ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

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ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by BLueSS » Sun Aug 08, 2010 7:59 pm

SCORE CRITERIA: All scores must be whole integers between 0-max
/5 - Presentation (2 being "average")
/11 - Second Hardest chart (4-7 being "average" for a chart)
/11 - Hardest Chart
/3 - Tilt
--------------
Max of /30 points

ALL JUDGING MUST HAVE FEEDBACK ON WHY IT WAS GIVEN THAT SCORE! Judging without feedback will NOT be counted in any situation.

Everyone is free to add a Public Review (PR), which will consist of a scoring sheet (using above criteria) for each song in a sub-bracket. The PR scores are then averaged together and the top move on.
You are not allowed to judge any bracket or sub-bracket your song is in!

You must review all the files in the sub-bracket for your review to count.
[I make the rules around here]
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by will-i-am » Mon Aug 09, 2010 6:52 pm

Yay, first. So, this is how I'll go by critiquing all the separate areas of the score criteria. I won't necessarily comment on all of the questions below, if not any at all, but those will be the general questions I will ask myself while playing through or judging each area in your file.

Hardest Chart - Was it fun? Did it make sense? Were there any awkward positioning/patterning? etc.
Second Hardest chart - Same as above.
Presentation - Are the graphics appealing? Are the fonts legible? If not, were the extras you included (steps, cd-title, videos, etc.) enough to bring up any lost points in this area?
Tilt - Would I play this again? Is there anything in this file that really sticks out that should be recognized.
Total - Final words.

Just as a side note, for the Presentation category, I'll most likely be giving points above 3 or around that point value. I believe everyone struggles with graphics from time to time and that a simfile's quality should not be soley based on the image that shows behind the main objective of the game - the arrows. That being said, I won't take absolute crap ms paint gfx with this generosity, and I'll note that, but if you have extras I'll try to give those a shot to raise your Presentation score a bit. If you already have a 5/5 for Presentation based on gfx alone, then great! I don't have to go through any of your extras, and I'll note that, unless I just say something like, "ZOMG GFX R 1337!", which you can probably safely assume I just needed to check out your pro photoshop skillz before moving on to the next area of grading your file. But if you need a little help, and say have a 3/5 for Presentation so far based on gfx alone, but the song nor the required stepcharts appeal much to me, then I probably won't even feel obligated to even give your extras a shot, because they most likely won't be any better than the material you were required to compete with.

Anywho, here we go! ;)


Acid Bath - Klippa vs Mayhem

Hardest Chart (Expert) - 11/11
This is exactly what I expected from you plus more! Everything was just SPOT. ON. The mines, the 16th quartet streams, the 16th runs, freezes, you name it! The turns got a bit crazy, but that's what ITG does so props for leading me through all of that without having to force one double-step. You must've been on some Acid Rain while making this chart, but it certainly paid off.

Second Hardest Chart (Hard) - 10/11
Everything here went by really smoothly. I liked when you threw in those 8th double taps where you could've had a 16th triplet in there if you wanted to. It just made a bunch of sense, as well as the entirety of this chart. The one time your had those mines actually made sense with the song, too. The only thing I wish you could've done was to introduce another set of double-taps or something during the half measure long freeze sections. The patterns got a bit repetitive, too, but that's just the song really. Anyway, not jaw-dropping awesome like your Expert chart was, but definitely a gem of what structure and form can do for a chart.

Presentation - 5/5
gfx are l0lz. They fit ITG well. l0lz.

Tilt - 3/3
Don't even ask me if I'm gonna play this again. I'll play it right now if you do! But wait. Don't ask yet...gotta load 5000+ songs first on crappy slowpoke StepMania GAHH

Total - 29/30
how2full scoar? owell you were pretty darn close. Now, make a pack of your stuff cuz I love this!


Cruel Angel's Thesis (OP-1) - Shiro Sagisu

Hardest Chart (Expert) - 8/11
First of all, weird choice of song. This was kinda surprising, actually, considering the Presentation off the bat isn't very impressive. Everything seemed to make some sense with the song here. I like how during the freeze-crazy section you matched the freezes with the violin or w/e and added in extra steps that still followed the music. That was neat. However, there was some strange stuff here. The 24ths were like...wut? I don't know if they went with the music or not, cuz I couldn't really hear if there was supposed to be a snare drum roll sequence there or something, so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and let that slide. ...but they were still...eh...nvm. The mines were meh at times. The 16th streams were alright, but nothing special. Kinda reminded me of old keyboard charts where the streams didn't really match anything based on placement, but still made sense with the song. As a whole, pretty good, but feels unprofessional in a few places.

