SVLC 2016

Postby **Marina** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:48 pm

(Joey note: I was planning on doing this again but apparently Marina wants to, so he'll host this year. Have fun!)

I can't believe you guys made me do this.

So yes, as some of you may have heard by now, I've decided to host a vanilla contest, seeing as the last official vanilla contest was a bit... short-lived.
Below you will find all relevant information you need.

Deadline

Saturday, the 9th of April, 6:00 PM UTC.

Submit your levels to me by uploading the level file to a site like mediafire or dropbox, then send the link to me in PM.

Judges
Judges that have submitted their reviews will be bolded.

Bossedit8
Wraith Adamknight
Zipper
Chad
ElTipsta

Backup Judges

ShadowStarX
Marina

Rules

You may only submit one .lvl file. As this is a vanilla contest, we want the levels to be made for vanilla SMBX. Using custom graphics, custom music, SMBX 1.4, LunaDLL or LunaLua is not permitted. Feel free to send in levels using these, but be aware that the level will be judged without them. It is permitted to use PGE to make the level.
The judges may not know which level you made. Self-explanatory.
The level must be completable. We want levels to be fun, not frustrating, so they must be of reasonable difficulty and must end in a SMB3 Star. It is not permitted to make that star end the game. Your level has to be completable with one of the five vanilla SMBX characters. If you use a character besides Mario, provide character blocks.
Using Events and Layers is allowed. Events and Layers are part of vanilla SMBX, therefore it is allowed to use them in your level.
Judges may not submit a level. Self-explanatory.
Try to keep the amount of stars in your level below three.
Teams of up to two people are allowed.
By submitting a level you agree that it may appear in a small 2k1x episode containing all the submissions.
By submitting a level you agree that it may appear in an issue of DMPYLAIY.

Violation of one rule results in point deduction, violation of multiple rules results in disqualification.

Submissions

Spoiler: show

Participants

Spoiler: show

Results

Honorable Mentions

Shadow40 and liamsjunk both sent in levels that could only be opened with 1.4. Furthermore, Shadow40 apparently did not understand the purpose of a vanilla contest and included custom music and graphics with their level.

In memory of Shinbison-kof.

Tier 1

42. Zyglrox Oddysey - Rinkas;whoops wrong contest - 0.00 (This level's score is displayed in Rinkas.)

Spoiler: show

41. SuperSkullz - Intro Level - 0.10(One point deducted for not including an end star)

Spoiler: show

40. ProngoKingdom - Vanilla Ice - 0.20

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 1.00
Simply a level from The Invasion 2 but without any custom graphics... that's all I can say. Please, be original next time rather than taking a level from a different SMBX Episode since that is just unoriginality all the way.

Wraith Adamknight - Cedrik.00
Seriously. Why would you steal such a great and wonderful level from the absolute best game that this community has ever been graced the ability to play by the all-knowing and drunk Redigit, also known as Demologic who is also the designer of Terraria; did you know he had to C&D SMBX because he doesn’t love us?

Zipper - 4.70(Apparently Zipper didn't know this was a stolen level and typed up an actual review. So here you have Zipper analyzing Redigit's level design skills. Sorry but this review doesn't count.)
wheeeeeee slideeeeeeeeeeeee
....well that was fun. Anyway, despite the toad at the start warning me about moles, they played a surprisingly small role in the level. It was mostly a cluster of pipes trying to block me from moving quickly. The first area was pretty nice with the split path options on the pipes, and falling actually required thought. It had plenty of bonuses, and enemies (mostly spike-tops) were placed well. Unfortunately, the same gimmick didn't translate over to the underwater section gracefully. It really felt like a chore at this point, trying to manuever around twisted pipes very slowly, while dodging fish that you can't really kill unless you got a lucky path choice at the start. All the movement that was required to proceed felt like artificial extension, and it would've been better if it didn't exist.
After that, we have about 10 seconds of climbing, then it....ends? That was abrupt, especially considering most of my playtime was a in a slow water passageway and I expected a lot more to do. Mildly disappointing.

Chad - 0.00
Did you know that with the advent SMBX, you can create your very own Mario levels? As in, arrange blocks and enemies to your own special liking? As in, not just copying and pasting an existing .lvl file somebody else made into a contest? Whoa! Neither did I until right just this very minute!

ElTipsta - 0.00
I never knew 'The Mole Hole' could look so good with vanilla graphics. Thank you for enlightening me on this.

39. Team Suzukyun (Akyuu & Yuka) - unique and original level name - 0.25

Spoiler: show

38. ParmaJon - Three Minutes of Horror - 0.70

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 1.00
I beat this in under a minute. This level is kaizo but less flavoured in difficulty and length edition. Invisible coinblocks with some enemies in your way that are bouncing off of invisible coinblocks which looks kinda funny but then there is a banzai bill on your way. At least, if you're good enough you can slide on these slopes so you can kill enemies that way if you have enough momentum involved. Next up after you fully bring the springboard at the other side of the coinblocks, jump up there to get to the midway. Then Yoshi with a blue parakoopa. Fly down to get to the red switch and then keep the blue shell to get to the blue switch up there but the funny part is, you don't even need the blue switch in order to get pass it. Later on some "tricky" jumps because those aren't too difficult to get over with and then a star with some ice blocks underneeth it. Too much momentum = death. Overall, kaizo quality with less flavour confirmed.

Wraith Adamknight - 0.00(Original score of -1.00 was rounded up to 0.00)
Honestly: go join Pixel Pest’s terrible contest if you want to do this.

Zipper - 1.50
I'm quite baffled. On one hand, this is the most atrocious trial and error system I've seen. On the other hand, if you do everything correctly, the level is like 25 seconds, so it's not THAT ridiculous, and yet I can't spare any points. The problem is, none of the challenges are worth doing legitimately. I just cheesed it with collision bugs and Yoshi's wings from the blue koopa. If anyone tries to do them without "exploits", they're not going to enjoy themselves one bit. The level says "go to hell" literally as soon as you start it up,and it only gets worse from there. Kaizo is not fun in SMBX, and never will be, unless we get active savestates as part of the regular game or something of equal caliber.

Chad - 1.00
While this level is certainly doable, especially when Yoshi and a blue shell make a lot of it easier, that doesn't mean it's fun. Invisible blocks overhead and enemies trapped under them with you are lousy, it's really easy for flying Yoshi to multi-hit the switches, and the rest can be outright skipped. On top of that, the design is incredibly messy and formless, and while a short length is appreciated for a level intended to screw you over, there's really not much good here in the minimal content given.

ElTipsta - 0.00(Original score of -9000.00 was rounded up to 0.00)
...
..
.
yeah.

37. TEAM NUCLEAR CROWS (MECHDRAGON777) - Doko yougan no ugoki o surunode, chikyuumasu - 一.四三

Spoiler: show

36. Jettpizza - Sands of Vanill - 1.59

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 3.00
Eeehhhh... well this was a level where I can say... it's not too good. I mean, level design is ok for certain areas but others... is not as of what you're especting from this level and also it's untested for sure because the wooden platforms turns back abruptly just because the lines are stupidly placed... so you're forced to walk on spikes which is really bad. Power ups are all hammer suits... ok. The end... is a SMB3 roulette exit... and there is a SMB3 star somewhere in this level... which is after the broken linerider area at the left side where tiles are looking like cutoff... not too bad of a secret but ehh. Aaaaand sooo many coins in this level and also so many ways to get 1UPs from. Good choice... but also a bad one because of a force hit at the top of the area.

Wraith Adamknight - 1.14
Clever usage of the SMW Line piece on top of SMB3 Sand. This gives it the illusion of being smoothed out without having to create a whole new graphic, so kudos mate.
However; test your level before you send it. Your lines are faulty and I know you used PGE to make this and didn’t bother testing the results.

Zipper - 1.80
Jeez, it's really easy to pinpoint the part of the level where you went "You know what? I don't care anymore." It started decent, like it was going to be promising, then you threw me a Hammer Suit with no challenge to correspond to it. After that, the whole wood block ride (which becomes UNWINNABLE if you fall from it once by the way), was just a very complicated Hammer combo of "Press Run -> Press Run -> Press Run -> Repeat". Post-checkpoint, the ride is bugged, it'll reverse before it passes through the spikes, so you HAVE to take a hit to get past it. Died after the checkpoint? Tough stuff, start over. There's no way this was playtested. If you somehow MIRACULOUSLY get past that, the rest is just a mess of broken sizables(most of which are graphically broken, by the way), and a mesh of enemies throws together. And then it just ends. All of this happens in the span of 2 minutes by the way.
...Yeah. You know you can do better than this, this just screams "rushjob".

Chad - 0.50
The functionality of this level equates to your use of the word "vanilla" in the title. Enough of the foundation is there that the purpose is recognizable, but enough of it is broken that it just doesn't quite work.

ElTipsta - 1.50This level is impossible to complete without cheating. The platform line just after the checkpoint has a break within it so the platform goes back on itself before it can get through the spike passage. That entire line needs to have half of it replaced. You need to test your levels properly, dude. If you can make Megaman out of vanilla graphics, you can test the level too. It's a shame, because the level was flawless up till that point, and after that the graphics get a little weird.

35. Dog of Annoyance - A Vanilla Level - 1.60

Spoiler: show

Tier 2

34. Team Turkish Delight (Sinem & Sibel) - W.D. Ghost House 1 - 2.52

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 2.00
One ghost house that I have to say... it's bad. Design by itself was ok but to me I would of played the one ghost house from The Invasion rather than this one because this... has some unfair mechanics to it. Not only that there are warps that leads you back to the beginning of the same area, you have invisible switches later on that makes a warp appear with a timer that the warp will disappear again. Not fun. Also your enemy placements are sometimes very cruel like your thwomps on narrow spaces and such. Boss was at least ok.

ShadowStarX - 1.50
Urgh, this level… It’s not enjoyable and also uncreative. The invisible switches are placed unfairly, especially the second one. (the one that activates a pipe)
They’re unreasonably hidden, but the first mini-maze is also quite cliché. Well, the enemy placements were at least acceptable even if they were a bit spammy. The boss is also ridiculously easy, but the biggest flaw of the level is that I couldn’t complete it without checking the switch spots in the editor. I only give a point for the meh placement and half a point because of the little effort you’ve put into the level.
side note: does W.D. stand for Gaster or Waddle Derp

Zipper - 4.60
Eh, not a huge fan, sorry. Despite being a puzzle themed ghost house, the puzzles were just dumb blind luck. The first area is literally "try until it eventually works", which for me means "enter like 6 different doors because you have the worst luck on the planet". The next 2 areas tried to be smarter about it, but all I got out of it was frustration. I managed to find the switch necessary to proceed by sheer stupidity, I just decided to tap Jump while near a door because my hand slipped. The second time this happened, I was a little more aware so I did notice the suspiciously empty platform, but it didn't make it any more pleasant. The thing with this level is, the platforming is perfectly fine and enjoyable. You have a good sense of enemy placement, and the difficulty is acceptable. If you re-coloured this to a different theme and made it linear, I might have enjoyed it a lot more. Perhaps if you re-arranged your puzzles to make the player move around instead of just kicking them back to the start, this would work a lot better? A way to make the player be aware of the switch's existence would be nice too, perhaps with coins, or suspicious blocks, I dunno, you're the level maker here. The boss having removable floor was nice, except I didn't have a sense of urgency at all, since throw blocks shred through Boos like they're nothing.

Chad - 0.50
Not really a good time. It's already copying off of DO NOT ENTER as it is, but the differences involved aren't really worth it. The puzzles consist of either "enter a series of luck-based doors" or "hit an invisible switch block you couldn't possibly have known was there", and in both cases I had to quit and look in the editor because I was not given any reason to expect them. Also, redoing entire long sections just because of a wrong choice is tedious, and it's sort of a troll move to have all three of the pipes in that one room be false. Other than that, the design is very rudimentary, just platforms and open space. Work on trying something different, and you need to give players a chance to figure out what they need to do.

ElTipsta - 4.00
I think I found the ghost house you liked Wraith. Because this level is beautiful in all it's trolling and enemy placements, and door warps. A masterpiece in how to get the player to dislike ghost houses.

33. litchh - Clashy Clash Clashlands - 3.58

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 6.00
Well... a land filled with multiple themes together into a grassland with water and even lava at places... and holes, never forget holes. Obstacle wise was ok for the most part but this world is just kind of weird if it's mixed up together into one section without any envioremental change in the background or even better, sections splitup to multiples so it's more natural this way. I find one of the dragon coin placement to be silly where you need a super leaf just to even get it. I do like your additional decorations though like at the pipes holding a tank piece area. There's one secret area which are just sonic rings once you found it after checking in a Metroid based warp that are spawning SMW Spiny Eggs... at least that one disappears after you went to the secret area to prevent unfair hits from the spawner.

Wraith Adamknight - 0.00(Original score of -1.00 was rounded up to 0.00)
This level doesn’t get a review. My advice, uninstall SMBX.

Zipper - 2.40
Ironic shitposting is still shitposting. Graphic spamming for cheap laughs doesn't change the fact that this is a flat piece of land that does everything it can to annoy you. Bouncing fish are irritating alone, we don't need podoboos or banzai bills to back them up. Putting rinkas, bullet bills and bowser statues in the same screen is not fun either. Something tells me you knew exactly what you were getting into when you made this, so I won't say much.

