Super Smash Bros. for 3DS/WiiU - Stage Contest - Round 14 - Kid Icarus

[Zzuxon]

AAAGGHHH!!!!
THE POKES!!
THE POKES!!!

 

[TheMarioaddict]

AAAGGHHH!!!!
THE POKES!!
THE POKES!!!

there is no escape. if you do not finish the grades, then you shall suffer from the pokes for ALL OF ETERNITY.

 

[ryuu seika]

Especially Pichu.

 

[Zzuxon]

I have now issued all scores.
I need only to write comments.

 

[Kevandre]

I have now issued all scores.
I need only to write comments.

Glorious! We're all waiting with bated breath.

 

[TheMarioaddict]

I have now issued all scores.
I need only to write comments.

*frantically refreshes page*

 

[Zzuxon]

*frantically refreshes page*

I wouldn't recommend it. Me finishing tomorrow is looking likely.
Should be early afternoon though.

 

[allison]

I have now issued all scores.
I need only to write comments.

*pokes anyway*

 

[Kevandre]

Sigh. Fine, how dare you have a real life and not pander to online people on a forum

 

[TheMarioaddict]

I wouldn't recommend it. Me finishing tomorrow is looking likely.
Should be early afternoon though.

*refreshes page anyways*

 

[Phaazoid]

*thought these posts were the grades

this is almost as bad a tease as ridley

ok nevermind it's not nearly that bad.

 

[allison]

SUPER POKES

 

[Zzuxon]

By the way, I promise this won't happen in future rounds.
I'm experiencing, lets say, highly unusual circumstances, but it will all be over by the time the next round rolls 'round.

 

[Phaazoid]

By the way, I promise this won't happen in future rounds.
I'm experiencing, lets say, highly unusual circumstances, but it will all be over by the time the next round rolls 'round.

Don't worry man. You're already going out of your way to do this in the first place. The fact that people anticipate it this much just means you (and the other judges, and the submitters) are doing a fantastic job. Thank you.

 

[D-idara]

SUPER POKES

ROB's clearly too slow for the intense poking. I wish I could participate I'd grade my stage wonderfully!

 

[Kevandre]

I wouldn't recommend it. Me finishing tomorrow is looking likely.
Should be early afternoon though.

Hey, so... early afternoon... Where you at? East coast it's totally past noon now so I've been hoping you're over in ol' Massachusetts or something. Lol.

 

[allison]

Hey, so... early afternoon... Where you at? East coast it's totally past noon now so I've been hoping you're over in ol' Massachusetts or something. Lol.

Well, it's still morning in the West Coast...

 

[Kevandre]

Well, it's still morning in the West Coast...

I know but I'm not sure where @ Zzuxon lives, could be east coast.

 

[Zzuxon]

I'll be finished between 3 and 5, Dallas time.
EDIT: I have finished my grades, the results are imminent.

 

[Kevandre]

Glorious! Excitement rising!

(Last edited two hours ago)

Well... I'm gonna guess that that means SOON, lol

 

[ryuu seika]

Ah, SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON™, of course.

 

[TheMarioaddict]

I have finished my grades, the results are imminent.

[REFRESHING INTENSIFIES]

 

[Zzuxon]

Ha, the grades are no longer in my hands.
BLAME D-IDARA

 

[D-idara]

Now I have seized control of these weaklings' expectations and dreams, I hold their hopes on the palm of my hand, able to crush them whenever and however I desire, I could also give them even more hope, though, make promises of coming grades so they will celebrate and lift statues with my likeness...the power, I can feel it coursing through me...the power to play a god...AHAHAHAHAHA...!

JK though! Here are the grades!
[collapse=Ascended's Grades]ryuu seika/Barudo Shores
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 21/25
Comments: This was a rather creative stage. I've never played Doshin the Giant, but I am familiar with the game and I like how your incorporated the essence of the game into the stage. I think that Smash should represent more franchises through stages, so good job!

crazal02/Sheriff's Desert
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 7/10
Total: 20/25
Comments: Another excellent stage idea! This does seem like something Sakurai's team would do, so that's good. Sadly, I had to take some points off for playability as it sounded like players would be spending more time fighting the stage than each other, but that could just be my comprehension being bad. I do think it's a creative stage idea.

