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Super Mario Maker |OT| Miyamoto Simulator 2015

Dimentios

Member
I don't know who Audrey is, or what all the tracks here are for. I felt this was somewhat empty and pretty average until the skewers showed up, but you gave those skewers lots of neat things to do. I don't love the plant boss battle though, which would be impossible to win without getting hit and instead is almost impossible to fail with unlimited power-ups.

It's a shame you can't recolour pipes by shaking them, because the first part is confusing, you don't know if a pipe is a way out of not, so you try every single one of them and it breaks the pacing (arrows would have solved that). Also, I assumed after a while every question block was a costume, so I wasted some time at the part where you have to activate a vine.Other than that, it's your usual high quality and the boss was original.

Nice to see you back in action! Always loved playing your levels, one of the few people that isn't a real life friend that I actually follow. Can't wait to try this one later.

Another great looking level here. I got all the coins and found a potential place to get stuck, though someone would have to really want to get stuck, so I don't think it's a big deal. Fun level with good use of skewers.

This was a very interesting level. It had a neat aesthetic to it, and you put course elements to good use. I would say that my only issue is that the look of it is a little too chaotic and confusing. The level design is good enough that it keeps pushing you in the right direction. I'm guessing it had to do with limits in the editor.

Thank you for your valuable words and critics. Audrey is the name of the piranha plant boss in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. Although it seems its only being called that in the german version of the game. And it's true, the boss and also the level itself is pretty easy as the rest of my levels. Yet, it has a completion rate of 10%. It's impossible to satisfy both the pros and the casuals. :/

Yeah, maybe I should place more arrows in my levels. Always trying to prevent this, I don't know why. But, thanks again for your time, reviews and stars.

Time to play some of your after-update levels. :3
 

Ranger X

Member
Why no smart power-ups? I just do not get this at all. You should reward good players, and if that means retooling your level a bit, most players will appreciate it. The rest probably won't know any better because they're too busy trying to survive.

In the Thwomp cave, I really liked the sliding puzzle, but I didn't like the wall jumping. The space was too tight, and there was too little indication of what to do. I got through it OK, but a lot of players wouldn't. The coin amid the pipes shortly after that (I think it's the third coin?) spits Mario out into a pit, dropping blindly from above. This is no good! You might need to playtest more thoroughly -- think of everything someone can do to break a level. You have a platform below that coin -- you just need to move it to where someone's likely to land on it. But I really like the use of semi-solid platforms as a guide -- where Mario can hide safely, where the skewers will end, etc.

The ease of finding the invincibility star undermines the challenge of the boss room, and that definitely undermines the pile of pink coins you want the player to find. Once you beat the bosses you can just clobber everything with the fire clown car, and it's super easy to do that with an easily found star before the encounter.

I wanted to like this level more than I did. I like the skewers set against the sunny, flowery setting, and I generally really liked how you used the skewers, too. But I can't ignore the stuff that's holding this all back. I hope this isn't coming across as too negative.


Thanks for your precious feedback. You actually want me to revisit the level a little (I always end up doing it because there simply is some stuff you can't catch somehow and peeps around here are good at Mario). I always end up fixing my levels because well, there's nothing perfect I guess. I am definetely curious about the blind spot you found. That wasn't intended and I probably didn't notice.

About the smart power-ups, I understand the concern but besides the mushroom, I really want power-ups to be rewarding and "special". I have to many mushroom in there to have them all giving a flower. I purposedly made so the smart power ups are in the cave sections, to valorise them even more. A player that takes his time to explore and find those places will in exchange pass the pipes parts more easily.

I question removing that star power though. I placed it there thinking people wouldn't really find it 'cause I didn't want to diminish the boss encounter with it. But it seems now that everyone finds the freaking star. I think I will remove it...
 
I loved this level! Mario Bros 3 is my favorite of the series, and this felt like it came right out of world 7. It did get a bit tricky during the last half. This isn't a problem, but there were a few jumps that felt a little off.

Brilliant speedrunning stage. Some sublime choices here: Do you take the power-up, or do you go for a better time? The power-ups are all just slightly off the main path, so going for speed or style points means thinking creatively and challenging yourself as small Mario. Really great design. If I had one complaint, I'd say the checkpoint is a touch too late in the course. Really fantastic work though, I don't know how this stage was originally received but now it's among the top tier in the thread.

Thank you for the high praise. I only get to play at night after the rest of the family is in bed, and I accidentally stayed up way too late, twice, trying to finish up this level.

Jholmes, I bookmarked your levels so I'll play them soon.
 

RPGam3r

Member
First time posting in here, also first level I put enough time into that I wanted to share it.

Requires a good bit of patience for the Goomba mechanics. So it is longer slower experience than a lot of levels.

My Goomba and Me
1491-0000-01F6-66F7
1491-0000-01F6-66F7.jpg


Snagging some neat looking levels from here. Hope someone enjoys my level.
 

Ranger X

Member
Ok I went ahead and made a new version of my lastest level. (fixes)

- Move Flower Power (smart power ups)
- Improved a spot where there was a possible blind death
- Removed the secret Star Power (haha!)
- Increased Boss room space
- Added life shrooms
- Added some space for certain walljumps


CLEAR THE WAY! (v2)

BDEF-0000-01F6-87CF.jpg



Have fun!
 
