Language…
15 users online: Astrakitu, Batata Douce, Blizzard Buffalo, Foxy_9000_, Fozymandias, Housemeister, Ice Man, MorrieTheMagpie, OrangeRock57, ppp9q, schema_tuna,  shovda, sinseiga, temsuper1, Tsquare07 - Guests: 243 - Bots: 300
Users: 64,795 (2,376 active)
Latest user: mathew

Vanish Castle (Version 1.25 released!)

Hey everyone!

This is my first time making a level for a VLDC (and pretty much the first time i'm really making a full level xD), so we'll see how it goes.

My level is currently called "Vanish Castle". but i don't know if i'll leave it as the final name (though i'm not feeling creative with names right now =P)
EDIT: I'll be keeping this name! I'm actually starting to like it!

As the name already gives out, it's a Castle themed level, and it has as a gimmick making enemies (more specifically, sprites) disappear,
by abusing the sprite limit.


EDIT: Version 1.25 has been released!

Gameplay Video (v1.25)

Vanish Castle 1.25 (Download)

Version 1.25 Info
Version 1.21 Info
Version 1.2 Info
Versions 1.1/1.11 Info
Versions 1.05/1.01 Info

Gameplay Video (v1.2)
Gameplay Video (v1.1)
Gameplay Video (v1.0)

This is version 1.25!

Version 1.25:
- Changes to the Big Boo Boss!

Some people will probably recognize a few segments inspired by other levels, namely:
- Swiss Hotel by Morsel (VLDC9)
- Swissotel by ft029 (VLDCX)


Note: Being pretty new to hacking myself, i'm still kinda unsure about level design and such.
I've played some hacks, so i know how to avoid obvious design flaws, but designing levels myself is a whole new experience!
So any form of feedback would be highly appreciated!

Thank you a lot for all the support and feedback everyone!
My Youtube Channel
Did the thwomp at 0:12 just despawn naturally somehow by going too far off screen? How'd you do that?

AnD hOw DoEs EvErYtHiNg DeSpAwN lIkE tHaT!?1?

Explain!!!

... In fact, I'm at a loss as to how you pull off the majority of the setups in the level. The falling platform and blue blocks room with the buzz saws in particular puzzles me.
                                                                                                                  
                              
Wow, yet another level from a first-timer that I can tell is pretty good. I too find the despawn gimmick pretty cool.

Same with those blocks that only sprites other than Mario can fall through - though I thought that was a custom block?
Twitter
The handomest people in the world are ones who follow my Twitch
Umm... are you sure you're new to this? I'm just.. wow. Totally amazed. The creativity is just insane, I am blown away!

I'll try to comment more critically on things that could be improved later, but for now I'm just quite impressed at the creativity on display here. While I recognize the throw block gimmick from swissotel, this level used it in surprisingly interesting and fun ways.

The way that you turned sprite slot management and despawning as a gimmick was extremely clever, and I'm a big fan of the first section with the "despawn a sprite here" blocks.

I think you could do something a little more interesting with the key than simply tossing it down the pit in that one room (neat setup though).

The big boo fight is cute, but maybe have something more dangerous to do than just grab fire flowers? For example, they could be hovering over spike pits or something? The idea is neat though.

Overall, super interesting concept. It seems a bit on the easy side, but that's quite alright. (Nevermind, difficulty is just fine). Looking forward to seeing more content from you outside of vldc. Nice job!!

Also, the aesthetics seem quite nice to me already! But if you really do want to change them, a custom palette would probably help you nab a few points in the aesthetics category (though that doesn't really matter much when the gameplay is this good).

Originally posted by K.T.B.
Wow, yet another level from a first-timer that I can tell is pretty good. I too find the despawn gimmick pretty cool.

Same with those blocks that only sprites other than Mario can fall through - though I thought that was a custom block?


That's not a "block" at all, that is the red ? light switch used to light up the disco ball (message boxes and invisible solid blocks have the same function here)

Originally posted by LethalBrownies
Did the thwomp at 0:12 just despawn naturally somehow by going too far off screen? How'd you do that?

