As you may have noticed we're getting closer making it to a year of contests, and it's been a blast hosting these for you guys. I'll make sure to make any remaining contests good theme choices and of course there will be the next 12 contests to look forward after this first year.
Additional ideas I'll gladly consider through pm only as this post is for the March contest.
So anyway yes the theme is a nice basic theme and I have no doubt that you folks can generate amazing and fun levels for me and my fellow judges to enjoy.
Rules
Don't put your name in any of the files
Don't post any screenshots of the level nor a download link in the comments
You must submit your level before the deadline.
You may only submit one level, if you send two levels the second will be disqualified.
No joke levels, joke levels will not be judged.
Give your level a unique name. Nothing random or funky though.
Any level theme accepted (forest, ice, mountain, lava, etc)
Level can end in any fashion.
Custom Graphics are allowed
Custom Music is optional
Adding a boss is optional
LUNADLL or LUNALUA is not allowed
-I do not have either programs I'm afraid, but if the codes aren't a major factor then that's fine.
Hopefully that's not too too strict
The level has to revolve around being underground in some sort of way.
I won't show a whole entire list, but here are some ideas:
Spoiler: show
Cave
Inside a Volcano
Center of the Earth
Underground City
Cave-in
Underwater cave
Crystal Cavern
Mining Facility
Abandoned Mineshaft
Abandoned Dungeon
Beneath quicksand
Bottomless pit
Underground_______(You get the idea...... I hope)
Inside a Volcano
Center of the Earth
Underground City
Cave-in
Underwater cave
Crystal Cavern
Mining Facility
Abandoned Mineshaft
Abandoned Dungeon
Beneath quicksand
Bottomless pit
Underground_______(You get the idea...... I hope)
Judges BOLDED = SUBMITTED REVIEWS
The Thwomp King
PixelPest
MECHDRAGON777
Turtwig
Linik
NO MORE JUDGE SPOTS LEFT
Backup Judges
HenryRichard
More TBD
Contestants (BOLDED = SUBMITTED)
MosaicMario
PixelPest
PROX
MECHDRAGON777
EpicMarioBro
YellowMe
ShadowStarX
Harvey36Dice
HVMetal
Kep
witchking666
Super Mario Channel
Catastrophe
TheDinoKing432
Jettpizza
Superiorstar
RoundPiplup
litchh
TBD
Comment on here or PM me if you're interested.
Sending Levels
Pm me levels that I will pm to other judges.
So feel free to comment below or PM me if you're interested in doing this contest.
THE JUDGING
The Thwomp King
Spoiler: show
Entry 1
Maze Cave by TheDinoKing432
I like the smw characters for Mario and Luigi. The option for an easy mode is nice, but I feel like the way you had that could’ve been better. Instead of having it at the start of the level, maybe have it before you even start the level possibly? I’m assuming this is part of an episode, so there’s my suggestion for it. Anyway I’m not the biggest fan of the leaps of faith you have to make, and I definitely believe you shouldn’t have a large stock of powerups all next to each other in the first section. It’s too difficult to get to anyway. There were a lot of issues with NPC placement too. You shouldn’t have blaargs above the lava. Furthermore using the rainbow shell in the lava is also too difficult.The chucks run too quickly, and overall the level wasn’t much of a maze at all. It’s a messy entry, so I hope the creator will do better next time.
1.2/10
Entry 2
水がかかっている寺 by MECHDRAGON777
Putting the title into google translate the level is called “Temple Water is at Stake.” I’d prefer english titles, but I’m obviously not gonna take off points for that. Otherwise the atmosphere is great, the level looks cool, but it’s way too short. The boom boom boss is disappointing too. I understand this took an hour to make so I’m sure this level would’ve been much better if more time was taken for it.
1.5/10
Entry 3
Below the Depths by Catastrophe
No level file.