Good level, very atmospheric, the gimmick is very intuitive, you understand immediately the concept, and the level itself is smooth, with a good pacing. I'm not a fan of the SMB3 style Bowser fight though, too long and random IMO.
Thanks! Glad you liked it.

Why no smart power-ups? Clever stuff in this stage (no surprise, given the time travel idea) but I don't love the boss encounter. That's mostly not your fault -- I've said it before and I'll say it again, SMB3 Bowser is a real jerk. Neat idea with the P-switch though, definitely I like the execution of the P-switch stuff.
Is it really that annoying to not have smart power-ups? I got the same feedback multiple times, lol. I refrained from using them on purpose, tbh. The stage is generally really easy, imo (boss fight aside). It'll be even a lot easier if you get a fire flower for example. I wanted the difficulty level to be maintained throughout the level.

And yeah, I added the P-Switch mechanic for the boss fight to make it short, and to not have the player struggle throwing fire balls at him for a while until he dies. I hate it when I'm forced to do that.

I don't understand the general hate on SMB3 Bowser though, lol. He might be random, but not really that big of a pain. Especially if you're not fighting him head on.

Thanks for your input!
 

Simbabbad

Member
Yet, it has a completion rate of 10%. It's impossible to satisfy both the pros and the casuals. :/
A lot of people do this, but don't confuse the success/attempts rate with the success/visits rate. The first one in your level is indeed 9% right now, but 51% of visitors in your level actually completed it.

Is it really that annoying to not have smart power-ups?
IMO it depends on the level, and in yours it was perfectly fine. I don't see what smart power-ups would bring to it except make the level unnecessarily easier.

- What do you mean by spike top? Just curious.
This fellows (official name):

Red_Spiked_beetle.png


- I am near my own tolerance limit before "cramped" becomes "bad". I suspect some players will need adaptation there. I think the level works good when the player takes the time to play.
I mean, you don't have much space to evolve. It's claustrophobic.

I have a question though, where it that mandatory hit you're talking about? I obviously did not design any so I am definetely curious to know what part you perceive as a mandatory hit.
Like I said, in the first cave with a pink coin, there are spikes under a one or two block wide tunnel. I don't see how you can jump above it and not be hit since your head hits the ceiling immediately.
 

BowieZ

Banned
Finally finished the fourth level in my "Super Mario Adventure" series (sprung from the first competition), which I started like 2 months ago lol.

It's a tower level, and uses five hidden red coins to activate a secret exit path, for those who want a tougher more exploration based challenge.

fgbeRr6.jpg


Super Mario Adventure: World 1-T

4826-0000-01F2-6358 (User: BowieZ)
 

tkscz

Member
So, a friend of mine created a level with the sole purpose of making sure I couldn't beat it. It's a mess but I beat it. She uploaded it and asked if I could have GAF give it a shot, so here you go.

Return to Lakatu's hideout
44F1-0000-01F3-071C

44F1-0000-01F3-071C.jpg

44F1-0000-01F3-071C_full.jpg
 

Ranger X

Member
Like I said, in the first cave with a pink coin, there are spikes under a one or two block wide tunnel. I don't see how you can jump above it and not be hit since your head hits the ceiling immediately.

Oh I understand now!
You bounce on the trampoline and crouch immediately to slide under. The spikes can be crossed with a "crouched slide jump".
 

jholmes

Member
Is it really that annoying to not have smart power-ups? I got the same feedback multiple times, lol. I refrained from using them on purpose, tbh. The stage is generally really easy, imo (boss fight aside). It'll be even a lot easier if you get a fire flower for example. I wanted the difficulty level to be maintained throughout the level.

First, and it's a minor point, but worth noting: Since Nintendo would never not use smart power-ups, getting another mushroom can break immersion along with making the level feel like a cheapskate.

Furthermore, remember that there are different ways for people to play your level in Super Mario Maker. You might think it's too easy (don't forget that it's easy to find your own level easier than it is) but someone more inexperienced might find it tougher. Someone playing on 100-Mario Challenge who has already died four or five times -- not excessive when played on its own, but a big stumbling block in that mode -- might want to be helped out with a flower or leaf after a good run. And someone putting in a speedrun might be ignoring the power-ups altogether!

Here's the thing of it, though: The same person who would get, in your example, a fire flower, is the same person who already finds your level easy enough that they aren't getting hit between power-up blocks. If you're afraid people will find your level too easy, things like pits don't care what power-up you have. And last but not least, a little secret: People like feeling like they're good at the game. Throwing in a flower might make part of the stage a breeze, but the player will feel like they earned it, and feel like they're good at the game when they fly by part of the level. Often the illusion of difficulty is more powerful than actual difficulty.

All just food for thought. I really did like the level!
 
