MoD/Volcove Duel Results

[Venexis]

VS.


So. An epic showdown between two of our site's most renowned level designers has come to a close. Two designers, two outstanding levels, four judges, and a whole lot of hype. And it's over. Finally. Now, because I'm really bad at introductory speeches and stuff like that, the results:

Obligatory Dramaspace (now 100% less empty): show

Jk, your results are in another spoiler.

In second place is...

Spoiler: show

MessengerOfDreams’ Escapists- Part One: Spectrum and Part Two: Blood Violets with a none too shabby 16.5/20!

And the first place trophy goes to...

Spoiler: show

Volcove’s Into the Depths and Parasite Queen with an incredible 18.0625/20!

So, that about wraps it up, then. Two amazing levels entered, but after being picked apart by the panel of judges including YoshiBoo118, ~MP3Amplifier~, Nin10mode, and myself only one was deemed worthy of first place. Volcove's winning level was originally supposed to debut in a Pipe-themed duel with Fourinone, but after plans disintegrated it was in danger of remaining unfinished. While MoD's level didn't place quite so high, it's a great score nonetheless; plus it's mostly thanks to MoD filling in for the inactive Fourinone that made the completion of this level worthwhile. I think I speak for everyone when I say I'm very glad this one didn't fall... heh... Into the Depths. *is shot* Anyway, congratulations to Volcove for an incredibly high duel placing, surely this level will be receiving praise for months to come.

With that out of the way, it would be great if the other three judges could post their reviews of the levels too.

Venexis' Judgings: show

MoD’s Escapists- Part One: Spectrum and Part Two: Blood Violets

Overview: As is typical MoD style, be prepared to immerse yourself in the love affair of two soldiers. Take up the role of James as you fight through war-torn lands to win your freedom and stand once more at Kati’s side.

Fun: (8.5/10) While there was nothing really new besides being the first level to make real use of the flame towers that I’ve played, the storyline definitely wins you points here. Some bits were more predictable than others (the end of the first part felt rather disappointing to me personally) but the second part more than made up for it. I loved the enemy compound right before the boss- and what a boss it was. Wow. Combining an intriguing but not overbearing plot and the most unique boss I’ve ever seen far overwhelms the slightly bland platforming segments, and anything less than a 8.5/10 would be sacrilege.

Graphics: (4.5/5) From the story intro, I was naturally expecting lots of weaponry and scarred landscapes, and that didn’t disappoint. I did feel some areas were more well-done than others; while nothing was bad, the enemy city appearing toward the end and Violet Hill stand out as my personal favorites, but something seemed off about the battlegrounds in part one. Perhaps scattered block weaponry or something in addition to the flame towers, but it just feels empty.

Other: (4.25/5)
+1 for the most out-of-the-box boss I’ve ever seen
-0.25 for a combination of small things:
-the text on signs was hard to decipher, although I’m sure that’s not intentional
-the elevator in part two was unsynchronized with the bullets rendering them ineffective, and the elevator floor stays at it’s lowest peak just long enough to enter the door. It doesn’t sound like a problem, but because it descends so fast Mario bounces around a lot on it, and it’s actually really hard to get in.
-boss difficulty. I fought with this a long time, and while difficulty is usually praised this is absolute hell on a borrowed library computer. Just a little note there, not enough to warrant its own deduction. :p
+0.5 for an excellent incorporation of story and music. I typically leave music out of judging, but it made all the quotes more meaningful, and was definitely a plus in this case.

Overall: I started this expecting a MoD level, and a MoD level was what I got. If I may say so, this is probably the best use of story in a level I’ve ever seen from you, not flooding the reader with walls of text but supplying them with enough to care about your characters. And I definitely wouldn’t mind seeing some more non-block bosses either. 17.25/20

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Volcove’s Into the Depths and Parasite Queen

Overview: The pipe network underneath the Mushroom Kingdom has been overrun with strange, seemingly invincible monsters. Volcove doesn’t disappoint as you’ll explore, investigate, and purge the pipes of this new threat in a Metroid Prime style platformer.