Chad - 3.50
Well, it's not really wrong. I almost don't know what to make of this, because the design alternates between seeming like it's either trying or not caring as quickly as it changes tilesets. The level was obviously intended to be a mishmash of chaos though, and that's pretty much how it turned out. It actually does play somewhat like a legit level most of the time though, and has a bit of strategic variety in its own weird way.

ElTipsta - 6.00
A linear level with lots of clash, which is probably the only time you'll be able to get away with it. This is well done and all the major themes are covered here well. Kinda wished you did more than one section (not including the bonus room) just to spice things up tbh.

32. PixelPest - Rockin' Kamikaze Woods - 3.80

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 5.00
Difficult forest and castle level! I mean sure, let's just use a lot of wooden spikes with boos, swoopers and shooting spiny eggs from the pipes above to the bottom while climbing with volcano lotuses and some kamikaze koopas on my way... and yes you have to collect all of the dragon coins to get to the secret star which is very difficult to even guess because to get to the castle, press the gray switch 2 times to make a purple pipe appear after the orange one and then kill all the boos in the next area to get keys to the castle itself... that alone took me a while to guess without any hints to share. Then, good luck trying to get up again after you hit the red switch because momentum is needed and at the secret star, only Mario is able to get it. At the regular path later on, it's pretty annoying that you have to get several switches to get further on while climbing with boos and all kind of hazards going around the area! Least the level isn't long but for it's difficulty enviorement it was for sure an evil experience.

Wraith Adamknight - 1.00
This is a vanilla contest, not a challenge contest. IF you want to make a level like this, then find an appropriate contest. Content like this is unacceptable for this contest. Switch Hunting, Boos on Climbing Games, Switch Platforms that constantly lead into boos and spiny generators around spikes while climbing gates. This level doesn’t warrant a playthrough at all. I will only give you points simply for participating however, since you obviously tried but clearly don’t have the right mindset.

Zipper - 3.50
Holy ****. Put everything aside for a moment. I'm sorry I can't appreciate the level for what it is because I KEEP DYING EVERY 3 SECONDS. There's a way to make the player have a hard time, and starting them off in a tight enclosed space with a lotus plant harassing them, followed by two rooms of what could be described as a "Touhou dodging with wooden spikes" is NOT a good way. Not only is EVERY challenge accompanied by 2-3 boos that WILL screw you over on a fence because turning on a whim is impossible, but wooden spikes are literally EVERYWHERE and WILL kill you many times. I just gave up and cheated my way through after realising dying 9 times to a different wooden spike won't make me advance any further. The last section of the cave was probably the biggest offender. I refuse to believe any normal human being can go there for the first time and go "oh yeah I can beat it without dying 4 times". It's so bad that spikes can randomly push you to other spikes while you're falling BETWEEN them(yes this actually happened). I'm sorry that I couldn't take my time to talk about the level design, because your ideas are actually smart. Manipulating falling platforms to hit switches, climbing fences to manuever around tricky obstacles, giving a bonus path to the harder-to-use character...They're all just executed in such an abysmally difficult way that it's hard to actually talk about it.

Chad - 2.00
I want to appreciate the complex design, but so much happens in this level that's only there to make the experience painful. You have to babysit non-generated items with no way of knowing beforehand and an incredible likelihood of losing them even if you did know, you're expected to understand that hitting the same switch a second time will yield a different result with not so much as a single clue, that same pipe leads you to an immediate onslaught of enemies with no idea that you're supposed to kill Boos with a shell you didn't know you needed, and the rest of the level involves sudden and merciless Boo/Spiny Egg/Shell behavior in tight spaces. You do have a pretty intricate layout here, but it'd only be enjoyable in a context where the player is given any warning and any time to adjust to anything. It's highly evident that the level wasn't made with the experience of someone besides the designer in mind. I had to do some editor investigation before I could even learn half of it. The castle is a lot saner and the propeller block room in particular is built nicely, but it doesn't salvage the rest of the experience that you still have to deal with partially to get there. Sorry, this just isn't a good time.

ElTipsta - 7.50
A really challenging level that was fun to play, with a variety of enemies used. The first boo in Section 8 needs to be removed, likewise at least a couple of the others. That section is a little too hard in comparison to the rest of the main path IMO.

31. Dominodalek - Conventional Castle - 4.04

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 5.00
A castle with... firebars, grinders, dry bones and statues. Well at least you get variety on NPCs but the level itself has lack of elevations... also your midboss is a Boom Boom. Your boss is a Toad controlling evil stuff and you can just skip it and also mess it up aswell. At the end, cutoff by missing the border pieces from the castle tiles before the main boss' door.

Wraith Adamknight - 0.00
This level doesn’t get a full review. It is pretty much “run right”, the level. All this level has is clever messages blocks, and that’s it. It’s too linear, difficult in certain spots and overall not a good level.

Zipper - 3.70
Well this sort of just came and went. The first area flew by me in like 15 seconds, with nothing of interest happening. The second part was a little more interesting, using saws in challenging ways, but again, it didn't do much with it other than "dodge vertically, dodge horizontally, dodge diagonally, repeat". The boss actually looked stupidly fun, until I realised I only need to grab ONE block to beat it. Then it was sort of underwhelming.
So yeah, overall, it's a good start, but it lacks a lot of substance.

Chad - 5.50
Pretty decent stuff. The player is given reduced space, but not to an extreme extent and it's used rather well for tricky jumps and enemy setups. While most of the level is sort of a plain rectangular tunnel with the same hazards, each one requires a different cautious maneuver from the player. The level could have gone without Boom-Boom though, as he adds nothing but a pointless delay in progress and a spawn point too close to where you talk to the friendly NPC. The actual boss, while really just a spin-jump up Grinders with an ice brick in hand, is an alright end to a level of this short length and difficulty. Kinda generic, but not bad and does offer its fun.

ElTipsta - 6.00
This is quite a difficult SMW castle level with a funny boss which I enjoyed. There were many traps in this level which were placed well, though powerups were a bit sparse in the second section personally. The boss required spin-jumping ehich isn't too difficult to do once you know what you're doing.

30. diamantico21 - a labyrinthic maze with clash and wierd warpzones - 4.10

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 6.00
For sure it's an interesting concept going on that you transport to different games via pipes per singular rooms and such (SMW to SMB3, SMB3 to SMB2, so on and so on...) but as of how the design goes it's not quite the best. I mean, there are areas that are hard to navigate like jumping on enemies in a small area and such... other times there are enemies that are either randomly stuck or even take an unfair hit after you come out of the warps. The rest was ok but it could of done better with it's design. Also you can get stuck if you break too many blocks in one section if you really want to.

Wraith Adamknight - 3.00
Level was unique in the concept of having each individual room be different, which I really liked. However, it also took the concept from Super Enigmatic World, in which each section is compact and lacks too much substance. Considering this is a puzzle, I was expecting the level to challenge me outside of guessing the correct path to walk. Another issue I had was that the level reused the same mechanics but kept switching the "game" style and music, which got incredibly irritating. I would recommend expanding each individual section a little bit, and try to recycle ideas creatively rather than create the same obstacle over and over. Quality over quantity, remember this.

Zipper - 3.50
"No custom graphics" doesn't NECESSARILY mean "you should use literally EVERYTHING that's not custom!". I get that you wanted to create the feeling of a bizarre labyrinth, but when the connections are extremely arbitrary AND are jarring, then it's not going to work. (My personal opinion, SMB1 Underground does not go well with anything. But that's irrelevant.) The gameplay is simple to grasp, needing to navigate a maze of sorts by going through many 1-screen challenge rooms. Rooms that offer almost nothing new, and are sometimes easily ignorable(Hi SMB2 Overworld area!). It was a bore until I realised a mistake can mean very slow backtracking(pipe room, TWICE, I had to make sure I didn't miss a path), then it just became irritating. I do like the idea of having to carry a power-up to proceed, except you need to carry it so far that if you lose it at any point, might as well kill yourself and start over because you're not getting that back any time soon. Overall, having an area span across multiple screens while providing more connections to the player could be nice. And holy hell please have some internal consistency. You could've used SMB3 castle/desert/sea/grass/cave only, and it'd look much better AND feel more connected. Rockman 4 Minus Infinity did a great job of demonstrating this at Wily Stage 3, but then again, that one depended on bosses and Megaman's weaponry, so it might not translate well here.

Chad - 3.00
Not the biggest fan of this one. I do somewhat like how each room is exactly one screen large and all laid out differently, as well as being a tour of several different themes, but most of the level consists of picking warps at random until you get somewhere useful. Many of the rooms have awkward or excessive enemy placements, which are often either practically on top of you as soon as you enter a section, or interact weirdly with the claustrophobic design. There is something interesting about needing to find a Kuribo's Shoe and take that to the final warp, but if you lose it on the way, you've got quite a lot to retrace even if you've memorized the correct route. You were nice enough to allow NPCs on all of the warps so the option exists of just carrying it, but that's still a considerable distance to babysit an item.

ElTipsta - 5.00
I like the creaitve usage of the vanialla graphics in this level. It is essentially a labyrinth that while it looks hard at first, is actually relatively straightfroward once you know what you are doing. Apart from a couple of minor errors (the spike top in one of SMW cave sections) there isn't muh to point out on, apart from I think the hidden star could have been hidden away in a different puzzle. Otherwise, nice job.

29. Mario_and_Luigi_55 - Pipeline to Subcon - 4.21

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 5.75
Please... whenever you make a vertical section with level wrap, make sure you put blocks at the offscreen area and make sure if one side has blocks the other side has blocks to or else this happens:

Anyway, level itself was ok as of how you did with the pipe section going up. Pipe choicements and then enemies to deal with but with all those pipes connecting into offscreen it's kind of awkward to deal with without blocks at the other side. After that one section, hi SMB2! I do like the variety for sure but there's one area that lacks enemies and that is at the area before the waterfall with a lot of pickable grass and after the waterfall, the waterfall connects to nothing at the top right of it which is really weird. Now to the stupid part, you gotta find a key so you can enter the door that leads you immediadly to the top. First time playing I have no clue as of where it is so I just flew up there with a super leaf. To even get the key, it's hidden in a block over the last Hoopster enemy. I mean sure, let's just hide it like that so not everyone is gonna figure it out this quickly unless I check it on the level editor just so I can see it. That's really bad. Don't do that unless you indicate it to the player better... like seriously. Further on you have 2 choices, go further to get to the regular star with a bunch of hidden blocks that contains a mushroom block or head to the secret area in the middle vase to fight Wart. Doesn't matter what you choose, both contain SMB3 stars.

Wraith Adamknight - 0.00(Original score of -1.00 was rounded up to 0.00)
You clearly have no grasp of the editor to warrant making a contest level. I commend you for trying, but experiment some more buddy. Your level wrap doesn’t have blocks extending off the screen so you just fucking fall off. You require a key, but place it so you need an NPC to reach it AND hide it in an invisible block. Like seriously, why would you design this level?

Zipper - 5.80
Ouch. We need to talk about what to do in a level with horizontal looping. Basically, if I can walk off one side, and FALL to the ground level from the other, you're doing something wrong. Most of the pipe placements felt arbitrary and prone to accidents. That said, I do like everything else about that part. A lot of clever jumps needed to progress, along with threats that are much more notable on a single-screen area. Even though I mentioned "being able to walk off the side" as being a bad thing, the fact that you need to occasionally jump through a warp really adds flavour to the gimmick, it becomes more calculated.
And then we have the second area, which is....Subcon. Well I should've expected that. Sadly, this tries to do MUCH less than the first area, with basic and easy platforming. The only thing that kept me there was the search for the key(which I failed to finish btw, I just used a Leaf to fly up there, the key is hidden TOO well). After that, we have a rock barrier that can simply be walked under(just remove rock barriers altogether), a pipe that leads to a Wart boss fight, and a path that leads immediately to an end star. I don't know why one of them is SIGNIFICANTLY easier to collect than the other, to be honest. Perhaps you meant to make one a collectible? Either way, the first area is quirky but fun, and Subcon is...well....not fun. I don't really have any advice on how to make it better, but making the platforming less stale by increasing section height could be a decent start.

Chad - 4.00
An okay level. It makes use of the SMB3 pipe area level wrap gimmick, but in a pretty minimal sense, although it does sometimes make you think a little. However, you often have to wrap around while surfaces are at different heights, which creates buggy interactions. The second half is a relatively short, but also a fairly ordinary trip through an SMB2 overworld. Compared to the first half, this part felt a bit extra, because the name of the level and length of the pipe area made it feel like it should have ended once you emerged, and the areas after don't really do too much of note. I also didn't care much for the required key in the randomly-placed invisible block that I found mostly by chance. Not a bad level, but very basic and not particularly interesting.

ElTipsta - 5.50
A pretty decent level, and the styles mixed well. However there are a couple of serious issues with the design. The SMB3 pipe section was poorly done with regards to the level wrap. The tiles should be in line with each other on each side so it's a natural transition. The player should be able to seamlessly walk from one side of the screen into the other, not jump. The pipes/blocks ar out of step. The player could fall down or hit a wall like you can do in several places. It was poorly designed, I'd personally remove the level wrap and modify the appropriate sections as you'd otherwise have to redesign the whole thing. Also, I don't know if this was intended but it's possible to get to the top of the sizables near the end of section 1 via the Bob-omb generator spawn point if you jump on top of it as it spawns, so I think I skipped part of the level.

