A second view - Reviews by Trindall - *Request queue closed*

[Trindall]

Title: "Profecy" Survival Challenge *Updated*
Author: Frank_Burns
Description: “You attempt to save a guy so he can tell you the Profecy. Zombies attack in a huge wave and keep coming.”
Forum Post: http://www.lbpforum.net/showthread.p...1199#post41199

Review

Visuals:
This level drops you into a small room or courtyard with electrified zombies coming in from the left and a large person sitting against the wall on the right. It is night and there are palm trees on either side of the active play area.

The decoration in the play area is minimal and the zombies themselves are similarly simple affairs consisting of a humanoid looking object, painted black with a creature brain and a single eye.

Once the player either succeeds or fails in the survival challenge they will be returned to a command center looking location that looks a lot more detailed and fleshed out than the zombie infestation site.

Depending on how far you progress in the level you may be greeted with large blocks of dissolve material pinned to the ceiling with score bubbles embedded in them which seems quite out of place to the high-tech appearing command center. Though the command center is visually the most appealing portion of the level there is still a noticeable lack of visual cohesiveness to the level.

The command center is hovering(?), floating(?) or built right above the courtyard yet the two are completely different visually or thematically such that I’m at a bit of a loss as to how they fit into the level in general in general.

Challenge:
This level starts off very quickly and gets right to the challenge. You start the level and within seconds will need to start shooting the oncoming waves of zombies. The zombies are staggered on all three layers such that the player needs to constantly shift layers to keep all of the monsters at bay.

Initially this level has some fast and furious action but soon devolves into an easily recognizable pattern. The zombies are emitted in a particular sync and the pattern soon becomes apparent and never changes. Once the player sees the pattern the difficulty of the level decreases significantly.

Couple this with the ability to simply hold down the R1 button to continuously fire the paint gun and the skill required to survive the zombies becomes a practice in repeatedly shifting layers, back, middle, front, back, middle, front and so on. As there is no change in pattern to the zombies, no additional threats or change of situation to increase the challenge this level sits in the easy level in terms of challenge.

Pacing:
This level has two modes which consist of steady shooting of zombies for a minute or two followed by a short stretch of walking to collect your reward. As far as survival challenge levels are concerned this level gets the concept down very well. A survival challenge should get the player into the heart of the level, the challenge, with a minimum of fuss or detour.

Once the player either fails or finishes they are deposited next to the scoreboard letting players choose to cash in their score or restart the level to try for a higher one. Again this is a well implemented survival challenge mechanic that is handled well in this level.

As far as the actual challenge is concerned the pacing is not managed as well. As noted earlier there is no variety or alteration to the threat and as such the pacing starts and ends at the same level and there is no sense of build-up or achievement against a steadily increasing threat.

Replayability:
It is very easy to replay this level again and again. Frank_Burns has put together a level that easily facilitates multiple plays but does not offer much incentive to do so. There are more score bubbles awarded for surviving longer but as the whole challenge is finite and lasts at most a minute or two one can quickly reach the high score in a few plays.

The waves of zombies is also static and does not offer the promise of a harder enemy or a more challenging set of adversaries.

Quirks/Oddities:
--If you die early and return to the control center you will see all of the different blocks of dissolve material with the score bubblse inside of them but the player can easily jump up, grab the dissolve material blocks and swing from one end to the other and collect sixty percent of the score bubbles without even needing to survive the challenge at all.

It would be good to either raise up the blocks higher so that they can’t be jumped up to or, better yet, hide them completely by placing them off screen, make the prize emitted or any other of many ways to hide this particular aspect.

--When the player dies and returns to the command center a board falls down to cover up the hole. The material this board is made from is extremely light and the player can push or pull this out the way and jump back down very easily. It would be good to rework this so as to not allow reentry.

--If the player does jump back down from the command center it is possible to land on the roof of the building and from the right side can jump out into the tree areas. It looks like you’ve accounted for this with gas which is a good bit of foresight but it’d be better to not let the player jump back down.

--There is a single zombie that does not move at all and is sitting in the front layer to the farthest left. I’m not sure if you intend this one zombie to sit there and act as a control mechanism for the ending gas sequence or if this zombie is just lost or stuck where it is at. If it is used to keep the gas from descending between waves of zombies there are cleaner ways to go about that and if it is stuck then it’d be good to clean that up.

--The prize bubble you give away is titled ‘sombie2’. I’m not sure if you wanted it to be called this versus something like ‘zombie’ but I thought I’d bring it up.

Rating/Closing thoughts:

This title and introduction to this level tell the player that there is a prophecy to be found or heard. Possibly it is some inside joke by the creator but the only prophecy to be found is in the level title. It is a bit of bait-and-switch going on here and it doesn’t seem to lead to anything useful or interesting.

