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OH NO!!! THE PRINCESS!!! World 3: Ocean Side

Archive: 44 posts

OH NO!!! THE PRINCESS!!! World 3: Ocean SideCaptainCowboyHat
http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj119/tumorzombie/APhoto_12.jpgThe third in my eventual eight part series. In this level, you sit down with the Dinosaur King and carry out an elaborate negotiation for the freedom of the Princess. Be aware of social graces and the nuances of diplomacy on your path to victory!

Just kidding; you swim around and jump a lot.
all
My beta tester (and roommate) insists that this is more like a shoot 'em up than a platformer, and I guess he's right. Nonetheless, I'm fond of the level.

This is not an F4F thread because I just moved and I should really be unpacking more than gaming. However, I probably won't be, so if you'd like me to play your level, I probably will. 		2009-08-03 20:10:00

Author:
CaptainCowboyHat
Posts: 153

Hey! I saw rtm playing it and was excited to find out that it was released. You are really knocking these things out!

Well, first of all, this was my favorite from your series, mainly because it had the most personality. I'll give you a rundown here...

Pros:

+The little baddies looked great throughout.
+The various traps were brilliantly done, and many of them were pretty original!
+The final boss was a challenge, but is very doable. It was pretty darn fun, as well. I'd say it's better than part 1 and 2's bosses combined.
+Lots of 'Oh Sh**!' moments, where I gladly welcome that next checkpoint.
+The water atmosphere was very nicely done.
+As usual, great dialogue from the king.

Cons:

-Parts 4-8 aren't out yet

Seriously, though, fantastic level. Your best yet.

5 stars and hearted, tagged brilliant.		2009-08-03 22:17:00

Author:
comphermc
Posts: 5338

Why? Why must you publish these while I'm at work? I'll check it out tonight. Can't wait!2009-08-03 22:20:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Awesome, 5 stars and hearted, of course .

Something didn't seem... "Marioy" to me, but still awesome level!		2009-08-03 22:26:00

Author:
RockSauron
Posts: 10882

Why? Why must you publish these while I'm at work? I'll check it out tonight. Can't wait!

my words exactly....only 5 hours left plus an hour drive home (double )		2009-08-03 22:27:00

Author:
Deftmute
Posts: 730

Yeah I played it. Another great level. I'm not sure if I gave you any feedback on the others, but what I love about this series is that it feels like a series, in the sense that the art style and overall feel to them is very much the same, yet they don't play the same. This is very important because each one stands out on its own and it doesn't feel like the creator has just created a series as an easy way to rehash the same style and gameplay over and over.

Overall I enjoyed it, the king still amkes me chuckle everytime he opens his mouth, the creatures are great, especially the plasma frogs very much fitting with the retro feel of your style. I also liked the forced scrolling hazards towards the beginning, though I think you may want to add a quick reset to them. Waiting for them to reset is tedious and dropping down prematurely is perilous.

There were two sections that I felt weren't really fair, due to visibility. The first is the section where there are two spinning squares, with a switch on the right and an electric piston in the middle. There is no way you can know what is expected of you before attempting this section - you can barely see the electric piston even if you shuffle to the edge of the ledge, and doing the jump and the switch and getting back once you realise what it has opened is not something many people will manage on the fly.

Second was the boss. If I stay in the safe area at the bottom I cannot observe him, then when I make an attack and have minimal time to get back to my safe zone, I have to rush and the camera angle and "remove jetpack" sign obscures my view so I don't know where the spikes are. I later found there were safe zones at the sides, but I really think that the visibility is an issue with this and your other bosses. I can accept difficult, but poor visibility bugs me.

Other than those two areas the level was great. I gave it 5* and a heart.		2009-08-03 22:37:00

Author:
rtm223
Posts: 6497

Second was the boss. If I stay in the safe area at the bottom I cannot observe him, then when I make an attack and have minimal time to get back to my safe zone, I have to rush and the camera angle and "remove jetpack" sign obscures my view so I don't know where the spikes are. I later found there were safe zones at the sides, but I really think that the visibility is an issue with this and your other bosses. I can accept difficult, but poor visibility bugs me.


