Spain vs Poland · Round of 16

Great hitsound usage overall, usually when they are overdone it's so easy to notice but here they mostly fit just right and elevate the experience as a whole! Patterning is pretty crazy, i think the flow goes just right with the song, and the symmetry usage in spots like 01:03:346 (1,2,3,1,2,3,1,2) - is epic 00:44:365 - very interesting rhythm usage and changes 03:01:982 (1,2,3,4,5,6,1) - yo I would say the the only section that i found unfitting is 01:18:852 - , it's not bad per se but i think it clashes too much with the rest. I think playability in 01:51:982 - feels a bit iffy at points too Overall an epic entry and one of my favourites, great job!

Very interesting slidershapes and playfield usage gimmick, patterning is generally very good. I like the variety of styles shown, at first i thought it might be jarring but I think it fits the different phases of the song well. I feel that some SV changes are kinda too much though, the variety on 01:09:645 (1,2,1,2) - for example gives me whiplash lol 01:11:145 (1) - nicee 02:50:369 - epic section Really enjoyed it overall!

The hitsounding is really well done, and I appreciate that the keysounding adds to the music while also respecting the original melodies, rather than transforming it into a different song. The symmetrical patterns and the patterns with the stop-and-start motion used in the first third of the map do such an amazing job at highlighting those reoccuring melodies. Each section seems to implement its own theme that works nicely with the unique sections of the song (although, I didn't quite see any clear ideas with the section at ~40%). The experience as a whole feels pretty cohesive outside of maybe the difficulty balancing; a few patterns in the later half seem like gameplay was forgotten about.

The visuals and gameplay in this entry feel disconnected. The intro sliders have an unusual design that makes it seem like it is laying the groundwork for what is to come, but nothing seems to relate to the intro much (apart from one pair of sliders a bit later). The section after the intro seems to incorporate a playfield gimmick, but the spacing feels totally arbitrary just to make the idea work. Other parts like the star-filled kiai or the paifang slider are nice in isolation, but I couldn't find the correlation to the rest of the map.

01:51:983 (1) - 02:00:427 (1) - this part uses really unconventional shapes and patterning in a really interesting way, but the part at 02:00:872 - is a letdown in comparison as it drops all the complex patterning to go for geometric patterning that doesnt particularly work well with the complex shapes. 02:10:385 (1) - 02:15:919 (1) - this whole section is amazing. The chorus part from 02:37:595 also feels like a bit of a lost opportunity with how complex some of the previous sections are, but the flow is extremely well done here, the issue returns with 02:49:982 this part as forcing the 1-2-3 patterns in the way it does completely ignores the interesting flow that made the first part of the kiai good and ends up feeling similar to the earlier part at 02:00:872 (1) -

this map starts off with a really cool concept, but it loses me at 00:50:586 (1) - the density here as it just feels out of place, but it brings it back for this part 00:53:086 (2) - . 00:56:186 (1) - this part is extremely well done, the playfield movement is really unique but i think some circle only patterns can lean towards being a bit too messy such as 01:03:540 (1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4) - , but overall i love this section. 01:56:427 (1) - this is so cool, 02:14:958 (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,1,2,1,1,1,1,1,1,1) - this is also really great. overall this map feels so coherent and has a lot of depth even though at first glance it could look messy, theres a clear mastery here. The only section that i think drops the ball is the end kiai 02:49:982 (1) - where it doesnt really pull from what made the rest of the map great and it just feels like it could have been done with more interesting movement.

I want to marry this hitsounder! They understood everything! About the entry, this map is clean. The circle size choice is helpful, but what I like the most is that you still choose to use pointy sliders on a very wide field with low slider density and still managed to have them work with the rest of the ideas. However, it does turn a bit messy over the time and that last intense section (02:49:595 -) suffers from this as it begins on a different tone and later turns into a chaotic intensity. I swear, I'm truly amazed by the hitsounds, like, I want to listem to them forever... but sadly I think the other team fought back nicely with their own tools.