Heh. Nintendo deleted one of my levels because it was "unpopular", I guess? It was a big level, one of my favorites of the levels I've made and took hours to create. I wanted to go back to add some stuff to it and re-upload (coins, checkpoints) but they won't even let me upload with revisions. The whole file has been flagged. That's incredibly shitty of them, honestly.
 

tkscz

Member
Heh. Nintendo deleted one of my levels because it was "unpopular", I guess? It was a big level, one of my favorites of the levels I've made and took hours to create. I wanted to go back to add some stuff to it and re-upload (coins, checkpoints) but they won't even let me upload with revisions. The whole file has been flagged. That's incredibly shitty of them, honestly.

I honestly didn't know that was a thing. Was it just like, super hard or something? Maybe it came off a bit troll-ish?
 
I honestly didn't know that was a thing. Was it just like, super hard or something? Maybe it came off a bit troll-ish?

Not trolling in the least. Very straight forward level. Probably too long for people to want to beat which is why I was going back to add checkpoints. (I haven't played in a while, obviously) It was a fire castle / ice caves NSMB level that switched back and forth between the environments.

I don't remember the stats the last I checked it, unfortunately. Also unfortunate is that Nintendo is not all specific about why they deleted it or let me review the stats of the level at the time it was deleted so I can see what was going on.

I guess I'll just remake it one day and then post it on here so it can maybe get one star to stay on Nintendo's good side.

Edit: I mean, how could it even be "too hard". This is a game that has a "super expert" difficulty level and requires you to persoanally beat your level before uploading. I don't get it. Just make sure your levels get some stars or they'll probably be deleted too!
 

tkscz

Member
Not trolling in the least. Very straight forward level. Probably too long for people to want to beat which is why I was going back to add checkpoints. (I haven't played in a while, obviously) It was a fire castle / ice caves NSMB level that switched back and forth between the environments.

I don't remember the stats the last I checked it, unfortunately. Also unfortunate is that Nintendo is not all specific about why they deleted it or let me review the stats of the level at the time it was deleted so I can see what was going on.

I guess I'll just remake it one day and then post it on here so it can maybe get one star to stay on Nintendo's good side.

Edit: I mean, how could it even be "too hard". This is a game that has a "super expert" difficulty level and requires you to persoanally beat your level before uploading. I don't get it. Just make sure your levels get some stars or they'll probably be deleted too!

I'll admit it is strange when streamer Vinesauce's Sponge level is still up. It IS purposely a troll level with the only way to beat it being super hidden. Only reason me and probably the majority of people who played it beat it because we watched the stream in which he made it.

But I can see a level being too long getting a lot of quits before the check points were added.
 
R

Rösti

Unconfirmed Member
I started working on a sequel to my Blockoland course. Some people wanted a checkpoint for the original level, so that's going to be included in the new one at least. Let's see if I can incorporate those skewers.
 

Inkwell

Banned
My new level is complete, but I'm having a difficult time picking out a name. Here's a few I came up with:

Baron Kuribo's Skewery Castle
Baron Kuribo's Screwy Skewery
Baron Kuribo's Crusher Castle
Goomba McSpiny's Crusher Keep
and any other permutation of these that fits the character limit.

Any suggestions? Are all of these just bad? It's the worst part of posting a level.

A lot of moving parts on this one so please do let me know if you find bugs. Hope you are up to beating the "boss" ;)

Title: A Ghost in the Shell
Style: NSMBU
Code: E3BB-0000-01EE-1CAC
Difficulty: Normal
Bookmark:https://supermariomakerbookmark.nintendo.net/courses/E3BB-0000-01EE-1CAC

E3BB-0000-01EE-1CAC.jpg

I didn't complete the level because I got soft-locked twice in the same place. I think it's around the middle of the second section of the level. Right after that diamond shape of coins. I hit the note block to make the bob-omb appear and clear the way for the shell, and it destroyed the shell both times.

I played a level in 100 Mario today that deserves sharing called Mad Mario: Fury Road. It has a really cool aesthetic and a moment with the best use of sound blocks I've ever seen. Give it a play, it deserves some stars.

https://supermariomakerbookmark.nintendo.net/courses/2CE5-0000-0160-8E89

That was fantastic! Thanks for posting this. A little ways into the level I was thinking "all the level needs is
the guitar guy
". I was not disappointed. It's so rare to come across a good level in 100 mario runs, let alone something as awesome as this.
 

jholmes

Member
I played a level in 100 Mario today that deserves sharing called Mad Mario: Fury Road. It has a really cool aesthetic and a moment with the best use of sound blocks I've ever seen. Give it a play, it deserves some stars.

https://supermariomakerbookmark.nintendo.net/courses/2CE5-0000-0160-8E89

Funny enough, there was already a level posted in the thread with that name, so I was confused why it was coming up again. I also thought that was the name of Sporky's level, but he used a similar but different name. (Also his level does NOT need any more stars.)

My new level is complete, but I'm having a difficult time picking out a name. Here's a few I came up with:

Baron Kuribo's Skewery Castle
Baron Kuribo's Screwy Skewery
Baron Kuribo's Crusher Castle
Goomba McSpiny's Crusher Keep
and any other permutation of these that fits the character limit.

Any suggestions? Are all of these just bad? It's the worst part of posting a level.

Skewer Shark!!!

