The Invasion 3

[NovaBuld0x]

So... how s the project doing? u guys still working on it?

[IAmPlayer]

Yea, it is. It's just slow right now since not everyone is available to work on them.

[FutureNyanCat]

I have a good feeling this will become the new default episode for SMBX2's full release when it's completed, just as The Invasion 2 was made to demonstrate SMBX 1.2. Can't wait for this tbh.

[Cedur]

Guess this is a major intention also. Especially when SLAM is dead

[ShadowStarX]

I have a good feeling this will become the new default episode for SMBX2's full release when it's completed, just as The Invasion 2 was made to demonstrate SMBX 1.2. Can't wait for this tbh.

Well the fact whether this would become the basegame episode is undecided and relies on multiple factors.
Even if the episode doesn't become basegame though, we're likely to pin it in the 'Episodes' forum.

[timocomsmbx2345]

I have a bad feeling that this project is in development hell.

[ShadowStarX]

I have a bad feeling that this project is in development hell.

It's not cancelled, but recent times have been hectic, so we don't know anything concrete.

[Murphmario]

I have a bad feeling that this project is in development hell.

It's not cancelled, but recent times have been hectic, so we don't know anything concrete.

I hope this isn't cancelled, we need a Invasion 3 that doesn't suffer the fate of the other failed attempts.

[timocomsmbx2345]

I have a bad feeling that this project is in development hell.

It's not cancelled, but recent times have been hectic, so we don't know anything concrete.

I hope this isn't cancelled, we need a Invasion 3 that doesn't suffer the fate of the other failed attempts.

me too, since it's been 6 months since the last time anything happened here.

[ShadowXeldron]

It's not cancelled, but recent times have been hectic, so we don't know anything concrete.

I hope this isn't cancelled, we need a Invasion 3 that doesn't suffer the fate of the other failed attempts.

me too, since it's been 6 months since the last time anything happened here.

It gets worse - I actually managed to forget that this even existed...

[ShadowStarX]

Well look what we've got here... The Great Fish Viasco makes its grand return!

Spoiler: show

The amount of Cheep Cheeps may be further cut, but this is the gist of the level.

[ShadowStarX]

It's time to sprinkle in some of the upcoming basegame NPCs into the levels. Today's showcased level being Bubbles in the Sky

[Roadconian]

sounds very epic

[Sandomer]

i think this will never be released full because i saw that this guy who making it is banned

[PdizzleParker]

i think this will never be released full because i saw that this guy who making it is banned

No, I don't think he is?

[Ness-Wednesday]

i think this will never be released full because i saw that this guy who making it is banned

If you're talking about Airship Attack 2, you're mixing the projects up. They wouldn't even have any involvement because they got banned when this version of the project was new. That user has nothing to do with Invasion 3.

[ElTipsta]

Glad to see more progress on this project. Looking forward to it's release!

[ShadowStarX]

Time to showcase the 11 areas of the world map! Hopefully this looks a lot more interesting than the map of Invasion 2, while still feeling to be more on the simpler side. (the only custom graphics are a few scenery and the SMB3 cloud tileset expanded by Sednaiur)

Glad to see more progress on this project. Looking forward to it's release!

Thanks! It's nice to see that people are interested in this, really!

[Chanceux2]

Nice to see how cool a world map can be without that much custom gfx

[Emral]

Gonna have to be a bit of a party pooper but I'm a bit torn on the maps. It might be because of how they appear from this high up with me being able to see much more than a player would in-game, but there appears to be a certain lack of direction, and a lot of visual clutter to them.

It is clear that a lot of time and effort went into them, and the attention to technical detail with regards to avoiding perspective issues and keeping paths short is remarkable. But with the detail and eyecandy scattered throughout I think the maps in part lose some of the simplistic ingenuity you can find in official mario game maps and TI2 to some extent.
For example, the entrance to the Valley of Bowser is unceremoniously placed at the tail end of a set of disconnected isles here, whereas the entire SMW map was shaped around the reveal being the literal centerpiece of the overworld. Having the islands at the very least encircle the valley entrance in a similar manner could be a good way to draw the eye at that empty spot in the middle of the world, and ensure that even subtly there is some tension building up to it, even if minor.

Similarly, bowser's castle within the valley is just "on some ledge", which makes it seem a lot less special than when the path to it is a straight line like in TI2 or SMB3, or when it is always on-screen like in SMW. I can't help but worry that perhaps the ending to the game may come a bit "out of nowhere", with the player entering the valley expecting the endgame to arrive, playing 6 or so levels without as much as a hint of the castle (reduces the tension), exiting one of two pipes and they just made it to the end. For the most minor suggestion of change: Perhaps moving a tank level after the pipe could be sufficient in building up a bit of the otherwise reduced tension ahead of entering the final level.
On a broader note, none of the maps here commit to a single-direction path from start to finish. The paths twist and turn to try and stay in a mostly square bounding box, even in worlds that had strong directionality to them in TI2. I feel like that too contributes to the maps all seeming a bit too similar for their own good. Things like the U-shape of TI2's forest or the highly vertical (and split!) World 4 are iconic IMO and similar ideas are worth exploring in a project that aims to recapture and/or improve upon the niche that TI2 fills.

Again, might be completely overblown and me reading too much into how these are presented in the screenshot, but if any of that ramble makes some remote semblance of sense to you, I hope the ideas I've touched on can help in making the maps even better.
Keep on keeping on either way!