28. Cedrik - Burdotable Vally - 4.23

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.00
Nice SMB2 design. I like what you did with the attacks of the SMB hammers from vases and also having those SMB hammers as weapons. I also like it's design but later on it could of done a bit better like the underground area, it's a bit too open for me like I thought the level wraps at first but no, it isn't. Also, getting all of the dragon coins can take some time since some of the warps are hard to guess if that's an actual warp like the small vase in the clouds. Enemy placements was decent... sometimes a bit too much or others a bit oddly placed with the background objects behavour as seen on the one Hoopster being inside the slopes. Anyway, hi Birdo at the end with a Sparky generator. After that there's your star with a message with my name on it. Ok, thank you for drawing your attention to me.

Wraith Adamknight - 1.14
This is just a bad level. It is way too long and makes the player wait on so many unnecessary elements. Bombs, building bridges, taking utterly useless doors; all of these amount to just bad design. What killed it the most was the fact you have a pipe right after the midway point that puts you back at the start of the level. Then there is this birdo fight which was just terrible. Its position means you can only grab one out of two eggs on top of having to dodge sparkies for no reason. Also, Easter eggs to judges don’t equal more points.

Zipper - 2.00
Oh hell, there's no rhyme or reason to ANYTHING in this level. It's like you pressed a random block every few seconds then rammed your mouse across the screen. Grabbable hammers(that hurt you)? PROJECTILE hammers? Boomerangs? What the hell is the point of these? Not to mention you stop caring about the hammers like 6 seconds into the level. In fact, I can call this "Gimmicks with a lifespan of an ifunny joke" : The Level. Hammers, sparks in bubbles, a Clock on invisible platforms for no reason, MUSHROOM STACKING UGH(JUST STOP IT'S STUPID AND NOBODY LIKES IT), a Birdo battle with the most horrifyingly awful gimmick imaginable... etc. Most of your points come from the fact that I can play it without dying violently and it lasts for a while. Next time, try to make something coherent. Have an idea in your head and base the level around it. Don't just randomly add NPCs and hope it works.

Chad - 4.50
It's an okay SMB2 level. The design is ordinary, but functional. A little bit of variety is explored, but most of what's introduced is left behind soon after, like the generating hammers and bombs. The overworld generally felt somewhat planless and the cave felt a bit cluttered and messy, but you handled the key and "Phantos" pretty well, as well as the vine section and Snifit turrets within. Birdo fight's meh, as the Spark generators are a bit too frequent and very little space is provided. Simply made, but not bad.

ElTipsta - 6.50
This SMB2 level has an interesting design. The multiple paths in the underground sections were a nice touch, likewise the backtracking. The heaven section was also an interesting, likewsie the hammers spawning from pipes - I didn't think of that before! The Birdo boss a bit too hard for the level and is a bit out of place, but at least getting the Dragon Coin in that section is pretty easy. The backtracking warps into the top of section 1 is a nice isea but if the player accedentially falls down they have a LOT of backtracking to do, so I would personally question the inclusion of that. Nice job.

27. Bowser is ded - Cave of moving stuff - 4.45

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 2.75
Well... you did put creativity with the whole moving layers and such in this level but there are certain cases that are just annoying to deal with like the whole piranha plant NPCs on moving layers because it hits you unfairly while on a moving layer up and down. Very stupid. Then of course you have to wait until the entire tower is at the bottom while they shoot bullet bills from their pipes at you. Near the end of the level, elevator going up. Beginning not too bad but later on it gets stupid because the blue coins are traps and such. Oh and there's one area that if you break these 2 turn blocks you can't get up anymore because it's too tall for you to jump over.

Wraith Adamknight - 1.71
This was interesting, to say the least, but there are a lot of flaws. Jumps which are just barely possible and a lot of jumps where, if you do something correctly, makes the jump impossible. Quite a few things did interest me, such as webs on pipes and the sidepaths with the dragon coins. However, your level is too long and the elevator section, in my opinion, needs to be completely removed. So, kudos on surprising me and having a neat level, but you’ll have to experiment some more.

Zipper - 4.80
Oh man, moving layers. I love them. Except when they kill you unfairly, then I don't love them. This level MOSTLY seemed to avoid pulling unfair tricks on the player...that is, if you were following the path to the goal, and nothing else. The first Dragon Coin was already tricky. The second one is RIDICULOUS and not worth it for a simple 1-up. And then the third one is extremely easy to collect as well. This inconsistency is somewhat bothersome. As for the level itself, it didn't try to do much, which is sort of disheartening because I have a thing for moving layers. However, it still introduced crushers at a reasonable pace, allowing the player to adapt. I'm a much bigger fan of the second part, with the bomb launchers and moving blocks with piranha plants on them. I really wish you had doubled down on that "rapid bombs but with protection" gimmick, it seemed really promising. What's worse is that the rest of that area was just tapping A to the beat of Soldier Game, while Bullet Bills harmlessly passed you for about 45 seconds. The end area elevator was ..eh. The coin leads were actually surprisingly generous, but then you throw random cement blocks with NO forewarning, which COULD lead to a cheap kill(I didn't die, by luck). Not a big fan of the blue coins either. I followed them and died like an idiot, since I was sleep deprived and didn't pick up on the screaming "BLUE IS BAD" message that popped up on the screen, but I still think deliberately misleading coins are unnecessary when you have LEADING coins right there. Anyway, overall, not too bad, but needs polish.

Chad - 5.50
Clever in some ways, troublesome in others. You really did well at putting the same one or two moving layers to work by repurposing them in several different ways, and for the most part they're clear-cut obstacles that are easy to anticipate and plan around. The setup is reminiscent of classic SMW, and operates pretty smoothly. However, they're also pretty fast and change rather abruptly, and not every area they're used in accomodates this. For instance, the second Dragon Coin barely gives you more than a couple frames as your window for grabbing it, and that's even without the other platforms you have to cross consecutively after it. Piranha Plants don't work on vertical moving layers because standing on their pipes will still hurt. I did enjoy the rapid bomb generator that's partially blocked, and the sinking tower of bullet generators is pretty creative, but the latter hardly gives you time to jump across it before it's fully down. You're already preoccupied with the faster bullets at the top as it is, plus it's lengthy to redo if you die. In general, the level felt like it was designed for a slower set of layers and then was changed at the last second without further consideration. I'd say that the final elevator is also borderline excessive, as the level could have just ended fine after the bullets, but the last segment is actually pretty short and forgiving aside from the array of stone blocks midway through. The level has several faults in execution, but it is still pretty doable, with design and difficulty that hold up rather cleverly in the places that work.

ElTipsta - 8.00
This lava cave level is really nice. The moving layers gimmick is fleshed out well (and the usage of the castle tileset to identify it is very creatively done conisdering the limitations). The last section, the ascent was interesting and a nice way to climax the level, likewise the bullet bill section before it was also a neat idea. The minority of graphical clash (ie. Fire Flowers, SMB1 Special Blocks) can be forgiven conisdering the overall qualtiy of the level.

Tier 3

26. We're Hard and Sharp (Linik for CC9 Judge) (Thwomp King & Linik) - P-Switchin' - 4.78

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 6.50
Beginning... level design that nearly looks like The Invasion's first main level... later on, P Switches as the level's name says. So yeah, this level mostly focuses on P switches so you have to be fast or else you lose against the time by the P switch. Not too bad but near the entire level is like that though. Just, run till the end and hope to survive aswell. Least there's variety like you have to do certain things until you're allowed to go further on in this level like defeating all of the enemies (Goombas) on your way. What I don't like about the disappearing and reappearing walls depends as of if you have the P switch active or not is that once you press the switch it disappears and once the timer runs out it reappears again. I know that it has to do with stuff that you are not allowed to go further until you hit the switch for safety matters but once you actually reach to that point where the wall is and the timer is up, at the direction you're facing you can glitch through, fall and die. About the rest as of what this level has to offer... P switches.

Wraith Adamknight - 0.00
This is a Vanilla Contest, not a Challenge Contest. If you want to make a Mario Maker level for the hell of it, go join Pixel Pest’s contest. This type of level isn’t welcome here. The level had no substance whatsoever and wasn’t remotely creative with its ONE gimmick. On top of this, a majority of the P-switches come out of blocks. This means that once they despawn they will never come back.
If you are going to make a gimmick heavy level, make it fun and enjoyable, not linear and pointless. And make sure you stupid-proof your own level.

Zipper - 5.90
This gives me Expert Mario Maker flashbacks, brr...Thankfully, this is a much easier take on the classic P-Switch dash gimmick. The idea is simple and presented well. Sadly, I found this to be pretty much a snooze-fest. Almost none of the P-Paths felt challenging, it was like a single-button switch hunt, and then it just continued to a normal level, and the level's standard platforming is...less than stellar. The part I enjoyed the most was the P-Chains, where there actually WAS a sense of urgency, as the paths were longer and safe spaces being out of range caused the player to worry. Maybe using gimmick items like the boots or the propeller would allow for more creative uses of the P-Switch?

Chad - 4.50
A P-switch run level is fairly uncommon, but this one has a very hit-and-miss way of handling it. The actual runs have a good difficulty to them, but the variation between them is minimal and the level goes on a bit longer than necessary. The green switch blocks made the cave that followed feel more like an elaborate detour than actual progress, too. I also felt that the walls at the start of each run were unnecessary, because while they are a pretty surefire way to prevent breaking the level, the switch runs are large enough that anyone attempting to do so would just get a very coin-filled fall to their death anyway. However, it is possible to end up mistakenly standing where a wall reappears and get pushed out of it into a pit if you don't know it's coming, especially in the cave where the walls are wider and the space between runs is smaller. I also feel like the effort decreases as the level goes on, because it starts out with a polished-looking woodland, then the cave looks somewhat empty, then the level construction essentially becomes nothing but the bricks you run on. Overall, nice to see a P-switch level and it performs fine, but it's very basic in execution with not a lot happening in between.

ElTipsta - 7.00
Nice job at this P-Switch run, it was a fun level to play. The frist section I thought was fair, however there was no checkpoint following this, meaning if you die later on you have to restart the whole level. The usage of switch goombas was okay, but the Goomba on the moving platfoorm needs to be moved back a few tiles as it's hard to avoid if the player is speeding through. It is also possible for the Switch Goomba just after the first P-Switch run in the underground section to despawn if they are on the bricks when the P-Switch expires.

25. One-Man Space Plumber Clan (Sewpah) - Templets;Linearity - 4.96

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.00
This hugely reminds me of those super old levels from Super Mario Flash (SMF) I watched when I was new to the whole level editing history and watched super old videos of it. Like Starfox having a crossover to SMF or so. Anyway, the level itself was pretty cool but well... about the background object placements, it's apparently not always right if you pay attention to it. Level design was nice with pretty cool variety going on like climbing, riding and jumping way higher with a propeller block with several hazards to avoid like rinkas from lava and a random banzai bill shooting out of the black blocks in the background... ok. Midpoint on the other hand is broken because the sizeable block is in the way and it causes you an instant death once you retry this level... bad design! Moving on, a boss that's inside a glass and then fight that's inside the glass... ok, SMB3 Bowser. After that you fight a giant piranha plant and then there's your exit of this level. Also, a random "ZK16" sign at the Bowser's arena area. Oh and a random sign in a level which is impossible to read ingame unless you cheat which says "TEMPLETS 4 LIFE".

Wraith Adamknight - 1.42
Kudos for not making a completely ludicrous joke level, but seriously? The fact I was able to give this level any points is shocking enough. If you can’t make a real level, don’t bother even opening this program.

Zipper - 2.90
I'm not a graphics person, but that airship....doesn't look good. A single tile and its blue brother tiling EVERYTHING made it an absolute eyesore. Please invest in better choices. Anyway, the gameplay was REALLY barebones. It was a chain of very simple obstacles thrown together with almost no connection between them. "Here's some fence climbing. Oh, are you done? Okay, walk for 5 seconds and ride this mole. Now use the propellers!" It's not cohesive at all, and each challenge individually is short and insignificant enough to make the whole experience unfun. You could at least try to lay some standard platforming with steadily rising difficulty in-between your challenges, to provide the player with SOME entertainment. Or at least make your challenges more engaging by mixing them with each other or something, I don't know.
The first boss was a really long and boring Bowser fight, which is ESPECIALLY ironic because you "praised" the "true" boss for "not being another Boom-Boom." Speaking of, the true boss was a joke. And not the funny kind either.
Overall, yeah, this was not fun. Very bland pieces of architecture with forced obstacles that are not engaging at all, and boring bosses. Try something else, please.

Chad - 5.50
An ambitious theme choice given the limitations, and I feel it has mixed results. Kinda weird given the graphical mix, but also somewhat cool in its own unusual way. The variety provided is rather good, going from springboard retrieval to line platforms, Thwomps, propeller blocks and so on. A lot of it felt underused though, considering they were offered and then quickly abandoned. I really like the design choice in the fence and mole area though, as it very specifically serves the intended purpose and is particularly fun to interact with. However, the rest felt rather basic, like it didn't matter how the blocks and spaces were laid out as long as they allowed you to move forward. Still, it functions fine, and the variety is still there. The boss(es?) felt lame, because SMB3 Bowser with no changes at all is still tedious, and the level making a joke about it doesn't change that. Same applies to the big Piranha Plant. Also, checkpoint's broken. Place it in front of a sizable, and you'll respawn on top of it. If it's connected to a ceiling, you'll die offscreen as soon as the level begins. Rinkas are sort of spammy and poorly placed, too. Otherwise, I still had some fun with this level. Not stellar, but intriguingly different.

