dobu gabu maru

In case anyone is curious how I make puzzles, this gives a little insight into my insanity:

The DB picture is of the puzzle in question; on paper I usually start with a "solution" in mind and work backwards with how I want the player to achieve it. In this case I was trying out different platform heights (listed as 1-6) and attempting to come up with ways for the player not to achieve the solution by any other means. This requires serious consideration regarding where each of the corresponding six "platform raising" switches are placed, as I want the player to find only one combination that works. Given how versatile and speedy Doomguy is too, this is can be quite vexing to figure out, since strafing allows the player to skip over surprisingly wide gaps. To get this properly working I had to use a one-way drop for two switches, make one switch unavailable if a different one is hit, and place one switch in a pit that requires you to hit it three times to escape. Fun stuff.