As best I can figure the whole level out there is a big flying command center airship that drops you off to protect a single person from zombies. Instead of being the stated informant about a mysterious prophecy he just turns out to be just a practical joker who made up the prophecy bit and laughs at the player even as you save his life in the middle of a zombie infestation.

Huh?

Survival challenges are typically light on the story department but this one has a story to beat them all. This level’s premise and execution wouldn’t be so ridiculous if the whole prophecy bit was dropped and the actual zombies hordes was the focus of the level.

Aside from the oddity of the storyline this level does work as a simple survival challenge though there are many rough edges and awkwardness in places.

Players who enjoy challenging survival challenge levels may find this level be too predictable and straightforward to find fun or challenge. Players without much experience may find this level a great level to hone their skills on as it offers solid paintinator action with waves of electrified zombies.

[Frank_Burns]

Thanks for the review, i built this level like a month or 2 ago and didnt really understand complected mechanics. At the time i THOUGHT there was a glitch with emmiters (But i didnt really know how they worked). So thanks alot, And i tried to make the Zombies come at different times, but it didnt work real well. Ill rebuild this level if im not to busy. Thanks


Frank_Burns Out

[arklon]

Thanks for the review! I posted my response to it in the Hacker level thread so I wouldn't clog your review thread up with usless rambling hehe

[SuicidalSquirrel]

hmm i liked this review i hope to play these levels soon

[Trindall]

Title: Rally Racing
Author: Apiculturalist
Description: “"Rally Racing" is intended to add intrigue to the typical LBP race in several ways. The vehicles are 4 speed automatic. This is meant to cause the vehicles to pull away from one another or jocky for position. There are hazards of varying difficulty and danger. This causes racers to stop mid race . . . successful hazard avoidance is rewarded either with bonus points or survival or both. No holding R1 and hoping you were initially fastest.”
Forum Post: http://www.lbpforum.net/showthread.php?t=2541

Review

Visuals:
This is a level in the race car/jeep/motorcycle/rocket cheetah genre and as such I typically have not seen much in the way of visuals in similar levels I’ve played in the past. I’m happy to say that this level has put a lot of detail and atmosphere into this level despite the large expanses that comprise the total level.

The courses that you race across are not overly beautiful to look at and are fairly standard in appearance with the obligatory dips, rises, bumps, cliffs and waterfalls. These race sections look well done but not overly exciting. However the real personality and depth comes from the intermission sequences and the final victory walk to the scoreboard.

Apiculturalist has helped create the setting and atmosphere through the use of the sections between the races, there are three races total, and has turned the level into a fairly convincing two day rally race. The house where you stay the night after the first race is cleverly created with a false façade complete with stickered windows that match the real interior, nicely done.

After a interesting and suitably dark dream sequence the player needs to repair a pair of jeeps in preparation for the final race. This last intermission sequence is another well done visual break from the vast open stretches of race course that entail the level.

The best visual elements and the ones that are the most out of place is the walk of victory to the scoreboard. There are some very clean and effective stickering used here to give thanks and props to various creators. Unfortunately the use of the line of gas and seemingly abrupt appearance of the rock/cliff environment makes this area seem a bit out of character with the rest of the level

Challenge:
The biggest problem with most race levels I’ve played is that the whole thing can usually be distilled down to whoever starts accelerating first is the one who wins. Other than this one bit of interactivity, race levels tend to be just another version of the roller coaster ride though with a higher chance of the level of vehicle breaking on you.

This level offers a refreshing alternative to that tired paradigm. Players are not rewarded for simply pressing and holding R1 and need to be aware of the level in order to stop before certain hazards. This and the work done in the jeep maintenance mini-game do a lot to add spice to the genre.

I rate this level to be around an easy to moderately easy level due to the fact that players of all skill levels will be able to finish the level. The only penalty in those who fail to avoid the obstacles or finish the race objectives properly is in a reduction of points earned. There is quite a bit of points available in this level for those who enjoy competitions on the score board.

In the aspect of point collection this level does offer a good level of challenge and is quite fun to try to do.

Pacing:
This is a race level and that means that for most of it the player is simply racing from point A to point B. This level does break that action up into three separate races which does help with the story and setting but it also breaks the smoothness of the flow a bit.

The level oscillates between being a race level and being a story level and the way that each is handled is well done however the fast paced races, the stopping for the hazards in the races, the stop at the end of the race, the transition time to the next race, the stop for hazards in that race, the fixing of the jeep, the racing and final stopping all feel a bit jerky in retrospect.

Replayability/Multiplayer:
Unfortunately I was unable to play this level with another person and cannot comment on how it behaves in those instances.

I do know that the level offers a fair amount of replayability for those looking to get every score bubble possible as well as to find the elusive vehicle prize bubbles.

