Once again the Sonic Hacking Contest comes to a close for another year. Here are the results! Judged Retro 1st – Pantufa the cat: Extended Edition by VAdaPEGA 2nd – Return of Shadow by JoenickROS 3rd – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 – Anniversary Edition by SophieDude 3D 1st – Sonic 06 Greenflower Zone by Knuxfan24 2nd – Dash Adventure 2 by AeroIncarnated 3rd – Sonic 06 Legacy of Solaris by JotaroPowered 2D PC 1st – Sonic Megamix Mania by MegamixManiaTeam 2nd – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Mania by AChickMcNuggie Joint 3rd – AMY MANIA 2020 by Troopsushi and CodenameGamma & Unnamed Mania Mod by Cyber1204 Overall 1st – Pantufa The Cat: Extended Edition by VAdaPEGA Joint 2nd – Sonic Megamix Mania – 2020 Demo by MegamixManiaTeam & Sonic The Hedgehog 2 Mania By AChickMcNuggie Community Retro 1st – Pantufa the Cat Extended Edition by VAdaPEGA 2nd – Return of Shadow by JoenickROS 3rd – Sonic the Hegdehog 2 – Anniversary By SophieDude 3D 1st – Dash Adventure 2 by AeroIncarnated 2nd – Sonic 06 Legacy of Solaris By JotaroPowered 3rd – Sonic 06 – Greenflower Zone By Knuxfan24 2D PC 1st – Sonic Megamix Mania By MegamixManiaTeam 2nd – Amy Mania 2020 by Troopsushi & CodenameGamma 3rd – Unnamed Mania Mod By Cyber1204 Overall 1st – Sonic Megamix Mania By MegamixManiaTeam 2nd – Pantufa the Cat: Extended Edition by VAdaPEGA 3rd – Amy Mania 2020 by Troopsushi & CodenameGamma Sonicu the Cubehog by C.A.L.D.M_2001 – Most WTF (Retro, Community) Knuckles Emerald Hunt Mania by BlueStreakMod – Best Fresh Concept Using Existing Concepts As A Backbone (2D PC, Judging) Motobug in Sonic Mania by PaisanoJay – Most Entertaining (2D PC, Judging) Sonic 2: Return to Westside Island by D.A. Garden – Best Level Design (Retro, Community) Sonic Forces Re-imagined Demo by brandonj Best Level Design (3D, Judging) Most Potential (3D, Community) Best Level Design (3D, Community Sonic Heroes Extended Multiplayer Edition by DonutStopGaming Best Multiplayer Entry (3D, Judging) Best Multiplayer Entry (3D, Community) Amy Mania by Troopsushi & CodenameGamma Most Improved (2D PC, Judged) Most Improved (2D PC, Community) Unnamed Mania Mod By Cyber1204 Most WTF (2D PC, Community) Most WTF (2D PC, Judging) Pantufa the Cat – Extended Edition by VADAPega Best Visual (Retro, Judging) Best Visual (Retro, Community) Best Level Design (Retro, Judging) Most Improved (Retro, Judging) Most Improved (Retro, Community) Return of Shadow By JoenickROS Best Audio (Retro, Judged) Most Entertaining (Retro, Judged) Sonic 2 Tailsplosion by GTKoopa Most WTF (Retro, Judged) Sonic Megamix Mania By MegamixManiaTeam Best Visual (2D PC, Community) Best Audio (2D PC, Community) Best Visual (2D PC, Judged) Best Audio (2D PC, Judged) Best Level Design (2D PC, Judged) Best Team Entry (2D PC, Judged) Best Level Design (2D PC, Community) Most Entertaining (2D PC, Community) Best Team Entry (2D PC, Community) Best Fresh Concept Using Existing Concepts As A Backbone (2D PC, Community) Most Potential (2D PC, Community) Best Voted by Media Panel (2D PC) Sonic 1 Point & Click Edition by NatThePorcupine Best Technical (Retro, Judged) Best Fresh Concept Using Existing Concepts As a Backbone (Retro, Judged) Best Technical (Retro, Community) Most Entertaining (Retro, Community) Best Fresh Concept Using Existing Concepts As A Backbone (Retro, Community) Sonic 06 Legacy of Solaris By JotaroPowered Most Potential (3D, Judging) Most Improved (3D, Judging) Most Improved (3D, Community) Best Technical (3D, Community) Dash Adventure 2 By AeroIncarnated Best Team entry (3D, Judging) Best Team Entry (3D, Community) Best Visual (3D, Community) Best Visual (3D, Judging) DOOM in Sonic Mania by TheStoneBanana Best Technical (2D PC, Judging) Best Technical (2D PC, Community) Sonic 06 Greenflower By Knuxfan24 