the water which would make any normal solution impossible. So I went with the disrespectful backroute option instead

edit: Solved Electric Factory too

[chaos_defrost]

yes the backroute goddesses are actually daemons shut up also I can't draw either so double shut up

Here's a version with no steel out of absolutely nowhere and a hopefully fixed water pool, I hope

[Proxima]

Seconding the request for a deadline extension. The Sonic Center are having a charity marathon all this week, and watching it has absorbed most of my free time

[mobius]

yes the backroute goddesses are actually daemons shut up also I can't draw either so double shut up

Here's a version with no steel out of absolutely nowhere and a hopefully fixed water pool, I hope

hey, how did you know what my sister looks like?

------------

anyway; here’s my entry.

[geoo]

Ok, I found an old level dated Feb 2011 which I don't remember posting here (though I might have), so if that's ok and unless there's a deadline extension (In that case I'd try to realize an idea that I have right now into a level), this is my submission.
EDIT: Ugh I'm dumb. This level isn't even Crystal. Just crystallize it. x_x

I solved the three levels that have been posted here, enjoyed all three of them.

[Clam]

Here's my entry (attached)

A couple of notes:
- I used an "out of bounds" release rate because 1 was too fast. It's set to "150" which is about 6 and a half seconds between spawns. I figured this way is more elegant than the alternatives: put a dud hatch over the exit, or compress parts of the level thus making it harder.
- The level validator complains because I moved the hatch and exit across a bit (for purely aesthetic reasons). The game can handle this just fine, so there's no need for it to complain

[Adam]

Apologies for the quietness - been in a massive row with the web hosts, and was setting all my free time to getting that sorted!

[Adam]

The deadline's been extended to 8th April at noon, but may be extended again depending on how things pan out with the web hosts.

[geoo]

Ok, I managed to get some level done, though I'm not too fond of it. Might or might not be annoying to play: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/43603680/LSS.lvl

Clam updated his level during the meantime: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/57182300/Contest/Clam%20-%20Switchback%20Symmetry%20v2.lvl

EDIT: Now attached.

[Adam]

Attachments are now fixed. We still have all the old avatars and attachments saved, we're just trying to figure out how to restore them.

[geoo]

Solved Clam's level now (v2).

[Luis]

I forgot all about this old level. http://www.lemmingsforums.com/index.php?topic=661.0 It's my no builder crystal and one that is finished.

[Clam]

Solved Clam's level now (v2).

Whoops, they fall past the trap now instead of in it.

v3 attached

[Luis]

I played my level in Lemmix and it reminded me why it was annoying back then. It's harder to free a blocker with a miner in the old Lemmings, because a blocker can turn a miner around. The blocker can't do that in the PSP, making it less frustrating. It took me a lot of restarts to find where exactly do you start mining. The solution is slightly different, due how much pixel the miner removes.

[geoo]

Hmm, my solution to your level doesn't use this trick at all:

[Pieuw]

I sent my entry to Adam last week, didn't know everyone would directly attach their levels here.
So, I guess you'll see it on April 8th

[ccexplore]

I played my level in Lemmix and it reminded me why it was annoying back then. It's harder to free a blocker with a miner in the old Lemmings, because a blocker can turn a miner around. The blocker can't do that in the PSP, making it less frustrating. It took me a lot of restarts to find where exactly do you start mining. The solution is slightly different, due how much pixel the miner removes.

I guess it's annoying if you are used to the PSP behavior.  But otherwise it just comes down to start mining farther away from the blocker than you may be used to doing.  If the level forces you to start mining very close to the blocker, then consider redesigning it.

I sent my entry to Adam last week, didn't know everyone would directly attach their levels here.

I think geoo suggested it over at IRC, not sure if anything was said in the forums about it.  The idea is that since there is no scoring around solving of the levels for this jam, levels and solutions can be posted immediately and openly without affecting the outcome.

[Pieuw]

Ok, it makes sense !
Here it is then, because I don't think I can wait another week...

[Akseli]

I voted for Pillar (probably my least favourite tileset although I like all of them) and for 'no terrain removal skills'. However, the chosen theme is very nice.

I promise I'll put a Rock level in ISteve11 

I'll anticipate that! ISteve10 had fortunately one Snow and one Dirt level, but Rock is the only tileset I haven't seen Steve using.

Ok, I found an old level dated Feb 2011 which I don't remember posting here (though I might have),

I recognised that level right from the title, I found it from the one type of skill topic a while ago. That's also where I came up with 'one type of skill' idea for a contest theme choice.

Here's Luis' No Builders topic, related to the theme of this jam.

It's awesome to see here people who didn't participate yet in the first level designing contest! Great job Adam, minimac, Pieuw and Luis.

Btw I find these levels harder than those levels in the previous contest. I solved all the 1-of-each-skill levels the first day but now I'm having hard times with almost everyone of these builderless levels... anybody else feeling similarly?

I finished my level during the site maintenance break, here it is. It's quite different type of level than my first one. The title is a tribute to Jazz Jackrabbit game in case someone wonders that. :--D

[chaos_defrost]

geoo's solution to v-4 is pretty close to intended, but it's a bit better optimised which opens up a lot of possible other routes all things considered. I'll have to see what I want to do to to this, but I also want to fix the appearance of the pond since in fixing that part I sort of made it look ugly when you actually solve the level, oops 

EDIT: I made a couple changes here have a v-3, also mobius your sister has horns and red eyes 

[Luis]

Hmm, my solution to your level doesn't use this trick at all:

That solution made me realized something different about the ice.



In the PSP, the climber can climb that part of the ice, making him walk all the way to the vertical terrain and not reach the exit on time. This can be fixed with erasers.

I guess it's annoying if you are used to the PSP behavior.  But otherwise it just comes down to start mining farther away from the blocker than you may be used to doing.  If the level forces you to start mining very close to the blocker, then consider redesigning it.