What I love the most about this entry is that every stylistical decision that has been taken leads to the development shown in the late half of the map. The playfield usage, I can't put it into words but it's interesting how some of the left-side mapping and right-side mapping end up comibining to the other ideas leading to a diverse map that can keep its own identity throughout. My downsides for this one is that the hitsounds are somewhat basic in contrast to the other team (and it turned into a vital part of their map) and that the 02:49:982 - section decision to map it on full kicksliders is somewhat a predictable outcome, so even though it looks cool it doesn't stand out as much as the other entry.

The spectacular flashes of brilliance and beautiful visual design throughout the latter sections of this map unfortunately do little to make up for the utter rhythmic incoherence of the first 1/3 of the map. To me, this song is decided on who is able to effectively comprehend and translate the extreme rhythmic complexity of 00:31:745 - into consistent and representative patterns, and this map unfortunately fails that test. Furthermore, this feels less like a map and more like a collection of separately mapped sections--the ideas don't really seem to build into or contrast with each other in any meaningful way. Given its general lack of coherence and inconsistent rhythm choices, this map just barely loses out.

On the rhythm of 00:31:745 - , this map pretty comfortably edges out its opposition--I'm not a fan of the rhythm choice throughout this section, but the mappers stick to their guns and maintain pretty rigid consistency in their choices. When it comes to gameplay design and building player expectations, often the consistency weighs more heavily than the exact correctness, since playing a rhythm game is inherently predictive, so the consistency matters far more than my personal preference here. That aside, there's some really interesting and clever evolution of the visual design further into the map, and although I'd say the other side wins on pure visual execution and cleanliness, the ideas here are more cohesive, developed, and sophisticated.

This is more of a case of unlucky pairing. I think Mendacious is a decent entry and has few interesting ideas and patterns. Notably, I love the execution of section at 45secs, believe it brings great and interesting way of emphasis. Section after builds around the playfield in a smart way. And the main drop has cool execution. Ultimately though, the map just has few faults that, in combination with overall quality of the other entry, make me not choose this as the winner. I assume 01:26:026 (1,1,1) - and 01:36:461 (1,1,1) - are done for variety within the long lasting section, but I think they take away from the section rather than enhance it by stopping the otherwise dynamically moving flow. 01:41:446 I just disagree with this being the intensity to bring for this section, while the drums do build up, this section of the map overshoots the contrast. As this is still a buildup/transitionary section in its essence, making it spike up this much takes away from the following drop massively. Finally, the 1:51 itself while doing a bunch with shaping, both the visuals and the flow feel like they have little to do with the rest of the map, as the subsequent 2:01 section changes out the visuals entirely

Best word I can use to describe Taciturn entry is clever. There is not much to note, as I think the map is well executed throughout and consistently brings interesting ideas. Section at 45secs has neat space reusage for building up patterns. 1:20 uses well orchestrated patterns and rhythms to deliver a good section with interesting flow. And the main drop uses unique shape pairings yet still managing to make it coherent with the rest of the map and the section itself. Only things that could be better imo are: at 02:00:872 (1) - I find this patterning slightly too boring compared to what just happened in the previous few seconds and how well done that was, and while final drop tries to do the best it can within the 1-2-3 that the song is spamming, maybe 2:54 goes a bit too extreme on the shaping and could instead try to play around more interesting placement. Still, the map is great and is my pick for the matchup

amazing hitsounding, woudnt even think of addding bass guitars, 00:45:586 - another really cool execution for this part of the song, 01:51:982 - rather unusual way to map this, not only from the crazy sliders but also the choice to focus hard on the backing instrument, works pretty welll imo, i like the way this part is mapped 02:37:595 - very fun patterns; 01:18:853 - this part though is so removed from how organized the rest of the map is, i can understand it being that way to add more sectional contrast but uhh; either way the map overall has higher pop-off moments than the rival so i'd lean toward it

cute geometric sliders, pretty neat and expressive visual style and larger cs plays well into it too, 01:18:884 - the slider patterns in this part look satisfying and the switch to jumps when the synths change works so well, 02:15:083 (3,4,5,6,7,8,1,2,1,1,1,1,1,1) - actually a pretty cool jumpscare, 00:56:186 - this part seemed to me a bit arbitrary with rhythm choices but overall a decent map