Second Hardest Chart (Hard) - 8/11
This was pretty good aside from the fact that the mines got really annoying. They were pretty much right after every other freeze ended, plus some more on the side in places where your foot would be if it weren't for a red/silver ball of death. I guess that's ITG for you. I like what you did with the freezes again, and this time they went through a lot more smoothly. All the 16ths were pretty fun, but mostly what stood out were the freezes, and I'll say that again if I have to. Another surprising one here, displaying some creativity, especially in the freezes. Wait...did i just? ...damnit.

Presentation - 3/5
So, the graphics don't make me go "WOW!", and the video is your average anime/asian cartoon/whaddevah da heck you wanna call it sequence, but you've got some other extras to boost you up, though they aren't anything amazing.

Tilt - 1/3
I probably would play this again for the steps, but then again, the song is just awful! Sorry. Can I say that? Okay. AWFUL! I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I don't get 80's-esque jap classic intro-to-anime sequences.

Total - 20/30
Pretty surprised by this score, considering the graphics and song did NOT make me want to play this at all.


Future Destination - Renard

Hardest Chart (Expert) - 9/11
I love how old school ITG this chart felt. The stops were kind of weird at first, but then I got how they went with the mines and all. I really wasn't expecting too much from this chart, disregarding the fact that the preview music sounds awesome, because the graphics, to be honest, suck. However, you proved my immature book cover judging brain wrong. This was a bit weird in some places, like C. Foy step weird, but the weirdness kinda fit in. I can't really give this a super high score because the weirdness just took over at times, with the 12th run ending in awkward loose 12th notes (maybe it went with the music, but it was still a bit strange) and a random double-step in the middle of the song somewhere (not that I gripe about double-steps, but it was still a bit strange x2), but I am thorougly impressed at this nonetheless. Mad props to you, sir.

Second Hardest Chart (Hard) - 8/11
This isn't really a 10 footer. It would be in DDR, but in ITG it's so rare to come by a 10 food Hard chart and this falls short of the difficulty needed to be a 10. Anyway, that's a foot rating issue, so that's not a problem really. Just wanted to state that. This was a bit less exciting than your Expert chart. It really felt like it was missing something. The couple double-steps were pretty awkward, especially since one of them was during the intro freeze sequence. Not sure when the other was, but that doesn't really matter. I liked all the 16ths you had here. They all made sense. But, like I said, something feels left out. Maybe you could've added some mines, because there was a lot of empty space. Plus, it could've drastically increased the difficulty to make this feel like more of a 10 footer, rather than a hard 9. Good stuff for the most part.

Presentation - 2/5
K, these gfx suck, lol. And the song cut off is bad. The sample start could also be moved to the part halfway into the sample, because that's the part that is really sweet to listen to. You have some extra goodies here, and I actually enjoyed your Medium chart. Still, unimpressed.

Tilt - 2/3
You know what, even though your graphics sucked, I would totally play this again. Your steps are so unique and ITG-esque, it's just crazy to admit what with a Presentation score like this, you'd still manage to impress me beyond belief solely on your other required fields. This is why I value stepchart scores of Presentation scores any day.

Total - 21/30
Hey, I didn't even expect this to go above 15 when I first saw this file, but you proved me wrong. I hope you can take this as a token that you can achieve in making a simfile fun, even if other areas are much less impressive than the steps.


Infiltration - ParagonX9

Hardest Chart (Expert) - 7/11
At times I felt like I was playing a very old fashioned, KBMP-style, index friendly, Eggman-like keyboard chart, especially during the chorus sections. You had those 16th streams then the 3 consecutive 8th jumps and repeated that throughout the song. Does the pattern follow the music? Yes, but did every jump feel like it added a different twist or offered more structure to the chart as a whole? Not completely. To me, they felt as if they were just thrown in there to increase the difficulty, without much critical thought. At the end though, you took out the jumps and just had raw left-right foot patterns. Now THAT was a lot more fun to play, and I wish you had just stuck with that the whole way through. Also, the jumps during the "GO! GO! GO! GO!" K.O.G G3 Remix w/e part of the song definitely got old. After the first 4 measures or so, you probably could've added in some 4ths in between to make it feel less repetitive. The 16th streams were good for the most part, but lacked patterning. Overall, decent chart. It just needs a few fix ups here and there.

