*X3 WINNER CONGRATS TO ENJL* the one with the seasonal allergies

[Enjl]

the fact that maglx3 + mafab combined have like, eight different entries that function as marxist critiques is incredibly funny to me.

YEAH
"ah so this is one of those workers rights levels" has become a bit of a running gag among my friends and i

[Crow]

i'm curious to see the full list (so far) now, tbh

also i'd give today's boss a gate/10

[Zephyr_DragonLord]

Oh, the top echelons of MaGLX3 refuse to let off with the surprises, huh. I'm all for it. Let's goooooo!

18th - Twlight Lighthouse: This is one of the times I'll actually side with one of the judges that didn't finish, actually. This level is good, looks magnificent, but something about the construction rubs me the wrong way. The midpoints are fine, and the boss is cool, but between the Banzai Brigade and the light show, I think there should have been some sort of powerup, and I think the boss should have a hit of leeway, too, particularly given how many bullets are on the screen at once.

The wraparound is really great, though. I just wish there might have been a handful of other ways to use it in the light section without... dying horribly. You still did great, it's just I'm a bit lower on it than its neighbors, which is all.

BOSS: 4th - Baby's 1st Boss: This. Is. MAGNIFICENT. I had a very hearty laugh several times watching this stupidity unfold, and it's one of the best things out there. I do agree that the boss is a touch sloppy towards the end, but it's so short and so... funny that the jank arguably adds to the charm, in a very Sonic Adventure 2 way. I was waiting to see what Dog in da Grass did for the boss, and it was wonderful. Truly, a job well done.

[7TC7]

Hello, it's the author of Twilight Lighthouse - even if my name is currently misspelled in the episode.
Have a slightly unfocused dev comment!

First of all, there were are few things that changed from my original idea for this level. The music for the stage part was originally supposed to be an instrumental version of Morrigan's "Purple Light Tower"

It somehow magically fit both the name I gave the level as well as its atmosphere. I decided to change it to what it is now however, to have a more consistent theme with all the music being from the same game series.

Speaking of that series, I was making this level while working on the English Translation Patch for the game Alternative Sphere, the third game in the series.

Because I had all the assets for that game lying around, I wanted to do something with the, so originally, I wanted to build the whole level out of only those assets and even resprite Mario to fit, but in the end decided to make things more subdued by only leaving a clear connection between the collectable crystals and the crystal boss (totally not because it was too hard to build a mario level out of shmup graphics).

After submission, I felt like I could have done a few things differently. Mostly, adding a midpoint for the third section. Secondly, I was not super happy about the bubble section in general. I had concerns about other people maybe not being able to find a good path at the beginning of that, being mad at dying for talking to the bird, or trying to spin jump on the bubbles because my hint of "do not touch the light" wasn't obvious enough - although that one is supposed to be intended as also referring to the plot.
I also had concerns about making Mario a one hit wonder, but I had built all the challenges around the idea, that you couldn't just tank them, so I couldn't do anything about that anymore without changing a lot.
I am pretty happy about how everything looks and how the other sections as well as the boss work, though.

The boss is quite a complex construction, despite it's simple look, mostly due to it's second phase starting being timed with the music, rather than being linked to its health. It's entirely possible to beat the boss before the second phase starts, however I experimented with the amount of required hits to make this improbable. A quick kill can be accomplished by getting the brick to hit the side of the crystal in a way so that it hits multiple times in a row (as raocow demonstrated).
Despite being based on a shmup boss, I wanted to not make it too difficult. The brick can be used to destroy the small projectiles, while you can actually stand on the bubble spawners to make them stop shooting - although this will desynch them, which personally just makes them harder to dodge. I also left the bottom step of the way up the tower in the arena, because I thought this was a nice platform to hide out of the way from the bubbles.
Lastly about the difficulty, it's really short and has a midpoint right before it, so I am of the opinion it's probably fine to learn it by dying - especially from getting surprised by a shot in the back from the second phase, although they spawners are far enough away to see them coming.