N/A
Entry 4
The Cave of Colorful Blobs by MosaicMario
This was nicely constructed level with a simple gimmick of having a bunch of colorful blobs roaming the cave. I like how this was all with smb2 graphics too. It oddly blended together perfectly, and the music helps build it up. The level has pretty good length too. The bouncing platforms section could take a longer time to complete for the average player, so I recommend adding a line to part of the platforms. There are some potential glitches that may show up too, that’s why I had to fix it up in my CC12 entry. I also recommend having more bombs for each section. Maybe have a pipe or an bottomless weed for that. It’d be pretty unfair if someone ran out of bombs and just had to stand there knowing they can’t finish the level. You need more space for the bomb rooms too if possible. It’s too easy to blow yourself up. Lastly the boss fight was a nice challenge and not too difficult, but I personally think a blob boss would’ve been more fitting. Overall this is a decent level.
6.5/10
Entry 5
Cntrhammer by litchh
I won’t bash for not having as much scenery for the bricks, but they would’ve helped more for when you’re not standing on bricks. I get bashed on for not having a lot of bgos in my levels, but I personally believe not every level needs them or can have them based on how they’re made. Anyway you don’t need them in some parts, but you did leave some parts of the level empty with nothing in them. I also don’t see the point to going into the pipe and ending the level there; it’s irrelevant. The level clashed a few things too, but the transitions are pretty neat I must say. This level overall is crazy, especially the second half of it. I wouldn’t call this an amazing level, but it’s definitely one worth checking out.
6.3/10
Entry 6
Cave of Candy by Jettpizza
Graphics look pretty nice. I’m not a fan of the song, but I suppose it fits with the environment. As soon as I saw the beat blocks I expected a noise to come out of the layers, but nope that didn’t appear. Usually I’d rat someone out for using annoying sound effects in these cases, but not having sound effects for these layers is just as bad if not worse considering it makes it harder for the player to keep track and to plan when to jump next. It’s not too difficult in this level though, so I won’t take off much. Just remember to add a little something to it I guess. You’re too generous with the Tanooki suits in the beginning and getting the 1 ups was as easy as it is in more recent mario games, which in my opinion is pretty terrible. In the second section I like the water climb up, but I recommend making the sides more jagged looking than just flat the whole way. Just doing that creates more atmosphere for the level and makes it feel less empty. I swear you also intentionally made a penis shaped water body, but I’ll just say good job for you. XD hahaha Suddenly the level ends, and I’m disappointed there wasn’t more to do. You could’ve made this level twice as long by utilizing the two cool gimmicks you presented in unique ways, and then this level would’ve gotten a much higher score from me. Also to mention the level was too easy to have as many powerups as it did.
4.1/10
Entry 7
Okibi Magmafall by Harvey36Dice (Camachoman Randy Savage)
Never open a level with a message as long as you presented it as! The average gamer will be not be appealed by this and will most likely skip it. A good way to avoid having gamers/readers skipping this information is by being more straight to the point, or if you have more signs with each carrying a small message. That is my SMBX english lesson to you for today.
*Walks two feet to the left when another long message comes up*
Okay yeah you really need to fix this because I dread reading long messages in video games like the majority. Also based on the message is Catastrophe is a girl? I figured the name’s not Rosy Shoopenbacher or whatever the hell the last name was, but I apologize for everytime I’ve called you a guy Catastrophe I had no idea. If your featuring other SMBX people in your levels sign me up to be in some. XP hahaha
Anyway back to the review, SM3DW music fits well and the atmosphere feels great going into this despite the rocky start with the messages. You can see the first podoboo when it’s laying down in the lava, so that needs to be fixed. I saw a third sign and I dreaded reading that one too. Honestly those messages ruined part of the level for me. Also I see you still put in too many power ups again, but I have a feeling you just ignore my suggestions. I’m gonna keep pointing it out to you until you finally fix it. XP haha Some levels it is okay for, but I’ll point it out when it’s not as necessary. Overall the level does the a good job of keeping the player on their toes with the stuff going on around them, and this was very fun to play. I need find a couple cutoffs as well, but good job overall.
