Official Contest Winter Contest 2023 [RESULTS OUT]

Yeah, the results for this are coming soon. For sure, things didn't go as planned and we definitely jumped the gun since we got some hopes up after Kano responded to one of our messages with hopes of some good prizes, more support and things like that. Apparently this turned out to be false once again and then there's the timing of the contest that wasn't the best, after some other cool contests and with a small time to produce tracks and then a last minute extension to the deadline that might have not been exactly super fair to the ones who had finished the tracks on time. Calculus and I aren't exactly the more experienced with hosting trackmaking contests, so maybe we should have been more careful with this, specially with the "Official" label and the prizes. Yeah, the contest flopped a bit and we might not be able to honor all of the initial intended prizes, but we are still planning to release full results for this and some kind of prizes, if possible. We will have 4 judges and 3 already finished their reviews, so we should have the results out this month. We'll keep you guys posted.

 

As Totoca12 mentioned, I, of course, do not have much experience hosting contests, but at the start of it, we were under the impression that we would have active support from KANO. We all know how that turned out. A month or so after the contest ended (after the extension, eg. March), we finally heard back from them. They asked for the names of the winners and how many coins they should get, but we had not yet judged the results as we had been waiting on their response and Totoca12 thought it would not be right if we judged it alone, so we had to get the opinion of a few other people. Apologies for the delay everyone.

 

QUICK UPDATE:

Reviews are finished and results should be out this week. We are just figuring out what we are going to do with the prizes, but we'll give a final update to you guys on this soon.

 

WINTER CONTEST RESULTS

Well, it took us some time, way more than it should, but it's finally time to reveal the results for Winter Contest 2023. Yeah, I know, I know. We are nearly halfway done with 2024, so I apologize for the delay. But to be completely honest, there were many factors that got us in this situation right now. And to explain this, let's quickly go back to November of last year. After months and months trying, Calculus and I finally managed to get to talk with Kano employees about FRHD and although it was clear that we wouldn't get any major updates soon, they seemed committed to help us like once or twice a month with our requests. We talked about a few different things so we got a bit excited and definitely jumped the gun deciding to create this contest. We got the idea that Kano would provide us some official support with the Pro and Coins, so since they would be behind the prizes and we could handle the VIP prize and the medals, we thought it could be a good idea to host an Official Contest. The thing is that we talked with Kano around the last days of November and we already announced this on November 30th, even though we hadn't seem a full commitment from them yet. So yeah, that's on us. The community was just recovering from other trackmaking and ghosting contests from the second half of 2023, so pushing a Winter themed Official Contest with a deadline set for like just a month after the announcement out of the blue wasn't one of our finest ideas, especially since neither Calculus nor I had hosted trackmaking contests before. After we saw the potential flop, we had a last minute attempt of saving the contest extending the deadline, but lots of people had already given up at that point, so although it helped some contestants, the whole outcome and timing was a bit confusing.

However, since we did have 6 entries, with some people putting a fair amount of effort on their tracks, we decided to initially take the L regarding Kano's response and our hopes for the contest, but at the same time we decided to go through with the judging process and proceed to honor the ones who spent their time on doing a track for the contest we created.

JUDGING AND SCORING SYSTEM

So, Calculus and I realized that we should bring some help from more experienced trackmakers with the judging, so we ended up going with the full admin team for this. We brought Ness and Eryp to the judging process and eventually we all got the time to review the entries and were able to determine the final results after a few days of judging. We used a scoring system well-known by most users and that is being used in some trackmaking contests lately. We went with the score being divided in 3 different sections. We scored from 0 to 10 the Utilization of the Theme in the track, seeing how people used "Snowed In the Suburbs" in their own tracks, expressing it in their own way. We also scored from 0-10 the Ride of the track, seeing how creative, fluid and consistent it felt to ride through the track. At least, but just as important, we had the Art/Detail, where we analyzed the detail, judging how good the track looks, the overall composition and also creativity in the artistic aspect of things. So with that we had a total score that could go from 0 to 30. For the final results, we didn't go with the usual average, but we went for the combined score for all 4 judges, which ends up giving us the same results. The overall combined score would be from 0 to 120 points. Eryp, Ness and I did the scores and some minor commentary and Calculus shared only his scores.

PRIZES

Only thing left to decide was the prizes, since we were unsure if we could keep up with what we promised, and although we did have some doubts, we ended up getting to a common ground about this. About Pro and Coins, we'll try to reach out to Kano about this, so no promises, but we'll try to get something for you guys, possibly the initial intended pot of 35.000 coins (20.000 for the winner, 10.000 for 2nd place and 5.000 for 3rd place). It's unlikely that we would be able to give out Pro, but if it happens, then it happens and we won't complain, haha. But we can't be 100% sure about any of this.

