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a hick's crapo level reviews (Done) And level analysis (also done tho I may revisit)

Great job with these reviews!

I'd be willing to do some reviewing/beta-testing as well
Originally posted by Centipede
stuff about music


I'll have to talk to him about it :P

@Gbreeze Of course, you're welcome to and we'd appreciate your doing either one of those, when doing so is possible :D Erik talked about starting beta-testing a while ago, but I can't quote him for my dual-oses don't talk well together.
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3-4, Grape Juice by a hick

I have more things that I want to change about this level than I'll let on in this post specifically, since it's my level, and I plan to change it up a bit, and make it look a bit less plain. Some balancing might happen as well, and you know how that goes. Other than what I plan to change, there isn't anything that sticks out as a problem to me, regardless of the level's staleness. If I feel like it, I might be redoing it entirely.



This screen is a cluster of spam, and the rest of the level doesn't reflect this at all. This doesn't counter the fact that the rest of the level is very easy compared to this one section, and while this level is considered a "breather", it doesn't need to be as easy as it is, and it doesn't need to be as hard as this one section. I'll be making the setup so that the shell goes on the lower path, if I don't end up just starting over on the design.



So that the player doesn't hit it and potentially fall in the goop if they try to jump to the clouds from there, and hit the invis. block above Morton, I'll change the block to just not exist. This'll happen either way I go with the level :P



I'll be changing the location of this fire flower so that if you screw up with the throw blocks you can still get a power, you just can't get something else. Since I'm planning to redo the entire level, I didn't bother to think how I'd change it if I did :P

Like I said, I don't have too much I can say about this level, and while it isn't specifically problematic, it isn't great either, and has some problems. Like I said above, I'll probably just redo the level. Shouldn't be too much of a problem, I have an idea in mind. The level will receive a revamp on aesthetic fronts as well, and I may make the level end in a way such that it goes towards the level that is next in the line-up, which is a jungle level that is also being reviewed next.
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3-5, Climbing Treetops by Erik557



Once more, the "evening" aesthetic is quite nicely utilized in a level. Very pleasing to the eyes, unless you're sensitive to orange in a way that harms you :P

I think the goomba parachuters must've been toned down a bit, because last time I played this level, they owned me hardcore. Hmm, maybe, maybe not. Either way, the level is pretty fun, and there aren't too many problems of note, except for some things that seem like they were put in just to troll, and can be removed so that we actually have some polish on the level. Most of the problems all have to do with one specific detail, and none are really "generic".



These coins are painfully easy to collect, and require little to no effort to obtain. I'd change the positioning to make them require more thought, or effort, or something. I'll talk with Erik on IRC to figure out what to do about this issue, since I don't have a surefire solution to display right here.



The first picture shows that you can stand on the blue things. The last picture shows that you can use them as springs. You can easily tell which ones you can and can't by way of how many orbs they have, but not everyone is going to know this on their playthrough, and the springboard isn't even required to do anything except kill yourself on a koopa that flutters by right when you're about to launch off the spring that you thought you could sit on. Therefore, it can be safely changed to not be springy.



EDIT: Wow, I didn't notice the cut-off, that could be fixed as well :O

What's the point of this hole down here? There are three coins that lead you to fall in a pit, and a koopa that decides that today'd be a good day to commit suicide if you wait for too long, and let other enemies crowd him, but other than that, nothing of note. Nothing tells me that this pit has any use, but I'll talk about this on IRC as well, just in case I'm missing something. Removing the pit is suggested for now.

Like I commented on before, the level is very pleasingly colored, and everything meshes together without keeping you from seeing anything important. The gameplay is enjoyable too, with problems not too evident, unless you happen to be unlucky and happen to notice certain things, or not notice certain things, but that's being fixed :P Good level, for sure.
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3-6, Autumn in Jungles by lolyoshi

Most jungles don't have an 'autumn' season, but this level's whole concept is around that they don't, but the level does, which makes this level more interesting than you would think at first glance. Also, flying fish. The flying fish are necessary. 100% You cannot have a cliche lolyoshi level without random flying fish. Anyhow, the level itself seems to have a few redundancies with how to get things, where parts of the level aren't necessary. Although, I think what he meant to have by doing that was "nonlinear design" or some blasphemy like that. Anyhow, the level doesn't have much of that. So, pretty fun level from my viewpoint over all, and there isn't much to call "problematic" about it, not much at all.