Nah seriously go with Screwy Skewery, great name.
 

eviltasan

Member
I didn't complete the level because I got soft-locked twice in the same place. I think it's around the middle of the second section of the level. Right after that diamond shape of coins. I hit the note block to make the bob-omb appear and clear the way for the shell, and it destroyed the shell both times.

OK thanks will check it out!
 
First, and it's a minor point, but worth noting: Since Nintendo would never not use smart power-ups, getting another mushroom can break immersion along with making the level feel like a cheapskate.

Furthermore, remember that there are different ways for people to play your level in Super Mario Maker. You might think it's too easy (don't forget that it's easy to find your own level easier than it is) but someone more inexperienced might find it tougher. Someone playing on 100-Mario Challenge who has already died four or five times -- not excessive when played on its own, but a big stumbling block in that mode -- might want to be helped out with a flower or leaf after a good run. And someone putting in a speedrun might be ignoring the power-ups altogether!

Here's the thing of it, though: The same person who would get, in your example, a fire flower, is the same person who already finds your level easy enough that they aren't getting hit between power-up blocks. If you're afraid people will find your level too easy, things like pits don't care what power-up you have. And last but not least, a little secret: People like feeling like they're good at the game. Throwing in a flower might make part of the stage a breeze, but the player will feel like they earned it, and feel like they're good at the game when they fly by part of the level. Often the illusion of difficulty is more powerful than actual difficulty.

All just food for thought. I really did like the level!
Good points. I'll keep it in my mind next time.

Thanks. :)
 

Inkwell

Banned
Skewer Shark!!!

Nah seriously go with Screwy Skewery, great name.

Baron Kuribo's Screwy Skewery it is!

4039-0000-01F7-7293.jpg


I put a lot of work into this, so let me know if any of you find something seriously wrong with it so I can fix it.

Obviously from the name, skewers figure into everything in the level one way or another. I honestly don't know about the overall difficulty. There's a mini-boss fight, as well as a final "boss" fight. I put that in quotes since it's not really a fight. It's more of an endurance thing where you need to stay alive.

Speaking of the boss fight, some people will find it incredibly difficult, and others fairly easy. There's also a way to seriously cheese it as well. I tried to counter it a bit but didn't do well enough. I decided to leave it in since I think people like to figure that kind of thing out.
 
All right, I don't really have much time to do the full reviews and quote people, but hopefully this does it. If I played your level, you can be sure it's been starred as well!

Audrey's Stronghold - Have to say the beginning had a confusing layout, but I loved the visual design.

A Castle in Time - Overall a fun course.

Perilous Pipes v2 - Awesome SMB3 feels even though very linear.

Incinerator - Intense! Love the patterns and timing.

Topsy-Turvy Waluigi (Mansion) - Intricate and beautiful.

Great courses from GAF as always.

My latest:
Stowaway
 

woopWOOP

Member
My reward Costume:
Baby Mario from Yoshi's Island
Haha, oh man. I can image the sound effects for that one.

A quick Google tells me that most of the SE rewards are
obscure, retro Nintendo characters... exactly the kind I want!
I finished a Super Expert round and was awarded a Zelda, I guess because I don't have all the Medium/Expert rewards yet :/
 

BGBW

Maturity, bitches.
My last expert run was almost all fairly normal levels. It was like a miracle. Super Expert mode seems to have helped.
 

fhqwhgads

Member
Haha, oh man. I can image the sound effects for that one.

A quick Google tells me that most of the SE rewards are
obscure, retro Nintendo characters... exactly the kind I want!
I finished a Super Expert round and was awarded a Zelda, I guess because I don't have all the Medium/Expert rewards yet :/
I did SE for the first time and i got a shitty animal crossing one, man i want
Ella Mentree
so bad ;_;
 
Just cleared my first Super Expert run

My reward Costume:
Baby Mario from Yoshi's Island

I got the same one on my first Super Expert clear.

I got to my last stage with two lives left and immediately botched a super easy jump. I completed the whole last stage with no lives left.

It was nerve wracking to say the least.
 

KingBroly

Banned
I got the same one on my first Super Expert clear.

I got to my last stage with two lives left and immediately botched a super easy jump. I completed the whole last stage with no lives left.

It was nerve wracking to say the least.

My run ended with 78 lives remaining

so...yeah
 

jholmes

Member
I made a new level! I was going to call it Skewer Shark but chickened out at the last minute. You know what that means, GAF: The name is still yours for the taking!

I invite you to play Skewer Sewer!



This is an underwater autoscrolling level and I know some of you hate both those things, but I hope anyone who plays it has fun. It's kinda quick and not super tough. I'd like to think some extra challenge comes from trying to get the pink coins.

OK, a little bit of feedback:

First time posting in here, also first level I put enough time into that I wanted to share it.

Requires a good bit of patience for the Goomba mechanics. So it is longer slower experience than a lot of levels.

My Goomba and Me
1491-0000-01F6-66F7
1491-0000-01F6-66F7.jpg


Snagging some neat looking levels from here. Hope someone enjoys my level.

Oh, geez. I really, really wanted to like this level. I started and saw there was a Goomba to free and bring throughout the level and had this big smile on my face. But sadly the smile didn't last so long.