6.8/10
Entry 8
Dark Damp Depths by PROX
Throwback Galaxy music, I like it! (Yes I know it’s from SM64). Then DKC cave music, which is also a nice touch. The visuals were good looking, but there were some things that didn’t really fit in as well along with there being both smb3 and smw coins. For some reason I thought the drops could hurt you until I got hit by one at the checkpoint. XD hahaha Anyway it’s a straightforward linear cave level, but it runs pretty smoothly and I had fun playing it. There really wasn’t too much wrong with the level besides there could’ve been a more unique gimmick in the level to keep it more enjoyable since it got kinda boring at times. Otherwise good job.
7.2/10
Entry 9
Shaded Magma Mines by HVMetal
Smb2 music in an Smb1/Smb3 level? Interesting. The use of Smb1 and Smb3 graphics oddly works well together. There was just something about this level I just really loved. Everything just flowed together gameplay wise, and the graphics and music took care of the rest. It’s definitely not a perfect level with some of it’s unfair platforming, but I had a blast playing this. I think lower the difficulty and leave some more space in those sections, and honestly add another half to this level because I think more length was needed. Otherwise excellent job!
7.3/10
Entry 10
A Underground Passage by RoundPiplup
This level plays it safe using the Smb1 underground theme, and frankly it works really. The execution of this level is really well done. The atmosphere was accurate, the gameplay was nice, and I had a lot of fun playing through this. I do believe you had a section where the amount of npcs was a little much though. With old Smb1 gameplay mixed with some of your own gimmicks, I think that was a smart idea to keep the level original and more surprising. I wish I could give a better review of this considering I’m running on 3 hours of sleep, but I do know as a fact that this was my favorite level out of the ten. I think you’re improving a lot as a designer, and I look forward to your next submission!
7.8/10
Maze Cave by TheDinoKing432
I like the smw characters for Mario and Luigi. The option for an easy mode is nice, but I feel like the way you had that could’ve been better. Instead of having it at the start of the level, maybe have it before you even start the level possibly? I’m assuming this is part of an episode, so there’s my suggestion for it. Anyway I’m not the biggest fan of the leaps of faith you have to make, and I definitely believe you shouldn’t have a large stock of powerups all next to each other in the first section. It’s too difficult to get to anyway. There were a lot of issues with NPC placement too. You shouldn’t have blaargs above the lava. Furthermore using the rainbow shell in the lava is also too difficult.The chucks run too quickly, and overall the level wasn’t much of a maze at all. It’s a messy entry, so I hope the creator will do better next time.
1.2/10
Entry 2
水がかかっている寺 by MECHDRAGON777
Putting the title into google translate the level is called “Temple Water is at Stake.” I’d prefer english titles, but I’m obviously not gonna take off points for that. Otherwise the atmosphere is great, the level looks cool, but it’s way too short. The boom boom boss is disappointing too. I understand this took an hour to make so I’m sure this level would’ve been much better if more time was taken for it.
1.5/10
Entry 3
Below the Depths by Catastrophe
No level file.
N/A
Entry 4
The Cave of Colorful Blobs by MosaicMario
This was nicely constructed level with a simple gimmick of having a bunch of colorful blobs roaming the cave. I like how this was all with smb2 graphics too. It oddly blended together perfectly, and the music helps build it up. The level has pretty good length too. The bouncing platforms section could take a longer time to complete for the average player, so I recommend adding a line to part of the platforms. There are some potential glitches that may show up too, that’s why I had to fix it up in my CC12 entry. I also recommend having more bombs for each section. Maybe have a pipe or an bottomless weed for that. It’d be pretty unfair if someone ran out of bombs and just had to stand there knowing they can’t finish the level. You need more space for the bomb rooms too if possible. It’s too easy to blow yourself up. Lastly the boss fight was a nice challenge and not too difficult, but I personally think a blob boss would’ve been more fitting. Overall this is a decent level.
6.5/10
Entry 5
Cntrhammer by litchh
I won’t bash for not having as much scenery for the bricks, but they would’ve helped more for when you’re not standing on bricks. I get bashed on for not having a lot of bgos in my levels, but I personally believe not every level needs them or can have them based on how they’re made. Anyway you don’t need them in some parts, but you did leave some parts of the level empty with nothing in them. I also don’t see the point to going into the pipe and ending the level there; it’s irrelevant. The level clashed a few things too, but the transitions are pretty neat I must say. This level overall is crazy, especially the second half of it. I wouldn’t call this an amazing level, but it’s definitely one worth checking out.