Fun: (9.25/10) Whoa. As soon as you enter the pipe network there’s a sense of awe. Not of beauty, or grand architecture… it’s more that someone dared to imagine the tangled mess of gloomy passages that one never sees, despite pipes being everywhere in the Mario universe. There’s honestly not much to say here, and perhaps it’s a mixture of childhood nostalgia and curiosity, but I love how you worked with this theme; incorporating puzzles and even a collection of almost minibosses to inhabit the level. It’s loads of fun, and honestly the only thing keeping it from being a perfect score is that it nearly crippled the computer I borrowed upon loading, and was equally merciless after every death. Lag killed me constantly when playing the level, and it kills me to award a 9.25/10 instead of the perfect score I’d desperately love to give.

Graphics: (4.5/5) I like the uniform style throughout, it fits very well with the dark, creepy Metroid-type atmosphere that lends itself so willingly to your dark, creepy Parasite Queen. I loved how it made the setting come alive during the final battle, but it does seem rather plain, especially when it’s the predominant theme in such a massive level. I’d suggest a bit more variation in the tiling pattern, symbols or warnings or something just to spice it up a little… Apart from that, the only thing that comes to mind is the cave tiles. I assume they’re to hide the inner workings of your block monsters, but maybe having them more frequently and more irregular in shape would prevent them from being so noticeable.

Other: (4.25/5)
+1.5 for incredibly advanced block monsters, and a metamorphosing Parasite Queen. The last stage in particular blew my mind.
-0.25 for a lack of health regeneration options. Especially toward the later sections, coins are particularly hard to come by and a weary monster hunter might very well fall victim to hulking block behemoths. Several times.
-no comment on lag, as it was already covered under Fun.

Overall: Well, everyone seems to expect great things of you, and you don’t ever seem to disappoint them. This entry will be no exception… I’m really glad you finished this one up after all. 18/20

YoshiBoo118's judging's, copypasta style (if you want to edit and post it yourself just let me know and I'll take it down): show

MoY:

Overall: 16.5/20

Fun: 8.5/10
The story was excellent, coupled with the music that really made it shine. I like the creativity with riding the bird, and how well designed the army areas were built in general. Although I didn't feel that there was something that made this level 10-worthy, it was still fun to play.

Graphics: 5/5
For the story you were trying to tell, it was very nice. Didn't see any cutoff, and the massive areas were presented well.

Other: 3/5
-1 For the Signs not having spaces...I know you said the system did that but you also said it worked on your .exe, and it didn't on mine.
+1 for the good music choice. For the Coldplay song at least...now I have a new song to add to my playlist

Overall, a great and enjoyable level that everyone should try out.

Volcove

Overall: 18/20

Fun: 9.5/10
Exemplary work. The story and music mixed well, and the adventure was a fun experience, with all the monsters along the way to add to the difficulty and excitement. The two endings were a great touch, as well as the little areas above the pipes. The boss was great as well, I can see you put much creativity into it. Well done.

Graphics: 5/5
Looked great as well. No discernible cutoff, and the boss looked nice.

Other: 3.5/5
-.5 Not for the lag you said was on purpose, but for in Part 1 when all the coins come out in the alternate ending...yes, I know the effect was good, but lag is lag.
+1 The Parasite Queen was quite the cool block boss.

A fantastic level. If only you could turn this mini-series into a full series. :3

[~MP3 Amplifier~]

18.06 FREAKING 25? XD Wow, now i can tell you that the level won in my judgings and got a high score, but i can't say i was expecting that.. O.O But that aside, congratulations! I'm honoured to have judged both your levels as they were both fantastic and i shall post through my judgings asap. And it seems 18s are coming back in fashion, amirite? :3 Hopefully i can score so high one day. :p

Judgings for MoD’s and Volcove’s duel:

Spoiler: show

Volcove:
with Into the Depths

Fun – 8/10. The platforming was inventive, and even saw a little bit of level4 influence in there too (with the flipping platforms). However, some parts were very ragequitty, especially towards the end. I like a challenge, but it got a little bit too much for my liking. Parasite Queen in particular. But I thought it was an enjoyable challenge, something that made me not want to give up, but keep going back and having another go at it.

