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The Bends Wed 06 Apr 2005 01:38
<rjmccall> (SPOILER) Added speedrun: 485 moves (old: 623).
In sheer power light!
 
Dodgeball Wed 06 Apr 2005 00:21
<Max> (SPOILER) Added speedrun: 38 moves (old: 41).
Damn! I have an unfinished level called "Dodgeball" with the same exact theme (also inspired by your comment on Jason's level). As with yours, mine is quite problematic in terms of reproducing a "realistic" dodgeball "story", while maintaining a level of challenge. The problem with this one is that you can just walk up and down in the 3rd and 4th rows from the bottom and then let hugbots walk above you to shield you from the lasers. I really like the concept though... Maybe revise it a little if you feel like it? Meanwhile, I'll work some more on mine. ;)
 
Regression: Bot on Top Tue 05 Apr 2005 22:05
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) I don't think you can beat this one with the buggy version of escape that's currently released. It'll be fixed soon.
<Joshua Bone> (SPOILER) 3 moves & I am frying like an egg. I don't see any other possible series of moves. I'm gonna have to call this one impossible.
<bpotetz> (SPOILER) Hard not to win?!? This is the hardest level I've ever played!! I've brute-force searched all possible solutions, and the longest one I've found is only three moves, and it ends in death. What's up with that?
 
Dodgeball Tue 05 Apr 2005 20:40
<jcreed> Hey! When I beat my own record, how come I don't get to record it?
 
Regression: Bot on Top Tue 05 Apr 2005 20:40
<Adam> Nah, don't worry.
 
Dodgeball Tue 05 Apr 2005 20:38
<jcreed> (SPOILER) Added speedrun: 41 moves (old: 42).
Harder than it looks!
 
Bot Brawl Tue 05 Apr 2005 20:14
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) I like it! The "second quest" is much trickier than the first, but still it's solved with reason rather than trial-and-error.
 
Dodgeball Tue 05 Apr 2005 19:51
<Tom 7> Easy, but my (unfounded) fear on jcreed's level made me want to see if I could embed this "classic" game. ;)
 
Where Are You Hiding, Hugbot? Tue 05 Apr 2005 19:28
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) I thought it was going to be a regular dodgeball match, but it turned out to be quite elegant.
 
Bot Brawl Tue 05 Apr 2005 19:02
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) Note to self: do not save hugbot
 
Laser Paranoia Tue 05 Apr 2005 18:55
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) Added speedrun: 236 moves (old: 314).
If I recall, the beginning of this is fairly well-optimized (perhaps even not what jason intended), but it gets pretty sloppy towards the middle and end.
 
Regression: Bot on Top Tue 05 Apr 2005 17:45
<Tom 7> I can put it back in triage if you want... but I figured it was meant to just be a regression test. It's almost hard NOT to win!
<Adam> You deleted my first level! I tried to make the 2nd part fun
<Tom 7> Since this is a regression test for developers, I moved it to the deleted collection and added it to CVS instead.
 
Impossible II: Impossibler Tue 05 Apr 2005 13:47
<Tom 7> As usual, it's up to the puzzle composer to make good levels! (That might mean making use of what little hidden information is possible.)

I'm just lamenting the fact that sometimes making the game more like I "meant it to be" can damage some subversive levels that I do like.
<Max> (SPOILER) Well, Tom, the screenshot also gives away "What's Going on Over There?", as does the ability to zoom during gameplay with "[" and "]". So, in a sense, screenshots of levels themselves have the opportunity to be spoilers. I think there should be a decision as to the extent to which a level that relies on hidden information is undesirable. In the case of "WGoOT?", it is quite possible to reason about the setup of the hidden part of the level through trial and error. Similarly, on this level, after realizing that the blue sphere puzzle is impossible, the only option left is to try pushing the button until something happens. (Of course, this is probably cute at best and obnoxious at worst.) Anyway, I do agree that in general there should be as little hidden information in escape as possible...
 
Hugbot Research Lab Tue 05 Apr 2005 09:15
<Joshua Bone> (SPOILER) Added solution "Original."
 
Upsetting Marble Puzzle Tue 05 Apr 2005 02:37
<bpotetz> (SPOILER) Added solution "Original."
<bpotetz> (SPOILER) Aw, nine kilomoves is not THAT much.

Well, at least I'll have a copy. I'll try anyway.
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) On second thought, that might not work because there's a limit on the size of a solution that's not the smallest (I don't want to fill up the database!). Oh well...
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) Brian, you could save max's solution by doing this:

Download his to your computer
Rename it ("Max's Crazy Solution")
Upload your own solution ("Original")
Upload max's solution (not as speedrun)
 
Hugbot Research Lab Tue 05 Apr 2005 02:28
<Tom 7> (SPOILER) No insert key? Yikes! Well, you'll be able to use ctrl-i too in the next version, but by then solution playback should be done.

All new levels store the original solution, but I don't think that includes this one. They're uploaded as non-speedruns, so they don't get deleted.

Generally, I'd like to keep for each level
(1) the "intended solution"
(2) the fastest known solution (set as speedrun, so it is deleted when a faster one is uploaded)
(3+) any substantially different and interesting cooks

So, if you're uploading an "intended solution" (for an old level) or cook, don't mark it as a speedrun. (But then describe it in the comment field!)
 
Upsetting Marble Puzzle Tue 05 Apr 2005 02:04
<bpotetz> (SPOILER) Wow, Max - that is some solution. It's pretty different from mine. I'm curious how you went about solving it. My general approach was to choose a set of atomic "moves" that made predictable changes to the board, and then plot out a path to the goal state on paper. I had to use longer & longer atomic moves before I got it to work. I could probably do it a lot faster if I tried again, now that I see your approach. Definitely I suffered from the false mindset where I had to put the grey spheres over the inner panels.

I would like to upload my solution, but then yours would be gone.
 
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