This level is ambitious, and the downside to that is a lot of ambitious levels get released broken. This is definitely one of those. There are lots of places to get stuck before the first checkpoint -- you kill the goomba and you're done, you hit the first note block yourself and you're done, you lose your mushroom before you break the first block and you lose. This is a problem! And there are lots of pits in this part of the level, many of them far below Mario so you can fall in them blind, and many of them very small. You use a lot of koopas in this level and I think they're not a great choice because they can serve as a red herring -- the player can think they'll need to take a shell instead of the goomba. I'd use different enemies, the shells are just a distraction.

After the first checkpoint, you can get the key without the goomba -- you just run straight for the note block before the pipe, smack the block and get the key. Easy peasy, onto the next one.

The bombs don't respawn after the second checkpoint -- not fatal, as you can go back through the pipe before the flag, but definitely not ideal. Why not give a smart power-up next to Bowser and let the player get a cape if they got there while big? There's nowhere to fly, so I don't see the downside. The Bowser fight is actually really fun (although if you lose your mushroom before breaking the blocks it's unbeatable) but there are a lot of areas in this part of the level where the ceiling sticks down, making some jumps unnecessarily tough.

So you beat Bowser, and there's no checkpoint. Like, really? Have mercy, you just BEAT BOWSER and there's no checkpoint. After you beat the following room -- which is short but has a very hard-to-manage puzzle at the end -- you're screwed if you don't enter the next room with the goomba, which is what I did. And that's where I just gave up, because I had spent a ton of time on this level already.

There are so many fantastic ideas in this level but you have to playtest every level before uploading them and try to break them -- especially a very complicated level like this. You made a very creative stage and have a good eye for level design but I just can't recommend this as it stands, I was very frustrated.

Baron Kuribo's Screwy Skewery it is!

4039-0000-01F7-7293.jpg


I put a lot of work into this, so let me know if any of you find something seriously wrong with it so I can fix it.

I got a kick out of your anti-cheese countermeasures before the boss. Really, really strong stage. I didn't love the end boss, but the rest is fantastic. A bit of a missed opportunity: You should've had something to reward players who survived the boss with extra hits left, like say putting a 1-up underneath breakable blocks to spin-jump on. Great level though, the Internet will eat this bad boy up.
 

Kaban

Member
Finally uploaded a new level the other day.

Wingin' it to the POW Train
8ED6-0000-01F6-8916_full.jpg

Played around with some different concepts involving wings. It's a little tricky and admittedly a bit unpolished, but I had a lot of fun making/testing it. I discovered the mechanic of the last section quite by accident!

As long as I'm signal blasting, I'll do one of my other courses:

Playing with Fire: Bomb Edition
6CE1-0000-0109-3B1E_full.jpg

Bomb-inspired platforming and puzzles!
 

KingBroly

Banned
Did an Expert run and got
Ayumi Tachibana from Famicom Detective Club Part II...yeah...

Super Expert definitely made Expert a lot easier.
 
Hmm, after playing and commenting on some courses here the other day I forgot to throw my new pair onto the GAF backlog.

Perplexing Pillar Palace


Is not actually perplexing, really just a simple use of them newfangled pillars and coin collecting gimmicks.
I'm sure many of us saw the update get revealed in the direct and immediately thought of Marching Milde's fort from Yoshi's Island.
But unlike that inspiration this is pretty short and simple I hope.

Coins in the Coral City

And another coin collectathon in a more open space, this was basically me thinking of Super Mario Galaxy and how it would scatter the 5 star pieces to make a launcher in some areas.
So really it shouldn't be tricky, just thought I'd experiment with an open water stage.
 

Dimentios

Member
Topsy-turvy Waluigi (Plains)
Wow. Brilliant level. A little bit confusing to be honest, but I very much enjoyed it. Fair placement of ?-Mushrooms.

Spike Fields
Adventurous SMB3 level. Great place for exploring, but also perfect for speedrunning.
Right difficulty.

Crumbling Castle
Again, a very fair level. The feeling of a crumbling fortress was great.
The "boss" maybe too easy, since the parabeetle (?) shell took all the work and stacked up my invisible 1UP-Count.
Anyhow, great level.

Skewer Sewer
Ahh, what a godlike water level. No complaints here. It felt absolutely right. Thank you!

Perplexing Pillar Palace
That Yoshi's Island 4-4 feeling. A little short perhaps, but I like that idea and execution. Every room felt unique.
Nice.

Coins in the Coral City
Same as your other level. Although I liked the palace much better. Water, you know?
Nethertheless, good job.

Baron Kuribo's Screwy Skewery
One of the best SMW Castle levels I ever played.
Only the boss was veeeery hard for me. Until I found a sweet point where nothing could hit me. :3
The pre-boss upgrades are quite useless, since you can dodge better when you are small.

Needless to say, I stared every level.
 

Inkwell

Banned
So, I had started to pick up my old "Mario Kart Assault" series again, but the update changed my focus to another series I paused after just one level: "Topsy-turvy Waluigi".

