"Small World" Level Competition Winners!!!

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Midnight Synergy
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"Small World" Level Competition Winners!!!

Post by Midnight Synergy » Wed Feb 11, 2004 1:09 am

February 11th, 2004, just after Midnight GT. ;)

We will now announce the winners of the "Small World" level creation competition. Each winner will receive an e-mail shortly, and can choose any of our games, either for themselves or to be sent to a friend.

Everyone else who entered the competition will also get a "little something" in their e-mail. It's just a silly thing, but check those e-mail boxes! :D

And the winners are.......












Hold it!!!









First:

Congratulations to everyone for an amazing competition. Each of you should be proud of your achievement, and each of you also gets a big "thank you" for your continued contributions to help grow this community. I hope you also enjoyed this little competition (and all the new levels).



Ok, having said that, the winners are....













Hold it!








First, a few comments on each of the nominees and their creators (in alphabetical order).

1. Adventure Land 2.5 - by "Robbie"
Insansity or Genius, or both? Combining a wild and zany back-story with a hefty dose of imagination (also required of the player to follow the intended game), this level is less a puzzle and more a playground for your mind - it almost invites you to make up your own story as you go along. Big points for taking the Wonderland engine into such a new and wild direction.

2. A Small Adventure - by "majic1"
Great selection of puzzle elements, all neatly arranged into the 14x14 size requirement. While the level can be solved without collecting all the coins, nobody worth their Wonder-salt will pass on the fun to be had to get them all. It looks easy at first, but you need to think ahead very carefully in order to have enough boxes to cross that lava at the end!

3. Castaway - by "leandemon"
Myamoto (creator of SuperMario) would be proud of this level. He designed his games so that you would get a little further on each attempt - thus maximizing your enjoyment. Castaway does just that, allowing you to slowly get closer to your goal... with not one but several "aha!" moments and good humour to boot!

4. Just Three Coins - by "malcdesol"
Living in Spain must be good for your Brain! This is a near-perfect logic puzzle... it looks impossible to begin with, but by working backwards and clear deduction ("I must use this box here, so what else can I use to cross the other stream of water") you can slowly unravel its mystery.

5. Coinsearchers - by Andrew (son of "bpurcell")
For anyone who doesn't know it yet - this level was created by a 5 year old! Special recognition goes to Andrew for putting together a thoroughly enjoyable level. Many "hidden walls" levels can be tedious, but Andrew's design is neat and elegant, making this level as enjoyable as, well, child's play. Absolutely fantastic!

6. Diversionary Tactics - by "LinkyNStoof"
Yikes! This has got to be the toughest puzzle created for Wonderland so far! Not only that, it gets multiple puzzle elements into the 14x14 size without feeling crammed, and also introduces us to one completely new and one almost completely new idea for creating puzzles. And even if you figure out what to do, you still have to figure out how to do it... which will not be an easy feat!

7. It's A Contest - by "Pat"
Fun, silly, fun. Rain, snow, weird colours, coiley's bouncing, zbots zipping, I felt this level was incredibly refreshing to play. While there were no "tough" puzzles in this one, it invited you to try out lots of different approaches to the same problem, making this a fun level to just play around and experiment in. It also contained an new extension of gameplay element - steering Zbots over buttons blocked by coins.

8. Jailbreak - by "Davidmad"
Fun, silly, fun, part 2! Again, not so much a tough level to figure out, but boy is it fun to just run for it and see how fast you can make it through. Coiley's had a real comeback in this competition, and it's great to see Coiley's do what Coiley's do best - be blown up! (along some with Kaboom!s for good measure).

9. Just A Little - by "Eeyore31"
This is what I would call a "classic" Wonderland level. Wonderful visual design, no tricks or gimmicks, not too hard, not too easy, just a really solidly designed puzzle. It's the simplest things that can be the most elegant - even after I discovered the secret passageway I still could not see how to solve this puzzle... until I forced myself to think about the setup differently.

