LBPCentral Archive

Home

LBP Showcase / Reviews / Recommendations

Level Showcase

Cool Levels

Free At Last

Archive: 84 posts

Free At Last

2 part video by JHKthree (who is awesome) *SPOILER ALERT* aka strategy guide

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEYbpjQx57Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUEDdoNcjBc

aka Breakout 2.0

This was a peculiar project. It started out as a way for me to show my friend, CENTURION24, some ideas on how I thought he could improve on his Breakout! level... I ended up getting really inspired to do my own version of the classic escape-from-jail LBP level. It's very much built on CENTURION's basic premise, and I'd recommend playing his original Breakout level if you haven't... but it'll be easy to see that I've taken creative license at every possible opportunity to do something altogether different.

There was ALOT I had to leave out, tons of ideas and sequences I couldn't fit in to the level (thought about making two...), but I can tell you I've still got the level literally jam packed with puzzles, aesthetic details and effects, mechanical gadgetry, involving story and dialogue, memorable NPC characters, and even a hint system for some of you (and you know who you are!)... the hint system, I'd like to add, is written entirely in character to the story itself. Also, some cool surprise guest stars

if I've done what I set out to do, then you'll find a rich and fully realized game world in this level.

Just a heads up in advance, though... don't start this level unless you're willing to invest quite a bit of time, and I highly recommend you play it by yourself, or at the most, with a patient, helpful and thoughtful friend. Enable your prizes, so you can collect the hint sticker, and be absolutely sure to pay attention to the dialogue or you will more than likely never escape. The puzzles can be difficult, but I hope you at least try them on your own before going for the hint stickers, for a more rewarding experience.

Thanks to CuzFeeshe, GruntosUK, and deboerdave for testing some of it... Vidi for an intro logo I didn't have the thermometer for D:, and thanks to CENTURION for giving me a ton of inspiration.

Anyway, have at it... let me know if anything's broken, or if it's overheating mid-play lol

2009-07-06 12:41:00

Author:
Unknown User

Cool its out. i will have to check it out tonight and see how you worked out the ending.

2009-07-06 16:20:00

Author:
deboerdave

Posts: 384

For sure, man. I think you'll like the rest... alotta humor in it, and some decent challenge towards the end aside from just puzzles. I only had about 60% of it done the last time I showed it to anyone. I still can't believe I fit all this stuff in, even though I had to cut myself short.

2009-07-06 16:24:00

Author:
Unknown User

Awesome, I love these type of levels.

*runs off to play...

2009-07-06 16:29:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

Definitely right up your alley, compher. Can't wait to see how the current puzzle diplomat/representative fares

2009-07-06 17:02:00

Author:
Unknown User

Ah, well, I didn't far well enough it seems. I got to the part where you are on the third level with the laser grids on each side. My prizes were turned off, so I couldn't use the hint. I will play through again with prizes turned on, so I can get a hint on where to go (my roommmate was sick of watching my play). I did notice the box up above, but couldn't figure it out.

It looks good so far, though. It's very reminiscent of Centurion's level, but with your own, more futuristic, style. The areas with the guards who expose a hole in the middle were a tad dark, but I was able to manage. (they were very well done, by the way). I do have to ask though, did you put a paintinator right after that part just in case the player dropped the gun? I was confused and thought I had to go back there, inside the glass emblem. But I got it, and was pleased to see an under-hung paintinator pull switch (have I started a revolution?

). It was a nice little touch using a 3-way switch, so it required several shots.

That's about as far as I got though. It appears you worked out the elevator problems you were having. Expect me to edit this when I finish it - this may not be until tomorrow.

I gave it 4 stars for the time being, but I forget which tag I used.

2009-07-06 17:33:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

I just played it, and you added quite a lot in since you showed me it over the weekend. The humour works really really well and gives it a lighter tone, I was literally on the floor at mega man when he gets his quest item, brilliant.

I knew the solutions to most of it, but still had a great time working through it, and got stumped at the new sections (never used the hint system though, I was determined). Once again, the lighting and design are top notch and the puzzles really really make you think.

I did'nt find any faults personally, people might get confused or stuck and quit, but then that's their problem as there missing a great level.

***** and hearted, with "puzzler" tag for some reason

2009-07-06 17:35:00

Author:
GruntosUK

Posts: 1754

Thanks, Gruntos... glad that part gave you a laugh. Alot of it was inside jokes, or niche video game triva comedy, so I didn't think anybody but me would get any of it lol... and yeah, I expect this too be way too much of a challenge to be a success, but I still love the results. I have 95 plays, 12 hearts, and only 4 people on the scoreboard. Weird math.

was pleased to see an under-hung paintinator pull switch (have I started a revolution?

). It was a nice little touch using a 3-way switch, so it required several shots.

Check out mine and Neverynnal's 2 player level "Seminal Gemini" published on 1/16/2009 - first instance of hitting ceiling mounted, underhung 3 way switches with a paintinator that I saw personally. I just had this idea that shooting it would be much more fun and gave it a try... to quote OCK -

"Voltiare was on the bottom shooting the switch handle (that`s right everyone SHOOTING A 2 WAY SWITCH HANDLE, NOT A PAINTINATOR SWITCH) and I was firing the turret on top, laughing out loud the whole time. This single gameply element will be really hard to top as far as I am concerned. This is Mt. Everest　and good luck to anyone wanting to conquer it's magnificence."

Also, Thegide's MGS level that I helped design the boss for makes use of this technique too, but not underhung like that. Technically, I pioneered the technique, you popularized it.

Anyway though... definitely hope you can check out the rest sometime, thanks for giving it a go. Sheesh, 4 stars... tough crowd.

2009-07-06 17:44:00

Author:
Unknown User

2009-07-06 18:21:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

The ending section got me a lot!! It requires a very keen eye, timing and skill to get to the top. Just when I got almost to the top, the dog decided to use my arm to practice its "technique", quite off putting when you're attempting a difficult section lol!

2009-07-06 18:26:00

Author:
GruntosUK

Posts: 1754

Ah, sorry. I had never seen it before. I was away from the LBP game from like January until about a month ago, so I probably would've never seen your level. I never would've thought to use a 3-way switch, though.

About the 4 stars... c'mon, you can't expect 5 stars when I wasn't able to finish it, lol. And for me, 4 stars = great level...
Hmmmm....

Rating a level 4 stars instead of 5 because the player couldn't figure it out....

.... because the sticker collecting is turned off...

My biggest pet peave of LBP - being able to rate a level without finishing it.

I'm looking forward to seeing the final product when I get home today. The look of this level is stunning, and the puzzles are some of the best I've ever seen (comphermc - re-rate it once you've gone through the whole thing).

2009-07-06 18:33:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

I've gotta agree with Ccubbage here. That is a little mean

Anyhoo, I haven't completed it either. What I have seen so far is fantastic. Lovely visuals, brilliant puzzles. And not just that, a brilliant mixture of puzzles. I really enjoyed the exploring and trying different things when you get stuck.