I tested the miner in Lemmini and it seems to have fixed the problem of blockers turning miners around.

I have a replay to mazeochismVnegative v3. It looks backrouted, since it doesn't use up all the skills.

[chaos_defrost]

Yea, that's not quite intended (albeit very clever, nicely spotted). You can probably even save 21 with good timing by collide stopping using that method. Back to revising 

That said, you will not use all tasks in the intended solution, either 

[Gronkling]

Solution to Utopia. (Saves 1 Climber, 1 Blocker)
EDIT) And also Miracle Freezly (Saves 1 Miner, 1 Blocker)
EDIT2) Now Crysilis. This has to be the wierdest solution I have ever found and is obviously both wrong and overcomplicated. (Saves 1 Blocker, 1 Basher)

[Pieuw]

Well done Gronkling ! It's just slightly backroutish, you got most of the intended plan. Here's v2.

[Gronkling]

Well this seems more intended.  (Uses all skills)

[Akseli]

Nice job Gronkling, I sent you a PM.

I took another look of the jam levels, wow these levels are impressing me already quite a lot !

Some solutions attached.

[Pieuw]

Well this seems more intended.  (Uses all skills)

Yes, perfect

Now I should take a serious look at these levels. I already beat two of them but didn't save any replays, and only took a quick look at the others... What am I waiting for !

[Minim]

It's a real shame that I can't access any of your replays for solving my level (Apart from Adam's). It's probably because I should be using CustLemm, which is my problem because I don't have access to that on my computer.

Anyway, here's the intended solution (Which uses the DOS viewer style). If any of your solutions match this one then please let me know. Any solution which involves enough lemmings going past the bulb trap to the exit is a backroute.

[Akseli]

My solution for Switchback Symmetry, it worked also in the earlier versions of that level.

Ok minimac, here's a replay made in 'DOS original Lemmings' viewer style. Now I actually saved an extra lemming due to different entrance order than in 'Custom Lemmings' viewer style.

My solution for Miracle Freezly v1 works in the second version also, and the climber reaches the exit in time.

[chaos_defrost]

Nice job Gronkling, I sent you a PM.

I took another look of the jam levels, wow these levels are impressing me already quite a lot !

Some solutions attached.

I'm waiting for the full levelpak to come out before I begin, very much looking forward to this as these seem like excellent levels.

This is essentially the intended solution and does a couple steps differently and slightly more efficiently. I think I know what I have to do to remove the known backroutes (doing this will probably keep your version of the route intact and may actually turn it into the intended route because my route actually wastes a skill). Nice job 

EDIT: Here's v-2. I wanted to keep the extra bomber(s) (there was only supposed to be one originally) in as red herrings but they put too many alternative routes in so out they go. Akseli, your route will still work here (but the replay won't because of the RR tweak).

[Luis]

Gronkling's solution works in the PSP and it's a backroute. If I were to fix that, I would have to replace the big ice on the left with steels, making the level look bad.

Akseli's solution works in the PSP too, but only when the second climber get's turned around by the first climber that is about to blow up with bomber. A fix to this would be putting the exit more further and removing the terrains on the right. This is also a backroute.

[Clam]

My solution for Switchback Symmetry, it worked also in the earlier versions of that level.

Ok yeah, that works rather nicely, yet somehow I didn't think of it at all.

Here's v4 with more arrows.

[Clam]

Replays:

• Miracle Freezly v2 - 100% saved
• Pillars of Creation - lotsa skills left over. I also found what I presume is the intended solution, which is very nice if it can be enforced at all.
• Utopia v2 - bit of a hack method, but it works and leaves a spare climber.
• Electric Factory - in Original Lemmings mode this time

[Minim]

Impressive! Clam managed to backroute my level. " title="Angry" class="smiley" />

And to add insult to injury, I've also found a backroute which takes a similar route to Clam's solution.

At least both of these problems can be easily remedied, by adding more bulb traps at the same place.

The attachments show my backroute and my fixed version of the level.

[Clam]

Unfortunately stacking traps like that doesn't work. The trap triggers overwrite each other so effectively you still just have one. Just space them out a bit and it'll be fine.

Anyway, I found a solution that doesn't go through the traps, and even saved more than required (edit: 2 more, even!)

---

Also solved this round:

• Land of Linebreaks
• Crysilis
• Mazeochism (v-2)

[mobius]

-well my level is broken, no idea how to fix it and I might not have time too unfortunately. At least clam's solution might be harder than the intended ...hopefully


-where does Land of Linebreaks come from?  Whose level is that? I can't find it in the thread..
found it- "LOL"

-everybody's level looks amazing! 

[Luis]

Test this one.

[chaos_defrost]

Just got around to looking at Clam's replay. Nice, efficient route but not intended. We're very close to positive numbers here, maybe this will push it over. Akseli's route still works, and I can't see a revision where it won't so it may as well be called the intended route now (especially since the original intended route now doesn't work, haha, like Akseli's route completely obsoleted mine).

[Akseli]

Hey, is this jam in the level solving phase already When we have to vote for the best level? I don't want to skip the voting part. Also, will there be a dat-file containing all the jam levels?

Yet again the same solution for Miracle Freezly, this isn't too bad?
I found a backroute for Mazeochism (v1).
Finally solved Utopia, my v1 solution is probably same than Gronkling's one. I used all the skills in v2 solution.

Has anyone solved geoo's Lemming Sound System?

Also Clam, good job with solving Crysilis.

[geoo]

Yeah, I think the voting phase is overdue, but let's wait for Adam for a little longer.

Note: My submission is Lemmings Sound System, not Land of Linebreaks.
LSS wasn't actually supposed to be a hard level, I guess it's just too annoying a level so no-one wants to try too hard.