6.3/10
Entry 6
Cave of Candy by Jettpizza
Graphics look pretty nice. I’m not a fan of the song, but I suppose it fits with the environment. As soon as I saw the beat blocks I expected a noise to come out of the layers, but nope that didn’t appear. Usually I’d rat someone out for using annoying sound effects in these cases, but not having sound effects for these layers is just as bad if not worse considering it makes it harder for the player to keep track and to plan when to jump next. It’s not too difficult in this level though, so I won’t take off much. Just remember to add a little something to it I guess. You’re too generous with the Tanooki suits in the beginning and getting the 1 ups was as easy as it is in more recent mario games, which in my opinion is pretty terrible. In the second section I like the water climb up, but I recommend making the sides more jagged looking than just flat the whole way. Just doing that creates more atmosphere for the level and makes it feel less empty. I swear you also intentionally made a penis shaped water body, but I’ll just say good job for you. XD hahaha Suddenly the level ends, and I’m disappointed there wasn’t more to do. You could’ve made this level twice as long by utilizing the two cool gimmicks you presented in unique ways, and then this level would’ve gotten a much higher score from me. Also to mention the level was too easy to have as many powerups as it did.
4.1/10
Entry 7
Okibi Magmafall by Harvey36Dice (Camachoman Randy Savage)
Never open a level with a message as long as you presented it as! The average gamer will be not be appealed by this and will most likely skip it. A good way to avoid having gamers/readers skipping this information is by being more straight to the point, or if you have more signs with each carrying a small message. That is my SMBX english lesson to you for today.
*Walks two feet to the left when another long message comes up*
Okay yeah you really need to fix this because I dread reading long messages in video games like the majority. Also based on the message is Catastrophe is a girl? I figured the name’s not Rosy Shoopenbacher or whatever the hell the last name was, but I apologize for everytime I’ve called you a guy Catastrophe I had no idea. If your featuring other SMBX people in your levels sign me up to be in some. XP hahaha
Anyway back to the review, SM3DW music fits well and the atmosphere feels great going into this despite the rocky start with the messages. You can see the first podoboo when it’s laying down in the lava, so that needs to be fixed. I saw a third sign and I dreaded reading that one too. Honestly those messages ruined part of the level for me. Also I see you still put in too many power ups again, but I have a feeling you just ignore my suggestions. I’m gonna keep pointing it out to you until you finally fix it. XP haha Some levels it is okay for, but I’ll point it out when it’s not as necessary. Overall the level does the a good job of keeping the player on their toes with the stuff going on around them, and this was very fun to play. I need find a couple cutoffs as well, but good job overall.
6.8/10
Entry 8
Dark Damp Depths by PROX
Throwback Galaxy music, I like it! (Yes I know it’s from SM64). Then DKC cave music, which is also a nice touch. The visuals were good looking, but there were some things that didn’t really fit in as well along with there being both smb3 and smw coins. For some reason I thought the drops could hurt you until I got hit by one at the checkpoint. XD hahaha Anyway it’s a straightforward linear cave level, but it runs pretty smoothly and I had fun playing it. There really wasn’t too much wrong with the level besides there could’ve been a more unique gimmick in the level to keep it more enjoyable since it got kinda boring at times. Otherwise good job.
7.2/10
Entry 9
Shaded Magma Mines by HVMetal
Smb2 music in an Smb1/Smb3 level? Interesting. The use of Smb1 and Smb3 graphics oddly works well together. There was just something about this level I just really loved. Everything just flowed together gameplay wise, and the graphics and music took care of the rest. It’s definitely not a perfect level with some of it’s unfair platforming, but I had a blast playing this. I think lower the difficulty and leave some more space in those sections, and honestly add another half to this level because I think more length was needed. Otherwise excellent job!
