Originally posted by MrDeePay00A: 2-1 (Swamp)
Now that some levels have opened up, I've been contemplating whether or not I should actually give one a shot. And fortunate for me, something in World 2 opened up, which initially if I was going to take on a level, that was the only world that really interested me. Unfortunately, it's the first level in the world - which typically lend themselves as "world introduction" levels and I don't think the idea I have particularly qualifies as an introductory level, but we'll see.
Anyways, I don't necessarily want to throw my name in the hat unless some of you think my idea is worth a dang. My idea is basic platforming combined with sections consisting of a slow-river raft ride - this would be the main gimmick of the level. Obviously, the level would need to use Layer 2 Scrolling, thus forcing a layer 3 BG. I initially thought about reskinning and possibly tweaking Sprite 5E so I don't have to sacrifice a layer, but after drawing some prelim graphics I can pretty much say that's not going to happen, what with all the extra tiles.
So to go along with the idea, I drew a raft today:
Keep in mind that I consider myself a horrible pixel artist and that this is the first time I've ever drawn anything from scratch, nonetheless attempted (I've only ever ripped graphics in the past), so I'm expecting some pretty harsh criticism regarding style and shading - or that it just sucks. Also, for the moment, this is only using a single palette, so a couple of things aren't quite colored the way I've envisioned them (namely the fish).
To further spice up the rafting sections, I thought about including some sort of spotlight effect centered around the lantern - nothing that would hinder the level as in adding artificial difficulty, just something to give it a nice aesthetic in combination with the lantern - the darker areas would only be just that: darker, not blacked out. However, such a feature is far beyond my knowledge, so obviously I would need help if I decided to go with that route.
As far as graphics, I've been toying with LunarDrake's Swamp and Jungle tilesets as well as WYE's Forest tileset made specifically for SMWCP2 - just to try some things out.
So yea, if any of this sounds worthwhile and anyone thinks I should go ahead and give it a shot, then I guess I'll take the level. The biggest reason I have reservations though is because, like I said, it's the first level in the world and I don't think the idea is very fitting of the first level in. I know that probably sounds foolish, but hey, that's just me.
If, however, none of this sounds like a good idea, then I'll just continue forth with level testing.