level review *clap* *clap* level review *clap* *clap*
Splitting into gameplay and decoration…
GameplayI think this level really lacking in readability. The player need to see what’s going on in order to act accordingly, so give time for the player to read. Basically the following parts can be solved by spacing transition and gameplay.
- 4%: Landing spot out of sight, with little reaction time for it.
- 13%: The mirror portal effect hindering reading of the layout.
- 14%, 28%, 34%: Teleportation portal again. Small platforms (like those in 28%) may help, but it’s nothing compared to the quadruple speed. (I checked your level I’m sure about that)
- 57%: From black to gameplay, not much time.
- 69%: Fast ascend, lacking reaction time after landing.
Plus there are also invisible platforms, which may mess up players because there is an unforeseeable incident and they need to respond to it. That’s bad. Give the player a chance to see and think, so that they can play accordingly. Here are other few tips
- 1%: Crammed orbs generally produce more buggy and ‘unfun’ gameplay. Orbs are meant to be spaced out to achieve the best effect.
- 4% to 10%: Covering up the layout with black is really bad practice. Of course, it gives difficulty, but it’s not from precision nor memory, but guessing where the icon is at. This makes a level hard and frustrating to play because you are not in full control.
- 10% to 13%: Gamemode portals placed together… Passing the same obstacles requires different inputs depending on what the gamemode, because they all work differently. Layout like this can mess up inputs, and cause crashes. Again, this takes control from the player, and make them feel like it’s not their fault, but your fault when they crash.
- 16% to 17%: I got stuck here because I can’t find out how to pass this. But on the off chance I do get past that. Inconsistent gameplay usually happens with long airborne time, slope physics and orbs. This part checks all of them. :/
- 18%: The S block is too close to the red dash orb it can actually trigger to stop the dash, causing a crash. Here is a picture showing how close it is.
- 27%: You can use the custom orb to ‘toogle’ a spawn trigger for the exit of the sawblade instead of ‘toogling’ the saw directly. If the alpha trigger is too slow for another toogle trigger to activate, consider spacing the orb and the saw. The custom orb can act as a spawn trigger shown here:
- 35% to 37%: You can actually be idle at that part.
- 41%: Mini wave and 45 degree slope? Seriously? No, these belong to silent levels, not here.
- 57% to 64%: This ship is quite good, but a bit bland. However, the short length justifies the repeating pattern.
- 65% to 69%: Fill hazards at ceilings (especially for ball) so players won't abuse it to 'cheese' the level. (floors are also the same)
- 70% to 85%: Syncs insanely good, and is super fun to play, but is a pain to sightread. To make a layout clear and obvious, 1) deco should not be in the way, 2) player should see what obstacles are there, and 3) what is available for the player to surpass the insurmountable obstacles.
Many of the mistakes cannot be found by yourself because you know the layout and are thus unlikely to find unintended paths. Be sure to playtest, especially by others.
If you don’t have a friend that plays Geometry Dash, find a future you that have left the level for about 2-3 days. You probably forgot most of the things by then. (please don't, just find one online, you can unlist levels and make secret ways)
Decoration
It is amazing! There is detail and variety shown in the decoration. Air deco is full, the block deco feels nice, and the background is breathtaking! Here are a few more tips though:
- 4%: A platform became unnoticeable because of the waterfall behind. Be careful of readability, because it affects gameplay.
- 14%: Don't spam monsters. They generally don't look good together. Actually, epic levels rarely use monsters. Bosses and animals animated by creators themselves allows for more variety, and likely better entities.
- 14% to 22%: The Nice Circles effects don't look quite good, and does not fit with the theme. Are you designing a Nine Circle deco for the sake of designing a Nein Circle deco? If so, don't. You want something that feel well together, not simply something that great people (Zobros is 'great people') have done before.
- 34% to 43%: It's acceptable to mix modern with glow, but people rarely do that, because they are really different. Again, you want something that feel well together.
- 44% to 57%: Default fonts don't look so good. It does not mean you should never use them: you can. However, don't slap them with 2.0x scaling and place it on the middle of the camera. For those texts, it is better to actually design another font yourself.
There is not much to complain about the decoration. It is already rate-worthy, if not feature-worthy.
Verdict
I think this sits at around Decent. The gameplay is really daunting to read, and play. While some parts are satisfying to follow, the level overall isn't a joy to play. Deco is already really nice at this point, but focus on improving your gameplay. Make sure people can read and react. The effort you put really shines in deco, especially after considering this is your first level. (mine sucks) You really have the potential to make good levels. Good luck!
