I initially gave up on this pack at around two thirds of w1m1. The map was nice until I had to face the puzzles, which as I recall were not that hard to figure out but required a dexterity and a speed I did not possess. I believe one of the maps in JCR’s JJJ pack had the exact same “issue” (as far as I’m concerned), and that’s the only map of the JJJ pack I gave up on. I might stay away from Smilecythe’s maps in the future since they are clearly not my thing. Too bad, because once you take away the puzzles, the rest of the maps are really enjoyable and cleverly constructed (both this one and the JJJ one).
Reading Johnny Law’s detailed comments, and especially on w1m7, whet my appetite (yes, insane monster counts and unreasonably-sized maps are my thing). I was craving for some Tronyn-style madness, so I gave it another go and I was not disappointed. After finishing it in hard mode (Copper’s version of Nightmare is a bit much for me, the 50 HP limit really gives it a new meaning), I went back to w1m6, w1m5, and so on. I found that many of these maps were beautiful, had a great atmosphere, and were also challenging while fun and original. A bit heavy on Shamblers at times, but you are always given the means to defeat them. So thanks a lot, I’m glad you made me go back because I was going to rate this a 2 and move on.
There seems to be a definite Finnish style — or is it this particular gang’s / pack’s style? — that I hadn’t noticed when playing their previous, individual releases. Not the puzzles, but a general feeling for the maps, the monster placement, and the overall flow of progression throughout.
I might go back for exploration, since the secret count of some of these maps is relatively high compared to their size / monster count, and also because some of these are a pleasure to walk around in.
Thank you all for this episode. I’m looking forward to your next offerings.