Community Keen X Level Pack Release 2

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tulip
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Community Keen X Level Pack Release 2

Post by tulip »

Here you go, this has in the end seen a few contributors!

Levels were made by

Ceilick
Commander Spleen
Fleexy
KeenRush
Lemm
Levellass
Mink
Tulip

Have fun guessing who made which, and may the force be with you!
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Commander Spleen
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Post by Commander Spleen »

First level: dislike. Too much zero-tolerance perfect jumping. Concept is nifty though. Without so many hazards, or maybe with some extra space at the top of the screen, this would be a nice level.
Second level: Yorps at start make for an annoying delay. Jumping over hazards requires strategy rather than perfect reflexes. ... SLIPPERYBLOCKSFAIL I hate this level now.

No patience for this right now.
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XkyRauh
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Post by XkyRauh »

Level03 is the winner. :) A little long, but a superb balance of difficulty and exploration. I really enjoyed it!

04 was the source of many extra lives; thank you whomever mis-used ship parts! haha

Kudos to 05 for asking me to think and be patient!

06 should have ended after the player finished moving Left; the second push to the right was ridiculous and detracted from the joy of the level.

08 was cute and short! :)

09 was completely barren--a work in progress?

10 looks like a beta version of 04, with even more mis-used ship parts! Hahaha

01, 02, and 07 were much too difficult for me. :(
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Levellass
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Post by Levellass »

Level 1: Hate you, so very, very much. Seriously? The door puzzle was nice, but the rest was pure hell.

Level 2: I often wondered why ID didn't use slippery tiles in Keen 4-6, now I know. They're terrible. Mort drones, I hate thee. Other enemies and cogwheels used very inventively. Almost swore after almost doing level then dying. That's some nice secret passages. Haven't been able to solve the first door puzzle without cheating.

Level 3: pure, undiluted Keen. The start was awesomely done, the hidden passages were great, the ice cannons useful, the slip tiles not too nasty and the block an under-used surprise. I killed all the non-clone enemies. Great stuff.

Level 4: The point items are VERY creatively placed (I do hope you realize all those ship parts are worth 20'000 each!) A small level, but a good one.

Level 5: A level, a small, mean one, but mine own.

Level 6: This was certainly a runabout, much like the Chips Challenge level Nightmare. At the bottom I feel proud in getting the tanks to kill ALL of the clones.

Level 7: Dread fall level. (I got that 5000 at the start, and the green gem at the end huzzah!) I hate the Tank bot. Good stuff.

Level 8: Interesting use of ground tiles. The hotdog puzzle was nice, I did not need to shoot the clone (But I did anyway!) or use the red gem.

Level 9: This is a level. Yep, definitely.

Level 10: Ummm... I can't get past the start at all. I mean, the REAL start, with just 5 shots and no pogo. What did I miss?
What you really need, not what you think you ought to want.
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tulip
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Post by tulip »

Thank you Xky and Levellass for your kind reviews of my level.

This reminds me, I haven't even said anything about those levels...

1: Neat design, but I couldn't possibly make it through that level.
2: Way too many deadends where you have to maneuver back the way you barely managed to come. Again too many hazards.
3: I still like my level.
4: Nice little level, I especially like the part to the right middle where your movement is restricted by blocks and hazards
5: A good level, yes Levellass, although a few too many Morts in the end, and I generally dislike when the player is forced to go the same way twice because of doors/keys.
6: Awesome idea, and maybe the tightest leveldesign I've seen so far, this level doesn't forgive the slightest mistake by the player. The second part is too hard for me, especially as I barely ever survive the first part.
7: I love this level, adrenaline intense, but not too hard, except maybe one jump in the middle.
8: Nice level you can let your kids play whithout having to fear about their agression level rising.
9: This is a joke level, as an answer to the Fleexy style insane mayhem levels. If you've died there, beware of entering any other level. Still this levels keeps true to the "you ain't getting anything for free in this life" principle: No points, or even more abstract, no point at all in this. This isn't a level, this is philosophy.
10: Second joke. Spleen was so amused by my beta review of his level, I wanted to share the beta with all of you. Spleen approved of this.
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Fleexy
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Post by Fleexy »

One of two levels made by me has my username in it. Who can find it first? (Hint: you might be able to tell by the difficulty and style)
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Levellass
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Post by Levellass »

Could it be the one with the slip tile fail and the giant FLEEXY in the middle?
What you really need, not what you think you ought to want.
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ckguy
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Post by ckguy »

Hooray, finally got around to playing this!
I, a few weeks ago, naively wrote:Yay, I finally have a chance to do a level for this. Hope I don't procrastinate too much...
Yeah, too much procrastination. :dopekeen

Level 1: Damn, that third jump is brutal, took me at least 10 tries to get past that. The door puzzle is nifty but the part past that is what did me in. Haven't been able to get past that yet. I would have definitely been able to identify this as a FleexLevel even without the signature.