Graphics – 4.5/5. Bullet bills synchronisation was brilliant as always, but the cave cut-off in the first level and parts of the second level. I didn’t really understand why it was there, I suppose you got away with it because of the black background, but I still really dislike anything cut-off related, but to add to this there was one section of cut-off in the black background of the second level and it looked fabulous! It blended in almost, it was amazing. The continuing pattern throughout the levels were great though. You even colour coded the bullet bills to them at one point, too. Your eye for detail is great too. A bit more décor would’ve been nice, but everything else seems to have made up for it. The blocks behind the jungle tiles in the very first section though, I love that graphics technique.

Other – 4.75/5.

Note – At one point you can miss a silver star in the invisible bricks section, for example, I was panicking that my invisibility cap was gonna run out so as soon as I got out of that area it ran out and I just realised I’d missed a silver star. I think a sign warning us beforehand would’ve been useful. However, I’m balancing this out because I loved that force you got as you tried to collect the silver star (I restarted the level afterwards) and that was quite a clever technique.
+0.25 – Nice idea of doors hidden behind plants.
-0.25 – Needed some more coins in areas. The underwater sections were fine, but it was difficult to regain back health in some areas.
+0.5 – I liked the variety of mini-blosses.
+0.25 – I like how the snow on the cabin’s roof near the beginning is filled in by clouds. Nice touch.
+0.75 – I love the bosses in the Parasite Queen! Some of the best (if not the best) I’ve ever seen!
+0.25 – I love the bullet bill blasters filling in for flame towers. That was a great idea.

Overall – 17.25/20.

Again, you impress us all with your fantastic eye for detail and innovative creations. The joint second highest score I’ve ever given to any level using this kind of judging, so I applaud you for that.

---

MessengerOfDreams:
with The Escapists

Fun – 8.25/10. Not a lot of interesting and new platforming, but it was still incredibly fun and challenging. Although very challenging in areas (in the second part in particular) I found it very enjoyable and wanted to keep restarting it and didn’t give up once until I had the shine sprite. For both parts. I loved the exploration in the jungle and the bridge in the first part though, I thoroughly enjoyed that. If anything I enjoyed that bit the most.

Graphics – 4.75/5. You really pulled off the prison feel, graphics were excellent there. I also loved the flag, like an emblem for the prison. I’ve always loved the idea of sustaining a symbol like that throughout the level as a kind of mystery feel, and in fact I plan to use it soon for a mini-series. Again you used the blocks behind tiles technique, always love to see that in levels (although some block edges stick out in sections, maybe you should increase the size so they don’t do that). Décor is excellent too, not too much, but enough to see the vast change between the dry, dead prison and now the fresh, new jungle. The tiling in the jungle section is also amazing, the tile shape variation was really eye-wateringly beautiful. And the snow section, the end transition in the second part. I loved the snow trees and the pink trees mixed! It really symbolised the flower violets.

Other – 3.75/5.

+0.25 – That falling log ladder thing near the beginning was sooo fun, especially if you held the up key as you were passing it. XD
+0.5 – Story was fantastic, as always.
Note – You seem to have had the same problem as Brawler’s entry in the 19th LDC. The writing is all scrunched up, due to an unfixable bug.
+0.25 – BOUNCING KOOPAS OMG THAT WAS SO KEWL.
-0.25 – However, the bullet bills weren’t in sync with the lift, so Mario never even got hit on the descent.
-0.25 – One of the doors in the second part that was balancing on blocks had a slight gap between the blocks where Mario couldn’t quite enter the door without risking falling between them.
+0.25 – I liked the bullet bills at the top of the second part section, they were all quite synchronised, and it had a slight illusion-like effect on the eyes.

Overall – 16.75/20.

This was fabulous! It doesn’t matter if Volcove won, this entry really connected with me. The story was heart-warming and the music was fantastic (of course it was, Coldplay are so utterly awesome :3) and there was yet another name in a story of yours that sounds a lot like mine. XD So yeah, I think everyone knows Volcove has won this duel, but your level is still excellent and will always be remembered for it too. Don’t let this put you down, and after all, there was only a 0.5 difference in scores anyway.