Kevandre/Teleroboxer
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 22/25
Comments: I was hoping there would be a Teleroboxer stage in this round! As the only new IP for the Virtual Boy, I would love for it have some presence in Smash. I gave you max creativity points because you were able to incorporate both Harry and the 3D effects, and I like that the stage stays red and black. Good job!

TheUltraDeino/Swordplay Duel Arena
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 22/25
Comments: Hooray for Wii Sports! I gave you max popularity because that series IS the Wii for a lot of people, and I like how you took the minigame concept and turned it into a stage. I think it would be fun and easy to play on!

Violenceman/Venus Lighthouse
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 21/25
Comments: I love Golden Sun, and I always say that the best locations for a stage are the first and last areas. I think you did a great job capturing the essence of the game with the Djinni cameos, and the appearance of Saturos and Menardi. Great job!

Phaazoid/Holosseum
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 22/25
Comments: A Custom Robo stage would be pretty sweet, and I also would love to see Ray playable! I've never played a game in the series, but I know what it is and from the videos and pictures it looks like you've captured the essence of the series' gameplay. I like that the layout is randomized when you pick a stage, and I like how you did the cubes! Good job!

TheMarioaddict/Excitebike
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 21/25
Comments: Excitebike was one of my favorite NES games! (Maybe I should get the 3D Classic?) I think you've managed to make the game work very well as a stage! I like your choice of ramp, and I like how the bikers come in. I think this would be a fun retro stage!

TechPowah/Altar of the Ancients
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 7/10
Total: 21/25
Comments: What a cool idea for a stage! (This also reminds me that I need to play Eternal Darkness now that I'm into horror games.) I've been saying this a lot, but you've captured the essence of the game quite well, and I love the method for unlocking! Sadly, I had to take some points off for playability. While I think it's extremely creative and I would have a lot of fun with it, I can see a lot of players being aggravated. I hope this doesn't discourage your creativity and participation for future rounds though!

evildevil97/Pushmo
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 21/25
Comments: I've been doing two things this round: praising people for capturing the essence of the stage and handing out a total of 21 to a lot of people. I think a Pushmo stage would be awesome to play on, and I like how you described it! I gave you a high popularity score as Pushmo seems to be the break-out franchise of the eShop, even making its way to the Wii U. I would not be surprised to see anything Pushmo in Smash, so nice choice![/collapse]
[collapse=BridgesWithTurtles' Grades]Barudo Shores by ryuu seika
Popularity: 2/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 10/10
Total: 22/25
This is a very impressive effort, ryuu. I feel that Barudo Shores takes a much simpler approach than most of your other stages, and in this simplicity lies the true beauty of the stage. The stage's morphology is completely unique, what with being a walk-off in which you can walk into the bottom blast zone, and the stage naturally having no straight terrain. This would of course seemingly pose problems, but the integration of Doshin's geomancy gives the stage a lot of character by having it address its own problems. In doing so, you've created a stage that is incredibly unique because it has unique responses to a unique layout, which mitigates the actual problems the stage would normally have. Great work on also making the stage's gimmick fit in with the actual source game so well. It strongly blends Smash gameplay and Doshin's source material to create something fresh.

Sheriff's Desert by crazyal02
Popularity: 2/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 9/10
Total: 18/25
This is such a unique stage, aesthetically, that I wish I could say the execution pleased me as much as the idea. Sheriff is one of my most wanted newcomers, so seeing a stage based on his game is great. I like how you integrated the encircling "Banditos" to recreate the effect of playing the original game. I actually wish that the Banditos themselves were tangible to the players, as that would've created a more unique feature for the stage, in having off-screen KOs become either more difficult or more easy, depending on their knockback properties. Still, the constant barrage of bullets from every which way is a pretty unique feature, though the fact that platforms are complete intangible to them seems to minimize any point of them being laid out in the pattern that they are.