7.3/10
Entry 10
A Underground Passage by RoundPiplup
This level plays it safe using the Smb1 underground theme, and frankly it works really. The execution of this level is really well done. The atmosphere was accurate, the gameplay was nice, and I had a lot of fun playing through this. I do believe you had a section where the amount of npcs was a little much though. With old Smb1 gameplay mixed with some of your own gimmicks, I think that was a smart idea to keep the level original and more surprising. I wish I could give a better review of this considering I’m running on 3 hours of sleep, but I do know as a fact that this was my favorite level out of the ten. I think you’re improving a lot as a designer, and I look forward to your next submission!
7.8/10
Spoiler: show
A Underground Passage - 7.2/10
This level is based off vanilla graphics, but it uses them in such a way that the level feels new. It's very well decorated and evokes the SMB1 style incredibly well, and the gameplay is rather fun as well and mixes new ideas with old ones to create a very convincing level, although this new idea largely centres on the same idea of go to one area, hit a switch, go back to a previous area, and see what's changed, and the level is of a decent length to stop this gimmick getting stale. It may be quite difficult to place enemies in some scenarios though, and this is evident in one certain water part where there are too many enemies, and the yellow Cheep-Cheeps move too fast. It should be worth noting that the brick block shatter effect is wrong and needs fixing.
Below the Depths - N/A
This level has no level file.
Cave of Candy - 4.5/10
Not so much candy I can see in this level as given by the title, but at least there's a level. This one, sadly, had a good idea going for it, in the form of the Beat Blocks which were used very nicely, but this idea was killed off by its length - the level's too short and looks unfinished as well, which is a shame because the Beat Blocks could have been used to their full potential to create one amazing level. There was that, and then at the end it was just a vertical underwater ascent to the star, which had no relation to the previous section, as if it was just tacked on with no thought aside from giving the level completeness. As well as that, I'm not really a fan of 8-bit music in SMBX because it clashes with the 16-bit sound effects, and I don't really like how you gave away a free Tanooki Suit without the player having to work for it.
Cave of Colorful Blobs - 3.7/10
This looks like a good authentic SMB2 underground level that takes SMB2 ideas and puts them into full force, but there are big problems with it, most of which prevent the level from being completed. First of all, it's quite easy to screw yourself up in the last section of the level if you screw around too much with the bombs because you only have a finite supply, so if you run out, you can't complete the level. Another thing is that while switch blocks hang high in the air, you need to take a shell with you all the way through the section, and given the number of enemies in it, it's possible to lose it by hitting another enemy with it, again causing the level to be incompletable. Another thing I noticed was that while the bouncing platforms were a novel concept, they weren't executed properly, as if you mistime the jumps it may be impossible to reach the next one. This level seriously needs a lot of work and testing if it is to be completable without cheat codes.
Cntrhammer - 6/10
This one was quite random. At some points the level couldn't even figure out what it even was. It started out like a decent SMB1 underground level reminiscent of World 4-2, then it's a Zelda 2-styled palace...then it's SMB3 pipes...and then SMB1 underground again...then bam! Brinstar. However, a good job was done at recreating the classic Pwnhammer feel from The Invasion and taking it further, like with the boss at the end, which was a very neat addition. However, the level only truly begins after the checkpoint because this is where the main meat of the action is - the sections leading up to it weren't really needed other than to add pointless filler and Dragon Coins, and were completely unrelated to the second half of the level. However, the Switch Goombas was a nice concept which sadly has gone underused.
Dark Damp Depths - 7.3/10
This was a very beautiful, and almost calm level, and everything in it screams cave so loudly. The falling droplets of water are a very neat touch, and it goes perfectly with the music track you used. Even the enemies and background objects used are shaded to go with the lack of light in the cave. Underneath all the cool graphics and how they're used, it turns out that this level is just a standard cookie cutter level with nothing cool to interest the player with. I felt the Star Coins to be a nice concept, but the reward unnecessary because there's already a secret exit given, so three exits is a little overboard. There are also a bit too many 1-Ups in the level (despite being hidden) as well which can allow for easy lives. Other than that, this level was nice.