ElTipsta - 8.00
Wow, this is neat! It's basically a flotilla space fortress made using mainly SMB graphics. I had a lot of fun and no real things to point out. The Bowser boss was a neat idea though, not everyone uses the Glass Case much anymore. Same with the BG tiles in SMB3 Misc. I thought the Piranha Plant joke was a bit redundant and unnessecary to be honest.

24. WaluigiTime64 - Pesky Pipe Land - 5.20

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 6.50
These pipelines...including water areas aswell... is interesting to investigate. I do like the navigation as of where you go in this level and then get specific items like P switches to get further on... and I like the design but other times it's also questionable. Not too bad at least since you can go back if you don't have the P switch with you. At the halfway as of where the grinders are, well be very careful or else you gain damage... they can be weird depending as of when you activate into the screen till interactions with the moving pipe. Also yay for hidden power up blocks. Later on, moving blocks with spikes. Cool but at specific areas it can be quite tricky to go inbetween it. Oh yeah we have 2 Birdo fights on top of that. One at the middle and one at the end... the one at the end is with shells and then after the last Birdo there's your star. Now checking at the debugger, there's a second star somewhere in this level but where is it? Well, take a wild guess... it's in a section that nobody can reach it via warp pipes or any kind of warps to get there. Apparently there's some bosses in there but that section probably either got unfinished or scrapped during developement of the level.

Wraith Adamknight - 0.00
This level was just dumb. No atmosphere, guidance or substance. I played the first section and legitimately just gave up on finishing this level. From what I gather, its incredibly linear and ugly, on top of about three birdo fights. Overall, bad level. If someone doesn’t even want to play it once then perhaps don’t bother sending it.

Zipper - 4.50
Eugh, where to begin...First of all, the idea of needing a P-Switch to proceed is not that bad on its own, but you have to carry it through absolute hell to get there. The moving jellyfish combined with the cheep cheeps is an absolute abomination of an obstacle. I can't remember NOT getting hit for each of the 5 times I went through there. (Yeah, 5. I didn't know there was a P-Switch path at first so I just looped it twice, and died a few times.) That part is easily what ALMOST made me give up on the level. The few almost-blind jumps in the bullet bill area didn't help matters. After that, the Birdo fight was....there. No complaints. It's one of the less annoying Birdos I've faced in this contest. After that, the moving platform with the grinders was actually good. It would have been better if the grinders didn't attach themselves to the pipe and suddenly become less of a threat for 3 seconds and disappear into the pit, but that's not a fault on your end, it's the engine's. Still, the ceiling being 1-block higher would've helped this, as the last few jumps REALLY make you sweat bullets.
And then the next area.....oh boy. I'm not gonna beat around this. This is literally a worse Flappy Bird with the overlooming threat of having to repeat another area EVERY time you die. Which WILL happen, because underwater physics are abysmal, and moving layers don't care about how slow you go before slamming your face into a spike. You HAVE to think about every "jump" you make, because godDAMN if this thing is NOT forgiving at all. Doesn't help that it goes on and on and on, and it only gets harder and even more likely to make you suffer through more of the same. I just can't think of any way to make this better.
Lastly, we get the second most annoying Birdo in this contest. Sort of ironic, since the first one was just fine. I really don't get the point of the shell spam. They're VERY annoying to deal with, and being this far into the level, having to mess with shells, eggs, birdo and a pit is not fun. Sure, the shells can be used as ammunition, but I hope you realise how finicky it can be to pick up a shell moving at Mach 3 and not get hit. Pretty finicky.
Yeaaaaah, I didn't have too much fun with this, my apologies. It just has too many things that bring it down for me. At least it had substance as a whole, and I felt like I was going through a connected...facility(?) of sorts, so you get points from that.

Chad - 7.50
This is a super unorthodox level, but in a really intriguing way. Both the design and theme are highly unusual but also pretty workable. The transitions between water and dry are a lot more intuitive in the way you did them than one might expect, and they give the level a very otherworldly cosmic feeling. They were a bit inconsistent at times, in terms of bridge tiles and waterfalls either being transitional/swimmable or not, but they're never threatening. The layout overall is complex to a degree that's fun to navigate, with a nice amount of exploration and puzzle. The P-switch route actually escaped my notice the first time due to the unique layout, but the level was nice enough to allow me to return and the area's small enough that I can easily narrow it down. However, the backtracking from the switch itself was unnecessary, you could have just had the pipe closest to the P-switch lead back to the place you need it or close to that. Moving layers are also put to interesting use, like that pipe you have to keep up with, and the very smooth but sometimes precise spike layers. Enemies were often awkward, either colliding with things in ways they shouldn't or dying before you could interact with them, such as one of the Buzzy Beetles on the way to the P-switch and over half of the Grinders. They also didn't interact with the pipe very well, but that area was otherwise laid out nicely. The fast-moving Jelectros are excessively difficult, and probably don't need to be there due to the narrow space. The first Birdo fight is ordinary and not needed, especially when you have a much more interesting and challenging second battle at the end. In general though, this was a super different level and I enjoyed it quite a bit.

ElTipsta - 7.50
I really like the atmosphere in this level and am impressed with the way it has been constructed within the constraints. You have an underwater sewer/black/underwater hybrid which is vibrant which is really appreicated. However, Forcing the player to take damage if they are big in order to fit through the gap and grab the P-Switch is not a good idea. i would suggest raising the ceiling to the right of the spawner would fix this issue. The section with the moving layer was a really neat idea but is also very difficult, particualrly near the end. Otherwise this was a very fun level! ^^

23. ShyGuyOfMoonside - SubconJourney - 5.38

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 6.75
This SMB2 level is nice but some of the areas are really questionable... like a bunch of grass but lack of enemies to deal with. Main level was nice and all but specific areas where you have to blow up with bombs and such, they won't regenerate which means if you miss all of it you pretty much have to reset. there are 2 SMB2 stars in the level, one before the halfway point and the other at the end of the level where Wart is. At the halfway point section... quicksand areas. You don't really have to go into the quicksand to get stuff from it but if you do, for sure it takes a while to get to 'em. Rewards for this level was neat if you find 'em. Oh and hi Wart at the end of the level where the second star is but here's a fun fact. You can skip the Wart fight by entering the door at the far right behind Wart so you don't actually have to fight him if you have more than one hitpoints. Good job not hiding the door with a layer and make sure that it only shows after someone defeats Wart.

Wraith Adamknight - 5.14
I really don’t have much to say to this level. It was long and boring to be honest. It was very nice how you incorporated to many side paths, but don’t have a secret star also end the level. This type of design is frowned upon due to the time it takes to get back to this point. On top of this, if you are going to make a boss….make it required. I simply took the hit and just ran past him.

Zipper - 3.50
I'll be honest, the whole overworld area at the start, up until the desert part, felt like a bad bootleg of the 1-1 from the original game. No moving layers to simulate logs, no pow blocks, no subcon pathways. Also, limited bombs to blow up blocks that are NECESSARY to destroy in order to progress. As someone who has terrible aim with Toad, this is downright unacceptable. Getting hit upclose is already a punishment, I shouldn't need a "go back to start free" card just because I misfired a few times. After that, we have an end star that's locked behind more limited bombs. But wait, that's not the end of the level, the star just happens to end it. Fortunately I noticed the level kept going, or my score would've been much worse. The desert area, while slightly more original, was pretty short and bland. Also, hiding things under quicksand is one thing, hiding them around 3 blocks deep and 2 blocks away from the surface is unacceptable. I hope you realise how DISGUSTINGLY slow the player moves while in quicksand. I felt instant regret when I decided to go for the secret at the end of the desert area and realised my way back is an agonizingly slow process of mashing Jump like hell(And my rewards were a few 1-ups, a shroom and a crapton of coins that I had to pick up individually because screw the player's keyboard, they can replace buttons later, right?). I'm sorry, it was just....an experience I don't want to re-live. The boss was nothing to note either, except I cheated through it because screw going through that zone again.
I want to say something positive about this, I really do. Sadly the only thing that comes to mind is that "you can jump and stuff and it's not stupid hard". Everything was either unremarkable or done just right to piss me off.

Chad - 5.00
A rather nice tour through a bunch of different SMB2 themes. The design is fairly standard, but each area changes up the design type a bit to add some variety while making use of a few different classic elements. However, bombs should be on generators and not finite, quicksand's no fun to swim in, a Snifit shouldn't be in a narrow tunnel that's only as big as its entire range, and Wart can be skipped by running past him if you're big. You provide three Mushrooms right before him though, so the player really isn't prevented from doing that. Still, a fine level. It has a lot of good secrets, too. It's not the most creative thing, but it plays well and changes it up here and there.

ElTipsta - 6.50
Not too much to say about this one to be honest. Aside from the fact that there are too many buried objects, and most of them are coins or veggies. It increases the runtime if players go and pick them up, which I'm sure bossedit8 enjoyed doing. Aside from that, a fair SMB2 level with the usual flavouring.

22. Duster - Somnium - 5.50

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.00
Pretty cool SMB2 level. I do like the basic SMB2 level design right here with plants to throw at enemies, enemies to throw at other enemies... haha. Well, it's pretty basic and I do like it like there are even multiple pathways at one point. One hard one and one easy one with a 1UP. Also I like that you put the Mr. Saturn in one of the grass NPCs. I've seen that guy so rarely in any SMBX Episodes thus far... so sad that this NPC is rarely on use in action. Anyway, not much to say but this level was very nice. At the end, the section looks like that you came here but there's a star instead of a door. It's a very nice level.

Wraith Adamknight - 5.42
this is one sassy level. It makes you go through the entire thing just to end up back at the start to claim a star. On top of this, the star’s death results in a door appearing. I wasted my time going through the level to see if this door was like some secret path; which it wasn’t. So...it tricked me into playing it more than one…such a sassy level.
However, I do have a legit review to write. Level was way too easy and didn’t bother to incorporate anything new, inviting or innovative to the level. So really, it’s just kind of casual and bland.

Zipper - 4.10
This seems to be suffering from a severe case of "I can't believe it's not 1-1!". Nothing interesting really goes on, and my only timewaster is plucking plants off the ground and not really doing anything with them. Also, occasionally plants gave you weird items like Shyguys and Mr. Saturns. It's funny on a meme level, maybe, but here they just felt sort of pointless and out of place. But that's just a minor nitpick.
...I really don't have anything to say more. The level was short and pretty flat, with nothing for the player to keep interest on. The only notable thing I can think of is the shortcut in the first section that allows you to skip the pipe. That was a neat little timesaver and I appreciate giving the player a "harder faster" path over the "slower easier" one. Perhaps if the level was longer, you could've done this on a bigger scale, and turned it into a gimmick in itself?

Chad - 3.50
Most of it feels rather close to a SMB2 1-1 remake, or at least something that accomplishes the same. It tries to deviate a little bit into its own thing halfway through, but it's mostly the same ordinary platforming that's not too far off from what it started with. Change it up a bit, experiment with blocks and enemies to create more varied interactions that give the level its own identity.

ElTipsta - 6.50
An interesting level, that goes through an SMB2 world. Nothing really of note on this one to be honest, though I will say it was nice to see somebody use Mr Saturn, he dosen't used at all in SMBX these days.

21. Marina will never be a CC judge (Valtteri & Quill) - Legacy Editor Masterrace - 5.59

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.50
A level... going left instead of right. Begins in a desert with a very weird music choice. Seriously, you're in a desert walking and jumping to the left while SSBB Waluigi's Pinball is playing in the background. Not only that but in the undergrounds too. Well, apparently Waluigi has a fun time in this level until Mario encountered it then Waluigi forgot to pick up his music box while he runs away from this place. At least that is how I can tell as of how the music choice comes to existence in a desert and in the underground area. Anyway, level itself was nice for a regular level like that and I do like what you did with certain items going further like a springboard and it doesn't drag on way too much about it since it's only once to do it in this level. In the undergrounds, at the end of it there's a house with a bob-omb buddy, telling you to go further outside of the underground which results with a forest area with MKWii - Mushroom Gorge music playing. Ok then. There's one house that's empty... but if you actually check it further you get a 1UP that's hidden. There's another hidden 1UP at the middle of the big house vertical wise. Inside that house though there's a Volcano Lotus that's just... stupidly placed. You gotta spinjump up there with high amount of momentum aswell and with the lotus' projectiles it is even harder to even get up there. It would of been better if the entire bridge where the Volcano Lotus is with more space to move to the player (5 bridges big, not 3 so you don't have to be forced to spinjump) and also one block higher so it's easier to get up there (without force momentum) but no, it has to be this stupidly difficult. Without that annoying placement at that specific house it would of been way better but apparently not. After that, you're on the higher elevation of the same section and at the end of that there's your star. Overall, a very nice level even with weird music choicements and that one Volcano Lotus placement inside that one house... just no.

Wraith Adamknight -1.14
I have no idea what this level was trying to do, but overall I don’t like this level. It is both huge and claustrophobic in my opinion. On top of this, these houses are creative, don’t get me wrong, but they are just so ugly. I know it is a form of Japanese house, and you ported it creatively, but it was just so ugly that I really can’t accept it. On top of this, the level just feels like it ends randomly and suddenly, which is akin to this level’s awkward pacing. Overall, a lot of work is necessary in order to revamp this level.

