Hi tankers,
In the last day of 2014, I have finally finished a summery, introducing the great lasertank level-makers in history. I pay my sincere homage to all of you, Thanks to you, lasertank has been showing her charm for about 20 years; thanks to you, we players have got much fun!
###Jim Kindley###
As the creator of this game, Jim Kindley has made at least 30 levels. He gave us some kids&easy levels for warming-up, then gradually raise the difficulty.
Almost all of his levels are fresh and attractive. Some levels were referred more than once in others�" collection of best levels. He has created only one deadly level (#0283 �SDazed and Confused⬝), and this one is very nice, which is a good training of mirrors. We can hardly find big shortcuts� only #0165 has one.
###Ivosh###
He is an important author in early days, having created about 47 levels, including 7 deadly levels and 15 hard ones.
Many of his works are interesting, and he is very good at make levels with many moveable mirrors, such as the series of �SSingle Pass⬝(3 levels), the series of �SDeep Little Wells⬝(6 wells in total), and �S222 Mirrors & Bricks⬝, etc. A particular example is # 0368⬝ The inchworm special⬝: even the shortcut-solution is impressive. Plus, Many of his works look beautiful.
He once made a very long level: #400 �SFor Mr Kheper & Mikulka⬝. It is the first super-long level in LT history, followed by �SFinger Erosion⬝(made by Kheper) & others; and the first �Shomage⬝ level, followed by �SKheperight⬝(made by Ihab) & others.
Unfortunately, some of his levels have big shortcuts, which ruin his very clever ideas, such as #0182,#0205,#0213. Hoping one day he comes back and eliminates the shortcuts.
###Mikulka###
He is also a well-known author having created more than 80 levels, including 21 hard/deadly ones.
Some of them are very nice, such as #0958 �SEffective Defence⬝, # 0384⬝ Windmill Fight⬝ and so on. What is more, In the southwest part of #0363 �SSpiegelwald am Teich⬝, several rotary mirrors are crowded, only leaving a narrow zigzag for things to move through. After this level, this kind of idea was re-used once and once again.
Some easy or medium levels are interesting too, like #1452�SSydney 2000: Athletics⬝.
Maybe there are also boring levels, such as ones with an army of mirrors, but a group of players like to play them too.
###Igor###
He has made 31 levels in lasertank.lvl file(#0610-#0616; #0671-#0694) with a very nice quality overall.
He likes to make levels that are fantastic� An especially impressive one is # 679⬝ Super G⬝. And he likes to use red blocks. There are very few shortcuts in his levels, so we can feel the charm of his intended solutions. Unusually, in Lasertank.lvl file, many of his scores (as the author�"s) are near to the GHSs.
###Kheper###(Robert Vignault)
Like Kasparov in the world of chess, Gauss in the world of Math, Kheper is a legend of LT world. If there is a list of �S5 best authors in history⬝, Kheper will probably be in. Some players consider him as the No.1. No less than three authors have made homage level for him.
He has created 58 levels, all of which were rated hard or deadly (In this respect, only one who can match him is Iron and Kheper made more levels). Some of them are famous nightmare for players. Look at the mails extracted from Yahoo Group below:
A guy called �Scleverspots⬝ said,
I'm ready to throw in the towel on level #948, "Les Outils Suspendus" by the deadly Kheper. Can anyone please give me a hint, or a full solution? I spent hours on it a couple years ago to no avail, and just again spent many hours on it with no luck. Thanks in advance if anyone can help.
After Donald replied him, he said,
To: Donald Drouin
Thank you, thank you, thank you thank you thank
you!
WOW! I was hesitant to ask for a hint (because I
really wanted to solve that one) but safe to say it would have eluded me if I
tried for another million years. Your screen shots were perfect.
I'd also like to take this opportunity to say
thank you to the creator, Jim Kindley, and all the brilliant minds who crafted
the marvelous levels. Too many names to mention, but Mikulka gets a special
shout-out (I'm still laughing about getting shot by mom's earrings).
LaserTank is a wonderful game.
Another example: PGN, one of the greatest level solver, who has solved at least 4780 levels, once said in Yahoo Group:
Hi!
I just want to tell the world of Laser Tank that
I today solved my
last remaining unsolved level in the original
LT-file. 2030 levels
solved, I didn't think that day would come!