The reason I haven't finished... I'll put this in spoilers, I don't know if any of it is relevant, but it's a puzzle level so..

When I went up in the lift I couldn't work out what I was suposed to do. I had this idea of jumping on top and manually working the switch, so I tried that and then the sack planeshifted forwards randomly. So I was outside the lift and I have this tendency to drop the paintenator when I'm not using it.

So i got stuck at the top. It might help to put a paintenator there too

As I was writing that, I realised I can just suicide, considering where the last checkpoint is. I still don't think it hurst to add a paintgun up there. Apparently some of us can be amazingly stupid at times. Lucky I hadn't gone back to my pod.

I'll edit this when I finish the level

edit - OK, so I got to what I assume is right near the end and then i genuinely did break the level. On the chains that pull you up, I managed to break one of them while trying to hide from the turrets. When I grabbed the second one, it acted like elastic and then broke. I'm pretty sure there was nothing I could do after that.

So, loads of good points to this level, the sheer variety and ingenuity of the puzzles is worth 5* on its own. But coupled with the visuals and all the little touches makes this one of the best levels I have played.

My one piece of feedback is that I found it weird that the defence grids still made the alert sound when they were disabled. Just seemed like that would be disabled as well. But that's it, the best critisism I can manage

Easilly :star::star::star::star::star: anda heart

2009-07-06 18:46:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

I've gotta agree with Ccubbage here. That is a little mean

Actually, this is designed really well (it's just that this whole thing IS a puzzle level).

You can use the switch to go up the the top floor and jump down off the elevator before it reaches the top. You don't have to kill yourself. I have not found any flaw like this in the level

2009-07-06 18:51:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

Yeah, as I realised while I was typing, the flaw was my inability to put 2 and 2 together and I thought that I'd reached a "level-breaking" moment. As I said, it wouldn't hurt to add a paintenator there.

I don't think you understand where I was though.

I was on the top floor and the lift wasn't. I couldn't call it because I didn't have a paintenator. I could have run into the traps or just suicided as I did, but it just didn't occur to me

And I agree it's very well designed, on the bit afterwards now

2009-07-06 19:02:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

Sorry about that, rtm. I did have a paintinator up there at first, but when I got down to the last 99% of therm, and the level was only functioning because certain brains and objects dissolve early on (you know the deal... paintinator stops firing etc) I had to opt out of a few things that weren't absolutely necessary. The pop clause seemed acceptable even if not ideal.

I've been habitually rediting and hemming things up all morning, and if I manage to free up any space in the next few days (bloodhounding out stray geometry or something), I will definitely add it back in, in a tasteful way. Glad you thought it through before quitting - I really appreciate that.

...I've been messing with the chains, and I think I'm going to try to put them on replacing emitters, if I can squeeze it in. Also, I was being lazy with the sounds on the grids... I can probably just put them on dissolve wired to the same thing that disables them. As long as I can add a square or two lol

2009-07-06 19:17:00

Author:
Unknown User

Ah fair enough if you are that close to maxxing the therm, although I'm really not suprised, you did squeeze it for all it's worth!

Also, don't thank me, I was really gutted when I thought I had to quit

I just updated my original post with some more details, including how I did actually manage to break the level. Sorry

2009-07-06 19:20:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

Actually... the chains are rigged up with two chains... one on the bottom to pull it down for a quick reset, and one on top for a slow pull. This is a technique I ot from your AAAlone elevator help post, but I'm not too familiar with adjusting strengths and whatnot.... so maybe you have some ideas. Right now they're both set to 10. I think the elasticity got too weak when I lowered it at all, too weak to pull when I lowered the strength of the the top one, but then the lower one weaker would result in the polysterine ball sinking down into the ground way below where I want it to rest at.

I'm actually unsure if any of the settins are breaking them... if they're pulling into things and catching, or snapping back too fast into them... I think I even saw the polysterine get crushed by plasma fire once.

That was the last stretch of the level though, so you were almost at the end.

2009-07-06 19:33:00

Author:
Unknown User

I had a go just now and had to quit out early. The flashing light on the third floor was giving me a headache and after I had spent a few minutes looking about for a solution, I decided to try another time.

My thoughts on brief time I had with it:

It`s certainly an improvement over the original level in terms of looks and production values. I really liked the new enemies with the rotating search lights. You`ve no doubt taken things to the next level.

There were two things that I didn`t particularly get on with though.

1. The lights. While in some cases the lights were brilliantly used and created a fantastic look, other times they were overly distracting, confusing and painful!

I felt that I couldn`t sit back and study the puzzle available because of this. I also found that switches were at times hard to see because of the bright lights.

2. The puzzles. The ones I did (and I didn`t get very far before giving my eyes a rest tbh) were solved by trial and error. The vent in the first room I knew from the original, but had I not known the solution, I would've no doubt stumbled on it the same way as I did then, through luck. It was the same when you have to get the power back on. Dunno if my TV is at a different setting, but I couldn`t see the switch at all and only hit it because I fired at random into the room, assuming that that was the action to take since I was given a paint gun.

I can`t comment on anything that follows that as I had to leave it once I got to the top floor.

However, before I gave up I tried using a hint to see it that would get me passed that flashing and instead of the solution, I found the story. When I read at the start that you considered using the sticker as cheating I had assumed it would be instructions on what to do. What I thought it did though, was to put things in context. The one I saw was about re-routing gas. To me, that changed it from trial and error, into an actual puzzle. Eg I can`t imagine many people got onto that top floor and thought. "Hmm if I re-route that gas, I could escape through that pipe". More likely they just started looking for paintswitches etc.

Anyway I think you should maybe make some (certainly not all) of the magic mouths appear whether people look for help or not, since it would make it a more involved and less random affair IMO.

Of course I was only really at the start so this might not apply to anything that happens afterwards, but I know that when I play it again that I`ll be using the hints quite a lot. Not because they makes it easier, but because they add context.

2009-07-06 19:59:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

I thought that's what you were doing. OK, I assume they are both connected to the same grab switch, so that they shouldn't ever be fighting. If both the top and bottom ones are on strength 10 then they should be stronger, due to going faster. You might want to drop the strength of the top ones, I don't see how it could cause a problem as they only have to pull a sackboy up. Also try slowing down the bottom ones (2-3s should be quick enough still enough).

I actually broke the right hand one by flinging myself into the porthole for the turret. I really can't explain what was going on with the left hand one.

In response to what Matt has said, I have to agree about the light on the switch in question made it very hard to see - I wasn't 100% sure it was a switch even when I did see it. There is also a random hole next to the paintenator where you can jump in the tank thing. This was very distracting, I'm not sure if it was intentional misdirection or not. BTW, the misdirection in the caves was awesome

I can't really comment on the hints, as I was trying very hard to get through on my own, but I just felt like for the most part I was looking for something to do, which in a way is frustrating but was also what got me motivated and was a large part of the enjoyment.

