Matt N
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- Shambhala (PortAventura Park)
Hello, everybody! Believe it or not, the closed season is upon us once again, and that can only mean one thing; it’s time for the return of the TowersStreet Planet Coaster Speed Build Contest!
Firstly, however, I’d like to address the elephant in the room. I can hear you all saying “Closed season started over a month ago, Matt. Why is the contest so late starting this year?”. Well, my original plan was to start the contest in late October/early November and play throughout closed season like we did last year. However, I’ll be candid for a second and say that my Semester 1 at university has been very busy, with my dissertation and other assignments taking up a lot of my time and headspace. The notion of a 2023/24 Speed Build Contest definitely took a back seat, and to tell you the truth, I’d pretty much completely forgotten about it amidst the flurry of dissertation stuff and other assignment stuff. For that, I sincerely apologise.
However, that’s in the past. I’ve broken the back of my dissertation a bit more now, and after a really fun Planet Coaster session and a very helpful reminder in another thread yesterday (thanks @Matt.GC!), I was given a bit of much-needed motivation. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have some fun round ideas for a new Speed Build Contest! As such, I’ve decided to have a go at launching a slightly shorter contest to see us through the remainder of the closed season.
Let me start by explaining how the contest works, to ensure that any new players have a good idea of everything and to jog the memory of any previous players…
How does the contest work?
So for those of you who’ve never played before, as well as previous players who might need a reminder, let me go over some bullet points to sum up the basic gist of the contest:
In terms of changes; I wasn’t planning any significant changes compared to last year, as I feel that the contest overall ran much more smoothly last year than it did the first time round, and I didn’t receive any major negative feedback after last year’s contest. However, if you have any suggestions before I post Round 1 in a week or so’s time, then I am absolutely open to making changes before we begin.
There is one minor addition I was considering based on feedback, however. Last year, we had some wonderfully crazy submissions; some players submitted stuff that was really out there! As such, someone suggested that I add a new optional acknowledgement category alongside Realism and Originality to specifically acknowledge the lunacy; “Craziest Submission” or something along those lines! Personally, I was hesitant, as I wondered if there might be too much overlap between this category and “Most Original”, but I’d be really keen to know your thoughts. Do you agree with me, or do you think this would be a great addition?
Now we’ve covered all that, let me go over some of the dull boiler-plate stuff…
Important things to note
In terms of the contest length; it will be shorter than last year’s due to the later start. I’m not currently sure how many rounds it will contain (I’ll make a Gantt chart or something and work it out), but my plan is for it to end on Saturday 16th March 2024, when Alton Towers’ 2024 season begins. I’m hesitant to extend into the open season, as people have theme park trip plans and I’m very conscious that that can mess things up.
To join in, just make a post in this thread indicating your interest. If you post in here telling me you’re interested in competing, you’re in! I’m going to give people 9 days for initial sign up, and I’ll drop Round 1 on Saturday 23rd December 2023 at 12am. You can sign up at any time during the competition, but please be aware that if you sign up after the contest has begun, you will be at a points disadvantage compared to other players.
So, I think that’s just about everything I need to go over! Despite its marginally shorter length, I hope you all enjoy this year’s contest; I’ve been really gratified by the response to the first two, so I hope you enjoy the 2023/24 contest just as much!
If you have any feedback or want me to make any changes before we begin, please don’t hesitate to tell me and I’ll be sure to take your feedback into account. If you have any questions, I’m also more than happy to answer them.
In conclusion… Speed Build season is upon us, people!
Firstly, however, I’d like to address the elephant in the room. I can hear you all saying “Closed season started over a month ago, Matt. Why is the contest so late starting this year?”. Well, my original plan was to start the contest in late October/early November and play throughout closed season like we did last year. However, I’ll be candid for a second and say that my Semester 1 at university has been very busy, with my dissertation and other assignments taking up a lot of my time and headspace. The notion of a 2023/24 Speed Build Contest definitely took a back seat, and to tell you the truth, I’d pretty much completely forgotten about it amidst the flurry of dissertation stuff and other assignment stuff. For that, I sincerely apologise.
However, that’s in the past. I’ve broken the back of my dissertation a bit more now, and after a really fun Planet Coaster session and a very helpful reminder in another thread yesterday (thanks @Matt.GC!), I was given a bit of much-needed motivation. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have some fun round ideas for a new Speed Build Contest! As such, I’ve decided to have a go at launching a slightly shorter contest to see us through the remainder of the closed season.
Let me start by explaining how the contest works, to ensure that any new players have a good idea of everything and to jog the memory of any previous players…
How does the contest work?
So for those of you who’ve never played before, as well as previous players who might need a reminder, let me go over some bullet points to sum up the basic gist of the contest:
- At the start of each round, I will post a brief inspired by a real world context, which could be UK-based or global. Your task is to build a roller coaster in Planet Coaster (console or PC; it doesn’t matter) that meets that brief. Each brief will give you constraints to work within, such as a min/max height, min/max speed, min/max length, max footprint, or possibly even something else entirely.
- Once you have built your creation, you need to film a POV and off-ride shots and post them in this thread.