Meanwhile, I've solved all the latest versions of the levels (attached).
Clam's levels looks like there's all kinds of neat techniques to try which keeps you busy, and then the eventual solution idea is deceptively simple. Really nice one.
Pieuw's level simply looks stunning. And the solution was fun to figure too. Though it turned out slightly simpler than some of the stuff I tried while looking for a solution.
I recognized where the title Crysilis is from, at first I thought it's just one of those no-builder techniques levels like I've made two before, but skill distribution makes this a lot more interesting.
Mazeochism, saved on more than required. Start done only slightly differently this time due to lack of bombers.
Electric Factory, basically the same solution as before, but saving two more than required this time.
Miracle Freezly also similar solution as before.

[Clam]

Meanwhile, I've solved all the latest versions of the levels (attached).
Clam's levels looks like there's all kinds of neat techniques to try which keeps you busy, and then the eventual solution idea is deceptively simple. Really nice one.

This is the intended solution, well done and thanks for the comment

[mobius]

can I use any of these levels for the Community Levelpack?

I'll PM anybody I need to, to ask them for a final version. Right now, I'm only interested in Switchback Symmetry, Utopia and Land of Line-breaks. (Although I'm not sure RR over 99 work in Lemmini, it could go in the bonus rating as we do have a level sort of similar to this already) Is the RR absolutely necessary?


oh yeah, and uh... ya know.. what happened? 

[Minim]

Hey, I'd like to see my Electric Factory level up on the Community pack if you don't mind. I've patched it up a little to avoid any further backroutes. Here's my second (and final) version.

[mobius]

as per suggestion by geoo, I'm going to end this contest. So all who were involved or anyone else who'd like to participate, please do:

-Level submission is over.
-Solving is over. Unless you're happy with the final version of your level uploaded here, please upload the final version now (here in this topic don't send me a PM).

-Please, upload the intended solution to your (final version) of your level in a post here (forum doesn't allow attachments to PMs). The voting will be based on these.


Scoring
3 categories:

    Most original level
    Best looking level
    Most fun level


Voting
Stealth edit: you can rate every level - give each level a rating between 1 and 10 in each category. 1 is the lowest score, 10 is the highest score. You must vote for every level in this Jam. The level with the highest combined score wins! If a level is tied all parties will win! Unless somebody wants to suggest a way to break the tie.

Submit your votes in a PM to me. As said above, anyone can vote even if you haven't entered a level for the jam. Please, give a vote for every level.


----------------------

Please correct me for mistakes:

These are the levels (not including any info about versions):

Clam Spammer - Switchback Symmetry
Akseli - Crysilis
minimac - Electric Factory
geoo - Lemming Sound System
Insane Steve - Mazeochism
mobius - pillars of creation
Luis - Miracle Freezly
Pieuw - Utopia

attached is a zip folder of everything that was uploaded in this thread. To make is easy for anybody that wants to get that, if they lost previously downloaded material for example.

-------
@minimac: I will consider your level for the next community pack. It was too late for this one sorry.

[Clam]

Oh wow, I forgot this even existed - including my own submission! I did remember how to solve my level at least

Here's a replay (attached). The level file is attached up the way somewhere (v4)

[Pieuw]

Hey!

Here's the last version of Utopia (which you typoed by the way) and the intended solution.
Now I'll have to take another look at these levels, it's been a while!

[geoo]

Here's the solution to my level:

[Akseli]

I'm still a bit unwilling to both if I want to watch a solution for a level I haven't solved or if someone watches a solution for my level without solving it at first. Some people voted in the previous contest for some levels in the fun category although they hadn't solved them, I guess that's some kind of an option, too. Though I understand that all about in this level jam is the levels, not about how many levels has everyone solved etc.

Any deadline for the voting phase? Also, it'll be important that everyone who has submitted a level also votes for every level and in every category - if not, then there'll be some score loss punishments? Same for those who didn't submit a level but want to vote, they need to vote for all eight levels in all three categories (so that no level would benefit more than others), does this make any sense?

The original solution for Crysilis attached.

[geoo]

Well, I suppose instead of adding up all the scores one could just take the average. Then it doesn't matter that much how many people provided a score for a level. Or have authors rate their own level (though if I had to rate my level, it'd probably get a very low fun score).

[mobius]

those are good points. If averages make it better (I think not that many people will vote...) I'll go with that.

------
Another much simpler way: Everybody just picks 1 level as winner in the 3 categories. You may vote for your own level. (I certainly won't be voting for my own level  )


a note about my own level: It's final version has backroutes and it will have to stay that way. I will try to upload the intended solution sometime. Honestly I wasn't happy with any part of this level at all shortly after entering it... but nothing to do about that now.

[geoo]

Alright, I entered my votes. I might give some commentary once the results are out.

Yeah, I definitely suggest to just average the scores. That way people can even leave out levels if they want to, and it doesn't matter too much whether all the authors participate in the voting or not.

And yeah, you should decide on a deadline.

Another much simpler way: Everybody just picks 1 level as winner in the 3 categories. You may vote for your own level. (I certainly won't be voting for my own level  )

I think that's a very bad idea, very little chance to differentiate between individual levels, and wouldn't solve the issue at hand anyway.

[Pieuw]

Another much simpler way: Everybody just picks 1 level as winner in the 3 categories. You may vote for your own level. (I certainly won't be voting for my own level  )

I think that's a very bad idea, very little chance to differentiate between individual levels, and wouldn't solve the issue at hand anyway.

Oops, I just did that. I guess I'll have to vote again then

[mobius]

okay then the deadline shall be....  a week from now? Two weeks? Or should it be more like a month? 

current deadline: November 28

Somebody yell at InsaneSteve and others to vote on IRC or something 

----------------------
Scoring
3 categories:

    Most original level
    Best looking level
    Most fun level

Voting
Stealth edit: you can rate every level - give each level a rating between 1 and 10 in each category. 1 is the lowest score, 10 is the highest score. Score averages will be taken to decide the winner. If a level is tied all parties will win! Unless somebody wants to suggest a way to break the tie.