Zipper - 6.80
Confession time! I don't know how to beat this level legitimately. The house area with the lava lotus completely stumped me, so I had to moonjump my way through. Other than that though, this was an interesting little stage. The most notable thing, of course, is that the main path goes left, rather than right. I found this to be really interesting, because despite being nothing more than a design choice, it actually somewhat affects the player's perception, sort of like how the Mirror Cup in Mario Kart is harder than it looks. That aside, the level was generally open-air and wide, allowing the player to do manuevers around obstacles freely. Being less limited when platforming is always a plus. Still, most of the level is just moving between the floor and the sizables. There's really nothing interesting going on that I can think of. The pyramid side path was a nice little change, even if small. But other than that, even after the dreaded lava lotus, the level just does its thing and then ends. Final notes; Atmospherically pleasant, level design is wide and generous, gameplay itself is a little dry.

Chad - 6.00
A really nice-looking level. Very natural and logical construction and decoration, nice arrangements of sizables and terrain, and a good degree of thematical variety that gives a real feeling of progress. It does more visually than in terms of gameplay, as that's relatively standard and consisting of ordinary progression, but it's built to a pretty solid and stable extent. Distributions of enemies and deviating landforms are fine, but the influence on the experience is moderate, as you can just breeze through a lot of it. Still, it's functional and doesn't pose any unpleasant problems besides that Lotus jump near the end requiring a hit because only Luigi can spin-jump high enough. I like the attention to detail applied to the insides of buildings and the expansiveness of the final area, though.

ElTipsta - 6.50
Wow, a level ging to the left. I like that. The desert section and underground sections were well designed, but the level awkwardly transitions into a jungle. I like the 'inside house' designs is a nice charm. However, The Volcano Lotus inside the house on the far left should be removed. It's tricky to get past that and gos against the difficulty curve of the level. Otherwise nice job.

20. glitch4 - Iceblock Castle - 5.70

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.25
Entrance till the iceblock castle area is alright then going inside, annoying wall where you have to bomb up. Then average platforming area with enemies to deal with and such. There's a bonus area where you can get 1UPs if you're doing this correctly and such... not too bad. After that you have a vertical section with a fairy power up and if you get hit there no matter where you have to do the whole section again... on top of that there are certain NPCs such as Thwomps that are appearing out of the sudden at the top of the screen if you don't follow the coin trails. After that you need the fireflower to get to the secret star section but before you even get to the secret star, an elevator is on your way going down which is alright. Hey, it's boss time at the end which is survival... was ok but at some point too spammy including ice physics... then at last, Larry. Thank you for your messages by the way.

And the douchebag-of-the-month-award goes to
Wraith Adamknight - 0.00(Original score of -1.00 was rounded up to 0.00)
This level doesn’t get a normal review. You get negative points due to so many issues. For one, the boss uses a curse word, which I find bad for as game meant for children. Entire level is filled with ice physics and precise jumps or obstacles. One section is filled with obstacles that you have to avoid with the fairy powerup. Get hit once, and you havew to redo the ENTIRE section again. Then there is the damn boss…that was just both lazy and bad.

Zipper -7.80
Ouch, my eyes. SMBX really doesn't really give much for icy levels, huh? Someone should fix that. Anyway, this is a pretty good fortress level. Really reminded me of the Ice World Fortresses in SMB3 for at least the first half(by the way, please remove the bob-omb wall blasting, timing challenges that early into the level aren't nice). And then it got a little more original by the second. The conveyor belts and donut blocks are nice, they force you to control your footing in a completely different way than ice blocks do, and that keeps things from growing monotone. The fire flower part was a little slow due to how cramped it was, but it wasn't too bothersome. Still, it'd be nice if you gave some breather room. I internally screamed when I saw the fairy room but, it wasn't TOO bad, as I only got hit once. Still though, you might want to create a pseudo midway point where players can restock, to keep last second damages from making players ragequit.
The boss had more coins than projectiles, falsely leading me to believe that its attacks would be strong. Nope! They're just piddly Bullet Bills. Not very exciting. The Rinkas were more of a challenge, but I don't want to encourage their overusage.
Anyway, not bad, a little rough around the edges, but it can be perfected.
(also is it just me or was that the greatest bonus room ever?)

Chad - 6.00
A pretty elaborate castle, especially one that does a great job of using the different-sized ice blocks for its foundation. It has a nice classic design scheme with a pretty wide variety of hazards and obstacles. Difficulty is handled cunningly, but could be a little more forgiving on powerups and length considering the somewhat narrow space and limitations on momentum. It seems more designed like the castle wasn't actually meant to be icy at first, because most of the platforming is slow and precise given the somewhat jagged layout. The conveyors are included well though and I enjoyed the fairy section, especially with the provided return pipes, but an upward section is not a place for Thwomps that can trigger offscreen like that. I also found the frozen coin section to be lengthy and timing-based bomb-throwing to be tedious. Bonus rooms are handled creatively, but the boss was more flashy than purposeful. The indicators are good, but it's just a few standard evasions followed by an ordinary fight.

ElTipsta - 7.50
This is a really well done level made using iceblocks as the main surface. I quite enjoyed this level, tohugh there were a couple of nitpicks. The section where you have to melt the ice blocks to proceed is difficult, especially where you ascend upwards. I would remove the Munchers at least, but it's tricky to the point where I cheated through bits of it. How do you do this? I genuinely have no idea. The lava felt out of place tbh. The boss was good though.

19. AirShip - Airship Fields - 5.73

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.75
"Bowser, have you worked on your Airships and Tanks lately? Too bad they're not really functioning at this point!" For a short SMB3 World 8's Tank level without autoscrolling it was pretty nice and I sure love how the design goes for linearity and such but well... all I can say is... you give me a SMB3 roulette exit at the end. Thank you for your patience!

Wraith Adamknight - 2.28
This was an interesting idea, don’t get me wrong, but a few things both me. For one, this level is composed of mostly tanks, not airships. On top of this, the level doesn’t scroll nor require a specific pace, killing any immersive action a tank level would normally have. One big issues I have is the graphical choice you took in constructing the “border” of the level. I liked that everything faded to black, but this is a concept best left on paper. Seeing the pipes cut off into blackness yet still be solid is a trick to the mind. On top of this, it feels incredibly claustrophobic having a pure black “border” at the top and bottom of the screen. Lastly, work on your difficulty and level length. You had a good idea here, but you didn’t really do anything with it sadly.

Zipper - 6.10
It's uh, pretty nice. It has a grand total of 2 airships, so that's sort of disappointing. But still, it certainly captured the vanilla vibe pretty well. You could put this as a World 8 level in SMB3 and I'd believe you. It's occasionally pretty tight to move around, and there are no checkpoints, but the level isn't long enough for that to be an issue. I can't really complain about it being same-y all the time, as it didn't last long enough to get stale. It's just that...it's a slightly boring, you know? Everything feels so static, with minimal layer movement usage and no events. Spice it up with something that surprises the player, and it'll be a much more exciting experience overall.

Chad - 5.50
Not bad. It has somewhat of a classic Invasion feel to it, and the letterbox is a neat visual choice. I like how this is less a traditional tank level and more like a scrapyard of spare parts, sort of. Design is pretty standard and the level's rather short, but there's a nice degree of smart enemy/obstacle arrangements throughout which create clever difficulty and fun gameplay.

ElTipsta - 7.00
I really liked this level. This is basically a tank/airship level hybrid level with pipes. The level was well decorated and fun to play, and the evrnts on the airship were a nice touch. Minor note - the Roto-Disc only appears once, so it's out of place, and it's a little too short, mind.

Tier 4

18. Catastrophe - Vanilla Takes A Shot - 5.87

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.50
Fun little SMB3 wooden level with nice little details aswell. Design is alright with it's structures and also some secrets to discover and such which... well you get at least something but the secret star, alone by guessing it as of where it is is ok but it's a bit hard to find unless you pay attention to the coins next to the enclosed area at the right side of the first section. Not too bad at least. The wooden platform at the end, once you miss it like if you jump off of it you have to wait for over 60 seconds in order to respawn and once you're done with that there's your exit where you can nearly easily fall off the edge if you gain enough momentum.

Wraith Adamknight - 7.140
I loved the simplicity but it also proved fatal for the level. It was much too short and linear to really stick out amongst the rest of the submissions. For a world one level though, this is very spot-on for what would be required. My only real recommendation is just extend the level’s length as it really just ends abruptly.

Zipper - 4.70
Not a bad standard SMB3 level. I enjoy how the level starts out as normal, but shows slight "tower-like" properties, when you use wood BGOs to cover up the background.(that's obviously not the word I'm looking for, but bear with me here.) The level doesn't really do anything unusual, but the platforming is enjoyable. A little bland, perhaps. The second part of the level was more of the same of the first part, which really left the level stale. The last area got my hopes up, but ended up being the most disappointing section when I realised the lift trip takes about a total of 15 seconds before ending the level. I was really hoping we'd get into a verticality focused area, what with the wood BGOs giving that feeling at all. Overall, it's nice, but falls short in certain areas, due to not really trying something new.

Chad - 5.00
It's certainly not bad, but it's not really an adventurous level either. It's a simple and short SMB3 overworld with a nice attention to detail and placement, a solid design foundation, and nothing really unpleasant about it. But at the same time, the gameplay is rather ordinary throughout. It plays fine, but not a lot of variety is offered.

ElTipsta - 5.00
Pretty okay in all honesty. It's nice for a wood level, but it's a bit basic, plus the platform line cutoff near the end tells me you didn't plan the design properly. Also why did the star disappear at the end?

17. Yoshi678 - Simple Wood Level - 6.07

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 4.00
A wood level with moving things... seems ok. Generating enemies... decent. Then certain narrowed spaces to move... uhhh. Then one Birdo that's easy to beat if you bring a shell with you but the secret Birdo where you fight in a very narrowed space like this... just, no. Also if you actually stand at the spot where Birdo is gonna appear after you defeat her the first time in the secret area you get an unfair hit. Also, inconsistency with the water placements. One area you can swim but others you can't. Why not make it either swimable or not in the entire level or better, if it's not swimable, just not have the water there. Moving layers with piranha plants tends to get glitchy which means standing on one of them can hurt the player unfairly while it's moving.

Wraith Adamknight - 9.14
A level that is true to its name until the very end. I must say I absolutely adored this level’s simplicity while still being incredibly fun and interactive. I do have issues regarding your alternate paths requiring so much foresight, but that is really minor. The level was lovely but also very claustrophobic and time comsuming in some parts, such as the moving pipes. Lastly, the SMB2 Birdo was pretty uncalled for in such a nice easy-going level.

Zipper - 5.70
<Kosaki> "this grey pipe will take you back to the hub!"
<Kosaki> >enter pipe
<Kosaki> >game crashes
<Kosaki> stop submitting your episode levels without editing them
Other than that, the level is actually pretty solid. It revolves around moving pipes, generally. I'm iffy about the first area to be honest. The pipe with moving chains REALLY looks out of place, and trying to go for the power-up really breaks the flow, since you need to wait for a beetle, a bob-omb, the water and the pipe. Other than that, the pipe jumping felt a little....awkward? I felt like I had to play the waiting game a lot.In fact, I'm pretty sure I can define the first area as "a little awkward". A steep slope in the middle of the level, 5 moving pipes with piranhas in EACH of them that force me to take it slow, even with a fire flower, etc. The other areas were more forgiving about this, being mostly straightforward platforming, with the pipes only being occasional traps. Sadly this also meant that the level itself fell a little flat later on. Still, I DID enjoy it. Its atmosphere really helped its case. For some reason, I really like the "under the wood floor" theming of the zones, can't explain why. Buuuut yeah, I don't have a lot to say. Perhaps make the pipes a little faster, and get creative with them. Not a bad level.

Chad - 4.50
A decent SMB3 overworld. The first area is a bit cluttered and unfocused, but the idea and focus on creating sort of a tricky layout is definitely there. The second and third areas improve though, as they each have a more consistent design plan. I like how the suspended platforms are laid out, and the tunnel-like construction works well for the last portion while making it feel slightly mazey and challenging. However, enemies are a consistent problem. In most areas, they're too numerous and crammed together. There's not much space to deal with them half the time, and they interact oddly with surfaces and each other. Section 2 is an exception for this aside from the last Paragoomba, but otherwise enemies are messy, and are even on you almost as soon as you begin the level. Also, don't have Piranhas on vertical layers, because standing on their pipe still hurts. I'm also not sure how you'd reach the bonus areas, because that would appear to require flying. There's only one leaf in the level and trying to find running space to take off safely seems exceedingly difficult. The alternate Birdo fight's not interesting, either. A super narrow space isn't a good way to spice it up, and throwing in a second identical phase is just redundant. Don't have water you can't swim in either, especially without warning the player. Overall, not a bad start and has decent design variety, but could use a lot of cleaning up.

ElTipsta - 7.00
This is quite a nice level. The not-so-hidden area in section 1 should have he warps moved around as it looks like the exit is the entrance to the hidden area. The moving pipes in the early part of section 4 is disproportionate more difficult in comparison to the rest of the level. And a couple of the Piranha Plants should be taken out of that area, and the Paragoomba and Spiny Egg. The enemy variety also increases significantly to the level's detriment. The Birdo fight can also be cheated with using the Grand Goomba. Aside from the fourth section, this level is really well done.

16. RoundPiplup - ClashTastic - 6.16

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.50
SMB3 to SMB to SMW to SMB2 to SM then back to SMB3. I like this level by it's variety and such but I find your enemy placement sometimes of either being annoying or just too much to deal with like at the Metroid section with so many rinka generators. If you're not fast enough, you're doomed. The rest as of how the design goes was alright at least. Not much to say but it was a nice level.