AnD hOw DoEs EvErYtHiNg DeSpAwN lIkE tHaT!?1?

Explain!!!

... In fact, I'm at a loss as to how you pull off the majority of the setups in the level. The falling platform and blue blocks room with the buzz saws in particular puzzles me.


I don't wanna spoil ECS's thunder, and I haven't checked LM yet to see exactly how they did it, but essentially they are using a large amount of sprites to fill up sprite slots. In the throw block section, for example, having too many sprites "on screen" at once (you can't tell because they are offscreen) will fill up sprite slots quickly and prevent new ones from spawning.


Edit: okay I played the level, super fun!! Here's some other suggestions

-maybe have a 1-up checkpoint after the throw block puzzle setups?

-the big boo fight can be slightly jank because, if there are too many eeries on screen, you can't pick up a throw block
Wow this is SUPER creative!! I really admire how you use sprite limit!
This will make new paths for VLDC.
Holy crap, I didn't know you were such a creative person! Not like most of the other first-timers who supposedly pad out the length of the level because they have no idea what a level should look like.

The boss fight might be some annoyance since you can't really grab a blue block when too many Eeries are on screen. I'd suggest having to eliminate some treacherous sprites before you can touch the blocks.

I'd make the part with the P-switch slightly funner when there are brown blocks blocking the exit pipe and whenever you can't parse in time, you can always reset.

As for aesthetics, if you don't feel confident about graphical edits, palettes are enough to start. Just remember they mustn't be eye searing and the palettes of the objects aren't conflicting. They can be a real nice touch on aesthetics when done right.

Good luck!
I have a Discord server as well! (by joining, you agree to the rules)
-----
Basically, I believe in peace and bashing two bricks together.

Holy crap, I love that gimmick. It's a very creative use of the sprite limit. I'm still wondering what these "vanish blocks" are triggering to erase the sprites.

The only part I don't really like is the Big Boo fight. Some people may be really confused of why you can't sometimes grab blocks, and that's something you might need to fix or just scrap the Eerie spawner idea. A custom color palette would also be nice, it'd suck to have such a creative level score so low just because of very basic aesthetics.
Very impressive. Levels like this are a Lunar Magic 3 demonstration that the community can really make use of. It almost looks like you added custom code.



YouTube Twitter Twitch
This level design is amazing. Also, I prefer the vanilla pallette over a custom one, because it reminds me of some of my favourite hacks that have similar design to this, but it might indeed cost you some points (even though it really shouldn't).
Huge text wall coming!!

Wow! That's a lot of feedback! Thanks everyone!
Being new here, this support really means a lot for me! =D

I've been planning a few changes, and considering your suggestions too! I'll come up with some screenshots later when i have some stuff done!

Originally posted by LethalBrownies
Did the thwomp at 0:12 just despawn naturally somehow by going too far off screen? How'd you do that?

AnD hOw DoEs EvErYtHiNg DeSpAwN lIkE tHaT!?1?

Explain!!!

... In fact, I'm at a loss as to how you pull off the majority of the setups in the level. The falling platform and blue blocks room with the buzz saws in particular puzzles me.


Well, Gbreeze pretty much explained it already, this gimmick works by filling up all sprite slots. If the sprite slots are full, Mario can't grab a throw block (Because, while the throw block is an object, when you grab it you spawn a sprite)

Originally posted by K.T.B.
Wow, yet another level from a first-timer that I can tell is pretty good. I too find the despawn gimmick pretty cool.

Same with those blocks that only sprites other than Mario can fall through - though I thought that was a custom block?


Thanks!
As for the "Mario only block", as Gbreeze already said too, it's actually a sprite block (the one used in the dark room of Bowser's Castle). Most sprites in SMW don't have interation with other sprites (See how sprites fall through sprite platforms for example), so this block, as well as a few others, only interact with Mario.

Originally posted by GbreezeSunset
Umm... are you sure you're new to this? I'm just.. wow. Totally amazed. The creativity is just insane, I am blown away!

I'll try to comment more critically on things that could be improved later, but for now I'm just quite impressed at the creativity on display here. While I recognize the throw block gimmick from swissotel, this level used it in surprisingly interesting and fun ways.