Submit your votes in a PM to me. As said above, anyone can vote even if you haven't entered a level for the jam. Try to give a vote for every level you can [except your own].

These are the levels (not including any info about versions):

Clam Spammer - Switchback Symmetry
Akseli - Crysilis
minimac - Electric Factory
geoo - Lemming Sound System
Insane Steve - Mazeochism
mobius - pillars of creation
Luis - Miracle Freezly
Pieuw - Utopia

[Akseli]

Voted. I didn't vote for my own level, did some people really do that, too? I'm not a fan of that idea. :b
I also want to comment every level more detailed after the results.

Here's my Switchback Symmetry v4 solution. Still didn't find other solution than this glitchy one.

And yes, I've also been already for a while in a good mood for next full level design contest.

[mobius]

For Luis; here is an apparent backroute to Miracle Freezly.

I sort of take back what I said about my own level, since some have commented (right here not via PM) they liked it. Maybe I will try to enforce the original solution; if I get the time before the deadline that is. Don't let this effect your vote however.

[mobius]

I forgot to add something:

Rate every level on it's difficulty! Use the same 1-10 scale. [1 is easy, 10 is difficult]

[Clam]

Voted. I didn't vote for my own level, did some people really do that, too? I'm not a fan of that idea. :b

I second "don't vote for your own level" but at this stage I'll probably just run with it. (Actually now I'm more confused - was this under the "vote for the best levels" scheme, or rating from 1-10  )

I do plan to vote still! (haven't re-played the levels yet :\)

[mobius]

Voted. I didn't vote for my own level, did some people really do that, too? I'm not a fan of that idea. :b

I second "don't vote for your own level" but at this stage I'll probably just run with it. (Actually now I'm more confused - was this under the "vote for the best levels" scheme, or rating from 1-10  )

I do plan to vote still! (haven't re-played the levels yet :\)

Vote on the 1-10 scale. I was just mentioning ideas but everybody likes 1-10 scale best. Also I believe I removed the "you may vote for your own level" in my post above". That was a typo actually

I've re-played some of the levels and haven't had much of any progress. I don't think I will be fixing my own level. I really don't know how to and don't have the time either...

[Clam]

Here's my Switchback Symmetry v4 solution. Still didn't find other solution than this glitchy one.

Nice one, I haven't seen the glitch used like that before

(This sort of thing is why I mainly design levels in Lix now... )

[namida]

I was going to try using Lix for making LPII, but my PC very much seems to not like it. It entirely freezes from startup and won't do anything - if I switch between fullscreen and windowed (in either direction), it'll respond for a second or two before it goes back to being non-responsive. So, stuck with Lemmix (it was pretty much either that or a custom-built engine, I am not a fan of Lemmini - it feels too clunky, plus I like the frame-by-frame options in Lemmix and having source code access and being able to make an all-in-one EXE is a huge bonus).

[mobius]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lemmings Forum Level Jam - the results are in!!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This contest is officially over! It has ended after being open for a whopping eight months. 5 people voted and the results are in!
Votes were cast on originality, fun, appearance, and difficulty. The results here are the averages of all votes.

Thank you to everybody who participated!!! Please join us in the next level jam to start in a few weeks!

If you would like to check my work or see the votes; ask me and I'll upload the spreadsheet. If you missed this voting phase you may send me a PM with votes or simply post comments. I will update this post.

-oops, I made a big mistake in the scoring; like Akseli pointed out I added up the difficulties in by mistake. the difficulties aren't factored into the score; they are just there for reference.

 now fixed 

~~~~~

Clam Spammer - Switchback Symmetry
originality: 8.25
fun: 7
appearance: 6.5
difficulty: 7.33
total: 21.75

Akseli - Crysilis
originality: 8
fun: 5.3
appearance: 9.3
difficulty: 9.67
total: 22.6

minimac - Electric Factory
originality: 6
fun: 6
appearance: 6
difficulty: 6
total: 18

geoo - Lemming Sound System
originality: 8
fun: 4
appearance: 7
difficulty: 9.5
total: 19

Insane Steve - Mazeochism
originality: 7.2
fun: 7.24
appearance: 7.7
difficulty: 7.25
total: 22.14

mobius - pillars of creation
originality: 7.13
fun: 8
appearance: 6.5
difficulty: 6
total: 21.63

Luis - Miracle Freezly
originality: 6
fun: 6.6
appearance:  6.8
difficulty:  4.75
total: 19.4

Pieuw - Utopia
originality: 8.5
fun: 7.63
appearance: 10
difficulty: 8.33
total: 26.13

~~~~~

Utopia had the highest total votes, making Pieuw the winner! Congratulations!


As winner you receive:

-The Lemmings Forum badge of honor. Wear it with pride.
-A useless nugget! (you can sell it at at mart for 5000P)
...and a Lemming plush doll, handcrafted by ProbLem!

[Akseli]

Hey hey HEY! You aren't supposed to add difficulty "points" to the total. The results are about the three original categories, now you seem to benefit difficult levels over the easy ones? Man, that definitely was not the purpose here!
EDIT: Now fixed.

Really nice to see some results after eight months. Though it would have been nicer if more people had voted. Hopefully those who are going to vote afterwards can be enough honest not to manipulate the results in a bad way.

I'll comment the levels after you've corrected the results. Consider also giving the total points precisely with two decimals. Though Pieuw's level (typoed 'Utpoia' by the way in the list again) still seems to be the winner even without paying attention to the difficulties. Also I'm of course interested to see the spreadsheet. : )

[Akseli]

I wrote these comments on the levels before the results came out:

Crysilis - I didn't vote for my own level.