Wraith Adamknight - 5.00
I really liked this level’s gimmick. Using clash to your advantage, yet still not actually having clash in any specific section. Very clever indeed. However, there are quite a few flaws. Level is too long, midway point isn’t in the middle of the level and the Metroid section is both unwarranted and much too difficult.

Zipper - 5.30
This is pretty nice! A little too standard perhaps, but it's got a cute little "aesthetic" gimmick going. Each area uses elements from their own game, and while it doesn't provide TOO much difference in gameplay, as each section seems to treat its gimmicks as "throwaways", it was still dynamic enough to not bore the player. I don't have much to say about this honestly. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed playing it, but it stands at a position so perfectly average that I can't say anything good or bad about it.

Chad - 6.00
Nothing says clash quite like keeping each tileset, background, and NPC alongside their respective game style and environment. Such a sin is so unforgivable that I'm going to give this level the score I am because each section uses a different design style that each functions pretty nice on its own and fits the source. Not a lot of unfamiliar ground is explored, but each area makes a good concise summary of each game and provides a simple array of elements from them. Spacing is used smartly for good platforming and enemies are arranged well, but the Hammer Bros. aren't given sufficient room and Rinkas in the Metroid section are beyond excessive. Other than that, pretty standard stuff, but not bad.

ElTipsta - 7.00
This level is basically a relay of all the styles in SMBX and each section plays to that game's advantages. The SMB2 section is a bit difficult, but it's fair, howeve the Rinka the Metroid section has there too many Rinka Spawners. Otherwise, nice job.

15. h2643 - bertie's contest level - 6.164

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.00
Thank you for having a very nice screen when I open up the level. Also that level name is very questionable. Anyway, into the level. SMB2 which, the design is pretty cool with variety going on and enemies to deal with... everything was neat with secrets including secret stars. I like how you put the halfway point in front of the door, makes it completly unavoidable. A thing that's weird is that if you don't talk to that NPC next to the infinite Mushroom Block spawner, those Sparkies won't spawn aswell but if you do they do spawn, makes it harder if you talk to it or not if you don't talk to it. Anyway, this part is quite a pain at first because you have to throw the Mushroom Blocks upwards and that at least 4 of them... less and then you won't be able to advance further into the next area and then you have to do the whole throwing stuff at the top again. At the end, Birdo is for you.

Wraith Adamknight - 5.42(The rating on this level is perfect you dingus wtf happened with all the other scores)
I will admit, this rating seems too high for a simplistic level, but I cannot find anything that bad about the level. It was a generic SMB1 level that really gave me the vibes of a smb2 level, even going as far as to take elements from the first level. I did love the fact you had side paths to explore, but I feel like more effort was given into making these paths immersive rather than making the normal path worth walking through. The door leading to the last section was annoying to enter as well. It is much less tedious to deal with ninji’s rather than throw a ton of mushroom blocks to create platforms. Overall, the level’s length was pretty lack luster with too little to offer in terms of originality or creativity.

Zipper - 4.90
The first half is a nice and calm SMB2 level. I spent more time pressing Down+B than actually moving around, but still. It had secrets, it had a few side paths that rewarded you, nothing amazing but it was cute. And then you get to the second half and it gets way more annoying. Feel free to call me out on my stupidity if I'm wrong, but, do I SERIOUSLY have to stack so many mushroom blocks while being harassed by sparks JUST to reach ONE door? That's not fun, that's not engaging, that's just plain dumb. I know I can just throw them upwards and use the pipe, but the finicky collision detection of the blocks REALLY push my limits on how creatively I can throw them. I spent a good few minutes setting up like 7 blocks and just said "well crap I'm really not enjoying this". A shame too, because while the rest of the level was nothing outstanding, it was not boring at all.

Chad - 6.50
A pretty polished SMB2 level. First half is pretty standard fare as far as an overworld goes, but I didn't find anything unpleasant with it. You have a knack for cleverly arranging blocks and items around different types of secrets though, because I enjoyed the stuff surrounding the bonus stars and the first area's 1up. The cave area is a bit more involved and explorative than the outside, but I found the mushroom blocks to be a little more time-consuming than necessary and the discovery of the key shouldn't have required a blind jump. Still, pretty solid work the whole way through.

ElTipsta - 6.00(Thought this was Darkonius' level)
This was a really nice level, despite the trolling at the start. This SMB2 level is well made and faithful to the source material. My only real complaint is the last section before the boss whee you are required to throw the Mushroom blocks upwards can be tricky if the Mushrooms despawn, likewise it's also possible to do the bottom challenge without the Saprks spawning if you don't talk to the NPC. Overall, nice job.

14. team circular circly circle guys (Circle Guy) - Hot Hot Volcano - 6.17

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 6.75
Volcano cave based level with moving lava that goes up and down. Also random clouds in caves... seems an odd coice instead of bridge pieces. I do like the pipes holding the lava, it's pretty neat. Other than that, it's ok. There are like... a lot of coins in this level. Enemy placements were alright and also the power ups but the level itself was kinda short but well that's how the older Nintendo levels are so it's not too bad... at least it could of done more than that as of now like secrets or so.

Wraith Adamknight - 2.00
Not a bad level, but its graphical consistency was just bad. Grass and wood in a cave full of lava…just..why?! Clearly the lava was the gimmick and difficulty factor for this level, but it did little to do anything to this level other than make the player wait constantly. Overall, a lot of work is necessary to improve this level.

Zipper - 8.10
Damn, for something so frighteningly standard looking, this was really cool. There's a single overarching threat over the entire level, and the level compensates for it by giving you different ways to avoid it. Whether by jumping, dodging, or using rising platforms. I also like the idea of using the lava as a way to ELIMINATE threats, as shown by some koopas and a lot of thwomps that you can get rid of. If I may nitpick a bit though, the entire experience felt a little...claustrophobic. Having half a screen to manuever for most of the level really limits the amount of creative platforming you can put out. Perhaps lava moving in different directions would let you use more room?

Chad - 7.00
I don't see the lava tides gimmick used like this much, and it's pretty well organized in this level. The construction is built nicely around the precise points at which the lava stops and gives the player plenty of space to make solid judgments about when to go next. Each obstacle's slightly different from the last, so a good variety is created in the experience. NPC pipes are put to good use as platforms carried by the lava, too. It's decently challenging, but each part is clearly conveyed and the length is reasonably concise.

ElTipsta - 7.00
A nice volcano level with a rising/falling lava gimmick. I like the usage of the pipes on the lava so they rise and fall with the lava. Made the second half a lot easier. This was also nice and fair. Not too much else to say tbh. Good job.

13. Ness-Wednesday - Some Short Desert Mixed Level - 6.22

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 -6.00
Ehh... level design was ok. I do like the decoration of this level like pipes inside the tileset and such but the design itself like how you navigate through it is on some cases troublesome like once you reach to the first lineriding platform, you have to wait for it and once it actually reaches you and you miss it just because it's still a bit too high anyway, you have to wait for it again. Just... no. Also yay for Lakitus in this level... if you don't kill him you have to deal with multiple SMB3 green spiny eggs aswell and if you fall down with the Lakitu, you pretty much lose a 1UP anyway because it's not really worth trying to get up there with that stupid Lakitu aswell while waiting for that platform to come back. On top of that, there's a venus fire trap as of where you have to wait out til the platform comes up... so timing is even more perfect than that without getting hit. Later on, propeller gliding... not too bad at least but certain items are quite hard to get. Also, red coins that are fully useless in this level. They're just there... without explanations what so ever. Next up, an airship with a switch... if you fall off of that airship you can't actually get further on in this level anymore. At the end you fight a boss which is interestingly constructured... silly stuff included.

Wraith Adamknight - 4.20
I really have no idea what this level is doing. I was constantly lost and confused, which is terrible design on your part. The level has events and platforms that require me to wait around for no reason or trap me if I don’t follow along with it. Always stupid-proof your events and make them as time efficient as possible.

Zipper - 7.40
Goodness, a stage with vertical focus that doesn't focus on moving platforms. I'm pleasantly surprised! Aside from the jump to the first lift in the level(which was STUPID hard to do), everything flowed together quite nicely, with adequate difficulty. Despite seeming labyrinthine at first, the player can quickly realise that going through the level is actually quite a linear process and not as complicated as it looks. The bulk of the level was designed nicely, with Lakitus used sparingly, and power-ups scattered generously, so the threat of dying is very little for anyone who's careful. The platforming was a little too simple, but it didn't really damage the integrity of the level. The propeller section was fun, but it felt like there was a lot of dead air between challenges, seeing as how you can just float down for a while without realising the danger is FAR ahead of you. The room before the boss was a little bit bland, but nothing too worrisome. What DID bother me was the koopa-jump between the two airships. Giving the player a "do or die" situation in a level where the only checkpoint is before the boss seems like quite a bold move. Sure it's not THAT hard of a jump, but you may never know when anyone can slip up due to reasons out of their reach. The boss was..well....I don't know. I just pressed the bomb ? block a few times and it was over. It looks easy to just cheese through the whole battle, so you might want to check that out. Still, pretty fun level, stands out pretty fresh compared to official Mario levels.

Chad - 5.50
Sort of interesting. It has a layer of intricacy to it in that you explore all corners of each area, and I like how one of the sections gets revisited a bit later in a different way. To some degree it feels like a mishmash of random ideas in the first area, but the design still holds up as being carefully built and fun to play. The propeller block descent is neat, especially where the moving layer is included, but I think the level could have ended there. It's a reasonably short level, but Section 4 feels a lot more mundane. Even though Larry's somewhat of a unique idea, his room just amounts to hitting block after block. I also didn't care much for the line platform/fire Piranha combo in Section 1, as you have a tiny window to get on the platform before having to wait a long time for it again, and that window coincides directly with a fireball, followed by a very sudden and difficult Lakitu overhead.

ElTipsta - 8.00
I like the usage of tilesets in this level, and some of the events at work. The propeller block section was fun, I wish it was longer. The boss was an interesting take on Larry Koopa, but it's literally just hitting ? Blocks whle trying to avoid Rinkas and Larry's projectiles. Though warp 7's enterance is the wrong way round. You really should fix that.

12. Snessy the duck - Vanilla Valley - 6.28

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.50
Very nice SMW styled level. I like as of how the level is structured and as of how you get to the secrets in this level but after you actually failed the P switch area in the underground, you have to swim back till the first area which takes some time to go back to it. Enemy placements were pretty, power up placements were alright, secrets were nice like after you press the switch you have to go back to get the other secret star in this level and it also indicates as of where it is... at least. The rest was pretty nice for an average SMW styled level so good job on that.

Wraith Adamknight - 5.70
Nothing to really say about the level. It was just really generic and bland. Even by SMW standards, this level didn’t really do much with the assets you had available. I did appreciate the use of moving layers in the cave sections. Overall, just experiment some more, as this level was just kinda “meh” in terms of replayability and longevity.

Zipper - 5.20
A decent overworld level. It's really nothing special, using piranha plants, galoombas and koopas we all know and love. The second half taking place in a cave was atmospherically a breath of fresh air, though it didn't introduce anything new other than the bats. However, the bats themselves proved to be at LEAST a decent challenge, so it'd be a lie for me to say that it was completely unchanged compared to the overworld area. What caught my eye in this level is the secret stars. They're both hidden behind mini challenges that are not time consuming and yet still rewarding. The first one is a (surprisingly) hectic P-Switch run that really pushes you to go fast while still leaving some room for breathing. The second one is slightly less appealing, being that you have to backtrack after reaching the end. However, the area was short enough that I didn't really find this to be an issue, as backtracking can still make someone feel like they're treading new ground as long as it's not TOO long. Yeah, I'd say the secrets were the main strength in this level. Using ideas for those in the main path would really spice things up, ASSUMING they're used sparingly.

Chad - 6.00
Pretty good SMW overworld/cave stage. The construction feels classic, natural, and deliberate. Blocks, sizables, and enemies are arranged for a somewhat varied platforming experience as well as good visuals, especially underground. Placements are good throughout, and it plays like a solid level, even if it is relatively standard. The red switch was a bit lame though, given that you don't have to work for it in the slightest, and the backtracking it requires betrays the general straightforwardness of the rest of the level. The P-switch room felt incredibly lazy too, because the terrain in there just ends, and the water is extremely time-consuming to escape if you fall in. Better to just have a pit and a solid ceiling, along with cave sizables much like how Section 3 used them because that looked nice.

ElTipsta - 6.00
A pretty okay level as well. It's a faithful SMW cave level with decent enemy variety and length. The P-Switch challenge is a bit too difficult for a hidden star in a W1 level IMO. Other than that, nice job.

Tier 5

11. Rudeguy - a level that has propeller blocks - 6.81

Spoiler: show

10. andregemao23 - Maglator Island - 6.95

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 7.00
Well, this was an Island discovery. Forest... then a cave with castle enviorement. I do like it's design as of how you go through the areas and such but later on I love how you warn the player multiple times with the signs "Be careful!" because once you touch the area with coins on the floor it goes into the lava. Also I love how this level only has 4 dragon coins, not 5 like the usuals. At the halfway point, there's a noteblock that's attached to the blue switchplatform and then after one obstacle you get to the boss... which is a creepy looking face. Also hi lag because of too many objects in this level and multiple sparkies. This guy has multiple forms and I do like the concept of it... but it's really weird. After that boss, star for you.

Wraith Adamknight - 7.14
I loved this level, including its incredibly ugly but creative boss. However, I do not like the fact you kept shoving these signs down my throat telling me what is happening. On top of this, I don’t really like the usage of the bonus room’s tileset on top of such unfitting music for the level. Overall good concepts, but I just have a lot of minor issues here and there.