The way that you turned sprite slot management and despawning as a gimmick was extremely clever, and I'm a big fan of the first section with the "despawn a sprite here" blocks.

I think you could do something a little more interesting with the key than simply tossing it down the pit in that one room (neat setup though).

The big boo fight is cute, but maybe have something more dangerous to do than just grab fire flowers? For example, they could be hovering over spike pits or something? The idea is neat though.

Overall, super interesting concept. It seems a bit on the easy side, but that's quite alright. (Nevermind, difficulty is just fine). Looking forward to seeing more content from you outside of vldc. Nice job!!

Also, the aesthetics seem quite nice to me already! But if you really do want to change them, a custom palette would probably help you nab a few points in the aesthetics category (though that doesn't really matter much when the gameplay is this good).

Edit: okay I played the level, super fun!! Here's some other suggestions

-maybe have a 1-up checkpoint after the throw block puzzle setups?

-the big boo fight can be slightly jank because, if there are too many eeries on screen, you can't pick up a throw block


Wow! Thanks a lot! It really means a lot coming from you Gbreeze, i've been a fan of your hacks for years!

As for difficulty, yea, i was aiming for something more on the easy side, i wanted to focus more on creativity than difficulty, and to be sure it would be accessible for most players without having them struggle to complete it.
There are in fact a few action oriented segments (Layer 2 On/Off part and the end Key Room) where i intented to have a higher difficulty, but i still didn't want them to be overwhelming. While i did use a lot of sprites in these rooms, to keep the player engaged throughout the whole segment, you'll notice there's always a safe spot every few steps so the player can catch a breath and analyse the next move.

I guess i can try a custom palette, i'll also see if i can add more details on a few parts.

The 1-up checkpoint idea is nice, i did think of maybe changing checkpoint distribution a bit, but i just couldn't decide where.
I wanted the Midway Point to be the defined point that separates the 2 uses of the gimmick in the level (The "Sprite despawn block" and the "Throw Block gate").
I guess your suggestion could be a nice place! (since those rooms are puzzle oriented)

As for the Big Boo fight, i'll probably change it, it's a little too RNG dependent as of now...

Originally posted by Kusrry
Wow this is SUPER creative!! I really admire how you use sprite limit!
This will make new paths for VLDC.


Thanks!

Originally posted by Emerald Shell
Holy crap, I didn't know you were such a creative person! Not like most of the other first-timers who supposedly pad out the length of the level because they have no idea what a level should look like.

The boss fight might be some annoyance since you can't really grab a blue block when too many Eeries are on screen. I'd suggest having to eliminate some treacherous sprites before you can touch the blocks.

I'd make the part with the P-switch slightly funner when there are brown blocks blocking the exit pipe and whenever you can't parse in time, you can always reset.

As for aesthetics, if you don't feel confident about graphical edits, palettes are enough to start. Just remember they mustn't be eye searing and the palettes of the objects aren't conflicting. They can be a real nice touch on aesthetics when done right.

Good luck!


Thank you for the suggestions!
I did take some care with lenght, i've already seen good levels being ruined by it (i used a 500 seconds timer to be more lenient in case players mess up some segments)

Yea, i know the boss can be too luck dependent...
The fact is i wanted to use the gimmick in the boss too.
My initial idea was to use a Lakitu to spawn Spinies, and we'd have to kill those to grab the blocks, but Lakitus aren't compatible with Big Boo.
Then i tried Bullet Bills, but their slow spawn time and fast movement speed weren't reliable to fill sprite slots.
Which is when i found the Eeries, they're more reliable with filling sprite slots, but since they can't be killed, it turns into a waiting simulator until we have a patterns that allows us to grab the blocks... and that's not what i wanted...

The P-Switch actually comes from an earlier version of that room, i guess as i changed it, it kinda became out of place, but you just gave me an idea, i think i can make a better use of it!

Originally posted by Ezel
Holy crap, I love that gimmick. It's a very creative use of the sprite limit. I'm still wondering what these "vanish blocks" are triggering to erase the sprites.