Best Technical (3D, Judged) Most Entertaining (3D, Judged) Most Entertaining (3D, Community) Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Mania By AChickMcNuggie Most Potential (2D PC, Judging) Ties Most Potential (Retro, Judging) – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Anniversary Edition By SophieDude & Return of Shadow By JoenickROS Best Audio (Retro, Community) – Pantufa the Cat by VADAPega & Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Anniversary Edition By SophieDude Most Potential (Retro, Community) – Return of Shadow By JoenickROS & Pantufa the Cat by VADAPega Best Voted by Media Panel (Retro) – Pantufa the Cat by VADAPega / Sonic Halloween by CamManS5 / Mighty & Ray in Sonic 2 by campbellsonic Best Voted by Media Panel (3D) – Sonic Forces Re-imagned Demo Dead Line / Sonic Lost World by AnotherBlob / Bob-omb Battlefield in SADX by Rarefoil Not Awarded Best Audio (3D, Judged) Best Team Entry (Retro, Judged) Best Multiplayer (Retro, Judged) Best Audio (3D, Judged) Best Fresh Concept Using Existing Concepts As A Backbone (3D, Judged) Most WTF (3D, Judged) Best Multiplayer Entry (2D PC, Judged) Best Multiplayer Entry (2D PC, Community) Best Team Entry (Community, Retro) Best Multiplayer (Community, Retro) Most WTF (Community, Retro) Best Audio (3D, Community) Most WTF (Community, 3D) Best Fresh Concept Using Existing Concepts As A Backbone (3D, Judged) Best Fresh Concept Using Existing Concepts As A Backbone (3D, Community) All entries will be added to the SHC Vault for archival purposes very soon, and it’s good to note that at no point during the week was there any downtime for the website, which is remarkable considering the fact that it used to be an annual occurrence. It’s also good to know that with off-site downloads being banned this year and everything going on a separate download server, people were able to download the entries without much trouble. The only downside this year being the Twitter domain problem cropping up during the week, but we have a new domain now for that, which should eliminate this problem once and for all. Compared to last year, we did not make many changes. But we also made a mistake by not adding (again) a few trophies that we talked about last year, so sorry to those who submitted character based entries and left home empty handed when they could have had a Best Character trophy. Same goes to bosses. It’s something that skipped our minds until it was too late to do something about it. As per every year please fill out the feedback form and tell us what you thought of the contest, and if there’s anything we can particularly look at for next year. There’s a few things that are certainly going to be considered for next year and hopefully we can get a good turnout as a result of those changes being made. This contest isn’t just about 2D entries, it’s also about 3D ones too. Also, we want to know what people are looking for in terms of the Contest Week date. If people want October again, we promise not to have it during Halloween, or when a time zone clock change happens which did affect some people in terms of scheduling. As for Judges’ Evaluations, we will have them out in the coming days. A few judges have asked for extra time due to circumstances outwith their control and we are willing to give them that. Thanks to: All Judges this year for their hard work in ensuring the Contest ran from start to finish. All of the Media Panel for their many streams and videos… SeanieB for providing server hosting and of course Cinossu for the website. redhotsonic for this year’s trailer. Everyone who submitted to the Contest or Expo, no matter if they won trophies or not. And You…for taking part in the Contest Week. We will be back for the Sonic Hacking Contest 2021. See you next Contest!
