Explosives Factory

40th: Explosives Factory Make a Good Mega Man Level 3

Where's OSHA when you need them?

Overview Creator(s): MarsJenkar Composer(s): TheCartridgeTilter, Manami Matsumae (originals) RushJet1 (cover) Statistics Scores: 77 42 75 87 65 Total: 69.2 / 100 Rank: 40th Elements: 1 Collectables: Enemies: Bomber Pepe Bombomb Killer Bullet Walking Bomb Gimmicks: Conveyor (MM10) Count Bomb Key Barrier Sub-Bosses: Emperor Pepe Bosses: Blue Bomber Man

Theme Music MaGMML 2 - Combust Man Cutscene: Mega Man - Elec Man Boss: Mega Man - Boss Stage Order Location: Tier 12 Previous: Guitar Man Next: Western Railway

"I mean, OSHA's probably less concerned about the signage and more about the fact that they're DEATH TRAPS."

―Worker's Journal, 25-Oct

Explosives Factory is the 40th place entry in Make a Good Mega Man Level 3. The level takes place inside the titular factory, which is experiencing both an attack by a "madman" as well as a number of hazards that would probably lead to OSHA intervention. Mega Man will encounter many explosive-themed enemies along the way, as well as Count Bombs and conveyor belts.

Strategy

Mega Man spawns in a room with a couple of signs; one is a calendar stating the date of the incident, and the other is a communicator that outlines the level's scenario (a madman is somewhere in the factory and is threatening to blow it up). Going right leads to a Bomber Pepe, a Walking Bomb, and a Killer Bullet. Sticking to the upper path across some Count Bombs will lead to some bolts, while the lower path only contains more enemies. Further right is a path leading to some more bolts, as well as the first of a number of journal entries left by one of the workers. Head down to continue into a room filled with Count Bomb setups, properly introducing Mega Man to a number of quirks regarding how they work. The next room continues introducing new setups. Continuing right will lead Mega Man across a number of Count Bomb jumps punctuated by Killer Bullets (with Walking Bombs and Bomber Pepes patrolling the floor below); successfully navigating this path will lead to the first of four Trickster Tokens. Regardless of the path taken, Mega Man encounters his first checkpoint in this room, as well as another journal entry.

The room continues with more Count Bomb setups over progressively more hazardous terrain, first over damaging fire, then over lethal spikes. The end of the room contains yet another journal entry. The next room begins with a Bomber Pepe and a Killer Bullet on the far right of the screen, easily dispatched. Continuing right leads to a couple more Killer Bullets, and the first Bombomb. These only spawn once over each pit (unless scrolled offscreen and respawned), and the pits they emerge from are marked with a caution sign, as well as a red stop sign where the bomb is set to explode. There are two more Bombombs in this room, with the third one requiring Mega Man to set it off before attempting to jump next to its pit. At the end of the room is a path leading down, as well as a side path leading to the right. This side room contains a checkpoint, a journal entry, and a jumping puzzle leading to the second Trickster Token. The challenge is to jump across the Count Bombs to the right-hand part of the screen without setting off the Count Bombs above. Doing so successfully leaves the downward-facing Count Bombs as platforms that can be used to access the Token.

In a red room below is a caution sign and a checkpoint, marking the appearance of the miniboss, Emperor Pepe. After defeating it, the room beyond contains a checkpoint, and introduces conveyors, combined with some Killer Bullets and the threat of falling into damaging fire. The room after that begins with another journal entry, but more importantly shows another Bombomb setup, this time with conveyors over a long bottomless pit. At the end of this setup, Mega Man can jump to a Count Bomb at the start of a slide passage, leading to an optional room to the left. This room is fairly straightforward, but tricky due to the placement of spikes. First, slide left through the passage above to clear away two Count Bombs protecting the rest of the puzzle, then slide right to enter the puzzle proper. Navigating it successfully nets the third Trickster Token. To exit, Mega Man must set off the Count Bomb above the Token spot, then return the way he came before descending to the next room via a ladder.

This next room (which contains yet another checkpoint) is a maze-like room with several Count Bombs and spikes as hazards. Trigger the Count Bombs needed to navigate the room. Eventually Mega Man will reach a point with a slide passage right (to a W-Tank) and left. The easiest way to proceed is to slide slightly right to collect the W-Tank, then go back left; the momentum from sliding back to the left should carry Mega Man through the slide passage but stop him from sliding too far. After that, finishing the room is straightforward. The room below contains a straightforward challenge with a Key Barrier and a conveyor near spikes. After that is another Count Bomb puzzle over spikes, and the final journal entry. The room on the right contains a checkpoint.