My adjective "makeshift" was kinda the basis for the whole level and was inherited by the orange crystals, as they make and shift things around in the level. The fake exit turning all the tiles in the vicinity into breakable blocks to have them destroyed by an invisible, friendly bonanza bill shot from the sky and the rebuilding of the tower after the boss fight also came from that.

Because raocow noted it, I originally wanted to use the term "thundering" as a bonus, because the bullet bills kept making their shooting sounds when you scrolled them on screen, but I thought this might not be enough of a reason to use that term, so the light bubbles came into play instead. And their interaction with screenwrap - changing their trajectory on each pass through the screen - became the central idea of the last part of the level.

Making this level was a lot of fun, and it personally felt like a huge step up from my previous levels, with me taking into account the feedback I got on those. I think my placing as 18th in this contest shows, I have indeed moved up in the world.

Finally, here is me playing an almost-finished-but-not-quite-yet version (no commentary). Can you spot the last minute changes? There is quite a few.

[PapyrusSemi]

My laptop freaking sucks so I guess I'm just gonna be doing these from my phone for now on.

18^th: Twilight Lighthouse
Well, this is definitely the tier of aesthetics. Because, at least for me, twilight looks really pretty, and the orange bricks of the tower compliment it well. Though, they probably could've used some sort of defining edge tile. Or maybe they have one, it's hard to tell at this resolution.
Either way, the gimmick is simple: make like Crash and collect all the CRYSTALS! As well, the horizontal wrap-around is used pretty nicely.
The Bullet Bill line right before the first checkpoint looks a bit devious, but it seems to be a comfortable enough jump. The Banzai Bill segment is pretty cool, not gonna lie, and I love the sunset lighting on it.
But the light bubble segment does quickly get kinda spammy, in my opinion, and it looks like there should've been a checkpoint before it, but there isn't.
But then that bait and switch at the end! In hindsight, it should've been pretty clear that it was a fake ending, given that the bubbles didn't explode into currency. Plus, the "DON'T TOUCH THE LIGHT!" gains a second meaning here. As for the boss itself, well, it's Mother Brain.
All in all, a solid 0/120 because you didn't call it Twilighthouse.

MAFAB ALERT!
☆4^th: Baby's 1st Boss
Well, I guess it's called a Giant Gate for a reason, but that was not how I was expecting that Mega Man X6 screenshot to be used.
And then it quickly devolves into a glorious cacophony of WHAT, as you turn into Baby Mario, and begin chasing Gate from Mega Man X6, in the form of a Giant Gate from Super Mario World, through all manner of weird locations as he shoots energy balls at you, which I can only presume is based on his boss fight from Mega Man X6, as I have never played it despite owning Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2.
Beyond this, all I can even say is that this being Rameau's favourite perfectly explains Burger Time - The Next Generation.

Also, there is a lightbulb in the corner of my basement which has been flickering on and off like it's trying its hardest to stay on.

[Dog In Da Grass]

That lighthouse level was super rad, I enjoyed playing it too!

Anyways here's my commentary on my boss too!

Woof Woof!
For the longest time I've been wanting to make a boss encounter that uses the voice line "I'll show you what REAL power is" and reveal themselves to be something completely rediculous! Gate Gate was the perfect opportunity for me to do this!
The line is from Viewtiful Joe 2 from the song True Heroes




"HYPER BABY MARIO FROM A PARALLEL UNIVERSE TO THE RESCUE!!!" Also came from this Yoshi's Island HAcked video I saw aeons ago


THis was a huuuuugeeeee influence to my level too once I saw baby mario in the one of my screenshots.
Runman and always moving forward helped cement this down too!

I wanted to use hills and other terraine to give it a more dynamic feel but it was way too jank and didn't work with how fast I made averything run!


The boss fight music is a midi version of "Can't by me love" by the Beatles


I was on a bit of a Beatles kick while working on my boss, I'm not entirely sure why I chose this song but was thinking it'd fit really well as a boss tune forwhatever reason
I wanted to find a midi version to avoid copyright and on the website I found had a version that was glitched out and super rockin'! I used that version for the final lap music too!


Oh, Hi-Max

Here's also a video showing off everything in the level too
Waddle dee kills you in one shot too!