The only part I don't really like is the Big Boo fight. Some people may be really confused of why you can't sometimes grab blocks, and that's something you might need to fix or just scrap the Eerie spawner idea. A custom color palette would also be nice, it'd suck to have such a creative level score so low just because of very basic aesthetics.


Thanks!
Yea, i wasn't too sure about the boss, as i commented above. I'll try to see what i can do.

Originally posted by Conal
Very impressive. Levels like this are a Lunar Magic 3 demonstration that the community can really make use of. It almost looks like you added custom code.


Thanks!
Yea, it's crazy what we can do with just Lunar Magic!

Originally posted by Nao
This level design is amazing. Also, I prefer the vanilla pallette over a custom one, because it reminds me of some of my favourite hacks that have similar design to this, but it might indeed cost you some points (even though it really shouldn't).


Thanks!
In fact, i think Castle palettes are one of the best in SMW, it fits the theme well!
But i might try to see what i can do with custom palettes.
My Youtube Channel
Really nice for a first level. I was browsing through a couple of these threads and the creativity of this one stuck out to me a lot. I don't think I've ever seen this particular gimmick used, and if I have, then certainly not to this extreme. If I'm being honest, however, I feel like the second half (blue blocks) kind of goes too far in a different direction than the first half. I've never been a huge fan of this particular sprite slot glitch, and seeing how arbitrary it feels on the boss reinforces my opinion of that, unfortunately.

Still, both sections are pretty great, and if this truly one of the first times you've made a full level, you have a boatload of potential. Looking forward to seeing more from you in the future.
Originally posted by S.N.N.
Really nice for a first level. I was browsing through a couple of these threads and the creativity of this one stuck out to me a lot. I don't think I've ever seen this particular gimmick used, and if I have, then certainly not to this extreme. If I'm being honest, however, I feel like the second half (blue blocks) kind of goes too far in a different direction than the first half. I've never been a huge fan of this particular sprite slot glitch, and seeing how arbitrary it feels on the boss reinforces my opinion of that, unfortunately.

Still, both sections are pretty great, and if this truly one of the first times you've made a full level, you have a boatload of potential. Looking forward to seeing more from you in the future.


Thank you for the feedback!

Yea, i know the two halfs can feel quite different (even though the core idea of the gimmick is still the same for both, Sprite Slots management), that's why i intended to have the Midway Point as a defined point to separate both gimmicks.
The Throw Block gate was actually where the whole level started, since the inspiration came from Swissotel, and i saw in that gimmick a way to make a little "100 Rooms of Enemies" like segment, where you have to kill enemies before progressing. (and also have a reference to the level that inspired this)

As for your opinion on the glitch, it's actually really nice to hear a different opinion! =D (It makes us think in different ways)
That glitch is still pretty new to me (you probably know it for a lot longer than i do), so i find it pretty interesting, and i see it can make some neat setups when used in a controlled way!
However, i can totally understand your opinion on it! This glitch can get out of hand pretty easily, and become more of a nuisance to gameplay than actually a gimmick (And the Big Boo Boss in my level is indeed a great example of that). Not to mention it is also pretty limited (The setup required is pretty specific), so it has to be used very carefully!
My Youtube Channel
----- Update 1.05 -----

Hey guys!
I'm here to say that i've made a few changes to the level, and it's now in what i consider to be version 1.05!

This version contains all the planned and suggested gameplay changes so far, which means by now the level is finished gameplay-wise! (I'll still make any changes if someone finds an issue or gives a good suggestion)

Also, with this version comes a complete rework of the Bossfight! I've (hopefully) fixed any issues caused by the use of the gimmick in the Boss, and removed any RNG dependent element in it!

Note that i still don't have a new download link or video of this version, because i'm planning to release it when i get done with aesthetics (Which i had some pretty cool ideas, and i'm starting to experiment with palettes)

Now, as promised, i do have some screenshots to show off some of the changes made!

Version 1.01 (gameplay changes)



I've made some slight changes to the Layer 2 segment, these should play better and help a bit with the waiting. Unfortunately, since Layer 2 On/Off moves so slowly, some waiting is unavoidable...



