A2XT: It's Over

[Unaniem]

With Peach defeated in Another Castle, Link tossed in lava at the end of world 2 cutscene, Toads knocked out in Fun Fungus Function and now the Mario bros left in a bottemless pit, the A2XT crew managed to wipe out every single vanilla player character.

[Crow]

Levels? In a video game? WHO KNEW?

Alternative Invasion does that thing Out of Season did with using the mario world alternate enemy sprites, and is also a lot better of a level. Also the mario bros are as stereotypical as ever aren't they :V

Navel of the Universe I quite like, it's a neat little explory level that gets it right where Qraestolia caverns got it wrong. Not too hard but honestly I'm fine with that, it's a pleasant level.

Party, Platform, and DODGE! is certainly a level about colorful stuff, and not really anything special in terms of platforming. Decently difficult but really unfocused and messy. Very "there".

[pholtos]

With Peach defeated in Another Castle, Link tossed in lava at the end of world 2 cutscene, Toads knocked out in Fun Fungus Function and now the Mario bros left in a bottemless pit, the A2XT crew managed to wipe out every single vanilla player character.

B-but mario was already killed in a previous level! Who... who was that? D:

Also what's a midnite?

[Sturg]

All I really did for PPD is just add some graphical flair to it, my name really shouldn't be on the author list for that level. Although I liked how unfocused and messy it was since it fit the name of the level nicely.

Also Navel of the Universe is also very pleasant to play and the KH music goes great with it you also missed a secret but in this game that's no surprise

[Septentrion Pleiades]

All I really did for PPD is just add some graphical flair to it, my name really shouldn't be on the author list for that level. Although I liked how unfocused and messy it was since it fit the name of the level nicely.

It would have never passed in its previous state: http://youtu.be/SYji_BLrl6Q

And here is the second review of the level: http://youtu.be/1pESFM6z7kA

[Mikkofier]

I'd like to take this moment to thank Weston Smith for advice on how to make the level less bad.

also, omg, developer commentary:

I found the Mario & Luigi SMB3 Bowser replacement in a graphics pack and was inspired to make a level. That's about all I can say about most of the level.
Sometimes I get carried away and write too much dialogue, hence the text-boxes. At first Marios' dialogue was pretty plain, then I tried to make him/them more Mario-like by putting some "-a":s at the end of some words. THEN:

In Mario's dialouge, I would either add even more '-a's behind words to make excessive fun of Mario's stereotype.

Taking that suggestion to heart, I put an "-a" at the end of just about any words that I could conceivably fit one and added a verbal tic of Italian foods to make Mario so excessively Italian that it goes past "offensive" and into "absurd", as my brother described it.
I can't say why I didn't think about getting some custom music in the level.
The Peach thing at the end was thrown in on a whim. I originally made it with the original Wart sound in mind, to be kind of vaguely spooky, but the replacement sound effects accidentally amped up the bizarreness. A lucky accident.

[SAJewers]

With Peach defeated in Another Castle, Link tossed in lava at the end of world 2 cutscene, Toads knocked out in Fun Fungus Function and now the Mario bros left in a bottemless pit, the A2XT crew managed to wipe out every single vanilla player character.

B-but mario was already killed in a previous level! Who... who was that? D:

That wasn't Mario, that was "Mario".

[Leet]

I like worlds that are fairly challenging and not really themed, so every level isn't "oh its a [x] level" and is more "hey its a memorable level thats memorable for what it is"

This is probably why I'm a large fan of the original ASMBXT, as well as the lategames of most collaborations

[docopoper]

Theming to some extent does dramatically improve the atmosphere though.

[Demolition]

The link to episode 43 in the first post instead goes to Shemp's Spyro playthrough by mistake.

[Doctor Shemp]

Also what's a midnite?

A book but also the greatest song ever.

there are some consequences if you missed a jump.

Doesn't that describe every platformer game?

The only change I remember being made to these levels in beta testing is PPD being filtered to Demo-only. It's possible with the other characters, although they can't slide (which makes the first section kind of dull) and the jump over the spiky flower wheels with the on/off wall is incredibly precise as Sheath (although theoretically doable) as you need to clear the entire obstacle in one jump. Still, I would have only filtered out everyone for the first half and just filtered out Sheath for the second. Unless of course they were aiming for difficulty, since I found several of the obstacles quite a bit easier as Kood.

The link to episode 43 in the first post instead goes to Shemp's Spyro playthrough by mistake.

This is what I get for multitasking. I'll fix that up.