Level 2: Wow, that is A LOT of androids to dodge right after the first yellow door. Some ammo might be nice right there. Despite this, the insane difficulty, and the problem of doors not matching up with the available gems, the level is actually pretty well-designed. I'm going to guess Fleexy did this one, too. The difficulty is a dead giveaway!

Level 3: Very nicely designed, and the difficulty is practically perfect (I can win this one! :O) The only part I'd really suggest altering is near the end where you need to jump and shoot the chain. Took me a minute to figure out what I was supposed to do there. :dopekeen Hrm, it's hard to decide who made this. Maybe Tulip or Mink? [Fake edit: Oh, it's Tulip's]

Level 4: Another very nice one. A little on the easy side, but that's a welcome change from the "MUST MAKE UBER-HARD UNWINNABLE LEVELS" trend. I like the proliferation of non-essential areas, lends the place a nice atmosphere. I'm going to say this feels like a Spleenish level.

Level 5: Devilishly tricky, that purple block with the die sign above the green goo pit is such a mean trick. And oog, that's a lot of androids to dodge by the exit. The garg thing at the beginning makes my initial guess KR. Or maybe Levellass. (Confession: IRCers told me this was indeed Lla's after I guessed KR)

Level 6: Let me tell you, that is one intense garg chase. This is how the one in the original game should've been. Could have done without the last section, though. Hrm, maybe this is Lemm's level?

Level 7: Definitely KR's. :mortlol Another one I'll have to come back to. (That slippery jump by the first gem is just so evil)

Level 8: Aesthetically awesome, great use of the tileset. Definitely has a Ceilicky vibe.

Level 9: Hahaha, a refreshing break from the insanity. Probably Mink or Tulip. [Fake edit: I guess Mink it is.]

Level 10: Heheh, did you even play this at all before submitting, Spleen? The use of ship parts as hazards is awesome.

Overall, glad this got another release, even if I didn't get around to making anything this time.
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Grimson
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Post by Grimson »

I haven't gotten past level 1's third jump :bloody
"All those thousands upon thousands of junk foods made for me on the various planets I explored make me wonder how I'm still alive."
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Fleexy
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Post by Fleexy »

Grimson wrote:I haven't gotten past level 1's third jump :bloody
Oops.

Maybe I made that too hard.
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Levellass
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Post by Levellass »

Level 5: Devilishly tricky, that purple block with the die sign above the green goo pit is such a mean trick. And oog, that's a lot of androids to dodge by the exit. The garg thing at the beginning makes my initial guess KR. Or maybe Levellass. (Confession: IRCers told me this was indeed Lla's after I guessed KR)
*A week ago*

Me: Hmmmn, maybe I should add more clones.

Kev: Nah, nobody can get past all those.

Me: But what if they try?

Kev: I'm sure they'll figure it out easily enough. Any more and it'll get ridiculous.


I should have added more clones.
What you really need, not what you think you ought to want.
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Fleexy
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Post by Fleexy »

Oops!

I noticed that one of my levels got a key color changed around. I found the original copy on my computer and rezipped. Level 2 is possible now. Funny, I don't remember opening that level recently. Maybe bit rot. Whatever it is, here is the fixed ZIP: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3771470/Xpackr2_fix.zip

That should help in the possibilty department. Tulip, you may wish to add this link in the original post.

--Fleexy--
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tulip
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Post by tulip »

Ah damn, I noticed this, and I was sure I fixed it, but seems I didn't. Link is uptated.
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Commander Spleen
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Post by Commander Spleen »

For future level packs, using the infinite lives and in-level score patches would be wise.

Level 3: well balanced. The point items and hazards are rather... haphazard in many places, but the overall structure is well composed. Nice use of the chain!

Level 5: Interesting puzzles. Fairly nice progression, but somewhat uncreative door/gem positioning and annoying backtracking at the start. That two-tile high jump back from the red door over the cogs is not cool. Amusing exit shortcut, but waiting for those clones to disperse from the area is tiring. Clever level. Like the others, it just needs some polishing.
Xky wrote:04 was the source of many extra lives; thank you whomever mis-used ship parts! haha
:lol

I fixed the ones below that jump before the gem, but didn't click onto those ones up the top being ship parts as well. :dopekeen
tulip wrote:9: This is a joke level, as an answer to the Fleexy style insane mayhem levels. If you've died there, beware of entering any other level. Still this levels keeps true to the "you ain't getting anything for free in this life" principle: No points, or even more abstract, no point at all in this.
Was a very nice level to explore, despite the irregular lighting. One or two like this in a mod can do well. Reminiscent of a statue dome on Mars.
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Levellass
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Post by Levellass »

That's a point, you don't see levels like that at all in Keen anymore.
What you really need, not what you think you ought to want.
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