Prompt 4: Describe what it was like solving a single level (level 4).
"Morandiphoria" by Parker Lougheed is based off the Sokoban base rule of pushing blocks into a target. Parker takes the base Sokoban rule a step further by making it so multiple blocks (cans of paint) must be pushed by the character (paintbrush) into the target (big paint jar). In this level, the idea of portals were introduced in the previous level where paint cans can be pushed by the brush into the portal to teleport to a different area. I first tried pushing the paint cans to the top of the page and pulling them down. Unfortunately, I had to restart because while you can push paint cans, you can't pull them. So, I had to maneuver around the paint can to push it. But I had to restart again because there was not a way to have pushed the paint can up without getting it back down. So, I had to push the paint can down before moving it over. The next paint can I worked on was the one in the lower right. Again, I had to restart because I locked myself into a corner where I could not push the paint can down into the portal. To get this second paint can in a portal, I had to push the paint can out of the initial constraint and then maneuver myself to the top of it before pushing it down into the portal. The third bucket of paint on the bottom left used similar rules to the paint can on the top left. So, I was able to get that one without any undo bottoms. In reflecting on my experience, I think I had to hit "Undo" quite a bit because Parker seemed to set up the levels so that there was a "obvious" first step but those first few steps were actually the incorrect way to go. By creating these tricky first steps, Parker was able to create a pleasantly frustrating Morandiphoria level for me.