There ya go.. ^_^

1st place – Volcove (17.25)
2nd place – MoD (16.75)

[nin10mode]

Spoiler: show

Let me quickly say that there seemed to be a miscommunication and I was looking at the wrong level versions which was why I was reluctant to judge at first. Also allow me to say that these judgings are written quite differently than I probably have in the past because ♥♥♥♥ happens. If you find this humorous, good for you, because this simply for my own self-satisfaction. Keep in mind that these are still my opinions, just made into really crappy jokes and unfunny material that I probably should have deleted.

---

For this first review, I bring you my usual cold humor. Everything in life sucks.

VICTIM #1/INFERIOR/MESSENGEROFYEAHWAY/MESSENGEROFDREAMS: Escapists{Spectrum/Blood Violets and Urine Daisies}
===============
Fun: 8/10 First thing.
These countries' militaries really suck. The single hit I took was from a giant fish. They at least need some better security.
In semi seriousness though, some more platforming would have been cool. The first level was mainly spin attacking a bunch of really bad soldiers that should be ashamed of their country for being stuck with these really crappy... turtle and mushroom shaped men. The first half was a nice introduction to fire towers for me. I think I have a some ideas for further innovation though(burn smic pl0x). Indeed, it was straightforward.

And then Round two comes and you deserve a hug. Challenge is always welcome. The bullet bills and flame towers gave a good sense of danger (Even though I got to the very last bit of the grounded part before taking any hits, usually only one or two because I'm badass). I can tell you put time into your timing AHAHAHAno that was terrible and I'm terribly sorry(not really).
The second part will be elaborated on more in the Other section, but let me just tell you that it was fun, minus the spazzy, annoying bird. That was the only damn part I ever died in. James should make better plans.


Graphics: 4/5 "The ♥♥♥♥ is that mushroom doing there!?" "Just go with it." "Does it have a purpose?" "No." "... The ♥♥♥♥ is that mushroom doing there!?"
In short, the first level is pretty. Tiles are exceptionally sloped, and decoration is used to give me a good feel of where I am, for the most part...

Okay, yeah, no. There are a few quirks in a lot levels that I will never get over, like large, twisting mushrooms above ground or seemingly swaying vines when everything else is perpendicular to the ground. The bridge amused me; whoever tried rebuilding it should probably jump off of that contraption right now. Desin sounds like ♥♥♥♥ if that's their quality of repair. (Seriously though, it looked a bit too ♥♥♥♥ for my tastes. If you made it for comical effect, it doesn't really fit the seriousness of the situation.) James should find a better country. Like Japan.

Another peeve of mine are perfectly straight foliage. God does not know how to make perfect ninety degree angles. That's why he made humans so they can make stuff like that for him. Many people have fallen to his will, including you. Gtfo, be more organic. He hasn't killed me for doing it.

Oh, right. Immunity to death... Nevermind, you stay right there and keep doing what you're doing. (Maybe I can win an LDC or witblo for once, HERP DERPY DERP)

I do like that you used the trees as leaves along the ceilings and walls though. I guess you can say I DIDN'T EX-SPECTRUM.

The tiles are there, but if you crammed more in there, you would make a good Queen of Graphics, missy. Compared to me, this is jack though; pun poorly executed, I know. More of that rotating block goodness that I abuse the hell out of.
The rougher the better.

Interpret that as you may.

I also noticed that the slopes are actually considerably bare.

^^^^^^^^^This^^^^^^^^^

Not exactly parallel with the grid, but I would've liked more variation in the areas that weren't huge cliffs and kindave-maybe-caves.

My favorite part is definitely the tower I spawn in however. Nice color scheme.

If this is post-apocalyptic, try harder, miss. Actually, some extra tilesets mixed in there would have been cool. More volcano tiles, maybe sanskrit to go with the jungle tiles. I should try that. I will. Yeah, forget what I just said. Mine.