Second Hardest Chart (Hard) - 8/11
So, I liked what you did with those 16th patterns followed by the 8th note triple taps for a while, but then you just over-used them. Plus, I kept tapping the 8ths with my right foot until the very end of the song. The 8th stream with the turns in it was fun to play, but as I look back on this, this really was just the same thing over and over again. The song kinda lends the steps to do that, but you even used the same patterns. You could've at least varied the tripple 8th taps for once by NOT doing them for a change. Better than your Expert chart, but suffers some blatant repetition issues.

Presentation - 5/5
Sexy gfx. Sexy song. EXTREME SEXINESS OVERLOAD!!! PEEEDOOOOOBEEEEAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!

Tilt - 1/3
I wouldn't necessarily play this song again, mostly due to the stepcharts, but the graphics are really just swell. I can tell you tried really hard on those, so I'm going to commend you for them here.

Total - 21/30
Decent overall, and I'm down with the song, but the steps certainly bring you down here from achieving a great score.


W-B-X ~W-Boiled Extreme~ - Kamiki Aya w TAKUYA

Hardest Chart (Expert) - 9/11
So, this kinda felt like a hard DDR chart trying to be ITG. If it weren't for the hands, I would just assume this to be a 10 foot DDR chart. No complex twists or turns or creativity as far as ITG sometimes succeeds to be step-wise. Nonetheless, this is a solid chart. It was pretty fun, especially the intro, verse, and outro sections, and I like how you repeated the patterns when each section repeated itself. The chorus was iffy, though. The hands were just unnecessary really. I liked this, but needs more elements typical to ITG I think.

Second Hardest Chart (Hard) - 9/11
I don't think I enjoyed this as much as Expert, even though I'm giving it the same score, but it was definitely still good. Once again, felt DDRish, but I need to stop making that comparison. Nice smooth flow and everything made sense. The chorus was a bit better I think this time around. Kind of generic as a whole, though. Don't know what else to say. Oh well, nice one here.

Presentation - 4/5
Oh, what the. I didn't get the graphics until the very end of the video. Now the random power ranger makes sense to me! :D Average to moderately good graphics and the video is kinda bad quality. Some extra charts to help you out, but can't go full score on this one.

Tilt - 2/3
The song is actually growing on me as I speak. It's an infection or something. An Infiltration! But yeah, good work on what you do best, hard stuff. I'd play this every once in a while probably.

Total - 24/30
Not thoroughly impressed, but impressed I am. The video is pretty grainy, though. Fix that up please? <3


Walking In Memphis - Master Blaster Feat. Rachel Hiew

Hardest Chart (Expert) - 5/11
Uhm...lol? This chart screams "HEY GAIS! I just start plai In The Gruve here my steps have fuhnn! ^^" The long ass 16th stream was just...ass. lol. No variation whatsoever. On the plus side, nothing seemed like it didn't go with the music, so that's good. I liked when you just had those 18th streams with 16th triplets in them. That was a nice break from the 98723958732 measure long stream earlier. Thanks for rating this an 11, though. I thought you might rate this a 12 or 13 cuz of that ZOOOOMGGGG WTFFFF YELLOW NOTE DEAAATH! stream. This actually isn't that bad, so don't put yourself down, but this DEFINITELY needs some work.

Second Hardest Chart (Hard) - 4/11
What's up with the gigantic 8th streams? The 16th gallop section got boring really quick, too. The 16th triplet section was nice to see again, though. Terribly boring. Nothing much else to say, 'cept that I probably won't be playing this chart ever again.

Presentation - 3/5
The graphics are alright. They don't do too much for the energetic song, but they work. Everything seems readable and the purple-black color scheme actually isn't bad. Way too short for ITG, btw. No extra charts, but 3's aiight dude.

Tilt - 1/3
I would actually play this just for the song. It's Pauly D fist pumpin' sweet. The steps are a drag, though, so maybe not.

Total - 13/30
OH NOEZ! Unlucky numburr! D: Looks like your luck just ran out, but I have a feeling it did even before this competition even started...ahwell. Now, if you'll excuse me. I'm going to download the full version of this choon.


STANDINGS

1. Acid Bath - 29/30
2. W-B-X ~W-Boiled Extreme~ - 24/30
3. Future Destination - 21/30
3. Infiltration - 21/30
5. Cruel Angel's Thesis (OP-1) - 20/30
6. Walking In Memphis - 13/30


Fairly entertaining bracket overall. A gem, a couple surprises, and a somewhat disappointing one.
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by x0_000 » Mon Aug 09, 2010 7:19 pm

I guess I should respond about the crappy video quality; I seem to not have any good codecs on my new laptop (and the old one's a old horse at this point) so this was the best I could do on short notice >_>;

but enough excuses, suggestions for decent compression codecs would be nice :)
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by will-i-am » Mon Aug 09, 2010 7:37 pm

I don't really know of any great ones. I just use the latest DirectX codec I have available to do my videos, and I don't even know what version it is, lol. :P

I would ask Chmurek because his Marshmallow video looks fantastic.
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by pyroko » Mon Aug 09, 2010 7:50 pm

welp, here we go.