Teleroboxer by Kevandre
Popularity: 2/5
Creativity: 5/10
Playability: 10/10
Total: 17/25
You know, I would've given this in a 1 in Popularity if it were nothing but Teleroboxer-themed, but given the stage's distinctive red-and-black graphical style, it's instantly recognizable to anyone familiar with the Virtual Boy. The stage itself is mostly inoffensive, and completely playable (except in tournaments), but it doesn't offer much in addition to that. It's a solid pick for the type of stage most semi-serious players will frequent, as it offers some variety without being completely sterile, and I like how it would represent the Virtual Boy (albeit on the 3DS version; the Virtual Boy is very much not a handheld system), but it doesn't really do much beyond include a stage boss that has a mildly unique way of attacking. I think there may be more potential here to be explored. One thing I love, though, is how the stage uses the 3D effect of the Virtual Boy by having Harry attack from the background, and thusly, I understand why you chose to include the stage on the 3DS.

Swordplay Duel Arena by TheUltraDeino
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 5/10
Playability: 7/10
Total: 16/25
I think this is a good example of a stage that has a unique base concept that isn't necessarily a good one. Because the stage gets as small as it does, it becomes pretty difficult to fit even a 1v1 battle on it. The platforms help with this somewhat, but it's still a problem, even if it is still mostly playable. It really does encourage the sort of "ring out" gameplay that both this Resort game and Smash itself are both known for, which is nice. My main problem with the stage is that it's a single location from Wuhu Island, which is already covered by the Pilot Wings stage on the same version of the game. I also don't think that the location itself is notable (or interesting) enough to be its own stage, despite its ability to be recognized. Perhaps it should be one stop on a grounded Wuhu Island tour stage instead.

Venus Lighthouse by Violenceman
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 9/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 20/25
Another splendidly detailed stage entry, this time for one of the stages I most desire to see in the actual game. The entirety of Venus Lighthouse is a love letter to fans of the game, and I think that this location has so much stage potential that I'm pleased that you touched on basically all of it. Saturos and Menardi showing up to recreate the end event of the first game is fantastic fanservice, though I was surprised that you have the earthquake simply tilting the side towers, instead of causing a rift in the main platform, like in the actual game. The use of Djinni as stage elements is also a nice touch, but I think that you should have clarified whether or not the tornado features are actual hazards, or simply help with recovery. Finally, I must comment on the stage's overall layout, and as always, providing a unique layout while staying true to the shape of the original location is your forte. All of the little details, from the bobbing, glowing platforms to the dislodged tiling gets me giddy just thinking of what should totally be in Smash 4, but likely won't.

Holosseum by Phaazoid
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 6/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 17/25
Perfect score for the Custom Robo soundtrack. Oh wait, you didn't include Panic Cube. Never mind. You get a 0. But seriously, Holosseum is a pretty neat stage. I like how you tried to convey the feel of the stage still being inside of an enclosed arena, though I feel as if walls would've done a better job here, similarly to Shadow Moses. I don't have much to say beyond that. I like how the stage is randomized each time it's played on because it meshes well with the source material and your objective in representing it, but I'm honestly just not a fan of randomized stages. Even Tortimer Island kind of bugs me.

Excitebike by TheMarioaddict
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 4/10
Playability: 7/10
Total: 16/25
I like the idea of an Excitebike stage, but I'm not sure I'd want one to be exactly like this. I actually think you should have gone with the floating platform layout, as that may have made the stage a little more fair for projectile users. Additionally, it would've provided a long stretch for fighting on. While this stage's layout is unique, it isn't very conducive to battling, and a lack of details exacerbates the problem. For example, you don't tell us if all of the slopes can be walked up, as some appear too steep to be traversed with anything but a jump. The platforms help in allowing a somewhat even fight and in avoiding the bikers, but it's not incredibly inspired. One thing I really like about this stage is that it's a simple, stationary location that always looks exactly the same. I could totally imagine a Sakurai-made Excitebike stage being a gimmicky, transforming mess that always loads with a different layout or something to that effect, but I personally like the "stationary Big Blue" design of this stage much better.