And then we go to round two, where this is more up my asslley. The elevator was both practical and as beautiful as you can get with a military base's POW transport system. The transition from base to snow was a little sudden and meh, (a hint of snow or something in the previous transition would have done) but that snow section is where I think you corrected what you did oh so wrong in the first level. Trees actually tilted a little, slopes everywhere. I especially like the cave plants. They fit surprisingly well as bushes. Too bad that's where it ends.
The flags were a neat, even if it was very minimal, touch.

One thing that I've learned that I'm going to need to edit into my judging style later is decoration. When you have space. Fill it with ♥♥♥♥. When you don't, leave it alone or it will look ridiculous. Q. E. D.


Other: 3.5/5 The very first thing I noticed while scrolling through the first level, pre-play, was that you forgot to add one of those fancy ninety degree angle flipping platforms in the water. I'm sure people aren't stupid enough to swim backwards thou- dammit. (Yes, I can type and play at the same time, with my extra two arms and this computer that I stole from NASA for this very, very, uneventful occassion.)

The rest of the crap you are about to get is from the second level. The doors I see once I'm outside were for decoration, which I did not know. A sign somewhere safe, maybe a hint in the first room could have saved us players a few hitpoints as we desperately searched for an exit. Those doubledoors were damn tempting.
Then next thing is that goonies are not very reliable. They glide down and soar up in random increments and can screw you over in certain cases. My first attempt, Isadurrrra flew right under the continuous flame tower, killing me from the damage I took the previous transition. The second attempt, Iz A Derpy flew under as soon as physically possible and took me down to one hitpoint because Of the fourway flametower's sequence. I later got killed by that sideways tower with the thwomp. I'm thinking that you placed that a bit too high, because I landed on the tile. The third time, he flew straight up into a fire by the top. The controls froze as well, so that didn't help. I don't like gambles(says the teenager playing Forum Gambling), though as said above, it was still fun.

On the plus side, some neat stuff brings your score back up. The Bob-ombs and Bullet Bills in that huge-ass elevator made for good effect. I'm not sure what your intent was, but when retrying a little, sometimes they fly out, sometimes they blow as soon as a bullet bill hits them. Either way, the sound adds to the atmosphere. Explosions match this lovey dovey story really well. It's the best sound to fap to.
The images you use are also a nice touch. They work together nicely and I can't really ignore the extra effort. (I bet I can make it look even sexier though.)
-.25 Flipping platform inconsistency (This matters? YEP)
-1 Isadickweed (No seriously.)
+.75 Bob-bomb/Bullet Bill combo (I'm going up and down, shooting off loads of explosions.)
+1 Image/Story (Would be better if it were based off of an anime; like a perfect 20 automatically)

Another aspect of this game that I now have a newfound hate of is the sound of Mario burning. I'd rather hear SMIC burn. While playing The Chat Is Dead song. On repeat. For 10 hours.



I'm thinking the second level could go pretty far by itself. Honestly though, it only took me about 5 tries. How many tries did it take you to beat Exterresta? Did you even beat it yet without moving Mario? EM PEE TREE, WHAT ABOUT YOU?

15.5/20 Nevermind about that hug. Reserved for people I judge that are worth it and Chau.

The last thing in my mind right now is this. Butt Violence. I dunno why. Pick names that I can't screw around with as much next time.

---

Before writning this next review, the chat was on a nin rage and the effects are still apparnint. Have funin tryning to read this ♥♥♥♥.

NINEXT ON MY HITLIST/VICTIM #2/NINFERIOR/VOLCOVE: nInto the Depthsof my Messed Up Mind/Parasite Queeninand the Sexually Transmitted Ninfections
===============
Funin: 9/10
Let me start of saying that your precisionin with timning and placement is very appealning.
You maninaged to make bening underwater fun. The contraptions at least make it look more interestining. They are not hard to pass, though nineat thnings like that make me squee. Platforming was nince and difficult. Bullet Bills aninoyed me when they needed to, Worms ate my face, Beholders pushed me when I nineeded a good scream. Good times(When I get frustrated, it's a good thing.) The boss was made masterfully as well.
I loved your way of having me reset on the first phase(though that became aninoying when I got crushed two consecutive times by the same tenintacle) I could not really find the patternin for the second phase and maninaged to get lucky(hurhur) after a few tries. The third phase was some very nince parkour, but I hated it when I was right at the door and a flame popped out and made me restart. Happenined twice.

