Sharpshooter/Falling Score Contests! $100 in MS Points!

[yyr]

EDIT 6/22/2010: Sharpshooter is out! Get it here: http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/games/media/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025855057a/. And Falling can be found here: http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/games/offers/00000001-0000-4000-8000-000058550483.

EDIT 6/10/2010: Sharpshooter is finally coming out this month! I am extending the contest deadline one last time. The new dates are below, and are finalized. There will be no further extensions...good luck!



Hello everyone! To celebrate the releases of Sharpshooter and Falling, I'm putting up $100 in MS Points. I'm looking for five individuals to score high above all the rest... each will receive 1600 MSP! These contests are open to everyone in the USA!

USA only. Contest ends on August 28th, 2010. Read on for complete rules.

"Sharpshooter Score Challenge"
To enter this contest, it will be necessary to purchase the full version of Sharpshooter (80 MSP/$1), as you can not finish the game in the trial version.

To submit your entry, play Sharpshooter in one of the 3 mode/difficulty combinations we have selected for this contest (Normal/Medium, Normal/Master, Insane/Difficult) and submit your high scores to the Sharpshooter Internet Ranking. You must submit the code you receive right after you earn your high score; the game will not allow you to retrieve old codes later. To submit a score or time, earn a high score on the game's chart, enter your initials, select "Internet Ranking" from the Game Over menu, write down the 16-digit code and then enter it at http://www.yyrgames.com/ranking, in the Sharpshooter Ranking area.

At the deadline, the number one players on each of the 3 selected scoreboards will each receive 1600 Microsoft Points! If there is a tie between entrants, there will be a playoff to be announced!

There is a limit of one prize per player. If the same player is number one on multiple leaderboards, only their highest score will count...so don't be discouraged, keep trying! Three skilled individuals will come away with 1600 Microsoft Points each!


"Falling Score Challenge"
To enter this contest, it is strongly recommended that you purchase the full version of Falling (80 MSP/$1), as the trial version will not let you play beyond the first few levels.

To submit your entry, play Falling in one of the 2 difficulty/setting combinations we have selected for this contest (Normal/Extend On, Hard/Extend Off) and submit your high scores to the Falling Internet Ranking. You must submit the code you receive right after you earn your high score; the game will not allow you to retrieve old codes later. To submit a score or time, earn a high score on the game's chart, enter your initials, write down the 16-digit code displayed immediately afterwards, and enter it at http://www.yyrgames.com/ranking, in the Falling Ranking area.

At the deadline, the number one players on each of the two selected scoreboards will each receive 1600 Microsoft Points! If there is a tie between entrants, there will be a playoff to be announced!

There is a limit of one prize per player. If the same player is number one on both leaderboards, only their highest score will count...so don't be discouraged, keep trying! Two skilled individuals will come away with 1600 Microsoft Points each!


Notes

Insane Mode is a hidden feature in Sharpshooter. The access method is hidden somewhere in the game itself. If the method is not revealed on the yyrGames forums before July 16th, 2010, I will post it personally.

To compete on the Normal/Extend On scoreboard in Falling, play with Difficulty set to Normal and Extend set to 10000/40000/60000.
To compete on the Hard/Extend Off scoreboard in Falling, play with Difficulty set to Hard and Extend set to None.


The Fine Print - Please Read

Void where prohibited. Eligibility is limited to residents of the United States (territories excluded). If you are not eligible, you may enter the contests anyway, but you will be unable to win a prize regardless of your results. This is a skill-based contest.

Deadline for entries in both contests is Saturday, August 28th, 2010. Scores must be posted by 11:59 PM EST on Sunday, August 29th, 2010. Games played after August 28th will not be considered for entry. All winners will be announced on or after August 30th, 2010.

All Internet Ranking entries must include a valid e-mail address. If a valid e-mail address is not used, or we are unable to contact you regarding any potential prize for any reason, your entry will be disqualified.

There is a limit of one prize per player. This applies to both the Sharpshooter and Falling contests; you may only win one prize from playing both games. You may compete on more than one contest scoreboard, but if you are the top-scoring player on more than one, you will receive only one prize. In such a case, only the highest score you submitted across all scoreboards will count.

