The Wonderland Board

Now for an easy level - by far the easiest in this world, and in general a level that was originally a lot harder, but now is a rather manageable challenge given where we are in the Quest. Mostly created for its concept - I didn't want it to be that hard.

Have fun!!

Lv134 - "Perfect Run" (6/10) - Your run must be perfectly executed, otherwise you will run out of time!

Download Notes:

Extract the level into your 'WD13 - Purgatory' folder.

Enjoy!!

Here is the current release plan for the next several worlds for Quest for the Five Elements:

1) The remainder of World 13 will be released ALTOGETHER in the next update - all the levels are complete and tested; I'd like to get them released so we can shift the focus to World 14 and the upcoming trailer.

2) After that, World 14 will be released entirely as a single update (it's much easier than World 13). World 14 is the end of CHAPTER THREE, so this is mostly an effort to get Chapter Three finished up and released for the QFE Trailer. This update will also include the Cutscene Update for all released worlds (cutscene exposition levels added to fill in some story gaps), minor level revisions, and a proper prologue/introduction for QFE that has been missing. This will all be added to the main ZIP with World 14, not 13.

3) The QFE Trailer will be released alongside World 14's rolling release - this will be promoted to the rest of the community and outside as we double down on the last chapter of the series. The trailer will be bringing in several new players to the Quest who have been purposefully waiting for a complete stable release of the series, which is why I want the released worlds to be in the most complete state prior to releasing it (as this will be considered a 3/4 full release).

4) Worlds 15-18 are still heavily in progress, so we will return to releasing them one level at a time after the trailer. I am still expecting another 4-6 months before the Quest is fully released, so these months will be focused on the Quest's final chapter which remains far from complete.

Alright, that's the release plan!! I anticipate ALL of this to occur within 1-2 weeks, the trailer releasing on September 1, 2021, so just prepare for a lot of released content coming up.

Tech Warrior wrote: Sun Aug 22, 2021 6:07 pm Here is the current release plan for the next several worlds for Quest for the Five Elements:
Alright, that's the release plan!! I anticipate ALL of this to occur within 1-2 weeks, the trailer releasing on September 1, 2021, so just prepare for a lot of released content coming up.

Whoa cool! I'm eagerly waiting for the early release, keep it up!

Just completed level #128: Descent Into Anguish ... Anguish indeed...

Amnon wrote: Wed Aug 25, 2021 1:51 pm Just completed level #128: Descent Into Anguish ... Anguish indeed...

Nice work!! You have FAILED the challenge... now it is time to go to hell...

Also the September 1 date listed above is unlikely as of now - however the release plan is the same. So once you get through #134, I will have the rest uploaded in a single update.

So once you get through #134, I will have the rest uploaded in a single update.

Don't worry, it will be a while, more busy times coming.

Likewise on my end - it will be probably another week or two for World 13, as I recently found a big issue in the finale that requires some fiddling... These levels will take some time to solve, though, specifically the first two (129 and 130).

ALSO I updated #130 - using Crumpet, I was able to remove all the annoying clocks and just add a default time limit of 233 minutes. I will be doing this for several other levels as well from here on out instead of adding clocks, and will be revising some previous levels to increase the default time this way (namely #114C for sure to clean it up, probably will make it 35 minutes).

Finally made level #129, Stranded under Bedrock - took me forever... Indeed an 9.5/10.

Thanks.

Amnon wrote: Sat Aug 28, 2021 4:55 pm Finally made level #129, Stranded under Bedrock - took me forever... Indeed an 9.5/10.

Thanks.

Nice work! Enjoy #130 - it will take a while (in fact the single longest level of them all), but it's a classic puzzle - one I very much enjoyed designing.

However don't feel obliged to stay on that one should weeks begin to go by - it's intended to be a puzzle you work on here and there until you solve the whole thing.

Alright, it's time for the WORLD 13 Update!!