Now for my list of lessons learned.
Firetowers have really derpy hitboxes.
Underwater levels will always lag, no matter what.
Rule 34 is indeed a Law of the web.

Graphics: 5/5
The beginning of nInto the Depths looked fair enough. It's not the mainin attractionin, so you don't really nineed to worry all that much about it. However, the trees, man. I hate whenin they are all flat and perpnindicular. It's a small detail that I do ninot dock off all that much for, but it does ninot add the dimensionins as much as I would have liked, and this is somethning I get on everyonine's case for.

Ninext, the sewers which are much more appealning. Usually, somethning this simple lookning is somethning I hate, but it pulls of well. It's consistnint throughout and the color scheme makes it look like a sewer, what it's supposed to be. I would ninormally ask for more decor, but whenin you have large water levels, the LD starts takning forever to load, so I'm actually grateful. What was that pile of rocks for though? It did ninot look like fecal matter, and I kninow it was meanint as a roadblock, but it's just strange lookning.
I liked that each pipe you take leads to a differnint themed area. It really feels like the pipelnine goes throughout the nintirety of of the Mushroom Kingdom. They also look subtle, yet effective. I didn't even ninotice you used clouds as sninow in that one cabnin.
The boss looks great as well. The most surprisning part of it for me was how well Fire pillars and color tiles look. The explosionins were very pleasning to look at and fit the theme of the boss nincely.


Other: 6/5 5/5 Nince background choice. If I were to pick, I probably would have picked Secret Course and put a buninch of filler tiles in there. Your choice was more practical. +1
"Oh, and we can't pay you." WELL SCREW THIS LEVEL I WANT MONINEY. Also brings to mnind "HP/MP restored! But you're still huningry..."
"It's daningerous to go alone. Take this!" Arenin't I technincally still alonine? LolZ refereninces
"What do you mean it doesnin't make seninse!?" Doesnin't make seninse - to have nino logical meaning behnind. Cute comments. hninnnnnnnng. +1

My face cannot express my contenint with your block eninemies. I do ninot think you can see it though, so it does ninot matter. It's not level4-awesome though. Nothing is ever level4 awesome. +1

IF FOURNINONE POSTS NEXT WARPHOUSE IS A MEME(thank you for the checkpoinints)

mfw inane(it should be ninsane.)
mfw when purfy(should be... I got ninothing.)-1

That alterninate eninding makes me both kill myself and smile with glee. x1
Bosses are always awesome. Ninless they're poorly made of course. +1
EGGSACS. WHAT IS SQUIRMNING NIN THEM. x1

Wait a ninute. That would be 6/5. WELL SCREW THE BACKGROUND THNING THENIN IT SUCKS.




Great level, great boss. Would play againin, and that's saying somethning. Nininininininininininininininin-
I'm slightly less crazy with this review because I did ninot stay up all ninght playning it.
19/20





I love how Moy's review is twice as long as Volcove's. Don't worry, that just means I paid more attention. <3(not really)

I might judge like this more often.

[~MP3 Amplifier~]

This post by ~MP3 Amplifier~ was thumbed up by: 2

Asterocrat (July 22nd, 2012, 11:22 pm) • SuYo1141 (July 24th, 2012, 8:01 am)

[Volkove]

Yikes, didn't the results to turn out like this. Thanks a lot!

@ Ven - If it matters any, I would have likely finished it even without the duel, for I was already working on it a little at a time. The challenge sure sped up the process, though.

To reply to various judging bits as necessary,

It’s loads of fun, and honestly the only thing keeping it from being a perfect score is that it nearly crippled the computer I borrowed upon loading, and was equally merciless after every death. Lag killed me constantly when playing the level, and it kills me to award a 9.25/10 instead of the perfect score I’d desperately love to give.

Hm. I tested it with my fairly old PC, and aside from a bit of a loading period, I didn't notice any lag.