- When the building stage of a round ends, we will then move onto a voting stage, where we will have the opportunity to vote in a Google Form for which layouts we like most from that week. There are also options to nominate Most Original and Most Realistic. Whoever gets the most points in a given round wins that round, and the points are allocated through weighting of the rankings given. In the regular rounds, a #1 ranking scores 5 points, a #2 ranking scores 4 points, a #3 ranking scores 3 points, a #4 ranking scores 2 points, and a #5 ranking scores 1 point. The exception to this is the Bonus Round at the end of the competition, where each ranking is worth double what it is in a regular round.
- Each round will last 2 weeks, broken down into 1 week for the building stage and 1 week for the voting stage. Rounds will run concurrently, so when we’re voting for a round, we’ll also be building for the next round and viewing the results of the previous round.
- I should point out that this is a roller coaster layout building contest, so don’t focus too much on theming. By all means put some light landscaping and terraforming in if you would like to, but please place sole emphasis upon the layout. You will gain nothing points-wise from any theming you add and lose nothing for not adding theming; rankings should be based solely upon the coaster layout produced.
- When all the rounds have elapsed, the person who has accumulated the most points throughout the competition wins. There are also winning plaudits for those who have gained the most Originality and Realism points throughout the competition.
In terms of changes; I wasn’t planning any significant changes compared to last year, as I feel that the contest overall ran much more smoothly last year than it did the first time round, and I didn’t receive any major negative feedback after last year’s contest. However, if you have any suggestions before I post Round 1 in a week or so’s time, then I am absolutely open to making changes before we begin.
There is one minor addition I was considering based on feedback, however. Last year, we had some wonderfully crazy submissions; some players submitted stuff that was really out there! As such, someone suggested that I add a new optional acknowledgement category alongside Realism and Originality to specifically acknowledge the lunacy; “Craziest Submission” or something along those lines! Personally, I was hesitant, as I wondered if there might be too much overlap between this category and “Most Original”, but I’d be really keen to know your thoughts. Do you agree with me, or do you think this would be a great addition?
Now we’ve covered all that, let me go over some of the dull boiler-plate stuff…
Important things to note
- As with last year, our changeover day will be Saturday. Rounds will close on Friday at 11:59pm, and new rounds will be posted on Saturday at 12am. The post on Saturday at 12am will take the form of a Weekly Digest, containing the brief and build details for a new round, voting details and the Google Form voting link for the previous round, and the results from the round before that.
- The contest only accepts Planet Coaster players. I don’t care what PlanCo version you build in (you can build in PC, console or another version entirely), but I can only accept entrants building in Planet Coaster, sorry. I think it’s important to keep the playing field reasonably level, and it also gives me a bit more flexibility when designing rounds. Furthermore, it doesn’t exclude anyone who’s played previously; this contest has only ever attracted Planet Coaster players in the past.
- If you do not think you can build a submission for a round in time for the deadline, you can request an extension from me and I will extend the deadline. However, these extensions will only happen on request. If you do not specifically ask me for an extension in this thread or via PM, I will assume that you are happy to forfeit the round and move on. I’m sorry if that sounds harsh, but I think it keeps the contest flowing more smoothly.
- Each round will have constraints that you must stay within. However, you can do whatever you want within those constraints; unless I’ve specifically said you can’t do something, then you can do it!
- In the voting stage, you must vote via Google Form for your votes to be counted. I will post a link in the Weekly Digest, and that form needs to be your first port of call. However, you can also post your picks publicly within the thread if you wish. The Google Form is a must, but I’m certainly not stopping you from posting your picks publicly within the thread like you did back in the first contest.
- Picking #1, #2, #3, #4 and #5 submissions when voting is compulsory, but making nominations for Most Realistic and Most Original (and “Craziest Submission” or similar, if you think that adding this would be a good idea) is optional. If you don’t wish to nominate entries for these categories, you don’t have to.
In terms of the contest length; it will be shorter than last year’s due to the later start. I’m not currently sure how many rounds it will contain (I’ll make a Gantt chart or something and work it out), but my plan is for it to end on Saturday 16th March 2024, when Alton Towers’ 2024 season begins. I’m hesitant to extend into the open season, as people have theme park trip plans and I’m very conscious that that can mess things up.
To join in, just make a post in this thread indicating your interest. If you post in here telling me you’re interested in competing, you’re in! I’m going to give people 9 days for initial sign up, and I’ll drop Round 1 on Saturday 23rd December 2023 at 12am. You can sign up at any time during the competition, but please be aware that if you sign up after the contest has begun, you will be at a points disadvantage compared to other players.
So, I think that’s just about everything I need to go over! Despite its marginally shorter length, I hope you all enjoy this year’s contest; I’ve been really gratified by the response to the first two, so I hope you enjoy the 2023/24 contest just as much!
If you have any feedback or want me to make any changes before we begin, please don’t hesitate to tell me and I’ll be sure to take your feedback into account. If you have any questions, I’m also more than happy to answer them.
In conclusion… Speed Build season is upon us, people!
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I’m in.
.