This is the first of two bulk updates which will culminate next with World 14, the Cutscene Update, and the QFE Trailer.

The rest of World 13, save for its finale, favors the "small but sinister" approach, most of the levels being quite compact compared to my previous work. These levels represent some of my best puzzles so far, but also some of the hardest. Enjoy!!

Here are ALL the levels for World 13, and a brief description for each:



World Intro - a huge story spoiler if you haven't gotten here!! Learn about it yourself...

Lv129 - "Stranded Under Bedrock" (9.5/10) - Everything is crashing down around the stinkers as they begin their exploration of the Purgatory - a desolate dimension representing Hell wherein the Shadow Stinkers are in control. This introductory puzzle is tough, requiring your brain in its best state if you want a chance to solve it.

Lv130 - "Lava Lakes" (10/10) - A canvas for your creative thinking, this puzzle is deviously simple in concept, but an incredible challenge to crack. This is the first 10/10 level in the Quest, and as you really get into the solve, you'll start to see the difference in scale between this and the 9.5 puzzles.

Lv131 - "Hot Coals" (8.5/10) - Don't let this level's small size fool you, however - there is a lot to keep track of all at once. You're walking on hot coals, after all! It's pretty tough, though a much more manageable challenge than the previous level.

Lv132 - "Flight of the Lone Wanderer" (7.5/10) - The original concept upon which "Lava Lakes" was based, though this is a completely different type of puzzle! One that is quite a bit easier, in fact. Have fun!! Don't get too lonely...

Lv133 - "Industrial Park" (9/10) - This level is dangerous. It's mostly an obstacle course level - some will love it, others will hate it. But you have a lot to conquer either way. I recommend practicing each section individually before trying to tackle the whole thing, because it's tough as hell (pun intended).

Lv134 - "Perfect Run" (6/10) - Your run must be perfectly executed, otherwise you will run out of time!

Lv135 - "Temptation" (7.5/10) - Greed is a rainbow soul hunter's greatest weakness, but how will you do when all you need is right in front of you?? This puzzle is, in my opinion, the most manageable in this world. The objective is straightforward, but how to get there will throw you for a loop.

Lv136 - "Hell's Kitchen" (9/10) - Things ramp up in difficulty quite immediately in the most chaotic kitchen in the universe!! There is a lot to do, much to keep track of - can your brain handle all the bits and pieces?? This is one of the most interconnected puzzles I've yet designed, making it also one of the toughest to crack.

Lv137 - "The Water Hole" (8/10) - Another small but devious puzzle, this one took FOREVER to refine properly. The result is a puzzle I expect will entertain you for some hours, maybe more, as you attempt to descend the water hole.

Lv138 - "Abandoned Well" (9.5/10) - An even more complicated mess than Hell's Kitchen, I guess the well became a dump for everything the shadow stinkers didn't want. Now you need to navigate through it in order to descend deeper into the Purgatory.

Lv139 - "The Devil You Know" (8.5/10) - The penultimate challenge of the Purgatory focuses on the greatest element that the shadow stinkers just haven't utilized enough: deranged deception. And there is a lot of it at play.

Lv140 - "Element 4: Fireball Frenzy" (10/10) - The FINALE of the Purgatory is the most insane level I have ever created, and probably ever will create (yes, it beats most of the end-quest levels in terms of its design and difficulty). The truth about this place is about to light up in a most bountiful firestorm, while the fourth element of fire shows its true power in the possession of the shadow stinkers.

This finale is a true master course only for the most experienced Wonderland players, and you'll notice the significant difference in scale between this and the 9.5 levels. My goal was to design a level that would keep your mind occupied every step of the solve, such that you wouldn't even be able to see other angles of the puzzle until getting to a certain point. A wildly interconnected puzzle, prepare for a most ultimate showdown with your demonic adversaries in an attempt to determine your own destiny. The work that went into this finale is unparalleled to any level in this quest – you will see it all.

