The Fungeon

They're not that bad, but they're not that good either.
Spider
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The Fungeon

Postby Spider » Sun Jun 05, 2016 4:31 am

I just managed to find an old level of mine, since it had such unique concept, I decided to share it here. The level features a playable Buzzy Beetle on a dark and creepy dungeon going around and solving puzzles in order to get the "?" orb. This level is probably the easiest i've done so far.

Some screenshots:
Spoiler: show
ImageImage
Download Link (This one fixed the problem with the Blue Switch puzzle): https://www.dropbox.com/s/mlcp7i5tjqdzd ... n.zip?dl=0

None of the graphics belong or were made by me.
Have fun!
Last edited by Spider on Sun Jun 05, 2016 9:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.

aero
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Re: The Fungeon

Postby aero » Sun Jun 05, 2016 4:54 am

How is the blue switch room possible?

Spider
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Re: The Fungeon

Postby Spider » Sun Jun 05, 2016 12:32 pm

AeroMatter wrote:How is the blue switch room possible?
Oh no, I forgot to make the keys spawn from some pipe. I will fix this later.

Artemis008
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Re: The Fungeon

Postby Artemis008 » Mon Jun 06, 2016 10:49 am

Spider wrote:
AeroMatter wrote:How is the blue switch room possible?
Oh no, I forgot to make the keys spawn from some pipe. I will fix this later.
Did you test the level?

Spider
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Re: The Fungeon

Postby Spider » Mon Jun 06, 2016 2:41 pm

Artemis008 wrote:
Spider wrote:
AeroMatter wrote:How is the blue switch room possible?
Oh no, I forgot to make the keys spawn from some pipe. I will fix this later.
Did you test the level?
Yes I did, I just forgot that I need to add more keys for that part.

HeroLinik
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Re: The Fungeon

Postby HeroLinik » Thu Jun 09, 2016 12:20 pm

Review time!

Level design: 7.15/10
For an early level, this is a very unique concept indeed! Not just that, but it was the focus of this level. The player is required to solve four radically different puzzles that range from killing a set of Switch Goombas, trying to unlock a path to a switch using keys, dodging a hail of fire using the fairy pendant and using a Lakitu to drop bombs and kill Goombas. Keeping the gameplay diverse made the level very interesting to play, but a major selling point for this was the fact that some of the puzzles themselves were unique and either seldomly-used or never used until this point. The green switch puzzle was the best one (Lakitu-bomb one) because it was cleverly executed and the Bowser statue coupled with Bill Blaster kept things a moderate challenge. However, there were some puzzles that set out with high hopes, but were eventually killed off by other factors. The blue switch room was tedious because the player has to keep going back and forth collecting keys, and while it starts out interesting it gets very repetitive. The red switch room had the challenge, but it was killed off by the fact that there are too many Bowser statues and thus dodging the fire is hard. As soon as all the puzzles are done, the level just ends without much more. Sadly enough, the level had so much potential that went to waste thanks to its short length, and leafing through the sections reveals other parts that could have been developed and used as part of the level. It's still a good level though, if it were extended a bit further.

Graphics and music: 7.8/10
It appears that this level is going for a more "creepy" vibe usually seen in ghost houses, and while although there are no Boos or any ghostly features, the music helps to fulfil this role, giving a feel of emptiness and being alone in a dark, damp dungeon. This idea is further backed by the graphics, which I'm going to talk about now. Before we begin I need to get one minor graphical flaw out of the way. A certain Hammer Bro. has its death effect missing, as is pointed out here:
Spoiler: show
Image
This looks rather out-of-place when an SMB3-styled Hammer Bro. dies with an SMB1 effect, so putting the death effect in will be grand. Other than that, I have to say that the use of a Buzzy Beetle as a playable character ups the creepy factor of the level. It's as if it's a lost one that's trying to escape on its own, and at every step is fearing Mario will come down and stomp it. The graphics used also drive in the creepy atmosphere, but actual decoration is rather scarce for a creepy level like this one. Also, the fact you didn't go for a background at all was actually a good idea. Usually it's a bad idea because it's not really a black background - it's actually nothing, just a blank space, but here it's used for the emptiness factor that is the motive of this level.

NPC placement: 6.4/10
I've already mentioned about the issues with the Bowser statues in the red room already, and praised the ingenuity with the green room, but there are some other things that have not been mentioned which will be talked about here. First off, the Venus Fire Traps in the blue room aren't really placed in natural ways - they sprout out from the quicksand instead of from a pipe. This looks rather unusual, and it would be of better benefit if pipes were used instead to house the Venus Fire Traps. There is also a noticeable lack of coins throughout the level, so the level would be welcome if coins were added in key positions. Powerups are missing as well, but the problem is that there aren't any sprites for the Buzzy Beetle getting powered up in the level folder, and also the level is short enough to the point where there don't need to be powerups anyway.

Overall result: 7.12/10
This is a very good early level! The ideas being used in it were executed very well, and if it weren't for the short length then it would have been a much better level.
Last edited by Valtteri on Fri Jun 10, 2016 7:15 pm, edited 2 times in total.

zlaker
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Re: The Fungeon

Postby zlaker » Fri Jun 10, 2016 12:12 pm

The Fungeon - Review

So I decided to play through this level, and oh man this needs work. A lot of work. First the lack of a background in this level makes it look boring and nothing but a empty house. Secondly, the minigame music in the rooms ruined the haunted feel in the level. Anyway you play as a Buzzy Beetle for some reason. Can ask why? Since as far as I know, he's just a costume for Mario. Moving on the level requires you to solve four different puzzles to get to the ? Orb. Lemme just tell you this: they're not fun. One of them is clever and that was the Green Switch one. The others were not fun or engaging. The Red Switch room had this spamfest of Bowser statues. I like difficult levels, but I cannot stand spamfest. The Yellow Switch room made you go down and kill a Goomba by destroying the Brick Blocks surrounding him with Bob-Ombs. This wasn't hard, but in no way was it fun. That's because waiting for a Bomb to explode is last thing the player wants to do. The Hammer Bro in that room also is missing a death effect. And lastly the Blue Switch room. This was perhaps the worst, since going back and forth to get four gets boring even after the first key. After the Switches are activated, the level is done, which is kinda a bummer. You really should've made it longer.

My Score: 4.5/10


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