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PLACENameAuthorsComment
Fun/6
Theme/4
Score /10Fixes
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Oops I Set The Forest On Fire!
AristoOh no! A Problem! Oh no! It escalates! And a twist that resolves it while making you feel all-powerful! I don't know if it's because of the glitchy sub-theme of the level, but I feel like the theme of the contest has been hacked in a great way here. The great thing about this narrative approach to the theme is that, when it works, the level just kinda speaks for itself. The level is beatiful, nothing overstays its welcome, and the gameplay's pace is quick enough so that you're neither overwhelmed nor bored when playing. Structurally I could make some remarks, like the unfortunate sprite for the giant snowball that looks like it can be jumped on (because of the small one's behaviour), but this loose judging rubric I set for myself means I don't have to! Hahaa!

At the end of one of my playthroughs I noticed that the fumes over the Baby Yoshi sprite's head moved away after collecting the goal. I can therefore only conclude that this "Enjl" entity representation is the smoke possessing a conveniently placed medium.		6410Yes
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2xyzzysqupThe execution in this one is quite brilliant. Seeing mechanics adapted across genres like this is always a treat. The individual setups are quite varied, too, often requiring at least a second look juuust to make sure you didn't miss anything that'll get you killed. On the negatives, I dislike the general lack of a sense of progression and the fact that this level is cumbersome to play solo. I'm sure it's an absolute blast with Player 2 on the mouse, though. Very nice overall!

So we back in the mines...		549
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3Step Right Up FolksDisasterMasterVery neat interpretation of the theme! Finding out patterns like that while dealing with obstacles posing a danger to the player is not something I thought I would enjoy as much as I did! A lot of the level is splendid, though I feel like my nitpicks here are significant enough to mention: For one, I feel like the concept works better with periodic dangers like rinkas, rather than strict timers. The latter tends to either be a pushover or incredibly demanding. Secondly, I wish this level had a handful of pattern presets from which it randomly selected when the level starts. Would have added some much needed replay value, I think. Overall very fun, though!

Waluigi's voluntary descent into the death lake ties in with the lore of 'The Mad Scientist'. Truly an incredible and unexpected crossover!		448
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Strange Sanctuary Situation - Swim
ShinbisonAnd so, after a decade in waiting, the NPC-only water mechanic makes its way into SMBX as well. With a pretty big splash to boot! This level is tons of fun and has quite a bit of effort put into what ultimately ends up being a rather minor plotline. Despite being minor, those little scenes add plenty of flavour and purpose to the player's mission, I find. In terms of gameplay, the level steadily evolves and brings forth not only new obstacles, but also some fairly cool-looking setpieces in the vertical section and ending section that I enjoyed just looking at. Well done!

So it seems like the Toads have the ability to teleport into the gem room as long as the blue chaos emerald is there. Is this canon in Sonic lore?		628
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5The Mad Scientist8luestormA fine floral level wherein the conflict's catalyst is a Robotnik-like reimagining of the (not 'a') Piranha Plant. Like is often the case in levels with limited toolkits, the individual ideas are combined into more elaborate contraptions. I would've wished there to be more combinations with things later introduced (say for example a foreshadowing firestorm) that drive up the urgency. As it stands, the Scientist may be defeated until a new main generator is built, but the plants remain. One has to wonder what happens next in this plotline. My guess? Revenge.

In a tragic twist, it seems like the Toads' focus on banter over tackling their problems seems to be what got them into this situation in the first place.		437
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5Lost in the PipeworkMamijomaleWhat a charming idea! I think this level's strongest feature is its lovingly crafted vanilla aesthetic, alongside a well-executed plumbing job plotline. In terms of gameplay the level peters off a little near the end, unfortunately. The early sense of progression is lost as new goals are introduced, and the level continues past the 4 lights, and later past the climactic (and really good!) boss fight, ultimately overstaying its welcome a little. I think with a bit of cleanup and streamlining, this level could be great! Certainly an incredible show of skill by a new community member.