The final room of the level contains a mixture of Count Bombs, conveyors, and enemies (including more Bombombs). Near the end is one final Count Bomb puzzle high up; successfully passing it without falling down will earn Mega Man the final Trickster Token. At the end is the boss door; inside the corridor is one last communicator, with the person who wrote the various journal entries. The level culminates (after a short cutscene) in a battle against Blue Bomber Man.

Judge Comments

Judge Comments
Mick Galbani  : 77 / 100
Design Fun Creativity Aesthetics Functionality 26 / 35 20 / 25 10 / 15 11 / 15 10 / 10 For a level that relies so heavily on overused gimmicks, this was remarkably fun! Explosives Factory makes excellent use of Count Bombs and Conveyor Belts alike, taking two common concepts and making some really fun scenarios. The Killer Bullets and Bombombombs make excellent seasoning for the concepts, combining really well with the level design. Top it off with a lot of charm, and we have the recipe for a lovely level. Normally, this would be where the 'but' goes, but I don't have much of a but this time. The Communications Guy is amusing, but I had so much fun reading Journal Guy's rants about poor workplace conditions. And while OSHA rightfully has a problem with all the death-traps, I *adored* the fact that none of them relied on cheap shots to kill me-barring one early Bombombomb. Every death felt like it was my fault, which is key for player enjoyment. For that matter, there are so many checkpoints here that you rarely lose much progress, and I absolutely support that. Considering how precise some of the tokens can get? These checkpoints go a long way to prevent frustration. If I were to name one big issue I had, it would be the non-respawning enemies. Neither the Walking Bomb nor the Red Penguins show up enough, the latter especially considering the Emperor Penguin midboss. You'd think Penguins would be prominent when they've got a King Mook in the level. The bosses themselves are fine, Emperor Penguin was an excellent mini-challenge, and Blue Bomber Man breathed fresh air into the old MM1 'bot-making the fight surprisingly frantic with his new mid-air toss and the odd triple bomb. Just... overall this was a fun experience. I can't call it top of the line, as without the charming dialogue it absolutely suffers from relying on overused gimmicks. But much like how Rock Force's Death Man made an alienating concept fun (if still alienating), I'd say this did the best it could with the ideas it started with.
Shinryu  : 42 / 100
Design Fun Creativity Aesthetics Functionality 13 / 35 7 / 25 5 / 15 7 / 15 10 / 10 I can't help but get the impression that you were inspired by Combust Man's level from the previous contest. Not just because it uses the same music, but the way it plays out reminds me of it quite a bit as well. Whether the similarities are intended or not, I found this stage lacking for roughly the same reasons that Combust Man fell short: It plays things overly safe, and doesn't do much with its gimmicks. Count Bombs (and by extension, conveyor belts) aren't exactly the most exciting hazard on their own, so to have them laid out in mostly basic configurations just ends up hurting the stage. There are a few exceptions to this, such as the segments leading to tokens, and everything including and past the key room was a step up compared to what came before it. Unfortunately, by the time the level is actually doing more interesting things with its gimmicks, it's already starting to end. The other, but definitely most notable parts of the level, would be the mini-boss and end boss. King Pen Pen - while he has a fun design - goes down incredibly quick and isn't much of a threat on his own. As for Blue Bomber Man, while I appreciate the small tweaks to make his fight feel a bit different, I don't think it was enough to fully distinguish him. Maybe it would be if he used that desperation attack (where he throws 3 bombs at the same time) more often, but he only seemed to do it once throughout the entire fight. It feels like a wasted opportunity that could have made the boss fight more interesting, which serves as a bit of a disappointing ending to a mostly lukewarm stage.
Pachy  : 75 / 100
Design Fun Creativity Aesthetics Functionality 22 / 35 19 / 25 11 / 15 13 / 15 10 / 10 Fire Bomb! Combust Man as the stage music is a bit... peculiar? Certainly a weird choice, homage, whatever may be the case here. In hindsight, it's probably just free Mega Man-style music to use that I'm not aware of. The stage consists of the count bombs and MM1 pit bombs as its gimmicks. Surprisingly, it works super well, I really like how they are used here. I'm always a fan of the count bombs being used in more puzzle-like situations. The warning indicators at where they're gonna detonate are also nice for the MM1 up-n-downs, which definitely helps narrow the chance of unfair deaths that they are mostly infamous for. I really like the miniboss sprite: behold, the emperor penguin of the Bomb Egg Kingdom! That is a great way to make the penguin enemies look less out-of-place in a setting like this. The generous checkpoint placements are really appreciated here, well placed for the token rooms where the player is expected to die at least a few times. Bomb Man has an upgrade but he's still fairly easy, largely fighting the same with only a slight occasion of doing an attack where he throws 3 bombs at once, which is easy to react to. Maybe if he would've thrown more bombs per throw in general, then it'd have been a more impactful difficulty increase?
