1. “810TOXIN” by Lazy

The winner of the Kaizo Level Design Contest, Lazy’s “810TOXIN” is easy enough to explain conceptually, but difficult to visualize until you see it in action. The level uses something that’s often completely neglected when making a Super Mario World hack: score. In this stage, as long as your score is exactly 810, you’re invincible. So the goal of the level is to get 810 points at exactly the right time so you can progress to the next section, often across an otherwise impassable section of spikes. Sometimes you even have to go over 810 after acquiring invincibility so you can go back to normal and bounce off of enemies.

“I often take inspiration from Morsel, one of the most innovative creators in the community,” says creator Lazy. “His hack Double Jump Man had a mechanic where getting points replenished your double jump, and the fascinating obstacles he designed with this inspired me to do my own take on a point-based gimmick for KLDC.” Not only did this level win a Favorite Brain Teaser award, but it also managed to outdo the competition to win the whole contest which, for a very thinky level, is a rare and impressive feat.