Also, yea, i'm pretty obsessed with symmetry in my level design haha.



As for this segment, i just entirely removed the P-Switch...
I just felt it was way out of place, and didn't go well with the idea of the segment.
I tried to make a P-Switch run, as Emerald Shell suggested, but i didn't like it either...
Basically, this room already has a layer of complexity due to the use of the Infinite Sprite Respawn glitch, and it would probably feel pretty new for many players, so i think giving the player time to stop and analyse the obstacles/patterns of the enemies is important here, while the P-Switch would instead prompt the player to rush the room to make it in time.



Also, i added the 1-up Checkpoint suggested by Gbreeze!



It skips the Throw Block gate rooms, and takes us to this room.
I also did some slight changes to the design of this room, as well as some pretty cool changes to the exit with the key!
But i'll leave those to show in the video when i release the level!

Version 1.05 (Boss Rework!)

Well, i've entirely reworked the bossfight!
I wasn't really satisfied with the way the previous version played, it relied too much on RNG and the gimmick was more an annoyance than actually something that improved the gameplay (just as most of you noted as well!)





As you can see here, overall the room is now a bit more dangerous to navigate.
Also, i've completely scrapped the idea of using the Throw Block glitch to get the items to throw at the boss.
Instead, i'm making use of the Infinite Sprite Respawn glitch again, with the keys spawning and falling through the marked spots on the ceiling (just like in the other room this gimmick is used)

With this, i got rid of the RNG dependent elements while still making use of the main gimmicks used in the level! And i believe this version will be a lot more entertaining and challenging to play!

Future Updates

With the gameplay changes done so far, i'm now going to focus on aesthetics.
I'll be experimenting with a few ideas i had, as well as the custom palettes, and i'll be posting them here as i progress to get some feedback!
My Youtube Channel
EDIT: Ok, i'm not gonna Quad Post xD

----- Version 1.1 -----

Aesthetics Update!

Hey guys!
Here are the changes done to aesthetics in the level!
As i said, i was experimenting with custom palettes, and i got pretty satisfied with the results!

Here they are:





As you can see here, i've changed basically the FG and BG palettes.
I didn't want to go too far from the gray palettes, since i already like the castle palettes, so i went with a purple-ish blue tone.
Also, i reduced palette 3's saturation a bit, because i always felt the original game's orange palette is quite hard on the eyes (#4 castle is the most noticeable example)





In the second area, i've used a darker palette on the Layer 2 FG objects.





Here, i've changed the look of the platforms a bit.
The darker palette on the platforms are only solid to Mario.
Also note that i'm using orange arrows to show where the enemies are falling (these are the same arrows used to show the "Enemy Vanish Switch" block)



As for the boss room, it has basically the same changes made to previous rooms.

Edit: I had previously named this post "Aesthetics Update Pt. 1" because i was still experimenting with a few aesthetic ideas i had.
But in the end i didn't really like the changes i made. So i just scrapped that idea and decided to keep just the custom palettes for aesthetics.
And since i'm already done with these, it means version 1.1 is ready to be released!

Edit(2):
Update 1.11 - Bugfix Update
I just wanted to get this quick fix update out after JP32's Fan Judge feedback.
- Fixed 'softlock' on Layer 2 room
- Made it clear in the Infinite Sprite Respawn room that darker tiles are solid to Mario
- Added indicators for spikes that come out of the ground on Layer 2 room
My Youtube Channel
Well, nevermind, here i am Quad Posting! xD

Well, after a long time, i think it was about time to release my level's latest version! (and i had to before the contest's deadline xD)
I've been working on and off on it after Mad Lad's great review, it provided a lot of helpful feedback and ideas, and i came up with quite a lot of improvements to the level!
It's now as good as ever!

Now, for the list of changes:

----- Version 1.2 -----

This update brought a lot of changes, both in gameplay and aesthetics!

--- Gameplay Changes ---

I took a lot of Mad Lad's suggestions, fixed the issues he pointed out and came up with a few cool ideas to change some stuff i wasn't much satisfied with.


