The first impression is: This is harder right from the beginning than I expected! I hope that new players are really familiar with Lemmings and also that the upcoming Lix tutorials are going to be a thorough briefing for this game.
I'm loving it so far, but I have to agree with this, also.
For example, I still haven't figured out Simple 12 ("Minimalism (Part 1)"), and I'm not sure if it's me or if something else is making it impossible. If it is just me, I'd love a pointer, please, haha...
This is why I left the Minimalism levels for Quirky in the draft ordering.
The trick to this one is extremely out of the box and requires more than just skill assignments. (That hint should help a lot, Prob Lem) EDIT: Turns out there's a solution I didn't know about that's much simpler! My mistake.
So far, I think Simple 7 "Climb to Freedom", Simple 10 "Little Miner Puzzle (Part 1)," Simple 12 "Minimalism (Part 1)," and Simple 20 "Minimalism (Part 2)" are too hard for their placements. Climb to Freedom probably be in the second half of Simple, Little Miner Puzzle a little after the half-way mark,
and consider moving both Minimalisms back to the start of Quirky. I still think Minimalism 1 is too hard for Simple, but Minimalism 2 seems good just before Lix Potion Number Nine now that it's been simplified.
Those are my major concerns. Some subtler ones: I wonder if Simple 17 "Solar Eclipse" and Simple 18 "Four Corners" should come before Simple 15 "Alternative Methods Recommended" and Simple 16 "Blocked by a Snowball," not after. Also, Simple 20 "The Borderland" could be pushed back to around Simple 13 "Four Color Circus."
Simples 21 "Snow Really" and 23 "Lix Potion Number Nine" are a little strange, and could maybe be moved down past Simples 25-27, which form a good chunk of simplish levels. (Although "Lix Potion Number Nine" shouldn't go next to Simple 28, "Charge of the Lix Brigade," as they are similarly about long lines of lixes. Maybe it could be moved earlier a level.) Simple 24, while hard, is a good "stumper" level, as there are only two skills -- it's not really that hard to figure out, but the solution isn't instantly obvious.
So my proposed reordering could be:
(
Bold means I've pushed this level ahead from earlier,
italics means I've pulled it in from later)
6. Every Lix for Herself!
7. Goblin City
8. Escape the Pit
9. Get Down from There!
10. Let's Block and Blow?
11. Four Color Circus
12. The Borderland13. Put Your Lix on Ice
14. Solar Eclipse
15. Four Corners
16. Alternative Methods Recommended
17. Blocked by a Snowball18. Let's All Go Down the Strand
19. Pitfall
[Needs a new landmark level...]
21. Minimalism (Part 2)22. Think Fast!
23. Ferry Tale
24. Lix Potion Number Nine
25. Climb to Freedom!
26. Snow Really27. Charge of the Lix Brigade
28. Little Viennese Waltz
29. Walk Them Golden Stairs
30. Low Clearance
31. Little Miner Puzzle (Part 1)32. The Lion, The Lix, and the Wardrobe
33. Don't Leave Me Hanging!
34. One Way Road
35. Declination Innovation Station
36. You'll Get Over It
37. The Two Towers
38. Fear of Heights
39. You Have to Build a Bridge
40. The Road Goes Ever One
We're still missing a level, though. I maintain that Minimalism should be kept in Quirky due to the trick that it requires (Lix Potion Number Nine can also be solved with that trick, but there are many other ways to solve it, too) Perhaps we can pull in Quirky 4 "Waste Not, Want Not" or Quirky 11 "Migration" again?
26: Another Lix in the Wall – The second level (after A Completely Ridiculous Level) to trick me at least for 10 minutes.
I think this level, along with "Exit, Stage Right" are incredibly hard.
The only other major suggestion I have for Quirky is that "Path to Mahimah" is a rather dull level. Neat concept, but in practice it's not very fun to play. Oh, and, "The Final Sacrifice" I thought was very easy. It could be moved to somewhere near the middle or beginning of Quirky. Unless there's a reason it makes a good "landmark" last level.