Difference between revisions of "Changeable Caverns"

Aw why did this have to end so quickly D: I really liked where it was going!! For a level that has a large majority of the special platforms in it it does a very good job at keeping focus and feeling coherent. It introduces each of the platform types safely and uses most in more dangerous setups later on. The difficulty curve is just very well done in general. The enemy challenges are pretty great, too - I really like how the Drilluns and Moliers were combined. But it felt like it ended just as it was starting to ramp up the difficulty!! I really wish there was more because I love what is actually here, it just feels like it got...cut off before it could be truly amazing.

Pretty forgettable level. It was mostly just rooms with enemies and then moving platforms over pits and that was it. The room with 3 Crash lifts is a bit glitchy, one of them randomly pushed me off for some reason.

This level is a lot of fun to play, but often misses out on aspects such as safety nets and ramping up the difficulty, with later sections sometimes being easier than early sections and the enemy setups not offering a lot of variety. A lot of the level's assets are taken for granted and while others are formally introduced, the others are often what will lead to the player's death. The guts lift section in particular is rather tricky for where it is placed in the level and I died a lot on it when I wasn't exploiting the lack of spike collision in that room to bypass it and explore other parts of the level. The open platforming segments are a nice but rompy challenge and definitely the highlight of this stage.

I feel like it could have been done better. The level just doesn't look nice. Some parts of the stage suffered from either bad enemy placement or having to deal with desynchronised moving obstacles. And overall it just feels generic. Nothing creative or interesting really. At least it was mostly enjoyable.

Fun little stage, if too much on the safe side. Pretty much all of this stage works, but on the goldilocks scale of level design, it sits just below the "just right" in gimmick implementation. What I mean by that, is you don't go far enough with the gimmicks to be truly memorable, and it's all a little generic, with not much identity of its own other than "every platform gimmick".

That being said, there is actual thought behind your use and placement of said platforms, and nowhere does it feel half assed, it's just I feel a few more screens with repeated gimmicks and a slightly higher difficulty (not by much, just slightly) for the climax of your stage would've served you better. You also put in areas where Noble Nickels would've acted much better than... er.. bolts. This is just a poor design choice, as no one will attempt the additional challenges you propose because there is simply no point to it, the stakes aren't high enough.

Lastly - I kind of feel the Guts Man platform segment was... pointless. This bit also houses your weakest implementation of any of the gimmicks, as the player is left waiting for the platforms to sync up together. It's minor, but it would've been better to see the platforms return later in the stage with a different setup, rather than the "Hi I exist" cameo.

Noteworthy things about this stage - perfect theme and selection of enemies for a cavern setting, good music choice, and gimmicks are introduced very well. Props to the Shadow Man platform segment, I didn't even notice how clever your introduction of them was the first time through! It took a second playthrough for me to get it... but it's subtle but well done.

... one thing that's odd, there are a few spots in the level tiles that look.. unfinished, or are using a beta tilset? They keep showing up and it just looks bizarre.