Altar of the Ancients by TechPowah
Popularity: 1/5
Creativity: 6/10
Playability: 4/10
Total: 11/25
I don't mean to come off as offensive here with the relatively low score, but this stage did little to impress me. I appreciate how you incorporated the various sanity elements from the game into this stage, but the majority of them would prove to be a major pain. The stage already has a lot going on with the four Ancients, but adding on top of that features such as all kinds of irritating and distracting visual effects which would disrupt the flow of even the most hectic of matches, well, that's a huge problem. To say nothing of making the entire stage intangible so that everyone instantly dies...I think we can all agree that this may be going too far with the stage hazards. In all fairness, I understand that it's hard to make an Eternal Darkness stage without these sort of features, but I think that this entry could have been tweaked to be much more balanced.

Pushmo/Pullblox by evildevil97
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 5/10
Playability: 8/10
Total: 17/25
Having a stage which has both walls and is a walk-off is a little hard to swallow for some. Mallo constantly moving the blocks alleviates some of this stage's playability issues (namely with chains and wall-locks), though. Another stage that would work well with the 3DS' gimmick, Pushmo is otherwise quite simple, if also a good homage to its source game. I'd be very surprised to not see something like this show up in the actual game.[/collapse]
[collapse=D-idara's Grades]Barudo Shores by ryuu seika
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 9/10
Doshin The Giant's one of those obscure Nintendo IPs that gets sorta-known because of critical acclaim, and I love those, they usually show the more experimental side of the Big N's concepts and usually end up being well-received. The stage feels charming and unique all-around, from the hill layout to the new terrain shifting mechanic which doesn't even sound obnoxious at all, it's bound to create situations like the cloud on Yoshi's Story, and I like those. Now, I took a point from Playability because of Jashin the Red Giant, but even that doesn't sound too disruptive.
Total: 22

Sheriff's Desert by crazyal02
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 6/10
Playability: 10/10
Sheriff's a classic, and although obscure, being Nintendo's first game automatically earns some Popularity score, I like how you kept things Retro, although it feels aesthetically similar to Pac-Labyrinth and 75m. On the Creativity front, I feel like you could've done SO MUCH MORE with this concept, rather than 'Battlefield with dudes shooting at the players' so I can't give a big score there. Now, since the bullets deal no knockback and the stage layout sounds balanced enough, you get perfect Playability.
Total: 20

Teleroboxer by Kevandre
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 10/10
The Virtual Boy graphics are recognizable at first sight, although the game itself...not so much! Still, I appreciate the delicious eyecancer! Now, the stage doesn't seem to do anything particularily new, meteor-causing hazards have been done before and the layout's nothing revolutionary...but I like the fact that the middle platform looks like it can be dropped through, so there's no real solid ground, that spices things up a little. Now, the hazard doesn't seem overly strong and at most it'll cause an awkward tech chase scenario, so full Playability.
Total: 20

Swordplay Duel Arena by TheUltraDeino
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 7/10
Playability: 9/10
The sword duels were one of the most memorable parts of Wii Sports Resort, aside from the cool plane sections. It's also a very high-profile game that came with the Wii Motion Plus. Now, the layout's pretty standard, but the stadium losing sections really adds a lot of pressure to the battle, I like it. Now the smaller and smaller stage does make the match a little more difficult to carry, but IMO, that makes it even more exciting and skillful.
Total: 20

Venus Lighthouse by Violenceman
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 9/10
I'm no expert on Golden Sun, to tell the truth, but I do know that First Game + Final Location = Popularity. Now, the layout does look unconventional and I like it, especially how the battle can translate between the middle section and the outer towers with the bobbing platforms, the varied hazards, although using the '4 elements' concept that has been used over and over, manages to diversify things a little by creating hazards that work differently from other similar stages, affecting the bottom of the stage and opening up new grounds for fighting all of sudden, although the enormous fire pillar does seem a little over-the-top, nothing seems to scream unplayable to me, and the tilting and crumbling towers with the rare event are a pretty nice touch, you always do a great job at filling the stages with rich visual detail.
Total: 21

