Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmoon Base

26th: Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmoon Base Make a Good 48 Hour Mega Man Level

In space, no-one can hear you puzzle over how to demolish towers.

Overview Creator(s): Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Composer(s): Hirokazu Ando Statistics Scores: 46 60 93 69 Total: 67 / 100 Rank: 26th Elements: 1 Box Items: Shigaraky Sprinklan Wander Bell Falling Tower Gravity Change Enemies: Shigaraky Sprinklan Wander Bell Gimmicks: Darkman Block Falling Tower Gravity Change Bosses: Bandana Wander Bell

Theme Music Kirby's Adventure - Orange Ocean 2/Rainbow Resort Boss: Kirby's Adventure - Nightmare Phase 2 Stage Order Location: Tier 9 Previous: Combustion Castle Next: Super Pipe World

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmoon Base is the 26th place entry in Make a Good 48 Hour Mega Man Level. It is a space-themed level with alternating gravity as its main gimmick, alongside a pair of Falling Towers that bookend the stage. Beyond that, Wander Bells and reskinned Shigarakys serve as primary enemies, with the former having a silver variant that takes more damage.

Strategy

Mega Man begins in a simple Falling Tower, which is easy to clear provided he doesn't use Rain Flush like a ninny and mass-destroy every Darkman Block on screen. At the end, an invisible Gravity Changer sets his gravity to low while Shigarakys attack him against a spacey background. This section also introduces Sprinklans and silver Wander Bells. A short while later, the gravity is set back to normal at the level's first checkpoint, which leads to more platforming around spikes and Sprinklans while fighting enemies. It is advised not to accidentally hit the latter, as they will send shots scattering about the place. The only weapon that can outright kill them is the Tengu Blade's dash, making it a useful tool to use.

The second checkpoint heightens Mega Man's gravity, giving him lower jumps just before the stage's second and final Falling Tower challenge. Unlike the first one, it requires a greater level of observation, forward thinking, and quick reactions to clear, lest Mega Man get crushed. One particular example is a silver Wander Bell patrolling in front of a Darkman Block; firing at it without thinking risks hitting the block early, and subsequently getting killed by a low spiked ceiling. Another tricky part comes from a block that is shielded by a nearby Sprinklan; to clear it, Mega Man must shoot the block up close, then quickly jump over the Sprinklan's cubbyhole and reach a safe zone before the tower drops down. Alternatively, he can take it out from afar using the Rain Flush from a safe spot, but this can be a dangerous move. Once the tower is fully dismantled, however, the terrifying Bandana Wander Bell awaits...

Judge Comments

Judge Comments
ParmaJon  : 46 / 100
Design Creativity Function Fun Aesthetic 14 / 35 7 / 15 9 / 10 10 / 25 6 / 15 This level is competent in that it doesn't have any big pitfalls, but it fails to take any real risks. The tower gimmick is fine. The low gravity gimmick barely exists, and the high gravity is fine in the tower segment but barely makes a difference. It's a neat idea, but I really wish this level went further. This level is just okay, but it really needs to take the tower idea and go to the moon with it. I wanna like this level more, but it falls short. The end boss is cute.
PKWeegee  : 60 / 100
Design Creativity Function Fun Aesthetic 16 / 35 8 / 15 10 / 10 14 / 25 12 / 15 It kind of flew past me a bit, but the last tower climb did stand out the most, since it combined the higher gravity with the tower. Mostly because the one part with the Gabyoall is a bit awkward to get through, but hey, it's doable enough.
M-Jacq  : 93 / 100
Design Creativity Function Fun Aesthetic 34 / 35 13 / 15 9 / 10 25 / 25 12 / 15 I think the worst thing about this level is almost certainly its title. Can we just agree to call it Mmm Bop? Or, even better, Zigzagoon Base. Like the Pokemon? Because all those Ms look like a zigzag, and Zigzagoon is a good boy. Just like this good boy of a level. If my score seems kind of high - and I bet for some of you it will look kind of high - consider the following. This level is basically "perfect," in the Goldilocks sense of the word. Take away a section and it'd be perhaps too short; add a section and it would just feel extraneous. Not to mention it'd break up the almost palindromic structure of the level (Dark Man tower, outside section in half gravity, standard platforming bit, outside section in half gravity, Dark Man tower). I think that's what sets Zigzagoon Base apart from any number of levels with similar themes (and the exact same tileset, for that matter) - the two tower segments that bookend the level hold everything together. The level isn't very hard, but that's a consequence of all the challenges being telegraphed well in advance: if you die in this level, it's entirely on you. Which makes sense, because it would be surprising if a level with a box like this one had any extremely difficult enemy challenges. And yet, the level does do some really cool setups with the Wander Bells and Sprinklans. My favorite has to be the "Dirty Harry" moment where the silver, durable Wander Bell variant (really neat idea, by the way) is slowly ambling towards you, but if you spam the buster to kill it, you'll break the tower and get crushed. The final Sprinklan setup is really cool too, if a little difficult. (It took me a while to realize you're supposed to take out the block by the Wander Bell so that it'll get forced offscreen.) Oh, and of course, Bandana Wander Bell is just the cutest little guy. After a level all about restraint, it's so fulfilling to just mash fire at the level's end. To conclude: this level really hit a sweet spot for me, and is easily one of my favorite levels in the contest.
Freems  : 69 / 100
Design Creativity Function Fun Aesthetic 23 / 35 9 / 15 10 / 10 18 / 25 9 / 15 I definitely enjoyed the usage of the Dark Man Tower in this level. The first time was your average run of the mill introduction, we've seen it before. But not only was putting the second one in high gravity a nice and easy way to keep things fresh, the enemy placement in that last section was (mostly; the one Sprinklan there still has me a little confused how you're meant to handle it without Special Weapons) pretty smart. Being both a little threat and more importantly, making you think about how you're taking care of them rather than just firing like crazy and getting crushed by the tower. The real shame is the parts of the level that don't revolve around the towers are kinda boring and forgettable. Outside of a few nice Shigaraky placements, it just felt like a bunch of filler until we got to the next tower. Beginning is a nice setup, ending is a great payoff, but the middle is just kinda there and that's it. At least the boss was adorable. I'd play as him in Mega Man Star Allies.

Notes

• That's 17 Ms in "Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmoon", for anyone curious about how to spell it.
• Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmoon Base has the second-longest stage name in MaG48HMML, only beaten by Mega Man Saves Canada from the Evil Clutches of. The name itself exists as the creator couldn't think of a better one before the deadline; they came up with "Wander Belltower" as an alternative name only after the 48 hours were up.