Aesopolis, A beautiful environment with so many cool details that I spent ages just wandering around looking. The introduction of the music once the first puzzle is complete is just perfect timing because the vista is breathtaking. The free form routing can be disquieting at first, but its something I really appreciate and gave me time to explore the layout further instead.
alexUnder, The vista once you leave the cave is just amazing, probably the best looking in the pack. The giant's causeway style rockwork lends itself to Quake blocky-ness and the presentation of different movement puzzles is perfect. I especially liked the re-use of space with the player going through and over moving obstacles. My only problem is the chain/ladders and I wished they were presented beforehand so that I could understand them better before the deathly slime pit incident!
bizzozeron, I can appreciate the vision and movement tricks that are required for this map, but it feels like it needs less rough edges and more testing for idiots like me. I especially liked the giant brushwork hands high above the ceiling, very creative idea.
brain, I saw someone complete this map on twitch and its a masterpiece of movement and Quake tricks. I just wish the first jump was easier, so at least I could make some progress into the map. The initial skill wall for this map is too hardcore for my old hands.
Colossus, The opening sequence is amazing, especially when the player is presented with this gigantic playground of shapes to explore. I loved the use of the ghost knights to guide the player and the runes being something obvious to collect. My only problem was the first rocket jump across the broken bridge, its such a great distance that I was wondering if it was the correct route to go. I assumed it would be a much easier introduction to rocket jumping for less skilled players like me. The most sublime part to this map is the Death Knight walking into the sun, pure visual masterpiece!
CommomCold, Such a good intro sequence presenting a dystopia city landscape. I loved all the different NPC's around the city to talk to and the way the story develops is very cool and unexpected. I wish CC had used the map variable system for the NPC conversations instead, its very easy to break the dialogue which is probably why there is warning messages very early on.
iYago, A Sauna, A Tavern and a Mountain, what else could you ask for! Such a perfect place to rest, chill out and catch some snappy conversations. Especially loved the giant sliding patio window for some reason!
Konig, This is a very cool homage to an ID map which changes into something else towards the end. I just wish the map was brighter, I had to bump the gamma/contrast up really high to see where to go. I wish it had more spooky environmental events, turnaround triggers and maybe some jump scares.
MadScientist, It was cool to see a low gravity map, they don't often happen from the community. Though I wished their was more gravity changes with different sections using different strengths and more options to climb using only the gravity jumps. The puzzle cube was cool, though the button part was confusing at first for me.
Rabbit, Such a masterpiece of movement puzzles, with easy jump sequences for unskilled players like me, to legendary sliding puzzles for the gifted movement players to enjoy. The visuals are top notch and everything feels so professional presented and well balanced. The sneaky puzzles linked to the rotating centre is Jonathan Blow level stuff. I especially loved the shambler shop for progression and the icing on the cake being the counter underneath!
RecicleDoj, Probably my favourite map of the pack because the architecture reminded me of the game Sin (Evil Corporation vibe) and the sound track was just pure Markie level legendary-ness that it brought the map to life. My only problem was the initial jump into the complex, I thought it was so confusing because it felt like it should have been from the giant crate not the ledge. The progression and HL style (vent) exploration was awesome and the executive suite at the top with the 45 degree angle windows, just sublime.
Sock, Its unfortunate that the start map has so much mirroring of architecture that it reduces the uniqueness down to 1/4. If there was more time I would have loved to add more NPC's to bring the place to life. Unfortunately the map name expresses my feelings for the final result. The puzzle maps were fun to create and I loved the circular layouts opening up with each new block to push around. I thought the YT links on the books would be more fun, but alas it turned out to be a disaster, a lesson learned.
Spootnik, A giant lava soaked cavern full of hazards, tiny ledges and tricky jumps. Very cool progression though I did struggle to find the GK (at first) at the end of the lightning death corridor. I wished the vania style items did not expire so quickly as I wanted to take my time to explore the map more. In the end I felt pressured to complete each area in order to survive.