It took me forever to find a way to rig the camera to make the boss even remotely playable. I agree that this needs to be fixed and I'll work on it; the boss is hard enough without "Remove Jetpack" getting you killed repeatedly.		2009-08-03 22:41:00

Author:
CaptainCowboyHat
Posts: 153

i hope there is gonna be a level full of bob-omb and bullet bill inspired enemies like the world 8 levels from SMB 3.

hint hint.... nudge nudge..... shove shove		2009-08-04 03:43:00

Author:
Deftmute
Posts: 730

This is one of my most awaited sequel, and it's out sooner than expect.
I see that yesterday were released a lot of good levels that deserve to play		2009-08-04 07:57:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer
Posts: 5112

This is not fair, CaptainCowboyhat. Why do you have to release these while I'm away from the ps3? Completely unfair!

Needless to say, I'm completely willing to play this; along with Morgana's series, this series of yours are my favorite ones.
I can't wait to hear more of the king's dialogue!		2009-08-04 08:59:00

Author:
Keldur
Posts: 628

Played this earlier today, loved it as usual. The humor alone is something that makes this series unforgettable, but you also have some nice platforming and a viscious boss to drag me in as well Keep up the great work, or at least give the king his own stand up level 2009-08-04 11:02:00

Author:
Burnvictim42
Posts: 3322

Great level, and as always, I loved the king.
I'm surprised at your speed in releasing such good levels.
They're always a funny and tricky ride.
5 stars		2009-08-04 19:47:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer
Posts: 5112

Played it:

Pros:
:star: the looks are lovely. The beach looks awesome, the factory not so much but still good. But it's the awesome lightening that makes it such a treat for the eyes .
:star: the humor. The king is really awesome. You gave him a big character upgrade!
:star: The underwater parts are the best part. Most fun because they have the right challenge
:star: I liked all the hidden treasures
:star: some challenges are unique!

Cons:
THIS IS A MAYOR CON.!!!!!
- the boss isn't challenging it's just cheap. After such a awesome level I was seriously disappointed by the boss. That's a huge letdown...

Still.... :star::star::star::star::star:, heart & hard		2009-08-04 21:27:00

Author:
blizzard_cool
Posts: 752

Cowboy, you've a real knack for snappy, challenging platforming. I loved this as i did the previous two. There's some terrific gameplay (and some brilliantly done dialogue) in all of them.

I had two issues with this one - the boss verges on the frustrating, in part due to the camera angle being a bit too tight on the entrance and in part simply because its flippin difficult. I wouldn't change the difficulty, thats part of what makes these levels so great, but the camera issue might ease just a little of the frustration.

I also couldn't jump out of the boss area, the jetpack seemed to dis-engage too early and i wasn't able to jump out. This is more likely due me being a muppet, was i missing something there?

Anyway, the platforming in this one is easily as fun and devious as whats come before - Awesome!		2009-08-04 23:15:00

Author:
julesyjules
Posts: 1156

Played though it last night and had fun playing. You always have at least one type of challenge I haven't faced before and this one has plenty of cool stuff.
+ Repetition of shapes in the series is a nice unifying element
+ Nicely challenging from the beginning and ramps up really well.
+ The King Rules - 'nuff said
+ I like that you have "themes" but aren't afraid to change them up a little bit (lava in a water level as part of the plot)
+ challenges that reward patience (gas and jetpack area)
+ boss kicked my...... well, you know.

Didn't have any technical problems with it but I have to echo the camera problem on the final boss. I liked your previous ones and with those you got a good look at the overall pattern so you could make an educated attempt at taking him out. This one you go from where is it - to right in the thick of it in mere nano-seconds. I'm sure you'll figure out a way to make this section more player friendly so I'll check back in a few days

I gave it 5 stars and hearted it! Still loving the classic platformer feel you consistently produce. Keep 'em coming!		2009-08-04 23:49:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Okay, I played through again for funzies and had one additional bit of feedback to give. I enjoyed the little hidden bubble prize zones, but it seemed like you gave up on the idea pretty quickly. There were two right after the horizontal platform traps on your way down to the water, but I didn't see any more after that. Did I miss them or were there just the two. It seems like adding a few more of these point nests would be a great addition to the level. Maybe add one above one of the bouncy frogs (that you can only reach by bouncing on the frog), or something like that, etc.

I don't want to sound like a broken record with the camera on the final boss thingy, but it would be irresponsible of me to not mention it. The only problem was the entrance - you can't see the spikes on the bottom when you are in the room...		2009-08-04 23:59:00

Author:
comphermc
Posts: 5338

There are two other secrets other than the two you mentioned, comphermc, although one of them is badly disguised and may not have registered as a secret.

I'll fiddle with the boss tomorrow or, if I'm lucky and have enough time (errands errands errands!), I'll do it tonight.