However, we can be sure about 2 things: the first one is the medals. We are finishing some exclusive medals for the top 3 placed players, so you guys can expect that very soon. The second thing was a bigger debate, and it was regarding the VIP role. We promised VIP at the beginning because we thought we could make this a hit in a short notice with no preparation, which wasn't true, so then we were unsure if it would be fair to still give VIP to the winner considering we didn't have any tracks featured and that we only 6 entries. Ness, the only VIP among the judges was in favor of proceeding with this and the other 3 mods/judges decided that if the VIPs agreed with the idea that then we should go with it, since everyone responsible for a decision like this (the contest creators, admins and VIPS) would have had a say on this. We put up a pull on the VIP forums about this, sharing the situation and the results. After some days, with the majority of VIPs being in favor of actually awarding the VIP for the winner of the Winter Contest we decided to proceed with this. So that's it, without further ado let's reveal what you guys are waiting for, sharing the full results and commentary, also announcing a new VIP!

RESULTS:

1st Place: Creep Street by loge_0 - 97 Points (loge_0 - A NEW VIP!!!)

Eryp: Fun. Detail works, honestly reminds me of ness. Really well done.
(Theme: 7 |Ride: 8 |Detail: 9 ) - Total Points - 24

Totoca12: Really liked the concept, the houses, the trees and the night vibes were great. Works with the theme. It's really solid. Didn't really dig the ride too much, though. I'm usually a fan of going into the same areas multiple times on tracks but I think the ride is a bit inconsistent and not the most fun. Still decent, though. As for the detail/art, it's a solid concept, not easy to pull off. Without fill tools, tracks like this usually are never able to achieve the maximum potential of the initial idea, but this one does really well attempting at that, regardless. Good stuff!
(Theme: 9 |Ride: 7 |Detail: 9 ) - Total Points - 25​

Ness: The streetlights' and the moon's illumination of the suburbs contrasted with the dark background is stylish and executed beautifully. The foreground trees are striking. The faces of the houses leave a bit to be desired, but the wood and snow of the rooftops is well done. The ride's back-and-forth path is great for the flat layout, and it's a challenging and fun experience, sometimes frustrating though. The sinister vibe as a subversion of the usual "holiday spirit" of winter themed tracks was a nice choice too. Great work!
(Theme: 8 |Ride: 7 |Detail: 8 ) - Total Points - 23

Calculus:
(Theme: 9 |Ride: 8 |Detail: 8 ) - Total Points - 25​

________________________________________________________________________________


2nd Place: Tis The Season by Egona - 95,5 Points (Egona)

Eryp: The buildings and trees are very well done. Rock and bg tree detail are a bit messy, but they do the job. Nice and solid.
(Theme: 8 |Ride: 7 |Detail: 7 ) - Total Points - 22

Totoca12: Epic! I feel like this track with the snow, the cabins, the trees and everything else is very fitting for a Winter Contest. Nicely done! I loved the concept of the ride. Some good ideas for sure, probably the highest potential among the tracks for the contest in terms of ride. However, I deducted some points for some small inconsistencies here and there. As for the detail, it's quite solid, the art is good, the composition is great as well, so I think this one deserves the top spot for me.
(Theme: 9.5 |Ride: 8.5 |Detail: 9 ) - Total Points - 27

Ness: The layers of snowy houses make for a great picture, and the mountain range in the back looks nice as well. The detail on the right side was lackluster and the ride could have used some cleaning up, but I can appreciate the layout and the variety. Solid entry!
(Theme: 7 |Ride: 6 |Detail: 7 ) - Total Points - 20

Calculus:
(Theme: 9 |Ride: 8.5 |Detail: 9 ) - Total Points - 26.5​

_______________________________________________________________________________


3rd Place: Blissful Serene by Baltic - 93,5 Points (Baltic)

Eryp: The ride looks fun. The ride’s length adds to how the track feels and plays. Detail is sparse but is cool. Nicely done.
(Theme: 7 |Ride: 8 |Detail: 7 ) - Total Points - 22

Totoca12: Nicely done with the houses, the trees, the gifts, among other things. It's not done to perfection, but it's a fair effort. You tried to incorporate different things and that's nice. The ride is really cool. You went bigger here with a longer track with lots of places to go but I think it worked out well. It's a fun ride, most of the time either smooth or interesting enough for us to like playing on it. Nice! The detail/art is not the best, but still a solid job with the overall concept. The houses look cool, though.
(Theme: 7.5|Ride: 9 |Detail: 7 ) - Total Points - 23.5