First off, "sometimes there will be a fish"
Then "They like to act as if they were swimming underwater"

Inconsistency, you only mentioned "a" fish, not more than one fish. Also, there are more fish than just the singular "fish" that you mentioned, so it's probably a good idea to change the "a fish" to "some fish", or something that denotes "fish" as plural, and proper for the level in being so.

Also, note the garbage that is at the top of the screen.



Occasionally that shell won't have a koopa beside it, and will fail to do anything useful. I don't know exactly what you could do about that, but I think that it should either be fixed or removed, or replaced with something else, but that's up to you.

Also, fix the cut-off at the tree where the branch is floating in space. Apparently trees have anti-gravity in this level, which is cool. That will change, though
:P

Like I said earlier, the level is entertaining and fun. Not much to complain about, and not much to suggest as a change. (All of the changes wanted that I could find are pretty small, too) I do think the music could be changed, since Erik screwed up all of the music in the ROM that I'm using, but none of the music is final yet, so whatever :D
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3-7 in the next!
Quote
Apparently trees have anti-gravity in this level, which is cool. That will change, though

what

also the shell has a koopa besides it
On a hick's point about the Autumn in Jungles level, I'm not sure World 3 should be considered a jungle. The mostly vanilla graphics certainly suggest a temperate forest, not a tropical forest. Of course, the map has palm trees on it (and it looks nice, by the way.) Maybe we should call it a subtropical forest, so that there would be some seasonal variation and the autumn level would make sense.


Originally posted by Cascade
On a hick's point about the Autumn in Jungles level, I'm not sure World 3 should be considered a jungle.


I don't see how that's on my point specifically, because the "Autumn in Jungles" level calls it a jungle itself. Not to mention, we've already decided this as a "jungle world", which can mean any type of dense forest (often including much wildlife), to my knowledge. Of course, with that description, the place that I live can be considered a jungle :P
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3-7, Into Spiky Branches by Fornaxus

The graphic decisions made in this level aren't ones that I particularly can stand behind, and I'll explain why. Standing alone, I suppose it doesn't look too bad, but compared to the rest of the levels, its style is in stark contrast. I also feel like I should mention that I still feel like the palette should be redone if not just because of the weird contrast between background and foreground that doesn't really have any reason. Other than that, there isn't much to actually say about the design of the level, as seen in what follows.



There is a random empty space here. You could just compact the surrounding into the empty space, or something in that realm. There are supposed to be flame generators firing at you, but they don't really do anything quickly enough for them to be a danger.



I jumped here assuming that because of the already obvious weird palette, I could stand here. This should be fixed with the palette change, that I already mentioned, I assume. We'll see



Mh, very repetitive design. I don't think that the gimmick of this level is to repeat the same section over and over in different ways, and if it is, then it's being done very badly, in my view. You could change this section to some groovy vertically inclined section that includes bowser flames being used to go up, or anything that has an up. The whole level is pretty much flat, which is apparently bad in this situation, considering most of the flat level isn't used in interesting ways, and my meaning of that being that you don't/can't (tileset changes may need) change things up enough to make the level fun.



That key wasn't hidden very well, maybe hide it behind the tree trunk? There isn't any reason not to, and you could also remove the annoying jumping dinosaur that comes out of the trees and kicks you, although that's up to your decision; it isn't enough of a problem for me to suggest anything.

In the end, the palette really needs a change. Well, actually, it does, but I was going to say "In the end, this level suffers from 'repetitively boring screen design syndrome' which spells RBSDS and doesn't actually exist. There isn't much else to complain about with the level except that a good chunk of the level could be swapped around to do other, more interesting and exciting things, and the level would be decent and enjoyable.
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3-8, Uplifting Heights by Centipede

Clearly, this will be a good level. Yesssssssssssss my precious, for now we shalll waitt..
Originally posted by aHick


I jumped here assuming that because of the already obvious weird palette, I could stand here. This should be fixed with the palette change, that I already mentioned, I assume. We'll see

I find to be pretty obvious that you can't stand there from my point of view, since you have the palette contrast.
Originally posted by aHick


I jumped here assuming that because of the already obvious weird palette, I could stand here. This should be fixed with the palette change, that I already mentioned, I assume. We'll see


I don't know, personally I think that due to it's darker palette it should've been clear that it's just part of the background, or something you can't stand on.
The outline of it shouldn't be black if it's supposed to be in the background.
Originally posted by Wavee
The outline of it shouldn't be black if it's supposed to be in the background.


