Keen 3 "Art Pass" competition! (Results pg.4)

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XkyRauh
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Keen 3 "Art Pass" competition! (Results pg.4)

Post by XkyRauh »

Alright, Keeners! I've missed you guys. I feel like I haven't done enough to be a part of this community for a great long while, and it's tinged me with guilt. I've got a month or so of pretty consistent free time, and so I want to hold a little Level Design competition to get some juices flowing.

I present to you:
http://files.commanderkeen.org/users/xk ... yK3-10.zip
Level Design: Creative Direction

The game: Commander Keen, Episode Three: Keen Must Die!
If you do not have access to this game, you can get it on Steam as a part of their "iD Software" packages. There are other ways, too...

The Levels: Two levels, to be built from provided templates.
I have a ZIP file with two level boundaries and start/finish locations mapped out. Your task is to flesh out the level between A and B, make it play nicely, and make it fit the theme I've assigned each level.
Each level should take no more than five minutes to complete, so remember to playtest.

Level01: "Vorticon City Park"
Keen takes a detour through the Vorticon City Park, hoping to relax, but is shocked to find the location just as deadly as the rest of Vorticon VI!
Gameplay Focus: The fountain at Vorticon City Park is known to be the largest on the continent...
Specifics: No Vortininjas; No Keys/Doors.
Suggestions: The Keen3 tileset doesn't have a lot you can do to make things "pretty," so see what you can do about establishing a relaxed, park-like atmosphere.

Level02: "Vorticondor"
Keen scrambles upward and onward through this level--is it a cliff face? A military facility? You decide!
Gameplay Focus: The 3 floating blocks near the central area of the map must remain intact.
Specifics: No Foobs.
Suggestions: Find a way to communicate to players that the drop off the bottom of the screen will kill them. Because the gameplay is vertical, the player will be reliant on your visual cues for success.

The Rules:
- One entry per forum user
- No Mangling Machines in the level
- No map level tiles in the level
- You may exchange existing tiles in the templates with similar types (ex. converting rock floor to steel floor or slate floor)
- You may not change the level boundaries

I'll run video captures of myself playing through each of the submissions (or dying horribly) and upload them to the Keen Community File Storage when winners are announced. :)

The Deadline:
The deadline has passed! This contest is closed.

Winners will be posted soon. Thank you for your patience!
Last edited by XkyRauh on Mon Aug 23, 2010 5:42, edited 4 times in total.
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VikingBoyBilly
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Post by VikingBoyBilly »

Well, I think I decided to try keen mapbuilding for the first time... ever. On to the keen modding utilities to see how this is done! :vikeen
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Mink
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Post by Mink »

Oh man, this sounds like it'll be a lot of fun, especially because I've (gasp!) never tackled the Keen3 tileset. A welcome twist on the standard level competition.

You have to be sure to show us your visions for these templates, too, though, even if they're not considered entries proper.

Edit:
XkyRauh wrote:I feel like I haven't done enough to be a part of this community for a great long while, and it's tinged me with guilt.
And Lol, a retraction of your, ahem, "Surrender", would work wonders towards rectifying this. ;-P

Edit again: Holy crap you weren't joking about K3 not having "a lot you can do to make things 'pretty' " - half the thing is just points and letters, for crying out loud!
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VikingBoyBilly
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Post by VikingBoyBilly »

I'm using mindbelt for the first time, and I find it pretty weird that I had to rename "temp01.ck3" and "temp02.ck3" to "level01.ck3" and "level02.ck3" to even look at them.

Playing around seeing how it works for the first time, I find it really odd that the enemies are all sprites but the keys and items are all tiles. But I suppose it makes sense since items are immobile and there isn't meant to be more than one occupying the same space. But it seems like such a waste that they had to make, like, 5 different copies of the same items just to use for different backgrounds. Who'd a thunk there were actually 5 different vortininja dolls :crazy
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tulip
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Post by tulip »

Oh boy, finally I get to take part in a xky moderated competition...
Welcome back (?) Xky.
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Ceilick
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Post by Ceilick »

Great idea, Xky! The level limitations are really going to make this stand out and it'll be neat to see what direction people go with the same beginning.

Kind of curious: your level descriptions sound like they won't make much use of the residential or military tiles much, which a lot of the keen 3 tileset. Was that on purpose?
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Post by Mink »

Ceilick wrote:The level limitations are really going to make this stand out and it'll be neat to see what direction people go with the same beginning.
Exactly what I'm thinking! It'll be like finding someone who has the exact same house/apartment as you and being pretty much unable to contain your curiosity at how the other person arranged their stuff. Is their dining room where your living room is? Do they have four chairs in one room while you've got two chairs and a couch in yours? I'm pretty excited for this, seeing how the rest of you use the template.
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Post by Ceilick »

Finished my level :D

Sent it to your gmail.
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XkyRauh
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Post by XkyRauh »

Ceilick wrote:Great idea, Xky! The level limitations are really going to make this stand out and it'll be neat to see what direction people go with the same beginning.

Kind of curious: your level descriptions sound like they won't make much use of the residential or military tiles much, which a lot of the keen 3 tileset. Was that on purpose?
The 2nd level is open to re-purposing in a Military fashion, as noted in the description ("is it a cliff face? A military facility? You decide!") and the rules ("You may exchange existing tiles in the templates with similar types").
The 1st is intended to really test the author's use of a limited palette.

Thanks for reminding me--I need to put my e-mail in the first post, so people know where to submit! :)



Edit to reply to Levellass's post below me: Thanks! I hope we get a good turn-out. I've got a few ideas on what to do with the results. :)
Last edited by XkyRauh on Fri Aug 06, 2010 9:40, edited 1 time in total.
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Levellass
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Post by Levellass »

I'm sorry, but I can do anything but levels. I officially hate level design and fail totally at level building.

It's why I hoped some people would help me with levels for my mod, but that seems not to be happening. So I've cancelled the whole thing. I hope you have more luck.
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KeenRush
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Post by KeenRush »

Interesting challenge. My park level is nearly done. :british
My newest mod - Commander Keen: Sunset: viewtopic.php?t=8568 | codename H.Y.E.N.A.
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VikingBoyBilly
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Post by VikingBoyBilly »

Just sent in my submission. One of the maps is a piece of cake, in the words of Duke Nukem :smokin
The second of which is so hard it will make you want to tear your hair out :garg
Have fun!
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Fleexy
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Post by Fleexy »

I've finished my Vorticondor.

Hopefully I didn't ruin the mood. It's kinda like an upward cave.
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Fleexy
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Post by Fleexy »

Levels sent :mortlol
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KeenRush
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Post by KeenRush »

Sent... I've never made levels this easy.
My newest mod - Commander Keen: Sunset: viewtopic.php?t=8568 | codename H.Y.E.N.A.
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