Zipper - 7.10
Pretty interesting...Going through a grassland, cave and a castle in VERY quick succession feels a little weird, but I'll cope with it. I sadly don't have much to say about this level. It does what it does well, but it doesn't try to stand out too much. Still, different obstacles were used, and the propeller block was fun for the ~15 seconds it existed. The yellow > blue jump at the final area was EXTREMELY annoying, either remove the buzzsaw or make the blue platform's path longer. As for the boss, oh my god that is the silliest looking thing, I love it. Its attacks were actually pretty fair, perhaps even TOO easy? (Don't buff it up with rinkas though, anything but rinkas). I especially loved the final phase(why do the platforms turn, though?), it's a mad climb with snifits threatening you. It might be silly looking, but this is easily one of the more creative vanilla bosses I've seen.

Chad - 6.00
All right, this was rather cool. I like the transition from scenic forest to tricky cave along with the incorporation of castle tiles, as well as the amount of detail put into each tileset arrangement. The use of moving layers and the propeller block spices things up a bit, with a boss that's pretty clever and unusual while easy to grasp. Other than that, the level gets by pretty well on fairly normal progression, but it's performed with really solid design. However, I do think the warning for sinking lava platforms could have been a bit less vague and sudden, but it's still not too hard to get past.

ElTipsta - 7.50
This level is really well deisgned, I like the transition into the cave area, which was a nice touch. There were no real issues with the main design that I noted, except it was hard to tell what castle pieces acted like Thwomps and which didn't. I like the boss, which is made out of the extr graphics, even a health bar which is really neat. Props for making it work within the limitations you had, although I did get lag at times.

9. ssumday - Just a simple bay - 7.10

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.750
You gotta love beach levels. This level was actually pretty cool with variety of design going on. Overworld with different tilesets, underwater, shipareas and then back to overworld again. I for sure like this level as of how it goes. There are areas that you either can skip a bit or you can go above the ceiling in the underwater area it's useless to do it but oh well. It's weird how a lot of areas are block off by tiles offscreen but not all of it. Also we have flying bloopers with a cyan yoshi that can turn them into ice blocks but while holding the blooper, the water area that's attached to the blooper is still there... not that it's too bad or something you can't do against it, it's just looks weird how you still can swim in air as of wher ethe blooper was last before yoshi has him in his mouth. Later on, a ship randomly going down in water... at least you hear an explosion while it's sinking. After that, a switch on the next section, makes a ship appear... pretty cool I must say. After that the level ends with a star. Oh and about the last section, there's a green cheep cheep trying to attack you while coming out of the pipe... if you're not reacting on that guy fast enough you get hit. There are certain areas where you can glitch stuff like skip a bit of the level as I mentioned before and other times, glitch through the bridge to get to unreachable places but those don't serve too much purpose anyway if you do that. Still, very nice level ya got there.

Wraith Adamknight - 5.57
Very interesting level, which is really strange coming from me. This level was one hell of a clash-fest, yet it works surprisingly enough. I liked the concept of colliding four separate games’ worth of assets into one level, but your decision to make a water level killed the pacing of the level. Work on your level’s pacing and make the level a lot easier, because there was a lot of obstacle spam in this level.

Zipper - 6.70
Very solid level. It involves a beach section, an underwater section and a cave(well it's a ship but who cares), and they blend together really well, due to how you set up the transitions. The overworld areas are nice, they actually catch the feeling of a ship attack. The amount of bullet bills aren't overwhelming, and you can always go underwater for split paths or just plain safety. The underwater area....I could honestly live without. Very slow and not too engaging. The Dragon Coin tied to the blooper was genius, though. The ship area was nice, albeit the Yoshi gimmick felt a little....eh....forced? I mean it was just "Now you walk but with a Yoshi". Since it's a Blue Yoshi, perhaps a projectile shooting oriented gimmick would be nice. Other than that, its platforming was solid, with the rising crates and fish attacks and whatnot. The end areas were....more of the same, so I'm not complaining. A moving ship would've been cute though.

Chad - 7.50
A very pretty level! For the tools you had to work with, you did an excellent job at creating tropical harbor/sunken ship scenarios. The layout is superb the whole way through, enemies are nicely arranged, difficulty and length are moderate, and you do well at alternating between land and water. The challenge is pretty traditional, but it does a ton of good with effective placements, presentation, and logical variety of hazards.

ElTipsta - 7.00
I like the usage of graphics in the overworld sections and the section follwoing that is nice too. However things start to go wrong in the airship sections. Surely it should be underwater and have water physics? And why the overpowered Yoshi? The green one wold be fine. The first Cheep Cheep in section 6 - remove it. That is bad design. The player may not be asble to react in time to that. Aside from those things, good job.

8. Team smb1x is cancelled also darkonius wanted bacon (Spinda & Darkonius Mavakar) - dEFINITELY a gRASS lEVEL - 7.25

Spoiler: show

7. MosaicMario - Overplanted Greenhouse - 7.73

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.50
This is an interesting concept going on. Complete grass in a castle. I really like it's design of it but for sure... putting those climbable vines at the top makes me climb it every time I hold down while jumping over a hole and such. Also there's one waterfall placement over a sizeable that looks like its solid at the top but it really isn't... and also a lot of enemies on your way as I speak about that. Later on, plant vs blocks section. Pretty cool. Next up, left and right areas with switches to press... not too bad. Then vertical section with level wrap... while one tile is a bit offplaced and then that's it for the level. I really like this level.

Wraith Adamknight - 8.57
I absolutely loved this level. Its atmosphere was really something else, using grass tile-sets combined with cave music to symbolize an enclosed space. However, the concept of this being a greenhouse isn’t really shown in the level itself, but represented by its name instead. So really, the name gives you the expectation and then the level delivers based off that impression. So, while I loved the level…you sorta fell short on the “greenhouse” part. Lastly, your level was beautiful and that is about it. I found the level to be incredibly linear, only really offering one direct path to take.

Zipper - 7.40
Oh my, I'm getting heavy Top Man vibes from this, I hope I'm not alone. Overall, this was a very solidly built level. I liked the usage of Pokeys as pseudo-walls that you had to shrink to proceed. Sizable blocks were utilized in a way that allowed you to traverse freely along different floors, which helped the level feel less cramped, despite only being one screen tall most of the time. Enemies were also easily killable with plenty of plants available on the ground. For the second area, I'm afraid the Piranha Gun was REALLY underutilized. It had no purpose to exist there other than to break those arbitrarily placed bricks and make the remaining 5 seconds of that section easier. Especially seeing how plants are a prevalent theme in this level, I'm sure there can be a way to improve upon this. The third area was a switch "hunt". Quotes used because well, it's just a matter of backtracking 2 short paths twice. This is the kind of split path I don't mind, as long as it's short enough to not bore the player. That was done correctly here. Both paths were slight boring in their own ways though. Not too much, but perhaps mixing pipes and pokeys for both sides would be better? The last room was a nice little vertical climb with not much to point out. The horizontal loop helped it flow well, and it was a solid challenge like the rest of the level. However, the second-to-last ladybug is absolute crap. You need to have some godly timing to not get hit. Please remove that.
Aaaaaanyway, I liked this plenty. Not too much to talk about, but it does what it does well, with a fitting and unique atmosphere to boot.

Chad - 5.50
Interesting concept. The layout is rather complex and natural-looking and does a nice job of facilitating the hazard interactions, but it's also excessively narrow much of the time. This is especially difficult around Pokeys, even more so in terms of the ones with buggy slope behaviors or large populations of them. Sizables are put to practical and decorative use, and the inclusion of Toothy is nice but brief. The switch room is thankfully not too time-consuming, but each one could have been given a return warp. The level wrap is nicely implemented, but this is also where the crampedness of the level is at its worst, especially in regards to the last two ladybugs. Overall, you've got a nice unique theme here and decent design, but the execution of some things could stand to be improved. There's also a waterfall edge very early in the level that presents itself as being connected to a sizable surface (around the Pokey crowd), but isn't actually solid and had me fall unexpectedly into non-water, so that was unfortunate.

ElTipsta - 8.50
I really like this atmosphere, and it was well excecuted, with a good variety of enemies from each game present. The water should really be swimmable, and switch blocks were a disappointing inclusion. The plant gun section was neat though.

6. HenryRichard - Toilet Bowl Galaxy - 7.81

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.75
One weird joke based level. You start up at someone's house, saying that the toilet is flooded but once you reach to that point there's a donut block on it that is talkable. Then a giant vanilla based rinka appeared and then you get to the main level, as the title suggests. Level design is pretty cool and it also includes multiple SMW stars aswell and they aren't too tricky to find except maybe the last one where you have to go over the castle to the far left of it to get to a completly new section as of where the star is. Also I find your talkable NPCs quite unique. Most of them contain jokes and infos of the level itself and such. During the level, be aware of the giant vanilla rinka shooting regular rinkas at you. There's one spot that even lagged the game a bit for whatever reason. At the water section, collect all the red coins in order to advance further. At the castle, midway, rinkas circling around at the roto-disk balls and then the boss. It's a little bit difficult to grab the flamethrowers since it's on a 1 block area next as of where you fall off. Boss itself was quite nice. After you defeat the giant vanilla rinka that has mother brain inside it you get the star.

Wraith Adamknight - 6.20
See this is a joke level done correctly. I don’t really have anything else to say other than this level was actually difficulty. I would recommend lowing the amount of sheer NPC spam.

Zipper - 6.70
Rinkas, oh no...Well okay I'm exaggerating, this level was really solidly built. It's got the Mario Galaxy feeling down correctly, providing you with small islands that you travel through, while having a focus on verticality. Not very hard, but still somewhat challenging, as pits and slopes....don't really have a loving relationship. Still! It was fair, is what I'm saying.
The underwater section was actually cute. It was a simple item hunt in a enclosed space(Still reminds me of Galaxy, good job on that), with rinkas being mixed in with corals. I honestly expected one of them to start shooting rinkas(You should've totally done that). The following vertical cave was good too, and it felt more challenging if you were carrying the key.
The pre-boss tower was dumb. The spinning rinka machines are a nice idea, but they're VERY aggravating to avoid in a closed space. It feels like it's just an excuse to remove your power-ups "fairly".
Honestly, the worst part of this was the antagonist itself, the Ultimate Vanilla Rinka. All of her appearances were either stupid memes, or cheap shots. Her first attack in the first area just nailed the shot perfectly, and cost me some time. I didn't know I was supposed to expect her. Her appearance before the tower just made me pull back vigorously fast out of fear from what might pop out. And the boss battle was...well, it's basically the "generic mother brain with rinkas and a gun" boss formula that I'm not a big fan of. Thankfully it lasts like 10 seconds and I can move on.
Yeah, that's about it. Ironically, the main focus of the level is the only part I have a problem with.

Chad - 7.00
Well this was a silly little idea, but quite fun. I like how well both the theme and design show Galaxy inspiration, as it's made up of floating islands but with plenty of detail applied to both the construction and placements of obstacles. The progression does a nice job of taking you in all directions, the underwater section's nicely made with an enjoyable focus on collecting red coins, and it has a cool transition coming out of it. However, the humor of the level tends to come at the cost of the gameplay value of things that come with it. Probably the intent, but pretty much every Rinka-based thing was excessive to some extent, and it's a bit less hilarious when a huge onslaught of them kills you while you're far away from both the start and the midpoint. Same applies to Vanilla Rinka who, even with the visual intent, is still a large group of lava blocks and you do have to deal with that at the end. Underwater enemies were also a bit too numerous, especially Bloopers. Otherwise this was a fun little adventure. It just didn't need to be spammy when it tried to be funny.

ElTipsta - 9.50
This level is really impressive. It's basically a vanilla Beach Bowl crossed with Rinkas. It's really ncie, the layers and events work well, there is lots of nonlinearity and the dialogue is funny. The boss was also great too, though it was easy to die if you weren't careful. I actually thought the Vanilla Rinka was CGFX till I realised the red bits were lava. The only real flaw I'd give is remove the Rinka spawners in the penultimate section, it's hard to avoid them without taking damage.

5. witchking666 - Sinking in the Sink - 8.04 (Level name changed to something less inappropriate, less immature & less gross.)

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.50
Weird choice of level name for an average castle level. I like the level a lot as of how the design and enemy placement goes. Nothing really was wrong in terms of difficulty but at that one section with level wrap, there's one area that isn't perfectly aligned to the other side as of where the free 1UP is (top left to top right... block placements is off by one block too high). At the end of that section there are multiple pipes and a dry bone but that dry bone is a bit hard to avoid because of the ceiling... also I like the podoboos attaching to the platform but if you kill 'em the platform won't move anymore. Moving on, spike pillars (skewers)! Pretty cool. This shows variety of this level including platforms and enemies. At the end, your star is there that you can easily fall off from the platform at the right side with enough momentum involved.

Wraith Adamknight - 9.42 (Wraith's Favorite)
This is probably the best juxtapose level I have ever seen. Using Ghost House atmosphere but using Dungeon-based gimmicks and design was just amazing. I won’t go off on a ramble so I will instead only note the flaws. For one, this level gives you one powerup and no midpoint. This is really cruel even for such a short level. Lastly, the level is just so god damn short. You had a lot of potential and wasted it.
Overall, I loved what the level offered. My favorite part is the fact the giant spikes have a sound tied to the event. So throughout 70% of the level you are constantly hearing this event take place, but never see it. This was great suspense build up and only added to the atmosphere. So, great work.