The concept of Topsy-turvy Waluigi is to pay homage to the openness, tone, platforming and exploration/light puzzle elements of Wario Land, but with a gimmick : when you go through a door, you actually go behind the level. Areas in the open air are therefore symmetrical, but ground areas and areas with backdrops differ since you can see what's "on the other side". Here's an example in the first level, Topsy-turvy Waluigi (Plains) (link gets you to the bookmark site):



I had started creating a ghost mansion sequel quite some time ago, but managing the openness with the Super Mario Maker options back then was a nightmare - but everything changed thanks to the pink coin update! So here is Topsy-turvy Waluigi (Mansion) (53DE-0000-01F5-35F6):



This is probably the level I like the most out of all the ones I've done so far, I haven't worked so enthusiastically on a level since Metroid Resurgence. Waluigi ventures into a ghost mansion but gets trapped there, and he must explore it to retrieve eight pink coins to get the key and escape. The level has a main hall that more or less works as a hub, and you can go from there and get the coins in any order - of course, the series gimmick of "flipping" the level is used a lot here, example with the very first door you use:



The level isn't hard in the sense that each area is easy individually, but you have to be curious to find every coin, remember where stuff is, and not waste too much time. To relax and not be frustrated because of the time limit or having to redo stuff you've done already, I actually created a genuine SAVE point (not just a checkpoint):



The way it works is actually very simple: you get to the checkpoint flag into the first picture, become big Mario, have to go through the pipe, then the second checkpoint is activated (second picture), and by the time you fall down to the second pipe, it generates the Waluigi costume. That way, every time you use this save point, the flags get activated one after the other and save your coin progression, and you get the Waluigi costume back - you can't lose your progress before you get the key. Only downside: the save point does NOT remember keys, so do NOT save once you got it (I warned about this through a Miiverse comment), or you'll get back to square one if you die after you "saved". The path from the save point to the exit isn't very hard, though, it's unlikely you die in this sequence, so hopefully it shouldn't be an issue.

I also updated the first series episode, Topsy-turvy Waluigi (Plains):



I added a checkpoint (it didn't have any), I sped up/smoothed out some areas, made a sequence more intuitive, and the pink coins/locked door, while not changing at all the order in which you're supposed to do things, makes level progression a lot more fluid with less potential meandering/confusion.

These were some very fun levels, and they look really good as well. You really know how to use the SMB items to make some nice looking levels. I'm kind of stealing your checkpoint idea for a small level I'm working on at the moment! Very cool concept that worked fairly well.

This level is actually older than the last one I posted but I had to erase it for reasons and I didn't get to show it:

Spike fields (796C-0000-01F0-44D9)

kp119TQ.jpg


It has a traditional main path but if you want to explore there are a couple of alternative routes with extra rewards and challenges.

I'm usually not a fan of multi-path levels, but you did a pretty good job. It's always more fun when the alternate path is something you have to discover, instead of just choose the high or low road.

First time posting in here, also first level I put enough time into that I wanted to share it.

Requires a good bit of patience for the Goomba mechanics. So it is longer slower experience than a lot of levels.

My Goomba and Me
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Snagging some neat looking levels from here. Hope someone enjoys my level.

It's a neat concept and can be fun, but I feel like there's a few issues. First is that you require a semi-advanced technique (spin jump carrying something) that's not needed anywhere else, nor is there any other part that requires any other advanced skill. It feels off. Plus you don't even need the goomba for the 2nd section at all. you can just sneak past the thwomps and get the key from the note block yourself.

I made a new level! I was going to call it Skewer Shark but chickened out at the last minute. You know what that means, GAF: The name is still yours for the taking!

I invite you to play Skewer Sewer!



This is an underwater autoscrolling level and I know some of you hate both those things, but I hope anyone who plays it has fun. It's kinda quick and not super tough. I'd like to think some extra challenge comes from trying to get the pink coins.

Should have called it Skewer Shark!

Seriously though, this was a fantastic level. This is a perfect example of how using some restraint can really make a level shine. The coins really added to the level. I loved their placement. None of them were too difficult to get, but you still had to work for them. This is probably one of the best water levels I've played. I wonder how a level like this would work carrying an item like a shell? The extra maneuverability and speed could make things interesting.

I got a kick out of your anti-cheese countermeasures before the boss. Really, really strong stage. I didn't love the end boss, but the rest is fantastic. A bit of a missed opportunity: You should've had something to reward players who survived the boss with extra hits left, like say putting a 1-up underneath breakable blocks to spin-jump on. Great level though, the Internet will eat this bad boy up.

Thanks! People don't seem to like it, but I was so happy with the "boss" fight initially. I was pretty upset when I found out there was those safe spots, and even after I tried to fix it. The funny thing is, though, I think back to all the really difficult bosses from classic games (maybe some current ones as well). It's a revelation when you find some trick or exploit to get past some really difficult boss. I was hoping maybe it would give some people that same feeling.

If I hadn't used SMW I would have done that boss differently. Had I used SMB3 I would have used goomba tubes so there was some fighting while you wait, and maybe have a skewer work it's way to opening another pipe that had winged goombas. I just don't like the way goombas work in SMW. I know you can spin jump on them but it's not the same.

You're right about that 1-up idea. I wish I would have done something like that.

