Fri Apr 05, 2013 1:16 pm
Level Contest Suggestions
Building off of Lamp's level contest ideas thread, I wish to initiate a serious and smart compilation of high quality contest themes.
1. For the sake of not wasting everyone's time, include at least one serious entry in your post.
2. Please limit your entries to three or four ideas max. (But hey, as long as you're being thoughtful I won't crack down on this. What I don't want to see is a wild list of one-sentence ideas that are the first off the top of your head.)
3. Using past or already suggested ideas is fine.
4. This is where the thread gets interesting. Feel free to "thumbs-up" someone else's posted idea (via "+1" or a comment) and likewise, "thumbs-down" if you think the idea would be a problem if employed. If you choose to -1 someone's idea, please write an explanation of why. Try to be constructive by suggesting alternate ideas, and be objective by not disliking an idea because it sounds silly to you personally but good for the community as a whole.
Tip: Be creative, but be realistic. An off-the-walls idea that is too specialized might result in a low turnout. Don't just suggest an idea because it sounds cool in your head, actually think it through. For example, a dungeon contest sounds cool to me, but naming it might alienate the large portion of the community who has mixed opinions of dungeons.
I'll start:
1. Compact Levels: Create a entertaining, creative, and competitive level within no more than 6x6 grid squares. Smaller arenas are allowed if you so wish, and players may spawn outside of the arena as long as their only path is a teleporter or route into the arena. (Think Mad Cow, War, etc stock maps from Zap.)
2. Welcome to Hollywood: Design a map that references your favorite movie in some way! The idea here is to not only design a map that looks aesthetically pleasing, but plays well in the theme of the movie you choose. Some examples: Replicate the hedge maze of The Shining, the arena of 300, the epic Mordor of LOTR, the conveyor belt scene in Toy Story, the sewers in TMNT, Gotham in the Dark Knight, etc. Not okay: Designing a map that features a glorious drawing of Batman without any special gameplay implementation related to Batman.
A working example of this theme would be Footloose's map Snakes in Boot.
EDIT: To clarify, accuracy is not a requirement. Can't design the Death Star in bitfighter at a 1:1 lifesize ratio? That's okay.
3. Custom Code. I particularly liked this idea from _k. Basically, the contest host publishes a bizarre excerpt of level code -- most likely a twisted barrier -- and it is your job to design a level based around that snippet. The key is figuring out how to use the barrier effectively and predominantly; that is, you can't just stick it at the top of your map where it gets no use.
4. I'd like to see a contest that asks users to utilize "hidden" game features. Namely, energy items or slip zones. Let's collectively make a case for these items. The best example I've seen is a NASCAR map where the entire racetrack is slippery, with lots of energy items. Double-tap boost and you'll go flying. Another map is Blackbird's Space Ship, where players use energyitems to stack tons of spybugs, then launch themselves toward the flags.
1. For the sake of not wasting everyone's time, include at least one serious entry in your post.
2. Please limit your entries to three or four ideas max. (But hey, as long as you're being thoughtful I won't crack down on this. What I don't want to see is a wild list of one-sentence ideas that are the first off the top of your head.)
3. Using past or already suggested ideas is fine.
4. This is where the thread gets interesting. Feel free to "thumbs-up" someone else's posted idea (via "+1" or a comment) and likewise, "thumbs-down" if you think the idea would be a problem if employed. If you choose to -1 someone's idea, please write an explanation of why. Try to be constructive by suggesting alternate ideas, and be objective by not disliking an idea because it sounds silly to you personally but good for the community as a whole.
Tip: Be creative, but be realistic. An off-the-walls idea that is too specialized might result in a low turnout. Don't just suggest an idea because it sounds cool in your head, actually think it through. For example, a dungeon contest sounds cool to me, but naming it might alienate the large portion of the community who has mixed opinions of dungeons.
I'll start:
1. Compact Levels: Create a entertaining, creative, and competitive level within no more than 6x6 grid squares. Smaller arenas are allowed if you so wish, and players may spawn outside of the arena as long as their only path is a teleporter or route into the arena. (Think Mad Cow, War, etc stock maps from Zap.)
2. Welcome to Hollywood: Design a map that references your favorite movie in some way! The idea here is to not only design a map that looks aesthetically pleasing, but plays well in the theme of the movie you choose. Some examples: Replicate the hedge maze of The Shining, the arena of 300, the epic Mordor of LOTR, the conveyor belt scene in Toy Story, the sewers in TMNT, Gotham in the Dark Knight, etc. Not okay: Designing a map that features a glorious drawing of Batman without any special gameplay implementation related to Batman.
A working example of this theme would be Footloose's map Snakes in Boot.
EDIT: To clarify, accuracy is not a requirement. Can't design the Death Star in bitfighter at a 1:1 lifesize ratio? That's okay.
3. Custom Code. I particularly liked this idea from _k. Basically, the contest host publishes a bizarre excerpt of level code -- most likely a twisted barrier -- and it is your job to design a level based around that snippet. The key is figuring out how to use the barrier effectively and predominantly; that is, you can't just stick it at the top of your map where it gets no use.
4. I'd like to see a contest that asks users to utilize "hidden" game features. Namely, energy items or slip zones. Let's collectively make a case for these items. The best example I've seen is a NASCAR map where the entire racetrack is slippery, with lots of energy items. Double-tap boost and you'll go flying. Another map is Blackbird's Space Ship, where players use energyitems to stack tons of spybugs, then launch themselves toward the flags.
Last edited by sky_lark on Fri Apr 05, 2013 3:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