10. It's A World of Laughter - by "SharonM"
Great to see a level that gets easier (and hence faster) to play with each go. At first glance those Chompers are a problem. So is that Kaboom! So are the Reflectors! But one by one you can unravel how to best deal with these elements - and then they don't seem menacing at all anymore. Which you'll need to do in order to get through this level in time!!!

11. Lightning Strikes - by "DiscGolfer"
My god, this level killed Stinky more often than any other combined, I think. Wonderful timing elements that were as tought as can be. I was near heart attacks trying to make my way from safe point to safe point. Bonus points for getting the 14x14 design into the level... and extra bonus points for coming up with the idea of making the level exit into a trap!

12. A Simple Plan - by "ol'gramma"
Another great Wonderland level. Not too tough on your noggin' --- which is a real blessing after some of the other levels --- but just plain fun to play and figure out. This is definitely a level for those of us who like to zip through looking for better and better shortcuts in the quest for the highscore. The open design allows you to experiment and attack problems from different perspectives.

13. Space Filling Curve - by "Ali"
Weeeee!!! Is there anything else to be said about this level? Pure fun...

14. Surprise - by "BruceB"
BruceB is back doing what BruceB does best - playing with Kaboom!s. Except this time you also have some other house guests. The surprise element was well thought out - you think you see it coming, you feel confident, you take that first coin, and aaaaaaaah!




And now the winners....















Except of course I first have to say how hard it was to pick a winner. Yes, everyone is a winner, but I do feel I should stick with the contest rules and only pick three "top" prizes. I wouldn't want to set a precedent and suddenly get hundreds of contest entries next time, would I now? ;)




And so, the winnner of the "Small World" Level competition are....















In alphabetical order of user.....



















(drum roll)..................














Eeyore31 for "Just A Little"
LeanDemon for "Castaway"
LinkyNStoof for "Diversionary Tactics"


Congratulations to all! Check your e-mail... and now excuse me as I take cover behind that big rock!
Last edited by Midnight Synergy on Fri Jul 22, 2005 5:35 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Robbie
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Post by Robbie » Wed Feb 11, 2004 1:24 am

Congrats Guys'n'Gals,

Awesome levels & worthy winners each one. Thanks Pat for your thoughts on all the levels too - made my day!

As far as picking winnders goes you're a brave man stepping out like this... either that or you do have a really really big rock to hide behind :wink:

So what's on for the next comp???

Robbie :D

PS Some Genius & a healthy dose of Insanity... you have to be... really.
Last edited by Robbie on Wed Feb 11, 2004 4:52 am, edited 1 time in total.
SharonM
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Post by SharonM » Wed Feb 11, 2004 1:38 am

Congrats all. Especially LeanDemon, eeyore31, and LNS. Great levels all. I think you did a good job Patrick, as I said before, I wouldn't want to be in your shoes. :lol: freightrain wants to know how big the rock is. :lol: I really liked the reviews of each of the levels, too! Can't wait for the next competition! :wink:
SharonM
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majic1
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Post by majic1 » Wed Feb 11, 2004 1:43 am

CONGRATULATIONS to the three of you! :!: :!: :D :D GREAT JOB!!! SPEECH, SPEECH!! HOORAY!!!!

Note: This has been an extremely FUN experience. Can't wait til the next "adventure" we all have together!! :D
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eeyore31
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Post by eeyore31 » Wed Feb 11, 2004 2:07 am

WOW!!! I am in shock. I really didn't think mine was good enough to win. I am happy for/and proud of ALL of us, putting all the time, thought, and pure brain-racking effort into creating the levels. This is truly a special Wonderland family. Thank you Patrick, for giving us the opportunity to be a part of it...........

