anyone know the origins of this level?

[sovavuye]

original pack level 40 sokoban like level "down the drain"

I identified the earlier level "up a creek" as one of the original 50 levels from Thinking Rabbit sokoban. But where does "down the drain" come from?

[Secret Squïrrel]

I've always thought that the Sokoban level that this is based on was also from Thinking Rabbit because it looks like their design. I would have guessed that it also came from The Original collection. However, I've just had a quick look at those levels and don't see it there.

Sokoban Jay has played both games from early on and might be able to help. I can ask him if you don't have his email address.

[sovavuye]

yes please. I don't have his address

[sovavuye]

"down the drain" is one of my all time fav sokoban puzzles

[Secret Squïrrel]

"down the drain" is one of my all time fav sokoban puzzles

Yeah, it's certainly a classic. Much more difficult than it looks at first.

I've sent Jay an email.

Incidentally, if you enjoyed the LT version of "Down the Drain", you might like to have a look at Sokoban-1 1092 "Soko Drain",
Sokoban-1 1205 "Up the Drain", and Sokoban-1 1742 "Double Drain". Only the first of these is a pure "Sokoban" level.

[Secret Squïrrel]

Ok, the short answer is that Jay was able to locate it - it's Perfect #233. You can see for yourself by going to http://www.sourcecode.se/sokoban/levels , scrolling down to Thinking Rabbit Arranged, clicking it then the 'Levels' tab, and scrolling about 2/3 the way to the right. You'll have to wait a minute for all of the images to download. For some reason the "Perfect" list above this is missing levels 232 and 233.

You'll note that there are 3 versions - R-1, R-2, and R-3. IIRC, some levels were "remodelled" when later distributed by companies such as Spectrum Holobyte because there were lots of copies and solutions out in the public domain, including scripts for auto-solvers.

Logically, "R-1" would be the the original with "R-2" and R-3 being subsequent remodellings. "R-3" is the one that most closely matches the LT level.

Hope that helps.

[sovavuye]

Brilliant, thanks!

I had a look at Sokoban-1 1092 "Soko Drain" and solved it second time, it's similar enough to the original if you can solve one you can solve both. The other levels you suggested I just don't know where to start with.

Just out of interest do people still make levels for the game to this day? Do you still receive level submissions?

[Secret Squïrrel]

Just out of interest do people still make levels for the game to this day? Do you still receive level submissions?

Absolutely, although the numbers of new levels are not as great as in the past. As you can see from the posts in this board - viewforum.php?f=4 - Donald continues to update the official levels (and GHS's) every month with new levels that he has received (or created himself).

You can download the latest update (it actually includes all the official levels) from the LaserTank website at https://laser-tank.com/ .
Choose your language and then click on New Levels & High Scores in the left hand panel (frame). The updated levels will overwrite any existing official .LVL files but won't touch your recorded solutions or personal scores.