Holosseum by Phaazoid
Popularity: 3/5
Creativity: 8/10
Playability: 9/10
Now, Custom Robo's no Mario or Zelda, but I've met quite a number of CR fans who are really passionate about the series, so I guess that counts somewhat towards the score. Now, I really like all the neat little details and random elements you added to the stage, although they don't seem to hinder the battle, they sound like they would expand the battle and open up a lot of interesting options, I especially like the upper walls, they add the thrill of wall combos and bounces without the problem of cheap hits and locking people into walls, overall a pretty nice stage! Took a point from Playability because of the exploding blocks, but they don't even seem like that much trouble.
Total: 20

Excitebike by TheMarioaddict
Popularity: 5/5
Creativity: 6/10
Playability: 8/10
Full Popularity because Excitebike is one of Nintendo's most well-known retro franchises, and everything about it is recognizable at first sight. Now...I understand there's not exactly a lot to work with, but you could've done something a little more exciting, although I appreciate the assymetrical stage design, the slopes and the floating platforms, I just don't see a lot of cool things, at least on Mario Circuit the Shy guys could drive from both directions and that spiced it up a little since it felt like you were really in the middle of a racetrack. Now, it's fairly playable, but the Excitebikers do take a few points off!
Total: 19

Altar of The Ancients by TechPowah
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 10/10
Playability: 5/10
The final area from a fairly popular and well-loved game! Now...you have a good twist on the transforming stage mechanic with some of the hazards affecting the players, I like how the Chattur'gha hazards don't affect the battle directly, and I also like the concept of a barrier preventing KOs for a few seconds, really helps build up tension! Although what takes the cake has to be the group of Sanity-Meter hazards, especially the disk read failures, the home menu, models glitching...I love that sort of stuff! It's really awesome! Unfortunately, it does make the stage quite chaotic and hectic.
Total: 19

Pushmo by evildevil97
Popularity: 4/5
Creativity: 6/10
Playability: 9/10
Pushmo's one of the best-sellers of the eShop, so the Popularity score can't be discussed here! Now...I really like the simple mechanics, but with the source material, I feel like you could've done something MUCH more charming and fun to play on, a simple 3 blocks doesn't really convey the essence of Pushmo well, it would've been fun if Mallo pushing the blocks towards you automatically caused screen KOs or things like that (Although this comes from Kirby Triple Deluxe, it'd fit) I dunno, I like the concept, I just think you played it way too safe...with Playability, the stage seems playable enough despite the walkoffs and walls, and Mallo doesn't seem to be too hectic of a stage hazard.
Total: 19[/collapse]
[collapse=Zzuxon's Grades]ryuu seika - Barudo Shores
Popularity: 2/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity:10/10
Total: 19/25

Comments: Had to skimp a bit on popularity, Doshin is Japan only, and obscure even there. The stage itself however? Fantastic. The doshin raising or lowering the part of the field that is under him mechanic is brilliant and dynamic, nothing less than a 10 would do. Though obviously not tournament legal, the stage looks like a blast to play on.

crazyal02 - Sheriff’s Desert
Popularity: 3/5
Playability: 8/10
Creativity: 7/10
Total: 18/25

Comments: Sheriff is somewhat well known, so I gave you a decent popularity score. The hazard is unique, not too intrusive, and true to the source material all at the same time. Not a ton to say about this stage, just a solid stage all around.

Kevandre - Teleroboxer
Popularity: 3/5
Playability: 8/10
Creativity: 7/10
Total: 18/25

Comments: Many have had the idea of a virtual boy inspired stage, and if there wasn’t one it’d be a severe missed opportunity on sakurai’s part. Playability is solid, the fact that Harry can’t actually kill you makes me think this stage could be a CP. The hazard presented by Harry is also interesting and unusual.

TheUltraDeino - Swordplay Duel Arena
Popularity: 4/5
Playability: 6/10
Creativity: 7/10
Total: 16/25

Comments: As a very memorable Wii sports game, this stage gets a good popularity score. Playability also decent, I’m just afraid it’d get way too cramped at the end of a match. However, The falling away mechanic is interesting and true to the source.

violenceman - Venus Lighhouse
Popularity: 5/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity: 8/10
Total: 20/25

Comments: Everyone who has played GS and their dog says this is the ideal Golden Sun stage, who am I to argue? Playability is solid, you have a simple layout, and most of the Djinni effects aren’t too intrusive. The whole concept of the Djinni gimmick is very interesting, I like how they are contained in the pits. Good stage overall, sounds like a love letter to GS.

