It just seems an odd system. If I wanted the best person to go forward would I chose someone who has put in a good application form, but has not passed the assessment or someone who has already passed the assessment (and therefore must have put in a reasonable application form previously)? Who knows.
It doesn't matter how far you reached last time. You will only progress beyond the first stage if your application is one of the highest-scoring. Last time, it was; this time, it wasn't. It really is that simple.
Let's say your application score is 60. Last time, this was sufficient to place you in the top six (either because the competition wasn't as strong, or perhaps because there were only six or fewer applicants in total). This time, at least six other candidates achieved/carried over a higher score than 60, so your application was rejected. Next time, it may be different again. Keep trying.
Anyway in terms of feedback, at the last interview, I was told that I answered everything well, apart from the communications question. Apparently if I had answered that correctly, I would have got the job, but someone else pipped me to the post
At least you know which area you most need to polish (although I would try to hone
all your examples). There are numerous posts on here providing good interview advice. Good luck!