I want to send a big THANKS to the creator of
this program and to all
the great level creators.
So, which is the most difficult level to solve ?
The level that took the longest time to solve
was level 1619 (2/3
wrong!)by Kheper.
It took me more than a month of daily thinking to
solve that masterpiece.
After years, PGN conquered Challenge-I.lvl and said again,
⬦
The most difficult level to solve for me, by
far, was level 1333 (Ch-I). I have, from time
to time, for almost two years tried to solve
it and when I finally solved it I had beaten
the GHS!
⬦
By the way, this CH-I# 1333⬝ S-C ��Ape⬝ has been referred to in Yahoo Group by at least 3 top lasertankers (PGN, Ihab, GerrW).
A great advantage of his levels, which is different from some other deadly-level makers�", is: they have both difficulty and beauty. Many levels like arts, presenting very good symmetry. It is the reason why players like his levels so much.
Some delicate levels are especially good, like #0948 �SLes outils suspendus⬝. There are also # 1421⬝ Quick Fix⬝, # 2014⬝ Addition⬝ as nice examples. He once made a deadly level which can be done with only 42 moves (#0540 �SThe Key⬝, you may find two strategies but neither of these will work). On the other hand, his long levels have also been discussed in the forum, like #1986 �SBig Time⬝.
He is very good at using the early trick� pushing a moveable objects UNDER our tank (See tutor.lvl #01 by Donald Drouin). #0178 �SBeing an inchworm⬦⬝ is a big show� Seemingly you have alterable strategies but in fact you have to walk like an inchworm, using the trick. Other tricks were used too, like # 0666 ⬝ Blind Beast⬝. Though he is an early author in history, he also made at least one level with timing trick (See Ch-II#0825 �S La Trappe ⬝).
Though his levels included many themes, it is likely that his favorite style is �SBlocks go into water⬝.
The only pity is: There are shortcuts in a part of his levels. You can find these levels from comparing the number of SHOTS (not the moves) between the GHS and the hint. But of course, many levels with shortcuts are still very nice.
It is said that he is a biologist in real life.
###Pono###
He is one of the top authors, having created 99 levels, with more than 30 deadly ones and a dozen of unsolved levels.
His levels in Ch-III.lvl are fairly easy, yet many are interesting, like Ch-III#0461, #1492, #1493, #1798,etc. When he marched into Ch-IV, he showed his talent of making very hard levels. Ch-IV#0599 �SLasertank on ice 2008⬝ is a nice start, then #0646, #0649⬦# 0649⬝ get smart⬝ is especially interesting, involving how to unlock a seeming deadlock, and a delicate timing trick. Plus, his level # 0043 in Ch-V is extremely good� several tricks combined in one level; all the left, middle, and right part are fun..
He likes to make levels with timing tricks, especially the �Sthin- ice- surprisingly- unbroken⬝ trick. One of his levels including this trick had kept unsolved for about 5 years.
He usually put ice/movers everywhere, possibly making players be lack of sense of security. However, to make this style of level is hard to eliminate all the shortcuts. You can find some shortcuts in his levels, but luckily most of them are still fun.
It seems that if he made or solved a new easy level, he used the name �Sonop⬝ instead of �Spono⬝.
###Ihab Nairi###
He is the man who made the most difficult levels. His levels often kept unsolved for several months, even several years. If we devide all the deadly levels into 5 grades by difficulty, most of the levels with the highest grade will be authored by Ihab.
For example, on Nov. 2003, Donald said, there are only 9 unsolved levels in Ch-II: 0997, 1144, 1597, 1601, 1602, 1604, 1786, 1787, 1829. Among these, 7 levels are made by Ihab. Look when some got solved�
#1144 Sep. 2004
#1786 Oct. 2004
#1597 Jan. 2005
#1601,#1602 Oct. 2005
#1829 Feb. 2006
Plus, Ch-III#0750 �SRedondance Cyclique⬝ kept unsolved from Nov.2004 to Feb.2007.
He has written an article to introduce his levels and other deadly levels:
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Lasertank/conversations/messages/5446
In the article he said, a level is very good when �Sit represents a simple concept, but the solution is very very difficult.⬝ Except for the levels he referred to, probably his work sok-II#1109 �S 4 solutions impossibles⬝ can also be added into the list.