True, you're right about that. Probably like a darkish brown would work better, in that case.
Erik won in a game of "I-made-this-Kaizo-puzzle, Erik-go-figure-it-out", so I'm doing reviews.
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3-8, Uplifting Heights by CENTIPEDE!

Literally. I can find nothing wrong with this level. Okay, I can find one thing, but it's hardly of any notice and may not even be worth fixing. This level is amazing. The palette looks nice, the platforming is fun, the enemies are placed nicely, this level is just yes. As a result, I can't really find anything to suggest, and the review will be.. short, to say the least.



I found it safe to assume that the vine and plant on the vine means that there is ground below in that area, but if you want to make this not a semi-blind jump, by all means, you can. This is truly all I could find that might even MIGHT be worth changing.

A great level, and I didn't say this before, but it doesn't stick out; that isn't a problem, because the level is great on its own without having to be gimmicky in a good way or anything like that. The hype thing is, the next level is also one of Centipede's!
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3-9, Trigger Temple by CENTIPEDE!

Another great level by the insect himself, and with a totally different theme! You're in a temple full of traps out to kill you, and you have to avoid them while doing things that Mario does. This level, unlike the last one, is unique in its gimmick from what I've seen. I don't have much to talk about on this level, like the previous one, and for the same reasons. But, there are a few things.



I find the one-pixel jumps to be a bit more difficult than they need to be, considering that the spikes will probably find a way to knock you off, and putting some of them as two spaces wide could make it a bit more enjoyable; but it's super enjoyable regardless, so it's truly up to you.



This coin is pretty darn difficult to get, especially if you have a power-up. I think it'd be better if there were just one muncher and that muncher was right above the coin, and just solid blocks where the other munchers are at the moment.



If you happen to jump on the platform before you jump on the other thing because you apparently can't see the future far ahead enough, and or are being careless, then you're screwed. Personally, I think that you could just put a solid block there instead of the falling platform, but once again, I leave this one up to you.

A beautiful level, I was actually wondering what I'd come up with to put for this level when it was released, and now that we're here, I don't think that I came up with very much.

:D Very good levels, I'll have to see which levels are yours ahead of these so I can be hyped in advance some more
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World 3 complete! World 4 starts.. NEXT TIEM
you were supposed to test foliage too =.=

jk good reviews man.
Originally posted by a hick

This coin is pretty darn difficult to get, especially if you have a power-up.
I don't see how it's difficult to get, since you can easily reach it with a running jump or by spinjumping on the lotus. Still, I'll try to see and follow your advice.

Also good reviews as always.

Now I should finally stop being lazy and start fixing my levels


My hacks: Justice for Mario / Unnamed Kaizo Hack
Originally posted by Centipede
running jump or by spinjumping on the lotus.


Oh shoot I'm an idiot and you're totally right


Never mind, that coin isn't hard to get at all :P
Thanks :D
4-1, Frosted Broadwalk [sic] by AlwaysANoob

What the hell is a "Broadwalk" anyway? I'm convinced that it was meant to be "Boardwalk", and was just misspelled, or I just don't get some joke that was made that never came my way.

Anyhow, on this "Broadwalk" we find lots of enemy spam, a mediocre-at-best placement placement of platforms to support it, and a few blind jumps or so just to kick it into gear. We also have out of place bullet launchers, if this wasn't enough. Anyhow, you get my point, I don't really think this level is good enough to keep; at least in its current form. I think that the level should be redone in its entirety, but like normal, that's up to THE EROIK.



Were these coins really necessary? I feel like they weren't. They could be removed, since they look ugly and don't do anything useful.