First of all, i did some slight changes to the Layer 2 segment, again! Hopefully it should feel less like a waiting game this time (though, again, i couldn't completely remove the need to wait)


As for the Infinite Sprite Respawn segment, i changed the exit location and added one little setup, so it removes the need to backtrack through the whole room.


The room before the boss has been reworked entirely! I didn't really like the way it player before, as it was mostly a few big spikes and a room full of enemies. (people also mentioned it was the segment that stood out the least in the level)
I made an entirely new segment there, again using the Infinite Sprite Respawn gimmick, as Mad Lad suggested. This time, i made this segment in a way that integrates the gimmick to a room with a more standard castle like design.
This also removes the need to go through the same room twice, as was with the previous version of the level.
I have only one screenshot of this room, as it'll be easier to show off in the new gameplay video xD


And the boss room, i made a little change to make it a little bit more interesting.

--- Aesthetic Changes ---

Well, before, the only thing i was really doing with aesthetics was a custom palette (and the functional graphics like the different colors for Layer 2 and the arrow indicators).
But after a while i decided to experiment a little bit more with the graphics i had available and Map16, and the results went pretty good!


First, a new palette change. I changed the color of all pipes in the level!
This is actually a change i found on 'accident' xD
I originally wasn't gonna use palette 5 for pipes, i changed them to palette 3 (orange) so i could change palette 5 to this brown-ish color to use with the Layer 2 spikes. But then, while i was working on the latest version, i opened up the Add Objects window and the pipes there were like this (since their original palette there is palette 5). So i thought it just looked really cool and decided to go with them xD

Then, as i experimented with graphics, i found some that looked pretty good:


These fence decorations. I've already seen them used in a few castle levels.


And in these images it shows most of the other decorations i came up with.
There are some hanging orb decorations. They were inspired by the orb decorations used in a few Fortress levels in SMB3.
There's also a little lamp in the ceiling.
And the pillar decorations that i kinda came up with using the SMW pillar graphics. (And using the orb decoration on the top)
Also, i made some of them look kinda like a torch, credits to Mad Lad for the base idea to these! (It's hard to see the torch ones on a screenshot as they are animated. These will be better seen on the gameplay video)

With these changes i'm now releasing a new version, there's a new download link, as well as a new gameplay video! (These are also updated in the original post)
My Youtube Channel
wow, this is REALLY awesome. for your first full level and vldc this is really unique and creative.

i have yet to play the level myself, but the video showed some really cool stuff. nice work.
Originally posted by ECS.98
Wow! Thanks a lot! It really means a lot coming from you Gbreeze, i've been a fan of your hacks for years!

Oh wow really? Thanks! :D I greatly appreciate the support. :)

I played the newer versions and the changes are very nice, and the new custom palette is pretty cool as well.

Only suggestion I have is that I am not exactly a fan of these aesthetics. Honestly, you had a pretty great thing going on with just the plain old vanilla castle tileset and the castle palette, I don't think the level needs more than that. The aesthetics here actually detract a bit from the level because they distract the player. Some of the tiles look a bit off as well, namely the ones that use goal point graphics. Creating tilesets out of vanilla tiles is extremely tricky and, personally, I have never been a fan of "adding decor" to the vanilla tiles (such as the castle ones) because I think the plain vanilla assets hold up extremely well on their own. Also, the dark grey dirt is a nice touch and I would keep it, but make it slightly less dark. Finally, I don't think the orange triangle thingy indicators are absolutely necessary. If it's on layer 2, blue or orange coins would do just fine, since they look much more "vanilla" and fit the castle aesthetic. In addition, coins are often used as indicators themselves.

Besides that, I am quite impressed with the level and I appreciate you continuing to improve it as well; fixing stuff and responding to feedback is a great way to add polish to an entry. Good luck!
Originally posted by GbreezeSunset
I played the newer versions and the changes are very nice, and the new custom palette is pretty cool as well.

Thanks once again for giving some feedback on my level!

Originally posted by GbreezeSunset
Only suggestion I have is that I am not exactly a fan of these aesthetics. Honestly, you had a pretty great thing going on with just the plain old vanilla castle tileset and the castle palette, I don't think the level needs more than that.

