Ludwig's Flaming Fortress [Re-Review]

[Erik]

Hello everyone!, this is a new level I made. Ehhhm, enjoy!

Screenshots



Download link
http://www.mediafire.com/download/kunjp ... rtress.zip

[Witchking666]

You must really have an addiction to ludwig...
Those screenshots look awesome though

[Erik]

You must really have an addiction to ludwig...
Those screenshots look awesome though

1: This level is my first GOOD Ludwig level and my second one I posted.
2: Addicted to myself?... no, not myself.

[Mable]

2: Addicted to myself?... no, not myself.

I think you take this way to serious. Or you just joking. We all know you aren't something which only exists in a game.

[PROX]

2: Addicted to myself?... no, not myself.

I think you take this way to serious. Or you just joking. We all know you aren't something which only exists in a game.

I'm pretty sure he's joking lol

Anyway I'll play this and review it

[Choco]

You must really have an addiction to ludwig...
Those screenshots look awesome though

Be more constructive.

And also, you're not supposed to post without actually playing the level. Unless you're saying "I'll review this soon" or something. Which you're not.

[PROX]

PROX's Unofficial Review:

Spoiler: show

A castle styled level with no clash or cutoff.

Design: The design of this level is fair. It doesn't get too repetitive and there is a variety of NPCs and bosses. The bosses were kind of easy because of the terrain. I could just jump on a ledge and then watch the boss constantly hit himself against the wall before he jumped up. Ludwig was a bit of an exception though because he had fireballs and bowser statues with him. There were a few sections that were unnecessarily hard such as:

This platform was constantly jumping up and down in the lava, and normally it wouldn't be so bad, but before that platform, there is a rotating platform which pretty much gives you a 50/50 chance to make it across. I would replace it with another rotating platform, a platform moving side to side, or maybe just a sinking platform.

This part almost guarantees the fact that you will take a hit when trying to navigate through this spot because if you spin jump too high, there's a good chance that you will hit the fire stick, but if you spin jump too low, there's a high chance that you will fall off the grinder and have to make another attempt.
Score: 6/10

NPC placement: The NPC placement overall was good, but the only issue I have is the previously mentioned grinder area.
Score: 8/10

Atmosphere: You captured the atmosphere very well, but the music didn't work at first because you named it wrong in the level settings. You added "Ludwig's Flaming Fortress" at the beginning, and the original music files didn't have that. I had to go to each individual section and change the name just to get the music to work.
Score: 5/10 (because the music didn't work at first. The music choice was good though)

Overall Score: 6.3/10 Level has potential, but try to fix the flaws mentioned.

[Erik]

That will be a problem with your PC/SMBX, here, the music just works.

[PROX]

That will be a problem with your PC/SMBX, here, the music just works.

no it wasn't SMBX or my PC that was having problems, you just named the music differently in the editor to the actual music file in your level folder. Also another thing I forgot to mention. If your level is as long as it is, it's always a good idea to add a checkpoint to it.

[silent_]

The music works fine for me as well.

[PROX]

The music works fine for me as well.

did it work right away, or did you have to change the name before the music worked?

[Erik]

The music works fine for me as well.

did it work right away, or did you have to change the name before the music worked?

Do you think I didn't test the level or something?

[PROX]

The music works fine for me as well.

did it work right away, or did you have to change the name before the music worked?

Do you think I didn't test the level or something?

I honestly thought that u just gave up on trying to get the music to work xD

[silent_]

The music works fine for me as well.

did it work right away, or did you have to change the name before the music worked?

It worked right away.

[Witchking666]

The part with the wooden platform PROX mentioned personally didnt bother me at all
It was meant to be that difficult

[PROX]

The part with the wooden platform PROX mentioned personally didnt bother me at all
It was meant to be that difficult

I like a good challenge don't get me wrong, but that part caused half my deaths and it was a lot harder than it should have been. Oh well, it's his level I guess lol

[Imaynotbehere4long]

Unless you're saying "I'll review this soon" or something.

That shouldn't be an exception, honestly. I have seen countless posts (some as far back as when Knux's forum was popular) where people say that they'll review the level/episode in question, but then never do. Even if the person in question actually does get around to reviewing the level/episode, the initial "I'll review this" post is useless since the level/episode creator, and even other potential unofficial reviewers, don't need to be warned of the impending review. It's not like saying that you'll review it beforehand will make your review any more credible. Heck, I'd be willing to argue that it's more useless than "the screenshots look awesome" posts since at least those posts offer some form of feedback.

In other words, if you're going to review a level, don't say that you'll review it; just review it. Actions speak louder than words.

@ PROX:

The music would have worked if you didn't move the level inside its folder. The reason it had "Ludwig's Flaming Fortress" at the beginning is because it was telling SMBX to look inside that folder for the music; since you moved the level inside the folder, it couldn't find the folder and therefore couldn't play the music. See this thread for more details: http://www.smbxgame.com/forums/v ... =35&t=2579

Also, the part with the wooden platform bouncing out of the lava just requires a bit of timing; it's not like you can't make the jump when the previous platform begins moving left, or even before it begins moving down.

Anyway, my review:

Oh man, this was almost a Pretty Good level! For starters, PROX is right: a level this long should have a midpoint somewhere. I recommend putting it in Section 9. Another thing PROX is right about is this part:

Spoiler: show

Like PROX wrote, the placement of the fire-bar almost guarantees that the player will get hit here. I recommend moving it (and its block) to the platform on the far right (the one Mario is standing on).

Another problem I found with the level is the lack of enemy variety. Sure, there weren't any Goombas or Koopas, but it seemed like there were SMB3 Bob-ombs, Dry-Bones, and fire-bars throughout the majority of the level, and in very similar positions, too (to be fair, the parts with the fire-bars on the climbable fence were unique additions). Plus, the level commits the laziest design choice in all of SMBX: the pre-programmed boss AIs are placed in empty rooms! Not only is that lazy for the designer and boring for the player, but due to the elevations on both sides of the room, the player can just stand on the elevated part and jump down to harm the boss when it's vulnerable, making it even more boring! The Ludwigs weren't as bad since they have Bowser statues in their boss room, but it was still quite simple to dispatch them. Lastly, the pipe in Section 1 should be moved since the player may think that it leads to a secret and get hit due to it being above a fire-bar.

Summary:
GOOD:
-Graphics aren't terrible.
-Music fits the level well.
-Block placement is well done.
-Fire-bars on climbable fences.

BAD:
--LITTLE NPC VARIETY.
--PRE-PROGRAMMED BOSS AIs IN AN EMPTY ROOM.
--NO MIDPOINT.
-The grinder and fire-bar at the top of Section 3.

In conclusion:
Like I said, this could have been pretty good, but the flaws are too great and numerous for this to be the case. I'd say this deserves a 5/10.

--EDIT--

One more thing: I'd advise against using graphically-resized Boom-Booms since their hit-box cannot be resized.

[Erik]

Could you for 1 time not be so harsh!?
I want it to be reviewed by another judge and then see it's score.

[Imaynotbehere4long]

Could you for 1 time not be so harsh!?

As long as you avoid the two worst design choices in SMBX (little NPC variety and pre-programmed boss AIs in empty rooms), your levels should do just fine.

Also, this is what I meant when I said that the level has the NPCs "in very similar positions":

Spoiler: show

Honestly, its not unlike Throwback Thursday with how repetitive the placements are.

[Superiorstar]

Um...
Boom Boom + slopes is not a good idea, of course it's empty.