Finally uploaded a new level the other day.

Wingin' it to the POW Train
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Played around with some different concepts involving wings. It's a little tricky and admittedly a bit unpolished, but I had a lot of fun making/testing it. I discovered the mechanic of the last section quite by accident!

As long as I'm signal blasting, I'll do one of my other courses:

Playing with Fire: Bomb Edition
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Bomb-inspired platforming and puzzles!

Both of these were pretty fun! That was neat with the pow train. I actually did the first part completely by accident while I panicked. Also, I have never seen a fireball riding a clown car. Very clever use of that by the way.

Hmm, after playing and commenting on some courses here the other day I forgot to throw my new pair onto the GAF backlog.

Perplexing Pillar Palace


Is not actually perplexing, really just a simple use of them newfangled pillars and coin collecting gimmicks.
I'm sure many of us saw the update get revealed in the direct and immediately thought of Marching Milde's fort from Yoshi's Island.
But unlike that inspiration this is pretty short and simple I hope.

Coins in the Coral City

And another coin collectathon in a more open space, this was basically me thinking of Super Mario Galaxy and how it would scatter the 5 star pieces to make a launcher in some areas.
So really it shouldn't be tricky, just thought I'd experiment with an open water stage.

Pillar palace was a little too short. You made good use of the new course elements.

Coral city was short too, but it didn't feel too short. You got me at the part with the fish blocks!
 

VandalD

Member
I like this a lot before the checkpoint. After the checkpoint it's a mad dash, and you don't really give the player any indication they're supposed to be running for their lives. A couple jumps in the latter half are super tight, too. Worth mentioning: One time, Bowser spawned on me before the one-way block, which meant I was screwed. Didn't happen any other time though, so maybe that's a one-off glitch. (Maybe Bowser's jealous of your level and needs to ruin your good time?)
I thought that the level felt very fair. I think the difficulty was perfect. If I had one criticism, it would be that the ending section clashes with the rest of the level. The majority of the time it's coin collecting and methodical platforming, but then you get to the hectic skewer fest that's kind of the antithesis of the rest of your level. Don't get me wrong, I think both parts are very fun, but it may have served you better to use that ending in a different level.
I figured the setup with the whole row of skewers would clue people in. If they stop before the first skewer, then they still have a path to jump through. If they charge through the first skewer, well, better keep moving! I agree it's pretty out of place. Weird thing is that I retooled the sub area after making the final area so that there aren't just suddenly skewers. The final part is maybe too unforgiving. Glad I put a checkpoint right at the door's exit.

Not sure how Bowser could possibly spawn there.. but if he does, he'll probably just stomp through the ground to his death. You can actually do this by just standing in the little one-way area anyway. Bit of a flaw in the level there.

Thanks for playing!
 

Simbabbad

Member
Topsy-turvy Waluigi (Plains)
Wow. Brilliant level. A little bit confusing to be honest, but I very much enjoyed it. Fair placement of ?-Mushrooms.
Thank you! It's meant to be a puzzle/exploration level in the vein of Wario Land where you have to mentally map the level, and it was actually more confusing at first since the locked door wasn't locked before the update, now I think it's better balanced.

If you liked it, you'll probably enjoy even more its sequel, Topsy-turvy Waluigi (Mansion).

These were some very fun levels, and they look really good as well. You really know how to use the SMB items to make some nice looking levels. I'm kind of stealing your checkpoint idea for a small level I'm working on at the moment! Very cool concept that worked fairly well.
Thank you! I actually made only SMB levels so far, so I acquired experience with its themes and I know how to achieve some effects. I'm particularly pleased with how the Mansion level looks.

Please do borrow my save point concept, I explained it in detail in my post so the people who like it can use it. Just remember to put a warning about the key not being saved so people don't get screwed (or I guess it could be solved naturally if the save point is right next to the door, and the other side of the door is right next the level end, then people can't really die after saving with the key).
 

jholmes

Member
Not sure how Bowser could possibly spawn there.. but if he does, he'll probably just stomp through the ground to his death. You can actually do this by just standing in the little one-way area anyway. Bit of a flaw in the level there.

I'm not sure how he spawned there either, but as I recall it's above solid ground so it's fatal because he'll never be able to jump out of there, and since it's one-way you can't goad him out or attack him directly. Hopefully it's just a very wild one-off glitch, it seemed like the weirdest thing to me too.
 

Inkwell

Banned
Please do borrow my save point concept, I explained it in detail in my post so the people who like it can use it. Just remember to put a warning about the key not being saved so people don't get screwed (or I guess it could be solved naturally if the save point is right next to the door, and the other side of the door is right next the level end, then people can't really die after saving with the key).

I just realized this issue today. There's a hub area, and the save point is right next to a locked door. The problem is that I'm planning on doing section after the door. As it stands right now, if the player died after using the key for the door they would have to play the entire level again. I have 2 options:

1. Add a single checkpoint where the player can choose when to use it, and one right after the door.
2. Place the ending right after the key door.

I'm going with option 1 for now. I have a really interesting idea to try for the next section. If I can't get it to work I'll just go with option 2.
 