He often made series of levels: For example, Ch-II# 1144 ⬝ IllIsIbIlIt口⬝ has a group of brothers. The same thing happened to Ch-IV# 1245 ⬝ Lookalike⬝.
He sometimes modified others�" levels, then the new levels got extremely hard, at least harder than the original level: like Ch-III#0002 �STest by Iron & Bartok⬝(but it has a shortcut), Ch-III#0003 �SYono in Jkt.�"s puzzle⬝(very good uses of the mirrors and antitanks on the ship), and levels inspired by Kheper, Secret Squirrel, Jero, etc.
Like all the best new-age authors, he is also very good at timing trick. A good material is Ch-II# 1875⬝ Tableau⬝, combined 2 astonishing timing tricks.
He is the expert on rotary mirrors. A good example is Ch-II# 0918 ⬝ Get up stand up⬝. As a deadly level, its GHS is only surprising 46 moves. Some levels including many rotary mirrors had kept unsolved for years. In those levels, an interesting one is Ch-IV# 1066 ⬝ Man in the Mirror⬝, which contains two hints on the right side of the map; to solve it following the hints is fun.
Totally by now, he has made around 152 levels, with 42 deadly and 43 hard ones.
###Iron & ⬦###(Alex)
In fact, all the levels were made by Iron himself, except Ch-III#0004 & Ch-III#1406.
As a very very creative author, He has made 39 levels, all of which were rated hard or deadly. Some had also kept unsolved for years, like Ch-III#1406 and Ch-IV#0518.
In the hints of his levels, he sometimes said something that may challenge the solvers, such as Ch-III#0004, Ch-III#0005, Ch-III#1157, Ch-II#1715. It is like the detective stories written by Ellery Queen.
Like Kheper, Iron�"s levels are both hard and good-looking. Many of the maps of his levels are clean and some show good symmetry. Particularly, in Ch-IV#0574, there are only 51 squares that are not �Sground⬝(total 256); and in Ch-IV#0781, the data is 72/256. Another particular level, Ch-III#0439 �SCyber Wasp⬝, is like a funny painting; meanwhile it is a deadly level.
He used timing tricks frequently, and probably quite a few tricks were very fresh in those days. Taking Ch-III#0005 for example, it has an amazing trick that teaches us how an antitank with low priority could kill one with high priority. Another example is Ch-IV#0518 �SPEBEPC⬝, which shows an interesting way to kill an antitank.
He is very good at making a pair of levels with similar appearance, but with quite different solutions. An outstanding pair is Ch-II# 1881 ⬝ Contact Time⬝ & Ch-II#1884 �SSurvival Test⬝. After you solve these two levels, you may probably love lasertank much more and admire the author very much. Plus, Ch-IV # 0519⬝ MOCT 2⬝ & Ch-IV # 0520⬝ MOCT 1⬝ are both worth to try.
In at least two of his levels: Ch-IV#0518̍, he got very tricky� to break the �Sthinking set⬝. After you solve them you will know his ideas.
It is likely that he paid much attention to the �Sorder⬝ in many of his levels. If you mistake the order, even a bit, you won�"t solve it.
Plus, he rarely made levels with shortcuts.
###NGG###
He hasn�"t been active for very long time in lasertank world, but he left us 30 levels (2 deadly and 21 hard), most of which are excellent.
A large part of his levels involve timing tricks. Some tricks had been used by others, like Ch-II#1576 �S2 loops and 2 flags⬝ (same as Ch-II#1875, which is earlier released actually)and Ch-III #1762 �SPhoto Finish⬝, But they are still very fascinating. Look at Ch-II#1576, it is very nice-looking and clean. Although you can easily see all the details clearly, the secret of the big square is hard to discover. The other level Ch-III#1762 has a good name, a good map, and much fun when you kill the P2 antitank. The preparation is fun too. This level is so attractive that the GHS had been refreshed at least three times, and Secret Squirrel, another super author, has made 2 modifications of it(See Ch-IV#0332#0333).
Some levels contain more than one timing trick, making the level harder and more attractive, like Ch-III#1578 �S10 FLAGS, 9 WRONG⬝.