Ness: In a lengthier track, being consistent with style and quality while not being monotonous is a hard line to walk. I think you've did a solid job here! There was room for more variety in the detail and ride, but they were consistently good throughout. Overall I think it was a fun track and I was happy to have as much playtime as I did!
(Theme: 6|Ride: 8 |Detail: 7 ) - Total Points - 21

Calculus:
(Theme: 9.5|Ride: 9 |Detail: 8.5 ) - Total Points - 27​

___________________________________________________________________________________


4th Place: Chilled Hills I by qduhon - 85 Points (qduhon)

Eryp: A very solid track. The style of the houses is unique! Good track, I like it! Good job!
(Theme: 6 |Ride: 6 |Detail: 6 ) - Total Points - 18

Totoca12: Good vibes, the constructions match the theme, although it's nothing insanely innovative. It works, though. The ride is not perfect, but it's simple, short and effective. The detail is simple as well, but pretty effective once again. Decent composition, the houses are well-made, so I think it was a solid entry.
(Theme: 7.5 |Ride: 7.5 |Detail: 7.5 ) - Total Points - 22.5

Ness: I loved how much this felt like an arcade game! the aesthetic here is pleasing to the eye and makes for a fun ride. The houses are very similar, which generally would be a detractor but I like how the shapes are changed up and it is true to the suburban theme. Hope to see a sequel!
(Theme: 8 |Ride: 5 |Detail: 6 ) - Total Points - 19

Calculus:
(Theme: 10 |Ride: 8 |Detail: 7.5 ) - Total Points - 25.5​

___________________________________________________________________________________

5th Place: Cabin Fever by AutoBoi - 81.5 Points (AutoBoi)

Eryp: Cool ride. Detail is simple and works for the track. The way the houses are done in the back adds a lot of depth, thats pretty neat. If finished itd be more awesome.
(Theme: 5 |Ride: 7 |Detail: 5 ) - Total Points - 17

Totoca12: Nothing groundbreaking, but the cabins it well with the Winter vibe. Maybe this could be scored higher if it was finished. The ride works mostly well, although it's not too complex and it's short. Whenever it's there, the detail is quite good, but it's clearly a NTBF. Probably enough to get a good thumbnail, but not for a great score here. I think AutoBoi should finish this, though.
(Theme: 6|Ride: 7 |Detail: 6) - Total Points - 19

Ness: Such an impressive start! The first jump was exciting and the beginning detail was captivating and original, but sadly the quality didn't last long. The ending of riding on top of the houses was exciting too. This had a lot of potential, but was quite undercooked. Keep it up with the detail!
(Theme: 6 |Ride: 5 |Detail: 7 ) - Total Points - 18

Calculus:
(Theme: 9.5 |Ride: 9 |Detail: 9 ) - Total Points - 27.5


___________________________________________________________________________________


6th Place: Cold Snow (2023) by Methodical - 63.5 Points (Methodical)

Eryp: Good for their first entry in a contest. Memorable drawings in the background unite the theme of the track. Keep it up
(Theme: 6 |Ride: 5 |Detail: 5 ) - Total Points - 16

Totoca12: Tried to use some elements to give it a snowy, Christmas vibe. Not everything fits organically, but it was a fair effort. The ride is ok, but the boosts occasionally mess up things, which is a big issue for such a short track. Some light detail, nothing too impressive, but a fair effort.
(Theme: 7 |Ride: 6 |Detail: 5 ) - Total Points - 18

Ness: Although the ride was fairly short and stale, I enjoyed the experience! the detail throughout was fitting of the theme, but sadly did not do much to elevate the experience. The helicopter holding the "z" sign and the trash fire were creative touches and I would have liked to see more of that, but maybe more winter-themed. Nice work!
(Theme: 5 |Ride: 4 |Detail: 5 ) - Total Points - 14

Calculus:
(Theme: 7 |Ride: 5 |Detail: 4.5 ) - Total Points - 16.5

FULL RESULTS ALSO DISPLAYED HERE:



=====================================================================================================

Congrats to Methodical, AutoBoi and qduhon for joining the contest, congrats to Baltic and Egona for the great tracks and the medals and also big congrats to loge_0 for the big VIP prize and for the medal as well. Well-deserved, man. I'll award the VIP soon enough and we'll keep you guys posted on the possible future prizes. We'll also try to plan better whenever we plan to do a contest like this or announce this kind of prizes, lol. Thank you for your time.
​