Acid Bath - Klippa vs Mayhem

Hardest Chart:6/11
it was... okay. i liked your mine placement, the hands not so much. the 16th streams were alright, the fit the song, but the song was kind of boring; as such it made the chart kind of boring as well.

Second Hardest Chart:8/11
this was a large improvement from the expert, you took the same boring song, and made it more enjoyable with a better stepchart.

Presentation:3/5
all charts present save for novice. it looks like you tried to give the graphics a mungyodance sort of vibe, which fits the song, but isn't really my taste.

Tilt:1/3
it might feel like i am being a bit harsh, but i just really did not like this song at all, and as such probably won't be playing this again.

Total:18/30
see above, not a bad file considering the song you picked, but the song choice counts for a lot to me, and i think you chose poorly.


Cruel Angel's Thesis - Shiro Sagisu

Hardest Chart:8/11
this was a fairly enjoyable chart. didn't really like the big 16th streams or the mines though.

Second Hardest Chart:8/11
also fun, slightly more so due to having freezes instead of the runs i did not like in the Expert.

Presentation:3/5
all charts present, graphics are nothing spectacular, and i felt the video, with its odd combination of scenes from the show opening, later in the series, and End of Evangelion, almost seems to detract more than it adds to the file.

Tilt:1/3
Cruel Angel's Thesis is really, really over stepped, but thank you for not stepping the Yoko Ishida version.

Total:20/30

Future Destination - Renard

Hardest Chart:7/11
this chart was pretty hit or miss through most of it. i went back and forth a lot between enjoying it and just wanting it to be over.

Second Hardest Chart:8/11
better than the Expert chart for sure, but not by a ton.

Presentation:1/5
all charts present, but the graphics are pretty bad. if you are going to put text on a picture in paint, at least make the text box transparent. also, song cut was pretty bad as well.

Tilt:1/3
not the biggest chiptune fan, and this didn't really help any. the Hard chart was fun, but just about the only thing i really liked about the file.

Total:17/30


Infiltration - Paragonx9

Hardest Chart:10/11
probably my favorite chart in this bracket. a lot of fun overall.

Second Hardest Chart:9/11
another pretty good chart, and a good "working your way up to the expert" chart.

Presentation:5/5
all difficulties present and good graphics to go along with them.

Tilt:3/3
A+ would play again.

Total:27/30

W-B-X ~W-Boiled Extreme~ - Kamiki Aya w TAKUYA

Hardest Chart:9/11
this was another fun one, the hands felt a little out of place, but everything came together well.

Second Hardest Chart:9/11
didn't really feel a whole lot different to the Expert chart to me, but that is not really a bad thing; overall a very solid chart.

Presentation:4/5
all charts present, graphics good, video was kind of grainy though.

Tilt:3/3
i like what i know of Kamen Rider W, so i like this.

Total:25/30


Walking In Memphis - Master Blaster Feat. Rachel Hiew

Hardest Chart:8/11
kind of boring at times, but i think it is fun.

Second Hardest Chart:8/11
don't really feel much difference between the charts other than having gallops instead of the big run. overall kind of fun as well, much like the Expert chart.

Presentation:4/5
graphics look good, though only having two difficulties makes it feel kind of unfinished.

Tilt:2/3
while not the best, both charts are kind of fun overall, and this is one of the better songs in this bracket.

Total:22/30





Overall.
Infiltration - Paragonx9: 27/30
W-B-X ~W-Boiled Extreme~ - Kamiki Aya w TAKUYA: 25/30
Walking In Memphis - Master Blaster Feat. Rachel Hiew: 22/30
Cruel Angel's Thesis - Shiro Sagisu: 20/30
Acid Bath - Klippa vs Mayhem: 18/30
Future Destination - Renard: 17/30
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by Chmurek » Tue Aug 10, 2010 1:02 am

will-i-am wrote:I would ask Chmurek because his Marshmallow video looks fantastic.

A few tips for encoding the wideo.

1. The key is to have a high quality source. The best choice would be at least a DVD-quality rip. >Here< is the input quality I used for my video.

2. As for the codecs, just download the latest Xvid MPEG-4 codec. I've been using Xvid coding for a few years when making Stepmania videos, and never ran into any compatibility problems. I recommend getting the latest K-lite codec pack, that way you can be sure that you never, ever lack a codec for encoding/decoding again.

