Tolsimir - Like a sequel to the 1k Museum. I adore this very meta driven park. I like how you did the frames on the architecture which feels very unique. I like the Log Flume it is very entertaining to watch for some reason. All the small scenes and references are exactly my favorite kind of stuff  and it really kept my engaged. I like the nuances in your foliage too.

 

Recurious - A really strong micro coaster. I dig the commitment to the sandy rocks and your very vibrant landscape.The rustic sorta architecture is all very pleasant and reminds me of Dollywood. There are subtle pops of color but everything feels harmonious.So naturally occuring but so deliberate.

 

Milo - I enjoy how this is sort of revolving around the entire rule about the void potentially being water or any texture. It is both creative and also kind of provokative. This big blue landscape and this small very morbid scene dwarfed by it. I really like this submission, t's very engaging and does a lot resourcefully.

 

Lurker - This is adorable and a very cool concept. I like the diorma sized architecture and the mini train infrastructure. I also like your landscaping, feels very appropriately scaled with the buildings.

1. Recurious: Love the layout-oriented approach; reminds me of Leon's work from Micro Madness 2019. It's a super fun layout too with a bunch of great interactions with the landscape. The little bits of archi on the map are precious, as is the little Fisch rock waterfall. Honestly there's not a lot for me to say, I just really really like this. Just a simple concept executed really well; contrarian to the micro meta but such a joy either way.

 

2. Tolsimir: First the Roast of Kumba, now the Roast of Steve! Definitely a very Steve Steve tribute, both in its simple PT2-esque execution and the little gags hidden within. While it may feel a little underwhelming if you just glance over it, you really need to dig in to find all the playful jabs at NE's oldest Bostonian. Steve's first car, the mechanic painting the tree statue beige, the placing trees against walls class, the private Dunkin'; look long enough and it starts to feel as layered as the 1K museum. Also I am super digging that curved land wall! Always love seeing your work Tols.

 

3. Lurker: Everything you do makes me smile dude. Your style is simple but not amateurish and it almost always makes for something refreshing. Here you go for a concept which takes your usual style but elevates it with a unique and charming concept and CSO adhering to the current meta. (I told you you should go for a CSO entry!) It definitely pays off; it's a little world you can just get lost in. Almost reminds me of Magnolia from Riverland with its small scale. The top of the box floating above with the locomotive drawn on it is pulled off exceptionally well. Everything about this just works, and honestly I have a feeling you can advance with this. Love love love love this.

 

4. Milo: Minimalistic. Unique. Eerie. Not a whole lot more than that. Great use of the water as blacktile rule though.

 

Ended up voting Recurious 1st and Tolsimir 2nd. Extremely tight race between Tols and Lurker, but Tols' had those little touches that hold your attention a little longer.

Tin Train (1): Adorable concept. Total standout for me in this group. Even though all of these parks are 'micro', the fact that this is actually supposed to be a miniature train set in a tin just adds a layer of micro-ness that creates so much atmosphere for me. The train village is so well composed and it feels like each tree, bush, and shrub was intentionally placed. Perfect balance of train track, water, land, and town. Such a small thing to comment on but I really like how the train goes through the tunnel and underneath the town, so much better than if it had just been circling it fully-above. The tin itself is also so cool. The detailing on the lid is fantastic and the button feature on the bottom is also great. >> I'm really holding out hope with these votes because I feel like this shows a great mastery of skills with the micro-format specifically and I'd love to see what you would do conceptually with other entries! Wishing the best of luck!! <<<

 

Lombardy Poplar Tree Nursery (2): A very playful park, I really liked how each angle had new elements to offer. Big fan of the Dunkin' Donuts stand. I like the composition of the ride and how it flows through the different architectural elements. The style of architecture in the buildings is also very cool, the shapes of them definitely aid in making this park more visually interesting as a whole.

 

Pinewood Forest (3): Close call between this and the tree nursery. The park had a really cool 'cabin in the woods' feel and the wooden track meshed perfectly with the tone of the buildings & landscaping. The ride itself is really interesting in the way it travels from the higher points to the lower points. Very forest-y and well-built, great park!!

 

Almost Alone (4): Shocked they didn't cancel the contest and give you 1st place right now. No one's making parks like this nowadays.

1) Lombardy Poplar Tree Nursery by Tolsimir

-Concept:++
-Content:+
-Quality:+++

Overall; A love letter to Steve? Very nice atmosphere and architecture. Also love the use of those Arjan windows which provide a very nice see-through with the flume in the building. The little 'voicelines' of the handymen and for example things like 'delivery for Ve2eris' had me giggling quite a bit Reminds me of Tripsdrill a bit, with that weird bathtub flume ride, which is a good thing though.