Do people have any articles or the like discussing how to design levels? Before launch the series that had me most hyped was The Daily Mario by Jeremy Parish at USGamer:

http://www.usgamer.net/articles/the-daily-mario-day-1-hes-so-basic

Earlier today I was searching for some articles I read on Mario Worlds design and found that the guy also put out some videos after Mario Makers release. It seemed really interesting so I thought I'd share it here.

http://gamedevelopment.tutsplus.com...-with-the-super-mario-world-method--cms-25177

I also recently rewatched a gamexplain video from around release with the guy analyzing some design elements from older Mario games and making a Mario Maker course with those elements. Sadly, I can't find it right now.
 

Dimentios

Member
I am proud to announce that my tenth made level, Sawblade Walker, miraculously, earned over 1000 stars since uploading. This is totally awesome.
According to Miiverse, most of the players found it in the 100er Challenge (Difficulty Hard) and were surprised to find it there,
since it's actually not really difficult.
Sure, the last part of the level can be tricky, because the mechanic is kinda half-baked.
Nethertheless, it also helps that it can be found all the time in the recommended section of the bookmarking page.
I can also thank GAF and reddit for that of course.

Thank you very much.



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Ground Pound to Victory!
Rather short and there are kinda cheap deaths if you ground-pound in the pit.

Wingin' it to the POW Train
Very solid level with a nice technique. The part with a train can be a bit tricky.
I guess take/throw is smarter than groundpounding, eh? Good job.

Cold Cavern
Hunting for coins in the cold caverns. I liked it really lot. The first powerup could appear a lot sooner
(maybe the beginning) and the room with the piranha plants is quite difficult without a powerup. Nice.

The in and outs of the mansion 2
Don't know if mentioned already, but if you die after the first checkpoint, you gain a spare key, and therefore
could skip the battle with bowser. It's a very great metroid-esque, Yoshi's Island 4-4 style level.
Only the time is tight. Very tight. Seems to be impossible if you're playing it blind without dying.

Topsy-turvy Waluigi (Mansion)
Dude. Besides the obvious flaws (time limit and dying with key means rage) this is pretty damn good.
Of course if you build levels like this, there is no room for any secrets.
The checkpoint should be a little more central and be in reach at any time, which is obviously a difficult task,
but maybe you can figure it out. Great work.

Perilous Pipes v2
Ah, that SMB3 World 7 nostalgia. Nothing to say here, very cool adaptation.
Some secrets would be great tho. Unless I didn't find them.
 

GokouD

Member
Time for some feedback!


Baron Kuribo's Screwy Skewery it is!

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I put a lot of work into this, so let me know if any of you find something seriously wrong with it so I can fix it.

Obviously from the name, skewers figure into everything in the level one way or another. I honestly don't know about the overall difficulty. There's a mini-boss fight, as well as a final "boss" fight. I put that in quotes since it's not really a fight. It's more of an endurance thing where you need to stay alive.

Speaking of the boss fight, some people will find it incredibly difficult, and others fairly easy. There's also a way to seriously cheese it as well. I tried to counter it a bit but didn't do well enough. I decided to leave it in since I think people like to figure that kind of thing out.

A really enjoyable level, and beautifully presented, it really does look like a proper mario level. I wasn't keen on the boss, but I found out how to cheese it, so it was ok. There were a couple of points where you had a very small window to get past a skewer, which is fine, but felt a little out of place in the context of the general difficulty level. Overall fantastic though.


I made a new level! I was going to call it Skewer Shark but chickened out at the last minute. You know what that means, GAF: The name is still yours for the taking!

I invite you to play Skewer Sewer!



This is an underwater autoscrolling level and I know some of you hate both those things, but I hope anyone who plays it has fun. It's kinda quick and not super tough. I'd like to think some extra challenge comes from trying to get the pink coins.

A really nice relaxed level, that goes to show autoscrolling and water can be fun.

Finally uploaded a new level the other day.

Wingin' it to the POW Train
8ED6-0000-01F6-8916_full.jpg

Played around with some different concepts involving wings. It's a little tricky and admittedly a bit unpolished, but I had a lot of fun making/testing it. I discovered the mechanic of the last section quite by accident!

As long as I'm signal blasting, I'll do one of my other courses:

Playing with Fire: Bomb Edition
6CE1-0000-0109-3B1E_full.jpg

Bomb-inspired platforming and puzzles!

These two are really clever and inventive! The actual POW train was a bit easy to screw up by throwing the wrong ones or getting crushed at the end, but very cool none the less.


I wish I could leave more feedback but I don't have a computer and typing this stuff up on the Wii U is a huge pain! I have played all the levels people have shared though.
 
You didn't watch a gamexplain video. You watched GameMaker's Toolkit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0c5Le1vGp4

(bonus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBmIkEvEBtA)

Thanks for this!

Perilous Pipes v2
Ah, that SMB3 World 7 nostalgia. Nothing to say here, very cool adaptation.
Some secrets would be great tho. Unless I didn't find them.

Thank you for the feedback. Ive bookmarked some of your levels.

I have a couple hidden blocks to make jumping shortcuts but otherwise not much in terms of secrets. Maybe it's time for Perilous Pipes v3!
 
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