(she bows slightly and humbly, walks backward through the curtain, and the lights dim)
Yes, I'm a donkey......
and I'm purple.....
and I am Polly, Minnie's little sister.
LinkyNStoof
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Post by LinkyNStoof » Wed Feb 11, 2004 2:44 am

eeyore31 wrote:WOW!!! I am in shock. I really didn't think mine was good enough to win.
I think Patrick said it best when he calls yours a "classic" Wonderland level. I couldn't find the right words to express it in my comments (other than something about "a good balance of tidiness & variety"), but when I first saw your level, I really thought it was very professionally made--meaning that if I didn't know better, I would've thought it was a bonus level from the game itself! I would've commented on it more if they weren't other, not-so-classic levels that stole the show so to speak. :wink:

See, I told you Midnight Synergy should hire you when they do Wonderland 3! :D :wink:
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Bearsland
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Post by Bearsland » Wed Feb 11, 2004 2:54 am

Congratulations to all the winners. Well deserved. :D

btw. Patrick, you should offer a job to the winner of the next contest. There are some brilliant puzzlers here. :wink:
LinkyNStoof
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Post by LinkyNStoof » Wed Feb 11, 2004 5:19 am

The special gift for everyone was quite interesting!

I'm almost a bit surprised at how your first 3D model of Stinky looks. Those eyes and pointy ears seem so full of mischieve!!! Looks more like a character out to destroy Wonderland rather than saving it! :wink: I'm quite glad that didn't end up as the final form!
malcdelsol
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Post by malcdelsol » Wed Feb 11, 2004 7:32 am

Hi Wonderlanders,

Would like to add my congratulations to Eeyore31, LeanDemon and LinkyNStoof :lol: - worthy winners and no arguments from me Patrick - a difficult decision I'm sure.

A great competition and a big 'Well Done' to all participants.

It was good to see how Stinky and Loof evolved, if not a little frightening had Stinky been made to look like the 'devil'. :twisted:

I will put a solution to my level 'Just 3 Coins', later today on the appropriate post, although I would have hoped that most Wonderlanders would have completed it by now.

Malcdelsol 8)
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Post by Davimad » Wed Feb 11, 2004 11:02 am

:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

Well done you three, I couldn't have wished for a more deserving trio.

Patrick, I think that you had better watch out, your job may be at risk!!!!!!!

Roll on the next comp. YIPPEE! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
DiscGolfer
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Post by DiscGolfer » Wed Feb 11, 2004 1:47 pm

Excellent Choices! Congratulations to a well deserving trio! :D
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Post by Dianna » Thu Feb 12, 2004 7:12 pm

Wow, finally I'm back in biz with the computer (now more commonly referred to by me as "the evil beast") :evil: and just wanted to say how WONDERFUL all of the contest levels are!

I had looked at them before, but hadn't been able to play. So impressed with all of these levels. Wish I were so creative! Takes me forever to make even one level, but some of you guys crank them out right and left.

Eeyore, I just finished yours -- I'd be embarrassed to say how many times I pushed Stinky over the conveyor trying to avoid the Scouge, and how many times I got him blown up when I did manage not to take the conveyor ride...that was a very fun puzzle. Congrats on winning the contest! You deserve it, not only for this puzzle but for your prolific Wonderland creativity in general.

I also tried Castaway a couple of times, and have no good idea how to solve this one yet. Love the theme, LeanDemon! Someone made our beloved Stinky WALK THE PLANK? We should all get together and roll boulders at the pirate who did that!

Unfortunately, I'll have to give the other levels a try later. Geez, I hate how the functions necessary to keep life together interfere with my time for Wonderland. Sure am glad to be able to play again, and looking forward to chomping into all of the levels this evening.
SharonM
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Post by SharonM » Fri Feb 13, 2004 1:09 am

Welcome back, Dianne! :) We were beginning to wonder if you would ever make it back! :lol: Hope your son got you fixed up so we don't have to do without your company again. :lol:
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Dianna
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Post by Dianna » Sat Feb 14, 2004 3:24 pm

Hmmm, I've been waiting for more discussion about the original Stinky but haven't seen a word since LinkyandStoof's mention of him. Deep, dark family secret?
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