I hope I can play this level in real life at Super Nintendo World.		347
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7Mountaintop MadnessDarkonius MavakarI'll be honest - I had no idea what I was doing to combat the problem until the moment the Thwomp crashlanded in the giant pillar. I just thought we were going around! Given the SMB3 Thwomp's revelations, this seems to have caused more problems than it solved though, oops! Despite its rather limited enemy variety, the level manages to be engaging through the use of revered Rube Pipeberg machines that I wish were taken even further in their execution. Also, I think the fact that the level wrapping isn't always enabled is an act of cowardice.

Looking forward to the troll level in which Mario gets repeatedly deceived by the scheming SMB3 Thwomp 'Thwiffany'.		426
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Switches of Sophistication
Fuyu, MECHDRAGON777
This episode is rather hit or miss. The quality of levels within ranges from 'fantastic and satisfying' to 'frustrating slog'. The levels are at their best when the solution is complex, while executing it is relatively harmless and non-complicated. A lot of the levels in World Green fit that description. Other levels are sadly plagued with an abundance of failure states that make you say 'Yes, I get it. I know every step to the solution, I just timed this one step wrong by half a second'. Most of World Red fits that description. On the scale from 'Solving' vs. 'Executing'-based puzzles I think the overall episode leans towards the latter. Most of my problems with it are rooted in this.

I wonder when I will see 'likes zipping their lover (Mr. Saturn) out of bounds' on one of those 'What type of [...] are you?'-type quizzes.		246
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7Beezo ValleyJulia PseudoWhen it comes to underused game mechanics, I think the most important questions are 'Why is this underused?' and 'What can be done to remedy its shortcomings?'. For the ridable NPC mechanic, I think some shortcomings include the NPC's speed and hitbox size, and perhaps the cycles they tend to be on. There are plenty of SMB2 levels that use the mechanic without evolving it, so I appreciate the effort to find new ways to use it. However, I feel like while the level turned out good, the mechanic's applications remain fairly standard and supplementary to the level's overall gameplay. For what it's worth, I could totally see this in an episode, though.

With the Birdo population booming, I for one am happy that the almighty Boss Music can still easily pick out the birdest of them all.		426
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7The Seesaw EfectSanclesThis level falls back on an old but gold way of entertainment: Silly humour. It also makes me feel very conflicted because of how it managed to turn my disdain for hyper-limited level building toolsets against myself by shooting Fighterflies from cannons and stacking them to the heavens to shake things up at a good pace. I can only imagine this to be intentional pandering. There are a couple of rough edges, most notably the telefragging Fighterfly at the start of the final section, but overall the experience is very enjoyable. The level also makes me consider how much further one could go with the concept... surely giant Fighterflies are the next step! Super neat, though I wish replaying with the boot after beating the level would be doable all the way.

With the Sidestepper level in the 48h contest and the Fighterfly level in this, we now need a Koopa level to complete the Mario Bros. level trifecta.		516
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7The Spirit SpireMrCavesOverall, I loved every minute of my eternal grind to beat this. I can't really give points for the theme, since this is fairly obviously a level you were just gonna make anyway. The only thing this level is missing is a speedrun timer. Did this inspire the timer on the level selection screen? Who can say...

This is like that one time when Hercules tried to escape from Hades but then Cerberus said 'POGGERS'.		606
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Ugh, Who Made The Terrain So Faulty Anyway
8luestormThis loose construction of a level may not be all that structurally sound, but I can't help but feel like the blatant oversights present have created some unintentionally enjoyable gameplay potential. As the level introduces the idea of switching between the two playable characters, it opens up into a section where the two characters need to work together. Said section has so much cheese that I found myself experimenting with tons of different ways of overcoming every obstacle. Infinite keys sure are something! In terms of the contest's theme, I enjoyed how heavy an impact the established problem has on the gameplay.