3. Video dimensions - I personally use 480x360. It's a nice compromise between blurry 320x240 and performance-killing 640x480. Stepmania is known for having very high system requirements when decoding videos with large dimensions.

4. Software of choice - VirtualDub is your bread and butter here. If you have an AVI source, you can load in straight away. If the source is in MKV or some other container, you can load them through avisynth (you need to do some googling around).

5. The most important part - the settings. Have a look at this:
>Resizing the video<
Enter the greater dimension in the "new size" box (typically, 320/480/640), the other one will be calculated automatically.
Use "lanczos3" as your filter.
Tick the "Letterbox to aspect ratio 4:3" to make sure that Stepmania doesn't stretch the video.
>Compressing the video<
The only thing you should touch here, is the target bitrate (If you see "target quantizer" instead, just click it once and it will change to "bitrate"). Fiddle around with this, until the final size of your video is acceptable. Something around 900~1100 kbps should do fine, and not look too ugly.
If you are obsessive about quality/filesize ratio, google "twopass encoding".

6. Remember to tick the Audio -> No audio option, before you do the final export.

7. Encoding with a lossy compression (Xvid) is always the final step. Never, I mean NEVER encode a piece of video twice. If you need to make additional changes to the cut, revert to the source video.

---------------------------------------------------------------

(I will do some reviews here)
That guy who made stuff like Rockhill / Vodka / Artillery / Gee
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by Loki » Tue Aug 10, 2010 3:42 pm

Song Title __ / 30
__ / 05 - Presentation
__ / 11 - Second Hardest chart
__ / 11 - Hardest Chart
__ / 03 - Tilt


Acid Bath - Klippa vs Mayhem 19 / 30
03 / 05 - Presentation
Ots okey, nice banner and bg, cd tittle on, more than average but not enouht for a 4... You would get if there were a beginer...
07 / 11 - Second Hardest chart
Good as a chart but boring, i mean i dont know, it can be fun and good but i didnt really enjoyed, sorry.
Also good work as a coherent and continated steps...
08 / 11 - Hardest Chart
GOod but i dont really liket that hands, i seems like you put hand just cause you can and you found the place...
Also 16th are close to be forced, but correct.
32th are good but strange...
Mines also like hands.
Average and enjoyable as a training song...
Tilt:2/3
You deserve something more than i gave you but that points fits nowere... so here you have, also im ok with not really nice song choice


Cruel Angel's Thesis - Shiro Sagisu 21 / 30
05 / 05 - Presentation
Whell, Good bg and bn, no cd tittle... But video and all difs
08 / 11 - Second Hardest chart
I allways wanted to chart this but i never had much time, but i didnt like at all, good but not exactly fits. Too much freeze, the groove radar is ok with me...
07 / 11 - Hardest Chart
Start and end are enjoyable, but some steps dont fit and i dont liked that 1/12...
01 / 03 - Tilt
I'm sorry, i didnt enjoied all as i spected, but good job btw.

Future Destination - Renard 19 / 30
02 / 05 - Presentation
Bad graphics and no cd tittle, ovbiously no video for that, You could do better work with everything also all charts...
06/ 11 - Second Hardest chart
Hum, not enjoyable, enought but not fits at all.
09 / 11 - Hardest Chart
I really liked, the middle hard part wast the worst for me there... but i like the other parts...
02 / 03 - Tilt
Good work with the stops, and with steps, i enjoyed all except the middle part as I said...

Infiltration - Paragonx9 24 / 30
04 / 05 - Presentation
All difs, cd tittle, good bg and bn, you mised random movies to make a perfect song on that sense...Deserves 4.5 i compensate on tilt..
08 / 11 - Second Hardest chart
Good chart, but not exactly like, i liked the streams anyways, the blue arrows with mines very original, but 4 little steps longer for me...
Average, but too much that i didnt enojied enought.
10 / 11 - Hardest Chart
Very nice, but not perfect at all, i dont like the part after the freeze with hands... But very good and really enjoyable
02 / 03 - Tilt
Good work at all, i liked the most part but not all. GJ anyways...