Congratulations to all of the winners. VAdaPEGA deserves the win for Pantufa the Cat Extended Edition in my opinion, and I'm glad to see VAdaPEGA's work get the recognition I feel it deserves. I am also glad to have contributed something this time that was well received by the community. Thanks for voting on my hack for Best Level Design, and it was also very nice to have received this trophy as a result. This just confirms that what I am doing with regards to level layouts is what people want to see. Finally, well done and thank you to everyone who contributed to the contest this year, whether you won a trophy or not. I had a great time playing through the various entries, and the quality continues to improve (obviously the quality criteria has a role in that, but I felt that the quality of entries in general is much higher this time around), so I look forward to next year's contest.
Here is a video of Sonic 2 Anniversary Edition. And here is a video of Sonic Visual Maze. More to come eventually, now that I work as a substitute teacher I don't have much time to record these. D.A. Garden's hack is next on my list.
Congratulations to everyone who either participated or won a trophy, especially Pantufa the Cat. After 6 years of showcasing the hack, it finally won SHC 2020, which I should be proud of. Sadly, I didn't win anything but it doesn't mean I won't give up. Rather than feeling upset about it, it has made me feel determined to try again, work off my mistakes and become a better person! I will be back next year to try again and make something unique! See you next year!
We're still looking for any feedback you may have - you have a few days to submit it to the feedback form! Also sorry about the delays, but the evaluations will be made public within a few days. Just like usual, real life and other contest related stuff sometimes gets in the way. That's all, thanks again for everyone who submitted and attended!
People have been waiting, and we can now deliver... https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pEkfwrfCcUnfbwQEXZ0STRM0yv8kmvaK?usp=sharing Here are all the Judges' Evaluations for every entry submitted to this year's Sonic Hacking Contest. Come and see what the judges thought of each entry, sorry for the delays. Please note that each judge may have different opinions for each entry, and this does not reflect the position of SHC completely. Judges are entitled to their own opinion and are not a hivemind. If you disagree with what they said, it's their opinion on an entry. As a result of the evaluations now being available, we will extend evaluations for the rest of the week, if anyone has further comments to make having seen these. https://forms.gle/2q4pSGecydNPh3R26 We do have plans next year to shake up judging to ensure better evaluation is possible, especially for the 3D entries, which have been highly requested. The 2021 Sonic Hacking Contest and Expo will be announced when we are ready to do so!
Thanks for the feedback judges, I appreciate it! I am a little confused/concerned by the seemingly lack of observation though. There were some comments/critiques that were actually addressed in the entry text itself; this either implies that the entry was unclear, or that the judges didn't read the entry page. Perhaps it's not my place to demand how judges consume and evaluate the work (and admittedly, the game in the end should convey enough info alone), but it would be unfortunate if the latter were true. Although one important personal takeaway for me, is to prioritize conveyance much more. I seriously overestimated what people would naturally notice during gameplay, and I'm a bit dismayed that even a few judges seemed to not know what was going on in either of my entries. Mind you, this was mostly my fault for some elements lacking in clarity (maybe more notes for the judges could've helped, if anything), but it is a little disappointing to see, especially when some reviews imply that the game wasn't quite explored enough to take a look at the different things offered (for example, I'm not confident that all of the judges looked at the special stages in Black and White, despite having a level select code). I'd love to be wrong, though; I do understand that y'all have a lot of entries to get through, and I really don't want to come across as conceited. Maybe my entries weren't worth the trouble for some, given the blatant issues they had. Which is understandable I suppose. Either way, there were still a lot of great critiques and improvement points given, so again, I appreciate it, and all the work you guys do for this every year.
Been reading a lot of the evaluations for each submission for a while and this OrdosAlpha user's review are very unnecessary hateful rude and unprofessional. Whatever hate boner this person has should stop. Not a good way to judge entries like that honestly. Spanner, if you're reading this, please get better judges, someone who's honest and fair, no bias what's so ever and not abusing their powers either. I suggest reevaluate this entire events that's been going on in SHC for a very long time.