2009-07-06 20:12:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

If I lower the strength on the top chain to anything less than 9.5 they won't pull sackboy up for some reason. The top chain is still at 60 seconds, but I've now slowed the speed of the bottom chain to 10 secinds and lowered the strength to 5 - they seem to snap back a little easier, and not so fast, but fast enough to meet back up with the player immediately after respawn. The lower strength isn't sagging like it was before either...

Also, I've changed the grab material to dissolve and stickered it... it' obviously still a breakable material, but seems to be much more resilient than the polysterine was.

I couldn't set up a proper remitting system (a little backlogged in the brain right now) and I don't trust this still, but they're alot more reliable and stable now than they were - I doubt they're failsafe though. I'll keep grinding away at it until I find a way.

Sorry, Matt. I don't know what to say... all I can say is that a hint by definition is a subtle push in the right direction, and not in any way shape or form spelling it out for someone. I did intentionally make the hints further layers of the story, as I dislike any use of magic mouths that feels disruptive to the dialogue when any story or dialogue is present in the level - the nice thing about this level is that, unlike the False Idols series, I don't have any high brow artistic vision to worry about tarnishing with superfluous and out-of-context dialogue or innuendo that doesn't coalesce with the motif.

I feel that a hint system in place being a drawback in any way is just... well, it seems like I can't win either way.

2009-07-06 20:23:00

Author:
Unknown User

I'm not sure there is anything to say.... from my personal opinion, the puzzles and figuring them out in this level are absolutely perfect. I never used a sticker (didn't want to spoil it) and solved everything by studying the environment. When I was analyzing it my main goal was to identify if things could be logically figured out. They could.

BUT... that being said, to solve the puzzles took me about a half an hour. Some of them are really difficult, but I think thats the point - this is "breaking" the LittleBigPlanet mold of simple obvious fun.

As a fan of the old school-style puzzle adventures (I go way back to TEXT adventures) I thought it was absolutely perfect. But many players simply will not stick around. To each his own.

2009-07-06 20:32:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

My point wasn`t that things were too hard or anything, more that players are missing out on stuff (as Ninja puts it, "Layers of the Story") by not using the hints. I just found myself a bit distanced from the action up until the point where I first used the hint.

2009-07-06 20:39:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

Ah, gotcha - so SOME of the hints may actually be better as standard text boxes. I can see this. So, a few less hints because the hints enrich the story without spoiling the puzzle.

The next time I go through it I'll make a list of possibilities, and Ninja can decide whether he wants to do it or not.

2009-07-06 20:46:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

I gotcha now, Matt, my bad. I actually agree with that, because I do like some of the dialogue in the hints, and it is part of the character (ie: "breaking rocks").

You don't think there's too many magic mouths already though?

I also don't want to remove the hint system... if I make alot of the hint dialogue part of the regular dialogue, then I'd have to come up with new dialogue for the hints, and have it be an even deeper layer...

I see the hints as like, additional 1st person narrative... and it kind of conflicts with the idea that the player is supposed to be his own narrator - and like notice the switch, or think about what he should do himself as the main protagonist in the story, while the hints are there to take over if the player is getting too far out of character and not following the plot.

I guess the other introspective dialogue already subverts that principle anyway, in the intro sequence, so I don't know where the line should be drawn. Things are always open to change though. I reworded everything tons of times already, and probably will again.

What I had originally set up was a time-delayed automatic hint system... each "trouble spot" had a magic mouth triggered by a slow moving piston, activated by a large radius, directional sensor switch in that area... I thought it would have been great for it to auto-assist, but the problem with that was, that I could never properly guage how long it was before any given player would get frustrated and give up, or move onto the next area. If they preempted the hint, and moved on, it would automatically reset from the directional switch and not activate... but having that kind of set up meant that any deaths or exits out of non-confined areas would reset the piston as well. I couldn't find a proper balance, and had no idea what a good amount of time would be, since I didn't want to auto-assist players who didn't want help, even if they were slow to catch on, but were still legitimately trying.

It seemed like a cool concept, but ultimately didn't work. Only way it might work, is if the key that triggers the hint was set to dissolve when the player exited the puzzle area after completion, but even that wouldn't work in this level since there's so much open and connected areas and alot of backtracking - hints would dissolve before being used, even if needed etc

When I told CENTURION about it, he said that he actually has something like that set up in GOT SKILLS? for each obstacle area. Seems like it's fine for a linear level, but not a connective "overworld" kind of layout.

EDIT: also, as rtm suggested, I was hoping I wouldn't have to and no one would notice, but I made the alert sounds disappear when the security grids are deactivated. I'm glad I did.

2009-07-06 21:20:00

Author:
Unknown User

1) I gotcha now, Matt, my bad. I actually agree with that, because I do like some of the dialogue in the hints, and it is part of the character (ie: "breaking rocks").

2) You don't think there's too many magic mouths already though?

3) I also don't want to remove the hint system... if I make alot of the hint dialogue part of the regular dialogue, then I'd have to come up with new dialogue for the hints, and have it be an even deeper layer...

4) I see the hints as like, additional 1st person narrative... and it kind of conflicts with the idea that the player is supposed to be his own narrator - and like notice the switch, or think about what he should do himself as the main protagonist in the story, while the hints are there to take over if the player is getting too far out of character and not following the plot.

I guess the other introspective dialogue already subverts that principle anyway, in the intro sequence, so I don't know where the line should be drawn. Things are always open to change though. I reworded everything tons of times already, and probably will again.

1) Yes exactly. My post wasn`t particularly well worded as I kept repeating myself and wasn`t sure if my point would come across at all.

2) Maybe further in, but I didn`t notice them at all tbh. Certainly not to the extent where I thought there were too many anyway.

3) Haha no rest for the wicked!

4) Yeah I think if you made them all part of the story it might get too much. After trying that hint about the gas and thinking how it embelished the story, I tried one down the bottom of the lift. It said something about finding a way to hit the switch above. I think that kind of thing suits being optional. Judging what ones enrich story and what ones take away from the player's sense of achievement would be the hardest part I think, as it can be a fine line at times.

2009-07-06 21:40:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

.

What I had originally set up was a time-delayed automatic hint system... each "trouble spot" had a magic mouth triggered by a slow moving piston, activated by a large radius, directional sensor switch in that area... I thought it would have been great for it to auto-assist, but the problem with that was, that I could never properly guage how long it was before any given player would get frustrated and give up, or move onto the next area. If they preempted the hint, and moved on, it would automatically reset from the directional switch and not activate... but having that kind of set up meant that any deaths or exits out of non-confined areas would reset the piston as well. I couldn't find a proper balance, and had no idea what a good amount of time would be, since I didn't want to auto-assist players who didn't want help, even if they were slow to catch on, but were still legitimately trying.