[sedron]

I like worlds that are fairly challenging and not really themed, so every level isn't "oh its a [x] level" and is more "hey its a memorable level thats memorable for what it is"

This is probably why I'm a large fan of the original ASMBXT, as well as the lategames of most collaborations

I don't see why levels can't be grouped thematically and be memorable on their own. Plenty of games do it.

Time to talk about levels! Again!

Alternative Invasion- Having two levels with Mario as the boss feels weird, but that's not a fault of the level itself. The gimmick is very similar to Another Castle, though admittedly (and arguably,) weaker. One of Another Castle's major strengths was how ridiculous the sprite swaps get, which doesn't really happen here. I wasn't a fan of the writing my first time through, but again, I don't think it's the level's fault that it came after a bunch of others that did very similar things. The ridiculous Mario bros were a nice touch (pizza.) This level is constructed pretty well from a stage design standpoint, with the sole exception of that one kick koopa in the first half. It's definitely not World 8 material in terms of difficulty. The aesthetic could use a bit of work; while the enemies look good, the level itself is pretty bland. There's a mix of good and bad here, but I think there's enough good to push this out of mediocre territory and into the better set of levels. Not great, but good.

Navel of the Universe- Too open-ended for my tastes, but it is very pretty. The level is designed nicely, and the different paths feel like they do add to the gameplay, but I don't like having so many choices. It makes me feel like I'm always missing something. Overall too easy for World 8 (again,) but a nice level.

Party, Platform and DODGE!- It definitely has that amateurish feel to it, but not as bad as earlier levels. Nothing strikes me as overly hard, but an improvement over the difficulty of the last two levels. The mixed tilesets are a bit odd. It's okay. I don't have a whole lot to say about it.

I'd write more, but dang I'm suddenly tired.

[Doctor Shemp]

One of Another Castle's major strengths was how ridiculous the sprite swaps get, which doesn't really happen here.

While it's true that Another Castle's sprite swaps are funnier, it's also much harder to tell what the sprites are in Another Castle, since there's some things that look the same as other things. Another Castle makes for a better video than Alternative Invasion, but Alternative Invasion makes for a better playthrough.

[GenesisJames]

Thank you all for the kind words on Navel of the Universe! This was my third level that I've ever made in the engine, so I'm glad everyone likes it. I honestly didn't expect it to get into World 8 when I made it due to the pretty easy difficulty, but I guess the end-gamey and night theme and feel led to this. Consider it a breather level for things to come. ;) My next level that's also in World 8 is a lot harder, which is why I wanted to try my hand at an easier level like this, so hopefully you all like my next one, as well!

And as usual, raocow missed a secret, but it's really just a fairly nice powerup and some dialogue, so he can always come back to it if he feels the need to.

[Joseph Staleknight]

In this video, Demo and Co. defeat the Evil Mario Bros. (ending Mario's revenge quest in the process), explore the navel of the universe, and attend a chaotic rave party.

Alternative Invasion (Mikkofier): Oh no, the Evil Mario Bros. have invaded the Planet of Non-Diurnal Content! Thankfully, Science doesn't have to deal with that inexplicable threat because Demo wiped the floor with them. Basically, the level was a pretty simple and not all that difficult romp for something this late in the game. Still, I appreciate the relative breather even with the boss at the end.

Also, what a nonsensical yet amusing ending.

Navel of the Universe (Louiejub): Man, the layout of this level feels almost confusing. There are so many routes you can take to the top, and each one has its own hazards to overcome. The way to actually get the leek is also pretty counter-intuitive even with the help of the green rock dude. It's tough to find invisible blocks unless you happen upon them by chance. Still, I enjoyed the mystical quality of the atmosphere, backed by some soothing Kingdom Hearts music. Overall, despite my misgivings it's a neat level.

The secret exit was pretty simple as well, though the Octobro near the house was rather too close for comfort. Still, once I cleared that obstacle it wasn't too bad.

Party, Platform, and DODGE!! (RedstarDirector & Sturg): Wow. This level really kicked the difficulty back up a notch. The enemies were one thing, but you also had the platforming challenges and Disco Dans to deal with, more so after the midpoint. It's quite a hectic journey to get across to the end, even though it is possible. Also, I thought the flashing switch blocks were somewhat gratuitous, but if it helped reinforce the "party" aspect then I don't see any other problems with that. Having completed it, I can compare this level's theme to a frantic rave where the music is loud, the dance is jumpy, and the drinks are pretty potent.