[LunarRainbowShyGuy]

- Level Comments -

18th Twilight Lighthouse: I really liked this level. I do wish there was a checkpoint after the Banzai Bill section, as I feel like it's the kind of section where once you've successfully cleared it once you've experienced everything it has to offer, and as such there's little reason for having to replay it other than making things take longer.

I found the way the boss gets more difficult after a certain amount of time to be interesting, although I'm still not sure whether I think it's well designed in an objective sense. I ended up defeating the boss before the extra rinka shooters even appeared on my second or third try, so it didn't really end up hindering me too much. I guess I feel like the difficulty increase ought to be more gradual, because it sure goes from fairly easy to quite difficult rather suddenly.

(Also, in checking my death tracking document to remember how many times I died in this level I discovered I had accidentally misattributed my deaths here to "GRRROL CONTROL", where I'm not sure it's even possible to die.)

☆ 4th Baby's 1st Boss: When I checked the images before going into this the image from Mega Man X6 caught my eye, and I'm glad that it was directly referenced in this boss. I also like how this Goal Gate has Gate's helmet and cape, and also fires the projectiles from his boss fight. I also liked, well, pretty much everything else about this boss too; I just had a great time here overall.

- End of Level Comments -

[Donut]

Given 7TC7's history with danmaku I'm not surprised their level is a stealth danmaku level - and a good one, too! Great atmosphere and good obstacle placement, though certainly not easy.

[KobaBeach]

Loved both these stages, Twilight had a nice atmosphere and an interesting vibe, and Boss Baby was generally really good plus, as a bonus, a nice reference to a funny little game. Need to actually play Runman.

[7TC7]

The Banzai Bill segment is pretty cool, not gonna lie, and I love the sunset lighting on it.

Glad you noticed the subtle color change on the bullets. I thought it added a lot when making the level.

All in all, a solid 0/120 because you didn't call it Twilighthouse.

I definitely had been playing with the idea, not gonna lie. I don't know anymore why I didn't do this.

That lighthouse level was super rad, I enjoyed playing it too!

Glad to be sharing a video with your hilarious boss!

Given 7TC7's history with danmaku I'm not surprised their level is a stealth danmaku level - and a good one, too!

That trick is to not make it Touhou themed, and nobody will complain!

[AtypicalAbbie]

That boss battle got me good, hilarious stuff, I wish I had the knowledge and skill to make something like that, but I'm a potato

[Zephyr_DragonLord]

On seeing the fact that Mario being a one-hit wonder is an intentional design choice (which I should have guessed, really), I'll raise my praise for yesterday's level a fair bit, though I'm still not completely onboard still... Looks very nice, however. There's lots of levels here that just look great. Including this one.

17th - Ancient City of Ambera: Solid title, very solid looks, and a level that plays mostly well, minus the awkwardness between the Princess and springboards. This is a learnable interaction, but it's definitely annoying for certain kinds of players. I do agree that the level goes on a bit long, and that the Angry Sun boss (which is pretty darn good, by the way) is a good ending point, but the stuff after the Angry Sun is very nice, too, and the lore is soft-spoken, but a very nice addition. And I do like that ending, it's a nice way to end things on a high note. Overall, great job.

It is a bit of a shame about that second star coin, but cleanup's going to happen and clear that all up.

[PapyrusSemi]

That first chapter title fills me with dread.

17^th: Ancient City of Ambera
I will forgo my semi-weekly raocow-directed insult for once. This level is definitely a neat concept that only had recently been done in Super Mario, but the specific use of red plants covering lava-flooded ruins looks nice. Also, the background is good, though I can't help but feel like it might be from Mario Kart.
The fiery coins gimmick is also pretty cool, what with it sending in all manner of stuff to ruin your day. Though, once more, good ol' SMBX Jank™ rears its ugly head, with the pipe cannon going wrong like it did for raocow.
The entire next section looks nice enough, what with the good old Angry Sun putting in some extra work by lobbing fireballs. The tower climb is neat enough, though maybe the bypass pipes should've had a built-in cannon so that the part you're skipping goes by faster.
And then, the Angry Sun boss fight. It definitely was a thing, though it looks a bit janky.
The twist that the goons were actually against the sun too was funny. Also, the princess and bouncing makes its return, for better and for worse.
And the banana at the end is only made better by the use of DKC sound effect.
All in all, a pretty solid level, but could maybe use a couple more Mushrooms.


