It sounds weird but “Iced Tiles” will confront you with your worst nightmares and pleasure at the same time. You’ll drop down several times, ruining all the hard work done up to that point, leaving you frustrated and furious, yet you’ll be amazed by how brilliantly structured and innovative this tile jumper is.

Disclaimer: Play at your own risk. Neither chume nor I are liable for any broken keyboards, smashed windows or tortured pets.
— macrohenry

While StreetsAhead is best known for his creative races, some of his best maps, in fact, are those that aren't races at all.

Take this little gem, for instance. Using nothing but one of the most simple tile patterns imaginable and intelligently placed mines and gold, StreetsAhead has created an atmospheric masterpiece that is challenging in its simplicity, yet never boring or frustrating to play.

On the contrary, it is surprinsingly addictive, and won't let you go until you've finally managed to pull of those jumps that are far more tricky than they seem.

(Also props for the Opeth reference [youtube.com].) — lifdoff

Sleek and modern, stark and barren. Kaylab’s aesthetics are on point. What could be more thrilling than bounding through this vacant metropolis, feeling ancient, mechanical eyes on the nape of your neck?

Explore this alien cityscape with a pinch of thievery, a dash of parkour, and a heap of panache. This is urban exploration at its finest. Fly between long-forgotten skyscrapers and laugh in exhilaration: These streets are yours, now.

— Tempus_Fugit

So yer in one helluva pickle. Yer a fox, like, and yer stuck in this ruddy hole, and there’s a whole pack o’ hounds out sniffin’ for ya. There a dozen? Two dozen? Dunno, but soon as ya poke yer fuzzy little noggin outta that hole, ya reckon it’s a damn sight too many. It’s time to panic, yeah, time for them old fight-or-flight reflexes to pop, and zoooooom yer boundin’ away with them slaverin’ hounds hot on yer hiney, and ya realize, hey, ya ain’t no fox — yer a goddamn ninja, and ya ain’t never felt so alive. — Tempus_Fugit

So, this morning, I was taking a stroll, enjoying the cool morning air. And then I come to this bridge, and there's this dog, so small he'd fit into my bag.

Anyway, the moment I step on the bridge, that little f*ck rushes at me, and... well, I turned back. I'm scared of dogs, you see.

I wish I wasn't. It would've been a neat shortcut, and I swear I caught something glittering just underneath the bridge, and I remember wanting to check it out. If you're ever in the area, have a look and tell me about it, yeah? — lifdoff

As the earthquake ceased, the ominous sound of rushing water echoed through the caverns. Suddenly, water sloshed over his feet from behind. Before he could think, it was up to his knees.

But in that moment, it was not fear that gripped him, only a heightened sense of things. Time seemed to slow down. The caverns themselves seemed to whisper their secrets to him. He saw clearly the crucial ledges to reach, the right jumps to make, and the slopes he could use to propel himself fast enough to escape these caverns alive. And in a flash, he was gone. — Nexx

script has always been one of my favourite mappers, and this map exemplifies everything that I love about his mapping style – not by any means a small feat, because there is plenty to like in his maps, in my opinion.

A clean, structured tileset, an open environment that encourages exploration while still offering an intuitive flow, perfectly placed enemies and objects... what's not to like? OK, yeah, this isn't anything groundbreaking in terms of aesthetics or game mechanics, but this is so well made that I find it hard to care.

Keep up the good work, mate. — lifdoff

Rockets have always been among my favourite enemies. They force you to react quickly and spontaneously and the longer you've been playing the game the better you understand how to manipulate them. That's where the fun begins. "Behind the Door" uses only a single rocket to cover almost the entire map and gives you enough space to toy with it at your leisure while the ingeniously placed one-ways provide a ton of opportunities for different routes and tricky moves. Sounds like a fun experience, doesn't it? Ready, set, go! — macrohenry

The hours tick away.

In a brief moment of eternity, we are here. In all of the possible worlds, out of all the possible species, we exist as sentient human beings. We experience sensory stimulation, we experience love, we experience all of the highs and lows of emotion. And for all the silliness of it, we can create things that provide enjoyment for people around the planet before we're gone, even with things as seemingly meaningless as levels for a free indie game released over a decade ago.

The hours tick away, but we'll enjoy them while we're here. — maxson924

Back when I joined NUMA, I favourited just about every map I played. Then, sometime in July, I grew weary of having so many favourited maps, so I thinned the ranks. This one survived.

I did another purge in late September. A couple of maps were axed. This one survived again.

Looking at it now, the reason is clear. It's intricately constructed, aesthetically pleasing and challenging throughout, yet never frustrating and complete with some impeccable enemy placement that makes it one of 2015's standout maps.

With that, to 2016 and hopefully many maps of this quality! Don't disappoint me, folks. — lifdoff