One of his deadly levels, Ch-III#1011 �Smljuz-bljuz⬝, seems unsolvable, for the trick is well hidden. And the other one, Ch-III#1406 �SFLOF⬝, can probably be listed in �Sthe 50 hardest level in history⬝. There are 12 hidden destinations for the 12 antitanks; any destination is waiting for only one kind of antitank. And the order cannot be wrong. It had kept unsolved for years.
His not-that-hard levels are interesting, too. A particular level is Ch-II#1575 �S 4 in 1⬝ . It includes 4 tiny levels and any one is fun. Ch-III#1761 �SThe full circle⬝ is like what its hint said.
It is said that he was a student when he released his levels.
###Secret Squirrel## (There are actually two points on the top of the letter �Si⬝.)
�SSuper Squirrel⬝� Ihab called him like this. Yes, he deserves. There are a huge number of good levels� about 910 in total, including 10 deadly and 115 hard ones. There are more medium levels that are full of fresh ideas, bringing us exciting experiences. if some levels are listed here, maybe a hundred times of un-chosen levels will cry �Sunfair⬝. Anyway, Ch-IV #1168 �SYour Rotary Nightmare⬝ should not be missed.
He thinks highly of making �Sinteresting⬝ levels. Most of the levels have their interesting parts� Some are the titles; some are hints; some are good-looking maps; some are hidden in the solving processes. He also likes to make open levels: there seems to be N feasible strategies to reach the flag, but N-1 ways are wrong. A good example is Ch-IV#1320 �S⬦Getting out is hard⬝. There may be dozens of plans, waiting to be tested one by one, but the solver �Slyf⬝ could only find one right plan. And, with no surprise, he mastered timing tricks and used them here and there.
He has created many �SOld-School⬝ levels(not including Ice/Tunnels), which may be welcomed by new players. Among these levels, his two favorites are Ch-III#1728 �S+Guard of Honour⬝ and Ch-III#1939 �SThe crooked path⬝.
In the �Shints⬝, he is warmhearted and sometimes humorous. his scores were probably seen, which was not easy to beat.
He often modified others�" levels, and usually they became better.
He is hardworking to �Sblock the holes⬝� that is, to eliminate the shortcuts. In the hint, from time to time, we can see his effort.
Plus, he is from Australia , a beautiful and peaceful continent.
###Yono in Jkt.###(Suyono)
Suyono is a prolific writer, like Squirrel. When he completed a new hundred levels, he wrote a particular level to commemorate it. By now he had made a level named �SMy level # 700⬝ .
In the large number of levels, there are at least 21 deadly levels and 238 hard ones. It seems that he is good at everything of lasertank. He hardly made inferior levels.
A large part of his levels has good look. Many paintings are very nice, such as Ch-III#0962 �SEnter Dino�"s Mouth⬝, Ch-IV#0352 �SRotating A-Ts on blue eyes⬝, and the series of �SChinese Zodiac⬝ levels (Year of the Pig, Year of the Rat or so).An outstanding level is Ch-III#0515 �SRoll the pair of dice⬝, which vividly shows how a pair of dice is thrown down. Plus, Ch-II#1920 �SRobinson Crusoe�"s Puzzle⬝ is outstanding, too.
He not only made levels with tricks, but also taught them to us. In tutor.lvl file, you can find a group of his lessons. He also released a group of levels called �SQuiz #xx⬝ on yahoo group. Among them, �SQuiz # 08⬝ shows a hidden bug of this game that is very hard to find.
He often celebrate the festivals(such as New Year�"s Day, Chinese New Year�"s Day, Valentine, Christmas and so on) by design a level. You can easily find one level of any of the series, then find others through the hints. Also, he often made levels for someone, such as Wolf, Ron Meijer and Razorflame.
He sometimes wrote very good articles to Yahoo Group, like Msg.#6002 �SMurphy�"s Law of Lasertank⬝. Sometimes he said some news about others, such as PGN�"s or Ihab�"s news. There is also an interview with Ihab. He had been very active in Yahoo Group for years.
It is not clear about his nationality. Since �SJkt.⬝ Is the short form of Jakarta , there is possibility that he is Indonesian.
###GerrW###(Gerry)
Gerry had stayed active for long time, and created about 110 levels, including 11 deadly levels and 24 hard.