 

2) Pinewood Forest by Recurious

-Concept:+
-Content:+
-Quality:+++

Overall; At first I was worried that 2 views of the concept might not be enough, but you kinda got away with it, especially because the quality and composition of those 2 views was so high. Love the vertical construction of the architecture and landscaping, it all blended in so well together and the minetrain flowed nicely through it all.

 

3) Tin Train by Lurker

-Concept:+
-Content:+/-
-Quality:+/-

Overall; Nice concept but the execution held it back a little for me.

 

4) Almost Alone by Milo

-Concept:+/-
-Content:-
-Quality:-

Overall; Nice little scene, but that's kinda it.

1. Tolsimir - lovely building with so many cute and little scenes going around in the gardens which really brings the park alive. Very well done and a deserved number 1 spot for me.

2. Recurious - Nice little scene what really captures the cabin in the woods vibe for me. The minetrain has a strong layout and the foliage is done wonderfully. Great job!

3. Lurker - Typical Lurker entry. Your eye for detail is such a joy to watch everytime. I really wanted to give you the 2nd spot but its just missing the quality that both Tolsimir and Recurious do have. I do really hope you will make something for the bonus round!

4. Milo - This entry is such a bold move but I really like it. 

 

1. Tolsimir, loved the humor and details, great flume too.
2. Recurious, very nice coaster and a good atmosphere. Not very impressive, but great use of space.
3. Lurker, very close to my #2 vote. Great concert, but not very creative beyond, tho I loved the logo on top.
4. Milo. "Cool." -John Oliver

lombardy - on top of making fun of steve, this is just a pretty map with lots of fun ideas and details. i especially like the splash powered irrigation

 

pinewood - the landscaping here is just so pretty and the minetrain interacts very nicely with itself and the landscape

 

shark - i love this tbh. great use of the water blacktile rule and i really appreciate how simple and to the point it is

 

tin train - this is just so charming! lots of cute little scenes packed into a neat little package

Recurious: this reminds me of my r1 micro from last mm but with more intention behind the setting and surroundings. super enjoyable and pleasant map with great architecture and landscaping

Tols: funny, but also just very aesthetically pleasing and i appreciate the experiments with the curved land walls. definitely feels like that could progress into something that will be widely used with the production of some other types of curved land objects

Lurker: super cute and really the epitome of your style in my opinion, also nice to see that when you use cso your style is as distinct and unique to you as it is in NCSO!

Milo: this entry is super clever and i actually love the vibes of it, just a very effective scene that evokes a lot with very little. i was already hoping someone would 'abuse' the allowance of water as blacktiling lol

1. Recurious. Making the most out of an irregular map shape and some verticality. The different levels give a nice sense of depth and the coaster manages to do every corner of the map justice. Mine train looks like a perfect fir for this theme and landscape. Archi, coaster and landscaping are all on point. This is somewhere in my top3 for the entire red bracket. 

2. Tolsimir. Tough choice here, but there are a lot of clever jokes which made me giggle throughout. In addition it is just well done. At first it looked quite simple, but there is thought behind all of the detail here. It's the cleanliness and humour in this park that leaves me wanting for more. Wish the back of the building would be trimmed as nicely as the front, as it's a bit understated. 

3. Lurker. Too bad tolsimir just overdid you here, because I really love the concept and I think this is your best CSO work to this date. That  miniature bridge, station and factory are very well made. Really proves how you can make CSO fit your style. Would love to see a bigger miniature park like this from you. Look up Madurodam in the Netherlands for inspiration. That is a concept that really screams your name. 

 

4. Milo. This was fun. Please tell us how this story ends. 

I'm a sucker for mine trains. The theming is more or less perfect, the way both the coaster and the queue weaves in and out of the mountain makes it seem larger than it is and the drop through the station down over the pond is great.

 

I'm also a sucker for miniature trains.

Pinewood is practically tailor made for me, I adore it. The finale with the height shift and the framing with the supports, UGH. Love it.

 

Really tough to call between Tin Train and the Nursery for #2. Both are very well executed. Nursery is more meta and maybe more technically interesting but Tin Train is a little more creative. I am a little more excited by what Lurker might give us in later rounds.

 

I do give Milo credit for a very creative use of the rules. I could see some interesting uses for full water maps in the contest later on. A bigger setpiece to this one, like a destroyed boat, could have brought it closer to the others, but nothing wrong with a fun little entry early in the contest.