REGARDING INTERMEDIATE SAVES: Since RTW does not have a save/load function, of course you will be unable to save your progress throughout Lv140. My workaround to this is to provide a "Lv140 Template" level - one which is NOT SOLVABLE, but instead is used for you to "create" your progress inside the level, so you can practice segments individually. This is the only feasible way for you to practice individual portions of the puzzle.

CUTSCENES: This world is the first to release with "CUTSCENE" levels! These are effectively the exposition-filled conversation levels that previously were taking up too much space in otherwise busy puzzles. Now, important segments are interlaced with these cutscenes, which do their job of filling in some story exposition that couldn't be done in the levels themselves. All previous worlds will be given this treatment in the upcoming Cutscene Update.

Download Notes:

Download the entire 'WD13 - Purgatory' folder and extract into your Quest for the Five Elements directory. The finale uses the 'fire' background from RTW's platinum set. You should already have this, but JUST in case - it is included.

Enjoy!!

However don't feel obliged to stay on that one should weeks begin to go by - it's intended to be a puzzle you work on here and there until you solve the whole thing.

So I took your advice and decided to keep level #130 for later when I have more time.

Meanwhile I made level #131 (Hot Coals), it is nasty and ugly, I hate it... difficulty level 9/10.

Amnon wrote: Tue Aug 31, 2021 1:58 pm
So I took your advice and decided to keep level #130 for later when I have more time.

Meanwhile I made level #131 (Hot Coals), it is nasty and ugly, I hate it... difficulty level 9/10.

Thanks for the feedback - is there a specific aspect of #131 that makes it a particular pain (perhaps the volatility of the rainbow spirits)? I'll use your feedback to improve the level, if it can be done.

is there a specific aspect of #131 that makes it a particular pain (perhaps the volatility of the rainbow spirits)?

Yes, it is the unpredictability, that despite my best practices and caution there is no way to ensure success. Both due to the spirits and the possibility of a conveyor stopping just when I jump and rely on it to continue moving (of course I could use CTRL-X to try to avoid it).

Well noted, in fact my instinctual feeling was that it would be a frustrating aspect of the level. I should have listened..

But in any case, I see some ways to control it. So I'll be making some modifications to the layout to keep them better controlled. This modification shouldn't take long and will be added tomorrow with World 14 and the Cutscene Update, all of which is releasing in less than 24 hours from now.

Welcome to the second major bulk update for the series... and this is a BIG one.

The Cutscene Update!!

This is a major update for QFE, as it adds more than 20 'cutscene' levels to all previous worlds where additional exposition was necessary. In some cases, exposition is moved from busier levels into the cutscenes (this is especially prevalent in later worlds). All future worlds will be released along with their respective cutscenes. Each cutscene level is labeled in the following format: "Cutscene to LvXX" where XX is the level that the cutscene leads into. The filenames are labeled such that everything is in chronological order.

The Cutscene Update also adds an official introduction level AND proper prologue to QFE - both of these are added in the World 1 folder.

Intended to be a 'polishing' update, there are several small changes to some levels in this update - these are the following:

- Changed dialogue in World 1 to better integrate with the newly added Prologue and bring more life to the series introduction.
- Revamped the aesthetics of Lv68 - "Battle at Blizzard Peak," mostly changing the empty spaces into 'deep wall' to fit continuity.
- Improved wording of gate code #0441, and updated Lv80 - "The Library," to add visual indicators for gate code #998.
- Wording changes in Lv77 - "The Crystal City"
- Removed unfair bonus coins in Lv74 - "Showcase"
- Added extra conveyor and changed green button location in Lv83 - "Plunging South"
- Prevented additional spawning of rainbow spirits in Lv131 - "Hot Coals"

NOTE: The 'QFE Introduction' level references a README and walkthrough - neither of these are available yet! They will be released alongside the full release for QFE.