Notes from the Spire XII:

13. "No one is better at navel-gazing than a genie!" (Navel of the Universe): Especially if said genie knows where the secret exit is.

[sedron]

One of Another Castle's major strengths was how ridiculous the sprite swaps get, which doesn't really happen here.

While it's true that Another Castle's sprite swaps are funnier, it's also much harder to tell what the sprites are in Another Castle, since there's some things that look the same as other things. Another Castle makes for a better video than Alternative Invasion, but Alternative Invasion makes for a better playthrough.

I think that's kind of subjective. I personally didn't have a very hard time telling those sprites apart, and context often helped. If that's not the case (which I know is true for a subset of players,) then I can definitely see Alternative Invasion being a stronger level to play through. For people who don't have as tough a time differentiating Another Castle's sprites, I can see the two being more equal in terms of gameplay experience.

So it's a trade-off for some players while for others the funnier sprites don't really detract from the experience.

[KingTwelveSixteen]

I think that's kind of subjective. I personally didn't have a very hard time telling those sprites apart, and context often helped. If that's not the case (which I know is true for a subset of players,) then I can definitely see Alternative Invasion being a stronger level to play through. For people who don't have as tough a time differentiating Another Castle's sprites, I can see the two being more equal in terms of gameplay experience.

So it's a trade-off for some players while for others the funnier sprites don't really detract from the experience.

Alternative Invasion felt much more polished to me. More...good. Higher quality. Probably because some of the graphics in Another Castle weren't very good, but almost all the ones in Alternative Invasion were great (I didn't like the goombas with red hats).

Also the ending of Alternative Invasion was way better with the whole Italian super-stereotype joke.

[Slit08]

Isn't aterraformer telling people to jump just a silly joking shout-out to JUMP? I figured as much since JUMP is likely to be the second-to-next talkhaus game to be released. It used to be that old, smaller devs would leave hints in their games as to what the next one would be, like the hidden swastika in Commander Keen hinting towards Wolfenstein 3D.

What's the next talkhaus project to be released then?

[docopoper]

Isn't aterraformer telling people to jump just a silly joking shout-out to JUMP? I figured as much since JUMP is likely to be the second-to-next talkhaus game to be released. It used to be that old, smaller devs would leave hints in their games as to what the next one would be, like the hidden swastika in Commander Keen hinting towards Wolfenstein 3D.

What's the next talkhaus project to be released then?

Why the finished version of A2MT of course!

[Voltgloss]

Isn't aterraformer telling people to jump just a silly joking shout-out to JUMP? I figured as much since JUMP is likely to be the second-to-next talkhaus game to be released. It used to be that old, smaller devs would leave hints in their games as to what the next one would be, like the hidden swastika in Commander Keen hinting towards Wolfenstein 3D.

What's the next talkhaus project to be released then?

Probably Superb Demo Sisters.

[SAJewers]

What about ACZT? Haven't really been following it, but isn't that close to completion as well?

[jayScribble]

Two levels that make you OP and balances it out by being instant death instead.

"Blue Surfer" is an autoscroller that also acts as a shoot 'em up, but with a twist: you're up and down are replaced by one button with gravity in play. Overall this level requires some memorization and/or fast reaction time and control to beat the level without getting hit once by an enemy or touch the lava. A very interesting level.

"Monty Mole's Aerial Extravaganza" (a reference to Monty Python's Flying Circus, in name only) is about infinite flight and bullets, gliding and spikes, and a red boot and lava, or in short, gimmicks that fit in a bonus area. Overall a mediocre level that requires good reaction to obstacles ahead.

[Willhart]

There was a lot of flying today. The levels today were fairly long and pretty fun to play.

[Crow]

Blue Surfer is a neat little level that does autoscrolling better than a lot of the other levels in the game. Having both vertical and horizontal is a nice touch, and it does vertical far better than curtain tortoise because your weapon flies upward rather than being on the side. The instant death is fine because it's rather short, and having Blue Sacktice exist allows new players to get used to blue shoe controls. Overall a fun little romp of a level.

Monty Mole's Aerial Extravaganza is probably a better gimmick than a level, but it's not a bad level by any means. The first section is kind of lame since at first you don't know you have infinite flight and thus keep going right, when suddenly bullets you couldn't see coming that instakill you. It's not bad when you know you can easily turn around, but having some kind of indication would've helped. The midpoint's also lopsided, though I'd rather have it there than before the spike section I guess.

[ano0maly]

You know what the red sack part of Monty Mole's Aerial Extravaganza reminds me of? The Muddy Buddy sections in Yoshi's Island.