Menace Fleet (Update 2.1)

[Jur1121]

Well this level took a bit longer to finish than I anticipated... good thing there was generous time given. Not much time for this thread, though!

I present you my third SMBX contest entry - Menace Fleet. An airship-themed level with barrels and lineguide platforming... and some fighting.

preview: show

Get it here (Update 2.1):
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1f_gysa ... sp=sharing

If you notice any event bugs, pacing issues, bad difficulty, inconsistencies, typos, and whatever, let me know. I might release an update if time allows, and with that, credit anyone who helped make this level better (thanks to no-anonymity).

changelog: show

Update 1:

Major pacing changes.
- Moved the second checkpoint tape to the beginning of the night section from the middle of it.
- Added a small amount of new platforming content after the first checkpoint tape to slightly compensate for the lost checkpoint length.
- Relocated the destructable airship from the beginning of the night section to the end of the vertical section as it's designed to be the final obstacle of a checkpoint.
- Added a new third checkpoint tape right before the final fight.
- Slightly increased the difficulty of the final fight.

- Adjusted lineguides on the last airship obstacle before the second checkpoint to avoid confusion.
- Reduced the speed the barrel rotates in the bonus room (The Star Coin is still meant to be lost if you miss).
- Added another Billy Gun generator into the last part of the final fight.
- Added some background decoration to the Clown Car part in the night section.

Update 1.1:

- Fixed a bad rope near the end of the vertical section.
- Fixed a bad saw at the end of the vertical section.
- Attempt to fix final fight phase 2 lineguide sometimes breaking.
- Some minor platforming optimizations.

Update 2:

- Changed the night section music track to better match the excitement of Thunder Tornado.
- Added a fifth Star Coin to fill the big space gap between the former 3rd and 4th Coins.
- Fixed first section being slightly taller than exactly one screen.
- More minor platforming and decoration optimizations.

Update 2.1:

- Corrected the order of checkpoint indexes, just in case.
- Swapped Propeller Block to the non-armed one before the final fight.
- Boomerang Bro won't insta-die to the Grinder in phase one in the final fight.
- Last minor adjustments.

[Sux]

I can't download it, there acess to the drive has been denied

[Jur1121]

I can't download it, there acess to the drive has been denied

Yes thank you. I didn't check if I enabled sharing..! Should be fixed now

[Sux]

Outstanding level, you merged The Invasion level style with the SMBX2 new features and the result is a very fun level to play with a great progression.
I suggest you to put a checkpoint after the vertical section just before the night section since is a bit frustrating repeat all the process if the player dies.
If I got a hit I can't proceed the level, a mushroom here would be useful

[Jur1121]

Outstanding level, you merged The Invasion level style with the SMBX2 new features and the result is a very fun level to play with a great progression.
I suggest you to put a checkpoint after the vertical section just before the night section since is a bit frustrating repeat all the process if the player dies.
If I got a hit I can't proceed the level, a mushroom here would be useful

Thank you for the input. The second part of the level is rather long, yes, but I'd need to redesign (add) some stuff if I'm going to cram a third checkpoint tape in. The first part would be mighty long compared to everything else otherwise. Maybe I could shorten that second part slightly...?

You can proceed by walking under the airship as small Mario (indeed, that obstable varies slightly depending on your powerup state!) But, maybe I could make it a bit clearer that you can waltz under it. I'll look into these things for a next update.

[cato]

While I like that you can destroy the ships and have dramatic effects, you should focus more on that specifically instead of the frantically moving ropes/saws/barrels. Put some of them on the vertical sections too.

Some sections feel stretched out and extremely punishing to die and restart. That includes the first Star Coin, in which both the Star Coin and the barrel move too fast to collect. During the boss, I accidentally dropped the bullet launcher in the Boom Boom phrase and I had to restart from the checkpoint, including the fly-and-gun section.

Aesthetically, you can certainly do more to fill up the empty places in the 3rd section (night).

[Emral]

awesome level

[Jur1121]

Thank you cato, your input has been noted - and with that, it's time for a level update.

I took a look into the issues both of you had, and made the following adjustments:

Update 1:

Major pacing changes.
- Moved the second checkpoint tape to the beginning of the night section from the middle of it.
- Added a small amount of new platforming content after the first checkpoint tape to slightly compensate for the lost checkpoint length.
- Relocated the destructable airship from the beginning of the night section to the end of the vertical section as it's designed to be the final obstacle of a checkpoint.
- Added a new third checkpoint tape right before the final fight.
- Slightly increased the difficulty of the final fight.

- Adjusted lineguides on the last airship obstacle before the second checkpoint to avoid confusion.
- Reduced the speed the barrel rotates in the bonus room (The Star Coin is still meant to be lost if you miss).
- Added another Billy Gun generator into the last part of the final fight.
- Added some background decoration to the Clown Car part in the night section.

The download link has been updated in the OP.

The development (improvement) of this level doesn't stop until the deadline hits, so any and all feedback is still being noted until the time comes Any level update may or may not be the last.

EDIT:
As it turns out, some somewhat obvious bugs managed to elude me last time I tested the level, so I rolled a small follow-up update:
Update 1.1:

more changelogs: show

Update 1.1:

- Fixed a bad rope near the end of the vertical section.
- Fixed a bad saw at the end of the vertical section.
- Attempt to fix final fight phase 2 lineguide sometimes breaking.
- Some minor platforming optimizations.

Update 2:

- Changed the night section music track to better match the excitement of Thunder Tornado.
- Added a fifth Star Coin to fill the big space gap between the former 3rd and 4th Coins.
- Fixed first section being slightly taller than exactly one screen.
- More minor platforming and decoration optimizations.

EDIT 2:

Update 2.1 marks the last update, unless I find a major bug. Hopefully not! Thank you for checking the thread out!

Update 2.1 log: show

Update 2.1:

- Corrected the order of checkpoint indexes, just in case.
- Swapped Propeller Block to the non-armed one before the final fight.
- Boomerang Bro won't insta-die to the Grinder in phase one in the final fight.
- Last minor adjustments.

awesome level

I'm glad you think that way.