Your thoughts on water levels

[SMBXxer]

Title says it all.
What do you think about water levels?
Me? Well, I think they are pretty fun to play...
But... I HATE MAKING WATER LEVELS.
They are so boring to make.
Discuss.

[RoundPiplup]

Water levels are usually rare as I don't really see that many people create levels that primarily uses water as their level. Still, they aren't easy to make, and there aren't that many water graphics as well. They are still fun to play them as they aren't commonly created.

[bossedit8]

I personally kind of like underwater levels in SMBX but the drawback is that your movements is slower than usual and sometimes it can be more difficult than being on the Land.




Original Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5gWiqO6JcM

(First and fifth Level has nothing to do with Water!)

[zioy]

I don't know, they're hard to make and harder to play, but somehow satisfying to finish in either case.

[bossedit8]

They're hard to make and harder to play...

Yeah, of course they are more difficult due to your controls and enemies but once you learn them it is getting easier. Making them, you only need ideas and inspirations. There are more of course...

[Julia Pseudo]

I find water levels extremely hard to design. The player has way too much freedom to move around; it's hard to implement obstacles well.

[bossedit8]

The player has way too much freedom to move around; it's hard to implement obstacles well.

You can make sure that the player does not go off the screen by putting blocks at the gray boundaries but that makes it even less sense to the regular Mario Games. Obstacles, you can make certain Blocks move, use those Hurting SMB3 Jellyfishes and Urchins, not only Cheep Cheeps and Bloopers.

[zlaker]

I love making them. They're so much fun to play .

[Warlock]

But the thing is it takes practice to make a good one. You need graphics, knowledge on layers and events, and the motivation to complete one, along with the ability to place NPCs in a formidable but fair way.

[RudeGuy]

I loved making "Hard underwater level". It also uses only 1 event and 2 layers. I don't hate underwater levels, because I think they are easy to make.

[bossedit8]

I love making them. They're so much fun to play.

I agree with that. Water Levels used to be annoying when I was younger but now they are like eating Cakes in no time.

...You need graphics...

Graphics isn't 100% necessary. You can always make a nostalgia Level without graphics.

I loved making "Hard underwater level". I don't hate underwater levels, because I think they are easy to make.

This is why your Kaizo Level exist here. :P I like Water Levels too but not with the whole speed of course sometimes.

[Warlock]

DELETE THIS POST

[Warlock]

...You need graphics...

Graphics isn't 100% necessary. You can always make a nostalgia Level without graphics.

No, what I mean is the right graphics to use in the level. You also need consistency in theme.

[Anphiba]

Water Levels are actually kinda fun to play, though making water levels is a bit challenging for me because I run out of ideas fast.
My main goal in making an episode is:
To make every level dynamic in it's own way.
I don't like repetitiveness too much, because I've played episodes with levels that are all the same. They look bland and too simple in design.
I also use lots of scenery as well.
It's hard to avoid being repetitive in water levels unless you're really experienced with them.
Castle/Towers & Water Levels are hard to make for me because their tilesets have very few BGO's for scenery.
I like to combine Themes to keep levels from being stale and the same as everything else.
Example:
Water/Ice
Ice/Fire
Fire/Forest (I actually did this one.)
Forest/Castle (I did this too.)
Castle/Water
My point:
I'm really bad at making water levels, but I like to play them. They feel slow, so if they are too long, it can get annoying.
They have few scenery BGO's and the original blocks don't fit in with my level. Combining themes is a creative and great idea for a level, as long as it's not taken too far.

EDIT: Then again, custom graphics aren't always needed. You only need to make sure the graphics fit in with the level.
Custom graphics are only a bonus as long as they fit in.
They aren't required.

[Superiorstar]

I find water levels extremely hard to design. The player has way too much freedom to move around; it's hard to implement obstacles well.

Have you SEEN Overheated ocean!?!?

[Julia Pseudo]

^
I'm not saying that they're can't be cramped water levels, I'm just personally not very good at designing them.

[Chad]

I rather like them, both playing and designing. Swimming has the interesting balance of letting you access every open part of a section (or designated area, depending) a lot easier than you can with jumping and running, but at the cost of control and jumping on heads. I'm good enough at SMBX's water physics that I have a comfortable time swimming past most enemies and obstacles, and its fun to devise my own path and timing for getting around them.

Designing them is also pretty fun. I find it easier sometimes, because since swimming covers an entire area, you can usually tell just by looking at the design whether or not you'll be able to get through it (give or take enemy placements and such). I also like putting in a lot of obstacles that you couldn't normally jump over, while requiring players to take a somewhat winding path with them. That is a big part of the fun in a water level for me, as swimming around in an immense empty space is boring.

[Axiom]

i hate them with a passion

i much prefer designing grasslands or caves or even castles to them

as for playing, i pretty much share the same hatred

[Mudkip]

I really like it to design them. It's actually really easy and playing them (As long as it is a good underwater level, like the ones I made) is really fun. I don't get why people hate them :x

[dragonfan96]

I personally like water levels. There visually appealing and very few enemies.
Mario may be slow at swimming but thats just a negative i just ignore.

I hate making ghost house levels and playing them!
Its not the ghosts(however when i was like 6, playing SMB3 on the NES for the first time i was scared of them and i skipped to world 5 using the whistle in 1-3)

Its just i feel as though there time consuming to make and difficult on where to go when playing