Maze Cave - 2/10
This is an okay level, but there's a lot of work needed. First of all, I like how you decided to use a callback to classic kaizo levels and place an invisible block right in the player's jump so they are sent straight into the underground. After that, the player is treated to a very boring generic level that throws gimmick ideas all over the place and doesn't really stick with a constant theme (it's all running over lava and no turn back until we actually get to the maze at the checkpoint, so the level doesn't tie with its name!). There was one point where a Stopwatch was given for no reason whatsoever, and an upside-down Rainbow Shell that doesn't really serve any purpose because there's a Skull Raft that does it for you. The actual "maze" portion was interesting and almost reminiscent of ghost houses, but was poorly done because the player just has to try every single pipe to find the right one, and it's pretty easy to spot that it's one certain pipe that's changed colour and not much.
Mizu ga kakatte iru tera - 2.4/10
More like an underwater temple than an actual cave, I was looking forward to playing this level when I saw how eyecatching and beautiful it looked, but the vibes were killed off very quickly when I found out that this level was extremely short, almost too short. It just fizzles out completely with a Boom Boom battle, and that's it! Something tells me that whoever created this ran out of time to design their level so just submitted what they could, as the Boom Boom battle at the end seems to have just been tacked on for the sake of ending the level. The only points you get here is for the graphics and how they're used.
Okiba Magmafall - 8.3/10
This is a pretty great-looking lava level, and I really enjoyed playing it! It's got some extremely great decoration and imaginative use of powerups such as the leaf descent, and enemies like the Fire Phantos (although they don't look like Phantos) require the player to angle their jumps effectively, along with the cool uses you can get out of the Skull Raft, which the level appears to accommodate its use around. Unfortunately as good as it looks, some design choices really hurt the score. First of all, it's worth stating that the level was pretty generic without much exploration of unique gimmicks, and was thus rather short to boot. The really long text dumps, although quite interesting to read, got irritating after a while, and I also noticed that in the final section it's possible to get a Koopa shell to hit the switch and the platform leaves without the player, leaving them stuck and forced to commit suicide, having come so close to the end. But it's still a really good level nonetheless.
Shaded Magma Mines - 6.4/10
Oh no, the music is clashing with the level!! Why is there SMB2 music in an SMB1 level?! Jokes aside, I don't really see many levels that take both the SMB1 and SMB3 styles and use them together in a way that feels fresh and new, and this is one of them. The platforming at some points is quite risky and at some points rather difficult due to the Venus Fire Traps, and you're even dealing in close quarters at some points, but it's still manageable. The only problem is that it adds fake difficulty to the level because you're forced to duck-jump at points, which is mildly inconvenient. What's much better is how decorated this level is to bring out the magmatic feel of the level, and strangely enough, the grey blocks fit in well with the lava.
This level is based off vanilla graphics, but it uses them in such a way that the level feels new. It's very well decorated and evokes the SMB1 style incredibly well, and the gameplay is rather fun as well and mixes new ideas with old ones to create a very convincing level, although this new idea largely centres on the same idea of go to one area, hit a switch, go back to a previous area, and see what's changed, and the level is of a decent length to stop this gimmick getting stale. It may be quite difficult to place enemies in some scenarios though, and this is evident in one certain water part where there are too many enemies, and the yellow Cheep-Cheeps move too fast. It should be worth noting that the brick block shatter effect is wrong and needs fixing.
Below the Depths - N/A
This level has no level file.
Cave of Candy - 4.5/10
Not so much candy I can see in this level as given by the title, but at least there's a level. This one, sadly, had a good idea going for it, in the form of the Beat Blocks which were used very nicely, but this idea was killed off by its length - the level's too short and looks unfinished as well, which is a shame because the Beat Blocks could have been used to their full potential to create one amazing level. There was that, and then at the end it was just a vertical underwater ascent to the star, which had no relation to the previous section, as if it was just tacked on with no thought aside from giving the level completeness. As well as that, I'm not really a fan of 8-bit music in SMBX because it clashes with the 16-bit sound effects, and I don't really like how you gave away a free Tanooki Suit without the player having to work for it.