CUSTOM MUSIC: Later worlds will feature custom music, but there is also now a soundtrack composed exclusively for Lv140. The .mp3 file is provided in a Mediafire download on the first post (it is too big for the forum), and instructions for how to properly use it are in the 'QFE Introduction' level. Since RTW does not support custom music, this soundtrack will need to be played in the background of your computer in place of the in-game music. Simply turn off in-game music, and play the track instead. This will greatly enhance your full experience of Lv140 (and the cutscene leading into it).

This update also includes all of World 14 - The Thunder Portal. This is the final world of CHAPTER THREE: Crystal City Chaos, and quite a climactic one at that.



No world/level info will be provided here - now that we have cutscene levels, my 'out of game' exposition is not necessary!! Experience the full immersion of the story yourself. I guess I will just note that despite being the finale of Chapter 3, this world is MUCH easier than several of the previous, particularly World 13. This is done with intention, giving you a little bit of a breather after you persevere through the insanity of World 13!

Lv141 - "Blast to the Past" (6/10)
Lv142 - "Destiny Vortex" (6/10)
Lv143 - "Inverse Reactions" (8/10)
Lv144 - "The Safe Zone" (6/10)
Lv145 - "Take the Long Way 2" (7.5/10)
Lv146 - "A Shortcut Through Space" (6.5/10)
Lv147 - "The Thunder Portal" (8/10)
Lv148 - "The Freeze" (9.5/10)

THREE chapters down. ONE to go. Let's do this!!

Save for any major bugs/issues (which I'm confident no longer exist given the amount of testing this series has undergone), this will be the final release for the first fourteen worlds!! We are now 3/4 fully released with Quest for the Five Elements, which is a huge feat. A while back, I would have never thought that QFE had a chance to see completion. Now it is almost there.

With that, enjoy the official trailer for Quest for the Five Elements HERE.

Download Notes:

For those who have already downloaded the existing worlds: Download the main ZIP in the first post. You can safely just replace all the world folders. Any updated levels will just erase your score (but the updated levels are listed above - not too many), and the cutscene levels will all be added to their respective folders. Of course, if you prefer just to manually add these, all cutscene levels end with 'POST' in the filename. You also need the INTRODUCTION and LV000 "Prologue" files as well, if you prefer to only add the new content and not replace the existing (although this is not recommended for story purposes, however I understand if you don't want to wipe your scores).

If you are just joining QFE: Download the main ZIP in the first post!! Further instructions are provided there.

World 15 will return to the one-level-at-a-time format, and will begin releasing on September 22, 2021.

Enjoy!

Just completed level #132 (Flight of the Lone Wanderer) - nice level, thanks!

Amnon wrote: Thu Sep 02, 2021 4:59 am Just completed level #132 (Flight of the Lone Wanderer) - nice level, thanks!

Nice work!

Now to be honest I am not sure if you will enjoy #133 - it is my version of an expert-tier obstacle course, albeit quite open-ended, with some good strategy required. Should provide some diverse challenges, nonetheless.

Now to be honest I am not sure if you will enjoy #133

I had a look at it.

Puzzles are OK, but most annoying are those boulders at the beginning.
They serve no purpose because they are not a puzzle, but having the mind on the real puzzles, I carelessly die there again and again, what a waste of my time!

Amnon wrote: Thu Sep 02, 2021 9:40 pm

Now to be honest I am not sure if you will enjoy #133

I had a look at it.

Puzzles are OK, but most annoying are those boulders at the beginning.
They serve no purpose because they are not a puzzle, but having the mind on the real puzzles, I carelessly die there again and again, what a waste of my time!

OK, couple changes made, and Lv133 updated to remove the annoying boulders. I attached just this level to the post - I already updated the main ZIP on the first post with the revised levels.

In fact, the first version of this level had boulders AND high speed electro tiles! But why??? Well, in fact there used to be a reason which is no longer relevant, but maybe you already determined this: originally there were metal boxes in the top section, which were intended to move through the boulder/button area to the right side. Originally, the center "ring of death" served to prevent boxes from crossing sections, but this is no longer the case, making them unnecessary.