I love blind jumps. Change either to have a coin trail leading down to a safe platform. qwrqeasdshwrh



GOOD GRIEF

As it appears, about half of that was wholly unnecessary. This is one of the reasons I think the level should be redone entirely, because the whole level's challenge is based around mass amounts of enemies and ice physics that troll you into not being able to get out of their way in time. ... I'm not a fan of that gimmick, personally.



The same goes for this one, but this shot also goes along with another annoyance. You can skip a good few sections if you just use the eeries to float across the section. (Spinjumping on them, of course.) Not too big of a deal, but another reason to redo the level, with a different theme and all.



I mentioned above, bullet bills really don't fit in with flying ghosts. ... They really don't, belieeriev me.



E N E M Y S P A M



(I love how using screenshots in ZMZ (It did that as well in ZSNES, same UI) unlocks all of your keys, so I have to savestate the moment before I take the shot)

This is a blind jump. You can't see it, but you can see that the wall is too high up for you to see that you can't just jump down and get the coin. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Anyhow, REDO the level, or salvage at your own risk, and even then, I don't think it'll be too easy to try to use the same gimmick or theme, and get good results. Also, fix the spelling :P
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More later. The next two levels are really fun
I'll have a go, I guess, at adjusting some of the enemy placement and the level design (if Erik doesn't want to scrap it, that is). I was never truly happy with this level, given that it was originally dropped by Nin and I never really wanted to adjust it much, so that it was still his level. I also want to touch up the graphics, with a gradient in the background to make it more appealing.

EDIT: I decided to change my plans from redoing it, since I realised, at that moment, I don't have August free. Shit.
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Current Project: Vanilla Rendezvous, my project. Click here to see the C3 thread.

Finally back and more active than ever!

Quest on Full Moon Island 2

Go watch GamingWithDrew at http://www.twitch.tv/gamingwithdrew

My Backloggery

Originally posted by AlwaysANoob
I'll have a go, I guess, at adjusting some of the enemy placement and the level design (if Erik doesn't want to scrap it, that is). I was never truly happy with this level, given that it was originally dropped by Nin and I never really wanted to adjust it much, so that it was still his level. I also want to touch up the graphics, with a gradient in the background to make it more appealing.


I feel it needs a really major revamp (see levels to be redone thread), nostly because the layout feels kind of amateurish and the sprite placement is even worse. If you don't want to make big changes feel free to, though.
I feel more experienced since making that level, so I'll have a crack at fixing it. Give me a week, it'll be much better!
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Current Project: Vanilla Rendezvous, my project. Click here to see the C3 thread.

Finally back and more active than ever!

Quest on Full Moon Island 2

Go watch GamingWithDrew at http://www.twitch.tv/gamingwithdrew

My Backloggery

You know what, I didn't need a week, since I actually didn't end up redoing as much as I expected. The main things changed are:

- Visuals
(new style to fit the 'Boos and Bullets' theme)
- Level Design
(flows better, in my opinion)
(oh, and much less enemies, they're more spaced apart and not BS)
- Name
(now Haunted Artillery, hope you don't mind)

Download here:
Here.

I hope Nin didn't end up using Map16 page 0A, since I used it because I assumed that was the page he reserved exclusively for this level. If this wasn't the place to post this, just tell me and I'll move it, I assumed this was the best place to put it.
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Current Project: Vanilla Rendezvous, my project. Click here to see the C3 thread.

Finally back and more active than ever!

Quest on Full Moon Island 2

Go watch GamingWithDrew at http://www.twitch.tv/gamingwithdrew

My Backloggery

Originally posted by AlwaysANoob
stuff

Can you place it in 4-1's thread? I'll place my review there.
Originally posted by AlwaysANoob
You know what, I didn't need a week, since I actually didn't end up redoing as much as I expected. The main things changed are:

- Visuals
(new style to fit the 'Boos and Bullets' theme)
- Level Design
(flows better, in my opinion)
(oh, and much less enemies, they're more spaced apart and not BS)
- Name
(now Haunted Artillery, hope you don't mind)

Download here:
Here.

I hope Nin didn't end up using Map16 page 0A, since I used it because I assumed that was the page he reserved exclusively for this level. If this wasn't the place to post this, just tell me and I'll move it, I assumed this was the best place to put it.


I think I used it for either 4-8 or 5-2 but idr which one (if any). Erik knows I think.