Thanks everyone!		2009-08-05 00:15:00

Author:
CaptainCowboyHat
Posts: 153

The platforming was fun as ever, The King was funny as ever, but I'm afraid I'm with blizzard_cool on this one: the boss was a huge letdown.

Nevertheless I gave it :star::star::star::star::star: and I can't wait for World 4. Seriously, I'm pretty hooked on Killzone 2 at the moment, but when I saw this in the showcase I was genuinely excited to play. If that's not a sign of a brilliant creator, I dunno what is.		2009-08-05 03:43:00

Author:
EVOin3D
Posts: 91

Yes, the boss is the real problem and since it has an infinite checkpoint, after you see how much it's cheap you don't care to die and you just kamikaze yourself.
One life for one brain, simple and smooth.

However, when will the next level be ready?		2009-08-05 07:19:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer
Posts: 5112

Yes, the boss is the real problem and since it has an infinite checkpoint, after you see how much it's cheap you don't care to die and you just kamikaze yourself.
One life for one brain, simple and smooth.

That's exactly what it felt like, a kamikaze.

Not level breaking by any means, but when there's 12 brains, I wouldn't call the one life for one brain approach simple and smooth.		2009-08-05 07:31:00

Author:
EVOin3D
Posts: 91

You managed it with only losing 1 life per brain? Wow.2009-08-05 10:00:00

Author:
rtm223
Posts: 6497

Actually with some lifes I kill 2 brains 2009-08-05 10:08:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer
Posts: 5112

haha cooool it was much darker than what i was expecting the last two levels were so sunny and happy lol so was expecting a nice beach and tropical waters and instead i was in a lava factory lol still cool tho cant wait for part 4.

isit me or does the king always sound a bit suspicious...is there gonna be a twist in the storyline?! lol		2009-08-05 10:44:00

Author:
Bombw87
Posts: 126

I republished the level with a few tweaks to the boss. It should be more forgiving now while still providing moments of panic. Let me know if the camera is still oppressive; it's kind of hard to tell.

Also, I changed the sign that points to Big Island, because the old sign implied that there will be elephants, and that sign was a dirty lie.

(Although the current sign is inaccurate as well...does anyone know of any good bumblebee stickers?)		2009-08-06 00:56:00

Author:
CaptainCowboyHat
Posts: 153

You could always go take a picture of BasketSnake's Honeyland level (I'd ask him if it's ok first) His bees are awesome! Or make one you plan to use in the future level and just take a picture of that 2009-08-06 04:11:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Finally played this tonight. I love it...I love this whole series and it just keeps getting better and better everytime. It's like you can do no wrong. Keep it up.2009-08-07 08:28:00

Author:
Unknown User

Ok.... I love classic platforming, and I decided to give all 3 a go at the same time.... man, I am SO glad you designed this series. I'm a huge fan of the Mario games, and have played a number of mario-style levels in LittleBigPlanet... and for whatever reason, many of the other levels were pretty, but they COMPLETELY missed the point - they were far too easy, probably to try to curtail to the LBP audience.

But this series.... this is true to the subject matter - it's got real gameplay. I died many times, which is the way it SHOUD be.

Anyway, just wanted to pass that on - really enjoyed all of them so far.		2009-08-09 04:22:00

Author:
CCubbage
Posts: 4430

Ok.... I love classic platforming, and I decided to give all 3 a go at the same time.... man, I am SO glad you designed this series. I'm a huge fan of the Mario games, and have played a number of mario-style levels in LittleBigPlanet... and for whatever reason, many of the other levels were pretty, but they COMPLETELY missed the point - they were far too easy, probably to try to curtail to the LBP audience.

But this series.... this is true to the subject matter - it's got real gameplay. I died many times, which is the way it SHOUD be.

Anyway, just wanted to pass that on - really enjoyed all of them so far.

I really don't like Mario , but I always loved platforms...and I absolutely love this series.
Since the great, huge point here, is that Mr.Cowboy here has managed to take a certain taste of visual from the latest Mario, he chewed them to bits and made them his own.

This is really the difference, since LBP is just LBP and some mechanics ripped from other platforms won't ever work in it, if you just "shift" them from the game, and this is the reason why I'm always reluctant to play tribute levels.
In my 3 week daily online experience with LBP, only him and Korndawwg managed to make an already existing game their own.