The level is easy enough to play and offers enough room so that a skilled player can get more points that this level does work well in subsequent plays.

Quirks/Oddities:
-- After you fix the jeep you enter the race start gate for the last race. The inverted race end gate that is also at this point has a bouquet of flowers attached to the race gate flag.

--I feel that the time it takes to transition from the first race to the dream sequence is a bit long. It is a very good transition to nighttime but it still feels a few seconds too long and becomes even more apparent when replaying the level over and over again.

Rating/Closing thoughts:

I enjoyed the level background used as it really helps to set the setting and also provides the environmental sound effects that add ambiance to the level. Lighting is used effectively to give to give the races a time of day that augment the experience.

I think that the transit truck, the crowds of onlookers, the house and other creations in this level are all good touches that add character and depth to this level in a genre that is in sore need of some creativity and revitalization. A lot of work and attention has been placed into this level and I think that the work shows.

The races themselves are fun to play and the concept of creating a manual shifting effect and in-race hazards are implemented well. Players wanting something more that a basic race level, one offering a different take on racing and offers a well visualized setting will enjoy this level. The level is deep enough to give score seekers a challenge and simple enough, with the possible exception of the jeep repair truck, that young players will have a good time as well.

[enodrawkcab]

Sorry, I didn't read the official review request forum before posting here so I came back and deleted it.

[Mnniska]

(have I posted here before? I ahve a feeling I have..Altrough I have rolled trough the tread and cant see my post anywhere o-o ..Ah well,guess I haven't posted here after all..)

I would like to request a review if you have the time

But,well,I have a question.

Can you review a whole Level Series?

I have 3 levels.

All of them are short,but hopefully fun!

I call them SBF,ShortButFun.

So,could you review my ShortButFun-series?

If you can,here are the names:

Level name 1: SBF Part 1: A Visit to the Gigantic Treehouse

Level name 2: SBF Part 2: Escape from the Death-Valley

Level name 3: SBF part 3: Up,Turn,Up!

..I had a forth level,but as it was CRUEL in its difficulity and that it really was not too good I ahve deleted it.

[Trindall]

Title: Rainbow Rush
Author: Mugsig-dk
Description: “I welcome you to a race of imagination - a colourful race! Gather some friends - it will always be most fun being more than one”
Forum Post: http://www.littlebignetwork.com/show...h-by-Mugsig-dk


Feedback/Review

Visuals:
The visual element of this level is what is immediately apparent when starting the level. This is an eclectic jumble of colors that are arranged, splashed and thrown about the level to give everything a cheerful and a quirky charm. A lot of work has gone into decorating the level, much more than I’m capable of and I admire the dedication spent making every area bit unique yet appealing to look at.

This level isn’t trying to re-create a place or genre with the visuals but rather seems to be there to set a positive mood or feeling that is refreshing. The visuals do not add to the depth of the level but do enhance the experience of the race.

Just as I thought the I’d gotten the feel of the level’s visual quirks Mugsig starts playing with the global lighting in a subtle yet stylish fashion. A good use of many elements to create an enjoyable visual style in the level.

Atmosphere:
This is a level that is bubbling with color and variety. It is unabashedly a race-to-the-end obstacle course that is filled with a wide variety of challenges that are off-beat and in character with the quirky feeling of the level.

This level doesn’t try to be or do more than what is as a race level and every decoration and object in the level is geared towards that purpose.

Challenge:
This level is a race that is peppered throughout with obstacles of varying degrees of difficulty. I’d rate this level as easy to moderate challenge though the level is long enough and with enough different sections that there is added challenge for those looking to do speed runs or, of course, play through the level with a group of other players.

This level uses all three layers very effectively to increase the race challenge forcing players to continually shift between layers to progress. The corner editor has also been used on practically every surface in the level and the result is a bumpy, rocky path that adds an additional layer of challenge . The placement of score bubbles is also well done allowing good combo chains for those skilled enough to get them which is another welcome part of any good race level.

I was also impressed by the creativity, pacing and variety of the obstacles. There isn’t anything truly unique or genre changing yet each hazard is well presented and vary throughout the entire level and nothing felt dull or repetitive. I was especially happy with the zip-line created by two loose springs and the balloon jumping segment.

Pacing:
The level speed is very smooth and well paced throughout with two large exceptions. A segment where you must slowly jet-pack through a few bent corridors covered in spikes with little room for error that caused me to seriously slow down to a crawl. I may be poorly skilled at jet-pack aerobatics but this section was the only really challenging section for me and it brought my headlong race to the end to a near standstill.

The second section was the balloon segment that I thought was a lot of fun but also interrupted the smooth flow of the race. This was less of a headache than the spikes but I was having so much fun jumping with the fiddly balloon trying to get bubbles that it really ate into my race time.