Zipper - 6.80
Ah, using ghost house tilesets in a castle setting. That's definitely a sight for sore eyes, seeing how it blends together so well. The brown and grays really complement the castle tilesets and backgrounds. BUT ENOUGH ABOUT THAT LET'S TALK ABOUT THE LEVEL
The obstacles overall were pretty predictable: lava, thwomps, rotating discs, dry bones. I do like how you didn't shy away from using boos, it adds a sense of urgency to whatever you're doing, however small it may be. The horizontal looping area was pretty nice, though a few obstacles were too close to the "warp point" for comfort. A few goombas come to mind. Nothing else notable to say about it. The third area's crushers were fast enough to not be boring, but their sounds resonate through the WHOLE level, so having to navigate with a THWUMP sound every ~5 seconds got really bothersome after a while. And then it....ends.
Well, I didn't get much to say about this level. Other than the horizontal loop area, everything felt like it just came by and went. If the gimmicks used were heavier, I'd have understood the short length, as they might've been less forgiving, but simple crushers and Bowser statues by themselves really don't require THAT much input from the player to get through. I was enjoying my experience, I just found myself left wanting for more.

Chad - 7.50
I like the unique style this level has. It makes clever use of many different castle hazards and facilitates that with a good layout. The difficulty is handled pretty well and spaces obstacles apart intelligently, then throws in some smart level wrap usage in the second half. The spike crushers are simple, but work pretty well, although you can just duck beneath the corners. There's no checkpoint, but the length is comfortably short to the point where it virtually doesn't need one. There are a couple of troublesome Goombas in the wrapping area and the level could have used more than two powerups, but for what's offered, this is quite good.

ElTipsta - 8.00
This is an excellent fortress level, made using a combination of SMB3 graphics and the SMW ghost house and lava tilesets. It's great. The level wrap section was a neat idea, though a couple of NPC placements near the wraps could be improved a bit. The piston section was nice too. It was over a bit too soon. I would have liked to have seen more. Also, no checkpoint.

4. Enjl & Pyro: Meme Team - VANILLA GHOST HOUSE - 8.07

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 9.25
This ghost house is super neat! "You thought you're gonna get a power up from a block!" Well, guess again. Anyway this level was pretty neat. Love what you did with the whole attaching layers and such as of how they work and I do like the indications aswell. Attach to layers... some of them can be a bit glitchy depends as of what you're doing. Then after the door, explosions... overworld with things that makes you less scary which is actually funny as of how they change like that. Later on, castle enviorement with a poison mushroom at a hard to reach area... thanks! Then Bowser! Ok drop me into the ghostly underground area and then have a beach aswell. Love the tricky situations that this level has. Also hi boss of this level that's cleverly designed while dodging red coins. At the end there's your gate I mean star.

Wraith Adamknight - 8.28
This level was just adorable. It is clearly designed by someone who knows what they are doing, but didn’t really care much for giving an actual effort. I praise this level’s creativity however, as it showed a few layer attachment gimmicks that even I don’t know about. So, overall…pretty damn good level.
This is what I consider a good joke level. A level that cant itself seriously, but actually tried to do something with itself.

Zipper - 8.10
Goddamnit. I can't believe I'm saying this, but you got me EVERY.SINGLE.TIME. Even when I thought I could figure something out by looking at obvious tells, something else managed to SOMEHOW blindside me. A job well done. This is the sort of "unexpected" I like: One that keeps the player's attention WITHOUT punishing them for not being over-prepared.
Even from the start, the level tells you that you shouldn't trust ANYTHING, not even yourself. Throughout all the areas, moving layers were used very cleverly: As blockades, as pulley, as simple obstacles...Tying layers to enemies was done really well too. An example of this would be the SMB2 treebug in the beach area. I don't know why, but that stuck with me the most.
The boss was actually creative. Needing various objects tied to a generator to actually attack the boss, instead of being spoonfed your artillery was very smart. It sort of became a bumrush when Big Boo appeared, but it didn't overstay its welcome
My favourite gimmick has to be the dropping Phantos, however. Using something harmful (falling platforms) as a means to progress is very fun if done correctly, and it sure was done right here.
However, there were occasional situations where not knowing something will happen WOULD get you killed. The biggest offenders of this are the pillar Thwomp in the ghost house area, where you can't see it coming at all, and the wood block in the castle area. Sure, it has Phantos signalling danger, but it still gives the player VERY little time to react, and the fact that it's the CEILING that lowers makes it a very precise jump. Also, the thwomp secret is stupid and possibly risky, as not knowing WHEN exactly to enter it can get you killed.
Don't let this get to you however. These are pretty minor issues, and everything ELSE was executed so well that I still had a grand time. Just make some tricks more generous in timing, and make your secrets...slightly less aggravating and you're golden.

Chad - 6.50
A pretty unique level, I'll give it that much. It's overflowing with creativity in ways to manipulate the presentation and trick the player's expectations, as well as exploring plenty of original Attach-to-Layer usage. Pretty impressive gimmicks, which are accompanied by some solid design to boot, and the level does well at feeling like ghostly tinkering even in all the different themes and transitions. Some of it felt excessively trollish however, like the first Thwomp being an instant-death crush hazard, fighting SMB1 Bowser while most likely small due to limited powerups (only to learn the axe isn't reachable anyway), the descent afterwards that's too sudden to react to, and that earthquake room which was unnecessary and obnoxious. A lot happens very suddenly and can be rather difficult in a level with no midpoint. The battle also didn't need as many phases and enemies as it did, but it's still a cleverly unusual level that performs well overall. It does require some patience, though.

ElTipsta - 8.25
This is pretty good. I like the usage of SMB3/SMW sections and it was genuinely fun to play. The layer attachments is a neat idea, and hopefully designers will use it in their own levels. The boss was neat too, but the final phase can get very hard. I would remove the Boo gnerators, personally. The only tihng I didn't like was the cave section's exit, please don't troll the player by killing them. It's very easy to go that way at first, especially if the exit was as hidden as it was (it should have been marked by the way, or at least revealed/hinted in a hidden area).

Tier 6 - Top 3

3. Nat The Porcupine - Creep-vine Clouds - 8.08

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.25
SMB2 level with SMB elements... which means there are no grass to pick up from the ground. Then you got vines... dodging grinders. Pretty cool I must say except when you have to wait until the vine comes up if you come up at the incorrect timing. I do like the section transitions like everything is in one section but it gets vertical then horizontal again later on. Then at the end you get a spiny egg attached to the vine... interesting and if you're good enough you can skip it at the complete top of it since there's nothing blocking you at the top of the screen.

Wraith Adamknight - 7.85
I fucking loved this level. This is was a great SMB2 level with cool vine-based transportation gimmicks. However, this very gimmick was a big downfall for your level. The first major one you ride is on an automatic event, so it can just be gone by the time you reach its start point. This means the player will just either sit there trying to figure out what is going on or try their hardest to pass the obstacle and die. The screen altering was a nice touch, but waiting for it to activate every time I die is very annoying. I recommend just separating these sections.

Zipper - 7.30
You would not BELIEVE how scared I was when I saw vines and moving layers in the same level. Thankfully, it worked out just fine and I could easily discover how beautifully crafted this level is. By means of moving vines, it creates simple, short bursts of challenges involving dodging, while still giving the player time to prepare beforehand. The vertical section felt like a nice change of pace, and it felt like a different area despite it only being one screen above the previous area. I sort of wish it lasted a little longer, with a few breaks inbetween. In fact, I wish this whole thing lasted longer, with more varying obstacles. The idea itself is so fun, and you obviously know how to make it work. Something like tying it to a paratroopa or even a bullet bill(would that even work? hell if I know) could open some ridiculous scenarios. You got a good thing going, make it go further.

Chad - 7.50
Pretty good! A SMB1/SMB2 hybrid set to the SMB2 sky background is actually a really good unique mix in terms of how it's handled here. The design is very presentable, being a nice detailed mix of land, log bridges, and moving vines. The latter in particular is rarely utilized, and is applied to a clever range of obstacles in a very DKC-esque fashion. However, I think you could have had the first vine be activated via switch or something in order to keep players from waiting if they miss it, and the upper cloudy portion didn't need the Grinder that falls super fast and bounces back up. Perhaps you neglected to place an endpoint on that line? The Spiny egg-controlled one is really cool, though. Nice construction overall, nice gimmick, and nice use of the Position events too.

ElTipsta - 9.50
This level is fantastic! It's an SMB-SMB2 hybrid heaven level with moving layers and working gimmicks in SMBX. I like the moving vines and the one that was attached to the spike ball. Really nice level here, clearly made by someone who knows the editor well just a few less cloud BGOs and it'd be perfect.

2. Sux - Nothing Beyond The Subcon Land - 8.21

Spoiler: show

1. Team Animal Jam Rocks (Camacho) - Woodfall Breeze - 8.23

Spoiler: show

Bossedit8 - 8.75
I like that level. Woods in the sky with a decent amount of moving platform variety going on. Enemies were alrightly placed throughout the level and the power up placements, were a bit too many (for 2 players it would of been far more suitable for sure) but it wasn't too bad either. About the concept, pressing switches to let red blocks disappear, was ok then a random spiderweb appeared, acting as instant warps to another spiderweb... pretty weird I must say for a sky level haha. There's a secret star aswell if you backtrack to that one point after you pressed the switch... wasn't too bad at least since you even get a Tanooki Suit by that. At the end, the star is for you after being at the wooden clouds with random spiderwebs acting as teleporters and moving wooden platforms on lines or no lines aswell.

Wraith Adamknight - 8.20
I liked what this level did with the “spider portals.” It really helped reduce the amount of time wasted running back and forth. I can foresee this becoming a staple in designing, should it be as well received as I wish it to be. This still doesn’t take away the fact this level was constructed with artificial extensions. Meaning, you are intentionally keeping the player from going forward just to waste their time.
I recommend adding in an entirely separate side-path in order to help the fact the level is so linear. Outside of this, I really don’t have any other suggestions.

Zipper - 8.70
Oooooh, that fresh new sky feeling. I do like how this level was structured. Bizarre wood buildings hanging in the sky, tied by thin ropes. It's a treat to carefully traverse from island to island, while being very careful to avoid the huge pits scattered throughout. The level has a focus on tight and sometimes very dangerous jumps, and it shows right from the start with 1-block platforms laid in front of you. Overall, I found platform placement done extremely well. Hanging blocks that are spread apart well, moving platforms that circle around in a difficult but acceptable pattern, koopa-troopas spaced between jumps. I'm also glad you provided portals that return you to the point you went into a split path from, really saves time and risk that could otherwise be troublesome. The ice flower was a godsend here, being able to create platforms out of enemies, and taking out more dangerous enemies like buzzy beetles and munchers. The music blocks were a nice touch as well. If there's one thing I'd like to point out, it's that a more dynamic level would've taken this level from great to godlike. Some moving platforms, some more lifts and you got a flawless formula going.

Chad - 6.70
This is a great visual style for a level! It's a very elaborate and polished form of SMB3 athletic that's actually pretty creative. The gameplay is solid and makes clever use of pipes, switches, line platforms, moving layers, and a unique warp system. It takes you in all directions to give a feeling of exploration as well. It ran on a bit long and sort of repeated the same stuff after a while, and interactions are mostly standard, but it's pretty well-made and I had a good time with it.

ElTipsta - 9.00
A really impressive sky level. The amount of depth present in the visual design is impressive. Not many custom graphic levels use the wood blocks in such a way. It's clear you put a lot of work into this and it shows. The design itself is also grand, the portals were very creative idea in terms of the execution. I hope this level does well, I have no issues with it.

TDK · Postby **TDK** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:54 pm

Postby **glitch4** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:56 pm

Postby **snoruntpyro** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:57 pm

pyro is a dorkatron

Waddle · Postby **Waddle** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:57 pm

in
in
in
in
in
in

Emral · Postby **Emral** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:58 pm

pyro is a dorkatron

RoundPiplup · Postby **RoundPiplup** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:58 pm

Yes, I will make a vanilla level(no... Actual vanilla).

MECHDRAGON777 · Postby **MECHDRAGON777** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:59 pm

I would like to join in on this.

Trace · Postby **Trace** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:00 pm

great im gonna do a thing this time

h2643 · Postby **h2643** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:03 pm

"pyro is a dorkatron"

Zipper · Postby **Zipper** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:03 pm

since I can't join have a recipe for vanilla pudding instead

Spoiler: show

Recipe courtesy of Food Network Kitchens

JupiHornet · Postby **JupiHornet** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:04 pm

Ecruteak · Postby **Ecruteak** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:05 pm

VANILLA

MY SPECIALTY
(in)

Postby **snoruntpyro** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:05 pm

i'm teaming with enjl, we're gonna make the best vanilla memes

edit: no bullet list for participants 0/10

Lukas Old Account · Postby **Lukas Old Account** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:06 pm

I would like to join.

underFlo · Postby **underFlo** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:07 pm

literally the worst contest name 0/10

but yeah in

JupiHornet · Postby **JupiHornet** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:09 pm

Spinda wrote:literally the worst contest name 0/10

i think it's pronounced "sveellik"

underFlo · Postby **underFlo** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:10 pm

i think its pronounced "valtteri"

Hani · Postby **Hani** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:11 pm

I'm in because I'm in.

Sewpah · Postby **Sewpah** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:15 pm

Spoiler: show

SVLC 2016

SVLC 2016

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