While the Mushroom Kingdom may not be known for its structurally sound meadows, I feel like Toad and Peach would know better than to stand in the middle of nowhere. Though I bet if they were at the castle, the road's pavement would split open instead.		336
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13Pencil HollowCloth PocketPretty neat and concise level! The progression toward stopping time for the moving pencils is well-executed and really neat in general. I'm not quite sure how to feel about the problem being an optional sidequest... it feels a little tacked on as a result, since it pretty much has to happen during a playthrough anyway. There aren't really any stakes as a result, and getting them all in one run can get a bit tiresome with the legendary walk speed of the Goombas. I found that to be a rather unfortunate hit to my own enjoyment of the level.

Mario really takes on any homicidal request from the capitalist elite these days, huh?		415
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14Sawline TaxventureWalderIgnoring the fairly obviously tacked-on story, I think this level is fairly nice! It's very high-octane platforming, making you think about how to approach common setups in a new way due to the lack of spinjumping. Stuff like the underneath-grinder spinjumps are fairly tight, but some of my favourite parts of the level! Makes me think what else can be done with this idea. There's plenty of SMW levels that use that trope, so I'm sure there are tons of ideas to be unearthed in SMBX as well! But I digress. Overall the level is fun, though I feel like there's a bit of rope jank that may occur, and the powerup placement is not the nicest kid in the neighbourhood. Good job nevertheless!

Now that Mario is on the other side of the level he has all the same problems as before. In addition to those, he now has to find a way back home somehow. This is today's plight of our favourite plumber.		404Yes
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14InflationShadowStarXThe problem with making a level about both types of inflation is that the gameplay and narrative end up completely separate from one another. So on one hand you end up with a fairly standard balloon level, and on the other side is a simple go-here-do-this-get-out plot that seems like it may have been added after the fact, seeing as the intro occurs in Section 20. With the content of the level developing slowly and predictably, I can't help but fear that you may have stumbled into the 'worst of both worlds' scenario, with gameplay consisting of repeating binary choices about which of two directions to drift in. Quite unfortunate.

Clogging the pipes would have had the same effect on the economy. The worthless money remains in circulation either way. I think the Yoshis just have a weird kink and tricked Mario for their own enjoyment.		224
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14fanfare forestAndregemeo23Being intimately familiar with the general programming workflow I can only imagine the next step in this level would be everything unexpectedly breaking apart at the parade. What an anticlimax though! There are hardly any stakes! No drama! The platforming is generally nice and I like the different kinds of platforms and platform arrangements you gradually introduce, but I would be lying if I said I didn't feel like it got a little repetitive by the third section. The experiments with 3D obstacles are incredibly clever, though! Well done with those.

There ought to be some ancient Mushroom Kingdom tribe disrespected by the use of their holy imagery in the Dead Chomp Wall mechanism.		404
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17Die, Live, RepeatTaycamgameI find it somewhat remarkable how straightforward this level is, considering it presents itself as a room-based puzzle solving level. I think the introduction of a second level element would have worked wonders for the level's complexity and range of decisions to be made. As it stands, this unfortunately plays like a hallway with frequent cutscenes where you watch the player die.

Revival gimmicks seem to appear pretty frequently recently, but my question is: What is their purpose? Now there's a problem looking to be solved!		123
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DQJust Hit the SwitchlitchhDQ'd for being recycled. Having seen a dozen interpretations on the 'uncooperative doohicky' trope before, I expected some clever ideas in this level that make use of it. For example a scenario where the switch actively works against you by trying to drop you in a pit by toggling itself in unhelpful ways. Unfortunately, the setup for this level's problem is only present in a little gag at the start that establishes the goal. Then it takes a complete backseat as the level goes on to be a fairly standard romp for a few minutes. A bit of a shame, really.

The existence of sentient pipes that emerge from other pipes raises concerning questions about the sentience of the Toad Town Sewer System.		000Yes
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Total score + medal count (39) * 10 ->495
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Trophy Score (/(medals + participants)) ->8.684210526
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