It seemed like a cool concept, but ultimately didn't work. Only way it might work, is if the key that triggers the hint was set to dissolve when the player exited the puzzle area after completion, but even that wouldn't work in this level since there's so much open and connected areas and alot of backtracking - hints would dissolve before being used, even if needed etc

It`s funny, I was going to suggest the same thing, but was thinking that people might not want it.

I used something similar in one of my levels, but there`s no problem to solve in mine, it just shows you the way to go incase you`ve missed it.

2009-07-06 21:44:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

I have to say thanks, Matt. I completely misunderstood your feedback. I took it wrong, and wrote it off as a bunch of negative complaints, but you actually took time to really dissect the merits of the storytelling and how it could be enhanced. That is not the usual feedback I would get, and is actually probably the most useful critique I've gotten in along time, aside from the usual "this broke" stuff that is always helpful in a different way.

There are 12 or 13 hint stickers I think... but I'm going to mess around with a few of them. I think #2 and 3... maybe #1... probably a couple of the later one's too. Removing a few of the yellow buttons might give me a smidge of therm to get some breathing room out of too.

I think I'm going to adjust the electricity conductors to only flash blue when the lights are off. It's really only needed in the first pass when the generator's still off. Just a couple nips and tucks oughtta do it.

2009-07-06 21:53:00

Author:
Unknown User

I'm playing, but a bit despondent.......only because I just started MY OWN break out of jail level (grrrr)

ha ha ha

2009-07-06 21:57:00

Author:
ZipCity

Posts: 208

2009-07-06 22:09:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

ha ha ha, i'm TOTALLY stuck

2009-07-06 22:22:00

Author:
ZipCity

Posts: 208

heh, no worries ZipCity... I'm not the first person to do a break out level. Escape From Alcatraz was probably one of the first 5 community levels I played on LBP. I remember thinking the combination lock that only worked if you landed on the right number the first time in one go, or hit the buttons only in the right order was so cool.

My friend Vidi was making a breakout too... don't know if he'll bother to finish it, but he actually had a very awesome puzzle design using a gear in the wall that I wish I had thought of. There's endless ways to break out of jail

Ok... update version 1 million. I changed the current conductors to only emit blue flashes when it's dark, so when the generator is back on, they only emit an electrical current. The two that turn on after the generator is activated, in the brightly lit areas, no longer flash blue light at all. No more seizures, hopefully. Also lit up and stickered the 3 way switch in a more eyecatching, but still obscured way, and changed the activation meter there from red, yellow, green to 3 shades of blue on a lower brightness. Finally, I changed, I think 3 of the hint bubbles to regular story elements, and edited some of the dialogue accordingly.

Thanks again for the help everyone.

2009-07-06 22:37:00

Author:
Unknown User

i'm going to try this again later. When I got to the part I NEEDED the skull, I had already somehow lost it, so I was stuck

2009-07-06 22:54:00

Author:
ZipCity

Posts: 208

Hmm, weird. Maybe it was still in the pipe somewhere when you walked through. It's set up with a key that triggers a new one to emit if the last one is accidentally broken while moving, and deactivate entirely after the skull delivery has happened.

2009-07-06 23:30:00

Author:
Unknown User

LOVED IT BRO!!! It starts off with the same feal as my level then quickly becomes all you. Had to restart and read my way to the finish. Loved the pipe controls. Loved the finish. And Loved looking at my hated as5 in jail. part 2 pleas :star::star::star::star::star:

2009-07-06 23:58:00

Author:
CENTURION24

Posts: 266

Hey, Just played again and completed it.

Important point: in one of your updates the mouth that tells you that to bring a skull has stopped working. That would probably make the level impossible! At least it ddin't activate for me just now.

I definately like the added mouths - matt had a very good point, they feel conversational and fit perfectly, you don't feel like you are being guided exactly, especially as they trigger just before the relevant point.

2009-07-07 00:24:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

^Fixed that, I think... that one's been giving me trouble for awhile... even before the magic mouth was disappearing too quick. I reset the emitter just to make sure, and shrunk the radius so that the magic mouth won't trigger until it's within a view range that doesn't quickly disappear. I don't even fully understand how that works, because sometimes I can get magic mouths to maintain a view from miles away on a permanent switch, and other times it won't work when it's more than 5 feet from the player.

Added two prize bubbles to a string with nothing in them

to try and get the score possibility back on track, changed 3 more hints into regular dialogue with some edits to the phrasing. There is now only 6 hint buttons. Shrunk the radius for the two-at-a-time skull emitter just in case one gets lost in the pipe and is hard to find...added an extra speech bubble to the skull delivery so that people know for sure that they now have the means to look for the energy tank, and finally added some on destruction confirmation sounds to the energy tank to replace the noise of the brain popping since I had to remove it to free up thermometer. Also fixed a potential problem I noticed with MM that hadn't been mentioned, where the player might bypass scaring him off after the gas is cleared, and then end up stuck behind the "slow" security grid that he runs through, and have to backtrack all the way around after popping to trigger the event. AND managed to free up just enough therm to put a tiny paintinator on the 3rd floor to avoid having to pop and still keep everything from overheating mid-play.

I think all these changes are just in the nick of time, as the level seems to be doing relatively ok and that's a nice change of pace for me.

...and yeah, thanks CENTURION, glad you like it and took what I was doing as an homage, a compliment, that I was inspired, and not like I was stepping in your yard. When I got past the rock climb section I knew I couldn't do Breakout better than it was, but I could do my own thing my own way... all of it still has most of your good ideas though - the whole first area, other prisoner cells, sentries, futuristic theme, dark matter lining on pipes, turret defenses, 3 floor elevator, vents etc still wish I could have done something with the second half of the level, for the vehicle and rocket, but oh well. Maybe I can muster up the drive to do another homage while it's still fresh... and maybe squeeze Ccubbage, GruntosUK, and jump_button in as inmates like I wanted to.

2009-07-07 01:27:00

Author:
Unknown User

You sir are the cleverest of the smarty pants I know! Really nice level. I had the #2 slot till your plasma spewing turrets toasted me a few times too... must replay under my regular account now. Proud to say I didn't have to use the stickers either. I feel so clever

Not bad for an eye candy junkie 'eh?

Loved the insider references for Jaeyden, Centurion, You and the lovely gentlememan who's name I can't recall but I believe was in for terrorism. (sorry) Wished you'd had more - I do so love insider jokes.

Elevator works like a charm. Incredibly wowed by that little beauty. Also think you nailed the lighting in this one. Loved the generators and the outside area on the cliff. Can't say enough good stuff about the consistancy of design either. Really nice.

I'd like to have something constructive to say but I can't find anything wrong with it. other than - I found four tiny visible key mags. 2 red ones, one on the left and one right side of the first level on the floor before and after the generator thingies. (very small) And the yellow and green ones are visible on the chain lifts at the end.

I have to agree with what CCubbage said though about casual players. I wouldn't change anything because it makes people looking for a challenge extremely happy but I'm doubtful the average LBP crowd are going to finish it and the rating will tank. Price you pay for greatness it seems sometimes in LBP.

