Opinion: This forum doesn't really take SMBX
too seriously, it's fine as it is. The only thing that could be considered "too serious" is criticism which, as long as it's constructive, helps us improve (and that's a pretty cool thing).
And yeah pls don't turn this into some super annoying fight etc, the discussion was fairly interesting before.
Also @SM7's level/
this image: Actually the one thing I remember not liking on that level were the random stars, I don't think they work very well as obstacles when used like that, and they can make the level flow slightly awkward. The lava waterfalls hurting/killing the player in another level leads to a similar issue (I think it was on
this level, might be wrong). I think gameplay/design logic>rl logic on cases like this one
On the BGOs I think there might be too much but they aren't as distracting as the random opening on the ground, and the ceiling is fine as long as it adds to the design and is not there only for having a ceiling.
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Also, to throw in something new:
-Random "holes" in the dirt/insert fill tile here don't work very well as decoration, they're more distracting than nice-looking, specially if you add something like unreachable coins/question blocks/enemies/etc.
-I'm not a huge fan of most boss fights, they're the weakest point of pretty much any Mario game/episode/SMW hack imo. Most are not exactly well implemented and definitely not fun to fight (specially considering they tend to fall on either "too short" or "too long" territory, largely being "just right").
-Vanilla levels are pretty cool, but even then you don't really need to completely follow what the original did - adding something new, or using something old in a new way, makes the level feel unique (which is fairly important, as most levels in the original Mario games, particularly the most recent ones, usually introduce at least one new element). I think people shouldn't limit themselves too much if going for levels inspired on them classic Mario games, and should try to add new gimmicks/enemies/level themes/etc. for extra variety if necessary.
-I think custom graphics might have went from super overrated to underrated. Sure, it alone doesn't really make the level a lot better, specially if you're just picking things from random "mega packs" and throwing on your level, but if correctly used they can make a level's atmosphere a lot better. Recoloring alone helps differentiate it from the other thousand levels using the same graphics tbh. I prefer a well-designed and good-looking level over a level that's "just" well-designed.
-Too many classic world themes, too few crazy stuff. Things like aquatic cities or alien stuff/other planets should be more common