All prizes will be awarded, as long as there are enough entries. In the event that a potential prize winner is ineligible to win for any reason, the next ranked player with a valid entry will be chosen as the prize winner instead. For example, if the 1st and 2nd place players are found to be ineligible, the player in 3rd place will win the prize instead (if eligible).

Prizes will be distributed within two weeks of August 30th, 2010. All prizes will be distributed, as long as there are sufficient eligible entrants on their respective scoreboards. We will contact the winners via the e-mail addresses submitted with eligible entries. If you are contacted, you must respond within 48 hours with your full name and address so that we can send you your prize. The address must be within the United States, and the name must be of someone who is at least 18 years of age. (If you are under 18, have a parent or guardian accept the prize on your behalf.) If you do not respond within 48 hours with valid information, you will become ineligible to win the prize and the next player will be contacted instead. A list of winners will be posted on or before September 30th, 2010.

By submitting an entry in any of the contests, you agree to the rules, and agree that the judges' decisions are final.

[yyr]

Hint: to receive the access code for Insane Mode in Sharpshooter, finish Normal Mode on Master difficulty with an overall grade of AA.

[yyr]

To access Insane Mode:

1) Go to the difficulty selection menu.
2) Press (click in) both thumbsticks and the LB button, then hold them while selecting your difficulty.

You will see the "16 rounds," "18 rounds," etc. message down below change to "Insane Mode - 16 rounds," "Insane Mode - 18 rounds," etc. The message will also be displayed in red text. Hold the LB button and the thumbsticks in until you've finished selecting your difficulty. If you did it right, the round number on the game selection screen will be colored red.

Insane Mode plays identically to normal mode, except that ANY miss will automatically end the round, no matter what minigame you're playing! The "if you miss, the round ends" warning will be displayed at the beginning of each minigame. This makes games like "Deadline 24" that require a fast rate of fire very difficult...good luck!

Insane Mode is not available in Double Mode.

[Geichz]

I'm so in!!!
Cool game I have enjoyed it so far.(Sharpshooter)

I have a question:
My older brother is living with me & he is wondering if he would be able to receive a prize in the event we both were to win in a category of this contest??
[ and I am so planning on winning something ]

[yyr]

As long as he is not you, I see no problem with it =) Good luck!

[Geichz]

Cool, sounds like he's gonna be pretty busy but hopefully he can participate too. I won a prize last year for Snake360 because somebody else didn't respond or was from Canada or something. I really like Sharpshooter! I had my doubts but it's actually pretty damn fun! good job with making it man.

[yyr]

Thanks! I'm glad you're having fun.

Seems like a common theme with my games is that people have a great time with them, once they try them... getting them to try the games is the hard part, heh. So if you had a great time, spread the word =)

[Geichz]

To submit your entry, play Sharpshooter in one of the 3 mode/difficulty combinations we have selected for this contest (Normal/Medium, Normal/Master, Insane/Difficult) and submit your high scores to the Sharpshooter Internet Ranking.

Normal/Medium?
By Normal I assume that means Left Side or Right Side Mode, as opposed to the choices of Double mode and the hidden Insane Mode?

[yyr]

Normal = not Insane or Double. You can play on either side.

At the time these rules were written, Double mode did not exist, but you'll notice that the Double leaderboards are separate from the ones used for the contest.

Good luck!

[Geichz]

Thanks

I have not actually posted a score yet as I know I can do better that i've been doing, but I think I'll start tonight.

Q: Why haven't Sharpshooter of Falling been put on the xbox.com forums - I used to count on xbox/indie game/forums for help picking/praising Xbox 360 Indie Games.

[yyr]

I have no control over when or whether games get added to the forums... I have no idea why they haven't been added. =(

[Geichz]

Is (name removed) eligible to win?

[yyr]

I won't be validating any entries or attempting to contact anyone until the entry period is closed.

Here is a summary of the rules regarding eligibility:
1) You must reside in the USA.
2) You can only win one prize (for both games). If you are #1 on multiple contest boards, only your highest score will count; all others are discarded.
3) You must have submitted a valid e-mail address when you submitted your score, so I can contact you.
4) You must respond to me within 48 hours when I contact you regarding your prize.