I'm going to have to agree on the Ordos front. His evaluations seem unnecessarily harsh and not very constructive, boiling down to "it's shit" and nothing more. Other than that I thought the evaluations this year were actually better overall than past years. Good stuff
Same here. I was reading my evaluations on my hack (Sonic ReOne), and the judges' review was quite reasonable. It was interesting to see Aurora becoming a judge to replace StephenUK, which was a bummer to see him unwell in these circumstances. Sure, she didn't like it but she was really honest and very well detailed about it mainly telling me the cons and where to improve. When I got to OrdosAlpha's evluation though, it seemed like a personal insult to me. His first paragraph is him moaning about the Sonic 3 sprites and him not playing the hack for a few days because of it. Sure not many people like the Sonic 3 sprites, I being one of them (I had to do it since my Sonic custom sprites were unfinished), but this zoomed me back to when he reviewed Sonic 2: Advance Edit saying how good the hack was which I agree, but that... also used the Sonic 3 sprites too. It's like saying I didn't like the Thanksgiving turkey because there was a type of gravy that seemed out of place even though it suited the Thanksgiving dinner. His second paragraph is honest; so props to that. Except, from the last sentences which put me off a lot. This is not impressive and I hope stuff like this change by next year. Other than that, as always, well done to all judges for being critical and positive with the evaluations. I hope there will be a slight change to judges next time so I can post my hack next year.
A statement regarding OrdosAlpha's evaluations and the decision that has been made for him not to be a judge next year. We understand people are upset over what has been written by Ordos for this year's Sonic Hacking Contest entry evaluations. What was written is the opinion of Ordos alone, and is not the opinion of every other SHC judge, but in the end reflects on the rest of us and the SHC as a whole. Expressing an opinion is one thing, but what was written is unacceptable behaviour. This was not "being blunt", but being derogatory for no reason. As a result the rest of us are looking at just who will be kept next year and who will be dropped. Ordos will be one of those dropped. We will also take the opportunity to look into bringing in new faces for the 3D and Mania judging duties to better help with those entries in the future. It has been made clear that there is a lack of knowledge in regards to these entries, and this needs rectifying in order to judge and evaluate effectively. We have tried over the last few years, and especially so this year, to portray this contest in a less amateur way than previous. Earlier contests were held in a more amateur way to those of later years, with the current community mentality of the time being clearly expressed in this. As time has gone on the community has grown up, and the SHC has had to grow up with it. It seems that some are still stuck in the past. A lot of the good will we have been building up with the community at large has taken a hit from this, and we can only express our apologies that it has happened, and do better in next year's contest and beyond. We still hope to see you all next year and look forward to seeing what you all submit. In regards to what is happening at SSRG as a whole right now, while this may be a knock-on from what is going on here with the evaluations, in no way is the SHC involved or do we condone what has happened or is being said. We have literally no control over that, and is the actions of Ordos alone.
The funny thing is there were judges from 2018 who were not particularly great at writing the evaluations. These being SuperEgg, Clownacy, and of course, OrdosAlpha. You can find the complaints I made with samples from the judges: http://www.mediafire.com/file/012bywbmybte24b/Sonic_Hacking_Contest_2018_-_Feedback_on_Judges%27_Evaluations.docx/file I was so unhappy with the 2018 evaluations that I went and did them myself, just to show some better examples: http://www.mediafire.com/file/1sarr1sb64a495a/Sonic_Hacking_Contest_2018_%E2%80%93_RadioShadow%E2%80%99s_Evaluations.docx/file The main point was the use of swearing. There was some very "colorful" language being used, which is not what you should do when writing a professional review. So I was a bit confused why OrdosAlpha was a made a judge in 2019 and 2020. It is such a shame he didn't take my advice.
I don't disagree with the general consensus regarding the bad evaluations, but man do you come across as so conceited. "He didn't take my advice, what a complete idiot", is a very self centered and arrogant thing to say, and it comes across as extremely entitled, as if your advice is the epitome and gold standard of wisdom for the hacking community.
Folks, please avoid the name-calling and the personal insults....we're better people than that, and we're at the forefront of the hacking community, so let's act the part.
I have gone and edited the previous post to remove any insults I made at OrdosAlpha. While I do not condemn what OrdosAlpha has done, I agree we should not be insulting people.