Phaazoid - Holosseum
Popularity: 4/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity: 8/10
Total: 19/25

Comments: Custom Robo is a fairly well known series, I think a decent pop score is warranted. I like how there are restrictions in place to ensure that no generated layouts are too stupid, so I gave a good playability score too. The fact that the layout is randomly generated is, of course, a unique and interesting feature.

TheMarioaddict - ExciteBike
Popularity: 4/5
Playability: 6/10
Creativity: 7/10
Total: 17/25

Comments: One of the better known NES games, I could see Excitebike getting a stage in the actual game. Playability is OK, not great but could certainly be much worse. I feel this layout is both true to Excitebike and takes liberties to help translate into smash, so a good score in that area.

TechPowah - Altar of the Ancients
Popularity: 2/5
Playability: 4/10
Creativity: 10/10
Total: 16/25

Comments: Eternal Darkness is pretty obscure, so I can’t give you a great popularity score here. Obviously the hazards (Especially Xel’otath) are a problem for your playability score, but the base layout offset these a bit. But oh boy, creativity. If I could give you an 11 in creativity I would. This is the most creative stage I’ve ever seen. Even though I can’t give this stage the round’s best score, I can say that it is my personal favorite.

evildevil97 - Pushmo Park

Popularity: 5/5
Playability: 7/10
Creativity: 7/10
Total: 19/25

Comments: Everyone wants this stage. Nothing else needs to be said. If there isn’t a Pushmo stage in the actual game, I’ll be mad. Playability is solid, with only 3 blocks moving around. I like your approach to the stage, and how it incorporates both Pushmo and Crashmo elements.[/collapse]
Total Scores:
@ ryuu seika : 84
@ allison : 76
@ Kevandre : 77
@ TheUltraDeino : 74
@ Violenceman : 82
@ Phaazoid : 78
@ TheMarioaddict : 73
@ TechPowah : 67
@evildevil97: 76

AND THE WINNER OBVIOUSLY IS...RED DOZERS' TRUCK BY D-IDARA! LOL NOT REALLY!

Barudo Shores by ryuu seika!
[collapse=Barudo Shores]Barudo Shores
Game of Origin: Doshin The Giant
Starting Layout:

Spoiler

Description: Unlike my past designs, Barudo Shores has no fixed pattern to it. It starts as a hill, greenery in the centre making way for sand towards its edges. Barudo starts out as a walk off stage, in a way, with the outer edges of the hill extending down to the bottom blast line. The inconsistent gradient of the stage, however, will make it very difficult to chaingrab off these edges and, as for camping, that too can be solved via the stage's unique gimmick.
Residing in the middle is our good friend the love giant. Doshin will, after 5 seconds, raise or lower the ground beneath him, as indicated by his green area of effect in the image above. This will alter the stage's height at a fairly gentle pace and will do so by roughly a third of a stagebuilder block, smoothing the edges slightly if necessary. His choice of raising or lowering is random but not entirely so. It will be weighted by the average height of the stage section in question, with a 50/50 chance only occurring when the ground is exactly centred between the bottom blast zone and the blue upper limit.
By hitting Doshin with a non-grab move, he may be caused to move away from his attacker, placing his new area of effect exactly at the edge of the old one. The area of the stage with ground is exactly 5 such areas wide and he may not be made to move from a new location before he has altered the ground height atleast once there. This means he can be pushed to the edges to raise the floor away from the blast zones without having to get too close to anyone hoping for a cheap kill.
In addition to this, Doshin can be pushed past the limits of the stage's ground. In this scenario, he will go storming off the nearest side of the screen and fly back on as the devilish hate giant, Jashin, fireballing the horizontal locations marked in orange above.
Doshin will not obstruct movement directly but, by playing with the stage height, he may well create some very interesting situations.
The bottom blast zone is made to look like the sea from which Doshin emerged in his first game.