I was a bit surprised to see that when the theme was to design with the same tileset, Crystal, I was the only one who went with the bumpy terrain theme (Luis and minimac maybe a bit too, nice!). I said that this level is somewhat different than my earlier contest level, 'Feel the Pressure'. I designed Crysilis purely aiming for a level, that offers lots of leeway how it can be solved, but no solution is too easy compared to others. There’s this one main trick that everyone who solved my level used, so I’m happy to see that no one backrouted my level. : )

I recognized where the title Crysilis is from, at first I thought it's just one of those no-builder techniques levels like I've made two before, but skill distribution makes this a lot more interesting.

Oh no, now I think I know at least one level you’re referring (geooPk1 – More ‘No Builder Problems’), but that really didn’t come across my mind, and I haven’t managed to solve that level either, so I didn't know. I really don't want to create levels that use significantly similar methods etc. than has been used in other custom levels earlier, sorry!

Clam Spammer - Switchback Symmetry - My votes: 7 for originality, 6 for fun, 7 for appearance, 7 for difficulty

I know that Clam is so strongly established and appreciated level designer (definitely for me also) that criticism won’t hopefully hurt.
I don’t still know why RR is set as so it is, I don’t see its function here. Instead I got a bit annoyed when I tried to change the RR, I don’t know how it works but then some lemmings spawned randomly at RR99, and then again in extra long spaces between. This level also had a lot of those “wrong” object placements to make things look better, but yea I’d guess it’s not a bad thing. Also, I don’t like messy one way arrows that are there only for preventing backroutes (not for the puzzle itself), and in this case, they didn’t even prevent my backroute. :q Otherwise this level seems really interesting, and I still don’t have a slightest clue about the intended solution, it’s probably so impressive what could be expected for being a solution for Clam’s level.

geoo - Lemming Sound System - My votes: 9 for originality, 7 for fun, 7 for appearance, 9 for difficulty (estimation, I didn't solve this level)

Gronkling found “left-facing-entrance” trick already in his Lemmini levels, but this is the first time I see that used in a Lemmix level, it works nicely with the black Crystal tileset terrain. :b The level itself seems that it's obvious what you need to try, but I still don’t have a clue how a working solution could be reached. Definitely points for originality, the design theme and the skillset seem really unique. Yet again it seems that geoo manages to create a level with the fewest backroutes, congratulations! :b (And the fewest any solutions, too… :--D)

Insane Steve - Mazeochism - My votes: 8 for originality, 9 for fun, 8 for appearance, 6 for difficulty

This level won clearly the most fun level category for me! I enjoyed this level the most completely despite the fact that there’s many, many different ways to solve it, even in every released version. Even backroutes were fun to find, and the right feeling solution has various different types of obstacles to get through. I tend to appreciate massive levels as well, I don’t know exactly why but large levels are in some odd way attractive in my opinion especially if they’re designed with love. (Yeah, if you just throw randomly terrain to fill the whole level, then no thanks.) The crystal sticks look a bit bare in places, though.

Luis - Miracle Freezly - My votes: 6 for originality, 6 for fun, 7 for appearance, 3 for difficulty

I was really happy to see and play a level made by Luis, because I don’t know if he’s ever released any level for a wider audience to play, except 'Temple of Return' and the PSP levels. This level felt most like in the original games with the huge map and not-too-gimmicky solution. I found multiple solutions for this one as well, and I don’t know what is the intended one. What I didn’t like is the messy one way arrows, this problem was in few other jam levels also.

minimac - Electric Factory - My votes: 7 for originality, 7 for fun, 7 for appearance, 6 for difficulty

Rather nicely constructed level with its skillset and the layout using many various types of terrain. As in many other levels in this jam, it was nice to try to find the correct path to approach the solution, because it seemed that there could be few working paths. Messing around with the grid terrain was as funny as it always is. The loner metal block and trap placements were minor nitpicks of the visual appeal, as well the fact that the level was a bit off-centered to the left.

möbius - Pillars of Creation - My votes: 7 for originality, 7 for fun, 7 for appearance, 6 for difficulty

This level took me surprisingly long to solve compared to how simplistic the layout was, the crowd control puzzle was trickier than it seemed at first. I got confused that the wall at the right is four crystal squares wide and only three squares wide at the left, so that tricked me, for example. A somewhat pleasant layout, though that crystal rod decoration at the edges seem a bit plain. Edit: I just noticed that this level has 30 minutes as a time limit. :---D

Pieuw - Utopia - My votes: 9 for originality, 7 for fun, 10 for appearance, 8 for difficulty

Well… this. I was really amused after I played this level, because I was wondering how Pieuw will cope with us now that the jam is not about Lemmini levels where he’s used to (even though there's not much difference). Well, that issue was completely pointless, because this level is ridiculously outstanding. I opened this level in Lemmix and it was like two seconds and I knew that here is something particularly exquisite. The visual design with its theme is unseen in the whole level scene. Even with strict evaluation, this level gets the maximum points from me in the good-looking category, and was completely overwhelming in this level jam compared to all the other levels in this category.
The solution took surprisingly long for me to find out in this level also, and it involves a trick that’s quite rare in general. And I love how almost every part of the level is used. The visual appeal is so magnificent, that I’m not sure if the solution itself seemed more lame than it actually was! This and geoo's Lemming Sound System won my originality category with 9 points each, though in Utopia more originality points came from the original design rather than from the solution.