[Geichz]

That's cool. Sorry. I really had at it last night. I don't think I can do much better than I did, but I may try again tomorrow or Saturday. Normal/Master is Freaking Insane

Good luck to anybody/everybody else playing

[yyr]

One last note, now that the deadline is drawing near:

As noted above, the contest deadline is this Saturday, and the IR codes must be submitted by the end of Sunday (EST).

What this means:
1. You must finish your game and get your Internet Ranking code by 11:59:59 PM this Saturday in your local time zone. Check the clock on your 360 if you're unsure of how much time you have left. Once your 360's clock hits 12:00 AM, you will no longer be able to receive a valid entry.
2. You must submit the code by 11:59:59 PM, Eastern time. When it's midnight for me, the contest is over.

Be careful! If you overwrite your score with a higher score you achieve on Sunday, you will no longer be eligible to win!

[Geichz]

I wish more X-box 360 Indie Games adopted your password method of Leaderboard/High-Score board keeping! Most people (developers) say Leaderboards/Scoreboards aren't possible with (XNA) Indie Games. Well obviously you've been proving them wrong since Snake 360 .

I plan on getting Falling as soon as I get some more Microsoft Points or (hopefully)win the contest which ever happens first. I played the trial - it reminds me of an old Sega Master System game, I think it was called Penguin Land .

I just recalled reading a' ways back on Nathan Fouts/mommysbestgames Blog site - that yyrGames booth was right next to his booth at PAX East. I'm a huge Mommysbestgames fan!

[Geichz]

Maybe this goes without saying, but everybody competing in the contest or just browsing this site,

If you really like Sharpshooter & Falling do what I do with all Indie Games that I've enjoyed playing: TELL YOUR FRIENDS, YOUR FRIENDS ON YOUR FRIENDS LIST, PEOPLE AT GAMESTOP !!! TELL EVERYBODY!!! Many Indie Game developers work very hard & yet they very often let their games sell at super-duper unbelievable bargain prices (Case in point: Sharpshooter & Falling $1 a piece - Think about that a min..... a $t@rbuck$ coffee type drink can cost up to $5 or more - or - there is most definitely more than 5 awesome, kick@$$ Indie Games you could own).

PS. Make sure you rate games you like & tell friends to rate 'em too.With so many Indie Games now available I (& most other people) must now rely on looking up the higher rated games first when checking out new Indie Games, though many really good games slip through the cracks unnoticed (& thus low rated) a result of being stuck in the ever increasing list of Indie Games.

(Here's a few Indie Games I have enjoyed: Weapon of Choice, Snake 360, Biology Battle, Shoot 1UP, Decimation X, Galax-Email
& quite a few on the Top Rated list, the Top Downloaded list. There are others but I'm forgetting names right now)

Just a thought. Peace.

[Geichz]

I find Normal/Master too difficult to really be much fun.
However even though Normal/Expert isn't part of the contest I'm having such a blast playing it!!!
The perfect balance of fun & challenge.

[Geichz]

The more I play. The more I appreciate all the different challenges!

The Counting Game Challenge is pure genius!!!
( though there isn't one badly designed challenge - Oh please tell me there will be more by way of update or sequel eventually!!! )

It seems to me that in the latter rounds of any difficulty mode selection that every challenge is usually more difficult.(?)
For instance, if say: The Counting Game Challenge appears (& is selected) in the final few rounds of (well any difficulty mode but lets just say >) Normal/Expert it will probably have a higher target requirement than if selected in (let's say>) the first 5 rounds or so.(?)
Or is it just random? It doesn't seem random to me...

PS: By the way - Still pictures of Sharpshooter do not do the game justice
(in fact honestly it looks like it could be a very boring bland game &
It is most definitely not boring or bland!!!).
There are lots of subtle touches in the mechanics(that I'm still uncovering & discovering) that drive this game and make it a really fun & addictive game that's very, very, hard to put down !!!

[yyr]

I really appreciate the positive feedback! Yes, I tried to design Sharpshooter such that it would be hard to put down. =)

Every time you clear a stage successfully, the next one is a little more difficult; if you fail, the next one is easier. These secrets and more are revealed here: http://www.snake360.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=75

Anyway, at this point, the contest entry period has closed. If you entered, watch your e-mail over the next couple of days; you'll have 48 hours to respond if you're sent a prize notification. If you don't respond, you'll forfeit your prize, so pay attention!