W-B-X ~W-Boiled Extreme~ - Kamiki Aya w TAKUYA 22 / 30
4 / 05 - Presentation
NIce banner, and bg, also no cd tittle but there is a video, that i cant see on game xD... So you get a 4
07 / 11 - Second Hardest chart
Good but but could be better, aslo average...
09 / 11 - Hardest Chart
It's nice and good, i liked. YOu did a good work. I wanted a 9.5... so i compenaste on tilt cause i can't give more on steps...
02 / 03 - Tilt
Good song, im not sure if it fits with ITG but enought. Not much to say



Walking In Memphis - Master Blaster Feat. Rachel Hiew 21 / 30
04 / 05 - Presentation
Good Bg and bn, no video, CD tittle. NIce but miss something to hook me... Not all difs
07 / 11 - Second Hardest chart
Not really excelent, boring the long gallops, also the final saved the song.
I realize its a short song isn't it?
08 / 11 - Hardest Chart
It could be great if the song was at inverse order, so stream at end, also lack of needed jumps or some arrows for me... Also enjoyable
02 / 03 - Tilt
Nice cat, you know what i mean...


Overall
Acid Bath - Klippa vs Mayhem 20 / 30
Future Destination - Renard 19 / 30
Cruel Angel's Thesis - Shiro Sagisu 21 / 30
Infiltration - Paragonx9 24 / 30
W-B-X ~W-Boiled Extreme~ - Kamiki Aya w TAKUYA 22 / 30
Walking In Memphis - Master Blaster Feat. Rachel Hiew 21 / 30

Good/middle songs on this bracket, Inf fine
Sorry for my english
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by TEEX » Tue Aug 10, 2010 5:32 pm

Though I didn't enter, I figured I'd drop some feedback anyway.

Acid Bath (expert)

There were some inconsistencies I noticed in the intro. To begin, I didn't mind the 16th drills; my only qualm is how they were applied. I think I liked them best between measures 14 and 16, because the allow more movement on the pad without being as robotic as LRLRLDLDLRLRLDLD. (Personally, if I were to have stepped it, I would have added more variation in the patterns to follow the scales in the synths more precisely, but again, no huge deal.) I didn't like the ones between 18 and 20. There isn't any change in the way the music is being played to really justify their usage.

I liked the effort made for pitch relevancy in the following section, although I felt like some minor things could be addressed. From beats 86 to 89, we encounter an 8th jack, but between 94 and 97, it isn't there to despite there being no difference in the way the music is played. While by themselves the flow just fine, but with some pattern rearrangement, *how* those sections flow can be consistent with one another.

For sections like Beats 98-100 and others like it which follow, you stopped the pitch relevancy you applied before (things like DUL-DUL) and tried using different types of 16th triplet patterns, however they resulted in several instances of awkward double-stepping.

For future reference, if you decide to apply repeating patterns to accentuate the music, you may want to consider placing mines in a way which would help guide the player's movements.

From beats 114 onward, the mines to accent the heavy percussions were a neat idea, but I wonder why you didn't apply them earlier on in the chart.

As for the ending, I wasn't too crazy about the long 16th run. I would have left a break in the steps between beats 240 and 242 and concentrated on following the lead synths as you had done so before. Besides, there's nothing in the music so extreme to justify that many twisty crossover patterns. If you wanted to build intensity somehow, you can always apply mines to follow the percussion, but in a way that would not disrupt the players flow.
 
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by Revolver » Wed Aug 11, 2010 7:04 pm

These reviews are the reason that random people really shouldn't be in charge of judging a stepfile competition. If you have no idea what rhythms are in a song (almost everything I've seen so far is just plain wrong), and you don't know what a double step is, you should not be judging.
 
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by Revolver » Wed Aug 11, 2010 7:05 pm

YOU ARE WELCOME FOR THE HELPFUL FEEDBACK

NO NEED TO THANK ME
 
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by will-i-am » Wed Aug 11, 2010 7:45 pm

Here comes the drama..
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by x0_000 » Wed Aug 11, 2010 7:49 pm

I am 99.9% sure these reviews aren't by judges. (Although they will count but not as much as the actual judges. Maybe.)
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by Dark Luke » Thu Aug 12, 2010 7:36 pm

There's no "official" judges in this tournament. The public are the judges this time.

r21freak.com's stepfile competition V took 4 judges over a month to finish judging a tournament containing 33 single-expert-only entrants (not including 10 DQs).
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by jammitch! » Sat Aug 14, 2010 8:57 am

Chart grading standards:
11 - Flawless chart. Floors me nonstop beginning to end. Unlikely to ever be found.
10 - Exceptional chart. Displays technical excellence along with engaging, interesting and creative patterns throughout.
9 - Excellent chart. Displays strong technical expertise with a few nitpicks. Patterning is entertaining, but may have brief periods with room for improvement.
8 - Great chart.
7 - Good chart. Technical aspects are generally good with a few noticeable flaws. Patterning is generally entertaining, but may lack creativity or interest at times.
6 - Above average chart.
5 - Average chart. Technical aspects may have some noticeable flaws. Patterning remains fun enough to be worth playing, but may be overly predictable and have significant room for improvement.
4 - Below average chart.
3 - Poor chart. Technical aspects may have some significant flaws. Patterning is bland throughout, or actively un-fun in parts, to a degree that would discourage you from playing the chart.
2 - Bad chart.
1 - Awful chart. Technical aspects may have severe flaws. A chart that is not fun from beginning to end; an incoherent, rambling mess.
0 - Severe technical errors that make a chart unplayable.