I compiled the votes for different categories (aargh I wish I knew how to use tables... ):

Originality
Utopia - 8,50
Switchback Symmetry - 8,25
Crysilis/Lemming Sound System - 8,00
Mazeochism - 7,20
Pillars of Creation - 7,13
Electric Factory/Miracle Freezly - 6,00

Fun
Pillars of Creation - 8,00
Utopia - 7,63
Mazeochism - 7,24
Switchback Symmetry - 7,00
Miracle Freezly - 6,60
Crysilis - 5,30
Lemming Sound System - 4,00

Appearance
Utopia - 10,00
Crysilis - 9,30
Mazeochism - 7,70
Lemming Sound System - 7,00
Miracle Freezly - 6,80
Pillars of Creation/Switchback Symmetry - 6,50
Electric Factory - 6,00

Total points
Utopia - 26,13
Crysilis - 22,60
Mazeochism - 22,14
Switchback Symmetry - 21,75
Pillars of Creation - 21,63
Miracle Freezly - 19,40
Lemming Sound System - 19,00
Electric Factory - 18,00

Difficulty
Crysilis - 9,67
Lemming Sound System - 9,50
Utopia - 8,33
Switchback Symmetry - 7,33
Mazeochism - 7,25
Electric Factory/Pillars of Creation - 6,00
Miracle Freezly - 4,75

And now my comments after seeing the results:
Thank you everyone for this level jam! I enjoyed this really much and like I said, I'm ready for the next contest if there are people who would also like to participate.

Congratulations Pieuw! At least in my opinion the victory went to the right place, and now when I look at the total points list, it seems that everyone liked it a lot, and in the end your level ended up beating all the other levels quite clearly (with over 3,5 points!). Congratulations for winning 'The most original level' and 'The best looking level' categories as well (the latter one with, well, pretty impressive full points), and congratulations möbius for winning 'The most fun level' category!

I was so concentrating on voting and playing others levels so I almost forgot that my level was also here, getting votes and being judged by other people. Hahaha that you guys considered my level the hardest came as a big surprise for me :DDD I know that three people solved it! And yes, in my opinion it's completely reasonable to give a low fun score for a level that feels hard and/or frustrating, and it's completely reasonable that easy levels can be considered more fun than hard levels. Like I've many times wanted to highlight in these forums, the difficulty of a level has nothing to do with how 'good' is that level. That's one reason why I was really shocked that you originally tried to add the difficulty points to the final points, möbius. And I want to highlight again, that it brings a lot more diversity and is a lot more fun, if people design levels with different difficulties to these contests, you don't need to design as hard as possible level! I'd hope that wider audience will enjoy the contests more in this way also.

So, again big thanks for Clam Spammer, geoo, Insane Steve, Luis, minimac, möbius and Pieuw for taking part to this level jam! I had a lot of fun, I hope that you had too.

[Pieuw]

Bravo everyone, this level jam was lots of fun and I think each participant did great! I'm still impressed that in 2013 some people are still playing Lemmings and making fan content. I remember when I came across the Lemmix editor, it was like a dream come true (as a child I used to draw Lemmings levels on paper, with custom styles and everything) and it opened a whole new little world to me! And here I am, exchanging custom levels with people from all around the world. I don't know why but I just felt like saying all this.

I'm sorry about not sending replays, I'll try to do it next time if it helps to block backroutes.
I didn't solve Geoo's and Akseli's levels. Both are good looking but their solution is like a nightmare to me (I'm not saying this in a bad way, even if it sounds like it ). I think it's mostly because I'm quite clumsy when I play with Lemmix, I'm just not used to it. But I plan to correct that. Watching the replays was fun though!

I solved the other levels and liked all of them. I can't tell my votes since I only wrote them in my PM to Mobius and can't seem to find it anywhere (yes, silly silly me). I remember I gave the highest appearence score to Crysilis and the highest fun score to Mazeochism, but I have no idea about originality... I only gave bad fun scores to Crysilis and Lemmings Sound System, probably due to frustration

About Utopia, well, I have to admit I was aiming for a decent appearance score: since I'm not comfortable with Lemmix and its mechanics I didn't try to make an original solution and I put all I got in the look of it. But wow, a perfect score! It's just amazing. Thanks everyone for naming this level winner of the jam!

Que l'esprit des Lemmings soit avec vous !


PS : Akseli, amazing feedback!

[mobius]

I hope I don't come off too strongly with my low votes in the "fun" category. It's mostly because I'm not a very patient player. All the levels however, I think had interesting solutions and were good levels.

Electric Factory:
I don't like levels with a bomber at the start like this (if that is the intended solution). Otherwise I liked the layout but solving was a pain because I kept coming very close but no cigar, after trying many different things. I also ran into a ton of frustration with Lemmix's lack of directional select. I found nothing wrong with the design visually.
I don't want to sound too negative on this level however because minimac is a great designer who has made many great levels in the past.

Lemming sound system:
I can see the general idea quickly after looking at it but I can also tell finding the solution exactly would be a real pain for me so I didn't even try for very long. I like the concept though, it's nice and probably wouldn't have taken that long... It's good to have a  different digger type level; instead of the same A.T like digger level. I liked the simplistic design as well. It reminds me a little of Land of Linebreaks because it's also small and simple yet for it's size and layout, it's surprisingly complicated. Order of operations fun.  (also reminds me of Clam's Floodgates open)

Crysilis:
looks beautiful; I love the night sky scene. As to the solution I don't even know where to begin so I don't know what to say really.  Either its really crazy or I'm missing something really really big.
I agree it's nice to see rocky terrain used here and in minimac's and Luis' when it wasn't used often.
Where does the title come from?

Mazeochism:
I like the concept and design a lot. I got frustrated quite about however as similar to minimac's level everything I try seems to end up not working. Knowing ISteve's levels however, the solution is probably not that complicated and I'm just missing something rather obvious.

Miracle Freezly:
A nice layout and I liked the solution even if it's somewhat simple (compared to the other contestants). This was the only level which I was able to solve.