Overview: A simple stage with a simple gimmick that provides the solutions to the most glaring of its inherent problems. This stage is unlikely to be a tournament staple but will involve much tactical gameplay between friends.

Unlockable: Yes
Make ten stages in the stage builder.
Music:
Yellow Giant (Doshin the Giant)
Festival Music (Doshin the Giant)
Grass Fumes (Doshin the Giant)
Yellow Giant Reprise (Doshin the Giant)
Time (Doshin the Giant)
End Titles (Doshin the Giant)[/collapse]
Congratulations, @ ryuu seika I think your stage really deserved to win, represented the game pretty well and was an extremely creative and fresh concept that did the amazing feat of fixing all of the problems with the layout through sheer stage design and non-harmful stage elements :D I really liked it! Another stage I personally loved was Altar Of The Ancients because of the Eternal Darkness sanity mechanics, really cool touch! Anyway, all you people submitted really cool stages, and prepare yourself for the next round, you'll have to show us your moves and we'll witness true power! HA! Multiple hints!

 

[Kevandre]

Great round, everyone, for sure. Excited for the next one.

...Feeling the contradictory hints from D-Idara though

 

[ryuu seika]

WOOHOO! I win, I win!
You all performed admirably as always though and it was a very interesting round with the variety of sources. I would, however, like to point out to Zzuxon that Doshin the Giant was actually released for the gamecube in all regions, only the original N64 version and its sequel were japan exclusive.

 

[Zzuxon]

WOOHOO! I win, I win!
You all performed admirably as always though and it was a very interesting round with the variety of sources. I would, however, like to point out to Zzuxon that Doshin the Giant was actually released for the gamecube in all regions, only the original N64 version and its sequel were japan exclusive.

Really? I didn't know. I thought it was exclusive to the N64 disk drive.

 

[ryuu seika]

Nope, I only know about it from playing the gamecube release, though I never had much patience for it TBH.

 

[TheMarioaddict]

Second to last AGAIN? Jeeze, I need to step up my game.

Ha, the grades are no longer in my hands.
BLAME D-IDARA

*pokes you anyways*

 

[BridgesWithTurtles]

I feel as if I must congratulate all of the participants. All your entries worked together to make possibly my favorite round yet. It was hard to choose a favorite, but I have to give the title to the victor, Barudo Shores. ryuu seika did a fantastic job crafting an original, interesting stage out of a very simple concept, and the tact that he harnessed in doing so makes it even more impressive. I think this stage sets the bar for what should be aimed for in this contest. It's everything a good stage should be: playable, unique, creative, and well thought-out. The only area it misses out in is popularity, but it looks like that didn't hurt its score too much. Almost all of you went for some obscure games this round.

 

[Violenceman]

Congratulations, Ryuu! A well-deserved victory.

 

[Zzuxon]

Second to last AGAIN? Jeeze, I need to step up my game.



*pokes you anyways*

 

[Zzuxon]

Of all the rounds I've judged or participated in, only Mario (Wii U) is comparable to this round. A hearty congratulations to all entrants.
EDIT: Oh crap, I've committed a mortal forum sin!

 

[TheUltraDeino]

Despite being on the lower half of the grades, I'm actually pretty content with my grade. I knew playability would be an issue, but I thought the point of it being tense near the end would fix it. haha

Congrats to everyone, this really was a good round. Can't wait for the next one.

 

[Toxicroaker]

Of all the rounds I've judged or participated in, only Mario (Wii U) is comparable to this round. A hearty congratulations to all entrants.
EDIT: Oh crap, I've committed a mortal forum sin!

For double posting, I will give you 50 pokes! Nah, just kidding I will have a little mercy. Five will do for now.
*poke* *poke* *poke* *poke* *poke*

 

[TechPowah]

Well, considering how much the judges liked my stage, it's clear I won the Panel Favorite award this time, and on my first time playing too! Haha, never mind that ryuu won, I get-Hang on, i'm getting a call.

"Hello?"
</\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/>
"Yes, I am..."
</\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/>
"Yeah, I was just about to get the Panel Favorite Award..."
</\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/>
...
...
...
"What do you mean, 'there's no such thing as the Panel Favorite Award' ?!?"
I kid, thanks for the scores, congrats ryuu. Don't even worry about the scores discouraging me from re-entering, this was actually just the round I was waiting for to get my foot in the door.

