The Tenth Annual People's Choice Awards
Welcome to the
Tenth Annual People's Choice Awards (also known as
The Deadlies)!
Has it really been ten years already? How time flies.
2013 was a pretty quiet year for the Caravel Forum. Mike and the Caravel team have been hard at work on The Second Sky, and if the Deadly Bar of Death is any indication, its release is imminent. However, in spite of all the activity going on behind the scenes, it seems like the forum has been unusually subdued lately. Nonetheless, 2013 saw the release of fifteen new holds and, after a two year drought, three new RPG level sets. Honoring those holds and level sets, as well as the architects who created them, is what the Deadlies are all about.
What follows owes a great deal to gamer_extreme_101, RoboBob3000, CuriousShyRabbit, and Trickster, all of whom put on this awards show in past years and helped to define the rules and categories. I’m not one for long-winded speeches, so let’s get right to the awards.
The fifteen categories for the Tenth Annual People's Choice Awards are:
1. Best Custom Game Element
The versatility of the GatEB and RPG scripting engines have made it possible for innovative architects to create their own custom monsters, custom protagonists, or other custom elements. This award is for a published DROD hold with an excellent implementation of a custom game element. The game element should work predictably (and without errors), it should be interesting, and it should be showcased in excellent puzzles.
Holds or level sets with "custom character" scripts may be nominated.
2. Design Excellence in a Modification or Addition
This award is for a modification to, or utility for, DROD or DROD RPG. It can be a whole new room style, a clock, or a “cheat” like transparent tar. It can be a modification for any DROD engine, or anything that works specifically in conjunction with DROD, like a separate program to organize DROD data. The most professional-looking and useful modification or utility wins this award.
Modifications or utilities usable with multiple holds or level sets and first made available in 2013 may be nominated.
3. Technical Design Excellence in Scripting
This award is for a published DROD hold where innovative and original scripting is a prominent feature. In contrast to the best custom game element award, where a constant script is used throughout a hold, this award is for a hold where different scripts are used in different rooms or levels, and these need not include custom characters or game elements. Scripting may be used for puzzle and/or storyline purposes.
Holds or level sets with scripting may be nominated.
4. Technical Design Excellence in Layout and Aesthetics
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and this award is for a published DROD hold that has a beautiful design. The rooms and levels must be attractive, and they must work together as a whole in an interesting way. Holds eligible for this award may (or may not) include hold art, original avatars or sprites, or original image floor, pit or wall. Players can't just rush through this hold; they feel somehow compelled to stop and just admire the beautiful rooms and levels.
Holds or level sets may be nominated.
5. Technical Design Excellence in Concept
This award is for a published DROD hold that is the first (or only one) of its kind. It features unique puzzles that fit together in an equally innovative way. This hold is a leader, where others are followers. A player's reaction is, "
I wish I had been the one to think of this!"
Holds or level sets may be nominated.
6. Creative Design Excellence in Storyline
This award is for a published DROD hold that has a detailed and engaging storyline. Characters are well-developed. The player is motivated to solve puzzles just to find out what happens next.
Holds or level sets may be nominated.
7. Creative Design Excellence in Difficulty
This award is for a published DROD hold that is difficult, yet still fun. Solving these puzzles requires the player to think in new ways. While many players give up on other difficult holds, they persevere and struggle through this one, because it’s just such an amazing hold.
Holds or level sets with an average vote of 7 or more "brains" (at the time of this posting) may be nominated.
8. Creative Design Excellence in Entertainment
This award is for a published DROD hold of easy to medium difficulty that is the most fun to play. Playing through this hold is the perfect way to relax on a Sunday afternoon.
Holds or level sets with an average vote of 6.5 or fewer "brains" (at the time of this posting) may be nominated.
9. Most Promising DROD Hold
This award is for an excellent work in progress, which began public beta in 2013 and remained in beta through the rest of the year (private betas are not permitted, unless they also include a public board). Please consider the progress of each work only as of December 31, 2013. The hold may feature an engaging storyline, beautiful custom artwork, a terrific layout, an interesting custom monster, an innovative use of scripting, or simply the best puzzles around. Holds which are published or abandoned after December 31, 2013 are still eligible for this award.
Holds first placed into public beta in 2013 and neither published nor permanently abandoned during 2013 may be nominated.
