Topic: The Amazing Race: Design Challenge VIII - Final Round Design Show on Page 50!

[Kamineko]

Kamineko's Comments

Here are my comments for your route:

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Leg 1:
Once again, I’ve commented on this leg before. I like the balance between the modern and traditional part of Kyoto highlighted here. The middle part of the leg sounds like a city-sprint and can get linear. The second Roadblock is fine as a highlight of Kyoto culture.

Leg 2:
The Roadblock task is fine. I like both Active Route Info tasks, although the steps counting could stumble many teams. The Detour is not that memorable and pretty generic. For a whole leg, it’s just mediocre.

Leg 3:
I never see a Brunei leg and probably never will in real TAR, but it’s nice to look at the “what if” parts here. Once again you followed the trend of doing a “city sprint” similarly like in your first leg, but those tasks are not too many and I think all of them won’t take a long time to complete. I actually expect more than just this.

Leg 4:
I like the idea of not doing an adrenaline task in New Zealand, which New Zealand leg is usually associated with. I hope you would show more than those two tasks because it can also mean that there are only few things to do in New Zealand if you take away those adrenaline activity tasks.

Leg 5:
This leg sounds really long for a 1-hour episode. I’m afraid it’ll be skipped here and there. The Roadblock is good, but I wish it’s not a 33kg bag because it’s way too heavy for a person to handle. The first Detour option also looks like a luck based during the sightseeing part, what if the marine animal doesn’t appear at all? I also wished you would introduce some tasks related more into Maldives’ culture, because all of those tasks are just a typical waterfront/beach leg.

Leg 6:
I like the tasks on this leg. The FF placement is also nice, especially after an overnight rest, and from what you wrote, it’s just an Hour of Operation without teams having to take a number for next day departure. The Detour and Roadblock task is also great to showcase what Luxor can really bring to us, the viewers.

Leg 7:
Nothing changed much from your original submission, but I still do not get that much excitement from this leg.

Leg 8:
A nice Christmas-themed Detour, and not that easy as well. The Angry Birds themed task is also a nice addition.

Leg 9:
I feel that three countries are too much for one leg. The Roadblock sounds dangerous and both Detour tasks are just okay, nothing impressive.

Leg 10:
I think you missed the second Detour details? Also, I’m kinda indifferent for this leg placed here, because Leg 10 should be more competitive than previous legs and I think this leg is pretty laid back.

Leg 11:
This leg is pretty fine. I like the Roadblock and the coffee Detour task. However, I’m kinda confused with the second Detour task, what’s the name of the dish they have to cook? Also, a cooking task as a task in the penultimate leg seems pretty weak. I’m not really feeling the tense of a penultimate leg in this leg because I feel that this leg is better placed in Leg 2 with more teams involved, for example.

Here is my comment for your final leg:

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Hey, nrh! Congratulations for making this far on the game. You’ve created many games here in RFF, so I assume that you should know all the nooks and crannies in designing a great final leg. For that reason, I have a high expectation for you this time, especially that you picked a really interesting city for the finale, which I’m not really familiar with as well.

Starting in San José, Costa Rica, teams are flying to Cleveland, Ohio. Arriving in Cleveland, they make their way to the Public Square for a Roadblock. For this Roadblock task, it has the similar trope with stunt-type tasks usually held in final legs. But, I have to agree that this task is pretty unique. Well, the production should have a thorough discussion with DC Comics to credit Superman here, so I hope they won’t fail this task. I certainly hoped that you would provide some examples of the stunts that they have to perform, or maybe adding some flying stunts to make this task more interesting to watch.

The next step is going to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and find three memorabilia of artists. This task I think really captures Cleveland well, but I wish the task is harder than this. Perhaps involving more artists rather than just three, and do some pattern matching (like the song with the year, etc) would be more interesting. But again, this task can have issues with copyright, so the production should do a good job in preparing this task as well.

Then, they have to go to Pierogi Palace and seal 30 pierogies. I think 30 pierogies are too little. Remember how many king cakes in the recent TAR32 finale? More pierogies here (let’s say 50-100 here) can cause chaos and more pressure on the teams, which is better in my opinion. This is not a Roadblock as well, so dividing the job for two won’t take too long.

Finally I see a cryptic clue task! Teams won’t have a hard time finding this if they can ask the right local or have a good taxi driver. Following after that is a clue to the NASA Glenn Research Center. I smell a final memory task here…

For the final memory challenge in the NASA research center, teams have to dress like an astronaut and find rockets with the pictures of their previous tasks. I like this task because it’s pretty simple to accomplish. The hard part of this task is actually moving while wearing the heavy(?) astronaut suits, that teams will have a long time to adjust and to complete this task. Also, I wish that you would provide the answer not only in the Wiki version. However, his task actually reminds me of TAR 14’s final Roadblock, with the surfboards being replaced with the rockets, and that teams have to wear a costume. Other than that, there’s nothing new about the concept for this task.

