I released a beta version for my stage 6 entry which is still missing some things, but is playable with all atm implemented features.
Personally I designed the levels depending on how "fast" I can go through them, then added enemys here and there, then added a time limit, put an addon here or there etc.
After all that I made the levels MUCH easier as I personally need to get some real action to finish them.

Now nearly all of the people who are testing my Betaversion claim, that they are not able to finish even level ONE after several tries.

My question now:
How much time will the judges take in the end to test a single entry?
I want (and I will) implement every single feature which is needed to get all points for game demo content. But what if the judges won't see it because they just don't manage to come to level 3 because they only play every entry 30 minutes or something?

What I mean is: Should I design my levels as I would to motivate a real player to try again and again? Or should I design the levels as a "blind rush", where you reach the end without any danger, just like using a cheat mode? This way the whole "thrilling feeling" will be gone, no matter what I do. So judges, what do you want to have? Showing all content in a easy rush or do you want gameplay which maybe needs to find out tactics etc.

This is not only a question of level design. This is also a question of BOSS design. This is a "Big Boss" competition and I think it is really important that you design a boss which cannot be defeated within 5 seconds.

So how much time will the judges take to try going through the whole contest entry?

Greetings,
Dirk