Flashman85  : 87 / 100
Design Fun Creativity Aesthetics Functionality 29 / 35 22 / 25 12 / 15 14 / 15 10 / 10 Like a tasty multi-layered dessert, this level is a stack of individually good things harmonizing to form something nuanced and delicious. It's the kind of dessert I could eat until I explode--which would be fine, because checkpoints are everywhere. The layers are as follows: - Fun, well-developed story that caters to my sense of humor - Clean, appealing graphics that seamlessly smash together different tilesets and add some lovely new sprites - Fitting, enjoyable soundtrack (the MM1 boss dialogue vamp is a nice touch) - Focused assortment of enemies and gimmicks that work well together - Challenges whose mild puzzle elements and sense of purpose outweigh my usual preference for less conventional Count Bomb and conveyor setups - Buttery smooth learning curve - Thoughtful difficulty progression (graduating from lava to spikes to pits: awesome) - Some tricky tokens that allow special weapon intervention but encourage the "honest" way - Clear consideration for the player, from properly labeled pits to plentiful power-ups - Varied architecture and sensible layout--I greatly appreciate seeing spikes below "bottomless" pits - Fair and thematically appropriate boss fight - Perfect length and pacing - Flawless construction Like a food simile describing a level about ordinance, I recognize but don't really mind that the experience is not *perfectly* harmonious: - When given an option, the lower path is always too tame (shoot this grenade, will ya?) - Emperor Pepe is a pushover--more health and slowly advancing toward the player would be fantastic - Rush wrecks whole sections (bad dog!) - The final stretch could be a smidge spicier - The dialogue on the last two screens falls a little flat for me, and it's a bummer to sit through the boss dialogue again on a rematch Speedrun tactics reveal this level's weak points, but they don't take away from the planning, execution, humor, and polish that make it a blast.
ACESpark  : 65 / 100
Design Fun Creativity Aesthetics Functionality 21 / 35 16 / 25 6 / 15 12 / 15 10 / 10 There can be a tendency for level designers to keep going past the point of fun, but instead make a long, sprawling stage. This level is not one of them, and ends when the player expects it to. However... the Bomb Man fight was so underwhelming. Even with a few new attacks, he just didn't live up to his self imposed promise. Was that the point? Was that the joke? Because it didn't land. This was worse than nothing being there! In fact, throughout the stage, the dialogue only detracted from the experience, as it completely broke any sort of flow the level had. Only use dialogue when the level requires it. This isn't up to the same level as Candy Panic in MaGMML2 - promising an original fight only for Metal Man to turn up in a Sweet themed stage - but it also doesn't learn from that stages' mistakes either. The first half of the stage does not provide much challenge or interest, with the Count Bombs used at their bare minimum. Enemy placement was fairly messy and hardly noticeable, barring one Bombombomb fatally blindsiding the player. Overall, very forgettable. Things improve in the second half, with several well-thought-out Count Bomb challenges, although I am not convinced the Conveyor Belts added much to the level, particularly in the final room. Checkpoints in this half were particularly well placed, both before and after slow rooms. It is not always about the physical length between checkpoints as it is the time it takes to get between them, and this shows that even two rooms can be a long enough period. Good stuff. The tokens overall were good, and the checkpoints in the side rooms were appreciated. These were somewhat hard challenges, there was never any frustration. The mini-boss was simple but fun. It should really have been the boss of the stage as well, in place of the unchanged Bomb Man. I hate to mention it again, but Bomb Man really was a low point of the stage. Creating a more interesting room for your mini-boss would have been a much nicer experience to end the level with. Overall, it's a pretty promising start to stage design!

Notes

• The background palette is based heavily off of Solar Man's stage, with assets from Metal Man's stage and others added. Additionally, new assets were created, such as the "danger" signs found at the beginning, as well as near the bosses. Some assets expanded on the Solar Man assets already included. All assets were recolored to match each other.
• By default, all the Trickster Tokens in the level are colored blue (though the diamond token retains its white colour); this was in response to testers complaining that the spade token wasn't visible against the level's background and was thus easily missed.
• A developer room is hidden behind a fake wall near the room before Emperor Pepe, and is found by walking right from the top of the crates in the right-hand part. The room contains an NPC based off the level creator, Crash Man as a second NPC, a monitor giving credits for various stage assets, and some bolts.
• The date on the calendar, November 25, 2018, was the deadline for submissions for MaGMML3. The final journal entry has a date of November 22, three days before the aforementioned date.