But I can only presume that raocow tried to enter the pipe with two coins on it just past the Angry Sun checkpoint

[LunarRainbowShyGuy]

- Level Comments -

17th Ancient City of Ambera: I found this to be an alright level, although I did feel like it was too long; it doesn't help that I had to play through the level three times to get all of the star coins. The first star coin I actually just walked right past the door my first time through. I feel like the doors could use something to help them stand out; for example: since there's already Kirby themed stuff in here you could put a star at the top of all the doors.

Then there's the second star coin, which I don't know how long it would have taken me to find it if I didn't stumble upon it by complete chance on my third time through

(I jumped on one of the Veggie Busters as it was pulling up a bomb, and it dropped the bomb through the floor right by where the hidden door is)

. And on the note of this being long, I found that it was really starting to feel tedious the third time around.

I did find the plot here to be entertaining, and I liked the treasure being a banana. I also liked the presentation for the boss fight against the sun, although I do agree with Rameau that that should have been the end.

- End of Level Comments -

[PSI Ninja]

In today's episode, Explorer Peach goes on another adventure.

17th - Ancient City of Ambera:
Visually, I thought this level was very busy. I had to take my time to watch out for the red-colored enemies that blend in with the decoration. This is a level where you really don't want to lose your Fire Flower, as it makes things a whole lot easier.

Peach is interesting because she has a bunch of interactions with objects that don't synergize that well with her floating mechanics: note blocks, springboards, and pipe cannons. Maybe this is an issue with Klonoa too, but I can't recall any levels where he had to interact with those things specifically. Speaking of the pipe cannon, I also got gotten by repressing jump after leaving it. The fact that it was right before the first checkpoint hurt a bit. Something similar happened to raocow way back in Transistasis (dying at the very end, of course). I also had issues with the slopes eating my jumps, but I don't think that's a Peach-exclusive thing.

You can cheese the Angry Sun fight by standing still at the very left. The fireballs and bombs will never hit you, and eventually the boss will do itself in. It takes a little while, but it's a good option if you're not comfortable with catching the bombs in mid-air. Regarding going into the fight with no hits,

there are actually two powerups in hidden blocks right before the boss door.

As for the second Star Coin, I also had to explore with cheats to find out where it was.

It was well-hidden, requiring you to blast open a door - subtle, but fair.

[KobaBeach]

im sorry but i see ambera and i just think of amdera from legend of heroes 3

[SpoonyBardOL]

Haha wow, my level wasn't even the only one that starred Peach In A Safari Hat!

[Mata Hari]

What killed the Toads

the ice age!!!!

[Mata Hari]

I think if you want to set a certain tone you don't make the frozen Toads shatter, or at least have the player do it once by accident

[Crow]

the aesthetic level is so funny. great work recapturing the spirit of tryhard edgy "depressing" indie games

[Zephyr_DragonLord]

Birthday dragon, reporting for duty. With a new and more powerful laptop, typing these up are a cinch again. Just need to come up with those ideas.

As for the second star coin, yeah, that's a bit out of the way. But it's kind of a fair secret, too, given that the place looks suspect to begin with...

16th - Decrepit Bastion of Greed: This level's really awesome. It leans on the double jumps to carry its platforming, but it does very well at that, and the level looks nice, and has nice music, too. It's cool how a space station just invaded this grassland, and the spirit of Wart invaded this man. There could be one more checkpoint, given this level has the philosophy of placing the one that's there right after the hardest section of the level, but it, again, is not a dealbreaker. Just something to consider in the future. You did great, Lunar Needle.

X/Audition Level - The Solarian Highlands: I really like how this level looks, though I'm not all for the fact that the pillars can crush Mario, rather than shunt him aside. There's also not much TO the level, it's just a flat plain, some neat dialogue, and then it just... ends.