I’d suggest a bit more variation in the tiling pattern, symbols or warnings or something just to spice it up a little…

Unfortunately, I can't see switching the pipeline tiling around working very well, so I decided to just stick with consistency in that regard.
What do you mean by symbols or warnings?

Apart from that, the only thing that comes to mind is the cave tiles. I assume they’re to hide the inner workings of your block monsters, but maybe having them more frequently and more irregular in shape would prevent them from being so noticeable.

but the cave cut-off in the first level and parts of the second level. I didn’t really understand why it was there, I suppose you got away with it because of the black background, but I still really dislike anything cut-off related, but to add to this there was one section of cut-off in the black background of the second level and it looked fabulous! It blended in almost, it was amazing.

As Ven guessed, it was indeed for the purpose of covering some of the creatures (most notably the pit wyrm). As such, in many areas, it had to be done to some extent, for other tiles would look even worse (and adding an extra slab of brick for no reason would be too suspicious / obvious as well).
I probably should have applied the same diagonal fadeout throughout the first section as well, but it only occurred to me later on to do so. :/

-0.25 for a lack of health regeneration options. Especially toward the later sections, coins are particularly hard to come by and a weary monster hunter might very well fall victim to hulking block behemoths. Several times.

-0.25 – Needed some more coins in areas. The underwater sections were fine, but it was difficult to regain back health in some areas.

Perhaps a few more could have been useful, but at the same time, it wasn't meant to be a walk in the park. It wouldn't have conveyed the same feeling if you were capable of shrugging off damage too easily.

-.5 Not for the lag you said was on purpose, but for in Part 1 when all the coins come out in the alternate ending...yes, I know the effect was good, but lag is lag.

Indeed, although at the same time, it just wouldn't be the same if it wasn't a proper raining effect. I could have probably cut it down a bit, though, but I had originally tested it on my newer laptop, and it was much more bearable there.

The platforming was inventive, and even saw a little bit of level4 influence in there too (with the flipping platforms).

Hehe. It was indeed an influence, but more of it came from the underwater 'current', which obviously came from power plant directly.

At one point you can miss a silver star in the invisible bricks section, for example, I was panicking that my invisibility cap was gonna run out so as soon as I got out of that area it ran out and I just realised I’d missed a silver star. I think a sign warning us beforehand would’ve been useful.

I had considered warning about it initially, or allowing for a way to backtrack and try again, but I figured that along with making it a harder secondary goal (since checkpoints don't help there), it would also encourage the player to play out the level using the normal route first. That way, they can come back for the harder silver star challenge once they've seen the level at least once.

+0.25 – I like how the snow on the cabin’s roof near the beginning is filled in by clouds. Nice touch.

Thanks; I've actually done this several times in the past, what with the fact that it can be used to invoke slower walking when done properly.

The third phase was some very nince parkour, but I hated it when I was right at the door and a flame popped out and made me restart. Happenined twice.

Do you really mean right at the door? I don't think any of the flames/lasers are supposed to reach that far.

[quote=Nin10"] What was that pile of rocks for though? It did ninot look like fecal matter, and I kninow it was meanint as a roadblock, but it's just strange lookning.[/quote]
It was just supposed to be a cave-in of sorts.

I liked that each pipe you take leads to a differnint themed area. It really feels like the pipelnine goes throughout the nintirety of of the Mushroom Kingdom. They also look subtle, yet effective. I didn't even ninotice you used clouds as sninow in that one cabnin.

Heh, thanks; I'm glad the feeling I tried to convey was executed successfully.

"Oh, and we can't pay you." WELL SCREW THIS LEVEL I WANT MONINEY. Also brings to mnind "HP/MP restored! But you're still huningry..."

Actually, its a reference to This.

mfw inane(it should be ninsane.)
mfw when purfy(should be... I got ninothing.)-1

Actually, inane (aka lacking significance) is correct and intentional in that context.
Not sure where 'purfy' came up, though.

EGGSACS. WHAT IS SQUIRMNING NIN THEM. x1

Heh heh heh.

[fourinone]

I feel quite ashamed for shirking on my responsibilities again, so here's nothing. I hope this makes things a little better.