Pillars of Creation:
I'm surprised at how high my level got rated. Also, incredibly surprised I won the most fun category  Shows how bad I am at judging my own work. 
Even though I thought this level wouldn't be real difficult, I liked the idea and thought it might be fun. Alas, it has a backroute which I'm not certain how difficult that is, with little ideas on how to remove it.
Another note: the name comes from the same name of a part of the Eagle Nebula, which is a famous picture.

Switchback Symmetry:
I like the design a lot and thought it was pretty original. It reminds me a little of Dodochacalo's the Spring.  It was too frustrated when playing but when I looked at the solution and was again reminded of how good Clam is at making well thought-out and deceptively simple levels. The solution is really not frustrating or precise at all! (no spoilers) More order of operations fun. 

I also don't understand the RR however, I thought I remember Clam saying somewhere why it was made that way. I don't see what it prevents. ?

Utopia:
this was of course the most original in appearance. Very unique and intricate look. Next time Dodochacalo has to join so Pieuw doesn't have such an advantage.

--------

I gave almost everybody a low score in "fun" and it's mostly because I really wasn't in a Lemmings-solving mood at all when I played them (back in April or recently) and frustrated easily. So, really I'm sorry for not being a real good sport for this but that's the way it happens. Hopefully someday I'll get in the mood and be able to play properly.

In the past, I think geoo, ccexplore and tseug were kings of creating the hardest levels ever. But Akseli, I believe you are becoming a true contender for that position  I consider all the levels of your first pack incredibly hard. I know it's hard to judge the difficulty of your own levels.

Also, what Pieuw said kind of reminded me: it's pretty cool for me to be joining this and being ranked in among all you guys who have been making and playing levels a lot longer than I have. ISteve10.dat being the very first levelpack I ever looked at (and could not solve a single level at first of course  ). Later I played and solved (some) of Pieuw's packs. So those were my first levels. 

Perhaps it's worth mentioning that we never saw Adam's level. Though I don't know if he actually made one or not.

thanks again for playing everyone! I'm sad that Crane, Pooty, namida, Proxima, Gronkling and Dodochacalo did not enter levels. All of which made excellent  levels in the past imo.

[namida]

With LPII almost out of the way, I might be interested in entering the next one...
By the way, I've never heard of Dodochacalo...

[geoo]

That was a great contest, thanks everyone for entering, and Adam and mobius for doing the organizational work. It's nice to see a lot of variety here, rather than just everyone aiming to make a level as hard a possible. Consequently I could also enjoy just playing through each of the level, with the hardest of them right at the borderline between leisurely play and the intense struggle to just solve them, rather than exceeding it, unlike in the last contest.
Congrats to Pieuw on his amazing level and winning the contest with it. One of ProbLem's sweet lemmings plushies sure sounds like a rewarding prize.

New contest sounds great, I mean it's been a while since everyone designed levels for this contest. I don't have the time to organize another contest, but it seems like mobius was already eager to find a theme for one, so why not go ahead and make it happen. If it takes place within December I'll try to participate, I definitely won't be around in January or February though.

Sorry I didn't get my votes for difficulty in in time, I read the note too late, after I had submitted my other votes.
Here's the table of my votes that I found in my 'Sent Items' folder, now with a column for difficulty added (not sure whether they'd stir up anything in the rankings).

author	title	fun	originality	looks	difficulty
Clam Spammer	Switchback Symmetry	10	10	5	7
Akseli	Crysilis	9.2	8	9.2	6
minimac	Electric Factory	7	4	3	3.5
Insane Steve	Mazeochism	9.2	6	7.5	5.5
mobius	pillars of creation	8	7.5	5	4
Luis	Miracle Freezly	6	4	5	3
Pieuw	Utopia	9.5	8	10	5.5

Lemming Sound System. I think the idea I had in mind when designing my level is pretty clear, a puzzle where you have to figure out where and when to place your diggers to still allow other diggers to get where they need to dig. In some sense it was an experimental level. The advantage I had as designer over you solvers is that I could adjust the pillar sizes until my planned solution worked...while you couldn't. When I finally had all the sizes right for my solution to work I was happy do be done with it to at least have something to submit, while I was already fully aware that this level would be very frustrating to solve (if I had to rate it, it'd probably have given it a 2 in the fun category). It's like a butchered version of Clam's 'The Floodgates Open', as mobius already observed. Butchered, because in Clam's level you see the effect your skill placement has, making it possible to work out the solution in your head, while in my solution you have to use trial and error because you can't see how the timing works out ahead of time, I think. I was thinking of adding sound speakers to the level for the theme, so the bars look more clearly like one of those frequency/instrument volume diagrams, not sure why I didn't end up doing that.

Crysilis. I was familiar with all the tricks used here, having already explored no-builder techniques in one level of each of my packs ('Crossing Stairs' and 'More No Builder Problems' which are just, you get 10 of each and see what you can do without builders.) That's why I didn't find this level too hard. What distinguishes this level is that you have to conserve you skills, and thus it becomes a puzzle of which technique to apply in which place instead of just brute-forcing your way through, which I enjoyed. The theme and design are really beautiful, but not able to keep up with the stunning design of Pieuw's level, that's why I didn't give it a 10 there.

Utopia. The design is really unique, unlike any other level I've seen before, and unsurprisingly this seems to be the consensus among us. I based my originality vote mostly on the solution rather than the design though, that's why I didn't give it a higher score. It was fun to figure out the skill placements, and again, it's a level where you can work out the solution by just looking at it. The first solution I found used somewhat technical digger placement which I didn't like, but the intended solution handles this more elegantly, using all the exits too.

Miracle Freezly. Nice easy puzzle with a few possible solutions. The time limit requires you to be aware of when you do what so as not to run out of time, which annoyed me at first when I had to restart the level, but once you're aware of it it's not too bad, adding another thing to think about. Design felt a bit uninspired, especially with the repeated crystal everywhere.