Yea, i'm still pretty new to aesthetics.
Well, yea, the castle tilesets look pretty good on their own already. But i received a good amount of feedback saying the aesthetics of the level could be improved, so i gave it a try!
I tried to come up with a few decorations based on levels i had already seen, and some even from other games. But i still wasn't too sure about how it looked. So your feedback was very valuable on this!

Originally posted by GbreezeSunset
The aesthetics here actually detract a bit from the level because they distract the player.

Yea, after playing the level a few times i can see what you mean. Some tiles can sometimes be pretty distracting.
There's also the fact that i didn't really know how to 'decorate' my level. As in, i've created the tiles, but i had no idea of how and where to place them, so i guess i tried mostly to cover empty spaces, which can make some places feel a bit 'full' now i guess.

Originally posted by GbreezeSunset
Some of the tiles look a bit off as well, namely the ones that use goal point graphics. Creating tilesets out of vanilla tiles is extremely tricky and, personally, I have never been a fan of "adding decor" to the vanilla tiles (such as the castle ones) because I think the plain vanilla assets hold up extremely well on their own.

Thanks for noticing this. In fact, i wasn't too sure about those tiles. I was a bit uncomfortable with a few of them as i was making them. But since i couldn't come up with any tile that looked better, i gave those a try.
Yep, creating tilesets with vanilla resources is very tough! I had to put quite a lot of effort just to find a few that would work!
Well, as much as i like vanilla graphics, i still think some decorations can make a level look even better, and make it quite fresh aesthetically, that's what i tried to achieve here.

Originally posted by GbreezeSunset
Finally, I don't think the orange triangle thingy indicators are absolutely necessary. If it's on layer 2, blue or orange coins would do just fine, since they look much more "vanilla" and fit the castle aesthetic. In addition, coins are often used as indicators themselves.

Oh my... you are absolutely right! In fact, i was a bit uncomfortable with the use of the arrow indicators because they looked weird when i placed more than one together. But i never really found a replacement.
Not until now! It didn't even cross my mind to use coins there before, and in fact they work really well! Thanks for this suggestion!

Originally posted by GbreezeSunset
Besides that, I am quite impressed with the level and I appreciate you continuing to improve it as well; fixing stuff and responding to feedback is a great way to add polish to an entry. Good luck!

Thank you so much for your support and feedback!

---------------------------------------------------------------------

By the way, i just released a little update with a few changes based on recent feedback i received, as well as a few ideas i had on my own.

--- Version 1.21 ---

- Changed the Layer 2 segment once again. This time i think i finally managed to remove the need to wait! I used a few climbing nets to slow the player down just enough so the Layer 2 can be in position!
Funny enough, the idea for this change actually came from my own suggestion to Mad Lad's level! xD
- Changed the Layer 3 scrolling setting, so it doesn't look as static.
- Changed quite a bit the aesthetics of the level. Removed a few tiles i wasn't comfortable with, and toned down a bit the use of decorations in a few parts.
- Changed the Arrow indicators to coins in the Sprite Respawn Loop rooms.
My Youtube Channel
Hey guys! Here again!
Since the deadline has been extended, i could benefit a bit from that!
Just released a new update to the level!

--- Version 1.25 ---

This version features a new change to the Big Boo bossfight!
I came up with a new way to get the Keys required to defeat the boss!


As the image shows: "Kill Blue Shelless Koopas to get the Key".
This segment now requires you to kill a Shelless Koopa every time you want to take a Key.

The ones who have been following my level for a while probably remember the first version of the boss, when i used a Eerie generator so the player can't get Throw Blocks if there were 3 Eeries on screen. My base idea for that was having to kill enemies in order to be able to grab the Throw Block, and then have the enemy respawn when we wanted to get the next block.

This new change is a combination of that idea with the previous Big Boo setup which uses the Infinite Sprite Respawn gimmick and the Sprite Limit!

I hope this bossfight plays in a more unique way now! And can stand out more along with the other ideas used in the level!
My Youtube Channel