Cave of Colorful Blobs - 3.7/10
This looks like a good authentic SMB2 underground level that takes SMB2 ideas and puts them into full force, but there are big problems with it, most of which prevent the level from being completed. First of all, it's quite easy to screw yourself up in the last section of the level if you screw around too much with the bombs because you only have a finite supply, so if you run out, you can't complete the level. Another thing is that while switch blocks hang high in the air, you need to take a shell with you all the way through the section, and given the number of enemies in it, it's possible to lose it by hitting another enemy with it, again causing the level to be incompletable. Another thing I noticed was that while the bouncing platforms were a novel concept, they weren't executed properly, as if you mistime the jumps it may be impossible to reach the next one. This level seriously needs a lot of work and testing if it is to be completable without cheat codes.
Cntrhammer - 6/10
This one was quite random. At some points the level couldn't even figure out what it even was. It started out like a decent SMB1 underground level reminiscent of World 4-2, then it's a Zelda 2-styled palace...then it's SMB3 pipes...and then SMB1 underground again...then bam! Brinstar. However, a good job was done at recreating the classic Pwnhammer feel from The Invasion and taking it further, like with the boss at the end, which was a very neat addition. However, the level only truly begins after the checkpoint because this is where the main meat of the action is - the sections leading up to it weren't really needed other than to add pointless filler and Dragon Coins, and were completely unrelated to the second half of the level. However, the Switch Goombas was a nice concept which sadly has gone underused.
Dark Damp Depths - 7.3/10
This was a very beautiful, and almost calm level, and everything in it screams cave so loudly. The falling droplets of water are a very neat touch, and it goes perfectly with the music track you used. Even the enemies and background objects used are shaded to go with the lack of light in the cave. Underneath all the cool graphics and how they're used, it turns out that this level is just a standard cookie cutter level with nothing cool to interest the player with. I felt the Star Coins to be a nice concept, but the reward unnecessary because there's already a secret exit given, so three exits is a little overboard. There are also a bit too many 1-Ups in the level (despite being hidden) as well which can allow for easy lives. Other than that, this level was nice.
Maze Cave - 2/10
This is an okay level, but there's a lot of work needed. First of all, I like how you decided to use a callback to classic kaizo levels and place an invisible block right in the player's jump so they are sent straight into the underground. After that, the player is treated to a very boring generic level that throws gimmick ideas all over the place and doesn't really stick with a constant theme (it's all running over lava and no turn back until we actually get to the maze at the checkpoint, so the level doesn't tie with its name!). There was one point where a Stopwatch was given for no reason whatsoever, and an upside-down Rainbow Shell that doesn't really serve any purpose because there's a Skull Raft that does it for you. The actual "maze" portion was interesting and almost reminiscent of ghost houses, but was poorly done because the player just has to try every single pipe to find the right one, and it's pretty easy to spot that it's one certain pipe that's changed colour and not much.
Mizu ga kakatte iru tera - 2.4/10
More like an underwater temple than an actual cave, I was looking forward to playing this level when I saw how eyecatching and beautiful it looked, but the vibes were killed off very quickly when I found out that this level was extremely short, almost too short. It just fizzles out completely with a Boom Boom battle, and that's it! Something tells me that whoever created this ran out of time to design their level so just submitted what they could, as the Boom Boom battle at the end seems to have just been tacked on for the sake of ending the level. The only points you get here is for the graphics and how they're used.
Okiba Magmafall - 8.3/10
This is a pretty great-looking lava level, and I really enjoyed playing it! It's got some extremely great decoration and imaginative use of powerups such as the leaf descent, and enemies like the Fire Phantos (although they don't look like Phantos) require the player to angle their jumps effectively, along with the cool uses you can get out of the Skull Raft, which the level appears to accommodate its use around. Unfortunately as good as it looks, some design choices really hurt the score. First of all, it's worth stating that the level was pretty generic without much exploration of unique gimmicks, and was thus rather short to boot. The really long text dumps, although quite interesting to read, got irritating after a while, and I also noticed that in the final section it's possible to get a Koopa shell to hit the switch and the platform leaves without the player, leaving them stuck and forced to commit suicide, having come so close to the end. But it's still a really good level nonetheless.