For my opinion - Excellent level 5 stars & hearted from me. Thanks for making it!

2009-07-07 05:15:00

Author:
Morgana25

Posts: 5983

ah, here's the mysterious level i hearted last weekend and suddenly dissapeared. I was just gonna write you an email to ask you were the level was gone

2009-07-07 11:28:00

Author:
Mother-Misty

Posts: 574

I finally played throught the entire finished level this morning. Wow. This has GOT to be one of the best LittleBigPlanet levels I've ever played (and everyone knows I've played a LOT of them). The visual detail, the perfect puzzles, the ingenious mechanics, the story, the fantastic enemies, the humor.... everything falls together here.

I know OCK said False Idols III was the perfect level.... and it is - but this is, at least in my humble opinion, flat out amazing.

I hope more people put aside their current conceptions of what a LittleBigPlanet level should be, sit down with a nice cold beer and some chips, and give this level the time it needs. This level is good enough to be part of a commercial game.

2009-07-07 13:18:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

I actually thought about something based on my experience playing this last night.

I think the reason I thought I had broken something when I dragged the skull over to the inmate was because everywhere else in the level up to that point you GRAB objects to use them, you aren't just told you have them. So, when I dragged the skull over to the inmate and he said 'Here's something....' I thought an object was supposed to be emitted for me to use. When nothing appeared I thought it had broken. Just food for thought - if you use a 'grab' mechanic where you grab something and it disappears when collected, it may make more sense to use it consistently thoughout the level. No biggee - I probably would have figured it out eventually

2009-07-07 18:37:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

I think I had a similar problem to Ccubbage my first time through. I can't remember the exact phrasing but isn't it something like "take this power shot"? I'm not sure, but I thought I had to physicaly take something and I had to read the mouth a couple of times before it sunk in

2009-07-07 18:51:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

Brilliant job once again ninja! still have to finish it but so far it looks and play incredible! 5 stars, heart and ingenious tag man!

(played it last night in multiplayer and for some reason the paintguns didn't work anymore, but i guess that's just a bug you can't do anything about)

misty.

Yeah, I remember that... I saw your comment and was like "oh crap, I forgot to lock it" - sorry about that last night. It happened to me too, and it's cause the level was overheating mid-play - it was from the two bubbles and paintgun I added, so I had to go in remove a different paintgun to keep the other one, and have only one in the elevator in the middle. Just got back on today, and changed 1 of the mouths to dissolve if things are done in a different order. Seems to still be under a hair of full, but it only happened before with 3 people and someone joining, so I hope it doesn't happen again.

Good idea, Ccub. Alot of people seem to glaze over that mouth for that reason. I changed it to a cut scene, but I'm going to try and make something emit there. I have no idea how I can fit it though.

There's also a spot deboerdave found where he can get to off-limits areas of the level towards the end... but I have no therm left to solve the problem... can't even add gas to prevent it.

2009-07-07 20:24:00

Author:
Unknown User

Thanks, morgana... it took me awhile of wracking my brain to find the red keys, til I remember what they are. It's the only part of the sentrys that won't dissolve, a little sliding square that dictates the up and down movement, which in turn dictates the horizontal movement. The body's so slathered with keys that I can't seem to select it... and for some reason when I increase their size, to maybe tab that piece as dissolve - they auto-pop themselves even in pause mode. Good eye though.

Yeah, I remember that... I saw your comment and was like "oh crap, I forgot to lock it" - sorry about that last night. It happened to me too, and it's cause the level was overheating mid-play - it was from the two bubbles and paintgun I added, so I had to go in remove a different paintgun to keep the other one, and have only one in the elevator in the middle. Just got back on today, and changed 1 of the mouths to dissolve if things are done in a different order. Seems to still be under a hair of full, but it only happened before with 3 people and someone joining, so I hope it doesn't happen again.

Good idea, Ccub. Alot of people seem to glaze over that mouth for that reason. I changed it to a cut scene, but I'm going to try and make something emit there. I have no idea how I can fit it though.

There's also a spot deboerdave found where he can get to off-limits areas of the level towards the end... but I have no therm left to solve the problem... can't even add gas to prevent it.
Take out all the edges in the caverns area and change it all into right angles. That'll give you LOTS of thermo. Also, maybe a picture of a toilet instead of an actual toilet - I think the toilet handle alone is probably eating a bunch of thermo.

2009-07-07 20:46:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

I put an emitting syringe in it, and the 2nd mouth that tells you "now I should be able to..." etc doesn't trigger until you grab it. Therm still "looks" the same, and I flew around to activate all the enemy emitters and tested the paintgun like I have been - it still fires, so I'm hoping everything's fine. I wonder if somehow multiplayer is calculated into therm and 4 guns won't fire but 1 will... no way, that would be a ridiculous additional limitation to have put on us.

heh, yeah Cccub... maybe not the precious toilet, but I could probably knock a point or two in the caverns. I'm really picky about the natrual look and geometry of my jagged terrain in any level, so I can't make it too smooth, but some could probably go. Corner editor won't budge it though, I'll have to cut it manually.

btw, the toilet handle is always jiggling... take a zoomed up picture of the sink too, the handles are turning, and there's an acutual faucet in the basin. sigh, the curse of unseen details.

2009-07-07 20:50:00

Author:
Unknown User

2009-07-07 22:00:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

Hey NinjaMicWZ,

I finally played through the level again, and managed to fare much better this time. It's funny how close I was to the finish before. Now, it's time for a proper review:

I love the little details throughout - you are obviously pushing the thermo to the max on this one. I also appreciate the little changes that you've made regarding the dialogue and the emitted syringe. The added magic mouths give it that little extra bit that was missing from the other play-throughs (and some of them are genuinely funny).

++I loved the puzzles and dialogue throughout.
+As I told centurion in his version, the invisible dark matter/pipe combination was genius.
+The misdirection in the cave section was funny.
+Arbitrary Mega Man appearance, for the win.
+The security guards that open the hole to jump through were awesome.
+Tricky use of the emitted paintball to make the elevator go up and down.
+The hint system works very well. I know your thermo is limping, but it would be nice to be rewarded at the end with prize bubbles for each hint you didn't use.
+I thought your approach to the first room was more clever/generally better than centurion's.
+I love levels that make the player backtrack (*glances around for Grantos*).
+The view from the cliff at the dead-end was very well done.
+Grab switch final scene was awesome (albeit difficult)
+I like the pipe puzzle. It was tough to get them lined up at first, though.

-There's not really a solution for this, but it was sort of annoying having to wait for the elevator when on either the bottom or top floor.
-I'm sure there was a reason for it, but the way that the [rats, I believe you called them] pop down from the ceiling, and then disappear confused me.
-It was very tough to figure out the puzzle where you...
...have to shoot the paint switch while riding the elevator up.
-I was not a huge fan of the lava burst, or whatever it was, at the top of the cave section.