The Finish Line location is really nice. I can imagine Phil’s waiting here with the other eliminated teams. Nice job!

Here are my final comments for your whole route and final leg:

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Route:
Nrh, considering that you’ve shown us that you’ve made many routes in your previous games, I’m sure that this task is not new to you anymore. What I like from your route is that you picked many interesting locations and created decent legs on it. I definitely love your premiere leg in Kyoto and your Egypt leg. However, some of your legs do not impress me enough, for example in your Maldives and the three-country legs. I see that you’ve tried your best in designing these legs, but like I’ve said before (IIRC), some of your legs look like designed to be an RFF Fantasy Game leg, not for a real TAR version. But, I really appreciate your effort and you should be really proud of yourself for reaching this far.

Final Leg:
You definitely picked an interesting location as your final leg. I’m not really familiar with Cleveland itself, but after reading your leg, I can really see that TAR is hosting a final leg in this city. Your final leg design is pretty simple and straightforward, but still ticking the usual final leg tasks tropes. It’s not bad to follow those usual tropes, but I wish that you would include some out-of-the-box task here. Your final memory task concept is really good, although it’s pretty similar with the one in a previous season of TAR. Once again, I want you to be really proud of what you’ve achieved and I wish that you would create this route as one of your future games here because I’m interested to see it happen.

[Kamineko]

Kamineko's Comments

Here are my comments for your route:

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Leg 1:
I like the starting line location. Would be interesting if the hti they have to find is worn by the locals there. Great first Roadblock because it can cause some drama. The remaining tasks are pretty straightforward and a good showcase of Burmese culture.

Leg 2:
The whole leg is really nice. The Detour is balanced and showcases Taiwanese local culture well. The Roadblock is really good and perfect for a night leg.

Leg 3:
The Roadblock is unique because I don’t know that Hong Kong export shrimp paste, I thought only Southeast Asian that produce this. I don’t like the Bricks Down Detour task because this is a sensitive issue there and I’m sure this task won’t happen in real TAR. I also don’t really like the Slum Up task just because I’m not sure about showcasing those people in this way. I actually expect more from you, especially for a Hong Kong leg.

Leg 4:
Like what I said before, I like this leg because you’re able to showcase beautiful locations and combine it with sold tasks. Won’t give too much comments other than a solid leg.

Leg 5:
I won’t give more comments for this leg, you could always see my comments from the round this leg you submitted in. Just want to say that this is a perfect leg example for me.

Leg 6:
After a perfect leg in your previous leg, I think this leg is not up to par to the first Netherlands’ leg. Although the amount of tasks should suffice a 1-hour episode, I kinda want more from you. The Head to Head is also okay, but that’s the only highlight of this leg. The remaining tasks are just fine. The cheese task could be one-half of the Detour, in my opinion.

Leg 7:
Simple and straightforward Roadblock but nice touch to integrate some Greek mythology here. Both Detour tasks are also nice. Overall, a simple but pretty decent leg.

Leg 8:
Nothing much changed from this leg, but I like that you put this leg on the latter-half of the race.

Leg 9:
This leg is pretty short in my opinion, so I hope there’s some drama to complement the short leg for the editing. The Fast Forward is interesting to watch, the Detour tasks are just okay, and the Roadblock task is not something new to see in a typical African leg.

Leg 10:
I’m in love with the abundance of Mayan themed task here. Although I believe that due to all the locations being close with each other, there won’t be any position change during moving locations, that’s the only issue I have with this leg.

Leg 11:
Nothing much to comment in this leg because I’ve given my comments in your original submission, but definitely love the final task on this leg.

Here is my comment for your final leg:

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Hi, betheactress! I have to say that I’m really glad that you can submit your route and final leg. I understand that this time is really hard for all of us, so I really appreciate that you’re actually committed to this game as well. I hope that you’re doing okay as well. Your final leg location is definitely different from the others, since you’ve designed a final leg not in the United States, so that’s totally new. Let’s see what you can show us this time.
Starting from Santiago, Chile, teams are told to fly to Queenstown, New Zealand. Arriving in Queenstown, teams make their way directly to the AJ Hackett Bungy Centre, where they will face their first adrenaline activity task. I’m kinda confused, why teams not directly going to the AJ Hackett Kawarau Bungy Centre instead? Because from the picture and your description, teams are going to the office(?) in the city center before going to the jumping site. Also, there’s a little mistake in your Wiki for this location (you stated Nevis Bungy Center). The task itself is challenging because it requires perfect timing for both team members, otherwise they would have to jump again and again. Can they switch roles, anyway?
After that, they have to go to the Winery in Arrowtown where they have to match a location previously visited on the race, printed in the wine barrel, with the one on a wine bottle. While this task is just okay and linear, this can provide a good picture, especially on the wine cellar part.
Following the task in the winery, they find a cryptic clue, where they have to find a ship. On the TSS Earnslaw ship, they have to load coal into the fire in the engine room. I really like this task because it sounds simple but navigating through the narrow corridors on the wheelbarrows could struggle some teams.
Then, they have to go to the Remarkables mountain range, at the Ski base. Here, they find their final memory challenge. The final task concept is great and new for me. However, I would like if you would provide the answers of this final task. Since if you only provided the descriptions, I won’t know what are the unique clue boxes (except the wine barrel one).
Finally, they make their way to the Finish Line, in one of the most picturesque Finish Line locations ever.