Presentation: 2 / 5 is average. Extras and attention to detail move that up. For example, a 5 / 5 file might contain a full set of single and double charts, good art, a lyrics file and a CD title. A 0 / 5 file breaks several rules regarding minimum presentation standards.

Tilt: At my whim. Most files get 2 / 3 unless I really decide I want to tilt a file. Mostly, I use this to single out music I hate :)

Most files will score between a 15 and 18 overall; a really good file will crack 20.

======================
ITG B1.1
======================

Acid Bath: 18 / 30

Challenge: 6 / 11
* The early drills are a bit repetitive.
* The crossovers starting at measure 21 are fun.
* Around measure 24-25, I'd like to see a turn.
* The 32nd note parts that go (286 2) or (428 4) are a bit more movement than I'd like to see at that speed - especially the latter one being a crossover.
* Measure 53 contains a short freeze (i.e. a freeze too short to miss), one of my personal pet peeves.
* I'm not a fan of the walking back and forth in a line between measures 61 and 65. The rest of the ending mixes it up, but still in a repetitive fashion.

Heavy: 6 / 11
* The backwards walk in measures 14-17 is interesting, but the forward walk right after is not.
* This exact pattern was repeated at the end as well.
* I felt tilted towards the left a little too often. Mix it up a bit more.
* Generally, it felt repetitive. It's a matter of taste, but I'd like to see a little bit of chaos in here, rather than so many 8ths relying on crossovers for difficulty.

Presentation: 4 / 5
* Decent art
* Good cut
* CD title
* Four charts
* Decent sample, although I'd have gone with a bloop on only one side of it.

Tilt: 2 / 3
I don't feel like putting much effort into tilt, so 2 is the default unless I say otherwise.

----------------------

Cruel Angel's Thesis: 17 / 30

Challenge: 3 / 11
* I would prefer not to see the opening run start with 282. That gives no indication which foot to lead with, setting the player up for a 50% chance of an ugly crossover followed by a nasty transition.
* Speaking of the opening run, it's way out of balance with the rest of the chart. I think the first four measures would be better as lead-in, and the next four could go to the drums.
* The mines are rather difficult, but not impossible.
* There are a lot of forced patterns during the chorus - the 16th-note burst isn't there at all.
* Lots of short freezes (see above).
* The freezy part is pretty good.
* What's with measures 25-28? The 24th burst in measure 24 is warranted, but the rest are not.
* Measures 30-31 also appear to go to absolutely nothing, when there's a perfectly good pattern in the music.
* My summary of this chart is that it appears to be forcing and inventing steps to up the difficulty when it really isn't warranted.
* My heart sank when I saw the author, considering I normally find his work to be quality.

Heavy: 8 / 11
* I like the mine usage - I'm guessing your intent is to force hops and not double-steps. I had a lot of trouble with them on a pad, but I play on a soft pad and I don't deal with mines like this a lot.
* I think the walk in measure 7 (and the one at the end) are a bit dull.
* A few parts in the middle (around 28-31) had faint support, but I think I heard it.
* There are still a few invented gallops, but I'm OK with that here.
* Generally, this was a fun chart that milked the song for all it had. I just wish you worked down from this and not up, but that probably wouldn't be very ITG-like.


Presentation: 4 / 5
* Basic art
* Movie
* Good cut
* Nine charts
* Decent sample

Tilt: 2 / 3
I don't feel like putting much effort into tilt, so 2 is the default unless I say otherwise.

Other thoughts:
* I prefer the vocal version, although I also generally prefer to have as little to do with EVA as possible.