Some of his levels are extremely hard. Suyono once said, �SGerrW makes the levels complicated and full of details. Your tank can be lost in nowhere⬝. A good example is Ch-I#0065 �SThru Thick & Thin⬝. This level (and Ch-III#0053 �S3araAka⬝) could even trap Iron.
It seems that he created the way to design a TRUE sokoban level using lasertank technique. In this kind of levels, Tunnel takes an important part. Eg:Ch-III#0053.
He is one of the earliest authors that use timing tricks. His first level of this kind seems to be Ch-I#0072 �SRe: Cognition⬝.
Among the authors, his hint may be the shortest� usually empty, making his level harder.
###Donald Drouin###
As the manager of this game, Donald is also one of the top level authors. He has created about 259 levels without cooperator, most of which are in sok-II.lvl. There are 4 deadly, 22hard(not including levels by XXX&Donald); and the 50 kids levels in Beg-I& Beg-II.lvl are interesting too.
Suyono once said, �SDonald doesn't have much time to create levels, but each time he makes or touches a level, the level is fun yet very very difficult.⬝ An example is Ch-I#0009 �SThe Ducky�"s Journey⬝. This one actually includes two levels: you can get both two flags, using two different strategies, both of them deadly. PGN, who has conquered all 2000 levels of Ch-I.lvl, regarded this level as the best one in the level file. When Ihab listed a group of very successful hard levels, he also referred to this level and Ch-III#0120 �SUnreal Morning⬝. Plus, Ch-IV#0116 �SHoles to be filled 2⬝ is so hard that it had kept unsolved for long time.
From time to time, he made levels with someone else. The most common partner is Baumann Eduard.
###Sven Egevad###
Sven is also a member of �S500+ level⬝ club. He has made about 520 levels, with 3 deadly and 91 hard ones. One of his deadly levels, Ch-II#0454 �SIsland Race⬝, was recommended by Ihab as a very successful hard level.
It is said he is the inventor of the �SZombie⬝ trick. This trick allows a dead antitank to move from one tunnel to another matching tunnel. He has used this trick again and again.
He has made some �Stiny⬝ levels which may fit new players, such as Ch-II#0468, #0469, #0470. They are pretty.
It seems that he didn�"t usually use timing trick. However, his level Ch-II#0831 �SDeath Key⬝ is an outstanding level involving a good timing trick. There may be more hidden in the sea of his works.
###LFE the FLE###(Sahan Dasanayaka)
He has not made many levels: total is about 27, with 5 deadly and 8 hard ones(not including ones in tutor.lvl). Yet, they have very high qualities.
A representative work is Ch-III#1319 �SRunaway Tank⬝. As the hint said, you must be �Svery creative⬝ to solve this one. And it is so concise that only 60 moves can do. What is more, its look is good and the final run is so impressive. It may be a best level of �SBig Run⬝ style.
He also made some tutor levels, that show some clever ideas.
### Gary ###
Gary has made more than 2 thousand and 3 hundred levels! He is the No.1 prolific author . In lasertank website, there are special columns for him. Ihab called him �SGrand Gary⬝.
He never made hard or deadly levels, and his easy levels usually have good looks. He liked to make �Sblocks into water⬝ levels, with some ice or thin ice.
###Baumann Eduard###
He is a most perseverant man. Approx, he has made 27+ 8+ 416+ 601+ 31+ 247+ 403+ 25+ 130= 1888 levels in total and he is probably going on. Each month he sent his works and thanks to him (and of course Donald), LT world keeps adding 10+ levels each month.
He usually made easy levels with the name containing 5 vowels (once for each). In the hint, he usually encourage us: �SDon�"t worry, be happy!⬝ It is likely that he wants players to relax themselves through his levels.
Probably his levels fit new players, though some of them also contain tricks (mostly the �Spush-something-UNDER-myself⬝ trick).
###laserloopy###
He has made more than 250 levels, most of them rated easy or medium.
He is a particular author that made a large group of �SLoopy⬝(Screen-Saver) levels. You can obey his hint then move to an interesting loopy situation. What is more, if we ignore the particular gifts, only considering them as normal levels, Many of them are still nice.
Welcome you to add more informations;-)
Finally, Wish you and all the lasertankers a peaceful and happy New Year 2015!
Best Regards,
Li Yifeng