Additionally, a hotfix was made for the very last level, Lv148, but no need to worry about that for now.

Introducing the House of Games bonus content update which will be rolling out alongside Chapter 4 (to begin in a couple weeks).

You'll notice that new threads will begin popping up with the addendum Crystal City levels. This new miniseries is mostly complete, featuring 30 new minigame-style levels that the House of Games will be introducing as an attempt to draw more tourists into the city. An RTW contest thread is about to be announced as well.

The point of this series is quite straightforward: I have been itching to do more levels in Crystal City's minigame style/format, but these would not fit anywhere within the rest of QFE. So, they are being released as a separate, though still interconnected, side series. The full release of those levels will be included as bonus content in the full release for QFE, however the levels will release in separate threads as standard practice for this subforum. This way, the general release of QFE can remain relatively organized as we roll out Chapter 4 simultaneously.

Once more, World 15 (which starts Chapter 4) will begin rolling out on September 22nd.

Long live the House of Games!

Completed level #133 (Industrial Park): without the revision which removed the middle boulders, I would never have had the patience to do it.

Done level #134 (Perfect Run) with 6 seconds left. Thanks.

Amnon wrote: Tue Sep 14, 2021 2:26 am Done level #134 (Perfect Run) with 6 seconds left. Thanks.

Leave it to you to get it done faster than intended! How in the world did you get 6 seconds left? I guess maybe you have some great opening moves with the boxes.

How in the world did you get 6 seconds left? I guess maybe you have some great opening moves with the boxes.

Indeed: first the top boxes, then the bottom ones, then the middle one to the bottom-ice again, followed closely by Stinky.

I just managed to make it 7 seconds. I think that this is indeed the limit.

Friends, you've worked hard to get here (unless you didn't and skipped ahead). Four elements down - ONE to go. The soul element - the very fabric of Wonderland's rainbow energy - is trapped deep within the 5th dimension, and finding it will be no easy task. The gang has much to recover from, new plans to formulate, and a whole lot of trauma to deal with as a very particular intervention has caused some fairly significant damage to the morale of our heroes.

You know at this point there are more questions than answers in our quest - the mystery is only going to intensify throughout this final chapter before coming to the imminent blitzkrieg of a climax that I have patiently been setting up... To quote a fairly popular line, "we're in the endgame now." This is of course the part I've been most looking forward to share.

Welcome to:
Chapter 4: The Beauty of Blitzkrieg.



NOTE: As per usual, anything you read here is a potential spoiler, including the world title itself, unless you have reached this point in the Quest. The final chapter in particular is extremely story-heavy - so unless you got to this point, I advise being cautious with what you read (I'll be careful not to spoil anything, but I generally encourage diving into the series/levels as blindly as possible)! Things won't make much sense anyway unless you're in tune with the lore of what is going on.

LEVELS: The levels in this world are fairly large and exploratory, and this is a thematic choice, following suit with the genre originally introduced in "Exploring the Big City" (108). The difficulty is quite variable in this world - you'll see some relatively easy levels next to some of the hardest in the quest. Logic puzzles and other non-Wonderland type levels will be making a rather prominent entrance in this world, too - so be prepared for that. This is also one of the most scenic worlds in the quest, with huge amounts of detail put into the overall theme and look, while promising a fresh slate of new types of puzzles. That slate starts right here at the shore!

Lv149 - "Meet the Neighbors" (7.5/10) - Welcome to Taurus Vango! In this level, you'll meet the neighbors, and learn about some of the new mechanics you will encounter throughout your exploration of this strange new land. Indeed, this level is a training course, not on Wonderland's features, but on some of its key glitches that will be used in this world's puzzles. This will make the levels fair for newcomers who may not be familiar with these glitches, as they allow so many new types of levels to be made (of course, there's one big glitch mechanic I'm referring to...).

Cutscene into Lv150 also included!