Tolsimir: “how to place tree against wall” ? is this a joke, with the way it glitches? On this map, I can’t tell. Enjoying the comedic atmosphere and some of the ideas like the poplar statue - aside from it being painted. Why is there a Vans logo on the lifthill? Lol. Modest entry from you, but enjoyable for sure.

Recurious: this is absolutely lovely in every way, other than the coaster. It’s hard to fit a good coaster on a map this size, and your attempt is underwhelming. Ideally there’d be more space for peeps too. But that’s as far as the negatives go, I’m loving the overall aesthetic. Solid landscaping, and even a modest cave scene. Good work.

Milo: this is do endearingly dumb! I like the effect on the shark as it swims by. Nice proof of concept, this idea would work well as a detail on a larger map.

Lurker: cute concept. Mini houses, mini factory, it’s all cute. Signal, crossing… And the well made tin of course. I think you could’ve done more, but I’m not going to pick apart what’s there, because it’s not necessary. Cute.

1. Thunder Mountain North - Great vibe here. Archy is cute, sets the scene. Great framing on the drop out of the main building under the bridge. Liked the waterfall placement too.

 

2. Thomas the Dank engine - love the concept always loved train sets growing up, well executed idea. 2d train on top is a nice touch.

 

Relaxing Trees - Charming, great colors. Good placement of the main building, but not enough going on for me

 

Sharky - I like it for what it is, fun entry. Cool that the barrels move too, must have taken lots of effort.

I've run out of time to view the parks and to vote on them, but here are my thoughts nonetheless:

 

Tolsimir / Lombardy Poplar Tree Nursery – I really liked the colours and style of the buildings here. Quaint, with some pretty scenes going on. Suitably winding logflume layout for the park size (and though hidden, I did appreciate the curved lift within the building to speed up the ascent). Pleasant stuff.

 

Recurious / Pinewood Forest – Excellent landscaping here, with the waterfall, rockwork, buildings, and foliage all coming together perfectly. Really enjoyed the coaster layout too, with plenty packed in, loads of interaction, and a thundering pace – ideal for a mine train coaster. The double tier station/tunnel was probably my favourite part of the map.

 

Milo / Almost Alone – Heh, clever. Clear storytelling with the minimal of scenery. The drifting debris was a nice touch.

 

Lurker / Tin Train – Cute idea, and executed well. I’ve found your buildings always display your style, and here that style was most suited. The wording, imagery and even the structure of the box was very well done, and the whole thing certain gave the impression of a toy. I’m impressed how you literally turned a micro into a micro.

The poll is now closed. The formula to derive the results is:

1st choice votes + ½ × 2nd choice votes

Player Calculation Score Outcome Recurious

46 + ½ × 17

=

54.5 (49%)

Quarterfinal 2

Tolsimir

17 + ½ × 33

=

33.5 (30%)

Quarterfinal 1

Lurker

11 + ½ × 24

=

23 (21%)

Replacement Chance

Milo

0

=

0 (0%)

Eliminated

As replacement, Lurker is invited to submit a park for Round 2 (QF). If there is a drop-out their micro will be chosen at random as replacement.

Recurious: I like how this park looks a lot bigger than it actually is, and I enjoyed the coaster layout (Especially the big drop over the station). Also enjoy the landscaping and general woodland style of this.

Tolsimir: A fun joke-filled park, and the flume is pretty cool to watch with the turning machine went through the buildings.

Milo: A creative way to take advantage of the water rule, and tell a story with it.

Overall, congrats to Recurious and Tolsimir on making it to round 2.

Honestly quite surprised I won so (relatively easily) here, I thought it would be much closer when I saw the entries.

Tols: Very classy entry, love all the inside jokes. The glitching tree and the painter were my favourites.

Lurker: Absolutely love your concept, deserved more votes imo. Overall a well done entry, shame only 2 can go through.

Milo: Cool idea and I too like how you bent the rules in your advantage. I think in the end this entry was lacking a bit of content though which made things hard for you.

To everyone else who commented: thanks for your kind comments, votes and feedback. I must say that AVC was spot on with his comment of my entry reminding him of WhosLeon's Derail and Cocoa's Forest Frontiers. Those two parks were the main references I used while building my entry. Although I must say that other than the minetrain I didn't really take anything from Derail, so its funny to me that so many people still drew the connection to Derail imo. My main goal for this park was actually to play around with the fisch rocks for a bit and to implement them in a park as I had never used them before. I think my experiment was a success and I am happy with the positive reception. Thanks again all who commented and voted .