Quote from spongylover123 on October 30, 2011, 5:41 pm

I like testing elements that fit each theme
Destroyed: plates, button, laser, turrets, light bridge, momentum
Clean: lasers, laser relays, plates, light bridge, button, momentum
Underground: gel, button,momentum
Wheatley: all of the above, excursion funnels, Frankenturrets.

Decorations that fit the theme (I like destroyed or underground). A puzzle that makes you stumped for about 10 minutes.

New testing elements and a boss battle, that will make a hard puzzle

Quote from iWork925 on October 30, 2011, 6:25 pm

As long as your map isnt just a laser relay puzzle you pretty much can't miss. Even Vavle used lightbridges underground etc etc.

Quote from spongylover123 on October 30, 2011, 6:47 pm

iWork925 wrote:

As long as your map isnt just a laser relay puzzle you pretty much can't miss. Even Vavle used lightbridges underground etc etc.

I meant in sp.
Since the bots got the blue prints for glados, she was able to get those things underground.

Quote from iWork925 on October 30, 2011, 9:03 pm

I dont think that anyone is that picky that if you used lightbridges underground that they would shout about continuity.

Quote from MasterLagger on October 30, 2011, 9:40 pm

Hmm... For lasers it has to have a simple solution, yet also make the player to think about what to do. Light Bridges should have a dual purpose (like for a bridge in one part and use paint in another).

Quote from ForbiddenDonut on October 30, 2011, 11:34 pm

My second map used a light bridge in the Underground setting and it was received quite well. Some people are picky about those things; I think the world, as a designer, is my oyster.

For me, a good puzzle isn't so much about the execution as it is in the idea surrounding it. The best puzzles always make the player try different methods that they are used to, only to miserably fail until that clear solution presents itself: the "ah-hah" moment. To achieve this, you have to teach and direct the player through lighting, architectural design and signage.

A major problem I see with newer mappers is that they get their idea on paper and try to immediately go to the final product. The general end-result is you get a map that is nowhere near as fun as you had thought it might be and is full of problems and complications.

Personally, from my experience as a commercial game developer, the most useful method to making a good puzzle is to lay it out on paper or a program like Photoshop, get an extremely rough prototype into Source, and play with it from the perspective of a player (try to break it, critique it). You'll know when you've got a winner, and when you do, then start the long road of getting it to production.

Quote from ChickenMobile on October 30, 2011, 11:41 pm

MasterLagger wrote:

Hmm... For lasers it has to have a simple solution, yet also make the player to think about what to do.

I think that lasers should not be made into a puzzle at all. They should be used for the sake of activating one thing at a time, even make it so the laser has to be blocked one time and unblocked later to do the puzzle correctly.

I think that puzzles that use portals smartly are great. Usually you would see chambers like this early in the game with the one portal gun. Honestly you don't see enough puzzles that require thinking of which portal to place on a wall or what order you need to place them or when you need to go backwards through a portal and place another one in order to solve it.

Since puzzle elements like funnels and lightbridges have multiple purposes, it is a good idea to mix them up with other test elements (usually around 1 or 2 maximum). I thought the puzzle where you had to block the laser cube in the funnel by the lightbridge (dlc) was extremely clever, however it would have been even more awesome if they had multiple uses for the lightbridge.
Flinging with lightbridges and funnels are also a good way to use them.

I agree with spongy about the different themes and I believe that if you design an element which is a bit difficult (or would be new to people) have a simple puzzle to begin with as an introduction.

Quote from spongylover123 on October 30, 2011, 11:55 pm

I really miss those energy balls

Quote from baca25 on October 31, 2011, 1:44 am

chickenmobile wrote:

I think that puzzles that use portals smartly are great. Usually you would see chambers like this early in the game with the one portal gun. Honestly you don't see enough puzzles that require thinking of which portal to place on a wall or what order you need to place them or when you need to go backwards through a portal and place another one in order to solve it.

My favorite, but then there are others that hate this. Idk, I guess I make them too hard sometimes.

I also agree with everything else chicken said.
Also, I'm pretty sure most people are getting tired of the clean style. Mix it up.