Download Notes:

Extract the 'WD15 - Into the 5th Dimension' folder into your Quest for the Five Elements directory (it already includes Lv149 and Lv149POST to start). Extract 'fireisle' into your CustomModels folder. You ABSOLUTELY need this, and it is a combination of models from WSW's Fire Island and Popo's Plants.

Enjoy!

Well I lost many of my Quest scores because I had several RTWs running simultaneously to deal with the flood of other levels.

I therefore decided to just play at random, so I chose Level #138, which I just completed - Abandoned Well.

It took me almost 2 weeks to complete and it was a delight. At every turn when I thought I had it, something new popped up, requiring new thinking.

It is my favourite, thanks!!!

Amnon wrote: Fri Oct 01, 2021 7:29 am Well I lost many of my Quest scores because I had several RTWs running simultaneously to deal with the flood of other levels.

I therefore decided to just play at random, so I chose Level #138, which I just completed - Abandoned Well.

It took me almost 2 weeks to complete and it was a delight. At every turn when I thought I had it, something new popped up, requiring new thinking.

It is my favourite, thanks!!!

Oh no!! How does running more than one RTW compromise your scores?? I never realized this could happen... A shame you lost records of your hard work (did it destroy all your scores? I'm curious what happened there).

Nice job on #138, in fact it is my second personal favorite in World 13, having taken the longest to design except the finale and #130. I would say it probably took about a month to refine. Since it took a few weeks, I guess this is a 9.5/10 difficulty overall.

Since you're playing at random, I highly recommend #136 "Hell's Kitchen" next - this is my first personal favorite, as it was directly inspired by the playstyle of #138.

Oh no!! How does running more than one RTW compromise your scores?? I never realized this could happen... A shame you lost records of your hard work (did it destroy all your scores? I'm curious what happened there).

Well, I kept the quest game in the quest subdirectories active and over time started other RTWs in the main CustomLevels directory for the new levels. Apparently, the games keep the scores in memory, so when I make a new score, it re-writes all it knows in the score files, but is not aware of levels completed since within other copies of RTW that run in other directories. Similarly I lost the scores of many other new levels when I completed quest-levels.

So counting the damage, I lost the score for "Industrial Park" (#133), "Perfect Run (#134, but that was easy to reconstruct),
and all my scores for worlds 1, 8 and 9, which I am not planning to play again.

Yes, my next level on the list will be Hell's Kitchen (#136) and I agree that the difficulty level of Abandoned Well should be 9.5/10.

Amnon wrote: Sat Oct 02, 2021 12:05 pm
So counting the damage, I lost the score for "Industrial Park" (#133), "Perfect Run (#134, but that was easy to reconstruct),
and all my scores for worlds 1, 8 and 9, which I am not planning to play again.

Okay, well at least you didn't lose your scores for Worlds 10-12 - that would have been really frustrating. At least these levels (save for some of the World 9 levels) aren't too bad if you ever did decide to refurnish the scores.

With that, I've been traveling and low on time lately, which is why I've paused the continuation of World 15 (I also don't have access to Quest levels at the moment, else I would have just continued releasing). Looking ahead, I'd say that the rest of World 13 will still take you another couple weeks to complete if you don't do #130 and #140 (these two alone might take several months to solve - they are really hard interconnected puzzles). Thankfully, World 14 is built so that you don't need to know how the World 13 finale ends in order to understand what comes next (though, for story purposes, the ending addresses a pretty big mystery in the series).

So if you want to hold off on 130 and 140 until you have more time, I'm basically saying that it's OKAY to jump right into World 14 afterwards - this world might take you a week or two in total, because it's much easier.

Just completed level #136 (Hell's Kitchen).

It was nice, no more than 9/10 in difficulty, I especially liked the puzzle with the two reflectors and cannon.

What is this "secret ingredient"?

For now I will continue with world #13 as it comes and as my time allows, I can see about two months work still there before I even download world #14.