All in all, the pros outweigh the cons. There were a few other nitpicks:
I managed to break one of the grabby things at the very end by catching it on an enemy. The prizes on the electrical floor - you can't walk to get them, you have to jump (I know, I'm a stickler, ha ha). The final sequence with the plasma balls and the grabby things: the emitted plasma balls lasted for much longer than I anticipated. At one point, I got through them all, but one of the earlier guys to spot me had shot almost straight up... these plasma balls managed to catch up to me after I'd cleared the last of the baddies, which was frustrating because I thought I'd actually made it.

I gave it 5 stars, hearted, and tagged 'Complex' this time.

2009-07-07 22:03:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

Thanks, compher... the "lava" is just errant gas build up. When you pass through from your cell, at the bottom is a flaming leak in one of the pipes. Tried to find a way to make the gas in the complex have a natural and explainable source, and a way to explain why there would be a propulsion hazard at that gap to jump over.

I lowered the lifespan on the plasma fire a bit, so it's only enough to kill when in crosshairs in their rotation radius. No more following plasma balls at the last minute.

The "rats" - i just wanted them to have some kind of life to them, and behavioral pattern where they pop in and out of their holes and the trap door closes shut on them, but not so long that sneaking past them would be null when closed.

...and the elevator... I hate how slow it is too, even why I put in the "PLEASE WAIT" mouth on the first press... but I have a thread in the help section asking about how to solve a plain shifting problem, and annoyingly enough it can't be any faster than it is.

Glad you liked it... and yeah, I was browsing through my costumes trying to think of a good NPC, and MM was crying out to be misused in a humorous way.

Wow folks... I just had a brush with my worst nightmare. Page 6, steady plays... today's edit gives me a Failed to Load Level on both the published copy and the moon copy. Luckily I had an earlier back up from yesterday published and locked from before I made some changes. Most of what I had to do was just throw in a few emitter changes and dissolve blocks to catch back up, but now I'm not sure what I changed and forgot about. Gonna be a long day again to check it out.

2009-07-07 23:07:00

Author:
Unknown User

Man, that SUCKS! Hope everything works out alright.

About the elevator problems - I know you probably don't have room for logic changes, but what you could do is make it so that the elevator doesn't go up or down until the doors on each floor close. This however would make the 'getting on top of the elevator' puzzle harder because you would have to do it on the second floor instead of the third (unless this was already the intended solution.

Anyways, to make it work, you make the paintinator buttons close the elevator doors instead. Then put mag switches on the doors, so that when they are closed, it triggers the elevator's motion. Top doors closed = elevator down. Bottom doors closed = elevator up. You would have to make a logic gate so that only one door can be open at a time. This is sort of what I did for the very simple elevator that I used in the AS series.

It's a bit different than what you have now, but it DOES allow for a faster elevator. It would make shooting the thingy on floor 2 a bit harder as well.

2009-07-08 02:16:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

Hi there! I really liked this level, but I got stuck so I'm not going to give my feedback just yet, but ask for a clue (I couldn't find a sticker switch that helped).

So anyway, I just went down the Mario type pipe and met Megaman who wanted a power cell, but kept running away from me, I managed to catch up with him and pull him over though so he didn't get far, but then I stood him up again as I thought he might need to activate something, he also seemed to get stuck when trying to get past the lift doors so I gave him a push to help him which did the trick.

Anyway, I don't know what to do now. There are some power cells under the stairs by the spinning thing, but they are on the wrong planes to get them out and take them to megaman. Can you give me a clue?

Cheers!

2009-07-08 06:24:00

Author:
chillum007

Posts: 228

The Energy Packs in his room are just a stockpile, his personal stash lol There's a hint sticker trigger in the room, just before the laser grid, tells you what to do next -

Go back down stairs and talk to NinjaMicWZ in the solitary cells. He'll tell you to bring him a skull. There's an Energy Pack on the bottom floor somewhere that you might have seen earlier.

2009-07-08 07:07:00

Author:
Unknown User

I'm stuck at the section...

...with all the three way switches and pipes, I've pretty much got them all connected, but it doesn't seem to work. What do I have to do? They all seem connected perfectly, all but one of them is working, it's the very first one that you can move (which would be the last pipe you need to connect) I make it connect but the square doesn't respond. Am I doing it wrong or something?

Nevermind, I was using the wrong one. Fail on my part.

2009-07-08 08:52:00

Author:
Whalio Cappuccino

Posts: 5250

I played this AGAIN this morning, and noticed the elevator lights weren't working. I think some wiring didn't get connected up again. Level worked great, though.

2009-07-08 13:21:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

Can you believe that I have absolutely no idea how that happened... they radius on the two keys that turn one on and one off was expanded to where the key was always inside the radius wether or not it was up or down. That elevator is wedged between two floors and is a total pain for me to access... I can only get to any of it by cutting out tiles, trying not to blow the therm while I do it, making a change in one tiny spot, closing the hole, and moving on to another... I have not even looked at those keys since I first made the elevator, and that is seriously weird.

Fixed now, but still... weird.

2009-07-08 13:42:00

Author:
Unknown User

Just an interesting technique I use for this kind of thing (maybe for future projects): I put covering material in front of areas like this and use 2 invisible bolts instead of glue to attach. I actually create "removable panels" that I can pop off and on so I don't need to cut. I started doing this in Splat Invaders Saga when I realized cutting material could suddenly make switches, camera zones, emitters, and magic mouths disappear (without me realizing it).

2009-07-08 13:47:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

Yeah, I do the same thing - glue just gets all sticky if something goes wrong (da-da-cha)

2009-07-08 15:03:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

Yeah, I do the same thing - glue just gets all sticky if something goes wrong (da-da-cha)
Well, we have a COMEDIAN here, eh?

2009-07-08 15:12:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

eh?

What are we, Canadian?

And that was meant to be a serious post, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity I was presented with.

2009-07-08 15:59:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

Did it today, headache free and I loved it!

I did manage to break one of the chains things at the end though. I take it if I`d broken the other one I was screwed? Didn`t matter anyway as that one held firm while I died 100 times haha!

Quality level.

2009-07-08 16:03:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

Well I always suspected you were a genius and my suspicions have indeed just been confirmed. Free At Last is one of THE most outstanding levels I have seen on LBP.

I admit I had to rope Rhy in to help me figure it out but two minds are in fact better than one and in a record breaking total time of one hour six minutes and 35 seconds we were both standing proudly at the finish post with a real sense of achievement.

Without a shadow of a doubt your level is visually superb with a brilliant storyline and the way you orchestrated the puzzles was nothing short of phenomenal.

There were so many things that made my eyes boggle. I didn't try to get my head around the mechanics and technicalities of it all I was too busy being gobsmacked!!

I very cleverly managed to break one of the chains too just like Matt!! It didn't matter though, I just grabbed Rhfelwr's leg and he pulled me up with him.

In a word.......

Challenging and stimulating puzzles
Fantastic visuals
Awesome design
Outstanding inventiveness
Superb precision
Likeable prisoners!