As for the Playability ratings, that's kind of what I was going for in all honesty; While I did know full and well that it would come back to bite me in the end as for as the actual contest, it's kind of the point to have that level of hazard craziness for the stage. Eternal Darkness is a game where, in addition to the troubles the game throws at your character such as monsters and puzzles, the Sanity Effects are a way the actual game tries to antagonize you yourself, essentially making playing the game one of it's own challenges. Through that logic, I feel that it's the best way to represent Eternal Darkness as a stage, to make the hazards so out there that playing on that stage is a hazard in and of itself.

@Ascended You really should play ED, it awesome. Ironically, I didn't think I would like it at first since I hate horror-genre works for being scary, but the gameplay made it less of a horror game and more of an action-adventure that happens to be really scary. That plus the hilariously trollish Sanity Effects (what kind of game threatens to delete your save files on it's own?!?) made it one of my favorite games ever, let alone my favorite GC game save for Smash Bros. Melee.

 

[allison]

So apparently Ascended thought my stage hazard went too far, while BridgesWithTurtles and D-idara thought it didn't go far enough.

 

[BridgesWithTurtles]

So apparently Ascended thought my stage hazard went too far, while BridgesWithTurtles and D-idara thought it didn't go far enough.

This conundrum is inherent in the necessary evil of having a panel of judges with different opinions. It can be hard to appeal to all of their tastes, but having a well-rounded set of opinions makes it more fair to all types of participants and entries. While it can be disheartening to know that each judge has their own problem with an entry, it's better than having a mob rule in which every judge has the exact same issue with everything. If everyone has the same opinion, then there's no point in having multiple judges to begin with.

 

[allison]

This conundrum is inherent in the necessary evil of having a panel of judges with different opinions. It can be hard to appeal to all of their tastes, but having a well-rounded set of opinions makes it more fair to all types of participants and entries. While it can be disheartening to know that each judge has their own problem with an entry, it's better than having a mob rule in which every judge has the exact same issue with everything. If everyone has the same opinion, then there's no point in having multiple judges to begin with.

Fair enough.

However, there are still a certain four judges in severe danger of excessive poking...

 

[TheMarioaddict]

prepare yourself for the next round, you'll have to show us your moves and we'll witness true power! HA! Multiple hints!

Your contradictory hints will not stop me! I shall crack the code!

"Prepare Yourself" - Ike's quote. Who is Ike? The son of a commander. Who else command things? Captains. Like Captain Falcon, shown in the second hint - "Show us your moves". Ike. Falcon. Both use a move that releases tons of flames. Both are burly men. Both have quotes that tell "you" to do something. Clearly, Ike and Falcon are one and the same. Captain Ike costume confirmed. "Witness true power" - power. Witnessable power. What kind of power can be witnessed? Electricity. Who uses electricity? Robin. A character revealed at the same time as Captain Falcon. Now hang on a second - Robin? Captain Falcon? Ike? All have something in common - the letter "I" appears once in their names. "I" is a line. What's the opposite of a line? A circle. What else is circular? or rather, WHO else? That's right - Jigglypuff, seen from above. Jigglypuff confirmed for smash 4. But what does Jigglypuff have to do with stage contests, you ask? Nothing - and that's exactly how D-idara wants it. He's trying to throw us off the scent, by leading us in the wrong direction. Obviously then, the next contest will be the opposite of Pokemon. But what is the opposite of pokemon? Lots of things. It's anyone's game - just like Tetris. Tetris can be played by anyone. What can't be played by anyone? Music. The best component of any game. So of course, the answer has been found. The next round will be the round for the game with the best music. Which game has the best music? It's been staring us in the face all along:

Rhythm Heaven. The Gematsu leaker has been found, and it was D-idara all along.

100% confirmed.

10/10, would conspiracy again.

Nice try D-idara, but the case has been cracked.

EDIT: Thanks for ruining my conspiracy, Kevandre. I fixed it, but it's still your fault.