And so, double dose of Kudos for Mr.Cowboy, that until now has gone very far.		2009-08-09 06:33:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer
Posts: 5112

The squid enemies looked sorta meh(sorry, I'm a bit nitpicky when it comes to graphics) and not as good as the green things earlier in the series. This was really fun though the boss was really hard.2009-08-09 21:14:00

Author:
Unknown User

I enjoyed the first two more than I enjoy most levels, so I'll definitely be giving this one a go tonight. I'll update this post with my feedback/thoughts/petty criticisms. 2009-08-09 21:18:00

Author:
BSprague
Posts: 2325

Just got to playing it and all I can say is I got my *** handed to me on a silver plate by that wheel.

But seriously great job. Repetitive at time but thats not a problem for me. Great challenge, great story, great fun.		2009-08-09 21:58:00

Author:
bonner123
Posts: 1487

Finally played this. It was great fun playing it with a couple other people! We died every other second, but it's always fun dying with multiple people

Pure ingenious fun, I must say. I think we should have to save the big fish-thing in the next one instead of the princess 		2009-08-13 07:27:00

Author:
hilightnotes
Posts: 1230

Just finished playing the series and they're probably some of the best levels I've ever played! The series gets better as it goes on and so does the difficulty, the 3rd level is RIDICULOUSLY awesome. I love the comedy, this level reminded me of julesyjules's Star Wars levels except for Mario. I also love that you didn't just copy a Mario level and put it in LBP like everyone else does. 5 stars and a heart for me. Really can't wait for the next one!2009-08-20 20:52:00

Author:
brnxblze
Posts: 1318

I've posted in your comment section and started a thread over in the 'everything else section' just because of how much fun I had with these levels.

As I said over there, I try to do so much clever stuff with my levels that I've forgot how much fun it can be to just jump around. You really have captured that old school feel perfectly.

I don't think there's any doubt that everybody dies in your levels a ridiculous amount of times, but it's always your own fault and because you haven't worked out the timings or just didn't get something right.

It's completely fair and consistent throughout. The only part that may not be is the last boss, and I think that is more down to it being tricky to work out the way you have to do it. I didn't manage to do it the 'proper way' myself, but I'm guessing you can hit one creature brain on the outside, then go into the little holes and go all the around with it, then come out and start again? (if that makes sense)

5 stars all around and author heart. Thank you!		2009-08-20 20:57:00

Author:
jackofcourse
Posts: 1494

i love this platform if gives my a feeling like the mario game
Hearted it 		2009-08-21 00:59:00

Author:
Unknown User

I had my top score torn away from me! Mine was like 22,000 and deboerdave managed to get 33,000! I was like WHAAAA...

Then I found the secret areas...order has been restored 		2009-10-02 15:40:00

Author:
jackofcourse
Posts: 1494

I had my top score torn away from me! Mine was like 22,000 and deboerdave managed to get 33,000! I was like WHAAAA...

Then I found the secret areas...order has been restored

lol ... whats the new score? .. i will have to check tonight. i thought you would beat it soon i had some really stupid deaths		2009-10-02 18:32:00

Author:
deboerdave
Posts: 384

Too bad for you guys... I'm going to get top score!!! 2009-10-02 20:24:00

Author:
iGotFancyPants
Posts: 1355

The new top score is only a little higher. Maybe 500? But I too had some silly deaths Definitely room for improvement!2009-10-03 02:44:00

Author:
jackofcourse
Posts: 1494

i just bumped it over 41000, you dont know how close to perfection i was. i died on one of the enemies with spikes on it i was really ****** seeing that i had never been killed by one of those yet2009-10-03 05:32:00

Author:
deboerdave
Posts: 384

i just bumped it over 41000, you dont know how close to perfection i was. i died on one of the enemies with spikes on it i was really ****** seeing that i had never been killed by one of those yet

Holy ?$%^%! I have to go to work but it looks like my night is planned out...		2009-10-03 11:13:00

Author:
jackofcourse
Posts: 1494

Well I think there must be a secret area I don't know about because I aced it and got every combo imaginable and still only got 39,350!!2009-10-03 23:42:00

Author:
jackofcourse
Posts: 1494

Well I think there must be a secret area I don't know about because I aced it and got every combo imaginable and still only got 39,350!!

Ha Noob! (I just called jackofcourse a noob, and I feel great )

Anyway, better keep trying! Muahahah!		2009-10-03 23:51:00

Author:
iGotFancyPants
Posts: 1355

I must say, it's delightful watching you fellows compete like this.2009-10-05 14:36:00

Author:
CaptainCowboyHat
Posts: 153


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