Very well done indeed. I loved every single minute of it.

ENCORE.

Icey

2009-07-08 23:11:00

Author:
IceMaiden

Posts: 1057

I beat it the second time, really great level filled with some amazing puzzles. All of it is very difficult for the average LBP gadder. But I loved every second of it.

Unfortunately my first time playing it, I get to the end with the two winches and I get them both stuck/glitched in the wall, I have no idea how this happened but I was basically riding near the wall, and one of the turrets popped out, and my dude just spazzed out, and the winch ended up inside the turret hole? Or something... I dunno really.

Great level nonetheless, I gave it 5 stars and a heart.

2009-07-11 01:08:00

Author:
Whalio Cappuccino

Posts: 5250

Hey NinjaMicWZ. First, this will be a partial review, as I did not have enough time to spend figuring out what to do at the top of the elevator, even though your magic mouth mentioned gas in the pipe. However, I will play it again so I can solve that puzzle.

Pros:

*Awesome visuals
*Awesome contraptions and related mechanics
*Excellent puzzles (with the elevator being "too excellent"

)
*Engaging game play that challenged the mind
*Many opportunities to explore (I like that)
*Good replay value, for those who don't make it to the end on the first try

Cons:

*At the top of the elevator, when I was unable to solve that puzzle in a reasonable amount of time, I found no place to use your hint sticker. Is there a place, that I was just overlooking?

Well Done!

I really enjoyed playing this level.

Rated 4-Stars, and will go back so I can get on the scoreboard next time

.

Rick

2009-07-11 19:31:00

Author:
RickRock_777

Posts: 1567

Sorry, man. I've reworked the level a few times, getting the final nub of thermometer to go up and down from full repeatedly, and was finally able to replace some of the hint stickers where they were originally without having any mid-play overheats. There is one by the elevator on the 3rd floor now, and another one that comes after if stuck at the 3rd floor again upon return.

2009-07-11 20:31:00

Author:
Unknown User

Thanks for the info NinjaMicWZ. I promise I'll only use the hint as a last resort

. I plan on playing it again this weekend...wish me luck

!

Rick

2009-07-11 22:43:00

Author:
RickRock_777

Posts: 1567

Freaking insanity in the realm of massively cool. ...I hope that means something!!

Anywhooo.. Incredible!! I could have easily just wandered around and been happy as the backgrounds were amazing. The puzzles were mind numbing and took quite awhile before I figured them out as well as getting up the long horrible column of doom. :eek:
... but I have to say wow.. just mind dropping wow.. I loved it. Really amazing work! I have to try it again soon to see if I can't figure out some of your other goodies though.. I thought I did pretty well, but still only got some 40%.

The humor as well as the cameo's by some LPBC folks were great as well.. I hope they stay put though!!

:star::star::star::star::star: and a heart. Wish I could give more!!

2009-07-12 20:16:00

Author:
jwwphotos

Posts: 11383

This was insanely awesome! I mean i dont know what else to say.

I love the puzzle elements, the backtracking, the humor, the premise. It felt great to be free at last at the end! The MegaMan stuff was funny as hell.

Thanks for making this!

2009-07-12 20:31:00

Author:
antman

Posts: 84

Well, it took me about 30 minutes, but I got through it! The puzzle design on this is mind boggling. Did you write any of this out on paper before you built it? Man, I think my mind would explode planning this thing.

The rooms, characters, and enemies were all designed very well. You come up with some creative baddies and some hilarious allies. As I was heading up the elevator the first time, I said to myself, "That looks like a little Mega Man." then sure enough, it was! The jail cell had me laughing out loud as did the dialogue throughout the rest of the level. It was all very clever and a joy to read.

The visuals were well done and I personally loved what you did with the pipes. The one at the beginning was especially nice, the way it went under rock, then back out, it looked very cool. I also loved the part with the cliff. I kicked a few pebbles off the side and thought about jumping to my death...

The puzzles were great and I really only got stumped with getting on top of the elevator. I had to resort to the sticker for that, but for the most part, after a minute or two...or five I was able to figure it out.

Awesome level! Well done!

2009-07-13 05:00:00

Author:
mrsupercomputer

Posts: 1335

I finished yesterday, after a first attempt two days ago.
Considering Ninja's levels this is quite easy.
The only part that's seriosuly annoying is rotating the "roof part" in your cell...it's quite tricky.
Anyway, 5 stars as always.

2009-07-13 07:17:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer

Posts: 5112

Great level! The puzzles were a lot of fun to figure out and also pretty difficult (which is a good thing in my book). I think I had to use the hint sticker twice (once with the part where I had to get to the second floor since I couldn't figure out how to get there and another time because I didn't know how to get in the vent.) I felt so stupid for not knowing (lol.) Just a little suggestion, you should reward people for not using the hint sticker with extra score bubbles or something if you can.

2009-07-13 08:24:00

Author:
brnxblze

Posts: 1318

I wanted to at first, but I don't have the room for point boxes, plus I rationalized it that even if a person cheats their way through it, they can just play through again not using the hints and get the same reward... ultimately defeating the whole purpose of a reward.

2009-07-13 09:08:00

Author:
Unknown User

I was thinking you could give it out before the last obstacle but the reason you gave makes sense, doesn't really matter since they can just restart. Plus, I guess figuring out the puzzles on your own is its own reward. No sense in playing a puzzle level if you're not willing to stop and think.

2009-07-13 17:39:00

Author:
brnxblze

Posts: 1318

Yeah, that's where I would have put it. I actually had an area set aside for it to the left of the final lift-staircase, but I didn't mean physical room in the level, just thermometer space. I spent it all on looks and play area and didn't get to do half the stuff I had planned for the level and almost considered going directly into a sequel before releasing this one (had to say no to sacrificing another 100 or so hours on the project)... if I have to choose between points, prizes, intro screens, and anything superfluous vs gameplay and looks I always go with the latter. What I wouldn't give for an extra thermometer or two

I got on page 1 for 7 hours with this, and it was cool. Haven't been on there since Contra, and it was a fleeting sense of accomplishment. I didn't even break 10k plays, but when I wasn't getting H4H and 16 jumps spam, or "too hard", I did get some positive comments. Thanks to everyone who helped me improve this level in the first days it was up, and I also want to say one last time that CENTURION's original level "Breakout!" should definitely be played by anyone who enjoyed this one.

2009-07-14 14:02:00

Author:
Unknown User

Amazing level! Sadly I didn't finish it, because my sticker collection was turned off

But if I get the chance I'll give it another go.

Amazing puzzles, and great graphics! This game actually reminded me a lot of Myst, a fantastic puzzle game. So nice job there!

Even though I didn't finish it, I still gave it its certainly due 5 stars and a heart.

Oh, and the best part was when you called yourself a fool or something like that...