Pillars of Creation. You've made a bunch of levels like this now where both the skill placement and the timing are key, and the design is based around a central idea, and often they don't use too many lemmings. I love those, you're developing a pretty unique style there that is quite unlike that of other level designers. Looking at my votes, I'm not sure why I didn't give it a higher fun score, maybe I thought it was over too quickly when I saw the key idea to the solution. The design looks a bit bland with the repeated pattern on the pillars, but apart from that it's a really solid level.

Electric Factory. Kinda straightforwards once you realize you can bashing at the bottom after the fence instead of through the pillar to save a basher, which took me a while till realized. Then a few details here and there, like trying to kill as few lemmings as possible at the beginning until you realize you can afford it, and working out some tidbits at the end where the lemmings tend to get stuck, added a bit to the difficulty for me, sometimes fun, sometimes a slight nuisance to work out. Design looks pretty messy though.

Mazeochism. It's one of those typical Insane Steve levels where you immediately know who made it, simple yet pretty, with some interesting shapes here and there (the 'pretty' part might be the only deviation from the standard). You got the usual puzzle where to place what, maybe a couple of variations in the solution, the usual amount of backroutes, and it's just as fun as usually. Only thing I didn't like was that one of the bombers needed somewhat precise timing, while the other bombers we really lenient.

Switchback Symmetry. A typical Clam level too. You see a pattern, try to do the obvious, then something is missing from the solution and you realize the devil is in the detail. And that's where the real fun begins. Repeatedly trying adjustments, coming up with new ideas, fixing things here and there, I just love this kind of level solving. When I finally found the solution it was pretty elegant, breaks the pattern to some extent, and seemed simpler than the time it took me to find it indicates. Only thing is that the arrows look a bit messy, and then the messiest ones even seems to have failed their job, considering Akseli's solution.

[Clam]

Okay, firstly: I thought this was intended to be a filler before the next "real" contest (the topic post even says as much), so I'm amazed at all the lengthy write-ups that have suddenly shown up!

The right level won for sure, this is one of the more visually stunning designs I've seen. If it can be fixed to require use of all exits, that would really cap it off.



In response to comments about my level:

- The slow release rate has a purpose, maybe not 100% necessary but anyway: (spoiler just in case)

To give more time to bash through the platforms before the next lemming arrives. This means you can place your blockers further out.

Lemmix doesn't even handle these rates correctly when it comes to adjusting RR in game . Will try harder to avoid this next time

- I didn't realise the added one-way arrows failed until after the level submission was closed. Of course, the blockers cancel them! Even steel would fail, for the same reason. So I pretty much give up trying to fix that, but I could remake it in Lix with the steel pipes (which I would have by now if it weren't for the main one-way wall being so awkward to substitute).



Also, I removed the whole LET THE JAMMING BEGIN thing from the title so we don't keep getting that on replies. THE JAMMING IS OVER!

[Akseli]

Okay, firstly: I thought this was intended to be a filler before the next "real" contest (the topic post even says as much), so I'm amazed at all the lengthy write-ups that have suddenly shown up!

Yes, but because of the extension of this jam the "real" contest didn't commence back in April like we aimed. :b At least my urge to analyse a bit more detailed this jam increased due to this long break.

Crysilis:
...
Where does the title come from?

Aah geoo is the only one who knew immediately where it's from? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8fDV9an_uU

In the past, I think geoo, ccexplore and tseug were kings of creating the hardest levels ever. But Akseli, I believe you are becoming a true contender for that position  I consider all the levels of your first pack incredibly hard. I know it's hard to judge the difficulty of your own levels.

Hey --  I'm still waiting for your solutions for my levels.

By the way, I've never heard of Dodochacalo...

Although I consider him to be one of the most talented level designers of all time, it's not that surprising imo if one hasn't heard of him, because he keeps a very low profile and doesn't take part in the forums almost at all. Years ago in Lemmings Heaven forums the only posts he wrote were the announcements of his level packs and level contest levels (that's also where I spotted his levels). I've been in e-mail contact with him at times, I might try to coax him to join these contests again some time, but it strongly seems that he hasn't much time for Lemmings nowadays, but he's a really nice fellow nevertheless.

Crysilis.
...
The theme and design are really beautiful, but not able to keep up with the stunning design of Pieuw's level, that's why I didn't give it a 10 there.

I agree. When I was designing my level at first, it came across to my mind: "Could I get success in the good-looking category now?", but when I saw Utopia for the first time, I thought immediately "Game over". I also considered to lower my appearance points for all the other levels just to highlight how big really is the space between Utopia and the other levels in this category in my opinion.

The right level won for sure, this is one of the more visually stunning designs I've seen. If it can be fixed to require use of all exits, that would really cap it off.

Umm... did you backroute the latest version also? This is updated from v2, so it should be labeled as v3 I guess.


Möbius sent me the spreadsheet of the votes, I noticed immediately one mistake there, I gave 7 points for fun for Utopia, not 10 like möbius has marked to the sheet. I fixed it now. This lowers points of Utopia, but it still wins clearly the contest, so it's not a big deal.
I added geoo's difficulty points here. Now 'Lemming Sound System' gets the place of the hardest level. I might upload Level Jam pack to the database soon.
Now everyone can check if the votes are correctly in the sheet.
Interesting notes: geoo found all the levels easy compared to the other voters, Clam found all the levels hard, möbius didn't consider levels very fun like he said.

EDIT: The level pack is now uploaded in the database, click here.
I broke the average difficulty tie between Electric Factory and Pillars of Creation, Electric Factory had smaller votes for difficulty than Pillars of Creation from more people, möbius was the only one to give high difficulty points for that level.
Crysilis, Lemming Sound System and Pillars of Creation are the initial versions, Electric Factory is v2, Utopia and Miracle Freezly are v3, Mazeochism is v1negative and Switchback Symmetry is v4. Does anyone still want a different version of his level to the pack?