10. Most Promising DROD RPG Level Set
This award is for an excellent work in progress, which began public beta in 2013 and remained in beta through the rest of the year (private betas are not permitted, unless they also include a public board). Please consider the progress of each work only as of December 31, 2013. The level set may feature an engaging storyline, beautiful custom artwork, a terrific layout, an interesting custom monster, an innovative use of scripting, or simply the best puzzles around. Level sets which are published or abandoned after December 31, 2013 are still eligible for this award.
Level sets first placed into public beta in 2013 and neither published nor permanently abandoned during 2013 may be nominated.
11. DROD Hold of the Year
This award is for the best DROD Hold published in 2013. This beautifully polished and balanced hold features an excellent overall concept, creative and fun puzzles with just the right level of challenge, great level design, an engaging story, and perhaps just the right extra goodies (such as custom artwork or voice acting) to set it apart from the rest. If only one of this year’s holds could be preserved for future generations of DRODers to enjoy, this would be it.
DROD holds may be nominated.
12. DROD RPG Level Set of the Year
This award is for the best DROD RPG level set published in 2013. This terrific level set is fun to explore, aesthetically pleasing, and the player encounters a variety of unique and interesting challenges. If you could take only one RPG level set to play and play again while stranded on a desert island, this would be it.
DROD RPG level sets may be nominated.
13. Best Voice Artist in a Distinct Role
This award is for excellent voice artistry in a published DROD or DROD RPG hold. Good voice artistry sounds professional and adds another dimension to the character being played. When nominating an artist, please specify both the hold or level set, and the specific role played (each role is a separate nomination).
Voice artists for distinct roles in holds or level sets may be nominated.
14. Novice Architect Award
This is the Rookie of the Year award for architects. This award is for an architect whose first stand-alone hold or level set was published in 2013. Excellent puzzles, well-designed levels, and possibly other architectural virtues such as well executed scripting, engaging storyline, and/or beautiful custom artwork show promise of great things to come from this architect.
Architects who published their first stand-alone (non-compilation) hold or level set in 2013 may be nominated.
15. Erik Hermansen Award for Lifetime Architectural Achievement
This award is for architects who have been creating great holds for years. To create one good hold requires creativity and skill. But to keep on creating good holds, year after year, requires special dedication and inspiration, well worthy of an award. This award is so prestigious, it can only be won once in a lifetime. Previous winners of the Erik Hermansen Award are Doom (2006), LarryMurk (2007), Jacob (2008), BoyBlue (2009), Rheb (2010), Chaco (2011), and Dischorran (2012).
Architects who have not previously won this award, published their first stand-alone (non-compilation) hold or level set in 2011 or earlier, have published at least one stand-alone hold or level set in 2013, and have created at least four stand-alone holds or level sets with an average vote of 7.0 or higher "fun" (at the time of this posting) may be nominated.
Nomination Rules
A list of eligible nominees for each category will be posted in the following message. If you choose to nominate yourself, or a stand-alone hold or level set or modification or utility that you are the architect of, you must post the nomination here in public. All other nominations should be sent to RabidChild directly by PM, and shall remain private. You are permitted to nominate more than one nominee within each category. A nominee must receive at least
two nominations in order to be included in the voting. When the deadline is reached, all nominees will be revealed.
If a category has no nominees, it will not be included in the voting this year. If a category has only one nominee, it will still be opened for voting, in which case the nominee must receive at least one vote to win.
Deadline for Nominations: February 28th, 2014.
Click here to PM RabidChild your nominations!
Links
History of the People's Choice Awards
The First Annual People's Choice Awards |
Voting |
Tiebreaker
The Second Annual People’s Choice Awards |
Voting
The Third Annual People’s Choice Awards |
Voting |
Final Round |
Tiebreaker
The Fourth Annual People’s Choice Awards |
Voting |
Tiebreaker |
Winners
The Fifth Annual People's Choice Awards |
Voting |
Tiebreaker |
Winners
The Sixth Annual People's Choice Awards |
Voting |
Tiebreaker |
Winners
The Seventh Annual People's Choice Awards |
Voting |
Winners
The Eighth Annual People's Choice Awards |
Voting |
Winners
The Ninth Annual People's Choice Awards |
Voting |
Winners
[Last edited by RabidChild at 02-05-2014 10:31 PM]
