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Star Penguin

Ancient Arches

B, the renowned archaeologist, has finally found the Ancient Arches, constructed by some civilization long ago. Now if the map in his hand is correct, there ought to be a precious artifact at the top of the archways...

Ancient Arches
Star Penguin, Jan 20, 2018
Helena, meko, hadi and 2 others like this.
    • Rating:
      5/5,
      Block builder
      Really like the looks and gameplay of this level. The little bit of movable instability can be forgiven, given the usages.
    • Rating:
      5/5,
      Don G Rowe
      Beautiful and super fun. And with that backstory, well, how could I resist? :p
    • gmacpro
      I need a hint - how to drop the 6th ball and get it into the hole and between the 2 stairs?
      I got R dropping the ball so B can stand and guide the ball towards the hole, the ball falls but stops over and over before coming out at the stairs. I tired using the mechanism to push it but no luck.
    • gmacpro
      Cancel last - I got it.
    • Rating:
      5/5,
      gmacpro
      Okay - that isn't the 6th ball. The level started off with a lot of investigating to see what was required so lots of trial and error. After seeing what was required, I found the R walking a little long especially after doing it so many many times. Almost wish you gave us Recovery Point Cards so we didn't have to repeat what we know over and over.
      Was the stairs at the top for design as B went straight to the win?
      Thanks for a great head scratcher level.
    • Star Penguin
      Thanks for the feedback @Block builder, @Don G Rowe, and @gmacpro!
      @gmacpro I personally don't mind recovery cards, and I've noticed you include them in some of your hints/captions, which I think is nice. Talking with some other members, it seems that other members on the forum are not like-minded on this subject, and would prefer there not to be "recovery cards." I'm not sure yet which side of the issue I stand on.
      Yup, the stairs at the top are for design. I thought the level looked a bit better with a few hanging stairs at the top to continue the theme of ruined-ness/ancientness.
      gmacpro likes this.
    • Rating:
      5/5,
      chemi
      Really clever path within a nice visual design. I really enjoyed it and loved the final surprise. :thumbsup:
      Thanks!
    • Rating:
      5/5,
      Ítalo
      B turned it into Indiana Jones. Level amazing, I was very pleased to finish. Thanks for sharing. I was curious, how much time on average do you dedicate on a level? Because every level you create is well worked and fun to play. @Star Penguin :thumbsup::thumbsup:
    • Star Penguin
      Thanks for the feedback @chemi and @Ítalo!

      @Ítalo Thanks for the compliment! :D It depends on the level. If it's just a simple logic level using bots and balls, then I can build a level in about 45 minutes. But if it's a level with a mechanism, like this one, it can take anywhere from 3-6 hours to build and stabilize. Those also don't include the testing times where I remove shortcuts and ask a few people to test for shortcuts and instabilities. And then some ideas occasionally have to be reworked from scratch to fully realize their potential, and then sometimes I make not-so-smart design decisions that have to be changed later in the process, slowing things down. But overall, that's how long I usually take. :thumbsup: Everyone's and mind workflow is different though.
      PvB and Ítalo like this.
    • Rating:
      5/5,
      delator77
      AMAZING ADVENTURE!! Great pure logic level with cooperation elements,visual effects,challenging path and excellent design!! WOW!! Thanks for sharing and GREAT JOB @Star Penguin :sneaky:
    • Mse&Csani
      I tried many Times but I failed :( can somebody put a video for help?
    • hadi
      i give up playing this level:cry::(
      The two primary balls will not put in the right place in most cases.:confused::confused::oops:
    • Star Penguin
      @Mse&Csani and @hadi, here is a video of my solution to the level. :thumbsup: It is a bit long, but the majority of that is R walking time, which as we know is notoriously slow. ;) Also I am aware that this is one of my more difficult levels, due to it's size and nature. I designed it to be kind of a throwback to some of my intrepid explorer levels I had made when I was just starting out, and as such it's not my easiest level.
      @hadi the balls should behave fairly consistently, are you sure you are using the right bot combinations to push them?
      hadi and Mse&Csani like this.
    • hadi
      @Star Penguin
      I confess that this time I solved this level by 0% ( :cry: * :( ).
      I had an incorrect look at the beginning of the level:oops:. I was very surprised by seeing the solution video( :eek: + :oops: ).
      As you said, this has been one of your most difficult levels.:oops::rolleyes:
      thank you :oops: + :)
    • Rating:
      5/5,
      hadi
      sorry ,i forgot the rating:oops::oops:
    There are no comments to display.
  • Album:
    Logic/Adventure
    Uploaded By:
    Star Penguin
    Date:
    Jan 20, 2018
    View Count:
    3,007
    Comment Count:
    23
  • Special thanks to @nGord for extensive shortcut-testing as well as some brainstorming. :thumbsup:
    Basically just R walking tricks, nothing fancy.
    1. R walking onto B's eye
    2. R cannot walk onto a wedge when B's eye is forced up underneath it
    3. R behavior on an inset stairs, & turning onto an adjacent block