Shaded Magma Mines - 6.4/10
Oh no, the music is clashing with the level!! Why is there SMB2 music in an SMB1 level?! Jokes aside, I don't really see many levels that take both the SMB1 and SMB3 styles and use them together in a way that feels fresh and new, and this is one of them. The platforming at some points is quite risky and at some points rather difficult due to the Venus Fire Traps, and you're even dealing in close quarters at some points, but it's still manageable. The only problem is that it adds fake difficulty to the level because you're forced to duck-jump at points, which is mildly inconvenient. What's much better is how decorated this level is to bring out the magmatic feel of the level, and strangely enough, the grey blocks fit in well with the lava.
Spoiler: show
level1 SuperiorStar: 5.4 Mech: 1.0 Average: 3.2
level4 SuperiorStar: 6.7 Mech: 6.75 Average: 6.725
level5 SuperiorStar: 5.6 PROX: 4.0 Mech: 1.0 Average: 3.533
level6 SuperiorStar: 4.8 PROX: 3.4 Mech: 4.3 Average: 4.16666...
level7 SuperiorStar: 8.5 PROX: 6.4 Mech: 4.978 Average: 6.626
Andialifbetara: For what it is worth, it is great, but a few things you did gave away your identiy and also, why did you meantion the user "Catastrophe"? Was that meant to be the username or the act of a Catastrophe? The graphics were astonding, the gameplay was great, but there were to many iSuperiorStarues. The optional checkpoint was also a bad thing. All checkpoints are optional, but that is just out of the way. 4.978 from me.
level8 SuperiorStar: 7.4 Mech: 7.0 Average: 7.2
level9 SuperiorStar: 4.0 PROX: 3.0 Mech: 2.77786667 Average: 3.25928889
level10 SuperiorStar: 5.0 PROX: 5.4 Mech: 7.0 Average: 5.8
level4 SuperiorStar: 6.7 Mech: 6.75 Average: 6.725
level5 SuperiorStar: 5.6 PROX: 4.0 Mech: 1.0 Average: 3.533
level6 SuperiorStar: 4.8 PROX: 3.4 Mech: 4.3 Average: 4.16666...
level7 SuperiorStar: 8.5 PROX: 6.4 Mech: 4.978 Average: 6.626
Andialifbetara: For what it is worth, it is great, but a few things you did gave away your identiy and also, why did you meantion the user "Catastrophe"? Was that meant to be the username or the act of a Catastrophe? The graphics were astonding, the gameplay was great, but there were to many iSuperiorStarues. The optional checkpoint was also a bad thing. All checkpoints are optional, but that is just out of the way. 4.978 from me.
level8 SuperiorStar: 7.4 Mech: 7.0 Average: 7.2
level9 SuperiorStar: 4.0 PROX: 3.0 Mech: 2.77786667 Average: 3.25928889
level10 SuperiorStar: 5.0 PROX: 5.4 Mech: 7.0 Average: 5.8
Spoiler: show
Mizu ga kakatte iru tera (aka µ¦¦püîpüïpüïpüúpüªpüäpéïs»¦): (2/10)
This level felt like it was made just because you wanted to submit something at the last second, with basically no effort at all put into it. The fact that the water was solid was weird too - if you're going to make a short boring level it should at least make sense!
This level felt like it was made just because you wanted to submit something at the last second, with basically no effort at all put into it. The fact that the water was solid was weird too - if you're going to make a short boring level it should at least make sense!
TheDinoKing432 - 2.133
MECHDRAGON777 - 1.967
Catastrophe - N/A
MosaicMario - 5.642
litchh - 5.278
Jettpizza - 4.256
Camachoman - 7.242
PROX - 7.233
HVMetal - 5.653
RoundPiplup - 6.933
Okay so it's a close result, so I'm saying this contest is a draw.
CONGRATULATIONS TO BOTH PROX AND CAMACHO FOR THE WIN!!!
POLLS FOR LOYAL FOLLOWERS OF MY CONTESTS!!!
http://strawpoll.me/7336248
http://strawpoll.me/7337999