Volcove: show

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Into the Depths - Volcove
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RATING: 17.5/20
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FUN: 8.5/10
The highlight of this level is most certainly the block enemies. Seriously, I had to do a double take the first time I saw one of those! My favorite is the guy with the two stomping feet. It's amazing how complex this obstacle is with such a simple design.
The silver stars are very cleverly placed. They require you to do a little extra on an existing challenge to reach them. I like this kind of design. The challenges themselves are also designed cleverly: they're introduced in a simple setting at first, then expanded upon. I noticed this with the spreading bullets and spinning as Metal Mario.
The bullet patterns look great, and I can see all the work put into it. It reminds me of bullet hell sometimes!
Each room is filled to the brim with unique content, and the length and pacing of the level is great.

The only part which I particularly dislike is the part where you must climb up the platforms with three worms coming from the left. I had trouble with this every time I played. With the way they move, it feels too random, and the window of opportunity to jump onto the middle worm is too small (either I bump into the topmost worm, or the middle worm's mouth is too high up), and it becomes a bit tedious being pushed off or bitten every time you mistime it. It may have helped to change the values so that the worms move in fewer ways, so that their movements are more predictable.
I also feel that coins are a bit too sparse, so it becomes easy to die in later challenges from being chipped away in previous challenges, especially since you're in a rush to avoid drowning in many places.

I found the difficulty level to be a bit high, but I think it's just because I'm a terrible player, heh. I feel that the FLUDD would make the level considerably easier and less time consuming, especially with the parasite queen, since the platforms are so small and demanding. The difficulty is still fair how it is, though. I had significant trouble my first time playing through the level, but it all became significanly easier my second time through.
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GRAPHICS: 5/5
Those block enemies. Oh man those block enemies. They really push the limits on what you can do with moving blocks. The spring on the thwomp enemy is a very nice touch. And the parasite queen, of course, looks amazing, especially when the body parts fall off after the first hit. The tilework is simple but does the job.
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OTHER THINGS: 4/5
+1 To design block enemies that act as obstacles, look good, AND actually damage you is truly a feat to be respected.
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Yeah, there's no way I would've beaten this if I had dueled against it. I can see all the effort and little details you put into it.

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MessengerOfDreams: show

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The Escapists - MessengerOfDreams
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RATING: 16.5/20
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FUN: 8/10
You really know how to blend gameplay and story telling. I like how the level itself is used to tell the story, such as when your character finds a way to escape the base in the beginning, and when he is captured in that cage by the enemies. The level itself was pretty easy, but much of the enjoyment comes from taking it easy, looking at the scenery, listening to the music, and reading the story.
The gameplay is quite basic for the most part, mostly walking along the path and jumping on enemies, but it is enjoyable and flows well. I wish there were some unique gameplay elements to set it apart from other levels, however. I did like the large flamethrowers that shot out from the walls of the castle roof; that is a pretty creative and effective use for it.

Something I felt could've been done better is the "final boss" section, where you have to ride on the bird. This is a good idea, but unfortunately it is too easy to cheese through. I jumped on the bird at the beginning, and from the next platform I was able to just jump normally to the next few, maybe bounce along some of the flamethrowers, and spin to the other side, skipping a majority of the challenge. I wish it were designed so that you must go through the whole thing.
Also a minor thing, I found the elevator in part 2 moving back up when it reached the end to be unnecessary. Since it goes so fast, you're likely to completely miss the door if you were jumping.
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GRAPHICS: 5/5
What can I say, as always, the graphics look amazing. All of the trees, tiles, everything are used in just the right way to make the world feel alive. In particular, I loved your army's skull goonie flag, and the enemy army's bully flag.
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OTHER THINGS: 3.5/5
+.5 Since this is a duel, although in normal circumstances I'd give each level 5/5 for graphics, I did like this level's graphics more, so that deserves some extra points for an edge.
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I must have magical timing or something whenever I play your levels because when I launched from the cannon, I was unaware of the flamethrower, and I just so happened to barely miss it as it shot out behind me, making it look all grand and epic.

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