For me, I don't know exactly how I'd rate it, but it would end up in the high 60s to low 70s range. The level sends a message, though lots of its just... sad. I'm not too much about sad stories that don't have some sort of upturn.

[PapyrusSemi]

16^th: Decrepit Bastion of Greed
Forward, important footnote. If you get a special fancy alternate jump, just assume it works in the air. It applied for the dodge jump several MaFABs ago, and it applies here.
This is certainly an interesting gimmick, what with the blocks which give you different jump types. That was definitely an interesting use of gimmick terms (with Wart used in roughly the same way I used Mr. Saturn), and I really love the interpretation of "treehouse". Though, I'm not really sure where Obsolete comes in.

X^Aesthetic: The Solarean Highland
Well then. It said it was an aesthetic level, and it delivered.

We've had some funny intros, so how about a funny outro?

But first, some tunes.

My fellow Talkhausers, give it up for our hundredth day of MaGLX3! That's right, over the past three-and-a-third months, we've been going crazy aboard the Satellite of Semantics, playing levels in all manner of colourful locations.
In that time, we (and by that, I mean mostly raocow) have seen:

• 137 levels made by the lovely people here, produced way back in 2018 or so
• 210 Power Stars, including a few Power Leeks, some knick-knacks, and a banana
• 180 ways to end a level, sometimes empty-handed
• 47 shiny Star Coins to buy some of those funny trick glasses from the gift shop
• A total score of 7,901,280 points across every level
• 1602 trips to the grave, from which we always bounced right on back
• 11 tiers full of bopping music and colourful characters, with one more still to come
• 10 fatal mishaps in the contest's tiers, plus one aboard the Satellite and another in the afterlife itself
• 12 levels made by the MaGLX crew, with varying levels of surreality
• 3 out of the 6 levels that were used to select who would get to join the ranks of the judges
• 2 utterly buck-wild theories by yours truly
• And a lifetime's worth of profanities in French

Once more, here's to episode 100, and to hoping the rest is just as wild!

[LunarRainbowShyGuy]

- Level Comments -

16th Decrepit Bastion of Greed: I found this to be an alright level, although I do agree with Rameau that the timer on the abilities seems rather pointless. I feel like the gimmick here has potential to be used for something more interesting than the typical sort of jumps that you'd expect in a level where you have a double jump. I can imagine a more puzzle-y type of level where the blocks give you a certain number of jumps rather than a timer, and you have to use your jumps carefully in order to progress, but that's not what this is.

Also, I find it interesting that Rameau calls the fact that the double jump isn't on the jump button "fundamentally odd". I feel like I often see people wishing that double jump was on a different button than jump so it doesn't interfere with other uses of the jump button, such as controlling your jump height and bouncing off of enemies (which is already a problem some people have with Peach's hover). I for one appreciated that the double jump wasn't on the jump button.

'Aesthetic' The Solarean Highland: This seems to be more of an experience than a level; what little gameplay exists here isn't exactly what I'd call engaging. As for the plot: I will say that it seems to be well written, and I'm sure that there are people that would enjoy this type of thing, but I'm not one of those people.

Also, as a Shy Guy, I feel like I can confidently say that those are Toads, not Shy Guys.

Anyway, if I were to give this numbers I estimate that I'd probably go with something like 15/50 design, 15/30 creativity, 20/20 aesthetic, and 15/20 gimmick.

- End of Level Comments -

[WinterSweater]

I would have liked that aesthetic level better if we could see what Mario was thinking on each part.

[Reecer7]

I would have liked that aesthetic level better if we could see what Mario was thinking on each part.

"mamma mia it sure is-a cold around here"

i absolutely love that the aesthetic level is simultaneously a very good facsimile of what a serious Art mario level looks like, while still being just marginally dumb enough that you know not to actually take it seriously as one, to attribute to it True Auteurial Intent. it was, after all, built specifically to convey Aesthetic.

imagine trying to make someone cry while being mario. couldn't be me. couldn't be intelligent systems circa 2007.