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6:41 AM on 06.27.2008

36 comments
The Destructoid/Blast Works level design contest
Jonathan Holmes

The Destructoid/Blast Works level design contest screenshot

See that Mr. Destructoid graphic up there? I made that in about five minutes with the ship creation tool in Blast Works' level editor. Then I uploaded it to the Blast Works Depot, where a grand total of two people have downloaded it so far. I know...pretty impressive, right?

Think you could do better? Want to win some fabulous prizes? The road to true fortune and glory may be staring you in the face right this very moment.

Hit the jump for details.

The Official "Design a Destructoid Blast Works level" contest

This is a competition to create the best Destructoid-themed Blast Works level on the face of the Internet.

How will this contest be judged? Longtime readers of Destructoid should be very familiar with such Destructoid-isms as "Also, cocks," as well as Destructoid personalities such as Ashly and the now world-famous Spacecat. Including references to these uniquely Destructoid phenomena in your levels will definitely win you some points.

Don't get the wrong idea, though. This isn't just an in-joke or catchphrase competition. Destructoid isn't just about self-referential humor. Destructoid is about unadulterated love of all things videogame. Showing that kind of love in your Blast Works level by including graphics based on your favorite game characters, consoles, or even game designers, is the real way to win this contest.

Most of all, make your level fun for you to play. There is no better way to show your love of videogames than to make a videogame level yourself that shows how fun they can be. Do that, and you'll be sure to do well here.

Also important to winning is not getting disqualified. Levels that take longer than five minutes to reach the boss, or are so difficult that the judges cannot reach the boss after 10 attempts on pilot difficulty, and submissions that contain images that might make someone want to cry and/or punch the level's designer (overtly pornographic, racist, or otherwise offensive material) will be thrown out. Basically, keep it "safe for work" and you'll be OK. 

The last rule is, you can't steal someone else's level. You can, however, use other people's graphics. Anything else is fair game, but steal someone else's level design and you'll be booted from the contest permanently. You can submit as many levels as you like, though only one level per creator will be allowed into the semi-finals.

Sadly, you must have a US Wii console and access to a Wi-Fi connection to enter this contest. Not because we like to be jerks, but because all of the entries for this contest, as well as many of the prizes, will be sent directly from the entrants' consoles to the Blast Works Depot. Sorry, Europe and the rest of the planet, maybe next year.

To submit your entry, just drop a link to your entry's page on the Blast Works Depot in the comments section of this post. Every Friday for the next five weeks, I'll select two levels to be declared "Destructoid Blast Works levels of the Week." These levels will then be pushed to the semi-finals. From there, Grant Poock and Marcus Brown of Budcat Creations (developers of Blast Works) will judge from the semi-finalists to crown the first, second, and third place winners. 

That's right, all semi-finalists in this contest will have their levels played by two of the creators of Blast Works. Who knows, if they like your style enough, maybe you'll even score a job out of the whole thing. Think of this contest as the American Idol of shmup designing.

Prizes include:

1st Place

* A retail Wii game of your choice (excluding games that come packed with peripherals like Guitar Hero III and Wii Fit)

* A Blast Works T-shirt signed by the crew at Budcat

* A Destructoid T-shirt of your choice

* A special in-game Blast Works "trophy" that will "include an unlock for a nice surprise" (to be sent directly from Budcat to the recipient via Wii-mail)

2nd Place

* A WiiWare or Virtual Console game of your choice

* A Blast Works T-shirt signed by the crew at Budcat

* A Destructoid T-shirt of your choice

* A not-so-special in-game Blast Works/Destructoid trophy designed by yours truly that will include a "crude, amateurish ability to manipulate polygons and a clearly un-evolved sense of humor" (to be sent directly from Jonathan Holmes to the recipient via Wii-mail)

3rd Place

* A Blast Works T-shirt signed by the crew at Budcat

* A Destructoid T-shirt of your choice

* A hand-drawn third place trophy made by me and Spacecat 

That's it! If you need some tips from the pros, a special FAQ straight from Budcat about the Blast Works level editor can be found here, and an even more special "Tips to making a great Blast Works level" guide can be found here.  

Now get out there and make the best shmup you can. We'll be waiting.



MORE IN OUR wii SECTION

Latest comment by Jonathan Holmes |view all 36 comments
Good job Shadow. No worries about your entry being late, as it's the only entry for the week. Congrats....




Dtoiders have posted 36 comments:

Justice's Avatar
Justice at 06/27/2008 06:50

Pretty good dude! I would love to enter but... ya know... (insert generic rant on Europe getting nothing).
Jonathan Holmes's Avatar
Jonathan Holmes at 06/27/2008 06:53

That sucks, Justice.

Maybe when Europe gets the game, we can make a special Euro version of this contest as well.

If it makes you feel any better, Blast Works hasn't been released in Japan either.
bloodylip's Avatar
bloodylip at 06/27/2008 06:55

Sounds pretty awesome, I'll have to give it a shot.
Mxyzptlk's Avatar
Mxyzptlk at 06/27/2008 06:57

This is an awesome contest idea. Now I really need to pick up this game.
Face's Avatar
Face at 06/27/2008 07:06

Awesome idea for a competiton.
vexed alex's Avatar
vexed alex at 06/27/2008 07:17

Thanks God it's not another c-blog raping contest. Thank God, sir.
Justice's Avatar
Justice at 06/27/2008 07:22

@Jonathan

Kenta Cho betrayed his own country? Damn. I'll still to Tumiki Fighters (the PC version)for now anyway.