----------------------

Future Destination: 14 / 30

Challenge: 5 / 11
* The double-tap at 9 is a bit weird, given that there aren't any others in the vicinity and there's no musical change to trigger it.
* There are no turns between measures 9 and 16 - just back and forth. It's bland. Actually, the entire song tends to devolve into long chunks of no turning.
* I'm a bit disappointed that you didn't pick up the jumps to every beat in measure 28.
* Why go with the one burst of 12th notes in measure 38, but go back to the drums afterward? I'm not 100% sure if they're accurate, but if you're going to switch over to that, be consistent. (And I recommend

you do, because switching from 16ths to triplets is a good way to introduce variety, if it's legitimate. Although the drum rhythms are fun too...)
* I think there's a few extra notes in the runs starting at measure 52, but it's no showstopper.
* In fact, the entire song gets a lot more fun once you let that cat out of the bag.
* The mines at the end are nice too...
* But the end of that cut is AWFUL.
* The latter half of the chart brings this one back to mediocrity. During the slower parts, a little more variety would go a long way.

Heavy: 5 / 11
* Measure 17 leaves the user in a crossover that you never bring them out of. Not cool.
* And another ugly situation in measure 44.
* The patterning feels a bit better than challenge, but not much.
* This feels like you copied Challenge and hurriedly cut it down. I'd like to see a bit more variety.

Presentation: 2 / 5
* Not very good art
* Bad cut
* Five charts
* Random sample
* Left .old files in folder

Tilt: 2 / 3
I don't feel like putting much effort into tilt, so 2 is the default unless I say otherwise.

----------------------

Infiltration: 19 / 30

Challenge: 8 / 11
* The opening gallop in measure 4 is basically a spin... pretty hard at this speed.
* Most people would lead measure 7 with the wrong foot, I'd bet.
* The opening (5-13) is a bit boring, but it picks up quickly after that. I especially like the crossover sixteenths.
* The death run in measures 45-53 is very well designed.
* The handplants were very forecasted, for better or worse.
* Conversely, the runs in 61-69 are better than the the opening, but the long run in 69-77 is less interesting than the run in 69-77.

Heavy: 5 / 11
* The opening is a bit too similar to Challenge... less movement, but the exact same rhythm. Mix it up!
* I actually think the mine jumps are *easier* than the single steps because that way you have to get both feet up. This is just going to make someone go all Beginner Mode.
* Measure 57 leads with a pseudo-hand. I'm guessing, since there's no other hands, you wanted to end your freeze one beat earlier?
* I'm actually not enthused with the patterning when the 16th notes are involved. It's basically the Challenge chart, but with everything interesting boiled down to movement-free runs. The twisty 8th runs

are the most interesting patterning in the chart.

Presentation: 4 / 5
* Good art
* Good cut
* Five charts
* Good sample
* CD title

Tilt: 2 / 3
I don't feel like putting much effort into tilt, so 2 is the default unless I say otherwise.

----------------------

W-B-X: 21 / 30

Challenge: 8 / 11
* I like the handplants. Lots of lead-in and lead-out time, so it's a good introduction.
* As for the rest of the patterning, I didn't have anything jump out at me, but in general I found it quite fun; a nice, solid chart.

Heavy: 7 / 11
* I'm not buying into the freeze-steps in 36-39; I don't think they have the right timing. Same with the end.
* Again, I thought most of the patterning was solid, but there's not much in there I can point to good or bad. It was pretty fun, but not especially memorable.

Presentation: 4 / 5
* Good art
* Movie
* Good cut
* Five charts
* OK sample
* CD title

Tilt: 2 / 3
I don't feel like putting much effort into tilt, so 2 is the default unless I say otherwise.

----------------------

Walking in Memphis: 15 / 30

Challenge: 4 / 11
* The opening has a lot of back-and-forth with relatively few turns. It might be thematic with Walking, but it's also somewhat dull.
* The long run starting in measure 21 doesn't really go to anything. It feels like it's trying to be Drop Out (or maybe My Favourite Game) but doesn't really capture the magic of either one. (It's not an

exact comparison because yours isn't always exactly four notes before a move.) Mostly, it goes back to the not-a-lot-of-turning thing.
* The rhythms get a lot more interesting in the second half of the song, but even there the patterning remains dull.
* This is probably a 10.

Heavy: 8 / 10
* The galloping is a great gimmick which is used surprisingly rarely in non-official stepcharts... although on the first series I'd like to see a bit more change of direction.
* Generally, the lack of movement is the weak part of this chart, but it remains pretty fun.
* There's nothing to command a 9 in here... this is an 8, tops.

Presentation: 2 / 5
* Basic art
* Good cut
* Two charts
* Good sample
* CD title

Tilt: 1 / 3
I don't like the song much.
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Re: ITG - Bracket 1.1 Reviews

by BLueSS » Fri Aug 20, 2010 12:21 am

All scores for this sub-bracket counted. No more scores accepted after this post.
[I make the rules around here]
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