2009-07-14 20:48:00

Author:
hilightnotes

Posts: 1230

Oh man, I tried so hard, I managed to get to the skull (quite near the start) without any tips, tried for ages, and then even when trying to use tips, I couldn't get any further. I feel I am missing something obvious, just no idea though what.

I felt I had to do something with the skull but couldn't move it.

2009-07-17 21:35:00

Author:
LieutenantFatman

Posts: 465

lol, i played this level a few days ago and got stuck, but after playing it again... and again... and again, i managed to work the solutions to all the puzzles, without hints

then played it again for fun lol

But seriously, this is an epic level, challenging puzzles that make u want to find the solutions, rather then just boring the player to tears, great visuals, that make the level come alive, which in turns makes it ultimately an enjoyable experience.

Yes this is my first level review, i give 5 stars

Detemination will prevail

2009-07-17 21:59:00

Author:
springs86

Posts: 785

Thanks, spring. Your first level review? That is really cool. I'm glad you liked it

... if you are looking for some more levels that I think are like mine, and even better in some cases, check the one post I have in my blog. There's a good 30, top quality levels in there to keep you busy for a long time and most of them are by members of this site.

...also, thanks for not rating it low highlight. It's really only the first 50 or so ratings that solidify how many stars it has, but it's the thought that counts and I've actually had old levels slowly crawl up from 3 stars to 4 stars well after they're off of cool pages.

...and Leiutenant -just grab the cracked rocks right above where you come out of the pipe, just before the skull. You won't need to skull until much later on.

2009-07-17 23:01:00

Author:
Unknown User

I played this a few days ago but i forgot to post about it (doh!). Right off the bat, I was given a visual treat, the jail cell (and everything in it) looked great, and I really liked that dripping effect you made for the sink (so cool). I literally spent 5 minutes in that cell trying to figure out what to do, and because community prizes was off, it took lots of random jumping to finally trigger the next event. I really liked how you gave the pipes actual structure, and we didn't pass right through them. And the way the cave used the multiple layers was very nice. After I got back in the cell, I escaped and the real fun began (silly prisoners).The enemies I encountered were very detailed and had a unique type of attack (loved it), and the way we used the paintinator to reach levers was very cool. Then there was the elevator, bravo. I love when someone makes a multi-functional elevator.

Running out of room (PS3 typing). Overall, I gave this level:star::star::star::star::star: and a heart. Really great level.

2009-07-18 00:05:00

Author:
RickTheRipper

Posts: 345

Just to let you know you can get through the laser door at the beginning if you go on the bed at the far right you can jump through the top lol

2009-07-18 12:23:00

Author:
theamilien

Posts: 485

Wow, thanks for letting me know. RicktheRipper found a way through the one's on the 3rd floor yesterday too. I fixed them all now... just had to expand the radius a little.

Good thing I don't design real prisons.

2009-07-18 12:34:00

Author:
Unknown User

The level was good but I got too frustrated at the part where you have to jump out. I couldn't figure out what to do! I plan on finishing it though just wanted to leave feedback.

2009-07-20 14:00:00

Author:
Unknown User

Okay, so I went and played your level again the other day and managed to completely break it within the first couple minutes. haha

- It definitely seemed to be a one time thing though because I tried to re-create it after restarting the level but was unable to do so. Here's what happened anyway ... after breaking out of the first room I ran over to the skeleton and grabbed the skull and tried pulling it to the right while tapping x. I know that it is held there by something when you get there the first time, but it seemed to be stuck on something else and my sackboy ended up dropping into the floor which made just about the entire level break/disappear. I fell down to the actual ground of the level and all that was left were the beds and toilet from the first room when I ran over that way.

- Anyway, as many people have said this level is really great. The visuals are definitely one of the high points for me and you start it off extremely well with a great looking cell full of details. There really isn't much of anything that I can say negatively about the level. At least not anything that is your own fault.

- To explain that last statement: I think that the puzzles in your level are really clever and well thought out. However, the game itself really puts you at a disadvantage ... or maybe more correctly ... the mindset that people have when they play the game causes problems. I found myself getting frustrated when I was unable to solve a puzzle or figure out what to do within a couple minutes. However, I love puzzle games and found myself taking hours if not days to figure things out in some of them (ie. Myst). When playing those games those puzzles didn't frustrate me in the same way that your LBP level did. And this is not your fault at all ... it's the expectations I had come to associate with LBP levels. I don't expect to have to think that much, or even in the same ways as your level wanted me to.

- However, in the long run, my own frustration with the level ends up being a compliment. The fact that this level, along with some others that I have played, make me think about the game differently means that you are doing something new and different and pushing the limits that early creators/levels put on the game. I hope, that with time, these expectations that led to my frustration will no longer exist due to more and more levels which challenge the type of gameplay possible in LBP.

- Anyway, long ranting and kinda putting too much thought into things ... but whatever.

Great level, 5 stars.

2009-07-21 07:54:00

Author:
Coreymill

Posts: 85

Hey wats up.
I just finished playing you level and I can say that I'm very impressed but yet a bit frustrated.. I really liked the great amount of detail that you put into this level. From the toilet and light bulbs to the rocky checkpoint. Also your cave work was excellent, you used the layers to perfection. Great job..
Now my frustration.. I couldn't go past the 3rd floor. I don't know what to do, even with the "loser" clues. So I'm stopping there, but overall it was a great design.
Keep up the good work
:star::star::star::star:

2009-07-27 03:56:00

Author:
javi haguse

Posts: 744

Ah you missed out on alot of good stuff. If the first half of the level is 4 stars, and the second half ends up being 4 stars too... that would make it an 8 star level. I can live with that lol

The "loser" comment in the intro area was just meant to encourage people to try as hard as they can to stick with it, and at the least find some satisfaction in figuring things out on their own... but I think it might have backfired by sounding mean.

2009-07-27 12:22:00

Author:
Unknown User

Don't worry, I didn't take it as an insult!!

I guess I just didn't see what you mentioned on the 2nd floor.. But now that you gave me "the guide" to your level, I'll be able to finish it and finally give you the 8 stars you deserve! Again, great job!
Add me as a friend if you want, I could use your help doing puzzles for my upcoming level "the descent 2"

See ya

2009-07-28 06:58:00

Author:
javi haguse

Posts: 744

Nice video you've added Ninja. Its made me want to replay the level again.

People who hav'nt played it yet might also have a play now its back at the top of the showcase for a bit

2009-10-08 21:27:00

Author:
GruntosUK

Posts: 1754

LBPCentral Archive Statistics

Posts: 1077139 Threads: 69970 Members: 9661 Archive-Date: 2019-01-19

Datenschutz

Aus dem Archiv wurden alle persönlichen Daten wie Name, Anschrift, Email etc. - aber auch sämtliche Inhalte wie z.B. persönliche Nachrichten - entfernt.
Die Nutzung dieser Webseite erfolgt ohne Speicherung personenbezogener Daten. Es werden keinerlei Cookies, Logs, 3rd-Party-Plugins etc. verwendet.