Here are my final comments for your whole route and final leg:

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Route:
Betheactress, you’ve become the frontrunner of this game, where you finished 2nd in Rounds 2 and 3, and 1st in Rounds 4 to 6. Your route is definitely unique because not only you start and finish not in the US, but you also didn’t create a US leg. Many of your legs here are impressive, but there are some that I don’t like. I really like your Chile and first Netherlands leg, which is not surprising since you reused from the previous rounds. However, I’m having an issue, especially with your Hong Kong Detour task (the Bricks Down one). I don’t think that’s appropriate to be put on the leg. I also think that your Mexico leg, especially when they’re in Chichen Itza, won’t have many positions shuffling because the locations are close to each other. But on the other hand, I’m impressed that you’re able to put an out-of the-box route and I can definitely see some of these legs happening in TAR show. This is your first time joining the game, so I’m really impressed with what you’ve shown us from the beginning of this game until now.

Final Leg:
Your final leg, while not perfect, is not bad either. I like the first adrenaline activity Roadblock, which is a twist of the usual bungee jumping task. I actually hope to see more of the tasks in the middle (the winery and ship parts) because they can be linear if teams are separated far between each other from the first task, which reminds me of TAR 32 finale leg. The final Roadblock has the potential to be impressive, however you didn’t provide more information about this. But, I’m really like the Finish Line location here, which I believe is the best between the other three.

[Bookworm]

Thanks to Lee for the comments and thanks again for joining RFF for Design Challenge!

Kami, thank you for the comments- I'm glad you appreciated my route. I understand that I can be verbose, but I would rather provide too much than too little detail. I feel as if I would be criticized if I were to under-explain my tasks, but I do apologize for any confusion and hope you can nevertheless appreciate the tasks. Thank you again for complimenting my creativity!

Morse Code was bland in TAR16 bc teams weren't given any guidance and it was stagnant. I attempt to correct that by informing teams that they're receiving three sets of directions. Not only does this provide an active component (looking for a soldier), but it allows teams room for error, as keen eyes provide a potential shortcut. In this vein, the task is dynamic and, in my view, juxtaposes nicely with a tedious, detail-oriented decorating task.

Regarding your comments about my final leg; first, thank you for the praise regarding the first memory task! It truly means a lot! I would have liked it to be later in the leg, too, but logistically it made more sense as an opener due to the proximity to the airport and the route path I wanted the leg to take, considering that I had to visit Pagosa Springs. Yes, I should've included the number of balloons in the final RB, but the balloons will be centrally located above the river so teams won't see them (at least not the important details, they might get a heads up that the task involves balloons) while traveling in Pagosa Springs before the task.

Thanks again for the great feedback all season! 

[AFVet1982]

When is the next Design Challenge?  I've only read a few individual submissions, but this is really intriguing and is kind of a way to play TAR remotely. 

I will look forward to the next DC and hopefully try to play.  Maybe I won't get beat up too bad by the veterans! 

[redwings8831]

Results soon?

[Bookworm]

Results soon?

[betheactress]

Lol my wiki is gonna be locked because it hasn't been edited in so long 

[Kamineko]

Sorry guys, I've been sick for this past week (and still recovering now!), hopefully I can give the update soon when I'm fully recovered.

[georgiapeach]

Hope you feel better soon!

[betheactress]

 

[Nuku]

[Nuku]

my wiki is closed, will this effect anyhting?

[smiley]

my wiki is closed, will this effect anyhting?

I'm pretty you can ask the wiki team to reopen it?

[betheactress]

lol yeah my wiki closed too but they had 60 days to view it while it lasted <3

[georgiapeach]

I too am awaiting the results eagerly!!

Would like to see the results before Tough as Nails Begins.... 

[Nuku]

Will we receive more feedback or anything, or will we just get the results whenever the time comes?

[gamerfan09]

I don't know about the rest but my scores have been in lol 

[Bookworm]

[Pi]

Just to provide a quick update: results have been tabulated and the placements are known!

We're working on getting the final Show unveiled. Stay tuned!

[Pi]

I'm excited to announce that the final Results Show of Design Challenge 8 will debut tomorrow at 6pm Board Time (4pm Los Angeles, 7am Jakarta)! Join us to watch the reveal of the scores given to the final four designers and find out the winner of Design Challenge 8.

A new thread will be created in this Design Challenge subforum for the results; a link to the new thread will be posted here for your convenience. RFF Guests will be able to view this thread as well!

Click here for a live countdown clock to the start time!

[Pi]

Here is the link to the thread for the Final Results Show. Good luck to the designers and happy viewing!