*scurries back to cave*
Spitfire's Avatar
Spitfire at 06/27/2008 07:58

Cool idea for a contest. I really love how easy it is to use the Blast Works Depot for community DLC. More Wii titles should use something like that.
galagabug 's Avatar
galagabug at 06/27/2008 08:08

this is a sweet contest, been meaning to try blast works, and this sounds like a damn good reason to.
Holyetheline's Avatar
Holyetheline at 06/27/2008 08:54

Is this game fun? I need to play videogames again. I'm such a bad "gamer" since the Radiohead concert...
TrailerParkJesus's Avatar
TrailerParkJesus at 06/27/2008 09:19

Too bad I don't have a Wii. Great contest idear though.
Kryptinite's Avatar
Kryptinite at 06/27/2008 09:58

man I don't think i have the patience to do this :)
4knuckleshuffle's Avatar
4knuckleshuffle at 06/27/2008 10:20

Interesting idea. I'd prefer to rape the Cblogs though.
The-Excel's Avatar
The-Excel at 06/27/2008 10:31

Someone loan me $40 real quick.
nintendoll's Avatar
nintendoll at 06/27/2008 11:40

@Excel

I send that motion. Only, you know, for me.
thebza's Avatar
thebza at 06/27/2008 11:48

there goes $40 from my back account (ch-ching) -$40
braulio09's Avatar
braulio09 at 06/27/2008 13:37

so if I have a US console but live in Mexico (northern mexico, if that helps), can i enter?
A New Challenger's Avatar
A New Challenger at 06/27/2008 14:13

I was on the fence about picking this up right away but now I may have to.
The-Excel's Avatar
The-Excel at 06/28/2008 00:09

I actually have $40 but I ain't spending it just to enter a contest.

I have other reasons to buy this game, of course, but all things have a time and place.
Knives's Avatar
Knives at 06/28/2008 04:28

That's a great idea for a contest.

@Braulio
I say enter now, ask questions later :P.
Jonathan Holmes's Avatar
Jonathan Holmes at 06/28/2008 08:29

Braulio- If you can receive a gifted WiiWare game from an Wii stationed in North America, and upload and download from www.blastworksdepot.com, then you can enter this contest.

As I don't have an US Wii in Mexico, I can't test this stuff out for you, but I assume it would work.
MATTFOO's Avatar
MATTFOO at 06/29/2008 15:55

game looks ill... but i dont have a wii
Dexter345's Avatar
Dexter345 at 06/30/2008 15:25

Maybe I will check this game out, but not only for this contest.
Jonathan Holmes's Avatar
Jonathan Holmes at 07/06/2008 14:25

Friday, Saturday, and now Sunday has passed and still no one has entered.

Don't you guys like free stuff?
Pacario's Avatar
Pacario at 07/06/2008 21:04

Please enter me into the contest.

I made a pretty cool level with Blast Works. It took me longer to make than I care to admit, anyway. It's called "Pest Quest."

The link: http://www.blastworksdepot.com/games/blastworks/type/level
Faceless's Avatar
Faceless at 07/07/2008 02:48

I'm working on an entry, it's just taking a while. It should be done for this Friday.
Gryzor's Avatar
Gryzor at 07/07/2008 02:57

http://www.miiplaza.net/games/blastworks/2946

This is a short level, more a preview than anything; but I still put a lot of time and love into it. I hope it's applicable. :)
dinobot19's Avatar
dinobot19 at 07/07/2008 04:54

By this Friday, hopefully my 8-bit Mario stage will be complete. It features 8 bit enemies that can't stick on your ship, Yoshi, Fire Flower, 1-up mushrooms, the bowser on a bridge and non-stick enemies. I've been working on the pixels for over a month.
ejamer's Avatar
ejamer at 07/11/2008 10:04

Just got the game, and plan to enter the contest... but it'll take some time to get used to the editor. Hopefully I've have something done by the deadline. :)

Even without the cool contest, Blast Works is a pretty sweet game. I look forward to trying the levels that other DToid readers have put together!
qoouep's Avatar
qoouep at 07/12/2008 01:51

My Yoshi's Island stage is finished! I still have more to add/fix, but I wanted to get it in on Friday. Be sure to pick a listed ship!

http://www.blastworksdepot.com/games/blastworks/3227
qoouep's Avatar
qoouep at 07/12/2008 02:15

Whoops! Did I say Yoshi's island? I meant Mario World. Yoshi is the star of the show though.
shadow1w2's Avatar
shadow1w2 at 07/24/2008 14:34

I'm entering the contest, but Ive gotta finishthe level first. July 31st the end date?
I have alot of ideas with robots and cats. Ive only made a few bots so far.
Needs more details really, but still depends on how much time I have for detailing.

Heres a small preview of what I'm working on to show I'm serious.
It's a playable Destructoid droid bot.
http://miiplaza.net/games/blastworks/3809
I plan to update this with more details later.
I'll have the level entry posted as soon as its finalized.
qoouep's Avatar
qoouep at 08/01/2008 22:37

Yoshi's Cave update:
I added a title screen and stopped the camera for the final boss battle, not to mention a few gameplay tweaks.

http://miiplaza.net/games/blastworks/4212
shadow1w2's Avatar
shadow1w2 at 08/02/2008 03:36

Well my entry is late and more or less unfinished. Playable though.
It's got robots at least!
If only I had more time.
Had more pixel work and ideas to throw in.
Oh well, better than nothing.
Now just to wait for my submission to show up on the site....
shadow1w2's Avatar
shadow1w2 at 08/03/2008 01:03

http://miiplaza.net/games/blastworks/4227 here it is.
Submitted it too late at night.
Its not much but its something at least.
Its got teh robots!
An incomplete level really, but I plan to finish it up later.
Not gonna let it all goto waste.
Some good levels made for this contest, was fun and awesome work guys.
Jonathan Holmes's Avatar
Jonathan Holmes at 08/03/2008 12:28

Good job Shadow. No worries about your entry being late, as it's the only entry for the week.

Congrats.


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