Both sections are not bad in themselves but do chop up the otherwise clean, consistent pace of the rest of the level.

Replayability/Multiplayer:
This level has secret caches of score bubbles as well as a timed element that provide a fair bit of incentive for replaying the level for those looking to compete on the high score boards. There is also the, very fun, multiplayer race aspect that adds greatly to this levels replay ability when playing with friends.

Though I didn’t get to do the level multiplayer I am a little skeptical on the use of the low life count respawn points. Whenever I’ve done any multiplayer race levels I’ve always needed the checkpoints to be liberally placed especially before anything containing fire, spikes or gas, fatal falls or anything that is raised or lowered.

The race timer seems to be set at a challenging yet manageable time and seems to be just about right though I don’t see people making the race within the time allotted on their first try.

Quirks/Oddities:
--I saw that there is a visible green magnetic key on the second rotating element that is holding up the swinging grab balls just before the jet-pack/spiky-path-of-death-section. I’m guessing that since the rest of the switches in the level are hidden that this one being visible may be an oversight.

--There is a text bubble with a typo. There is one saying let go of the ‘baloon’ which should be ‘balloon’. Again this is not an issue and the rest of the English is very well done.

Rating/Closing thoughts:

I enjoyed my time playing this level largely due to the cheery, whimsical visual presentation as well as for the good assortment of obstacles and length of the race. I think that this level will appeal to those who are into racing and straight up platforming levels. I also think that this may be a fun group level for those looking for a diversion from survival, bomb or paintinator levels.

This level reminds me that fancy logic, amazing set-pieces or other fancy effects are not needed to make a pure platforming level fun and enjoyable.

[Mugsig]

Thanks a lot for the sweet review, Trindall! I didn't expect anything 'big' from anyone at all.

Just as I thought the I’d gotten the feel of the level’s visual quirks Mugsig starts playing with the global lighting in a subtle yet stylish fashion. A good use of many elements to create an enjoyable visual style in the level.

It was actually really easy to make the visuals nice - a bit of stickers, and a bit of editing on the corners. Mostly everything started out by a square. I wanted to make something special at some point though.. so why not play around with the light and see if we can make that look pretty, hm? I'm glad you like it

The level speed is very smooth and well paced throughout with two large exceptions. A segment where you must slowly jet-pack through a few bent corridors covered in spikes with little room for error that caused me to seriously slow down to a crawl. I may be poorly skilled at jet-pack aerobatics but this section was the only really challenging section for me and it brought my headlong race to the end to a near standstill.

Yes, you have to slow down to deal with this one. I never thought it was a problem, because I have playtested that a lot of times, and I only died 2 times out of that. I assume it must have been lack of testing at that area, because many seemed to die just right before in a small accident when playing multiplayer.

The second section was the balloon segment that I thought was a lot of fun but also interrupted the smooth flow of the race. This was less of a headache than the spikes but I was having so much fun jumping with the fiddly balloon trying to get bubbles that it really ate into my race time.

I hope the bubbles made up for the slow balloon ^^ I really don't have much more to say to that, but maybe balloons weren't perfect for my level. Still, I think they're fun

Though I didn’t get to do the level multiplayer I am a little skeptical on the use of the low life count respawn points. Whenever I’ve done any multiplayer race levels I’ve always needed the checkpoints to be liberally placed especially before anything containing fire, spikes or gas, fatal falls or anything that is raised or lowered.

Well, actually, before the level was done.. I didn't even decide if I should use infinity checkpoints or not - I just took the normal checkpoint without thinking and placed it around. You're not the first one that says they thought there were lack of checkpoints, but I have denied to add more, simply because, as you've said.. my level isn't the biggest challenge out there. Doing the same little obstacle again because you died must be a punishment for that, because, well.. you died! Doing it again is simply like in other video games. I do know of course that it can get annoying doing it again and again - but I really think the player can pass it easily.

--I saw that there is a visible green magnetic key on the second rotating element that is holding up the swinging grab balls just before the jet-pack/spiky-path-of-death-section. I’m guessing that since the rest of the switches in the level are hidden that this one being visible may be an oversight.

--There is a text bubble with a typo. There is one saying let go of the ‘baloon’ which should be ‘balloon’. Again this is not an issue and the rest of the English is very well done.

Thanks for that mate, I knew about the green magnetic key, I just forgot.
About the speech bubble, I was unsure about that. I'll edit it

This level reminds me that fancy logic, amazing set-pieces or other fancy effects are not needed to make a pure platforming level fun and enjoyable.

Nope, it isn't I'm glad you came to that point! I have never rocked at logic, so I need to stick with the simple.

Thanks a lot for this Trindall! I enjoyed reading and comment it

[thegamer201]

Can you please review my level "the escape"? my psn is thegamer201 thanks.